Sinotruk partners Overland Trucking of Hyderabad for India foray

Business & Economy, World Opinion
Zhang Houqin, president, marketing and sales for South Asia, Middle East and North Africa Sinotruk unveil 'HOWO' a chinese mime tipper truck in Hyderabad on Wednesday. Photo: Mohammed Yousuf / The Hindu
Zhang Houqin, president, marketing and sales for South Asia, Middle East and North Africa Sinotruk unveil ‘HOWO’ a chinese mime tipper truck in Hyderabad on Wednesday. Photo: Mohammed Yousuf / The Hindu

Hyderabad-based firm may set up Chinese truck assembly plant by 2016. It will require 20 acres for setting up the plant/assembly line.

Chinese truck maker Sinotruk has joined hands with Hyderabad firm Overland Trucking Pvt. Ltd. for its India foray, a journey that also envisages setting up of an assembly plant next year.

Though the details, including the different trucks to be assembled are yet to be worked out, Overland Trucking is weighing options primarily between Telangana and Maharashtra for the plant. It is also looking at Tamil Nadu for the facility that is expected to entail an investment of Rs.100 crore to Rs.150 crore.

The final decision will depend on what the governments offer by way of incentives, Overland’s Rajashekar Ailneni said, even while appreciating iPass, a legislation enacted by Telangana to ensure speedy, time-bound clearances for industrial projects.

Mr. Ailneni, who was speaking to presspersons at the launch of Sinotruk’s two trucks for the mining sector on Wednesday, said formal discussions with Telangana Government officials were yet to be initiated, but the plan is to establish the assembly plant by 2016. Twenty acres would be required for the plant.

On the foray, Sinotruk president (Asia-Europe Division) Zhang Houqin said: “Without [presence] in the India market, you cannot be a global player.” Pointing to the huge potential, he said that with more GDP growth and new roads and highways taking shape the demand for the vehicles will only go up. Sinotruk, established in 1960, is a $15 billion firm with a capacity to make 3 lakh trucks, including 40,000 heavy duty trucks.

Mr. Ailneni said that the focus initially was on introducing Sinotruk products to the mining sector in India and followed by cargo trucks. Overland is eyeing sale of 400 units next year.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by N. Ravi Kumar / Hyderabad – October 14th, 2015

It is a Celebration of Being Alive

Arts, Culture & Entertainment
Nizamabad MP Kavitha preparing Bathukamma at Narsampet in Warangal district on Monday | Express Photo
Nizamabad MP Kavitha preparing Bathukamma at Narsampet in Warangal district on Monday | Express Photo

Hyderabad :

Setting the tone for Dasara festivities, women, dressed in their best, danced to the songs of Bathukamma, from villages to cities across the State on Monday. The floral festival spread the fragrance of a variety of flowers – from tangedu to marigold – bringing in much-needed optimism among every section of the society, including the farming community to some extent. The State government declared a holiday to enable people to participate in the ‘celebration of life’ and released funds for beautification of important installations in the State.

Telangana Jagruthi, headed by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s daughter and Nizamabad MP K Kavitha, spearheaded the festivities. Kicking off the celebrations at Narsampet in Warangal district, Kavitha said it will take some time for the realisation of ‘Bangaru Telangana’ (Golden Telangana) and sought to dispel the pall of gloom that has enveloped the farming community. Notwithstanding her words, the festive air was conspicuous by its absence at villages, where there have been suicides of farmers in the last few months.

In the State capital, family members of ministers participated in the festivities at the ministers’ quarters. All the government departments too joined in on the directions of the government. However, the opposition parties took Telangana Jagruthi to task for monopolising the festival.

“Kavitha is giving the impression that it is she and the TRS, who have brought Bathukamma festival to the state. Bathukamma is an integral part of Telangana,’’ TTDP women’s wing president B Shobha Rani said and questioned the rationale behind the government’s spending spree on Bathukamma at a time when farmers were committing suicide. Congress MLC Akula Lalitha alleged that Kavitha was trying to derive political mileage.

Former Nizamabad MP Madhu Yashki Goud said the `10-crore allotted to the fest should have been spent for farmers’ welfare.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express News Service / October 13th, 2015

Solar power lights up Banjerpally village

Science & Technology
Solar panels erected on houses in Banjerpally village in Medak district.-PHOTO: Mohd Arif
Solar panels erected on houses in Banjerpally village in Medak district.-PHOTO: Mohd Arif

In Banjerpally village, located in Siddipet mandal, around 150 km from the district headquarters and close to Kaimnagar, R. Shankar is a happy resident and like him other villagers also.

Reason being, for the past three months, they have been paying between Rs. 100 and Rs. 120 towards the power bills in spite of using all electrical gadgets such as TV, fridge, lights and fans. Some of them also use single phase motors to pump water.

Thanks to the solar initiative taken by Irrigation Minister T. Harish Rao.

The village has 121 houses and as many as 95 households got the solar power connections.

Meanwhile, for the rest who lost the chance to set up solar power connections in their houses on the Central government’s subsidy, the district administrators have been trying to provide with alternatives.

The total cost of the solar power system for each house was Rs. 85,000 whereas each beneficiary had paid an amount Rs. 8,500 (ten per cent of the total project cost) as their contribution, while the remaining amount was subsidy from the government.

This is part of bigger plan that was in store for the village to transform it as complete solar village, if possible seeing that without poles.

Once all the house were connected with solar power, the second phase of work for solar street lights would commence for which while the State government will provide a fund of Rs. 5 lakh as its contribution followed Rs. 5 lakh from NABARD.

In the final phase, solar power would be supplied to run bore wells in the village if farmers come forward.

“The second phase work will be commenced in next month. We are trying to exhibit a picture to the world on how we can depend on nature for our energy requirements,” G. Ramesh Kumar, AGM, NABARD, told The Hindu .

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Telangana / by R. Avadhani / Banjerpally (Medak District) / October 13th, 2015

A gala FICCI event in Hyderabad

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Leaders

RekhawPVSindhuTELAN12oct2015

In an open air party at an upscale Banjara Hills venue, the glitterati of the social circuit gathered with their spouses and friends in tow for an event dedicated to women’s empowerment and inspired by stree shakti.

Awards and honours were given to women achievers in several fields ranging from teaching, philanthropy, medicine to achievements in technology and media.

This FLO blockbuster-fundraising event was a night to not only commemorate achievers like PV Sindhu, Begum Bilquees Latif and others but also to celebrate the feminine side unabashedly.

The show-stoppers of the night including T-Town brigade Lakshmi Manchu, Regina Cassandra, Raashi Khanna and ace athlete Saina Nehwal walked the ramp in splendid outfits.

Over 40 ladies from the organisation, who usually are busy professionals by the day or run businesses, also walked the ramp along with the show-stoppers for the evening and as they took the stage doting family members and friends stood rushed to take photos of them while cheering them.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Hyderabad / by Paulami Sen / October 12th, 2015

B-school celebrates silver jubilee

Education, Records, All

The ITM Business School celebrated its silver jubilee and the chief guest of the event, T. Vishnu Vardhan, CEO NTR Trust and NTR Blood Bank delivered a lecture on “Networked Individual: Is a Re-Imagination of Institutions Required?”

He said that there was a tectonic shift in the knowledge domain, which had a tremendous change from acquiring knowledge from print to viral digitalisation. He also said that the social media plays a crucial role in the present generation with a larger impact on society and also said that the networking is the key to get success in acquiring knowledge or business.

Institute’s director Dr. K.V.N. Prasad said that the institute had grown in the past 25 years. The curriculum which was redesigned as per the requirement of the industry and the track record of the institute has 100 per cent placement.

Various sports competitions were conducted for staff and students on the occasion.

Prizes were also distributed. All faculty members and students attended the event.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Telangana / by Special Correspondent / Warangal – October 10th, 2015

The other face of Dhoolpet

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Travel

Hyderabad :

It’s that time of the year again when the city, breaking away from its mundane routines, is set to immerse itself in exalted jubilation, complete with drums, deities, devouts and dandiya. And as the festive bells start ringing, the spotlight, like always, is found flashing brightly on the narrow bylanes of Dhoolpet from where the celebratory season is usually flagged off.

Home to a sizable population of the Lodha, Bundeli Rajput and Gangaputra communities, it is in Dhoolpet, a short distance away from Afzalgunj in the Old City, that idols of all gods and goddesses – prayed to during the one-month-long festivities – are conceptualized, Syed Omar designed and created.

The rows of Durga murtis in particular are the hardest to miss. “There are lakhs of idols (Ganesha, Durga and Sherawali) that are made in Dhoolpet.These are usually carved out of Plaster of Paris. And unlike those that are made in Kolkata, their structures are built on iron frames,” said Manik Mukherjee, president of the adhoc committee of the Hyderabad Bengali Welfare Association that organizes an annual Durga Utsav in the Old City. “These days, the artisans of Dhoolpet also bring craftsmen from outside and employ them during the festive season,” he added.

The towering half-finished deities apart, what’s also conspicuous in the area is the pres ence of several vendors waiting impatiently to lure `clients’ with their neatly packaged pouches of ganja. Over the years, this pocket of the city has become synonymous with the sale of the contraband. And this, despite the presence of a police outpost right in the middle of Jummerat Bazaar, a stone’s throw away from here. In fact, Dhoolpet is itself home to the Mangalhat law and order police station and the prohibition and excise station.

Notwithstanding such barriers, this flourishing `trade’ goes on uninterrupted, beginning as early as 10 am every day . History has it that residents of this area had ancestors who migrated from north and central India in the 17th century to work for the Nizams. They took up the sale of the contraband post Independence as a means to eke out a livelihood. Some have accumulated a lot of wealth since.

On any given day, as one takes a leisurely stroll through Dhoolpet, one is sure to notice men with `stoned’ eyes perched on the chabutras and anxious to sell a `tola’ of ‘best quality’ ganja for Rs 200 to any eager buyer.Try to bargain and the peddler, sporting an unkempt look, wastes no time to retort: “Pachas ka pudi bhi hai lekin dubara idhar nahi aaoge. Doso ka lelo, phir se khojte hue aaoge.” (I have packets worth Rs 50 also, but after that you will not come here again. Take a Rs 200-packet and you’ll come looking for me again).

As night falls, business picks up further. Even post-midnight, it is not uncommon to see young men and women in sedans and SUVs driving in to ‘score’. “As regulars, we know just when to go there and look for what kind of people. Even the `sellers’, with years of experience, easily identify prospective customers.If they realize you aren’t an `interested party’ or are generally loafing around, they won’t entertain you,” said a young professional on condition of anonymity. He confessed that the `dope’ available in Dhoolpet is usually of the finest quality .

Turns out, that the ganja making its way to the city comes from districts such as Warangal, Nizamabad and Visakhapatnam. The local dealers buy this in bulk for Rs 3,000 a kilo and make 10 times profit when they sell it on the street.

In addition to ganja, Dhool pet is also notorious for the sale of arrack. There are about 200 families that are involved in the production, transportation and sale of illicit liquor.

Police authorities, while ad mitting to Dhoolpet being a den of illegal activities, claim tha such `businesses’ are on the de cline in the area. “Bootlegging and drug peddling are coming down due to stringent enforce ment activities. In the past one month, we have booked five of fenders under the PD (Preven tion of Dangerous Activities Act and the process has been initiated to book repeat offend ers. We are also conducting a lo of awareness campaigns in the locality to explain to people why they need to opt for alternative livelihoods,” said Ujwala Reddy assistant prohibition & excise superintendent, Dhoolpet.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Hyderbad / by Mahesh Buddi & Sudipta Sengupta, TNN / October 09th, 2015

Empowering through sports

Sports
Winners of the Begum Sugra Humayun Mirza Mini Olympiad for girls.
Winners of the Begum Sugra Humayun Mirza Mini Olympiad for girls.

A good start to the initiative to promote sports among girls from less-privileged society

The Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar Award seems to have spurred Sports Coaching Foundation founder-general secretary K. Sai Baba to extend his passion to promote sports amongst the less-privileged to new domains. He has decided to go in and around Hyderabad and promote the sporting culture, especially in schools where girls rarely get an opportunity to train, leave alone compete in the meets.

Sports meet
The Begum Sugra Humayun Mirza Mini Girls Olympiad organised last weekend was one such initiative as part of the ‘Build India Through Sports’ programme which saw about 500 to 600 girls from the Government and the aided schools between IV and 1Xth standard compete in a sports meet.

Winning or losing was not the focus in this which was essentially aimed to let these girls free from the shackles and venture on to the sports fields, showcase their skills as competitions were held in running, skipping, basketball, kho kho, kabaddi and karate.

“We are delighted with the kind of response for this meet. And we are planning to hold these kind of events for the less privileged with regularity. We are an NGO and we did this thanks to the support of LIC. We don’t look at monetary benefits. On the contrary, we spend from our own side,” said Sai Baba.

Former Chief Secretary to State Government Gopala Krishna, who gave away the prizes appreciated the efforts of SCF. “Sports in India need not be all about big achievers. Unless we give a platform for these age groups at the school level, how can we produce more champions,” he said.

For SCF, which is into its silver jubilee year, this is yet another significant milestone.

“We have requested many schools to make optimum use of our facilities. Hope, there will be good response,” signs off Sai Baba.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Metroplus / by V.V. Subrahmanyam / October 07th, 2015

‘Demon Bakasura’ is worshipped here

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links / Pre-Independence
The Bhakasura temple belonging to 14th century in Nainpaka village in Warangal district. Photo: M. Murali
The Bhakasura temple belonging to 14th century in Nainpaka village in Warangal district. Photo: M. Murali

Temples are constructed only for gods and goddesses but here is a temple named after mythological character Bakasura who is identified as a ‘rakshasa’ (demon).

Far away from the district headquarters at Nainpak village in this mandal of Telangana is the temple built centuries ago. It houses a huge boulder on which four statues were sculpted – Yoga Narasimha, Kaliya Mardhana Krishna, Balarama and Sita Rama Lakshmana.

The Yoga Narasimha idol resembles demon Bakasura and people living around came to believe that it was the Bakasura temple.

The neatly carved out idol believed to be that of mythological character demon named Bhakasura in a temple in Nainpaka village in Chityal mandal in warangal district. Photo: M. Murali
The neatly carved out idol believed to be that of mythological character demon named Bhakasura in a temple in Nainpaka village in Chityal mandal in warangal district. Photo: M. Murali

Local lore
Local lore has it that once upon a time Bakasura ruled the land. He protected his subjects but killed those outside his kingdom.

While he came to be known as a demon, his subjects considered him their god and as a tribute, this temple was built.

The structure reflects excellent sculpture. The whole of sanctum sanctorum was carved out of single huge boulder. The ‘sikhara’ was built with bricks. Over the years, this was plundered and damaged by treasure hunters.

Donthula Rajender, a local farmer, said that until two decades ago, people found gold wherever they dug and even farmers found gold coins while ploughing their land. “Many people come here and we do not talk to them out of fear. They drive us away and dig up all over for treasure,” he explained.

This temple came to light in recent times. Retired deputy director of the Archaeology and Museums Department, S. S. Ranga Chary, who is engaged in research on ancient monuments, said the idol was of Yoga Narasimha and not Bakasura as is widely believed. “Since Narasimha is not found with his consort, people think it is Bakasura,” he said.

Unique inmany aspects
According to him, this Vaishnavite temple belongs to the 14th century, corresponding with the post-Kakatiya period. “Undoubtedly, this is a unique temple which is not found anywhere in South India. The State government has recommended for its protection and preservation but the Central government has to consider it,” Mr. Ranga Chary said.

The temple is located adjacent to a sprawling tank and is in a dilapidated state. It is one of the many monuments found across the district, which need to be preserved for their historical value.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National / by Gollapudi Srinivasa Rao / Chityala (Warangal Dt.) / October 08th, 2015