Monthly Archives: April 2012

Buy sugarcane in powder form, enjoy juice at leisure

Business & Economy, Uncategorized

Coimbatore:

There’s good news for those who crave for sugarcane juice, but don’t want to have it from roadside shacks with suspect hygiene standards. Coimbatore-based Sugarcane Breeding Institute has developed a technology to make sugarcane powder. Mix the powder with cold water, you have sugarcane juice.

“Sugarcane powder would look like milk powder and it can be used to quench thirst,” says K Sivaraman, a principal scientist at the Institute. “The powder can be produced by a slight modification in the machines used to make milk powder. It can be mixed with water, the same way milk powder is mixed with water. Sugarcane juice is ‘spray dried’ to make sugarcane powder,” he said.

Spray drying is a complex process used to turn liquid food particles into solid form. Milk powder is made using this process. Sugarcane juice though popular has a short shelf-life. Due to the high content of sugar, the juice gets spoilt in six hours. K Hari, the principal investigator on the project, said the sugarcane powder would solve this problem. “It would solve the problem of storage of sugarcane juice. And, the juice could be available in various flavours like lemon, ginger etc,” said Hari.

The powder could also be used as a substitute for sugar. “Use of white sugar is not a healthy option. But the powder extracted from sugarcane retains the mineral content in almost the same way as it is present in sugarcane juice. This can be even used as a substitute to sugar in food or even in ayurvedic medicines. The flavour will be different, but is a healthy option,” Hari added.

Sivaraman said the powder would be introduced in the market soon. “A Gujarat entrepreneur has bought the technology. They are contemplating about various products and flavours, which could be developed from this. However, others interested in the product could approach the institute as we do not sell the rights exclusively for any single party,” he said.

Coimbatore-based Sugarcane Breeding Institute has developed a technology to make sugarcane powder. Mix the powder with cold water, you have sugarcane juice.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Coimbatore / by Arun P Mathew / TNN / April 03rd, 2012

State’s largest temple bell to chime in Trichy soon

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All

Erode:

The largest temple bell in the state, weighing more than 1.5 tonnes, will be ready to ring in two months from the premises of Ugrakaliamman Temple at Thennur near Trichy. The brass bell’s sound will reportedly be heard within a 20km radius. Over two dozen artisans from Kumbakonam and Thanjavur will work with award winning sculptor L Radhakrishnan in Erode city round the clock to get the bell ready by the last week of May.

The wooden mold has already been made and works regarding its replica was completed on Monday. Sculpting of the brass bell will begin on Tuesday. It will be transported to Trichy by the first week of June.

According to Radhakrishnan, the bell will be six feet in length and the estimated cost is more than Rs 20 lakh. “Most temple bells in the state weigh less than a tonne. It has been my long cherished dream to make the state’s largest bell,” says Radhakrishnan, who has made more than 300 huge temple bells so far.

His workplace is located inside Edissia Industrial Estate in Kangayam Bypass and residents are starting to trickle in to view the finished clay model. “Though most temples in Tamil Nadu are located in the Thanjavur-Kumbhakonam belt, the bell manufacturing business has remained in Erode for the last several centuries. However, due to manpower shortage I had to depute artisans from Kumbakonam and Thanjavur,” says Radhakrishnan. Winner of the National Award for the best sculptor in 2002 and Shilpa Guru Award of Union Government in 2007, Radhakrishnan also won Tamil Nadu state award for sculptor in 1979 and 1981.

He won Erode Jaycee’s young person award in 1988 and Rashtriya Nirman Rattan Award in 1999. He had also won Gowri Shankar Stapathiyar Award in 1999 and Tamil Nadu Kalainanmani Award in 2002. “I am very passionate about sculpting temple bells. When the Thennur temple committee approached me with the project, I instantly agreed to do it as they were able to afford the cost,” says Radhakrishnan, who is also making bronze statues of Radha and Krishna for a Coimbatore temple. “More than the job satisfaction and the money in it, what motivates me to keep going is my desire to keep the art of sculpting alive,” he added.

source: http;//www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Coimbatore / by K A Shaji , TNN / April 03rd, 2012

TAFE plans Rs 100 cr new facility

Business & Economy

World’s third largest tractor manufacturer Tractor and Farm Equipment Ltd (TAFE) plans to set up a greenfield facility in Tamil Nadu to manufacture tractors. The plan comes against the backdrop of the high demand and all the company’s plants operating at full capacity.

TAFE’s Chairman and CEO Mallika Srinivasan said, we will invest around Rs 100 crore on a new plant with an annual capacity of 60,000 units in Madurai. All our plants are operating at full capacity and we expect demand for our products to outpace industry growth.

The company will also set up an agricultural implements plant for an outlay of Rs 30 crore and a similar amount will be spent on carrying out value addition at our Turkish plant, added R C Banka, president, TAFE. Presently, the company has a capacity of around 180,000 units per annum (600 units per day) and the new plant at Madurai is needed to meet the projected increase in demand. Post expansion, TAFE’s annual capacity will be 250,000 units.

Last fiscal, TAFE sold 148,112 units, including TAFE’s Massey Fergusson (MF) and Eicher brands of tractors. It included export of 20,396 units.

Presently, the company exports to 73 countries and its export revenues are around Rs 1,200 crore.

On the company’s performance, she said, in the first half of the year the industry grew around 19 per cent, while TAFE grew at 26.9 per cent. From November onwards, the industry showed a downward trend while TAFE continued see growth. “Nearly 68 per cent of our sales come from products launched during the last three years. We expanded the Eicher range of tractors. It was known as a small horse power (hp) player and now it has tractors up to 50 hp,” she added.

The company is planning to launch a new 55 hp model this month. “We are cautiously optimistic about the tractor industry’s growth. The short term outlook is caution while the medium To long term outlook is optimistic. As far as TAFE is concerned, we are bullish about our prospects,” she said

Going forward, the company will enter soil preparation, harvesting and post harvesting agricultural implements segment, added Banka. To a question on harmonisation of components between its three brands — TAFE, Massey Ferguson and Eicher — to cut costs, Srinivasan said each model has its own USP and that cannot be compromised to achieve advantages of common components.

TAFE is also participating in the development of the Centurion family of tractors (50-125 hp) along with the AGCO Corporation.

“We will make the tractors in India and ship them out during the second calendar quarter of 2013,” she said.

TAFE reported a 30.4 per cent growth in consolidated revenues from Rs 6,149 crore in 2010-11 to Rs 8,020 crore during year-ended March 31, 2012.

Overall, tractor sales increased 26.6 per cent at 148,112 tractors as against an estimated industry sale of 607,213 tractors.

source: http://www.Business-Standard.com / Home> Companies & Industry / BS Reporter / Chennai, April 04th, 2012

Pollachi sends summer coolers

Business & Economy, Uncategorized

For 48-year-old Mahendran, March to May is a busy season as the demand for tender coconuts peaks with rising mercury levels. Mahendran has been selling them for nearly three decades in Egmore and now owns two shops and seven push carts. “I buy around 4,000 coconuts every three days,” he says.

As the mercury rises in Chennai , people turn to tender coconuts to beat the heat. The town that supplies Chennai with its daily dose of coconuts is Pollachi, about 40km south of Coimbatore.

According to Hemachandra, deputy director of the Coconut Development Board, Chennai gets around 30 truckloads of coconuts from Pollachi and 15 from Puducherry and Cuddalore between March and May. Each truck has 4,500 coconuts.

The Tender Coconut Producer Association, which consists of Pollachi-based farmers, meets every week to decide the price of coconuts. An SMS is sent to the members and representatives of nearly 200 villages and traders, informing them about the price. Traders then bargain based on the quality of the coconuts.

A E Srinivasan, a farmer and secretary of the association, says Pollachi coconuts are the best as they have more butter. “Earlier, we were not aware of the price in other cities and used to sell coconuts for as low as Rs 4. Now, we sell the hybrid quality for Rs 12 to Rs 14, dwarf variety for around Rs 15 and tall quality for up to Rs 9. The prices will go up in May,” says Srinivasan, who has coconut plantations. Traders come to his farm once a month to take the harvest.

Kamaraj (41), who has been selling coconuts for past 15 years in Egmore, says he buys about 500 coconuts depending on the sales. “I pay Rs 20 for a piece. I sell around 60-70 coconuts daily and the price varies from Rs 25 to Rs 30,” he says.

Till last year, Puducherry, Cuddalore and other coastal districts supplied coconuts. However, Cyclone Thane destroyed most of the plantations, thereby increasing the prices. “I used to buy coconuts for Rs 12, but now I have to pay Rs 20,” says Mahendran.

Despite getting a better price for their produce, things are not all bright for the Pollachi farmers. “There is labour shortage as younger generation doesn’t want to take up this job and only a trained person can climb the tree,” says Srinivasan.

T A Krishnaswamy Gounder, president of United Coconut Growers Association of South India, says youngsters prefer to work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act schemes than climb coconut trees for a living.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Chennai / by Nanya Srivastava / TNN / March 31st, 2012

4,294 gallstones removed from bladder of 63-year old man

Records, All, Science & Technologies

Erode (TN), Apr 1 (PTI)

A surgeon at a private hospital here has claimed to have bettered a Guinness Record by removing a whopping 4,294 gallstones totally weighing 300 grams from the bladder of a 63-year old man. The laparascopic surgery was performed recently on Duraisamy, a retired Village Administrative Officer, who had complaints of back pain. A scan revealed the presence of gallstones in the bladder and the patient was advised to go for surgery during which 4,294 small gallstones were removed, Dr T K Swamy said. The patient is keeping good health now.

Swamy claimed removal of 4,294 stones from the bladder was a Guinness record. Earlier, in Germany 3,110 stones were removed from the bladder of a woman. He said he would approach Guinness Records for entry of his feat.

source: http://www.ibnlive.in.com / Home> Wires> Latest News / PTI / April 01st, 2012