Monthly Archives: March 2019
15
Nari Shakti Puraskar presented
The Nari Shakti Puraskar, which is the highest civilian honour for women in India, was given at a special ceremony in New Delhi on March 8 to 44 women as well as institutions.
They were recognised for their relentless service towards the cause of women empowerment and social welfare.
Sujatha Mohan, executive medical director of the Rajan Eye Care Hospital was recognised for her efforts in raising awareness about the importance of eye donations as well as several projects she has initiated to ensure that quality eye care is accessible to all sections of society.
Mini Vasudevan, co-founder of Humane Animal Society from Coimbatore was honoured for her involvement in animal welfare as well as sensitising the public to it.
Award for dept.
Among the institutions, the Social Welfare and Nutritious Meal Programme Department of the Tamil Nadu government was recognised for performing well with regard to the implementation of the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) campaign.
The campaign is a flagship programme of the Central government to address declining child sex ratio in the country.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Staff Reporter / Chennai – March 12th, 2019
Thirubuvanam Silk saree gets GI tag after a wait for 5 years
After a five-year wait, the Geographical Indications Registry of India accorded GI tag to the Thirubuvanam silk saree.
Chennai :
After a five-year wait, the Geographical Indications Registry of India accorded GI tag to the Thirubuvanam silk saree. The Handlooms and Textiles department that filed the application with the GI Registry on behalf of Thirubuvanam Silk Handloom Weavers Co-operative Production and Sale Society Limited (THICO Silks), was granted the status on Tuesday.
The application filed in April 2014, by THICO Silks, submitted that Thirubuvanam located near Kumbakonam, is a historical town and has preserved the art of silk weaving and withstood the test of time.
The GI tag is granted to products that are special for a particular geographical area and prevents misuse of the popularity of the products by others.
The aesthetic silk sarees, weigh around 450-1250 gm. The silk alone weighs around 400 gm and the rest of the weight comprises of zari. Traditionally, these silk sarees would measure about 12 ft in length and 4 ft in breadth. The THICO Silks was established in 1955.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Tamil Nadu / by Harish Murali / Express News Service / March 13th, 2019
Giving back to art: On the new Artrendz Art Gallery
Artist Vignesh Raj R hopes his brand new Artrendz Art Gallery will nurture art and allow it to reach more people
A colourful peacock draws my attention as I enter the Artrendz Art Gallery at Saravanampatti. This work by S Sujatha is a part of Women Artists’ Art Exhibition 2019, the inaugural show of the gallery. The place is well lit and either hung or leaning on the walls are 160 art works by 80 women artists from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and Assam. “We received 545 entries from all over the country. These were selected by a panel of artists,” says Vignesh Raj R, proprietor of the gallery. The paintings are on oil, watercolour, oil pastels and pen on paper.
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Info you can use
- Timing: 10:00 am to
- 7:00 pm
- At Artrendz Art Gallery, Near Prozone Mall, Sathy Road, Saravanampatti
- 8148407465 for detail
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Vignesh himself is a contemporary artist and it was his dream to open a gallery since he was a college student. “I did not want to depend on my family for the finance. I participated in art shows and sold my paintings to fund this project. It took me four years.”
Artrendz has two halls, one bigger than the other. “The small hall can accommodate up to 25 paintings, while the bigger hall can have around 120. The total hanging space of the entire gallery is about 200 running feet. We are yet to do more lighting work in the bigger hall,” he says. “I visited the Hermitage Museum in Russia in 2018. It is spacious and has huge art works. I enjoyed the ambience as an art lover. I hope my gallery will also provide such an experience to the people in the city.” He also plans to set up an art museum with paintings of well-known artists from the city at Thondamuthur by 2020.
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Prize winners in the exhibition
- Sudha Rajendran
- Abhinaya Ramadhurai
- Yazhini L.M
- Sujatha S
- Tamizh Selvi
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Vignesh wants to expose more people to art. “I want people to get a better understanding of the varied styles. I also hope to invite eminent artists to hold demonstrations here.”
One thing Vignesh says he will definitely do is provide the gallery space free for artists who cannot afford to hire space.
“Being an artist myself, I know how difficult it is for beginners. This is my way of giving back to art.”
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style / by Susan Joe Philip / March 12th, 2019
Kalaichemmal awards announced
The Tamil Nadu government has announced Kalaichemmal awards for painters and sculptors for 2013-2018.
The award consists of a citation and ₹50,000 cash, a government press release said.
The list of awardees for the Kalaichemmal awards are P.S. Nanthan, S. Ganapathy Sthapathi, P. Gopinath, Ramajeyam, Anathanarayanan Nagarajan, M. Thamizharasi, C. Douglas, S. Keerthivarman, Jeyakumar and A. Gopalan Sthapathi, the government press release added.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Special Correspondent / Chennai – March 09th, 2019
City gets first woman public prosecutor
Gowri Ashokan has been appointed city public prosecutor, the first woman to hold the post.
Ms. Ashokan was holding the in-charge position until now. The State government has issued orders appointing her full time to the post.
She will represent any prosecution, appeal or proceeding on behalf of the State government in the city sessions courts.
Along with her, 16 law officers have been appointed as additional public prosecutors to the sessions courts in the city. The law officers will hold the post for a period of three years from the date of taking charge.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Special Correspondent / Chennai – March 10th, 2019
Meet WeBe Design Lab: The architecture team behind National War Memorial
WeBe design won the international competition to design the National War Memorial of India hosted by the Ministry of Defence in 2016.
Chennai :
“It was an overwhelming moment when the sketch on my notepad stood magnificent in front of my eyes. It’s a privilege to work for the nation,” reminisces Yogesh Chandrahasan, the principal architect of the National War Memorial inaugrated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on February 25. Yogesh is a part of WeBe Design Lab, an architecture practice based in Chennai and Coimbatore. The firm was established a decade ago by a vibrant team of eight partners from the School of Architecture and Planning, Anna University, in 2010.
Bagging the project
WeBe design won the international competition to design the National War Memorial of India hosted by the Ministry of Defence in 2016. The team was commissioned to build the same in 2017. The competition hosted by the Ministry of Defence was on a global level in two stages. From around 450 entries, 75 entries were shortlisted. They were then narrowed down to nine based on conceptual designs
These nine teams further developed the designs and competed in stage two. Each of the team had to present the final design to a 20-member jury comprising renowned architects and eminent professors in the field, and to the Ministry of Defence.
“We were not in a great circumstance when we took up the project. Especially, after demonetisation and floods, things had taken a hit for us financially. Taking up a humongous project like this was a big deal that demanded great responsibility. The time given to complete the project was two years,” said Yogesh, who will be in New Delhi for another month.
Capturing emotions
The selected team had eight consultants from Chennai and New Delhi to assist the project in different areas. “The whole idea was a collaborative effort. The intent of our design was to look at the memorial as a place where soldiers were reborn,” he says.
Drafts and details
Revisiting his initial days of the project, Yogesh says, “A partner and I travelled to New Delhi to sign the final agreement before the project commenced. We had to present the detailed project report and the work demanded two whole months of stay in New Delhi. A team of six architects flew from Chennai and we stayed in a hotel there.” “Instructions from the Ministry came as orders and not requests. Here, the clients are particular about individual tasks completed in scheduled time. The deadline was the only factor that kept us going. The team was a big motivational force. Each of us used to lift one another up in times of crises,” shares Yogesh.
Grand opening
Yogesh will always cherish the inaugural day. “The Prime Minister shook hands with me and walked away. However, Defence Minister Nirmala Si-tharaman introduced me to him for a short private chat. His words still ring in my ears — ‘You’ve justified my dreams by doing a satisfactory job with the project’,” he shares.
Memorial architecture
Spread across 42 acres, the design of the `176-crore project is interpreted as four concentric circles of varied elements. The outermost — The Circle of Protection — personifies the territorial control of the armed forces of the borders, The Circle of Sacrifice metaphorically represents the formation of soldiers in the war. The Circle of Bravery has been conceived as subterranean colonnaded semi-open corridor holding the brave stories, and the focal point of the memorial is the innermost circle — The Circle of Rebirth — symbolising the immortality of jawans who lost their lives, through the external fire. The Param Yodha Sthal is a unique space dedicated for the Param Vir Chakra awardees, India’s highest military decoration.
The park is designed with the existing trees, accommodating bronze statues of 21 awardees. “As directed by the Central Vista Committee, New Delhi, the design of the war memorial is subterranean with the built form not exceeding 1.5 metres above the ground level. The design was conceived carefully to retain the character of the existing open space and the aesthetics sanctity of the Lutyens planning. Above all, the success is because of team effort and amalgamation of creative thoughts. That aside, my family and friends were a huge support. Some of my clients pooled in resources to support me financially,” says Yogesh.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities>Chennai / by Vaishali Vijaykumar / Express News Service / March 07th, 2019
This 14-year-old from Chennai is on a roll
Even before showing her prowess at the international rollball tournament, city-based Mahimasree CS impressed the jury in the state.
CS
Even before showing her prowess at the international rollball tournament, city-based Mahimasree CS impressed the jury in the state. She was the only player from Tamil Nadu to be selected to play for the Indian team in the 3rd Asian Rollball Championship held recently at Belgaum. She was the only player from South India and youngest player in the team that won gold at the event. A class 9 student of Suguna PIPs School, Mahimasree was a skater initially.
When she was practising to skate, she was introduced to rollball by the physical director of her school, Rajasekar V, who also serves as the secretary of the Coimbatore District Roll Ball Association. “I started skating when I was in class 5. Rajasekar was my coach. Seeing my skating skills, he introduced me to rollball and trained me,” she says. Mahima was selected at district-level in rollball in 2016. “After the selection, I was appointed as the captain of the team,” she says.
In 2017, the 14-year-old participated in the National Rollball Championship in Goa, SGFI Rollball Championship in Chhattisgarh, and in 2018 she took part in Invitational Rollball Championship in Sri Lanka. Her team won bronze at the national meet, silver at the invitational championship and two gold and one bronze at SGFI championship.
“The first national- level match I took part in was in Udaipur in 2016 where my team secured fourth place,” says Mahima, who is a goalkeeper and defensive player in the sport. Talking about the recentlyheld Asian Rollball Championship, she says that it is her first venture into the international- level. “Players from 17 countries took part in the tournament. In the finals, I played offence and defence against Bangladesh and won gold with a score of 4-3.
It was difficult to win in the finals because the score was 3-0 in favour of Bangladesh. When we almost lost the hope of winning, the coach motivated us to play for the country and in the last 30 seconds, we placed the goal,” she shares. Mahima plays tennis, is a swimmer and an athlete. “Playing as a team taught me team spirit. I feel proud to have represented India,” she says, adding, “I aspire to represent India in the Olympics, and make the country proud,” M a h i m a says.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities>Chennai / by S P Kirthana / Express News Service / March 06th, 2019
In a big win for regions’ farmers, Erode turmeric receives Geographical Indication tag
The Geographical Indication (GI) tag is granted to products that are special for a particular geographical area and prevents misuse of the popularity of the products by others.
Chennai :
Turmeric grown in the Erode region was conferred the Geographical Indication tag on Wednesday, enabling the farmers and traders from the region to claim sole rights over the famed ‘Erode Manjal’.The Geographical Indication Registry of India granted the coveted status based on the application filed by ‘Erode Manjal Vanigarkal Matrum Kidangu Urimaiyalargal Sangam’.
The Geographical Indication (GI) tag is granted to products that are special for a particular geographical area and prevents misuse of the popularity of the products by others. The application for the GI tag was filed by the traders’ association from Erode, first in 2013 and after a scrutiny, the application was accepted and publicly notified in August 2018.
The traders’ association in its application said that the region in and around Erode is synonymous with the turmeric and vice versa. ‘Erode Manjal’ is famous across the globe. The prominent areas of cultivation of Erode turmeric in the region in and around Erode, are Kodumudi, Sivagiri, Havani, Gobichettipalayam, Anthiyur, Chennampatti, Sathyamangalam and Thalavady.
“During the Sangam era, 2000 BC, of Tamils, the peasants grew turmeric plants in front of their houses. There is evidence that turmeric is one of the commodities traded during the Chera, Chola and Pandian Kingdoms. The turmeric assumed greater importance in the religious and socio-cultural traditions as it was considered as an auspicious and holy herb. For its aroma and colour to the food items, turmeric has multifaceted utility in food, medicine and cosmetics,” the application said.
Among the two important varieties of turmeric – Chinna Nadan and Perum Nadan, the Erode farmers raise Chinna Nadan. It is grown as an important commercial spice crop in the Erode and bordering areas in Coimbatore district and thousands of small and marginal farmers are involved in its cultivation.Speaking to Express, Chinnaraja G Naidu, Deputy Registrar of Geographical Indications in Chennai, said the product has been registered and the certificates have been issued under Class 30.
The application also said that the Erode turmeric requires a hot and moist climate and the temperature in the district varies from 20 to 37.9 degree Celsius. The turmeric thrives best on the loamy or alluvial soils.
According to the traders, Erode is one of the largest markets for turmeric in India. Erode Regulated Market, Erode Agricultural Producers Marketing Co-op Society, Gobi Agricultural Producers Marketing Co-op Society and open market are the major daily turmeric markets in Erode. Coimbatore Regulated Market is also a marketing centre.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Tamil Nadu / by Harsh Murali / Express News Service / March 07th, 2019