A stakeholder awareness and education seminar to discuss agribusiness and commodity market price risk management will be held at 4.30 pm on Wednesday at University Auditorium (Convocation Hall), Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Coimbatore.
The seminar is part of an ongoing series of events organised by The Hindu Business Line jointly with Forward Markets Commission (FMC), the commodity futures market regulator under the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs; and National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), the country’s largest agri-futures market exchange.
Ganga Murthy, Principal Advisor to the Government of India, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, will be the chief guest. K. Ramasamy, Vice-Chancellor, TNAU, will be guest-of-honour along with M. Mathisekaran, Member-FMC, and Lakshmi Narayanan, Director, T. Stanes & Co. Ltd. Arun Anant, CEO, Kasturi & Sons Ltd, will deliver the welcome address.
Presentations include ‘Commodities as critical driver of India’s economic growth” by G. Chandrashekhar, The Hindu Business Line and “Benefits of commodity futures trading and price risk management” by V.V. Ganesan, NCDEX. Mathisekaran will bring the regulator’s perspective. Representative of T. Stanes & Co will speak on role of inputs in agriculture.
Commodity producers, processors, importers, exporters, local traders and related others who have exposure to the physical market and face the risk of price volatility will benefit by participating in the seminar.
A question and answer session will follow the presentations. To register, please contact: S. Prabhakar on 9894288511.
source: http://www.thehindubusinesline.com / The Hindu Business Line / The Hindu Bureau / Mumbai, April 02nd, 2013
As the Indian pump industry pins its hopes on a revival of industrial demand and the onset of the South-West monsoon in June to perk up demand from the farm sector, Coimbatore-based Deccan Pumps is preparing to launch a new brand of pumps ‘EKKI’ (which in Tamil means ‘to ascend’) that targets both the agricultural and urban markets.
The company, among the top pump manufacturers in Coimbatore city that accounts for a near 40 per cent market share of the organised pump market in the country, is also looking at opportunities to partner with European pump manufacturers to serve markets in India and abroad.
In an interaction with Business Line, P. Arumugam, Chairman, DPPL, and Kanishka Arumugam, Product Manager, EKKI, a new division of DPPL, said the development of the borehole submersible ‘EKKI+’ was driven by the demand for energy efficient pumps with lower lifecycle costs.
The new borehole range comes in varying diameters ranging from 4 inches to 8 inches and are up to 10 per cent more efficient than the earlier generation of boreholes, making them ‘the best in class’ from 0.5 HP up to 90HP. They expect the ‘EKKI+’ borehole submersibles to contribute to about half the sales of the EKKI brand. The existing ‘Deccan’ brand open-well submersibles, mini submersibles, jet pumps and centrifugal monoblocs would also be sold under the ‘EKKI’ brand name.
The EKKI range of products would be produced at a greenfield facility set up with a capacity to manufacture 6,000-7,000 units a month. While the first phase of the plant was ready, the second phase would be completed in two months.
Kanishka Arumugam said while MNC pump manufacturers dominated the industrial segment, the Coimbatore pump industry has carved a niche in the agriculture, residential and commercial segments. But the industrial segment was alluring because of the scope for value addition.
Deccan was focused on the farm segment at present, though the industrial segment was also on its radar. He felt there were still some pockets in the country where the company’s products had not reached and he would like to tap these markets even while trying to ramp up capacity.
He said some of the leading European pump makers wanted Deccan to supply products under their brand names. For instance, while buying submersible motor parts from India and China, they would produce their own pumps at their own facilities, making Deccan an OEM supplier to them, under their brand name. As the company does not have sufficient capacity to meet domestic demand, it has not embraced the opportunity. But once capacity addition was in place, Deccan was open to the idea of looking at such opportunities in countries where its own brand did not have a market.
He said a few other foreign companies that wanted to enter the Indian market have evinced an interest to forge joint ventures with Deccan. The advantage was that these companies had niche technologies whereas Deccan has manufacturing strengths. He said EKKI would consider ‘growth through joint synergies’ with some of the European family-owned groups. This would also catapult the company from ‘being follower to leader’ by leveraging its R&D and design capabilities.
Arumugam said besides Coimbatore, Ahmedabad was also a major production hub for the pump industry, though Rajkot also had many players. The Central and State Governments have been lending a supporting role, particularly in the manufacture of energy-efficient pumps. But the sluggish business environment has impacted the supply chain and captive foundries have also been slow in meeting their supply commitments.
Asked about the impact of the ongoing drought in many markets, including Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, he said generally drought drives up the demand for borehole pumps from the farm sector. In Tamil Nadu the ‘sales are actually OK due to drought’ as farmers dig new wells in search of water. But the drought in Maharashtra, an important market for the Deccan brand, has affected sales. But he expected the demand to pick up once the monsoon sets in and distributors there have already begun stocking, expecting a demand revival. He said compared to last year, the overall demand was high for Deccan as farmers have plumped for ‘high performance energy-efficient branded pumps’.
On future growth plans, Arumugam said DPPL completed the spin-off from Deccan Industries on March 31, 2013. This would enable DPPL to focus on becoming the largest producer of vertical open-well submersibles and mini submersibles. He planned to set up a group logistics centre and an additional greenfield facility in the city in the coming fiscal, apart from the three plants it has now.
source: http://www.TheHinduBusinessLine.com / Home / by R. Yegya Narayanan / April 01st, 2013
Work on the restoration of the Cooum river will begin in November after a report is submitted by Chennai Rivers Restoration Trust — Photo: V. Ganesan / The Hindu
The eco-restoration of Cooum river, the polluted waterway running across the city, is all set to begin in earnest.
Addressing the Assembly on Monday on the demands concerning Municipal Administration and Water Supply, Municipal Administration Minister K.P. Munusamy said that the Chennai Rivers Restoration Trust (CRRT) is set to complete a detailed project report by November this year after which work will be started. The stretch of the waterway between Paruthipattu anicut near Avadi and the river mouth will be cleaned.
Besides identifying projects to reduce pollution, the eco-restoration project aims to explore possibility of navigation in the river. A coordinated approach by various departments would be sought to reduce pollution in the waterway and also plug the sewage outfalls and prevent dumping of garbage.
Mangrove plantations will be set up in Cooum estuary near Island grounds to minimise pollution and also revive biological diversity in the waterway. There are also plans to create river front development such as parks and walkways in urbanised stretches.
An integrated eco-restoration plan has been chalked out for the Adyar river too. The CRRT has invited expression of interest from consultants to prepare an integrated plan for Adyar river from its origin near Chembarambakkam reservoir to Thiru. Vi. Ka bridge, for the third phase.
An eco park has been created and 58 acres of the Adyar creek was restored in the first phase. The eco-park houses an environmental education centre and nursery for plants. Nearly 31,000 students have visited the eco-park, which functions as a centre for environmental education.
In the second phase, the restoration plan is further being expanded. The scope of eco-park would be extended to 300 acres from eastern side of Thiru. Vi. Ka. bridge to the river mouth and northern part of the creek extending up to Santhome causeway. Studies are being carried out to get statutory clearance from State coastal zone management authority. In phase three, remaining stretch of the river would be covered under the eco restoration plan.
source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Chennai /by Staff Reporter / April 02nd, 2013
Apollo Hospitals is taking over the defunct facility of Lifeline Multi-Speciality Hospital in Perungudi, Chennai on a long-term facility lease.
Lifeline Multi-speciality Hospital, Perungudi, a 180-bed tertiary care hospital headed by Dr J. S. Rajkumar, shut down operations over a month ago. According to sources, this facility was making losses. (Lifeline also runs a smaller facility in Kilpauk, Chennai.)
The lease is for 29 years, extendable by another 29 years, said a source close to the deal. Apollo will refurbish this facility and operate it under its brand name. It will bring in its own equipment and staff, said the source.
The new facility will specialise in cardiology, neurology, orthopaedic, critical and trauma care and is expected to start operations in three to four months.
This hospital is expected to strengthen the Apollo group’s presence in South Chennai. Apollo is already setting up a comprehensive cancer care hospital in this region (on Old Mahabalipuram Road) which is expected to start operations by 2015. An Apollo’s women and child care centre is also coming up on the road.
South Chennai, home to several IT companies including Cognizant and Infosys, and residential complexes, is fast developing into a major hub of activity. Hyderabad-based Global Hospitals (formerly Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Sankara Hospital) runs a 250-bed multi-speciality hospital at Shozhinganallur.
source: http://www.TheHinduBusinessLine.com / Home> Companies / The Hindu Bureau / Chennai, April 01st, 2013
In 1957, an unlettered man, L Nagasamy Naidu opened a small biriyani eatery at Big Bazaar Street in rural Dindigul district and named it Ananda Vilas Biriyani Hotel. Today his dishes lure food connoisseurs, who wish to ‘spice up’ their appetite, from far and wide. Parcels of the biriyani are even taken overseas. Yet, Ananda Vilas Biriyani doesn’t ring a bell. Instead, mention ‘Dindigul Thalappakatti Biriyani’, and people instantly relate to it.
So successful is Naidu’s ‘Thalappakatti’ biriyani that in Chennai, a food chain capitalised on the brand name and opened as many as 68 eateries since 2005 with their name boards screaming ‘Thalappakattu Biriyani’. Later an inconspicuous prefix ‘Rawther’ was added to the Chennai-based chain to differentiate it from the original Dindigul outlet on a direction from the Madras High Court.
On Friday, Naidu’s grandson D Nagasamy alias Satheesh, won a long drawn battle to retain the trademark ‘Thalappakatti’ with the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) ruling that the Chennai-based Rawther Thalappakattu had dishonestly laid stake to the name.
There is an interesting tale behind the evolution of Ananda Vilas Biriyani Hotel into Thalappakatti Biriyani Hotel. “My grandfather always sported a turban. So, the local people casually referred to him as ‘Thalappakatti’ Naidu (in Tamil turban is called Thalappa) and soon our eatery itself was identified as ‘Thalappakatti Biriyani’,” says Satheesh.
But it was not until the mushrooming of the Rawther Thalappakattu Biriyani that Satheesh himself realised how popular his grandfather’s recipe was.
Only three years after the Chennai eateries became a hit, Satheesh opened the first Dindigul Thalappakatti Restaurant in Chennai and used his grandfather’s photo in the logo. Before that outside Dindigul, only one outlet existed- in Coimbatore.
“Today, we serve 12 varieties of biriyani including chicken, mutton, egg, prawn, crab, kadai (quail), fish, butter, panneer and nattu kozhi (country chicken) ,” says P V Nagendran, manager of the outlet in Dindigul.
Nagendran says the Dindigul outlet serves only biriyani whereas in Chennai parotta, dosa and other dishes are also made. Satheesh says it was not easy to get the trademark for his family business. “We won a case against the Rawther chain in the Madras HC and SC. Later, they approached the IPAB which dismissed their application with `20,000 cost,” he says. The third generation owner hopes now the Rawther chain would close shop. “We have 16 outlets including 12 in Chennai. In the next 20 months, I hope to launch seven branches including one in New Delhi and another in Bangalore,” says Satheesh.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Tamil Nadu / by M. Dhavamani Vel / ENS – Dinidigul / April 07th, 2013
K. BHASKARAN looks back to the time when Prof. P.V. Indiresan motivated him to patent his inventions.
The academic-industry-innovation eco-system has lost a great mentor in Prof. P. V. Indiresan, who passed away recently. One of the earliest events for encouraging innovative projects and exhibiting the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) labs and facilities for visitors was a two-day event, in 1982, the first ever The IIT Open House. It was conceptualised by Prof. Indiresan, the then director.
The director himself had to his credit national awards for his patented inventions, and was known for trying out several innovative projects, in the IIT eco-system. (He invented the automatic signalling system for Indian Railways , which received a national award.) The open house brought in a number of visitors from Chennai into the IIT-M during those two days. This helped in creating awareness about IIT as an institution.
Prof Indiresan always had many progressive ideas on innovations in science and engineering. One of the earliest student patents at the IIT-M, as far as I am aware of, was an invention designed by a student and prototyped in an IIT lab — the design of an ‘improved murukku making machine’. This happened to be my invention in my fourth year of B Tech Chemical Engineering. I patented it after a formal official permission from the IIT-M. This hand-held device was demonstrated during the Open House at the Mechanical Operations Laboratory in the Department of Chemical Engineering and it was the only student patentable invention at the event.
I can vividly recall the appreciation of Prof. Indiresan, on seeing the demo of the machine, and the director’s personal advice and follow-up later. It was on Prof. Indiresan’s advice that I applied for the patent, after getting due permission from the IC&SR (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research). He was a forerunner for student innovation and entrepreneurship support, incubation and mentoring.
Though my efforts at early commercial exploitation of the patent did not take off, after several meetings and discussions with companies, I was successful. Prof. Indiresan was a direct catalyst in this endeavour.
Email:bhaskarank@gmail.com
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Education Plus> Colleges / April 01st, 2013
Kal Raman , Chief Operating Officer of Groupon./ The Hindu
Hailing from small-town Tamil Nadu, Groupon COO Kal Raman has taken many a risk in his dream career — all ‘for the learning and not the money’.
I am mad at Kal Raman — he’s kept me waiting for 45 minutes. I threaten to leave, but don’t because he has a great story to tell — a textbook rags-to-riches tale. When he finally arrives, I mention punctuality, but he is sufficiently, and smartly, contrite. He isn’t feeling too well, and so on.
In two minutes, I can see why the man who couldn’t “even say ‘My name is Kalyan Raman in English without shivering’” when he joined Anna University’s electrical engineering course in 1984, has today become the Chief Operating Officer of American company Groupon, with an annual billing of $5.5 billion.
Raman is disarming, can talk his way through tough spots and, in his dream career, has taken huge risks — but more for learning, he says, than money.
EARLY YEARS
The son of a tahsildar from a village in Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, a 15-year-old Raman, his mother and four siblings were literally thrown out on the streets after his father died of a heart attack. “From a nice house, three servants and a jeep, we were on the road.”
With a pension of Rs 420, and the Rs 100 she earned through reading palms, his mother raised the five children with a single goal — they’d have the best of education. “She became an expert at pawning; pay the interest for a piece of jewellery or kodam (utensil) by pawning another.”
After high school, he qualified for both a medical course in Tirunelveli and an engineering course at Anna University, Chennai. He opted for the latter; “I took the first risk of my life because I didn’t want my life to begin and end in Tirunelveli, so I chose Madras.” He didn’t even know about the existence of Anna University — “a friend’s dad applied and picked my courses. There was nobody to help or guide.”
One of the toppers in his batch, Raman cruised into Tata Consulting Engineers (TCE). We now have the famous story of how he landed at 4 a.m. at Dadar East in Bombay, slept on the platform, and left his bag with a vegetable vendor from Tirunelveli. Reporting to the office in chappals, he got ticked off by his boss, who soon turned sympathetic after hearing his story and gave him a month’s advance… and shoes!
AC, NOT COMPUTERS, IMPORTANT!
After nine months at TCE, when Tata Consulting Services wanted staff, he volunteered, “because the computer guys worked in AC rooms”. At TCE, he had done very well, and was offered a jump from Rs 2,350 to Rs 3,600, but he turned it down, quit, and applied to TCS. “Maybe I was naïve, crazy or audacious, but I enjoyed the power of computers and wanted it as a full-time job.”
He stayed at TCS for six months, his last stint in India. The highlight of it was his trip to Singapore as a “glorified courier” to deliver a software tape to IBM — but it crashed, robbing him of the opportunity to shop at Mustafa! After fixing the problem over two days, he whined to a senior about his bad luck. “He extended my trip, gave me an extra $1,000, and a car and driver. And I returned to India like a king, with a new suitcase, two gold chains for my mother and sister, shoes for my brother, TDK cassettes, Tiger Balm, etc.”
AUDACITY PAYS
TCS next sent him to work for a Scottish insurance company. It was launching five new policies, and Raman found the statistical fundamentals of one model flawed. When he pointed that out to his TCS boss in Bombay, he was asked to mind his business and stick to software writing! But when a director of the company, Chris Nicolty, stopped to chat with him, “I told him, ‘Please educate me, I am trying to understand how this will work.’ He listened and said ‘You might have a point’… but nothing more, and walked on.”
Two weeks later, the Scotsman came back to him and said, “Good job, I’m proud of you.” The project was stalled, Raman was given a bonus, and even offered a job at that company, hiking his salary from £500 to £2,500. “My life was made; in my mind I could see a house for my family, sister’s marriage, etc.”
But, interestingly, Nicolty advised him not to take the job because his biggest strength was the ability to take risks. In the UK he would soon hit a glass ceiling, so he should go to the US. “He said ‘don’t make your strength your weakness’.”
US CALLING
It was 1992. Fighting the urge to grab the opportunity, with his Scottish friend’s help, Raman soon had an offer for a contracting job with Walmart at an annual salary of $34,000. “But by the time they processed my visa, within a month the offer had gone up to $60,000,” he says.
By then he was married; he met his wife at TCS. “So with a Prestige cooker, two suitcases, and $100, we landed in Atlanta.” He joined as a Cobol programmer.
Raman’s dream run continued, with a helping hand from his ability to take risks. Walmart was making some of its contractors permanent employees, but the catch was reduced income — from $60,000 to $34,000. “Many others refused, but I took the job. By now my wife was also working, and we were comfortably sending $1,000 home every month,” he says.
FAIRYTALE RUN
Unbelievably, Raman says he got 18 promotions within just 18 months, and his salary jumped from $34,000 to $96,000.
Fascinated, I ask Raman how much more time he has for the interview. “I came late, so I don’t get to decide on the time; you do,” he says.
So, is he really good, or is it his gift of the gab that got him so far, I ask cheekily. Or does the US really recognise and reward talent? “I happened to be lucky; just like Forrest Gump, I was at the right place at the right time. God was disproportionately unkind to me when I was young, and disproportionately kind to me later.” He believes the US is “the most meritocracy country in the world… there is no question about it. You can take shots at America for so many things, but for honesty, work ethics and meritocracy, there is no country like it.”
So, was Nicolty right about the UK? “I think so… experience, tenure, that s**t works there. But in the US, I became a director so soon. At 24, I was negotiating $100 million deals with AT&T, without knowing the zeroes in one million.”
By 1993, he had shifted to retail, and when Walmart bought Pace Club the day before Thanksgiving, his challenge was to “integrate everything by Christmas — only six weeks. At this time, about 90 per cent of the people are on vacation. I wrote a bunch of codes and the system went live the day after Christmas.”
This is the day of heaviest returns, but everything worked without glitches. “So my boss introduced me to Rob Walton (the Chairman), saying, ‘he is the guy who did it’.”
Next, he moved to Walmart’s international division; “I moved away from technology to marketing and sales, and in the six years I spent in Walmart, I played every single role you can in retail business.” That laid the seed for his present role in Groupon.
So why did he leave?
“Because my boss, Doyle Graham, a father figure to me, died at 45 — just like my father. After he died, I lost the spark.” He next went to Blockbuster (a home movie rental provider) as a senior director running international technology for 26 countries. Here, too, he found the business model was flawed, and wrote a white paper detailing why it would go bust. But the Chief Executive Officer didn’t care for his views. So he left for Drugstore.com. “It was 1998 and the Internet was becoming big.” He joined as Chief Information Officer, became COO, and then CEO — all within two years.
Then the dotcom bust happened; everybody wrote the company off, but “I said the company would be profitable in two years. We got there a quarter earlier… and then I got bored.”
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was on the board of Drugstore; “and I made another weird call. I became CEO when I was 31, and when I left I was 34, I said I’ve got promotions too fast in my career, so for the next two years I won’t be CEO and will undo all the bad habits I’ve learnt.” Bezos “invited me to solve a complicated technology problem at Amazon. I said I’ll work for a couple of years, but I want to start my own company in education.”
“I DON’T WORK FOR MONEY”
In 2007, he started Global Scholar to “help teachers give differentiated education to kids using technology. It was a fantastic experience. I raised $50 million in the toughest economy since the Depression. In 30 months, I gave four times returns to my investors and then sold the company in 2010-11.” On why he did so, he quips, “The moment you start a company, it is for sale… at the right price. You can’t have emotions…”
Also, by then he must have made enough money, I prompt. “I don’t work for money; every penny I make in Groupon, I’ve pledged to charities…”
To my sceptical look and arched eyebrows he responds: “I don’t need money; I work hard because I want to work hard. Why do I need money? My daughter (studying computer science at Carnegie Mellon) says she won’t take a penny from me. My son, too, is the same, and my wife is cool with it. I still take care of my siblings… I play cricket, watch Tamil movies, read books, that’s it.”
No fancy yachts? “I can’t even swim. I have the same car, a Lexus, since 2001.”
Groupon’s Chief Financial Officer, Jason Child, a colleague in Amazon, got him on the board of the company, which has 14,000 people and 500 offices in 46 countries.
But isn’t Groupon doing badly?
“It is under pressure, true, but not doing badly. That is a distorted reality. I like it this way, though. I want everybody to think we are doing badly, so that all of a sudden you guys will call me a magician. We’re not going to do anything different, but will look like winners.”
On the speculation that he might be named Groupon CEO, he says, “Why should anybody care? Let’s get the stuff going in the right direction.”
During his last visit to India, Raman adopted 24,000 physically challenged kids in a village in Tenkasi — he’ll help with their education, healthcare, vocational training, and employment. “My goal is to give them both dignity and hope… and the ultimate goal is to create one million jobs in Tirunelveli district.” And to own an IPL team!
On India’s future, he says nobody can stop the country from becoming a superpower — “We will work hard to mess it up, but India will prevail because of our intellectual talent and the average age of Indians.”
source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Home> Features> Weekend Life / by Rasheeda Bhagat rasheeda.bhagat@thehindu.co.in / 2013
Mitticool, a terracotta refrigerator./ Photo: S. Siva Saravanan / The Hindu
With more than 12 hours of power cut a day, consumers, including students, are looking at ways that will improve power availability.
Be it industries, students or the common man, many are coming up with new concepts and products that will reduce the dependence on conventional electricity, improve energy conservation and generation.
The State-level science expo organised in Coimbatore a couple of months ago by the Department of School Education saw a significant number of entries related to energy conservation and generation of power from alternative sources. This included off-shore wind mills and an improvised pedal-operated generator to power home appliances.
On the industrial front, two companies went in for bio-diesel production using non-edible vegetable seeds. Though awareness is high, production of bio-diesel is not viable in this region at present because of non-availability of seeds. If there is an assured supply of the seeds and support from the Government, production and use of bio-diesel can increase, says an industry source. The plants require nearly three kg of seeds to produce one litre of diesel and the total cost works out to Rs. 40 a litre. The cost varies according to the availability and price of the seeds. The diesel can be used to run generators and in industries.
Similarly, a product that has found a market here is terracotta refrigerator manufactured buy a Gujarat-based entrepreneur.
The 50 litre refrigerator does not require electricity to keep vegetables, fruits, milk and water cool. According to Mansukhbhai Prajapati, who makes “Mitticool” from 2004, he entered the Tamil Nadu market recently by appointing dealers. In Coimbatore and Erode Districts, over 50 have been sold in the last two months. Mr. Prajapati is now working on “Mitticool house”, which is an environment-friendly air-conditioner.
source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Coimbatore /by M. Soundariya Preetha / Coimbatore, April 04th, 2013
Kashmiri creations have been retailed from Spencer’s Plaza for a long time,despite the mall having hit a rough patch | P Ravikumar
Spencer Plaza, one of the oldest shopping malls in the country, is now probably just a remnant of the British Raj. But, a horde of Kashmiri Muslim merchants have kept the place buzzing with activity for decades now, despite other shops moving out to more feasible locations after the advent of modern-age malls
Rows of shops dot the maze of floors at the Spencer Plaza that otherwise bears a desolate look, except for one thing: goodwill drives trade despite tough competition. S A Shawl of Master Collections explains, “So many shops have shut down over the years, especially in the last decade. But, I have a stream of customers at my store and they are not just the foreign clients.”
Shawl, like most of the other shop owners is from Srinagar, Kashmir and has been a resident of Chennai for the last two decades. For many generations now, the Shawl family has been engaged in handicrafts. “We had the license from the British government in those days. Our family name, Shawl, indicates our occupation,” he adds.
Quite a few procure the handicrafts from Kashmir, he explains, “It is a labour-intensive sector and it takes many days for us to manufacture one handicraft item. And, it has a long procedure involved as well.”
Jewel Mine, another shop that is popular among the local shoppers and foreign clientele is a hotspot for its exclusive handicrafts, shawls, gold and silver jewellery. Parvez Ahmed Khan, owner, Jewel Mine, shares his views on the consistent popularity of Kashmiri handicrafts among the crowd. “The reason why none of the handicrafts shops moved out of Spencer is because of the places popularity among the foreign crowd. They come here because it doesn’t have a European or American feel to it.”
He adds that it is impossible to run a unit in Chennai, though it might possibly save much of costs for the shop owners. “For many, it is easier to procure the handicrafts and other items like carpets and shawls from Kashmir,” he says rather ruefully.
Shabarat Sidiq who runs Aarasz, another Kashmiri emporium explains why Spencer is the ideal set up for many like him.
“Over the years, emporiums have thrived because of their appeal among foreign clients. There are close to 72 shops here and everyone has an exclusive client,” he says.
With the fashion boom that has spread even to a traditional city like Chennai, emporiums have benefitted from the sudden surge in demand. Shawl says, “Even college girls in Chennai are now keen on the original pashmina shawls.”
Khan echoes similar thoughts and says, “Earlier, Chennai’s customers were interested only in gold but today we see people like to invest even in gems.” Now they are open to spending on new things,” he laughs.
However, there has been a 70 per cent decline in the production because of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), over the past 5 years, says Shawl. “That has directly affected the manufacturing of handicrafts. Labourers don’t want to engage in the process as the act has a provision to provide them with the basic amount.”
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Janani Sampath – Chennai / April 01st, 2013
The inhabitants of the remote villages tucked away in Jawadhu Hills, about 70 km from here, got the shock of their impoverished lives the other day when their district collector came riding a motorbike to check on their needs.
The young IAS officer, Dr. Pingale Vijay Maruti, brought his additional collector T. Anand on the pillion, riding through 15 km of tough forest tracks winding along steep slopes amidst loose boulders to reach those miserable people and see firsthand the generations of neglect they have suffered through successive regimes. About 5,000 people live in these 11 villages that lack most of the basic needs, including schools, healthcare and ration shops.
“Almost all the people he met told the collector that their most vital need is a road to link them to civilisation. They carried their sick 17 km down the difficult forest track to reach the nearest PHC (public health centre), often too late, and carried the dead body on their shoulders for final rites at home. Moved by their plight, the collector has initiated steps to lay roads through the hills”, said a local official, who had struggled to keep pace with Dr. Maruti on that trip on Tuesday.
Asked for details, Dr. Maruti told DC that he met several village leaders during his motorbike ride up the hills and told them to activate their ‘forest rights committees’ for helping him to lay the roads. Under the forest laws, only thin paths of 3.5 metres width were allowed through reserved forests but the ‘forest rights act’ permitted exceptions to make life better for the inhabitants of inner villages.
Once the roads are completed, it would be possible to motor from Polur on Tiruvannamalai side to Jamunamaruthur and on to Amrithi on Vellore side. “A villager now has to either walk or take the bus on a circuitous route of over 50 km for this travel, whereas the new road will shorten the distance to 12 km”, Dr Maruti said.
“It’s been over two years since I rode a two-wheeler, but this ride was quite exciting. And very satisfying in its results”, added the collector, who hails from Nasik in Maharashtra.
source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> News> Current Affairs / DC / March 29th, 2013
