Dawood Khan Jawahar Ahamed, right, senior engineer (contracts), DEWA, making a presentation in Tiruchi on Tuesday on business opportunities for SMEs in Dubai. / Photo: A. Muralithara / The Hindu
DEWA to facilitate SMEs to register themselves as vendors in Dubai
With fabrication units of Tiruchi beginning to explore business opportunities in Dubai, the State-run Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has come forward to facilitate the small and medium enterprises to register themselves as vendors in Dubai and also provide match-making services for the SMEs.
Representatives of DEWA, who visited the city for an interaction with BHELSIA members in November last year, are here again to take forward the discussions. A delegation of BHEL Small Industries Association (BHELSIA) had also visited Dubai recently to explore opportunities .
Both the organisations are of the view that fabrication units could tap direct and indirect business opportunities in Dubai. Briefing reporters here on the discussions, Dawood Khan Jawahar Ahamed, senior engineer (contracts), DEWA, said fabrication units of Tiruchi could supply equipment for power generation, power and water transmission, renewable energy, oil and gas, desalination plants, and a host of other fields.
His organisation would support the fabrication units in not only registering themselves as vendors online but also provide match-making services to help them become sub-contractors for DEWA’s main vendors.
Dubai was now going in for a 2 x 600 MW clean coal technology power plant and 1 x 100 MW solar power plants. The country will also ramp up its power generation capacity ahead of Expo 2020. “We are looking at suppliers in Tiruchi for its cost competitiveness and quality in fabrication,” he said.
“Our vendor registration process is very simple and can be done online from here. We do not have a system of approved vendors and anybody with expertise to supply quality material can register themselves.
Unique codes will be assigned within two days and evaluation will be purely on merit,” Mr.Ahamed said. Mr.Ahamed said that DEWA would help BHELSIA in exploring opportunities in countries other than Dubai in West Asia and elsewhere. “We are here for a long-term association,” he affirmed.
M.Srinivasan, president, BHELSIA, said after long years of being dependent on the public sector major BHEL, fabrication units in Tiruchi are now ready to explore opportunities abroad. “We have built the capacity and expertise. We have learnt from our visit to Dubai that we can do business from here. Given our cheap and qualified labour, we can still be competitive by exporting,” he said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Tiruchirapalli / by Special Correspondent / Tiruchi – June 11th, 2014
His modest workshop in the sleepy locality of KNG Pudur in Coimbatore stocks a few machines that spit out the revolutionary low-cost sanitary napkins. Menstrual man Arunachalam Muruganantham, perched on his chair, goes on with his business even as he sorts out his visa applications to the different countries he has been invited to deliver keynote seminars. “All these visits are by invitation only. I had never stepped out of the city before. Today, I rub shoulders with biggies across the world,” says Muruganantham, son of a poor handloom weaver.
A Muruganantham
The social entrepreneur has found a place in the list of 100 Most Influential People in the World by an international magazine, that too with the likes of Narendra Modi, Arvind Kejriwal and Arundhati Roy. “When I got the news, I didn’t realize it was a big achievement. It was my wife, who told me that it was a feat I should be proud of.”
The tryst with the production of low-cost sanitary napkin producing machines began when Muruganantham saw his wife using a rag cloth during those days of the month. “I wouldn’t even clean my scooter with that. That’s when it struck me that most of the women, especially in the rural areas are not aware of sanitary napkins and those who did, couldn’t afford it. I studied women across the country and I was shocked to find out that only 5 per cent of them (excluding the metros) were aware of sanitary napkins. Women in rural households used saw dust, dry leaves and ashes on those days. When I showed these slides abroad, the audience was stunned. I started working on the machines with utmost care. No one volunteered to be my subject and when I tested these pads on myself, I was called a pervert. It was journey where I had to battle many ordeals.”
Muruganantham’s hard work bore fruits when his work was approved by IIT Madras in 2009. “It was a strange ambiance there. Everyone out there was conversing in English and I didn’t understand a word of what they were saying. I thought I would never fit into the corporate set up. But when my design was finally approved, I was glad that I was not well- educated as I didn’t have learn about ‘unnecessary’ things. I then supplied the machine to women self help groups, who now not only make a living out of it, but also take care of their ‘monthly’ issues,” says Muruganantham, who strongly believe in the cause of women empowerment. “We keep discussing nuclear power and other issues but we should spare a thought to the basic needs of our women. Now that I am on a mission to spread awareness about menstrual hygiene and help women, I would be glad even if I am able to raise the awareness level to 10 per cent.”
He also emphasizes that entrepreneurship is the need of the hour. “Every year, in our country, we churn out more job seekers rather than job creators. We have to look at new business models, identify a problem and work on a solution for the same. Today, the machines I have created have provided employment to many women in the rural areas across the country. Why can’t youngsters follow suit?”
As the conversation veers to his future plans, Muruganantham says, “I am now working on a model of suspended agriculture that is growing plants without water and sand,” he says as shows us a plant hanging from the ceiling of his factory. “This is to help the landless farmers,” he says with a grin.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Coimbatore / by P. Sangeetha, TNN / june 07th, 2014
US President Barack Obama plans to appoint a Madras University graduate and alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology as a member of the National Science Board of National Science Foundation.
The proposed appointment of Dr Sethuraman Panchanathan, Senior Vice President of the Office of Knowledge Enterprise Development at Arizona State University (ASU), was announced by the White House Friday with 15 other key administration posts
“Our nation will be greatly served by the talent and expertise these individuals bring to their new roles. I am grateful they have agreed to serve in this Administration, and I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead,” Obama said.
At over thirty, the Obama administration has more Indian-Americans working at high places than in any other previous administration.
Panchanathan, who has held his current position at ASU since 2011, previously worked as a Data Communication Engineer for International Software India Limited in Chennai, India in 1986.
He received a BSc from the University of Madras, a BE from the Indian Institute of Science, an MTech from the Indian Institute of Technology, and a PhD from the University of Ottawa, Canada.
Panchanathan has held a number of positions at Arizona State University since 1998.
He has been a foundation chair professor in Computing and Informatics since 2009 and a founding Director of the Centre for Cognitive Ubiquitous Computing since 2001.
Panchanathan founded the ASU School of Computing and Informatics in 2006 and the Department of Biomedical Informatics in 2005.
Prior to working for ASU, Panchanathan served at the University of Ottawa as a founding Director of the Visual Computing and Communications Laboratory from 1990 to 1997.
He worked as Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering from 1994 to 1997, and Assistant Professor from 1989 to 1994.
Established in 1892 by the British, Arapalayam Water Works is the first modern drinking water scheme in Madurai. An initiative of J A Jones, a British engineer, the project enabled the British to provide drinking water to Madurai city.
However, the scheme was abandoned after 1980 due to contamination of the riverbed and decaying of the stone structure which hosted the water works after city corporation dismantled its roof for renovation. Almost after a year, renovation was not carried out and the otherwise heritage structure is at peril. Residents and conservationists advocate that the structure and place surrounding it – being used as two-wheeler stand at present – can be converted into a beautiful park and heritage centre.
After capturing power in Madurai, the British constituted the city as a municipality in 1866 . To provide clean drinking water, Arapalayam Water Works was developed by the municipal administration by constructing a check dam and sand aquifer wells were sunk. The British were able to pump 30 lakh litres per hour through this system and were able to provide drinking water to the entire city. They also took care in protecting the check dam and aquifers by deploying a mounted horse battalion. According to a book titled ‘Neerinri – the water resources of Madurai’, the project, which had a long run was abandoned in 1980.
R Shivakumar, author of Neerinri, stresses that the structure should be protected considering its heritage value. “It could be turned into a park and the building could be used to host an event exhibiting photos and models of drinking water schemes of Madurai,” he said.
R Jothiram, 60, a resident of Arapalayam, recalled that a park existed some decades ago. “Some 40 years ago there was a park surrounding the water works. The Vaigai river itself was in good condition. The corporation and PWD failed to prevent contamination of the river and subsequently abandoned the project,” he rued. “There is no proper park for Arapalayam and Ponnagaram regions and converting this land at Arapalayam as park will be ideal. Besides hundreds of passengers utilizing nearby Arapalayam bus stand can cool their heels in this park,” said A Ramesh, a resident of Ponnagaram.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Madurai / by J. Arockiaraj, TNN / June 11th, 2014
Sethuraman Panchanathan’s father R Sethuraman and mother Saraswathy at their residence, in the city on Sunday | martin louis
Chennai :
For Sethuraman Panchanathan, who was appointed member of US’ prestigious National Science Board of the National Science Foundation by President Barack Obama on Friday, the foundation for his spectacular career was laid while pursuing higher education in India. The scientist with roots in the Chennai, did his schooling and spent and much of his college days in the city.
After passing out of the Madras Christian College School here, he went to Vivekananda College, then the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore and finally IIT Madras before he left for Ottawa, Canada for his doctorate. “When I went to Canada I could easily cope with my research since my professors at the IIT and IISc had motivated and engaged me in research,“ he informed Express in a telephonic conversation from the US.
He fondly recalls many of the professors who guided him to reach that stage. “My professor at the Vivekananda College, Professor Shankar was a tremendous inspiration for me. He was an amazing teacher, the commitment that he brought into teaching and the kind of care that he gave to his students inspired me much,” says Panchanathan.
This is the first time that someone of Indian origin has been appointed to the prestigious body, which guides the science and technology policies in the US. Speaking about research in India, Panchanathan, called Panch by peers, says there is a need to find ways to make a career in research exciting.
“There is some good work being done in the IITs and IISc. But as a whole the training and emphasis is not as much on research as for jobs in information technology or other areas. Research needs to be scaled up and intensified if India needs to compete globally. As of now the research in the country is not level with its position globally,” he says.
He points to the number of options students in the US have when they take up research, including starting their own entrepreneurial ventures, being hired into research wings of companies or as faculty in research positions.
“How to promote interest in research in undergraduate students, increase interest in science among students, how to promote curiosity driven creative research, how to make use of basic research to create innovations that can help society – these are certain questions that needs to be answered,” he says.
Giving a sense of how intense research projects ought to be pursued, Panchanathan’s dad Sethuraman recalls how he had to call off a marriage proposal for his son to enable him to continue his research project in Canada.
“When he was in Canada working on his research, we had this proposal and called him to India. But his professor there, one Mr Goldberg, wrote a long letter to me. He said, ‘no wedding when the research is going on, I will not leave him from here unless he completes his project.’ With that we dropped the plan straight away,” he says with a laugh.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Amritha K R / June 16th, 2014
Orthopaedic surgeon Mayil Vahanan Natarajan has taken the technology of custom-made prostheses across the country
In 1996, when Keshava Raghunathan was 12, he was diagnosed with a bone tumour.
“My parents were terrified that I would lose my leg. The surgeon we consulted, asked us to see Dr. Mayil Vahanan Natarajan,” he said.
The first thing eminent orthopaedic surgeon Dr. Natarajan said, according to Mr. Raghunathan, was, “This boy can walk.” And, after a limb salvage surgery using a custom-made prostheses, Mr. Raghunathan had 15 glorious years of walking, running, trekking and mountain-climbing. “It is only because I have grown taller that I now need a surgery again,” he said.
Mr. Raghunathan was one of several patients who spoke at a ceremony held to mark Dr. Natarajan’s completion of 2,000 limb salvage surgeries using custom mega prostheses, held on Saturday.
Eleven-year-old Subbaiah M. Nuchimanyanda, another patient, who underwent the surgery in 2009, said he was now writing a book.
“When I started out as a young doctor 25 years ago, we would come across case after case of patients with malignant bone tumours at the general hospital or Cancer Institute, Adyar. Back then, the only option was amputation of the limb, which would leave both patients and their families shattered. Also, imported prostheses were very expensive. It made me determined to come up with an alternative,” Dr. Natarajan said.
And thus, in 1988, began an indigenous design-and-manufacturing process for the development of custom-made prostheses. These, since they did not involve amputation and were considerably cheaper than the imported ones, soon became popular. “After 10 years of studying the effects on patients, I took the technology across the country, encouraging doctors to use it, and training them,” Dr. Natarajan said.
About 15 States have now adopted this methodology and the limbs of thousands of patients have been saved thanks to them, he said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai> Health / by Staff Reporter / Chennai – June 16th, 2014
Carborundum Universal Ltd (CUMI), part of the Murugappa Group , is expecting its South African plant to increase its sales by $10-million sales with the addition of new capacity.
The group had invested around 115 million Rand (Rs 63.6 crore at current currency rates) to hike capacity at the Bubble Zirconia plant to 5,000-tonne from last year’s 500-tonne. The plant produces electro minerals used in various applications in refractories for possessing thermal shock resistance.
K Srinivasan , managing director of Carborundum Universal Ltd, recently told analysts the Bubble Zirconia plant had been a big challenge for them as the production remained less than 500 tonne for the entire last year despite seeing an investment of 115 million Rand. “It took far more effort and time than what we thought it would be,” he said.
source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> Companies> News / by BS Reporter / Chennai – June 06th, 2014
Arvind Remedies , a producer of branded and generic pharmaceutical products, has entered into a memorandum of understanding ( MOU ) with SRM University in Chennai to use the university’s patent to manufacture and market drugs for type II diabetes and coronary heart disease.
These drugs will be manufactured in the form of tablets and will be launched in mid of 2015, first in the domestic market which will be followed by the global market.
“According to the International Diabetes Federation, 382 million people across world have diabetes, which is expected to rise to 592 million by 2035. The number of people with type II diabetes is increasing in every country. In order to curb this disease, we have come up with new drug that is from the botanical source which ensures zero side effects on the health of the patient. We are expecting this new drug to be available in the markets by mid 2015,” Dr B Arvind Shah, managing director and chief executive officer, Arvind Remedies.
“Coronary heart disease is also a common type of heart disease and is killing more than 385,000 people annually. We are happy to share that, we have been successful in developing a new drug, which will help in treatment of coronary heart disease,” Dr Shah added.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Business> India Business / by Aparna Ramalingam, TNN / May 31st, 2014
Naba K. Mondal (right), Project Director, India based Neutrino Observatory, inspecting the site for Inter Institutional Centre for Higher Energy Physics at Vadapazhanji, in Madurai. / Photo: S. James / The Hindu
The Inter Institutional Centre for High Energy Physics (IICHEP) at Vadapazhanji, near here, has completed research and development activities for the construction of a particle detector in the Neutrino Observatory (INO) coming up in a cavern in the Bodi hills in Theni district.
Though pre-project work was progressing well both in Madurai and in Theni, the construction of the main observatory in a cavern would begin only after clearance given by the Union Cabinet, INO Project Director Naba K. Mondal toldThe Hindu on Friday. “The clearance is expected soon.”
Mr. Mondal said a 66-acre site was identified at Pottipuram in Theni district for establishing ground facilities at the entrance to a two-km-long tunnel to be dug under the hills for establishing the observatory. The site had now been fenced and pipelines for supplying water to the site had been laid for construction work to begin.
Simultaneously, the IICHEP, functioning from a rented building, was carrying out research and development activities with respect to over 30,000 particle detectors required for the observatory and other allied facilities. “All parameters of the detector have been determined. Now, we have to start industrial production of the detectors and associated front-end electronics,” he added.
S. Stephen Inbanathan of American College, one of the collaborators for the project here, said the construction of a compound wall was completed around 33 acres of land, earmarked for establishing state-of-the-art facilities for the IICHEP. “Construction of buildings would commence soon, and the facility would serve as a research hub for particle physics.”
The INO is a collaborative project of 22 reputed science institutions in the country and is backed by the Departments of Atomic Energy and Science and Technology. The pre-project work started after an initial grant of Rs.83 crore sanctioned by the Centre last year.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> news> National> Tamil Nadu / by Mohamed Imranullah S / Madurai – May 30th, 2014
A car from the good old world – Ambassadors are still a symbol of pride. / Photo: S. James / The Hindu
The Ambassador car will remain in the hearts of the people forever even after it goes off the roads
The street opposite the bus depot on Bypass Road is no different but for the dozens of ambassador cars tightly parked along the sides. Some rusted and laden with dust wait for a coat of paint, some wait for a repair and some await a buyer. ‘Ambassador workshops’, as they are called, dot the street.
Now with the production stopped, the Ambassador may soon join the line of vintage cars.
There was a time when a car meant just Ambassadors. For its Swadeshi tag, it was sought after by the netas.
The garage of the rich too had an Ambassador parked majestically.
It was the peoples’ car too. Some years later, Ambys became synonymous with taxis.
Many owners take pride on their sturdy car and still claim that it is the best of the cars. Some see the machine as an inheritance from their fathers and grand-fathers, some even consider the Amby as a member of the family! It is a token of remembrance from the good old world.
The Amby makes a perfect car for the jugaad experiments of the desi mechanic. Mechanics praise the versatility and simplicity of its mechanism. “It’s a mechanic’s car and one can do any kind of modification in it,” says Bhoopathy, an Ambassador specialist. Private workshops like his thrived on Ambassadors. “Ninety percent of the vehicles we repaired were ambassadors. People preferred these as the maintenance cost is cheap,” says Bhoopathy, who started fitting Isuzu engines in the car even before the manufacturer introduced it. He compares the car to a quaint village inn. “It’s simple and not extravagantly luxurious. But it is still comfortable and affable.”
After vehicle owners started drifting to other sophisticated vehicles, the mechanics also tried to shift their attention to new models but found it hard. “It is extremely difficult to change. We have been servicing ambassadors for years with trained professionals. Now again we have to start from the scratch,” says Bhoopathy.
The sprawling Thanga Niranjula Automobiles, which once buzzed with Ambys and their owners is now deserted. The owners have sold a portion of the mechanic shed for survival. “Ambassadors were not like the ready-to-use modern cars, even the brand new car needed some welding to fix the front and back seats properly. Most of the mechanical parts were made of lead making the car heavy,” says N. Ashok Kumar, one of the partners of the workshop.
Businessman K. Ganesh is a die-hard ambassador fan. His maroon-coloured 1957-model Mark-I Ambassador is a car with an antique moustache grille. “We were a big joint family and nearly 10 of us kids would go to the school in the car. It so easily accommodated all of us and our school and lunch bags,” says Ganesh, who repainted the car from black to maroon. “I have so many fond memories of the car bought from a royal descendant of Ramanathapuram.”
The ambassador was once a status symbol. It was parked only at palaces, mansions and bungalows. If the Fiat was called the ‘doctor’s car’, the Amby was called the ‘family car’.
“We have shifted houses in this car,” says 25-year-old Sharath Madhav pointing to his metallic gold Amby that his father bought in 2002. “It was my grand father’s wish to buy an ambassador car,” says Sharath. “Each time we returned from our native village in Nagercoil, we used to stack coconuts in the boot. It was huge and we have transported families out of cities.” Though the Ambassador is called the ‘man’ for its masculine and sturdy appearance, it is a car that everyone in the family loved and related to. “My mother never finds any other car as comfortable as the ambassador. It’s a kid’s car too, as there is so much of space for the children to play around and have fun,” says Sharath.
To R. Prabhu, an engineer, Ambassador is a statement. “You stand out when you drive the amby. It’s bulky and big and can never go unnoticed,” he says. In the age of luxury cars, the Ambassador continues to be a fancy among people and many give the credit to its ordinariness. “It’s a very simple and ordinary car. And that’s the beauty about it,” says Prabhu.
Several Amby owners remodelled the interiors and fitted power-windows, bucket seats, air conditioners and power-steering as the car’s ordinariness is also said to have gone against it. “Innovations were hardly introduced in the car. Even basic facilities came much later in the Ambassador. And that’s the reason for the drop in sales in spite of its engine performance,” feels P. Kumarappan, a car valater.
Best Taxi
Hindustan Motors’ Ambassador was rated the world’s best taxi at the Beaulieu’s World of Top Gear motorsport show last year. It started its life in Britain as Morris Oxford and introduced here with a name change to become one of the country’s most enduring vehicles. Ambassador saw off rivals from Britain, America, Germany, South Africa, Mexico and Russia to win the award.
R. Sarathkumar, actor and a car lover:It is a durable car and it ruled Indian roads for more than half a century. Though I don’t have one, I love driving this car. The bench seats are accommodative and are comfortable offering good thigh support. It has been the car of the masses then, now and forever. It is a preferred choice even now for its spacious interiors and ability to withstand bad road conditions. Whatever is said the goodwill of the ambassador will never die.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus> Motoring / by T. Saravanan & Shri Kumar / Madurai – June 04th, 2014
