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PUNE, JANUARY 03, 2015 | www.thegoldensparrow.com
• T H E P E O P LE ’ S PA P E R •
TGS LIFE
New Year resolutions & how to keep them
PUNE’S PEOPLE WITH A PURPOSE
Service to humanity, is serving God P2
SPORTS
Ankita targets national games P 16
The Golden Sparrow on Saturday wishes its readers, advertisers and well-wishers a very happy & prosperous New Year 2015
The birds have
arrived
Civic body approves `12 crore for PMPML Pardeshi asks for funds to improve the transport utility BY ARCHANA DAHIWAL @ArchanaDahiwal Giving a push to the efforts of Dr Shrikar Pardeshi, who took the additional responsibility as chairman Dr Shrikar Pardeshi and managing director of Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML), to improve the service of public sector bus undertaking, the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) Standing Committee approved Rs 12 crore for PMPML. Dr Pardeshi visited the PCMC head office last week and asked the civic body to assist PMPML financially. Accordingly, the Standing Committee members unanimously approved Rs12 crore for PMPML. Earlier, the PCMC held back the proposal of providing funds to PMPML, citing its poor administration. In a meeting with officials of Pune Municipal Corporation and PCMC, Pardeshi highlighted the need for immediate financial help to improve the services of PMPML. PMPML dues of Rs 72 crore are pending with both the municipal corporations. PMC has payment dues of almost Rs 43 crore, while the PCMC has Rs 26 crore. The PCMC will give Rs 12 crore to PMPML to help the latter cover operational losses and offset the cost of free bus passes that the civic body has given to students. Meanwhile, the PMPML has decided to use Rs 50 crore from the employees’ salary fund for bus repairing after the nod of employee unions. The PMC had given Rs 50 crore to the PMPML to clear the pending salary of employees. However, the PMPML was unable to use it since PCMC was yet to provide its full share (Rs 26 crore). Pardeshi suggested that Rs 50 crore would be used for bus repairs and once PCMC gives its share, the PMPML will clear the employees’ salary.
archana.dahiwal@goldensparrow.com
PCMC shows the biometric way of success
Even as Pune Municipal Corporation has failed to bring discipline after three years of implementing the new attendance system, the salary record of Pimpri-Chinchwad civic staff is covered by BAS, and PMPML follows suit
PCMC employees following biometric attendance system at its head office in Pimpri
BY ASHOK BHAT & ARCHANA DAHIWAL @ashok_bhat & @ArchanaDahiwal To track the attendance and office hours of babus and employees, and the time s/he signs in and signs out, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) installed the biometric attendance system (BAS) in 2012. Even as the civic administration followed the Centre’s example, bowing to the staff union pressure, it did not connect the attendance data with salary records. However, the public transport utility Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) adopted the biometric system within two days of taking the decision after Dr Shrikar Pardeshi took over the office. And the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) is also following the new attendance system effectively since 2010. And Pardeshi was the municipal commissioner at that time. Talking to TGS, Deepak Pardeshi, public relations officer, PMPML, said that PMPML started collecting thumb
impressions from December 16, 2014, and collected the data of around 1,200 employees within six days. And the attendance record has been linked to their salary. The equipment were also brought from the vendor who provided it to PMC. The PMC’s effort to ensure staff ’s strict adherence to punctuality in workplace has failed to produce the desired result. Many employees of various departments are found not making entry either in the traditional attendance register or use the modern biometric attendance system. In 2012, the then municipal commissioner Mahesh Pathak and additional commissioner Umakant Dangat had called a tender for 300 units of biometric equipment and installed 200 in different departments. The civic body had made it binding for about 3,500 clerical employees to register attendance by using the biometric facility. The duty profile at PMC involves office and outdoor work with around 11,500 staff from engineers to Class IV employees doing field work. Contd on p 10
Bhigwan, the winter gateway for the migratory and the local birds, is full of chirping and airborne birds these days. The migratory birds, including Flamingos and Rudy Shelduck, cover the backwaters of Ujani dam, located on the Pune–Solapur highway. The Golden Sparrow on Saturday’s (TGS) lensman Aniruddha Rajandekar and reporter Gitesh Shelke went bird-watching. The memorable experience opened their eyes to everything out there besides capturing the images of avian beauties.
See Spotlight on p8 & 9
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
PUNE
“The low standards of our state-run schools and our weak infrastructure have especially hurt the poor. Those of us who can afford alternatives merely opt out, leaving behind rickety, nonfunctioning systems for the less fortunate to endure.” —Nandan Nilekani, entrepreneur, politician
Poems reflect a sensitised mindset P4
Pune author gets a start-up pat P7
Service to humanity, is serving God Dr Vinod Shah set up Janaseva Foundation for the upliftment of the elderly and destitute
Dr Vinod Shah attending a patient in an ambulance that is part of the mobile medical unit started by Janaseva Foundation
BY PRACHI BARI & YASH DAIV @prachibari & @yash009 To Dr Vinod Shah, social work comes naturally; it is a family tradition. Dr Shah founded the Janaseva Foundation on January 15, 1988, with the aim of easing the hardships and suffering of the poor, sick and downtrodden of society. “My uncle was involved with Sane Guruji’s freedom struggle. My
grandfather Pitamber Mehta walked alongside Gandhiji during the Dandi Yatra,” he said. “I was born in Dapoli and went to the same school where Sane Guruji and Dhondu Keshav Karve did their schooling. Later I came to Fergusson College, then BJ Medical College and finally, Sassoon Hospital for further specialisation. I wanted to specialise in gastroenterology hence, I went to Houston Medical Centre in US,” Shah said.
Shah has attained eminence in the medical profession, but he is also strongly drawn towards social work, in which he invests both time and money. Dr Shah’s patients range from poor slum dwellers to the chief minister and governor of Maharashtra. “When I came back in 1982, I began helping Lion’s Club with their health camps, which were often set up in villages near Saswad,” Shah said. Dr Shah also hosted a medical camp for senior citizens, where he came
across a number of women with serious opthalmological problems. To help these women overcome their plight, Dr Shah organised an eye camp at Sanjeevani Hospital, Hadapsar in 1982, with the support of the then Pune mayor Suresh Taur, Dr Satish Desai, a citybased socialite, former deputy mayor and presently, counselor in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Dr Anil Ravetkar, an opthalmologist. Dr Revatkar, has performed about 30
cataract surgeries, under the auspices of Pune Netraseva Pratishthan, an NGO founded by Dr M B Jhamwar. The dilemma was how to take care of the patients for a week but Modern Café’s Gunduraj Shetty and Vaishali’s Jagannath Shetty came to their aid of feeding the patients for a week. Soon with the help of the Pune Municipal Corporation, he set up a separate eye ward at Dalvi Hospital. Dr Shah recalls that many of the women would cry at his feet that he had given them a new lease of life and treated them as if they were ‘Maheri’ and were sad to leave. Initially, Janaseva Foundation was involved with organising health camps in the villages of Maharashtra, and over the years, set up a rural hospital and an old age home. “Serving society brings me inner peace. That’s why I take time out from my work every day, and devote it to the working of the Janaseva Foundation,” Dr Shah said. The Janaseva Foundation has also had an unceasing support of philanthropists, who have donated generously. “A patient of mine gave us five acres of land near Panshet, where we set up a home for senior citizens. Today it accommodates 200 people. We also put up another senior citizens home in Sonapur district, with the help of Sahayadri Vikas Mandal,” Shah said. Dr Shah has held eye camps in all the 120 villages in the Velha region. He was conferred the Anandibai Joshi Award in
The noble deeds • Built Sonapur General Hospital in 1990, a centre for healthcare and free physiotherapy services • The foundation has started a mobile medical unit with three ambulances to provide medical services at home for patients in remote villages • OPD is held once or twice a week in 60 villages • Nutrition scheme for children in rural areas
2007, for outstanding health services in rural areas. Shah looks up to the ideals espoused by Mahatma Gandhi, Sane Guruji, Mother Teresa and Baba Amte, and aims at contributing to the welfare of the needy in every way possible, through Janaseva Foundation. prachibari@gmail.com yashdaiv@gmail.com
Converting waste plastic File RTI applications the right way to get desired results into polyfuel Medha Tadpatrikar collects plastic waste and converts it into polyfuel. She believes that people themselves should be responsible for creating a sustainable environment BY PRACHI BARI @prachibari M e d h a Ta d p a t r i kar, who lives in Model Colony, was concerned over people’s careless attitude Medha Tadpatrikar towards garbage disposal. “I lived in the UK for nine years and so was familiar with the concept of the segregation of garbage. But we Indians are completely unaware of it,” said Tadpatrikar. A firm believer in preserving the environment, she undertook a personal mission of making people aware about the segregation of garbage. “A lot of plastic is thrown in with other waste. Plastic is nondegradable and causes more harm than we realise. Together with like-minded people, I wanted to find a solution. We urged people to segregate plastic waste which we then collect,” she said. Tadpatrikar has also found a way to turn the plastic waste into polyfuel, that can be used in place of gasoline or petrol. About four years ago, under the banner of Rudra Environmental Solution India, Medha Tadpatrikar along with Shirish Phadtarer and Nitin Gore as partners, set up a trial plant at Jejuri to create polyfuel from waste plastic. “We create polyfuel from plastic by gasolysis, a process used to degenerate plastic into polyfuel. If the plastic is of good quality, the output is almost 50 to 60 per cent. The methane gas which is released, is used to fire up the machine. The
Rudra Environmental Solution’s Jejuri-based plant that converts plastic waste into polyfuel
sludge can be used as fi lling, to creates waterproof roads,” said Tadpatrikar, who is the director of the company. The first couple of years were spent on research followed by persuading people to segregate plastic.
“From 100 kg of plastic, we can create 55 litres of polyfuel.” - Medha Tadpatrikar
“We asked people to segregate plastic waste which we collected and recycled into polyfuel,” Tadpatrikar said. “It was not easy to convince people to give us the plastic waste from their homes. We would give them big bags which when we collected them at the end of the
month, would contain oil cartons, toothpaste, ballpen refi lls etc that were ideal to make polyfuel,” she said. “From 100 kg of plastic, we can create 55 litres of polyfuel, which works fantastically well in gensets or large generators. We have one in our factory and it works like a dream,” Tadpatrikar said. The plant has the capacity of processing around 400 kg of plastic in a day, will generate nearly 200 litres of fuel that can be used to operate power generators. The operating cost of the plant is considerably low, as it is fully-automatic and a single man can operate it. They collect plastic waste from the Deccan area, Model Colony, Bopodi and Aundh. “We collect the plastic in our vehicles and transport it to the factory. People are very helpful. We just had to educate them on the hazards of plastic and wonders of polyfuel. I want to change people’s habits and also reduce the pressure on the local authorities, so we can all live in an environmentally-friendly city,” Tadpatrikar said. prachibari@gmail.com
One should follow a precise structure when filing an RTI application, Suraj Sangharsh Samiti shows you how BY MANASI SARAF JOSHI @GargiManasi
Dinesh Gaikwad filed several applications with the Pune Municipal Corporation, under the Right to Information Act (2005), when the builder of his society encroached Vijay Kumbhar on the society land to construct a gas station. But, Gaikwad was not provided the information he wanted by the PMC. Why? Because Gaikwad had not filed the RTI application correctly. Ashish and Amit, did not receive the state government scholarship funds they were eligible for. They filed several applications with the college but to no avail. They have now filed an application under RTI to resolve the scholarship issue. Resolved: After filing the same application under RTI, they have received their scholarships. After the PMC removed his stall in an
anti-encroachment drive, Ramesh Gaikwad was running from pillar to post to get his stall licence renewed. He finally resorted to filing an application with the PMC under RTI. The PMC has admitted that the stall was removed by mistake and has assured Gaikwad of its reinstatement. Despite RTI being used largely, ignorance and improper way of writing the application under it has limited its use. Suraj Sangharash Samiti’s (SSS) RTI katta (forum), has helped over 100 such people who failed to file the exact and precise RTI. The katta was started on January 4, 2014 and completed 50 sessions on December 15, 2014. The RTI Katta is held every Sunday between 9 and 11 am, at Chittaranjan Vatika, Model Colony. SSS chief and an RTI activist Vijay Kumbhar told The Golden Sparrow on Saturday, that, “The sole purpose of this katta is to solve people’s problems. At the katta we focus on the problems, and guide people to use RTI constructively. We explain the application filing procedure and the process thereafter. The katta or forum gives the space, where anyone can come and get information about it without any prior appointment of the concerned person who is knowledgeable in the field
“Long applications and lots of pages are not needed. A few lines can convey the necessary information,” Kumbhar said. Along with Kumbhar, social activists Shivling Mali and Sushil Ghate are also educating people on RTI. An RTI application should be of around 150 words. Here is how to file the application. Procedure: 1. Every government and semigovernmental organisation has a Public Information Officer (PIO), who is authorised to receive the application. 2. In rural areas, there are assistant PIOs at grampanchayat and other offices. 3. A fee of Rs 10 has to be affi xed with the application but it is free for people below the poverty line. It can be paid in the form of cash, demand draft or money order 4. The charge per page is two rupees. 5. Preserve the photo-copy of the application 6. As per the law, the information should be given in 30 days. If it fails, the applicant can go for appeal. If this fails too, the applicant can approach the Information Commissioner. manasisaraf@gmail.com
Suraj Sangharash Samiti’s RTI katta at Chittaranjan Vatika, Model Colony, helps people understand the RTI application filing procedure
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
When college campuses turn festive P5
Traffic details on your smartphone P6
PUNE
Out of the total 24,53,717 vehicles in Pune, nearly 75 per cent of them (18,40,834) are two-wheelers. Apart from two-wheelers, the city has 4,30,440 four-wheelers. —Pune RTO
Scoop that poop, says Uma Chakranarayan Every owner should clean up the place used by their pet
ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR
Do you think people should carry a poop collector when they take their four-legged friend out for a walk? Poop collectors are available in the market for as less as Rs 180 and come in a range of lengths and sizes. It makes sense to carry them especially in areas where there is constant human activity. On the rare occasion that Wag and Black do their business in our housing society, I make sure to clean it up. On the road, luckily, where we stay we have loads of open spaces where nobody goes so if it’s there, then it doesn’t worry me. Wag, mostly uses the toilet at home, so we are good. My son too has learnt that cleaning up poop is essential.
Uma Karve Chakranarayan, editor of a pet magazine ‘Tell Tail’, carries a poop collector when she takes her pets out for a daily walk
BY MEGHA V CHOUDHARY @meghaVchoudhary These days, the ‘Clean India Campaign’ is on everyone’s mind and lips, with the government and civic-minded organisations putting their shoulder to the task. But has anyone given a thought to the nuisance and litter that our pets create, when we take them out for the daily walk? Should it not be the owner’s responsibility to clean up the place dirtied by a pet? The Golden Sparrow on Saturday interviewed Uma Karve Chakranarayan, editor of a pet magazine Tell Tail, about the issue, and asked her if pet owners should carry along a poop collector or a poopscooper, when they take their pets out for a walk, and how necessary it was to discipline one’s pets. EXCERPTS FROM THE INTERVIEW: Tell us about yourself and your magazine? I always wanted to do something for
TGS Quiz Contest
A
No. 29
nswers to the following 10 questions are embedded in the stories featured in this edition. Send us the correct answers at contest.tgs@gmail.com and be one of the three lucky winners to receive gift coupons. 1
Who accompanied Medha Tadpatrika in setting up a trail Polyfuel plant at Jejuri?
2
Who is the founder of Janaseva Foundation?
3
Where is Alfurqan Islamic Centre located?
4
Who is the author of The Last Wave?
5
Who will be playing the title character in Lokmanya –ek yugpurush
6
What are the two characteristics of bipolar disorder
7
Where is Ammis Biryani in Pune
8
Who is Bindumadhav Khire
9
What is Kalki koechlin’s New year resolution
10 How many jeeps has Memon auto worked on?
Contest # 28 winners Komal Bafna Primo Samuel
animals. I used to write a column on pet care for ‘Prevention’, a magazine. The idea of launching a petcare magazine was sown by my friend Sandeep Mulye, partner, Petsworld, a pet food, apparel, toys, pet care and product store. My husband, Kunal Chakranarayan, encouraged me to start ‘Tell Tail’. We launched Tell Tail in May 2014. It is a monthly magazine that promotes responsible pet parenting. It talks about this directly and subtly through our features, stories and more. Tell Tail talks about you and your pets having fun together, while remembering the underlying rule – pamper them but discipline them too (as with children). To my knowledge, nobody has a column on birds or pages dedicated to pets. Here is where Tell Tail is different. Also, we do stories differently from other magazines. Pets have always added a lot of love and joy to my life. Tell Tail is an extension of what I do and what I love, together.
Apart from your pets, do you love other animals? I have been loving animals since I was a child. On my fifth birthday, I got parakeets as a gift from my parents. For my next birthday, I was asked what gift I wanted. I told my parents I wanted to set the gifted birds free. And they agreed. How do you manage time for your pets? I have two dogs, two guinea pigs, a magazine, and a pet accessories and pet wear business to run. I also have a gorgeous nine-year-old son. But it’s not all that difficult. My older dog, Black, is an angel, very protective of me and my son, and is extremely well behaved. Sadly, he has a weak heart and a broken hip joint – the result of being beaten by a stupid person. We wanted a pet for my then six-year-old son and this was when we came across Black. The younger fellow – Wag, became a member of our family on the fi rst day of Diwali last year, and he is the exact opposite of Black. Full of beans, he is
What pet owners say about using a poop collector…
always up to no good. We have always had mixed breed dogs and I advocate this breed to anybody who wants pets. I also have guinea pigs which aren’t all that interactive; our conversations are limited to their meal times and my peeking into their cage now and then. I let them run around a room for a couple of hours as I dislike keeping them caged. And we have fish too. So yes, my pets are rescue animals.
Where can one buy a poop collector and how much does it cost? Poop collectors are available at most pet shops. Try Petsworld stores (Karve Road, Salunke Vihar, MG Road and Aundh), Dr Vinay Gorhe’s Clinic in Kothrud. Is there any need to make it compulsory, especially when we are talking so much about the ‘Clean India Campaign’? Of course, we should ensure that all poop is cleaned up. I have seen owners leave poop in places where somebody will obviously step on it. People don’t want to bend and scoop… that’s laziness. The attitude that it’s not in my door so ‘it’s ok’ should change. So yes, it must be made compulsory.
Shehnaz Chavla, Clover Highland, NIBM We don’t carry poop collectors, but newspapers and dried leaves can be used to remove the litter. We have strict rules in our society and we need to clean the area used by our dog. Using a poop collector is an individual’s choice, but I feel that people should clean the litter.
Ganesh Pandhare, Sinhagad Road I own a Labrador, but never thought of using poop collector for it. We ensure that it doesn’t litter the surroundings and use places less frequented by people.
Suchismita Pai, Magarpatta City I own a Labrador mix and live in a bungalow, so most of the time my dog uses my garden, but I think people should remove their pet litter. They can use a scooper or a large leaf or whatever is handy, and ensure it is in a place where it can be buried out of sight. But it is not easy as not every place has a space to walk dogs and get rid of pet litter.
Societies follow strict rules on cleanliness Pet owners have been made responsible to clean up the mess their pets make BY ANJALI SHETTY @shetty_anjali
Housing societies in Pune are showing a far greater awareness and attention to matters of cleanliness and hygiene on their premises. Several societies are ensuring cleanliness at their surroundings especially when it comes to pets and their business. Your message to pet/ Divyanagar animal lovers. & Society in Wanavdi a. Pamper them but SWACHH BHARAT ensures pet owners discipline them. carry poop collectors, b. If your dog bites, when they take their pets for a walk. don’t encourage kids and older Arihant Enclave resident Anita S people to pet her/him - it stresses the said, “We do not use a poop collector, pet a whole lot. but we have trained our pets to use c. Scoop that poop. newspapers. When we take a pet for d. Be kind, caring to your pet. Help a walk, we use a newspaper to collect animals in distress - if not for the dog poop. Th is keeps our society compassion, then for good karma. premises in a clean, hygienic state.” All pet owners have been cautioned about megha.choudhary@goldensparrow.com
DOG LOVERS
‘Expedite hearing of curative petition’ Bindumadhav Khire writes a letter to the Supreme Court, on behalf of the LGBTI community BY VIDYA UNNITHAN @vidya_unnithan Well-known LGBTI (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex) activist and president of the city-based Samapathik Trust, a men’s sexual health organisation, Bindumadhav Khire, has dispatched a letter to the Chief Justice of India, HL Dattu, urging him to consider the pending curative petition of IPC 377 immediately. A curative petition is held in the judge’s chamber and if found fit for admission, will be posted for hearing in an open court. It is usually the last judicial resort available to any given party to redress their grievance in court. In April 2014, the Supreme Court agreed to consider the plea for an open court hearing on curative petitions filed by gay rights activists against its verdict criminalising homosexuality. The SC,
however, failed to give a tentative date. Khire’s letter emphasises expediting the hearing of the curative petition. It also contains his views regarding the decision on recriminalisation of homosexuality taken by Supreme Court on December 11, 2013. Speaking on behalf of the LGBTI community, Khire contends that sexual minorities are a creation of nature and to construe a personal, natural act between two consenting gay individuals as a crime would be a grave misinterpretation. “Even though the transgenders and intersex communities have the ‘Third Gender’ status, IPC Section 377 (1860) still continues to impinge on their fundamental rights to sexual expression,” Khire said. Khire’s letter has the support of the LGBTI community. Speaking to The Golden Sparrow on Saturday, Tinesh Chopde, a member of the community
“Even though the transgenders and intersex communities have the ‘Third Gender’ status, IPC 377 still continues to impinge on their fundamental rights to sexual expression.” - Bindhumadhav Khire
LGBTI activists during one of their protest rallies in Pune
said, “As an individual citizen of the state, I am deprived of my basic rights. We, as a community, do not demand for legalisation, we know it is a long shot, all we need is amendment in the law wherein two consenting adults have the basic freedom of expression and identity.” Treading on the same line of thought, Vikram, 26, says, “The law imposed by Section 377 is a major setback to our identity. A major part of our life is not being accepted. Being shown as a criminal for having a different sexual orientation is offensive, moreover, it is unfair. The law was made during the British rule, it has been over fifty years since the UK legalised gay rights and India still follows the rule that the imposers themselves have reinstated.” vidyaunnithan@gmail.com
What is section 377? Section 377 (1860) of the Indian Penal Code was enacted by the British colonial regime to criminalise ‘carnal intercourse against the order of the nature’. It was rooted in the Judeo-Christian morality that abhorred non-procreative sex. Section 377 reads: Unnatural offences: Whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
maintaining cleanliness. A resident on condition of anonymity, said, “People don’t take the issue of poop collection seriously. But it is necessary to maintain hygiene as excreta can spread disease. We have made it compulsory for pet owners to carry newspapers or such things to clean up the mess their pets make.” Similarly, residents of Mont Vert, Khadki, have been disciplining their pets to poop in certain areas. A resident of the society, Kanchan Rajput said, “If my pet dog messes up the society premises, I use a newspaper or paper bag to clean it up.” The idea is to maintain hygiene on roads and societies. Baner resident Sheetal Patil said, “Pet owners should carry a bag or newspaper to clean up the mess. Th is should be done wherever they take their pet, and not only on the society premises.” anjali.shetty@goldensparrow.com
Parties gear up for Cantt elections BY ASHOK BHAT @ashok_bhat The countdown for the Cantonment boards election has begun. All the political parties have accelerated their poll campaigns for the elections to be held on January 11. There is a body of total eight public representatives in each Cantonment board. The BJP is serious about the elections as it wants to continue its victory march. At the same time, ruling Congress is struggling to save its position. Similarly, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is also struggling for its revival. Shiv Sena is also independently in fray making this a quadrangular battle. State BJP minister Dilip Kamble is commanding the Pune Cantonment election and MLA Vijay Kale has been made in-charge of Khadki. The city Congress gave responsibility to ex-MLA Vinayak Nimhan and former minister Ramesh Bagawe of Khadki and Pune cantonment boards respectively. Sena deputy leader and ex-minister Shashikant Sutar is in-charge of both the Cantonments. Similarly, the NCP has appointed MLC Anil Bhosale and working president Shrikant Patil as in-charge for Khadki, and for Pune Cantonment, MLC Jaydev Gaikwad and working president Sunil Bankar have been given the responsibility. All four parties appointed two corporators and office-bearers as incharge of each ward. The BJP is still depending on Modi ‘charisma’ and both the Congress and the NCP are worried about how to stop the ‘Modi wave’.
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
PUNE
“The post independence era left the Muslim community with a sense of alienation. Today, the NDA government has carried out development without any discrimination against anyone.” -Sabir Ali, Rajya Sabha MP
Signposts Balewadi idol singing competition To promote upcoming singers, Shree Khanderai Pratishthan will be conducting Balewadi Idol singing competition at CM International School, Balewadi on January 17. The competition will be held in four categories (up to 15yrs, 16 to 30, 31 to 50 and above 50). All finalists will get an opportunity to sing with singer Abhijeet Kosambi. Those who wish to participate can register their names on www. cminternationalschool.com. The qualifying round of the competition will be held at the same venue on January 10-11.
Certificate course in practical astronomy Aastronomica, an astronomy club, will start a certificate course in practical astronomy from January 16 onwards at NMV Girls School, Tilak Road. The course will acquaint its participants with the practical aspects of observational astronomy. There will be seven lectures and a guest lecture on different topics conducted over seven days. The admissions fees are Rs 1000. For details and registration contact 9822393872.
P13
P11
‘Poems reflect a sensitised mindset’
POETRY COMPETITION RESULTS GROUP A-CLASS (II,III,IV & V) 1
RANK Class V
SNEHA AJAY KADU
Modern High School
2
RANK Class IV
SANIYA DESAI New English Medium School
3
RANK Class III
MURARI CHAWLA
St. Vincent’s School
COMMENDATION CERTIFICATES (IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER)
Social activist Lakshmi Narayan feels that poem entries received for the children’s day competition show how school students understand the plight of the under privileged
KSHIPRA JOSHI New English CLASS Medium School
IV
V
CLASS
MIHEERA KASHELKAR Millennium High School
MAHI DESHPANDE Millennium High CLASS School
V
GROUP B (CLASS VI, VII, VIII) 1
ISHAAN PENDSE
2
1
Jnana Prabodhini Prashala
RANK Class VIII
JYOTI CHOUDHARY
Modern High School
RANK Class VI
SOUKHYA DALVI
RANK Class VII
3
Jnana Prabodhini Prashala
NANDINI PHATAK
RANK Class VII
Millennium High School
COMMENDATION CERTIFICATES (IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER)
Notebook collection drive begins on Jan3 Like Minded Initiative for Empowerment (LIFE), an NGO has started Vahi Apli Bhavishya Tyanche (Our Books, Their Future) initiative to provide books and pencil in rural areas. The notebook collection drive will begin on January 3 and aims to collect 25,000 books by May 10. For more details call Omkar Kondhalkar on 8381018010.
Double blow for parents of jihadis
Extreme mood swings may indicate bipolar disorder
ANIKIT BHADE Millennium High CLASS School
VI
MANASI PAWAR Jnana Prabodhini CLASS Prashala
VIII
SHIVANI PANDIT Millennium High CLASS School
VIII
GROUP C (CLASS IX, X) 1
RANK CLASS X
Lakshmi Narayan said that students had pitched their thoughts through well structure poems. (Right) An award winning poem by Sheetal Raskar of Modern High School
YASH DAIV @Yash Daiv The Golden Sparrow on Saturday announced a poem writing contest on the occasion of Children’s Day. Child labour was the theme of the competition, as a tribute to Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi’s crusade against child labour. The competition received over 150 entries from the schools in the city. The entries were first judged by an internal jury which comprised the TGS editor Abhay Vaidya and the director of Therefore Design, Dhun Patel. The entries were judged by Lakshmi Narayan, general secretary of Kagad Kach Patra Kashkari Panchayat (KKPKP). She said that these poems
ROHIT GARUD
Modern High School
2
SHEETAL RASKAR
Modern High School
RANK CLASS X
3
RANK CLASS X
AAKANSHA KHISTE
NMV High School
COMMENDATION CERTIFICATES (IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER) ADITYA PUJARI Millennium High CLASS School
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AISHWARYA CHITALE Jog Educational CLASS Trust
JUI PADMALKAR Jog Educational CLASS Trust
NISHADI TANTARPAALE Modern High CLASS School
SHREYA PATIL Millennium CLASS High School
SWARUPA DAMLE Millennium CLASS High School
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are a proof of how sensitive the children are against such issues and the remarkable impressions of creativity in the students. “It is heartening to know that students are able to think about the under privileged children. The poems that they have written reflect sensitivity,” said Narayan. Every poem has addressed various aspects related to child labour, reflecting an understanding and sympathy towards the plight of these children. “Some poems truly go beyond some stereotypes associated with child labour. I can see a lot of creativity,” said Narayan. The poem writing was an interactive process rather than just a competition of producing marvellous literature. “The initiative has engaged enhanced
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their thought process. Children tend to think elaborately when they address such issues,” said Narayan. The thought process, Narayan feels, has been employed with creative skills as far as language, detailing and presentation is concerned. “The creativity is inherent and it has come out through observations that these children noticed from their surroundings,” she said. She lauded the entries, even the
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ones from primary school students, for the effort they have taken to pen down their thoughts about this issue. This initiative has a universal relevance. Children’s Day is an occasion without any class boundaries. “The poems encapsulate the aura of such an occasion. They are not just any pieces of literature but they are thoughts over sensitive issues. They have handled it most maturely,” said Narayan. yashdaiv@gmail.com
Top 4 films to watch at PIFF
The colours of Himalaya
The eight day film festival will screen over 200 films from Jan 8. TGS picks four you should look out for BY PRACHI BARI @prachibari
Chitra Vaidya
Hailing from the illustrious Wakankar family, Chitra aims to carry forward the rich legacy of her grandfathers, Padma Shri Vishnu Wakankar
who is best known for his widely acclaimed work on the discovery and research on cave art at Bhimbetka. She is also related to LS Wakankar, known for his pioneering work in calligraphy. “Subsequent to the first show of the series “Call of the
The 13th Pune International Film Festival (PIFF) is going to be abuzz with world cinema in the select cinema halls of the city. The catalogue which came out last week boasts of events and films from every country. The Golden Sparrow on Saturday hand picks four flicks which should be on your must see list.
Hills” in 2012, which featured paintings and sketches from Western Ghats, we decided to go north and start the process of exploring the Himalayan region,” she said. These paintings are a result of extensive travels in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
THE KINDERGARTEN TEACHER Israel, France ,2014 Synopsis: In a world that does not appreciate artists, where sensitive souls don’t stand a chance, a poetry-loving kindergarten teacher discovers a child poet and decides to take it upon herself. To nurture him and save his greatness from the world, to salvage him
from the banal, the mediocre and the crude – to save him from life itself. It is the story of a female Don Quixote, who strives to save the world through the poetry of a child. NABAT Azerbaijan, 2014 Synopsis: Nabat and her husband Iskender, an old and sick ex-forestry worker, live in a small isolated house far from the village. The war in Nagorno-Karabakh has been raging for some time and their son has been killed at the front. As the shadow of war envelopes the region the village is slowly deserted by its inhabitants. Following Iskender’s death, Nabat has to survive in a now abandoned village under the regard of a she-wolf. The fi lm was the official submission of Azerbaijan to the best foreign language fi lm category of
Letters to the Editor TGS is interactive Our newspaper is interactive and you are welcome to write in to our various segments: • Letters to the Editor email: editor_tgs@goldensparrow.com; editor_tgs@gmail.com By post: The Editor, The Golden Sparrow on Saturday, 1641 Madhav Heritage, Tilak Road, Pune-411030, (Best letter gets a weekly prize) • Articles for the Relationships page: relationships@goldensparrow.com, relationships.tgs@gmail.com • The Way Forward with Compassion & Hope: wayforward@goldensparrow.com • Want to become an entrepreneur? For mentoring advice, write to our associates: mentoring@pune.tie.org • Get weekly events listed: listings.tgslife@gmail.com
the 87th Academy Awards 2015. FOREIGN BODY, 2014 Poland, Italy, Russia Synopsis: A dashing young Italian in Poland finds himself caught between two women — a novitiate nun and a ruthless corporate ladder-climber MONUMENT TO MICHAEL JACKSON Serbia, Germany, Macedonia, Croatia, 2014 Synopsis: A local barber in a small Serbian village comes up with an idea to erect a monument to Michael Jackson to attract tourists from around the world. Some locals like the idea others do not. And then we take a special Balkan ride. prachibari@gmail.com
editor_tgs@goldensparrow.com
Take steps to shun junk food for healthy life
Globalisation is a vertical growth and a horizontal development. And the phenomenon has led to increasing consumption of junk food. Junk food has brought swift changes in people’s eating habits. Is it necessary for us to consume these unhealthy eatables? It has become a cohesion substance of our life as people cannot defy themselves from this ‘hazardous’ happiness. Only a balanced diet ensures that our body has the vitamins and nutrients it needs to properly function. Junk food not only destroys the health potential, but also invites diseases. Children are suffering from many ailments, including obesity and heart problems, due to intake of junk and fast food. It is a situation of make or mar. Future is in our hands. Th ink about it. — Paridhi Shrivastava
Give chance to retired teachers @TGSWeekly
ER 20, 2014
PUNE, DECEMB
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Maiden title for girl Shital P-16
NETIZENS
Why Pune cinema tly screens are constan a-glitter
news, portal Driven by local n Award creators win Mantha P -6
L Improve PMPMr children for the sake of ou ANIRUDDHA
on the busy
Karve Road
hers Paucity of teac lish hits PMC’s Eng s ool sch m mediu has been R
RAJANDEKA
their lives thus risking d moving bus Pardeshi as the to an over-crowde andal officer Shrikar 41-year-old IAS Mahanagar Parivahan Maham to is has hand-picked road Pune Devendra Fadnav of Pune’s public bus service, the firm leadership to steer it on the P 8 & 9 Chief minister L requires See Spotlight, anaging director on end, the PMPM chairman-cum-m Neglected for decades very best in this endeavour i the Ltd (PMPML). Pardesh Dr wishes efficiency. TGS
Karad
ent of 100 teachers ermax Proposal for recruitm government since 2012. Th a state which are run with pending with the adopted four schools, nalism Foundation has ent and professio high degree of commitm
suggested have therefore, to difficult. They of these schools BY ASHOK BHAT social the handing over or CSR (corporate @ashok_bhat charitable trusts is responsibility) initiatives. in this respect, demand for EngAn ideal example that runs four In face of the growing the Pune Municthe Thermax Foundation medium taklish medium schools, PMC English School Board has admiipal Corporation schools, with an and the t en steps to raise rable commitmen ism, under number of its English professional in medium schools in its CSR initiative. has 12 the city, from The PMC 2014. in in 52 to located 2003, 306 schools been across The board has 110 buildings in this PMC under pressure the city. The politibudget regard, from School Board’s , was 2014-15 cians and corporators for please who want to Rs 292 crore. form PMC the citizens who The English their vote banks. introduced 12 in present, At medium schools 21,787 this there are 2003. In 2014, up slums students from number has gone with economically and to 52 schools, of VII. backward sections of from KG to Class rolls 21,787 students which society, on the government norms, medium schools, and In keeping with schools are not PMC’s English government grants, English medium PMC has been do not avail of and significantly lower are grants fees given whose tuition of these schools n schools. However, funding the running than privately-ru in these schools since their inception. Baba Dumal the quality of education primarily owing desired, School Board chairman on Saturday, leaves a lot to be Sparrow of teachers. told The Golden teachers need to be to the acute shortagePMC’s proposal for 100 that , “At least and after Moreover, the these schools teachers, has remained Body, recruited for recruitment of 100 tangles of the the PMC General the to approval from embroiled in bureaucratic effect was sent , since 2012. a proposal to this state government .” has been funding state government Although the PMC Contd on p 10 its own, these schools on y the running of that will get progressivel its officials say
Students clinging
The dearth rd for Students win awa idea vative business of inno teachers, as rightly mentioned in December 20 issue of The Golden Sparrow on Saturday (Paucity of teachers hits PMC’s English and Surabhi Dinesh Kumar ion Symbiosis students prize at the LEAP Innovat first feet Mishra won the idea to export chicken Award for their
is transformed But Dinesh eloquence when BY ANJALI SHETTY into an outgoing current project. his @shetty_anjali he talks about is wastage a second year studentt “Today in India, there in the Dinesh Kumar, Managemen paws and feet Agribusiness worked of of chicken of industry. We Symbiosis Institute (MBA-AB) at Hinjewadi, poultryplan to convert the poultry International University, shy. out a profitable export introverted and waste into a is normally rather that there We estimated of product. SUPPLY metric tonnes DEMAND AND is around one lakh feet in India. of $677m worth wastage of chicken market of five US exported with chicken potential China is to There chicken every to a 85 per that is wasted billion rupees, feet, amounting He is being share in China. year,” said Dinesh.student Surabhi cent market imported China assisted by another In 2013,
of chicken 250,900 tonnes worth around feet, a trade £410 million
1.7 Britain rendered In 2012, into pet
feet billion chicken unwith other food, along offal. wanted poultry
Mishra. year of college In his first the showed that of Dinesh’s survey industry was one Indian poultry segments of the the fastest growing sector. Indian agricultural Contd on p 10 Dinesh Kumar Singh and Surabhi Mishra
(Symbiosis Infotech Campus) receiving the LEAP Innovation Award from actor Atul Kulkarni (centre) for their business of idea ‘Export Chicken Feet’
medium schools), is also because of poor payment and the general disrespect for the profession in society. Even the authorities fail to realise that teachers mould students to become responsible citizens. Why cannot retired teachers, who are willing to work, be roped in and lessen the load of overburdened teachers? The move will fulfi l politicians’ demand and enhance school education in the city. — Sandhya Paradkar
The crime of honour killing An honour killing (the word sounds sweet, charming and dignified but deceptive and hollow) has been
described as homicide (the killing of another human being) of a member of a family It is rampant in states such as Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan. To combat the epidemic of ‘honour killings’, it is necessary to understand what makes these murders unique. Such killings have happened in countries like US, Canada, Europe, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Not withstanding the 2011 Supreme Court directive that honour killings should be treated as the ‘rarest of the rare ‘ crime and those perpetrating should be sent to the gallows, still it is not made a classified crime. However, it is a matter of great satisfaction now that out of 29 states and seven Union Territories, 22 states have given their consent to the Law Commission which is seeking to enact a stringent law against honour killings
that will be able to contain such ghastly cases of murders in India. — Vijay Dattatray Patil
Write to Us Letters to the Editor may be emailed to editor_tgs@goldensparrow. com or mailed to Golden Sparrow Publishing Pvt Ltd, 1641 Madhav Heritage, Tilak Road, Pune-411030. The Best Letter of the Week will receive a special gift from Venus Traders, Pune’s finest stationery departmental.
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
The yet awaited fundamental change P 12
Total literates in Pune city are 25,56,743 of which 13,61,257 are males while 11,95,486 are females —www.census.co.in
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The beauty of life lies in the stillness P6
When college campuses turn festive and lively
Colourful college festivals in December and January give students a platform to showcase their creativity
DEPARTMENTAL FESTIVALS, FERGUSSON COLLEGE Date: December 29 and 30 Being one of the oldest colleges in Pune, saying Fergusson College departmental fests have established their niche wouldn’t be an understatement. Every year, Fergusson hosts as many as 20 different intra college departmental fests, one for every department, like Psy-Fy, Word’s Worth, Wallstreet, PhotoSync and Quoram. These vibrant events see enthusiastic students come together to compete with one another with vigour. Embodying different themes as per their department, these fest have everything to cater to your liking be it literature, science, photography, graphology, music and dance. Highlight: The traditional Fergusson rally that flags off the fests.
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Highlight: Look out for the war of DJs. SYMPULSE, SYMBIOSIS CENTRE FOR MANAGEMENT STUDIES, VIMAN NAGAR Date: January 28 to February 1 Like every year, students of Fergusson College came together to participate and compete at their Departmental Fests this time.
Currently in its fifth year, TROIKA has become one of the most sought after college festivals with the variety of events it hosts for students of all streams. It hosts a total of fifteen events which include Dance, debate, madads, treasure-hunt, gaming, sports and moot court. “TROIKA gets bigger every year .It is the only time of the year when students come together in huge numbers. It is the most memorable thing that can happen to you in college,” said Mayur Sakpal, TY BBM student. Highlight: This year, TROIKA will have ‘Classic Cartoon Network’ as its theme, celebrating the glorious cartoons of 1990s.
events. Roping in big celebrities and cool bands, the famous intra-college fest is the highlight of the year. Divided into four categories, Spectrum (business and skills), Neon (cultural), Spectacle (sports) and Techtonic (games and gadgets) Karandak caters to all your interests ranging from sports to music. “I had heard about Karandak long before I joined Sinhagad, it is that popular. The planning starts months in advance. We have huge crowd puller events this year and I am sure it will be the best fest Pune will see,” says Chirag Nambiar, student volunteer of Sinhagad institute’s Smt Kashibai Navale College of Commerce (SKNCC).
KARANDAK, SINHAGAD INSTITUTE Date: January 12 onwards Initiated in 2006, Karandak is known for is mega cultural and sporting
Highlight: Arjit Singh will hold a concert this year ZEST’15, COEP COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING,PUNE Date: January 23 to 26 Breaking the typecast of being extremely studious, engineering students all around India will tighten up their boots to kick up a ball at one of country’s largest inter college sports fest. COEP is organising their annual sports festival, Zest’15 .The 13th edition of Zest promises to be monumental as the national event will see over 150 colleges from 15 states fight their way to the finale. Staying true to its theme, ‘Prayaan, zero to zenith’, Zest’15 ensures to give every athlete an opportunity to metamorphose into his best.
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THE SAD STATE OF PUNE’S ‘ZERO STONE’
Help restore Pune’s Zero Stone
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Given its significance, this valuable part of the city’s heritage ought to be restored, fenced and beautified ABHAY VAIDYA @vaidya_abhay
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APSHINGE:
The great village of brave soldiers Two days from today, July 28, 2014, will mark the centenary of the First World War, also known as the Great War, that ushered in a new epoch in world politics. The history of that war is intertwined with a small, remote village in Satara district. TGS Special Report p13 This medallion was presented by the Queen of England after the First World War to the next of kin of all British and Empire service personnel who were killed in the war. Sepoy Khashaba Powar’s medallion has been placed by his family at their place of worship
India to have 4 new central universities NEW DELHI:: The government has decided to set up four new central universities in the country, parliament was told early this week. “The ministry of human resource development (HRD) has decided to set up four new central universities, viz. one Central Tribal University each in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, one central university in Andhra Pradesh and Mahatma Gandhi Central University in Bihar,” HRD Minister Smriti Irani said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. At present, there are 40 central universities under the purview of the ministry.
Army chief pays tributes to Kargil War martyrs SRINAGAR: Indian Army chief after the wreath laying ceremony at the General Bikram Singh on Friday paid Kargil War Memorial in Drass town of tributes to the martyrs of 1999 Kargil Kargil district. War in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ladakh The chief of the Indian Army said region on the occasion of 15th Vijay ceasefire violations by Pakistan have Diwas. been taking place regularly on the He said the army is alert and Line of Control (LoC) in the state, but has been deployed effectively on the assured that the army has been effectively borders to defend the integrity and the responding to those violations. sovereignty of the country. “They violate the ceasefire every “Let me assure you, the army is week and every month, but the army has deployed on the borders to defend the been taking effective steps to respond to PUNE, AUGUST 30, 2014 www.goldensparrow.com integrity and the sovereignty of the those,” he said. country,” General Singh told reporters Contd on p 10 I've always been a movie guy, movies have been my thing. I love movies, all kinds of movies. — Christopher Nolan
WASHINGTON
$250,000 fine. Shah was the president and CEO of SOHM and Costas, both based out of California. He was accused of paying kickbacks to an investment fund representative in exchange for buying stock in the two companies. The fund representative was, in fact, an undercover FBI agent working on an investigation into fraud in the market for penny stocks, the report said. Penny stocks are less heavily regulated than stocks that trade on major exchanges such as the Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange.
students- to prepare for the winter. The mandal also runs a small library for the neighbourhood residents and children, says Shaikh, explaining that a lot of money can be saved if spent prudently on just decorations, sound systems and other such expenses. As a part of its activities, the mandal has rented out some space to a tea vendor and the rent is used for the Ganeshotsav celebrations. Ni ne te e nyears-old Sheldon, a BBA student, helping others and doing something constructive for society brings lot of joy to everyone involved in the celebrations. Associated with this youth group since childhood, he says his fellow members hail from different castes, creed and religion. The Ashok Chakra Mitra Mandal close to Shivaji Market, Camp, is celebrating its golden jubilee this year and has a number of Muslims as its members, said Faiyaz Khan, one of Headed by Raghuvir Vanal, this
(IIM)-Shillong to emerge as creative leaders to bring about the required change in the country. “I want to see all of you as creative leaders to bring about the required change,” Kalam said, while delivering a lecture “Dimensions of National Development” at the prestigious B-school on Thursday. The “missile man”, as Kalam is also known due to his background in aerospace engineering and his role in India’s
indigenous missile development, is one of the visiting faculty members in IIMShillong. Kalam spoke about the challenges that India and the world were facing and emphasised the role of leadership to tackle these issues and develop possible solutions to ensure socio-economic development. He said the key requirement for achieving a distinctive profi le for the nation was by creating sustainable enterprise-driven models at the rural level. Kalam urged the students to emulate a development model to bring
TGS LIFE
Pune brands go pan India
PUNE’S PEOPLE PURPOSE
BY PRIYANKA
dents were killed and some 20 injured when their school bus was rammed by a speeding train at an unmanned rail-road crossing in Telangana Thursday. The dead included the school bus driver. Although the number of school children is a minuscule part of the total number of Indians dying daily on the roads, activists say most accidents are avoidable. I dislike about Will’s school? Are my and my efforts in both on an excursion in these Maharashtra on Piyush Tewari, founder and presistandards really too high or are people crafts are unfolding. December 7, 2013. dent of Save Life Foundation, said —Priyanka working in Chopra the education field really In an accident in Tamil Nadu’s holding an adult “accountable for safetyjust that ignorant.” The next morning, Pudukottai district in June 2013, a of children while on the move” andshe received a call asking her to meet mini van collided with a bus, killing having child safety laws would act asthe principal when she dropped off seven school children. deterrents. her son at Sonshine Christian AcadAnother seven children died when Two accidents this year injured 12emy, a private religious school, in Flortheir bus fell into a gorge in Jammu and school students. The first took placeida. To her shock, the school decided Kashmir’s Anantnag district in April May 12 in Greater Noida in Uttarto expel her son. 2013. In July last year, 11 students were Pradesh, injuring two students. Ten killed and 20 injured when their bus hit students were injured in adjoining Noia truck in Rajasthan’s Hanumangarh da April 29 when their school bus was district. hit by a state-run bus. Contd on p 10 Three children died when their
‘Chayan’ promises to offer shelter, legal support and counselling to couples in case of outburst from families BY YASH DAIV @yash009
RAHUL RAUT
&DESERTED
DEAD
“Providing Urban amenities in Rural Areas (PURA) is one such system which I suggest will help in providing opportunities through cooperative working of resource and social entrepreneur in the rural areas,” he said. “PURA is the creation of physical, electronic, knowledge connectivities leading to electronic connectivity of rural regions. With this combined and planned intervention of infrastructure, digital technology, information and enterprise, we can select a cluster of about 20 to 50 villages, which share core
“We collect money and support poor patients in the hospitals. Our members also support orphans in different orphanages in the city,”
from 20 last year and 23 the year Central minister with regards to this before, according to the list published project soon,” Bidkar said, adding that in the web edition of Forbes Asia. an announcement on the forthcoming China’s tech companies made a state assembly polls is expected in PUNE, OCTOBER 11, 2014 www.goldensparrow.com strong showing, with Tencent the most a week or two and the BJP is keen valuable, having a market cap of $155.6 to push the Pune Metro project to a billion, nearly twice that of runner-up decisive stage before the Model Code India’s Tata Consultancy Services. of Conduct comes into force,” he said. Lenovo is the biggest in terms of annual revenue of $38.7 billion, Continued on p 10
Pune’s hottest start-up, 2014 get top prize today
Muslims and Christians and they are steadfast about the spirit of unity in diversity and respect for all religions that defines the nation, said Khan.
mouth
you take care of your supporting this event and includes the roster in 2005. family. Association of Software and Other notable National companies from —Julia Roberts Service Companies (NASSCOM), India include HCL Technologies, Indus (Tie, Pune), which makes the listTh fore the fifthEntrepreneurs time, SoftwareIndustries, Technologies Parks of and Sun Pharmaceutical (STPI), Mahratta Chamber Of which appears on theIndia list for the third consecutive time. Commerce Industries & Agriculture (MCCIA), PuneTech, iSpirit, IIM Mahindra & Mahindra also rejoins Ahmedabad’s the list after a two-year absence. Centre for Innovation Incubation IANS and Entrepreneurship, SME Joinup, Hinjewadi Industries Association (HIA), IACC, and Pune Open Coffee Club. The four finalists for the top prize are: Scandid- a shopping technology start-up that enables shoppers to compare prices by scanning the product barcodes with one’s mobile phones; Framebench- a cloud based online collaboration, communication and feedback platform; Ecozen Solutions, started in September 2009 to promote awareness against poor energy management practices and elevate the Indian industry to the standards and expectations of a developed nation, and The Green Raddiwala which focuses on providing door-to-door services in collecting raddi or recyclable waste such as plastic, newspapers and the like. Founded by Sushil Chaudhari and Madhur Khandelwal in 2012, Scandid also helps consumers find latest online and offline deals. The company previously won the regional round of the Seedstars World- a global start-up competition.
3 ECOZEN SOLUTIONS Framebench, founded by Rohit Agarwal, is a cloud-based online collaboration, communication and feedback platform. Framebench is a central workplace where one can store and share one’s creative assets. The company can help remote teams and
THE GREEN RADDIWALA clients to review, mark changes required on the assets and even host discussions on them in real time, which automatically gets documented for viewing later. This visual communication workflow allows for crisp & quick feedback. Ecozen Solutions run by Devendra
Gupta, Prateek Singhal and Vivek Pande was started in 2009 to promote awareness against poor energy management practices and elevate the Indian industry to the standards and expectations of a developed nation. It is with this view that this designed a pioneering and innovative micro Cold Storage- a solar powered cold storage system, which was primarily designed for the rural segment to serve their needs ideally. This innovative product can be suitably adapted for local conditions Great across thethings world. can happen when have the The you fourth finalist, The Green courage to yourself. Raddiwala hasbebeen established by Michael Sam Nikhil Pagare—and Saurav Pasalkar to provide door-to-door services in collecting raddi or recyclable waste such as plastic, newspapers and the like. Green Raddiwala purchases the recyclable waste from households at market rates and sells it directly to recycling industries. This drastically reduces environmental pollution. ishani.bose@goldensparrow.com
(Left to right) MANS state secretary Milind Deshmukh, president Deepak Girme and Dhanak secretary Asif Iqbal at SM Joshi Hall in Navi Peth on November 4
After several brainstorming sessions that probed into legal, religious and humanitarian aspects of marriage, the group devised the concept of Chayan (choice). These organisations aspire to make Chayan a national movement. The conference began with an “oath of humanity” to promote the principle of non-discrimination based on caste, religion, language or gender. Madhav Bhavge, secretary, MANS said Chayan is the need of the hour. “It could be a national level movement which would give shape to the ideas and suggestions that we have
“People blindly follow the vedic rituals. A person should be able to justify all his or her activities rather than following a tradition. If we are able to instil this attitude in the masses we will be able to eradicate class politics and in turn the problems of mixed marriages,” he said. Subhash Bhave, secretary, SM Joshi Socialist Foundation emphasised on the need for mass awareness. “People have a tendency to hide their marriages until the legal documents are ready. This attitude must be changed,” he said. It was suggested during the deliberations that there should be a group of five to ten people in every district who will promote and provide assistance if required, for inter-caste and inter-religious marriages. yashdaiv@gmail.com
City takes lead over Delhi, Mumbai in the journey of product start-ups TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeeKLY Pune has emerged as the nation’s second-fastest product start-up hub in the country. A close second to Bangalore, Pune has taken a lead over mega-metros like Delhi and Mumbai. This has been stated in the latest report by iSPIRIT, (Indian Software Product Industry Roundtable), a company mainly focussed towards the product industry. “Pune is significantly ahead of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and Hyderabad,” the report said while
noting the product start-ups activity in Bangalore at 33% of India, Pune (21 %), Delhi and Mumbai (about 1112% each) and Hyderabad at 9%. “Pune is definitely No. 2, which is excellent,” said Amit Paranjape, co-founder of Pune-Tech, an online tech portal for the tech and startup community in Pune. Addressing a recent press conference Paranjape spoke about Pune’s viable ecosystem, which has been developing tremendously to enable entrepreneurs to launch an enterprise.
Others who shared this thought were Gaurav Mehra, past president SEAP and managing director, Saba Softwares; Maneesh Bhandari, director, Pune Division, Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE) at IIM Ahmedabad; Ashutosh Parasnis, president of SEAP and managing director of Qlogic; Ramaswamy Narayanan, vice president, SEAP; Vishwas Mahajan, president of TIEPune chapter and Navin Kabra, cofounder of Pune Tech. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com
Children, send us your paintings, poems & essays on
CHILD LABOUR IN INDIA Mention your name, age, standard, school’s name and contact number in your entry. Last Date for Receiving Entries: Saturday, 22nd November Prize Winning Entries will be announced in this newspaper Entries may be sent to: The Golden Sparrow on Saturday, 1641, Madhav Heritage, Tilak Road, Pune - 411030. Tel: 020-24324332/33
For Details SMS/Contact: Prachi, Tel: 9822619858 or Yash: 9762884007
Vow Factor The
From the
Ever wondered where thoroughbreds go after retirement? Or why jockeys are weighed before and after a race? Barnalee Handique has the answers
the Special Marriage Act, 1954, which is complicated, different in every state and plagued with controversies. “A platform like Chayan can help modify such a law,” he said. Iqbal suggested that under the national platform one can create a secure place for couples who have mixed marriages. “We can offer them shelter, legal procedures and counselling in case there is an outburst from the families,” he said. Chayan would ensure the smooth functioning of the legal structure pertaining to marriage. Deepak Girme, president, MANS said society’s mindset have deep religious roots. Having worked with the late anti-superstition crusader Narendra Dabolkar for 25 years, he said any religious text should be questioned.
Asif Shaikh (left) and Sheldon Fernandes (right) of Shri Shivram Tarun Mandal Trust preparing the decorations for Ganeshotsav
mandal runs a social organisation called Anzuman Faizane Raza and the members celebrate other prominent festivals and occasions such as Eid, Independence Day and Republic Day with equal fervor.
competencies and empower those using local enterprise. This would enable our country to grow by shared efforts and overcome the challenges faced by the society,” he said. Charting out a link between creative leadership and economic development, the former president emphasised the importance of the role that change in leadership would play for ensuring success. He also accentuated on the role of integrity among leaders for sustained success and development of the society. (IANS)
Horse,s
Prominent social workers from different parts of the country who promote intercaste and inter-religious marriages have decided to establish a national movement called Chayan (Choice). This was decided at a meeting in the city on November 4-5 during a conference on ‘Right to Choice of Partner in Inter-caste and Interreligious Marriages’. Activists from the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (MANS), SM Joshi Socialist Foundation, Rashtriya Seva Dal and Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal along with the voluntary organisation, Dhanak from Delhi, were present at this meet.
Six out of eight subways in the city are in a sad state of neglect and are closed to the public. Some are used as convenient urinating spots or as gambling dens. They are dirty, poorly lit and unsafe. Why can’t city subways be restored and made user-friendly for pedestrians? Also related is the complete avoidance of foot over-bridges by pedestrians. Why waste public exchequer and construct them if they are so very unpopular with the public? See Spotlight on p8-9
THE FINALISTS ARE...
the BJP’s newly elected city MP Anil Shirole, was to closely follow-up on the mass transportation project. Shirole focused on updating himself on the project and seeking clarifications on the project as proposed by the Congress-NCP government.
Pune FC enter Durand Cup final P 16
Nat’l movement to promote marriages of choice gets going
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a bid to counter the ruling CongressNCP government in the forthcoming polls, the BJP is chalking out its strategy to gain maximum advantage by announcing critical steps on the Metro project. Speaking to this newspaper, BJP’s leader in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), Ganesh Bidkar said that one of the top priorities for
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Carrying the torch in the battle against cancer P2
City subways are
Emerge as creative leaders: Kalam to IIM students SHILLONG: Former president APJ Abdul Kalam has urged students of the Indian Institute of Management
country as special markings for a survey by the British. India’s Zero Stone stands proudly in Nagpur, denoting the centre of the country. The oldest and most famous of such milestones is located in Rome, the Milliarium Aureum (“Golden Milestone”) of the Roman Empire. The maxim “all roads lead to Rome” is believed to have originated from this monument. A number of prominent cities in the world have their own “zero stones” and are proud of it, including Washington DC, Tokyo, Berlin, Buenos Aires... The citizens of Pune and publicspirited organisations such as the MCCIA’s Janwani, INTACH, Pune International Centre and the National Society for Clean Cities, to name a few, need to lobby with the Pune Municipal Corporation’s Heritage Cell to do what is needed. The Golden Sparrow on Saturday pledges its fullest support to such an effort. Get in touch with us at: editor_tgs@goldensparrow.com www.goldensparrow.com or Tweet us: @TGSWeekly
Telangana school bus accident resulting in the death of 19 students is part of a larger tragedy that demands immediate attention
NEW DELHI: India not only has the dubious distinction of having one of the worst road accident records in the world, but these are taking more and more young lives, particularly of school children. Road accidents have left nearly 70 children dead and many injured since the start of 2013, a NGO has said.
Chief of Army Staff General Bikram Singh paying homage to martyrs at the Infantry War Memorial during his farewell visit to the Infantry School, Mhow in Indore recently
Boston Globe reported.
On Wednesday, when this newspaper took a review of Pune’s Zero Stone on the footpath outside the General Post Office (GPO), the sight was pathetic to say the least. With white paint spilled over it, there was a sweeper’s broom lying next to it and rubbish all around. A tea vendor was stationed with his cart next to the stone. In 2006, when this journalist fi rst reported on this small, yet valuable piece of Pune’s heritage, there was a watermelon seller sitting on the stone, using it as a convenient stool. The Zero Stone is a very special milestone as it signifies the geographic location of a city and the point from where distances are established between towns and cities. As such, it ought to be restored, fenced and beautified so that the children of this city, other citizens and tourists can go back to the time when Pune was taking shape under the British, bit by bit. There are just 80 of such special milestones that were installed in the
Generosity & communal harmony define these mandals
What is going wrong with road safety in India?
convicted in stock scheme
Pune’s chess player Eesha Karavade wins Al Ain Open City-based chess player Eesha Karavade won the women’s title in the Al Ain Open Chess tournament held at the Al Ain Rotana Hili Hotel in UAE recently. A total of 127 players from 25 federations participated in this tournament, including a strong field of 54 grandmasters and 18 international masters. Eesha scored 5.5 points out of possible nine to win the title. She ranked fourth in India and 77th world wide.
`2,200 cr project for water augmentation
The Zero Stone monument in Nagpur and other parts of the world
Rainfall in July has brought some reThe PMC’s Water Supply lief to the citizens of Pune and the civic Department has proposed a administration. However, to be able to `2,200 crore project to replace ensure regular water supply without the network of old, leaking and cuts in the coming weeks and months, and drainage Modiwater tweets the dams supplying water to Pune willPMdamaged BY GITESH SHELKE lines. A Draft Project Report (DPR) need to build up an additional 10 TMCin Japanese @gitesh_shelke is scheduled to be placed before (thousand million cubic feet of water) the City Improvement Committee storage. Primenext minister Narendra With 28-years-old Asif Shaikh as its week, BJP’s groupModi leaderon While the Khadakwasla dam hasThursday putGanesh out a series of told tweets in head, the Shri Shivram Tarun Mandal in PMC, Bidkar TGS. reached its storage capacity of 1.98Japanese and said that be as his friends Trust on MG Road is truly an inspiring project would financed TMC, the situation in the Panshet,from The Japan had him to talk to icon of communal harmony, as it through theasked Jawaharlal Nehru Varasgaon and Temghar dams wouldthe people of Urban JapanRenewal directly, Mission. he had prepares for Ganeshotsav with a range be crucial not just for Pune city butdoneNational so. Modi is scheduled to visit Jaof charitable activities every year. The project will drastically curtail also for smaller towns downstream likepan from 30 to September 3. Describing their youth group as “a waterAugust wastage. Daund and Indapur, which depend onIn a tweet in Japanese, he said he was truly cosmopolitan mandal”, Shaikh these dams for their water supply. Tovery “excited” about the visit that will and the mandal’s secretary Sheldon fulfi l this demand, a total of 20 TMCstrengthen the relationship between Fernandes spoke of water will be required, of which storagethe ministration tookIna another review oftweet the rain-what Ganeshotsav two countries. of 10 TMC has been achieved. fall andtowater storage status at thecelebrations mean addressed his Japanese counterThis was underlined by the officialspartKhadakwasla, Panshet, Shinzo Abe, Modi said Varasgaon he deeply andto them every year. of the Irrigation Department duringrespected Temghar dams which supply water to First Abe’s leadership. and a meeting convened at the civic headthe city. foremost, the trust quarters by mayor Chanchala Kodre The Khadakwasla dam has waterinvolves everyone on Thursday. Those present at this storage to itsHerald full capacity of 1.98 TMC.from the locality in case: meeting included municipal commis-National The irrigation department thereforethe festivities. sioner Vilas Deshmukh, city engineerCourt hearing decideddefers to release some water from this The mandal Prashant Waghmare, water supply dam into the Mutha river. The PMCcollects vargani chief V. G. Kulkarni, standing comalso decided to withdraw the alternate( v o l u n t a r y on Thursday fixed December mittee chairman Bapusaheb Karne andA court day water supply plan and release water contribution) from 9 as the next date of hearing in a case top party representatives. once a day from this dam. the neighbourhood and During the meeting the civic ad-against Congress chief Sonia Gandhi Contd on p 10but does not spend her son and party vice president Rahul it entirely on decorations and the Gandhi and others over acquisition of immersion procession. “Instead, we the National Herald newspaper. provide meals to the poor for 10 days Metropolitan Magistrate Gomati and also undertake other charitable Manocha deferred the hearing after it activities,” Shaikh said. was apprised that the Delhi High Court This includes the distribution
Signposts
Signposts
The special squad of Additional Commissioner (South Region) have recovered 19 vehicles – 10 four wheelers and nine two-wheelers after arresting two suspects involved in different theft incidents. It was revealed that the suspects had sold these vehicles at Malshiraj in Solapur district at cheaper rates. A case against the duo has been registered with the Faraskhana police station. The duo has been identified as Kashinath Haribhau Takale (32) of Malshiraj in Solapur and Chiku Krishnarao Waghmode (25) of Solapur.
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(L to R)Anil Jain, Vishal Bhende, Yashwant Khoje
Pune police special Squad recover 19 stolen vehicles
ALASKA
City dams need additional 10 TMC water to tide over crisis BY ASHOK BHAT @ashok_bhat
Jain and Yashwant Khoje , who have been working in the field of photography and videography for over 25 years. The trade show had more than 100 top brands like Sony, Epson, Digi Flick, Fuji, JVC , Smart Photo , Pleasure Digital and the like. These companies displayed, photo cameras and camcorders, photo video editing soft wear and hard wears, instant photo printers, video mixers and everything related to photography and videography at the fair .Apart from exhibiting these advanced products, some exciting activities were also conducted in the trade show. Fashion shows, based on different themes choreographed by Tulika Dutta and Sandeep Varpe and photo exhibition of selected pictures by Photographic Association of Pune were the added attractions.
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Pune’s water situation improves
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Spiritual leader Dalai Lama, who was in Pune recently to inaugurate Chanakya Mandal’s new eight-storey educational-cum-residential building in Warje, believes India to be one of the most stable and reliable countries in the world, despite its problems.
Lukewarm response to Pune’s 1st VideoPhoto Trade Fair The first biggest Video Photo Trade Fair was inaugurated recently by Vishal Bhende, director, Symbiosis School Of Photography. The Photo Trade Fair was conceptualised and organised by Anil
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As a step towards a wider goal of integration, Vishwakarma Institute of Information Technology, has organised a two-day sci-tech exhibition for school students and teachers, which will be ending today. The main objective of the exhibition is to create an intimate interaction between students and teachers of schools and colleges and the industry personnel, which could help evolve a synergy between science, technology and engineering and could be a role model for many institutions to follow in the future.
Highlight: The event Pronite will bring popular Indian bands to perform on the campus vidyaunnithan@gmail.com
`5
IANS
Sci-Tech Exhibition at VIIT for school students, teachers
The name INFINITY has come to be synonymous with grandeur as Ness Wadia’s annual fest is a larger than life event with an estimate of 5,000 footfalls each year. Taking creativity to another horizon, INFINITY-2015 will be organising 32 mind boggling events ranging from chess, battle of the bands, street dance, Snap-HUNT, war of DJ’s and salesperson of the year. A mayhem of enthusiastic crowd at Wadia will ensure your fun never ends.
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PM to attend bankers’ meet in city Prime minister Narendra Modi, Maharashtra governor C Vidyasagar Rao, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley and minister of state (Mos) for finance Jayant Sinha will attend ‘GyanSangam: Bankers’ Retreat’ at the National Institute of Bank Management (NIBM). The institute, Centre for Advanced Financial Research and Learning (CAFRAL) and Department of Financial Services (DFS) are jointly organising the two-day retreat on January 2-3. The prime minister will address the participants on January 3. The retreat is organised for brainstorming on various aspects of banking sector towards further reforms in banking in coming days.
INFINITY, NESS WADIA Date: January 23 to 25
Highlight: Zest’15 will host 30 different sports events for both men and women, with kayaking and rowing
Catch up with developments in Pune as the week comes to a close
The events of Sympulse are spread across its five arms, Ananya (The Cultural Wing), Sprint (The Sports Wing), Symulate (The Business Wing), SIMUNC (Model United Nations Conference) and Headline Events spanning over five days, Sympulse 15,Chrono Drift promises to bring you the best in each category. From giving exposure into the different worlds of business and management, a chance to discuss world issues at an international model UN conference, showcasing talents cultural events or showing competitive spirit through sports.
as new additions
ILLUSTRATION BY GAURI BARVE KALE
It’s that time of the year when going to college gets a tad bit easier! The monotonous college routine transforms into a colourful gala of annual festivals. Students manage these events completely, right from deciding the theme to gathering sponsorships; they leave no stone unturned to make their college fest the talk of the town. Pune glitters with different campus festivals over two months. The cultural extravaganza becomes a platform to showcase creativity. Here is an inventory of some college festivals.
TROIKA, BMCC BRIHAN MAHARASHTRA COLLEGE OF COMMERCE Date: January 12 to 14
RAHUL RAUT
BY VIDYA UNNITHAN @vidya_unnithan
A Woman Of Substance
DEEPIKA PADUKONE
Talented, hard-working and a big league movie star, They are independent and opinionated and Deepika Padukone can also these 20-year-olds are going it solo when everyone around them is getting hitched. take a tough stand when Ishani Bose tells us more push comes to shove. Anjali Shetty gauges public opinion See P10-11
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Berners-Lee uploaded the first image to the internet. It is of a joke band of women from the nuclear research lab CERN. -http://www.buzzfeed.com
Will Modi conquer 2015? P 10
Dhoni’s abrupt good-bye was stunning P 15
Traffic details on your smartphone Traffic and Road Safety Solution, a mobile application that gives live traffic updates, has been an instant hit among Android users.
ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR
BY GITESH SHELKE @gitesh_shelke
The mobile app, Traffic and Road Safety Solution, updates users about the traffic situation on Pune’s roads
A user friendly mobile application named Traffic and Road Safety Solution, developed for the city traffic police and citizens, was launched last year in July. It has received and overwhelming response with 50,000 downloads on Playstore within six months. It took three months for the traffic department along with the two private companies to develop this application. “The primary objective with which this application was proposed was to provide correct information and better service to citizens where they can check everything related to traffic,” said Sarang Awad, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic). City police modelled this application after Bangalore traffic police live application which functions similarly. The application has a simple user interface and is integrated with a list of traffic offences, phone number of senior officers, emergency contacts, ambulance numbers and daily updates on
the traffic scenario of the city. The application allows users to take pictures of traffic violators and errant autorickshaws. It provides alerts on traffic jams and guides individuals Sarang Awad to the nearest police stations in case of emergency. The app also provides the user an opportunity to suggest ideas, give feedback and even register a complaint. The app is connected to Global Positioning System (GPS) that can provide the co-ordinates of a stolen two or four wheeler and even guide a commuter for navigation. Awad said that the app tells everything about the city traffic. “It is a one stop shop of live traffic updates makeing it an extremely useful application,” he said. The mobile application has garnered a lot of attention from word of mouth publicity. It is now being promoted through social media. “If this application goes down into cell phone essentials, I think it will make a lot of difference. People will be able to steer clear of traffic
New application on the block Another cell phone application has been developed for the city police similar to the defunct Trafficop system. The ambitious Trafficop system worked for about one year and remained neglected after that in the want of money. The new application ‘9AS’ will catch regular traffic offenders and will keep online record of the motorists, vehicles and driving licenses. The cell phone application is connected with a server. It has all the record of Regional Transport Office (RTO) and the record of the traffic branch. It will help to nail the regular traffic offenders and to punish them for the offences
problems,” said Awad. The application will be promoted extensively during the traffic safety fortnight programme scheduled in the first week of January 2015. “Also, it will be promoted on the road-safety posters that are planned to be put up as a part of this programme,” he said. gitesh.shelke@goldensparrow.com
Microsoft sues Indian co for technical scams The technology giant files a civil lawsuit in California court against firms for falsely claiming to be affiliated to it Some international fraudsters are exploiting the tech-savvy reputation of Indians to trick computer users into giving them access to their machines by pretending to be from Microsoft. Now the technology giant is fighting back suing several companies, including an Indian one, alleging they falsely claimed to be Microsoft-affi liated technical support. “In its first big strike against technical support scamming companies, Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) fi led a civil lawsuit in federal court in the central district of California against Omnitech Support and related entities for unfair and deceptive business practices and trademark infringement,” said a Microsoft spokesperson. One of the companies named in the case fi led recently is C-Cubed Solutions Private Limited, which the court papers said is “a private business company formed
under the laws of India” that operates the mail server through which “fraudulent technical support businesses communicate with customers”. Microsoft’s suit said that 3.3 million Americans fall victim to technical support scams every year and lose $1.5 billion. Describing the fraud, senior Microsoft attorney Courtney Gregoire wrote in a company blog, “These scammers claim to find nonexistent computer viruses and infections then con people out of their hard-earned money for bogus tech support, in addition to stealing personal and financial information or even installing new malicious software.” Microsoft has received over 65,000 complaints about such scams since
May, she wrote. The court papers specifically mention alleged frauds using web sites and phone numbers from the sites leading to scammers that Microsoft said it had investigated. Many people in the US have reported receiving telephone calls - in several instances from persons speaking with an Indian accent and using Indian names - claiming to be from Microsoft or a related organisations and saying a problem has been discovered in their computer. In a typical call a person identifying himself as “Raj” from Microsoft called from a number with a Washington, DC, telephone area code and
“Microsoft has received over 65,000 complaints against scams”
claimed that the company had identified a problem with the computer. Asked in one instance how he knew about the problem and if he had hacked the computer, “Raj” said he had. When he was told that hacking was a crime, he hung up. Unwary computer users who take the bait are asked to visit a web site or to download a program, which will introduce a malware that can collect information like logons and financial data or be used to spread the malware. The information collected can be used for identity theft. In other cases, they ask for remote access to the computer and demand credit card numbers to collect their fees. According to Snopes, a website that tracks internet misinformation and fraud, people in several countries, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and England, have received such calls. IANS
The beauty of life lies in the stillness TED is a global platform where people from different fields come together and speak for 18 minutes or less about their respective disciplines. It was started in 1984 by a non-profit organisation called Sapling Foundation, under the slogan — Ideas worth sharing. Initially it organised conferences where matters related to technology, design and entertainment merged, but today it includes varied topics such as business, photography, art, science and the like.
“I’m a lifelong traveller,” said Pico Iyer a British essayist and novelist at TEDx, New York, earlier this year. Flying solo since the age of nine, travelling has been his fi rst love. The more he flew the more he loved it. To merge his job and joy into one, he became a travel writer. “I really began to feel that if you were lucky enough to walk around the candlelit temples of Tibet or to wander along the seafronts in Havana with music passing all around you, you could bring those sounds and the high cobalt skies and the flash of the blue ocean back to your friends at home, and really bring some magic and clarity to your own life,” he said. He says the fi rst thing a person learns while travelling is that a place becomes a magical experience only if a person decides it to be. “I found that the best way that I could develop more attentive and more appreciative eyes was, oddly, by going nowhere, just by sitting still,” he said. By meditating he found that he could connect his
experiences of past and future and trace his growth in between. Th is going ‘nowhere’ was as exciting as going to Tibet or to Cuba. “Taking a few minutes out of every day or a few days out of every season, or even, as some people do, a few years
“I could develop more attentive eyes by sitting still” out of life in order to sit still long enough to find out what moves you the most, will help you recall where your truest happiness lies,” he said. He says that the idea of stillness has been around for more than 2,000 years, the Stoics(school of philosophy founded by Zeno, who taught that people should be free from passion, and unmoved by joy or grief) taught us that it’s not our experience that makes our lives, it’s our reaction to it
Twitter faces a temporary blackout Twitter faced a temporary outage early this week, when users found themselves logged out of the social networking site. Apparently, the crash seemed to have affected Android users more. While the @twitter handle as well its official blog are so far silent on what happened, those who logged in during the outage were faced with a welcome page saying “Something is technically wrong.” “Thanks for noticing-we’re going to fi x it up and have things back to normal soon,” the page added. The log-in issue occured both on the online service as well as through its mobile site. Twitter application for Android and iOS also faced issues and most users were logged out. Some users tweeted that tweets on popular Twitter client TweetDeck were a year-old date stamp. Across the world users are still facing log-in issues and Twitter said its “engineers are currently working to resolve this.”
Microsoft’s new ‘Spartan’ to be an option to Internet Explorer Microsoft is intending to initiate a brand new browser called “Spartan” as a lightweight substitute instead of overhauling Internet Explorer with its launch of Windows 10, according to reports. According to sources, Spartan may finally debut on different platforms like iOS and Android, reported PCWorld. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer still continues to be the most popular browser in the world, maintaining consistency at 58 percent of the user base throughout 2014, according to NetApplications. The company may launch the new browser with Windows 10, from January 21, 2015.
Trestor Foundation to enter India’s digital currency market Trestor Foundation, a not-forprofit private organisation, is aiming at entering the digital currency market in India. It enables digital money along with a complete new payment and market system. Trestor aims to help underdeveloped and developing countries uplift their economies. Kunal Dixit, founder, Trestor Foundation believes that T- Net is a computer program or mobile application that provides a personal digital wallet, thereby allowing a user to send and receive Trests. Utilising Trests is as easy as using email or WhatsApp. The users can also enjoy facilities such as; faster and cost efficiency in transferring money at minimum (close to zero) fees. They can be easily sent to anyone, anywhere in the world without paying up to 55 – 60 per cent transaction fees
Amazon and Flipkart likely to invest `2300 crore in India
Pico Iyer, British essayist and novelist talked about the need of stillness, meditation to connect to life and inner-self
BY VIDYA UNNITHAN @vidya_unnithan
In The TECH WORLD
that does. “Imagine a hurricane suddenly sweeps through your town and reduces every last thing to rubble. One man is traumatised for life. But another, maybe even his brother, almost feels liberated, and decides this is a great chance to start his life anew. There is nothing either good or bad, as Shakespeare told us in ‘Hamlet’, but thinking makes it so,” he said. He maintains that much of our life takes place inside our heads, in memory, imagination, interpretation or speculation. And to bring a change in life, one must begin by changing his or her mind. Emphasising the need for stillness in life, he said that in an age of acceleration, nothing can be more exhilarating than going slow. And in an age of constant movement, nothing is so urgent as sitting still. “So you can go on your next vacation to Paris or Hawaii; I bet you’ll have a wonderful time. But, if you want to come back home alive and full of fresh hope, I think you might want to try considering going nowhere,” said Iyer. vidyaunnithan@gmail.com
Amazon and Flipkart India will invest nearly `2,300 crore in the near term as they fiercely compete with each other to acquire more customers in India’s fast-growing online retail market that’s mostly driven by deep discounts. Flipkart and Amazon run their websites as marketplaces — connecting buyers and sellers. Amazon was raising `610 crore through a rights issue to its parent and in July, the company announced a $2-billion investment in the country without giving a time frame. Flipkart, the country’s largest online retailer, approved plans of `1,300 crore through a rights issue to its Singapore-based parent and borrow up to `400 crore from Kotak Mahindra Bank. Two weeks ago, Flipkart’s parent company raised $700 million in fresh funding from existing as well as new investors, pegging its valuation at $11 billion.
Infosys ‘Super Ninjas’ to offer solutions on rapid prototyping Infosys has started building a team of ‘super ninjas’ or domain specialists across divisions to strengthen its engagement with clients along with putting in place a group of a dozen executives to resolve issues faced by employees. The process has already begun in some of the units of India’s second-largest software exporter. The super ninjas are a team of people who have deep technical expertise and will work along with service line teams to offer solutions to a client on rapid prototyping. The formation of this team resulted from murmuration, the company’s initiative to crowdsource ideas from employees.
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
“If people are not laughing at your goals, your goals are too small.” - Azim Premji, Indian businessman and philanthropist
Signposts 250 firms to attend MAHATech Pune will be hosting the 11th MAHATech, an industrial exhibition from the January 8, 2015 at New Agriculture College Ground, Shivajinagar. MAHAtech is an ideal platform for entrepreneurs to showcase their products and services, upgrade their capacities, modernize their business and reach out to customers. Launched in 2004, MAHATech is organized by The Maharashtra Industries Directory and is the biggest B2B (business-to-business) industrial trade fair in Pune. “This year the exhibition will see more than 250 Indian and International companies including firms from Germany and Taiwan,”said Vinay Marathe,director of MAHATech.
Electronic funds for start-ups soon Recommending replication of Kerala’s Startup Village model in other states in India to boost entrepreneurship, union communication and information technology minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that the government will set up an electronic development fund for start-ups across the country. “We propose to connect 2,50,000 gram panchayats across the country with a national optical fibre network in the next three years,” said Prasad. Kerala is doing very well in this. With regards to the incentives, he said if a state government or any other body provides 100 acres of land for setting up manufacturing units, the central government will provide a funding support of Rs 50 crore straight away.
PUNE
“Innovation is the key to modern health care. The idea behind WISH emerged out of my passion for innovation and affordable health care. I wanted to find a way to channel these two personal passions.” -Sunil Wadhwani, founder, Wish Foundation India
Pune author gets a start-up pat
The Bloody Good Book initiative by Rashmi Bansal and Niyati Patel has shortlisted Roomies/Foodies for e-book publication BY RITU GOYAL HARISH @ritugh
“BGB is a democratic platform for upcoming authors.”
Full time authors Rashmi Bansal and Niyati Patel, in June 2014, unveiled their publishing plans for the fi rst time authors. The venture called ‘Bloody Good Book’, invited entries from all over the country. “We intended to publish books that are pathbreaking, original and interesting,” said Patel. In October 2014, two authors were declared as winners. Uday Satpathy’s thriller Brutal was selected to be published as an e-book as well as print book by Delhi based Westland publishers. Beauté Naturelle cosmetics shop founder Meghana Choudhary Joshi and her friend Lakshmi Ramachandran’s book, Roomies/Foodies was picked for
- NIYATI PATEL
Rashmi Bansal
e-book publication. Rashmi Bansal, author of the five bestsellers, Stay Hungry Stay Foolish, Connect the Dots, I Have a Dream, Poor Little Rich Slum, Follow Every Rainbow and Take Me Home, can be singly credited for chronicling the start-up and entrepreneurial revolution that was taking place in India. In October 2013, Bansal teamed up with Patel to initiate the Bloody Good Book, a publishing venture that uses the power of crowd sourcing and crowd curating to zero in on the next great book. Highlighting the prospects of a venture like the BGB, Patel said, “We believe that traditional publishing needs a wake-up call, and BGB does just that by creating a democratic online platform that can bring
Lakshmi Ramachandran & Meghana
Choudhary Joshi
together aspiring authors looking to be noticed and avid book lovers who want to have their voice heard.” Th is exclusive online venture began in June 2014 with the launch of their website. Facebook and Twitter were used extensively to invite manuscripts from talented fi rst time authors. Readers had to sign up as members and review the short manuscripts posted online. By the time the founders were ready to announce their two winners (one for a hardcopy publication by Westland and the other as an e-book), BGB had 67 manuscripts online and over 5381 members. Roomies/Foodies was one of them. Roomies/Foodies is a collection of 60 recipes that Meghana Choudhary Joshi and Lakshmi Ramachandran used, created and conjured when they lived together in Buffalo, US as they
Synopsis of Roomies/Foodies The year is 2001. Two young Indian girls arrive in the US for the first time, to attend graduate school. They become roommates. One’s a non-cook. The other’s kitchen skills are strictly basic. As luck would have it, both are consummate foodies. And it’s not just advanced molecular biology they’ll come to tackle—the daily challenge is to feed their stomachs and souls on a thinner-than-spaghetti budget! Part memoir, part cook-book, Roomies/Foodies compiles the experiments and culinary adventures of Lux (Lakshmi Ramachandran) and Meg (Meghana Choudhary Joshi) as they stick to their resolve of eating only non-boring food!
attended the universities in 2001. “We had basic culinary skills but we both are food lovers. The recipes came up as a part of our experimentation with different kinds of food,” said Joshi. Owing to their busy schedules, the former roommates never got to meet and fi nish the book together. It was written over four years and across three countries. “We co-ordinated the
content over Internet, phone calls and emails,” said Joshi. Bansal believes that the book is written with a unique style and authority. “It is drawn on the authors’ own experiences. It is a delightful, useful, practical guide for Indian students abroad. I know they will like it immediately,” said Bansal. ritugoyalharish@gmail.com
Sandeep Dharma is set to redefine A hair stylist with a difference the city’s fashion landscape
Amrita Bokey believes that hard work and passion will help you materialise your business
Sandeep Dharma Fashion Studio is the only city platform for aspiring models. He recounts his journey of setting up his agency through networking RAHUL RAUT
Sandeep Dharma choreographing a fashion show at Westin, Pune
BY RITU GOYAL HARISH @ritugh Creative, versatile and young, Sandeep Dharma had stints in different industries before settling as a fashion choreographer, fashion stylist and model co-ordinator. The industry experience helped him network and sell his services among the best clients in the country. He believes entrepreneurship in the fashion industry is all about networking, hard work and creativity. He started his career at WLL phones right after school. Then he tried modelling on ramp and even acting in a few television serials such as Dhoondh Legi Manzil Humein and Diya Aur Bati Hum. Sandeep Dharma finally found his calling in the fashion industry as fashion choreographer, fashion stylist and model co-ordinator. Dharma began fashion choreography when he was barely 20 years old with a Mr & Ms Fresher party for a college. By this time he had already acted in a few television serials and realised that “I wasn’t good at it” he admitted smiling sheepishly. Th is was around the year 2007. “I started doing a lot
of local shows, brand launches etc.” he said. By 2008-’09 he had jumped into the big league. By 2010 he had set up Sandeep Dharma Fashion Studio (SDFS). It has
Becoming of SDFS • Idea was born out of the need to create a niche Fashion Studio in Pune so that the aspiring models don’t have to go to Mumbai • It was difficult to jump into business initially as SDFS was a new name. It took some time to break the market • The top 3 challenges faced by the company were – a) Get people to accept that they need professional grooming to get into modelling, b) Justify their cost to aspiring models, and c) Earmarking a suitable venue for grooming since SDFS was flooded by enquiries from across Pune.
two centres, one in Model Colony and the other in Kalyani Nagar. “We are the only one in Pune who give models a platform to get into the industry” explained Dharma who belongs to a family of doctors and had even passed the entrance to get into medicine, but gave it up for creative pursuits. The fashion industry while being glamorous is also known for the hardships that its people, especially beginners come across. Dharma’s experience is no different. “It is a lot of hard work because we need to understand the designer, his clothes, technicalities of how the clothes should be showcased, choosing the right models, music, and so many elements” he said. In his vast repertoire of experience, Dharma has worked with some of the country’s biggest designers such as Rocky S, Rohit Verma and Vikram Phadnis. He has launched some of the biggest brands in Pune such as Bebe and Forever New. He has choreographed all Provogue shows in Pune from 2008-2010. Models like Pooja Chopra (Femina Miss India 2009) and Kriti Kapoor (Femina Miss India Viewers Choice 2011) were groomed under his guidance. SDFS is also associated with Truth, Love and Cash and GetGorgeous reality shows that come on Channel V. SDFS has several new ventures to its credit. In 2012, SDFS conducted Project Masoom, a social event in Pune to sensitise others to the issue all women face. In 2014, they brought Ms India Worldwide, a beauty pageant to Pune in collaboration with famous TV actor Anuj Saxena. With the upcoming Mrs India International pageant that SDFS is bringing to Pune, Dharma is set to redefine the fashion landscape of the city. “It is a myth that fashion is in Mumbai. Only TV and fi lms are in Mumbai. Real fashion is in Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata. We are working on making Pune the next fashion hub” he added. ritugoyalharish@gmail.com
BY BARNALEE HANDIQUE @barnalee In 2007, after completing her BBA course from Symbiosis International University at SB Road, Amrita Bokey was left with two options. She was to either pusue law or hairdressing. Bokey eventually went to Vidal Sasson academy to learn hairstyling. In 2012, she launched her unisex salon- Amrita Bokey’s Hair and Makeup Salon. To Bokey, her salon is her channel of creativity and gives her a sense of independence. Her experimental haircuts and celebrity hairdos have garnered attention. Bokey worked at Headlines, a beauty parlour in Aundh before she applied to the ‘London school of Beauty and make up” for a course in beauty and make up.
RAHUL RAUT
“New entrepreneurs should get their basics right.” - AMRITA BOKEY
Amrita Bokey
After she had acquired her second degree, she received a lot of freelancing projects. She did the make up for artists and models at Essar laptops and Zee Cine awards ceremony at Macao. It proved to be time consuming and tedious for her. “I love working hard, but it was too tedious. That’s when I decided that I will open my own salon,” she said. She started looking for places to start her parlour. With her mother’s help she invested in a nice cozy fl at at Rohan Garima, behind Marriott hotel at SB Road. The 1200 sq ft salon is divided into bridal, waxing, nail and haircutting sections. Since the launch, Amrita’s smart cutting styles have been the talk of the town. She keeps tabs on the different hairstyles and hairdo sported by celebrities’ worldwide. For instance, at her salon you can get your hair dyed like Sarah Jessica Parker. “The washed out colour look is the new trend these days. My celebrity clients want to wear the same look,” said Amrita. For dyeing, Amrita charges Rs 3000, which may go up according to the length of the hair. Otherwise, it is Rs 800 for a simple haircut for a woman and Rs 500 for men. Amrita is enjoying her work. She regularly joins courses to keep herself updated with the latest hairstyle fashions. Her advice to budding entrepreneurs who are starting new is to take each day as it comes when one is starting work. “At the initial stage, it is very important to get the basics right. Itwill provide the blue print, which will allow one’s creativity to flow,” she said. barnalee.handique@goldensparrow.com
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
BLACK HEADED IBIS
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY
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JANUARY 03, 2015
The birds have GREY WAGTAIL
RUDDY SHELDUCK
arrived
Bhigwan, the winter gateway for the migratory and the local birds, is full of chirping and airborne birds these days. The migratory birds, including Flamingos and Rudy Shelduck, cover the backwaters of Ujani dam, located on the Pune– Solapur highway. The Golden Sparrow on Saturday’s (TGS) lensman Aniruddha Rajandekar and reporter Gitesh Shelke went bird-watching. The memorable experience opened their eyes to everything out there besides capturing the images of avian beauties. @gitesh_shelke
WHITE HERON
GREATER FLAMINGOS
The backwaters of Ujani reservoir area is visited by over 229 species of birds with the tall wading flamingos with long legs and neck standing above the rest, and many small birds camouflaging against the wintery surroundings. Located about 105 km from Pune, Bhigwan is two hours by road. To see most of the visiting birds at the reservoir, one should take an early morning trip to Kumbhargaon (Bhigwan), off Solapur highway (NH 9). A group of local youths, aware about the bird species, their habitat and habits, take visitors to two spots: Diksal – Parewadi and Dalaj – Kumbhargaon. The backwaters have shallow and deep water areas. Ample of algae, plants, seeds and fish attract birds. Rudy Shelduck, Greater Flamingos, Ciconia Episcopus also known as Wooly Necked Stork, Painted Stork, Purple Heron, Grey Heron, Wood Sandpiper, Purple Moorhen, Black Drongo, Black Headed Gulls, Cormorants, Eurasian Spoonbill, Asian open billed stork, Red-naped Ibis, Goodwits and Glareola lacteal are major attraction. A two-hour journey on boat rowed by local youths takes visitors near to these avian guests. The fl ight of different birds, including flamingos, painted storks and grey heron is a treat to watch. Sandeep Nagare of Kumbhargaon, who brought the village youths, in their 20s, under the umbrella of Agnipankh Bird Watcher Group – Nisarg Sevak, guide the tourists without disturbing the birds. These
youths also provide details about the birds, their habitat and habits. “Nowadays, the visitors or bird watchers make it a point to not disturb the flying guests, unlike in the past. The villagers also alert the authorities if they find anyone suspicious or with weapons, besides planting trees to increase the green cover and securing the birds’ nesting grounds. The youths earn their livelihood by guiding the tourists,” Nagare said. Nagare said that he has observed 229 birds in the backwaters, including 115 local species.
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GLOSSY IBIS
GULL
AFRICAN PIED WAGTAIL
PAINTED STORK
PURPLE HERON
SPOT-BILLED DUCK
Writer’s attempt to save lake and its avian visitors Sandeep Nagare’s book Ujani Jalashay Parisaratil Pakshi (Birds found in Ujani reservoir area) is a detailed study on birds and their habitat. Nagare and his team are making efforts to preserve the environment around the reservoir. The proconservation steps include using rowing boats instead of motor boats so as to not disturb the migratory and local birds. They also appeal to the visitors to not litter the lake and its surroundings. gitesh.shelke@goldensparrow.com
The youth from Kumbhargaon led by Sandeep Nagare in one of the boats on the bank of Ujani Dam
PURPLE MOORHEN
GRAY HERON
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
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“The government is working on the idea of reserving 33 per cent of jobs in Delhi Police for women. We will make sure this happens in next three to four years.” —Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh
Making inroads against climate change P 13
Modi dominated 2014, but can he conquer 2015? If the negative tides of December 2014 continue into 2015, the PM will have a tough time delivering what he promised BY R JAGANNATHAN There is little doubt that one man dominated 2014 in India: Narendra Modi. But can he dominate 2015 as well? On recent form, we can’t be sure. Let us first list his achievements so far. After a spectacular victory in May 2014, the prime minister has been winning election after election for his party – the most recent one being Jharkhand - and has also restored the primacy of the PMO in policy matters. He is not just primus inter pares, but numero uno in all things that matter in this government. He has made waves in foreign policy, which is probably his most successful side so far. He has also made good changes in defence and railway leadership, with the induction of Manohar Parikkar and Suresh Prabhu as cabinet ministers. Otherwise, the promise of his government exceeds performance by a wide margin. Modi has, for example, announced some bold policy initiatives (Make in India, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, et al), and pushed through some modest legislation through parliament (the judges appointments bill, some minor labour law changes, and the small factories bill). Regulations (environment, etc) that can be changed by executive fiat are, however, being changed quickly, and their impact will be considerable in the years to come. However, operative words in the previous paragraph are “announced” and “modest”. His announcements speak of high vision, but the actual achievements – especially in terms of path-breaking legislation – have been small and far between. There are several reasons for this. First, there was the election cycle. Modi has had practically no respite from state assembly elections from
the time he was elected prime minister in May. They will continue all the way to February 2015 with the Delhi polls. Second, Modi seems to prefer incrementalism to big-bang changes of the 1991 type. And third, just when he was getting ready to push through some new laws (on insurance, GST, etc), elements of the Sangh parivar have been acting up, shifting the focus of the media to extraneous issues like conversions and Godse. This has given a handle to his wounded opponents to strike back and block his moves. This is why 2015 will be a makeor-break year for Narendra Modi. If the negative tides of December 2014 continue into 2015, Modi will have a tough time delivering what he promised the electorate. If Modi does not use all the powers at this command – powers to lure, threaten or pressure allies and opponents - to back his legislative moves, he would have lost momentum and he will increasingly face more and more headwinds as he gets embroiled in more state assembly elections by the end of 2015. After Bihar towards end-2015, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal will follow in 2016, and after that comes the very big one in Uttar Pradesh in 2017. 2015 is when Modi will have to decide whether he is willing to risk his party’s political fortunes for
something that is even more vital – the revival of India’s economy and the sidelining of the fringe elements of the Sangh who are sure to derail his “development messiah” image. The problem, as always, is the end of a government’s proverbial “honeymoon” period. Six months is what governments usually get, and Modi probably got that. He might have got an extension, but with the Sangh’s fringe creeping out of the woodwork this month, he will no longer be given the benefit of doubt by his critics – and some friends as well. Modi probably made the mistake that all politicians make – of waiting too long to get the diff icult things done. L o n g before he got elected, I
had suggested that he should get the most difficult parts of his legislative agenda passed in the first 90 days – but the only thing he got done was the National Judicial Appointments Commission bill – which still has to get the approval of 15 states that are needed for a constitution amendment bill. However, all is not lost, for the basic goodwill for Modi remains. He probably has time till around June 2015 to get his legislation passed, and this means he has no time to waste. The last budget by Arun Jaitley was lacklustre, but the next one needs to be truly path-breaking. The next budget is key to reviving animal spirits in the economy, but budgets cannot ensure legislation beyond money bills. Four or five pieces of legislation have simply got to get passed if the economy is to move beyond the UPA terminal years of 4-5 per cent. These includes changes in the growth-retarding Land Acquisition Act, the Insurance Bill, the Goods and Services tax, the Companies Act, among others. If these are not passed in
Modi should focus on getting states to compete for business and reforms
the budget session, they will be permanently held hostage to politics. Given the government’s weak position in the Rajya Sabha, can Modi really get this done? I believe it can happen if Modi deploys all the levers at his command – sops to state parties, threats to others, some skullduggery – to get them to pass his bills. This may have to include a willingness to go on bended knees to the Congress for help. No price is too much if the cost of failure is the country’s future. It also means that Modi has to gag and mothball the Sangh’s wild elements till all his legislation is passed, or else they will never happen. At the heart of Modi’s ability to turn India around – whether politically or economically – is a fundamental problem: the centre’s ability to bring about change is severely limited by the fact that it is states which have to implement crucial policies. Whether it is food security, or land legislation, a manufacturing revival or even toilets for girls in schools, it is states which can make or mar Modi’s programmes. And states have less reason to be on his side if his party is going to be threatening to steal their political bases. This dilemma is relevant not only in states ruled by the opposition, but also BJP-ruled states. It is a mistake to believe that BJP-ruled states will be over-eager t o implement Modi’s policies for the simple reason that each state has its own
IANS
PCMC shows the biometric way of success
priorities, and Modi’s rise threatens state-level BJP leaders too. The Sangh will be giving them the muscle to resist Modi. The only logical way out for Modi is to accept the reality that he can impact only the areas that the centre can directly control – which means the budget, foreign affairs, defence, and the macroeconomy. This means, even policies like Make in India or Swachh Bharat can work only if the states buy in, and the best Modi can do is offer them money and the centre’s expertise in these areas to enable states to do better. He could start competitions between them, help them share best practices, etc. He can’t do it all himself. If Modi is really looking for a longterm legacy that will outlive his tenure, whether one term or two, he has to adopt federalism as his main mantra – not just good governance. In fact, he can use the offer of more power to states to get states to sign on to GST and other laws. The deal could be this: the centre will shift more economic powers and reduce the list of subjects in the concurrent list so that states can legislate on them without Delhi’s interference. All central funds for schemes will be fully grant based, and states will have flexibility to use them where they think it is important. Modi should focus on getting states to compete for business and reforms, for the era of centre-driven reforms is rapidly coming to a close. If Modi thinks he can do it all, he will come a cropper. His only option is to focus on delivering the goods in the areas that are his by law – which means defence, foreign affairs, etc. In other areas, the centre can only be a facilitator. He must challenge states to do the rest by giving them more power. 2015 is make or break for Modi, but he also has to set limits on what he himself attempts to do. He can’t do what only states are equipped to deliver. He has to define success as equipping states to succeed. By special arrangement with Firstpost.com
Refusing to be ‘shamed’: Uber rape survivor speaking out offers hope to all She talks about a slew of things she feels should be done to change the existing public mindset
IANS
BY AYESHEA PERERA
The staff of PMPML attending office after using BAS
THE STORY OF PMPML AND PMC... PMPML December 14, 2014: Decision to adopt biometric system December 16, 2014: Process starts of taking thumb impressions December 22, 2014: The staff at transport utility’s headquarter and main workshop are covered by the attendance marking machines, and it is connected to their salaries PMC April 2012: Tender called to adopt biometric system December 2014: Offices fitted with 200 equipment covering 3,500 employees December 2014: The issue to cover the staff employed on outdoor duties is still pending. Staff union opposes the move to connect these employees to the new attendance marking system
Contd from p 1 With labour union objecting to the mandatory rule of following biometric attendance for only 3,500 employees and not covering those who do field work, Zagade had decided not to connect the attendance data with the staff ’s salary record. The employees’ opposition to the transparent system of biometric attendance system came to the fore during an official function recently. At the oath taking ceremony against corruption arranged by additional municipal commissioner Omprakash Bakoriya for nearly 15,000 employees, very few turned up. Bakoriya called for the attendance record of employees and took action against 60 latecomers. With many departments, including the municipal
secretary office, still following the traditional attendance register method, employees turn up late in office and sign the register. The departments, including water supply and vehicle depot, where overtime is permitted, many staffers deliberately don’t use the biometric system. PCMC public relations official Anna Bodade said, “The BAS followed by the civic administration has improved the administration process.” PCMC implemented BAS phase wise and now it covers all staff, and even the salary is withhold if BAS record is not submitted. The system can record thumb impressions and information about 1,500 people at a time. ashok.bhat21@gmail.com & archana.dahiwal@goldensparrow.com
When the news of the Uber rape first broke and as it played out in ceaseless newspaper headlines and television coverage, the reaction that many of us had was one of despondency and hopelessness. It felt like a slap in the face of all that we had been fighting for, because it brought home the stark reality that despite new stringent laws, much more public awareness and heightened media focus on crimes against women, nothing much has changed on the ground. The fact remains that being a woman in India is like living some sort of sordid Russian Roulette. Every time you step out of your house and return safely, you have fired a blank cartridge. The ‘live bullet’ always lurks at the edge of consciousness. The next rape victim could just be you. It’s easy to bow down to the inevitable in this situation. Restrict your movements, buy into the ideology that victims somehow ‘asked’ for what happened to them, accept that this is the ‘reality’ of the world we live in and relegate feminist values of equality and dignity to the shelves of utopian and impractical ideology. But the brave decision of the Uber rape survivor to come forward and loudly proclaim via national media her refusal to be cowed down by what has happened to her and hide behind the anonymity of the faceless, nameless ‘rape victim’ tag has given us all a reason to hope. It is in fact, an extremely important step in any battle ahead for women’s equality, which is most stymied by a culture of shame. By coming out and talking about what has happened to her,she is refusing to be ‘shamed’ by the incident and
All India Democratic Women Association (AIDWA) activists demonstrate against Uber taxi rape case in front of Delhi Police Headquarters in New Delhi (file photo)
instead places the ‘shame’ at the feet of the perpetrators. “This city has failed me” is the opening line of her Indian Express column. But this is not a column of false bravado. She is frank about the impact that the incident has left on her. “Today, I find it difficult to sleep. Memories of that night keep coming back in flashes to haunt me. I try to sleep but can’t because of the constant fear. The incident has left a deep impact on my psyche, I feel scared to go out alone”, she writes.
She is also frank about the difficulty of being branded a ‘rape victim’. “Some people in my neighbourhood have already started raising questions about my dignity. I have stopped going out alone and I am facing immense difficulty in coping with the pressure”, she admits. But despite the trauma of what has happened to her, she is defiant. And she is under no illusions about who is at fault here. It is certainly not her. She talks about a slew of things she feels should be done to change the existing public mindset and to sensitise people on violence against women.
She is not about to quietly accept her fate, and eventually the blame, with regards to this incident. And nor should any of us. The woman is emblematic of a changing psyche among our younger generation that gives us great reason for hope. The more we refuse to be silenced, and the more we speak out against injustice and violence, the more it weakens the existing biases against women that make many men feel that perpetrating violence against them is almost a right. Firstpost.com
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
“Tuberculosis affects all organs of the human body, and managing it requires good clinical judgement and investigation services.” -SK Sharma, Head of the medicine department at AIIMS
“A healthy diet and adequate physical activity, a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate activity for at least five days a week, can help prevent lifestyle diseases.” -Sachin Chaudhary is CEO&Founder, Medical Second Opinion
Extreme mood swings may indicate bipolar disorder Bipolar disorder should be taken as seriously as any deadly disease, warns Dr Harish Shetty
The Way Forward With Compassion & Hope
Care for the elderly with joy in your hearts BY C RAVINDRANATH
BY ANJALI SHETTY AND YASH DAIV @anjali_shetty @yash009
GRAPHICS: THEREFORE DESIGN
pass. But over time, he started having extreme mood swings. A friend suggested that I should read up on bipolar disorders. That is when I realised what my brother was suffering from,” she said. Shetty says that people experiencing such drastic swings of moods, are in immediate need of psychiatric care. “The person who oscillates between these mental situations may not admit it. It thus becomes the duty of the family to report the case to a psychiatrist and convince the patient to attend sessions,” he said. “Bipolar disorders are as serious as
any dreadful disease. But a bipolar disorder can be controlled with treatment,” he said. Llithium is known to reduce the radical transition in mood and it also averts mental relapses. It reduces the risk of suicide, self-harm, and death in people with bipolar disorder. Small doses of benzodiazepines are prescribed to stabilise mood. Besides medication, alternative medicine like omega 3 fatty acids may be prescribed to curb depressive symptoms. The medication is easily available through prescription at chemist’s shops. However, people refrain from consulting a psychiatrist or a psychologist and thus are unaware of the solution. The fear of being stigmatised also prevents people
‘Tobacco litter challenge to health, environment’ Cigarette butt is a major source of litter in the world and its harmful chemicals have adverse effects on the surroundings. Environmentalists address the need for an absolute ban on smoking in public Environmental experts have called for strict implementation of the ban on public smoking as callously discarded cigarette stubs are a health and environmental challenge. “The non-biodegradable nature of cigarette butts, a hazardous solid waste, make it a challenging area to address. The butts also contain dangerous chemicals such as cadmium, arsenic and lead,” environmentalist MK Prasad said in a statement. “Stricter implementation of laws on public smoking will not only improve public health but also restrict environmental damage,” said Prasad. “Developed countries have woken up to this fact and have undertaken steps to identify the enormity of the problem. According to one estimate, the overall littering rate for cigarette butts in America is 65 per cent,” said Prasad. A paper published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health cites that an estimated 1.69 billion pounds of butts are littered worldwide a year. Harish Vasudevan, an environmental law expert, said studies pointed out that tobacco refuse was a major source of litter on the planet.
GRAPHICS: THEREFORE DESIGN
“Filter cigarettes offered as an alternative to reduce the amounts of nicotine and tar consumed are a mainstay with smokers now. Cigarette fi lters are made of
cellulose acetate, a plastic slow to degrade,” said Vasudevan. Indian Tobacco Control Act COTPA 2003 prohibits smoking in all public places including public offices, educational institutions, public conveyances, restaurants, hotels, health institutions and all workplaces. “Presence of cigarette stubs in public places provides cues for smoking. This major environmental and public health issue can be effectively controlled by implementing laws that prohibit smoking in public places,” Vasudevan said. Highlighting how infl ight smoking has been effectively prohibited, CN Mohanan, former head of Environmental Sciences Division, Centre for Earth Science Studies here, said education, awareness generation and enforcement all have equal roles to play while addressing the cigarette litter issue. “Policy b a c k i n g , repetitive communication and punishment for violators have made it possible to curb smoking during air travel. Cigarette butt littering is something we cannot afford to ignore,” said Mohanan. IANS
Bipolar disorder Bipolar disorder is a mental disorder characterized by periods of elevated mood and periods of depression. The elevated mood is significant and is known as mania during which an individual feels or acts abnormally happy, energetic, or irritable. The need for sleep is usually reduced. During periods of depression there may be crying, poor eye contact with others, and a negative outlook on life. The risk of suicide among those with the disorder is high. Mental health issues such as anxiety disorder and drug misuse are commonly associated. Both genetic and environmental factors are considered as disorder triggers. Environmental factors include long term stress and a history of childhood abuse.
from consulting a shrink. Commerce student 19-year-old Naina Sharma believes that talking of mental illness is taboo. “The moment I mention the word depression or feeling low, my relatives and parents change the topic or tell me to stop talking rubbish. So I went into a shell and started blaming myself for feeling low. I was under the illusion that I was responsible for my state. My parents till date haven’t accepted the fact that I need treatment. A close friend of mine has been helping me recover. People should start taking bipolar disorder seriously.” *Names changed to protect identity anjali.shetty@goldensparrow.com yashdaiv@gmail.com
Yoga a potential therapy for cardiovascular disease: Study A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials has concluded that the popular mindbody practice of Yoga can be a potential therapy for cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. Out of 1,404 records, 37 randomised controlled trials were included in the systematic review and 32 in the meta-analysis. Compared to non-exercise participants, Yoga showed significant improvement for body mass index, systolic blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Significant changes were seen in body weight, diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, triglycerides and heart rate but not fasting blood glucose. “This review helps strengthen the evidence base for Yoga as a potentially effective therapy for such conditions. The results support earlier reviews on the positive benefits of Yoga for cardiovascular disease prevention,” the authors noted. However, no significant difference was found between yoga and exercise. One study found an impact on smoking abstinence. The team concluded that there is promising evidence of Yoga on improving cardio-metabolic health. The study titled “The effectiveness of Yoga in modifying risk factors for cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome: A systematic review and metaanalysis of randomised controlled trials” appeared in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology. IANS GRAPHICS: THEREFORE DESIGN
“Symptoms of a bipolar disorder are hard to spot. The disorder can be spotted through extreme mood swings. It may last for hours, days, weeks or even months,” said psychiatrist Dr Harish Shetty. Since those affected by bipolar dis order do not show overt signs in their behaviour, like schizophrenia patients do, people are largely unaware of this condition. Bipolar behaviour is passed off as erratic behaviour, without it being diagnosed as a mood disorder. “The disorder is mainly differentiated as a classic form where the patient’s behaviour escalates and are out of control. The second phase, depression, has fewer symptoms. The patient may find it difficult to spot it themselves,” said Shetty. Those suffering from bipolar disorder are given to feeling extremely happy for long stretches of time, they talk fast, exude confidence, engage in high-risk behaviour like casual sex, gamble away life savings, or going on a big spending spree. They are also prone to feeling sad or worried for long periods, suffer a loss or increase in appetite, fatigue, they speak slowly and have suicidal thoughts or tendencies. 37-year-ol Suman Dixit*is a high school teacher, who has been looking after her younger brother, who is suffering from bipolar disorder for over a decade. “We first thought it was depression and that the phase would
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he greatest poverty is loneliness,” said Mother Teresa. I daresay she knew more about poverty than most of us ever will. Though it is said that no man is an island, I see more and more islands of loneliness dotting the ocean of humanity. It makes me sad, for loneliness sprouts depression and brings on a host of problems for the lonely person and others. In extreme cases, lonely and depressed persons commit suicide, which is both a waste and a shame on the society we are part of. There is a difference between loneliness and solitude. The former has been described as the poverty of being alone while the latter, the richness. Solitude is chosen. Loneliness is forced. Nobody really wants to be lonely, though they may prefer solitude. While loneliness is associated with a feeling of rejection, frustration and melancholy, solitude is associated with quiet reflection, meditation and introspection. To me, the only way to counter loneliness is to reach out and share. The lonely person can reach out, seek help (a difficult task) and benefit from others. We can reach out, empathise with the person who is lonely and bring some cheer. The least we can do is listen – another difficult proposition. It is sad that there are organizations like ‘Connecting’ in Pune and Institute of Psychological Health (IPH) in Thane that run telephone helpline for persons in distress. I say it is sad, though both organisations (and I’m sure, many others like them) are doing excellent work. I say it is sad because it is what you and I should be doing. It is easier
for us to reach out to a lonely person than for him or her to reach out to us. Alas, most of us shelter under the excuse of lack of time when it is actually a case of lack of inclination. We couldn’t care less and consider our duty done by clucking our tongues in sympathy when we read of a suicide in the newspaper. “Most of the times, all that is required is active listening,” said Bobby Zacharia of Connecting. “Active listening is focusing on the person’s words, empathizing and listening without counselling, advising or even interrupting,” he said. This is alien to many of us who labour under the compulsion to speak and seldom give the other person an opportunity to talk and unburden himself. Let us ask ourselves how often we listen and how often we talk. Let us answer this question honestly. When we listen without judgement, we not only accept the other person’s feelings but the person as well. There is comfort in being accepted and included. More often than not, whenever I have listened to someone’s woes or problems without bias, it has ended in the person either finding his own solutions or at least gaining some relief. It is the least I can do for him. It is also a lot. It is a win-win situation with both feeling good at the end. Why are we denying ourselves the pleasure of a good deed? Can we therefore listen without interruption? Can we listen without opining or judging? Can we listen actively and empathize? Above all, can we reach out to someone in need of an attentive ear? (The writer is a multi-faceted personality who believes in responding with compassion and hope
Is a problem bothering you and you are unable to decide what to do? Write in to us at wayforward@goldensparrow.com for advice and suggestions from C Ravindranath
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
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TH E EDIT PAGE
Editor’s pick
People have to start talking to know more about other cutures and to understand each other. - Martin Scorsese, American filmmaker
PK, Narendra Dabholkar and blind faith
Cartoon by: Keshav (Courtesy The Hindu)
The yet awaited fundamental change Modi govt’s reforms concerning several bills, and policy reforms may not radically transform the economy yet.
Readers need to be fully aware and enlightened about this dark reality
Vol-1* lssue No.: 29 Printed and Published by: PRI – Media Services Private Limited CIN: U22222MH2012PTC232006 on behalf of Golden Sparrow Publishing Pvt. Ltd. CIN:U22200PN2014PTC151382 Printed at Diligent Media Corporation Ltd., Plot No. EL-201, TTC Industrial Area, MIDC, Mahape, Navi Mumbai. Published at Golden Sparrow Publishing Pvt. Ltd. 1641, Madhav Heritage, Tilak Road, Pune-411 030, Tel: 020-2432 4332/33. Editor: Abhay Vaidya (Responsible for the selection of news under the PRB Act, 1867)
BY MADAN SABNAVIS The government has made a strong statement by having three important bills passed through the Ordinance route. Th is is very encouraging as it reinforces the faith in the assurances given for delivering on policy when it took over power in May 2014. However, the Ordinance route may never be as satisfying as an act of Parliament for the players as there would always be uncertainty about the ratification of the same when the Parliament reconvenes. Even so, how do these policies or reforms really add up? The re-auctioning of the coal blocks is probably not an issue to be opposed and ended in an impasse due to other political developments and hence is more of an administrative challenge. The insurance bill sought to increase the access of FDI to 49 per cent from 26 per cent. Th is has not been quite contentious in the economic spirit as it still ensures that ownership remains with Indians. While politically there has been opposition to these limits as it a part of real politick to oppose any move on FDI in any sector, the move as such does not change the structure of the business. In fact, sceptics term 49 per cent of FDI as being opportunistic for countries which want the dollars but do not want to part with control. The bill on land reforms has met with a mixed response. Essentially the issue can be split into two parts: infrastructure and industry. For ensuring that the infra projects go through there have been exemptions
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human thought and imagination. God then helps transform our inner self, giving us inner strength and peace and enables us to fight against and surmount various hurdles. It is this God who gives us hope during our trials and tribulations and personal difficulties. Th is is why when people worship they are either thanking God for favours done and prayers answered; praying for a way out of darkness or seeking forgiveness for sins committed. Idol worship gives form to our gods and makes the pursuit of such belief systems that much easier. The power of faith that gives us inner strength and the “inner voice” that Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr, Swami Vivekananda and countless others spoke of is neither questioned nor challenged by the fi lm PK. Just as Dabholkar did throughout his life, PK draws our attention to the exploitation of the masses by cheats in the guise of Godmen who promote blind faith and superstitious beliefs in the name of religion. The protests against PK are not worthy of our support in any form and it is disappointing that a person of intellectual merit like BJP leader Subramaniam Swamy should be associated with the campaign against PK. Khan portrays a India-Pakistan love story in the fi lm effectively and shows how it is the politics of hate in the two nations, religious fundamentalism and terrorism, also born out of misguided beliefs in religion, that have kept the people of the two nations divided. All of this is, however, not enough to stop true love, as we know of real life stories of wedlock between Indians and Pakistanis. It is quite gratifying that Hirani’s fi lm has emerged as a blockbuster which will enable him to make more socially-relevant fi lms. PK deserves to be seen and discussed widely, across the country. @TGSWeekly editor_tgs@goldensparrow.com
made on consent and social impact assessment, which have been waived for five segments. Therefore, to the extent rural infrastructure, affordable housing, defence equipment, industrial corridors and PPP have gotten stalled, there is relief. But will these projects take off ? One is not quite sure as the compensation structures remain unchanged at 4 times for rural and twice for urban land. Th is cost could still be a deterrent. Further, given that this is passed through the ordinance route, and the government does not have a majority in the Rajya Sabha, there is a good chance of there being opposition when the bill is finally tabled. Therefore, potential investors would prefer to tarry before going in as the history of politics related to natural resources has not been encouraging in the last few years and nobody wants to be caught on the wrong foot with future retrospective measures being imposed. At a broader level, the question
posed really is as to what is the power of a government to control the pace of investment and growth in the economy? When the UPA was in power it became fashionable for everyone to chastise the government for inaction. However, with the NDA taking over, there has been a frantic effort made to clear stalled projects and bring in reforms. The former was also done by the UPA with the Committee on Investment fast-tracking such clearances. Th is has been hastened by the NDA; and despite some announcements made by the some companies, investment has not really picked up. Th is really raises the issue of how important is policy and reforms for bringing about growth? While it does certainly add the ‘delta’ to the growth process, on its own, is inadequate to bring about a radical transformation in the economy. There has been the tendency for critics to overstate the case of reforms as being the panacea for the economy. But, it goes back to
The passionate Sanskrit scholar BY QUAID NAJMI In downtown Worli, it is common to hear the strange greeting of ‘AssalamuAlaykum, Guruji’ whenever an 80-year-old Muslim man steps out of his modest home. He is none other than renowned Sanskrit scholar Pandit Gulam Dastagir, who over six decades has impressed the Shankaracharyas, RSS leaders and Islamic scholars, all with equal elan. Born in Chikhali village in Solapur district, Pandit Dastagir completed his schooling before joining a government Sanskrit institution. “I was the only Muslim student in a class of around four dozen Brahmins. My Brahmin Guruji developed a special liking for me and encouraged me. I acquired my entire Sanskrit knowledge of the scriptures, Vedas and other texts there,” said Pandit Dastagir. Around mid-1950s, he shifted to Mumbai and joined the Maratha Mandir Sansthan’s Marathi-medium Worli High School as a Sanskrit teacher for all classes. Two decades later, to comply with professional requirements, he appeared directly for a Master’s degree in Sanskrit from Mysore University. After the Emergency, when the Janata Party ruled India, Pandit
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A superbly entertaining fi lm, Rajkumar Hirani’s Aamir Khanstarrer PK goes beyond entertainment and captures the hypocrisy and blind faith in Indian society rather eloquently. Using sarcasm, humour and entertainment, Hirani and Khan have done on celluloid what the late anti-superstition crusader Narendra Dabholkar did on the ground, fighting against the exploitation of the poor in the name of religion. Any person of moderate intelligence who believes in free thought can see through the destructive and divisive role of religion and religious order and its associated paraphernalia. Using a simpleton’s logic, Khan asks in the fi lm: we call ourselves Hindus, Muslims and Christians and then go about fighting for our religion, not hesitating to kill and infl ict suffering on others. But then, were we born with our religions stamped on bodies, asks PK, an alien who is the central character of the fi lm. He demonstrates effectively how our belief in various religions serves only to divide and not unite towards a common purpose such as making this world better for all. Why do we allow these religions and religious leaders to make a fool of society, he asks. Godmen and their blind followers are dealt with effectively by PK: He calls them a bunch of frauds and cheats who run business empires in the name of God. They don’t guide people but misguide them. If Godmen can do miracles and create gold out of thin air, why do they collect money and donations from their followers and live a fi lthy rich lifestyle, asks PK. Why do the so-called Godmen ask their followers to do various sacrifices, penances and observe “vrats” and fasts to appease Gods when they know that none of it is going to work? The fi lm does not question faith in a mysterious, higher power which we call God and worship in various forms and through various religions. It is this God, whom we give shape and form and conceptualize through
Pandit Gulam Dastagir
Dastagir was suddenly targeted. “They suspected I was a namesake Muslim propagating the RSS and Jana Sangh ideology through Sanskrit. It was only after a long investigation that they were proved wrong,” he said. For two years, he toured India extensively and propagated Sanskrit in government and private institutions. He quit the in 1984. “I acquired MA in Sanskrit only in 1987 when I was around 50 years old although I was proficient in the language long before.”
Since his retirement, Pandit Dastagir lectures on the similarities between Islam and Hinduism with reference to various aspects of one of the world’s oldest and richest languages, Sanskrit. Pandit Dastagir explained that Hinduism does not recognize ‘conversions’ or the caste system. “The current craze for ‘conversions’ has no basis in Hindu scriptures. It is not recognized. At best, you can change a person’s name, not his soul from the religion of his or her birth,” he said. An old darling of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), Pandit Dastagir credits the group with giving him full encouragement to pursue his vocation without having to change his religion. He feels the RSS was not against any religion. “But if anybody threatens Hinduism, they will retort,” Pandit Dastagir said. His love for Sanskrit has not made him lose Islamic identity. He prays daily at the mosque. “I have built up a huge library on Sanskrit and Islam which I study and propagate,” Pandit Dastagir said. He laments that there are many other Muslim Sanskrit scholars in the country but financial constraints prevent them from propagating the ancient Indian language. IANS
the fundamentals, which when weak cannot really lead to acceleration in the growth process even if the reforms are brought in. In a way the progress of the reforms path and the economy could be a vindication of the earlier government. When we say that the fundamentals have to change it refers to interest rates, inflation, consumption, investment and government spending. The demand-led slowdown has not been reversed and with the government being conservative by not spending in order to maintain fiscal prudence, the Keynesian thrust is missing. Therefore, it is not surprising that even though we have seen incremental policy changes all over like labour, companies act, single market for agro products, infra push, Make in India campaign, and inclusive banking, demand revival is still some time away. Th is should also make us think hard on how effective GST will finally be in terms of increasing our growth rate. Surely, efficiency will improve and companies will become more effective. But will this lead to better compliance? Will those companies who were dodging tax become honest now? And why should they start paying when they have gotten way so far? Will prices of goods come down or will the system be revenue neutral? Will companies lower their prices – toothpaste rarely becomes cheaper when duties are reduced? Have companies not produced in the past due to tax inefficiency? Therefore, while GST is needed and will help, we should be abstemious in judging its impact on the economy. firstpost.com
Limericks of the week BY C RAVINDRANATH
This is what some people say Rapes, bombs, come what may What’s important At this instant Is shouting over Amir’s PK.
Beyond decorum’s hedge It’s become a game of sledge Above all Bat or ball It’s the mouth that has the edge.
Just like that - without fail It’s very easy to get bail That’s the gist For a terrorist In a Pakistani jail.
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
PUNE
With selections from The New York Times
Kohli ushers in new era for Indian cricket P 15
“Supporting internally displaced persons and early recovery of critical social infrastructure in eastern Ukraine is a priority for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).” Inita Paulovica, deputy resident representative of the UNDP in Ukraine
Double blow for parents of jihadis
They are losing their children and their community as the authorities throughout most of Europe are taking steps to stop them, amid fears that they will recruit others or bring violence
MANCHESTER, England: Everyone at the Alfurqan Islamic Centre knows of the parents who tried to rescue their twin daughters after the girls ran off to join the Islamic State. They know how Ibrahim Halane and his wife, Khadra Jama, who are immigrants from Somalia, followed their daughters to Turkey. How Jama, who ventured into Syria after them, was arrested by the militants and detained for more than five weeks. How the parents came back empty-handed, their 17-yearold daughters, Salma and Zahra, already married off to jihadis. They know the story, and they sympathise. But they keep their distance. “We know he’s upset, and everyone feels sorry for him,” Haji Saab, chairman of the mosque, said of Halane. But “we leave him alone. It has been very difficult for the community as well,” Saab said. It has ‘shut itself up’. “People are traumatised,” he said. About 3,000 men and women are believed to have left Europe since the Syrian war intensified to join up with militant groups like the Islamic State. While their loved ones hope for their safe return, the authorities throughout most of Europe are taking steps to stop them, amid fears that they will recruit others or bring violence back with them. But in many cases they have already created turmoil for their families and communities, say those familiar with the people left behind. Not only do parents like Halane and Jama live with the worry that they will never again see their children - many of whom are just teenagers - but they must also endure isolation and fear. And with the authorities unhelpful - and largely unsympathetic - in most cases, more families are taking matters into their own hands and trying to go to Syria to rescue their children themselves. “Even their relatives are ignoring them because they are frightened of being associated with so-called terrorists and of being arrested,” said Saleha Jaffer, who runs Families Against Stress and Trauma, a London-based organisation
Andrew Testa/The New York Times
BY KIMIKO DE FREYTAS-TAMURA
The Alfurqan Islamic Centre in Manchester, England, the place of worship for a family of Somali immigrants whose two teenaged daughters ran off to marry jihadists with the Islamic State group. The parents travelled to the Middle East in a failed attempt to bring the girls home, and have since been effectively isolated from their community — another facet of the trauma in Europe’s Islamic community
that helps families of children who have joined the Middle East conflict. Many, like the Halane family, are keeping to themselves. At the Alfurqan Islamic Centre one recent morning, Halane, who occasionally teaches there, was in a classroom, throwing questions at a group of young boys, who responded in lively unison. But he frowned as he emerged with his students. “Please, you must go away,” he said in a low, trembling voice, as the students stopped chatting and listened in. “I have nothing to say, except that if they want to come back, they can,” he said, referring to his daughters. “If they don’t,” he paused, and flicked his hand as if to brush them away. He turned his back without finishing his sentence. The trauma is particularly acute among Somalis. Somalis are struggling with the lure of Islamic extremism on multiple fronts: More than 100 Britons are thought to have joined the Shabab, an Islamist group in Somalia, according
to the intelligence services. jihadis after their families cooperated Jaffer said the stigma faced by with the police. The police have arrested families was acute. Families know they more than 270 people on terrorismare gossiped about and shunned. Some related charges in Britain in 2014. siblings refuse to go “No one is talking to school because they about their impact are afraid of being on families and the bullied. Part of her communities,” said organisation’s work is to Mohammed Shafiq, help the families rejoin the chief executive their communities of the Ramadhan by persuading others Foundation in they will not be Manchester, which punished if they show aims to discourage support. But so far, the young people persuading has been from joining the difficult. Activists said Islamic State. “The governments were government just has making the problem a series of knee-jerk worse with their plans reactions.” for tighter anti-terror One father from -Saleha Jaffer laws, more stop-andCardiff, Wales, was searches, and the 12determined to bring year prison sentences handed down back his 22-year-old son, who joined in Britain recently to two returning the Islamic State after travelling to the
“Even their relatives are ignoring them because they are frightened of being associated with so-called terrorists.”
conflict zone as an aid worker a year ago. “He said he thought the police and the government were useless because they weren’t of any help,” Shafiq said. “He had even contacted the local member of Parliament, but didn’t get results.” Shafiq dissuaded him. “I know you are suffering because your child is gone,” he said he had told the father. But if Syrian government forces did not capture him, he told him, Islamic State militants would. “It’s too dangerous. Can you live with yourself knowing your other children would be orphans and your wife a widow? “I rarely see grown men break down and cry,” recalled Shafiq. “He was just so helpless.” A family friend described the Halanes as a deeply religious family of 13. They left Somalia, lived in Denmark for a while and then immigrated to Britain, where the twins were top students and aspired to become doctors like an older sister, who is a medical student in Denmark. But in June, the twins flew to Turkey and crossed the border into Syria. The family
friend, who works with the older sister at a charity in Denmark, discovered their whereabouts, and their parents set off after them. The friend, Ahmad Walid Rashidi, a Dane of Afghan origin, agreed to help. In an interview, Rashidi said he and the father had made it as far as Turkey when the father balked. Although they had determined that the girls’ father was more likely to be granted access to his daughters, their mother, Jama, who uses a different name from her husband, insisted on making the journey. “I have lost one son,” she told him. “So I don’t want to lose the twins.” Rashidi said she had been focused on taking the girls back to Britain. “She was not afraid of dying.” They found the girls in Manbij, a Syrian city between Raqqa and al-Bab, which is said to be popular among European fighters of the Islamic State. But Jama’s efforts to encourage her daughters to return were thwarted when she discovered they had already been married. Soon after, militants arrested her and Rashidi on suspicion of being Western spies. They were detained in separate jails for 36 days, an experience Rashidi plans to recount in a book. According to Rashidi, at their subsequent trial in a court of the Islamic State, Jama’s optimism began to weaken. “She started looking scared that she’ll never see her daughters again,” he recalled. Her daughters told the court and their mother that their hearts belonged to Islam and that they did not want to return to Britain. The girls’ husbands would also have to give their permission for them to return home, Rashidi said, and “they were not ready to do that.” The court ultimately released the mother and Rashidi, and they were allowed to return to Turkey. Jama flew back to Manchester. One of the Islamic State judges said: “We didn’t ask your twins to come here,” Rashidi recalled. “They came here because you taught them” to be religious. As they left, Rashidi said, a dejected Jama murmured: “Fi sabilillah.” The expression, which comes from the Quran, means, “for the sake of God.” © 2014 New York Times News Service
Germans balk at plan Making inroads against climate change for wind power lines The country has embraced environmental protection policies since the 1970s BY MELISSA EDDY FULDA, Germany: Germans have welcomed solar panels glinting on their rooftops and windmills looming over their fields, and they have even put up with a doubling of their electric bills. But enthusiasm for all things green appears to have reached a limit with a plan to string high-voltage transmission lines along the outskirts of cities like Fulda in the centre of the country. Dozens of protest groups have sprung up over the past year along the 800-kilometre path of the project, SuedLink, one of four high-voltage direct current lines that are to carry windgenerated power from north to south. The lines are described as essential to the success of the country’s pivot away from nuclear and coal power and toward mostly renewable energy. But nearly a year into the plans, the SuedLink project has set off an outbreak of not-inmy-backyard syndrome that threatens to disrupt a linchpin of Germany’s commitment to a lower-carbon future. People like Johannes Lange, who said he had supported Germany’s green efforts for decades, have sprung into action. “I have been following energy policy for 30 years and have gone along with everything,” said Lange, a selfemployed music teacher from Fulda’s eastern Kämmerzell district. “The
moment that I heard they wanted to build this behind my house, I thought, enough!” Germany has embraced environmental protection policies since the 1970s and has been a leader in efforts to move away from fossil fuels toward an energy system that will reduce its carbon emissions - its contribution to a global effort to slow the rise in temperatures that scientists say is already affecting the planet. Businesses have been wary of the growing costs the policies have imposed on them, but citizens have been largely stoic. They have protested when the government seemed to waver in its commitment, even as the cost of power for an average family of three has climbed to 85 euros a month (about $103) from 41 euros since 2000, according to government statistics. While the accelerated shutdown of Germany’s nuclear plants in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi disaster in Japan in 2011 has inched the country back toward a greater reliance on coal, Germany already draws nearly a quarter of its annual power from renewable sources. It remains on track to reach more than 40 per cent renewable power by 2025, part of an adaptation and efficiency program known as Energiewende. That power is largely produced in the north, while most of Germany’s industry is in the south. The new power lines are supposed to address that problem, allowing the energy programme to remain on track and Germany to remain the economic powerhouse of Europe. © 2014 New York Times News Service
Germany already draws nearly a quarter of its annual power from renewable sources
BY JUSTIN GILLIS
LA VIRGEN, Costa Rica: Over just a few decades in the mid-20th century, this small country chopped down a majority of its ancient forests. But after a huge conservation push and a wave of forest regrowth, trees now blanket more than half of Costa Rica. Far to the south, the Amazon forest was once being quickly cleared to make way for farming, but Brazil has slowed the loss so much that it has done more than any other country to limit the emissions leading to global warming. And on the other side of the world, in Indonesia, bold new promises have been made in the past few months to halt the rampant cutting of that country’s forests, backed by business interests with the clout to make it happen. In the battle to limit the risks of climate change, it has been clear for decades that focusing on the world’s immense tropical forests saving the ones that are left, and perhaps letting new ones grow - is the single most promising near-term strategy. That is because of the large role that forests play in what is called the carbon cycle of the planet. Trees pull the main greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, out of the air and lock the carbon away in their wood and in the soil beneath them. Destroying them, typically by burning, pumps much of the carbon back into the air, contributing to climate change. But now, driven by a growing environmental movement in countries that are home to tropical forests, and by mounting pressure from Western consumers who care about sustainable practices, corporate and government leaders are making a fresh push to slow the cutting - and eventually to halt it. With the recent signs of progress, long-wary environmental groups are permitting themselves a burst of
Adriana Zehbrauskas/The New York Times
Huge conservation push in Costa Rica has given strong grounds for optimism for environmentalists
A researcher arrives for work at the La Selva Biological Station, near the town of Puerto Viejo in northern Costa Rica
optimism about the world’s forests. “The public should take heart,” said Rolf Skar, who helps lead forest conservation work for the environmental group Greenpeace. A remarkable comeback Deep inside a Costa Rican rain forest, white-faced capuchin monkeys leapt through the tree tops. Nunbirds and toucans flew overhead, and a huge butterfly, flashing wings of an iridescent blue, fluttered through the air. Ignoring the profusion of life around him, Bernal Paniagua Guerrero focused his gaze on a single small tree, placing a tape measure around the trunk and calling a number out to his
sister, Jeanette Paniagua Guerrero, who recorded it on a clipboard. With that, the tree, a black manú, entered the database of the world’s scientific knowledge. Its growth will be tracked year by year until it dies a natural death or somebody decides to chop it down. The Paniaguas and their co-worker, Enrique Salicette Nelson, work for an American scientist, Robin Chazdon, helping her chronicle a comeback. Cuatro Rios, the forest they were standing in, looked, to a casual eye, as if it must have been there forever. In fact, the land was a cattle pasture only 45 years ago. When the market for beef fell, the owners let the forest reclaim it. Now the Cuatro Rios
Destroying trees, typically by burning, pumps much of the carbon back into the air, contributing to climate change
forest, near the tiny village of La Virgen, is a study plot for Chazdon, an ecologist from the University of Connecticut, who has become a leading voice in arguing that large-scale forest regrowth can help to solve some of the world’s problems. The burning of coal, oil and natural gas effectively moves carbon out of the ground and into the active carbon cycle operating at the earth’s surface, causing a warming of the globe that scientists believe is more rapid now than in any similar period of geologic history. Though the higher temperatures are causing extensive problems, including heat waves and rising seas, the increasing carbon dioxide also acts as a sort of plant fertilizer. The gas is the primary source of the carbon that plants, using the energy of sunlight, turn into sugars and woody tissue. Scientific reports suggest that 20 to 25 per cent of the carbon dioxide that people are pumping into the air is being absorbed by trees and other plants, which keep taking up more and more even as human emissions keep rising. But when people damage or destroy forests, that puts carbon dioxide into the air, worsening the warming problem. Scientists concluded decades ago that deforestation must be stopped, both to limit climate change and to conserve the world’s biological diversity. These days, they are also coming to understand the huge potential of new or recovering forests to help pull dangerous emissions out of the air. Decades of watching the Costa Rican forests recover have taught Chazdon that, at least in areas that still have healthy forests nearby to supply seeds, the main thing human beings need to do is just get out of the way. “The forests know how to do this,” Chazdon said. “They’ve been doing it forever, growing back.” © 2014 New York Times News Service
MONEY MATT ER S
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
PUNE
“As of now we do not need any further money because we are capital compliant and our capital adequacy is more than 21 per cent, so we do not need any capital now.” -Malay Mukherjee CEO, IFCI
Signpost Sensex closes flat, metal stocks up
ADB’s $60 mn loan to improve J&K’s infra The government signed an agreement with Asian Development Bank (ADB) for a $60 million loan to improve urban services, including water supply and urban transport infrastructure, in the two key cities of Jammu and Kashmir. The loan has a 25-year term including a grace period of five years. Improved access to water supply, functional drainage systems, and better transport infrastructure are the proposed plans from the loan.
`2,521 crore deal for L&T Construction The building and factories business of Larsen and Toubro (L&T) Construction has bagged orders worth Rs 2,521 crore in December in both the domestic and international markets. L&T Oman LLC, a subsidiary of L&T won an order from the ministry of transport and communications, Sultanate of Oman for the construction of a new passenger terminal at Duqm Airport in Oman.
Investing with leading companies
Should you invest in larger market leaders or small companies? Read about the pros and cons BY R BALAKRISHNAN Every industry has its market leaders. Each one of us will remember the top two or three. The rest of the companies fall in the category of what we call ‘me-too’ or striving to be in there. The leaders’ financial performance is marked with consistency and moderate growth. Rarely will you see any spectacular year from them, unless they are coming off from one bad year. Leaders are characterised by steady to improving margins (for instance, Colgate worldwide, has had 30+ consecutive quarters of better and better operating margins and is among the most profitable companies in the world!). Leaders’ growth rate will be close to that of the economy or slightly higher. So, growth will not be spectacular. However, their growth will be better than the average growth rate of others in their own industry. If we break down the universe of Indian companies that are listed, the average return on equity (RoE, or profit after tax divided by total shareholders’ funds) would be around 10%. If you take the leaders’, it would be above 25% or so. Of course, we have some multinationals in the consumer space that enjoy an annual RoE of 100%! Some other characteristics of leaders would be: zero debt, high dividend payout, conservative accounting policies, full rate tax payout, no dilution of equity capital, possibilities of buyback, possibilities of delisting (if it is a multinational company) and bare minimum interaction with financial community.
In other words, they are beyond talking up their stock. Investing in leaders will not give you mouth-watering returns. However, there is a lesser likelihood of losing your investment as opposed to your investment in other stocks. The best time to invest in these companies is when there is a general bearishness in the market and the stocks are trading at the lower end of their P/E band. What I mean is that if, for instance, HUL has traded between 20 and 45 P/E over the past decade or so, it makes sense to buy it closer to P/E of 20 than 45. Th is may seem like common sense; but, often, I have seen people shying away from the big names because the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) are selling or there are multiple worries out there. They tend to sell these fi rst, since these stocks are more liquid and can be sold very close to the quoted prices. A small company stock cannot be sold in big volumes without breaking the price dramatically. When these big names get sold off, the prices drop and, for me, it provides buying opportunities. The other way to buy these stocks is by way of systematic investment plans (SIPs) for 10 years or more. I have written earlier about single-stock SIPs. Th is can give you a return that is certainly higher than the inflation rate and, generally, above the average stock market returns. But it will not be two times or 10 times the market returns. To invest in the leaders, you do not need to know the company or its management so well. If we leave aside the leaders, we are left with others—some are followers;
Some great returns can happen in tech firms but they are ephemeral
some are hungry to grow; some think they are different; some think they have got a niche position. They have a lot of ambition, but few are backed with resources to grow really large. A smalltime forging company may get into a niche segment, but will never grow up to challenge a Bharat Forge. I cannot visualise a serious competition to Gillette or to Cummins. So we can look at the second and third rung, but we are tak ing a big
chance. I f the company grows big, we will earn fabulous returns. Some great returns can happen in technology. But technology companies are ephemeral. A leader like Nokia is no more. Blackberry is struggling to stay alive. In the years to come, Apple will give way to someone else. There are also commodity sectors—textiles, cement, metals, etc—which are cyclical, seasonal and are fragmented. They can give you big returns if you are lucky with your timing. In the space outside the leaders, we are playing a high risk, high reward game. If one is skilled in analysis (more from a business perspective than financial), the odds of picking winners is higher. Pure financial analysis is not going to help. Further, in Indian markets, it is also important to know the quality and integrity of the promoter. In smaller companies, the risk on the promoter is very high. He has not yet built up his personal fortune and, hence, he can be tempted to skim the shareholders.
Right time for debt schemes?
In the concluding part of our three part series, Jason Monterio guides the readers on investments
Where are interest rates headed? In line with market expectations, RBI, in its fifth bi-monthly monetary policy review on December 2, 2014, kept the benchmark interest rate unchanged. The headline inflation has been declining steadily. Inflation in October 2014 was below the January 2015 target of 8 per cent as well as the January 2016 target of 6 per cent, due to a favourable base effect. “Over the next 12-month period, inflation is expected to retain some momentum and hover around 6 per cent, except for seasonal movements,” mentioned Dr Raghuram Rajan, RBI governor. “A change in the monetary policy stance at the current juncture is premature.” However, if the current inflation momentum and changes in inflationary expectations continue and fiscal developments are encouraging, “a change in the monetary policy stance is likely early next year, including outside the policy review cycle.” Clearly, RBI
Do you expect RBI to cut interest rates over the next 6 months? 21.1% 63.4%
15.5%
Yes
No
Not Sure
is following a policy of wait and watch. Chances are that any further policy action will be decided after the Union Budget 2015. Best Time To Invest? We had mentioned, in our earlier article on bond schemes, that it would be an opportune time to invest in bond schemes when yields are above 8.50 per cent. If you had invested in a top scheme last year when bond yields were hovering above 8.50 per cent, your investment would have yielded far better returns than a bank fi xed deposit. So if interest rates are expected to go down, where should you invest? Theoretically, long-term debt schemes would be the ideal choice. However, while you may be able to time your buying, you would need to time your selling as well. If you need to sell your investments in a period of rising interest rates, you would end up with poor returns. Hence, for the average saver, short-term debt schemes would be an ideal choice. Which Schemes? Debt schemes may be safe for the long term, but performance of the schemes can vary significantly. You need to choose wisely. In the tables where we have listed the schemes, we have categorised the schemes based on the average duration and have ranked them based on their performance over the past three years. Apart from the returns and duration, we have provided the allocation of the portfolio to highrated securities. Dynamic bond schemes have the flexibility to move investments into short-term instruments or long-term instruments—depending on their view of where interest rates are headed. Here, again, it is a matter of timing. The schemes mentioned are ranked only on the basis of performance and are not a recommendation. To pick the
35%
You do not invest in debt schemes because: 26.7%
25%
22.6% 21.2%
20% 15%
and then come to the markets to raise capital at a time of their convenience and at a price that leaves nothing on the table. It is now more difficult to pick up multi-baggers than it was in the 1980s and 1990s. Another time, mid-cap stocks give great
a n d only a few finish at the top. So, if you buy a number of small companies, maybe one or two of them would be 10-baggers. Some would give you below-market returns and some would get eroded to zero. One test of small companies, in India, in the past would be their ability to service their debt. Capital raising was not as easy as it is today and there was no private equity. Our stock markets used to be the biggest venture capital provider, since you did not require any track record to list a company. So capitalraising went more on name recognition than any serious analyses. If a company survived long enough to service all its debt, it probably progressed to the higher level. Today, with the easy availability of foreign money at every stage of a company, it is difficult to predict or pick winners. And, now, most companies grow to some level with private equity
returns is when they turn around. For this, you have to be constantly tracking the company and the industry. Often, the turnaround would be a fake one, driven more by hype (look back at the history of a company called Arvind Mills), and you may make some quick money, provided you are smart enough to exit in time. As an investor, there has to be clear about the kind of companies one invests in. Leaders will give you very good returns, but will not help you create spectacular wealth. Small company investments can multiply manifold but are highly risky. The most important thing is for each one to decide how much money can be invested in any given idea. It depends on your risk preferences. However, it definitely makes sense not to put a lot of money in a single midcap idea simply because the price of a failure is too much as opposed to the leaders who always emerge stronger from adversity. @moneylife.in
Consumer care centre in Pune soon
12 cities will get centres which will assist the customers in registering their complaints in appropriate consumer fora MONEYLIFE DIGITAL TEAM
29.5%
30%
Also, many small companies have high debt that cannot be serviced during bad times. However, these companies do spectacularly well in good times. There are many hopefuls in any race
WIKICOMMONS
After a rise of 30 per cent in valuations for 2014, a benchmark index of Indian equities markets closed the first day of trade session in 2015 flat, marginally higher by 8.12 points or 0.03 per cent as no major triggers. Healthy buying was observed in metal, automobile and capital goods stocks, while selling was seen in fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), healthcare and power sectors.The Sensex touched a high of 27,545.61 points and a low of 27,395.34 points.
“There is a downward trend in grievances in my company due to our increasing dependence on third party administrator for settlement of claims and less communication with the policyholders.” - K Sanath Kumar, director, The New India Assurance
17.1% 12.3%
10% 5% 0% Not familiar with debit scheme Not familiar with mutual funds in general Not clear of the risks Better returns from bank deposits Other please specify Better returns from other fixed income investments
right scheme, you need to analyse the performance of different periods with respect to the benchmark, check the portfolio holding of the scheme and its expense ratio. Moneylife Survey: Investing Wisely in Debt Schemes Our survey reveals that a majority of investors are expecting interest rates to fall and long-term debt schemes to do well. Nearly 64 per cent of the participants are of the view that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) would cut interest rates over the next six months, while around 20 per cent were not sure. In line with those expecting an interest rate cut, nearly 60 per cent feel it is a good time to invest in debt schemes while 33 per cent were not sure.
In the second half of the survey, which was only open to debt scheme investors, of the 184 debt scheme investors, 60 per cent invested in longterm debt schemes. Investors seem very optimistic about the returns from long-term schemes over the next one year. 48 per cent of the debt scheme investors expect a return between 7.5 per cent and 10 per cent from long-term schemes. As many as 46 per cent of the investors expect a return of above 10 per cent from longterm schemes. However, long-term debt scheme investors need to realise that for such high returns, apart from timing their buying, they would need to time their selling as well, as seen in our analysis. @moneylife.in
building of the Consumer Fora, carrying out addition/alteration/ The government is in the process renovation of existing buildings and of setting up consumer care centres grant for acquiring assets such as (Grahak Suvidha Kendras) in more furniture, office equipment etc.” than a dozen cities in the country DCA has also said that it is to provide a spectrum of services setting up a network termed the to consumers. The Department of CONFONET. “The consumers who Consumer Affairs (DCA) came out have fi led complaints in District with new measures to strengthen the Fora/State Commission/National consumer protection infrastructure Commission can see the cause today. Pune will get one list, case status and such centre along with judgment through New Delhi, Lucknow, online sitting at their Chandigarh, Bangalore, home or elsewhere,” Chennai, Hyderabad, the department’s release Jaipur, Ahmedabad, said. Pune, Bhubaneswar, In terms of Legal Patna, Kolkata, Metrology, which has Guwahati, Shillong, as yet not received Raipur and Bhopal. the kind of attention “The department it warrants, by virtue - The Department of Consumer Affairs has recently invited of its ubiquity in applications from consumer applications, registered and eligible voluntary the DCA said, “Legal Metrology consumer organisations for setting up Division of the Department is and running Consumer Care Centres,” implementing two Schemes.” The an official release said. release further added that the They will also be authorised to take schemes include “Strengthening up complaints with private companies/ of Legal Metrology Infrastructure manufacturers/ service providers on of States/UTs- under the Scheme behalf of the government, it added. grant-in-Aid is released to States According to the release, efforts /UTs for the construction of are on to bring consumer grievance Laboratory buildings and standard and helpline mechanism under one equipment are also provided common IT platform with a single for verification of weights and toll-free number across the country. measures used in any transaction. The government has also drawn Strengthening of five Regional several other plans and programmes Reference Laboratories and Indian for empowerment of consumers and institute of Legal Metrology at their welfare. Ranchi – The RRSLs situated DCA’s release also said that, in Faridabad, Guwahati, Ahmadabad, “Funds are given for Building and Bangalore, and Bhubaneswar are Non Building purposes Infrastructural given assistance for infrastructure Facilities being provided under the development. scheme include construction of new @moneylife.in
“Consumers can see their complaints status online.”
SPORTS “We are still in a process. I think the players understand the philosophy, and that’s why we are improving - but we can improve more when we have all the players available.” — Manchester United coach Louis van Gaal
Kohli eyes Dravid’s run record in fourth Test SYDNEY: Indian Test captain Virat Kohli, who has scored 499 runs in the ongoing series against Australia, has a strong chance of breaking legendary Rahul Dravid’s record of scoring maximum number of runs in a series against the Baggy Greens. Dravid accumulated a mammoth 619 runs during the four-match Test series Down Under 2003/04 and the 26-year-old Kohli is just 121 runs short from breaking the former captain’s record. Other than Dravid, Gundappa Viswanath (518 in 1979) and V.V.S. Laxman (503 in 2001) have scored more than Kohli in a series against Australia.
Liverpool confident of retaining Gerrard LONDON: Liverpool are confident Steven Gerrard will sign a new deal at Anfield even though their captain is free to talk to other clubs from New Year’s Day. Gerrard entered the final six months of his contract at midnight, and the 34-year-old can now negotiate with foreign teams over a move in the summer, reports dailymail.co.uk.
Paul Duminy returns in South African squad CAPE TOWN: Batsman Jean Paul Duminy has recovered from injury and has been named in South Africa’s 14-man squad for the three-match Twenty20 series against the West Indies starting January 9. The left-hander missed the ongoing Test series after failing to recover from a knee injury which he picked up on the tour of Australia last November, reports CMC. Duminy, 30, is a key member of the South African limited overs side.
PUNE
“It’s the confidence of the players in having the ability to take those chances. We missed a couple of run outs that we probably should have taken as well. I’ve been really pleased with the work.” — Australian coach Darren Lehmann
Dhoni’s abrupt good-bye was stunning BY KISHEN DATTA The suddenness with which Mahendra Singh Dhoni announced his retirement from Test cricket ‘with immediate effect’ is as stunning as it is mystifying. Cricket captains who have led their country for as long as Dhoni has – 60 Tests, to be exact – don’t bid good-bye as unceremoniously and as instantly as he did at Melbourne on Tuesday. The words “immediate effect” say it all. After missing the first Test, did he have to go all the way to Melbourne to announce his decision? What if under him India had not lost the Test and, with it, the series against Australia. There is one more match to go before the four-match series ends. Forgeting the baffling abruptness with which Dhoni decided to say farewell to Tests, there is no denying him credit for keeping his job for so long after taking it over from Anil Kumble and then leading India to the top position in the international Test rankings. Of the 60 Tests he played as wicketkeeper-captain, he lost half of them on foreign soil - many of these in his later years at the helm which led to some of his detractors criticising his tactics and outlook. Forgotten was the time when they called him ‘captain cool’ and praised him for the manner in which he held his nerve in the last over of the final of the first world T/20 tournament against Pakistan. Coolly, he threw the ball to Joginder Sharma for the crucial over and the Haryanvi
Indian Test captains Read: name, number of matches captained, wins, losses, tied matches and drawn Tests. CK Nayudu: 1932-1934 - 4 0 3 0 1 Maharaja of Vizianagram: 1936-1936 - 3 0 2 0 1 Nawab of Pataudi (Iftikhar Ali Khan): 1946-1946 - 3 0 1 0 2 Lala Amarnath: 1947-1952 - 15 2 6 0 7 Vijay Hazare: 1951-1954 - 14 1 5 0 8 Vinoo Mankad: 1955-1959 - 6 0 1 0 5 Ghulam Ahmed: 1955-1959 - 3 0 2 0 1 Polly Umrigar: 1955-1958 - 8 2 2 0 4 Hemu Adhikari: 1959-1959 - 1 0 0 0 1 Datta Gaekwad: 1959-1959 - 4 0 4 0 0 Pankaj Roy: 1959-1959 - 1 0 1 0 0 Gulabrai Ramchand: 1959-1960 - 5 1 2 0 2 Nari Contractor: 1960-1962 - 12 2 2 0 8 Nawab of Pataudi: 1962-1975 - 40 9 19 0 12 Chandu Borde: 1967-1967 - 1 0 1 0 0 Ajit Wadekar: 1971-1974 - 16 4 4 0 8 S Venkataraghavan: 1974-1979 - 5 0 2 0 3 Sunil Gavaskar: 1976-1985 - 47 9 8 0 30 Bishan Singh Bedi: 1976-1978 - 22 6 11 0 5 Gundappa Viswanath: 1980-1980 - 2 0 1 0 1 Kapil Dev: 1983-1987 - 34 4 7 1 22 Dilip Vengsarkar: 1987-1989 - 10 2 5 0 3
There is no denying him credit for keeping his job for so long
PLAYER’S CORNER
got the Pakistani batsman facing him Misbah-ul-Haq (now the captain) to sky the ball for Sreesanth to take the catch that won the day for India. In quick time, Dhoni, a hitherto little-known young man of humble beginings from Ranchi, soon
Pooja Ghatkar
BY ASHISH PHADNIS @phadnis_ashish Pune’s Pooja Ghatkar is aiming to make a mark in the 10m air rifle shooting arena. Pooja claimed a team gold medal in the company of Anjali Bhagwat and Tejaswini Sawant, with an overall score of 1240.2 in the women’s 10m air rifle, at the recently concluded 58th National Shooting Championship held at the Shiv Chhatrapati sports complex in Balewadi.. “I could have performed better, but my weapon developed a problem. I had little time to adjust to the new gun I had to use. However, my performance this year was satisfactory overall,” said Pooja. Pooja took up shooting seriously in 2007. Initially she trained with Gani Shaikh in Pune, and was soon absorbed in the state government’s Kreeda Prabodhini scheme. Pooja gives her mother Bharati a large share of the credit for her success, for providing unceasing support to her in her nascent career. Pooja first tasted international success, when she won a gold medal in the 3rd Asian Junior Air Gun Championship, at Doha, in 2009. Since then she has represented India in a number of international level tournaments, Asian championships and World Cups. For Pooja, 2011 started on a great note when she won silver medal at the 54th National Shooting Championships in New Delhi. She was also a runner-up in the Champions of Champions event, where she beat a strong field comprising India’s top shooters. Pooja also won silver at the 34th National Games at Ranchi, and was also selected on the Indian team for the ISSF World Cup at Sydney and
Pooja Ghatkar with her mother Bharati
JANUARY 03, 2015
IANS
Signposts
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY
acquired celebrity status as a cricketer, excelling with the big gloves behind the wickets as well as with the bat. His long filmi-style locks also caught public attention with the young, who would ask their barbers to give them similar hair-styles after they watched the then Pakistani president, Gen Parvez Musharraf advising the captain in front of TV cameras at Rawalpindi to not clip his hair short. “You look good this way,” said the Pakistani general, but Dhoni opted for changed hair-styles later in
his career - and with his new-found affluence acquiring motorbikes to different models and makes. He is said to own several of them in his Ranchi mansion. Not everyone was happy with his role as vice president in the cement company owned by the cricket board president, N Srinivasan. He also is the captain of the company-owned Chennai Superkings in the lucrative Indian Premier League. The conflict of interest, as they describe it, is the subject of litigation. —IANS
Ravi Shastri: 1988-1988 - 1 1 0 0 0 K Srikkanth: 1989-1989 - 4 0 0 0 4 Mohammad Azharuddin: 1990-1999 - 47 14 14 0 19 Sachin Tendulkar: 1996-2000 - 25 4 9 0 12 Sourav Ganguly: 2000-2005 - 49 21 13 0 15 Rahul Dravid: 2003-2007 - 25 8 6 0 11 Virender Sehwag: 2005-2012 - 4 2 1 0 1 Anil Kumble: 2007-2008 - 14 3 5 0 6 Mahendra Singh Dhoni: 2008-2014 - 60 27 18 0 15 Virat Kohli: 2014 - 1 0 1 0 0
Kohli ushers in new era for Indian cricket
The Indian team last won a Test series away from home back in 2011 against the West Indies IANS
BY SANTOSH RAO
Changwon, thanks to her winning performances. In 2012, Pooja won a national silver and a gold medal at the Karni Singh Memorial Championship in Jaipur. She made a comeback to the Indian team, by winning the national championships title in Delhi in December 2012. She also won both the trials and was selected as the top rifle shooter for the 2013 World Cup squad. Pooja rates her performance at the Asian Championship in Tehran, Iran as her best. “In the individual category, I finished fourth and won a team gold. I believe that was my best personal performance till then,” said Pooja, who created history last March by clinching gold at the Asian Air Gun Championship in Kuwait, defeating world champions Yi Siling and Du Bei of China along the way. Pooja is currently training with world record holder Thomas Farnik and is mentored by Anjali Bhagwat and Olympics bronze medallist Gagan Narang. She believes in hard work and starts her day with mediation followed by four to six hours of practice and mental as well as physical training. Pooja says that she does not have long-term targets. “My simple strategy is to set short-term goals and try to achieve them. Right now I am just focused on the National Games to be held in Kerala in February. That will be followed by the Kumar Surendra Singh Memorial Shooting Championship and selection trials. I know there is a long season ahead, but I am not thinking about it now,” she said. Pooja is thankful to Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ ) for their support. “After OGQ offered to support me, I acquired a proper technique and physical and mental approach towards shooting. They have supported me in acquiring my new rifle, pellets, shooting kit etc. It’s is like a family which is always there to support you in times of need,” she said. ashish.phadnis@goldensparrow.com
NEW DELHI: Aggressive, brash and in your face - these qualities have become synonymous with India’s new captain Virat Kohli, and his passionate and outspoken methods have ushered in a new era for Indian cricket in the Test arena. The days of the charismatic, ice cool Mahendra Singh Dhoni in Tests are over. They say a team adopts the demeanour and characterstics of their leader, and the nonchalant ways and detached persona of India’s ‘captain cool’, surely, rubbed off on the entire team till he led them. But the coming of Gen Next - aggressive players like Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Varun Aaron - have changed the dynamics of the team. These cricketers fight fire with fire and not buckle down under the barrage of verbal spats. They like to look at their opponents in the eye and stand strong. The Indian team was begging for a firebrand leader. The uber cool attitude stopped working sometime back, at least in the longest format of the game. The Indian team last won a Test series away from home back in 2011 against the West Indies and there was a need for a change, a different game plan, a different approach and a different attitude. The likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag and VVS Laxman all added to the ‘coolness’ that Dhoni brought to the table. These were not players who would mouth-off against marauding fast bowlers, they would rather go about their way quietly and let the bat do the talking. And that is exactly the sort of captain Dhoni was. With the exit of such stalwarts and the coming of fresh faces in the Tests, the team cried out for a new leader. Dhoni in 2012 had hinted that he would soon quit Tests to concentrate on the shorter formats, especially the 2015 World Cup to be played in Australia and New Zealand. But that call may have come a tad too late and the suddenness of it took everyone by surprise. It wasn’t the decision so much as the timing that left people grasping for
Kohli, though, will have to curb his temper and rein in his attitude
answers. Dhoni’s Test record has sometimes been overshadowed and neglected by his success in the shorter formats. The team might have climbed to the top of the Test rankings under his leadership but the most successful Indian captain has had a torrid time abroad. Overall, Dhoni played 90 Tests in a career that began in 2005 and scored 4,876 runs at an average of 38, with a high score of 224 against Australia in Chennai in 2013. As a wicketkeeper, he effected 294 dismissals, the fifth highest in Test cricket. However, out of 30 Tests overseas under Dhoni’s captaincy, India lost 15. Since the 2011 World Cup victory, India lost 13 out of 22 Tests played abroad, winning just two and drawing six. Kohli has already hit nine hundreds overall - three of them in the current series against Australia - and his ‘onward and upward’ cavalry charge almost took India to victory in the first Test at Adelaide. From the team don’t come soon, the
daggers will be out swiftly and the fans that love and adore him will be baying for his blood. Kohli, though, takes over the responsilbility with a severe disadvantage. While Dhoni was surrounded with senior and experienced players when he took over, Kohli takes charge of a new look team lacking in experience. When Dhoni is removed from the equation, 26-year-old pacer Ishant Sharma becomes the most experienced player in the side, having played 61 Tests while Kohli himself has played just 32. That leaves Team India severely short on players who are well-versed with the nuances of handling Test cricket. In a way that could work in favour of Kohli, who will look to forge his own path and give him proper control of the team. Kohli, though, will have to curb his temper and rein in his attitude. Mixing aggression with calmness will serve India’s 32nd captain well. — IANS
SPORTS
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY JANUARY 03, 2015
PUNE
“Dhoni had some great performances. When he took over the reins of captaincy, he had a magnificent team that did really very well in India and also reasonably well abroad.” — Former selector Mohinder Amarnath
“I want to make hockey, and Indian team’s performance even more enjoyable to watch. My resolution is to improve my skills to help me be more beneficial to my teammates on the field ” — Indian hockey captain Sardar Singh Rahul Raut
Signposts Senior National tennis from Jan 4 PUNE: After a highly successful inaugural year, the champions of yesteryears are returning to Pune for an action-packed week as Solaris hosts them for the 2nd Solaris Club NECCAISTA Senior National tennis tournament at its Mayur Colony courts from January 4 to 10. Though the last year’s Plus-45 champion R Nagraj will be missing from action, the other two champions—RE Sudharshan Rao of Andhra Pradesh (Plus-55) and D Gururaj of Karnataka (Plus-65) have confirmed their participation in the tournament.
JN Petit clinches U-23 basketball title PUNE: JN Petit A team scripted an easy 57-43 win over VOBA to clinch Under-23 Invitational district level basketball title at Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan courts recently. JN Petit boys were leading 30-16 in the first half and continued their domination in the later half too. From the winning team, Nitin Chopde was impressive with 15 points and was later adjudged as the best player of the tournament. Deccan Gymkhana finished third.
Amdocs, Tieto win in inter-IT cricket PUNE: Amdocs and Tieto scored easy wins, while chasing modest targets set by their opponents Syntel and IBM respectively, in the 11th Ankur Joglekar Memorial Inter-IT Cricket Championship Cup at the Poona Club recently. Unbeaten knocks by Abhishek Patankar and Amit Joshi steered Amdocs to an impressive nine-wicket win over Syntel. Chasing Syntel’s score of 109, Amdocs raced to the target thanks to Patankar and Joshi’s partnership that yielded the maximum runs. Patankar scored 47 not out in 38 ball and 9 fours.
Ankita targets national games After becoming fourth Indian to win ITF $25,000 single’s title, the city-based tennis player aims to start 2015 with a national win TGS News Service @TGSWeekly PUNE: Ankita Raina capped her tumultuous year with an inspiring straight set victory over Katy Dunne to win the $25,000 NECC-ITF tennis title, a first for an Indian after a gap of 14 years, at the Deccan Gymkhana courts recently. In the process, she became the third Indian after Radhika Tulpule, Nirupama Vaidynathan-Sanjeev and Sania Mirza to win the title. National champion Radhika had won the title in the inaugural year in 2001 when she beat Archana Venkatraman in three sets and since then four more Indians made it to the summit clash—Isha Lakhani doing it twice—but failed to get past the final hurdle. With this win Ankita will move up in the 250260 bracket with the 50 valuable points.
“My goal now is to get into top 200 of the WTA rankings. This year I was defending a lot of points of 2013, that’s why my rakings hovered around 290,” said Ankita after her win. Ever since Ankita won the junior and senior national titles in 2009 she was touted as the future star of Indian tennis. A Kashmiri-brought up in Gujarat, Ankita and her family shifted to Pune to further her tennis career. Though she has been coming up with decent results in singles, it is her doubles performance that is making people stand up and take notice. Ankita made a positive start to the match and after Katy began throwing her frustration around the Indian grabbed the initiative to win the summit clash 6-2, 6-2. Having played quite a few three-setters during the week, Ankita was ready for the worst, and that
Ankita Raina
boosted her confidence by a few notches as she took control of the proceedings once Katy began falling apart. “Since I was playing this final in Pune and with the kind of support I got from fans, I wanted to give my best and was very excited to do it on home ground,” said Ankita who now heads to Kerala for the National Games. The match began on equal terms as the two players held their own service games till 3-2 when Ankita broke Katy in the sixth game. She then took the seventh game at love before breaking the Briton again to wrap up the first set 6-2. “When the second set began, I decided to hurry up the things. Even though I was broken in the opening game, I calmed myself down and waited for Katy to commit mistakes,” explained Ankita. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com
Career Highlights Became the first Indian women’s player to reach a $25,000 ITF Women’s singles final in four years in June 2013. Won three $10,000 ITF singles titles in 2013. Reigning National Grasscourt champion. Won the double crown in $10,000 ITF women tournament in New Delhi in June 2012. Won two successive $10,000 ITF women doubles titles in New Delhi in May 2012. Winner of the doubles at $10K ITF tournament, New Delhi 2011 Junior and senior National Champion in 2009.
A year without Sachin in the field
Indian cricket team lost successive Test series abroad with South Africa last December By Biswajit Choudhury The year that the Indian cricket team played without Sachin Tendulkar and lost successive Test series abroad gives enough food for thought on the nature of the sport, also at a time when other team sports in the country are beginning to organise commercially on the lines of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Tours in alien conditions are the true test of a team’s standing. This is “nature” in cricket, the importance of weather and soil conditions, and it applies specially to Indian sides as testified by their touring record. Thus, for instance, the performances in this summer’s 1-3 loss against England stand out in contrast to that of Rahul Dravid’s in the previous tour to the home of cricket. Dravid, however, had played county cricket for Kent and Scotland and is perhaps still better in these conditions
The year has been epochal for Indian cricket also for the Supreme Court’s attempt to clean the Augean stables than the current crop of our Test players. Which brings one to Virat Kohli, who is about to aggregate 500 runs in Australia in the series just lost. This means that the till recent only One-day wonder got caught out this year in English conditions, IANS
where he has to return to prove himself to be counted among the greats. So, having lost successive series abroad, beginning with South Africa last December, where does this put the team which scaled the world rankings not too long ago? This is a recurring question that provokes comparisons with teams of the past. Commenting on the ongoing Australia series, the great Sunil Gavaskar threw up his hands in despair at the penetrative quotient of the Indian attack. The team with Gavaskar and Kapil Dev was among the top international teams but never reached the greatness of past teams from South Africa, Australia and the West Indies because it lacked a potent bowling unit. India has had individual greats like Kapil Dev and Zaheer Khan, but not great combos like that made up by the Pakistani legends. In cricketing parlance, India is good in defence and has produced many great batsmen. Wondering about the popularity of cricket in India makes me think it comes from being a non-contact sport, like the art of war, that demands much concentration and is intensely psychological. Because Test cricket is played out over so much time and moments get stretched, there is time to think and play on each other’s minds. I like to think that it is our psychology which has made us take so well to this foreign sport. It is germane here to point out that a favourite reading of one of Australia’s most successful coaches, John Buchanan, is the classical Chinese text The Art of War by Sun Tzu. The other fact is that England’s most successful captain in terms of winpercentage is Mike Brearly, who took a tripos from Cambridge and is now a practising psychoanalyst and therapist. A mediocre cricketer, but outstanding captain in 31 Tests between 1977 and 1981, Brearly became president of the British Psychoanalytical Society during 2008-10. - IANS
Pune FC striker Eric Brown (in red) fights for possession with Mohun Bagan’s Bello Rasaq during their federation cup match
PFC fight back to hold Mohun Bagan
Club regained their top spot while going ahead of Bengaluru FC on goal difference in Federation Cup football tournament TGS News Service @TGSWeekly
PUNE: Pune FC staged a spirited second half performance in a come-from-behind 1-1 draw with Mohun Bagan AC in a Federation Cup Group-B second round encounter at the Tilak Maidan in Vasco on Thursday. In a game of two halves, it was Mohun Bagan who took the lead in the 26th minute through Cameroonian striker Pierre Boya (26th minute) before a penalty conversion from Japanese playmaker Ryuji Sueoka (66th) levelled scores for Pune FC. The result was the first draw played by Pune FC this season in twelve games in three competitions. Moreover, the point
earned also meant that Pune FC (4 pts) regained their top spot going ahead of Bengaluru FC (4 pts) on goal difference in Group-B. Going into the game, Coach Karim Bencherifa made two changes in the starting lineup from the previous game bringing in defender Raju Yumnam and medio Lal Ramluaha. Pune FC began the game confidently creating a few half chances early on. However, it was Bagan who took the early initiative and had a handful of close attempts on goal mainly through winger Sony Norde and striker Balwant Singh. After soaking pressure in the opening quarter, Pune FC finally went close in the 22nd minute. Medio Dhanpal Ganesh won possession in the midfield before passing to Eric Brown who found Arata Izumi on the left. The skipper sent left back Raju Yumnam clear on the left but his cross was finally blocked. At the other end, Bagan broke the deadlock through striker Boya in the 26th minute. Having earned a corner on the left flank, Norde sent in a cross which came back to him after a clearance. Pune FC came out of their shell and began to
attack. Ganesh, once again, dispossessed an opponent and let fly from distance but went wide. Meanwhile, Bagan continued to attack and went extremely close couple of times past the half hour mark. Having restricted Bagan to few attacks, Pune FC kept on pushing ahead and went close once again in the 78th minute. Haokip did well to run solo on a counter attack down the right before finding Arata on the edge of the box on the left. The medio controlled, turned and took a snapshot which went agonisingly over. Into the final five minutes, Haokip once again went close. This time his attempt on the run after Arata set him up on the edge of the box went wide. Moments later, the youngster timed his run well to control Mathew’s floated cross from the right, but his lobbed effort went just over the horizontal. Both sides created a couple of chances in the dying minutes of the game before it ended 1-1. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com