The Golden Sparrow on Saturday 07/03/2015

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PUNE, MARCH 07, 2015 | www.thegoldensparrow.com

CITY

TGS LIFE

Hubby gets jailed for not paying alimony P5

Campus cuisine

Their homes are crumbling. The decrepit structures won’t be able to stand for too long — a fact that everybody is aware of.

Only way out is redevelopment. Existing rules don’t allow them to construct multi-storey apartments and exploit the potential of their land. Nor do they have the money to rebuild their homes all by themselves. Everybody can see that residents of wadas within 100 meter radius of Peshwa Fort are caught in a vicious cycle, but won’t do a thing to elevate them of their misery.

Not so long ago, residents of these wadas took pride in the fact that they lived in the heart of the city, in proximity to the famous Shaniwar Wada, from where the Peshwas ruled for a century. They were the ones who gave Pune its identity as cultural hub of Maharashtra. But not anymore. Their crumbling, decrepit homes keep them too busy to bask in olden days’ glory. Making matters worse is the fact that within 100 meters of the heritage Shaniwar Wada, redevelopment is a dream that will probably never come true.

Spotlight Pg 8 and 9

Of the people, for the people, by PCMC The civic body in Pimpri Chinchwad has evoked a phenomenal response to Participatory Budget this year thanks to aggressive citizens’ group; has set aside `12 crores for 231 works suggested by residents

If the common man so desires, things can really change for good. This has been proved beyond doubt by citizens residing in Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation limits. This year citizens have been able to convince the civic body to sanction `12 crores for 231 projects suggested by them. The amount is highest ever since PCMC floated the concept of Participatory Budget in 2007.

Every year before starting work on the civic budget, PCMC invites suggestions from citizens for projects they would want executed in their areas. However, the response hasn’t been so great since 2007. This year, though, several citizen groups came together and reached out to the masses.

The result was astounding – they received 844 suggestions, of which 231 have been shortlisted and `12 crores set aside in the financial year 2015-16 by the civic body for the works.

52 suggestions. In 2014-15 citizens’ participation did improve marginally and PCMC received 75 responses. However, this year 844 responses is being seen as a huge turnaround.

THE TURNAROUND Experts point out that citizen participation over the past years was abysmally low mainly due to two reasons – lack of awareness about existence of Participatory Budget and reluctance to participate due to obdurate process involved in giving suggestions. With the concept and participation dwindling over the years, several citizen groups decided to take matters in their hands. Janwani - a social initiative organisation, Pimpri Chinchwad Citizens Forum (PCCF) and Centre for Environment Education (CEE) joined hands and created Citizens’ Facilitation Network (CFN). A memorandum of understanding between the three groups was signed and each ones responsibility clearly defined.

Contd on p 4 ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

A new speed breaker will soon be constructed near BHEL Chowk at Nigdi

Suggestions ranging from concretisation and tarring of roads, to construction of footpaths and cycle tracks, to installation of signages, to construction of public toilets, among others have been cleared in this budget. Though the sum of `12 crores seems miniscule considering the annual budget of PCMC is `2,315 crores for the twin cities with 68 wards or prabhags, many believe it is a good beginning.

In the past the civic body did not cross the three digit mark when it came to the number of suggestions. Started in 2007, the Participatory Budget evoked only 18 responses in the first year. In 2008-09 there were 34 suggestions, 66 in 2009-10 and 64 in 2010-11. In 2011-12 the number dropped to mere

RECIPE FOR SUCCESS CFN did away with the old two page format for inviting suggestions and instead made it a single page document. The form was uploaded on PCMC’s website.

Simultaneously, a website for online participation was designed by CFN - www.participatorybudgeting.in.

Also a participatory budgeting toolkit was designed and circulated among citizens and as reference material for conducting workshops.

Cops are our best friends P 10

No students please!

Puneri Wadas are falling down...

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

Catch22

BY ARCHANA DAHIWAL @ArchanaDahiwal

COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS

Housing societies in Viman Nagar are allergic to the student community and do not allow flats to be given to them on rent

BY RITU GOYAL HARISH @ritugh

Four decades ago when Gulzar sahab wrote the lyrics for ‘Ek akela is shahar main’ little would he have known that the song would be relevant even to the students studying in Viman Nagar, Pune. The dreamy eyed lot may have figured their abudana, but aashiyana continues to be a struggle. Finding a home around their colleges is a nightmare all thanks to housing societies in Viman Nagar who have passed resolutions not allowing students in stay in any of their flats.

The area that boasts of around half a dozen higher education institutes, has 190 housing societies. Under ideal circumstances, an area with such a mix should be perfect for societies as well as student community. But not Viman Nagar several housing societies have signages outside their gates announcing that flats won’t be rented out to students. Some societies further beak this down to ‘foreign students’ and ‘bachelors’. For example, a board outside Gera Foliage denies houses to ‘foreign students’.

For students it is an uphill task to find an apartment due to this arbitrary rule that housing societies in the locality have the propensity to follow. But it wasn’t always like this.

In the early 2000s when Viman Nagar was still developing, flats were rented out to students

LAW POINT Not long ago Vijay Sehgal, owner of an apartment in Ganga Nebula CHS filed a complaint against his society for not allowing houses to be given on rent to students and bachelors. The case was taken up by the Deputy Registrar of Societies Vinayak Kokare, who passed an order on June 7, 2014.

Deputy Registrar ordered that the society must follow the Model Bye Laws. Bye law number 43 does not discriminate. Flat owner needs to be simply intimate the managing committee about the sub let agreement and does not need permission as such before letting out the house to anyone. Moreover, there are precedents: The Supreme Court while hearing Sanwarmal Kejriwal v/s Vishwa Cooperative Housing Society Ltd and others case in 1990 upheld a member’s right to keep a tenant of his choice.

and bachelors alike. They were in fact preferred tenants as they occupied flats for a limited period and left without much ado. But times have changed now.

STAY AWAY Residents of Viman Nagar have a long list of grievances against the student community.

Managing committees of the societies are quick to list down their grouses with the student community - rude and unkind to senior citizens, undisciplined, unruly and noisy, having little regard for society rules, smoking and drinking, having members of the opposite sex visiting them, nuisance mongers – the list is exhaustive Contd on p 4 and endless.

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

PUNE

“My idea behind naming the trust Raktache Nate was simple.

I believe that when a donor gives blood to a patient, they establish a blood relation. That’s exactly what the name means” —Ram Bangad, founder, Raktache Nate

When robots played badminton!

P6

36 years on, she returned to her roots P4

Hand that heals

Loss of her brother got Vaishali Vilas Ruikar, fondly known as Tai, to take up nursing as a profession. She has been serving bedsore patients selflessly for 45 years

Vaishali Vilas Ruikar

PRACHI BARI @prachibari Her energy and enthusiasm is infectious. At 70, Vaishali Vilas Ruikar is always seen in a white sari and two baskets. She is always in a hurry to reach patients on time. When we met her at home she was calmly sitting and cutting strips of bandages to be used for patients the next day.

Fondly known as Tai, she believes it is her work that has kept her alive.

“If I can save a person, then I feel that I have fufilled my life,” said Vaishali, who leaves her home as early as 4.45 am. “This is when I have a lot patients waiting for me, otherwise I leave home at 7am. I am a trained auxiliary and midwifery nurse. I learnt nursing at

Ghataprabha near Belgaon. In 1967, I Delhi on March 12, 2014.

In Pune, Vaishali joined Sanjeevani came to Pune after clearing my exams,” Hospital and worked she added. for a year. “I did night What got her to take shifts and during the up nursing? “My brother day I looked after private suffered from typhoid patients who needed care when I was 10. Delayed with bedsores. I would treatment resulted in his be paid a paisa or two death. I went to call the but it was never about local nurse but she did money,” said Vaishali not come and I lost him. who lives independently On that day his matric in a sunshine yellow results (then standard room which houses her XI) results were medals. “I have struggled announced and he stood a lot in life and now first in Maharashtra.

I am working to give That is when I decided to my daughters-in-law be a nurse and help save whatever I could not get lives.”

-Vaishali Vilas Ruikar She was conferred in my life.” Recalling her the National Florence first patient she said, “It Nightangle Award 2014 by the President was a large and deep sore. All I knew of India Pranab Mukherjee at the was that one should do the dressing well Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, with extra love and care.”

In a career spanning more than four Govt of India awards ceremony held in

“When I ease their pain and bring a smile on their face only then I feel my life is well spent”

decades, she has earned a reputation all over Pune and its suburbs as a professional who helps with bedsores dressing. “When I ease their pain and bring a smile on their face only then I feel my life is well spent. I pray to God to give me strength to continue this way.” Her father was an ayurveda doctor and she learnt a basic things like keeping the wounds clean and healing every one with tertiary care by observing him. Her wrinkled face lights up every time she speaks of her innumerable patients whose wounds she has healed. “I must have treated over one lakh patients through Jeevan Sanjeevani Bureau which has taught women to be caregivers. If you don’t get something in life, give it to others if possible and enjoy watching them feel good.”

All Vaishali feels that, one should never tire or retire. “Sakali dressing karachye ani sandhyakali vaikuntha jaiche!” prachibari@gmail.com

On a ROLL Not only does she skate to work, but also teaches underprivileged kids to do so TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly

RAHUL RAUT

Her name - Khushtar - means ‘always happy’ and Khushtar Pandit represents just that. Th is chirpy 23-year-old technology analyst with ZS Pune, has been skating since the age of five. It is her passion for the sport that led her to teach underprivileged kids the art of skating. For the past eight years she has been collecting group of kids and teaching them to skate.

It was seniors in school and a few television commercials that introduced her to the concept of skates. Within no time she bribed her brother, who in turn convinced their parents to buy a pair of skates. “I would smuggle the pair out and practise the sport. My parents had no idea that I could skate till I learnt the art completely,” said Khushtar, who has a patent-in-process for an Interactive Projector System which could potentially be used in parliaments and schools.

Khushtar has won many awards at district levels in skating. She has travelled half of India on skates.

“In Pune, every weekend I visit the juvenile care group with my company and teach the kids how to skate. It feels great to give back to society. It takes

me back to my values and helps me stay humble,” she said. She aims at creating more awareness on the sport. “Skating yet isn’t looked at as a regular sport.

Efforts should be made to make it a popular sport. I can proudly say that I started the trend of skating in my school in Kashmir. I hope this lives on and more and more people adopt it.”

Another aspect that she touches through her passion is that of pollution.

Khushtar is probably the only Puneite who has been skating to work. “I know my contribution in controlling pollution is really small but I am happy that I am at least trying to make a difference. It is a win-win situation, as skating is extremely healthy and good for the body. So, it keeps me fit, happy and the environment pollution free,” said Khushtar whose patent is in final stages with IIT Delhi. She is also a voracious reader and loves to steal time to read. She is also into public speaking and has won a prize for Best Team in ZS ‘Toast Masters’.

Khushtar is keen on teaching skating to as many kids as possible. She believes kids can learn and pick the art faster at a certain age. “Despite hectic schedules I visit the orphanage and will continue to do the same.” anjali.shetty@goldensparrow.com

Campaign to save Pune kids bid good bye to plastic the Indian wolf

Love thy nature, is the slogan these kids promote as they walk up to hilly areas in the city collecting plastic and paper waste

EnviroCare Welfare Society along with Parner villagers and Forest Deptt take up the wolf conservation effort in Ahmednagar

For the first time, a systematic effort has been initiated to save the Indian wolf, now figuring on the ‘endangered’ list of wild animals in the country. A wolf conservation effort has been taken up in Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra by a Mumbai NGO, villagers of Parner in Ahmednagar and the Maharashtra forest department, helped by a British trust.

The wolf was once widely spotted in grasslands all over India. “In recent times, the creature is hardly noticed at regular haunts, due to various pressures on its natural habitat and hunting areas,” naturalist Ashwin Aghor told IANS. “We observed this in Ahmednagar’s grasslands which once abounded with packs of wolves but which are now rarely sighted,” said Aghor, director of EnviroCare Welfare Society (ECWS).

Aghor learnt of an amateurish effort to save the wolf, jackals and foxes in Parner in Ahmednagar by a schoolteacher, Raosaheb Kasar, and volunteer Santosh Gandhi. “This was a truly noble venture. I decided to join them for the sake of the Indian wolf,” he said. The groundwork began over six months ago using their own resources.

NGO Vanashakti helped them.

The wolf, once routinely sighted, seem to have virtually disappeared from the region, villagers told Aghor.

They said this was despite abundance of prey like deer, antelopes, hares, rabbits,

rodents and even sheep, goats, dogs when they stray into human habitats, and there is up to one metre tall grass, dens or burroughs in the wild for them to hide and hunt, he added. “The ECWS has taken up the cause of saving the wolf simply because there is nobody trying to save them in India though there are many organisations working for them worldwide,” he said.

India is home to two important species: the Grey Wolf and the Himalayan Wolf. The latter is even more endangered. According to unofficial estimates, there may be just 2,000-3,000 Indian wolves in the wild.

Luckily, the United Kingdom Wolf Conservation Trust (UKWCT) in London chipped in with 5,000 pounds to the ECWS. Sunil Limaye, the Chief Conservator of Forests-Wild Life, Pune, said the Indian wolf had been accorded a ‘protected animal’ status since 1972. “However, we have no data on their numbers. The (Ahmednagar) project has been started specifically for the wolves. It will continue for another six months to learn their behaviour in winter, summer and monsoon months,” Limaye told IANS. Lamented Aghor: “Though wolves are supported to live across India, not even primary estimates of their numbers are available, forget a systematic census conducted for other bigger animals like tigers and lions.” ECWS and its 10-member team are planning to convert the Ahmednagar grassland into a ‘wolf laboratory’ for the whole country and deduce a fair idea of its population, behaviour, average pack size, area of activities, food habits and migration patterns by 2020. The grassland in the district is spread over 1,444 sq km.

BY SNEHA KRISHNAN @sne_krishnan

About a year ago, the Chawla family was extremely excited about moving in to their new house surrounded by hills and acres of greenery. “But when we started living there, we saw a lot of waste piling up at the foothills in pockets around the buildings. Like most people in the area, my husband and I conveniently ignored the pile up,” says Shehnaz Chawla, a resident of Clover Highlands. A couple of weeks later, innocently wondering why plastic bags are lying around, her sons started questioning her about the mess.

“Which is when, I came up with the idea of Namaste Pune.”

Chawla, along with her sons and 20 other children, walk up to such spots around their housing societies in the morning, and collect the waste plastic. “I provide the kids with gloves, masks and garbage bags and we finish the collection before the municipality truck comes. After the collection, the kids are given breakfast in the society,” adds Chawla, adding, “Our collection walks were praised a lot by the municipality’s garbage truck drivers and collectors as they were extremely surprised when the kids went up to them with garbage bags.”

The group meets once a month and gets to work in a new location each time. After seeing their work, even developers in the area have shown interest and have sponsored some of the collection drives.

Children have been very enthusiastic about the drive from the beginning. “Children are always more receptive to change and when you explain to them the purpose of the

(From top) Young volunteers of Namaste Pune with RTI activist Vinita Deshmukh during one of their plastic collection drives. Kids enjoying breakfast after the drive

activity, they focus on doing it with even more vigour.”

Such outdoor activities help kids learn more about the purpose, rather than keeping them engrossed in books

and leaving them to learn about the issue by themselves. They now question their parents, who think twice before asking for a plastic bag from their grocer or bhajiwala.

“When I saw the kids were really interested in the collection, I thought of getting a few people to talk to them about garbage segregation and its advantages in a fun manner and so during one of our breakfast parties I got a couple of workers from the municipality to talk to them,” says Chawla.

“They explained the process of segregation, collection, recycling and dumping grounds to them. I was surprised to see children asking the workers their questions about paper and plastic usage, which shows how enthusiastic they are about change.”

The children have considerably learnt a lot from these collection drives, which is visible while they distribute and take on responsibilities during the activity. “My son has also begun to link these activities to what he learns in school. He tells me to switch off lights in rooms and use both sides of the paper; sometimes it embarrasses me, but it makes me a proud parent in the end,” she says feeling tender about her kids.

“When I heard about Shehnaz’s work, me and my son got on board immediately,” says Pallavi Khurana, a resident of Wanowrie.

“My son Neil has a great time at the collection with the other kids. It’s a great way of motivating them to learn about the issue of garbage disposal in the city. He has even started telling his friends to not use plastic and reuse paper,” adds Khurana.

As the phrase goes, the youth are the future of the nation, Namaste Pune truly believes in this. When we see little ones around us working hard to achieve something for the wellbeing of the people, the adults involuntarily jump in to be a part of it. snehakrishnan@hotmail.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

60 dog bite cases in 7 days in PCMC P5

Shripad Sapkal’s love of heights touches milestone P7

I am sure every ‘Hinjewadian’ would ask his mate after coming back from a short home visit -“Traffic kum hua kya?” #Hinjewadi #mess #pune @ParshvSanghvi1

Allah ke bande

WHO’S WHO OF NEST

Billionaires from Middle East are going all out to educate 2,000 underprivileged children from Mumbai and Pune; Zakat money is being used to fund the project

BY BAPU DEEDWANIA The Yaseen sisters — Nisha, 13, and Ilaf, 12 — suffer from albinism. Like other albino patients, their vision, as well as the pigment of their skin, is fast diminishing.

Their father, Mohammad Yaseen, tries to make ends meet by taking up odd jobs but, with a paltry salary of `7,000, dayto-day survival has become a struggle for the family of six. While Nisha and Ilaf struggle through their day in school, their elder sisters juggle between helping their mother with household chores and attending college. Further, Nisha has been suffering from typhoid and pneumonia for the last four months and has barely been able to keep pace with her fellow students.

Over time, the sisters have reconciled to the fact that they would have to drop their studies since the family isn’t in a position to afford special medical care for Nisha and Ilaf, given their financial condition.

Nine-year-old Sohail and his elder brother Shifa Ali, 12, hail from a financially strained family. Their widower father, Aamir Ali, 45, works as a labourer with a bag manufacturing

factory. However, over the years, he has lost nearly 50 per cent of his eyesight due to a genetic disorder. Along with his vision, Ali’s financial condition has also weakened steadily. The brothers still have a chance at an education since their school is letting them study for free. The school, however, has its own problems — it’s located on marshy land and when the tide is high, water flows into the shed where children study.

“Any help would be welcome, so that more and more children can benefit. If we get regular funds and assistance in building certain facilities for some of our students, we will certainly be able to provide better for the children,” says principal Imran Zabbavali.

A few weeks ago, a ray of hope seeped into the lives of the Yaseens and the Alis, along with numerous other underprivileged families. A group of youngsters, mostly from affluent families in Kuwait, have come together to help the underprivileged in Mumbai and Pune. Nurture and Educate Students Today (NEST), as the group formally goes by, is reaching out to schools where the kids study in a bid to ensure education for underprivileged

Members of NEST believe that their share of charity should be utilised towards improving the lives of underprivileged children through a sustained education programme

children as part of their Zakat. Zakat is a form of charity mandatory in Islam, wherein a person is required to give a certain portion of their income to charity. NEST provides underprivileged students with access to proper educational resources. Of the 2,000 students NEST aims to sponsor, 600 children are from Pune, while 1,400 are from Mumbai. The group from Middle-East has the support of the Kuwaiti Royal family, Al-Sabah.

The royal family helps the non-profit in its fund raising by contributing and getting other prominent families in

Pune beats Mumbai, Delhi in quality of life: Study

Global consultancy firm states that ours is the second best city in India to live after Hyderabad TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly Pune has something to be proud of.

We beat Mumbai and Delhi when it comes to quality of life. A study done

by Mercer titled ‘Quality of Living rankings 2015’ states that Pune is the second best city in the country.

Globally, Pune didn’t do too well and ranked 145, but within the country it is second only to Hyderabad, according to Mercer report.

The city has been put in the category of ‘emerging cities’ by the global consultancy fi rm. According to the study, Pune’s success is largely due to “automotive manufacturing and information technology” which

have led to city’s development as a business center. Considerable rise in population in Mumbai and New Delhi in the last few decades has increased existing problems, including access to clean water, air pollution and traffic congestion. The list also figures other Indian cities —Bangalore (146), Chennai (151), and Kolkata (160).

The factors that were considered are housing, climate and physical conditions, pollution, disease and sanitation, medical facilities, education facilities, infrastructure, physical remoteness, political violence and repression, political and social environment, crime, communications, cultural and recreation facilities, and availability of goods and services.

Austrian capital Vienna emerged as the city with the best quality of living in the world. Overall, European cities dominate the rankings along with major cities in Australia and New Zealand, according to the Mercer website.

Zurich (Switzerland), Auckland (New Zealand) and Munich (Germany) are in the second, third, and fourth positions respectively. In the fifth place, Vancouver (Canada) is the highestranking city in North America and the region’s only entry in the top 10.

Singapore, in 25th place, is the highest ranking city in Asia.

Sri Lankan capital Colombo, with a rank of 132nd, is the city with the best quality of living in South Asia, while Japanese capital Tokyo (44) topped the ranking among East Asian cities. Chinese cities Xi’an and Chongqing (both ranked 142nd) are also emerging as business destinations. Their main challenges to improving quality of living standards are clean water provision and air pollution.

The lowest ranking cities in western Europe are Belfast (63) in Northern Ireland and Athens (85) in Greece.

Dubai (74) ranks highest for quality of living across the Middle East and Africa region. Ranked 230th, Baghdad is the lowest ranking city in the region and on the overall list. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

A

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 two lucky winners to receive gift coupons.

1. What is the original name of rock star Papon?

TGS Quiz Contest

No. 38

Contest # 37

winners

Rajiv Gupta Laxmi Nathpotani

2. The ‘Ghanta Awards’ live show invites online entries on Bollywood in how many categories?

3. How many college canteens did TGS Team cover to rate the best and worst ones?

4. Who is the author of ‘Cricket World Cup: The Indian Challenge’?

5. Which book did British author Jeffery Archer launch when he was

PUNE

in the city?

6. Who is the brainchild behind naming the food joint ‘Chai’ at ABC Farms on Salunke Vihar Road?

7. What made Vaishali Vilas Ruikar to take up nursing?

8. Where is Stepin Adventure Gear Store located?

9. Where was Robocon held?

10. Good Artists of Pune (GAP) was launched in which year?

Kuwait to contribute towards NEST by way of Zakat.

It all began in 2013, when Noor Al-Badai, an enginnering student from Kuwait University (KU), began working on the idea of NEST. Noor hails from a prominent Kuwaiti family and she believes that her share of charity should be utilised towards improving the lives of underprivileged children through a sustained education programme. “By educating a child, one can ensure that a life is taken care of. One does not need to give money in hand to make a life better,” she states. Once NEST’s vision

Noor, the brain behind NEST, hails from the family that runs Boodaicorp, a multibillion company which has investments in key economic areas of Kuwait. The family runs Alrai TV, Boodai WLL, Boodai Aviation Group (BAG), among several other known ventures. Seeing the organisation’s efforts, and success, Al-Sabah, the royal family of Kuwait, decided to lend their support to one of its initial projects, titled Gaadi, in 2013-14. The royal family helps continues to help in raising funds.

Through a sustained effort, Noor also got in touch with philanthropist Dr Hilal Al-Sayer, a former minister of health in Kuwait, deputy president of the Kuwait Red Crescent Society, chairman of the board of Dasman Diabetes Institute and Bay’t Abdullah Children’s Hospital. With Dr Sayer’s expertise, the group was certain that they would be able to accomplish their dream of educating the less fortunate.

was clear, Noor approached various people associated with KU apart from its well-placed alumni, to help fund and run the organisation.

Over time, Noor was able to bring together a diverse group of students, teachers, doctors, and other prominent members of Kuwaiti society in her mission to bring proper education and resources to underprivileged schools all over the world. Noura Al-Mudhaf, whose father is a managing director with Kuwait Petroleum, and Naza AlKhursheed, whose father is a top medical practitioner in Kuwait, also joined hands with Noor to work on NEST. In India, Noura is spearheading the group’s campaign. Currently, NEST focuses on providing uniforms, books, annual fees, raincoats, gum boots, among other things required by students. “The hurdles are many.

While we were working on a shortlist of students, we did come across numerous cases where the children are orphaned

and are staying with their relatives. The relatives were using the children as a means to earn an extra income. We did have to go through a lot of checks and balances, but one cannot really blame the families. The circumstances, in which they survive, are such that they would go to any extent to seek benefits,” says Shital Ghia, spokesperson for NEST, India.

“This is our first step in India. We were clear that we did not wish to uproot any student. So, the alternative is to look at funding their education in the school where they are already enrolled. For that reason, we shortlisted schools that cater to students who hail from below poverty line families,” says Ghia.

In a chat with TGS, Noor explained that NEST’s main aim is to provide education to those in need. “We want to use our resources to educate the less fortunate and provide a better quality of education to any society,” she concludes. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

PUNE

“PCMC has done its part by widening the Dapodi stretch of the highway. But the mess at Dapodi is a nightmare for commuters. There is an urgent need for PMC to build an overbridge” —MLA Laxman Jagtap

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy

Indian economy surges as other nations stumble

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P12

36 yrs on, she returned to her roots Germany-based psychiatrist travelled over 6,000 kms to find and connect with her biological family. The decade-long struggle finally bore fruit in February this year, when she met her elder sister living in Pune

Born in 1978 to an underprivileged couple in Pune, Swati didn’t stay too long with her birth parents.

They brought her to an orphanage and the sevenmonth-old was soon adopted by a German couple.

Then, Swati’s childhood ensued in a completely different environment, in Germany.

As the little girl grew older, she noticed differences between her appearance and that of her parents. The more Swati compared her jet black hair to the brunettes and blondes among her friends and family, questions began to arise in her mind. Through her growing years, she faced a number of questions about why she had an Indian name and a German last name, or, if she knew who her biological parents were? “These questions are very genuine but I would never know how to respond to them. If I’d avoid the question, it might be considered rude and that would put me in a tough situation.”

Questions raised by people around her left Swati fumbling for answers. When her parents finally told her about the adoption, she felt lonely and different all in an instant. “The search for my biological parents started in 2004.

I rummaged through documents and researched the background my adoptive parents shared with me. Finally, three years later, in 2007, I took a trip to India and came to Pune to look for my birth mother,” recalls Swati.

Swati first made her way to Mahila Sevagram in search of the files that would lead to her biological family. But after endless calls and ruffling through stacks of files, she was unable to find anyone. Left with no choice, Swati trudged back to Germany. On her second trip too, she had

I had no idea that I would have to face numerous difficulties because, in Germany, if you wish to find out about your birth parents, all you need to do is visit the orphanage and ask for your files no luck. During her third trip, Swati was adamant and fought her way through the Sevagram’s labyrinth and protested before her relatives to seek information about her mother. “That’s when I found my mother in an old age home in the city,” she says.

The practising psychiatrist’s dig into the past was exhausting, but she did not give up.

“The search has caused me a lot of stress. At the beginning, I had no idea that I would have to face numerous difficulties because, in Germany, if you wish to find out about your birth parents, all you

Contd from p 1 Residents aver that they were compelled to take the extreme step of barring students due to their experiences in the past. Anil Hoshangbade, outgoing chairman of Lunkad Colonnade said, “In 2002 when our society came into being, we used to allow students on rent. But in 2005 we stopped it because there were several incidents regarding girls who were staying in a flat and boys used to visit them regularly.”

Naresh Karpe, Secretary of Rohan Mithila points out that recently his society has banned students from given houses on rent. “Pune is an otherwise safe city and most students who come from outside can’t handle the freedom. They have late night parties and trouble society members.

We won’t be renewing the lease henceforth and owners have also been informed,” he said.

STUDENTS’ PLIGHT The inability to get an apartment is a logistical nightmare for most students. Take the case of 20-year-old Akshita Roongta, a student of Symbiosis International University (SIU): Originally from Mumbai, the campus that she had studied in for the first two years for her Liberal Arts course had shifted from Senapati Bapat Road to Viman Nagar. In May 2014 she started hunt for her house in Viman Nagar along with her mother. Her search took her to a sprawling housing society on Nagar Road. Her search ended as fast as it started. She was interrogated by a lady resident and accused of having

‘boyfriends’ in front of her mother. Eventually she settled for an apartment in a ramshackle building a little away.

Varundeep Chawla, also a SIU student, is among the luckier ones. He managed to find an apartment in Viman Nagar, but hunt and moving in wasn’t easy. Armed with the rent agreement when Varundeep and three of his friends went to the building for the first time, they were stopped at the gate by the security. His landlord put his foot down and convinced the managing committee to give the two bedroom house to Chawla and three of his friends.

However, life isn’t easy for them. Varundeep feels that they are treated with a certain disdain.

“Our friends are our families here,” said Varundeep pointing out that most of the assignments given at the college are group activities which require for them to work together, sometimes for long hours.

While it may sound like a blame game gone out of control the fact remains that students feel excessively victimised, even those who do eventually find accommodations in residential complexes. The in-time for students can range from 10.30 pm to 12 am depending upon the whims of the society, while a family is free to do what they like. Eyebrows are raised over visitors of the opposite sex in particular and over all visitors. “Sometimes lines are crossed.

Guards and society members ask questions about a visitor,” averred Varundeep. Students also alleged that brokers charge them higher commissions and rents.

RAHUL RAUT

No students please!

need to do is visit the orphanage and ask for your files and you will be assisted with everything.

But it was very frustrating for me when I realised that the people involved in all the paper work and the orphanages were not letting me meet my birth mother and they were taking decisions on whether I would get to meet her or not without even knowing who I am, or where I have come from,” Swati adds, the resentment is now palpable.

During her fourth trip to Pune, Swati found out that she has a biological sister, who is 12 years older to her. This past week, the two long-lost sisters were reunited. “When I met my sister, I was extremely happy and she was even more delighted to see me. I have a brother, back in Germany, who has also been adopted. But having a sister is something different entirely. I met her children too and they are very nice kids and I was even happier to know that they are going to school.”

Language may have served as a barrier between the biological siblings, what with one sister fluent in Marathi and the other in German, but, Swati says, “The happiness reflected in our eyes. The feeling of having someone, who is your own blood, is incomparable; neither of us had ever felt this way. She was holding my hands, and touching my face. She couldn’t believe that she had a sister. My sister, I realise, was more alone than I was, because I had my German parents, German relatives and friends, but she only had her mother, who was not even with her at all times. She was raised in a residential care all her life and her mother would visit her very rarely.”

The familial bonding came with its share of disorientation, especially when Swati saw the house where her sister lives. “It was my first cultural shock, because, in Germany, you won’t find four people living in one room. I have

BOILING POINT At the launch of Mission Safe Viman Nagar, a community initiative by Vimantal Police Station, residents voiced their discontent with the growth of the student population in the area. Allegations such as “They are moneyed people, come from rich backgrounds and are already spoilt, have no respect for elders” were thrown around. Chairpersons of several housing societies pinned the blame of uncouth behaviour by young adults on bad parenting. Members from housing societies took their discontent with the student community to another level during the meeting, “Girls were found smoking.”

SANER VOICES In this mess where housing societies and student community cannot see eye to eye, there are some saner voices. Long standing resident of Viman Nagar, Shyam Kuddyady said, “We must understand that students come from diverse cultures. Nearly 60 per cent of the students studying in Pune are from outside. If we are to call Pune a global education hub, students must be allowed to stay in housing societies.” The complex he lives in, Konark Campus, doesn’t allow students to stay, and even has a board on the gate that states so. But a large complex (about 600 dwellings) such as this has had to alter their rules on case to case basis owing to pressure from some of the flat owners. Shyam emphasised the need to have a balanced view. “Girls and boys being friends and mingling are viewed as either an orgy or rape. It’s sad that this how most people think. Not all students are crackpots, maybe 10 per cent are,” he said.

WAY FORWARD With the never ending argument raging and once again brought to fore during the recent citizens’ meet, there is ray of hope. Col (retd) S G Dalvi, a resident of the locality and who was at the forefront of the Mission Safe Viman Nagar initiative said that the issues could only be sorted out with dialogue and interaction. He proposed to set up a meeting with all the stake holders - chairpersons, college administrations, students and even the police - to get an amicable solution to the problem.

Symbiosis administration, which alone has four colleges in the area also seem keen on resolving the stalemate. “We have hostel facility for 1000 girl students of our colleges in Vimannagar. We know that some students tend to be indisciplined and noisy but all students are not, and they need a place to live in the locality.

We request housing societies to allow them to stay.” - Col (retd) V K Kempraj, Campus Administrator, SLA & SSLA. “Not all students are trouble makers and housing societies must take a balanced view of the issue. Misconduct should be addressed but not hypocrisy,” said Varundeep. Akshita agreed: “Make stricter rules, but don’t deny us a place to live.” ritugoyalharishgmail.com

heard about it and I have seen it on TV. It is normal here, in India,but it was hard to accept when I saw my sister living like that.”

After years spent striving to know more about her roots, Swati is close to reaching an equilibrium. She understands that she is now part of two families, here, in India and in Germany. As for the future, she simply wants to preserve the smiles for the longest, “I am happy to be reunited with my biological family. I know that it will take us all some time to get accustomed to each other, considering the cultural distances. Although my search is complete, there is a new life starting at this stage of my life.

It feels a little like a parallel world because I already have a life in Germany and now I have a second life here in India. It’s pretty exciting,” she laughs. Meanwhile, Swati is already planning regular trips to Pune, “I will come again. My sister insists I come visit her more often.” tgs.feedback@ goldenspar row.com

RAHUL RAUT

TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly

Of the people, for the people, by PCMC Contd from p 1 The ultimate objective of CFN was to create awareness among people at large and increase participation in the budget. To begin with several workshops were held to educate citizens about the Participatory Budget. Next step was to create online and offl ine platforms to receive suggestions. Once the suggestions were received, CFN worked closely with PCMC to shortlist the relevant ones.

Moreover, PCMC also changed its policy with regards to Participatory Budget, which made things simpler for citizens groups. Till 2014, there was a ceiling on sum to be sanctioned – Rs 25 lakh for four zonal wards (twin cities are divided into four zonal wards for administrative purposes and then further sub divided into 68 wards), which in essence meant not more than Rs 1 crore to be spent on works suggested by citizens. Also, a citizen could only suggest works to the tune of Rs 5 lakhs in his/her area.

Moreover, since there was no clarity on how many suggestions had been received, residents shied away from participating. However, PCMC officials realised the flaw and without much hesitation tweaked the entire concept. Moreover, the entire process was made transparent.

Sixteen workshops were organised by CFN to create awareness. Two password based web portals were created - one for accessing the data received through online participation and another for data entry operators at the zonal offices for entering the forms received offl ine (this ensured that all data is available on centrally). Citizens who had doubts were sent emails answering their queries. PCMC Sarathi helpline staff was also trained to solve queries of citizens.

With as many suggestions in place, civic engineers were sent out to study each one of them. The engineers came back with their observations. Public gatherings were held to finalise the suggestions. Civic officials, CFN representatives sat with the citizens for hours on end to make sure that all the feasible projects were included in the budget. Once everything was in place, final list of approved projects was shared with PCMC accounts department for inclusion in the commissioner’s budget.

PCMC V/S PMC Like PCMC, Pune Municipal Corporation too has Participatory Budget. CFN members found that PCMC was more receptive when it came to implementation of the concept. Firstly, PMC has a ceiling of Rs 50 lakhs to be spent through Participatory Budget even though the number of wards area 76 as compared to 68 in PCMC. In PCMC, however, there is no ceiling on the sum to be allocated to the concept as long as work pertains to one of their wards. Moreover, in Pimpri Chinchwad, a citizen can suggest works to the tune of Rs 10 lakhs in his/her ward.

AUTHORITY SPEAK Officials in PCMC are a proud lot after receiving an astounding response. PCMC chief accountant Pramod Bhosale said, “Citizens’ participatory budget plays a key role in urban development. Thanks to the citizens’ groups involved, we received an overwhelming response this year. We will extend every possible support to the groups to ensure that citizen participation improves further in coming years.”

CITIZEN SPEAK

SUGGESTIONS FROM ZONES A zone - Public library cum newspaper shed - Building a wall along the railway line which will act as a noise restrictor B zone - Public library and recreation centre - Curbing noise pollution at Chapekar Bridge as there are hospitals around.

C zone - Closing of drainage system at Ganga skies - Installation of street lights at Sangamnagar to solve safety issues D zone - Installation of waste bins at Rose Icon Society - Regular spraying of pesticides at Sadhu Vaswani Garden to prevent breeding of mosquitoes E zone - Constructing a botanical garden at Chakrapani road - Public library at Dighi F zone - Construction of Sulabh Suchalay for housemaids in Shahunagar and Sambhajinagar - Complete the work of sport facility behind Sambhaji Park

Pooja Shetty, project coordinator, governance of Janwani said, “It has been a wonderful experience to be part of the Citizens’ Facilitation Network. The response given by the citizens of Pimpri Chinchwad for this year’s budget has been overwhelming and has added a feather in the cap for the Corporation. In the coming years, our aim would be to improve the process and extend our outreach along with the support of the PCMC. We hope to make our budgets as inclusive as possible!” archana.dahiwal@goldensparrow.com

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

Pune International Film Festival (PIFF) was born in 2002. The aim was to attract the best in celluloid to the city, a task that it has achieved and how, over the last 12 years

Prick your way to sleep P11

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

DOG BITE CASES IN PCMC

6,930 9,181 9,384

April 2013-March 2014

April 2012-March 2013

April 2011-March 2012

Hubby gets jailed for not paying alimony

grievous injuries. My son was unable to eat food for a few days as he could not open his jaw.”

Alarming increase of dog terror can be gauged by the fact that Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) received 34 cases from various localities last Sunday. And the weekly figure stood at 60 cases. The 2012 dog census puts the population at over 30,000 strays.

PCMC chief veterinary officer Dr Satish Gore said, “There has been a significant rise in dog bite cases in Pimpri and Bhosari areas.

In the last three months, we have received 453 complaints regarding dog bites.” He added, “Stray dogs are dangerous not only because of their teeth but also because they help ticks and other parasites thrive,” he said.

The official said that dogs’ puberty and pregnancy period is small and they can give birth to 6-8 pups at a time. The civic administration should sterilise and vaccinate stray dogs at ward level.

Animal activist Manoj Oswal said, “Irresponsible disposal of garbage, mainly meat and poultry waste, is one of the major reasons for rising number of strays. Even the mass sterilisation programme has failed to give desired results. With citizens not adopting garbage disposal methods and civic administration not encouraging the practice, dog bite cases will continue to rise in PimpriChinchwad.”

Gore informed that PCMC has sterilised and administered anti-rabies vaccines on 18,000 stray dogs since January 2015. archana.dahiwal@goldensparrow.com

It was the sheer perseverance of a separated woman that let a court, in a rare case, to sentence her ex-husband to 11-month imprisonment after he failed to pay alimony.

Koregaon Park-based Sarika Satish Kataria approached the police after her husband Satish Kataria did not pay her monthly maintenance amount. Earlier, the court had directed Satish, who owns a bakery in Koregaon Park and stays in Ghorpadi village, to pay her regular alimony after the couple separated in 2005.

Sarika fi led an application in city court and obtained a non-bailable warrant against him.

However, the police failed to present Satish before the court despite the judge issuing warrants thrice. The lame excuse given by the police team was that ‘he was unavailable’.

Annoyed with regular replies from local police stations, Sarika met police commissioner Satish Mathur last month and narrated her plight.

Mathur directed Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) Prasad Hasabnis to look into the issue and a crime branch constable picked up Satish within a day. He was produced before a city court that ordered Satish to pay `2 lakh to Sarika.

However, he failed to pay the money, and the court sent him to prison for 11 months.

Satish is in Yerawada central prison these days.

Speaking to TGS Sarika said, “We had an arranged marriage in 2000 and separated in 2005 after I got to know about his extramarital affair.” With two daughters aged 14 and 12 years, Sarika applied for alimony and the court granted it. But Satish’s monthly payments were irregular. “I had to look after my daughters and life became difficult for me,” she said. A home maker earlier, Sarika started working as a real estate agent.

“The police failed to execute NBWs and arrest him. Whenever I asked the police if he was caught, the reply was a curt no,” she said.

According to Sarika, police commissioner requested her to ask the lawyer to issue a warrant against the city police commissioner next time. “As directed, my lawyer got a NBW against the city police commissioner which was executed within no time,” she said.

Her counsel Advocate Bharat More said that it is a rare incident that a person involved in a domestic civil suit has been arrested in such a fashion. “The court of Judicial Magistrate (First Class) SA Sardar admitted all the legal provisions and issued a NBW against him,” he said.

ACP Hasabnis meanwhile said that an enquiry will be conducted by zonal authorities to find out why earlier warrants were served upon Satish. gitesh.shelke@goldensparrow.com

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

Three-year-old Samarth Paswan, a stray dog bite victim, had to remain in hospital for six days and will have to undergo facial plastic surgery

Priyanka Ghise (37) will never forget her visit to Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital in Pimpri last Sunday. She had gone to the hospital with her husband Sandeep, who was suffering from severe back pain and in need of immediate medical assistance.

Priyanka stepped out of her car and was walking towards the hospital lobby, when, much to her horror, a stray dog grabbed her leg. You heard it right – there are strays in the crowded government hospital campus. Now both Sandeep and Priyanka were in need of urgent medical attention.

“I was running, screaming and the stray

P14

BY GITESH SHELKE @gitesh_shelke

60 cases of dog bites have been reported this week; the stray dog menace in Pimpri-Chinchwad has citizens running for cover

was not letting go of my leg. People around somehow managed to scare the dog away.

Doctors at the hospital cleaned the wound and gave me three injections. Imagine going to a hospital for your husband’s medical check-up and end up getting admitted,” she said.

Th ree-year-old Samarth Paswan residing in Chakrapani Vasahat was another victim.

A stray dog bit while he was playing near his house. He had to be rushed to a hospital where he was administered three stitches on his lips.

He suffered injuries on near his left eye and right hand. Recuperating for the last six days, Samarth will have to undergo facial plastic surgery. Rushila Paswan, Samarth’s mother said, “The dog had attacked the eight children who were playing but Samarth sustained

Investors can claim damage in fraud

Determined woman meets police commissioner after cops fail to execute three non-bailable warrants against her husband

On a PROWL

BY ARCHANA DAHIWAL @ArchanaDahiwal

PUNE

Sarika Satish Kataria separated from her husband Satish (inset) in 2005

Cummins India to chop down 222 trees Pune Municipal Corporation’s ‘Toothless’ Tree Authority fails to check tree felling in the city

congratulations

BY ASHOK BHAT @ashok_bhat Cummins India has sought permission from Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to chop 222 trees from its Dahanukar Colony office in Kothrud. The firm wants to clear area for multilevel parking, treatment plant and road.

The possibility of the firm getting a go-ahead is high as the Tree Authority of PMC is illegal claims an RTI activist. The tree authority will take up cases, including the request of Cummins India, at the meeting to be held on March 12. In all likelihood, the panel comprising experts and officials from garden department will permit the firm to cut down 146 trees and transplant 231 trees and plant 1,131 saplings in the area.

A Cummins India official said that the company has sought permission from the civic authorities. “We will follow the rules and regulations laid by PMC as the firm had done this exercise before also for its expansion plan,” the official said.

The latest tree census project launched by PMC was in 2013.And the count was over 32 lakh trees. The tree authority of PMC has received 65 proposals seeking permission to chop down 668 trees. Most of the applications (28 for chopping of 377 trees) are submitted by builders/ developers.

Regarding the proposals to chop 668 trees, 305 will be axed as per the recommendations made by expert committee and garden department. The panel has asked the parties to transplant 348 trees. The applicants have been directed to plant trees in 1:3 ratio (For cutting of one tree, three trees should be planted) as per the law of Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975.

To enforce the Act, the government framed rules in 2009 and directed authorities to form Tree

NGO Nisarga Sevak planted 2,000 trees on the hills section next to Cummins India in 30 years

Authority at the local level. PMC also constituted Tree Authority and its prior permission was mandatory for cutting trees. Twenty proposals submitted to Tree Authority by individuals, housing societies and NGOs relate to trees that pose a threat. The various departments of PMC have forwarded 17 proposals for tree chopping to facilitate road works.

Opposing the massive cutting of trees, RTI activist Vinod Jain said that destroying the city’s green cover will have adverse effects.

“Is Tree Authority taking the responsibility of transplanting and new plantation?” he said.

WHY PMC TREE AUTHORITY IS ILLEGAL According to Jain, Tree Authority should have 5-15 members, but the present body has 27.

Any notice published by Tree Authority is illegal as according to clause 1(e) of Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975, these releases have to be signed by the tree officer and the position is yet to be filled by the civic administration. According to the activist, the PMC website on Tree Authority is clueless regarding details of how many trees are axed after September 20, 2013, how many have been planted in the ratio of 1:3, the places where trees have been planted and their status. “Instead of

protecting and preserving trees, the department is allowing the chopping of trees,” he said.

NGO Nisarga Sevak has planted 2,000 trees on the five-acre hills section next to Cummins India in the past 30 years. Vivek Velankar of Nisarg Sevak said that chopping down of trees in large number will affect the environment. “The firm should transplant trees in a scientific manner as it includes precious trees from sandal to mango. Before giving the completion certificate, PMC should ask for the map of transplant trees.

If the success rate of transplant trees is lowered then PMC should ask the company to plant more trees to fulfil the quota,” Velankar said.

IN THE PAST In 2007, PMC had served a show cause notice to Cummins India Ltd for cutting 53 trees on its premises without taking its prior permission.

A site visit by the civic administration had confirmed 53 trees and branches of 46 trees were cut on the compound of Cummins. As per the rules, the company had to pay penalty of `15,000 per tree cut without PMC permission and also make a deposit of `10,000 to ensure a tree is planted against each tree that is been cut. The company was liable to pay `1,000 for cutting of each branch. ashok.bhat21@gmail.com

WINNERS OF PREVIOUS HOUSING SOCIETY CONTESTS BY GODREJ PROPERTIES, PUNE

Mayur Aahuja

Mrs Junagadhwala

Sacred Heart Town Co­operative Housing Society

Kubera Garden Co­operative Housing Society

We are coming to your society soon.

Keep a look out in this newspaper for your invite.

For more information please Call: 1-800-258-2588 | www.godrejprana.com Site office: Godrej Prana, Undri Saswad Road, Undri, Pune 411028 Regional office: Dreamworld Landmarks LLP, Godrej Eternia C, 10th floor, Office A, 3 Old Mumbai Pune Highway, Wakdewadi, Shivajinagar, Pune 411 005 Head office: Godrej Properties Ltd., Godrej Bhavan, 4A Home Street, Fort, Mumbai 400 001

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

PUNE

Majority of Internet traffic is not generated by humans, but bots like Google and Malware.

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Iconic restaurant for sale

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Be happy, avoid anxiety with Personal Zen MIT College of Engineering Pune’s Operator 1 Mandar Kulkarni (left) and Operator 2 Ashwjn Sahasrabudhe working with their robot on the badminton court at the ROBOMINTON in Balewadi on Thursday

When robots played badminton!

A platform for budding engineers, Robocon tests students on various subjects every year. This year it mixed badminton and robots with the theme Robominton

By Sneha Krishnan @sne_krishnan

Haven’t we all wished to own a robot that obeys us? Well, Robocon (short for Robotic contest) pushes students to achieve the same. It is an interesting game-cumintellectual exercise for budding engineers, who are determined to innovate and create machines. Participation in the contest is a competitive experience for students as they focus on concept, design and technicalities of a system of robots that are programmed

Signposts Rly launches first customer complaint mobile app Indian Railways became the first company in the country to provide customer complaint services on a mobile app besides providing the facility online by launching a complaint management system (Coms). The Coms comprises the mobile app, an online portal backed by a centralised grievance redressal monitoring system and a mobile network messaging facility. “Passengers can also SMS their complaints on the mobile number,” the railway authorities said in a statement. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said the app and the web portal will act as a suggestion forum as the complaint can be tracked once the supplicant registers with the app or online. He said the railways welcome suggestions from people to further improve passenger services and valuable suggestions on this newly launched portal can be incorporated in all possible ways, if found suitable.

Mobile app for PMO The government along with online search giant Google launched a nationwide contest to develop a mobile app for the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Communications and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said here.

Google will partner MyGov in this contest to build the PMO mobile app.

“This is the government, which not only engages, it also acts upon the suggestions,” the minister said while launching the app. He said this tie-up shows that the government “use social media for public good” and the crowd sourcing it does implies that the government reposes immense trust with its people. Prime Minister Narender Modi in his address at the 25th foundation day of the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) recently had announced the plan to launch a mobile App for the PMO. The contest is open for all citizens of India above the age of 18 years, who are registered on MyGov.

to perform according to rules of the competition.

Every year, the event has a theme, and this year, Robocon has decided to take technology one step further and has linked robots to sports and so this year’s event is called Robominton. Eighty-five colleges from across the country took part this year and each of the teams had to build two robots that will be able to serve and receive the shuttlecock on the badminton court.

This year the event took place between March 5 and 7 at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Balewadi.

The annual event is a run down to the international contest that is due to take place in Indonesia in August this year and out of the 16 teams that reach the super league, one team will qualify to take part in the finals in Indonesia.

As the Balewadi badminton courts were filled with engineering students from across the nation, TGS caught up

with some of the most promising teams to know more about their participation and robots. Team leader Rohit Krishna said, “Involving badminton with robots is a great concept and since robots have always been associated with being nerdy or highly intellectual, people lose interest in them.

But this time we are mixing robots with sports and there is a considerable rise in the crowds and participants too.”

When asked about their teams learning’s from the contest, team operator 1 Mandar Kulkarni said, “This year, judges can compare the performances of two teams and chose the winner, unlike the previous years where the team is judged only on its individual performance and scored on the time it takes to complete a task. This year the contest is very unpredictable and very interesting too.”

“Being our first year at Robocon, we didn’t know what to expect out of it. Our team of 31 students started working on our

robots last year and we are hoping to make it through to the super league,” says team leader Akshay Gulhane from MMCOE, Pune.

“The contest seems to be very uncertain; you can’t say which team will serve well or which team will reply to your serve. Sometimes your machine might not work in the 11th hour and you can’t do anything; sometimes the best colleges get disqualified,” added Akshay.

Students from SRM University, Chennai were also in town with their robots and team leader Srinidhi Srinivasan said that regardless of the fact that they don’t have robotic engineers in their team, they have made it a point to venture into Robocon this year. “Whether we win or not, as senior students we will be able to use our experience back on campus with the juniors and encourage them to take part next year.” snehakrishnan@hotmail.com

Intricately carved out artistic expressions

Pune-based LMB Productions makes a video of artists who put their soul into glass sculptors

By Ritu Goyal Harish @ritugh With locally made tools and blowers, two bespectacled individuals give their artistry a vivid and tangible expression at 900 degrees centigrade melting point.

Hidden from the glare of malls and glitzy shops in Camp lies an establishment called K & K Scientific Agency— a name that neither exemplifies nor gives a clue to the kind of work that goes on inside. A delicate glass tree on which tiny birds perch, slim stemmed wine glasses, perfume bottles, three dimensional figurines of dancing girls, Gods and Goddesses and many more, deft fingers sculpt objects out of glass.

If you cannot visit this little haven of artistic expression owned by Sangeeta and Owner of K & K Scientific Agency Sanjeev Kakade is busy moulding glass object at his Sanjeev Kakade, you can watch their work in workshop. (Right) Creative director of LMB a video titled - The Rhythm of Glass and Fire, Productions, Anurag Ramgopal with his crew produced by Pune-based LMB Productions, the first in a series of similar such videos that will capture the heart of Pune. specifically mentioned. “We have always The first thoughts for the wanted to create hyper local project emerged from the content,” he said. popularity of online content in The young team at LMB recent times. “But almost all wants to become a community online content focuses on Delhi that creates quality content. and Mumbai and we want to “We don’t want to be overtly create a lot of content ‘for’ the driven by ‘what works’, but by city of Pune, ‘from’ the city of what people feel,” emphasised Pune,” said co-founder and Ramgopal who accepted that creative director of the company, creating a self-funded project Anurag Ramgopal. like this one is not easy. “But - Anurag Ramgopal When LMB (Let’s Make we don’t want to be known as Better) Productions started a generic production company about three years ago, they wanted to create and our passion has to show.” films that would also be commercially viable.

“People view online content as being plentiful The making of The Rhythm but low in quality. We aim to create small but of Glass and Fire high value content,” said Ramgopal.

On a walk in Camp area one day, Video, according to him, is an underRamgopal chanced upon K & K Scientific utilised medium. “There is an immense Agency. The idea to create a video capturing opportunity to create a strong engagement their work was also inspired by the glass tool to tell stories from Pune,” he said. sculpting duo, who valued their art more In pushing the boundaries of corporate than the money they make. “The key element communication, the company created an for us was the fact that they are artisans, animated road safety video for a leading creator of things,” he said.

IT company in which Pune’s BRTS is The company has many more such Pune

Personal Zen uses a technique called attention-bias modification to help reduce anxiety in its users through a simple mini-game.

Players attempt to trace the trail of a happy-faced sprite, while simultaneously avoiding the angry-faced one, teaching players to avoid threatening stimulus and focus on happier ones. While the premise sounds wonky, studies indicate that it actually works. Give it a try yourself and see.

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Prezi, a cloud-based app for presenting ideas on a virtual canvas Always on the move? Then you need Prezi. This app lets you access all your presentations whenever you want.

The app allows you to present live to people regardless of where they are.

While you’re on your way to your big meeting, why not use that time to run through your presentation? When you arrive, connect with Chromecast and present your presentation on the big screen. The app also allows you to easily share your prezis via email or any chat app and view any prezi shared with you.

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YouTube Kids To make sure YouTube’s suggestively explicit content doesn’t reach Google’s young fans, this video library has a more age-appropriate experience; its engineers have come up with a new app called YouTube Kids.

The free app that launched in February is an answer to parents’ requests to make YouTube a better place for kids..

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TransferWise Money Transfer TransferWise Money Transfer has made money transferring across countries easier and faster at the lowest possible cost. This app rids you of hidden fees charged by banks and use unfair exchange rates. The app uses real currency exchange rates to help expats, foreign students and businesses transfer money online securely, conveniently. The app allows you to also pay a bill in another country or pay off your mortgage or loan abroad.

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“We aim to create small but high value content”

Shifts – A Worker Calendar

centric stories waiting to be captured on camera. The video of the glass sculpting couple titled - The Rhythm of Glass and Fire can be viewed on https://vimeo. com/118787158 ritugoyalharish@gmail.com

There are many people working in shifts across the world.

Wouldn’t it be convenient if you could confirm the schedule of your work ahead of time before reaching work? This is a useful calendar app for such people. All you need to do is enter your shift timings and the app will notify you in advance when you have to be at work. Moreover, you can save this calendar as an image, and set it as a wallpaper of your iPhone. The app allows you to send your shifts to others via E-mail and displays your working hours, work days and holidays in the month.

Available for iOS

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

“The 5 C’s that Zone Startups India wants from their startups – collaboration, communication, coaching, consideration, choosiness.”

— Ajay Ramasubramaniam, Zone Startups India

Signposts Women in business face gender bias People are likely to discount the competence of female entrepreneurs and the investment-worthiness of their enterprises. This bias is mitigated when women pitch a particularly novel business idea, a new study finds. UC Santa Barbara sociologist Sarah Thebaud asked participants to rate business plans for their investment-worthiness. The plans were identical, but she manipulated the first names of the entrepreneurs. The participants rated women to be less competent as entrepreneurs than their male counterparts. Thebaud suggested that when female entrepreneurs propose innovative business ideas, they signal traits that characterise society’s stereotype of what an entrepreneur is supposed to be: aggressive, ambitious, independent, creative, a risk-taker.

Start-ups to witness hyper-growth

PUNE

“I follow only one philosophy: Work should be fun. My team should look forward to coming to work every day.”

— Ganesh Manickavasagam, ClayStation

His love of heights touches milestone Young and enthusiastic climber with 15 years of mountaineering experience, opens Stepin Adventure, a one-stop shop for climbers

BY ANJALI SHETTY @shetty_anjali For Shripad Sapkal, 33, Stepin Adventure is the reality of turning a passion into a profession. An avid rock climber and mountaineer from a young age, the Kothrud resident has been involved in activities related to mountaineering, trekking and adventure from schooldays.

“The name of the start-up, launched in January 2014, is inspired by the idea that any adventure requires one to ‘step up’ to something new or challenging,” the venture’s ownerfounder Sapkal said.

Crediting his father for introducing him to the world of mountaineering, Sapkal said, “Over the years, I found that the city did not h a v e any store or access to the right and

Year 2014 saw the largest ever Venture Capital infused into the Indian start-up ecosystem. Technology startups formed the backbone of the ecosystem. The policies for start-ups and SMEs (small & medium enterprises) are going through a revival process to make sure that the machinery is supportive of these new businesses. The annual Economic Survey 2014-15 released by the finance ministry states that Information Technology (IT) and IT-enabled Services (ITeS) make up the single largest contributor to India’s services exports.

appropriate gear. Stepin Adventures is born to fi ll this gap. Prajakta Ghode, who heads the operations and marketing part, too joined me in the enterprise.”

The initiation was not easy for the adventure lover. He gradually learnt the ropes to run the business. To arm himself with requisite skills, Sapkal completed his courses in methods of instruction, liaison officer, Alpine, and search and rescue from the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) Uttarkashi.

He also participated in several mountaineering expeditions to the Himalayas.

Some of his memorable achievements include climbing the Himalayan peaks of Satopanth (7,075 m), Sudarshan (6,507 m), and five first ascents in eastern Karakoram region.

“When I started as a tour guide, people were sceptical about paying money to be shown around. It was difficult to convince them on treks and adventure activities. People did not feel the need to shell out money for an adventure trip. They found it a waste of time. Fortunately, with no competition around, the opinions have changed. Today, people are excited about adventure activities and search for newer options,” Sapkal said.

The Stepin Adventure Gear Store on Paud Road is the one point for the ways, the means and the method to your next big break as an adrenaline junkie, rock-hard rock climber, leisurely nomad, ace mountaineer,

Stepin Adventure Gear Store on Paud Road is the one point answer for an adrenaline junkie, rock-hard rock climber, leisurely nomad, ace mountaineer, badass biker or even corporate honcho

badass biker or even corporate honcho.

The 12-member Stepin team has organised many treks, mountaineering expeditions, construction of artificial climbing wall system, besides equipping themselves with understanding the outbound training programmes and team building activities for adventure enthusiasts and corporates across India.

What really makes Stepin stand out is the ‘Artificial Rock Climbing Wall System’. “Unlike running or cycling, rock climbing is a sport that can’t be easily simulated. In the old days, you’d get in your car and drive to

a mountain to ‘practice’,” he said.

Sapkal said, “How do you squeeze a mountain into a gym that’s already been constructed? Easy, we will do it for you. We not only create the highest quality rock climbing walls and structures but help you really bring the spirit and passion of outdoors into your facility, whatever it is. Our designs and engineering methods have stood the test of time, proving our reputation in the industry for revolutionary and reliable builds. European schools have it included in their curriculum as a compulsion and so we are trying to convince schools on the same.”

According to Sapkal, Pune has the best of places to trek within 50 km radius. “We should take more advantage of the nature’s bounty and explore more,” he concluded. anjali.shetty@goldensparrow.com GET IN TOUCH www.stepinadventure.com Stepin Adventure 3, Anand Complex, Alkapuri Society, Opp. Hotel Kinara, Vanaz Corner, Paud Road, Pune - 411029, Maharashtra, India.

So long cabs, hello self-driven cars

Zoomcar allows users to rent cars by the hour, day, week or month

Greg Morgan (L) and David Back plan to cover more metros and Tier 2 cities in future

TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly The sizeable tech population and those working in corporates have found another reason to enjoy their vacations.

Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Bengaluru, Zoomcar services started its self-drive car rental facility in Pune in November 2014.

Spread across Bengaluru, Pune and Delhi NCR, the fi rm’s vehicle catalogue offers a wide and extensive variety of cars for self-drive in India, ranging from hatchbacks to SUVs to luxury sedans. The company’s expanding fleet which is currently clocking over 700 cars includes Ford Figo and Ecosport, Honda City and Amaze, Mahindra Scorpio and XUV, Tata Safari and Nano, BMW 3 Series, and the Mercedes A class and GLA. Founded by Greg Morgan and David Back, Zoomcar was part of Microsoft Ventures Accelerators fi rst

Accelerator Plus batch that graduated in May last year.

Zoomcar is a 100 per cent selfdrive car rental company. It allows users to rent cars by the hour, day, week, or month. Zoomcar.com cofounder Greg Moran said, “India has the highest urban population density in the world and also has several of the world’s largest cities based on absolute population. Consumer tastes are rapidly evolving and the desire for convenience is becoming the primary factor in decision making. Th is, in turn, is conducive for the opportunity and development of Zoomcar’s selfdrive model.”

According to Moran, owning a car today is an expensive proposition and often inconvenient with regular parking hassles, high fuel and maintenance costs, and daunting traffic woes. Against this backdrop, most individuals only have intermittent needs for a vehicle.

“These factors contributed to the birth of Zoomcar. The company has expanded rapidly in a short period to unfurl services in new cities, including Pune and Delhi NCR, while rapidly adding new cars and new vehicle pickup points for convenience,” he said.

The company has raised a total fund value of $11 million to date from sources ranging from Sequoia Capital, Mohandas Pai, Larry Summers and other global investors.

The Zoomcar team boasts of diverse and vibrant set of individuals with experiences ranging from technology, analytics, automotive, finance, and marketing.

Zoomcar believes that cost is not the only reason for the shift towards self-drive. A taste for privacy and independence is a growing phenomenon, even among people who can easily afford a chauffeur. The company recently notched yet another fi rst with the launch of their mobile booking app to further improve the customers’ experience.

“We are continuously focussed on growing its presence in existing markets, along with expanding into other major metros and Tier 2 cities.

We are excited to launch services in Chennai, Hyderabad, and Mumbai soon,” he said.

The co-founder said that travel companies work overtime to accommodate clients who vacation during long weekends.

“We’re not just talking about fl ights.

Road trips are the flavour, with cab and car rental services reporting an upward swing of bookings and enquiries. We are getting pre-booking enquiries and seen a surge by 50 per cent as March is a perfect timing for family outings and picnics. We are receiving bookings for short road-travel breaks with the Bengaluru-Mysore-Ooty, MumbaiPune-Lonavla-Khandala and DelhiAgra or Delhi-Chandigarh-Shimla circuits being the most preferred choice among vacationers,” Moran said. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

THE FASTEST READS ON THE WEB

We have more hooning and sliding action on our YouTube channel. Subscribe and comment.

Four cylinders, four doors, all-wheel drive. The CLA 45 AMG and Evo X misbehaving around the hills.

Wet conditions and the Jaguar V8 R Coupe addup to an impossibly fun afternoon spent mostly sideways.

We went to the top of the world in an insane rally Thar and a Suzuki V-Strom 1000. We came back too.

Look our for the alive logo in the magazine to watch the action unfold

Going back to when Toyota’s were cool, we drive a custom Supra with a big turbo and come away scared, and maybe a bit wistful.

w w w. a l iv e a r. c o m

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY

PUNE

MARCH 07, 2015

PUNE

PICS BY ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

Mote Wada One of the biggest and oldest in the city Mote Wada still has a bit of life left in it. Once a beautifully crafted building, majority of the structure has caved in and only ruins are now visible.

The wada had two separate buildings.

It had a huge hall, a press (which used to be run by Nathuram Godse, who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi) and massive gates to keep the intruders at bay.

Kasba Peth

owners of the wada do not trouble us to vacate the rooms but the thing is that we cannot repair it either,” he said.

Residents of Mote Wada recall how life used to be grand in good old days. “We have attended many wedding ceremonies here. Our friends and near ones got married in the hall, which had wood carvings artefacts, a huge chandelier and wooden roof.

It was one of the beautiful places for

The marriage hall here had wood carvings artefacts, a huge chandelier and wooden roof

Catch22

Puneri Wadas are falling down...

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR & GITESH SHELKE @rajandekaraniruddha & @gitesh_shelke

To be neighbours with the magnanimous and throne of power Shaniwar Wada was matter of pride for several families residing in Kasba Peth and Budhwar Peth. That was a couple of decades or so ago. These days the same residents curse their luck for being born in families who moved into wadas near the fortress.

Residents of around 35 wadas around the fort are living only on hope – that someday our new age rulers will come up with a solution for the mess they are in right now. With their homes falling apart by the day, families pray that they do not become mere names on a list of deceased when a tragedy strikes. For now there is no way out – no construction within 30 metres of Shaniwar Wada is allowed and up to the 100 metres mark structures can be redeveloped but cannot go beyond 15 metres. This hampers the redevelopment potential of the fast crumbling wadas that once used to be symbols of Puneri culture.

Shaniwar Wada Fort was declared a heritage site in 1997 and restrictions were put on the construction activities in the nearby areas of the wada.

In 2002-03, after Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) went to the court against a construction activity on Ahmednagar road, the Bombay High Court made it very clear that rules framed by ASI to preserve the heritage sites must be followed.

Following this, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and ASI did allow restricted construction in the vicinity of the Fort. According to the rules framed by the ASI, no construction activity is allowed within 30 metres, and only 15 meters high structures can be built within 100 metres from Shaniwar Wada.

Such massive restrictions have ensured that none of the wadas in Kasba Peth and Budhwar Peth have been redeveloped even though they pose a severe risk to the occupants, most of whom are tenants.

Residents of such wadas also feel pathetic about the fact that several of their neighbours were sensible enough to have demolished the old structures and carried out redevelopment before the ASI rules came into force.

Taru Wada Prakash Mundada is the only occupant of Taru Wada these days.

All the other occupants have left but Mundada and his family have nowhere else to go. His gaze is constantly fixed to the roof as the crumbling structure sheds a part every now and then. “It is a 150-yearold wada and I am the only tenant living here,” he said.

Located on the Shivaji Road, Taru Wada used to be one of the most sought after addresses in good old days. Like most others, this structure too had teak wood used generously at the time of construction. Over the years the wood has started decaying.

There is very little left of the flooring.

Only remnants of the upper floor is crumbling walls.

Gunjal Wada Walls are crumbling, tin sheets have replaced Mangalore tiles on the roof, reinforcement pillars can be seen everywhere around the 120-year-old Gunjal Wada. But this hasn’t dampened the spirit of 55 families living in the wada. No one knows how long will they be able to go on like this though.

Gunjal Wada is divided into four buildings with narrow alleys separating the wings. Tin sheets placed on the roof to replace the Mangalore tiles have also given way. Teakwood pillars and stairs still hold the Wada. Walls though are a major hassle here. They have started leaning and crumbling.

Sandip Pasalkar lives with his parents, wife and a child. He is the fourth generation of the family to live there. A small time egg bhurji vendor Pasalkar explained, “We tried to carry out repair works by reinforcing the pillars, but we all know that this will only solve the problem temporarily.

We also plastered the walls from inside our rooms. But all the walls have turned into mud and we know that sooner or later they will fall on us. It is about time somebody does something concrete.”

The residents are well aware that their wada cannot be redeveloped given the restrictions, as there is hardly any potential for a developer to make even meagre profits.

Ramesh Saikhedkar, a developer residing in the wada added that the best he can do to safeguard his property from crumbling is put supports. “Authorities are waiting for something big to happen. Policy needs to change urgently unless they want some of us to die under debris when the wada comes apart,” he said.

Policy needs to change urgently unless they want some of us to die under debris when the wada comes apart

The Peshwa era wood has aged, the bricks have turned into mud, and the roof has withered away. “Minor repairs are allowed but we cannot reinforce the wada,” Ganesh Ghorpade, a resident of wada said.

The Ghorpades have been tenants in the wada for almost a century now.

“Many tenants have left their rooms after walls started crumbling. It all started after 1980. This was a very beautiful place to stay, but now a major portion has collapsed,” Ghorpade added. Of the 50 tenants, only 20 are left. The ones left cannot afford to buy a house and move on like the rest. “The

It is a 150-year-old wada and I am the only tenant living here “Everything is about to collapse.

I do not have any option but to continue to stay here,” said the 58-year-old. Mundada and five other tenants, who continue to hold on to their tenanted properties on paper,

Very little is left of Mote Wada that once used to house Nathuram Godse’s press

Nagarkar Wada

Naru and Indumati Bandal in their 10X10 room at Mote Wada

Anant Pasalkar is saddened by the state of Gunjal Wada, where he was born and spent his youth

Kasba Peth

Budhwar Peth

A narrow alley separates the four wings of the 120-year-old wada

Deo Ajji residing on the second floor of Mote Wada is hopeful that someday the crumbling structure would regain its lost glory

Nagarkar Wada is a classic example of how things can improve provided residents have it in them. Though the solutions are not permanent but for the time being, there is no threat of the structure giving away.

Santosh Nagarkar, a resident, explained that that the occupants got together and reinforced the 125-year-old wada. “About three years ago, I ran from pillar to post to get permissions to reinforce the wada. It’s not an easy task and only those who have money and contacts can do it,” he said.

Nagarkar said that the ASI’s office is located in Mumbai, and some sanctions are needed to be taken from the heritage committee of the PMC. The wada has a mix of owners and tenants, who coexist in harmony. “Actually, we have maintained a very healthy tenant–owner relationship.

Everyone contributes for the maintenance of the wada. A total of nine families are staying in the wada for last sixty years and we celebrate all the festivals together,” he added. The facelift is not only benefitting the residents but also shopkeepers who have their businesses facing Shivaji Road. The wada attracts tourists and admirers of heritage structures, which only means business for the shopkeepers.

TDR TO FACILITATE REDEVELOPMENT? Suhas Kulkarni, former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) corporator from the area, believes there is still hope. Having represented the area and studied it closely, Kulkarni explained that under the current norms, there is little or no hope. “Very little can be done for the residents of these wadas. The only clearances they

get these days is reinforcement permissions can. My party has proposed two and a half Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) for these properties. This will allow builders to redevelop the old wadas within given norms and TDR can be utilised in their other schemes. It will lead to balanced development,” he said.

Shyam Dhavale, Executive Engineer, Bhavan and Heritage Cell, PMC

LAST MAN STANDING: Prakash Mundada refuses to give up on his house at Taru Wada. He believes he will go down with the 150 year old wada

Everyone contributes for the maintenance of the wada

Residents of Nagarkar Wada are a role model for those living in century-old structures

Expert Speaks Aneeta Benninger, An urban planner and architect

Authority Speaks

Kasba Peth have applied for reinforcement of the walls with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), but to no avail.

“Instead of granting permissions urgently, PMC has been issuing us notices stating that we are living in a dangerous building and must evacuate without any delay,” he said.

Taru Wada used to be a bustling place in the olden days – it had a small open area where the elderly and children used to discuss their days and studies. Located just across Shaniwar Wada, residents used to go to the fort every evening for a stroll or for post dinner walks. “The wada survived the 1962 Panshet floods during which river water had touched our roof. The wada kept its occupants alive,” he added.

wedding ceremonies in the city,” added Ghorpade. Not to mention that the address in itself was something that almost everyone envied – Mote Wada, opposite Shaniwar Wada.

“The rules, framing the restrictions on the construction activities, of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) curtails redevelopment of the properties located within the 100 metre radius of Shaniwar Wada, Aga Khan Palace and Pataleshwar caves.

The wadas located near Shaniwar Wada are in a critical state. Nothing much can be done for them in the wake of restrictions put up by the ASI and subsequent orders of Bombay High Court. However, minor repair work permissions can be granted to them without a hitch.

The construction activities may cause damage to the historic Shaniwar Wada and can also block its view.

PMC can support in repair works of these wadas if proper proposal is tabled.”

Aneeta Benninger, an urban planner and architect, believes that there is lack of will to preserve the heritage wadas within 100 metres of the fort.

There is a way out, according to her. “Old wadas can be preserved easily. The wadas which lies within the radius of 100 metres and are in dilapidated conditions can also be restored without a hitch. Actually, I feel that these structures can be maintained and preserved in a proper way,” she said.

Benninger explains that specialised craftsmen and agencies are easily available and can be pulled in for preservation of the wadas. As for finance, there is a way out as well. “Owners and tenants should be contributing for restoration projects. The monthly maintenance can be enhanced to preserve the wadas for timely repair works. Right now, tenants are shelling out `5 or `10 per month as rent but no maintenance charges. It should be collected in a right spirit to maintain the wadas.” Moreover, she suggests that if these wadas can be included in the heritage list, Central funds for heritage restoration can also be roped in.

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

PUNE

“Our revenue department has surveyed 806 villages which suffered agricultural losses due to this rain. Wheat, jowar, grapes, onion and pomegranate are the worst-affected crops while there are other small losses as well. It will take a weak to get a clearer picture of the extent of the damage” —Saurabh Rao, District Collector, Pune

Check for these nine signs, it may be a tax refund scam P 14

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy

Kagad Kach Patra Kashtakari Panchayat (KKPKP), Tathapi Trust and Terre des hommes (TdH) organised a football match to promote children’s right to play

Vikram Domte,17, son of a Phursungibased ragpicker, was ecstatic on Tuesday, when he was allowed to play his favourite sport all day long.

The event was co-organised by Kagad Kach Patra Kashtakari Panchayat (KKPKP), Tathapi Trust and Terre des hommes (TdH), at Azam Campus, Camp to promote children’s right to play under the United Nation Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

“It works as a stress reliever. We normally do not get time to play given the conditions and circumstances we live in. So, this was a great day for me. I enjoyed the game a lot,” Domte added. He along with 120 children from the city, teachers and social workers from different organisations played a game of football together.

Youth from Delhi, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Orissa, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, who were visiting the city for a workshop on ‘Youth Training on Gender and

Sustainable Development’, were also part of the initiative. The event was managed by volunteers from a sports management company ‘Sportytude’.

Maitreyi, a KKPKP activist said, “Right to play is an integral part of the right to development of all children.

“Right to play is an integral part of the right to development of all children. ports activities make them strong and promote creativity and team spirit among them” —Maitreyi Sports activities make them strong and promote creativity and team spirit among them. Playing together is a great equaliser - a football can bring together children from different states, backgrounds, and interests.

Children have the right to relax and play, and to join in a wide range of

cultural, artistic and other recreational activities. We are looking at children’s rights and many such issues related to them.”

“I have always been interested in sports, but rarely got a chance to play, either in school or at home.

However, initiatives like this would create opportunities for slum children to participate in sports,” said Lalita Pawar, daughter of a waste picker from Chandan Nagar.

Today, these kids do not have access to playgrounds neither they get play time. Even if they get a play period in school they do not have sporting equipment to make use of.

“Opportunities exist but these kids do not get a chance. Th is event was a launch of the idea to have a sporting programme in place. We are not looking at making everyone an athlete. But sports is important for the holistic development of a kid,” added Maitreyi.

The organisations will also welcome volunteers or organisers who would like to conduct similar events in the city. feedback.tgs@goldensparrow.com

Fusion of art on a wider canvas

The Good Artist of Pune has been providing a platform for multi-disciplined artists across the city

(From top) Children enjoying a game of football at Azam Campus, Camp. Participants pose for a group snap after the match

Cops are our best friends

Vimantal police station comes up with Mission Safe Viman Nagar to redress citizens’ grievances; to work in tandem with ward office, MSEB, traffic police and other govt departments

BY RITU GOYAL HARISH @ritugh Most of the time when people approach local police station for petty issues such as locality’s hawker problem, encroachment, water woes and electricity grievances, they are directed to concerned authorities only to make their life miserable. But, Vimantal police station is an exception. Cops here have set an example by taking the matter into their hands.

In a fi rst of its kind of initiative by any police station in Pune, the Vimantal Police Station launched Mission Safe Viman Nagar to address all citizens’ grievances on a single platform, where they also invite representatives of ward office, MSEB and traffic police.

(From left) Rajyashri Goody, Kumar Prashant, Shraddha Borawake and Rucha Kulkarni Chaudhari.

(Below) Shweta Bhattad of Nagpur Farmer’s Market and Movement, and Dominics sculpture in progress

BY ANJALI SHETTY @shetty.anjali Launched online in 2012, the Good Artists of Pune (GAP) is a non-profit grassroots organisation set up specifically to create an open networking platform for local artists to facilitate a quality interactive experience in arts.

Spearheaded by artist and photographer Shraddha Borawake, the GAP believes in the good artistic practice of exchange, collaboration, and sharing of process. Elaborating more on GAP, Borawake said, “We fi rmly believe that art does not reside solely in artist studios and galleries, for its quality as well as impact remains limited to a certain strata of the population.

Artistic creativity flourishes and inspires entire community only when it steps out into the streets, into public and private spaces, which are typically regarded as non-artistic spaces. The idea was to build a strong community for artists from multi-disciplines not only for sale but for a healthy ecology of art.”

The group recently organised Pune’s fi rst KHOJ International Artists’ Association workshop, titled Refracting Rooms that displayed the result of two weeks of 20 artists’ work in an Open Studio Day at Talera Institute of Fine Arts

(TIFA Working Studios) on March 1. KHOJ is a non-profit, contemporary arts organisation that encourages experimental, interdisciplinary and critical contemporary art across India. Refracting Rooms is the only contemporary art workshop that the city of Pune has ever seen. Its objective is to catalyse the local art scene and to use the tapestry of its rich history and vibrant past as a backdrop to build upon new and innovative work and make it available to the public.

Shraddha added, “Th is workshop brought together 10 international and 10 national multidisciplinary artists to share a workspace and living space, ideas, art practices, backgrounds and more. While some of the participants chose to continue with ongoing work, others produced artworks as a reaction to the new space and the influences around them. Housed in TIFA Working Studios, a 100-year-old hotel from the colonial era (now newly restored) this was the fi rst edition of KHOJ’s travelling workshops in Pune.”

Th is is probably the fi rst time these artists collaborated to form works that are not only sellable but also pushed their creativity and minds. GAP wants to work as a platform for artists willing to work for the betterment of art. anjali.shetty@goldensparrow.com

A PLETHOR A OF PROBLEMS A locality that has mushroomed into one of Pune’s most populated, Viman Nagar has 190 registered housing societies, several colleges of the Symbiosis International University, many IT companies and countless commercial establishments.

Residents face several problems such as traffic congestion and parking issues, the lack of walking space on footpaths due

RAHUL RAUT

TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly

DCP (Zone IV) Manoj Patil addressing residents of Vimannagar at the launch of Mission Safe Vimannagar

to encroachment by over 1,500 hawkers, indiscriminate digging, the lack of street lights, garbage dumping, flouting of rules by auto rickshaw drivers, rising cases of molestation and harassment of students and many more.

Owing to its proximity to the airport, the locality also faces the problem of illegal parking by taxis along the Airport Road (VIP road).

The issue is especially grave around the new building of Symbiosis, which houses the Symbiosis Law College and the Symbiosis School of Liberal Arts, where dozens of cabs can be seen parked at all times of the day and night. Col (retd) VK Kempraj, campus administrator of the new campus, pointed out that the presence of such

random vehicles was becoming a security issue for the students of their colleges.

POLICEPUBLIC INTER ACTION At the fi rst meeting conducted in the locality recently, representatives from the Nagar Road ward office, MSEB, traffic police and the Vimantal police station were present. The officials offered solutions to the citizens’ problems and chief amongst them being the relocation of hawkers to a designated area within Viman Nagar. API Sudarshan of the Yerwada traffic division also informed the gathered citizens about the action taken against 600 cabs in the past few weeks on Airport

Road. It is proposed that such meetings will be held once in three months.

A FRUITFUL EFFORT The ball was set rolling about three months ago when senior inspector (SI) of Vimantal police station, Sanjay Shamsundar Kurundkar approached Col (retd) SG Dalvi and Shankarrao Shinde, residents of the locality with their proposal to address citizens’ concerns. Letters were shot out to all 190 societies and about 65 of them wrote back with 450 complaints.

“The problems related to traffic, police and the ward office were maximum,” said Col Dalvi.

Inaugurating the initiative, DCP (Zone IV) Manoj Patil said, “If you ask any officer here about the problems of the area, most of them will admit that they exist. But the resolution to the problems does not lie solely with them.

Many other authorities are involved and we will try our best to give solutions by taking other government departments together.” He noted a word of caution adding, “While citizens are responsible for getting this initiative started, we know that it is difficult to satisfy the expectations of all citizens. But we will try our best.” ritugoyalharish@gmail.com

SCIENTIST FELICITATED

On the occasion of Science Day, Shailesh Pawar, an upcoming scientist was felicitated by prominent scientist Raghunath Mashelkar. (L to R) Science and Technology Park Director Rajendra Jagdale, Rajya Sabha MP Vandana Chavan, City Mayor Dattatray Dhankawade, Arun Nigvekar, former Chairman of UGC and scientist Vijay Bhatkar were present.

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

“Due to clinical studies demonstrating that high dietary salt is detrimental to hypertension and cardiovascular diseases, we feel that at present our data does not justify recommendations on high dietary salt” —Jonathan Jantsch, microbiologist, Universitat Regensburg, Germany

“If you are counting calories, seemingly innocuous reminders of tempting, high-calorie food, it can lead to worse performance on difficult tests of attention and reasoning ability” —Aimee Chabot, lead researcher, University of California, San Diego

Prick your way to sleep

Sleepless nights have left you weary and tired? Try poking yourself to a peaceful sleep with accupuncture ANJALI SHETTY @shetty_anjali Not in love yet find it difficult to sleep peacefully at night? Is stress getting the better of you and leaving you tired and weary every morning? Acupuncture could be a solution to your problem.

In today’s fast paced stressed-out life, insomnia and sleep disorders are on the increase.

Insomnia is common among teenagers and adult. Many people are facing sleepless nights, and yet they fear the side effects and addictive nature of sleep medications. Dr Anil Patil, psychologist and Ayurveda Ratna, founder-chairman and managing director Vedicure Group, shares his take on how acupuncture can improve sleep.

HOW DOES IT WORK? Acupuncture is often used in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of insomnia and other sleep disorders. Th is procedure involves inserting very fi ne needles (sometimes in combination with a small electrical stimulus or with heat produced by burning specific herbs) into the skin at specific points in order to influence the functioning of the body.

“Although acupuncture helps to restore sleep, many are reluctant to try it as they fear having needles inserted into their body. However, most people who have used acupuncture assert that it causes little or no discomfort, and many swear by the benefits they’ve received. Side effects from acupuncture are also rare and appear

WHY ACUPUNCTURE? If you decide to try acupuncture for your sleep problems, seek out a licensed practitioner.

“Lack of sleep causes the body to over produce “stress hormones” such as

Lack of sleep causes the body to over produce “stress hormones” such as adrenaline and cortisol, which causes people to be nervous and more aggressive

Air pollution can affect kids’ memory The developing brain may be vulnerable to traffic-related air pollution well into middle childhood LONDON: Admitting your kids to schools located near busy roads or in areas with high levels of air pollution could hamper their intellectual development, new research suggests.

Attendance at schools exposed to high levels of traffic-related air pollution is linked to slower cognitive development among seven to 10-yearold children, the findings showed.

“Children attending schools with higher traffic-related air pollution had a smaller improvement in cognitive development,” said Jordi Sunyer from the Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology (CREAL), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.

The findings suggest that the developing brain may be vulnerable to traffic-related air pollution well into middle childhood, a conclusion that has implications for the design of air pollution regulations and for the location of new schools.

The researchers measured three cognitive outcomes (working memory,

Coffee breaks good for heart

Three to five cups of coffee daily lowers the risk of clogged arteries and heart attacks SEOUL: People consuming three to five cups of coffee a day have the lowest risk of clogged arteries and heart attacks, says new research.

An international team of researchers led by the Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, Seoul, South Korea, set out to examine the association between coffee consumption and the presence of coronary artery calcium (CAC) which is an early indicator of coronary atherosclerosis (when arteries become clogged).

It can cause the arteries to harden and narrow, leading to blood clots which can trigger a heart attack or a stroke.

They studied a group of 25,138 men and women - average age 41 - who had no signs of heart disease.

The researchers estimated the CAC score ratios associated with different levels of coffee consumption compared with no coffee consumption.

They categorised coffee consumption as none, less than one cup a day, one to three cups a day, three to five per day and at least five or more

to result mostly from treatment by unqualified practitioners,” said Dr Patil.

superior working memory, and attentiveness) every three months over a 12-month period in 2,715 primary school children attending 39 schools in Barcelona.

The increase in cognitive development over time among children attending highly polluted schools was less than among children attending school exposed to low levels of pollution, even after adjusting for additional factors that affect cognitive development, the findings showed.

Thus, for example, there was an 11.5 percent increase in working memory in a year at the lowlypolluted schools but only a 7.4 percent 12-month increase in working memory at the highly-polluted schools.

These results were confi rmed using direct measurements of traffic related pollutants at schools.

“Air pollution is a suspected developmental neurotoxicant,” the researchers noted.

The study appeared in the journal PLOS Medicine.

IANS

adrenaline and cortisol, which causes people to be nervous and more aggressive. It leads to poor job performance, impaired judgement, and serious accidents when driving or operating machinery. Unlike western medicine there is not one ‘prescription’ for using acupuncture to treat insomnia. - Each person’s body is considered unique. Therefore, there are as many forms of acupuncture for the treatment of sleeplessness.

They check the patients tongue, and observe their general appearance,” he added.

TYPES OF TREATMENT If you are suffering from short term sleep disorder, then a short series of treatments will suffice to reverse the trend. If the issue is chronic, however, it will likely require a longer series of regular

Why medication fails to address mood disorders NEW YORK: The majority of people with mood and anxiety disorders who receive the most commonly prescribed anti-depressants called SSRIs are not helped by these medications.

A new research sheds light on why Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors or SSRIs fail to work in most patients. SSRIs are designed to increase serotonin, a neurotransmitter in the brain that is key to maintenance of mood. “We have shown that serotonin is too high near the serotonin brain cells, reducing firing of the serotonin nerve cells through a well-documented negative feedback mechanism in the raphe nucleus. “The result is that the hippocampus and other critical brain structures needed for mood maintenance do not get enough serotonin,” explained lead researcher Jeremy D Coplan.

“The serotonin neuron may not be able to adapt and restore its firing, inducing a presumed serotonin deficit in terminal fields, evidenced by shrinkage of the hippocampus,” added Coplan, a professor of psychiatry at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, in the US. The researchers advocate that additional studies should be performed as better understanding of the serotonin system will significantly improve future treatment options. Coplan noted that a recent large-scale study showed only a minority of patients do well on SSRIs, and of those, many lose response in a year or two. “There is an epidemic of inadequately treated depression and psychiatrists are not well trained to deal with this challenge,” he observed.

“What they often do is change from one anti-depressant to another when there is a lack of response. Eventually the patient becomes non-compliant and the patient, rather than the treatment, is blamed for the non-efficacy,” he rued.

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acupuncture treatments.

Regular acupuncture treatment will not only help you overcome this problem but will also ensure proper sleep without any stress. The specific treatment strategy and treatment plan is always customised to the unique presentation of the individual. Acupuncture can improve your mental health which in turn improves sleep.

HEALING FACTORS Regular and restful sleep is an integral factor in healing from all health disorders. The body rests and repairs itself. Dr Patil said, “Acupuncture to fight insomnia is a very simple and better way. Quality of life increases tremendously once proper sleep patterns are restored.

One can realise long term benefits with good night sleep.” anjali.shetty@goldensparrow.com

per day.

The calcium ratios were 0.77 for people who had less than one cup per day, 0.66 for those having one to three cups every day, 0.59 for those consuming three to five cups per day, and 0.81 for people having at least five cups or more every day compared with non-coffee drinkers.

The researchers found the prevalence of detectable CAC was 13.4 per cent among the whole group of people and the average consumption of coffee was 1.8 cups per day.

Possible explanations for the findings, said the researchers, were that chronic coffee consumption had a possible link to reduced risk of Type 2 diabetes, a strong risk factor for atherosclerosis.

“Coffee consumption might be inversely associated with CVD (cardiovascular disease) risk. Further research is warranted to confi rm our findings and establish the biological basis of coffee’s potential preventive effects on coronary artery disease,” the authors concluded.

IANS

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

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“We can ban the documentary in India but there is a conspiracy to defame India and the documentary can be telecast outside. We will also be examining what should be done. The Home Minister has said he will talk to the I&B Minister and find out what is the way” — M Venkaiah Naidu, Parliamentary Affairs Minister

The weather and warm people are a hit here P 15

Renewed optimism from outside investors is spurring business expansion

BY KEITH BRADSHER

SRIPERUMBUDUR, India China’s economy is slowing. Brazil is struggling as commodity prices plunge.

Russia, facing Western sanctions and weak oil revenue, is headed into a recession.

As other big developing markets stumble, India is emerging as one of the few hopes for global growth.

The stock market and rupee are surging. Multinational companies are looking to expand their Indian operations or start new ones. The growth in India’s economy, long a laggard, just matched China’s pace in recent months.

India is riding high on the early success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a raft of new business-friendly policies instituted in his first eight months. Small factories no longer need to shut down every year for government inspectors to spend a day checking boilers. Foreign investment rules have been relaxed for insurers, military contractors and real estate companies. A broad tax overhaul is underway.

Renewed optimism from outside investors is spurring business expansion in cities around the country like Tiruppur, a hub of India’s yarn and textile industry.

Most of the factories in Tiruppur are doubling or tripling their capacity, and these are huge factories,” said Pritam Sanghai, the director of Arjay Apparel Industries.

Whether India’s momentum is short-lived or sustainable hinges on whether Modi can push through deeper reforms, including addressing the persistent poverty and corruption

Atul Loke/The New York Times

Indian economy surges as other nations stumble

An industrial project under construction in Pune. India’s economy has been riding high on the early success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a raft of new business-friendly policies instituted in his first eight months that have multinational companies looking to expand operations there or start new ones. (Right) Farmers, who have yet to give their land to the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation, work in Pune

that plague the economy. Lacking the necessary political support to overhaul legislation quickly, he has largely relied on temporary measures to make changes.

India, in part, is benefiting from favourable economic winds, the same ones wreaking havoc in Russia, Venezuela and elsewhere. The country’s reliance on imported oil, for example, has been its bane for decades. By last summer, oil was a $100 billion drag on the economy, roughly 5 percent of the entire country’s economic output.

With crude prices now halved, fuel costs for trucks and cars have plunged, pulling down transport expenses and inflation. The cost of government fuel subsidies has nose-dived, helping curb the country’s chronic budget deficits.

“We’ve got essentially a $50 billion gift for the economy,” said Raghuram G

50 years on, Nirodh makers eye products beyond condoms

By Sanu George

Ustad, Saheli, HiCare, New Life, Xoom As it enters its 50th year of conception, and Velvet — has also started to testthe state-run HLL Lifecare, as market its latest product range through Hindustan Latex is now called, is its website and the response has been spreading itself into a wide range of encouraging, the top official said. ‘sexual wellness’ products “The knowledge — an industry estimated about using these new at `8,500 crore ($1.3 products, or for that billion) in India annually. matter even about From lubricants condoms, is low in and gels to lip-shaped India,” said Ayyappan. vibrating rings, besides “Our objective is value addition to its to encourage people to mainstay, the condoms, use condoms,” he said, the company has set its adding: “We are in no eyes beyond the ‘Nirodh’ hurry and hence we are - M AYYAPPAN brand — India’s first going slow.” condom that was a key The HLL Lifecare to the successful family chairman, himself a planning, or birth control, campaign. veteran of 12 years in the company, “Yes, we are making made a soft said that one of the successes of his entry into the new market. We decided company came from the way it has been to opt for the promotion of such marketing its products. Set up in 1966 products through a series of campaigns as Hindustan Latex, with a technical on Facebook and other social media collaboration with Okamoto Industries and this will help us,” HLL Lifecare of Japan, its first plant began operations chairman and managing director M on April 5, 1969 at Peroorkada in Ayyappan told IANS. Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala.

The company — which counts (Sanu George can be contacted at among its brands Moods, Crezendo, sanu.g@ians.in)

“We are confident we are on the right track.”

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Rajan, the governor of the Reserve Bank of India.

India is also profiting from the troubles of other emerging markets.

C h i n a ’ s investigations of multinationals, persistent tensions with neighboring countries and surging blue-collar wages have prompted many companies to start looking elsewhere for large labor forces.

Big companies like General Motors have recently moved their international or Asia headquarters from Shanghai to Singapore as they expand further into India and its main rival as

an alternative to China, Indonesia.

Mary T. Barra, the chief executive of GM, came to Pune in western India last September to oversee the start of Chevrolet exports from there to Chile.

She is also scouting for opportunities to expand in India’s auto market, which the company predicts will be one of the world’s three largest by 2020.

“All the circumstances have come together to make manufacturing and growth happen,” said Shailesh V Haribhakti, the chairman of MentorCap Management, a boutique investment bank in Mumbai.

India is also profiting from the troubles of other emerging markets

As India’s fortunes begin to shift, Modi is trying to tackle thornier economic issues. He wants to expand the private sector’s role in coal mining, a government-dominated industry. He is looking to accelerate the construction of roads and other infrastructure. On the tax front, Modi hopes gradually to replace state taxes on goods that cross state borders with a national tax.

In a January visit to New Delhi, President Barack Obama highlighted chronic regulatory obstacles in India.

“There are still too many barriers hoops to jump through, bureaucratic restrictions - that make it hard to start a business, or to export, to import, to close a deal, deliver on a deal.” But Obama acknowledged the country’s progress, saying, “Prime Minister Modi has initiated reforms that will help overcome some of these barriers.”

The challenges are significant.

The World Bank recently ranked India as the 142nd-hardest place to do business out of 189 countries.

Legal disputes, often involving land, can bog down even the most sought-after projects. Would-be builders of large factories worry about India’s stringent labor laws, including essentially lifetime employment guarantees for unskilled or semiskilled workers with at least two years’ experience.

For Modi, the most immediate challenge is on the political front.

While his party dominates the lower house of parliament, the deeply divided upper house has delayed action on bills for his longer-term reforms. So Modi has relied on executive orders that automatically expire in late April. They can be renewed, though not indefinitely. © 2015 New York Times News Service

Glaciers in Brahmaputra basin may reduce alarmingly: Study

By Vishal Gulati

Glaciers in the upstream basin of the Brahmaputra, a 2,900-km-long river that originates from Tibet and flows into the Bay of Bengal, are likely to reduce alarmingly by the middle of the 21st century, according to an international body which also warned that the overall flow in the river was likely to increase.

“Hydrological modelling was carried out in the upstream areas of the Brahmaputra, which indicate the glaciers are likely to reduce by 20 to 55 percent by 2050,” Nand Kishor Agrawal, programme coordinator for the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), told IANS. He said there were chances of increase in total water flow in the Brahmaputra.

“By 2050, the total runoff is likely to increase from zero to 13 per cent due to fast melting of glaciers and increased precipitation,” said Agrawal, who travelled to Tibet to study impacts of climate change on the ecosystem and the communities.

About 60 per cent of the inflow in the Brahmaputra is from rains. The remaining is from the glaciers, base flow and snow melt. The feedback gathered by the ICIMOD from the pastoral communities settled in Tibetan plateau has indicated that the climate has changed a lot, resulting in uneven flow in the river.

“They say sometime the flow increases suddenly and sometime decreases drastically, which simply indicates the governments have to be prepared for the unexpected floods and draughts,” said Agrawal, who was in India for the workshop on climate change adaptation in the western Himalayas.

Studies conducted by the Tibetan administration in exile, which is based in this northern Indian hill town, say the Tibetan plateau is staring at ecological destruction.

“Human activities are mainly

About 60 per cent of the inflow in the Brahmaputra is from rains. The remaining is from the glaciers, base flow and snow melt

responsible for the destruction of Tibet’s ecological balance,” said in its report titled “A synthesis of recent science and Tibetan research on climate change”.

It said the temperature increase on the Tibetan plateau was twice the global average, resulting in quicker degradation of permafrost, drastic change on climate pattern and desertification of vast grassland.

To protect the Tibetan plateau from certain destruction, the report said there was a need for a water sharing treaty among the countries of the region and of making the Tibetan plateau an exploitation-free international observatory zone.

Climate researchers at the University of East Anglia and the Chinese Academy of Sciences in an

online paper in US academic journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences say the wettest individual year reconstructed in 3,500 years in northeastern Tibet is 2010.

They say precipitation during the past 50 years in the plateau has been historically high. They have reconstructed precipitation records by using sub-fossil, archaeological and living juniper tree samples from the plateau. Tibetan spiritual leader and Nobel laureate the Dalai Lama has been saying his homeland Tibet is currently vulnerable to climate change.

“Many of the rivers which flow through large areas of Asia, through Pakistan, India, China, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, rivers such as the Yellow river, Brahmaputra, Yangtse, Salween

Research states that the Tibetan plateau is staring at ecological destruction

and Mekong, all originate in Tibet.

“It’s at the places of origin of these rivers that large-scale deforestation and mining are taking place. The pollution of these rivers has a drastic effect on the downstream countries,” a post on his official website quoting the Dalai Lama said.

ICIMOD researcher Agrawal warned: “The current data indicates more flood risks in the future. If the Brahmaputra is not managed in Tibet, it will affect India and Bangladesh more.”

Currently, he said, the flooding in the river is not directly affecting the grasslands in Tibet, but may be this will never happen in the future.

“But its flooding can affect more in the downstream areas mainly in the floodplains of Assam,” he added.

The ICIMOD has been carrying out studies in Tibet and India’s Arunachal Pradesh and Assam districts under the Himalayan Climate Change Adaptation Programme in collaboration with scientists from China and India.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at

the d

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

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and “Taiwan independence forces are the biggest hindrance to the peaceful development of cross-strait ties, the biggest threat to cross-strait peace and stability and therefore should be resolutely opposed” —Xi Jinping, President, China

It’s an endless desire to learn P 16

New York: Facebook has blocked the account of a 12-year-old boy from Georgia who posted a YouTube video that questions US President Obama’s love for the country. CJ Pearson, the self-proclaimed conservative, defended former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani for his recent comments that Obama does not love US in the threeminute video that has gone viral.

“Today I just want to applaud Mayor Giuliani for his comments about President Barack Obama,” Pearson was seen saying in the video. After posting the video, Pearson’s account was locked due to ‘suspicious activity’.

Believe it! They digest deadly arsenic London: Arsenic is a potent killer but up in the high Andes mountains of Argentina, researchers have identified the first-ever evidence of a population uniquely adapted to tolerate the toxic chemical. The authors speculate that the local adaptation may have occurred as a result of the severe health effects of arsenic and the need for faster metabolising arsenic which may have been a matter of life or death in ancient times.

For the study, a Swedish research team led by Karolinska Institutet and Uppsala University professor Karin Broberg performed a genome-wide survey from a group of 124 Andean women screened for the ability to metabolise arsenic (measured by levels in the urine).

Genetic sleuths can determine a suspect’s eye and hair colour fairly accurately

Mark Allen Miller/The New York Times

Facebook blocks boy who questioned Obama’s love for US

Building a face, and a case, on DNA

By ANDREW POLLACK There were no known eyewitnesses to the murder of a young woman and her 3-year-old daughter four years ago. No security cameras caught a figure coming or going. Nonetheless, the police in Columbia, South Carolina, in January released a sketch of a possible suspect.

Rather than an artist’s rendering based on witness descriptions, the face was generated by a computer relying solely on DNA found at the scene of the crime.

It may be the first time a suspect’s face has been put before the public in this way, but it will not be the last.

Investigators are increasingly able to determine the physical characteristics of crime suspects from the DNA they leave behind, providing what could become a powerful new tool for law enforcement. Already genetic sleuths can determine a suspect’s eye and hair colour fairly accurately. It is also possible, or might soon be, to predict skin colour, freckling, baldness, hair curliness, tooth shape and age.

Computers may eventually be able to match faces generated from DNA to those in a database of mug shots. Even if it does not immediately find the culprit, the genetic witness, so to speak, can be useful, researchers say.

“That at least narrows down the suspects,” said Susan Walsh, an assistant professor of biology at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis in the United States who recently won a $1.1 million grant from the Department of Justice to

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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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Pune’s water situation improves

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City dams need additional 10 TMC water to tide over crisis

BY ASHOK BHAT @ashok_bhat

`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 Abe’s leadership.

First and a meeting convened at the civic headforemost, the trust involves everyone National Herald case: from the locality in Court defers hearing the festivities.

The mandal collects vargani ( v o l u n t a r y A court on Thursday fixed December contribution) from 9 as the next date of hearing in a case the neighbourhood against Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and but 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 has put on hold a trial court’s summons of blankets, jackets and other such clothing to the poor, especially

Signposts

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

Signposts 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:: An Indian-American CEO of two publicly-traded companies has been convicted for paying kickbacks in return for purchases of his companies’ stocks, a media report said. Shailesh Shah, 48, of California pleaded guilty before a US district judge to two counts of mail fraud and two counts of wire fraud Monday, The Boston Globe reported.

Shah will be sentenced in October and could face up to 20 years in prison for each count and a $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.

RAHUL RAUT

Indian-American convicted in stock scheme

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

What is going wrong with road safety in India?

Telangana school bus accident resulting in the death of 19 students is part of a larger tragedy that acquisition of the paper’s publisher. demands immediate attention

BY PRIYANKA 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.

More than 60 students were also injured in 11 accidents spread over seven states since January 2013 till July this year. In all instances, the victims were travelling in school buses which were either hit by other vehicles or trains or rolled down mountain slopes.

According to NGO Save Life Foundation, which works for road safety, the accidents took place in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Telangana.

In one of the worst disasters, 19 stu-

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

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 enyears-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 the activists.

Headed by Raghuvir Vanal, this

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

on Thursday.

The “missile man”, as Kalam is also known due to his background in aerospace engineering and his role in India’s

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

urban amenities to rural areas.

“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

Speaking to this newspaper, BJP’s leader in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), Ganesh Bidkar said that one of the top priorities for

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 ‘Chayan’ promises to offer shelter, legal support and counselling to couples in case of outburst from families

BY YASH DAIV @yash009

RAHUL RAUT

&DESERTED

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.

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.

Pune’s hottest start-up, 2014 to get top prize today

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.

“We collect money and support poor patients in the hospitals.

Our members also support orphans in different orphanages in the city,” Khan said.

This members of this group include

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.

shelke.gitesh@goldensparrow.com

With support from Delhi, city BJP 12 Indian firms among keen to push Pune Metro project Forbes Asia’s Fabulous 50 In view of the forthcoming assembly elections in Maharashtra, central road transport minister Nitin Gadkari has begun giving personal attention to the proposed Pune Metro project. In 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

SPORTS

DEAD

WASHINGTON: A dozen Indian firms figure in this year’s Forbes Asia’s “Mr Gadkari informed the Pune Fabulous 50 list of the region’s best big BJP leaders that he is taking charge of publicly traded companies with HDFC the Pune Metro project at the centre,” Bank making the list more times than Bidkar said. In this regard, the Union any other company. minister called a meeting in Delhi of China boasts the most companies about five experts from various fields on the list, as it has for the last three related to the project. years. But the number fell to 16, down “We are planning to meet the 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

The Software Exporters Association of Pune’s (SEAP) annual mega event, PuneConnect 2014, that seeks to promote a culture of innovation, just edging out India’s Tata Motors. creativity and enterprise in the city is India trails China with 12 companies setsame to unfold on the Fab 50 list, the numbertoday as at Hotel Westin, PUNE, AUGUST 2, 2014Koregaon www.goldensparrow.com Park, at 9.30 am. last year.

At this event 2014’s hottest start-up HDFC Bank, the country’s fromsector Pune will be selected from four second-largest private bank, finalists for theyear, top prize. appears on the list for the eighth The entire the most times of any company on the galaxy of bodies Yousince have pridebegan inpromoting how in India is list Forbes compilingStart-ups this 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.

FRAMEBENCH

THE GREEN RADDIWALA

feedback platform. Framebench is a central workplace where one can store and share one’s creative assets. The company can help remote teams and

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

(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

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 (See related reports on p3)

After several brainstorming sessions

“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

Pune - 411030. Tel: 020-24324332/33

For Details SMS/Contact: Prachi, Tel: 9822619858 or Yash: 9762884007

Vow Factor The

From the

mouth

PUNE’S PEOPLE PURPOSE

WITH A

Carrying the torch in the battle against cancer P2

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

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)

Ever wondered where thoroughbreds go after retirement? Or why jockeys are weighed before and after a race? Barnalee Handique has the answers

Pune brands go pan India

BY ISHANI BOSE @ishani_bose

dents were killed and some 20 injuredSchool expels toddler when their school bus was rammedover mom’s FB post by a speeding train at an unmanned rail-road crossing in Telangana Thursschool bus collided with a truck at day. The dead included the school busA four-year-old toddler was expelled Malkapur in Maharashtra on January driver. from his school in the US after his 10 this year. According to the foundaAlthough the number of schoolmother vent her frustration against tion, all the accidents involving school children is a minuscule part of the total the school in a Facebook post. buses in 2013 led to deaths. number of Indians dying daily on the post read: it that evI Habat’s live cinema and “Why Six students lost istheir lives on roads, activists say most accidents are ery single daylove theremusic, is something new passionately the Solapur-Dhule highway while 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 as the 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

Horse,s

TGS LIFE

City subways are

Emerge as creative leaders: Kalam to IIM students indigenous missile development, is one of the visiting faculty members in IIM-

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

Generosity & communal harmony define these mandals

WIKI COMMONS

Literary figures such as TS Eliot have dined in The Gay Hussar

SPORTS

EDUCATION & CAREER

IANS

LONDON: Even loyal fans of The Gay Hussar, a restaurant favoured for decades by London’s political left, will acknowledge its shortcomings. Quite a few admit that those include the food.

Lawmakers from the opposition Labour Party are excited when taken to The Gay Hussar, said Kevin Maguire, ssociate editor of the left-leaning Daily Mirror and a regular diner, “but usually if they have never been there before.” Many have, however, and Maguire said that when he invited one female politician for lunch here recently, she replied, “In that case, I’ll have a sandwich first.”

But now, The Gay Hussar is up for sale, and suddenly its supporters are legion. Around 160 politicians and journalists have banded together as the Goulash Cooperative to try to buy the place. When it opened in 1953, the Hungarian restaurant was an exotic addition to London’s Soho district, and many still enjoy its hearty cuisine. But it is not a good choice for vegetarians or those on a low-carb diet.

Dumplings, pancakes and goulash feature prominently on the menu, vegetables rather less (except red cabbage). Then there is the house specialty, chilled wild cherry soup, a starter that tastes like a sweet and fruity milkshake. Most of the biggest figures of the Labour movement have eaten here, and it was a favourite of several former Labour leaders, including Michael Foot and Neil Kinnock.

Visiting luminaries have included Henry Kissinger. Literary figures such as TS Eliot have dined in the Gay Hussar. And, when a failed effort was made to tempt a young Mick Jagger into Labour politics, it was here that he was wooed. But the Gay Hussar fell from favour in the 1990s, when Tony Blair took the Labour Party rightward and his food-fashionista followers gravitated to shinier, smarter, somewhat healthier restaurants.

The Gay Hussar has also suffered from the demise of a tradition of British political journalism: the long, alcohol-fueled lunch. “People don’t have the time,” Maguire said, “and journalists have to be sober for longer at work.”

But the political lunch is not quite dead yet, and those fighting to save it include Tom Watson, honorary president of the Goulash Cooperative and a prominent Labour lawmaker, known for campaigning against phone-tapping

by Rupert Murdoch’s newspapers and for championing the cases of child sex abuse victims.

Less well known is his nickname, “Tommy Two Dinners,” coined after a bibulous lunch at The Gay Hussar that somehow merged into dinner. Sipping ruby-colored Hungarian wine, Watson recalled how, between the two meals, he had an hour’s sleep on an upper floor of the restaurant before being

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PUNE, AUGUST 30, 2014 | www.goldensparrow.com

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

Jordi Ruiz Cirera/The New York Times

By STEPHEN CASTLE

DNA phenotyping DNA phenotyping is different: an attempt to determine physical traits from genetic material left at the scene when no match is found in the conventional way. Though the science is still evolving, small companies like Parabon NanoLabs, which made the image in the South Carolina case, and Identitas have begun offering DNA phenotyping services to law enforcement agencies.

Illumina, the largest manufacturer of DNA sequencers, has just introduced a forensics product that can be used to predict some traits as well as to perform conventional DNA profiling.

The Toronto Police Service has submitted DNA from 29 cases dating from the early 1980s through 2014 to Identitas. In 10 instances, the quality of the sample was too poor for any analysis to be done. In a number of other cases, “it’s enabled us to actually change the direction we were focused on originally,”

THANK GOD IT’S S AT U R D AY

The Gay Hussar has also suffered from the demise of a tradition of British political journalism: the long, alcohol-fueled lunch

revived with “fresh mint and a glass of champagne.” Watson, who features in at least three pictures, named a handful of Labour lawmakers who eat here, though not the leader, Ed Miliband.

“He has been here, but he’s part of that generation that don’t particularly lunch,” Watson said. Over a meal of fish dumplings, followed by chicken pancakes, he conceded that the cuisine could be on the heavy side. “If we ever get the place, one of the things we are going to put on the menu is a lighter option,” Watson said. Rowson said the Cooperative’s plans included more use of the building’s upper floors for literary and political events, capitalising on its unique history.

The Gay Hussar’s founder, Victor Sassie, died in 1999 having already sold it. The current owners, Corus Hotels, put it on the market because it loses money and is not part of their core business. “We have kept this iconic little restaurant going for years,” said Andrew Clayton, managing director of Corus Hotels. “And it has been lossmaking for a couple of years, so I think we deserve a bit of credit for that.”

The asking price is 500,000 pounds ($772,000) for a lease that expires in 2022. Corus has rejected the Cooperative’s bid, currently the only one - of 225,000 pounds.

Clayton said Corus wanted “a little more” for the restaurant but had “no plans to shut it.”

According to Watson, the Goulash Cooperative’s offer was “already above the market rate.” John Wrobel, manager of the Gay Hussar since 1988, put it more colorfully: The 500,000 pounds asking price would make economic sense only “if the council also gave us a license as a brothel,” he said. Devotees remain loyal, even from afar, including Mark Seddon, former editor of Tribune, a leftwing publication. Now working at the United Nations in New York, Seddon said he had fabulous dining options in Manhattan but still hankered after goulash and stuffed cabbage. © 2015 New York Times News Service

said Detective Sgt. Stacy Gallant, a cold-case homicide investigator. But there have been no arrests or convictions as a result, he said. Now researchers are closing in on specific physical traits, like eye and hair colour. A system called HIrisPlex, which was developed at Erasmus University MC Medical Centre in the Netherlands, is about 94 percent accurate in determining if a person has blue or brown eyes, but less so with intermediate colors like green, said Walsh, who helped develop the technology.

HIrisPlex, which analyses 24 genetic variants, is about 75 per cent accurate for hair colour, which can change as a person ages, she said.

Scientists look for genetic variants associated with physical traits the same way they look for genes that might cause disease: by studying the genomes of people with or without the trait or the disease, and looking for correlations.

Many of these techniques were developed by studying Europeans and might not work as well elsewhere in the world, said Kenneth Kidd, a professor of genetics at Yale. He and other experts are skeptical that faces, which are very complex, can be determined from DNA. While inheritance clearly plays a big role - identical twins look alike, obviously, and people resemble their close relatives - some experts say not enough is known yet about the relationship between genes and facial features. © 2015 New York Times News Service

Some scientists question the accuracy of technology - its ability to recreate facial images

The growing capability to determine physical characteristics from genetics can help the police, but it also raises questions of rights and profiling

Iconic restaurant for sale

Lunch customers at The Gay Hussar, a Hungarian restaurant favoured by politicians -particularly those in the Labour Party -- and journalists for decades, in London

develop such tools. But forensic DNA phenotyping, as it is called, is also raising concerns. Some scientists question the accuracy of the technology, especially its ability to recreate facial images. Others say the use of these techniques could exacerbate racial profiling among law enforcement agencies and infringe on privacy. DNA, of course, has been used for more than two decades to hunt for suspects or to convict or exonerate people. But until now, that meant matching a suspect’s DNA to that found at the crime scene, or trying to find a match in a government database.

ILLUSTRATION BY GAURI BARVE KALE

Signposts

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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PUNE

MONEY MATT ER S

“In business, it is all about being optimistic in revenue and it must be higher on the value chain. It is an intensively skilled job.”

—Dilip Chhabria, DC Design

Signpost Sahara’s Grosvenor House up for sale In a fresh twist to crisis-hit Sahara Group’s efforts to raise funds, its iconic London hotel property Grosvenor House, estimated to be worth over `5,000 crore, has been put on sale by lenders. Grosvenor House, a landmark property on Park Lane in London, is one of the three marquee hotels owned by Sahara outside India, the other two being Plaza and Dream Downtown in New York. Sahara has been trying to raise funds to secure release of its chief Subrata Roy, as also that of two other senior officials, from Tihar Jail in New Delhi, where they have been lodged for one year. These three hotels have been at the centre of these fund-raising plans.

Key rates cut, loans could be cheaper Housing, auto and commercial loans could become cheaper with the Reserve Bank of India cutting key lending rates by 25 basis points in an unexpected move on Wednesday as it expected inflation to soften further, sending stock indices soaring during the bulk of the day. Getting some positive cues from the national budget tabled last week, and sensing an sustained economic recovery, the repurchase (repo) rate has been cut to 7.5 per cent from 7.75 per cent and the reverse repo rate has been adjusted to 6.5 per cent from 6.75 per cent. The cuts follow a far-reaching agreement between the government and the RBI.

Insurance FDI to bring in `50,000 cr The passage of the Insurance Bill in the Lok Sabha is most welcome as it would spur the sector’s growth and penetration of insurance, and bring in `50,000 crore capital, said a top official of Life Insurance Council. “We have been wanting this for a very long time for industry’s betterment. Life insurance is capital intensive and needs large doses of the same for the industry to grow,” V Manickam, secretary general, Life Insurance Council told IANS. The proposed law increases the foreign direct investment (FDI) cap to 49 per cent from the current 26 per cent, a major demand of the industry players. Manickam hoped that Rajya Sabha too passes the bill so that it becomes a law.

Investors can claim damage in fraud In an historical decision, the NCDRC held that the remedy before a consumer forum is primarily a civil remedy, whereas the prosecution before and conviction by a designated court constituted under MPID Act is a criminal remedy MONEYLIFE DIGITAL TEAM The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), in a significant decision, has held that investors and depositors have a right to seek compensation under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, in case of defaults from a financial establishment. In a related case, the apex consumer Commission has asked Nagpur-based Shivaji Estate Livestock And Farms Pvt Ltd to refund money invested along with a 9 per cent interest from fi ling the complaint.

The NCDRC also directed the company to pay 10 per cent of the amount invested as compensation and `1,000 as cost of litigation to the complainant.

The NCDRC judgement ratifies a financial consumer’s right to seek compensation for a fraudulent default on part of a financial establishment. A Bench of Justice VK Jain and Dr BC Gupta said, “It would be seen from a perusal of the provisions contained in Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (MPID) Act, 1999, that the designated court has no power to grant compensation to a person who is a victim of the fraudulent default on the part of a Financial Establishment.

“Therefore, it would be difficult to say that the said MPID Act provides an adequate redressal of the grievances of a person who suffers on account of the fraudulent default on the part of a Financial Establishment, where such defaults also constitutes deficiency in the services rendered by a service provider to its consumer. We are also in agreement with the learned counsel for the complainant that the remedy before a consumer forum is primarily a civil remedy, whereas the prosecution before and conviction by a designated court constituted under MPID Act is a criminal remedy available to the victim of a fraudulent default on the part of a Financial Establishment.”

In this case, the complainants, Pratibha Adelkar and 372 others were represented by advocate Shirish Deshpande of the Mumbai Grahak Panchayat.

MFs ready to launch 34 new schemes Of these 34, two draft offers have been filed so far this month, while 19 papers submitted in February and the other 13 were filed in January MONEYLIFE DIGITAL TEAM Mutual fund (MF) companies have lined up almost three dozen new fund offers (NFOs) and have fi led draft documents with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) following a rally in the stock market.

The documents for 34 NFOs have been submitted with the SEBI since the beginning of the year and the schemes will be opened for subscription soon after the necessary clearances.

Of these 34, two draft offers have been fi led so far this month, while 19 papers submitted in February and the other 13 were fi led in January.

Some of these NFOs have already been launched after getting regulatory clearances.

ICICI Prudential MF, Reliance MF, SBI MF, UTI MF and HDFC MF are among the fund houses that are offering NFOs to investors.

“The rupee has remained strong relative to peer countries.

While an excessively strong rupee is undesirable, it too creates disinflationary impulses.”

—Raghuram Rajan, RBI Governor

A large number of these schemes are aimed at investment in equity and equity-related securities.

Manufacturing, retirement, economic recovery, resurgence of the business cycle and e-commerce are some of the themes that are attracting mutual fund houses.

A number of fund houses are expected to come up with more schemes that will invest in equity and equityrelated securities to take benefit from the rising stock market.

According to market participants, MF houses are rushing towards SEBI to launch new schemes on account of good response received from investors in the recent fund launches.

Also, they said that the NFO market has picked up as the investors’ confidence about equity markets is back and participation from retail investors is also on the upswing.

The benchmark BSE Sensex has risen by 7 per cent this year so far. @moneylife.in

Many plans are aimed at investment in equity and equityrelated securities

Shivaji Estate Livestock invited investors to invest in its goat farming and allied activities by purchasing units of several schemes floated by it. In its brochure, Shivaji Estate Livestock said it has arranged about 500 goats in each goat shed with 25-50 such shed in each rearing centre, 100 per cent of the livestock would be insured and there would be 100 per cent guarantee of the invested amount.

The company also told investors that they would have hypothetical charge on 1,000 sq ft of land of Shivaji Estate Livestock and one time investment would offer consistent benefit for 15 years, experienced vets and professionals would look after livestock.

The company also assured minimum expected return on the investment and if targets are achieved, investors were also promised additional bonus. The schemes also provided for pre-mature withdrawals by giving 45 days’ notice.

Initially, Shivaji Estate Livestock made payments of some instalments due to the investors under the schemes but later on did not fulfi l the terms (for repayment to investors). When the investors applied for pre-mature withdrawals, the company failed to honour its commitment.

Alleging deficiency in the services offered by Shivaji Estate Livestock, the complainants fi led appeal before the NCDRC. No one except a director of Shivaji Estate Livestock fi led any reply. In the reply, the company director took a preliminary objection that in view of the provisions contained in the MPID Act, the NCDRC has no jurisdiction

to entertain the complaint, since the Act provides complete machinery for recovery of investors’ deposits. It also stated that a complaint and FIR was fi led against the company. A charge sheet was fi led against the Company and nine others, under Section 420 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 3 and 4 of the MPID Act and the case was pending before the Designated Court. Shivaji Estate Livestock, however, did not deny floating of schemes and accepting deposits from the complainants.

The NCDRC Bench, said, “As per Section 2(1)(d) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, ‘consumer’ means any person, who either buys goods or hires or avails services for a consideration, but does not include a person, who avails of such services for any commercial purpose. The term ‘service’ has been defined in Section 2(a) of the Act to mean service of any description, which is made available to potential users.

The complainants hired or availed the services of the opposite party for

The apex forum directs company to refund the 372 investors

RBI not sharing bank data with intel agencies MONEYLIFE DIGITAL TEAM In the Economic Intelligence Council meeting, the chief of Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB) reportedly said that RBI had initially agreed to share extracts of the inspection reports on banks but later on, had changed its stand RBI has refused to share its reports on banks’ inspection on alleged money laundering laws and other violations with CEIB, citing legal hurdles.

The RBI was required to share relevant extracts of inspection reports with law enforcement agencies and CEIB, an apex intelligence agency under the Finance Ministry, to check black money and other financial crimes where gross violations of know your customer (KYC) guidelines and Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) are noticed, official sources said.

It had earlier given an assurance about sharing information relating to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violations with CEIB, which they share with the Enforcement Directorate (ED), they said.

The matter of non-sharing of inspection reports by RBI with CEIB was discussed during a recent meeting of the Economic Intelligence Council (EIC) headed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.

RBI has cited “legal impediments” in sharing the reports with CEIB as it is not a statutory body; the sources said quoting the minutes of the meeting. @moneylife.in

investing their savings in the schemes floated by Shivaji Estate Livestock, and deposited money with it for investing on their behalf in goat farming and allied activities. Therefore, it can hardly be disputed that the complainants are consumers of Shivaji Estate Livestock within the meaning of Section 2(1)(d) of the Consumer Protection Act.” The Bench then decided on whether the jurisdiction of NCDRC is barred under sub-section of Section 6 of the MPID Act. Adv Deshpande contented that since the consumer forum is not a court; the provisions of Section 6(2) of the MPID Act are not applicable to such forum. He also submitted that the remedy provided before a consumer forum is a civil remedy in a case where the fraudulent default, as defined in MPID Act also constitutes deficiency in the services rendered by a service provider, whereas MPID Act provides for criminal prosecution and punishment of the persons indulging in such fraudulent defaults. “...the designated court constituted under the provisions of MPID Act has no power to grant compensation, which a consumer forum can grant in a case of deficiency in the services rendered to a consumer,” Adv Deshpande pointed out.

Accepting the contention,

the Bench said, “Section 3 of the Consumer Protection Act provides that the provisions of the said Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of the provisions of any other law for the time being in force. The MPID Act came to be enacted much later than enactment of the Consumer Protection Act. “Despite that the Legislation in its wisdom used only the expression ‘Court’ and not the expression ‘Court or any other forum’ in sub-Section (2) of Section 6 of the said Act. In these circumstances, it would be difficult to say that the legislative intent behind the enactment of sub-Section (2) of the Section 6 was also to exclude the jurisdiction of the consumer forum in a case where fraudulent default on the part of the Financial Establishment also constitutes deficiency in the service rendered to a consumer. Therefore, in our view, for the purpose of the subSection (2) of Section 6 of the MPID Act, consumer forum cannot be said to be a ‘court’.”

While disposing of the complaint, the apex consumer forum, then directed Shivaji Estate Livestock to refund to investors, money deposited in different schemes along with an interest of 9 per cent from the date of fi ling complaint. @moneylife.in

Check for these nine signs, it may be a tax refund scam Do not file with fraudsters this tax season, warns Indian Revenue Service TRUTHINADVERTISING.ORG

charitable organization before you donate.

You may hate to do your taxes, but some scammers eagerly await the season. And as we approach Tax Day this year, the IRS is warning of a surge in phone scams where fraudsters impersonating IRS agents aggressively threaten arrest, deportation, and other actions, if the person on the other end doesn’t immediately give up money or personal fi nancial information. But that’s not the only way fraudsters are attempting to make hay on the season. Here’s what you should know so you don’t get fleeced when fi ling your claims:

Every tax preparer has to 6 have a PTIN (Preparer Tax Identification Number). Ask to

see the number. (A list of IRS actions against preparers can be found here if you want to see if the preparer has had a problem before.)

Tax preparers who encourage you 7 to place false information on your tax return are breaking the law. of “free 8IRSPromises money” from the or Social Security

e IRS will never call to demand Promises of larger1 Thimmediate payment. Period.

3 than-normal tax returns should be a red flag that the tax The IRS does not contact preparer may not be above board.

2 taxpayers by email, text, or through social media to request Ethical tax preparers do not personal information. If you get 4 charge a percentage of the refund a communication from someone amount as a fee or require you to split purporting to be from the IRS, it may be someone trying to steal your identity by getting your personal information. Report such attempts to phishing@irs.gov.

the refund with them.

Some scammers pose as fake 5 charities to attract donations from taxpayers. Look into the status of a

refunds or rebates are part of scams known to lure low-income and elderly consumers to a fraudulent website or tax scam artist.

Fraudsters will try to 9 attract taxpayers by promising that you can fi le a tax return

with little or no documentation, which is untrue.

The IRS offers free assistance in preparing taxes. More information on how to pick a tax preparer and programs offered through the IRS can be found here. @moneylife.in

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 7, 2015

“The civic administration is looking to set up nearly 16 small garbage processing plants which will come in different parts of the city.”

Kunal Kumar, PMC, Commissioner

PUNE

“The suburban local train network between Pune and Lonavla should be strengthened. In the next five years, minimum 15 to 20 lakh passengers should commute.”

— Jugal Rathi, PMP Pravasi Manch, Convenor

A prime locality in Wanavdi has gone to the dogs owing to poor policing and resident apathy problems. For example, the nullah near Ganga Satellite Society throws up an unbearable stench. The rotting garbage dumped outside draws stray dogs and pigs, who keep foraging for food the whole day.

The gymnasium Stretch in the locality is a hub for youngsters and others who come there for their daily workout. In the evenings, vehicles are parked haphazardly outside the gym, which causes traffic snarls. The footpath from Ganga Satellite to Kedari Petrol pump has been occupied by a horde of unauthorised food stalls where passersby stop to grab a bite. The vendors have left no room on the footpaths for pedestrians. In the evenings, the cars and two-wheelers parked at random are the cause of regular traffic jams.

On the other side of the road, where Nancy Towers, Green Valley and Flower Valley societies are situated, there are close to 100 shops selling everything from medicines, groceries, fast food and liquor. Then

there are the anti-social elements, who in an inebriated state resort to eveteasing, fighting and create a nuisance of themselves.

The residents of the area take their dogs out for walks and their animals defecate wherever they please, so that the footpaths are covered in dog poop.

The large open piece of land opposite China Grill restaurant has also been occupied by vendors, squatters and anti-social elements. It is also being used as an open toilet and a camping place for nomads and their cattle. Besides all this, it is also a breeding ground for mosquitoes and insects.

What is required is a strong police presence and regular patrolling.

It is because of all these ills that this residential area is being devalued compared to other similar localities. A major reason for this undervaluation is the lack of civic administration and lack of concern among the people who live here. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

RAHUL RAUT

No room on the footpaths for pedestrians CITIZEN JOURNALIST

I have been living in one of the premium residential localities of Wanavdi since 2006. Once upon a time this area was known for it’s serene and peaceful atmosphere, natural surroundings and friendly people. But now this once calm and quiet area is home to upmarket housing societies such as Ganga Satellite, Clover Village, Raheja Garden and more.

And today, the stretch of road from Ganga Satellite to Clover Citadel is facing many challenges and

Pune gives me peace of mind to work on art

Garbage strewn across the road opposite Ganga Satellite in Wanavdi

Weather and warm people are a hit here

RAHUL RAUT

First and foremost, the feeling of security; I always needed someone to escort me after hours back in Delhi, which isn’t the case in Pune. I can step out with my friends or by myself, feeling safe at any given time of the day. My husband and I love socialising, and are very fond of being a part of events in the city, be it musical, standup comic nights or just an ordinary night out with friends.

Dance has been my passion for the longest time, and since my husband would be on tour most of the time, it

Shola M Carletti, Italian artist

Anusya Maiti, danseuse

I moved to Pune in 2006. And since then, the city has been my second home.

When I talk about Pune, I am referring to places like Kalyani Nagar, Koregaon Park and MG Road. It is a huge city but Koregaon Park (KP) is where I stay and find all the facilities that I like. The city is accessible and you can reach any place in a span of ten minutes by vehicle, unlike places like Delhi and Mumbai, where it takes over two hours to reach your destination.

Another good part of Pune is that you can just walk around. Having said that, the traffic is not great but we are still in a better place.

I got my fi rst glimpse of this city back in 2006, when I arrived here with my husband and our little baby boy. My fi rst sigh of relief was over the weather; coming from Delhi’s sweltering heat, Pune’s chill was a beautiful feeling.

I’m a CA by profession and my husband has been a defence employee for many years, which took us to different countries and cities over the years. But when we got an opportunity to shift back to India, my husband and I were very keen on coming back to Pune. There are a number of things about this city that have kept me here since then.

LETTERS TO THE

EDITOR

Pakistan has opened the 1992 World Cup triumph blueprint. It was also cohosted by Australia and New Zealand.

They look at the results against a particular team in 1992 and do the same in 2015.

In 1992 too they were not considered anywhere near favourites, and it’s the same in 2015 Lose to India, lose to West Indies.

Pakistan’s captain was 39-year-old Imran Khan then. Now it is Misbah Ul Haq. Both lead the team from the front with performances. Interestingly, the Kiwis were considered as the favourites, and even now they are in the same league.

In Misbah, like Imran Khan, they have a great batsman who never gives up. The fi rst T20 World Cup final is a good example of this. With smaller teams to face ahead in the competition, Pakistan might have just turned the corner to winning ways. Watch out for a single point against Ireland, which they had against a rain-helped point against

Right from my yoga teacher to malls, I have everything within my reach. In addition, KP has a great music and art scene.

You have great people performing at various cafes. I love this part of KP the most.

Another highlight is the Tango Tuesdays where we dance our hearts out within our international community.

The flea markets and similar events

are a great hit too. Pune is full of lovely, creative and beautifully talented people. It inspires you to work better.

I have my studio at home and when I work I can overlook the greens which keep me going. There is a river flowing in my backyard which inspires me to work and create more art. Pune is a good place to work and provides peace of mind.

FROM FOREIGN

SHORES

NON-NATIVE

PAROLE

gave me the opportunity to cultivate my hobby. I joined The Flames dance institute that teaches Latin styles of dance. Th is has now become a major part of my life. The dance socials and get-togethers are very exciting and my son too loves being a part of it.

Another thing that’s very interesting about this city is the fact that there are plenty of weekend getaway spots. We as a family love these outings to picnic spots, be in Mahabaleshwar or the beautiful Lavasa, and just the thought of a long drive excites us.

All in all, this is a city that brings you back. From the beautiful weather to the warm cosmopolitan people, everything makes it worthwhile to live here.

ANIRUDDHA RAJANDEKAR

Ramaswamy Ganesan, director, Allana Institute of Management Science

Pakistan team might have just turned the corner England in 1992, which helped them to qualify for the semis.

Other instances are Kiwis beating the Aussies in the opener of 1992, the same as seen now. Proteas beating the mighty West Indies in 1992, and the same in 2015 —Pandithar Sivakumar Perumal

If Jinnah had been a Hindu...

Historically, human beings have been fighting, brothers against brothers, neighbours, upper caste and lower caste etc, to settle injustice, or due to jealousy, ego, power, money.

Take for example, Karna and Arjuna, Ravana and Rama, Jaychand and Prithviraj Chauhan, Ghasiram and Nana.

Karna thought he was more capable than Arjuna, and injustice had been done to him, so he sided with Kauravas and he lost.

Ravana kidnapped Sita, finally mighty Ravana in spite of being blessed

by Shiva, could not defeat Rama, because he was on a wrong premise, wrong footing.

Prithviraj Chauhan kidnapped Samyukta, Jaychand took the help of Mohammed Ghori and Prithviraj was made prisoner, blinded, he killed Ghori but he and his best friend Chandram, both killed each other. Jaychand felt Prithviraj has done injustice to him, cheated him, insulted him.

Mohammed Ali Jinnah’s grandfather was a Hindu, who started a fishing business, and his Hindu neighbours were envious of his riches, so they harassed him, outcast him, so he had no option but to convert to Islam.

Upper caste Hindus torture lower caste Hindus, lower caste women are raped and killed. Chanakya, 2,300 years ago in Artha Shastras, mentioned punishment for such acts, corruption by government officials.

Dr Ambedkar said, “I am born

Hindu but I need not die as a Hindu.”

Muslims invaded and converted millions of Hindus in India. Then came Christians, but they did it quietly through missionaries, worked for the poor, were converted, even upper caste Brahmins like Tilak converted to Christianity, and even today you will find Tilak, Ranade surnames among Christians in Konkan.

If Hindus had not oppressed Hindus, if Hindus had not raped and killed Dalit women, if upper caste Hindus had not done injustice to lower castes, allowed them to fetch water from the same well and allowed to live in same colony, may be things would have been different...

Even today we may not like a lower class man sitting next to us, in trains, buses, because basically he is dirty, his body smells, there is odour from his mouth. Even today in thousands of villages there is no drinking water (and power), forget about bathing. Except for some who can afford to take a bath and

Muslim league (also his ambition), a pork eater, cigar smoking, he was not a ‘namazi’ and for the rights of Muslims.

The British (read as Christians) might have added fuel to the fi re and finally India was divided.

—Vinod Desai

Write to Us wash clothes, otherwise 75/80 per cent of Indians may not be taking a daily bath (our scriptures recommend bath two times a day). If our leaders can provide 750 litres of water one day to 125 crore Indians, only then will we see Swachha Bharat (cleanliness is next to godliness).

Coming back to Jinnah’s story, he was a better barrister than Nehru (Jinnah defended Lokmanya Tilak in Bombay High Court), but somewhere in the corner of his mind he might have had a grudge against Hindus (injustice done to his grandfather). In later years he became a strong advocate of the

Letters to the Editor may be emailed to editor_tgs@goldensparrow.com, editor_tgs@gmail.com or mailed to The Editor, 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.

SPORTS

THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY MARCH 07, 2015

PUNE

“Good to see man of the match award going to Kyle Coetzer. Too often we give too much weightage to the player from the winning side.”

— Harsha Bhogle

Signposts Parab, Khan emerge top tennis players Arnav Paparkar, Arjun Gohad, Yashraj Dalvi, Sujan Parab, Siddhant Patil, Dishaan Gidwani, Ira Shah, Radhika Mahajan , Bela Tamhankar, Naheed Khan and Aishwarya Andalkar finished No 1 ranked players in their respective age groups in Pune District.

The annual ranking from January to December 2014 was announced by the Pune Metropolitan District Tennis association joint secretaries Jayant Kadhe and Himanshu Gosavi and ranking coordinator Aditya Chougule. Ranking of eight district ranking tournaments held in Pune and PuneChinchwad in the year were considered for the ranking, they added.

Radhika Mahajan and Naheed Khan emerged No 1 players in two categories, the players will be awarded prizes at a function to be held later, Kadhe and Gosavi said.

Annual ranking for Pune district for 2014 Boys under 14 1. Sujan Parab 2. Sahil Dhanwani Boys under 16 1. Siddhant Patil 2. Sahil Dhanwani Boys under 18 1. Jayesh Pungaliya 2. Dishaan Gidwani Girls under 14 1 Naheed Khan 2. Rutuja Desai Girls under 16 1. Naheed Khan 2. Rutuja Rajmane Girls under 18: 1. Aishwarya Andalkar 2. Suprabha Pujari

Wipro faces BMC Software in title clash Wipro will clash with BMC Software in the finals of the first edition of the MJ Cup Inter I.T. Tennis League 2015 organised by the Winning Edge Academy and Pune Metropolitan District Tennis Association. In the semifinals, Wipro scraped past KPIT 24-21, while BMC Software outplayed Barclays 30-19 to move into the summit round. In the exciting tie, KPIT led 18-20 before the last match, Joy Banerjee helped Wipro to register a 6-1 win in the last tie and get them to a 24-21 win and a place in the finals.

BY BARNALEE HANDIQUE @barnalee Tejashree Naik is a triathlon athlete who is making her mark at both the national and international levels. The 21-year-old final year BMCC College student has won five national championships and has taken part in a number of international competitions.

“Triathlon is a sport that involves multiple-stage competitions, and the completion of three continuous and sequential endurance disciplines. It requires strength, endurance and de-

Golfer Smriti reigns supreme in Pune

It’s an endless desire to learn

City’s Shweta Galande was tied eighth with score of 225

Nikhil Kadam of Pune FC is shortlisted for the under-23 national team camp

Winger Nikhil Kadam wants to one day represent India on the international stage and later become a football coach

TGS NEWS NETWORK @TGSWeekly For Nikhil Kadam, 21, leaving his hometown Kolhapur, shifting to Pune, getting selected by Pune FC and making it to the national side probables will remain milestones. And the green turf of football has been the mid-fielder’s best place for action, achievement, inspiration and success. Kadam is the first person from Kolhapur to join the national team.

The student of Yashwantrao Mohite College of Arts Science and Commerce in Erandwane joined the ranks of the Peninsula Pune FC Academy as a member of the Under-19 team and worked his way to the senior team. And now, three seasons later, Nikhil has been called to Goa for the U-23 national team camp.

Coming from a district where professional football is still in its infancy, the game fascinated Nikhil from childhood. “My grandfather, father and uncle were all footballers. The biggest inspiration was my uncle. He played for the Maharashtra State Police team. I used to accompany him as a boy to see him train. I began playing at school level and moved to Krida Prabodhini in Pune, after they invited me for a trial. It was in 2011 that things changed completely. I

gave trials for Pune FC’s U-19 team and was picked up by the club.”

The youngster says that the club groomed him in professionalism. Lack of professional attitude has left many talented footballers in his hometown from making it big.

“I am lucky that I shifted to Pune and was taken in by Pune FC. They not only taught me to improve my game, but also made me learn to think about playing the game on a bigger level. Everything changed. Right from the way I perceived the game to how to attack, and then quickly fall back, the finer nuances of the game and a lot more.

The biggest plus point was the experience that it generated in terms of the seniors, the other players, the coaches, the support staff and everyone involved with our work.

Everyone provided with learning and direction, which really helped me,” he said.

The hard work paid in the form of success with the title winning performance in the 2011-12 U20 I-League. “We had a good run winning all the nine games. In the final round, I scored three goals. My performance helped in making to the senior team in 2012,” Kadam said.

Coaches Derrick Pereira and Karim Bencherifa took his game to an intense level and taught him the importance of fitness. “The senior players bought their own experience and always motivated

“My inspiration was my uncle who played for the state police team”

PLAYER’S CORNER Pune’s Tejashree Naik is a rising star in the triathlon, a sport that tests an athlete’s endurance and stamina to the outer limits

“I still feel rusty after playing irregularly on the world circuit since the London Olympics. As all the top players are here, so I seem a little bit out of form.”

— Lin Dan, badminton Olympic champion

me. The foreign players also taught me to mould my game in accordance with the way it was played internationally,” he said.

To be shortlisted for the under-23 national team camp was a successful progression for Kadam. “I literally jumped in my room and was greeted by my teammates, seniors, juniors and others. I was selected because somewhere someone has seen my work and found it to be good,” he said.

Kadam follows his coach’s words: In football or life, we cannot be sitting and gloating on previous glories. We have to keep moving ahead. Innovating, improving, implementing new styles and incorporating it in the game every day.

“It’s a learning process. And honestly I love it that way. There are a lot more tweaks that are needed for my game to become even better,” he said. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com

Overnight leader Smriti Mehra played a cautious round of 1 over 72 on the final day to win the `5 lakh seventh leg of the Hero Women’s Professional Golf Tour at the Poona Club Golf Course on Thursday.

Th is is Smriti’s second win in as many weeks. Trailing by a huge margin of seven strokes were Delhi’s Vani Kapoor, Chandigarh’s Saaniya Sharma and Kolkata’s Neha Tripathi who were tied second with identical scores of 222.

Local girl Shweta Galande and Delhi’s Ankita Tiwana were tied eighth with 225.

Veteran Smriti started impressively with three birdies on the third, fourth and seventh holes along with a lone bogey on the eighth in her front nine.

Her scratchy back nine included a double bogey on the 10th, a birdie on the 11th and two consecutive bogeys on the 16th and 17th.

Thanks to the overnight four stoke advantage and an impressive front nine on a difficult day, Smriti steered clear of anxious moments to win her second title of the season with a total score of 215.

Order of Merit leader Vani played a bogey-free front nine with a birdie on the fi rst. However, her ordinary back nine included bogeys on the 13th and 16th along with a double bogey on the 14th. Her lone birdie on the 15th came to her rescue and she finished with a score of 2 over 73.

Saaniya had an indifferent start, dropping shots on the fi rst, third, fourth and fi fth followed by a lone birdie on the seventh. Thereafter, she

Smriti Mehra

played with much more confidence, carding just one more bogey on the 15th along with a birdie on the 18th to finish with a score of 3 over 74.

Neha played a birdie-less round of 4 over 75, carding bogeys on the third, sixth, 12th and 17th.

Bengaluru’s Sharmila Nicollet had a bad day in office, playing a card of 5 over 76. She dropped shots on the fi rst, third, fi fth and sixth but made a strong comeback, fi ring three birdies on the seventh, ninth and 12th.

However, two double bogeys on the final two holes marred her chances of a podium finish. Sharmila finished tied fi fth along with Panchkula’s Amandeep Drall and England’s Kiran Matharu with identical totals of 224 after 54 holes.

The tour now moves to Classic Golf & Country Club, Gurgaon, for its eighth leg to be played from March 11 to 13.

IANS

Tejashree Naik

termination. To swim 1.5 km, cycle for 40 km and run for 10 km demands a huge amount of stamina,” she said.

Tejashree’s passion for sport began in school.

She was an outstanding student who excelled in academics as well as in extra-curricular activities. Her interest in swimming took root when she was in the fifth grade and her parents provided her with all the support and encouragement she needed.

Tejashree initially trained with Sant Kumar at the Shahu College pool. With her unflagging enthusiasm and burning desire to acquire the necessary skills and craft, Tejashree’s efforts soon bore fruit. She the trained with Tapan Panigrahi at Tilak pool, where her all the skills she already possessed were honed and finished to a finer and highly competitive level.

Tejashree’s aims and ambitions reached a broader horizon when she

developed an interest in aquathlon.

“It is a sport which involves swimming for a certain distance, followed by cycling. I knew of Mobius, which is an aquathlon competition and I decided to take part in the competition, when I was in standard,” she said.

She soon graduated to state and international level when she was in 12th grade.

She never skipped her daily regimen of training and competitive practice, and worked out twice a day, in the mornings and evenings. The success in aquathlon competitions spurred Tejashree to began training for the triathlon, which involved the added discipline of running.

“My day starts with swimming, followed by cycling. On alternate days, I do jogging. This schedule helps me train in all the three features of the triathlon,” she says.

Tejashree has participated in a number of state and national level triathlon championships. In 2011, she won a bronze medal at the 34th national senior championship at Jharkhand, and was in fourth place at Nashik. She won a bronze and silver in the triathlon at Nashik and Jaipur respectively, in 2012. This year she won a silver medal at Jaipurand a silver and bronze at the 35th National Games in Kerala.

She has participated in international triathlon events like the Asian beach games (modern pentathlon) at Phuket in Thailand and the4Asian Games at Incheon, Korea, in 2013.

She is preparing for the National Games to be held in Goa next year.

For Tejashree, the sky is the only limit.

barnalee.handique@goldensparrow.com

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