Railways Mulls Four Universities in Five Years

The Indian Railways is exploring the possibility of setting up four universities across the country for trained manpower. The railways, which is hailed as the lifeline of the country, currently has only one training institute located in Baroda. The idea of a dedicated railway university originally came from none other than ‘Metro Man’ E Sreedharan. Union Railway minister D V Sadananda Gowda had talked about plans for one such university in his maiden budget speech and has now extended it to set up four such universities in different parts of India in a phased manner over the next five years. According to Gowda, graduates coming out of railway universities will have an assurance of getting absorbed in the system as all-rounders. “We should have a full view on the issue by December and roll out the university from start of an academic year,” the minister said. These Railway Universities are slated to be world-class and will impart knowledge in diversified fields of technology and innovations in Railway operations etc. The intention to set up Railway Universities is not to limit the university to a particular region but to cover all four corners of the country. - See more at: http://digitallearning.eletsonline.com/2014/08/railways-mulls-four-universities-in-five-years/#sthash.zEoyS2Te.dpuf

Aug 22 2014 : The Economic Times (Delhi)

Rush of PPOs at IITs Hints at Good Year for Graduates

Devina Sengupta & Sreeradha D Basu

Mumbai





At IIT Bombay, job announcement forms given by cos are double that of last year

The first flush of pre-placement offers (PPOs) now being handed out at India's leading IITs are pointing to a coming bumper placement season this year.At IIT Bombay , job announcement forms submitted by companies are already double of what was seen at the same time last year. The number of PPOs at other IITs is also rising, offering yet another piece of evidence of a resurgent job market.
Companies make pre-placement offers based on performance of candidates who have interned with them. Many companies like Goldman Sachs and RIL now use this route more, as it helps them gauge candidates better, over longer periods of time and in real work situations. Such internships at IITs end in August and the first PPOs are trickling in now. The flow will gather momentum by mid -SeptemberOctober and will continue till December 1, when the campus placement season begins.
Facebook started its campus hiring this year by offering international posts to students of IIT Bombay and IIT Kharagpur. Although the social networking company has not disclosed salary details to the colleges, it is expected to offer at least $120,000, which was last year's package.
Microsoft has also rolled out PPOs at IITs, after offering ` . 79.5 lakh per annum pay packets for Redmond-based posts at non-IIT campuses recently. Deloitte is offering `. 21.3 lakh for domestic profiles.
Others who have offered PPOs, include Schlumberger, Directi, Adobe, Reliance, Shell Technology , Cadbury , Qualcomm, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, HUL, ITC, Samsung, VMWare, Samsung Research, LinkedIn, VizExperts, Works Application, Goldman Sachs (Tech) Intuit, Futures First and P&G. The companies can come again for campus placements to hire more.
Companies also use PPOs to get an early advantage in the war for talent at the placement season in campuses.
“This year looks very promising. The political & economic ecosystem looks very supportive,“ said Mohak Mehta, placement manager at IIT Bombay. Mehta said recruiters from Japan, Singapore, South East Asia & Middle-East have shown special interest this year. The college has received 30 PPOs and is not expected to take long to cross last year's total of 90 PPOs.
Monday's count of PPOs at IIT-Kharagpur shows 51 offers, said Sudhirkumar Barai, professor-in-charge, training and placement of the institute. Expecting a return of big hiring, IIT Madras and IIT Roorkee have made changes in their placement methods to fit in more companies.IIT Roorkee will introduce parallel slot system where three slots of six companies each will hold interviews on the first day .So, 18 companies can pick their employees simultaneously compared with mere 3-4 recruiters per day hiring last year.
“This reduces hassles of managing company preferences for initial slots and more hires can take place. We did a dry run of parallel slot system during internship placements this year and it was a success,“ said NP Padhy , professor-in-charge, Training and Placement IIT Roorkee.
IIT Madras will start their placements in `graveyard shifts' from 12 at night to 7 am on December 1. This will be done to navigate international time zones and have international companies recruit via calls and Skype. IIT Madras has bagged 32 PPOs from Shell, Linkedin, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, HUL and Microsoft.
IIT Kanpur says a larger draw from startups and international posts will be on the cards this year and has already received 36 pre-placement offers compared with a total of 45 rolled out in 2013. The older IITs of Madras, Kanpur, Bombay, Kharagpur have an average of 1,000 students each registered for placements.

Aug 21 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)

Infertility clinics multiply in India

Malathy.Iyer@timesgroup.com

Mumbai:





The rush to infertility clinics in the country grew annually at 15% between 2010 and 2012 as the number of such clinics rose by 20%, new statistics show.The data was collected by the Indian Society for Assisted Reproduction (ISAR) between 2010 and 2012 for the country's only voluntary registry of infertility clinics. Called the National ART Registry of India (NARI), the three-year data presents a snapshot of how Indians coped with the problem of infertility.
Karnataka leads the number of treatment cycles, followed by Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. Maharashtra is the leader in the number of clinics.
There is nothing to indicate a rise in the incidence of infertility in India. But the NARI data, said ISAR president Dr Hrishikesh Pai, shows there has been an increase in many newer tech niques: from using frozen embryos to adopting embryos to seeking surrogates.
Most Indians opting for assisted reproductive techniques --almost 64% -preferred to get pregnant using fresh embryos.
This involves women taking special drugs to stimulate ovaries to produce more eggs, which are recovered for fertilization in a petri-dish in a laboratory . The fresh embryos are then transferred into the woman's womb. The most significant aspect of the NARI data is the almost 66% increase in use of frozen embryos in the threeyear period of the study . This indicates that technologies for frozen embryo transfer are improving and patients are opting for frozen transfers without compromising their results,“ said Dr Hrishikesh Pai.
The number of couples seeking surrogacy has also gone up: about 44% from 2010 to 2012. “Many celebrities have spoken up about using surrogates. This has resulted in many Indian couples opening up to the idea of surrogacy, which until recently was only sought after by foreigners,“ said former ISAR president Dr Duru Shah, who flagged off the registry study .
For the full report, log on to http://www.timesofindia.com

Saluting India's Science Legends [Infographic]

Mt. Sinha, a mountain in Antarctia is named in honor of Akhouri Sinha, an eminent Indian-American scientist, whose pioneering biological research expedition has provided critical data about animal populations.

Recently, two Indian-origin scientists, Shubhroz Gill and Satchidananda Panda have discovered the gene that regulates sleeping and waking patterns.

Last year, India sent its Mars Orbiter Mission to the red planet, which will demonstrate technological capability for future interplanetary missions. The project cost amounts to just US$75 million, a very economical spending, compared to the mammoth budgets of other space agencies. 

This is not the first time you are coming across this, you may have read this praise nauseum for quite a long time.  Yet, every time you read it, you feel a sense of pride surging in you.

Every country has its own sets of heroes, what is so different about India?

Without swaying into jingoism, Mark Twain’s quote, “India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, and the grandmother of legend and the great grandmother of tradition” does perfect justice to this question.

Indians are known for their minds. They have successfully earned respect of the entire world in every department, be it sports, science, technology or innovation. India has also given the world some of the best scientists who have done a great deal of work and achieved the top most level in their fields. Not only this, but they have also famed the country globally.

Let us celebrate this 68th Indian independence by remembering these scientists who gave the world, so much. 

Aug 20 2014 : Mirror (Pune)

Key to save nature hidden in tribal art

Mayuri.Phadnis @timesgroup.com TWEET @ThePuneMirror





A joint project by two environmental institutes is aiming to preserve biodiversity, cultural heritage of the state through workshops to be held by masters of tribal art

The growing pressures of globalisation and homogenisation is bringing into focus traditional culture, artwork, folk lore, and their links to biodiversity.A joint project by Bharati Vidyapeeth's Institute of Environment Education and Research (BVIEER) and Maharashtra State Biodiversity Board (MSBB) is aiming to preserve the biodiversity and cultural heritage of the state through workshops by masters of tribal art work who are commercially successful. The research was conducted by Dr Erach Bharucha, director of BVIEER and chairman of MSBB, Dr Rahul Mungikar, senior research consultant (MSBB), Dr Shamita Kumar, Vice Principal, Dr Kranti Yardi, Professor, and Pallavi Ganju, programme officer of BVIEER.
Folk culture is abundant in Maharashtra, with local tribes such as Gonds, Korkus, Warli, Katkaris, Mahadeo Koli, and Pardhis spread across the state. Each tribe has its own distinct cultural values and rituals, embedded in art, that revolve around biodiversity and its conservation.
“The art, craft, folklore and rituals of traditional communities need to be preserved.The knowledge of varied wildlife, trees, and sacred groves is integrated into our culture and are ideal examples of conservation strategies,“ said Bharucha.
Giving an example of the Warli community in the western regions of Maharashtra, Ganju said, “Warli paintings are aesthetically simple.Their analysis brought out the influence of nature. Out of 86 paintings that we analysed, 137 faunal and 315 floral elements were found.However, artists are dying out because of reduced monetary returns due to middlemen.“ She also spoke of Rann Bhoot (forest ghost), a well-known folktale. The ghost is a protector of jungles and scares children if they exploit and damage forests. They also worship the Umbar tree (Ficus Racemosa), as the roots have a lot of fresh groundwater around them.
Another tribe highlighted in the research is the Korku tribe dwelling in the Satpura ranges. This tribe is divided into clans associated with a tree or an animal. A particular clan has to protect the species it is named after.
“Another one is the Madia Gonds from Gadchiroli. They have their own artwork and metal artefacts called Dhokra art. In Maharashtra, there is only one artist named Suresh Pungati who practises this art at a commercial level. He too has left his native place and now runs Devrai Art Village in Panchgani,“ Ganju added.
“Most of our art draws inspiration from realities of nature. We have animals, birds and tree figures made from brass. I have also modified it into rock Dhokra art -a combination of brass and graphite. The art, however, is dying, since people in my tribe are not good at marketing, their financial conditions are not improving,“ added Pungati.
According to senior research consultant in MSBB, Dr Rahul Mungikar, this traditional knowledge can be used for sustainable development. “Cultural values have changed through generations and the current generation is ignoring the importance of biodiversity. Traditional intelligence and knowledge is important and sustainable development is possible if some traditional ways, in tandem with scientific steps, are revived,“ he said.

Aug 20 2014 : The Economic Times (Delhi)

Dress Sense As Brand Sense





There's sound branding sense behind the old adage on how clothes make the man, writes Ambi Parameswaran, member ­ management board, FCB Ulka

It was 1978. I was on a summer break after my first year of slogging at IIT. I thought I should show off my new found fashion sense that was the rage on the campus: a white kurta and a pair of blue jeans. So wearing my new set of clothes I wandered into the venerable Mylapore Club in Chennai's Tam Bram Capital. Much to my surprise, the guys in the motorcycle stand found my attire curiously funny. I was almost laughed out of the club and then went home to change into a t-shirt and jeans.Why does dress really matter? And how have personality brands used them? This is indeed an interesting area of study. Just as packaging design maketh the consumer product brand, dress design maketh the personality! M K Gandhi used to wear a suit when he was a student and a practicing lawyer in London and later in South Africa. But when he returned to India and joined the freedom struggle he gave up those clothes to sport the attire of the Indian farmer. His dhothi was always in spotless white and he was often bare-chested. Interestingly the cap he wore got rechristened as the “Gandhi Topi“. So while M K Gandhi could go about his business in a suit, Mahatma Gandhi the freedom fighter needed a set of clothes that was seen as a common man's attire. I wouldn't want to repeat the reportedly interesting exchange he had with Winston Churchill about his clothing habits.Incidentally, Churchill did refer to Mahatma Gandhi (and his attire) derogatively as the “half-naked fakir“. M A Jinnah with his suits and cigarettes on the other hand decided to be a contrast to Mahatma Gandhi.
Jawaharlal Nehru did something different. He combined the formal western suit with Indian nawabi attire to create the `Bundhgala Suit', which got named the Nehru suit. It stood for a modern India, yet reflected western style and taste. We now note that the Nehru suit has been reinvented in many new avatars to suit the million dollar big Indian weddings.
It was therefore very interesting to read about the buzz that Narendra Modi's half sleeve kurta has created in the apparel world. I am told that #ModiKurta even trended soon after the election results came out.
Personality brands need to see how to use dress as a signal to their various audiences. Some leaders do it with style and panache. Nelson Mandela frequently appeared in traditional African attire, suitably modified for the modern age. In his heyday, Mahatir Mohammad the president of Malaysia used to appear in Malay Batik shirts.Hamid Karzai is reported to sport the nicest of clothes his embattled country produces.
If Mahatma Gandhi adopted the farmer's attire and almost appeared as a Hindu saint -just go to Shanmukhanda Auditorium in Mumbai and see how vividly this comes out; on one wall is an illustration of Mahatma Gandhi and on the other a picture of Chandrashekara Saraswati of Kanchi Kamakoti Mutt -Modi has done something interesting with the humble kurta. He has trimmed it to suit the new ethos. And the Modi Kurta ap pears in many attractive colors.
So why does the half sleeve kurta suit Narendra Modi's brand persona ?
A loose fitting kurta is not the most ideal form of attire for someone who is speaking of industrialisation and liberal economics. It is loose to start with and flaps about in the wind. You cannot operate a lathe wearing the kurta. Neither can you plough the fields in one. However Indian politicians have made the white kurta the uniform of their class. It is white to signify purity, it is the common man's attire and makes the political class appear a lot more approach able. Or so they believe.
So what to do with the kurta in order to make it more suitable for the need of the hour? The half kurta does precisely that. It signifies a `rolled up sleeve' attitude. The attitude of a leader who wants to get to work in a hurry. How ever the addition of a nice attrac tive well-designed waistcoat adds a touch of formality to an otherwise informal `half sleeve kurta'.
No wonder the kurta has caught on as the #ModiKurta. Don't be surprised if you start seeing more and more politicians sporting it in the months and years to come.

Aug 20 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)

Tatas give IIT Bombay Rs.`95 cr for design centre

Manash.Gohain @timesgroup.com

New Delhi





The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay has received Rs 95 crore, the largest donation in its history, to set up a centre to develop hi-tech products and solutions for consumers and industry that lie at the bottom of the economic pyramid.On the lines of the Tata Center for Technology and Design at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), US, the Tata group has granted Rs 95 crore to IIT-Bombay for a period of five years to develop design and engineering principles suited to the needs of people and communities with limited resources. An MoU has been signed by both the parties, and the centre at IIT-Bombay , also called Tata Center for Technology and Design (TCTD), has started functioning from July .
On August 20 and 21, fellows from MIT and IIT-Bombay will come together for a brainstorming session under the aegis of the centre.
Speaking to the TOI, Prof Devang V Khakhar, director, IIT-Bombay , said the centre would focus on “frugal engineering“. “What we are going to do here is to come up with products which are high in technology but affordable. Students and faculties from all departments can participate as this is a virtual centre,“ he said. “The centre will support research work for postgraduate and PhD scholars, although there is no bar for undergraduate students,“ added Khakhar.
Tata fellows for the centre have been appointed. The centre plans to design items not only for consumers belonging to the low income group, but products like medical devices too. The institute has singed an MoU with MIT to work on some projects.