#Srinath Apartment

[townpostin]

SDO Halts Unauthorized Construction in Jamshedpur’s Kadma

Builder Violates Prohibitory Order, Faces Immediate Action < p dir=”ltr”>Disputed land near Srinath Apartment becomes focal point of controversy involving political figures. < p dir=”ltr”>JAMSHEDPUR – Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) Parul Singh intervened to stop illegal construction work near Srinath Apartment in Kadma, enforcing a previously issued prohibitory order. < p dir=”ltr”>The SDO,…

[somerabbitholes]

Hi! I’d love to read more books from India. Maybe some classics, but more recent stuff too. Do you have any recommendations? As for genres I enjoy lit fic the most. I hope you have a good weekend ✨

hi! thank you, i hope you had a nice weekend too. here you go —

cocoon by bhalchandra nemade (trans. sudhakar marathe): coming-of-age story; follows a 21 y/o coming to terms with moving to a new city, dealing with disillusionment both at home and as a student; kind of stream of consciousness like; it’s a particular favourite

the shadow lines by amitav ghosh: set in the 1960s, explores how world wars, partition, independence, and decolonization affects his family and the people around him

the hungry tide by amitav ghosh: about a marine biologist studying the sunderbans; also explores the tension between development and ecology and the human-environment conflict; really good environmental fiction

a fine balance by rohinton mistry: about four people brought together during and by the emergency (1975) in mumbai; their friendship and what it means for either of them

kanthapura by raja rao: about how satyagraha comes to a south indian village, how people receive it; about the popular memory and myth of gandhi; a little dense while reading and not everyone’s cup of tea, but there’s something to be said with how it mixes public memory with storytelling

baluta by daya pawar (trans. jerry pinto): pawar’s memoir of being ‘untouchable’ in mumbai, living in the city’s underbelly; very raw, and it’s a good translation

midnight’s children by salman rushdie: follows the life of salim, who’s born at the stroke of midnight on august 15, 1947 and is now telepathically linked with other ‘midnight’s children’; mixes magical realism with historical fiction to explore the changes taking place after independence

untouchable by mulk raj anand: about a sweeper’s son, bakha, working to come to terms with his reality and living a life in the caste role he’s born into

here’s some more recent stuff —

maharani by ruskin bond: about the queen of no-longer kingdom near mussoorie; how she and her family cope with no longer being royalty in a democratic republic

also literally anything by ruskin bond. especially check out the room on the roof, a flight of pigeons, the blue umbrella

the lives of others by neel mukherjee: if you like generational novels about families, this is for you; about how this bengali family in kolkata copes with partition, the naxal movement, and everything else happening in bengal and india in the 1960s and 1970s 

em and the big hoom by jerry pinto: follows a goan catholic family in mumbai as they deal with the mother’s mental illness; very tender, also jerry pinto is great

the adivasi will not dance by hansda sowvendra shekhar: a collection of stories set in marginal jharkhand

serious men by manu joseph: about ayyan mali, who weaves stories for his son in mumbai’s slums; explores ambition and ego and how peripheral lives navigate socio-economic settings

ghachar ghochar by vivek shanbag (trans. srinath perur): a rags-to-riches story of a kannada family; how the sudden presence of money tears the family apart; it’s a short book, worth a day’s read  

cobalt blue by sachin kundalkar (trans. jerry pinto): about two siblings who fall in love with the same boy; traces both their relationship with the boy and the subsequent impact on their family

name place animal thing by daribha lyndem: explores different lives set in shillong as they deal with politically charged social settings 

and if you’re interested in historical fiction, check this list.

i hope you find something you like!

[saswathacademy]

Chess in streaming platforms on the rise

Learn the game of Chess

Chess Classes in Bengalore

Gone are the days when chess used to be just a board game played on a sixty four squares board with sixteen chess pieces allotted to each player. For a long period of time, only the two players competing against each other were an actual part of the game. When it came to champions, the media and mass media could only talk about the exceptional and calculative moves undertaken by a certain player, which further used to succeed in reserving a place in the headlines and newsletters. The die-hard fans of the game would wait desperately for the news to either come up on the television or forage the newspapers as it would get them acquainted with the remarkable moments in the game.

Times have however, changed now. With the elevation in technology and the world getting digitalised in every possible way, chess has not been an untouched area. The introduction of streaming platforms has been a noteworthy advancement in the age of digitalisation. The platforms are designed in such a way to provide the live stream of the games being played to the end user, which is done with the help of the service providers working at the back end.

It is certainly noteworthy to acknowledge that on one of the most sought after streaming platform, Twitch, the tremendously main staying activity is the game of chess. The credit for this solely goes to the online streamers and celebrated chess champions who choose the online mode to play the game. In a recent research by a data analytics firm, SullyGnome, the number of hours for which chess was viewed on Twitch doubled every month. It amazingly topped in the month of May by attaining the record of more than 8 million hours of watching.

The first landmark in this was set by Hikaru Nakamura who is a five times US chess champion and the youngest player belonging to America to achieve the Grand Master title. Through the popular social networking site Twitter, Nakamura has acknowledged the keen interest of the visitors who have either witnessed just one or two stream or have continued their viewership streaks for all the streams. He also mentioned in his tweet about how the game of chess is getting to witness the popularity that it hadn’t in the near past.

One of the breakthroughs of the rising fame of Twitch can be attributed to its collaboration with the popular and user friendly chess playing website, ‘Chess.com.’ It is said that Twitch has a long history of chess players that dates back to the period when it was not so popular but the amalgamation that took place in the year 2017 gave a new elevation to the acclaim received by the game. Apart from the game itself, the power that lies in the hands of the influencers in enhancing the impact of a brand is quite evident in this scenario.

The famous Grand Master, Hikaru Nakamura elsewhere uses the Twitch platform to impart the knowledge of the game to others. During the difficult times when the world has been enveloped by the global pandemic, the chess champion has gained over 350,000 followers and this has resulted in the rejuvenation of people’s interest in the century old game. In an interview, Nakamura mentioned the essence on which the game of chess is based on. He thoughtfully said that the rules according to which the game of chess is played have not changed much even in the modern times. This implies that the basic structure of the rules has remained the same throughout centuries.

Nearer to home, in the sense of a digital streaming platform that most of us are aware of and use it on a regular basis, we cannot help but mention the name of YouTube. In the midst of the life threatening global pandemic, wherein young kids could be easily and callously expected to remain glued to ‘idiot box,’ also known as the television, watch cartoons or play some violent combating games, surprisingly, they chose to view online streaming of the chess matches. As add on, they were thoroughly supported in this by their parents who often joined their posterity and remarkably spent some quality time watching the live streaming chess.

The best thing about the live streaming of the chess matches played by world champions on easily accessible platforms like YouTube is that the viewers are able to get complete insight into the way in which the game is played. A keen observer will tell you that how satisfying it is to be able to deep dive into the game and not just remain confined to watching the players shaking hands in the beginning of the match or saying them “well played” and “congratulations” to each other post it. The thing that fascinates the children the most is that they get a chance to explore the leading players discuss the game in detail, analyse tactics and sometimes even banter with each other. This further helps the kids to develop a prudent sense of understanding the logic behind every move and their problem solving and analytical abilities are also enhanced.

During the pandemic caused due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, various leading Grand Master belonging to India like Vidit Gujrathi, Baskaran Adhiban and Srinath Narayanan have begun hosting their own streams on YouTube and needless to mention, they have received humongous viewership consistently. Among the other well established pioneers in the field of chess, there have been some newbies as well. Samay from India is one such name that is noteworthy to mention. He began taking chess classes on YouTube on the behest of his friend Tanmay, who also happens to be a comedian. He tells that he began it as a hobby to be followed in leisure time but soon it seemed like he had found his niche. Later, he organised an online chess competition in a merger with the members of the comedy series ‘Comicstaan’ which marked the first instance wherein comedy was infused with a sport like chess.

So, in a growingly digitalised world, the platforms like Twitch and YouTube are proving to be of immense help to the admirers of the game. They have come like an oasis in the desert and gave people an apt platform to learn and if pursued correctly, showcase their own talent in the game.

For Chess Classes in Bengalore , Visit Saswath.academy 

[rajrag66]

Indian Expeditions Down Under

There is a certain allure to cricket played in Australia. This could be attributed to the massive iconic venues, sunny weather when it is cold and dreary in most parts of the world, revolutionary television coverage pioneered by channel 9 and sporting wickets.

As the test series gets under way in Sydney with the 1st ever day and night match between the two countries, my mind goes back to the battles waged down under since I started following cricket in the 70s. The Aussies were practically invincible at home for most of that decade as they humiliated their bitter rivals England in 74-75 & the mighty Windies in 76-76. I still recall hearing about the exploits of Lillie, Thompson & the Chappell brothers through the crisp commentary of  Alan McGilvray & Jim Maxwell on Radio Australia short wave.

There had been only 2 previous tours by India to Australia in 1947-48 & 1967-68. On both occasions, the hosts had won 4-0. Therefore history was against the tourists, when they visited Australia at the end of 1977 after  a gap of 10 years, However India were up against a severely weakened team due to the exodus to Kerry Packer’s world series cricket. Only Thompson resisted the temptation of joining the Packer bandwagon and a 41- year old Simpson was recalled after several years of retirement to captain a young and virtually unknown team. It still turned out to be a close series with Australia winning 3-2. Simpson apart from marshalling his young troops well, also scored an epic 176 in the 2nd test at Perth and 100 in the final test in Adelaide with 539 runs in the series. Australia won the first 2 matches at Brisbane and Perth narrowly by 16 runs & 2 wickets respectively. Tony Mann became only the second batsman in test history to score a century as a night watchman at Perth.  India came back strongly with thumping wins at Melbourne & Sydney, as the Indian spin trio of Bedi (captain), Chandra & Prasanna wove their magic for the last time in their illustrious careers. Chandra picked up 12 wickets at Melbourne as he bowled India to victory. The final test at Adelaide went down to the wire with Australia romping home by 47 runs as India almost reached the massive 493 set for victory.  India felt the absence of a genuine fast bowler and in hindsight could have included Kapil Dev who was just making his mark in domestic cricket. Gavaskar scored 3 consecutive centuries and was well supported by Vishwanath and Mohinder Amarnath, all three finished with over 400 runs in the series. The Aussies uncovered a number of new talents during that series such as Peter Toohey, Rick Darling, Wayne Clarke, Graham Yallop, Gary Cozier & Craig Sarjeant.

The Packer boys had come back by the time India toured next in 1980-81. Thompson & Ian Chappell were no longer playing, but the home team had Len Pascoe, Alan Border, Kim Hughes, Graeme Wood  & Rodney Hogg to support stalwarts such as Greg Chappell, Lillie & Walters. The tourists made a shaky start losing easily in Sydney and scrapping through to a draw in Adelaide. Sandeep Patil was the hero at Adelaide with a blistering 174 after being knocked down by Len Pasco in the previous match. India defied expectations with a thrilling victory in the 3rd test at Melbourne to draw the series. Vishwanath whose place in the team was in doubt, silenced his critics with a brilliant century at the MCG. Gavaskar almost forfeited the match when he forced his partner Chetan Chauhan to walk off the field after an altercation with the opposition following a doubtful LBW decision. Luckily the manager Wing Commander Durrani intervened to cool things down. Chauhan who had a brilliant series was unlucky to miss out yet again on a well-deserved century. India successfully defended a meagre target of 142 thanks to the brilliance of Kapil Dev who braved a knee problem with pain killer injections to finish with figures of 5 for 28 as Australia was skittled out for 83. Kapil was ably supported by Dilip Doshi and Karsan Ghavri who bowled Greg Chappell round his legs in the 2nd innings. In addition to the test series, there was also a tri-series ODI competition featuring New Zealand as well. As was expected, the Indians who were still finding their feet in limited-over cricket did not fare well in this series. It was a treat to see the highlights brought by channel 9  for the first time during the 80-81 series. Even in those early days, their coverage was really innovative and brought out a different dimension to watching the game on TV.

After a gap of 5 years, India toured again in 1985-86. At the beginning of 1985, India stunned the cricketing world again in the ODIs. Following on from their shock win in the 1983 world cup, they won the world championship of cricket which was likely a mini-world cup  and held to mark the 150th anniversary of the European settlement in Victoria. The enduring image of the win was the Indian team going around the MCG ground after easily winning the final against Pakistan, in the Audi car won by Ravi Shastri who was declared the champion of champions. We were privileged to watch most of the matches in that tournament live and by then the channel 9 coverage had evolved considerably. Messers Greig, Lawry & Benaud delighted Indian fans with their magnificent commentary and insight into the game.

The 1985-86 tour was a tale of missed opportunities as India could not get over the line in at least 2 matches. They were foiled by some stoic resistance from the Aussies especially the captain Allan Border. Gavaskar scored 2 centuries and others like Amarnath & Srikkanth piled on the runs against a relatively weak attack. Craig McDermott was the only potent bowler on the Aussie side and they were still in a rebuilding phase after Kim Hughes had quit  the previous summer. Steve Waugh made his debut in the 2nd test and showed early glimpses of his talent . The other newcomers like  David Boon, Geoff Marsh and the beanpole like fast bowler Bruce Reid were to be become mainstays of the team in future years. India did very well in the ODI tri-series which also featured the Kiwis. They however could not beat the Aussies in the finals.

The next series in 1991-92 was quite a let-down for the Indian team which could not quite match a strong home side led by Allan Border with experienced cricketers like Boon, Marsh, McDermott, Merv Highes & Dean Jones. Mark Taylor who was establishing himself in the team had a brilliant series with 422 runs second only to David Boon who finished with 556 runs. Shane Warne had the most inauspicious start to his career at Sydney and his bowling was taken to the cleaners by Ravi Shastri who scored a double century. The saving grace for India was the batting of Tendulkar who displayed his prodigious talent in no small measure with 2 brilliant centuries.The other big gain for India during the tour was the emergence of Srinath as a genuine quick bowler following in the footsteps of Kapil Dev who still a force to reckon with on the tour capturing 25 wickets. Manoj Prabhakar also ended with a creditable haul of 19 wickets. In the tri-series which followed also featured the West Indies, India managed to reach the finals but were no match for the Aussies who won easily. Kris Srikkanth won 2 player of the match awards during this tournament on the last international tour of his career. The world cup which was the climax of a long Australian summer was also a disappointment, with the only bright spark for India being the victory against the eventual winners Pakistan. 

India had to wait almost 9 years for their next tour in 1999-2000. This was a very low-key series and the Indian team led by Tendulkar was no match for the Aussies. Bret Lee who was at his peak  broke the left thumb of the Indian opener Sadagopan Ramesh and along with McGrath proved lethal for the Indian battsman. India lost all 3 tests by huge margins despite Tendulkar’s determined displays. Ponting, Langer, Waugh & Gilchrist dominated the Indian bowling.The tri-series one-dayers featuring Pakistan were equally disastrous with India notching a solitary win in 8 matches.

The tour in 2003 was a watershed in India’ test history abroad. Well led by Sourav Ganguly, India proved they were no pushovers any more overseas. Ganguly set the tone for the Indian performance by scoring a brilliant 144 in the first test at Brisbane, which was drawn. Rahul Dravid’s brilliant double century to match Ricky Ponting who achieved the same feat and 6 for 41 by Ajith Agarkar helped them register a historic win in Adelaide. Australia came back strongly to win the next test at Melbourne. India almost won the final test at Sydney, which was Steve Waugh’s last match and he signed off with 80 in the 2nd innings. India had earlier posted a mammoth 705 for 7 in the 1st innings thanks to 241 from Tendulkar and 178 from Laxman.

It was mixed bag in 2007-08 and the tour was shrouded in controversy The second test in Sydney marred by poor umpiring decisions against the visitors, also saw the Monkeygate scandal when Harbhajan Singh was charged with racial abuse against Andrew Symonds. Harbhajan was suspended from the next test, which  was revoked after  a protest by India. Steve Bucknor who made some contentious decisions was stood down by the ICC from the next match at Perth, which also created a controversy. The Sydney test had a dramatic climax, with Michael Clarke getting 3 wickets in the last over of the game. India went into the Perth test  down 0-2  after losing the 1st test at Melbourne by a massive 371 runs and the 2nd test at Sydney by 122 runs despite gaining a substantial  1st innings lead. The tourists stayed alive in the series winning the Perth test  mainly due to some splendid bowling by the young Ishant Sharma. His spell in Perth against Ponting arguably the best batsman in the world at the time is still a vivid memory. Sehwag made a triumphant comeback with 151 in the last test in Adelaide, which ended in a draw. Laxman who relished batting on the hard wickets continued his dominance over the Australia bowlers. He finished 2nd in the batting averages after Tendulkar who got over 500 runs with 2 centuries. Kumble’s leadership during a difficult series was commendable and he also led the bowling averages with 20 wickets second only to Brett Lee with 24 wickets. India lost the series 1-2, but had the consolation of winning the tri-series that followed, which also featured Sri Lanka.

The tour in 2011-12 was a rather forgettable affair and capped a miserable year following India’s crushing defeat in England that summer. Two legends Dravid & Laxman retired after the Aussie series. They will be remembered as much for exemplary conduct as for their sublime batting skills. Their record match winning 376 run 5th wicket partnership in Eden Gardens against Steve Waugh’s men in 2001 is the best in Indian test history. The 2011-12 series also saw the coming of age of Virat Kohli who resurrected his career with a brilliant 116 in the last test at Adelaide. This could not prevent India reeling to a 4th loss and a series whitewash. They also finished last in the tr-series also featuring Sri Lanka.

The 2014 test series was preceded by the one of the biggest tragedies in cricketing history. The young and promising life of Philip Hughes was cruelly cut short after he died following a head injury during a Sheffield shield match. The series was slightly delayed and itinerary rearranged as this extremely unfortunate event cast a pall of gloom. India almost pulled off a sensational win in the 1st test at Adelaide chasing 364 to win falling short by only 49 runs. Credit for this goes to Virat Kohli who scored a sensational 141 to add to his 115 in the first innings. Kohli also deputised as captain for the injured Dhoni, before taking over on a permanent basis after the 3rd test at Melbourne when Dhoni announced his retirement from test cricket. Murali Vijay was another big success scoring a century in the 2nd test as well as coming close to 3 figures on two other occasions with 99 &  80. India drew the last 2 tests after  losses at Adelaide & Brisbane. India had a disappointing tri-series featuring England, losing 3 of the 4 matches. They also failed to defend the world cup held in Australia in 2015, losing convincingly to the hosts in the semis after a promising run including a quarter-final win over Pakistan.

India created history during the 2018-19 tour by finally winning a test series in Australia 2-1. The biggest hero from an Indian point of view was Cheteshwar Pujara who ended with 3 centuries including a brilliant 199 in the last test at Sydney. He was ably supported by Kohli, debutant Mayank Agarwal & the young Rishabh Pant who also got a century in the last test when India scored a mammoth 622 for 7 in the 1st innings. Bumrah was sensational with the ball and was ably supported by Shami & Kuldeep Yadav. India also won the ODI series that followed the tests 2-1 ending possibly one of their best ever overseas tours. The only slight disappointment was the absence of Warner & Smith who were serving their suspension due to the ball tampering incident in South Africa. This should not detract from the merit of India’s performance.

It has been bit of a roller coaster ride for the Indian team down under over the years. In the same vein, they had a fairly rough start in the ODI series this time, salvaging some pride in the last match after losing the series. However they made up with a brilliant 2-1 victory in the T20s, which saw a new star in the horizon in the form of the debutant T.Natarajan. Kohli who was in top form in the T20s, will be missed both as a captain and batsman when he is away on paternity leave after the 2nd test. The experience of Pujara and Rahane will be needed in the absence of Kohli. India will also be hoping that the younger batsmen like Mayank Agarwal and Shubman Gill make a substantial contribution. Ishant Sharma who has been a star against Austraia will also be sadly missed, but hopefully Bumrah and Shami  will repeat their performance from last time. Fans on both sides will be hoping that this rivalry which is the next biggest after the Ashes lives up to its billing.

[msrm123456-blog]

Police find no evidence to link Radhe Maa to dowry harassment case

Can’t name her as she is not blood relative: charge sheet

The India Express Written by Srinath Rao | Mumbai | Updated: October 17, 2016

In statements recorded in May, Kaur’s aides — Punjab natives Ritu Sareen alias Chhoti Maa and Gaurav Kumar alias Talli Baba — have accused Nikki of lying and attempting to malign Kaur’s reputation.

The Mumbai Police have found no proof that self-proclaimed god woman Shri Radhe Maa egged on six members of a family to physically assault a 32-year-old woman over dowry demands. Her name has thus been dropped as an accused in the charge sheet filed last month.

The police’s 230-page charge sheet names Nakul Gupta, his father Daulat Gupta, mother Lata Gupta, brother Sandeep Gupta, sister-in-law Jyoti Gupta and uncle Jagmohan Gupta for domestic violence, demanding dowry, criminal breach of trust, criminal intimidation, cheating, voluntarily causing hurt, insult and common intention.

They have been accused by Nakul’s wife Nikki Gupta of cheating her family of Rs 1.25 crore in expenses during her engagement, wedding, dowry and alleged gifts to Shri Radhe Maa, alias Sukhvinder Kaur, in 2012.

Nakul and his family have been accused of demanding Rs 65 lakh more from Nikki to purchase an apartment.

The charge sheet, however, states that Kaur cannot be charged with domestic violence as she is not a blood relative of the Gupta family. The police have also found no evidence to suggest that Nikki’s in-laws illegally confiscated her belongings at Kaur’s behest.

However, in statements recorded in May, Kaur’s aides — Punjab natives Ritu Sareen alias Chhoti Maa and Gaurav Kumar alias Talli Baba — have accused Nikki of lying and attempting to malign Kaur’s reputation.

Both have stated that they are the only two individuals who care for Kaur, and that no one else is allowed to do so.

“Nikki Gupta never visited our house alone. So where does the question of her being forced to sweep the floors arise?” their statements read.

They have also told the police that Kaur has never declared herself to be a ‘god’ and instead urges her disciples to worship God.

Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/police-find-no-evidence-to-link-radhe-maa-to-dowry-harassment-case-2910259/

[alwaysfirst]

Jeete raho, khush raho: Katrina Kaif showers blessings on 'devar' Sunny Kaushal

Sep 28, 2022 13:25 IST Mumbai (Maharashtra) , September 28 (AF): Actress Katrina Kaif penned a sweet birthday wish for brother-in-law Sunny Kaushal. Taking to Instagram, Katrina dropped an adorable picture from her wedding festivities with Vicky Kaushal. In the image, Sunny is seen bowing before his bhabhi Katrina and Vicky, who stood near them kept one of his hands on Sunny's back and held Katrina with the other. "Jeete raho , khush raho," Katrina captioned the post, adding a cake and smiling emoji. The trio's image has garnered several likes and comments. Reacting to the post, Vicky commented, "Mere do anmol ratan." Katrina wore an orange ethnic outfit and wrapped a pink dupatta around her. Vicky was seen in a yellow and white outfit, while Sunny Kaushal was dressed in a black outfit. Both Katrina and Vicky had white garlands around their neck. Vicky, too, posted a cute wish for brother Sunny on his birthday. "Happy Birthday to the most sarva gun sampan Kaushal! Love you," Vicky wrote on Instagram. Apart from the birthday note, Vicky shared a picture with Sunny. In the image, Vicky had his arm around Sunny. Like Vicky, Sunny is also an actor. He has worked in films such as 'Bhangra Paa Le', 'Hurdang' and 'Shiddat'. In the upcoming months, Sunny will be seen sharing screen space with Neetu Kapoor and Shraddha Srinath in 'Letters to Mr Khanna' film. (AF) Read the full article

[techminsolutions]

Better Harvests: Raising funds easier for agri-tech startups

Better Harvests: Raising funds easier for agri-tech startups

The innovation has also been the main attraction of other funds and venture development platforms. By Srinath Srinivasan In the last three years, agri-tech in India has seen increased attention from industrialists, accelerators, incubators and alternate fund investors apart from established venture capitalists. This is due to innovation in technology that enables addressing new challenges.…

[indianarrative1]

Small rocket maker Agnikul Cosmos Private Ltd is looking at overseas rocket ports to launch its rocket with small satellites apart from the Indian rocket launch centers, said a top company official.

“Our first preference is to use Indian rocket ports at Sriharikota or the upcoming one at Kulasekarapattinam in Tamil Nadu (both belonging to the Indian Space Research Organisation). If the customer prefers the launch to happen from some other country, we will ship the rocket and launch from there,” Srinath Ravichandran, co-founder and CEO Agnikul Cosmos Pvt Ltd, told IANS.

In July 2020, Agnikul signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Italian company Leaf Space for ground station services.

Ravichandran said the company has signed up with a launch port in South Australia and is exploring four to five launch ports across the world.

The company is hopeful of signing a satellite launch contract in 2021 and the debut launch of its rocket ‘Agnibaan’ is planned for 2022.

Towards roping in customers Agnikul has recently signed up with Germany based HOSTmi – a matchmaking platform between satellite owners and satellite launch companies.

“HOSTmi is supported by the European Space Agency to make it easy for European customers to have on-demand access to space,” Ravichandran said.

According to Ravichandran, Agnikul has already signed MoUs with several European customers – Deployables Cube, Alen Space, Innovative Solutions in Space, Nanoavionics A-A to launch their small satellite systems.

Speaking about the status of the Agnibaan rocket, he said the upper stage engine has been realized and work is on for realizing the first stage engine, which is bigger in size to give the necessary thrust during the initial stages of the rocket’s flight.

All the engines will be fired by semi-cryogenic fuel or simply put pure kerosene.

The rocket height will be 18 meters and it would weigh about 14 tons at liftoff and has a carrying capacity of 100 kg to low earth orbit (LEO).

“We will be integrating the rocket stages in a horizontal manner. Horizontal integration is not new for the industry. Our workshop is in IIT Madras Research Park. We will be needing additional space,” Ravichandran said.

While there is no certifying agency for satellite launchers, Ravichandran said the company has asked ISRO to review its engine.

“Having now completed multiple engine firings and igniter hot-fire tests, we are now gearing up to a full-blown semi-cryogenic engine hot-fire test in the coming months,” he remarked.

Agnikul will buy commercially available navigation systems and modify them to its needs.

According to Ravichandran, the global micro, nano and small satellite (satellites weighing 1kg to 150kg) launch market is estimated to be about $2-$3 billion per year.

About 500 satellites are being launched across the world and the carrying rate is about $40,000 per kg for low earth orbit.

Presently, small satellites are carried as piggyback luggage by bigger rockets. Thus, the waiting time for small satellite makers to put their satellites into orbit is very long.

While small rocket players may face competition from agencies having bigger rockets in terms of pricing, Ravichandran said the satellite players will have to look at the opportunity cost of waiting for space in a bigger rocket whereas it may not be so with players like Agnikul.

He said Agnikul has raised $4 million in two rounds of funding to date.

[liveindiatimes]

Wasim Akram ranks Sachin Tendulkar 5th in his list of top batsmen, gives reason for his choice - cricket

https://liveindiatimes.com/wasim-akram-ranks-sachin-tendulkar-5th-in-his-list-of-top-batsmen-gives-reason-for-his-choice-cricket/

Former Pakistan captain and arguably the best left-arm paceman to have played the sport of cricket, Wasim Akram, has given his verdict on the top five batsmen that he either bowled to or played along side. Akram’s former teammate Basit Ali invited the legend on his YouTube show and gave him names of five batsmen and asked Akram to rank them in terms of their overall ability in Test cricket.

Among those Akram picked the legendary West Indies batsman and former captain Sir Vivian Richards on the top spot.

Viv Richards

“If you talk about a batsman with an unmatched technique, charisma and someone who had a huge impact on the game, it is Sir Vivian Richards. I have played against all the greats from mid-eighties to the nineties to the 2000s, but Viv Richards was a class apart,” Akram said.

Also Watch | ‘My brother & coach’: Sachin Tendulkar reveals the two most important people of his life

  ALSO READ: People talk about Glenn McGrath but Javagal Srinath was right up there: Parthiv Patel

Sachin Tendulkar

He then spoke about Indian batting talisman Sachin Tendulkar. Akram said he can’t talk much about Sachin as he and his fast bowling partner Waqar Younis didn’t get a chance to bowl at Sachin in Test cricket when they were at the peak of their respective careers. 

“I am keeping Tendulkar aside from this list because we didn’t play Test cricket against him for 10 years. Waqar and I didn’t bowl to him for ten years in Test matches. He came to Pakistan in 1989 as a 16-year old and after that we played against him in 1999. 

“I bowled at him at Sharjah in ODIs but Test cricket is different. No doubt he is one of the greats of the game but as a bowler I didn’t bowl to him in my peak and that is why it is difficult for me to judge him,” Akram opined.

ALSO READ: Rahul Dravid one step ahead of all Indian batsmen in terms of technique: Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif

Martin Crowe

He went on to pick former New Zealand captain, the late Martin Crowe, in the second spot.

“At number two I will put Martin Crowe because of his sheer technique. At a time when the world had no idea about how to face reverse swing, he played against us. It was a series where Waqar picked up 30 wickets in three matches and I picked up 16 wickets in one and a half matches as I got injured. Crowe had scored two centuries in that series. 

“After the series I asked him how did you play me and Waqar so well. He said ‘I played you and Waqar on the front foot when you guys are bowling in swingers and I didn’t follow the ball that was swinging away and hence I didn’t edge it,” Akram said while remembering his conversation with Crowe.

Also Read | I asked my wife ‘why did you cry’: Rohit Sharma recalls emotional moment after third double century

Brian Lara

He went on to pick Brian Lara in the third spot and said that the West Indian was a difficult batsman to bowl at as he was never settled in the crease.

“At number three I will put ‘the prince’, Brian Lara. He was a quality batsman. He was very different and odd to bowl at. His bat would come from various directions. He was never settled and it was difficult to bowl to him,” Akram said.

Inzamam-ul-Haq

Akram picked his former teammate Inzamam-ul-Haq in the fourth spot and kept Sachin Tendulkar at number five. For both Inzamam and Sachin, Akram said that he hadn’t bowled to either in the longer format much and hence he won’t be able to judge them as a bowler.

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Looking to the experts

New Post has been published on https://apzweb.com/looking-to-the-experts/

Looking to the experts

For the migrant workers in the state, the government has set up 218 camps where 9,695 persons have been sheltered.

Show the light: CM Jagan

For the Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy-led Andhra Pradesh government, containing COVID-19 became a complex challenge after the realisation that 90 per cent of the recent positive cases have not been linked to foreign returnees, but those who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi and their contacts. Still, the state is striving to stay on top of the situation with real-time data gathering. And it is using the nascent village secretariat system set up last year for this. Ward and village volunteers, along with auxiliary nurse midwives and ASHA workers, have already surveyed 12.8 million of the 14.5 million households in the state to identify those with COVID-19 symptoms, enabling swift action and strict vigil.

A total of 27,876 foreign returnees identified since February 10 and the 80,896 people they came in contact with are under surveillance. For the migrant workers in the state, the government has set up 218 camps where 9,695 persons have been sheltered.

Realising the need for expertise, Reddy, apart from having medical graduate-turned-bureaucrat P.V. Ramesh as an advisor in the chief minister’s office, has roped in K. Srinath Reddy, president, Public Health Foundation of India, to guide the state’s response.

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Startups are helping city buyers invest in farm plots, agro-forests - real estate

As realty prices rise in the cities, there is growing interest in farmland on the edges of metropolitan areas. Some want it so they can do their own organic farming, others use it as a second home and rent it out to holidays as a means of income, still others just want an affordable investment, and some are using the land to plan their retirement homes.Farmland is typically more affordable. And with the promise that metropolitan regions will grow, and make your investment worth exponentially more, there are start-ups now offering to help you make the switch to farmland, from the paperwork to the managing of the plot and eventual sale.New directionIt is not an easy switch to make, going from urban to rurban or rural. Acquiring farmland alone can take years, and in some states is not really an option unless you can show that you have an agricultural background.“The rules relating to the owning of agricultural land differ from state to state,” says Manish Ramjiyani, managing committee member of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India - Maharashtra Chamber of Housing Industry (CREDAI-MCHI).For instance, it is very difficult to buy a farmland in Maharashtra if you are not from an agricultural background. Whereas that is not the case with states such as Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. “Over time, as a city expands and the urban limits end up absorbing the villages on the outskirts, people tend to invest in plots on the periphery. But this too should be a considered decision, because if the metro does not come close enough, land prices may not appreciate, and could even be seen to depreciate over time.”That’s what has happened with Venkatakrishnan, 56, from Mumbai. He invested in 3 acres on Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) in Chennai, a city that is fast expanding and including peripheral areas in the greater city limits. “The idea was that the value of this plot would appreciate greatly when the locality turns into a buzzing place with people renting and building homes here,” he says. “That hasn’t happened, and now I want to sell it but I cannot find a buyer. Rates too haven’t appreciated as I had expected.”OutsourcedTo help navigate the paperwork and minimise the risks and hassles of maintenance, startups such as Beforest and Hosachiguru have begun setting up and running agro-forest and agricultural communities, most of them on the outskirts of metro cities.Bengaluru-based Hosachiguru describes itself as an agricultural asset management company. “We choose our areas based on several parameters,” says co-founder Srinath Setty. “Water availability, land fertility, soil quality and investor budget.”Apart from fruits, vegetables, they also grow timber and guests can earn from the produce; all they do is invest the initial capital, and pay annual maintenance fees.Set up in 2018, Beforest entered real estate with the idea of selling land, managing the farms of buyers and creating a community that lives amid agro-forests and farmlands. “I was planning to invest in a farm. But the return on investment was not much and managing it seemed very hard,” says Sunith Reddy. “I met many friends who had similar views in investing and that’s when we started the firm.”The objective, Reddy adds, was to make owning farmland viable. “We create collectives of 30 to 40 buyers per plot. We have such collectives in Bengaluru, Coorg and Hyderabad. This makes the entire concept cost-effective when compared to one individual dealing with the hassles and spending huge amounts on maintenance.”Kranti Vanga, 35, a business consultant, owns 2 acres of farmland in Anthappaguda village, 50 km from Hyderabad. He lived for three years, indulging his passion for organic farming. “Buying the plot was not difficult, but issues can follow later,” he says. Documentation, registration, and if you are living somewhere else, lack of security, are key potential issues. If there is any encroachment, it becomes very difficult to reclaim the plot entirely.So when he bought his second such plot last year, it was a patch of agro-forest in Coorg — a house with a farm forest around it that he plans to use as a holiday home — run by Beforest.“This place is so different from what I have back in Hyderabad. I am in middle of dense greenery, we take part in coffee harvesting, go on trails through the coffee estates, and there’s none of the hassle and stress of managing a farm yourself,” he says. “This trend is still in its nascent stage,” says Samson Arthur, Hyderabad branch director at Knight Frank India, a realty research firm. “With affordable housing, there is demand for farmland. With the slump in urban realty and the costs still remaining inflated, people are turning towards this sector due to its long-term benefits. However, it is just the beginning now and land policies of the state has a bigger role to play in the growth of this sector,” he says. Read the full article

[evalin8]

What is agricultural land management?

Land management is a process where the land is managed and used for the development of land resources. These developments are taken after considering the urban and rural settings in and around the land. While developing any piece of land, the resources are used for a variety of purposes that includes reforestation, organic agriculture, eco-tourism projects and water resource management.

While land management refers to managing the land to optimally use the resource in and around the land, agricultural land management is to devote the land for agricultural purposes. Typically, agricultural land is devoted to agriculture, controlled and systematic use of other forms of life, particularly rearing the production of crops and livestock in order to produce food for humans. In other words, agricultural land is synonyms with cropland, farmland, rangeland and pasture.

In India, the concept of agricultural land management is relatively new, inviting only a couple of companies to work towards it. Hosachiguru, a start-up based out of Bangalore, India has been dedicatedly working towards preserving the farming in India by reviving it with a brand new concept.

It was in 2006 when Ashok Jayanthi and Sriram Chitlur decided to giveaway what nature has been giving to mankind. After learning more and more about agriculture in India for years, Jayanthi and Chitlur were joined by Srinath Setty, the third partner, and together they initiated Hosachiguru in 2013. The word ‘Hosachiguru’ is derived from Kannada language where ‘Hosa’ refers to new while ‘Chiguru’ refers to ‘Shoot’.

Since 2013, Hosachiguru has been ideating and developing projects that offer farmlands to the customers which are well managed by the Hosachiguru team. Soon after, a period of unprecedented growth unfolded before the team. They started to manage a couple of farmlands while brainstorming on how the food that was being produced so sustainably could reach a wider market.

Since 2013, Hosachiguru has delivered numerous projects. To name a few: Bristlecone, Nature’s Springs, Green Gold Farms, Green Alpha Farms, Arrow Farms, EOS Farms, Beta Farms, Green Meadows Farms, Green Rock Farms, Urban Harvest Farms, Urban Harvest-Kalpi Farms, Manvi Hosachiguru Farms and Krishna Hosachiguru Fig Farms. While these have been completed, the company is currently working on projects like Abhivrudhi and Eco Habitat.

Abhivrudhi, which is located 90 mins away from Bangalore International Airport, is a sustainable farmland project that focuses on creating prosperity and wealth. This project is certain to leave an impeccable impact on the environment while offering farmland to customers, which will serve long term wealth generation opportunities and weekend homes. Additionally, the project is equipped with around 5000 mango trees of multiple varieties such as Alphonso, Badam, and Mallika. Most of these trees are more than 7 years old, which ensures the proper bearing of fruits.

Apart from this, the team is engaged in Eco Habitat, whichis located on the state highway of Hindupur. This project offers a unique opportunity to the customers to connect back with nature while creating wealth for themselves and leaving a positive impact on society.

With all these projects and ample years of experience, Hosachiguru is mastering the art of agricultural land management. The team is now providing improved, highly productive and profitable yields to existing farm owners. The company is evolving the process of land management with appropriate technology in operations, drip design, land preparation, fertigation management, irrigation management, weeding, pruning, etc.

Most of the projects developed by Hosachiguru are located within 30 to 90 mins drive from Bangalore International Airport. If you want to know more about the current project, you must check Hosachigur’s web page or meet in person with the team. The team also assists its customers in buying a piece of land within their projects!

[alknkritashaarma-blog]

Customer Testimonial Video - Provident Neora - Anuradha & Srinath

Anuradha & Srinath firmly believe Provident Neora is an excellent investment. They've purchased an apartment at the project as a second investment. We welcome them to our 10000+ strong Provident Family. #TooGoodHomes

[pinkvilla]

Milan Talkies Movie Review: Ali Fazal and Shraddha Srinath starrer is a staple romantic masala flick

Milan Talkies Movie Cast: Ali Faizal, Shraddha Srinath, Ashutosh Rana, Tigmanshu Dhulia, SanjaiMishra 

Milan Talkies Movie Director: Tigmanshu Dhulia

Milan Talkies Movie Ratings: 3/5

Tigmanshu Dhulia who earlier directed movies from various genres fares well at his attempt to make the romantic drama as he has smartly used the Bollywood masala movie formula for ideal results. The movie which set against the backdrop of the old-world charm is an ode to single-screen cinema and to the filmy public. But the movie is marred by predictability and few unrealistic and over-the-top scenes.

Speaking of the plot, the first few minutes into the movie and a sense of deja vu will surely strike you as the story is about a boy meets a girl and are apart because of goons and parents and how they reunite is what we have seen in many movies. So, Tigmanshu who said that the movie will showcase unconventional and unique love story completely fails to deliver it. Apart from the love story, there are a lot of things going on with Dhulia giving a shout out to several social messages such as rampant exam cheating in small towns among others.

Ali Fazal's role mirrors every girl's desired boyfriend who loves his girlfriend whole-heartedlyand would do anything to be with her. The major takeaway is Dhulia himself who plays Fazal's cool filmy dad. His role is different from what he has played in the past and it is one of the major highlights of the movie.  

Keeping the misses aside, right from crackling chemistry of Ali and Shraddha to funny scenes, there are a good number of moments to treasure. Tigmanshu gets full marks for the casting as the same is a triumph for the makers. Along with the female and male leads, the supporting cast of the movie which includes Ashutosh Rana, Sanjay Mishra, Sikander Kher among others have really enhanced the movie with their terrific performances. 

Despite a predictable plot, it impresses because of good dialogues, amazing cast, andcinematography. In a nutshell, the movie has all the elements of a commercial movie with this year's Holi anthem in it. So, yes it is a staple masala flick and fans of such movies can go for it. But those who are not a fan of romantic dramas should give it a miss.

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[brajeshupadhyay]

Coronavirus Outbreak: This pandemic threatens to overwhelm India’s health care system

By Puja Changoiwala

About a week after returning from Thailand on 4 March, 26-year-old television producer Rajlakshmi Upadhyaya visited the government-run Kasturba Hospital in Mumbai to get herself tested for possible COVID-19 infection. After being admitted for the day while waiting for the test results, she noticed two big bags of garbage inside the makeshift coronavirus ward. The bathroom was unclean, and she had to walk on dirty floors to get to it. It was five hours before she could get water, and when the food arrived — rice, lentils, and beans — she glanced at it and decided against eating it.

As Upadhyaya awaited her test results, she was given some tablets. When she asked what they were, she was told not to worry, and not to ask questions. Having lived in Mumbai for a while, the rundown condition of the government facility did not alarm her. But she said she noticed a Spanish girl who was “definitely uncomfortable.” The girl did not want to sit on the hospital bed, or use the sheets, and stayed on her feet for more than 11 hours.

The ward housed 20 to 25 suspected patients, who were kept two beds apart, according to Upadhyaya. “That’s just stupid because even if one of us is infected, there’s the fear of infecting others,” she said. When her test results arrived, they were negative. The hospital prescribed some medicines, she said, “but did not specify how many times I was supposed to take them, or what they were. I was really happy to just leave, so I didn’t bother.”

As the COVID-19 pandemic begins making its way through India — the country has documented 358 deaths and more than 10,500 confirmed cases so far according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center, though these are sure undercounts — reports of overcrowding and unsanitary conditions in state-run testing and quarantine centres have been multiplying. Patients with COVID-19 symptoms, many who had previously travelled abroad, are reportedly abandoning state-run isolation wards — including 11 patients who fled from a government facility in Navi Mumbai. This could help the virus spread, further threatening the country’s already inadequate public health infrastructure.

Until recently, India had only 111 COVID-19 testing centres to handle a population of 1.35 billion people. The number of beds in government-run quarantine facilities across the country, meanwhile, is about 60,000. As a result, most patients have been relying on understaffed and underfunded state-run facilities like Kasturba Hospital for COVID-19 diagnosis and treatment.

Faced with a looming surge of COVID-19 cases, the government recently urged private hospitals to begin admissions and roped in 35 private laboratories across the country to conduct coronavirus tests. This came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on 23 March, announced a 21-day national lockdown to contain the spread of the virus. Presumably aware of the plight of the public health care system, Modi also committed $ two billion to boost infrastructure through increased availability of testing facilities, isolation beds, ICU beds, ventilators, and other necessary tools.

And the government is taking a no-holds-barred approach to containing the pathogen: In India’s first police complaint registered over the pandemic, a man in Agra was charged for a “negligent and malignant act to spread infection of disease dangerous to life.” The man had refused to share his daughter’s whereabouts with medical authorities a couple of days after she allegedly tested positive and fled from a state-run hospital, partly due to its unhygienic conditions, although a relative disputed the account. The charge can lead to two years in prison.

But many Indians have taken to social media, sharing pictures of abysmal conditions at government facilities, including choked, overflowing toilets and the absence of medical personnel to guide patients through diagnosis and treatment. An online petition, which called out the unhygienic conditions in quarantine centres across the country, garnered more than 100,000 signatures. Rhea Bhalla, who was quarantined at a government facility in New Delhi after returning from Spain on March 16, wrote: “The most difficult part of the night was not being able to use the washroom. I felt tortured, like a prisoner. When I demanded that we should at least be given water to drink, they asked us to drink directly from [bathroom] taps which had no water in them.”

Mahrokh Irani, a research associate at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, wrote in an email to Undark that India’s public health system is chronically plagued by poor sanitation, nutrition, drinking water, and access to care. “It is a disaster in the making,” she wrote, adding that the “system is not prepared to handle the full onslaught of Covid-19.”

“Many hospitals in India are already overcrowded, understaffed, and lack resources,’’ she added. “In addition to this, the public trust in the system is low and from my experience, people are already hesitant to access the public health system. Sick people are not going to come forward because they are not convinced that the system can help them if they are unwell."

According to the most recent government data, India spent only 1.28 percent of its GDP on health in 2017-18, compared to nearly 18 percent in the United States, and far lower than neighbouring countries, including Indonesia (1.4 percent) and Sri Lanka (1.68 percent). Global health experts say that given the paltry expenditure, India does not have the infrastructure or financial capability to tackle a large public health disaster. There are also severe shortages of medical staff and supplies throughout India, which further limits access to care, said Irani.

“India lacks universal health coverage,” wrote Irani. “Private spending is shockingly high — out of pocket expenditure is a whopping 70 percent of total spending. Millions of Indians are faced with impoverishment every year because of catastrophic health care costs.”

She added that India does have some “world-class speciality institutes that provide great quality care.” However, the cost is too high for the vast majority of the population: “In my opinion, this is only exacerbating the economic disparity and creating a wide chasm within the fabric of society.”

Anant Bhan, global health, bioethics and health policy researcher affiliated with the Kasturba Medical College in Manipal, said that although India does not have as many positive COVID-19 cases as some other countries — including more than 172,000 in Spain and more than 582,000 in the United States — the situation could rapidly escalate and overburden the health care system. It could worsen even further if suspected COVID-19 patients continue to flee state-run hospitals, increasing the threat of wider infection.

“We don’t have that scale of availability of patient beds or ICU beds, or ventilators, which might be required if the worst-case scenario happens,” said Bhan. “We actually might not have enough even in the private sector, even if we try to involve them.”

India has already started reporting cases in which doctors treating COVID-19 patients have tested positive for the virus. Experts fear that the shortage of personal protective equipment for health care workers such as gloves, medical masks, gowns, and aprons, will lead to more cases among medical staff.

“The public health system in India is anyway under-resourced, both from infrastructure and staffing sides — it could be a double-whammy in that sense,” said Bhan, adding that routine health care functions are also likely to be affected when resources are diverted to COVID-19 treatment. “If suddenly there are shortages of medications, we could also see downstream repercussions which are not COVID-19-related, but are probably due to the health system being overstretched.”

Testing is another major concern. As of April 5, India had performed a little over 100,000 tests — a rate of nearly 47 tests per million people compared with 4,572 tests per million in the U.S., 2,753 tests per million in the U.K, and 8,800 per million in South Korea. “At present, India is not adequately testing to identify new cases, which might be masking the true number,” wrote Irani.

India’s health care system has evolved by default rather than design, said Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation of India, a nonprofit health initiative. This, he said, is primarily because the Indian government has incentivized the private sector over the public health system over the past few decades.

The government’s decision to encourage private sector expansion has attracted the investment of $3.4 billion from private equity investors between 2007 and 2017. Although private health care costs four times more than public health care in India, 72 percent of the population in rural areas and 79 percent in urban areas use private health care services, which are seemingly more reliable. According to a survey of 184 nations, Indians stood sixth among the biggest out-of-pocket health spenders in the low-middle income group of 50 nations in 2014.

To control the Covid-19 pandemic, India must follow in the footsteps of Spain, which recently nationalized its private hospitals, said Dr Yogesh Jain, co-founder of the Jan Swasthya Sahyog, a nonprofit focused on improving public health in rural parts of the central India state of Chhattisgarh. The country is “sitting on a volcano,” he warned.

“Even things like giving kits to the private sector is an abdication of the state’s responsibility to manage an epidemic like this,’’ he added. “Epidemics are crisis points where you can reinvent yourselves and make it better for the future.”

Despite its overstretched public health care system, India did succeed in defeating polio and managing the recent outbreak of Nipah virus, which claimed 17 lives in the southern Indian state of Kerala in 2018. Jason Corburn, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health, wrote in an email to Undark that COVID-19 could be similarly confronted if the government decides to adopt a grassroots strategy.

“Meaningful community engagement where government and experts don’t treat local people as ignorant, but rather treat them as having a critical role to play in information sharing, influencing behavioural change, etc., is essential,” Corburn wrote.

Reddy believes the public and private health care systems must be coordinated to fight COVID-19. “But that is not a long-term solution,’’ he added. “The long-term solution is strengthening the district hospitals, medical college hospitals, and primary health care infrastructure. Unless there is a strong public sector, neither can we deliver universal health coverage, nor can we combat epidemics with the degree of effectiveness and equity that is needed.”

The government plays a crucial role as well, Irani noted. By spreading misinformation about the therapeutic benefits of homoeopathy, yoga, and cow urine, she wrote, Indian officials did significant damage in the initial days. “Even the last message by the Prime Minister was vague and lacked strong leadership,’’ she wrote. “Under these circumstances, I wouldn’t be surprised if the public loses faith, which means that people are not going to follow necessary measures like social distancing and abstaining from going to temples, schools, restaurants.”

Meanwhile, many Indians are struggling to navigate public and private options for COVID-19 treatment. On March 12, Ankit Gupta took to Twitter to highlight the “bad conditions with poor sanitation” and “reckless staff attitude” at Mumbai’s Kasturba Hospital, where a friend, Aakash Budhiraja, was being kept under observation at the state-run facility with 10 other patients. Gupta shared pictures of a stained washbasin and a cat inside the hospital ward.

Three days later, Budhiraja shared his experience directly. “Government hospitals are in general not very clean and that is not very ideal for our health care system, be it the time when [coronavirus] is spreading or any other regular day,” he wrote. “While the ward and washrooms were eventually cleaned, this should not be the situation in the first place itself. In fact, the frequency of cleaning should be ramped up to match the needs of the hour.”

This article was originally published on Undark. Read the original article.

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[cinemapremam]

I was really looking forward to this film because I loved the energy behind the original Hindi film, Pink & was excited to see Ajith and Shraddha Srinath onscreen together. However, looking at this trailer it seems like what should have been a female-centric film about rape culture & slut-shaming in the judicial system has transformed into a typical fan parade for Ajith. Now, I'm not trying to take away from Thala fans because I had the same issue with Amitabh's role in the original although apart from promotions I felt the screen time was effectively divided. But, the remake seems so focused on the Tamil icon, Ajith & painting him as a savior figure the two girls besides Shraddha barely get any space in even the trailer. I hope the film proves my perceptions wrong because consent is an important message but this issue shouldn't only be spouted by the men who "rescue" us, but the women who are affected by it consistently in society. We do not need male voices to speak for us but give us the platform & attention to speak for ourselves 🙌 https://www.instagram.com/p/ByvhNjXhymB/?igshid=1kjkdte37pv2k