HYDERABAD: Parcham and Hyderabad Urban Lab launched the book ‘The Queen, The Courtesan, The Doctor, and The Writer’ on Thursday. The book was written by Parcham Founder Member Sabah Khan and illustrated by Neelima P Aryan, and the launch took place at Lamakaan. The book presents inspiring stories of 52 Indian Muslim women and men who made immense contributions in various fields, including politics, law, education, and social awareness, including the rights of women and arts and culture. The foreword was written by journalist Javed Anand. 

The book tells the stories of Muslims who, with their extraordinary contributions, stand as inspirational icons for present and future generations. Some of these stories shed light on the lives of Ashfaqullah Khan, Azizun Nisa, Begums of Bhopal and many more. Each life story is complemented by a page-size illustration of the luminary on the side. 

The book marks the 10th anniversary of Parcham, an organisation that empowers marginalised communities and helps them access their fundamental rights. However, the story of Parcham interestingly started with a football initiative, where young girls from Mumbra, a suburb on the outskirts of Mumbai, were given training in professional football.  “If you are a Muslim living in a ghetto, you would spend your entire life without having to interact with a non-muslim. The girls, especially, remain confined within the walls of their homes and even if they go to schools, they are never able to move beyond those narrow passages. Football is a space where these barriers are broken. It being a team game, Muslim and non-Muslim girls play alongside each other,” said Sabah Khan. 

While both society and media were appalled by the organisation's efforts to bring Muslim girls out on football fields, Sabah Khan said that it also helped them challenge the narrative of what activism means in Muslim space. “Usually we used to get to hear sob stories of violence, divorce, Muslim personal laws and all. But with this initiative, the focus was on questions like, ‘why am I not outside, claiming my right of being in the city, why am I not visible?’” she said. 

The organisation has been training girls for the past 10 years and some of them have now become coaches and started their teams. Talking about her own experience of being in the group, Aarti Melkeri recalls how they had to fight at each step, just to be able to play. “We have to go and talk to parents to tell them that social boundaries do not overpower the dreams of their daughters. In addition to that, there have been instances where we got into physical fights with boys. Thankfully, we have the support of the local police,” said 20-year-old Aarti who started playing when she was 10 and now heads a team as a coach.  

Sabah Khan also mentioned that after the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA), Muslims have been forced to ‘prove’ their identity as an Indian and are often asked whether they are Muslim or Indian first. With that, the organisation began conversations around identity and citizenship, which includes developing empathy, thought and knowledge of one’s constitutional rights and responsibilities. 

The present book took shape from a collection of five eminent personalities whose life stories were published in the form of diaries and Parcham got a positive response from buyers.  Telling the story of Hajrah bee, a radical feminist who divorced her husband on accounts of unmatching outlooks, went to London to have an education and then came back and married for love, Sabah said that the book is not only for non-Muslims but also for Muslims to remember their history and reclaim the contributions made by their ancestors. 

“One of the many interesting things happening around the cities is the creation of small museums and archives, which people are doing instinctively, with great intensity in cities across the country. It shows that the past is now becoming available as a very complex resource. We have to start telling our stories in different ways for us to be able to live meaningfully,” concluded Anant Maringanti, director of Hyderabad Urban Lab 

“It weren’t just the queens who fought for the Independence and cared for the welfare of the people, there were courtesans, too” said Sabah Khan, who launched her book ‘The Queen, The Courtesan, The Doctor, The Writer’ at Lamakaan on Thursday

HYDERABAD:  Festivals are just excuses to enhance collective bonding and Ramzan ensures that no one sleeps hungry. It is a time when people of all religions care for people around them. “If you are an employee and want to order food for Iftaar, as a courtesy, you would order for everybody,” said Rubina Nafees Fatima, Founder and CEO of Safa organisation.  

If you are a busy working individual who struggles to find time for a wholesome meal, let alone a lavish Iftaar, Luqma’s Iftaar platter is a good option. This platter includes traditional Iftaar elements commonly found in Muslim households such as dates, seasonal fruits, dahi wada, samosas, chana dal (also known as Iftaari), and juice.

Conveniently priced at Rs 155, the platter serves the food needs of corporate employees, doctors and nurses at hospitals, children in schools and orphanages and the elderly in old age homes. With Safa taking in the responsibility of delivering the food before 5 pm, the younger population can find it suitable to break the dawn-to-dusk fast with friends and workmates, keeping the spirit of Ramzan intact despite odd work hours. 

Safa’s Luqma is run by women from underprivileged homes – most of them were left on their own without sufficient resources to make a meaningful living before they joined Safa. The organisation, which was founded 10 years ago, to provide support to people’s livelihoods and education, started Luqma, initially as a cloud kitchen, to enable women from the Vattapalli area to be able to make a living with their culinary skills. 

“The USP of Luqma is that it specialises in the traditional cuisine of Hyderabad. The idea was to bring some of the oldest recipes and home-cooked food to the market. We trained some 30-odd women under renowned chefs and then opened the kitchen for orders,” said Rubina. 

“We market our food in two ways, one is the pre-order menu and another is the ‘cheers to food charity’ menu, which is primarily for people who want to donate food to orphanages, hospitals, old age homes, etc. We have people from all over the world asking for food donations. This year, we have got 40 per cent more orders than usual. The key is that we don’t compromise on food quality so that the dignity in donating food remains intact,” she added. 

Keeping alive the spirit of Ramzan, Luqma distributes the same curated platter all over the city.  It provides the means and resources for people who would like to donate food but do not have the wherewithal to do it.  As opposed to watery dal and badly cooked rotis, one could rely on the quality of food provided by Luqma. 

Other options with Ramzan-centered delicacies available with Luqma are vegetarian and non-vegetarian thalis. The vegetarian one contains veg pulao, two rotis, mirch ka salan, raita and double ka meetha and is priced at Rs 199. The non-vegetarian thali costs `249 and has bagara rice, dalcha, Luqma chicken and salad. One could order a non-veg bowl too, with just rice and chicken curry for about Rs 229.

HYDERABAD: From the humble beginnings at Cyber Towers in 1999 to the dizzying heights of international success, the journey of today’s pTron is an inspiration for aspiring entrepreneurs everywhere. Ameen Khwaja, the CEO of pTron, shares how the company evolved, its products consistently meeting 
international standards and earning certifications, clearly paving the way into the real Make in India

Imagine this: the price of a wireless earbud in China is worth around Rs 250, which brands label as their own and sell at Rs 2,500. But pTron, an extension of Palred Electronics Private Limited, originally born as Four Soft firm at Cyber Towers in 1999, takes a different approach. It’s not solely focused on instant profit gratification and has big goals to make it all: Make In India. The brand has successfully delivered over 5 million Bluetooth earphones, smartwatches, and Bluetooth speakers, at affordable prices and, is the second most sought-after brand in the country, yet it’s not merely chasing numbers.

Every year, India imports $26.39 billion worth of electrical and electronic equipment. But not for long, as Hyderabad-based pTron has a different plan, and it’s working for good. Ameen Khwaja, the CEO of pTron, believes it’s all in the approach. He says, “Quality is the hallmark, values and adherence to the native land are precursors to excellence.” Ameen adds, “Of course, there are challenges. We already have a wide online presence and over 40 offline distributors covering almost all Tier I and II cities with over 250 service centres. We entered the market in 2014 and have made our presence felt since then; now, our focus is on making it all Indian.”

With a growing network of distributors, pTron expanded its reach to international markets, including the United States, Hong Kong, Israel, and Indonesia, shares the CEO. As pTron ventured into offline distribution and retail channels, forging partnerships with e-commerce giants like Amazon to sell their Xmate line of smart products. The company’s innovative approach and commitment to customer satisfaction propelled it to the forefront of the IT supply chain management market, rivalling even the most established multinational brands. “Our products are always valued for money; they are not cheap per sae because we are transitioning from China to India and are striving to be better,” Ameen said.

Established in 2014, pTron, a mobile accessories brand, quickly gained a reputation for offering high-quality products at competitive prices, catering to the mid-market segment. Initially, pTron’s accessories were manufactured in China, but as the brand grew, it developed a strong and loyal customer base.

“There are many things we cannot make in India, and for a few more years, we will have to rely on China and Taiwan. When we first started, we were labelling and selling products manufactured based on our standards. Later, we began ordering different components from different manufacturers and assembling them. Soon, we will make it. Yes! Make in India,” says Ameen.

“Our journey has been difficult; it started with Stanford Graduate Srikanth Reddy (who passed away two years ago). He had already made Hyderabad’s mark in the tech world with Four Soft in 1999. However, after selling the business to a UK-based firm in 2013, he was hungry for a new challenge. That’s when I joined him, and Palred Technologies entered the burgeoning e-commerce market with LatestOne, a platform that sold computer peripherals and digital device accessories. Now, it’s pTron that is set to make its mark.”

HYDERABAD: Seven Sisters, a quaint cafe located on Road No 12, Banjara Hills with blue interiors and cute decors is where the lanterns are seen covered in baskets. A pink tree which makes the entire look of the cafe so vibrant and not to forget their roots; whom they worship, Lord Buddha. A glimpse of the names of the north-eastern states are very interestingly put up with a twist of foreign countries mentioned too which are dangled up on the wall namingly Bhutan/ Philippines, Singapore/ Meghalaya, China/ Arunachal Pradesh, Thailand/ Mizoram, Myanmar/Manipur, S-Korea/ Sikkim, Vietnam/ Assam, Japan/ Nagaland, Tripura/ KPG and Nepal/ Darjeeling.  

“We serve the most authentic himalayan north east food at the Seven Sisters with varied dishes ranging from regular momos, dimsums, baos to ramen,” explained Phira War, the Assistant Restaurant Manager.

We started our experience of tasting with Veg Chilli Basil Dimsum which is the most talked about and the taste was unbeatable. We moved onto the next one, Veg Jhol Momo which is a traditional Nepali momo served with spicy timbur and peanut based curry or soup which is popularly known as jhol or achar. Our next pick was an authentic Tibetan dish Veg Phaley prepared with bread stuffed with veggies. 

The next two dishes were very prepared by the Chef himself namely, Chef’s Special Sushi and Nepali Pizza. The cheese was stuffed beautifully and blended well with avocado as the toppings along with a dash of green wasabi. The latter had a minimalist appeal but it was mouth-watering. All in all the special dishes were finger-licking good. 

Next, we got our hands on Lotus Steam Bao Bun which was tweaked with teriyaki sauce and mayonnaise sauce; served in a bao bun. The dish was topped with a lotus stem for the flavour and it tasted and looked pleasing. The dish and the taste looked very pleasing. 

The tale of Seven Sisters comes to an end with the most explored dish, the Burmese dish, Khao Suey. A dish where all the core ingredients to mix were served with a coconut curry to dilute those noodles and to give them a touch. After adding the ingredients — coriander, basil leaf, bird’s eye chili, green chili, spring green onions, white sauce, peanut sauce, garlic fry, onion fry and lemon — the dish looks complete and is ready to eat. For those who are a sucker of authentic himalayan food and are wanting to embrace the other side of India are welcomed with open hands by the warmest staff. 

HYDERABAD: All over the world, street food is what makes a city vibrant and to savour the bursting flavour bombs, tourists flock in huge numbers around the year. In Hyderabad too, not only the locals celebrate street food, tourists come in looking forward to grabbing a bite of the delicacies. Keeping that in mind, two friends — one born Hyderabadi and another who made the city his home — Abhinav Rodda and Deepak Gosar — thought of bringing together the best of both the worlds of street food and cafe with Belly Baba.

Talking about how it all began, Deepak says, “I am basically from Mumbai and I have grown up having street food there like Vada Pav. In Hyderabad, even though it is available, the authentic taste is missing. With Belly Baba I wanted to bring the authentic Mumbai street food flavours with a twist.” With both the founders having a background in the food industry, they researched before coming up with the outlet in East Marredpally. “This side of the city lacks a proper cafe that serves good street food. So we thought it would be apt to start here,” says Abhinav. 

After this quick chat, we concentrated on our chaat options and started with two cool drinks — Shikanji mojito and Yuzu mojito. Both the drinks were refreshing and made us all charge up to continue our gastronomic journey. Next, we tasted the Vada Pav and we could understand the difference from others. The potato stuffing was brimming with flavours and the chutney’s tanginess made each bite enjoyable.

Italian Puff, Bombay Grilled Sandwich, Spicy Paneer Wrap were the other dishes we tried from the menu.  We focused our attention on the main dishes next. We tasted Pav Bhaji, Tawa Khichdi and Veg Alfredo Pasta. All the three dishes were delicious. Our next focus was two innovative dishes from the menu — Basket Chaat and Chinese Bhel. While the basket was made of fried potato, the bhel was made from fried noodles topped with chutneys and yogurt. We finished our meal with Mahabaleshwar’s favourite Strawberry with cream. “We will replace strawberries with other seasonal fruits like mango as the month progresses,” shared Deepak. 

If you are a fan of all things chaat and want a place to hang out with friends and family in this hot summer, then Belly Baba is the place. The yellow interiors with huge mirrors and windows looking onto the street makes it an ideal place to sit and relax and enjoy fusion street food.

HYDERABAD: Haleem: The city’s a nourishing medley of wheat, pulses, and meat, is a veritable feast that stands on its own, requiring no accompaniment. But does it possess a taste that sets it apart from the other four known tastes? According to food bloggers and scientists alike, it indeed does, and that’s what makes it truly unique. “Haleem is brimming with umami, a fifth taste that tantalises the taste buds in a way that sweet, sour, salty, and bitter could never achieve,” explains food blogger Zubair Ali, though he cannot pinpoint the exact reason why.

Praveen Kumar, a researcher at the Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology, notes that umami is a hotly debated taste within the scientific community.

“Umami is the savoury taste of glutamate, which is found in meat protein when mixed with proteins of other grains, constituents of haleem. The taste adds depth and complexity to the overall flavour profile of the dish, it stays for longer than any other of the four tastes in the mouth for it leaves a coating of sensation over the tongue,” says Praveen.

Haleem is a harmonious blend of slow-cooked grains and tender meat. Its foundation is embellished with an array of aromatic spices, such as cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves, which unfurl their unique flavours, creating an intricate, evocative tapestry of tastes as they engage the taste buds.

He adds, “There is also a Maillard reaction that occurs between plant and meat protein amino acids, creating a wide variety of flavour compounds. The caramelisation of onion and other spices compounds adds depth to the dish, providing a sweet and slightly bitter taste. Also, there is gelatinisation of starch-containing starch granules present in wheat and other lentils that swell and gelatinise when heated in the presence of water.”

Zubair Ali says that slow cooking also contributes to umamification. He says, “There’s only one middle eastern dish that is full of umami besides haleem and that is khichada which has haleem-like consistency but is made up of chunks of meat rather than shreds seen in haleem.”

Sweet, sour, salty, and bitter — these four sensations have long been considered the cornerstones of our gustatory experiences. However, none of them offers a taste as enduring, as mouthwatering, and as enveloping as the elusive fifth taste known as ‘umami’. CE delves into the fascinating chemistry of umami, which can be found in full force during Ramzan in Hyderabad’s haleem

HYDERABAD: T-Works and Qualcomm India Pvt. Ltd. entered into a grant agreement to establish a unique multilayer printed circuit board (PCB) fabrication facility at T-Works. The facility will enable rapid fabrication of up to 12-layer boards to accelerate electronic product prototyping and development.

Sujai Karampuri, CEO T-Works said, “We are making Telangana, and indeed India, the preferred manufacturing destination for electronics. Electronics is at the heart of modern technology and the PCB prototyping facility will enable entrepreneurs to build high-tech products, allowing global brands to be launched from India.”

Speaking about the collaboration, Shashi Reddy, VP, Engineering, Qualcomm India Private Limited said, “We are extremely happy to collaborate with T-Works for this pioneering project. As a leading technology company, we understand the need for such facilities to drive innovation. We also understand that not everyone will have the same kind of reach and resources that we have.”

Qualcomm India is supporting this initiative as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility programme. This initiative aligns with several programmes driven by Qualcomm across the country aimed at enabling and supporting design and innovation in India.

Electronics boards have been integral to products for several decades and quality PCB prototyping is needed to get from product idea to validation. It currently takes a PCB manufacturer anywhere between 10 to 15 days to fabricate an electronics board at certain minimum order quantities and first-time entrepreneurs could find it difficult to identify the right manufacturer for their needs. 

Through this facility, users will get quality PCBs at low volumes within a day. Educational and training programmes for students and professionals will also be conducted here. 

This upcoming capability will support development for a range of products including electric vehicles, medical devices, industrial automation products, consumer electronics, and so on. Innovators using T-Works will be able to design, fabricate, assemble, and test their electronic products, all under one roof. This drastically lowers cost, time, and complexity for product innovation.

HYDERABAD: L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited (L&TMRHL) has announced a Super Saver Offer (SSO-99) for the benefit of metro passengers. Passengers can avail of this offer from April 1 to March 31, 2024. 

With this new offer, passengers can travel any number of times on 100 notified holidays for just Rs 99. L&TMRHL also announced an off-peak hours offer wherein the passengers can avail of a 10 per cent discount on the notified fares on Contactless Smart Cards (CSC) only, from 6 am to 8 am and 8 pm to 12 am.

The existing SSO-59 smart cards can be used for the SSO-99 offer. The list of notified holidays where the SSO-99 offer is applicable is enclosed and is also available online and at stations. 

L&TMRHL also announced the withdrawal of 10 per cent discount on the notified fare, on the usage of Contactless Smart Cards (CSC) and Digital QR (DQR) tickets. The SSO-59 offer which saw more than 1.3 million rides, ended on Friday.

KVB Reddy,  MD & CEO, L&TMRHL stated “These offers are for the benefit of the passengers using the Hyderabad Metro Rail services. I believe these offers will further strengthen passenger commute with Hyderabad Metro Rail to facilitate both office commuters and the general public.”

Currently, Hyderabad Metro Rail is ferrying approximately 4.4 lakh passengers daily across 69 kms and 57 stations in three corridors.

HYDERABAD: The GHMC has started a door-to-door collection of Construction and Demolition (C&D) waste from the city, similar to the door-to-door collection of garbage. C&D agencies in GHMC are using smaller vehicles with 2-6 tonnes capacity in all GHMC circles to collect the smaller quantities of C&D waste generated from building renovations or minor repairs. For the C&D waste generated from the demolition of buildings and construction of apartments and new buildings, larger vehicles with 16-25 tonnes capacity are being deployed.

The GHMC generates around 2,000 MT/day of C&D waste, and currently, there are two operational C&D waste processing plants (Jeedimetla and Fathullaguda) with a capacity of 500 TPD each. Additionally, two more C&D waste processing plants are under construction, with a processing capacity of 500 TPD each. Citizens can contact the C&D waste contractors to collect and transport their waste to the recycling plants for safe disposal. The citizens also have the option to transport their waste to the nearest plant using their vehicles. However, they need to pay the requisite user charges to the respective contractors at their doorsteps or plants as applicable.

The C&D waste contractors are authorised to levy penalties on violators who dump waste at unauthorised places such as nalas, lakes under the flyovers, and open places, etc. GHMC takes necessary action against repeated violators. 

Therefore, GHMC has requested citizens to use the authorised C&D waste contractors to dispose of their excess waste to reduce air pollution, protect water bodies, prevent flooding, preserve natural resources for future generations, and to ensure a sustainable Swachh Hyderabad.

For the eight circles of GHMC covering Yousufguda, Serilingampally, Chandanagar, RC Puram and Patancheru, Moosapet, Kukatpally, Quthbullapur, Gajularamaram, the C&D waste will be collected by M/s Hyderabad C&D waste Management Ltd (SPV of Ramky Enviro Engineers Ltd) and will be transported to Jeedimetla C&D waste recycling plant. 

User charges will be Rs 398.50/MT, and if the generator transports the waste to the plant site, the user charges shall be Rs 99.62/MT. 

Those interested can contact toll-free 1800-120-1159 and WhatsApp no: 9100927073. For the seven circles of GHMC covering Uppal, Hayathnagar, L B Nagar, Saroornagar, Malakpet, Santhoshnagar, and Amberpet, the C&D waste will be collected by M/s Hyderabad C&D Waste Management Ltd (SPV of 
Ramky Enviro Engineers Ltd) and will be transported to Fathullaguda Waste Recycling Plant. 

User charges will be Rs 388.75/MT, and if the generator transports the waste to the plant site, the user charges shall be Rs 97.20/MT. Those interested can contact toll-free no: 1800-120-1159 and WhatsApp no: 9100927073.

For the eight circles of GHMC covering Chandrayangutta, Charminar, Falaknuma, Rajendranagar, Mehdipatnam, Karwan, Goshamahal, Jubilee Hills, the C&D waste will be collected by M/s Soma Srinivas Reddy and transported to the Shamshabad C&D recycling plant area. User charges will be Rs 405/MT, and if the generator transports the waste to the plant site, the user charges shall be Rs 101.25/MT. Those interested can contact toll-free No: 1800-203-0033 and WhatsApp No: 7330000203.

GHMC PROPERTY TAX COLLECTION CROSSES Rs 1,640 CR
Hyderabad: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal  Corporation (GHMC) has netted Rs 1,640 crore in property tax by the evening of March 31, the  last day of tax payment for FY 2022-23. The civic body was hopeful of another Rs 30 crore collection by the end of the day as Citizen Service Centres at the GHMC Circle Offices  and Head Office were kept open till night. Citizens are also making payments online.  In the last  financial year, the GHMC collected around Rs 1,495 crore property tax. As per the GHMC data, out of the 13,53,264 assessments, till  Thursday, 7,73,098 property owners had paid tax online while 1,31,603  paid through Mee Seva centre.

HYDERABAD: Telangana State Council for Higher Education (TSCHE) on Friday announced rescheduling of EAMCET of engineering stream. The decision  was taken because TSPSC and NEET exams are scheduled on the same dates.

According to the new timetable, the engineering stream exam will be conducted from May 12 to May 14. There will be no change in the examination schedule of the agriculture and medical stream. The schedule for the rest of the examinations remains the same.

Telangana State Engineering, Agriculture and Medical Common Entrance Test (TS EAMCET) is scheduled to be conducted from May 7 to 14. The engineering stream exam was to be held on May 7 and May 9.  

However, the National Testing Agency also decided to conduct the NEET UG exam on May 7. Telangana State Public Service Commission also proposed to conduct some examinations from May 7 to May 9. 

HYDERABAD: Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari on Friday held a meeting with officials of the Industries department and took stock of the progress achieved in setting up Special Food Processing Zones in the State.  

Principal Secretary Industries Jayesh Ranjan, TSIIC MD Narsimha Reddy and other officials were present.
The Chief Secretary told the officials that the vision of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao was to transform the State into a food and agriculture sector powerhouse by setting up Food Processing Zones based on the demand and feasibility in each district.

Accordingly, she directed the officials to formulate a strategy to promote food processing zones in seven places where there is a huge potential and demand from prospective investors.   

With the increasing paddy production in the State, there is a need to promote setting up rice mills in these food processing zones, Santhi Kumari said. 

She wanted the officials to accord top priority and complete the process of allotting the lands for setting up rice mills within the next four to five months. 

HYDERABAD: Suspended BJP MLA T Raja Singh found himself at the centre of another controversy by making communally sensitive and abusive remarks during a Shoba Yatra held on Sriram Navami in the Old City. He declared that he will renounce politics to make India a Hindu Raj. 

“I will leave these politics, where the advocacy of Hindu rights is hindered. Now, I wear a saffron turban and my only aim is to make my Bharat a Hindu rashtra. No force will stop me from formation of a Hindu rastra,” Raja Singh roared amidst cheers, while speaking standing atop a vehicle during the yatra. 

“There are more than 50 Islamic nations in the world and more than 150 Christian-majority nations. I want to ask those opposing the idea, ‘why can’t India be declared a Hindu rashtra? Every part (state or region) that split from India became an Islamic nation,” Singh said. 

He also found fault with the Hyderabad police for filing cases against him for speaking against love jihad, Ayodya Ram Mandir martyrs, cow slaughter. 

“I know they will send me to jail after Sri Ram Navami. But, my friends, you need to raise your voice for Akhand Hindu rastra,” Singh said. 

He also made the crowd in the Shoba Yatra to take a pledge to make India a Hindu nation.  Meanwhile, it is learnt that Hyderabad police have sought a legal opinion on the alleged objectionable remarks made by Raja Singh to initiate legal proceedings. 

HYDERABAD: Osmania General Hospital received donation of surgical equipment worth Rs 50 lakh used in urological procedures. Director of Medical Education Dr K Ramesh Reddy inaugurated the equipment donated by Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd under their CSR initiative on Friday.

The equipment will be used in high-end laser procedures for complicated surgeries in the urology department. For the first time such costly and one-of-its-kind equipment was established in the government hospital in Telangana. 

Many high-end procedures which were earlier possible only in corporate setup can now be performed in OGH, a tertiary care government hospital which caters to the poor.

Two days after a report of 19,000 SC/ST students dropping out of IITs and IIMs in five years came to light, the Ambedkar Students’ Association (ASA) of the University of Hyderabad (UoH) published a seven-page report on the discriminatory grading system in the institution’s Ph.D. admissions. 

The report, which has become viral on social media, notes a pattern in the grading of Ph.D. candidates that resembles the caste hierarchy. 
 
Students belonging to reserved categories are marked much lower than students belonging to the unreserved category in their interviews despite them having similar marks in the entrance exam’ says ASA’s report. 

“We discovered a pattern of discriminatory marking in interviews in many departments across various schools in the university”, the report states. 

The report presents data from UoH’s seven departments -  Computer science, plant science, biochemistry, physics, electronics, applied mathematics, and microbiology - Ph.D. interview marks. 

According to the data in the report, the average entrance exam mark of five toppers in the computer science department for the Unreserved category is 41.4 and the interview mark is 24.6. Meanwhile, the average exam mark for toppers in the OBC category is 40 and the interview average is 17.2. The average entrance exam mark of five toppers in the SC and ST are 30.2 and 25.4 respectively, while their interview average is 12 and 6.6. 

The report shows a drop in the marks of students in accordance corresponding to their caste privilege. “The discriminatory marking in these departments almost resembles a structure of graded inequality where marks of students resemble their position in the caste hierarchy,” says ASA’s report. 

Ambedkar Students' Association prepared and submitted a 7-page report on discriminatory marking of reserved category students in PhD interviews. The report establishes that there is a consistent pattern of discriminatory marking almost resembling the hierarchical caste order. pic.twitter.com/lrGEk6opVf

— ASA HCU (@asahcu) March 30, 2023

The report also highlights eight acute instances of discriminatory grading, which include 1)seven out of eight faculties marking an SC student who appeared for Ph.D. in material engineering with zero and 2) an OBC candidate for Ph.D. in material engineering being given 2.4 marks in the Ph.D. interview while their entrance score is 40. 

Detailing the history of reservation on the campus and the movement that made it feasible, the student association called for a committee to be set up to look into the grading pattern. Other demands of the committee include the criteria of evaluation to be defined, individual marks from the faculty members be provided and recorded, Ph.D. admission workshops for students before the admission begins and that no student must be rejected by the faculty by giving them zero marks. 

In the past, the faculty have marked students with zeroes and deemed them not suitable for admission, which is a violation of USC norms. 

It is to be noted that Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University’s Dalit and Adivasi students alleged that they were consistently given low marks in their Ph.D. interviews in 2021.

HYDERABAD: Commuters taking the 158-kilometre-long Outer Ring Road (ORR) access-controlled expressway (main carriageway) stretch will have to shell out more as the Hyderabad Growth Corridor Limited (HGCL), a wing of Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA), has proposed to increase the toll for all categories of vehicles with effect from April 1. 

The toll fee is likely to be raised by four to five per cent per kilometre on the existing toll rates. The HGCL has decided to increase the fee on ORR as per the toll clause in the collection agreement with the private collection agency for an enhancement every year.

To avoid any ambiguity in the revision of rates, toll rate charts for the year were provided, the calculated rates for a specific length of stretch has be rounded off to the nearest Rs 10 duly following the orders issued by the State government as per the Wholesale Price Index (WPI). 

Toll fees are collected at the interchanges located at Pedda Amberpet, Medchal, Kokapet,  Edulanagulapally, Patancheru, Shamirpet, Ghatkesar, Keesara, TSPA, Rajendranagar, Shamshabad, Nanakramguda, Pedda Golconda, Ravirayal, Tukkuguda, Taramatipeta, Sultanpur, Saragudem and Bonguluru. 

The HGCL earns around Rs 500 crore revenue from toll charges every year. Over 1.30 to 1.40 lakh vehicles ply on ORR each day.  
 

HYDERABAD: Bangalore-based band ‘Thermal and a Quarter’ is all set to rock Hyderabad on March 31 at F House. CE talks to Rajeev, Tony and Bruce about their 26-year-long journey, memorable experiences and what to look forward to  this Friday

How have these 25 years been?

Rajeev: In 1996, we formed this band, never imagining we would play together for so long. Despite thinking our band wouldn't last after college, we continued playing, even as we started our careers, got married, and had kids. The pandemic was the toughest time for us, as it felt like starting fresh after a break of almost two years, we started writing music again, feeling like we were starting from scratch. It's been over 10 years with this current lineup, but the last year has been amazing. 

How has the pandemic brought changes in terms of ideating and songwriting?

Rajeev: During the pandemic itself, we tried to continue to write music by sharing stuff and listening to stuff online. We tried to meet when the lockdown was not there and put together lyrics. A lot of maturity in just valuing what we have, has come after the pandemic, for me personally, if I speak for myself as a drummer. It's much more difficult playing an acoustic drum kit at home and by yourself. Valuing the whole relationship and what it means to meet together and jam with people.

Bruce: I think as far as songwriting goes, the thought process hasn't really changed much. For me, it's still about the same. I just respond to things that I see around, things that I read and watch. The process of creating songs, writing lyrics, making melodies – that really hasn't changed so much. But considering how intensely ‘dislocated’ we were, we did pretty well and came up with an album in just the first six months of the pandemic. 

Do you think live performance makes a difference considering the changes that have come up in the way people consume music?

Bruce: Yeah, of course. The standard relationship with art and music that people have now is, I think, considerably different across a general scale than what it was 25-30 years ago. Right now, most people around the world, especially in the urban sphere spend a large amount of time engaging with technology every single day. So technology is also mediating their engagement and relationship with the art that they consume, whether it's visual art or music. While, of course, the live experience of going and watching a concert, a performance, or going to an art gallery, are still things that people do.

Tony: When Thermal started in 1996, it was before the major internet boom. People mostly consumed music through terrestrial radio stations, CDs, and cassettes, as LPs were unaffordable. Going to a gig was a privilege as they didn't happen as often as they do now, and people wanted to hear familiar songs rather than original music.

Thermal, however, was known for its exclusive original music, which made attending their gigs a unique experience. Nowadays, there are many avenues to consume music, including watching gigs streamed on various channels, or on DVDs, websites, or social media, which is also good in a way. However, there's nothing like standing in a room in front of a band making loud noises on stage and being part of that interaction. Despite the many options available, as long as there is live music being performed, there will be people who understand the value and un-replicability of the experience.

What do you have in store for Hyderabad audience for March 31 performance?

Bruce (adding some sass to an otherwise boring conversation): Well, because at the end of the financial year, it's all about new budgets and new everything! (Then getting a tiny bit serious) It's a club gig, at F House, Hyderabad. Club gigs are nice because they are  intimate performance spaces. And like what Tony said, the thing about going and watching a live act is that it’s a ‘social-tribal’ thing. The gig we played last week was a very different experience, playing in a stadium with 25,000 people. This will be in a club with maybe a few hundred people, but they're right up in front of you. It’s nice to make those connections, especially when playing your own music and telling your stories and so on.
We will be playing quite a few songs from the album we released in 2020, ‘A World Gone Mad’, as we never really got to play those songs even after two years of releasing the album.

What was the most memorable performance

Bruce: It’s difficult to distil a 26-year history into one thing but I'd have to say, for me personally, the most memorable tour was the one we did 10 years ago at the Edinburgh Fringe. We played in Scotland, the UK, Ireland, and Nepal. It was 60 gigs in two months, across three countries.
Rajeev: Yeah, pretty much the same thing. I think the most memorable ones end up being the ones where we really connect with the audience.

What are your upcoming albums? 

Bruce: We are in the process of writing the next album actually. We are about five or six songs down and we have about three more to go. We have finished the writing process and we’ll get into the recording, hopefully soon. Apart from that, there's always one thing that we keep saying, "we just like to be present in the future".

Do you cater to any specific audience? Considering the 'modern urban identity' caught up in the midst of a transformative world? 

Rajeev: We've never categorized ourselves as writing for specific kinds of people. Our music uses Western instruments, and we write lyrics based on our own experiences and perspectives, without forcing any Indian elements into it. 

We believe that good music transcends language and cultural boundaries and that it's up to the audience to interpret the art and take away what they want from it. We simply strive to be honest with ourselves and put our music out that way, without following trends or targeting specific audiences.

HYDERABAD: State Roads & Buildings Minister Vemula Prashanth Reddy on Wednesday asked the Centre to not increase toll tax rates. In a letter to Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari, Prashanth Reddy said: “We are given to understand that the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has decided to increase toll rates from April 1, including at 32 toll gates in Telangana. The toll tax being collected by Centre has become a heavy burden on the people of Telangana.” 

“In 2014, Rs 600 crores of toll tax was collected in Telangana. It means that the toll tax collection has increased by 300 per cent in these nine years. 

This has led to increase in prices of essential goods supplied by trucks as well as hike in bus fares, which in turn made the lives of poor and middle class people very burdensome,” he added. The minister demanded that the Centre immediately roll back the decision to hike toll tax rates.

“From 2014 to till date, the Centre has sanctioned a total of Rs 1,25,176 crore for 113 NH projects and CRIF works in Telangana. But, it spent only Rs 20,350 crore in the last nine years. The National Highways Corporation, however, has collected Rs 9,000 crore in toll tax in the State during the same period. It means that half of the money spent by the Central government has already been collected from the people of Telangana through toll tax,” he added.

HYDERABAD: Organised by the New Delhi-based startup Kitablovers, run by R K Shanker and Rahul Pandey, ‘Load the Box’ is one-of-its-kind book fair in the country, where people don’t choose the books, but the box. Just grab a box and fill it with as many books as you can. One can choose from a ‘money saver’ box at Rs 1200 that fits 10-13 books, a ‘wealth box’ at Rs 1800 which fits 17-20 books or a ‘treasure box’ at Rs  3000 fits around 30-33 books.

The place was filled with bibliophiles of all age groups. Book lovers were open to choose from a collection of over 10 lakh books by various authors and from a range of genres in both fiction and non-fiction. Fiction included crime, romance and fantasy, whereas, non-fiction comprised books on international affairs, religion, and science, biographies and  dictionaries.

“The best thing I’ve seen so far is watching young people moving towards self-help books and non-fiction genres as well; it’s amazing to see parents getting their kids into a habit of reading,” says Rahul, one of the organisers, adding, he said, “We are delighted to host the book fair in Hyderabad. This is our fifth event in the city, and we are so happy to be back. Our book fair offers books at the most affordable costs and most importantly, serves a wide range of book readers. From toddlers to senior citizens, there’s books for everyone.”

R K Shanker, another organiser said, “We’re also hosting storytelling sessions, and author-signing sessions. It’s incredible to watch so many young kids and teenagers getting back into reading passionately. In order to engage book lovers, we’re also holding drawing sessions. 

Basically, we wanted to create an environment for book lovers to feel at home. It’s not very often we get to see so many people come together for books in this generation, but the number of people coming forward to donate books and re-love the used ones, it’s a very positive environment altogether.”

While talking about the challenges of filling their box, Bhavana and Anushka, CAs by profession, shared, “After the completion of our tiresome course, it’s a pleasure to finally be able to read peacefully. 

We love the collection here of genres ranging from romance and paranormal/thriller books. Finding pre-loved books and new ones here, it has everything.” Danny, a 14-year-old kid said, “I love reading. I can get  books from literally any genre. Even my parents are finding books for themselves.”

HYDERABAD: For birthdays and beyond, no matter what you’re celebrating, this one-of-a-kind store in Banjara Hills, has everything you want when you’re throwing parties. The ease and convenience of these supplies makes planning and shopping for your party almost as fun as having it! With thousands of the highest-quality party supplies for all ages and occasions, Tiki Times is the place to be.

Many people shy away from party supplies because of a perception that party supplies are too expensive. The founder, Aaradhna Codavalli, is a party-loving mom who knows just how hard it can be to throw an amazing bash for your little ones and grown ups too. Not only that, they are also dedicated to making sure your party planning and decoration needs are eco-friendly and reusable.

Speaking about how she got started in the party industry and her passion, Aaradhna, says, “Being a parent myself, I know what it takes to throw a party, to choose the perfect theme, the perfect costumes for the kids, making sure the products are of good quality and so on. So, when my friend and I started the company, we made it our vision to make sure everyone has an accessible and memorable celebration which should be fun and easy on the parents. We’ve scoured the world to source the best party ware and decor to make every event effortlessly awesome and everlastingly memorable.”

The mega-store at Banjara Hills, is India’s largest and most unique, featuring over 500 themes and 12,000 products on display. The store is absolutely inviting and colourful, it showcases party decorations, tableware, balloons, and other accessories, all from popular brands and with expert advice on party planning and decoration. When asked about her view as a woman in business and working on career goals and managing her family, she says “As a woman, I have to wear many hats: a mother, a wife, and a business owner.

I am delighted that I’m getting to fulfill my goal of providing people with the best party supplies and helping them plan memorable events, as long as your work makes you happy and in my case, so many kids and parents, that never stops being exciting. Life should be celebrated and what better way to do it than with a party!” Further adding , “And of course being a woman in business has its challenges, but I believe that if you are truly dedicated and passionate about your goal, you can achieve anything. Of course, a sense of humour also helps in dealing with the challenges along the way!”

HYDERABAD: Sneaking a day full of vibrance and delight from an otherwise dull and mundane school routine, Round Table India and Ladies Circle organised an event for the students of the National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities (NIEPED) where children not only had pizzas for lunch but also learned how pizzas are made from scratch. The pizzas were provided by Figaro’s, a 40-year-old US brand of pizzas opening their first venture in India.   

Munching on the delicious pizzas being served fresh from the oven, the students of NIEPED were all smiles on Wednesday. “I liked it very much,” said Ajay, a student pointing at his plate of pizza slices. 

Round Table India is a collective of men between the ages of 18 and 40, who are young business professionals and corporate executives and want to serve the needs of the underprivileged. They help in building educational infrastructure for children of financially weak backgrounds. Ladies Circle is the women’s wing of the organisation and organises social activities for children in schools and educational institutes. 

As part of their year-round activities, the Round Table organised the event on Wednesday. Rheya Kapur, chairperson for 2022-23 for Ladies Circle, said that the main aim of the organisation is to help the ones that are in need, by providing not only life essentials but also a unique experience that makes a difference in their lives. “When we look at underprivileged children, the first thing that comes to mind is food, and education but these experiences are something that is missed. We try to give a different experience event, something new that they will remember and cherish. Throughout the year we keep doing activities such as these. For example, a month ago we did a runway show for the same kids. It was very different for them. We sponsored shoes and clothes for them.” 

Going beyond education, the organisation identifies the spaces where intervention needs to be made, “For example, we also support them medically by providing resources for surgeries. We also see that if a student has the capacity for doing well in a field, let’s say, sports, we support them in getting the equipment, at times monetary aid is also given,” said Arya Sonthalia, whose husband, Ashis Sonthalia is a part of the Round Table. 

“Besides, Ladies Circle also takes up the initiative of building toilets. We also noticed that several young girls drop out of school every year due to the lack of toilets in schools. We also make sanitary pads. We have an international tie-up where the equipment is provided to women from underprivileged backgrounds, they are hired and trained to make sanitary pads and then the same are distributed within the communities,” she added. 

After having scrumptious pizzas, as students lined up for heading back to school, Rhea and other ladies from the organisation handed over water bottles and stationery items to each, which, they all accepted with a kind “thank you”. 

Talking about Figaro’s Pizza, young entrepreneur Vamsi Kapilavai mentioned that the franchise seeks to expand to around 255 stores in India in the next five years. “The USP of Figaro’s is that the dough is freshly made here in the kitchen, as compared to the centralised or frozen doughs that we get to see in the market. Even the sauce is prepared here and we don’t just serve with tomato sauce as the base, we have seven extra sauces, including magnolia and ram, We serve 45 types of pizzas, available in small, medium and large sizes. We also have calzone pockets, and desserts which include chocolate pizza as well,” he said.