Ornithologist can beeline to Belgaum

Source The Hindu 30 Jan 2008

http://www.thehindu.net/

Belgaum: Belgaum is home to a good number of bird species. They can be seen hovering all around the city, particularly in the green patches and near water bodies such as tanks and ponds. The five water ponds nestled in small area of bamboo forest on Belgaum-Hindalga Road near Military Ganapathi Temple, maintained by the Maratha Light Infantry Regimental Centre (MLIRC), are not just ecological habitats of sorts for a few species of birds but also significant to the environment of the city. They are now home for over two dozen bird species.
However, these ponds, known as “Argan Talab” until converted into what is now known as “Watermanship Training Area and Nature Workshop” about 17 years ago, are not open to the public. According to a MLIRC officer looking after the maintenance of these fenced ponds, they are used for imparting training in swimming for the commandos.
Yet, one can take a break to watch different species of birds hovering over them. Some of them even nest and help in multiplying the species.
Among the birds that have made these ponds their home are the Indian Darter, Indian Shag, Open Bill Stork, Little Cormorant, Large Cormorant, Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Large Egret, Medium Egret, Flamingo, Glassy Ibis, White Ibis, Black Bill, Whistling Teal, Blue Winged Teal, Common Teal, Shoveller, White First Geese, White eyed Pochard, Little Grebe, Black Necked Grebe, Painted Stork, White Stork, White Neaked Stork and Adjutant Stone.
A large number of other species are found in the district, which is endowed with a rich and variegated fauna and salubrious climate, particularly in Khanapur and other western parts of the district with close proximity to the Western Ghats.
Among the resident birds are the White breasted Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis, which is common and found everywhere in the district. The honey pecker Cynnyris zeylonica is another resident. The Malabar racket-tailed drongo Dissemurus paradiseus is also resident bird seen in the forest areas.
While the red vented bulbul has large presence all over city of Belgaum and district, Indian tailor bird Orthotomus sutorius, also a resident, is found in the plains and generally near wells, ponds or streams.

Another feather in Belgaum's booming IT market

Banaglore based K2 Technology Soultions has set up its center in KLE Collage of Engineering and technology for further info please read my fellow blogger site link below

http://vayavya.blogspot.com/2008/01/ktwo-technology-solutions-sets-up.html

Your election id card correction

Deccan Herald Helping out citizen so as to avoid falling in corrupt hands


Source Deccan Herald
28 Jan 2008

In the wake of errors spotted on the voters’ list, citizens are concerned about the possibility of their names getting deleted from the list. Citizens who find their names deleted or with other complaints can send in their grievances to this paper either through e-mail or post. The complainants should attach their residential addresses along with their grievances, that will be addressed by the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Karnataka.Our email ID is :editor@deccanherald.co.in and postal address: Deccan Herald, # 75, MG Road, Bangalore-1.

Lessons to learn from Past Kannada Marathi Unity

I request my blog readers to think over the post (Last paragraph) I got from one of the old newsprint of Times of India,

The wrong and right

Bringing Kannada marathi divide among Belgaumites : Utter wrong

Mr More's Balckening of face in Banglore : Utter Wrong
( As a elected representative he have dignity of public servant and mainly respect as human being)Are not Kannadigas staying in Mumbai and Pune and Mahrashtra, are these Bangalorei so called Kannada abhimanis ( bloody Konga's-- migrants from Chennai), have these ever thought about them.
Just look back into history after Babri Masjid issue the middle east started publishing jobs with the tag ( Only muslims and christens need to apply ) the discrminitaion is still on except for professionals who are invited by these countries.


Kumarswamis decison for holding winter session (if aimed as Belgaums devlopemnt and bridge regional imbalance gap then) : Right

Kumarswamis intention to divide our hearts of Belgaumites : Wrong


I request all Belgaumites to stand above language to heal each other wounds and slap on these politicians face, Belgaum's devlopment should become our main interest , livilihood for everyone is all about the basic need for every human being. A tolerant society is my dream but want your eyes to share the same and if any one should open his eyes they should see Belgaum as the city for everyone,
I am not a social reformer ,but do believe in thought process and mind power , ability of an individual to come up and stand out in the times of difficulties, we all might have seen "Rang de Basanti" , dont you all think our society need such awakening , and why not Belgaumite be trendsetters, Unity is strentgh but dont just leave it reading as bunch of words.

If it has happened in the past it can happened today



Jan 2001 Times of India
Belgaum: is belgaum city corporation (bcc) moving away from its language-based politics? the coming together of marathi and kannada groups for the second time in the history of bcc to elect the mayor was an indication towards this. and at the first meeting of the newly elected bcc members, a resolution to merge marathi-speaking areas of karnataka with maharashtra was rejected outright. it was a tradition of the bcc to pass such a resolution pleading with the union government to take an initiative to merge the border areas into maharashtra. the resolution was proposed by the mes and shiv sena, which received a setback when a section of marathi corporators, led by sambhaji rao patil, joined hands with kannada-urdu group to come to power. to the disappointment of mes-shiv sena, the ruling members passed another resolution giving a new twist to the long-standing border dispute between maharashtra and karnataka. the members made it clear that they would welcome any decision taken at the proposed meeting between karnataka and maharashtra at the initiative of pm vajpayee. this did not go well with the opposition. when mayor vandana belgundkar gave her ruling, the mes and shiv sena rushed to the well of the house and stalled the proceedings. mayor suspended the disrupting corporators and had to adjourn the house when they did not relent. the ``knockout punch'' came from sambhaji rao patil. he is an active and powerful pro-marathi leader in belgaum city. he said: ``they are not ready to resolve the border dispute. what they need is to keep the issue alive to reap political benefits.'' former mayor shivaji shuntkar earlier tabled the resolution, which was opposed by mlas ramesh kudchi and manohar kadolkar and sambhaji rao patil. the resolution states that belgaum, khanapur, nippanni, karwar, bidar, bhalki and other areas should be merged with maharashtra. it may be recalled that cm krishna had taken an initiative to create a platform for both marathi and kannada corporators to come together and prepare an agenda for the development of belgaum. he had also announced a special developmental package for belgaum.

Belgaum New destination for Resorts and Eco Tourism

Swapnagandha to set up resort near Belgaumby 2008-end

Tuesday, January 01, 2008 (10:00 IST)
By Mayuresh Pawar Belgaum
Source http://travelbizmonitor.com

Swapnagandha Resorts Pvt. Ltd. plans to develop its third property, focusing on wellness and ecotourism, near Belgaum, Karnataka by 2008-end. The company has already identified a 127-acre land at Thirthkunde and earmarked an investment of over Rs 75 lakh for the project. According to Sudhir Naik, General Manager, Swapnagandha Resorts Pvt. Ltd., the resort will house six cottages, 10 tents, multi-cuisine restaurant, bar, ayurvedic spa and swimming pool. "Our focus is wellness, adventure and ecotourism. The proposed site, located at a distance of about 75 kms from Goa and Belgaum, is picturesque and surrounded by a waterfall and lake. So, we plan to offer boating and trekking facilities too," said Naik. Plans are also afoot to develop a centre for research on issues relating to wildlife and environment.At present, the company has two properties, Wildernest and Swapnagandha, established in 2004 and 2006, respectively. Wildernest is a three-star resort housing 16 cottages, while Swapnagandha is a two-star resort housing eight cottages. Both resorts are located within a distance of five kms along the Goa-Karnataka route.Currently, the company is looking to develop its properties as Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) and Free Individual Traveller (FIT) destinations. "We are in discussions with travel agents and tour operators to promote our properties in United Kingdom, Spain, Sweden and Australia," said Naik. In India, the company's target clientele is from Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Kolhapur, Kolkota, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.

More Wings of beauties in Air

International Airhostess Academy to open branch in M'lore

SOURCE DHNS: www.deccanherald.com

The international airhostess training academy VIINZS, associated with Birmingham International College of London plans to launch a branch at Mangalore. Speaking to Deccan Herald , Regional Director of VIINZS Akash Verma said that the company has already established its Regional Office and a model centre at Belgaum from where it plans to expand in the Southern operations. Mr Verma said the golden era in flying with smart flight attendants aboard has arrived. The subcontinent is on the verge of a major revolution in aviation. The need to establish international training centres for in flight services has arisen.

Belgaum desitnation for retail units

Nine years back in Belgaum I use to observe in Khade Bazaar every third or fourth shop in a sequence was a textile showroom or a redymade garment exclusive shop still remember Amrcons, Magaldeep, Status and Ambica Saari Center in Shahpur is known through out Goa and Maharashtra , today I understand why Nahar group opened its retial unit in Belgaum


Source : www.economictimes.com
CHANDIGARH: Nahar Retail, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Ludhiana-based Rs 2,500-crore Nahar Industrial Enterprises and the owners of Cotton County brand will invest around Rs 430 crore over the next two years on capacity expansions and new outlets. The company will launch its premium segment French Republic and will have 50 exclusive showrooms in North India at an investment of Rs 40 crore. The company will also spend Rs 10-15 crore on brand building. “We will expand our production capacity in our garment unit in Ludhiana. Currently we manufacture 8,000 garments a day. We will take this to 20,000 garments per day by April 2008. Of the total investment of Rs 430 crore, about Rs 40 crore will be for this,” Nahar Retail’s vice-president, Sachin Sahni, told ET. On the French Republic expansion plans Mr Sahni said “Cotton County is our fashion & lifestyle brand in the medium segment and now we will have a premium segment called French Republic. Right now it is available in some selected Cotton County outlets. By the middle of the next financial year we will have around 50 exclusive showrooms for French Republic. All these stores will be in North India,” he added. Mr Sahni said they will add 75 Cotton County stores in the next six months and will have around 150 stores in the southern cities by 2008-09 at an investment of around Rs 40 lakh per store. Having made its presence felt in Tier II & Tier III cities, Cotton County, will now foray into metros and cities in South India. Currently, with 365 exclusive outlets across North India, Cotton County is targeting 500 stores by the end of this fiscal, which translates into launching one new store a day & and cross the 1,000 store mark by the 2009. Through its franchisee route, within its first year of operations itself, Cotton County had over 120 stores across the country. The company has already launched its stores in Gulbarga, Raichur & Belgaum in Karnataka and are looking at key markets such as Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mangalore, Coimbatore, Kochi, Madurai, Thiruvananthapuram, Tiruchirapalli, Vijaywada, Visakhapatnam, etc. The company will be focusing on its new kids wear under the brand name TAZO and women’s wear FEMME which will be available in Cotton County stores. Apart from that the company will be looking at denim products in a big way and will be looking to get a market share of about 5% in the denim segment, he added.

Say No To kalasa Banduri nala Project

I have added a new site called Delta Resort (Belgaum sports and Adveture section) covering vide ecology of Belgaum and western ghat , the Kalsa banduri nala is going to spoil the whole ecological balance.

The main aim of kalsa Bandulri nala was only to source water supply for Hubli dharwad which it already getting through mallaprabha dam , the catchment area of this dam has aleady shrunk as the water
supply ment for irrigation is reduced to
great extent and even if kalasa banduri nala wil be cut accorss ther would be one more problem this water will not either be useful for drinking or for irrigation as the effulients of certian factories pass though this kalasa stream to main Mhadayi (Mandovi) Kalsa and Surla are the main tributeires to Mandovi river and originate in south west part of Kankumbi mountain range.



The activist here have already taken up arms against this project and sure it wouldnt come in force even the Goa Government is in full support to these activist and helped to avoid in disturbing the ecology.

Reliance Fresh Belgaum retial outlet and Distribution Unit

I admire Reliance Fersh initiaitve to help farmers paying them directly and eliminating middlemen, I wish the Belgaum distribution unit would grow bigger in near future, creating employment and opportunities, Reliance fresh should tie up with Agricultureal collages in Belgaum to promote seed devlopment and more emphasis on biotic plantation then chemical and hybrid vegitables.

Source: oheraldo.in

Goa’s reliance on vegetables and fruits from Belgaum could be under threat and competition has come in from an economic giant. The setting up of a vegetable procuring unit at Belgaum by ‘Reliance Fresh’, a division of Reliance Industries Ltd, to provide vegetables to its growing chain of outlets in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra may adversely affect the supply of vegetables to Goa in the near future.Farmers in Belgaum are only too happy to offer their produce to Reliance at better rates and with the vegetable supply from Belgaum — predominantly meant for Goa — now likely to be diverted elsewhere, Goans would have to pay much more for the few vegetables that enter the Goan market.Incidentally, though Reliance Fresh intends to set up seven outlets in Goa at ‘cheaper rates’, the supply of vegetables would be too meagre to cater to the entire state. Reliance has recently set up a procuring unit at Halga, about 10 km from here, where vegetables are being purchased directly from farmers. “Vegetables purchased are being sent to Hyderabad and other places,” Suresh D, the unit manager at Halga said.At present, about 10 tonnes of vegetables are being procured by Reliance everyday and sources speculate that the demand would rise sharply with the growing number of retail outlets to be opened in the region. The unit at Halga is strategically based at the hub of the vegetable growing hinterland of Belgaum district, where more than 60% of the farmers in the district are engaged in growing vegetables.Sudhatai Hiremath, Secretary of the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC), the apex body controlling the procurement and sale of vegetables and other farm produce, said Reliance has been issued licences to procure vegetables from farmers and the company has been promptly paying the cess to APMC. Officials disclosed that Reliance plans to open seven outlets in Goa and attempts are being made to supply farm-fresh vegetables from Belgaum at rates cheaper than that offered by the Belgaum vegetable traders.This is because Reliance will buy vegetables directly from farmers, eliminating middlemen in the process. “Our intention is to give justice to the farmers by offering them better rates for their produce,” said Aniruddin of Reliance. According to Umesh Patil — a vegetable wholesaler and member of the Cantonment Wholesale Vegetable Merchants Association — over 100 brokers supply vegetables to Goa and other coastal areas including Karwar, Kumta (Karnataka) and Sindhudurg (Maharashtra).“About 30 tempo loads of vegetables are supplied to Goa everyday and more than 70% of the vegetables from Belgaum are sent to the coastal areas,” said Patil.To a query on the impact of ‘Reliance Fresh’ on the prevailing supply of vegetables to Goa, Patil admitted that while the prices may not increase in the immediate future, the increase of Reliance outlets in the region could spark off a shortage of vegetables en route to Goa.Meanwhile, the farmers in the district are pleased with the new development, as they are being paid a better rate as compared to the brokers.“We do not have to bother about the brokerage and other costs that we earlier used to pay,” said a farmer.

New Luxury Business Hotel ‘VITS’ Launched in Belgaum

Source NDTV-Profit Jan 10, 2008

New Delhi, Delhi/Belgaum, India -- VITS (Business Wire India)

KHIL opens second hotel in the VITS chain-- VITS Aurangabad, Nagpur and Pune to open in the near future-- More than 36 VITS hotels in the next five years.A 60-room VITS property, part of a new chain of luxury business hotels from Kamat Hotels India Limited (KHIL), opened today in Belgaum. Located at Club Road, the new hotel offers contemporary luxury business accommodation for discerning business class travellers from across India. Belgaum is well known for its prominent medical and education facilities and tourist attractions. With a VITS hotel in Belgaum, travelers visiting the city for leisure or for medical treatment from Karnataka, Maharastra or Goa will now have an alternate ‘home away from home’. With this launch, KHIL has taken another step in its ambitious plan to grow the VITS chain for business travellers. The first VITS hotel was launched in Mumbai in November 2007. KHIL plans to extend the VITS hospitality experience to Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, Baroda, Chinchwar, Gujarat, Hubli, Kolhapur, Nagpur, Nashik, Navi Mumbai, Pune, Solapur, Surat, Thane and twenty more locations in the next five years. The launch of VITS Belgaum was a grand affair, with the crème-de-la-crème of Belgaum society attending the function. Corporate heads, golfers, defence personnel, doctors and renowned personalities from diverse fields were there to mark the occasion. A musical extravaganza by renowned DJ from Mumbai set the evening afire with sizzling numbers that drew the audience to the pulsating dance floor. The evening also witnessed the unveiling of the VITS logo amidst fire show and an impressive theme dance performances. Facilities at VITS Belgaum are among the best in the category across the state. Its ideal location provides guests proximity to the domestic airport. It will offer varied dining options like an open terrace restaurant with a contemporary ambience and a 24x7 coffee shop with a midnight buffet option. VITS offers a range of spacious and luxurious accommodation to suit the needs of guests: twin and double rooms, a Presidential Suite, service apartments and studio rooms equipped with all modern & technical facilities. The rooms in VITS are one of a kind, they provide customers with varied options to select depending on the requirement and duration of stay. Guests visiting Belgaum for a long period e.g. business tour/medical treatment, can experience the ‘home away from home’ in the service apartments; while the Presidential Suite and studio rooms option can be explored by those who want to have a unique hospitality experience.Belgaum will witness many firsts with VITS, such as a pick-up and drop facility, terrace swimming pool and a wellness club. For guests who like to combine business with pleasure, VITS has a tie up with premium golf courses and spare golf kits that golf lovers can use. These and other special facilities will give guests an exclusive VITS experience.Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Vithal Venkatesh Kamat, Executive Chairman & Managing Director, Kamat Hotels India Limited (KHIL), said, “The new VITS hotel is in sync with the development envisaged for Belgaum, which is now being referred to as the second capital of Karnataka. With a Vidhan Sabha planned in the city and companies from emerging sectors such as medical tourism, EXIM houses and other public infrastructure projects setting up base here, Belgaum is a growing business destination. There is a need for top quality hospitality services in the city and VITS bridges the gap by providing best in class facilities and services.”As an inherited principle from its flagship Orchid group, VITS will uphold the Kamat’s philosophy of giving the maximum value to customers without compromising on service, quality or food. The same values are epitomized in VITS' concise motto – ‘Guest. Rest. Best.’In the VITS chain of hotels, standardized amenities will include world-class service -- from airport pickup by luxury car to one-time registration while checking in. The 24-hour, in-room dining, contemporary ambience, banquets for specific requirements, high-tech conference centers and seamless Wi-Fi connectivity on the premises will cater to all the needs of modern, business travellers. VITS also plans to include select facilities required by guests in specific locations.The new VITS hotel chain will bridge the gap existing in the market by being present in all major Tier II and Tier III cities and towns in India. It will offer a complete package of top quality hospitality services for upwardly mobile business class travelers. VITS will have a trendy look which will be reflected in its logo, facilities and services and will be the best in class. The VITS marketing plan revolves around acquisition, retaining and regaining customers. Exclusively designed customer loyalty programmes for travel agencies, guests and for corporate houses will be announced soon. About KHIL: Kamat Hotels (India) Limited (KHIL) is one of the fastest growing hospitality groups in the country. KHIL was initiated on March 21st, 1986 by the late Venkatesh Krishna Kamat, a visionary in the business. His guidance and support helped Vithal Venkatesh Kamat, current Executive Chairman and Managing Director, steer the company into a successful public limited company in 1994. Kamats is today a large hospitality business group with interests in Luxury Hotels, Budget Hotels & Restaurants, Travel Business, Catering & Educational Institutions, Departmental Stores and of course, Restaurants. With a turnover of over Rs. 80 crores (2006) and approximately ten thousand shareholders, KHIL is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

Contact Details:

Anindita Chakraborty,
VITS, +91 9373598252
Email: kamatsholidays@khil.com
VITS Belgaum Club road,
Opp Jt Director of Public Instruction (Belgaum Division)
Belgaum

Belgaumite (Khanapur) girl Now DHL New Zealand Head

Belgumites makes global strides just not in IT but in various other areas too, read about the success story of Blegaum Girl "Chitra Bhonsle" published by my associate blogger UdayK

http://belgaumblog.blogspot.com/2008/01/khanapur-girl-now-dhl-new-zealand-head.html

Kind Gesture from Belgaum Boy of IIT " Sheri Sundeep "

I recived this communique from Sheri Sundeep whcih could help most of you


Please spread the word, so that this initiative benefits as many students as possible.
The IIT's have taken up an initiative of starting online teaching and
thus have started offering course materials online for FREE for every
engineering stream.


1] Type the following address on internet explorer
2] Click on Courses
3] And one can access any course material.

http://nptel.iitm.ac.in

Sheri Sundeep
MTech/Power System Engg
IIT Roorkee
India

THE DAWN OF 2008

I wish You all a very Best for This year of 2008 and Years to come with peace, prosperity love and happiness in abundance.

Centre clears six flower auction centres

Belgaum "the flower City"

News Source
The Hindu (www.thehind.com) 26 Dec 2007

BANGALORE: To tap the potential in the floriculture sector, the Union Government has sanctioned six flower auction centres to the State under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY).

Karnataka, which occupies a prominent position in floriculture in the country, has decided to establish auction centres on the lines of Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMC) in six districts.

The Centre has accepted the proposals made by the State Government and agreed to release Rs. 8 crore for establishment of auction centres, Horticulture Department officials told The Hindu on Tuesday.

The centres would come up at Sirsi in Uttara Kannada; Madikeri in Kodagu; Chikkanayakanahalli in Tumkur; apart Udupi, Belgaum and Bagalkot.

These districts are known for large areas under floriculture, and several people in the floriculture business have set up hi-tech units. “The floriculture enterprise will continue to be a challenge until the chain of activities right from post-harvest to buyers is properly handled,” an official maintained.

The officials said the Centre had decided to release Rs. 6 crore in the current financial year and Rs. 2 crore in the next fiscal year.

Awareness lacking


Flower growers lacked awareness about market conditions because of poor linkages in the distribution chain and had poor access to cold storage facilities, leading to seasonal gluts and price variation. The auction centres provided all facilities, including storage.

There was much scope for tapping the Rs. 600-crore domestic market in the floriculture sector.

At present, only 2.5 per cent of the flower sales were in the organised retail sector. Since floriculture provided a viable diversification option for agricultural sector, the Centre agreed to provide funds to set up auction centres, the officials spointed out.

In the State, floriculture covers about 21,500 hectares and flower production is around 1.60 lakh tonnes worth about Rs. 300 crore.

At present, there are 125 hi-tech floriculture units in the State, spread over an area of 200 hectares.

There are about 150 nurseries, big and small, registered and unregistered, in and around the garden city. The State has already established an International Flower Auction Centre at Bangalore, which is said to be the first of its kind in the country.

A major chunk of the country’s floriculture exports is from the Bangalore region as it accounts for exports worth Rs. 50 crore in the country’s total exports of Rs. 74.13 crore.

The floriculture business is concentrated in Bangalore, Belgaum, Kodagu, Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kolar districts.

The flowers that dominate the production are marigold (46,101 tonnes) chrysanthemum (42,794 tonnes), jasmine (29,707 tonnes), tube rose (11,185 tonnes), crossandra (9,898 tonnes), aster (7,812 tonnes), rose (3,128 tonnes), and others (9,365 tonnes).

The highest number of hi-tech floriculture units are in Belgaum (70), followed by Bangalore Rural district (25), Bangalore city (20), Kodagu (10) and Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Shimoga (five each).

There are nearly 1,000 florist stalls in Bangalore.

However, retailers maintain that the highest consumption in the market is the home segment.

The corporate consumption in the city is negligible, they say.

Nurseries


The Horticulture Department has decided to provide assistance of Rs. 18 lakh to establish model floriculture nurseries in the two universities of agricultural sciences, Krishi Vignana Kendras and State departmental farms under the National Horticulture Mission.

The private entrepreneurs could also avail themselves of assistance of Rs. 9 lakh to set up model nurseries.

Jain heritage needs your Help

Dear Friends

My associate blog-buddy Uday has recently published a very nobel cause and efforts of Mr Chipre, who is on crusde to save rare 10th centry Jain heritage site at Belgaum for more info please follow the URL below

http://belgaumblog.blogspot.com/2007/12/kamal-basti-unseen-pictures.html
http://mahiuk.googlepages.com/basti.htm

Onion prices and crying Farmers (Apathy in North Karnataka)

This story really touched me and fear that North Karnataka shouldn’t become another Vidarbha region, The Gowdas (term as Gowder gaddalla) brought instability to the state and then as I live in the middle east the onion now coming here from other countries is far from good quality , where as the onion from India where much better quality , but thanks to the nexus of politicians and bureaucrats at NAFED where the rampant corruption was exposed, and even though NAFED $100 was good price for these poor farmers to fetch some returns from hard earned yield, but these middle men at APMC sallow up all the bucks,
We should have a proper federal price control committee and regulated price export with inflation control supply in the country, I suppose these onions will make all hear far more cry in near future.


Onion price crash triggers suicide


Source Newindpress Monday December 10 2007

HUBLI: Mallikarjun, 38, was found lying on the ground, grimacing in pain, on the wintry morning of December 3.

He had just consumed half a litre of cypermethrin, an insecticide. A man known for his calm demeanour, Mallikarjun listened in silence when the villagers began to chastise him. But the heartbroken man could not hold it in any longer.

‘‘What do you know of my problems?,’’ he asked, and breathed his last. Mallikarjun, a farmer of Kabbenur in Dharwad, was hopeful of a good harvest for his onion produce. Manjula, his sister, recalls: ‘‘Despite Rs 4 lakh loans, he was optimistic about making money. ’’

Mallikarjun’s first attempt to sell his onions at the Hubli Agricultural Produce Market Corporation (APMC) ended in disaster. Armed with 120 quintals of onions in late October, a trader agreed to buy the produce for Rs 700 per quintal.

However, the agreement was not honoured and the produce was returned. By the time Mallikarjun could resell it, there was severe price crash, and he received only Rs 200 per quintal. With the export of onions banned, Mallikarjun’s, and thousands of other farmers’ last hope was the announcement of a Minimum Support Price (MSP) by the State Government.

But, as the political drama in the state unfolded in October and November, a MSP seemed increasingly unlikely. He ventured to Belgaum to sell another 80 quintals. His fortunes, however, did not improve in the new market and he settled for a price of Rs 250 per quintal.

But further tragedy struck on his way back as he went to Manjula’s house and on the way had lost the Rs 3000 he had made at Belgaum on the bus. She recalls: ‘‘He went straight to the bed and began to sob. ’’

Meanwhile, the Karnataka Grameena Vikas Bank, from where Mallikarjun had taken a loan of Rs 1.45 lakhs, sent a notice for repayment. Kallanagouda, his brother, said: ‘‘Apart from this, he also had to settle a bill of Rs 2 lakhs for labour work on the fields.’’

By now, Mallikarjuna had pinned all his hopes on getting a fair price at Bangalore. But the prices were still low. Mallikarjun was worried about the loan. Manjula said, ‘‘Luck had completely deserted him,” and two days later, he committed suicide.

His family blame it on the government’s failure to announce an MSP. In early October, when the prices of onion rose to Rs 30 per kg, the government decided to restrict exports to bring the price down.

The NAFED also raised the Minimum Export Price by $100. As a result, exports in November dropped by 72%. Bangladesh, traditionally the largest importer of onions, has imported only 320 tonnes this year, against 4.2 lakh tonnes in 2006-07.

Mudigoudra , a relative of Mallikarjun warns that this could be the beginning of a spate of suicides in the region. ‘‘There is a palpable sense of despair among the farmers,’’ he warns.

Belgaum artists’ exhibition in Kolkata

Source EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE Monday December 10 2007


BELGAUM: Three artists from Belgaum and one from Haveri will launch Group Painting Exhibition displaying their paintings from December 13 to 19 at Academy of Fine Arts in Kolkata.

The group of artists include Aaron Anil Prakash, a 23-year-old student of Beynon Smith School of Fine Arts in Belgaum. The other two are S Anil Prakash, principal of Beynon Smith School of Fine Arts, Belgaum and Somanand M Gadakari, alumni of the same school.

It was artist K H Hanchinmani of Haveri who joined them for exhibiting the paintings. Hanchimani has completed his Diploma in Drawing and Painting from Fine Art College, Rattihalli. Both Gadakari and Hanchimani are working as constables in police department.

All the four artists have displayed their paintings at different exhibitions in various places winning the hearts of art lovers.

We need more persons like Chikkodi tahshildar B L Gote

Ther are few people like Mr B L Gote who really serve the public in public intrest


Source www.newindpress.com 3 Dec 2007

BELGAUM: Unable to bear it any longer the mounting public grievance about cooking-gas shortage, Chikkodi tahshildar B L Gote, on Saturday made a surprise check on Swastik Gas Agency at Nippani, and finding the agency sitting over the stock, set himself down to distribute the gas cylinders to the waiting consumers.

Gote found to his dismay that the agency had not issued a single cylinder to its customers for over two weeks.

He counted 815 on the roll waiting for their refill. Further he detected 189 filled cylinders in the godown.

A truck-laden with 489 refilled cylinders had arrived to the godown when the tahshildar was checking the records.

The official and his team made themselves comfortable in the godown for four hours and distributed the cylinders.

Gote has also taken the trouble to ring up the waiting customers at their homes and told them to collect their cylinders.

Later, the tahshildar called the oil company concerned and instructed it to send another load of cylinders so as to clear the backlog.

Meanwhile, a media corp had assembled to witness the unusual activity of a duty-conscious tahshildar.

He told reporters that he would report the matter to the Deputy Commissioner and recommend action against the gas agency.

Gote also visited two fair-price ration shops which were reported closed while they are supposed to be open.

He telephoned the shop owners and asked them to come to spot, and made them keep open the shops for the scheduled time - from 8 am to 12 noon and from 4 pm to 8 pm everyday.

He warned of cancelling the licenses if he gets any more complaint from the people.

Giving the official a helping hand were the Taluk Food and Civil Supplies Department officer B S Halage, spe, special tahshildar S M Nayak, and a team of official functionaries.

This is my Belgaum These are my people "Belgaumites'

A Kannada school for Marathis by Marathis

Extracts from Newindpress Wednesday November 28 2007

BELGAUM: Jamboti village of Khanapur taluk, dominated by Marathis is the best example of linguistic harmony between Kannada and Marathi people. Marathis here are running a Kannada primary school.

Even though there were no Kannada families in and around Jamboti village, the Government had started a Kannada primary school here in 1990. Now the school is being run by Marathis for Marathis, as almost all the students and SDMC members are Marathis. It has become a Kannada school for the Marathi people who have accepted the school as their own, giving education to their children in Kannada.

The school has classes only up to fifth standard. Keeping education away from the language dispute, the SDMC members have maintained the school so well, that they have even urged the Karnataka Government to upgrade the classes to stop their children going to other schools near Khanapur, which is 21 km away.

The school, which is the only Kannada school in and around Jamboti zone, started with just three students. Interestingly, those three were Marathis. Even now most of the students are Marathis.

Even though the villagers plead strongly in favour of Marathi, they prefer to teach their children Kannada so that they can obtain government jobs. It will also help them to be in the mainstream of society, they feels.

In the beginning, the school never used to celebrate Karnataka Rajyotsava, as the villagers who supported the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti, used to observe the establishment day of the state as Black Day.

Now, the school, which is managed by Marathis is celebrating Rajyotsava as in other Kannada schools. Impressed by the school, villagers of Mudagayi near Jamboti, have urged the Government to start a Kannada school in their village as well.

We the Belgaumites

Dear Friends
The following extracts are from Newindpress, What I am seeing is the Karnataka govt take some good initiative for we Belgaumites irrespective of being either Kanaada or Marathi, must be welcomed.
6 new Marathi medium DEd collages is a welcome gesture news but why not our district representative (local politicians) who had taken language divede as a major issue than development are not understanding this.
Belgaum deserve still more, I remember in 1986 when the bus boards of CBT used to be in Kannada Marathi and English and route number use to be in middle. the inegrity of Belgaumites is more important then language and if Belgaum develop its we the Belgaumites to get benefit of it.

At present, the district has 11 Marathi D.Ed colleges and the government has sanctioned 6 more for Marathi medium. The total number of students from Marathi D.Ed colleges would be 1380 for every two years. However, over the last three years the government has provided job opportunities only to 350 students. The Urdu medium D.Ed students are also sailing in the same boat.

The input of each college is 50 students out of, which 25 seats are being filled by government and 25 are from management quota. However, the private managements, which have opted for the D.Ed colleges, are not able to get the students as there is a sudden decrease in the number of students seeking admission, due to more number of colleges in the district.