Tata Motors to launch slew of vehicles in 2008

Tata Motors to launch slew of vehicles in 2008

The LPT 2516 Super Turbo model

The Hindu - Business Line

Pune, Dec. 20 Tata Motors is preparing to launch a slew of new products in the forthcoming year, including pick-up vehicles in Thailand, the world truck in Korea and India and inter-city coaches and buses under the joint venture with Marco Polo, in addition to the small car.

Amongst the vehicles, first in the line-up for commercial launch during 2008 are the Xenon and the Space Cab, the first of the pick-up trucks that will be manufactured by the Tata-Thonburi Automotive Assembly Plant Company joint venture near Bangkok, in Thailand.

Mr P.M. Telang, Executive Director, Commercial Vehicles, Tata Motors, said that the vehicles were slated for launch around March. “The Space Cab has been developed in India, but will be made exclusively at our brownfield plant in Thailand,” he said. It would address export needs also, and Italy and Korea were amongst the countries with a market for the product, he added.

Tata Motors has 70 per cent stake in the joint venture and has invested Rs 150 crore in the plant, which will have an initial installed capacity of 25,000 units, with scope for expansion.

Speaking about the world truck being developed both in India and Korea by Tata-Daewoo Commercial Vehicle Company and due for launch first in Korea in June, Mr Telang said that it would have specifications that would address the needs of developed markets too. “We will design a full platform of vehicles and decide which one to launch. The world truck will have features such as the Taco-graph and GPRS so that it can be sold anywhere in the world. Of course, in other markets, there can be appropriate de-contenting,” he said. The truck will be launched in India six to nine months later.

Referring to the Tata-Marco Polo joint venture to manufacture buses and inter city coaches, Mr Telang revealed that work on the facility near Dharwad had begun, and manufacturing was expected to begin by the middle of next year. “The plant will have a capacity of 30,000 units, and we expect to reach 50 per cent of the capacity within a year’s time,” he said.

Telcon to invest Rs 180 crore in Dharwad

Telcon to invest Rs 180 crore in Dharwad
Business Standard

Mahesh Kulkarni / Bangalore November 17, 2007

Telco Construction Equipment Company (Telcon), the Rs 1,800 crore joint venture between Tata Group and Hitachi of Japan, is on an expansion spree.

The equipment maker is in the process of enlarging its manufacturing capacities at two of its existing facilities at Jamshedpur and Dharwad in Karnataka.

Telcon is investing Rs 180 crore to increase production capacities at Dharwad and also set up a design-cum-training centre. The company owns 120 acres in Dharwad, which makes some of its equipment.

Telcon aims to add one more assembly line and a paint shop at the facility, Rana Sinha, managing director, Telcon said. “We are also seeking some additional sops from the state government,” Sinha added.

“The move to expand our capacities at these two plants in addition to a new facility is to cash in on the boom in the infrastructure sector. We are already the biggest manufacturer of earthmoving and construction equipment in the country and see a huge opportunity opening up in the sector. We wish to consolidate our presence by bringing in new products,” he said.

According to Sinha, the company had seen this boom a couple of years back and decided to expand capacities by setting up a greenfield facility at Kharagpur, West Bengal over 350 acres at an investment of Rs 600 crore.

The plant is scheduled to commission the Kharagpur plant by 2011 in three phases

Telcon is also looking at inorganic growth opportunities to expand its business in India and abroad.

“We have shortlisted a few firms and are in talks with several construction equipment firms in the US and Europe. We will finalise a deal by March.”

Telcon to set up training, R&D centres

Telcon to set up training, R&D centres
Economic Times

16 Nov, 2007, 1245 hrs IST, PTI

BANGALORE: Telco Construction Equipment Company Limited (Telcon), a subsidiary of Tata Motors, plans to set up a research and development (R&D) unit and three training centres in different parts of the country by next year.

"We will set up three training centres in Jamshedpur, Dharwad and Kharagpur by January next and impart training to 30 persons in each of these facilities," Telcon Managing Director Ranaveer Sinha told reporters here last night.

The R&D unit would come up at Dharwad in Karnataka. The new manufacturing plant at Kharagpur, where the company would be investing about Rs 600 crore in three phases, would become operational by early next year, said Sinha.

He was here to attend the EXCON 2007 event. In phase I, Telcon would roll out 6,000 units of equipment such as excavators, new models of wheel loaders, road equipment, trucks and cranes and the capacity would be scaled up to 24,000 units annually by 2011, he added.

The company is also focusing its attention on acquisitions and mergers in India and developed countries and the proposals were expected to fructify by March next, Sinha said.

"We are bringing in a slew of new products with updated technology. We are also working strongly on building support network," he added.

Telcon, which recorded a turnover of Rs 1,830 crore last year, has targeted to earn Rs 2,600 crore this fiscal, Sinha said.

Infy help sought to make Hubli IT hub

Infy help sought to make Hubli IT hub
Express News Service

Friday October 26 2007 14:48 IST

HUBLI: Once again Infosys has been appealed to set-up its IT shop in Hubli to make the city the an IT-hub of North Karnataka. The appeal this time was made by made by KLE Society chairman Prabhakar Kore.

The occasion was the foundation laying ceremony of the Dr R H Kulkarni Memorial Lecture Hall Complex at the KLES’ BVB College of Engineering and Technology here on Thursday. Infosys Foundation chairperson Sudha Murhty laid the foundation.

Kore stated that with the rise of Infosys and other IT companies, the economy of the country had entirely been changed. “We are expecting the same kind of change in northern part of Karnataka, which would be possible if Infosys sets up its shop in this part of the region,” he said.

Sudhya Murhty, who is also an alumni of the BVB College of Engineering College, has donated Rs 5 crore to construct Dr R H Kulkanri Memorial Lecture Hall Complex on the college campus.

The complex will be built in the area of 42,000 square feet. Around 1,200 students can attend the lecture at the venue. The complex also houses class rooms, teachers’ hall and examination section.

Addressing the gathering, Sudha Murhty, however, did not promise any investment by the Infosys Technologies in Hubli, but said that it was the pay back time for her for the college which gave her a successful career. “Whatever you pay for your institute, cannot be matched with what you have gained from it,” she said calling upon the college alumnus to help their institute in all possible ways.

Principal Ashok Shettar said that the move of Sudha Murhty is worth emulating. With the aid given by the Infosysian, the infrastructure facilities in the college would further improve and maximum number of students can benefit out of this.

Sudha Murthy who visited the Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences Hospital promised to donate Rs 2 crore to build super speciality OPD during the 50th year of the institute. She held discussion with KIMS director Dr M G Hiremath and concerned engineers for selection of land for the new OPD.

The land behind the existing OPD has been selected to construct two-storyed super speciality OPD complex with all modern facilities.

The work would be completed by the end of July 2008. The block would be named after her father Dr R H Kulkarni who was professor in the Gynecology Department in the same institute.

TATA Motors permitted to set up unit at Dharwad: Minister

TATA Motors permitted to set up unit at Dharwad: Minister
UNI - DNA India

Saturday, September 01, 2007 12:57 IST

HUBLI: Karnataka Revenue Minister Jagadish Shettar on Saturday said the TATA Motors had been given permission to set up an automotive manufacturing unit at Dharwad.

Addressing a press conference here, Shettar said the Cabinet had given a go-ahead to TATA Motors after asking them to comply with certain conditions.

The conditions were that the company had to reserve 80 per cent of both direct and indirect jobs to Kannadigas preferably from North Karnataka region and the government would withdraw the permission if the unit did not commence operations in the stipulated period.

Shettar said the company would set up its unit near the present TELCO unit at Dharwad in three phases to manufacture luxury buses, small buses and light commercial vehicles and there would no further land acquisition from farmers.

''Whatever additional land required would be given to the company from the adjoining Belur industrial estate, where KIADB has sufficient land'', he added saying there was no reason for the farmers to worry over land acquisition.

On concessions sanctioned, the Minister said a stamp duty concession to the tune of 75 per cent was accorded and Value Added Tax (VAT) was deferred for 11 years though the company requisitioned it for 18 years.

The VAT had to be paid back with One per cent interest, he added.

Private land will not be acquired to beautify Sadhanakeri Tank: DC

Private land will not be acquired to beautify Sadhanakeri Tank: DC

The Hindu - Staff Correspondent

The tank area will be developed into a tourist spot

For tank rejuvenation: Deputy Commissioner M.S. Srikar speaking at a meeting on the development of the Sadhanakeri Tank in Dharwad on Thursday. Writers Channaveera Kanavi and Kalburgi are seen.

DHARWAD: Deputy Commissioner M.S. Srikar has categorically stated that there is no question of using private property for the development of the Sadhanakeri tank in Dharwad.

Chairing a meeting on the project being implemented for comprehensive development of the Sadhanakeri tank, Mr. Srikar said that eight acres of land forming the Sadhanakeri tank and four acres of land of the Police Department was being utilised for the project.

The objective of the project was to beautify the tank and also develop it as a tourist spot. Steps would be taken to provide information to tourists on literary and cultural importance of the tank, he said.

The Deputy Commissioner said that steps would be taken to prevent entry of sewage into tank. Only rainwater would be allowed into the tank.

A sum of Rs. 2.5 crore had been released by the Union Government for the project which included construction of a jogging track, an open air theatre and a children’s garden.

There would be lighting arrangements and 50 per cent of the power requirement would be met through solar energy, he said.

Chairman of Dr. D.R. Bendre National Memorial Trust M.M. Kalburgi briefed about the plans by the trust to utilise the venue for organising cultural and literary programmes.

Writers Channaveera Kanavi, Sadanand Kanavalli, and Arya Acharya gave their suggestions for the development of the tank.

Assistant Director of the Tourism Department Nagaraj and architect Vyasa were present.

Air Travel in India may get Heavy on Pocket

Air Travel in India may get Heavy on Pocket
The Times of India

Bangalore, Aug 19: Air Deccan’s Bangalore-Hubli route, which witnessed the low-cost carrier’s inaugural flight four years ago, is proposed to be terminated. Reason: Kingfisher Airlines has proven to be more profitable on this sector, and is seen as a better bet on the route.

In other words, what many customers feared is beginning to happen. The recent marriages between low-cost and full-fare airlines — Kingfisher-Air Deccan and Jet-Sahara — are leading to some serious rescheduling of flights to improve the profitability of the airlines. For customers, it implies the withdrawal of low-cost options that they have enjoyed for some years.

“A team from both sides (Air Deccan and Kingfisher) are looking at how best we can service various routes profitably, by drawing on each other’s strengths,” says Capt G R Gopinath, executive chairman of Deccan Aviation.

Garry Kingshott, acting CEO of JetLite (formerly Air Sahara and now a low-cost airline), says the new schedule for JetLite, which will come into effect from September 1, “has been developed with Jet Airways to ensure that there is no cannibalisation”.

Intense competition has led to most airlines bleeding, and rationalisation looks inevitable. The routes likely to be hit the most are the high-traffic ones between New Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. These three cities alone account for 60% of the country’s passenger traffic, with over 80% of the traffic being corporate travellers.

“When you are catering to a business market, frequency of a full-service carrier plays an important role in staying competitive,” says Kapil Kaul, CEO of Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation (CAPA) India.

According to sources, Jet and Kingfisher will increase frequencies on these routes during peak hours (morning and evening), even as JetLite and Air Deccan reduce their frequencies during these hours. However, the latter frequencies during lean hours may increase.

Just a few months ago, Air Deccan was planning to make itself more attractive to business travellers. But at least on high-density business travel routes, Deccan is unlikely to take the idea forward. High-traffic routes are witnessing near 30% rates of growth, fuelled by corporate travel and small enterprise business travellers.

Says Gaurang Shetty, VP (marketing) of Jet Airways, “We would like to introduce flights every half hour between Mumbai and New Delhi as that is the densest route in the country.”

Low-cost airlines are expected to focus more on tier II towns, where demand for lowcost travel is seen to be rising by 25%. JetLite, in its new schedule, has increased its number of flights from 90 to 134, but 60% of the increase is into tier II cities.

Air Deccan has recently increased frequency on its Chennai-Coimbatore and Chennai-Madurai sectors. These sectors that were earlier serviced by ATR aircraft, have now been upgraded to one ATR, and one Airbus A320 aircraft for each sector.

STRATEGY RETHINK

Intense competition has led to severe bleeding by airlines, and rescheduling looks inevitable

The Bangalore, New Delhi and Mumbai sectors are likely to be hit most as they constitute 60% of all airline business

Jet and Kingfisher may increase frequencies on these routes during peak hours (morning and evening), even as JetLite and Air Deccan reduce their frequencies during these hours. However, the latter’s frequencies during lean hours may increase

Jet Air says it will introduce flights between Mumbai and New Delhi every half-an-hour.

Digital work in Central library initiated

Digital work in Central library initiated
New Kerala.com & UNI

HUBLI, Aug 18: Karnataka Primary and Secondary Education Minister Basavaraj Horatti today inaugurated the process for renovation of central library into a digital library at a cost of Rs.2.5 crore and hoped that it would be a model digital library in the state.

Speaking at the function he said such libraries were limited to only Bangalore and Mysore, but now Hubli-Dharwad would also have a model library that would help people, children and students.

Revenue minister Jagadish Shettar who presided over the function expressed happiness over the renovation of the library into a digital library and sought people cooperation in maintaining and utilizing the library.

NRI’s query under RTI Act gets response

NRI’s query under RTI Act gets response
The Newindpress.com

Friday August 17 2007 11:48 IST
HUBLI: Going by the facts revealed under the Right to Information Act by an official of the State Industries and Commerce Department, the proposed IT/ITeS Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Hubli by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) seems like a non-starter.

The company itself has shown lukewarm response and even the Central Government has stopped granting in-principle approval for IT SEZ projects.

The State Government had cleared the proposal of TCS to establish an IT/ITeS SEZ on 50 acres in Hubli-Dharwad with an investment of Rs 120 crore. The project was cleared at the State High Level Committee meeting held on Aug 28, 2006. Responding to an application filed by Nagesh Taverageri, an NRI from Hubli living in California, under the Right to Information Act seeking information on the status of the SEZ project granted to IT bellwether TCS, the Deputy Director (SEZ) has said that the company has to acquire the land to be allotted by Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation and Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board participating in the auction.

So far, the company has not informed the progress of land acquisition to the State Government. And till now, the company has not filed the SEZ Form A application with the Union Ministry of Commerce as the proposed land is not in possession of the company. ‘‘Submitting of SEZ Form A is prerequisite for the formal approval of IT SEZ,’’ the office said in a reply.

On the information sought on expediting the process, the reply is ‘the ball is in the TCS court.’ The officer said: ‘‘If the company takes possession of the land and submits the SEZ Form A application with Government of India, the State will recommend the proposal to the Centre for granting formal approval.’’

JSW fuels BPO revolution in Bellary

JSW fuels BPO revolution in Bellary
Source : Moneycontrol.com

2007-08-17 12:51:53
Celebrating the 60th year of Indian Independence, Honorable Home Minister of Karnataka Shri M. P. Prakash inaugurated JSW’s new 100 seater BPO at Bellary. Capable of employing over 300 young graduates the BPO will be run under the aegis of JSoft Solutions Ltd, the newly formed software arm of the JSW Group. The JSoft Solutions venture is part of an ambitious youth empowerment initiative started by Mrs. Sangita Jindal, Chairperson of JSW Foundation.

Aimed at providing localised employment and to empowering the youth, JSoft Solutions, has planed to set up such centers in other cities of Karnataka like Hospet, Hubli and Raichur.

A 300-seater BPO, with a capacity to employ 900 people, is slated to start operations by January 2008 near Toranagallu, where JSW Steel Limited is located. Initially the center will cater to non-voice processes, which will later be upgraded to a full fledged voice BPO.

Speaking on this occasion, Mr. Sajjan Jindal, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of JSW Steel Ltd, said, “On the auspicious occasion of our 60th year of Independence it gives me great pride to initiate this youth empowerment project to generate localized employment. I would like to assure all Kannadigas of employment in even the tier-III cities and district talukas. Preferential employment for the Indian Girl child in these JSoft centers is another priority area for us.”

The Hon’ble Minister announced plans for setting up an Earth Station at Bellary to give a quantum boost to the IT Industry and make it a technical hub.

Later in the day, the Bellary Chamber of Commerce & Industry felicitated Mr. Sajjan Jindal & Mrs. Sangita Jindal for their sterling contribution to the fields of Industry and Corporate Social Responsibility.

Mr. Jindal also announced future plans to scale up the Bellary BPO into a 1000-seater operation with due support from the Bellary Chamber of Commerce & industry. This would open up new avenues of employment to the youth who were forced to migrate into the cities, Mr. Jindal added.

The Rural BPO revolution was started with the launch of Datahalli at Vidyanagar under the aegis of the JSW Foundation. It has provided job opportunities to numerous rural women above eighteen years of age. The BPO at Bellary has already hired 100 men & women.

NRI seeks info on SEZ under RTI Act

NRI seeks info on SEZ under RTI Act
The Newindpress.com

Tuesday August 14 2007 13:04 IST
HUBLI: A Non-Resident Indian from Hubli has filed an application with the Indian Embassy at Washington DC, USA, seeking information on the status of Karnataka Government’s decision on clearing the proposal of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to set up a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Hubli under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

Nagesh Tavarageri, California-based techie, who launched the online campaign to make Hubli-Dharwad an IT destination, appraoched the Government under the RTI Act to know what actually the Government is doing to implement its decision. Ever since the government evinced interest to develop tier-2 cities in the State, Tavarageri and his friends abroad from the twin city set a mission for the development of Hubli-Dharwad in all aspects. They had even submitted an online petition to the President of India requesting the President to include Hubli-Dharwad under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) scheme. In the application submitted to the Public Information Officer at the Indian Embassy, Nagesh has stated that though the Cabinet of Karnataka gave its clearance for the SEZ by TCS Ltd on Aug 28, 2006, hardly has there been any progress in the pursuance of the said project.

Nagesh has sought information on following specific information:

What is the current status of the SEZ project granted to TCS, for Hubli-Dharwad?

Has the Department of Commerce and Industries forwarded the file pertaining to SEZ project granted to TCS, in Hubli-Dharwad, to the Board of Approval (BoA) for SEZ?

If the details of the project have not yet been submitted to the BoA SEZ, what is the reason for not submitting the same to Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry?

Who is the bureaucratic authority responsible for the undue delay caused in this regard?

If the same details have already been submitted to the BoA SEZ, I would like to have all the related details of such submission to the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

If the details of the project have not yet been submitted to the BoA SEZ, what steps are being taken by the authorities, to expedite the process with a sense of urgency?

People's movement for honest officers

People's movement for honest officers
Times of India

13 Aug 2007, 0432 hrs IST,
BANGALORE: A people's movement is gathering momentum in two towns of the state, protesting the transfer of two upright officers. The battle lines seem to be drawn between people's power and the powers that be.

Residents of Hubli-Dharwad and KGF towns have stomped the streets in protest against the transfer of honest officials in whom they say they ‘saw hope'.

While people staged rasta-rokos to criticise the transfer of IAS officer and Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation (HDMC) commissioner, P Manivannan, residents of Kolar Gold Fields (KGF) have decided to observe a bandh to protest the transfer of IPS officer K V Sridhar. The Kumaraswamy government had effected their transfers last week.

But, why are people taking to the roads in support of only these two officers? The answer is simple: These officers distinguished themselves with their integrity, their grasp of people's problems and sincere efforts to find solutions.

Manivannan, for instance, chose not to be the typical bureaucrat who worked in an air-conditioned room. Instead, he was on the field each day for over 12 hours, interacting with people. In fact, when he took over as commissioner three years ago, the twin cities of Hubli-Dharwad were described as a ‘big village' because of lack of development, which was only increasing people's frustration.

Even before people could realise what was happening with HDMC, Manivannan restructured the internal administration by giving thrust to decentralisation. He spent Rs 30 crore on construction of roads. Next, he took on the builder-lobby through a demolition drive against illegal buildings. The builder-politician nexus got him transferred in July 2006, but public protests forced the then Dharam Singh government to cancel his transfer. His deft handling of grievances brought him to the public eye. So much so, when the Kumaraswamy government transferred him recently, people became suspicious. The government had to say that it was a routine transfer effected once in three years.

In the case of transfer of KGF superintendent of police K V Sridhar, the residents of the once-mining town are not enthused about the government's decision. In the last 14 months, the town has seen four IPS officers. Sridhar was first posted as SP to KGF on May 20 last year, but was shunted out within four days following political pressure.

The police administration in the town degenerated as everything was controlled by local politicians. But people saw hope when Sridhar was posted again as SP on July 9 this year. He got the lower-rung policemen to respond to people's problems. Nine personnel were suspended for dereliction of duty. A police party deployed to provide security to a politician's under-construction house was withdrawn. He curtailed the influence of the cable mafia. But before people could smile, transfer orders were issued to him on August 8.

Irked, the residents have appealed to the government to reinstate him. They have called for a KGF bandh on Monday.

Manivannan and Sridhar's cases are a pointer to the fact that people do protest when government uses the power of transfer to shunt upright officers.

rakesh.prakash@timesgroup.com

Rain gives fresh lease of life to lake

Rain gives fresh lease of life to lake
The Newindpress.com

Tuesday August 7 2007 13:16 IST
HUBLI: Baaro Sadankerige, the famous lyric penned by poet Dr D R Bendre still echoes in every person residing in Dharwad. Sadhanakeri Lake, the inspiration for Bendre, is brimming with water for the first time.

The lake was on the verge of extinction. This beautiful lake is also a habitat and breeding ground for migratory birds too. Lush green trees surround the lake. The chirping of birds add to the charm.

In rainy seasons the lake abounds in splendour. Now it is almost full with fresh water. ‘‘We never saw this lake this full. With more rains predicted this week, we expect more inflow,’’ said Kartik, a resident.

If the lake is de-silted, it may look more attractive, and lure tourists, says Bharat, another walker around this place. However, this historical lake faces a number of problems.

‘‘Nearby people dump garbage into the lake posing great threat to the water body. Public awareness needs to be created to save the lake,’’ said Smriti, a housewife.

‘‘We used to go to different far-off ponds or lakes to catch fish, but this time the lake is full with a variety of fish in it. We can sight other small aquatic species here,’’ said Shabuddin, a fisherman.

Citizens take road to insurance

Citizens take road to insurance
Deccan Herald News Service

Hubli:For the first time in the history of the Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation (HDMC), people of a residential area in Hubli have insured a road asphalted by the corporation a few months ago...

For the first time in the history of the Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation (HDMC), people of a residential area in Hubli have insured a road asphalted by the corporation a few months ago.

The corporation had asphalted the Thimmasagara Temple Main Road under the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF). This road is an arterial road connecting PB Road to Unkal Hosur Road situated in the heart of Vidyanagar, which falls in Ward No 43 (Zonal No 9).

Subsequently, the residents came out with the novel of idea of insuring that stretch of road and approached the HDMC authorities.

Welcoming the residents’ initiative, Commissioner P Manivannan agreed to insure that road on behalf of the HDMC.

Later, the residents also got a no objection certificate (NoC) from the corporation and approached the Oriental Insurance Company, who insured the road for Rs 2 lakh with an annual premium of Rs 303. The residents contributed equally to pay the premium.

They felt the need to insure the newly asphalted road in order to reduce the burden of maintenance.

The total sum assured is Rs 2 lakh and in case of any claims for the damages mentioned in Standard Fire and Special perils policy schedule, the amount would be directly remitted to the HDMC account.

The people here opined that the corporation has helped them a lot in many things and it was also their duty to do something in return to help the civil body.

The residents are now planning to plant saplings on either sides of the road for further development.

No insurance would be paid if anybody digs up the road to lay water pipelines or for underground drainage system. The residents could claim insurance for any possible road damage caused due to pipeline burst. In such a situation, the insurance money would be deposited to the HDMC’s account from which the road can be rebuilt.

NRI sets up centre for Social Entrepreneurship

NRI sets up centre for Social Entrepreneurship
The Hindu - Staff Correspondent

His trust will open seven Indian Institutes of Public Health

A NEW CHAPTER: Gururaj Deshpande, chairman of Sycamore Networks, U.S., unveiling a plaque during the bhoomi puja of Deshpande Centre for Social Entrepreneurship in Hubli on Saturday.

HUBLI: The bhoomi puja for the “Deshpande Centre for Social Entrepreneurship” said to be the first of its kind in the country was done here on Saturday.

The centre, which is the brainchild of Gururaj Deshpande, chairman of Sycamore Networks, U.S.; aims at creating a common platform for exchanging and improving the best ideas and methodologies adopted among various non-governmental organisations and those from abroad.

The centre is being promoted by Mr. Deshpande and his wife Jayashri Deshpande, who are trustees of Deshpande Foundation. Its building will come up on the campus of BVB College of Engineering and Technology, Hubli.

A formal function was held here on Saturday to mark the occasion in which apart from the couple, S.C. Deshpande, chairman of K.L.E. Society Prabhakra Kore, Commissioner of Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation P. Manivannan, and principal of the college Ashok Shettar were present.

Mr. Gururaj Deshpande explained the objectives behind establishing the centre. Initially, the around 50 non-governmental organisations had been selected by the centre already and they would be intermingling with “change agents”, including dedicated students from abroad and those who have successfully implemented their ideas to bring about changes in the field of their work, he said.

Dr. Deshpande said the foundation would be funding the activities of the centre but would rope in other agencies and foundation. He said all the programmes implemented by the NGOs would require technology support, where the services of the engineering institute like BVBCET would be utilised. The projects would be in the field of education, agriculture, water, and micro finance.

Mr. Deshpande said that with the assistance of the Centre, and Bill Gates Foundation seven Indian Institutes of Public Health (IIPH) would be set up. About Rs. 200 crore had been mobilised for the purpose, he said.

He said the first IIPH would be in Hyderabad.

KLE planning to start engineering college at Hubli

KLE planning to start engineering college at Hubli

The New Kerala.com and UNI

Hubli, Aug 4: The prestigious Karnataka Lingayat Education (KLE) Society, spearheading the education field in the state was planning to start an engineering college here for Information Technology (IT), Society Chairman Prabhakar Kore said today.

Talking to newspersons, he said the society had already purchased 15 acre of land for the purpose but clearance from the government was awaited to convert it into the non-agriculture land.

He said "we have planned to start the college from this academic year but now it will be postponed to next academic year.

He urged Revenue Minister Jagadish Shettar to clear the land.

The engineering college will have an intake of 2,500 students, will begin with admission for 250 students in the next academic year as per the norms, he added.

Artificial hike in land prices in Hubli -Dharwad

Artificial hike in land prices
The Newindpress.com

Saturday August 4 2007 12:22 IST

HUBLI: Although the City Development Plan (CDP) has nothing to do with real estate, the realtors are creating an artificial hike in land prices in the city.

The soaring land prices could be attributed to the much-hyped IT investment and airport upgradation, as the realtors and land investors are manipulating the land prices for land banking purpose at the cost of the commoners dream to have a plot in the city.

Admitting the artificial hike in land prices, M F Samoji of Ganesh Real Estates said that the city has been witnessing a huge growth in the number of developers and realtors in recent times, following the overall growth of the city. However CDP is yet to be recommended for revision by HDMC.

Shashikumar, Deputy Director of Town Planning, HDMC said that CDP has nothing to do with the real estate business.

As per the section-25 of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, the CDP can be revised every ten years and there were clauses to revise it before completing the tenure following the sudden and unexpected growth in the city.

The present CDP drafted in 2003 does not see any unexpected and sudden developments for premature revision as the equation of land and population has not gone beyond the calculations of CDP in HDMC limits, he said.

“Both realtors and land investors who acquired land at lesser price are falsely forecasting land scarcity to get more for their layouts coming up on the outskirts”, he stated. Local ministers and media are to be blamed for this artificial hike in prices, as both gave a wrong picture of the IT potential of the city, said Ashok Bhat of Ashok Real Estates.

The magic of Vastu consultants has also been playing a key role in the artificial hike in land prices, particularly in Gokul Road area as it comes under the North-Eastern zone which is said to be auspicious for residences.

Ashok Kheny, MD of Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises (NICE) on his recent visit to the city had stated that the soaring land prices had disrupted the development work in the city and sought the intervention of authorities concerned to check the price.

Online Campaign to Retain HDMC Chief

Online Campaign to Retain HDMC Chief
By Manu Aiyappa - Times of India



DHARWAD-HUBLI: Some like-minded residents have embarked on an online campaign to garner public support and demand the state government to extend the services of Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Commissioner P.Manivannan, who is due to be transferred in October.
"He has changed the face of Hubli-Dharwad in a span of three years. Another two years of his stay will work wonders for the twin-cities", Sunil Nalavade, the brain behind the online petition venture said.

Nalavade has created an online petition, (http://www.petitiononline.com/HDCOMMMP/petition.html) to mobilize public support to seek a two-year extension considering his performance in Hubli-Dharwad. He is also planning distribution of posters, pamphlets and banners urging people to support the cause.
"The public usually raise their voice whenever an upright officer is transferred by the government. The government will not heed such requests until such agitations turn violent or results in the damage of public property. So, we thought we will take up the matter now itself", Nalvade said.
Online petition has now emerged to be a popular and accepted mode of campaigning. Nalvade and others hope that once the issue comes in the public limelight and is picked up in the media, there will be no going back. As expected, petitions are pouring in. Nalvade said the online petition is now close to 300.

Interestingly, it has also become a platform for serious discussions where people are exchanging various points of view. For instance - "He (Manivannan) has done so much for the city and he deserves an extension. Or, at least, he should be allowed to accomplish his incomplete missions of regularizing illegal buildings and giving shape to citizens committees" - was one among the many petitions posted online.
There are others too - "HDMC, whose image as a non-performing body, reinvented itself as a proactive and development-driven agency under his period. He deserves an extension", "We never ever had in our dreams thought that HDMC will get a coveted certificate such as ISO-9001, 2000. Give him two years, he will take it to greater heights".

One of the prime concerns expressed by the petitioners, however, is that will the Special Commissioner, Ajay Nagabhushan, manage to continue Manivannan's good work."How can a person, without experience of working in any major municipal corporation of the state, manage the HDMC, touted as the second biggest municipal corporation in Karnataka", asks a petitioner.
Interestingly, a petitioner argues that if the state government transfers Manivannan, it should be seen on a positive side. If he is given greater responsibility by the government, the state as a whole will benefit along with Hubli-Dharwad".

Note: This article appeared on Times of India / Dated 8/1/2007, Bangalore edition.

Big Bazaar comes to Hubli

Big Bazaar comes to Hubli
The Hindu - Staff Correspondent

HUBLI: Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd. opened a Big Bazaar outlet in Hubli on Saturday. This is the ninth outlet in the State and 62nd outlet in Hubli on Saturday.

Rohit Malhotra, Business Head- South Zone of Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd., told presspersons that with 50,000 sq. ft. of shopping area, the Big Bazaar in Hubli would be one of the largest stores of the company.

Located near Akshay Centre, Gokul Road, it was the first and biggest hypermarket store in the city, he said.

To a question, he said the company hoped to do a business of Rs. 50 crore to Rs. 75 crore in the first year of the Hubli outlet. Initially, up to 60 per cent discount would be available on the products and goods, he said. The company planned to introduce “Future Money”.

For Address click Big Bazaar

Retain Mr.Manivannan Ponnaiah as Hon.Commissioner, HDMC

Retain Mr.Manivannan Ponnaiah as Hon.Commissioner, HDMC

Dear Friends,

An online petition has been published on the web, for collecting a huge support to stop the transfer of Mr.Manivannan Ponnaiah from HDMC. Please collect as many of your friends, known circles to sign the petition, that could be finally handed over to Hon.CM, Hon.Minister, Mr.Jagadish Shettar and other government officials, as deemed necessary.

We cannot afford to lose Hon.Commissioner, Mr.Manivannan Ponnaiah, from his current administrative authority. Let us collectively demand, to retain him at HDMC.

http://www.petitiononline.com/HDCOMMMP/petition.html

Thanking you in anticipation.

Have a good day.

Best regards,
Nagesh Tavarageri

IT cos to finally get possession of land

IT cos to finally get possession of land

20 May, 2007 0059 hrs IST
M L Kapur/TIMES NEWS NETWORK

HUBLI: Exactly a year after the IT Investors’ Meet held here to promote Hubli as the next best Tier-II investment destination for the IT/ITeS sector in the state, 11 local and Bangalore-based firms are set to get possession of HDMC land allotted to them at Rayapur.

The last hurdle was cleared at a meeting the HDMC Commissioner P Manivannan had with representatives of the firms here on Friday. He assured them that demarcation of the land allotted to them will be completed in four days and they would be handed over the relevant documents next week.

A senior HDMC official had caused confusion regarding the terms of allotment of land without doing his homework. It was sorted out at the meeting to the satisfaction of both the parties. According to the HDMC’s initial offer, 40% of the cost was to be paid at the time of possession and the remaining in two equal yearly instalments.

But when the HDMC’s proposal came up before the cabinet for clearance, it approved that the land cost will be recovered in two equal instalments. However,while HDMC had demanded interest on the instalment at prevailing market rates, the cabinet has made it without interest.

Manivannan told the representatives, "as long as you are willing to pay interest on the remaining instalment at the prevailing market rates, the number of instalments in which you pay the land cost will not be any problem."

Expressing satisfaction at the flexible terms offered by the HDMC, Sankalp Semiconductor founder and CEO Vivek Pawar said: "We will start construction work within three months of the possession of land and start operations at Rayapur within 18 months."

Pawar, who shifted his Bangalorebased firm to Hubli in June last year to overcome infrastructure bottlenecks and high attrition rate, told the Sunday Times of India: "We took it up as a challenge to develop industry-academia synergy in Hubli."

Functioning at present from the BVB College of Engineering and Technology campus, Pawar said: "We are into the designing of VLSIC chips for hardware, and for start-ups like us industry-academia interaction works to mutual benefit."

He said: "While the engineering college gets to know the industry’s latest requirement, we have easy access to trained manpower. Moreover, we always wanted to add value to Tier-II cities like Hubli so that it attracts more start-ups."

Sankalp Semiconcuctor started its operations in Bangalore in November 2005, and shifted base to Hubli in July 2006, with a highly skilled workforce of 15. At present, it has 45 people on board and plans to expand to 100 by the end of next year.

Tech cos setting up R&D centres near engineering colleges

Tech cos setting up R&D centres near engineering colleges

SOBHA MENON - TIMES NEWS NETWORK
SUNDAY, MAY 20, 2007 02:01:09 AM

NEW DELHI: Don’t be surprised if you start seeing quite a buzz around cities with reputed engineering colleges. And an increase in prosperity too, for that matter. There are more and more tech companies looking to setting up their R&D centres close to engineering colleges in places like Manipal, Udipi, Trichy, Madurai, Udipi and Kharagpur.

Sankalp Semiconductors, a two-year-old start-up with about 45 engineers working on analog and digital mixed signal technologies, operates right from the BVB Engineering College premises in Hubli. “Besides Hubli’s colleges, we recruit from campuses in Nanded, Berhampur in Orissa and Durgapur. So we are planning to set up our next R&D facility at Durgapur or Kharagpur,” says Vivek Pawar, CEO, Sankalp Semiconductors.

There’s IT services company, Able Technologies too, that’s operated out of Dharwar in Karnataka for the last two years. “I source most of my engineers from colleges in north Karnataka, so I don’t see any reason to live in a tier one city,” says Jagdish Hiremath, CEO, Able Technologies.

Tier one cities with their problems of increasing operating costs, conjestion and pollution, just fails to stack up against these towns. “You can’t give much thought to innovation and creating IP if you spend most of your time travelling — which is what I was doing in Bangalore,” says Mr Pawar about his decision to move lock,stock and barrel to Hubli two years ago.

Says Poornima Shenoy, president, Indian Semiconductors Association: “Engineering colleges are indeed turning to be quite a draw for semiconductor startups. And in many states, the government is doing its best by setting up incubation facilities and providing good infrastructure.” The success of companies such as Robosoft, a software company in Udipi, and Karmic (Karnataka Microelectronic Design Centre), a semiconductor solutions company in Manipal, could also be a reason for companies feeling more confident about operating from smaller towns and cities.

And no, employees too don’t mind leaving big cities to live in places like Manipal and Udipi. “It’s the work atmosphere that we provide here that matters to them — and so we have people who have come from Uttaranchal, Rajasthan and Manipur to work with us here in Udipi,” a Robosoft official said. In fact, there are many who would like return to their hometowns if only they had the job opportunity there, says Mr Hiremath, who returned from the US to settle in Dharwar. The tech boom’s apparently having a ripple effect.

Karnataka to give Dharwad land to Tata Motors

Karnataka to give Dharwad land to Tata Motors
Business Standard
Mahesh Kulkarni / Bangalore May 7, 2007

DHARWAD: The Karnataka government is ready to provide additional land to Tata Motors, a Tata Group company, at Dharwad to set up their new facility to manufacture and assemble a variety of buses and coaches. Tata Motors is planning to invest over Rs 1,000 crore in this plant.

According to Katta Subramanya Naidu, minister for major and medium industries, government of Karnataka, Tata Motors had submitted a proposal in this regard to the state government in September 2006. The company’s proposal is being discussed at the next cabinet meeting, he said.

However, when contacted Tata Motors spokesperson declined to comment on the proposal. “We have formed a joint venture with Brazil-based Marcopolo to jointly manufacture buses in India. But where the plant will be set up is not known,” he said.

“We have already held discussions with Tata Motors officials. They have a plant at Dharwad and sought additional 1,000 acres. We are ready to provide them additional land, but the exact extent of land to be given to them will be decided at the next cabinet meeting,” Naidu told Business Standard.

According to the minister, Tata Motors has also proposed providing employment to 30,000 people in north Karnataka. The company plans to manufacture 10,000 buses every year.

Tata Motors already has a unit, Telcon, that manufactures construction equipment, set up a decade ago at Belur industrial growth centre, about 10 km from Dharwad on national highway No 4. It has acquired 680 acres of land.

It may be recalled that Tata Motors had announced a joint venture with Marcopolo, the Brazil-based global leader in body building and coaches, in May 2006.

A delegation led by Tata Motors’ managing director Ravikanth and vice president T S Tagore had met Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy in Belgaum in September last year and held preliminary discussion on the proposal.

A senior executive of Tata Motors had told Business Standard that the company would bring fabricated material from Brazil to assemble it with the Tata chassis at Dharwad and then supply it across the country and neighbouring nations.

The company had decided to set up this plant at Dharwad considering its proximity to Mangalore and Karwar ports. In addition to land, Tata Motors had also sought various incentives including tax concessions.

“The company have asked a lot of incentives like deferment of taxes to 20 years, etc. The state industries department is looking into their demands and take a decision soon,” Naidu said.

Land acquisition for expansion of Hubli airport cleared

Land acquisition for expansion of Hubli airport cleared

Staff Correspondent - The Hindu

Government to release Rs. 50 crore as first installment
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rs. 195-crore proposal submitted for land acquisition
530 acres of 650 acres is agricultural land
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HUBLI: Another hurdle for the expansion of Hubli Airport has been cleared with the State Cabinet on Thursday approving the proposal to acquire 650 acres of land for the project.

Revenue Minister and district in-charge Jagadish Shettar told The Hindu that the Cabinet had approved the proposal to acquire acquisition of 650 acres of land for the expansion of the Hubli airport and also decided to release Rs. 50 crores as the first instalment.

After the preliminary notification for acquisition of land is issued, the remaining amount required for the purpose would be released, he said.

The approval follows the Rs. 195-crore (initial estimate) proposal submitted by Deputy Commissioner M.S. Srikar for acquiring 650 acres of land, which includes acquiring some of the residential areas adjacent to the Hubli airport.

More than 155 houses will have to be acquired by the Government for the proposed expansion plan of the airport, according to the master plan submitted by the Airports Authority of India.

Proposal

The district administration had submitted the proposal three months ago after completing the ground survey of the number of residential buildings to be acquired for the purpose.

That was in response to a high level meeting chaired by Minister for Infrastructure B. Sriramulu in Bangalore, which had sought report on the availability of 650 acres of land for the expansion of the airport.

As a step towards clearing doubts among the residents of those areas that were to be acquired and also to take them into confidence, the district administration had constituted a committee of residents associations and involved them in the ground survey.

Of the 650 acres of land identified around the airport for its expansion, 530 acres is agricultural land and remaining is non-agricultural land.

Rising and Shining

Rising & Shining

DH News - Shyam Sundar Vattam

Dharwad, home of delicious, melt-in-the-mouth pedas, has 900 years of history. It is famous for its rich cultural heritage, historical importance, educational institutions, jolada rotti and, above all, its role in the freedom struggle of our country.

“If you throw a stone, it will fall on the house of a litterateur”. This is how Dharwad is known as. In fact, Dharwad is known as the cultural capital of North Karnataka. It also has the rare distinction of producing literary giants and noted Hindustani classical musicians of national and international repute.

The word ‘Dharwad’ means a place of rest in a long journey or a small habitation. For many centuries, this city was seen as a gateway between malenaadu (western ghats) and bayaluseeme (plains) and served as the resting place for travellers. According to one version, the place got its name from one of its rulers by name Dharav, who ruled Dharwad in the year 1403 when it was under the rule of the Vijayanagar empire. There are some inscriptions that refer to Dharwad as Kampana Sthana. Inscriptions found near the Durga Devi temple in Narendra, a tiny village near Dharwad, and the local RLS High School, date back to 12th century and have references to Dharwad, proof enough that it is about 900 years old.

While the Chalukyas ruled Dharwad during the 12th century, in the 14th century it was first ruled by the Bahmani Sultanate, after which it was annexed to the newly established Hindu kingdom of Vijayanagar. After the defeat of the king of Vijayanagar at Talikot in 1565, Dharwad was for a few years practically independent under its Hindu governor; but in 1573 the fort was captured by the Sultan of Bijapur, Adil Shah, and Dharwad was annexed to his dominions.

Adil Shah built a fort in an area later called Manna Kille, and later Nazratabad. With this fort, the strategic importance of Dharwad increased and it thus attracted the attention of subsequent conquerors, including Aurangazeb, Shivaji, Aurangazeb's son Mu Azam, Peshwa Balaji Rao, Hyder Ali, Tipu Sultan and finally the British colonisers.

A seat of education

Dharwad has been a seat of education for many decades. The erstwhile British rulers started an English medium school in Dharwad way back in 1848 and in town municipality in 1856. Later in 1863, the Basel Mission started a school and in 1867 the British opened another school by name Varmal School, which later came to be known as the Training College.

Dharwad has two universities - the Karnatak University and the University of Agricultural Sciences, besides a number of educational institutions. The place also has many colleges of repute offering professional courses.

The merger

In 1883, the municipality area included Sidapur, Lakamanhalli, Haveri Pete, Bagtalan, Madhihal, Gulaganjikoppa, Malapura, Kamalapura, Narayanpura, Saptapura, Atti Kolla and Hosayellapur. The Dharwad Railway Station was set up by the then British Government in 1888. By 1901, the town had a population of 31,279 and was home to several cotton ginning factories, a cotton mill and two high schools, one maintained by the government and the other by the Basel German Mission.

After India's independence in 1947, the Bombay Presidency was reconstituted as the Bombay State. In 1956, the southern, Kannada-speaking districts of Bombay State, including Dharwad, were added to Mysore State, rechristened as Karnataka in 1972.

In 1961, the town merged with the adjacent town of Hubli to become a single municipality, Hubli-Dharwad, and is the second-largest conurbation in the State after Bangalore.

While Dharwad has been known for art, literature and cultural activities, Hubli has been a hub of commercial activities. According to history, this city was founded by one Basappa, a trader with a cluster of houses. The place was once known for its cotton mills and ginning factories as cotton was one of the major crops of the region. The presence of UAS, Dharwad, also helped in the introduction of new varieties of cotton crops. For many years, both Hubli and Davangere competed in cotton production. However, the cotton industry has now completely collapsed and Mahadev Textile Mills, one of the biggest mills of North Karnataka with around 2,000 employees, closed down five to six years ago, as also a number of ginning and pressing mills, which have now become a thing of the past.

Tanks and lakes

When Dharwad Municipality came into being in 1846, there were 614 wells, of which 126 had sweet water. The people of Haveri Pet, Kamalapura and Malapura depended on Halageri and Koppadakeri tanks for their drinking water needs as the water in the wells in their areas was salty and hence unfit for drinking.

One such historical well has been Jakani Bhavi, situated in the heart of Dharwad city. Earlier, it was a private property, but the municipality authorities renovated it about 50 years ago and constructed steps on both sides and a protection wall. This was one of the wells that had sweet water and the road on which this well was situated came to be known as Neeru Raste. There is also a memorial right next to this well, erected in memory of freedom fighters. As time rolled by, people stopped using this water and started dumping all kinds of garbage in it. Officials concerned have also turned a blind eye to it.

Another well with an interesting story behind it is the Nucchambali Bhavi on Hosayellapura Road in the city. This well was constructed in 17th century on the banks of Hirekere when severe drought hit Dharwad. The digging of this well was taken up as part of drought relief measures and the workers were given jolada nucchina ambali instead of wages. Hence the well became popular as Nucchambali Bhavi.

Rao Bahadur Venkatrayara Bhavi (Judgi Bhavi), also situated on Hosayellapur Road, was constructed by Sri Rao Bahadur Venkatrayaru, a local judge, when drought gripped Dharwad between 1837 and 1840. He spent a huge amount for the construction of this well. After his death in 1846, his son Rao Saheb Tirumala Raya Inamdar completed the work. In recognition of this humanitarian work, the governor of erstwhile Mumbai honoured Sri Tirumala Rayaru. This well was open to the people of all castes, community and creed, and it did not go dry despite another bout of drought in 1874.

A few other wells in the place include Koppammana Bhavi, Rayara Bhavi, Udupirayara Bhavi, Srinivasa Rayara Bhavi and Railway Bhavi, most of which were constructed in late 18th century. Although many wells have vanished, there are still a few, but in urgent need of attention.

KVS

The Karnataka Vidyavardhaka Sangha, established in 1890, united the people of Dharwad, encouraging them to excel in the fields of art, music, drama, culture and freedom struggle. One of the major contributions of the Sangha has been its role in the unification of Kannada-speaking people and the formation of Karnataka.

However, it was during the early 20th century that Dharwad assumed importance as the centre of freedom struggle. The first political conference in Karnataka was held in Dharwad in 1920 and during the Non Co-operative Movement in 1921, the first ever police firing in the whole of India took place in Dharwad. The people of Dharwad participated actively in the Khilafat and Quit India movements too. A monument, right at the centre of the city, bears testimony to the active role the residents of Dharwad played in the freedom struggle.

That’s Dharwad, the district with a rich historical background.

Important eveImportant events in the history of Dharwad

1818: Dharwad comes under British rule and General Munroe starts civil rule. 1820: The Post Office and the District Collector's Office are established. 1821: Collector Thackeray commences land survey. 1824: Thackeray killed in the battle of Kittur by Rani Chennamma's forces. 1826: First Marathi school established. 1830: Dharwad district formed; Civil hospital built. 1831: First Kannada school established. 1835: First Silver coin comes into circulation. 1835: Samuel Hebik arrives. 1836: Basel Mission set up. 1840: Catholic church built. 1844: Hospital of mental health established. 1845: Sunday declared holiday for schools and government offices. 1848: Government English school established. 1849: Sanskrit Pathashala founded by Gurunath Rao. 1854: Native General Library founded by Lakshman Sripad Nagpurkar. 1855: The arrival of mail in bullock carts. 1856: Municipality established. 1858: School for Juvenile criminals established. 1861: Venkat Rango Katti starts publishing the first Kannada monthly Gnanabodhaka. 1861: District magistrates� court house established. 1863: Basel Mission High School established. 1865: Men�s Training College publishes the Vara Patrike weekly. 1866: Cholera epidemic in Dharwad. 1867: Import/export of cloth commences. 1868: First girls� school established. 1870: Ziggler comes to Dharwad. 1872: Chickenpox epidemic in Dharwad. 1872: First common census taken. 1873: Head Post Office established. 1876: Ziggler writes the Kannada-English Dictionary; Men�s Training College building built; Kerosene import commences. 1879: Karnataka School of Music established. 1882: School started in Kamanakatti, christened later as the Victoria High School; Southern Maratha Railway lays meter gauge railway. 1883: Lingayat Abhivriddhi Samsthe started in Chennamallappa Tenginakai's house in Adiki Oni. 1884: Dharwad upgraded to City Municipality. 1885: Telegraph office becomes operational. 1886: Dharwad Gymkhana Club established. 1887: Railway office started, which later became the Karnatak College. 1888: Dharwad-Vasco Railway commences operation. 1889: The Karnataka Vidyavardhaka Sangha founded by Ra Ha Deshpande. 1895: Shivaji and Ganesh festivals introduced by Balgangadhar Tilak; Mitra Samaj Club established; Women's training college founded. 1896: Vagbhushana magazine started; Veni Samhara, the Sanskrit play, staged for the first time; Severe famine hits Dharwad. 1897: A place near the fort area allotted to the Lingayat Abhivriddhi Samsthe, which later became the Town Hall. 1898: Plague hits the city. 1902: The Theosophical Society founded. 1907: Lokamanya Tilak visits Dharwad and delivers speech in the Anjuman College grounds; The Southern Maratha Co-operative Bank established, which later came to be known as the Mahalakshmi Urban Co-op Bank. 1911: Water supply started from the Kelageri tank. 1913: Hukkerikar Ramaraya appointed the principal of the Victoria High School. 1914: Karnataka Historical Research Centre founded. 1916: KCC Bank established by Shantaveerappa Menshinkai. 1917: Karnatak College built. 1918: Murugha Math Prasada Nilaya established. 1919: Motor vehicles arrive. 1920: Bharat Scouts and Guides School established. 1920: Mahatma Gandhi visits. 1921: Three Khilafat activists die in police firing near Jakani Bhavi; Lala Lajpat Rao visits. 1922: KLE society founded. Hostel for Lingayat students established. 1927: General strike against the Simon Commission. 1930: Rangarao Divakar arrested for selling salt without paying tax. 1933: Karnatak Natya Vilasi Havyasi Nataka Society was founded by well-known playwright Sriranga. 1936: First telephone exchange established. 1936: Salunke participates in the Indian hockey team in the Berlin Olympics. 1947: Agriculture College (now the University of Agricultural Sciences) established. Courtesy: Dharwad district administration.

Literary and cultural contribution

Dharwad is proud to have given birth to Hindustani classical singers of national and international repute - Sawai Gandharva, Mallikarjun Mansur, Bhimsen Joshi (now in Pune), Basavaraj Rajaguru, Kumar Gandharva and Dr Gangubai Hangal. The introduction of Kirana Gharana to Dharwad was quite accidental. �Sangeet Ratna� Ustad Abdul Karim Khan, who frequented the Mysore Darbar, stayed with his brother in Dharwad, where he taught his most famous disciple, Sawai Gandharva. In turn, Sawai Gandharva taught Dr Gangubai Hangal, Pt Bhimsen Joshi and Pt Basavaraj Rajaguru. Jnanapith award winners Dr Da Ra Bendre, Dr V K Gokak and Dr Girish Karnad trace their origin to Dharwad.

PROFILE

District: Dharwad. District headquarters: Dharwad Taluks: Dharwad, Hubli, Kalghatgi, Navalgund and Kundgol. Area: 4,265 km. Population: 1,604,253 (2001 census). Languages spoken: Kannada, Marathi. River: Shalmala. Food speciality: Peda, jolada rotti, rice, chapati, sprouts, yengai badanekai, varieties of chutney powder and onion. Famous personalities: Dr Gangubai Hangal, Dr G S Amur, Dr Chennaveera Kanavi, Dr M M Kalburgi, Ustad Balekhan, Mr Sadanand Kanvalli. Tourist sports in and around Dharwad: KC Park, Thackeray Tomb, Murugha Mutt, Sadhanakeri, Kelgeri, Dr Da Ra Bendre National Memorial Trust, Dr Mallikarjun Mansur National Trust, Sri Siddaroodha Mutt, Unkal Tank, Nrupathunga Hills, Varur Navagraha Tirtha, Koliwad (birth place of Kumara Vyasa).

Rs 50-cr grant to tide over water scarcity

Rs 50-cr grant to tide over water scarcity
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
19 Feb, 2007 0223hrs IST

HUBLI: The state government will soon release a "special grant" of Rs 50 crore to initiate work on the third phase of the Rs 195 crore Malaprabha Drinking Water Project to augment the drinking water supply in Hubli and Dharwad.

Speaking to reporters here on Sunday, deputy chief minister B S Yediyurappa said the state government will release the funds before the conclusion of the ongoing assembly session.

"In all probability, the work will commence within a month or two," he asserted. He said the special grant has been sanctioned keeping in view the acute drinking water shortage faced during the summer in the twin-cities.

"With immediate release of funds for the scheme, tenders will be floated to start the work. The project will also ensure that the twin-cities get drinking water supply daily, instead of twice a week as it does now," he said.

However,Yediyurappa remained non-committal on allocating funds for the project (Malaprabha Drinking Water Scheme) in the budget.

"Let the work start. Then we will see what best can be done to ensure the early competition of the project," he said.

Stating that the state government is committed to the development of Hubli-Dharwad, he also said a sum of Rs 12 crore has been sanctioned for the development of the historical Indira Glass House in Hubli and other parks and roads in the twin-cities.

Law varsity will begin from next year: Prakash

Law varsity will begin from next year: Prakash
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
19 Feb, 2007 0225hrs IST

HUBLI: The first ever law university in Karnataka will start functioning from the next academic year, home minister M P Prakash announced here on Sunday.

He told reporters that all hurdles pertaining to land acquisition have been cleared with a "compromise formula"between the stakeholders of law university and IT companies.

Prakash said the Karnataka Law University Bill, 2007, has already approved by the cabinet and it will now be placed before the both the Houses for discussion before obtaining the assent from the governor.

"We are optimistic that we will get the nod of both the houses and the governor soon and we the law university will be operational from the coming academic year 2007-08,"he asserted.

Lauding the efforts of opposition leader H K Patil, Prakash said the establishment of a separate law university in Karnataka is one of the main objectives of the policy and action plan prepared by the department of law, justice and human rights.

This was proposed by H K Patil when he was the law minister on the basis of recommendations of Dr D M Nanjundappa Committee report on regional imbalance.

Prof J S Patil of Gulbarga University has been appointed as special officer to establish law university.

KCCI demands setting up of IT SEZ in Hubli

KCCI demands setting up of IT SEZ in Hubli
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

18 Feb, 2007 0151hrs IST

HUBLI: The Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry has demanded that the stage government should take immediate steps to establish a special economic zone for information technology sector in Hubli for the overall development of North Karnataka.

In a pre-budget consultation meeting with deputy chief minister and finance minister B S Yediyurappa held here on Saturday, KCCI president Shankaranna Munavalli stressed the need to create investor-friendly conditions to attract big industries to the region.

Munavalli also sought early acquisition of 650 acres of additional land for the development of Hubli airport, an open heart surgery facilities at Karnataka Institute of Medical Science, Hubli and construction of the much delayed Outer Ring Road to take care of infrastructure bottlenecks.

The KCCI president said apart from improving the general power supply situation in North Karnataka and irrigation facilities in the Krishna basin district, development of Karwar Port was also essential to boost trade and exports from the region in the longrun.

He lamented that despite huge investments to computerise tax administration in the country, the website of the empowered committee on VAT was either not operative or was not regularly updated.

As a result that traders remained ignorant about latest changes in tax laws. He demanded reduction in VAT rates from 12.5 per cent to 4 per cent on PVC pipes, CFL bulbs, dry grapes, biscuits and sweets, coconut oil, brass copper and stainless steel utensils, industrial inputs and ghee, and total VAT exemption for tamarind, chilli, school bags and husk of groundnut, paddy, and karadi.

HDMC draws criticism

HDMC draws criticism
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
14 Feb, 2007 0010hrs IST

HUBLI: The alleged hasty manner in which the Hubli Dharwad Municipal Corporation is pushing ahead with the formation of citizen committees at the polling booth level to prioritise development strategies for the twin cities has come in for criticism from certain quarters.

Concerned citizens told 'The Times of India' that the time given by the corporation for completing the formalities to be on the booth level panels was a little to short. "There is not enough time for the citizens of the booth area to sit together and arrive at a consensus," they said.

The Dharwad Citizens' Forum pointed out that "the proposal for formation of booth level citizen committees was announced through a public address system on February 6. The details about it appeared in newspapers on February 8, which was incidentally the last day for submitting applications."

In a statement, citizen forum's general secretary H K Pathan alleged: "The entire process is being conducted in a very hasty manner to prevent genuinely interested, eligible citizens from becoming members of such committees.

This has given room for suspicion that the process might be manipulated by some to pack the committees with their own men."

HDMC commissioner P Manivannan said: "We have given sufficient time to those interested to apply for membership of citizen committees.

I have written a number to letters to the citizens' forum and am even willing to make them a part of the NGOs involved with the corporation to uplift the twin cities. But they don't respond. So what am I to do?" The corporation had hired the services of a consortium of Administrative Staff College of India and Ernst & Young to prepare a City Development Strategy Report.

The strategies for long-term development of the city suggested in the report are to be prioritised by incorporating the response of booth level citizen committees.

Each booth will have a nine-member committee. There are, in all, 654 booths in the corporation area. So, a total of 5,886 members will have to be appointed. In response to the HDMC scheme publicised in the media, nearly 2,500 citizens have applied, including more than one applicant for a given slot in the committee in many cases.

An HDMC official involved in the formation of the committees admitted that the response has been less than sufficient, but he did not agree that it was due to lack of time given to the citizens. The poor response is now being met by resorting to the mechanism of nominating remaining members on the booth committees, he said.

Ostensibly to help in the process of formation of the booth level committees, HDMC had constituted a nine-member Citizens' Advisory Committee chaired by former Mangalore University vice-chancellor M I Savadatti.

At a meeting held over the weekend, the advisory committee, in fact, authorised the assistant commissioners of 12 zones of the corporation to nominate members to constitute the booth-level committees.

Twin-cities gear for shutdown

Twin-cities gear for shutdown
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
11 Feb, 2007 2358hrs IST

HUBLI: Normal life is likely to come to a standstill on Monday with several organisations here extending support to the dawn-to-dusk state-wide bandh in protest against the recent verdict of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal.

Security measures have already been stepped up in Hubli-Dharwad as a precautionary measure. Senior police officials said additional security forces had been deployed in vulnerable areas and vigilance strengthened at vital installations to prevent any untoward occurrences and disruption of peace. All schools and colleges across the twin-cities will remain closed as per the government orders.

Autorickshaws and private buses will go off the roads in support of the bandh. The cinema halls also will also down shutters. The NWKRTC will run skeletal services unless there is no major law and order problem.

Even clinics and hospitals of private practitioners will remain closed from 6 am to 6 pm in support of the bandh. Other services such as milk supply, government hospitals, chemists, ambulances and railway services will not be affected. Going by the support now, it is likely to evoke some good response to the bandh call.

"We were worried that the people will not support the bandh call in North Karnataka as Cauvery is basically a southern issue. But,we are happy at the support that has been pouring in," members of Karnataka Rakshna Vedike said. "It is our duty to extend support to the bandh as the river belongs to the state.With this,we also hope to win the hearts of people in the South so that they support our region's cause equally," they asserted.

Even the Dharwad Truck Owners Association has decided to extend their support by not operating their trucks from Sunday midnight to Monday midnight, according to a release from Dharwad Truckers Association.

Apart from government employees, school and college teachers associations, and other organisations here such as the Karnataka Kannada Sangha, Sri Gajanana Mandal and Kannada Yuva Jagruthi Mandali have also extended their explicit support to the bandh.

HDMC sets up panel

HDMC sets up panel
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
9 Feb, 2007 0214hrs IST

HUBLI: The Hubli Dharwad Municipal Corporation has initiated the process of constituting citizen committees at polling booth level to prioritise implementation of strategies proposed in the city development strategy report.

The city development strategy report has been prepared by the HDMC as a blueprint for long-term development of the city for the next 20 years, which will also act as a basic document for development plans under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.

HDMC had commissioned the services of a consortium of Administrative Staff College of India and Ernst & Young to prepare the report. It was funded by Washington-based Cities Alliance, a World Bank affiliate.

To facilitate completion of the process of formation of citizen committees by February 18, the corporation has constituted a citizen advisory committee chaired by former Mangalore University vice-chancellor M I Savadatti. HDMC commissioner P Manivannan will be its co-chairman. Other members of the committee are D C Patil, Anand Pandurangi, Bharath Kkimji, K B Desai, S S Hasabi, Mohan Nagammanavar and Savithri Mahishi.

The citizen advisory committee will supervise the formation and functioning of citizen committees and zonal committees, which will be formed in all the 12 zones with one representative each from the citizen committees of the respective zone.

It will identify the activities of HDMC where citizen participation is essential and provide necessary guidance to working groups for three divisions of the city in drawing up and implementation of action plans to meet the goals of development. Each working group will be headed by the executive engineer of the respective division and will have three NGO representatives as members.

These working groups will assist the citizen advisory committee and the capacity-building agency in functioning of citizen committees.

After bringing about decentralisation in its administration and transparency in its functioning through e-governance, the HDMC is now attempting citizen participation in preparing development plans of their respective areas and monitoring of works undertaken.

If successful, it will curb the clout of councillors in the sanctioning of development works in their respective wards as this will then be decided by the zonal committees on the basis of inputs received from the citizen committees.

The citizen committee will be asked to prepare a monthly feedback of the respective wards and will be empowered to undertake internal checking of electoral, tax and other details. Along with zonal committees, they will also help create civic awareness.

Govt may allow airports on pvt land: Patel

Govt may allow airports on pvt land: Patel
BS Reporter / New Delhi February 6, 2007

To overcome hurdles in land acquisition for airport projects, the government is planning to allow private players to build airports on their own land.

“To increase connectivity, the government will set up merchant greenfield airports, which will be private airports built on privately owned lands, within permissible civil aviation parameters,” Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said.

This, he said, would solve the problem of land acquisition, which was a major hurdle to infrastructure projects in the country.

The Jindal group recently opened its Jindal Vijayanagar airport, that had been operating as a private airstrip since 1997, for commercial operations.

Apart from Air Deccan, which operates daily flights connecting Bangalore and Goa with Vijayanagar, Kingfisher Airlines has shown interest in operating flights connecting Mumbai, Hubli and Vijaynagar.

The civil aviation ministry is also negotiating with state governments to develop some of the 300 airstrips to provide better regional connectivity. The government, which is considering imposing a cess to fund economically unviable airports, is expecting investment of $50-70 billion in the sector in the next ten years.

“Due to the unprecedented growth in the civil aviation sector, we would need secondary airports in non-metro cities for the next 5-10 years. The aviation sector in India has the potential of growing by 25 per cent annually in the next ten years. In 2006 alone, the growth was 50 per cent. This has created the need for urgent and immediate growth in infrastructure,” Patel said. He added that public-private-partnerships can help build infrastructure in shortest possible time.

The government is also considering regulatory control over the civil aviation sector. The Bill for setting up an airport economic regulatory authority would be introduced in Parliament in the Budget session, he said. The authority is expected to be in place by the end of the year.

Patel said a proposal to hike foreign direct investment (FDI) cap in helicopter and sea-plane operations, charters, air-cargo and non-scheduled air operations and in maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities has been moved for Cabinet’s consideration.

Illegal connections pose hurdle

Illegal connections pose hurdle
M L Kapur - TIMES NEWS NETWORK
5 Feb, 2007 2336hrs IST

HUBLI: Nearly 1,000 illegal water connections in Hubli and Dharwad have become the main stumbling block in the timely commissioning of the 24x7 drinking water supply demonstration project in selected eight wards of the twin cities.

The World Bank-aided project was to have been completed by September last year. The deadline was extended till December following opposition to the project from a section of the target population in Dharwad. Many of them had illegal connections.

The Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation (KUIDFC) is implementing the Rs 237-crore project in select wards of Hubli-Dharwad, Belgaum and Gulbarga. It has now been rescheduled for commissioning by March-end this year.

Even as some 60-odd houses in Shakti Nagar and Madhura Park areas of Hubli are getting round-the-clock water supply up to the second floor for over a week now on an experimental basis, the illegal connections issue continues to dog the project the project officials.

KUIDFC chairman A K Agarwal reviewed the progress of the project on Monday. Dharwad regional deputy project director I M Prabhakar said those illegally tapping water from the main pipes in Hubli and Dharwad had been asked to regularise their water connections.

Project officials made it clear that only those having authorised Water Board connections would be offered the facility of 24x7 drinking water supply. According to a rough estimate, about 60% of connections in Pendar Oni and Kolikeri areas of Dharwad are illegal. A French multinational, CGE, has been awarded the contract to execute and operate the project for two years, and also design billing software, before handing it over to the respective local civic bodies, even though KUIDFC is the nodal agency for its implementation.

At the peak of opposition to the project in Dharwad on grounds that water charges would be hiked steeply,HDMC commissioner P Manivannan had given the residents the option to either retain the Water Board connection or go in for 24x7 supply. He had also promised to provide public taps in the demonstration wards.

However, project officials said that water supplied through the public taps will also be billed. "The only difference will be that that if HDMC installs public taps, it will pay the bill. The money will just move from one head of account to the other as revenue under the project ultimately goes to the civic body."

Meanwhile, the Dharwadbased Rural and Urban Development Association, the NGO whose functioning had come under severe criticism for its failure to create public awareness about the project, has been asked to motivate people to apply for connections under the 24x7 project.

HDMC poised to get ISO certification

HDMC poised to get ISO certification
MANU AIYAPPA - TIMES NEWS NETWORK
4 Feb, 2007 2233hrs IST

HUBLI: Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation has initiated measures to obtain the ISO 9001:2000 certification for its quality management systems that will put a stamp of excellence on its services provided to the citizens.

The corporation is inching towards this goal with the help of TUW, an international organisation for standardisation based in Netherlands.

If successful in this endeavour, the HDMC will be the first municipal corporation in the state to be awarded the certification and the third civic body in the country.

A three-member team of experts from TUW will start evaluating its services being rendered to the citizens from Monday. The civic body has been striving to improve its services. The HDMC has undergone a revolutionary change over the last two years for the purpose.

There has been significant transparency in the administrative activities, thanks to the successful initiation of egovernance. The attitude of the office staff has also transformed for the better. Unlike earlier, they are more eager and helpful now.

However, the biggest achievement of HDMC was the opening of Citizens’ Facilitation Centre (zonal offices) aimed at decentralising power and deliver timebound services.

The centres, which have cash counters, help desks and a complaints desk, resemble corporate office as far as ambience is concerned. They enable citizens to submit applications/ complaints, check the status of their letters, and receive vital and useful information related to HDMC besides other routine activities like getting birth/ death certificates, paying property tax and water bills.

Data mining and maintenance have all become easier now. One does not have to go through numerous large files for days to retrieve a single document. The 24x7 control room, started by HDMC for good governance, has also been effectively functioning with more than 90% redressal. A rather anxious HDMC commissioner P Manivannan said the members of the evaluation team should be impressed with the different system established by the HDMC to transact business with the citizens.

He said: “If they find any discrepancies, the evaluation team would give a month’s time to put all these systems into place. They will also advise us on the records to be maintained to obtain ISO 9001:2000.”

He said the team will submit their final report to their office within a month and the municipal corporation is likely to get the certification by March-end. However, Manivannan expressed confidence that HDMC will be able to get the certification though there is quite a lot of discrepancy between the goals of the quality policy and reality.

Road to Hubli airport to get makeover

Road to Hubli airport to get makeover
BS Reporter / Chennai/ Hubli January 30, 2007

The Gokul road in Hubli, which leads to the airport, will be made a four-lane road with assistance from the state and Centre under the Assistance to States for Developing Export Infrastructure and Allied Activities (ASIDE).

Karnataka revenue minister Jagadeesh Shettar told reporters here on Monday the Centre and the state governments would give Rs 9 crore for the purpose. About Rs 2.5 crore had been released already.

He said the government had initiated steps to acquire additional land for developing Hubli Airport into an all-weather international airport. The land would be handed over to the Airports Authority of India.

Shettar said as per the Nanjundappa Committee’s recommendations, the government had formulated the new industrial policy, which proposed to give incentives and tax exemptions to industries that are to be established in backward regions of the state.

Earlier, the minister inaugurated the hi-tech intensive care unit and hospital ‘Lifeline 24X7’, a unit of the Logicare Health Solutions Private Limited on Gokul road here. He also inaugurated the state-of-the-art equipment procured by the Karnataka Material Testing and Research Centre (KMTRC).

Green cover faces HDMC axe

Green cover faces HDMC axe
MANU AIYAPPA - TIMES NEWS NETWORK
30 Jan, 2007 2314hrs IST

HUBLI: About five dozen trees, including 10 aged 50-80 years, will face the axe to make way for widening of the Hosur-Unkal stretch of Old PB Road.

The road-widening is being undertaken as part of the road upgradation plan to ease traffic on the bustling Hosur-Unkal stretch, which had witnessed a spate of road accidents in recent times. Last year, about three dozens trees were axed on Club Road, connecting Hubli-Bijapur highway, as part of road widening work, that attracted a lot of public wrath.

HDMC commissioner P Manivannan said the feeling of trees on Hosur-Unkal stretch will begin in the third week of February. The road updgradation project includes widening of road, construction of footpaths and medians. "We are bound to lose some precious trees, but it is unavoidable since the city is also growing in leaps and bounds", Manivannan said.

A meeting to review the shifting of electrical installations and standing trees was held under the chairmanship of Dharwad DC M S Srikar which set a February 15 deadline for Hubli Electricity Supply Company (Hescom) to complete shifting of electric poles. "The felling of trees will begin soon after the electric poles are shifted", Manivannan said.

Several trees in and around the twin cities have been victims of urbanisation and nature's fury over the last few years resulting in ecological imbalance in the twin cities which is already being polluted by dust. However, the HDMC or the forest department have not made any efforts to compensate such losses.

Expressing concern, some environmentalists contended that HDMC should ensure a contingency plan for plantation of shady trees in vacant areas to compensate such losses. "It is not just the green cover or shade that will disappear now, but their usefulness in several other ways, including in maintaining the ecological balance, subsoil water and providing shelter to human friendly birds, will also be lost in the name of development", rued S N Girish, an environmentalist.

As per the afforestation clause, he said the forest department is supposed to plant 10 times the number of trees felled. "But that is not happening here. This is not good for the city or people", he alleged. Environment watchers also pointed out that HDMC, some time ago, had also initiated a special scheme to plant 65,000 saplings in the twin cities to improve greenery in the twin cities.

Under the scheme, it had also announced that it will give stipend of Rs 150 per year for any person who safeguards such plants until it matures as a tree. But the campaign failed make much impact, largely due to poor public response.