Red tape blocks Hubli tech park

Red tape blocks Hubli tech park

Vincent D’Souza | TNN

Hubli: Aryabhata Tech Park launched with much fanfare four years ago has failed to realize IT dreams of Hubli as expected. It is said red tape has come in the way. Of the seven companies to which land was allotted in 28 acres in Rayapur, only N S Infotech has started its operations, while Sankalp Semiconductors will start functioning soon.
The other five companies which include Diksha Technologies, one of the top 50 fastest growing IT companies in the country, C2Silicon Software Solutions, Auriole Technologies, Mahaveer Infoway, Pen Arbor InfoTech and Abel Design Engineering Services have not been able to start operations allegedly because of red tape.
North Karnataka IT Developers Association president Sridhar Pujar said unnecessary delay in paperwork in government offices has been a major stumbling block. The civic authorities are not working in coordination which discourages investors, he said.
He said in the case of Diksha Technologies which was sandwiched between two portions of land belonging to Karnataka State Law University, the authorities asked the company to part with land allotted to it for the university but did not show any alternative land. When the authorities did not respond positively for alternative land, the company set up their unit in the land allotted to it earlier. Likewise, in the case of Intent Info which wanted to set up a company with 200 jobs, its papers got stuck in the municipal corporation for more than three months which finally led to the company to move out of state. Bangalore based engineering software services company Quest backed out due to delay in land allotment and settled in Belgaum.
Santosh Hurlikoppi of N S Infotech said the Hescom has been delaying permanent power connection to his unit and he is shelling out over Rs 60,000 every month which is double for the power he uses. Even the BSNL has so far not been allotted land in the Park for broadband facility.
However, HDMC commissioner K V Trilokchandra said the corporation has given needed permission to the firms.
NO SMOOTH RIDE
North Karnataka IT Developers Association says delay in paperwork in government offices hampering work, discouraging investors
Infrastructure problems also plague Aryabhata park.

Bhimsen Joshi, music maestro passes away - The Economic Times

24 JAN, 2011, 11.27AM IST,PTI

Bhimsen Joshi, music maestro passes away

PUNE: Legendary vocalist Pandit Bhimsen Joshi , who enthralled generations of connoisseurs with his renditions of Hindustani classical music, passed away at a city hospital today after a prolonged illness.

He was 87. A recipient of Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award, Joshi had been put on life support system following old age- related ailments leading to kidney and respiratory failure after his admission to hospital on December 31, his family said.

Joshi, the most-celebrated exponent of 'Kirana gharana' of Khansahib Abdul Karim Khan , leaves behind three sons and a daughter.

A pall of gloom descended on the city as the news of his demise spread with people making a beeline to his residence to pay their last respects to the singer who was the most powerful figure on the Hindustani music concert platform of 'khayal gayki'.

Born on February 4, 1922 at Gadag in Dharwad district of Karnataka, Joshi got a boost to his career during a concert in Pune in January 1946 on the occasion of the 60th birthday of his guru Sawai Gandharva.

What distinguished him from the ordinary was his powerful voice, amazing breath control, fine musical sensibility and unwavering grasp of the fundamentals that made him the supreme Hindustani vocalist, representing a subtle fusion of intelligence and passion that imparted life and excitement to his music.

In the forays he made outside the classical fold, Joshi lent is voice as a "dhrupad" singer for a Bengali film based on the life of Tansen and later sang as a playback singer for Marathi film "Gulacha Ganapati", produced and directed by celebrated Marathi humorist "Pu La" Deshpande in addition to Hindi movies "Basant Bahar" and "Bhairavi".

But it was his 'Sant Vani' recitals, which bore the flair of Marathi 'Bhakti Sangeet' that added immensely to his popularity in both Maharashtra and Karnataka which have had a long succession of saint-poets.

He was honoured with the Padma Shri (1972), Sangeet Natak Akademi award for Hindustani vocal music (1975), Padma Bhushan (1985) and Madhya Pradesh government's "Tansen Samman" in 1992. Bharat Ratna was bestowed on him in 2008.

Joshi had undergone a surgery for removal of a brain tumor in 1999 followed by a cervical spine operation in 2005.

The maestro's last surprise public performance that regaled the audience was during 2007 'Sawai Gandharva' annual music festival which he himself had started to commemorate the memory of his guru.

Dharwad Utsav makes a colourful comeback - The Times of India

Dharwad Utsav makes a colourful comeback

GURURAJ JAMKHANDI, TNN, Jan 23, 2011, 10.04pm IST

DHARWAD: The district administration relaunched Dharwad Utsav after a gap of two years to showcase cultural flavour of this cultural hub of northern part of the state.

Rural development and panchayat raj and district minister Jagdeesh Shettar inaugurated the four-day event with the beating of a drum in the historic backdrop of Karnataka College building on Saturday evening.

The who's who of the cultural circles of the district, including renowned poet Channaveera Kanavi, Giraddi Govindraj, Veena Sjanteshwar, danceuse Kumudini Rao and Karnataka Vidyavardhak Sangh president Patil Puttappa were among those present on the occasion.

Earlier in the day, the administration was forced to postpone a colourful procession a la the Mysore Dasara Jumbo Sawari, depicting cultural traditions of the district through tableaux owing to Karnataka Bundh call given by the ruling BJP.

The lilting strains of music wafted in the background to set the mood for the evening at the main venue of the festival followed by the singing of the state anthem. The inaugural function concluded with some select cultural events by Anandshankar Jayant of Hyderabad and Harish Kulkarni of Dharwad. Sanket team of Bangalore presented Kannada drama Naa Tukaram Alla (I am not Tukaram) at the Srujana auditorium here.

In Hubli, Hindustani vocalist Muddumohan enthralled the audience with a scintillating recital at Sawai Gandharva Hall while Vijaya Nagara Mahila Mandal and Kala Balaga of Ingalagi staged dramas.

Deputy commissioner Darpan Jain welcomed the huge gathering while president of the organizing committee Giraddi Govindraj gave a glimpse of the events to unfold during the next three days.

Twin cities break into celebrations

Twin cities break into celebrations

Staff Correspondent - The Hindu

Folk dance, music concerts, stage plays and painting add glitz to Dharwad Utsava

RIOT OF COLOUR:Children taking part in the drawing competition and folk troupe performs in Dharwad as part of Dharwad Utsav on Sunday.

DHARWAD: It was a wonderful Sunday for the residents here as the city wore a colourful look, thanks to the cultural, entertainment and sports events of the Dharwad Utsava 2010-11.

The ‘Janapada Kalavahini' procession that depicted the rich folk culture of the land was a major attraction along with scores of other programmes. The procession began from the R. N. Shetty stadium and passed through the major streets of the city adding flavour to the celebrations.

As it was a holiday, all programmes witnessed good turnout with people from neighbouring villages thronging the venues.

While the vibrant dance forms like Kamsali, Gurji Kunita and skating dance along with some folk performance thrilled the audience, magician Kudroli Ganesh cast his spell by riding through major streets of the city blindfolded. Nearly 600 children took part in the painting competition at the serene Kittur Chennama Park.

Big applause

Kananda play Harishchandra by Shivakumar Kalasangha, Sane Halli, won a big applause.

The cultural and entertainment programmes were held on the sprawling Karnatak College grounds here, with the imposing college building of the British era in the backdrop, giving a perfect environ for the festival.

The salubrious climate coupled with flowery surroundings added flavour to the events. Similarly, the district administration held a 10-km half marathon which marathon began from Karnatak College circle to culminate at ISCKON temple in Rayapur. Deputy Commissioner Darpan Jain stole the show by joining the runners and completing the 10-km run.

Laser show casts a spell at Dharwad Utsava

Laser show casts a spell

Staff Correspondent

Rajkumar number makes the audience delirious

DAZZLING: Laser beam formations sent the audience into a tizzy in Hubli on Sunday.

HUBLI: The laser show organised as part of the Dharwad Zilla Utsava mesmerised hundreds of people who had gathered at the Siddharoodh Math in Hubli on Sunday.

As the “dancing” laser beams created changing patterns drenched in myriad colours one after the other, the crowd responded with loud cheers.

In a way, the audience got themselves drenched in the intangible colours for a few minutes as the colourful patterns shot out by the projector fell on them.

The laser show conceived and designed by the State Information Department kick-started the second day programmes of the Dharwad Zilla Utsava at the math premises.

Designed with the objective of conveying to the public what the State Government had done for them through welfare programmes, the laser show provided infotainment to the audience.

Once the formal information on welfare schemes and development programmes were over, the laser beams “danced” to the foot-tapping hit numbers of Kannada films.

The crowd went into a frenzy as the laser beams created different patterns to the hit number Huttidare Kannada Naadalli Huttabeku rendered by the late thespian Rajkumar. The song was shot in Hubli at the Siddharoodh Math premises and also at the landmark Kittur Channamma Circle.

As Vande Mataram played on, many in the crowd responded with “Bharat Mata Ki Jai”. The laser show concluded with the laser beams creating the ‘tricolour' in the air.

After the show, folk troupes presented exuberant performances. Researcher and folk artist Anandappa Jogi and his troupe comprising Nagaraj Jogi and others presented the “jogi pada”.

Then it was the turn of a children's troupe led by Sudha Kumari to enthral the audience through their dance mixed with “yoga”. They presented folk dance subsequently.

Then it was time for laugh riot at the Siddharoodh Math with “Hasyotsava” being presented by speakers such as Sudha Baragur and others.

Curtains go up on Dharwad Utsav

Curtains go up on Dharwad Utsav

Staff Correspondent

Heralding a start:Minister Jagadish Shettar and journalist Patil Puttappa inaugurating the festivities in Dharwad on Saturday.

DHARWAD: The annual Dharwad Utsav got off to a colourful start at an impressive inaugural function held at the Karnatak College grounds here on Saturday.

People from various parts of the region thronged the venue. A small but colourful procession was taken out prior to the inaugural function which, to some extent, filled the vacuum created by the postponement of the mammoth Janapada Kalavahini procession, following the bandh call given by the BJP on Saturday.

Speaking on the occasion, poet Chennaveera Kanavi dedicated the utsav to musical maestro Mallikarjun Mansur as the event falls on his birth centenary.

The formal inauguration of the festivities was done by Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Jagadish Shettar and veteran journalist Patil Puttappa by beating traditional drums.