Planetaki Planet coimbatore Live

‘Manage the present industrial scenario well’

2010-02-04T05:04:55+00:00

Speakers at the Young Leaders Global Conclave 2010 on Saturday said that if India’s past industrial scenario can be considered ‘good’, to make the future ‘beautiful’, the present scenario should be managed well.Speakers Arvind Kaul, Chief Executive of Vestas and Manickam Ramaswami, Chairman of Loyal Textiles made this observation and spoke on ‘What should young leaders do to achieve this’ at the plenary session I held at PSG College of Technology.

Addressing students, Mr. Kaul recalled his student days and said now youngsters are more independent, take decisions on their own and are able to decide the path they want to choose unlike in the past when decisions were made by parents and elders in the family.Calling upon students to have a vision and clarity to achieve their goal, he stressed the importance of team work and the need for sharpening communication and presentation skills. The country needs good leaders to move forward in its growth path.

“Life may not be smooth, but my experience outside India has showed that Indians manage pressures much better than others”.“Indians learn the hard way, but have risen to great heights,” Mr. Kaul said and advised the students to make sure that they understand what job they were looking for, before jumping the gun.Mr. Ramaswami, on the other hand, took the students through the current politico-economic situation.

Asking the students to visualise a truly developed India, free from poverty and hunger, excellent education and infrastructure, he said “to support this, a rapid pace of growth, a transformation in the real sense is necessary.’” He pointed out that to achieve 8-9 per cent growth in GDP, industry and services would have to grow 12 – 13 per cent. “Country needs a sustained growth rate with a good tax regime. It is a delicate balance, but not impossible,” Mr. Ramaswami said, before adding “we have strengths, but the system is highly corrupt.”

Highlighting the strengths, he said “human resource is our greatest strength, followed by a stable government. Mobilisation of resources would therefore not be an issue. The weak point though is our infrastructure and logistics cost,” observed Mr. Ramaswami.

He urged the students to tap the domestic market opportunities both in the manufacturing and services sector. “One should use imagination and change the style of lobbying by being more creative. Don’t ape the West. Instead rediscover the indigenous Indian concepts and come out with compatible solution.”

Consumer body opposes ‘illegal, excess bus fare’

2010-02-04T05:04:55+00:00

Coimbatore Consumer Cause has “strongly opposed” the strategy of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation in collecting more revenue against the interests of the people, by introducing over 200 semi-low-floor buses.These buses, flagged off recently, collect “exorbitant and illegal excess fare” more than twice that of the ordinary fare, it was pointed out.

In a memorandum to the Chief Minister, the Secretary of CCC, K. Kathirmathiyon said that the Chief Minister had said that despite severe financial constraints to the Transport Department the Government never wanted to increase the bus fare since 2001.It is a fact that the bus fare is lower compared to that in many other States.

It is a policy decision taken by the Government in the interest of the people.But unfortunately TNSTC officials were collecting “excess bus fare” from the people in recent days by adopting different “unethical, illegal and unfair methods”.By mere replacement of existing vehicles, they had started collecting more than double the regular fare.As on date more than 200 buses are already collecting such “illegal fare”.

By merely claiming the buses as ‘Deluxe’, fare collected is close to 250 per cent more.If buses were to be operated as ‘Luxury’, permit for the same has to be obtained from Regional Transport Authority (RTA) for the same.

Replacement

The Regional Transport Officers had said that they had not issued any new permit for the buses and all the buses were only replacement for old vehicles and only ordinary permits were issued for those buses.If the same irregularity had been done by a private operator, the permits would have been cancelled.Unfortunately this unethical practice is being adopted by TNSTC buses and hence officials are not taking any action on the same.

As per the Motor Vehicle Rules the buses have to be operated as per the condition of the permit issued.Many old buses are being regularly replaced with new ones, both by TNSTC and by private operators.But now TNSTC is in the habit of claiming all the new buses as ‘Luxury’ for the sake of collecting excess fare.

In such case, private operators might also start claiming luxury fare since they too have new buses.The people are totally against the action of TNSTC, since their interests are affected.The association had been continuously representing the matter for the last two years.The issue has emerged as widespread agitation because more buses were named as semi low floor and luxury buses.

Coimbatore Consumer Cause had specifically pointed out that the officials were not bothered about the disrepute caused to the Government.The Government could verify the complaint by calling for a white paper from all Regional Transport Officers and District Collectors (Regional Transport Authorities) in respect of the “illegal excess fare” being collected now. Coimbatore Consumer Cause has urged the Chief Minister to intervene and stop this practice.

Coimbatore identified for lean manufacturing programme

2010-02-04T05:04:55+00:00

Coimbatore is among the 60 clusters identified for the National Programme on Lean Manufacturing for micro, small and medium-scale units.Secretary General of the Federation of Indian Micro and Small and Medium Enterprises (FISME) Anil Bhardwaj told here on Wednesday that the Union Government launched the National Programme in 2009 and issued detailed guidelines about a couple of months ago.

The FISME, which was a member in the steering committee for the programme, in association with the Southern India Engineering Manufacturers’ Association (SIEMA) had recommended that Coimbatore should be among the first 100 clusters for the programme and Coimbatore was among the 60 approved.

Of the approved projects, six were under different stages of implementation.The scheme was designed for mini clusters of 10 to 12 units each.The units should form a special purpose vehicle and identify a consultant to implement the lean manufacturing programme in the cluster for a year.The National Productivity Council was the nodal agency for disbursement of funds to the clusters.

Each cluster would get Rs.10 lakh to Rs. 24 lakh for a year as subsidy and 20 per cent of the project cost would be borne by the units.Mr. Bhardwaj said lean manufacturing was a continuous programme that was accepted globally to reduce cost and improve quality.It was adopted by automobile component manufacturing units and was yet to be implemented widely in industries manufacturing capital goods, engineering products and machinery.

On the need for such practices, he said the Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) were exposed to phenomenal competition because of trade agreements the country had and lowering of import duties on a number of products.“We have to be cost-wise competitive and improve quality to take advantage of opportunities in the Indian market,” he said.

Jayakumar Ramdass, president of the SIEMA, said it organised a meeting on Wednesday for its members on the scheme to create awareness on lean manufacturing and about the opportunities available under the programme for the MSMEs here.The association proposed a special purpose vehicle to implement lean manufacturing programme for a group of units here.

Trial run on New Irugur - N.cbe Track !!

2010-02-04T05:04:55+00:00

To check track stability of the newly-laid second railway line on the Coimbatore North – Pilamedu – Irugur section, a loco trial run was conducted on Wednesday.The single line between Irugur and Coimbatore North had been a major bottleneck leading to increased pathway congestion.As a result, all along the Southern Railway administration was handling some of the important trains on the Kerala – Chennai sector via Podanur and Irugur sections skipping Coimbatore Junction, which had been a major revenue spinner next only to Chennai in the Southern Railway.

The single line bottleneck not only led to trains skipping Coimbatore Junction but also hampered timely operation of trains departing from and arriving at Coimbatore Junction. During peak hours, there had been instances of trains being held up at Junction.Hence, the second line had been a major demand for several years. Initiated about two decades ago, the project is almost nearing completion. While lines had been laid, connecting them at a few places and installation of new manual signal points and linking them to stations are pending.

The authorities hope to complete the same within another 45 to 60 days, so that the second line could become fully operational.Only a couple of days ago, the authorities constructed a local trial run on the Coimbatore Junction – Podanur second line.On Wednesday, the loco trial run was initiated from Coimbatore Junction and it covered a distance of 6.7 km from Coimbatore North to Pilamedu and another 4.8 km from Irugur – Pilamedu. The loco trial run was specifically for the Pilamedu – Irugur section.

The Deputy Chief Engineer, Construction, Rajagopal, Pilamedu Station Inspector Thomas and a couple of other officials supervised the trial run.Authorities plan to complete even the other remaining works so that the entire stretch of the second line from Irugur – Pilamedu – Coimbatore North – Coimbatore Junction and Podanur could be put into use well ahead of the World Classical Tamil Conference in June 2010 thereby ensuring timely operation of trains besides handling more trains without facing pathway congestion.

‘Medical Transcription Outsourcing Capital !

2010-01-20T04:08:59+00:00

There is more to Coimbatore than just being the ‘Manchester of South India' with its burgeoning textile and engineering industries. This third largest city in Tamil Nadu and home to the Formula 3 circuit has, over the years, emerged as one of the top destinations for the IT-BPO industry.

In fact, according to a recent study by Cyber Media's Global Services and investment advisory firm Tholons, Coimbatore has been ranked in the 17th position in the list of the top 50 Emerging Global Outsourcing cities. Industry associations have been making concerted efforts to turn this industrial hub into another Silicon Valley. The Coimbatore zone of the CII has been, for nearly a decade now, promoting this industrial hub as an ‘ideal IT destination' for engineering process outsourcing (EPO), among others. The region has carved a niche for itself in engineering, auto components and machine tools space.

Industry experts say the locational advantage that the city enjoys, its proximity to Chennai and Bangalore, the huge talent pool and its entrepreneurial culture differentiates Coimbatore from other destinations. A number of companies across the gamut of outsourcing (from EPO to legal and medical transcription) have started their operations to capitalise on the rich pool of talent and resources readily available here.

Statistics reveal that there are over 27 engineering colleges, 70+ arts and science colleges and 18 polytechnics in and around here, making it an ideal recruitment destination as well. Retention of talent pool has been a strong point for most of the players establishing a presence here.

IT major Cognizant, for instance, was one of the first major players to start a development centre here and has since expanded rapidly. Its Vice-President and Head, Vishnu Potty, admits to Coimbatore being a strong sourcing base for its operations across India. Cognizant's Coimbatore centre focuses on financial services, healthcare, manufacturing and retail, media and entertainment.The city is set to emerge as the ‘Medical Transcription Outsourcing Capital of India', say leaders in the medical transcription space.

Players such as CBay Systems and Spheris have expanded their operations here rapidly. CBay, for instance, has its largest facility here in an area of about 20,000 sq.ft. The company has, in the last eight months, opened up two centres, initiated tie-ups with local colleges to rope in students. A few others are exploring opportunities across the landscape as this (medical transcription) industry is predominantly South-based.

Being the chosen hub for MT, the city also has a number of people travelling from smaller towns such as Salem, Erode, Pollachi and Udhagamandalam attracted towards this steadily growing industry.

“The availability of quality manpower, large talent pool of almost 28,000 non-graduate engineers passing out every year from the 260-odd institutions has made Coimbatore an attractive destination for us,” says Suresh Nair, CEO and Managing Director, Spheris.

Industry leaders believe that with requisite training, the prospective candidates could be groomed to become world class medical transcriptionists to cater to the $200-billion healthcare outsourcing business world-wide.

Residential space: Coimbatore spins a growth story

2010-01-20T04:08:59+00:00

The textile city of Coimbatore is witnessing initial signs of surge in demand for residential space. The pleasant climate and sweet Siruvani water had turned this centrally-located industrial city in Tamil Nadu into a retirement haven. But today the culture is changing and more people are buying homes here as an investment option.

Renowned for its cosmopolitan outlook due to influx of north Indians generations ago, the people in the city were mainly dependent on manufacturing industries. But with the development of infrastructure in IT space and enormous growth in retail, a huge flow of population is expected to come into Coimbatore in the next few years.

“The Tidel Park, which will be ready in 2010, is expected to bring in direct employment for 12,000 people and at least half of them will require residential space,” said Builders’ Association of India (BAI) Coimbatore chapter’s vice-chairman C T Narayanan.

He expects demand for residential space to improve drastically in the coming years. “By January 2011, the industry will be back to its good days,” he said.

Sankar Foundation, MD, Omkar Sankar, too painted a positive picture “The sector is slowly getting better as investor confidence has come back. We are seeing a lot of confirmations unlike a few months ago,” he said, adding that the builders were quoting 10% less on the price front compared to last year.

“The land rates are still high but we are trying to move ahead in business by reducing our profit margin,” said Mr Narayanan. He added that the prices never dropped in Coimbatore on the realty front even during the recessionary phase.

“Coimbatore’s property market is showing signs of recovery with several companies seeking a presence in the city. However, the word of caution is that prices should remain reasonable due to sustained demand and more investments,” said Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj MD Ramesh Nair. He told SundayET that the year 2010 definitely looks better than 2008 and 2009. “Compared to other cities in the tier II and III arena, prices were realistic in Coimbatore and there wasn’t any major downward trend seen during recession,” he added.

Sreevatsa Real Estates MD C S Ramaswamy said, enquiries have increased and conversions are happening now. Even big players in the realty segment like Sahara, which announced projects long back in Coimbatore, have expedited construction activity, he added. Recently, Rakindo too announced the starting of Kovai Hills project in the city. The residential projects are mainly taking place in the outskirts of the city like Saravanampatti, Vadavalli and Mettupalayam Road as the main areas such as Race Course cannot support anymore projects.

“The increasing enquiry in the last three months doesn’t mean that the industry has recovered from recession. The enquiries will have to be converted into sales or occupancy,” Mr Nair cautioned. He, however, credited the city for its adaptability to changing market conditions. “The builders reduced the sizes of apartments and cut down on amenities to make sure apartments are more affordable,” he said.

BAI Coimbatore chapter chairman D R Sekar added, the houses in the Rs 20-40 lakh range are moving well. “It is only the higher budget ones that are seeing sluggish movement,” he added. The enquiries on the commercial front are yet to pick up, added Mr Nair. “Most of the SEZ projects planned in Coimbatore haven’t taken off. But we expect demand for office space to grow in the coming months,” he sai

Industrial estates for smaller units sought

2010-01-19T05:23:07+00:00

The Coimbatore Tirupur District Micro and Cottage Entrepreneurs’ Association has appealed to the Coimbatore Corporation to relax the punitive action taken on micro and cottage industries based on complaints from residents of a locality against the units.Association president S. Ravikumar has said in a release that recently the Corporation asked a few units to shift operations from a residential area as there were complaints against the establishments.

The Corporation should give time to the units move out as the Government had announced the establishment of industrial estates for micro and cottage enterprises.Most of these complaints were regarding noise pollution.

Machines

A large number of micro and cottage industries here had just one or two machines and were functioning in residential areas. The workers of these units were also residing in nearby areas.Representatives of the association had met the Deputy Chief Minister and Rural Industries Minister and appealed to them to expedite the process of setting up industrial estates for the smaller units.

In the wake of complaints, the officials should form a team with industrial representatives too and study the complaint before initiating action on the units, said M. Loganathan, secretary of the association.

IOPS launches services

2010-01-19T05:23:07+00:00

International Organic Processing Standards (IOPS), a textile certification company, has launched its services here.

According to a release, IOPS is a textile testing, verification and certification company with offices in Canada and India. The company focuses on organic manufacturing processes in textiles and conducts training and awareness programmes, disseminates information and helps in networking. It assists textile units comply with environmental regulations and assesses the environmental performance of its clients.

KSRTC opens online ticket reservation counter

2010-01-19T05:23:07+00:00

The online advance ticket reservation counter of the Karnataka State Transport Corporation (KSRTC) at the State Express Transport Corporation bus Stand at Gandhipuram in the city was inaugurated by Collector, P. Umanath on Monday.Passengers wanting to travel to various destinations in Karnataka could book their tickets 30 days in advance on-line, in all classes of service operated by KSRTC from Coimbatore to different destinations in Karnataka and also to various other places in Southern India, wherever KSRTC was operating its service. The counter would work on all the seven days a week from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.

According to R. Jayabalan, in-charge of KSRTC operations, the service provider was operating three different types of services i.e., Express, Rajahamsa (Ultra Deluxe) and Volvo and to the same destination via various routes.

From Coimbatore, there are seven Express and Rajahamsa services to Bangalore, six to Mysore, two services each to Mercara and K R Nagara besides one each to Mandya, Tumkur, Chikkamagalure, Hunsur, Gundalpet, Chitradurga, Gudulpet, Mangalore, Shimoga, Sringeri and Harihara.In addition, 14 services including Volvo and Rajahamsa are being operated to Bangalore via Salem and Hosur daily from 00.25 hours to 23.45 hours.

Beautification of Coimbatore begins !

2010-01-19T05:23:07+00:00

The Coimbatore Corporation launched on Monday a Rs. 4.15 crore project to create roadside parks and lay pavements for pedestrians at 21 places as part of efforts to beautify the city before the World Classical Tamil Conference in June this year.Mayor R. Venkatachalam, Corporation Commissioner Anshul Mishra and Deputy Mayor N. Karthik launched the works.

Footpaths

The Mayor said many areas in the city did not have good footpaths and pedestrians faced the risk of getting hit by vehicles.He cited the case of Dr. Nanjappa Road that had heavy traffic.Apart from town bus services, buses to Salem, Tiruchi and Madurai took this stretch from Avanashi Road to reach the Central Bus Stand.

This would be among five to six main roads that would be provided with good pavements.

The Mayor said as many green spaces as possible would be created before the conference. South Zone Chairman P. Pynthamil Pari provided an image of a pavement and roadside park that would come up in his zone.As many as 15 important locations, including junctions, would have parks.The parks and pavements would be among a slew of measures that the Corporation was embarking upon to showcase Coimbatore as a clean and green city during the conference.

Slum-free city

The image-building exercise also included a project to create a slum-free city.Recently, the State Government allocated Rs.26 crore to widen and relay 71 roads in the city before the conference.

Official sources said most of the works being taken up now were aimed at improving the infrastructure facilities in the city, mainly the roads, so that traffic bottlenecks did not crop up during the conference.

Traffic diversions in city today

2010-01-16T06:13:36+00:00

In view of the ISKCON Jagannath Yatra to be taken out in the city on Saturday (January 16) from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m., the city police have planned to enforce certain diversions in traffic.

A release from City Police Commissioner P. Sivanandi said that vehicles entering City from Palakkad Road, Pollachi Road via Ukkadam should enter at Ukkadam Junction and not Oppanakkara Street, the vehicles should either take the Valankulam Rail Over Bridge or the Perur Bypass Road and proceed further.With Vincent Road having been made one way, vehicles should not enter Vincent Road from Ukkadam side. Vehicles and heavy vehicles from Avanashi Road flyover and Lanka Corner going to Palakkad Road/Pollachi Road should take the Goods Shed Road, Big Bazaar Street, Vincent Road and Ukkadam.

Buses could be operated on the usual route to reach Ukkadam Bus Stand.However, they should not enter Raja Theatre, Judka Corner (Oppanakkara Street) to reach Vysial Street.Vehicles from Old Flyover bound for Thadagam Road, Mettuppalayam Road should not enter Sukrawarpet Street instead should take the Brooke Bond Road.Vehicles from Mettuppalayam Road, especially trucks and mini cargo vehicles, should take the Brooke Bond Road near Chintamani and proceed via Old Flyover.

Vehicles from Thadagam Road bound for Palakkad Road and light vehicles should go via Ponniahrajapuram, Chokkampudur, Shivalaya Theatre Junction, Perur Bypass Road and Ukkadam.Vehicles from Perur side for reaching Palakkad Road should take the Perur Bypass Road and reach Ukkadam.Vehicles to other places should take the Shivalaya Theatre Junction, Chokkampudur, Ponniahrajapuram and go via Thadagam Road and Gandhi Park.

Truck traffic would remain banned from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and again from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. as usual.People are requested to co-operate with the police in managing the traffic situation.

Coimbatore Corporation to build bridges, improve roads

2010-01-16T02:42:55+00:00

The Coimbatore Corporation is set to take up a number of road and bridge works in the city over the next few months.Funds have been sanctioned by the State Government and the Corporation Council too has cleared proposals to take up some key roads for improvements and also to provide foot path for pedestrians.Some main roads and link roads in the city will be improved with Rs.26 crore sanctioned by the State Government from the State Infrastructure and Amenities Fund.

Widening and black topping of roads in the city are some of the works, according to Corporation Commissioner Anshul Mishra.As many as 71 roads, totally measuring 75 km, would be taken up for widening or black topping.These would include D.B. Road at R.S. Puram, Nallampalayam Road, Villankurichi Road and Thanneerpandal Road.The Corporation Council approved at its urgent meeting on Wednesday four proposals for widening of roads, construction of bridges and laying foot paths at Rs. 3.59 crore. A 40 ft scheme road would be laid near Ranga Vilas Mill The scheme road would connect Avanashi Road with Tiruchi Road.

The Corporation said the scheme road would enable easier access for people residing along Tiruchi Road to offices and educational institutions on Avanashi Road.The Corporation allocated Rs.75 lakh to construct a bridge that would link the road with Sowripalayam Road and facilitate the access from Tiruchi Road to Avanashi Road.The Corporation would lay a road from Chinnaswamy Road to reach Avanashi Road through S.N.R. Sons College and Avarampalayam Road.

A bridge across Sanganur Canal would be built at Rs.75 lakh as part of the road work.Pavements for pedestrians would be laid from Anna Statue to Lakshmi Mills on Avanashi Road at Rs.59 lakh.A sum of Rs.75 lakh each would be spent on laying pavements from Hosur Road to Puliakulam and along Krishnaswamy Road.

Land acquisition

The Corporation also received a boost to its Pilloor Phase II drinking water scheme in the form of Government clearance for acquiring land from the Department of Forests for a collection well.Mr. Mishra said the Government had cleared the acquisition of 1.83 acres for the well.The Department of Forests would be compensated with 3.66 acres of revenue land at Tenkarai, costing Rs.10.12 lakh.

While the district administration would hand over the land to the Department of Forests, the Coimbatore Corporation would pay for it.The clearance by the Government would help in speeding up the implementation of those components of the scheme that related to creating infrastructure in the forests.

New fire tenders for Coimbatore Airport

2010-01-15T05:52:56+00:00

The Coimbatore Airport on Wednesday received the first ROSCNBAUR, International AG Austria, Air Field Crash Fire Tender costing Rs 3.35 crore. Two more will reach in a day or two, Airport Director M.R. Vasudeva said. Mr.Vasudeva told that the airport has conventional fire tenders that could throw the jet up to 60 m. ROSCNBAUR could throw a jet up to 90 m with pressure measuring up to 10 Bar.

Air crash Fire Tender could carry 10,000 to 12,000 litres of water and 1,500 litres of foam. It could accelerate from 0 to 80 kmph in just less than 30 seconds. The vehicle could spray the extinguishing medium at 4,500 litres a minute.

Airport Authority of India (AAI) inducted these vehicles first in 2007-08 and at present there are 15 vehicles.

AAI would have 55 such fully computerised vehicles in airports across the country by May 2010.

Power cabels t go underground !!

2010-01-15T05:52:56+00:00

The Tamil Nadu Electricity Board has started work on Avinashi Road and Tiruchi Road here to shift overhead cables underground.

Chief Engineer of the Board C. Thangavel told that the work, covering a total of 36 km, would be completed by the end of March. Mr. Thangavel said that starting near the Uppilipalayam flyover, the underground cables would be laid on the entire stretch of Avinashi Road, till the Neelambur bypass.

For Tiruchi Road, the cables would pass through the Collectorate Road and the Government Hospital Road from the Uppilipalayam flyover and continue through Tiruchi Road till the L & T Bypass.

Route divided

The estimated cost for the work was Rs. 52 crore. He said the entire route was divided into stretches of about one-and-a-half km each and tendering process was going on.For some stretches the bidders had been selected and they had started work. The board was co-ordinating with all the other Departments.

There might be power disruptions while switching over to the underground cables. The consumers would be informed in advance, he said.An official of the board added that on Tiruchi Road, the board was working in co-ordination with the National Highways that was carrying out widening and strengthening of NH 69, a part of which passed through Coimbatore.Thus, the road would not be dug up again to lay the underground cables.

On both Avinashi Road and the Tiruchi Road the underground cables would be given protective covers using concrete slabs so that the cables would not be damaged when the roads would be re-laid.

Eclipse Watch !!

2010-01-15T01:59:29+00:00

The Coimbatore Astronomy Club and Perk’s School have organised a viewing of solar eclipse for January 15 on the school grounds.

For details, contact the club on the following phone numbers: 97904-57568 and 98434-25945.

Army recruitment announcement

2010-01-12T04:38:40+00:00

The Indian Army has announced recruitment of junior commissioned officers in the Army as religious teacher in various categories.

The basic eligibility is that candidates should not be below 27 years or over 34 years as on July 12.For various categories, the educational qualifications differ. Shortlisted candidates would be have to undergo a written examination on March 14.

For further details norms, categories of posts, educational qualifications, the interested candidates could approach the nearest Headquarters Recruiting Zone. For candidates in Tamil Nadu, the Recruiting Zone Headquarters is at Fort St. George, Chennai. Last date for receipt of filled in applications is January 23 (Saturday), a release from the Indian Army-Recruitment Headquarters Zone said.

Ministers review arrangements for the Classical Tamil Meet

2010-01-12T04:38:40+00:00

Ministers Veerapandi S. Arumugam (Agriculture) and K.R. Periyakaruppan (Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments), on Saturday visited the CODISSIA Hall and reviewed the plan and arrangements for the ensuing World Classical Tamil Meet to be held there in June 2010.

The Ministers were accompanied by District Collector P. Umanath, City Police Commissioner P. Sivanandi, Vice-Chancellor of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University P. Murugesa Boopathy and other officials from various departments.They asked the officials to plan a decorative arch at the entrance of CODISSIA and also for elaborate arrangements for parking of vehicles especially for VVIPs, delegates and visitors in separate areas.

Discussions were based on the already prepared rough sketch.Ministers also offered suggestions on setting up the expo pavilion, stage and pandal for the nearly one lakh audience.Officials were asked to focus especially on seating arrangements and also for planning a system wherein the proceedings could relayed live on large screens outside the conference venue for the benefit of the audience seated there.

Similarly, arrangements for putting temporary shelters for those accompanying the invitees and delegates were suggested.The Ministers along with officials discussed the plans for creating space for the visitors to eat, drinking water provision and convenience facilities.The arrangement for a hitch free flow of traffic was also discussed.

CODISSIA Hall would have 20 enclosures for the conduct of various plenary sessions while outside the auditorium there would be arrangements for seating nearly one lakh people.

Encroachment removed to restore road link

2010-01-12T04:38:40+00:00

Ending a long drawn battle, the demolition squad of the Coimbatore Corporation and revenue authorities on Thursday removed an encroachment on a revenue land on Valluvar Street in Tatabad.

According to authorities, a tiled roof structure was encroaching upon a revenue land measuring 300 ft width and 300 ft length. This led to the disconnection of a link between two roads. Even as the authorities tried to remove the encroachment, the alleged encroacher, who had applied for a patta, resisted it by creating legal hurdles, officials said. The last attempt to remove the encroachment had gone in vain because of a stay order obtained by the encroacher from a court.

On Monday, when officials reached the scene with the demolition team of the Corporation, the official machinery faced resistance and a lawyer entered the scene. The officials were told not to remove the structure till the issue of patta and legal dispute was resolved.

At one stage, the officials preferred a complaint against the lawyer stating that he was preventing them from discharging their duty. The police removed the advocate and after removing the belongings of the encroacher who was said to be an ex-serviceman the official team began the demolition work.

Masakkalipalayam road widening work begins

2010-01-12T04:38:40+00:00

Corporation officials on Saturday conducted an on the spot inspection of the Masakkalipalayam road to explore the possibilities for widening it into a 80 ft scheme road.Mayor R. Venkatachalam; Deputy Mayor N. Karthik; Corporation Commissioner Anshul Mishra; elected representatives – councillors and chairmen of various committees, Town Planning Officer, M. Soundarrajan visited the road.

The road width at present is just 40 ft thus leading to congestion and traffic snarls and it is a crucial road branching off from Avanashi Road.There is a pertinent need to widen the road to serve the residential areas beyond the road.Officials negotiated with the land owners there to give 40 ft for 800 m to widen the road to its original plan width of 80 m.The residents said that sparing 40 m of land would be difficult and added that they would be content with the scheme road measuring 60 m length instead of the present 40 m.

Officials have planned to take the proposal forward through the Local Planning Authority and District Collector to see whether the road be widened into 60 ft or viable options could be worked out to ensure that the road is restored to the original plan of 80 ft scheme road.

Widening of this Masakkalipalayam road is paramount for melting the traffic on Avanashi Road which is increasingly becoming congested.The focus is on widening of the roads branching off from Avanashi Road.

200 surgeries and more to go at KG !!

2009-12-27T11:26:29+00:00

K.G. Heart Hospital here has completed 200 heart surgeries under the Kalaignar Insurance Scheme for Life-Saving Treatments, its Chairman G. Bakthavathsalam said on Saturday at a function got up to felicitate the heart surgeons who performed the operations. The children who underwent the surgery were also present at the function.

Rural Industries Minister Pongalur N. Palanisamy took part in the function at which Chief Cardiac Surgeon S.K. Varma and his team were felicitated for performing these many surgeries in four months, a press release from Dr. Bakthavathsalam said.Dean of Coimbatore Medical College Hospital V. Kumaran also took part in the function.

The Minister appreciated the contribution from the hospital in saving precious lives through the insurance scheme. He said the scheme brought relief to scores of people below the poverty line, who could not afford the cost of treatment so far in the private healthcare sector.Dr. Bakthavathsalam promised the best of efforts to provide people covered by the insurance scheme with good diagnosis and treatment facilities.

SIMA revives textile park project in Andhra Prades

2009-12-27T11:26:29+00:00

The Southern India Mills’ Association (SIMA) has revived its proposal to establish a textile park in Andhra Pradesh.The association that has about 95 members in Andhra Pradesh and 250 in Tamil Nadu has given new life to the project nearly after two years as the textile industry is reviving and some of the mills here have expressed willingness to expand or shift to Andhra Pradesh. The mills already having operations in Andhra Pradesh will also have the option of investing in the park.

Association chairman J. Thulasidharan told the SIMA signed an agreement with the Andhra Pradesh Government in 2007 to establish a textile park. The Government identified 5,000 acres for the project.It assured that the units that invested more than Rs.100 crore at the park would get uninterrupted power supply at Rs.1 a unit lesser than the existing tariff and the others would get power at 75 paisa a unit lesser. The Andhra Pradesh Government would also give Rs.5,000 per worker for training.

However, the project had not progressed as the mills were hit by the economic slowdown. Now, at least five units have expressed willingness to start operations in Andhra Pradesh. The labour and power shortage in Tamil Nadu was one of the factors that made the mills explore other destinations for investment.

They would purchase totally about 300 acres in Andhra Pradesh and set up the units individually, he said.The association would establish the park with common facilities when more units came forward to start operations.The association has also revived its proposal to establish a processing park at Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu.

SIEMA to develop ‘Made in Coimbatore’ brand

2009-12-27T11:26:29+00:00

During the next six months, the Southern India Engineering Manufacturers’ Association (SIEMA) will promote the “Made in Coimbatore” brand for pumpsets made here.

President of the Association Jayakumar Ramdass told the SIEMA would organise a meeting here in January on Geographical Indication. The Association was trying to get GI for pumpsets made here as the city had a substantial market share. Subsequently, the SIEMA proposed to develop a common logo that would indicate that the products were made in Coimbatore and draft a set of standards for these products. The Association would hold talks with 15 to 20 leading pumpset manufacturers here and encourage them to use the logo.

Mr. Ramdass said Coimbatore pumpsets were known for quality and efficiency and through the common branding, the image of the products made here would improve.He said that during the last one year, the domestic market for pumpsets had been positive. Coimbatore manufactured mainly agricultural and domestic pumpsets. The stimulus package given by the government to farmers provided them with liquidity and they were able to spend on pumpsets. The reduction of Excise Duty from eight per cent to four per cent also brought down the prices.

With a good market, the sale of pumpsets from Coimbatore went up by nearly 20 per cent during the last one year.However, the market might not remain buoyant in 2010 because of the erratic monsoon and the poor power situation in almost all the States. Some of the States had banned borewells temporarily because of the power shortage.The high interest rates were also having an impact on the bottomline of the units.He said the Union Government should continue the stimulus packages to help the industries stabilise with a good market. In Tamil Nadu, shortage of skilled manpower was another area of concern. The State Government should immediately improve the industrial training institutes and establish new institutes.

Students’ skills need to be developed: NAAC chief

2009-12-19T02:25:53+00:00

There has to be a consistent awareness in ensuring the quality of higher education and quantity should not lead to compromise in quality, said Director of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), H.A. Ranganath here recently.

He was speaking at a function organised by the Nehru Group of Institutions and Educational and Charitable Trust to present the P.K. Das Memorial Best Faculty Awards to 18 teachers.

Harping on the quality of education, Mr. Ranganath said that the skills of students besides academics needed to be developed. He also sought the teachers to enlighten the UG students as marketing them in the employment front was proving to be tough. Vice-Chancellor of Bharathiar University C. Swaminathan underlined the need for making graduates into marketable products and teachers to perform a socially, academically and ethically responsible role. Parents and teachers besides academics would have to ensure the character of a student.

Mr. Swaminathan cautioned that with education becoming digital and e-learning dominating, if teachers failed to equip themselves, there was always a danger of technology replacing them. Teachers should rise to the occasion and prove that no technology could replace their role.

Copenhagen summit: City students express solidarity

2009-12-19T02:25:53+00:00

In a bid to create awareness on climate change and express solidarity with the Copenhagen summit, environmental engineering students of Park College of Technology held a candlelight vigil from 6.30 p.m. to 7.00 p.m. at the college entrance on December 12.

According to a pamphlet released by the college, global warming was the biggest threat to living species. Scientists say a further rise of 3 to 4 degrees centigrade would ravage the planet.The Copenhagen Climate Change Summit is an important event where 192 countries are taking part.

The summit aims to bring together the rich and developing countries to fight climate change.Lights went off in all Park institutions during the period to support the event.More than 400 students took part in the vigil.

Awareness campaign for TNSTC drivers

2009-12-19T02:25:53+00:00

The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation(TNSTC), Coimbatore, conducted a road safety awareness campaign for its 300 drivers recently.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime and Traffic), N. Kamini said that such an interface was essential for fostering a cordial relationship between the TNSTC and the police department. She exhorted the need for sensitising the drivers to ply the buses without any distraction.She assured the drivers that measures were being initiated to remove encroachments on the roads to ensure a congestion-free driving experience.She also pointed out that the response for the enfocement of the compulsory helmet rule was overwhelming. This would help in reducing the number of fatal accidents especially the ones involving TNSTC buses.

Ms. Kamini urged the bus crew not to encourage foot-board travel and use of cellular phones while riding and driving.The TNSTC crew should adhere to the new six lane system of traffic being implemented on Avanashi Road to ease the flow of traffic.The police personnel had also been instructed to record observations such as whether an accident was caused by drunken driving, whether the driver was using cell phone at the time of accident and also whether the motorist was wearing a helmet or not.

Database

This would help in formulating a database on the nature and cause of accidents and evolve policies and enforce rules accordingly.Managing Director of TNSTC, G. Balraj, General Manager K. Choundramouli and Senior Divisional Manager (HR), A. Rajendran spoke.