Category Archives: Business & Economy

Counting sheep, literally

Amazing Feats, Business & Economy, Green Products, Leaders
A farmer tending to the ‘Nari-Suvarna’ breed of sheep at Veerapura in Tumakuru district of Karnataka.
A farmer tending to the ‘Nari-Suvarna’ breed of sheep at Veerapura in Tumakuru district of Karnataka.

Sheep farmers in Tumakuru have agri-scientists in Maharashtra to thank for a breed that has, quite literally, doubled their profits.

The new breed, developed by scientists at Nimbkar Agricultural Research Institute, Phaltan, called ‘Nari-Suvarna’ has turned out to be a boon for farmers. While the local breed of sheep gives birth to one lamb at a time, the new breed gives birth to two or three.

Cost of the sheep

The State government is trying to promote the Nari-Suvarna breed. It plans to offer subsidy to purchase the sheep, which costs Rs. 8,000 each, in the future. The local breed in Tumakuru —both Hassan and Bellary breeds — cost Rs. 6,000 per sheep.

With the guidance of the Karnataka Sheep and Wool Development Corporation (KSWDC), a farmer in Sira taluk in Tumakuru district has bought 10 sheep and they have given birth to 23 lambs. Farmers at Sidlaghatta in Chickballapur district and Chitradurga district are now eager to follow suit.

The new breed, according to the Agriculture Department, is a combination of three Indian breeds – Deccani and Madgyal breeds of Karnataka and Garole of West Bengal.

Doddaraju of Veerapura in Sira taluk, who bought the 10 sheep, told The Hindu that people in his village were making advance payments for Nari-Suvarna sheep. He said the sheep had adjusted to the climate and environment of his village and could be reared along with the local breed.

Mirza Basheer, Assistant Director, KSWDC, Tumakuru, said the new breed would help meet the demand for meat and would be beneficial to farmers. Nagaraja G.M., Assistant Director, Special Livestock Breeding Programme, Tumakuru, said the government would identify farmers in Belagavi, Vijayapura and Kolar districts and would introduce them to the new breed.

Scientists have developed a new breed of sheep, Nari-Suvarna, that gives birth to two or three lambs at a time

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by S. Bhuvaneshwari / Tumakuru – December 14th, 2014

Coffee Board blends co-op subsidies into coffee kettle

Business & Economy, Leaders

In an effort to enhance the production of robusta and arabica coffees, the Coffee Board has proposed higher allocation for replanting and expansion, Coffee Board Chairman Jawaid Akhtar said on Thursday.

Under the 12th Plan subsidy rates have been proposed at 40 per cent for up to 2 hectares, 30 per cent for 2-10 hectares and 25 per cent for holdings of above 10 hectares.

Inaugurating the United Planters Association of Southern India (UPASI) and Karnataka Planters Association (KPA) coffee conference on Thursday, Akhtar said, “Coffee Board has proposed to increase the unit cost by 75 per cent to Rs 1,75,000 per hectare.”
For the first time, the Board has included corporates and co-operatives to avail of the subsidy.

Besides, the Board has also introduced subsidy for eco-certification at 50 per cent of the certification cost at a ceiling of Rs 50,000 per beneficiary. It has also enhanced subsidy for quality upgradation to Rs 2.50 lakh for up to 20 hectares.

UPASI President Vijayan Rajes said the coffee committee of UPASI will submit a proposal to the Coffee Board to forward it to the Centre to release funds for producing two new robusta clones and one robusta seedling. This will be in collaboration with Incaper, Brazil’s premium research organisation for conillon robusta.

“We are planning to have a new proposal to get India-specific arabica plants with know-how from Brazil,” Rajes added. “This will help us have 10 million clones supplied to coffee growers in the first four years; and, from the fifth year, the share of Indian robusta will be increased by 50 per cent,” Rajes said.

B M Mahesh Kumar, a coffee planter from Hosathota Estate, Ballupet, spoke on ‘Achieving High Productivity of Black Pepper through Water, Shade and Nutrition Management’. He said, “Disease control can be effected by following judicious Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Integrated Pest Management (IPM).”

“Many people are taking up mono pepper cultivation at the cost of arabica coffee which is not a good sign,” Kumar said, adding that farmers should adopt innovative methods to multiply pepper vines for higher production.

Indian Vanilla Enterprise Pvt Ltd and Indian Vanilla Initiative Pvt Ltd, Pollachi, Chairman R Mahendran speaking on ‘Cocoa Cultivation, Processing and Management’, said that the opportunity of cultivating cocoa as another inter-crop for coconut, arecanut and oil palm in select regions of Karnataka holds promise.

Ease of cultivation and management make cocoa an attractive income generator, Mahendran added.

UPASI-TRF (Tea Research Foundation) Valparai, Quality Assurance Assistant Director N Palani stressed the importance of maintaining organic matter in the soil for preserving the physical, chemical and biological properties of soil.

Palani added that since the top soil is rich in humus, it has to be safeguarded from erosion for which soild and water conservation measures, depending on the slope of the terrain, must be taken.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Business / DHNS – Bengaluru, November 14th, 2014

Scoops of delight

Business & Economy

Having an ice-cream, especially in the winter, offers a different kind of joy. In fact, one seldom needs a reason to have an ice-cream, and if you happen to stop at the ‘Art of Delight’ ice-cream parlour, you are in for a treat. 

IceCreamMPOs06dec2014

Situated on Residency Road, ‘Art of Delight’ is a combination of an ice-cream parlour and a cafe gallery.

With a rustic chalk board menu, ‘Art of Delight’ serves crafted ice-creams, desserts, brownies and beverages like milkshakes, tea, coffee brewed off a French Press. It’s a semi-open kitchen where ice-creams are freshly made.

The desserts include premier and regular flavours. Among the regular flavours, they serve Aztec Hot Chocolate, which is a dark chocolate ice-cream with cinnamon and chilli; Chocwork Orange, which is a dark chocolate with orange flavours; Mint Condition, Strawberry Ecstasy, Wyanad Vanilla, Sitnah Bliss and Strawberry Yoga. In premier, there is ‘White Chocolate – Kaju’, ‘Cranberry Cheesecake Swirl’, ‘Rocher Supreme’ and ‘Passion Cream’.

‘Rocher Berry Fudge’, ‘Orange Choco Cookie Crumble’, and Classic Lemon Cheesecake with strawberry are popular among the customers. ‘Art of Delight’ was started by young and spirited Ayaaz Hammed. “We make our ice-creams from scratch, we use fresh and natural ingredients and the shelf life of our ice-creams are only two to three days. So it’s freshly made with innovative flavours, our menu changes on an everyday bases as we are constantly experimenting on our ice-creams, to churn out the best and authentic ice-creams,” says Ayaaz.

Ayaaz plans to introduce a launch pad for young and creative artists to exhibit their photographs, paintings and other art works. Besides this, he also plans to have a few gigs at the parlour. Darius, a customer says, “I really liked the cheesecake with strawberry, it is a unique combination and enjoyed every bit of it.”

Meera, another customer adds, “The ice-creams are amazing especially the Hazel-Choco-Cream, where I could literally feel the hazel melt in my mouth. Also, this parlour is a nice place to hang out over a scoop of ice-cream.” For details, call 9739506907.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> MetroLife / by Preethi Ravi / DHNS – December 06th, 2014

International honour for Rose Society president

Business & Economy, Green Products, Leaders, World Opinion

 

Ahmed Alam Khan
Ahmed Alam Khan
President of Hyderabad Rose Society Ahmed Alam Khan has been elected vice-president (Central Asia) of the World Federation of Rose Societies, at 16th World Rose Convention held at Sandton City, South Africa, a press release informed on Wednesday.

In yet another achievement, five members of the Society have been elected to the Indian Rose Federation. They include Vijay Kant, A. Veerbhadra Rao, Khader Alam Khan, and Mohd. Minhajul Hussain, apart from Mr. Khan, the press release informed.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by Staff Reporter / Hyderabad – February 07th, 2013

Treat for Rosarians

Business & Economy, Green Products, World Opinion

Hyderabad :

Rose lovers have another reason to celebrate as the The Indian Rose Federation and Hyderabad Rose Society together are organising 3rd World Federation of Rose Societies Regional Convention in the city. During the event, around 800 varieties of roses will be displayed. The purpose of the convention is to inform people about the wide varieties of roses available in the country, informs Ahmed Alam Khan, President of Indian Rose Federation. “This is the first time such convention will be held in India,” he adds.

Rosarians from around the country will be presenting the flowers they grow in their convention. “A competition will be held where they will be judged on the quality of their flowers. Apart from the competition, technical sessions will be held at the convention where they will be informed about how to good quality roses, increase their shelf life, etc,” he says. Ikebana, Japanese pattern of arranging flowers will also be taught during the convention.

The theme of the convention is ‘New Light on the Old World of Roses’. “Around 98 per cent of roses exported in the world is by Israel. But India also has the potential to have good market in exporting roses. Through this convention, we aim to encourage the rosarians to develop good quality of roses. People from the city are encouraged to visit the show to gain more knowledge about roses at the event.

The event will be held from November 29 to December 2 at HICC between 11 am to 5 pm.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express Features / November 14th, 2014

Tender coconut, fair and lovely

Business & Economy, Green Products, Science & Technology, World Opinion
Kaja Mohideen. PHOTO: GNANAVEL MURUGAN / The Hindu
Kaja Mohideen. PHOTO: GNANAVEL MURUGAN / The Hindu

The strong pith is removed using a machine and weight is reduced to 800 gm.

Innovation in marketing tender coconut has been his watchword. He has designed special machinery for peeling off the strong pith before despatching them to market.

The new shape of the tender coconut appears white all around – a value-addition with a new look. Its weight gets reduced from about 2 kg to less than 800 grams or so.

“The value addition mainly aims at attracting the consumers besides ensuring environment-friendly ambience at the retail sales outlets,” says Kaja Mohideen (50), referring to the growing demand for the produce in the city in the last one week since he introduced his sales.

With lightweight, it could be stocked at commercial complexes and medical shops. Using his experience of three decades in the trade, he had devised the plan of using a machinery for ‘clean coconut’.

Mr. Mohideen procures about 6,000 coconuts a week from Pollachi and a group of six workers work on the machinery peeling off the pith. Explaining the functioning of the machinery designed at Pollachi, he says adequate training had been imparted to all the workers on the task.

At the retail outlets on the pavements, the pavement vendors would be spared of the problem of collecting and disposing the waste pith.

White tender coconuts kept ready for sale. PHOTO: GNANAVEL MURUGAN / The Hindu
White tender coconuts kept ready for sale. PHOTO: GNANAVEL MURUGAN / The Hindu

Export-oriented

Apart from local market, he has explored the possibility of exporting it the tender coconut to Australia. “There has been a growing demand for coconut in Australia. The container with a capacity for 6,000 tender coconuts would reach Australia by sea within 20 days from Chennai,” he says.

To attract customers, he has fixed the price per coconut at Rs. 20. “My investment on the machinery is Rs. 90,000 and I have to incur a huge expenditure for purchasing the coconut from Pollachi,” Mr. Mohideen added.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Tiruchirapalli / by Special Correspondent / Tiruchi – November 10th, 2014

Sweet shapes at your service

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, ,

Unique Hobbies

CakesMPOs11nov2014

Aeliya always had a passion for making things from scratch. “My romance with clay started when I was in college. I used to make jewellery with potter’s clay or terracotta and my creations were very popular on campus,” she recalls.

Slowly, Aeliya moved on to make things out of coal porcelain. “By then, I started using candle as a medium and would make flowers and insects like ladybirds and beetles on it,” she adds.

But once she graduated and started working in an MNC, she was left with little time to pursue her hobby. “But my hands would twitch even at work,” she laughs. So she would create things whenever she got some time off. “I also started making customised clay magnets and using my artwork on gel candles and started experimenting with different clays,” she says.

She then realised that she could do the same with edible ingredients. “I realised that there are certain food items that have the same quality and could be used for cake decoration. Slowly, I came across sugar or gum paste which is also known as fondant and thought why not make edible shapes with my passion. Also innovative cakes are a trend in the market nowadays and unique cake toppers add to their beauty,” she notes.

Soon after she had her second child, Aeliya left her corporate job and started pursuing her passion full-time. She used this period to sharpen her skills. “I didn’t go to any institute and learnt everything on my own,” she adds.

“My friends then told me that I might as well learn the art of baking. Though baking sounds like an easy process, it’s far from that. It requires a lot of scientific techniques which I learnt by reading. My brother-in-law, who is in London, sent me a book to learn more. He also started sending me cutters of different sizes,” she notes.

Today, Aeliya bakes amazing cakes and cupcakes with toppers that are equally stunning.
“Since cupcakes are in trend and a lot of people bake them, I like making unique cupcakes with floral toppings. I even make bouquets on them,” she explains. She even makes ‘Angry Birds’ and superhero-themed toppers like ‘Batman’. Name any theme and she can make a topper and cake as per that.

One her most beautiful works is the sandal topper. The delicate piece takes around two days to make. Explaining the process of creating the topper, she says, “I first cut the basic shape out on the paste with a knife and then fine tune it. I don’t use any mould to create the shapes. So on an average, each topper takes around two or three days. A shape like sandal takes a day to be created and then the finer details like fixing the buckle take another day.”

Aeliya’s toppers are so popular that she gets a number of orders. “If a person has something in mind, I tell him or her to send me a photograph. So I can make it according to their wish. My speciality is half-kg theme cakes,” she explains. She also enjoys experimenting with as many shapes as possible. “So far except one or two designs, I have never repeated myself,” she notes.

Another favourite design of hers, which is unique, is the handbag cake. “It’s something that college girls really like.” She gets a number of requests on her Facebook page — ‘Cake Toppers Shoppe Bangalore’ too. She perfectly sums up her love for making cake toppers as she says, “I have finally found my nirvana.”

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> MetroLife / by Deepa Natarajan Lobo, Bangalore / DHNS – November 10th, 2014

‘Explore BioTechnology to Enhance Quality Silk Production’

Business & Economy, Leaders, Science & Technology

Says Dr. Mohammad Aslam, Advisor, Dept. of Bio-technology

A section of delegates at the Brain-storming Session on Mulberry and Silkworm at CSR&TI.
A section of delegates at the Brain-storming Session on Mulberry and Silkworm at CSR&TI.

 Mysuru :

“Explore networking technology to enhance quality silk production,” said Dr. Mohammad Aslam, Advisor, Department of Bio-technology (DBT), New Delhi.

He was speaking during the one-day Brain-storming Session on Mulberry and Silkworm sponsored by DBT and organised at the Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, (CSR&TI), Mysuru, on Oct. 31.

He recalled the 20-year association of DBT with CSB in this area. He informed that during this period, DBT has organised a series of brainstorming sessions at different places across the country including North – Eastern States.

Speaking about the major objectives, he said application of biotechnology for increasing the productivity, improving the host plants, enhancing the silk quality, productivity utilisation and developing areas like silkworm seeds should be focused.

“The expert group had decided to have a separate session on silkworm and mulberry to develop the road map for the next 3-5 years and review the research outcome generated so far,” he informed and hoped to develop some transgenic network programmes in both on silkworm and mulberry.

He further added that DBT has taken up collaborative work with CSR&TI in this area. He appreciated Dr. Sivaprasad, Director, CSR&TI, Mysuru, for his initiative to organise this session.

Dr. L. Shashidhara of IISER, Pune, in his address, felt that research goals have already taken an in road in agriculture and now, it is the turn of sericulture to join and explore the possibilities of utilising it by working together with other institutes for the betterment of the industry.

Mentioning about the brisk technology activities of the world, he evinced keen interest in the collaborative studies in the field of sericulture.

Appreciating the phenomenal growth of silk industry, Dr. M. Uday Kumar, UAS, Bengaluru, spoke about few major constraints like irrigation and yield gap. He said that there is a need for genetic enhancement to improve the quality and the productivity. “The transgenic technology could be of immense use in this area,” he felt.

Dr. Sivaprasad, Dr. Mohd.Aslam, Prof. L. Shashidhara, Prof. Paramjit Khurana, UDSC, New Delhi, Prof. M. Udaya Kumar, UAS, Dr. S.K. Ashwath, CSR&TI, Mysuru, Dr. K.P. Arun Kumar, CDFD, Hyderabad, Dr. A.K. Awasthi, SBRL, Bengaluru, Dr. V. Satyavathi, CDFD, Hyderabad, Dr. P.J. Raju, APSSRDI, Hindupur, Dr. Nataraja Karaba, UAS, Bengaluru, Dr. Girishi Naik, CSR&TI, Mysuru, Dr. Jhansi Lakshmi, CSB, Dr. M.S. Sheshashayee, UAS, Bengaluru, Dr. B. Rita, CSB, Dr. T. Mogili, V.Kota, Dr. Rajashekar, CSR&TI, Mysuru were the invited speakers on the subject.

Various areas of networking and its applications in sericulture were discussed and the vital areas to be focused for the improvement of silk industry were earmarked in the session.

Eminent scientists from DBT, New Delhi, IISER Pune, CCMB, Hyderabad, CDFD, Hyderabad, UAS, Bengaluru and several Universities, R&D Institutes of Central Silk Board and State Governments participated.

Dr. Thippeswamy, Dr. Girish Naik and Dr. Ashwath co-coordinated the programme.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Tuesday, November 04th, 2014

Shariff’s City’s First Home Appliance Store

Business & Economy

checks out… but checks into a new location

ShariffsMPOs08nov2014

by S. Kenneth Shishir

City’s first home appliance store Shariff Electricals, established in 1938, is now on the move. The present store housed in the old building opposite the Bata Showroom on Sayyaji Rao road, which also housed other old popular stores of Mysore like Krishnaswamy Stationeries and Panchacharya Press, is now being vacated as the building is weak and the old iconic stores are finding new locations. And so Shariff’s, the most popular among the shops and the most sought after place for home appliance in city for more than 75 years too is moving out. Luckily for the old customers they are not moving very far from the old. The new store is still on Sayyaji Rao road opposite Devaraja Market main entrance.

M.A. Shariff, Managing Director of Shariff Electricals and his father late Hyder Shariff, were electrical contractors who not only dealt in electrical items but also specialised in wooden electrical casing. Hyder Shariff did most of the electrical casing work in the Mysore Palace and then his son M.A. Shariff ventured into electrical appliance business and took up distribution of GEEP torches, dry cells and bulbs under the name Shariff Sales and General Agencies on Old Bank Road in city. Soon companies such as Philips, Crompton Greaves, Usha and Khaitan came calling noticing that Shariff had become Mysore’s one-stop-shop for basic home electrical items. As business grew, in 1981 they opened their official electrical appliances store, Shariff’s-1. Then the second Shariff’s-2 was opened in 1995. In 2006 Shariff’s-3, a multi-brand and multi-storeyed showroom of home appliances began. M.A. Shariff’s children Maqsood and Faizy now manage these stores.

When M.A. Shariff was asked how he felt about moving out of the old store, he says “it feels bad, but it was bound to happen. The building was old” and adds “but I have to thank our customers in Mysore who made us what we are today.” When asked how he has managed to have such loyal clientele, he says “in sales you must make customer the king…and service is the king- maker. That’s what makes customers keep coming back.”

Speaking of the new challenge posed by online retail, Maqsood, the elder son of M.A. Shariff says, “we have to accept the challenge and we must learn from it. The best way is Omni-line: have both an online store and a brick and mortar shop. This way it removes the hassle of returns and service. It also helps the touch and feel factor which is missing in online stores.” Maqsood says Shariff’s will launch their shopping website soon.

Faizy, the youngest son of M.A. Shariff, speaking about the new multi-floored Shariff’s says that with the large space available now, they can display more products and also stock more. He adds, ” ‘NO, we don’t have that’ is something our customers will never hear from us.” Looks like the mantra of “service is king-maker” rings deep in this family.

source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / Monday, November 03rd, 2014

Valley’s first online book store inaugurated

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Education

Srinagar :

Kashmir Book Trust Pvt Ltd today inaugurated its first online book store by the name “Online Book Store”.

The book store was inaugurated by Kashmir University Chief librarian AM Baba, Deputy Director, DIQA Showket Shafi and Director, Centre for Career Planning and Councelling Farooq Ahmad Khan at second floor Auqaf complex opposite Sir Syed Gate, Kashmir University.

During the inaugural function AM Baba while applauding the initiative said, “To have online book stores is the need of the hour.  During the recent devastating floods many rare books were washed away, they would have been saved, had we made online editions of these books”.

“We started this endeavour in order to give an extra edge in education system in Kashmir keeping in view the various problems the Valley students face, who don’t have easy asses to subscribe e books. The students, who hail from far flung areas can also avail benefit from our free door to door delivery system”, said Sameer Nazeer and Mudasir Ahmad, Managing partners of Online Book Store.

source: http://www.dailyexcelsior.com / Daily Excelsior.com / Home / by Excelsior Correspondent / Srinagar – November 03rd, 2014