Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa presenting Bravery award to Mohammed Yunus during the 67th Republic Day Celebrations at Marina on Tuesday. Photo: R. Ragu / The Hindu
Mohammad Yunus, who today bagged theTamil Nadu government’s Anna Medal for Gallantry award 2016 for rescuing people during the December 2015 floods, plans to develop a mobile application to tap the talents of youngsters to serve people.
He was instrumental in the rescue of nearly 2,100 people in the December 2015 floods.
On the first day of heavy rain on December 1 last year, Yunus and his team in a boat had rescued a pregnant lady and her husband from the flooded Urapakkam area on the outskirts of the city.
Later, she delivered a baby girl in a private hospital and the grateful couple named her after him.
Yunus was given the award by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa at the 67th Republic Day celebrations today.
An elated Yunus told the award was a motivation for him and that he would develop a mobile application for youngsters.
“I feel great after receiving this award. I never expected that I would receive an award when I saved those people in flooded areas,” he said.
“This award motivates me more and as a first step, I plan to launch a mobile application for youngsters. The app will be to tap the talent in youngsters and would be aimed at serving people”, Yunus said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Tamil Nadu / PTI / Chennai – January 26th, 2016
A senior Indian-origin imam has been conferred an honorary doctorate by the University of Leicester in recognition of his work for his local community.
Muhammad Shahid Raza, who serves as Head Imam at Leicester Central Mosque and is a leading Muslim cleric and teacher in the UK, was born in Bihar and studied in Moradabad, Agra and Meerut before moving to the UK.
“The city of Leicester has always been a place of significance in my life since I emigrated here from India in the late ’70s. One of my first responsibilities as Imam of Leicester Mosque and then Leicester Central Mosque was to oversee the moral and spiritual education of children,” he said in reference to the honour.
“I have always strived to instill in my students a desire to achieve academically and integrate themselves as valuable members and contributors to society. I am delighted to note that many of my former students have gone on to graduate from this university and of those many are now working in this city as civil servants, teachers and doctors or owners of small businesses.
“For this reason I reflect on this award fondly and I hope it will further inspire the young Muslims of Leicester,” Raza said.
He was awarded his honorary Doctorate of Laws by University Chancellor Lord Grocott at the university’s degree ceremony at De Montfort Hall today before an international audience of graduating students and their families.
Raza leads the Friday prayers at Leicester Central Mosque and is credited with designing and conducting the first in-service training course for imams in the UK.
As executive secretary and registrar of the Muslim Law (Sharia) Council UK, he is engaged in a number of initiatives directed towards the wider community in Britain, Europe and North America through his association with organisations such as the InterFaith Network UK and the InterFaith Youth Trust in London, the university said in a statement.
In the 2008 New Year’s Honours list, he was awarded an OBE for services to the Muslim community in Leicester.
Reverend Canon Dr Stephen Foster, Coordinating and Anglican Chaplain to the University of Leicester, said, “Muhammad Shahid Raza has been a hugely influential figure in our city and County as a leading Muslim cleric and teacher over a period approaching 40 years.”
“In terms of Interfaith dialogue over that period, again his influence has been profound. As we presently travel sensitive times and roads in interfaith issues, his wisdom and insight into same will continue to be so important both locally and far beyond. The University of Leicester I know honours him…rightly and gratefully so,” Foster said.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> NRI> Other News / PTI / January 25th, 2016
A girl from Kolkata has become the first Muslim woman ever to top the West Bengal Commercial Tax Service. What makes Suraiya Ghaffar’s achievement sweeter is the fact that she has cleared the “state’s toughest examination” as a general category candidate despite qualifying for backward class quota, reflecting a growing trend among meritorious Muslim students of giving OBC reservation a miss.
In the commercial tax category itself in which Suraiya has topped, three of the top five candidates are Muslims, who despite qualifying for reservation, cleared as general category candidates. Mohammed Shabbar Khan has stood second and Mohammed Azhar Khan fifth. A total of 40 candidates have made it to the commercial tax service.
Suraiya, 23, was confident that her sound academic background would see her through. “If I wanted I could have taken the reservation route but I decided to test my skill by appearing as a general category candidate. Since age is on my side, I am entitled to several attempts,” she said, sitting in her husband’s Shibpur residence. Maqsood Hasan is in the West Bengal Police Service.
A senior official of the minority affairs and madrasah education department confirmed that Suraiya is the first Muslim girl ever to top the commercial tax service.
Close to 50,000 aspirants sat for the WBCS examination in 2014 out of which 4,000 qualified for the second stage termed as “mains”. Only 400 made it to the interview stage for the services listed in Group A and Group B. Apart from commercial tax service, Group A includes executive, labour, excise and agriculture services. Group B consists of the state’s police service. The results were declared last week.
Suraiya is the eldest of five siblings in a home with limited financial resources. Her father Abdul Ghaffar Khan works in the electricity department of the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited.
Overcoming hurdles is nothing new for this girl from Metiabruz. After finishing her higher secondary from a local school, Suraiya enrolled into an Honours course in Chemistry in a college in central Kolkata for which she had to travel for almost two hours every day.
The girl, whose role model is her father, did not lose sight of her dreams, even after her marriage to Maqsood in 2014. Hard work, determination and resilience helped Suraiya sail through the written and interview rounds of WBCS in the first attempt.
When she is not glued to her books, Suraiya is inseparable from her smartphone. Beside her academic achievements, Suraiya has another accomplishment to boast of — her chemistry with her husband.
Even before marriage, Maqsood used to encourage Suraiya to sit for competitive exams. He helped her with the study material, tutorials and did all the research work for her so that she could concentrate on her studies completely.
“I would even serve food to her when the exams were approaching,” smiled Maqsood.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Kolkata / by Zeeshan Javed, TNN / January 25th, 2016
Former Mayor D. Dhruvakumar (third from left) is seen receiving the prize on behalf of his grandson Dhruvesh, who shared first place along with Venkatesh of Kolar (2nd from left) at the State-level Milking Contest, from Actor Darshan Thoogudeep and Animal Husbandry Minister A. Manju at J.K. Grounds in city yesterday. MLA H.P. Manjunath, Film Director Sandesh and others were present
Mysuru :
The three-day State-level milking competition, organised by Mysuru Nagara Gopalakara Sangha in association with the Department of Animal Husbandry at J.K. Grounds in the city, concluded yesterday.
The cow, owned by Dhruvesh, grandson of former Mayor D. Dhruvakumar and the cow owned by one Venkatesh of Kolar bagged the top prize, with both of them milking 40.800 kg of milk.
As both the cows shared equal honours, the owners were given Rs. 87,500 each (Rupees 1 lakh first prize and rupees seventy five thousand – second prize, divided by two). The third prize was bagged by the cow owned by Anwar Shariff, a resident of Akbar Road, Lashkar Mohalla, which milched 36.350 kg.
Anwar Shariff was given a cash prize of Rs. 50,000.
The fourth prize was bagged by the cow owned by Aishwarya, the grand daughter of former Mayor D. Dhruvakumar, which milched 35.450kg.
Aishwarya was given a cash of Rs. 25,000 as fourth prize.
Speaking after distributing the prizes, Animal Husbandry Minister A. Manju said that dairy farming can be a main source of income for farmers. Pointing out that taking dairy farming will bring happiness in the lives of farmers, he called upon the youth to engage themselves in dairy farming.
Stating that the State was one amongst the top producers of milk in the country with 66 lakh litres of milk production per day, he complimented the role of the Sangha in boosting milk production.
Actor Darshan Thoogudeep was the star attraction during the prize distribution ceremony. Thousands of people, most of them youths, gathered at the venue to have a glimpse of the actor, who has been attending the event for several years.
Minister Manju also presented a cheque of Rs. 1.5 lakh (Rs. 1 lakh donated by the Sangha and Rs.50,000 donated by actor Darshan) to Adarsh, son of the Sangha Founder late B. Paramesh on the occasion.
Former Mayor D. Dhruvakumar presided. Hunsur MLA H.P. Manjunath, KEA Chairman R. Murthy, Cine Producer Sandesh, JD(S) leader G.D. Harish Gowda, Sangha Hon. President Desigowda, President and Corporator D. Nagabhushan and others were present on the occasion.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Monday – January 25th, 2016
Our society needs to change; we are generating a society of merits. We need to understand our children in such a way that education is mixed with passion.
These lines describe Abdul Kaleem’s life in a nutshell. In 2009, Abdul was felicitated by the President of India for his innovations, when he was barely 22 years old. That same year, he was also honoured by the National Innovation Foundation (NIF) for Grass Root Innovation.
Innovator and entrepreneur Abdul Kaleem
But it was never about good grades or staggering dreams; as a student, Abdul always thought a little differently, a philosophy he still lives by:
“Whenever something happens, I think about the logic behind it. I keep questioning.”
And this questioning always took the form of little innovations. In the seventh grade, he saved Rs 2 from his pocket money to buy a crystal bird, which he turned into a greeting machine. It would open out with banner saying Id Mubarak whenever someone entered his room. A theft in his neighborhood caused him to create an alert mechanism that would call the last dialled number on the owner’s phone as soon as the door was opened.
But the contrast of all this sets in when one realises that Abdul was brought up in a small village in Deoria, in Uttar Pradesh born to an Urdu tutor father and an uneducated mother, where an alert mechanism was unheard of!
His parents could never understand what their child was really up to. What they wanted for him was a basic education that would lead to a secure government job. His father was disappointed to see his son’s unconventional ways, and his neighbors constantly felt the need to remind them how he was wasting his time.
But Abdul was only interested in his innovations, electronics, machines, and not the world’s opinion of them. He was undeterred; he smiles and says:
On one hand, Abdul continued to think about wider impact and what the community really needed, while on the other, he finished his high school exams and joined a Psychology course in Deoria. Staying deeply grounded to his roots, Abdul started looking deeper at his inventions. He created a device that could gauge moisture in the soil using sensors, and water pots automatically. The device would stop watering the plants once the sensors gauged enough moisture in the soil.
Next in line was a flood informer system, with a scale fitted at different areas of the river, including the centre and the bed of the river. The minute the water rose to the third level, the sirens would alert villagers to look for higher ground.
Finally, it was a visit by his Psychology professor that put him in the spotlight. He convinced Dr Nagiz Banu to visit his home and the small laboratory where he carried out his experiments. Dr Banu was reluctant, but when she entered the room, she was in for a surprise. Seeing the scale at which Abdul had mastered his experiments, she asked him to send his innovations to NIF. He did and, on 21 November 2009, Abdul was awarded for his grassroots innovations by President Pratibha Patil; what followed was a slew of other recognitions by the state.
We ask Abdul why he pursued Psychology and not Engineering, where his passion truly lay. He replies
“If you see, technology is created by perceiving Psychology, similarly as Psychology perceives the invented technology. So every subject has a correlation, it depends on how you use it.”
When we ask him what we feel is missing in innovations today, he says it is a lack of understanding of Psychology to create technology for the masses, while understanding their needs.
Abdul’s interaction and felicitation from the various Presidents of India
From innovations to business
However, Abdul says that while he may be a good inventor or engineer, he is not a good businessman. He has never understood business numbers.
Abdul constantly innovating, with his GPRS sensor
In 2011, Abdul embarked on the Jagriti Yatrawith around 350 strangers, a journey which completely transformed his outlook on where he aspired to use his potential to startup. Immediately after the Yatra, Abdul started working on a low-cost solar table lamp, another basic innovation catering to the masses.
This business idea required an initial capital of at least Rs 5 lakh. Unable to procure the funds, he shelved the idea and pursued other innovations.
Through reference of a customer Siddharth Jettar, in 2014 Abdul was introduced to G.K. Sinha, who was in awe over how solutions to complex issues came so easily to this young man. Abdul had created a universal light controlling remote for Siddharth’s house. G.K. Sinha was an angel investor, having the experience of guiding multiple startups.
He helped Abdul with starting his venture Eco tronica Pvt. Ltd.
Sinha also introduced him to Gautam Kumar, a graduate from Harvard University. Gautam felt the same potential in Abdul’s innovation and worked with him to refine his soil moisture-sensor-driven innovation and mobile weather prediction station to a requirement at Centers for International Projects Trust (CIPT), which is affiliated with the Earth Institute at Columbia University.
The low-cost weather station of sorts, powered by solar power, works on cloud computing and the installation of sensors on rooftops of buildings. The industrial setup costs as little as Rs 15,000, while the user-friendly and domestic models cost up to Rs 10,000 and Rs 5,000, respectively. Jharkhand’s Birsa Agricultural University has planned to set up this technology in the state’s Angara block. This will directly impact 700 farmers of the area.
Today, Abdul is also working on solar powered lighting with dual LED lights, which he claims should work for 24 hours with just five minutes of solar charge. He says he still doesn’t understand the revenues or sales figures because he thinks he is an innovator at heart and will remain one.
Abdul says the biggest challenge in having a manufacturing startup is getting the right vendor, who gives the right product at the lowest cost.
But there is an important lesson for all entrepreneurs when Abdul speaks. Even as Indian entrepreneurs flock to create the next Uber and Amazon, he makes us question what truly comprises innovation for the masses. He makes us question whether business models and revenues are the only success metric for a startup.
For many Indian entrepreneurs taking their product to Silicon Valley – an enduring symbol of innovation – is the highest form of success. But what about innovations for the masses? Is our entrepreneurial ecosystem based on the same system of meritocracy followed in the US?
Innovators like Abdul even make us question our prevailing education system. He rightly says we need to harbor our own culture of innovation. Our challenges are different, and the only way out is to innovate through passion and dedication to solve a problem, rather than look at is as a business.
source: http://www.yourstory.com / YourStory.com / Home> Success Stories / by Tarush Bhalla / January 20th, 2016
Screenshot of the ‘Dial Kashmir’ app. The application has witnessed an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 with a thousand plus downloads on Google Play.
Srinagar, KASHMIR :
23-year-old girl becomes first Kashmiri to develop Android application ‘Dial Kashmir’ with over 500 contacts of government and private departments — a one stop source for ‘essential information’.
“I don’t want to be a second someone, I want to be the first me,” this is how a 23-year-old ambitious computer engineer, who has become the first Kashmiri to develop an Android application, describes herself on her Facebook page.
The Android application named ‘Dial Kashmir’ contains over 500 contacts of government and private departments — a one stop source for ‘essential information’.
‘Dial Kashmir’ contains important contacts of different departments, officials and public utilities and would be of immense help to the locals and tourists alike, says Mehvish Mushtaq, who holds a Bachelors (B.E.) in Computer Science.
“I felt a need to develop such an application because unlike outside where there are many apps and websites which contain such information, Kashmir had none. ‘Dial Kashmir’ would provide information easily to the people here. There are many users of Android platform based mobile phones here,” Ms. Mehvish, a resident of uptown Barzulla in Srinagar, told PTI.
Ms. Mehvish claims that the application has witnessed an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 with a thousand plus downloads on Google Play.
Ms. Mehvish did an online course on Android application designing in January and put together her skills and desire to develop a “helpful Kashmir centric application” and with an “actually, I can” attitude — as her display picture on Facebook suggests — developed ‘Dial Kashmir’. “I did this online course at the end of which I had to develop something, as part of the project. It took me about 2 weeks to develop this application,” she said.
‘Dial Kashmir’ provides users detailed information like addresses, phone numbers and email ids of various essential services and other departments in Kashmir. It is a one stop source for information on healthcare, education, transport, police and so many others and one does not need to surf through internet pages, official websites and directories,” she said.
A music lover and an ardent Atif Aslam fan, Ms. Mehvish says technology fascinates her and her love for “any-thing-tech” was the sole inspiration behind her “dream of developing something which would help the people of my native place”.
Ms. Mehvish, who did her B.E from SSM College of Engineering and Technology in Pattan area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, says girls in Kashmir are “second to none” and “can achieve anything“.
“We just have to keep a dream alive and start working towards realising it. We are second to none and once we set on something, we can achieve it,” she said.
The response to the application, she says, has been “encouraging”.
“Heartening to see a Kashmiri girl develop an android app when everyone claims to be a geek in Kashmir. Good work although app is simple. Keep it up,” one Android user, Rais Bhat, who downloaded the app from Google Play, wrote as feedback.
Another user, Wani Kamraan, wrote, “SPEECHLESS..! Well the application should be improved but this work of you should be appreciated by me, by your own people…So 4 stars for your outstanding work and extra one for being citizen as well as sister of me from my Kashmir… Thank You!“.
Ms. Mehvish says she is now working on making the application “much better” and trying to add “as more details and information as possible”.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sci-Tech> Technology> Gadgets / PTI / Srinagar – April 16th, 2013
The toppers of this year’s class XII examination have attributed their success to hard work and support from parents and teachers. They also shared their desire to continue the winning streak in their professional lives.
Bushra Amin has secured first position in Science stream with 489 marks (97.8 percent). A resident of Khanaqah Bagh Pampore, she wants to be an ideal daughter and honest professional.
“This is a small success in life. I want to shine in every sphere of life-social as well as professional. My first priority would be to see my parents happy,” Bushra told Rising Kashmir.
A student of Muslim Educational Institute Pampore, Bushra said she relied more on self study rather than coaching classes, and credited her teachers for the success.
“Coaching classes only helped me to complete certain portions of my curriculum but real supporters were my school teachers as they would treat me with affection like their own sibling,” she said.
COMMERCE TOPPER
Tehneez Bashir of Green Valley Educational Institute, Illahi Bagh has topped the Commerce stream. She dreams to become honest and successful business woman.
“I am yet to decide whether to go for academic or professional course. However, I have a dream to become a successful businesswoman and to break all taboos and stereotypes,” she said.
Tehneez lost her father when she was in class 3. She said her father was always encouraging. “My elder sister who shouldered many responsibilities after my father’s death is my inspiration as she has shown me how to overcome tough times,” she told Rising Kashmir over phone.
ARTS TOPPER
Aiman Jan Habib, who topped Arts stream with 486 marks (97.2%), credited the teachers of her school, Jamiat ul Banaat for her success.
“Though I never compromised on hard work but the consistent support of teachers in the school has proved fruitful,” she said.
Resident of Tral in south Kashmir, Aiman said her parents supported her in the decision of not opting for private tuitions. “I want to become an administrator as I always dreamt of it,” she said.
source: http://www.risingkashmir.in / Rising Kashmir / Home / by Manzoor-ul-Hassan (muhassan@risingkashmir.com / Srinagar – January 21st, 2015
ECO-FRIENDLY ABODE : The Rs 2-crore mosque built by the Beary Group aims to promote harmony among all communities.
Udupi, KARNATAKA :
The Badriya Jum’a Masjid, a landmark on Kodi beach in Kundapur, holds out a new hope. Termed an ecofriendly mosque, it exemplifies sustainable technologies and also presents a modern face of Islam.
The green mosque, a typical Islamic architectural structure, aims to promote harmony among all communities in the world. There is a hope that the mosque will become a place of worship where people from all over the world will come and pray. It has already begun attracting non-Muslims.
Syed Mohamed Beary of the Indian Green Building Association’s state president told TOI that Badriya Jum’a Masjid is the world’s first `zero-energy’ green mosque. The Beary Group, with the help of locals, constructed the mosque at a cost of Rs 2 crore. Situated on two acres, the 1,500 sqft building can accommodate 2,000 people. It also has a library.
The Beary family built the mosque in memory of their grandfather. “Years ago, he wanted to go on the Hajj pilgrimage, but fell ill and couldn’t go. He used the same money to build a small mosque.It was renovated 40 years ago, but it wasn’t satisfactory . Now, using improved technology , we’ve come up with an eco friendly mosque,” he added.
Architects Sandeep and Manoj from Bengaluru have designed the mosque in such a way that the entire energy requirement is met through hybrid renewable energy , both wind and solar.
Their grandfather had planted a huge mango tree and a coconut palm on the premises. While the orientation minimizes solar heat gain, natural elements keep the inside of the building cool. The Lshaped building plan and elevated prayer hall, vegetation and water tanks around cool the environment naturally.
Natural cooling is accentu ated by a wind scoop on the 70-ft multifunctional minaret, from where the azan, or prayer call, is given. It forces down a draught of cool breeze into the prayer hall and also supports the tower structure of a wind turbine mounted atop it. The solar heat-reflecting terrace floor laid with white china mosaic and fitted with turbo vents not only keeps the prayer space cool but also reduces warming of the local micro climate.Non-conducting glass reinforced concrete jaalis with over 50% openings, maximize natural ventilation and supplement the design effort to reduce heat gain.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Bangalore / TNN / January 15th, 2016
Fitness enthusiasts in the city can add one more event to their workout calendar with JGI-Jain University announcing the launch of ‘My Country Run 2016’, which will see thousands of runners stream through the picturesque Cubbon Park as they compete in the 5k and 10k events on January 31.
The Sree Kanteerava stadium will be the hub of the activity as the races, which begin from 4pm, start and finish at the venue. “We have had an enthusiastic response so far as more than 3,000 people have already registered for the race. Though there are many road races in Bengaluru, we still need to do a lot more to get more and more people running,” race director Gul Mohammed Akbar told TOI.
Akbar said the first prize of Rs 1 lakh has attracted many elite runners, including athletes from Ethiopia and Kenya.
“Some of them are staying back after competing in the Mumbai marathon,” he said. Athletes who have finished the 10k in less than 60 minutes will fall in the elite category.
JGI Group chairman Chenraj Roychand said the proceeds generated from the race will go towards supporting the 30-35 athletes from below-poverty-line families, which are being looked after by the Jain Group. The money will be used to give them foreign exposure. “After looking at the savings, the trust will put in an equal amount to create a corpus that will be used to help these kids,” he said.
Uthappa lauds Jain College Returning to his alma mater along with ace cueist Pankaj Advani as the brand ambassador of the race, star cricketer Robin Uthappa recalled how the institution helped him through his college days. “I was frantically looking to get an admission for a degree course when I got a call from Jain College, expressing their willingness to start even a new course. Shankar sir was very helpful throughout my college days and the college even conducted special classes for all the sportspersons.
Now they want me to complete my MBA and I’ve promised to do that. I can confidently tell that Jain College is the best any sportsperson can aspire for,” recalled Uthappa, in the presence of his fiancee and former tennis player Sheetal Goutam.
The marriage is scheduled on March 3.
Roychand, meanwhile, recalled how he helped Uthappa to get back his focus after he was on the verge of quitting cricket.
“Robin once called up and said he wanted to quit the game but I told him that he was born to play cricket and put him through a few meditation sessions. Eight days later, he was back with a bang, cracking 165 runs,” the JGI chairman said.
He said the college has supported not only cricket but other sports as well, involving more than 300 international sportspersons, which included seven Olympians. “I’ve told Gul to reach out to rural schools and identify talent who can be nurtured to become top-class athletes. If we put in the hard work for the next 10-15 years, we can get more gold medals at the Olympics,” Roychand added.
UV Shankar, Director of Sports, Jain University, said the race will be an annual event. “The idea is to get everyone (men, women and kids) on one platform.”
The total prize money is Rs 5.35 lakh with Rs 1 lakh for the winner of the elite race. The registration fee is Rs 1,000 (Rs 800 for students) for Open 10K and Rs 700 (Rs 600) for the 5k race.
For online registrations, log on to www.mycountry.run.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> Cities> Bangalore / by Biju Babu Cyriac, TNN / January 19th, 2016
Liver team at Pandorum Technologies: Dr. Abdullah Chand, senior scientist (left); Arun Chandru, co-founder and managing director (centre); and Dr. Sivarajan T., senior scientist / @ABHINAV_MAURYA
Bengaluru, KARNATAKA :
Pandorum Technologies, a Bengaluru-based biotech startup, has developed an artificial tissue that performs the functions of the human liver.
Pandorum said these 3D printed living tissues made of human cells would enable affordable medical research with reduced dependence on animal and human trials. It will also eventually lead to full scale transplantable organs.
Arun Chandru, 30-year-old co-founder of Pandorum, said liver toxicity and drug metabolism are the key hurdles, and contributors to failed human trials.
Pandorum’s 3D bio-printed mini-livers that mimic the human liver will serve as test platforms for discovery and development of drugs and vaccines. The firm said these drugs would have better efficacy, less side-effects and be developed at lower costs.
“We developed everything here in India,” said Mr. Chandru. “We can grow thousands of these tissues in the laboratory and test the efficacy of drugs on them for diseases including cancer.”
He said large pharma companies on an average spend about $10 billion (Rs. 66,290 crore) and 10 years on research and development to get a single new drug to the market.
Tuhin Bhowmick (34), another co-founder of Pandorum, said development of artificial organs has numerous clinical uses. The cell-based miniature organs can be used to develop bio-artificial liver support systems for preserving life in patients who have developed liver failure.
“In the near future, such bio-printed organs will address the acute shortage of human organs available for surgical transplantation,” said Dr. Bhowmick, who holds a Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Science.
Pandorum was founded by a group of friends in 2011 who were pursuing their higher studies at IISc. They came together to work on the development of artificial human organs after winning a business competition.
Surviving initially on money from friends and family, the team approached the Department of Biotechnology with their vision. The company was awarded funding support by the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council in 2012. The same year, the company got incubated by the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms in Bengaluru.
Mr. Chandru said they created the innovation with a funding of about Rs. 1 crore, more than half of which came from the government.
Scientists and startups across the globe are growing artificial organs made of human cells to better study diseases and help test drugs. A team of researchers led by Hebrew University professor Eduardo Mitrani is growing pancreas in a petri dish to better regulate blood sugar in diabetic patients.
The global artificial organ and bionics market is expected to reach $38.75 billion (Rs 2.5 lakh crore) by 2020 at an estimated CAGR of 9.3% from 2014 to 2020, according to a study by Grand View Research.
Pandorum’s ultimate aim is to make personalised human organs such as lungs, liver, kidney and pancreas on demand, according to Mr. Chandru.
Pandorum’s innovation takes the area of making artificial organs to the next level. Bengaluru-based bioinformatics firm Strand Life Sciences founded by IISc. professors had earlier developed a virtual liver that mimics the functions of liver through software simulation. It is a predictive method that integrates data and insights for deeper understanding of the impact of a drug on the liver. The platform can predict the toxicity of several known drugs and toxins and explain the mechanism.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sci-Tech / by Peerzada Abrar / Bengaluru – December 23rd, 2015
