World cup in Chinnaswamy Stadium !

ICC confirms Chinnaswamy Stadium for India v/s England match :

              Mumbai: The International Cricket Council (ICC) Monday confirmed that the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore will replace Kolkata's Eden Gardens as the venue for February 27 World Cup match between India and England.

The world organisation said that it will again inspect the Eden Gardens February 7 to check if the stadium can host the remaining three matches slated for March 15, 18 and 20.

"The ICC today confirmed its decision to relocate the venue for the India vs. England match in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, which had been originally scheduled for Eden Gardens in Kolkata on 27 February. It will now take place in Bangalore on the same date," the ICC said in a statement.

ICC's decision unfavourable and unfortunate: Dalmiya

ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said Bangalore gives the world body a certainty over the fixture.

"We can now work with our various partners and stakeholders to make sure that match - along with the rest of the tournament - is all it should be," Lorgat said in a statement.

The ICC has also informed the BCCI about the schedule of works that needed to be carried out at Eden Gardens ahead of the ground's other scheduled fixtures.

Last week the ICC ruled that Eden Gardens was unsuitable for the tie due to its unpreparedness. The scrapping of the venue followed an adverse report from the ICC venue inspection team that reviewed Eden Gardens readiness for the big event hosted jointly by India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka from Feb 19 to April 2.

Two men drown in Hemmigepura lake :

                BANGALORE: Just two days after two PU students drowned in Hebbal Lake, the bodies of two men were fished out of Hemmigepura lake on Sunday. They were identified as Nasrulla and Imran.

              Police said fire officials and local swimming experts searched for the men from afternoon till late evening in the lake, situated close to NICE Road, but didn't find them, T Mahadeva, Talaghattapura circle inspector, said.
According to police, a boy saw the two men drowning in the lake around 11.30 am. "The boy said in his statement that one man was drawing water from the lake and the other person was standing behind him. While drawing water, the man reportedly fell into the lake and the other person jumped in to save him. However, both were said to have drowned," police said.

The boy immediately alerted a few men who had gathered at a prayer hall. They, in turn, informed the police and fire brigade personnel.

Police said the lake was 10-15 feet deep, and were finding it a little challenging to search for the bodies. It is suspected that the duo had come to attend the Sunday prayers at the prayer hall.

Chappals were thrown at RMP Men by Women !

Fake business of RMP led to disorder in Kuvempu Kalakshetra:

              There was a disorder in the Kuvempu Kalakshetra today evening at the conference of RMP. As you know RMP is a chain link Business which had become famous all across India. The Chief of the Company is Mr. Premsingh.
The company will profit crores & crores per annum. It has the method of chain link. Click here to know more about working type of RMP.

                    RMP had a function in Kuvempu Kalakshetra today evening. But as the RMP agent conference was going on, about 20 to 25 women attacked the RMP Conference & stopped it.
They started showing chappals to men who had assembled in the conference & some also threw at the faces of the leaders who had assembled there.
The men also threw their shoes on the women. Totally there was a crowd noise in the conference hall.

             The women gathered there told that they had been cheated by the company with a sum of 6 lakhs from 100 to 150 women. when tv9 interviewed them.
Yes ! About 150 women gone cheated with RMP company. They also said that "One among them was about to die the last week because of cheating".
They also told that they had gone cheated around 6 lakhs from RMP.
 
             They said that "The RMP men were coming to our homes when we are alone & were showing desires that we could earn money from around 2000 per week.
If the business improves, u can earn money up-to 20,000 per month. But now they had cheated us. We the women feel like dying because of the tortures in our homes.
So we protest to give our money back & to close the RMP company".

           But the RMP company leaders said that, "We had not cheated anyone. The women had failed to show their interests in the business. Hence they have got no profit.
In case, we take money from people through DD or Cheques for security reasons. Across this it is thier fault if they have lost. We are not responsible for that."

          But still the women did not leave showing chappals at them. As the police arrived, they stopped the disorder that went on throughout the evening. The women registered the case on the RMP at Chamarajanagar police station.
Many Bangloreans had been shocked by watching this..

Church attacks in Bengaluru !

Karnataka Church Attacks: Government Gets Clean Chit :

          Bangalore: Finally, some good news for the beleaguered BJP government in Karnataka. A commission set up to investigate a series of attacks on churches in 2008 has said neither the government nor the police can be faulted. The report submitted by the one-man commission states: "There is no basis to the apprehension of Christian petitioners that the politicians, BJP, mainstream Sangh Parivar and state government directly or indirectly, are involved in the attacks."

            That leaves Karnataka wondering who exactly vandalized its churches in eight different districts. The report dodges that bullet, stating, "The attacks are indulged in by misguided fundamentalist miscreants of defined or undefined groups or organisations against Christians and Christianity who have mistakenly presumed that they would be protected by the party in power with their policies at the relevant time."
In September 2008, churches were vandalized in different parts of Karnataka like Mangalore, Udupi, Kolar, Bellary.
BK Somasekhara, a former judge, was assigned to investigate the attacks by the newly-elected BJP government which was confronting its first major crisis. 

"This is not an attack on Christians. This is an attack against conversions, against those who hurt Hindu feelings," Mahendra Kumar had said at the time. He was then the convener of the Bajrang Dal and he seemed uninhibited about justifying the offense

Christians in the state describe Mr Somasekhara's findings as a please-all pardon.  "It has given a clean chit to everybody. As you are aware, our churches were attacked, innocent people were attacked," said Father Jayanathan, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Bangalore.
The chief minister, BS Yeddyurappa, is currently dealing with multiple allegations of corruption and persistent demands for his resignation by the Opposition. There's also a public and shrill war between the government and the Governor of the state, who has sanctioned the chief minister's prosecution.
So Mr Yeddyurappa is cautious when it comes to discussing today's developments.
"The Home Ministry will examine what the government should do further in this regard. Till then, it's not appropriate to discuss any other point at this stage," he said.

World Kannada Meet

Govt to provide Rs 30 crore for world Kannada meet :

Karnataka Government would release Rs 30 crore for the World Kannada Conference to be held from March 11-13 in Belgaum, Minister for Kannada and Culture Govind Karjol said today.

Rs 10 crore has already been released and the District administration has spent Rs 3.5 crore on creating infrastructure for the event, Karjol said after unveiling the emblem for the conference here. He would discuss with Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa the issue of allocation of more funds if the need arose, he said. A meeting to discuss the arrangements for the meet would be held in Belgaum on February 2, he said.

Yeddyurappa's Land Allotment

Land allotment to sons a mistake, admits Yeddyurappa :

          

Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa today admitted that he had committed a ''mistake'' by alloting land to his sons but appeared defiant about the act being ''immoral or illegal''.

"If land is there you can offer it to anybody. My mistake is I allotted land to my son. If court takes a decision, let them take back the land," Yeddyurappa told Headlines Today. However, Yeddyurappa- who virtually forced the party high command to allow him to continue in office despite the scandal- appeared to differ with party president Nitin Gadkari who had said the Chief Minister's act of making out of turn land allotment to his sons may be "immoral but not illegal". "I will speak to Gadkari. He must be mistaken. Somebody must have misguided him", Yeddyurappa said. Yeddyurappa also lashed out at Karnataka Governor H R Bharadwaj for giving sanction to prosecute him. "He has converted the Raj Bhavan into a political party. I want to ask the governor Sahib: What is your intention?," the Chief Minister said. The Chief Minister felt that Bhardwaj may have been sent to Karnataka with a specific mission by the Congress high command. "He may have been sent for this purpose only. Everyday we are observing, governor is acting like an opposition party leader in Karnataka." Yeddyurappa said the Governor had neither sent notices to him nor invited him for discussions to clear the air on the land deals. "I am ready to face the prosecution in court", he said.

Local Sights

Local Sights in Bengaluru:

Ashoka Pillar

             The Ashoka Pillar was inaugurated on Aug 20, 1948 by C Rajagopalachari, then governor general of the country, on the completion of eight years of the reign of Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar, Maharajah of Mysore.

This may not be a place you need to go out of the way to visit. If you are near by Jayanagar area, it is nice to drive around it. Luckily there is greenery near Ashoka Pillar because of Lalbagh being beside it.

 Dargah Hazarath Tawakkal Mastan

            This Muslim shrine,located in Cottonpet, a suburban locality, is associated with the Hindu Karaga festival too. The procession annually visits the Dargah of this Sufi saint, Tawakkal Mastan. His tomb attracts both Muslim and non-Muslim pilgrims.




Jumma Masjid
                 The Jumma Masjid is probably the oldest mosque in the city. It is an imposing structure with tall ornamented granite pillars adorning the elevated prayer hall. Scores of devote Muslim worshippers throng this masjid during the annual festivals of the Muslims. It is located in the busy market area of Bangalore, K.R.Market.





 Ravindra Kalakshetra

                The Kalakshetra, built to commemorate Rabindranath Tagore's centenary, promotes cultural activity in the city. It has a superb theatre and houses the Cultural Akademi Offices. Next to it is the Gothic styled Puttannachetty Town Hall whose huge auditorium can easily accommodate over 1500 persons.







And Still more local sights coming soon.....

Toyota Recalls. . . .

Toyota recalls 1.7 million autos worldwide on quality issue:

           Toyota Motor Corp. said it would recall more than 1.7 million vehicles worldwide, bringing its total for recalls to nearly 16 million since late 2009 and dealing a blow to its efforts to restore its reputation for quality. The recalls are for various issues, the biggest of which is to fix potentially faulty fuel pumps and connecting pipes in 1.34 million vehicles, Toyota said.

Although the situation is different from last year, when Toyota attracted intense scrutiny from U.S. safety regulators over unintended acceleration problems that were blamed for dozens of fatalities, the latest recall may make it harder for Toyota to convince investors it has put its quality problems behind it.

Shares of Toyota, the world’s top automaker, extended early declines and closed down nearly 2 percent on the Tokyo Stock Exchange after the announcement.

Toyota’s U.S. shares were down 1.5 percent at $82.60 in morning trading in New York, compared with a rise of 0.6 percent in the S&P 500 index.

“Toyota faces harsh competition from Honda Motor Co, which is in a much better situation in the U.S. market — this is reflected in its stock price which now stands at multi-year highs,” said Mitsushige Akino, chief fund manager at Ichiyoshi Investment Management.

“That’s why investors are a little nervous and sold Toyota when this negative news came out,” he said.

The models affected by the fuel pump issue include the Noah minivan and other models sold in Japan as well as 141,000 Avensis units sold overseas. That is Toyota’s biggest recall in six years and its second-biggest ever for a single defect, said Toyota spokeswoman Shiori Hashimoto.

Toyota said in a filing to Japan’s transport ministry that no accidents had been reported because of the defects.

U.S. SALES SUFFER

Toyota was the only major automaker to see its sales fall in the United States last year, and just squeaked by General Motors Co to keep its spot at the top of the global sales ranking.

Toyota said it was also recalling around 335,000 Lexus units sold overseas, including about 245,000 sold in the U.S. market, due to trouble with a fuel pressure sensor connected to an engine fuel delivery pipe.

In the United States, about 152,500 IS250 models are affected by the recall.

Lexus remained the top luxury brand in the U.S. market last year, with sales of about 230,000 units. But second-place Mercedes-Benz closed the gap to less than 5,000 vehicles and grew by 17 percent. Mercedes-Benz is owned by Daimler.

Lexus’ 6 percent growth in sales compares with gains of 26 percent by Honda’s luxury brand Acura and of 27 percent by Nissan Motor Co’s Infiniti brand.

Lexus is seen as a car for Baby Boomers which does not appeal as much to younger buyers.

Lexus has lost some luster in the U.S. market in part because of publicity surrounding last year’s safety recalls but also because its model lineup is not fresh, said Jeremy Anwyl, chief executive of Edmunds.com.

“The safety issue from last year had an impact, but the products for both Lexus and Toyota are getting stale in a market that values newness,” said Anwyl.

“I don’t think this is going to have a huge impact in terms of sales,” he said, mentioning that Toyota and Lexus dealers can claim the automaker is being proactive, before any injuries or accidents have been reported.

In two other filings on Wednesday, Toyota said it would recall about 75,000 Crown models and about 6,200 Townace vans in Japan to fix the same fault found in Lexus cars sold in the United States and elsewhere.

Toyota’s Hashimoto declined to say how much the latest recalls would cost the Japanese carmaker.

The U.S. recalls regarding Lexus will take an estimated two hours for inspection and tightening of the fuel pressure sensor but three hours if a gasket needs to be replaced, Toyota said.

For the financial year to March, Toyota expects operating profit of 380 billion yen ($4.6 billion), lower than both Honda and Japan’s No. 3, Nissan, are forecasting.

Toyota’s last big recall was in October when it said it would fix 1.66 million Avalons, Highlanders and other models worldwide mainly for a defect in the master cylinder brake seal.

Toyota shares closed down 1.9 percent at 3,400 yen, underperforming a 0.6 percent fall in the benchmark Nikkei average.

Shares of Honda, Japan’s second-largest automaker, gained 0.7 percent to 3,470 yen.

Sleepless METRO

Metro leaves residents sleepless :

            Those staying around CMH Road station complain that the ear-splitting noise from six granite-cutting machines is posing a serious health risk.

            Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation authorities are in a race against time to ensure that the Namma Metro is commercially operational as quickly as possible, but residents around CMH Road are complaining of sleepless nights due to the hectic work. Residents say they have not had a decent night’s rest in the last couple of month’s because the contractor involved in building the Metro station, has deployed dozens of workers to cut granite slabs in the residential area. The workers begin their task early in the morning and continue until midnight. The ear-splitting noise from the machines and the clouds of dust created by the cutting work are posing a serious health risk, residents say. When repeated pleas to the contractor fell on deaf ears, they decided to approach the Indiranagar police.

            Satish Rajanna, a long-time resident of 10th Cross, First Stage, Indiranagar, told Bangalore Mirror: “There are six granite cutting machines at the site. They are being used non-stop until late in the night. What is more, they don’t even apply water while cutting these slabs. Water helps reduce the noise. We have not been able to sleep for the last couple of months.”

             Satish revealed that BMRCL had earmarked a special areas where such work could be carried out. “We won’t have this problem if they work at the designated area. But this contractor is determined to make our life miserable. So we have sought police assistance,’’ Satish said. R Rajagopal, another resident of the area, alleged that the waste granite pieces are strewn all over the area, hindering pedestrians and motorists. “The BBMP is responsible for sweeping the roads, but they say it’s the job of the Metro workers. While they keep passing the buck, motorists and pedestrians are having a tough time,” Rajagopal said.

             Some residents say they cannot take their vehicles out of their houses because the contractor is using part of the barricaded road to park heavy vehicles. “We can’t walk, nor can we take our vehicles out,” Satish said. The contractor promised to shift work to the designated area only after the Indiranagar police arrived on the scene. But much to the agony of the residents, two fresh truckloads of granite slabs arrived on Monday. When the residents protested, the contractor guided the trucks to the designated area. But not before some of slabs were already unloaded.

Yashwant Chouhan, BMRCL spokesperson and public relations officer, promised to look into the issue.

“If work is disturbing the peace and quiet of the people, we will certainly ask the contractor to shift the work another area,” he said.

Karnataka Radio Stations

102.9	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani / Vividh Bharati)	Bangalore II
107.8	Radio Active (RA, Jain Group of Institutions)	Bengalaru [Bangalore]
107.2	Gyan Vani	Bengalaru [Bangalore]
98.3	Radio Mirchi	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
94.3	Radio One	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
93.5	South Asia FM (S FM)	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
92.7	Big 92.7 FM	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
91.9	Radio Indigo	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
91.1	Radio City	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
105.6	Gyan Vani	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
104	Fever 104 FM (HT Media Ltd / Virgin)	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
101.3	All India Radio (AIR FM Rainbow / Akashvani)	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
100.4	AIR Music Service	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
100.1	All India Radio (AIR Classical Music Channel / Akashvani / Amrutha Varshini)	Bengaluru [Bangalore]
101.8	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Bijapur
102.6	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Chitradurga
90.4	FM90.4 (Samudaya Banuli Kendra, University of Agricultural Sciences)	Dharwad
103	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Dharwad
93.5	Kal Radio Ltd (S FM)	Gulbarga
103.7	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani / Vividh Bharati)	Gulbarga
102.2	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Hassan
100.5	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Hospet
102.3	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Karwar, Uttara Kannada District
103.1	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Madikeri, Kodagu District
98.3	Radio Mirchi	Mangalore
93.5	Kal Radio Ltd. (S FM)	Mangalore
92.7	Big 92.7 FM	Mangalore
100.3	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Mangalore, Dakshina Kannada District
93.5	Kal Radio Ltd. (S FM)	Mysore
92.7	Big 92.7 FM	Mysore
105.2	Gyan Vani	Mysore
100.6	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Mysore
102.1	All India Radio (AIR / Akashvani)	Raichur

Visit the wild life zoological garden in Bengaluru

             Bannerghatta National Park is about 22 km from Bangalore in Karnataka. It is a home to many endangered animal species. It is a natural forest and has one of the largest collections of carnivores in any bio-park in the state. This zoological garden is spread over area of about 25000 acres. It consists of dense forest and scrub land becoming home for wild animals like bison, leopard, wild boar as well as being an important corridor for elephants migrating between the eastern and western ghats.

Tiger

             One of the main attractions here are the lion and tiger safari. Other attractions here are a butterfly park, crocodile farm, serpentarium. In addition, a portion of the park is used as a sanctuary for wild rescued animals from circuses.

             An elephant ride in the herbivore safari facilitates viewing of these animals in the natural habitat including the bison, spotted deer, black buck, barking deer etc.

The park is open for visitors between 9 AM to 5 PM . The park is closed on Tuesdays.

White Tiger

            Safari : The famous Safari has Carnivore Section and Herbivore section. In the Safari rides, visitors are taken around a mini bus through the enclosed and protected area of the aninmals to roam around freely. The Herbivores section comprises of few animals like deers, bears and a few monkeys etc. White Tigers, Bengal Tigers make up for the Tiger Safari, Lions Safari and Bear Safari  in the carnivores' section. Though the entire national park stretches across 104.27 sq km, only a small portion in the north has been carved out for tourism.

Butterfly

          Zoological garden and Trekking : You can find everything from avifauna to hyenas, panthers, neel gay, etc in the Bannerghatta National Park. The 25,000 acre park is home to panthers, lions, tigers and a large variety of birds. Wander through the Zoological Garden, with its canopy of shady and sturdy trees, find a quiet resting spot beside a pond and watch waterfowl frolic, also facilities to rest, pinic are also available in the park premises. The zoo boasts an amazing reptile collection, an encounter with the scaly, slithery creatures at the snake park. Uddigebande (3.5 km) a natural rock formation called Hajjamana Kallu (3 km) and Mirza Hill (1.5 km) are for the Trekking enthusiasts. There is also Jumbo ride for the visitors  beyond the parking slots organized by the Forest Department. One has to buy a ticket for this ride. The area spread of  Dry deciduous forests and thorny scrub, with patches of moist deciduous forests along the streams.

White Peacock

            Suvarnamukhi Stream and Temple : Covering an area of 104 sq km, including ten reserve forests of Anekal Range of the Bangalore Forest Division, the scenic hills are covered with many ancient temples.A stream named Suvarnamukhi flows through the park, originates in the Suvarnamukhi hills. These hills spread out to a huge rock, about a kilometre long.

The Champaka Dharna Swamy temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu and his consorts Sridevi and Bhoodevi is built in the Dravidian style of the Hoysala age, lies at the foot of the rock. There is also a Narasimha temple about two km away from the Suvarnamukhi pond. The waters of this pond are believed to have curative powers. For those of you who are nature and wildlife buffs, visiting Bangalore for few days, a trip to Bannerghata National Park will truly be an unforgettable experience.

You can visit the place year round. The weather is moderate in the range of 25 - 30 Degree C all through the year. Best time suited will be September to January. 

 Tourist Information :

• Day Visit : Indians: Rs. 325/- , Foreign citizens: US $15/-
• Tourists are accommodated in large well equipped vans managed by Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC).
• Bannerghatta Nature Camp,
  Bannerghatta,
  Tel : 080-25597021 - 25 (Corporate Office),
  Fax : 080-25586163 (Corporate Office),
  Email : junglelodges@vsnl.com.
  Tariff :
  Swiss Tent : Indians : Rs. 1000/- , Foreign citizens : US $30/-,
  Dormitory : Indians : Rs. 500/- , Foreign citizens : US $20/-
• The first week of October each year is celebrated as the Wildlife Week to spread public awareness about the need to save our precious flora and fauna. The Karnataka state forest department, in coordination with various nature clubs and organizations, arranges a wide range of programs for nature enthusiasts through out the week.

How to Reach :
By Road : 22kms from South of Bangalore on the Anekal Road.
Lodging : No accommodation available
Altitude : 740 to 1034 meters above sea level
Visiting hours : 9 am to 5 pm
Holiday : Closed every Tuesday
Best time : September to January.

South Indian Actress Yamuna Arrested !

By Agencies Bengaluru:

             South Indian actress Yamuna is in news for wrong reasons. She has been arrested for charges of prostitution from a city hotel in Bangalore. The business of flesh trade has been popular in the city for several years. Yamuna along with seven others were arrested after police conducted a raid on the hotel. Shankar M Bidari, city police commissioner stated “We cannot reveal anything about the racket. We are quite certain, though, that it has a network spread across the country.” Yamuna was offered a whopping amount of Rs 2 lakh for this assignment. Police sources stated “On specific information, we conducted a raid on room no. 1402, 4th floor in ITC Royal Gardenia Hotel, Bangalore. During the raid, we have recovered Rs. 2 laks from actress Yamuna and Rs 46,000 from her pimp Surakshit of Puttur in Andhra Pradesh.” Source said further, “Customer Nandakumar, the owner of Transoft Call Centre and a resident of Kasthuri Nagar in Indira Nagar, has been arrested. Nandakumar’s Toyota Forturner and pimps’ Hundai Electra cars have also been seized.”

Bangalore Renamed !

Bangalore To Be Renamed As Bengaluru

                     Bangalore, according to state historians, got its name from Bendakalooru (the town of boiled beans) after a king strayed into the area during a hunting trip in the late 14th century. A woman offered him a meal of boiled beans which the king enjoyed so much that he named the town after the dish. Bengaluru is a transliteration of the original spelling, according to state historians.

I.T. Raids on Bollywood "STARS"

Mumbai: There have been Income Tax raids at the residences of Bollywood actors Katrina Kaif and Priyanka Chopra in Mumbai.

The raids were reportedly made in connection with suspected tax evasion. Sources said the Income Tax authorities were investigating whether or not the actors had paid taxes proportionate to their income.

Both the actresses have done a fair amount of movies, endorsements and international shows in the last two years and they are paid between Rs. 3 to 5 crore per film. Katrina Kaif endorses 10 brands whereas Priyanka Chopra has about 8-10 endorsements in her kitty. Also, Priyanka Chopra was reportedly paid Rs. 6 crore for her movie "Pyar Impossible" that released in 2010.

The raids began at 8 on Monday morning and are expected to continue through the day.

The Route map of Bengaluru Metro !

Bengaluru Metro Route Map

Is Makarajyothi Man-Made ?

'Makarajyothi' is not man made: Thantri

Amid heated debate on whether 'Makarajyothi' of Lord Ayyappa shrine is celestial or man-made, the chief priest of Sabarimala temple today said the controversy was generated only to divert attention from the tragedy that killed 102 devotees.         "Makarajyothi is the celestial star Siries and Makara villakku a symbolic deeparadhana (aarthi) lit at Ponnamabelamedu," Kantaru Maheswararu told reporters here.

The recent controversy over 'Makara Jyothi' and 'Makara Vilakku' was only to divert attention from the tragedy that claimed the lives of 102 devotees, he said. The controversy was also an attempt to torpedo the two month long pilgrim season of the sacred shrine, he said, adding, efforts should be made to provide better facilities and security for the pilgrims.           The thantri,  who is responsible for lighting 'Makara Vilakku', said the practice was earlier done by tribals. "We do not see who is doing it," he said. Rahul Easwar, his grandson and spokesperson of the family said the question over who was lighting the 'Makara vilakku' is "irrelevant", but what was being done was more important.            On reported remarks of former TDB commissioner Nalinakshan Nair that TDB (Travancore Devaswom Board which administers the shrine) lights the fire atop Ponambelemedu,he said Nair should not use this opportunity to "tarnish" Sabarimala.             "There is a deliberate attempt to create a controversy by stating that 'makara vilakku' is being lit by some people in the forest," he said. Asked if the thantri family would file an affidavit in the the backdrop of the Kerala High Court's query to the government on whether 'Makarajyothi' was man made, Rahul Easwar said they would clarify it if asked. "We expect the court to ask us. Court should ask us and not the TDB," he said. "This is a delicate and sensitive issue. We have to deal with clinical precision as legal, ethical, devotional aspects are involved," he said, adding, the faith of lakhs of devotees was unnecessarily being questioned and a controversy created.

Visiting Places in B'lore....

Main Attractions In BENGALURU

Vidhana Soudha 

This elegant four-storied edifice is constructed out of granite stone on the pattern of temple architecture. This 46m high complex is an official building holding the Legislative Chambers of the state government. The structure houses four domes in all the four corners. There are the sculptures of 4 headed lions - the majestic beast, on the gateway of the building representing the symbol of Indian sovereignty. It also houses 22 departments and 300 rooms. The lighting up of the building on every Sunday evening holds the special charm among its visitors.

Cubbon Park
The park was constructed by Lord Cubbon.in 1864 over an area of 300 acre. This ravishing garden is adorned with lush green patches, blossoming rows of flowers and some structural buildings all adding to its glory. It is an idle place for relaxing and escaping from the ciaos of the city, thronged by young crowd, families, walkers, joggers and nature lovers. Other attractions of the park are Cheshire Dyer Memorial Hall, Ottawa Chatter, Museum, Century Club and the Press Club.

Government Museum and Venkatappa Art Gallery
Established in 1887, the museum is the oldest structural complex of India. The Government Museum showcases medley of archaeological artifacts, exquisite collection of coins, sculptures, inscriptions, old paintings and excavated items. Whereas the art gallery houses the works of the celebrated artist of the Mysore Court like K. Venkatappa, his famous paintings, plaster of Paris works and wooden sculptures are worth a site.

Timings : Open 10.00 to 17.00 hours except on Wednesdays.

And still more places coming soon.....

Countdown begins !

                  Work on Namma Metro’s Reach One stations has been fast-tracked, as chief minister BS Yeddyurappa announced on Tuesday that the trial run of the Metro train is scheduled to begin on January 24.

Yeddyurappa will inspect progress of work soon, and will take a ride on the train even as it does the trial runs.

                 There are six stations on Reach One, between Byappanahalli and MG Road. All stations have been witnessing work at a brisk pace. With just a week to go before trial runs begin, Metro officials find their hands tied. There is much work still to be done on the stations before the trial runs.

Questioned about all the work that remains to be done and the fast-approaching deadline, BLY Chavan, spokesperson of the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), said, “Work pressure has remained more or less the same. However, it is true that there is a lot of work still to be done before the trial runs begin.”

                 At the Byappanahalli Metro depot, where the station is at grade (meaning that it is at ground level), construction is ongoing on the foot over-bridge within the depot, connecting the station’s main entrance to the Old Madras Road.

                 Workers have been instructed that the ramp has to be ready for use by January 23. Ticketing counters at the Byappanahalli station will be made near the entrance gates at the Old Madras Road side of the depot. Structures for erecting the main frame of the foot over-bridge for the Swami Vivekananda (SV) Station on SV Road are being readied. Workers have been instructed that this work should be complete by Sunday.

              The station at Byappanahalli is getting whitewashed. The station on Chinmaya Mission Hospital (CMH) Road has already been whitewashed; it will soon get a coat of paint. The back wall of the Mahatma Gandhi (MG Road) Station has been painted yellow.

Many teams have been working simultaneously at different stations and junctions of Reach One. Security arrangements too are being made, ahead of trial runs.

              Escalators at all stations have been fitted. Half-walls are being erected, as boundaries to the stations. The third train, which was brought to the yard on Wednesday, was coupled only on Tuesday night. Electrical connections will be made into the coaches for static tests on the new train. Meanwhile, sources in the BMRC said that the committee for deciding the fares has already prepared a report. It is expected to meet next week; according to the BMRCL website, fares are expected to be one-and-a-half times the bus fares in the city.

Run all the way !

Bengaluru: People in this tech hub have found a new way to raise funds to help educate the poor children and in the process, stay fit.
For 48 hours from 5 p.m. Friday, groups of people will run or cycle to raise at least Rs.200,000 to fund an NGO to educate the poor children here.

'Someone or some group will be running or cycling from 5 p.m. on Jan 21 to 5 p.m. on Jan 23 in Bangalore. One group will be cycling to Hyderabad, about 560 km away,' Kavitha Kanaparthi, one of the organizers, said.

Called the Strides of Hope to help NGO Asha-Bangalore, the 48-hour run/cycle marathon is also intended to encourage Bangaloreans to take up a healthy and environment friendly lifestyle, she said.

'This is also an effort to raise awareness about education for the underprivileged children in India,' said Kavitha, who describes herself as a full-time endurance athlete and owns 'Globe racers', a professional running organization.

Asha-Bangalore said that it 'supports education of underprivileged children and initiatives that help empower communities as a whole'.

The NGO currently supports six projects in India and raises funds through marathon program(running/cycling), monthly donations and calendar sales.

Other organizers of the event include 'Runner's High', which provides coaching and training for the runners, 'Runners for Life', a recreation company, 'Contours International' that helps women to stay fit.

The event is being organized for the second time. Last year, about 350 people took part, together logging 3,000 km.

'This time, we target 1,500 participants and 15,000-plus km.'

Kavitha added that two or three people are looking to run/walk for all the 48 hours.

'Many people will start cycling to Hyderabad but around 10 will continue all the way to the city. Others will return to Bangalore after riding a distance they are comfortable with.'

Kavitha and her co-organizers have appealed to people either to join in the running or cycling along the route the organisers have chosen or do it at any other location.

'If you are a group of 10 or more runners or riders you can run/ride at your own location. For example, employees of a company can get together and run around their office, children from a school could run in their campus.

'We will all be a part of the Strides of Hope team,' the organisers said in their appeal.

Kavitha said the organizers expect at least 50 to 60 percent people who participated in the event last year to take part this year too.

On the number of Bangaloreans who have taken to running, she said, 'There are easily about 10,0000 runners in Bangalore, whether they run one kilometer, 20 km, 40 km or longer distances.'

'Bangalore is known to be one of the most active cities in the country.'

The organizers have plans to 'educate' the city vehicle drivers, considered notorious by cyclists and pedestrians.

Asked how they intended to make vehicle drivers behave, Kavitha said, 'We, cyclists, have been working with police to create awareness, conduct classes and create ads for this purpose.'

On plans for a sustained campaign for a dedicated cycle lane here, she said, 'It's being done by the cycling community. We have faced many life threatening situations while cycling, and I, too, have been in accidents, coming close to death situations.

Latest News !

Tulip acquires data center facility in Bangalore.

          BANGALORE: Tulip Data Center Services Pvt Ltd, an arm Tulip Telecom, has acquired the data center facility here from SADA IT Parks Pvt Ltd (SADA)for Rs 230 crore. The company has also decided to undertake Rs 670-crore investment in the coming three years for facility upgradation.

             Mr Sanjay Jain, CEO of Tulip Telecom, said, “The company has made Rs. 230 crore as the upfront payment, which will come from Tulip's balance sheet, while about Rs. 270 crore will be generated from the Data Center revenues, and about Rs. 400 will come from external funding for which we are in discussion with strategic investors.”

            This data centre is spread across 900,000 sq ft. The firm is planning to fulfill the demand of both foreign and domestic customers via this data centre.

IT & Electronics

Karnataka govt. approves IT & Electronic hardware project:-

         BANGALORE: The Government of Karnataka has approved the new IT and Electronic Hardware guidelines.

              The IT and electronic hardware industries account for 20 percent of the State’s GDP. The State Government has allotted Rs.25crore for the implementation of the project. The State Government plans to construct four IT parks in cities such as Bangalore and Mysore.