Nasheman

India's largest selling Urdu weekly, now also in English

You are here: Home / 2018 / Archives for August 2018

Archives for August 2018

SAG Awards on January 26, 2019

by


The 26th annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards will take place on January 26, 2020, a date thats two ahead of the Academy Awards.

The SAG Awards made the announcement Monday afternoon after news broke that the Producers Guild of America will claim January 18, 2020, as the date for its 31st annual Producers Guild Awards, reports variety.com.

The guild awards announcements came less than three weeks after leaders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences moved the 2020 Oscars forward two weeks to February 9.

Variety reported on August 8 that the AMPAS announcement – which included the creation of a controversial best popular film category and limiting the telecast to three hours – came in response to declining ratings and concerns that viewers had become fatigued by the ever-increasing number of televised awards shows.

The SAG Awards took place on January 21 this year. It announced in February that it had staked out January 27, 2019, for its next show. Nominations will be announced on December 12.

The awards are selected by members of SAG-AFTRA, which numbered 121,544 eligible voters this year. This year’s ceremony featured its first-ever host, Kristen Bell.

(Ians)

Stop giving excuse on fuel prices, Congress tells Centre

by


As diesel prices touched a record high across metro cities on Monday, the Congress said that this is the distorted and horrendous definition of “aache din” and asked the government to stop giving excuse of legacy issue.

“If this is the distorted, horrendous definition of ‘aache din’, then I would like to find out which dictionary defines ‘aache din’ like this,” said Congress Spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

“We are talking of diesel for tractors and trucks and also because your distribution of everything is too crucial. But there is silence,” he added.

Singhvi said: “We are getting sermons from the Finance Ministry every day and the only best answer they find is ‘legacy’ issue. After four-and-a-half years, the petrol and diesel prices are touching Rs 77 and Rs 70 respectively.

“You still have to talk of legacy issue. Actually, the legacy was very beneficial to you when you came to power. You were getting oil per barrel at half the price at which we were getting,” he added.

Diesel prices touched a record high across metro cities on Monday, barring Mumbai. Prices of petrol too inched nearer to all-time peak across major cities.

In the national capital, diesel was priced at Rs 69.46 per litre, against the previous high of Rs 69.32 recorded on Sunday, according to data from the Indian Oil Corporation.

(Ians)

Indian firms lead IT transformation in Asia: Dell EMC

by


When it comes to IT transformation, 17 per cent of organisations in India have achieved the fully Transformed status — a much higher percentage than was observed in other Asian countries researched (4 per cent), a Dell EMC study said on Tuesday.

Respondents at the transformed companies in India were 8.5 times more likely than legacy or emerging firms to say their company almost always makes better and faster data-driven decisions, the findings showed.

A whopping 90 per cent of Indian respondents agreed that failing to embrace IT Transformation will hurt their company’s competitiveness.

“Today, Indian organisations not only realise the importance of transforming their IT infrastructure to ensure they have a competitive edge to reduce costs, but they also now know that it is crucial to turn data into business intelligence,” said Rajesh Janey, MD and President, Enterprise India, Dell EMC.

Transformed firms in India are more likely to execute the majority of application roll-outs ahead of schedule compared to lower-scoring organisations, said the study.

Over 70 per cent of Indian respondents whose organisations have achieved transformed status also report having mature digital transformation projects underway versus only 3 per cent of the Indian legacy/emerging companies surveyed.

“Indian organisations are more virtualised than other Asian organisations – 49 per cent of Indian production servers are virtual machines versus 45 per cent in the rest of Asia.

In addition to modern data centre technologies, Indian organisations are, in general, exceeding the rest of Asia in terms of automation and process evolution.

The “IT Transformation” maturity study surveyed 4,000 IT decision makers worldwide, out of which 400 were from India.

“With our expansive set of infrastructure and software technologies, Dell EMC has become a powerful ally to help any business in its IT Transformation journey to fuel digital innovation,” Janey added.

(Ians)

Google pledges Rs 7 cr for Kerala relief work

by


Google will contribute $1 million (nearly Rs 7 crore) to the relief and restoration work in Kerala which has been battered by severe floods, a top company official said here on Tuesday.

“Google.org and Googlers will contribute $1 million to the relief work in Kerala,” Rajan Anandan, Vice President, Southeast Asia and India, said at the Google for India event.

Google Crisis Response team has launched several measures to help victims of Kerala floods.

Among other measures, it activated the “person finder” tool that fetched 22,000 records, Anandan said.

As many as 417 people have lost their lives ever since monsoon rains began lashing Kerala on May 29, with some 8.69 lakh displaced people sheltered in 2,787 relief camps.

Focused on building brand loyalty, innovation in India: Vivo

by


As the festive season inches closer in India, Vivo is focused on building brand loyalty and offering consumers innovative new “made in India” products across all price segments, a top company official said here on Tuesday.

The Chinese smartphone maker is set to launch another flagship smartphone Vivo V11 Pro on September 6.

“When it comes to the V series, Vivo has done very well. And with V11 Pro, we will take innovation to the next level in Rs 20,000-Rs 30,000 segment,” Nipun Marya, Director, Brand Strategy, Vivo India, told IANS.

“To be successful in the long term, we must have great products. That is the reason why you see so many innovations from Vivo, whether it is the elevating camera in Vivo Nex or the in-display fingerprint scanner in X21,” he added.

According to Counterpoint Research, Vivo’s India market share in terms of shipment went down to 12 per cent in the second quarter of 2018 — from 13 per cent in the same quarter last year — while that of Xiaomi’s went up to 28 per cent from 16 per cent during the same period.

Marya, however, claimed that in terms of value, Vivo is the leader in the 20K to 30K segment and overall No. 2 in the Indian smartphone market for the past 18 months.

“We have more than 50 per cent market share in the 20K to 30K segment,” Marya said, adding that what has worked in its favour is that old Vivo customers have been upgrading to new Vivo phones.

“The Indian smartphone market is increasingly becoming a ‘replacement’ market, meaning an increasing number of customers are now second time or third time smartphone buyers,” Marya said, explaining the reasons behind Vivo India’s focus on building brand loyalty.

“Moreover, the average selling price (ASP) is increasing and consumers are becoming more aware – they know what brand they want to buy and what features are their priority, and accordingly they make their choice,” he added.

According to him, the brand awareness of Vivo, which bagged the title sponsorship for five consecutive sessions of Indian Premier League (IPL) starting this year with a whopping Rs 2,199 crore bid, is 100 per cent.

“When we entered India four years ago, our initial strategy was to build awareness for the brand and that is what we did. Now we are focusing on building consideration and preference for the brand,” Marya said.

“Today everybody knows about us. But the brand awareness has to be backed by great products, great after-sales services and a good retailer network as brand awareness alone can help a company survive for a maximum period of about two years,” the company executive noted.

Vivo has long term plans in India and all its investments in the country – be it in marketing or manufacturing – offer testimony to that.

“India is a very important market for us and all the investments we have made here are from a long term point of view. We have so far invested Rs 300 crore in the Greater Noida factory which has a capacity to assemble 2 million units per month and an SMT (surface-mount technology) capacity of 1.8 million per month,” Marya said, adding that all Vivo phones sold in India are now “made in India”.

“We are now looking at expanding our manufacturing capacity in the country to meet the increasing demand of our products,” he said without divulging further details.

There are currently more than 70,000 retailers in India where Vivo phones are available and the company has more than 200 exclusive stores and two experience centres.

The company has service centres in almost all parts of the country except in Manipur, Lakshadweep and Daman and Diu, Marya pointed out.

“When we entered into India, we were very clear that we wanted to build a very strong foundation here. And four years after entering the Indian market, we stay totally committed to the country,” he said.

(Ians)

Indian women archers take Asiad silver

by


Indian archers took silver in the Compound Women’s Team category following a narrow loss to South Korea at the 18th Asian Games here on Tuesday.

The Indians gave a tough fight to the overwhelming favourites before going down 228-231 in the final.

The Indian team of Muskan Kirar, Madhumita Kumari and Jyothi Vennam won the first set, but could not sustain the momentum, going down 59-57, 56-58, 58-58, 55-58.

(Ians)

Centre signs MoU with 6 states for Lakhwar Yamuna basin project

by


Union Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) here with six states for the construction of the Lakhwar multi-purpose project in the upper Yamuna basin to deal with water crisis.

Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh (Yogi Adityanath), Rajasthan (Vasundhara Raje Scindia), Uttarakhand (Trivendra Singh Rawat), Himachal Pradesh (Jai Ram Thakur), Haryana (Manohar Lal Khattar) and (Delhi Arvind Kejriwal) signed the MoU .

Under the agreement, the 204-metres high project will be constructed near Uttarakhand’s Lohari village with live storage capacity of 330.66 million cubic metres (MCM).

“The MoU has been signed to create storage facilities in the upper Yamuna basin to deal with the water crisis between January and June,” Gadkari said.

The agreement is an effort to conserve and utilise the monsoon flows of the Yamuna, said the Minister, adding that 90 per cent of the project will be funded by the Centre while the remaining amount will be paid by the six states.

The total project is worth Rs 3,966.51 crore.

Gadkari said that the water storage will provide irrigation for 33,780-hectare land and facilitate availability of 78.83 MCM water for domestic, drinking and industrial use in six basin states.

The project will also generate 300 mw of power and will be executed by Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (UJVL), he added.

(Ians)

BJP CMs’ Council meeting begins

by


A day-long meeting of the BJP Chief Ministers’ Council began here on Tuesday to discuss plans of reaching out to the beneficiaries of the Centre’s welfare schemes as part of the party’s efforts to retain power in 2019.

Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah delivered the inaugural speech. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the meeting at 12 p.m.

The BJP has 15 Chief Ministers and seven Deputy Chief Ministers — two in Uttar Pradesh and one each in Gujarat, Bihar, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura.

In Bihar, the BJP is part of the coalition government led by the Janata Dal-United while in Nagaland, it is part of Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party’s Neiphiu Rio-led People’s Democratic Alliance.

The Council meeting has been an annual affair since 2014 after Modi took over as Prime Minister.

He will address the valedictory session later in the evening.

For 45 years, this Maharashtra war widow awaits possession of ‘promised land’

by


This is one war widow of Ahmednagar cast in the mould of her husband Kondaji Lakshman Malunjkar, who was killed in the 1965 India-Pakistan war.

Over five decades after she was widowed, Lahanbai Malunjkar is now waging a different battle with the local and state authorities to get possession of a 10-acre plot awarded to her as part of the compensation following the death of 23-year-old Kondaji on the war front.

“I am already 71. That land is my right, but I am too old and unable to take possession. I appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to help me before it is too late,” Lahanbai told IANS at her home in Rumbhodi village.

She said her simple life as a teenager was shattered when she was informed on October 2, 1965, that her young husband Kondaji, a soldier with the Maratha Light Infantry, had died in action in Jammu & Kashmir.

“My only son, 18-month-old Deepak was in my lap then. There were no other close male relatives on both sides in our families. I started all over as a widowed, teenager mother, and encountered huge difficulties, but somehow I managed,” recalls Lahanbai.

In 1972, a ray of hope appeared: Defence authorities allotted her 10 acres of agricultural land in Aurangpur village, around 6 km from Rumbhodi.

“My grandmother’s travails just began,” says Sachin Malunjkar, Lahanbai’s grandson.

“The people of Aurangpur would not allow us in. It meant that our land remained only on paper. We had no means to take physical possession of it,” says Sachin Malunjkar.

After waging a four-year war of nerves with the villagers, the family retreated by seeking another plot of land — measuring 2.5 acre — which the district administration allotted to Lahanbai.

But that land was was more than 25 km away, most of it rocky and unfit for cultivation. So Lahanbai rejected it and finally surrendered it after 30 years in 2007, according to Sachin Malunjkar.

Lahanbai’s son Dipak became adult, married and they have two sons, Sachin and Sagar. The joint family continued to eke out a modest living by farming on their own nine-acre ancestral plot in Rumbhodi, supported by Lahanbai’s war-widow pension which started with Rs 27.50 in 1965 and is now around Rs 25,000 per month.

Ahmednagar Resident Deputy Collector Prashant Patil says that the plot in question belongs to the woman. “It has not been taken away, but she will have to take possession and start cultivation there,” he said.

“If there are any legal issues, we are ever ready to help her, she can approach the local revenue official (tehsildar) for guidance,” Patil told IANS.

Local Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) legislator Vaibhavrao Pichad has promised to raise the issue in the Maharashtra Assembly and through the NCP, even in Parliament.

Aurangpur villagers claim they are opposed to the land allotment in their village since they are facing a shortage of grazing land for their cattle. Possession of land by Lahanbai could result in some farmers losing their land, they say.

“Besides, it is a forest land and cannot be allotted for farming,” said a villager.

Sachin pointed out that they had even approached former Maharashtra minister Babanrao Pachpute, tehsil officials, the collectorate and other officials, but nothing has happened in the last 46 years.

“My efforts with the tehsil office continue. Now they have asked us to measure and demarcate the plot, which we hope to complete soon,” said Sachin.

Unaffected by her 45-year experience, Lahanbai is grooming her younger grandson Sagar to either the join the armed forces or the police.

(Ians)

This smart village empowers differently-abled to stand on their own

by


In a small village near this famous lake city in Rajasthan, thousands of physically challenged people are given a fresh lease of life. Not only do they receive corrective surgeries free of cost but, during the course of their treatment, they are also imparted training to repair computers and mobiles or learn the art of stitching to ensure they become self-reliant.

The Narayan Seva Sansthan houses in its premises a modern hospital, an orphanage, a smart school, skill imparting institutions, and centres for rehabilitation, physiotherapy and naturotherapy. It is branded as a “smart” village because it has all facilities and means of sustenance for all its inhabitants within the campus, including ATM machines, Internet connectivity and even its own toy train.

Set up by Kailash Agarwal ‘Manav’, a recipient of the Padma Shri for distinguished service, the sole mission of the organisation is to ensure that the differently-abled can stand on their own and start earning a livelihood when they leave the campus.

The organisation provides medical treatment not only to polio-affected people via corrective surgeries, but also offers surgeries to those suffering “by-birth” disabilities, Narayan Seva Sansthan President Prashant Agarwal told IANS.

“Besides caring for the rehabilitation of the poor, needy and differently-abled people, we also equip them and their attendants with skills through computer, mobile repairing, sewing and tailoring classes. Over 4,276 people have benefited from this till date,” Prashant, who is Kailash Agarwal’s son, said.

Vinod Kumar, a physically challenged man from Agra with deformities in his limbs, expressed excitement on being trained in mobile repairing. With twinkling eyes, he told IANS, “I want to set up a shop and start earning once I go back to Agra. The best part here is that I am being trained while undergoing treatment.”

Asha Devi, who was here to get her grandson operated, said: “Although I am 60, I am enjoying learning to stitch frocks and kurtis in different designs. No one in our village has this expertise; hence I am confident that I shall earn a decent income.”

She said the Narayan Seva Sansthan had promised her a sewing machine when she returned to her village.

“As our lodging, food, training and treatment is all free, we treat this place as a temple where all our prayers are heard,” she added.

The organisation has also been conducting regular “mass marriage ceremonies” twice a year for young, physically-challenged boys and girls from underprivileged backgrounds. Till date, 1,298 such couples have tied the knot here.

Agarwal senior, who set up the organisation in 1985, started working for the cause of humanity after visiting a bloody accident site in Sirohi district in 1976, where seven people lost their lives.

“My father was working as a clerk in a post office when he heard about a bus collision in Pindwara, Sirohi. Taking leave from his job, he rushed to the site and was shaken to see the blood-splattered mess. With help from others, he admitted the injured to the general hospital. He started visiting the hospital daily to look after their needs,” Prashant said.

During these visits, he realised how patients battle with daily challenges while also grappling with financial crises. He saw they were hesitant to buy medicines and food as they had no money left with them after incurring medical expenses.

“To help such people, he started distributing a few containers, with ‘Narayan Seva’ written on them, among his relatives and acquaintances and asked them to put some flour in it on a daily basis. Every morning, he and my mother used to prepare chapatis out of the flour they had collected and feed the hungry. Even my sister and I helped,” he said.

While Kailash Agarwal kept this up on his own from 1974 to 1984, he set up Narayan Seva Sansthan as a non-profit charity organisation in 1985 to serve patients belonging to the poorest of the poor of society.

Over time, the organisation grew and is now among the few centres in the world where over 100 corrective surgeries of polio and cerebral palsy are done each day. The institute has given a new lease of life to over 325,000 people with free-of-cost polio corrective surgeries.

Not only does it provide treatment to the patients, it also ensures their relatives are taken care of. Once they reach Udaipur, all expenses of patients and their attendants are borne as long as they are at the institute for treatment.
Prashant said the organisation is blessed with a strong team of medical practitioners.

“With its headquarter at Udaipur in Rajasthan, the organisation has a 1,100-bed hospital where patients from around the country and abroad make their way for treatment and surgeries,” he said.

Irrespective of caste, creed and religion, the organisation serves all — Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians, he said.

It also runs a Narayan Children’s Academy, with its well-equipped classes, for tribal students residing nearby. It is a delight and surprise to see tribal students studying in e-classes. The organisation runs a school bus which picks up students in the morning, are given breakfast and lunch in school, and are dropped to their homes in the evening. This too is a free service.

The students are also provided school uniforms and stationery. The organisation also runs a residential school for the deaf and dumb, blind and mentally-challenged children.

However, Prashant said this was just a start as there are thousands awaiting their turn to get surgeries done.

“Our vision is to spread our wings to ensure that all differently-abled people walk with confidence, overcoming all odds — be it physical or financial.”

(Ians)

KNOW US

GET INVOLVED

PROMOTE

Archives