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MAX presents Elite Model Look India 2015

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MARC ROBINSON

Bengaluru: MAX, the country’s largest international value fashion brand, is back with the 2nd edition of Elite Model Look India 2015 after getting raving success last year.

Elite Model Look is one of the most sought-after & prestigious contest in the world. This contest is a lifetime opportunity for thousands of boys and girls to become the next international supermodel and reach great heights like Cindy Crawford, Stephanie Seymour, Gisele Bundchen, Sigrid Agren and Constance Jablonski.

The contest which will tour 6 cities across India to hand pick the best talents, reached Bangalore after getting fabulous response from Delhi, Chandigarh & Chennai. The Bangalore Regional Casting took place at Phoenix Market City, Bangalore on 29th August 2015. The city was brimming with energy and enthusiasm as young boys and girls made a bee-line to participate in a rare, unique and an unbelievable opportunity to be a supermodel. The whole environment was charged as they competed fiercely to get shortlisted. Cheering fans and guidance from the experts turned this contest into a memorable and exciting day for the young contenders.

The esteemed jury included – Max Fashion’s Executive Director VASANTH KUMAR, Licensee Elite Model Look India & highly renowned Fashion Director MARC ROBINSON, Supermodels NICOLE FARIA and RACHAEL BAYROS.

Contestants were shortlisted from hundreds of hopeful contenders based on criteria like their ramp walk, first impression and photogenic appeal. These contestants will compete in the final selection round inNational Casting along with contestants shortlisted from other cities including Delhi, Chandigarh, Chennai, Kolkata & Mumbai.

National Casting finalists will undergo a week long grooming sessions by industry experts including Marc Robinson and Erika Oliveira, an Elite Model and winner of prestigious Golden Globe for “Best Model Female”. These rigorous grooming sessions conducted in a safe, supportive and fun environment help aspiring models to understand the concept of stage presentation, poise and most importantly to be confident. Shortlisted aspirants will be put on their road to success though guidance and mentoring by our experts right up to the Grand Finale, schedule to take place in Delhi in September.

The ultimate goal is to win the prestigious World Final and represent India on International level. The winners will aim for the super model trophy and will also secure a 3-year contract with the Elite agency.

Commenting on the occasion, VASANTH KUMAR, Executive Director, Max said “With the launch of Elite Model Look India 2015, Max reinforces its positioning of democratizing fashion and giving the Indian models the exposure to establish themselves in the International fashion circuit.”

Speaking at the event MARC ROBINSON, Fashion Director & Licensee Elite Model Look India said, “The fashion industry in India today is bereft of “Supermodels” that once had an iconic influence in the fashion scene in the 1990’s, today they simply and sadly don’t exist. With the introduction of a genuine initiative by the fashion brand like MAX and Elite Model Look, Paris, it will provide an opportunity to aspiring young male and female models”

Supermodel NICOLE FARIA said “It’s a great opportunity for young girls and boys to participate in ​E​lite ​M​odel Look. Not only it’s prestigious, it puts you on a very good platform.”

Commenting on the occasion, Supermodel RACHAEL BAYROS said “Elite Model Look India 2015 is a great opportunity for young aspiring models. Being part of such a credible model search, automatically ensures that you will be noticed by the best people in the fashion and glamour industry. I wish the contestants all the best.”

Are the streets safe for men, questions SIFF, a men’s rights organization

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uber-in-india

You start your day normally and carry on with your chores without a slightest of inclination that by evening you would be famous across the country as an eve-teaser, molester and a branded criminal having to apply for bail and attending courts. This is what happened with Sarvjeet Singh on the fateful day of 23rd August 2015 as he was standing at the traffic signal of Tilak Nagar, Delhi. Little would he have known that a minor confusion over traffic lights would lead to the girl Jasleen Kaur taking his picture (without his consent, as per his statement), post it on social media and tag him as a molester and eve-teaser, and the society would brand him as a criminal without any verification.

This also reminds us about the famous Rohtak sisters case which happened in November 2014, wherein 2 girls Aarti and Pooja had mercilessly beaten up 3 innocent boys with belts over seat argument and made a video of the same claiming they were molested by the boys. After a lot of brouhaha and male bashing, it emerged the girls were liars and they not only failed the lie detector test before the SIT but also eye-witnesses supported the boys. But this was not before a false case of molestation was filed against the boys, their lives and reputation ruined and they lost their appointment in army.

Coming back to Sarvjeet Singh’s case, eye witness statements emerged and also Sarvjeet himself spoke up and reality came out. It was a false case and the girl Jasleen just thought of claiming fame by making out a story of molestation while she was an Aam Aadmi Party volunteer for traffic management at Tilak Nagar traffic signal.

While we are it, it is pertinent to mention about Dimapur Lynching incident also wherein a 7000 strong crowd marched into the prison facility at Dimapur, Assam and lynched a man accused of rape mercilessly by dragging him on streets and raining blows on him. Later, it turned out that he was trapped in a false rape case.

So, what did we learn from these cases?

The message is very clear – Men are unsafe on streets

Any argument or disagreement with a woman can end up in the man being trapped in a false case of rape, molestation, eve-teasing, his life and reputation ruined and many such innocent men have either been jailed, or worse, they have been beaten up mercilessly or even killed.

That’s not the worst part. The worst part is, society justifies such killings and attacks on men by calling it “Instant Social Justice”. Such a social mindset, which emerges from a patriarchal society, makes the lives of men extremely precarious. Conservative and traditionalist people refuse to see this as a social issue despite numerous examples coming to fore.

Also, no action is taken on people who abuse men based on assumptions without verification of facts. As a result no man is safe on streets.

The role of media in such cases also cannot be ignored. More often than not media channels blow the issue out of proportion without verifying facts in a blind race for TRPs. Most often media channels resort to passing stereotypes against men which make the situation for men more dangerous with each passing day.

“We need to remove people like Arnab Goswami from journalism. In a recent TV Debate on Times Now channel, Arnab was spotted saying, “Do not throw data at me”. Had he said the same thing in some other debate, he would have been out of job by now and his journalistic career would have come to an end, but because he said it in a gender debate and his statement was against men, he is still in the job. However, in the interest of journalistic ethics, Arnab must be fired” rued Sujit Deshpande, National Coordinator for Save Indian Family Foundation, a men’s rights organization.

“Save Indian Family Foundation strongly condemns such horrific acts of violence on men and the vilification of men in general discourse. Such behavior against men is extremely sexist in nature. As a society we only teach men to respect women but we don’t teach women to respect men, this must change. Otherwise I can see a dangerous trend setting in, wherein men are refusing to help any women fearing that she will take a picture of him and ruin his life by uploading it on social media”, says Jyoti Tiwari, spokesperson for Save Indian Family Foundation.

Save Indian Family Foundation urges the society to take a pro-male approach in dealing with such cases. Let’s make the streets safer for men.

Hey Bob – Bengaluru meets its first ever Bike Taxi

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Endless traffic jams, no free cabs during peak hours and expensive everyday commute.

Here’s the answer to all your commute woes – Say Hey Bob!

Hey-Bob

Let’s face it, we live in one of the most crowded cities of the world. More than 50 lakh vehicles are vying for space on Bangalore roads. It’s a huge urban crisis and individual citizens have to now take matters into their own hands and make their commute sustainable.

S​pending half of your day being stuck in traffic? Not finding free cabs during peak hours? Everyday commute making big holes in your pocket? Say ‘No more’! Bangalore’s first ever bike taxi, Hey Bob, is here to make your commute smoother and your wallets happier.

Bangalore has been recorded as one of the most crowded city in India. Owing to the magnitude of the problem, it has come down to individual citizen to take matters into their own hands and make their commute sustainable. Vishal, Girish, Suman, Vinay are the co-founders of Hey Bob & have embarked on this journey to make lives much easier for the commoners of Bangalore. Utilizing the potential of technology, the budding entrepreneurs have aligned the app to the business models of four-wheeler cab services – Ola and Uber.

Having bike taxi as an alternative will reduce the number of cars on the road that run only with one passenger most of the time. Also, it will save several hours every week because of its swift and hassle-free commute. The only catch in the entire project is the absence of bike taxi laws in Bangalore currently. But this has not dampened the spirits of the founders as they are in continued talks with the state transport department to make this initiative a success. Thanks to Mr. Rame Gowda (Transport Commissioner ), Mr. H. G. Kumar (Additional commissioner For Transport) and Mr. Sambrani (Joint Commissioner for Transport, Environment & E-Governance), the law is soon to be passed. The operations are underway in full force and will only begin once the law is in place to strictly adhere to the road safety rules and regulations.

To top it all off, free rides are to be awarded for the first few users after downloading their mobile app. Refer your buddies and you can earn huge discount too.

Say ‘Hey Bob!’ this Saturday, 29th Aug, and meet the team who are making this initiative a reality. The Launch of the App Hey Bob. Get answers to all your questions and find out more about their future plans at Cubbon Park between 10.30am – 11am after which the team moves to M G Road. We’d love to see you there.

Supreme Court recalls Mangaluru pub attack, bans Muthalik’s Goa entry

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Pramod Muthalik

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday banned the Hindutva activist and Sri Ram Sene chief Pramod Muthalik from entering into Goa over so called moral policing issues.

The court slammed Muthalik for beating up girls at a Mangaluru pub a few years ago and restrained him from entering Goa for at least six months.

The SC withheld the Bombay High Court’s order barring the Sri Ram Sene Chief from entering Goa.

Muthalik had moved the Supreme Court against Bombay High Court’s order.

Pramod Muthalik, 52, grabbed the headlines after a group of men headed by him attacked women visiting a pub in Mangaluru in 2009.

In 2010 Muthalik and top aides of his outfit, were caught on camera agreeing to vandalise an art exhibition in return for money. Despite warnings, he continued to deliver provocative statements in public meetings and press conferences.

(Agencies)

Karnataka government orders CID probe into M M Kalburgi’s assassination

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M M Kalburgi

Bengaluru: A CID probe was today announced by the Karnataka Chief Minister into the murder of progressive Kannada thinker and scholar M M Kalburgi at his residence at Dharwad in north Karnataka.

“We have decided to hand over the case to CID…. This incident should not have happened. It is highly condemnable,” Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told reporters here, a day after Kalaburgi was shot dead at point-blank range by two unidentified men.

77-year-old Kalburgi was an associate of rationalist Govind Pansare of Kolhapur in Maharashtra, who also fell victim in similar circumstances in February, and had drawn the ire of some right-wing Hindu outfits like VHP and Bajrang Dal with his remarks about idol worship by Hindus.

He had often spoken against superstitions and courted controversies with his outspoken stand.

At Dharwad this morning, hundreds of admirers of Kalburgi paid last respects to him. The funeral will take place later in the day today.

Yesterday, the attackers had knocked at the door of Kalburgi’s house claiming to be his students and as it was opened, they pumped bullets into his forehead and chest and fled. He died in a hospital.

“Whoever is behind this, we will catch them and punish according to law,” said the Chief Minister, who visited Dharwad to pay last respects to Kalburgi yesterday.

Asked if the sleuths have got any clues, Home Minister K J George said the probe was being started. “It will be investigated from all angles.”

The Hubli-Dharwad police had announced a special team to probe the murder that has shaken the Kannada literary world.

Kalburgi had raised the hackles of right-wing outfits when he made certain remarks about idol worship by Hindus that were considered “derogatory” and “blasphemous” and also led to protests by them.

A winner of central and state “Sahitya Akademi” awards, he had also suggested the need for a better state anthem.

Part of his works on “Vachana”(verses)” literature had also come under criticism of the state’s majority “veerashaiva” (Lingayat) community, a liberal Shaivism founded by 12th century philosopher, poet and social reformer Basaveshwara.

(Agencies)

Bajrang Dal activist defends killing of MM Kalburgi, says Prof. Bhagawan is next target

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bajrang-dal

Mangaluru: A few Sangh Parivar activists in the coastal Karnataka have openly justified the killing of thinker Prof. MM Kalburgi and warned that a similar fate was awaited for those who “mock” Hinduism.

Bhuvith Shetty, who claims to be the co-convener of Bajrang Dal in Bantwal taluk of Dakshina Kananda district, tweeted on Sunday morning from his twitter handle @GarudaPurana that Prof. KS Bhagwan, a well known critic, would be the next target.

He tweeted at 10:41 a.m.: “Then it was UR Anantamoorty and now its MM Kalburgi. Mock Hinduism and die a dogs death. And dear KS Bhagwan you are next”(sic). The same person had tweeted on July 15: “You should know that I myself chopped off one Muslim’s hand for smuggling cows in Kalladka” (sic)

Both the tweets were retweeted by many tiwtterati on Sunday triggering a heated debated on social media. Some right wing social media activists even defended his provocative comments. When the matter was brought to the notice of authorities, the man deleted his tweets. However, the screenshots of his tweets continued to go viral on social media.

Prof. Kalburugi, the former vice chancellor of Hampi University, was shot dead by an unidentified gunman at the former’s residence in Dharwad in the morning. Hindutva activists had warned him of dire consequences after he raised his voice against blind beliefs in Hindu society and criticised idol worship.

It is worth mentioning here that Sangh Parivar activists in Karnataka had organised celebrations and burst crackers on hearing the news of the death of Jnanpith award winner UR Ananthamoorthy one year ago.

ABL organizes a workshop on ‘Rain Water Harvesting’

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ABL ROOTS Blowers

Bengaluru: ABL Roots Blowers Private Limited had organized a two-day workshop on “Rain Water Harvesting”. The workshop was conducted to promote mass awareness among the young youth about the water issues, difficulties, facts and the solutions. A large number of participants were seen from farming and students communities.

Mr. Maninder Singh, Water Treatment Consultant was the key speaker and he said, “Water is an important natural resource and is the very basis of our life. Since ABL is into water treatment business and India strongly needs innovative water management systems, it was exciting to deliver informative lectures on Water Harvesting System & Techniques.”

Mr. Rahul Singh, Senior Manager – Projects, ABL Roots Blowers Private Limited said, “As per the existing CSR rules & regulations, we do not have any compulsion for planning and budgeting CSR activities for ABL. We did it voluntarily. Although the CSR provisions are not applicable on the company but we understand that as a business we have some moral or ethical responsibilities towards the society. Social welfare is always appreciated.”

ABL team shared the demo and case study of rain water harvesting in respective area and future plans for the implementation.

It is exciting to see the young companies glowing & growing well and coming ahead voluntarily to disseminate the much needed social messages for the country’s development.

ABL Roots Blowers Private Limited is a leading manufacturer of high-performance and energy efficient Roots Blowers using state-of-the-art latest technologies in the industry. The company offers a complete range of reliable Twin Lobe Rotary Air Blowers. ABL offices are situated in New Delhi, Haryana, Bangalore, Pune, Kerala and Chennai.

Annual journal of Mahfil-e-Nisa ‘Meraas’ released

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‘Meraas’ the annual magazine released at the event.

‘Meraas’ the annual magazine released at the event.

Bengaluru: Mahfil-e-Nisa, the all women’s movement  to ‘learn Urdu and teach Urdu’, celebrated its third annual function here at the Hasanath women college.

Prof. Ali Ahmed Fatmi, Head, Dept of Urdu, Allahabad University was the chief guest. He lamented the current state of Urdu in the country and praised the efforts of organisations like Mahfil-e-Nisa to promote the cause of Urdu.

DSCN3718

Chief Editor of Nasheman Urdu Weekly Mr. Rizwan Asad, commended the work of Mahfil-e-Nisa, and called for more such organisations to be formed.

The annual magazine ‘Meraas’ was released by the guests.

Dr. Fouzia Chowdhary, chairperson, Karnataka Urdu Academy, Dr. Syed Sha Madar Aqeel, Former Head, Dept of Urdu, Kuvempu University, Shimoga, Dr. Shaista Yusuf, President, Mahfil-e-Nisa, Convenor, Azeezulla Baig, were also present.

Nationwide truck strike from October 1: AIMTC

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AIMTC

New Delhi: The All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) on Friday announced it will go on a nationwide indefinite strike from October 1 after the government did not respond to their demand to revoke TDS and toll charges.

“We had a meeting with Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari Thursday who refused to talk on the issues (including removal of toll charges),” Bhim Wadhwa, the president of the apex transporters’ body, told IANS.

He said the transporters body, representing over 80 lakh vehicles across the country, had given a deadline of August 25 to the Centre to address their issues. But the demand appears to have fallen on deaf ears.

“Eventually, there is no option left, except going on an indefinite nationwide strike from October 1,” Wadhwa said.

Wadhwa said the government would lose about Rs.1,700 crore per day on account of the countrywide strike, but clarified that the transporters’ body was not against the government revenues raised through toll.

He urged the government to work out alternate toll collection methods that would not only contain “illegal collection” but also save diesel worth thousands of crores of rupees.

He said the apex body’s demand for a barrier free India would save public money to the tune of Rs.87,000 crore per year.

“The transport fraternity cannot sustain operations in light of burgeoning corruption, harassment and time delays at the toll plazas and check post barriers. They have decided not to pay toll on road and want that the revenue may be collected as indirect tax and therefore proclaim ‘barrier free India’ and removal of toll plazas across the country,” Wadhwa said.

He said that toll charge constitutes about 20 percent of total operating cost and fuel (diesel) around 45-50 percent.

In addition, Wadhwa also demanded revocation of TDS imposed on the transport sector from July 1.

“The levy of TDS on the transport sector has unleashed utter confusion and other practical difficulties like cash flow constriction, difficulties in keeping records, collecting TDS certificates, reconciling and taking refund of TDS, on deposit of TDS by the consignor are obvious,” he said.

“It is now time for the government to wake up and take note of the wave of disappointment and resentment among the fraternity at the utter callousness of the government towards this sector,” Wadhwa said.

(IANS)

OROP remains stuck, protest continues

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orop

New Delhi: As another round of parleys on the ‘One Rank One Pension’ (OROP) failed to break the logjam, ex-servicemen on Friday said the government did not intend to implement the scheme.

On the same day, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) was directly handling the issue, and Home Minister Rajnath Singh also assured the veterans during a meet.

“Now the small gaps are being filled. Give it some time for completion. In principle, the prime minister on August 15 (in his Independence Day speech) has given an approval. Now, the PMO is directly involved… then by saying that ‘do it in these many days’ will not help,” Parrikar told reporters on the sidelines of an event on Friday.

The home minister was, meanwhile, reminded by the veterans of his promise of OROP when he was the BJP president.

“The minister said he will do his best in sorting out the issue,” spokesperson of the ex-servicemen front Col. Anil Kaul (retd) told IANS.

At Jantar Mantar, the ex-servicemen refused to give up the protest and questioned the government’s intentions.

“The government does not intend to implement OROP,” Major General (retd) Satbir Singh, chairman of the United Forum of Ex-Servicemen, told his protesting colleagues.

He also said some people in the government were making the OROP issue a difficult one.

Satbir Singh said talks met a dead end as the government did not agree to budge from its position on revising pensions every five years.

He said that initially, the government said pensions would be revised every 10 years, and the veterans pressed for a revision every two years.

The defence force retirees also wanted an annual increment of three percent.

However, when representatives of the ex-servicemen, including Maj. Gen. (retd) Singh, went for a scheduled meeting, Nripendra Misra, principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, did not meet them on Thursday evening.

“However, a message was sent through a joint secretary that the revision in pensions will be done only after five years. We refused to compromise,” said the veteran.

“The first proposal the government came out with did not pertain to OROP and we rejected it. On the second day, the talks proceeded positively, and we thought a breakthrough can be reached.

“A point of contention between the government and the ex-servicement is the date of implementation of the OROP. While veterans want it to be implemented from April 2014, the government wants it to come into force from April 2015. If implemented from April 2014, around Rs.12,000 crore in arrears would have to be paid to the ex-servicemen.

The veterans agreed to give up two months of arrears but the government asked the date of implementation to be fixed at September 2014. This was also rejected.

“They want us to take the OROP from 2015, at the 2011 scale, which is not possible,” Satbir Singh said.

The veterans also rejected the offer that the pensions be revised under the 7th Pay Commission.

“We are now not ready to compromise any more. We are also taking back the offers of compromise we made. The agitation will continue,” he said.

Meanwhile, the protest by ex-servicemen continued for the 75th day on Friday. While four protesters are in hospital, six are on indefinite fast.

Col. Pushpender Singh (retd), Hav. Ashok Chauhan (retd), Maj. Piar Chand Rana and Hav. Sahib Singh were also stable. All four continue to be on fast.

Hav. Major Singh, who began his fast last Monday, is still at the Jantar Mantar despite deteriorating condition.

Also on an indefinite fast at the Jantar Mantar are Naik Udai Singh Rawat, Sawal Ram Yadav, father of martyr Lance Naik Sunil Kumar Yadav, Cdr. A.K. Sharma, Subedar Vijay Singh Yadav and Subedar Keshaw Singh, all retired soldiers.

On Friday, many of the veterans said they would boycott the government’s commemoration of the 1965 India-Pakistan war and felicitated war veterans separately, offering flowers to them as well as some families of the martyrs.

There are around 24 lakh ex-servicemen in India and around 6.5 lakh widows who will benefit if OROP is implemented.

(IANS)

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