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He makes technology barrier-free
Thiruvananthapuram :
Growing up with two best friends — one who is visually challenged, Muthuraj D always knew that he would one day work for persons with disability (PwD). The 39-year-old Bengalurean was the eldest of the six children born to a BPL family in Kormangala. Working as a salesman during the day and attending classes in the evenings, he eventually had to drop out of the college. Today, he has developed and customised over eight technologies that help the disabled, some of which has been adapted by technology giants such as Bosch.
Two years ago Muthuraj collaborated with a technology called ‘Kavi’, developed by Mindtree, Chennai and IIT Madras, and used by people with severe disability. This can convert muscular movements into an input.
“Unlike the western countries, disability is seen as a problem in India. Government has a long way to go and officials are apprehensive about spending money on technologies to benefit the disabled,” says Muthuraj adding that he renders solutions by coming up with affordable technologies.
With sky-high costs for propriety software, Muthuraj’s cost-effective technologies are a boon for the disabled, as they’re either free or priced lower than `5,000. Making use of free software such as Camera Mouse, which enables controlling the mouse pointer on the screen with the head movement, he devised a solution for people who cannot move their limbs. He trained non-English speaking students to use this. He also made an alternative for the three-button foot pedals that are used in medical transcription to record, play, and rewind. Muthuraj customised a mouse and a keyboard to be used instead of the pedal. “With the available three buttons, we can come up with over 30 combinations that can be used for separate commands such as copy and paste,” he explains.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Thiruvananthapuram / by Regina Gurung / Express News Service / October 19th, 2016
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4th Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology convocation: 572 students awarded degrees
Thiruvananthapuram :
As many as 572 students who passed out from IIST (Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology) in the years 2014, 2015 and 2016 were awarded certifications at the fourth IIST convocation convened here on Saturday.
Among the students 378 were BTech graduates, 178 MTech graduates and 16 PhD holders.
The chairman’s gold medal for best academic performer was bagged by Mr. Mithun Neelakandan, Mr.S. Sajin and Mr. Mohit Singh Malik for the year 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively.
The director’s gold medal was presented to Priyanka Natani, Gaurav Harsha and Aditya Duhan for the respective years.
“First degree is like a learner’s licence which allows you to practice as a professional engineer and technologist. Acquiring wisdom is a moral duty and it is not something you do to advance your life,” said V K Aartre, director general of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), who was the chief guest in his convocation address.
“The intimate interweaving and mutual enhancement of science and technology in the past century accounts for the ever escalating pace of both,” he said. IIST Chancellor Prof UR Rao presided over.
IIST under the ISRO is the first institution of its kind in India to offer education in the bachelors, masters, doctoral and post- doctoral levels in areas with special focus on space sciences, space technology and space applications.
The institute conducts its own admission examination, ISAT, based on which students get admission to various UG programmes. The institute also has the MoU with Universities Space Research Association (USRA) and California Institute of Technology in USA.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City News> Thiruvananthapuram / October 16th, 2016
Where tea production is a lasting legacy
The factory was set up by Britishers in 1935 and production is still on the equipment installed then
Acclaimed as the highest altitude tea plantation in the world, Kolukkumalai, near Munnar, has the unique feature of preserving the British heritage in tea-making at the factory here.
Located at an altitude of 7,130 ft. above sea level, the factory is housed in a two-storey wooden structure set up by the Britishers in 1935 and the method of tea production is still on the equipment installed at that time.
Tea is made here through a process of withering. Manual labour is an integral part of the process, from hand-plucking to the final stage of making tea dust. The factory is set in the ambience of green tea plants on the mountain stretch bordering Tamil Nadu.
Though Kolukkumalai is in Theni district of Tamil Nadu, it is 32 km from Munnar. The story of Kolukkumalai is linked to the tea plantation era of the British Raj in Munnar.
Leased land
The visit of British resident of the erstwhile Travancore Kingdom, John Daniel Munro, to Munnar in 1870s paved the way for tea plantation. He leased the land in 1877 from Poonjar Koikal Rohini Thirunal Kerala Varma and started cultivation of various crops under the North Travancore Land Planting and Agricultural Society. However, it was A.H. Sharp, a European resident who started tea cultivation on 50 acres of land in Munnar in the 1880s.
The tea plantations later extended to the nearby hills, reaching the present border areas of Tamil Nadu. Though tea production in the Kanan Devan Hills is still done in the factories set up by the Britishers, the process and the equipment underwent a lot of change under the modernisation process
An official at the Kolukkumalai factory said the organic method of production is followed here. Since the plantation is located on a peak, the attack of pests is minimum and the natural elements in the soil are preserved. Kolukkumalai also provides a bird’s-eye view of land extending up to Kodaikanal and it is also a natural habitat of bird species that are seen in the high altitude ranges.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Kerala / Idukki – October 15th, 2016
Selected for Kolkali performance
A team of Serve India, a Kozhikode-based cultural organisation, has been selected to perform Kolkali in Rashtriya Samvrithi Mahotsavam organised by the Union Department of Culture in Delhi from October 15 to 23.
According to a press release issued here, the team consisting of artistes from across the State will undergo a three-day training in Chennai before they set off to Delhi.
The traditional dressing style for Kolkali has been altered to be more colourful considering the importance of the festival as well as to suit the audience expectation.
The team is led by Yasin Kurikkal while Noushad Mankavu is the troupe manager, the release adds.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kozhikode / by Staff Reporter / Kozhikode – October 12th, 2016