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NATIONAL / KARNATAKA: BOEING’s LARGEST : PM Modi inaugurates Boeing’s largest campus outside US in Bengaluru

Boeing’s new campus will also serve as the hub for Indian startups and universities.

While inaugurating the Boeing India Engineering and Technology Centre (BIETC), Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Bengaluru is a city that connects aspirations with innovation and achievement.

“Bengaluru connects India’s technological capability with global demand,” said PM Modi in Bengaluru.

This is Boeing’s largest centre outside the US, built with an investment of Rs 1,600 crore which is also Boeing’s largest such investment. Modi also launched Boeing’s Sukanya Program that aims to support the entry of more girl children from across India into the country’s aviation sector. The program will provide opportunities for girls and women from across India to learn critical skills in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields and train for jobs in the aviation sector.

Boeing’s centre in Bengaluru will house engineering, test, research and technology teams, performing advanced high-quality aerospace engineering works. It includes support in structural and systems design, manufacturing, aircraft testing system development, and digital solutions that drive sustainability in aviation. The centre will also work in areas like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Internet-of-Things, Cloud Solutions, Model-Based Engineering, and Additive Manufacturing to enhance quality, safety, and productivity.

Boeing’s new campus in Bengaluru will also serve as the hub for Boeing’s work with Indian startups and universities. Currently Boeing has collaborated with seven incubators, including Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship – IIT Mumbai, Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer – IIT Delhi, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center – IIT Gandhinagar, IIT Madras Incubation Cell, Society for Innovation and Development – IISC Bengaluru, T-Hub Hyderabad, and Technology Business Incubator – KIIT Bhubaneshwar. Together, they host the Boeing University Innovation Leadership and Development program (BUILD) annually in India.

The Boeing’s Sukanya Program was launched in the backdrop that India leads the world with women comprising 15 percent of all pilots, exceeding the global average of 5 percent. The Indian aviation sector is also witnessing a surging demand for pilots. More than a doubling of the current roster of 9,000 pilots will be required. Under this program Boeing is establishing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Labs in girls’ schools, especially in tier 2 and 3 towns, to expand awareness, knowledge, and exposure to careers in aviation.

With around 150 locations planned, local program managers will engage with as many as 75,000 students through these STEM labs, with the intent of reaching 60 percent of the young girl students. The initiative will support learning through various digital products, including Virtual Procedure Trainer, Virtual Airplane, and Private Pilot License ground school courses. Boeing will also provide scholarships for training, covering aspects such as foundation, jet bridge, type rating, and more.

Besides this Boeing will have full-flight simulator capacity to support the women’s pilot program and collaborate with customers to ensure candidates are airline-ready. These investments – both hard assets, and Competency-based Training and Assessment (CBTA) courseware aim to produce a large pipeline of female pilots entering the airlines annually.

During the inauguration PM Modi was joined by the Governor of Karnataka Thaawar Chand Gehlot, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Leader of the Opposition – Karnataka Legislative Assembly R. Ashoka and Stephanie Pope Boeing’s Chief Operating Officer, along with other senior Boeing executives. 

source/content: theweek.in (headline edited)

NATIONAL / KARNATAKA: ARTS & CULTURE: 19th National Kannada Cultural Conference celebrated in Andaman

 The 19th National Kannada Cultural Conference was recently celebrated with great enthusiasm in Andaman. The event, jointly organized by the Vishnu Naik Memorial Forum, Hridaya Vahini Mangalore, Manjunath Education Trust, and Kannada Sangha Andaman, in association with the Kannada and Culture Department, took place at the S R Castle Hall in Port Blair.

Shubha Dhananjaya, president of the Karnataka Sangeeta Nritya Academy, inaugurated the conference. In her address, she highlighted the global spread of Karnataka’s art and culture and attributed this to the generosity and warmth of Kannadigas. She expressed pride in this cultural expansion and its worldwide recognition.

Dr Archana Athani, the conference president, noted the emotional connection between Karnataka and Andaman. She emphasized the importance of remembering freedom fighters like Kittur Rani Chennamma and Ullal’s Rani Abbakka, whose bravery ignites patriotism.

Dr Malayashanta Muni Shivacharya Swamiji from Shivagange Melenagavi Math, who graced the event with his presence, stressed that every Indian should visit the Andaman Jail to understand the hardships faced by freedom fighters like Veer Savarkar. He spoke about the torture endured by many freedom fighters under British rule, underscoring the need to honor their sacrifices and fuel national pride.

Distinguished guests included renowned thinker and orator Mohammad Rafi Pasha, assistant commissioner of Commercial Tax, and Dr T S Ashok Kumar, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) Andaman, who was honored by the conference committee.

K P Manjunath Sagar, president of the conference committee, explained that Hridaya Vahini Karnataka has been organizing these national Kannada conferences annually since 2004, providing a platform for thousands of Kannadigas, artists, poets, and resource persons from across the country.

S Ronica, secretary of the Andaman Kannada Sangha, presided over the inaugural ceremony. Notable guests included Gona Swami, chairman of Swami Enterprises, Bengaluru; Dr E Anjaneya, chairman of Kuber Groups, Raichur; Dr Shivakumar H D, executive committee member of Kannada Sangha Andaman; and Dr D S Vishwanath, retired district commissioner. K Nagaraj, president of the Karnataka Janapada Artists Association, was also present.

A poetry session, chaired by Dr Archana Athani and Dr Prakash G Khade, featured poets such as Prof Bindiganavile Bhagavan, photojournalist Arif Kalkatta, Aarti Suresh, and Manu Mangalore presenting their works.

The cultural programme included a comedy show by TV9’s Mahadev Sattigeri, Togalu Gombe Aata (puppet show) by Yashoda Shashidhar and team, Bharatanatyam by Natyantharanga artists, and various dance performances choreographed by Guru Shubha Dhananjaya. Performers included Anjana S, Harshita H P, Mudra Dhananjay, Maya Dhananjay, Yashika J Kumar, and Krithika R.

International dance artiste Anu Anand presented a Bharatanatyam performance, while the Rang Samaj (Regd) Bengaluru troupe performed a historical play on Kittur Rani Chennamma, featuring S Tilakraj and A S Aarti Suresh. Renowned folk singers Gona Swami and Shivraj Pandeshwar entertained the audience with their melodious songs.

source/content: daijiworld.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL / KARNATAKA: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY: IISc designs device to make infrared light visible, with diverse applications in defence and optical communications

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have fabricated a device to increase or up-convert the frequency of short infrared light to the visible range. This up-conversion of light has diverse applications, especially in defence and optical communications, said IISc.

“The human eye can only see light at certain frequencies (called the visible spectrum), the lowest of which constitutes red light. Infrared light, which we can’t see, has an even lower frequency than red light. IISc researchers have now fabricated a device to increase or up-convert the frequency of short infrared light to the visible range,” IISc said.

2D material used

The institute added that in a first, the IISc team used a 2D material to design what they call a non-linear optical mirror stack to achieve this up-conversion, combined with widefield imaging capability. The stack consists of multilayered gallium selenide fixed to the top of a gold reflective surface, with a silicon dioxide layer sandwiched in between.

It said that traditional infrared imaging uses exotic low-energy bandgap semiconductors or micro-bolometer arrays, which usually pick up heat or absorption signatures from the object being studied.

However, existing infrared sensors are bulky and not very efficient. They are also export-restricted because of their utility in defence. There is, therefore, a critical need to develop indigenous and efficient devices.

The method used by the IISc team involves feeding an input infrared signal along with a pump beam onto the mirror stack. The nonlinear optical properties of the material constituting the stack result in a mixing of the frequencies, leading to an output beam of increased (up-converted) frequency, but with the rest of the properties intact. Using this method, they were able to up-convert infrared light of a wavelength of around 1,550 nm to 622 nm visible light. The output light wave can be detected using traditional silicon-based cameras.

Going forward, the researchers plan to extend their work to up-convert light of longer wavelengths. They are also trying to improve the efficiency of the device by exploring other stack geometries.

Worldwide interest

“There is a lot of interest worldwide in doing infrared imaging without using infrared sensors. Our work could be a game-changer for those applications,” said Varun Raghunathan, associate professor, Department of Electrical Communication Engineering.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)