INTERNATIONAL, IN INDIA: KARNATAKA: HEALTH & MEDICAL SERVICES / SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY: GE Healthcare launches its first ‘5G Innovation Lab’ in India and the First for GE across the Globe.

GE Healthcare on Thursday announced the launch of its 5G Innovation Lab in India, the first for the company across the globe.

With the advantage of massive bandwidth, high data speeds, low latency and highly reliable connectivity, 5G has the potential to disrupt the patient care continuum, transforming diagnosis, therapy, and prognosis, the company noted.

“The 5G Innovation Lab is designed to position GE Healthcare at the forefront of these groundbreaking advances in patient care, including potentially bringing cutting-edge technology to rural and suburban regions,” a company statement said.

Situated at the John F.Welch Technology Centre (JFWTC) Bengaluru, GE Healthcare’s largest R&D centre outside of the USA, the lab will serve as a testbed to develop future-ready products and solutions, turning a new corner in innovation, it said.

5G in Healthcare was valued at an estimated USD 215 million in 2021 and is projected to reach USD 3,667 million by 2026.

“India is an important market for us globally and it is indeed the right time to venture into 5G, which will open a realm of exciting opportunities, driving the next wave of growth in Healthcare,” said Jan Makela, President & CEO, Imaging at GE Healthcare.

The GE Healthcare 5G Innovation Lab will serve as a conduit for the interplay of exponential technologies like AI/ML, IoT, Big Data, Edge Computing and Cybersecurity, the statement added.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

INDIA RECORDS: KARNATAKA: Bengaluru is Key Driver in GST Backend Operations Contributing to its Nationwide Operation Driven by NIC.

E-way bill and e-invoice is driven from the city by a small team from National Informatics Centre.

As the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime is set to complete five years in a few days, Bengaluru has contributed to its nationwide operation. The backend operations for the crucial e-way bill, mandatory to move goods across the country, and the e-invoice that helps in input credit, is driven from the city by a small team from the National Informatics Centre (NIC).

In the four years since its inception, the country has seen over 273 crore e-way bills being generated to move goods and over 163 crore e-invoices having been generated. While the transition from the Value Added Tax (VAT) regime to GST regime took place on July 1, 2017, the e-way bill was introduced on April 1, 2018, while the e-invoice was introduced in October 2020. In fact, the e-Sugam launched by the Karnataka Commercial Tax in 2010 morphed into the e-way bill under the nation-wide GST regime. In the VAT regime, Karnataka was generating 1.2 lakh e-way bills a day.

36% increase

Since its introduction in 2018 April, the number of e-way bills generated daily has seen a 36% increase from about 22 lakh a day to 30 lakh a day. If 55.8 crore e-way bills were generated in 2018-2019, it has shot up to 77.4 crore in 2021-2022.

In case of e-invoice, the numbers have shot up by 92% since October 2020 when 26 lakh invoices were generated daily to about 50 lakh invoices daily now. If 4.95 crore e-invoices were generated in October 2020, it has reached 12.18 crore in April 2022. The numbers have also increased as the e-invoice mandate has been extended to those reporting above ₹500 crore turnover annually when the e-invoice was introduced in October 2020 to include those reporting turnover of over ₹20 crore in April 2022.

The NIC, sources in Commercial Tax Department said, has been managing the entire operations from Bengaluru with a staff of around 50. Sources also said, “It is heartening that the 24/7 software and hardware support from Bengaluru has been such that there has been no incident of the software glitch where an e-way bill generation has been delayed over the past four years.”

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INDIAN RECORDS: KARNATAKA: HEALTH & MEDICAL SCIENCES / SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY: Researchers at Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Develop Algorithm called (ReAl – LiFE) to Study Connectivity in Brain

Researchers at Indian Institute of Science (IISc.) have developed a new graphic processing unit (GPU) based machine learning algorithm called Regularised, Accelerated, Linear Fascicle Evaluation (ReAl – LiFE), which will help to obtain a better understanding and in the prediction of connectivity between different regions of human brain.

This algorithm can help analyse extensive data generated from diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging (dMRI) scans which helps scientists study the connectivity in the brain at a speed, which is 150 times higher than a regular desktop computer or existing state-of-the-art algorithms. The study has been published in the journal Nature Computational Science.

“Even though it is difficult to pinpoint the connectomes, we are trying to infer information highway network by looking at traffic flow patterns (if molecules are like cars). We look at the movement of water molecules in the brain and we try to infer where the wires are. The water molecules have to travel along the length of the cables (axons), which have connected various parts of the brain. By measuring these lengths of water molecules, we are able to infer which areas are connected,” explained Devarajan Sridharan, Associate Professor at the Centre for Neuroscience (CNS), IISc., and corresponding author of the study. 

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INDIA RECORDS: KARNATAKA RECORDS : SOFTWARE & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, SECURITY: IISc-Bengaluru Develops Device to Improve Data Encryption

‘This will provide better protection for digital data such as credit card details, password  etc.’

A team at the Department of Electrical Communication Engineering (ECE), Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has developed a true random number generator (TRNG), which, the team says, can improve data encryption and provide improved security for sensitive digital data such as credit card details, passwords and other personal information. The study describing the device has been published in the journal  ACS Nano.

“Almost everything we do on the internet is encrypted for security. The strength of this encryption depends on the quality of random number generation,” explained Nithin Abraham, a PhD student who is a part of a team led by Kausik Majumdar, Associate Professor at ECE, which has developed the device.

Encrypted information can be decoded only by authorised users who have access to a cryptographic ‘key’. But the key needs to be unpredictable and, therefore, randomly generated to resist hacking. Cryptographic keys are typically generated in computers using pseudorandom number generators, which rely on mathematical formulae or pre-programmed tables to produce numbers that appear random but are not. In contrast, a TRNG extracts random numbers from inherently random physical processes, making it more secure, the IISc release explained.

source/content: thehindu.com (edited)

KARNATAKA RECORDS: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY: PES University Students Shining ‘Sitara’, Awarded for Kanglish Content, at 6th edition Azim Premji University’s National Level Science Enterprise Idea Challenge

‘Kanglish’ content on YouTube through Akkas and Annas, developed by a team of nine engineering students from PES University in Bengaluru has come as a blessing to children from 27 districts in Karnataka.

On Saturday, the team ‘Sitara’, which has developed content to teach Maths and Science to Class 10 students, has won the 6th Edition of Azim Premji University’s National Level Science Enterprise Idea Challenge in which 100 teams across the country participated.

The trio–Ananya V, Shriya Shankar and Srushti Jayaramu– who will be graduating in the next one and half months will quit their careers in engineering and continue full time with ‘Sitara’. Srushti tells TNIE, “The children’s hunger to learn motivated me, and pushed me to work harder.” The content has been appreciated and well received.”

source/content: newindianexpress.com (edited)

GLOBAL INVESTMENT : KARNATAKA RECORDS. INDIA : California-based Applied Materials, USA Acquires Land in Bengaluru for ₹350 crore

California-based Applied Materials has invested ₹350 crore ($50 million) to purchase land in Whitefield in Bengaluru where it is planning to expand its engineering infrastructure.

The company said the expansion would boost its next phase of growth in India.

“We expect this investment to support future product development and R&D, as well as benefit the development of the local supply chain,’‘ said Srinivas Satya, country president and Managing Director, Applied Materials India at Semicon India 2022 in Bengaluru on April 29.

Indian Government’s mission mode approach to evolve the country’s semiconductor sector, together with the ease-of-business initiatives and scaling up of indigenous electronics end-manufacturing, were positive and practical steps to enable its Semiconductor Mission, he added.

Applied Materials supplies equipment, services and software for the manufacture of semiconductor (integrated circuit) chips for electronics, flat panel displays for computers, smartphones, televisions, and solar products.

source/content : thehindu.com (edited)

Aster CMI hospital and IISc. to launch artificial intelligence lab  in Bengaluru

The lab has been set up to build cutting edge AI products in the healthcare domain, and bridge the gap between clinical medicine and technology by training healthcare professionals in AI.

To understand disease patterns and improve treatment outcomes using artificial intelligence (AI) tools, Aster CMI Hospital has joined hands with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc.) to launch an AI lab.

The lab was launched by Azad Moopen, founder Chairman and Managing Director, Aster DM Healthcare; Lokesh B., Consultant Neurology at the hospital; and Phaneendra K Yalavarthy, Professor of Medical Imaging, Department of Computational and Data Sciences, IISc.

source/content: thehindu.com

Rammanahalli becomes first Karnataka village to come under WiFi net – March 01st, 2022

Rammanahalli, on Mahadevapura Road, on the outskirts of Mysuru, has become the first village in Karnataka, to entirely come under WiFi internet coverage.

With the establishment of a Public Data Office (PDO), the entire village has become a cost-effective WiFi zone, with high-speed internet, provided by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), an Union government-owned telecommunications service provider.

Launching the services at MGR Enterprises in the village on March 1, Vivek Banzal, Director, Consumer Fixed Access, BSNL, said, “There are WiFi services at several places. But, this is the first time, the entire village has been provided the facility.The people of the village can get high-speed internet at a lesser price.”

source: deccanherald.com

Innovation Lab Inaugrated at PDA Engineering College (Kalaburagi) in Collaboration with Danish Enterprises

H.E. Freddy Svane, Ambassador of Denmark inaugurated an innovation lab established at the college as part of a collaboration with Danish companies and institutes.

After inaugurating the innovation lab, which has been set up to facilitate and develop innovations in the fields of Internet of Things, green energy, climate change mitigation, agricultural applications and electric vehicle systems, among others, Mr. Svane stressed the need for the development of in-house skilling to face global challenges such as global warming.

Manager of Karnataka Skill Development Corporation Kavita Gouda, President of Hyderabad Karnataka Education Society Bhimashankar Bilgundi, Principal of PDA College of Engineering S. S. Kalashetty, CEO and MD of Flexitron R.S. Hiremath and others were present.

source: thehindu.com

* Karnataka Bank bags awards at tech conference

The bank bagged three awards at the 17th Annual Banking Technology Conference and Awards 2020-21 Next Gen Banking, organised by Indian Banks’ Association

Karnataka Bank has bagged three coveted awards at the 17th Annual Banking Technology Conference and Awards 2020-21 Next Gen Banking, organised by Indian Banks’ Association on February 14.

The bank has won won awards for Best Technology Bank of the Year, Best Fintech Adoption and Best Use of AI/ML and Data Analytics, emerging second in all these categories.