Records, Bengaluru (Bangalore) – Page 26

NATIONAL: INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION in AI : Australia’s AICRAFT and Bengaluru’s VALDEL Inks MoU on AI in Aerospace

One more memorandum of understanding was inked between India and Australia to use artificial intelligence and machine learning in aerospace, on the final day of the Bengaluru Space Expo (BSX), 2022.

The MoU was signed between Bengaluru-based aerospace company Valdel Advanced Technologies and Australian artificial intelligence company AICRAFT. The MoU, which was signed in the presence of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientific secretary Shantanu Bhatawdekar and Australian Space Agency head Enrico Palermo, will work towards using the AI capabilities of AICRAFT to help Valdel with simulation and manufacturing capabilities through the use of advanced AI and machine learning.

“We are pleased that Australian industry has continued to explore tangible space collaboration with India over the past few days. Both parties have agreed to utilise AICRAFT’s advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning capability and products to support Valdel’s modelling, simulation and manufacturing capabilities. Valdel’s facilities will also be used to test AICRAFT’s systems and platforms,” said Sarah Kirlew, Consul General for South India, who announced the MoU on Wednesday.

On Monday, as many as six MoUs were signed between several Australian and Indian companies, including two Bengaluru-based companies. In addition to this, Australia’s Space Machines Company, an aerospace company, opened a new research and development office in Bengaluru.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (edited)

GLOBAL: Infosys enters a five-year collaboration with Kansas, U.S. based ‘Spirit AeroSystems’ to Boost Aero Structural Services

IT services major Infosys on Wednesday announced a five-year agreement with Spirit AeroSystems, the manufacturer of aerostructures for commercial airplanes, defence platforms and business or regional jets.

The IT company will collaborate to provide aerostructure and systems engineering services for product development of commercial, business jet and emerging aircraft programs, and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) services.

Headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, Spirit has facilities in the US, UK, France, Malaysia and Morocco.

As part of this engagement, Infosys said it will offer end-to-end product development services, including design engineering, sustaining engineering, systems engineering, stress engineering, manufacturing engineering, and repair and maintenance.

“Our longstanding collaboration with Infosys means we are well-positioned to co-innovate on critical stages of product development. This strategic agreement will leverage mutual synergies to accelerate the development of sustainable aerostructures and services across our commercial and aftermarket business segments,” said Sean Black, Senior VP and Chief Engineer, Engineering and Technology, Spirit AeroSystems.

Infosys collaborates with 7 of the top 10 global aerospace companies.

Jasmeet Singh, Executive VP and Global Head of Manufacturing, Infosys, said, “Aerospace and defence organisations need to rapidly reinvent their digital foundation.”

The company has been investing in aerostructure engineering and next-gen technologies like artificial intelligence and the cloud.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: SCIENCE / ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY: Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) Produced Gas Turbines to Power ‘INS Vikrant’, India’s First Indigenously Produced Aircraft Carrier

HAL has produced the Gas Turbines to power India’s first indigenously designed and built aircraft carrier, IAC-1 Vikrant which was commissioned recently as INS Vikrant at Kochi by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

INS Vikrant is powered by four General Electric LM2500 Gas Turbines supplied by HAL.

These Gas Turbines were assembled and tested at HAL’s dedicated facility at Bangalore. With the power of 88 MW and top speed of 28 Knots, INS Vikrant is truly enhancing the maritime capability of India.

HAL carried out critical activities towards readiness of IAC for basin trials.

HAL’s team was actively involved in the integration of the power plant to the IAC and was onboard IAC for all sea trials in the absence of foreign OEM representatives contributing substantially to the Make-in-India concept.

source/content: daijiworld.com (headline edited)

KARNATAKA: ARTS & CULTURE / CINEMA: The 4th Bengaluru Bengali Kannada Film Festival (BBKFF) returns to the city after two years- September 02-04, 2022

Various award winning films and documentaries in both languages will be screened at the festival

Film buffs in the city will get a chance to watch some classic Bengali and Kannada movies this weekend, as the Satyajit Ray Film Society Bengaluru (SRFSB) brings the Bengaluru Bengali Kannada Film Festival (BBKFF) back to the city after a gap of two years.

The fourth edition of the festival, which will be held at Inox, Lido Mall, from September 2 to 4, will also showcase award-winning documentaries by various directors in the two languages.

“Cinema is a medium through which people can understand each other irrespective of where you come from. This festival is a cultural integration between Bengalis and Kannadigas. We want to promote the film culture in the city and provide a message that movies are not only about entertainment but go beyond it. We wanted to provide a platform for better cinema and to the upcoming debutante directors,” said Madhushree Sengupta, festival director from SRFSB.

While the inaugural ceremony will be held on Friday, the films will be screened on Saturday and Sunday.

Movie enthusiasts can register for the festival on SRFSB’s website and avail delegation passes which are priced between ₹250 and ₹500.

The delegates will have to carry a government-issued ID card to the screenings and follow all COVID-19 protocols, the organisers said.

Directors M.S. Sathyu, Girish Kasaravalli, and Goutam Ghose will be the chief guests for the inaugural ceremony. The inauguration will be followed by the screening of Mr. Ghose’s short film Somoyer Smritimala.

The two-day screenings will include Satyajit Ray’s Sonar Kella, Jalsaghar, and Aparajito under the retro cinema category.

New-age movies such as Jhilli, Dostojee, and Manikbabur Megh, along with Kannada movies such as Mahishasura Mardini, Pedro, and Kasaravalli’s Illiralaare Allige Hogalaare will also be screened.

Cannes’ Golden Eye-winning documentary, All that Breathes, will also be an added attraction at the screening.

The screenings will be followed by panel discussions, which will include the directors and cast of the screened movie.

The delegates can interact with panellists such as Jaya Ahsan, Rituparna Sengupta, Paoli Dam, Goutam Ghose, Girish Kasaravalli, and Natesh Hegde, among many.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

HEALTH & MEDICAL SERVICES: CANCER: Free Medicine Kits Given to Cancer Patients by Karnataka Cancer Society (KCS) in Bengaluru

Dr Ramachandra said it was important to cater to all strata of society, and schemes like Aarogya Karnataka and Ayushman Bharat had proved to be extremely helpful.

Poor lifestyle habits, alcohol, drugs and tobacco consumption have led to a rise in cancer cases, said Dr C Ramchandra, director, Kidwai Memorial Institute of Technology. Calling Bengaluru a drug hub, he said these habits are a major reason for all health issues, including obesity, infertility and cancer.

Speaking on the sidelines of the distribution of free medicine kits worth Rs 5,000 each to cancer patients on the occasion of the 54th Founder’s Day organised by Karnataka Cancer Society (KCS), Dr Ramachandra said consumption of tobacco among women has seen a steep rise in cases in the past few years.

Society president HV Suresh said all patients, including those from above and below the poverty line, are provided treatment without bias, be it surgery or chemotherapy medicines. The association also provides support to society and provides medicines at a 40 per cent discount, which has proved helpful. In all, 106 cancer patients were given free medicine kits, and 12 patients in Mysuru were given the free kits two days ago. Doctors and past presidents associated with the organisation were also felicitated.

Dr Ramachandra said it was important to cater to all strata of society, and schemes like Aarogya Karnataka and Ayushman Bharat had proved to be extremely helpful. Cervical cancer has reduced in recent times due to increased awareness about early testing, appropriate hygiene and the ills of child marriage.

The aim is to create awareness and help early detection of cancer, and provide appropriate treatment, he said.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

COVID-19: HEALTH & MEDICAL SCIENCES / HEALTH & TECHNOLOGY: Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore Researchers Develop Covid Doppelganger

When the pandemic hit, IISc professor Soma Das and his team began working on a VLP for SARS-CoV-2.

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has developed and tested a novel virus-like particle (VLP) – a non-infectious nanoscale molecule that resembles and behaves like the virus but does not contain its native genetic material – in a study published in Microbiology Spectrum.

When the pandemic hit, IISc professor Soma Das and his team began working on a VLP for SARS-CoV-2. They artificially synthesised a VLP with all four structural proteins – spike, envelope, membrane and nucleocapsid. “The main challenge was to express all four structural proteins together,” said Harsha Raheja, PhD student at MCB.

Such VLPs have several uses and can also potentially be developed into a vaccine candidate that can trigger an immune response in our bodies, Das said, adding that they can also be used to reduce the time taken to screen drugs that can fight the virus. When the team injected a high dose of VLPs into mice in the lab, it did not affect the liver, lung, or kidney tissues.

Testing immune response
To test its immune response, they gave one primary shot and two booster shots to mice models with a gap of 15 days, after which they found a large number of antibodies generated in the blood serum of the mice. These antibodies were also capable of neutralising the live virus, the team found. “This means that they are protecting the animals,” explained Raheja.

The researchers have applied for a patent for their VLP and hope to develop it into a vaccine candidate. They also plan to study the effect of the VLP on other animal models (using the expertise of SG Ramachandra, one of the inventors), and eventually humans. Raheja said they have also developed VLPs that might be able to offer protection against the more recent variants, like Omicron and other sub-lineages.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

GUINNESS WORLD RECORD: Bengaluru’s ‘Clay Seed Ganesha Campaign’ sets a new Guinness Record for ‘Most Number of People Sculpting with Modelling Clay simultaneously’

People from various age groups join hands to sculpt 3,308 idols

The clay seed Ganesha campaign, organised by Bengaluru Ganesh Utsava and Shree Vidyaranya Yuvaka Sangha, in association with the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board and Rotary Bangalore Parisara, claimed to have set a new Guinness World Record for ‘the most number of people sculpting with modelling clay simultaneously’ on Sunday at National College Grounds in Basavanagudi. Although the initial goal was set to create 10,000 Ganesha idols, only 3,308 idols could be created, making it to the records book.

“We are elated because we have broken our own record that we had created three years ago. We would like to do this more and more. We couldn’t reach our desired number, but I’m glad that we could set a new benchmark,” said Nandish Mariyappa, managing trustee of Bengaluru Ganesh Utsava.

The campaign saw over 3,000 people from various age groups and professions joining hands to sculpt their personal Ganesha idols. Idol-making materials such as clay, sculpting popsicle sticks, plant seeds, and water were provided at the venue. Many professional artist volunteers were also assisting participants. The live screening of the sculpting procedure by an artist was also organised. Seeds of plants such as tulsi, ashwagandha, sunflower and other flowering plants were provided for embedding within the idols. QR codes were also allocated to individual idols.

“We are so happy about the Guinness record. It’s a milestone for the KSPCB because we had planned to execute this systematically and create awareness about environmental pollution. We have all created our green Ganapa and seed Ganapa. This has been a success not only because of the record but also because of it being environment friendly,” said Shanth A. Thimmaiah, KSPCB Chairman.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: KARNATAKA / BUSINESS & ECONOMY, : 3 Bengaluru Startups Win at Conquest a BITS Pilani Students Run Event – Green Tiger Mobility, Daffodil Health and StreamMoney

Green Tiger Mobility, the cleantech firm, and Daffodil Health, a healthcare startup, won in the Pan India Track, where participants were invited from across the country.

Of the 15 startups, shortlisted from over 1,500 applications, four have been selected to receive an equity-less grant of Rs 30 lakh each. Of these, three are from Bengaluru. Winners were chosen based on three categories or tracks — Pan India, BITSian and Web3.0.

Green Tiger Mobility, the cleantech firm, and Daffodil Health, a healthcare startup, won in the Pan India Track, where participants were invited from across the country.

Green Tiger is working on developing a hybrid vehicle, while Daffodil Health is a behavioural healthcare platform aimed at children.The latter aims at giving parent-mediated therapy to children with behavioural and developmental disorders like autism, ADHD, dyslexia and others.

Conquest, run by around 30 engineering students from BITS Pilani’s Centre of Entrepreneurial Leadership, is the first and largest student-run startup accelerator, hosting programmes every year to help startups get funding and mentors.

The Demo Day for the 18th edition of the accelerator programme was held in Bengaluru on Sunday, with 15 startups shortlisted to pitch their ideas to a panel of investors, industry leaders and others. Another Bengaluru-based company StreamMoney won in the Web3.0 Track, where the focus is on startups developing or utilising technology related to Web3.0. StreamMoney focuses on the ability to transfer conditional ownership of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The startup is working towards making a utility protocol, allowing NFT owners to rent out or allow ticketing or subscriptions of their NFTs. This allows owners to add in a utility contract with their NFTs that allows access to their tokens for a limited period of time.

Green Tiger Mobility, the cleantech firm, and Daffodil Health, a healthcare startup, won in the Pan India Track, where participants were invited from across the country.

A clean technology firm, focusing on building hybrid cars that allow you to switch between electric and internal combustion engines at the switch of a button, was one of the three Bengaluru startups that won big at BITS Pilani’s Conquest.

Green Tiger Mobility, the cleantech firm, and Daffodil Health, a healthcare startup, won in the Pan India Track, where participants were invited from across the country. Green Tiger is working on developing a hybrid vehicle, while Daffodil Health is a behavioural healthcare platform aimed at children.

The latter aims at giving parent-mediated therapy to children with behavioural and developmental disorders like autism, ADHD, dyslexia and others. Conquest, run by around 30 engineering students from BITS Pilani’s Centre of Entrepreneurial Leadership, is the first and largest student-run startup accelerator, hosting programmes every year to help startups get funding and mentors.

The Demo Day for the 18th edition of the accelerator programme was held in Bengaluru on Sunday, with 15 startups shortlisted to pitch their ideas to a panel of investors, industry leaders and others.

Another Bengaluru-based company StreamMoney won in the Web3.0 Track, where the focus is on startups developing or utilising technology related to Web3.0. StreamMoney focuses on the ability to transfer conditional ownership of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

INVESTMENT INTO INDIA: BUSINESS & ECONOMY/ IT & eCommerce: Japanese Company Rakuten Opens Office in Bengaluru.

Rakuten India is a global product and innovation centre for Tokyo-based Rakuten Group that focuses on electronic commerce and online retailing.

Rakuten India, a global product and innovation centre for Tokyo-based Rakuten Group that focuses on electronic commerce and online retailing, has opened an office in Bengaluru to grow its customer base in India.

Rakuten’s new office is situated near Cubbon Park. The 20-storey building, Rakuten-Crimson House, has office space of 3 lakh sq.ft. with a capacity to accommodate over 3,000 persons.

The office is expected to enhance the company’s capability for deep-tech innovation and R&D in e-commerce, fintech, content and entertainment, as well as AI in computer vision, speech, and natural language processing (NLP).

“India is and has been central to our growth strategy. Our new R&D centre will build on the high value-added engagements that Rakuten has been delivering from India in deep tech and product innovation,’‘ said Yasufumi Hirai, CIO, CISO, Group Executive Vice President of Rakuten Group, Inc.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

KARNATAKA: TRAVEL & TOURISM: Airbnb Ranks Bengaluru among Top Tourist Destinations

Travellers are eager to visit India, and inclined to stay on for longer to explore more places, which is increasing economic opportunities for the locals, a survey by Airbnb has revealed.

Travellers are eager to visit India, and inclined to stay for longer to explore more places, which is increasing economic opportunities for the locals, a survey by Airbnb has revealed. A study of searches by international tourists for Airbnb Stays in India showed that it jumped by more than 60 per cent Y-o-Y from Q1 2021 to Q1 2022, indicating that the tourism industry is bouncing back.

Data also showed that metro cities like New Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Chennai have emerged as the most popular destinations among international and domestic travellers.

Those from Canada, the UAE, the UK, Germany, and Australia were among the top origin countries for searches for India.

Airbnb GM for India, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Amanpreet Bajaj said the uptick in preference for metro cities and tourist hotspots indicates people have resumed travelling along with workstations and vacations.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)