Category: Records, Global

INTERNATIONAL: SPORTS: Government Officer Giridhar Salian wins Silver in Javelin Throw at ‘World Masters Athletics Torun Indoor Championship 2023 ‘ Torun, Poland

Giridhar Salian, a government officer hailing from Kavoor Bolpugudde, has won a silver medal for India in the Javelin throw event (M60) at the World Masters Athletics Torun indoor championship 2023 in Torun, Poland.

The event will conclude on April 1st. Salian has served in various capacities as a government officer, including as deputy director and Grade-I principal at Government ITI Kadri Hills, Mangaluru, and as executive director at Karnataka Vocational Training and Skill Development Corporation (KVTSDC), Bengaluru.

He is also a nodal officer and deputy apprenticeship advisor for implementation of apprenticeship training in the district.

In addition to his professional accomplishments, Salian is a sportsman and has achieved medals at the district, state, national, and international level athletic meets in the Javelin throw event. He has represented India twice at the Asian Masters Athletic Championship and once at the World Masters Athletic Championship. Salian’s recent win follows his silver medal in the Javelin throw event at the 21st Asian Masters Athletics Championship in Kuching, Malaysia, in 2019.

source/content: daijiworld.com (headline edited)

KARNATAKA-INTERNATIONAL: CULTURE & ARTS: Comparative Study on Poetry of Basavanna and Hopkins released

“The Poetry of G.M. Hopkins and Basavanna: A Comparative Study”, authored by Basavaraj P. Donur, Registrar, Central University of Karnataka, was released at Basava Samithi office in Bengaluru on Saturday.

“If Hopkins knew about Basavnna and his ideas he would have adopted Lingayat philosophy,” said Manu Baligar, member, Central Sahitya Academy, after the release of the work.

“Basavanna protested against the exploitative religious system and gave Lingayat philosophy and Hopkins also protested against the rigidity and orthodox practices of the Church of England. Though he lived in the 19th century, Hopkins’ ideas have a lot of similarities with that of Basavanna’s. It shows ideas of great thinkers always correlate and are timeless,” he said.

Dr. Baligar said that the work is meant for serious readers and suggested its translation into Kannada for taking it to a larger section of readers.

Central University Vice-Chancellor Battu Satyanarayana, faculty members Vikram Visaji, Ganapati Sinnoor, Siddanna Langoti, Prof. Donur and others were present.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

KARNATAKA: BUSINESS & ECONOMY: AVIATION: Queensland’s Ferra Aerospace signs MoU with Dynamatic Technologies

This collaboration will fast-track the production and development of aerospace components using the state-of-the-art facilities and resources available at Ferra Aerospace and Dynamatic in Bengaluru.

Ferra Aerospace India through Queensland-based Ferra Engineering Australia has inked an MoU with Dynamatic Technologies Ltd to enhance its scale and capabilities in strategic aerospace manufacturing.

The MoU was signed by Ferra Aerospace MD and GM Sridhar Chintha and Dynamatic Technologies CEO and MD Udayant Malhoutra in the presence of Treasurer and Minister for Trade and Investment Queensland Cameron Dick, CEO of Trade and Investment Queensland Justin McGowan and officials from the Queensland government during the Treasurer’s India Trade Mission.

Commenting on the partnership, Cameron said, “Support and advancement of companies like Ferra diversifies our economy and builds on our existing skills base in Queensland.”

While David Rogers, Group CFO – Ferra Engineering, said succeeding in these opportunities allows the strengthening of its industrial base within the Indian subsidiary, Udayant noted that the pact will enable the development of new products that are specific to customer requirements.

“This collaboration will fast-track the production and development of aerospace components using the state-of-the-art facilities and resources available at Ferra Aerospace and Dynamatic in Bengaluru, India.”

newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

WORLD RECORD : SPORTS / TENNIS: Rohan Bopanna becomes Oldest ATP Masters 1000 Champion after claiming Indian Wells Doubles Title at 43

Bopanna thus surpassed Daniel Nestor of Canada, who had claimed the 2015 Cincinnati Masters to become the oldest champion at the age of 42.

Indian Wells :

India’s Rohan Bopanna became the oldest ATP Masters 1000 champion when he and his Australian partner Matt Ebden claimed the men’s doubles crown at the BNP Paribas Open here.

The 43-year-old Bopanna and Ebden, 35, defeated top-seeded Wesley Koolhof of the Netherlands and Neil Skupski of Britain 6-3, 2-6, 10-8 in the final on Saturday.

“Truly special. It’s called Tennis Paradise for a reason,” said Bopanna, who was playing in his 10th ATP Masters 1000 final.

“I’ve been, over the years, coming here and seeing all these guys win for so many years. I’m really happy that Matt and I were able to do this and get this title here.

“It’s been some tough matches, close matches. Today we played against one of the best teams out there. Really happy that we got the trophy.”

Bopanna thus surpassed Daniel Nestor of Canada, who had claimed the 2015 Cincinnati Masters to become the oldest champion at the age of 42.

“I spoke to Danny Nestor and I told him sorry I’m going to beat his record,” he joked.

“Winning the title, that stays with me, so really happy with that. ” It was the 43-year-old’s fifth Masters 1000 doubles title and first since he won in Monte Carlo in 2017.

This was the third final of the year for the Indo-Australian duo.

He now holds 24 tour-level trophies in his cabinet.

The Indo-Australian pair stunned defending and two-time desert titlists John Isner and Jack Sock in the semi-finals, while getting the better off Canadian singles stars Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov in the quarters.

Bopanna and Ebden had defeated Rafael Matos and David Vega Hernandez in their opening match.

A former World No.3, Bopanna jumped four places to No.11 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Rankings.

source/content: newindianexpress.com / PTI (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: Ashes of John Merwin Fritz, a London-based Archaeologist, Immersed in the Tungabhadra waters at Hampi

The ashes (asthi) of John Merwin Fritz, an 83-year-old London-based archaeologist and anthropologist, who died in London on January 23 this year, were, as per his wishes, immersed in the Tungabhadra waters at Hampi on Sunday.

Fritz was an internationally acclaimed archaeological researcher who made notable contribution to research on the great imperial city of Vijayanagara.

As per his wishes, his cremation was carried out according to Hindu rituals in London and the ashes were immersed in the Tungabhadra waters. His grandson Williams performed the ash-immersion rituals at Hampi.

Fritz’s daughter Alice Chandra Fritz and his friends John Gollings and George Michell were among those present at the Hampi ceremony.

“Fritz was very fond of India, especially Hampi. As per his wishes, his ashes were submerged in the Tungabhadra waters. His other wish was to complete the Vijayanagara Research Project which he started 30 years ago. I am also part of the project with a specific assignment of mapping surface archaeological features and I have finished it. We will try to complete the entire project,” Surendra Kumar, a Hampi-based researcher, told The Hindu.

Born on December 29, 1939 at Glendale of California in the United States, Fritz had settled down in London.

His work, Paleo-Psychology Today (1978), anticipated not only new directions in archaeology but also what would become the core of his research and publications regarding the symbolic features of past architectural monuments and structures, including aspects of both the Chaco site in New Mexico and, most substantively, the grand imperial city of Vijayanagara at Hampi in India.

In April 1981, Fritz joined George Michell, an architect from Australia, for archaeological research of Hampi. Over the next 20 years, he and George Michell ran an independent field camp in the middle of the ruins in Hampi. Together with the many scholars who became involved in what came to be known as the Vijayanagara Research Project, Fritz published extensively, editing the two-volume “Vijayanagara: Archaeological Exploration, 1990-2000”, and, together with George Michell, issued a popular guidebook on the site.

Their jointly authored “City of Victory” published in 1991 by Aperture in New York was the first of the several superbly illustrated volumes. They gifted much of the project’s maps and drawings to the British Library. Before his death, Fritz made a bequest to the American Trust for the British Library to fund a one-year cataloguing post for the collections.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: SPORTS / TENNIS: Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden Win Men’s Doubles Title at Qatar Open 2023

On Friday, Indian tennis player Rohan Bopanna and his Australian partner Matthew Ebden took home the men’s doubles championship in the Qatar Open 2023 tennis competition in Doha. The pair defeated Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands and Constant Lestienne of France 6(5)-7(7), 6-4, 10-6.

It was Rohan Bopanna’s second victory in the Qatar Open. He had finished second last year with Canadian Denis Shapovalov in the doubles competition after winning it in 2020 with his Dutch partner Wesley Koolhof.

Throughout his career, Rohan Bopanna has already won 23 doubles championships. It was his first time playing alongside current Wimbledon  doubles winner Matthew Ebden. At Tel Aviv, Pune, and Adelaide, the Indian tennis player won three championships last year. Bopanna’s first championship of 2023 was the ATP 250 victory in Qatar.

Bopanna and Ebden also advanced to the Rotterdam Open ATP 500 final last week, but they fell to Austin Krajicek of the USA and Ivan Dodig of Croatia in the match tiebreaker following the winning point.

The third-seeded Indian-Australian combination in Doha on Friday had a break advantage at 6-5 in the first set before being pushed back and dropping the set in a tiebreaker. In the second game, both defences improved, and the teams maintained their serves until the ninth game. Bopanna and Ebden, though, triumphed in the tenth game to force a match tiebreak.

Bopanna is ranked No. 37 in the world and No. 17 in the ATP doubles rankings. The match tiebreaker was won in 99 minutes by Ebden after they successfully converted four of six break-point opportunities.

source /content : sportscafe.in (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL / NATIONAL: Infosys Prize for 6 Researchers

IISc Prof Mahesh Kakde received the award in the mathematical sciences category for his contributions to algebraic number theory which is predicted to help in computing and cryptography.

Six researchers were awarded the Infosys Prize 2022 on Saturday in recognition of their work in their respective fields.The Infosys Science Foundation, a not-for-profit trust, annually honours researchers in the fields of engineering and computer science, humanities, life sciences, mathematical sciences, physical sciences and social sciences.

“The Infosys Science Foundation has instituted the Infosys Prize to highlight the importance of scientific research for the development of India and the world. From exploring the frontiers of brain research and astronomy to developing solutions for the urgent healthcare needs of underserved populations to examining the notions of justice in a fast-changing world inundated by the climate emergency and pandemics, our laureates are working on the cutting edge of science, technology, and scholarship….,” said Kris Gopalakrishnan, president, Infosys Science Foundation.

Prof Suman Chakraborty of IIT-Kharagpur has won the award in the engineering and science category for developing diagnostic devices for easy access and use in rural areas. In the humanities category, Vice-Chancellor of National Law School of India University, Bengaluru, Sudhir Krishnaswamy, was honoured for his work on “the importance of the basic structure doctrine of the  Constitution that was adopted by the Supreme Court in 1973”.

IISc Prof Mahesh Kakde received the award in the mathematical sciences category for his contributions to algebraic number theory which is predicted to help in computing and cryptography.

Chairperson, Department of Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, Vidita Vaidya was honoured under the life sciences category for her work on understanding the brain in the context of mood disorders like anxiety and depression.

Prof Nissim Kanekar of National Centre for Radio Astronomy, Pune, and Prof Rohini Pande, director, Economic Growth Center, Yale University, were respectively awarded for their work in the field of physical sciences and social sciences. Prof Kanekar was awarded for his studies on galaxies during the ‘cosmic noon’ era, while Prof Pande was awarded for her research on governance and potential policy change for the benefit of social justice.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY & SOFTWARE: Int’l Institute of Information Technology Bangalore (IIITB) Develops Platform to provide Aadhaar-like Digital Identities for 9 Countries

Citizens of Philippines, Morocco, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Ethiopia, Republic of Guinea, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso and Togolese Republic will enrol on the platform.

Around 70 million citizens in Philippines (80% of the population) have enrolled themselves on their national digital identity programme rolled out by Modular Open-Source Identity Platform (MOSIP), a digital identity platform developed by a team at the International Institute of Information Technology Bangalore (IIITB).

Upon the request of World Bank to initiate research and development, the project provides digital identities similar to Aadhaar to underdeveloped and developing countries. So far, 16 lakh lines of codes have been developed and used by countries, free of cost.

People of 9 nations to enroll

Although the project was first aimed at providing MOSIP to five countries, it has now been extended to nine countries. Philippines, Morocco, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Ethiopia, Republic of Guinea, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, and Togolese Republic are the countries whose citizens will enroll on the platform. A team of 30 people, comprising top designers and others from software, database design, security and privacy departments, are working on the project at IIITB.

“Along with technical know-how, we will also help the countries with technological training. Data, privacy, and security will all be within their own country and their policy, we will not interfere with it. We are providing digital identity for the world in a modular nature so that it can be customised to their needs. For instance, in Philippines, English, and Filipino are the languages which used, while in Morocco, it is French and Arabic. Different countries have separate biometric needs and accordingly, the modular biometrics will be used,” explained Debabrata Das, Director, IIITB, who is also the Chairman of Executive Committee for the project.

Scalable. secure

Prof. Rajagopalan, President of MOSIP project, added that the project is highly scalable and secure. The developers have also figured out a way to operate in 5,000+ habitable islands of Philippines where there is no good internet connection.

“We have developed a new technology to identify people where there is no internet or low bandwidth connection. A lot of research went into it and we developed a secure QR code which can be stored in local servers and mobiles and can be used to authenticate each other. Later, when they get internet connection, the information can be exchanged and authenticated,” he further said.

The project is also being funded by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Norad, Sir Ratan Tata Trust, Pratiksha Trust and Omidyar Network.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: ARTS & CULTURE / MAGIC: Magician Kudroli Ganesh was Presented with the US-based ‘Int’l Society of Magic’s -‘ Merlin Award’ at the Int’l Magic Extravaganza 2022, Bangkok, Thailand

Mangaluru magician Kudroli Ganesh received the Merlin award during the International Magic Extravaganza 2022 held at Bangkok in Thailand recently.

The award, which was instituted by the International Society of Magic from the U.S., was presented to him by U.S.-based magician Tony Hassini. He was considered for the award for his magic show ‘Tulunadu Tudar Chendu’. He presented the traditional cups and balls trick of the world in a creative form, using the Tulu Paadana (sung narratives of Tulu).

The Thailand International Academy of Magic, the organisers of the event, praised the presentation and adjudged it as the “most original act” and presented the award, Mr. Ganesh said in a communique.

The event was held for five days.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

GLOBAL: AIRPORTS / TRAVEL/ METAVERSE: Kempegowda Intl Airport’s Terminal-2 (KIA T-2) is One of the First in the World that can be Experienced on the Metaverse. First phase of ‘BLR Metaport’ Launched

The Kempegowda International Airport’s Terminal-2 has become one of the first terminals in the world that can be experienced on the metaverse, after Bangalore International Airport Limited, operator of the KIA, on Tuesday announced the first phase launch of the BLR Metaport.

The Kempegowda International Airport’s (KIA) Terminal-2 has become one of the first terminals in the world that can be experienced on the metaverse, after Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), operator of the KIA, on Tuesday announced the first phase launch of the BLR Metaport.

Built in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Polygon, the BLR Metaport offers an immersive, three-dimensional (3D) virtual experience of the newly launched terminal.

Interested travellers and members of the public can log on to www.blrmetaport.com and virtually tour and navigate the new terminal using their smart devices.

The BLR Metaport is an outcome of the Joint Innovation Centre (JIC), announced in April 2022 by BIAL, AWS, and Intel. The JIC focuses on driving the development and adoption of digital solutions in aviation.

“For BIAL, the mission of the JIC is to leverage emerging technologies to build new business models and passenger experiences and be at the forefront of technology innovation in India’s commercial aviation,” BIAL added.

Developed in line with this mission, the BLR Metaport is one of the first airport metaverse experiences, designed to deliver an enhanced digital experience.

A 3D interface will offer customers new ways to interact with the airport, such as checking into flights, navigating terminals, shopping, and social aspects like connecting with other travellers.

BLR Metaport brings the virtual and physical worlds together to provide consistent engagement, and aims to excite travellers with new, unique, and immersive experiences.

BIAL’s Chief Strategy and Development Officer, Satyaki Raghunath said, “We are very excited that BIAL is entering into the new world of metaverse through the BLR Metaport.

This is our first foray into the world of Web3 and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and we aim to delight travellers with a unique, immersive, and virtual experience. We believe that it is important to connect with a new generation of our global audience through the metaverse.

We also have several initiatives planned around the BLR Metaport, which promise to increase ways in which we can engage with our global audience and enhance business impact over the next few years.”

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)