The Central Public Works Department (CPWD) on Wednesday awarded its largest-ever contract at ₹3,141.99 crore, handing over the letter of award for construction of three buildings of the new Common Central Secretariat to Larsen and Toubro Ltd.
The CPWD opened the financial bids of three bidders — L&T, Tata Projects Ltd. and NCC Ltd. — on October 18. L&T was the only one to submit a bid below the estimate of ₹3,254 crore. The project includes construction of the three buildings.
M. Krishnan Nair, renowned oncologist and founder-director of Regional Cancer Centre (RCC), passed away here on Thursday. He was 81.
Having single-mindedly pursued the dream of setting up the first modern and affordable cancer care centre in the State’s public sector, Dr. Nair’s name was synonymous with the institution he founded in 1981 and nurtured till his retirement in 2003.
Bengaluru scientists have devised a toxic-free method that converts the most common greenhouse gas (GHG) carbon dioxide (CO2) to methane (CH4) – known to be the cleanest fossil fuel – a process that can effectively help in reducing levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide levels which is a major climate change concern.
The scientists from Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bengaluru, achieved this using non-metal catalysts, unlike procedures that are in use, which are found to release toxic gases in the process.
In doing so, the scientists, led by Professor Tapas Kumar Maji from the Chemistry and Physics of Materials Unit of JNCASR, have designed a cost-effective metal-free catalyst to achieve the conversion by absorption of visible light.
Cherupuzha native Elizabeth S. Mathew was presented with the maiden Znehazandram Excellence Award instituted by the Kozhikode-based Zmart Foundation for inspiring personalities.
Ms. Mathew was chosen for the honour comprising a purse of ₹50,000 and memento considering her inspirational musical talent despite her continuing struggle to overcome the neurological disorder Tourette syndrome.
Kerala
Babu Parambath cultivates 50 varieties from India and abroad.
At first glance, they all look the same until you read the name boards kept on the foot of every plantain shoot and Babu Parambath describes the speciality of each of them. Then you start noticing the minor details that make this plantain grove one of its kind.
Mr. Parambath, known for his several ventures in the waste management front as the project coordinator of Niravu waste management company, has collected 50 different varieties of plantains from not just India, but from other parts of the world too, over a period of one-and-a-half years since the first COVID-induced lockdown.
He has one or two shoots of each of them planted in the 10 cents next to his home at Vengeri.
Indian-origin Canadian politician Anita Anand was on October 26 appointed as the country’s new Defence Minister in a Cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, over a month after his Liberal Party returned power in the snap polls and amid calls for major military reforms.
“My eyes welled up when I reached the summit. It took me three hours to hike the last 50 metres,” says actor Nivetha Thomas, who scaled Mount Kilimanjaro a few days ago. At 5895 metres above sea level, Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, East Africa, is the highest single free-standing mountain in the world.
Nivetha was accompanied by Telangana mountaineer Poorna Malavath, her coach Shekhar Babu Bachinepally and 15 crew members.
Meet Bengaluru make-up artist Durga Venkatesh, who can drape a saree in 155 styles in two hours .
In a time where inspiration and endurance is wearing thin, Durga Venkatesh, a make-up artist and bespoke fashion designer, has chosen to take life by the hems. Venkatesh, who has lived in Bengaluru since her childhood, currently holds the world record for the fastest number of saree styles draped, having been attested by the Limca Book of Records, India Book of Records, Asia Book of Records, Asian World Records, British World Records, and, most recently, the Kalam’s World Records in August.
In addition to this, she also won the Divalicious Mrs South India Universe title for 2019, and manages her own make-up salon and academy, Durga Makeup Studio & Academy in JP Nagar.
Padma Shri awardee Professor Sharada Srinivasan has added yet another accolade to her expansive list of accomplishments by being one of three women to be chosen for the Indian National Academy of Engineering’s Woman Engineer of the Year award in 2021.
The title is awarded by the academy to women who have made breakthrough contributions to the fields of technology and engineering in India. She is a professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bengaluru.
Anita Desai, one of India’s best-known authors, has been conferred with the Tata Literature Live! Lifetime Achievement Award for 2021.
Desai’s authorship has spanned more than 50 years, with memorable works such as ‘Fire On The Mountain’, ‘Cry The Peacock’, ‘A Village By The Sea’, ‘The Clear Light Of Day’, ‘Baumgartner’s Bombay’, and ‘In Custody’, which was made into a Merchant Ivory film starring Shashi Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, and Amrish Puri.
Desai’s blend of lyrical style, ease with different cultures, and a clear-eyed examination and confrontation of realistic truths about society and relationships, made for a unique reading experience that fast led her to occupy a leading place among her peers.