Month: February 2022

** Reliance takes control of about 200 Future Retail stores, offers jobs to staff

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd. has taken over the operations of at least 200 stores of Future Retail and has offered jobs to its employees after the Kishore Biyani-led group failed to make lease payments to landlords, sources said on Saturday.

Reliance Retail, the retail arm of the oil-to-telecom conglomerate, had in August 2020 agreed to take over the retail and logistics business of the Future Group for ₹24,713 crore but the deal couldn’t be closed as Future’s warring partner Amazon went to courts citing violation of some contracts. Future denies any wrongdoing.

** Rashmikaa, Humera pair triumphs Haryana Women’s ITF $15k tennis tournament

Hyderabad tennis players Shrivalli Rashmikaa and Humera Baharmus pair lifted the women’s doubles crown at the Haryana Women’s ITF $15k tennis tournament, in Gurugram on Saturday.

The talented youngsters, who were unseeded in the tournament, defeated top seeds Kovapitukted Punin of Thailand and Anna Ureke of Russia 6-3, 1-6, 10-3.

** Ind vs SL 3rd T20I | No escape from Shreyas for Sri Lanka as India completes sweep – February 27th, 2022

The No. 3 batter’s unbeaten 45-ball 73 takes the home team to yet another win with plenty to spare; visiting captain Shanaka’s quickfire knock of 74 goes in vain

There’s no stopping Shreyas Iyer. After hammering back-to-back half-centuries in the first two T20Is against Sri Lanka, the 27-year-old remained unbeaten on 73 off 45 deliveries as India completed a clean sweep, defeating the touring side by six wickets in the third T20I.

Chasing the target of 147 at the HPCA Stadium on Sunday, India captain Rohit Sharma opened the innings with Sanju Samson as Ishan Kishan was ruled out of the fixture after being hit on the helmet in the previous game.

** National Science Day : Of C.V. Raman the botanist, and a palette of floral hues

National Science Day – Monday, February 28th, 2022

Why do flowers have colours? Do varying hues alter their properties?

Such questions prompted Nobel Prize-winning physicist C.V. Raman to focus his efforts on studying floral colours and their roles in attracting pollinators and shielding flowers from predators during his final years.

As the nation celebrated yet another National Science Day on Monday to commemorate the discovery of Raman effect, an eponymous laboratory in Kerala has been making strides in creating a comprehensive spectral library of flora in the country.

The research by Athira K., an assistant professor at the C.V. Raman Laboratory of Ecological Informatics in the Digital University Kerala, is spurred by a broad understanding of the importance of the colour of angiosperms (or flowering plants) in attracting pollinators. With the characteristic found to be extremely crucial in stabilising the declining population of wild pollinators, the study held immense relevance for policy makers in promoting crops.

** Take pride in Tamil, says Modi

PM stresses language diversity of India.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that every citizen should be proud that the world’s oldest language, Tamil, is in India. Emphasising the importance of the mother tongue in his ‘M ann Ki Baat’ radio show, Mr. Modi said, “The mother and mother tongue, both together strengthen the foundation of life, lending it permanence. Just like we cannot abandon our mother, similarly, we cannot leave our mother tongue either.”

He said the country was proud to be associated with 121 forms of mother tongues, 14 of which are spoken by over one crore people in everyday life.

In 2019, Hindi was ranked third among the most spoken languages of the world. “Every Indian should be proud of this, too. Language is not just a medium of expression, but also serves to preserve the culture and heritage of society,” Mr. Modi said, highlighting the contribution of Surjan Parohi, a famous Hindi poet from Suriname, whose forefathers had gone there along with thousands of workers to earn a living.

** West Indies spin legend Sonny Ramadhin dead – Feb 2u7th, 2022

Sonny Ramadhin (1 May 1929 – 27 February 2022) was a West Indian cricketer, and was a dominant bowler of the 1950s. He was the first of many West Indian cricketers of Indian origin, and was one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1951.

Having had made his Test debut against England at Old Trafford in 1950, Ramadhin ended up playing 43 Tests and taking 158 wickets at an average of 28.98

** Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani practitioners can now issue fitness certificates

National Commission for Indian System of Medicine releases order in this regard

Registered practitioners of Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Sowa-Rigpa are now authorised to issue medical fitness certificates, the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) has said.

An order in this regard was issued to the commissioners of the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) Corporation, New Delhi, and Kerala on January 20 by Rakesh Sharma, president, Board of Ethics and Registration, NCISM.

The Transport department recently started allowing registered Ayurveda doctors to issue medical fitness certificates for driving license. Earlier, only MBBS graduates or postgraduates in Ayurveda were allowed to do so. It was pointed out that those who have cleared BAMS are equal to graduates in modern medicine.

** KHETA: Showcasing Shershabadi Women’s Embroidery

KHETA, an embroidery exhibition of lesser-known reversible quilts made by Shershabadi women from Bihar’s Kishanganj district, will be held at the National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy, Bhairon Marg, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, from March 4 to April 3, 2022, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Originally settled in the Malda district of Bangladesh on land given by Emperor Sher Shah Suri (who ruled from 1486 to 1545 A.D.), the Shershabadi community has migrated along the rivers and settled in Kishanganj and neighbouring districts of Bihar and Bengal in India.

Delicate yet densely patterned with vibrant colours, the Kheta embroidery is a kind of quilting (the art of stitching layers of fabrics) that has survived the onslaught of time and shares a similar origin with other recycled quilting techniques, “Kantha” of Bengal and “Sujni” of Bihar.

** Dancers from across India to take part in 41st Natyanjali festival

The 41st edition of the annual Natyanjali festival where dancers from across the country will participate will be held in Tamil Nadu’s Chidambaram from March 1, a statement said.

The festival will be held on the premises of Rajah Sir Annamalai Chettiar Trust in Chidambaram, the Secretary of Natyanjali trust said in a statement, adding that dancers from across the country would participate and present classical dance forms like Bharatnatyam, Kuchipudi, Mohiniattam, and Kathak.

The event will commence with devotional music, followed by a dance performance by Anusha Raj of Mysuru. On Maha Shivratri day, the programme will begin at 6.15 p.m. and go on till 11 p.m.

About 500 artistes including solo dancers and dance troupes will participate in the festival, the statement said.