P Indhu is flush from the victory of her team against Sri Lanka in the recently held National throwball tournament
“I cannot express my joy in words. Winning a medal for the country is a dream,” says P Indhu. She was a part of the National throwball team that defeated Sri Lanka in the Indo-Sri Lankan Series (score 5-0) held at Bengaluru recently. She is a final year student of B.A Sociology from PSG College of Arts and Science in the city.
Indhu was interested in sports from a young age. “I started playing volley ball and kho-kho from class I. I joined the throwball team in class VIII.” She was soon selected by the School Games Federation of India (SGFL) to represent the state. “I was a part of the Open State National Throwball competition in 2011, 2014, 2016 and 2018. The one in 2018 happened at Panipat and I was chosen for the Indo-Sri Lankan series based on my performance in it. I was in college when my mentor, S Mani called me to inform about the selection. I couldn’t believe it initially. I was representing India for the first time.”
The 19 year old says that she practises everyday to keep fit. “I am trained by A Prabhu, coach for the Tamil Nadu throwball team. I run for two hours early in the mornings and play the game at Decathlon in the evenings. Before the Indo-Srilankan Series, I attended a 20-day residential camp in Bengaluru. The training was intense. I was coached by Mohammad Aquib, the national throwball team coach. My team mates were from other states and I have played against them in the state matches. It was fun to get to know them and to learn from them.”
She was a part of all the five games in the series. “The competition was tough. They were also a strong team. I am now preparing for the upcoming South Asian Throwball Series.”
Indhu says that though throwball is a popular sport, it is not recognised in most of the colleges and universities in the state. “I do not know the reason. My college does not have a throwball team. I play with students from other colleges interested in this game during my practice sessions. If more educational institutions support the sport, I am sure there will be more players taking up throwball seriously.”
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sports> Other Sports / by Susan Joe Philip / February 19th, 2019
With the help of 3D printing technology, doctors reconstructed the jaw of a 20-year-old woman from Sudan at a private hospital in the city recently.
The patient, who preferred anonymity, approached Gleneagles Global Health City with a contour deformity of the lower jaw. She had undergone surgery to remove a benign tumour of the jaw a few months ago in Sudan.
A segment of the lower jaw bone was removed and the gap was bridged with the plate which caused major contour deformity in the due course and she could not close her mouth. She had difficulty in swallowing and her major concern was the face deformity and the absence of teeth on that side. The team of doctors, headed by S. Selva Seetha Raman, senior consultant plastic surgeon, Gleneagles Global Health City, planned for the reconstruction of the jaw bone.
The doctors with the help of 3D printing technology and CT scan image created a 3D mirror image of the opposite side to reconstruct an entire jaw bone model.
A legend with legends: M.N. Nambiar with Sivaji Ganesan; and right, with MGR. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Late Chief Minister Jayalalithaa penned the foreword for a book authored by his grandson, to be released on March 7
The title, Nambiarswami: the good, the bad & the holy, encapsulates the personality of M.N. Nambiar, on and off the screen. He played the villain in films, but was a good man off it, leading a spiritual life as a staunch devotee of Lord Ayyappa and making a pilgrimage to Sabarimala more than 200 times over a 70-year period.
The book, by the late actor’s grandson M.N. Dipak Nambiar, will be released on March 7, on the occasion of his birth centenary. Late Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, who starred with Nambiar in a number of films, had written the foreword, describing him as ‘pure-hearted’.
The book will also be released in Tamil in a couple of months. The publisher is Harper Collins.
“The inspiration for the title came from the western classic: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and I have slightly altered it,” said Mr. Dipak, a software professional who started writing the book in 2004 when Nambiar was alive.
He prefers to address his grandfather as Nambiarswami, as he first took him to Sabarimala when he was seven. He continues to make the pilgrimage regularly — 42 times to date and counting — despite losing his left leg in an accident four years ago in the U.S.
Mr. Dipak, the son of Nambiar’s daughter Sneha, had the opportunity to see the life of a great person up-close, since he grew up in his grandfather’s house. Nambiar would reminisce about his early childhood, his struggle during the drama days, his entry into films, his best friend MGR, and the person who was the most important to him and whom he loved the most — his wife Rugmini. “She truly was the epitome of the proverb ‘Behind every successful man there stands a woman’,” Mr. Dipak said.
Besides capturing the vignettes of Nambiar’s life and the funny anecdotes that he recalled from his 71 years in Tamil films, the author has interviewed industry stalwarts to know their experiences with him.
Friendship with MGR
While MGR and Nambiar were known for the intense hatred they had for each other in films, they cherished an envious friendship in real life. It was MGR, who accompanied Nambiar to “see” his bride Rugmini.
“She walked in, escorted by her sisters. I had learned to control my emotions as an actor, but I leaned over and whispered to MGR that though I liked the girl, I thought one of her sisters looked prettier,” Mr. Dipak quotes Nambiar as saying.
Another incident explains the bond between MGR and Nambiar. “MGR was the best man for the wedding and he could not make it on time because it was raining heavily and the transport was running late. The muhurtham time was elapsing fast but I refused to tie the thaali till I saw MGR. Luckily, a completely drenched MGR ran into the hall with a few seconds to go, gesticulating with an upward motion of his hands to say go ahead,” Nambiar said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by B. Kolappan / Chennai – February 24th, 2019
Seahawk jet sank in 1964 off the Neelankarai coast in south Chennai
A team of scuba divers has stumbled upon the wreckage of a single-seater aircraft that sank in the 1960s off the Neelankarai coast in south Chennai.
Residents of the fishing hamlet recalled that they had rescued the pilot, who was pulled out by two men who caught his long tresses on that day.
“I was just 10 years old then and my father showed me the aircraft as we were returning home after fishing. I saw it from a distance and saw it sink into the water,” said Devadas Ganapathi, who is now 65. His son Chandru was one of the four divers who found the wreckage. The others were S.S.B. Aravind Tharunsri, master instructor, Professional Association of Diving Instructors in Australia, who led the diving expedition, and Thimoth and Arun.
A report in The Hindu on August 13, 1964, said that an aircraft mechanic of the Navy had taken the Seahawk jet fighter for a spin from the Meenambakkam airport at 7.15 a.m. without informing the control tower. After circling over the city, he returned to the airport but could not land and went for another round but later crashed into the sea.
Mr. Devadas said that the man was unconscious when he was dragged out of the water and, later when he regained consciousness, he gave ₹10 notes to four fishers who helped him.
Scuba diver Mr. Aravind said the wreckage found at a depth of 12 metres at a distance of 1.5 km was quite intact.
“One wing is under the sea bed and the other one tilted upwards at an angle. Fishermen kept telling us to help them with the object that cut their nets. And two days ago, we found this wreckage. We will not touch it since it is not allowed,” he said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Deepa H. Ramakrishnan / Chennai – February 21st, 2019
The newly launched Moore Market in Velachery takes visitors on a trip to the past with its collection of books and antiques
A doorway made entirely of books welcomes you into the newly launched Moore Market, a bookstore/café/antiques marketplace at Grand Square in Velachery. As you step inside, there are rows and rows of books flanked by two cafés and coffee tables that invite you to sit down and spend a leisurely afternoon sipping some fine brews from Coorg and read a book.
But it’s the ceiling that truly captivates me. There are books of all kinds — paperbacks, hardbound and graphic novels — suspended from the ceiling, some even doubling up as lamps with naked bulbs speared through them.
The brainchild of Zarook Shah, owner of Grand Square, the store takes visitors back in time with its impressive collection of antiques. There are rows of records, coins, telephones, cameras, camel bone walking sticks, grandfather clocks, utensils, armchairs, radios and other knick-knacks to choose from. “I wanted to recreate the nostalgia of the iconic market that was once everyone’s favourite shopping destination in Madras,” says Zarook.
In fact, the launch of the space last weekend treated audiences to screenings of Laurel and Hardy, and Charlie Chaplin movies played on a vintage film reel projector. The launch also saw two book signings and an auction kept people on their toes. The auction began as low as ₹1 and the item that sold for the most amount was an ancient seal for ₹30,000. “Going forth, the auction will be a regular affair,” says Zarook, who is keen on keeping the memory of the iconic market alive.
As a child, Zarook would make it a point to make that weekly trip to Moore Market, behind ChennaiCentral, with his siblings and cousins. The halls and corridors of the imposing colonial structure would be buzzing with activity as hawkers and vendors would sell everything from books, clothes, antiques to even pets of all kinds. Behind the market was a lily pond and the zoo (which has now moved to Vandalur). And it was in this area that the annual Jumbo Circus would be held, another draw for Zarook.
“Moore Market was where we went for entertainment. There were no malls and cafés back then and we looked forward to our weekly trips to the market. I was an avid reader and books were my best friends. It was there that I found several page turners — Aesop’s Fables, Amar Chitra Katha, Hardy Boys and National Geographic,” he says. “But we would make it a point to ask our driver to park the car some distance away and walk to the market. Because, the vendors would quote different prices to those coming on foot and those coming by car,” he laughs.
In fact, Moore Market was the favourite shopping destination for most people in Madras till it burnt down in 1985. The fire that changed the face of Central Chennai, also led to a new complex for the vendors of the market, albeit without its colonial charm and flavour. “But it just isn’t the same any more,” says Zarook.
The jeweller-turned-businessman admits that he’d always dreamed of opening a bookstore with a café in it and when the opportunity finally presented itself, he decided to give his plans a twist by incorporating some history into it. While the antique collection will be changed every other week by Bidfe, whom Zarook has partnered with, the space will also host events to encourage upcoming artistes and entrepreneurs.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style / by Ranjani Rajendra / February 21st, 2019
The select verses have been translated into Malayalam, Telugu and Hindi.
Chennai :
Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami has released translations of select verses from ‘Pathinenkilkanakku Noolgal’ (18 Lesser Texts) part of the Tamil Sangam literature and Minister for Tamil Official Language and Tamil Culture K Pandiarajan received the first set of books. The select verses have been translated into Malayalam, Telugu and Hindi.
The CM released these translations at the secretariat on February 19 and also presented `one lakh cheque each to Rajalakshmi Seenivasan (Hindi), KK Chandrasekaran Nair (Malayalam) and LR Swami (Telugu). The State government had allocated `15.30 lakh for the translation and other works.
Palaniswami handed over a cheque for `1 crore towards establishing the MGR Arts and Social Development Research Chair in the International Institute of Tamil Studies (IITS) at Taramani to G Vijayaraghavan, Director (in charge), IITS.
Meanwhile, the CM handed over the key for the vehicle, meant for selling the publications of the IITS, and inaugurated the MGR centenary library building constructed at a cost of `2.30 crore besides the hostel for research students at IITS at Taramani.
New taluks inaugurated
The Chief Minister also inaugurated new taluks, Thiruvattar and Killiyoor (Kanyakumari dt), Vathirairuppu (Virudhunagar dt), Gujiliyamparai (Dindigul dt) and RK Pettai (Tiruvallur dt) and declared open new buildings for RDO and taluk offices as well as residential quarters for the employees, constructed at a total cost of `11.87 crore.
Craft treasure award
The CM presented the living craft treasure awards to seven craftsmen, Poompuhar State awards to 10 craftsmen and three best silk grower awards for 2018-19. The craft treasure award carries `1 lakh, one-sovereign gold medal and citation. The Poompuhar State award carries `50,000, half-sovereign gold medal and citation.
EPS, OPS to garland Jaya statue on Feb 24
Chennai: Edappadi K Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam will garland the statue of the late leader J Jayalalithaa at the AIADMK headquarters on February 24, to mark her 71st birth anniversary. They will release a souvenir on the occasion. AIADMK functionaries and cadre will organise blood donation camps, present educational materials to students, feed poor and inmates of orphanages and distribute sarees and dhoties. Party functionaries will organise public meetings for 5 days from February 24.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Express News Service / February 22nd, 2019
Meet Harish Natarajan, a champion debater who recently triumphed over IBM’s AI debater
Harish Natarajan loves arguing. It has helped him win debates against his parents at dinner table conversations when he was young. It has helped him scale heights in debating circles — he holds the world record for most debate victories. And recently, it helped the 31-year-old triumph over IBM’s artificial intelligence debating system, affectionately dubbed ‘Miss Debater’.
His victory has been celebrated across the globe, thanks to the recent emphasis on man-vs-machine clashes. At his nondescript house in Chennai’s bustling T Nagar, where he is for a day for his grandfather’s birthday celebrations, a jet-lagged Harish is nonplussed about all the worldwide attention. “Before the clash, part of me thought that a machine couldn’t be as good as humans in debating. But then, I knew that a machine had beaten chess champion Garry Kasparov in the past. So, winning against the AI was somewhat of a relief. Maybe in a couple of years, if IBM continues developing the debating side of AI, I’d be happy to have a go at it again… and then, that would be real achievement,” he says.
_____________
Who’s Harish Natarajan?
A 31-year-old, settled in the UK, and among the world’s best debaters
He recently defeated IBM’s AI-powered debating system in a live face-off
Is currently involved in coaching people from less developed debating circuits
_____________
The topic given to the two was about pre-school subsidies, and Harish went about treating the clash like he would with any human. “The first 30 seconds, of course, were strange — I realised I was up against this giant ballot box. But after that, as the AI was making arguments, I kept noting what my responses ought to be. At times, it was putting forth points that I couldn’t really deny. But I was always thinking: How do I use its words against it?”
One of the reasons Harish was able to outsmart the machine in the 25-minute rapid-fire exchange was the emphasis he gave to ‘emotion’ during his arguments. “Emotion elevates the importance of what you’re saying. There were moments when even the machine was trying to evoke emotion. But I did have an edge because, when I talk about experiences, it comes across as more genuine partly because… well, I’m not a machine.”
Point of the matter
His parents are both from Chennai, but Harish was born and brought up in the UK, and has been debating since he was 16. “I was relatively good at school, but I discovered I wasn’t up there once I went to the bigger debating world.” His time at Cambridge helped him put a lot more effort into this side of things. “I realised that I enjoyed debating and had the aptitude for it. Eventually, with practice, I got better.”
Today, he has participated in more than 2,000 debates and is among the world’s best, but Harish has never been too happy with his performances. “That’s why I never re-watch any of my debates, because I am always thinking what more I could have done,” he says.
There have been times when Harish has been caught off guard. At one debate, the topic in front of him was: commercialisation of feminism. “I remember thinking that I had no idea what it was. But I got back home, and read a lot about it. So, a few months later, when a similar topic came up in another debate, I knew a huge deal about it and my teammates gave me looks like: ‘why do you know all this?’” he laughs.
He’s always reading something or the other. “There are things that I don’t care about much, but I know a great deal about. I’ve read so much about academic feminism and elements of climate science in my life. Personally, I like reading about economics and international relations, but as a debater, I have to absolutely keep reading everything under the sky.”
All this reading has helped Harish incorporate debating into his everyday life. “If I read an article in a newspaper, I always think: what is the underlying argument here? With respect to anything I read, I’m always debating within myself. It has now become a way of thinking.”
Out in the world
When he’s not out there debating or attending to his day job — he works as Head of Economic Risk Consulting at AKE International — Harish loves watching football or catching up on a show on Netflix. He loves travelling as well.
“There’s a big difference between having knowledge about a place and actually experiencing something there,” he says, “My last big trip was to Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. What shocked me about the city was that it looks different from anywhere else in world. It looks empty, but there are giant buildings everywhere.”
Currently, Harish is involved in coaching people from less developed debating circuits. “In April, I’ll be in China. A few years ago, I was part of World University Debating Championships right here in Chennai. India has a vibrant school circuit, a good educational system and the parental pressure on children to succeed is huge… and so logically, should be among the best debating countries in the world. Debating at the school level has developed a lot of late and I predict Indian students to be among the best in the next few years,” he wraps up.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Srinivasa Ramanujam / February 20th, 2019
Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday announced the names of 56 personalities who have been chosen for the various awards instituted by the State government for 2018.
Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday announced the names of 56 personalities who have been chosen for the various awards instituted by the State government for 2018. V Madhan Karky, lyricist and Tamil computing researcher, will receive the Tamil computing award for 2017. The Chief Minister will be presenting the awards at a simple function to be held at the secretariat on Tuesday (February 19).
The names of those chosen for various awards include Bhubaneswar Tamil Sangam (Thamizh Thaai award), Poet M Kasuman (Kapilar award), Nadana Kasinathan (UVeSa award), Avadi Kumar (Sollin Selvar award), KK Chandrasekaran Nair (GU Pope award), S Naseema Banu, Silampoli Su Chellappan (Ilango Adigal award) and P Veeramani (Singaravelar award), Bhubaneswar Tamil Sangam will get Rs 5 lakh and a shield while others will be presented with Rs 1 lakh, a gold medal and a citation.
As many as 10 scholars including Dr Akbar Kausar will receive the best translator award which carries Rs 1 lakh and a citation.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Tamil Nadu / by Express News Service / February 19th, 2019
The dentistry also launched Cone-Beam Computerised Tomography machine, a special type of X-ray equipment.
Chennai :
Pearl Dentistry, a dental clinic, and Dentsply Sirona, a manufacturer of dental products and technologies, on Tuesday launched a new technology that enables a patient to fix new teeth in a single visit unlike conventional method which will take a minimum five days.
CEREC software that allows a dentist to take 3D model of the teeth to design restoration, was started. It will enable to complete single crown, bridge, implants and smile makeover restorations in a single visit.
B Arunkumar, founder of the dentistry said, “Using CEREC software, teeth can be scanned.
It will capture video image in the computer. It takes an accurate pix. By using the image, tooth crown can be created in 20 minutes and it will take another 20 minutes to fabricate and to fix the crown, and it will take another 20 minutes to polish it. So, new teeth can be fixed in single visit,” he added.
The dentistry also launched Cone-Beam Computerised Tomography machine, a special type of X-ray equipment.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Express News Service / February 20th, 2019
Grand plans: Founders of Pickyourtrail Srinath Shankar (left) and Hari Ganapathy
Will be used for expansion and product innovation
City-based travel technology start-up Pickyourtrail has raised ₹21 crore ($3 million) in a Series A round of funding. This round was led by Kumar Vembu, CEO of GoFrugal, Girish Mathrubootham, CEO of Freshworks, Shyam Sekhar, founder of iThought, and Rajagopal Subramanian, CIO of Entrust.
The start-up intends to use this capital infusion for continued product innovation, scaling up the proprietary technology platform, expansion of its technical team and creating brand awareness. The firm also wants to tap the Tier 2 and Tier 3 market where digital penetration is still not very high but there is a significant number of people taking trips.
Founded by Hari Ganapathy and Srinath Shankar in 2014, Pickyourtrail was launched with the idea of providing people the ease of planning international vacations. Pickyourtrail’s proprietary algorithm takes into account over 40 factors like duration, travel time, ratings, and so on, to build personalised itineraries that travellers can further customise and book. Post booking, travellers use Pickyourtrail’s app to keep track of bookings, get real time information on flight and weather updates, restaurant recommendations and on-trip chat support.
Growing interest
Hari Ganapathy, co-founder of Pickyourtrail, said that people are slowly getting comfortable booking vacations online. He added, “We have had about 10,000 plus travellers who have picked their trail with us till date. Of this, more than 95% were Indians and the remaining 5% of people are from Singapore, Dubai, U.S. and people in West Asia who come to know about our product online.”
The start-up claims that it is unique from other portals in the market. “Our focus is trying to use tech to personalise and create last-mile delight and with our understanding of vacations, having travelled to about 50-plus countries ourselves, we have a core understanding about how consumers behave and how they buy,” said Mr. Ganapathy.
Mr. Shankar said, “Personalisation is a mantra that’s been around in travel. I believe that our algorithms across personalisation, routing and price matching are industry first in their approach and output.”
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Sangeeta Kandavel / Chennai – February 19th, 2019
