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indianexpress: THE Pune police is poised for a technological leap. Soon, all First Information Reports (FIRs) recorded will be tamper-proof and making copies of complaints will be a simple process. Moreover, senior police officials will be instantly updated about all complaints filed at the 21 police stations in the city.

The Pune police are planning to bring in the digital pen and paper technology which was successfully implemented at DB Marg, Nagpada and Colaba police stations by the Mumbai police in January. The Mumbai project is funded by the the Department of Science & Technology (DoST) and the Mumbai police. The system, developed by Pune-based Impact Systems Pvt Ltd, covers FIRs, arrest and crime reports.

The pen has an in-built camera which captures digital pictures as the pen rolls on the paper and stores the data electronically. The paper captures the information written on it in the form of strokes. The system reduces duplication by saving time and preventing paper wastage. When inserted into a socket, the pen transmits the data to a computer.

“All the three forms — FIR, arrest and crime forms, which include 11 pages, will cost Rs 14. That means each page costs around Rs 1.20. Each digital page can store data of 30 A4 size fully written pages each time,” says Impact Systems CEO Dhananjay Datar.

He adds: “The digital format is tamper-proof. The data collated is centrally available at the click of a mouse for any senior police official whenever needed. The policemen will not need any special training,” he says.

Police Commissioner Jayant Umranikar recently wrote to Mumbai Police Commissioner DN Jadhav seeking permission from the Mumbai police to use the software at police stations in Pune. The Pune police will provide hardware, network and OS software and arrange for the digital pens and paper. Impact Systems will be roped in for development of the project.

Mumbai Police Commissioner DN Jadhav confirmed that his office had received the letter sent by Pune police on Thursday. Jadhav said: “We will give the permission to Pune Police to go ahead with the implementation of the technology at their police stations.”

indianexpress: SOCIAL activist Medha Patkar on Saturday called upon citizens to harness the potential of the RTI Act by procuring information on the Special Economic Zones (SEZs). “RTI is not only a tool for strengthening democracy but also as a weapon in the hands of commoners to expose scams of so-called development,” she said. Patkar was speaking at a meet on the Right to Information (RTI) Act at Firodia Hostel organised by city-based Surajya Sangharsha Samiti. The meet was attended by 200 activists from across the country.

Remembering the early days of the Narmada Bachao Andolan, Patkar said that dam officials often harassed villagers when they tried to seek information on the project. Sounding a note of caution for activists, she said, “The bureaucracy is trying to scuttle people’s right to access information. So there is a need to keep RTI alive and take it to the nook and corner of the country.”
 
Coming down heavily on the builders’ lobby in Mumbai, Patkar lambasted the state government for ignoring the interests of the commoners. “Over 75,000 shanties were demolished in Mumbai on the grounds that they were unauthorised. But what about the illicit land use pattern followed by the builder-politician nexus,” she asked.

Patkar said that efforts to seek details on the SRA were in vain. “We had asked for information from the SRA but it did not bother to send us a proper reply,” she said.

Censuring the top brass of the state police, Patkar said that most of them were occupants of illegal buildings that had no occupation certificates. “You won’t find Dalits and minorities in such plush but illegal buildings,” she said.

Earlier social activist Aruna Roy described the RTI act as a multifaceted and pluralistic campaign of democracy to fight against injustice. Roy urged RTI activists to file applications seeking information related to the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA ) on an urgent basis

indianexpress: THE Pune Municipal Corporation has not received a single claim for accident insurance scheme it launched for cyclists five months ago. The city, incidentally, has nearly 10 lakh cyclists.

The scheme was to promote cycles as an environment-friendly mode of transport and put back on track the failed cycle track project. The insurance scheme was one of the suggestions made by citizens during the public participation exercise ahead of the budget making process, last year.

Accordingly, the municipal administration had allocated Rs one crore in the 2006-07 budget, introduced in December 2006. However, with no claim being made, this amount has now lapsed. Despite this, the civic administration has continued with the provision of Rs one crore in the 2007-08 budget.

“The objective is to promote cycling amongst Puneites, so we decided in favour of continuing the insurance scheme,” said additional health chief ST Pardeshi. “Unfortunately, not many people know about the scheme. It is quite possible that the number of cyclists meeting major or fatal mishaps is negligible. Hence, there has not been a single claim so far,” he added.

The scheme entitled a cyclist to Rs 25,000 in case of injuries involving medical expenses above Rs 5,000. In case of death while riding a bicycle, the family members were entitled to Rs one lakh. The municipal administration had even shortlisted and recognised 40 city hospitals where cyclists could get treatment and claim insurance cover.

Pune Cycle Pratisthan president and Indian Medical Association vice president Dilip Sarda said the PMC should involve cycling organisations and the medical fraternity to promote the scheme. “There should be awareness about the scheme amongst cyclists and hospitals and dispensaries should be informed about the insurance scheme,” he said.

The organisation which has over 300 members is involved in promoting cycling in the city. “It is the best way to stay healthy and check pollution. The PMC’s accident insurance may have failed to take off but the effort is commendable,” said Sarda, adding that the civic body must continue with the scheme since the city roads are clogged with heavy traffic and there are not enough cycle tracks.

indianexpress:  KHICHADI, the rice and moong dal preparation served to nearly 68,000 Pune Municipal Corporation school children as a mid-day meal everyday, will be replaced by more nutritious food.

Beginning June, the civic body will start serving sprouts, leafy vegetables, dal and rice that will be cooked by women from Self Help Groups (SHGs) who will prepare the diet
 
Till now, the PMC had been giving the contract to prepare the meals to private caterers. By involving the SHG women, the civic body will provide employment to over 1,000 women from 130 SHGs along with providing quality food to students of civic schools from standard I to V.

“SHGs were started by the PMC to provide employment to women members. Through the mid-day meal scheme the PMC will generate employment and also encourage other women to join such groups,” said additional municipal commissioner, Urban Community Development, Ashok Kalamkar.

The PMC spends Rs 1.75 paise per student per meal and plans a different menu for every day of the week that will have nutritional value of 450 gm calories and 12 gm protein. The civic body will bear the cost for the new menu.

A two-day training programme on nutritional diet at SNDT College from May 21 will guide women on maintaining the quality of food, precautions to be taken while preparing it, cleanliness and hygiene. Since most SHGs operate in slum areas, hygiene and cleanliness is of utmost importance.

The workshop will focus on low-cost recipes prepared from rice. “Women will be taught to prepare different recipes from rice while maintaining the quality and providing better taste,” Kalamkar said.

Since the women may have never handled such a large scale project, the PMC will also provide training on management issues like team building, time management, capital building, account maintenance and transport.

The PMC will also appoint a 12-member team to inspect the quality of food. Each squad member will visit schools under their jurisdiction every day and check the food. “This is to keep a constant vigil on the quality and upgrade maintenance,” Kalamkar said.

indianexpress: BRINGING together the government and NGOs on the same platform can be no easy feat. But that is precisely what the Council for Advancement of People’s Action and Rural Technology (CAPART) will be doing over the next few years. Through its the unique venture — Grameen Vikas Andolan, CAPART will be facilitating collaboration between NGOs and government agencies for sustainable development in rural areas across the country.

“We find that the main problem in the rural areas is the lack of awareness about schemes offered by the government. This is why the Ministry of Rural Development has decided to work together with NGOs, and CAPART will act as a facilitator,” said CAPART member convener and representative for the northern and western region Pramila Sanjaya.

The programme will be taken up as a pilot project in all states. In Maharashtra the GVA will cover 681 Gram Panchayats across four districts, with an investment of Rs 1.15 crore. The programme will aim at disseminating information about the various schemes offered by the government, and ensuring that these schemes reach down to the grassroots, through various ‘watch agencies’. While awareness will be created about all developmental schemes of the government, the focus will be on water conservation and effective water management techniques, especially in dry and semi-arid areas.

For this purpose, the GVA will target village youth, community organisations, self-help groups (SHG), Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRI), officials from government agencies, voluntary organisations, and so on. The entire programme will be coordinated by a Central Advisory Body and Cell in New Delhi, and nine regional cells will look after implementation at the state and regional level.

Each district will be regarded as a unit, and NGOs will be selected for each block in the district. The NGOs will then set up an action plan, which will involve disseminating information through various media like street plays, audio-visual media, discussions. Trainers from the NGOs will then form ‘Vikas Sarathi Groups’ by imparting training to local youth, members of SHGs, voluntary organisations, and so on.

The Vikas Sarathi Groups will comprise at least 50 per cent women, and will travel from village to village to spread awareness. Information will also be given on the traditional and scientific techniques of water conservation, the need to implement modern scientific water harvesting systems, checking contamination of water bodies among others.

indianexpress: ALTHOUGH a state government resolution had stated that from March 1, it would be possible to get registration of marriages done at all the 14 ward offices of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) as well as Cantonment offices, the actual situation appears to be quite different. Officials at the PMC stated that no registration of marriages was being done at the ward offices, the said work is being done through office of assistant district registrar and stamp duty collector.

The resolution had brought some relief to the over burdened Registrar of Marriage Bureaus where people faced several hassles due to a heavy rush most of the times.
 
The implementation of the resolution provided additional 14 marriage registration centres and four in Pimpri-Chinchwad. Residents in the Cantonment areas of Pune, Khadki and Dehu Road could directly approach the Cantonment Board Office.

When activist Vihar Dhurve filed a requisition under Right To Information Act seeking information on the status of registration of marriages at ward offices, Karve Road ward officer Raghunath Phate stated that although the state government resolution had directed for registration of marriages at ward offices, the actual implementation is not being done at the ward offices.

When contacted Phate said there was a stay on the registration of marriages at ward offices by the Bombay High Court due to which implementation was being made at the district administrative offices.

msnbc: A Canadian professor has developed technology that allows advertisers to count the number of people who look at their billboards and screens.

Roel Vertegaal’s Xuuk eyebox2 is a $999 portable device with a camera that monitors eye movements and automatically detects when you are looking at it from up to about 35 feet away. Until now, Vertegaal says, such eye-trackers have been ineffective beyond 2 feet, required people to remain stationary and cost more than $25,000.

“It can track interest for your advertisers so you can actually have a business model where you sell the ad by the eyeball,” said Vertegaal, a professor at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario.

The eyebox2 comes as ads increasingly appear on plasma display panels in shopping malls, restaurants and other public places. Although Internet ads can be measured by the number of hits on a Web site, it is much harder to assess the ads on plasma screens.

Vertegaal, who has been working on the technology since 1994, says advertisers can now accurately measure how much attention something receives, whether on a plasma panel, a billboard, or as the result of its placement on a supermarket shelf.

Whether a viewer actually makes a purchase is another matter.

Vertegaal said the eyebox2 is being used by advertisers in Britain, but not in the United States yet.

He recently spoke at Google Inc.’s corporate headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. Google said in a statement that it often invites interesting people, but such talks shouldn’t infer any specific product direction Google is taking.

msnbc: In a sign that environmental sensibilities are informing business strategies, IBM Corp. is spending $1 billion to spread technologies and services that could make corporate computing centers more energy efficient.

Under an initiative that IBM executives intend to announce at an event Thursday in New York, the company will reoutfit the “data centers” it operates and help its customers redo their own with multiple power-saving approaches.

Data centers are huge, humming banks of servers that process transactions, serve up Web pages and store information. Because of all the electricity and air conditioning those computers need, data centers can be energy hogs.

IBM — which has pledged, like several other big companies, to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions — is a leading data center operator, with more than 8 million square feet of these computing warehouses worldwide.

Among the ways IBM expects to make data centers greener is through heavier use of “virtualization” technologies, which let one computer handle the operations of multiple machines. IBM also plans to deploy more “provisioning software” that increases the time that servers switch to power-saving standby mode. And it expects to launch new liquid-cooling systems that capture power in off-peak times and store it for peak use.

The $1 billion is being reallocated from other purposes and is not an increase in the company’s investment or capital expenditure plans. Even so, IBM is expected to call this a massive effort that reflects how energy issues are a higher priority for its customers.

Forrester Research analyst Christopher Mines said the initiative reflects the fact for an increasing number of companies, environmental responsibility now is “an input to business strategy rather than just being an output.”

msnbc: A convincing twin of Darth Vader stalks the beige cubicles of a Silicon Valley office, complete with ominous black mask, cape and light saber.

But this is no chintzy Halloween costume. It’s a prototype, years in the making, of a toy that incorporates brain wave-reading technology.

Behind the mask is a sensor that touches the user’s forehead and reads the brain’s electrical signals, then sends them to a wireless receiver inside the saber, which lights up when the user is concentrating. The player maintains focus by channeling thoughts on any fixed mental image, or thinking specifically about keeping the light sword on. When the mind wanders, the wand goes dark.

Engineers at NeuroSky Inc. have big plans for brain wave-reading toys and video games. They say the simple Darth Vader game — a relatively crude biofeedback device cloaked in gimmicky garb — portends the coming of more sophisticated devices that could revolutionize the way people play.

Thought control?
Technology from NeuroSky and other startups could make video games more mentally stimulating and realistic. It could even enable players to control video game characters or avatars in virtual worlds with nothing but their thoughts.

Adding biofeedback to “Tiger Woods PGA Tour,” for instance, could mean that only those players who muster Zen-like concentration could nail a putt. In the popular first-person shooter “Grand Theft Auto,” players who become nervous or frightened would have worse aim than those who remain relaxed and focused.

NeuroSky’s prototype measures a person’s baseline brain-wave activity, including signals that relate to concentration, relaxation and anxiety. The technology ranks performance in each category on a scale of 1 to 100, and the numbers change as a person thinks about relaxing images, focuses intently, or gets kicked, interrupted or otherwise distracted.

msnbc: With a tiny, high-tech scale, researchers can now weigh living bacteria and immune cells for the first time.

In traditional methods of weighing, molecule are placed on top of a tiny silicon slab inside a vacuum.

The slab vibrates at its natural frequency until the molecule is placed on top, when the frequency changes slightly. The mass of the molecule can be calculated by measuring the change.

But living cells cannot survive in a vacuum and must be measured in a fluid, which would interfere with the measurement if it surrounded the slab.

A group of MIT scientists solved this problem by pumping the fluid containing the sample of cells through a microchannel inside the slab.

The scale can now measure living cells and nanoparticles down to a femtogram, or about the weight of an E. coli bacterium.

The technique could help researchers develop inexpensive, portable diagnostic devices that could help health workers in developing countries; for example, a device could be created to count CD4 immune cells in AIDS patients, which would tell how far the disease has progressed.