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indianexpress: With great fanfare, the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited had a few months back launched a drive to detect power thefts across the State to nab and fine those who use electricity illegally. But MSEDCL apparently closed its eyes to the going-ons within as it has now come to light that the company itself has been supplying around 2.5 mega watt of electricity to 195 “unauthorised” sawmills in and around Pune city every day.

The shocking revealation came to light after Mahesh Mahajan, an activist and founder of Friends of Nature Association, filed a Right to Information Act (RTI) application with the forest department in May 2007, which provided him with the information that there are 195 unauthorised sawmills operating in and around Pune. He has also brought the issue of illegal power supply to sawmills to the notice of the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC).

“I had sought information from the forest department regarding as to how many unauthorised sawmills are operating in and around Pune. I filed the application in May 2007 and received the information that there are 195 sawmills in the Pune division of the forest dept. After this, we carried out a survey to check the real situation and found out that within Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, there are 150 unauthorised sawmills while the rest are in the adjoining areas like Talegaon Dabhade. In some cases, we also observed that the electricity supply is reconnected for office use and then the same is being used for unauthorised saw mills on the premises.”

Of the 150 illegal saw mills in Pune and PCMC limits, 100 are in Pune city while the remaining ones are in PCMC limits and each sawmill consumes electricity in the range of 75 KW to 150 KW.

When contacted, MSEDCL chief engineer of Pune Division R B Gautam said, “We are aware of this issue. MSEDCL and the forest department together are going to launch a survey to get the complete picture. We will come out with a report in a couple of days based on which we will initiate our action. We will disconnect the power supply of the defaulters.”

indianexpress: In an effort to avoid damage to gardens and parks, the Praveen Pardeshi-led civic administration of the Pune Municipal Corporation on Monday put forth a proposal for restricting programmes by private organisations along with complete ban on political functions. The civic administration has also decided not to allow any programmes in the gardens if there is objections from local residents.
In its proposal tabled before the standing committee, the civic administration said there was no policy so far to decide on allowing use of its gardens and parks by private organisations for various purpose.

“It is becoming difficult with many organisations simultaneously seeking permission for use of PMC garden and parks for various purposes like cultural functions and drawing competitions,” the proposal said. It has proposed that private organisations should not be given permission for function if there is opposition from local residents and that there should be total ban on political functions. The garden should neither be given for any political function nor any political party flags, banners and posters will be allowed in the parks or the permission will stand cancel, it said.

The civic administration will charge Rs 1,000 as the fee for the programme and additional Rs 1,000 as deposit. The programmes to create awareness regarding nature and environment will be given permission free of cost.The organisations seeking permission should be registered ones. Cultural, solo singing function, poem recitation and lectures should be allowed in the gardens while musical functions like orchestra banned. The organisers have to follow the guidelines of court while using loudspeakers, the proposal said. The civic administration proposes to allow only one programme in a month in a garden and all the programmes should be open for public free of cost. The garden rules will be applicable for organisers and the cost of any damage to the garden will be recovered from the organisers., the proposal said.

indianexpress: Six-hundred seater ‘Rajwada’ restaurant on Baner Road has introduced a product to automate the order and bill execution process. By doing so, it has become the “first restaurant in the city” to the mechanise the system using wireless technology. The Wings iNet Technologies India Pvt Limited, a city-based IT solutions firm, is brain behind the innovative move.

While this system has been in process for a month and a half now, the restaurant and the company came together to formally announce the move in the city today.

“All waiters carry electronic palm devices which they will feed with customer orders. It will directly be transferred to the concerned department, be it the kitchen or the bar,” said Vijay Badhe, director- Technical, Wings iNet Technologies.

He said the foolproof way to pass orders to the kitchen would also help streamline accounts for the company. The restaurant will know what department makes the most money, which dishes are most popular or vice versa. As bills would be easier to generate, there will be fewer inaccuracies and it will leave little room open for account manipulation. There will be less harassment for the waiters as well, said Badhe.

“The restaurant has invested Rs 6.5 lakh to get 12 palm devices and for the accompanying hardware infrastructure,” said Vijay Kale, restaurant head. Wings iNet is in talks with four other restaurants in the city and 10 restaurants in Goa and Nagpur and other parts of Western Maharashtra to introduce this technology there. The company is planning to target 100 restaurants by next December 2008, said marketing manager Rajiv Ranjan.

indianexpress: The International Institute of Information Technology (I2IT) has signed a significant agreement with US-based North Dakota State University (NDSU) for undertaking collaborations in research as well as faculty and student exchanges with the university. The MoU was signed by I2IT chief mentor Vijay Bhatkar and NDSU president Joseph A Chapman along with other NDSU dignitaries including the dean of graduate studies David Wittrock.

NDSU is a state-funded university with grants of up to $120 million with primary emphasis on research. The varsity is research-intensive have 41 Doctoral Programs in addition to the existing 55 Masters Programs and more than 100 Undergraduate Programs.

The research collaborations with I2IT would focus on fields like nano-technology, biotechnology, robotics, computer science, telecommunication, and embedded systems. These would include student as well as faculty exchanges at the research level. As per the agreement, students pursuing their MS at I2IT would be able to complete their final internships at NDSU and even pursue Ph.D programmes there. Students from both institutes can also opt for semesters or project, and teachers can carry out joint research projects. Both the institutes can also jointly organize seminars, international conferences and lecture series.

These academic collaborations will be coordinated by NDSU associate vice-president Sudhir Mehta, who will be based in India and will act as the liaison for carrying out the agreement.

indianexpress: Close your eyes and make a wish. And yes, it will be granted by Make-A-Wish foundation that set up its Pune division. So on Saturday, 50 children who have been receiving treatment at Ruby Hall Clinic were in for a happy surprise. Santa Claus visited them laden with gifts donated by Pune division of the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of India.

Director Dipti Bhosle and programme coordinator Ashish Dodamani interacted with the children, their parents and the staff of Ruby hall. Said Bhosle, “The operations of Pune Division of Make-A-Wish Foundation® of India have got off to a most auspicious beginning. We have been able to talk to so many children and ascertain their wishes. We will now start the process of fulfilling them.”

Make-A-Wish Foundation is a non-profit wish granting organisation in the world, providing joyful experiences that take wish kids and their families on a magical journey. Dr Ashok Bhanage, chairman of the Cancer Centre at Ruby Hall Clinic said that “the responsibility of the hospital goes beyond providing good treatment. The patients should be rehabilitated and their quality of life has to be improved.”

Those willing to volunteer their services to Make-A-Wish Foundation® of India, may contact Dipti Bhosle - 9890452461 and Ashish Dodamani— 9881211746 The Make-A-Wish Foundation® in India was set up in 1996

The Indian affiliate was established by Uday and Gita Joshi and till date Date, the Foundation has fulfilled over 11,500 wishes, relying on support from various organisations, generous donors and volunteers.

indianexpress: After years of protest, advocates in Pimpri-Chinchwad have something to look forward to. A new court room has come up at Morwadi which already houses four civil and criminal courts. The new court hall which has been set up on the terrace of the Morwadi building is likely to conduct trial in cases relating to Section 138 (cheque bouncing) and Section 125 (maintenance for women).

Morwadi court officials said the court hall is ready and they were waiting for the arrival of new first class judicial magistrate. “Once the judge arrives, the court functioning will begin immediately as everything has been put in place,” he said, requesting anonymity. Advocate Sushil Mancharkar, former president of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Advocates Bar Association, said the new court hall was readied over a month ago. “We had also heard about the appointment of the new judge. But apparently the appointment was cancelled by the State Government and a fresh appointment is likely to be made soon,” he said, adding, in another four-five days the new court should start functioning.

Mancharkar said in the new court room all the furniture, witness box, dias and other amenities have been put in place. “The staff has also been appointed,” he said. The new court, said Mancharkar, will be of great help in taking up the cases related to Section 138 and Section 125 as their number was piling up by the day. “The cases related to both the sections have gone up considerably. The new court is expected to take up these cases,” he said.

The advocates however say this is only one of the several demands that has been met by the State Government. The court premises, point out advocates, is devoid basic facilities. “There is absolutely no parking facility. Proper toilet facility is also missing. There is no reading hall, well-equipped library, bar room, drinking water facility and even inspection room is not available,” says Mancharkar.

indianexpress: The Institution of Engineers, Pune Local Centre, celebrated the Energy Conservation Week recently and presented the DSK Energy Awards to individuals and companies for their outstanding contribution in the field of energy conservation.

This is the seventh successive year of DSK Energy Awards, which is given in four different categories. It includes a trophy, certificate and a cash prize of Rs.10000.

Pradeep Bhargava, managing director, Cummins Generator Technologies received the DSK Energy Award in the category of individual having outstanding contribution in energy conservation sector.

Ashutosh Agashe, joint managing director, Brihan Maharashtra Sugar Syndicate, bagged an award in the category of corporate implementing the most energy efficiency improvement measures.

Deepak Kale from Apex Enterprises won the DSK Energy Award for being the most prominent energy saving device manufacturer. Shyam Sunder Deo, technical advisor, Suzlon Energy Ltd, Pune was awarded for his outstanding contribution in renewable energy sector.

The awards were given at the hands of Ashok D. Atre, Chairman, Transparent Group of Companies.

Prof S L Kolhatkar, B V College of Architecture delivered a keynote address on “Current trends in architecture for energy conservation.”

indianexpress: A replica of Velankanni Church at Nagapattanam, 300 km from Chennai, which has come up along Dhole-Patil Road is drawing curious crowds. The architect is 75-year-old Anthony Swami, a resident of Sangharalay Society, where the replica has become the cynosure of all eyes.

It took 45 days of hard-work for Swami to churn out the replica which rises to eight feet. The mini-church, made of thermacol, is festooned with stars, balls and lamps. “I did it all by myself, manually…crafted every bit of it,” stresses the septuagenarian. And when the mini-church is lit up, it is a sight to behold.

Swami begins his work by conceptualising the theme of the model and ultimately gives it a desired shape. “Not just Christians, but even the Muslims, Hindus and Parsis come to Velankanni’s church with full devotion. Mother Velankanni is known for granting all the wishes made by pure heart,” he says.

For 30 years now, Swami has been engaging himself in creating these kind of magnificent and majestic cribs every year on Christmas. He makes use of straws, thermacol and wax to bring his imagination to a solid form. The best part of it is, he recycles the wax and uses it to make candles every year.

Swami’s creativity picked momentum when he started making cribs for the Church of the Lady of Perpetual Health located on Sassoon Road. “My work was greatly appreciated there. After that, I started making the same at my residence,” he recollects. He has won several best crib awards in contests organised by the Church of the Lady of Perpetual Health.