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TOI : PUNE: Poor quality and shortage of coal that resulted in a sharp reduction of 1,200 MW in thermal power generation by the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Ltd (MSPGCL) during July 27 to August 3, is the main reason for the heavy load-shedding in Maharashtra even after the revival of monsoon.

This was revealed in an analysis of generation data for the periods July 14 to 26 and July 27 to August 3 of 2007 and 2008, done by city-based Prayas energy group.

“Maharashtra today is facing a severe power deficit. Delayed monsoon has definitely been the main culprit behind the current situation but there are other factors as well which need careful scrutiny,” said Shantanu Dixit of Prayas.

In order to analyse the current situation, Prayas compared the generation pattern, unrestricted demand and load-shedding at this time of the year with what it was during the same period in the previous year.

“It is clear that in the first half of the period considered, there was truly a crisis situation. The unrestricted demand had increased by about 2,300 MW than what it was in 2007 and hence load-shedding had also increased proportionally,” Dixit observed.
However, the scenario in the second half — from July 27 to August 3 — is quite different. The demand in 2008 is more by only 450 MW than 2007 but the load-shedding increased by about 1,350 MW, he said. “The primary reason for this increase in load-shedding is that coal-based thermal generation of MSPGCL had dropped by 1,200 MW than what it was during the same period in 2007.”

Analysis of the sudden drop in coal-based generation shows that units 5 and 7 of Chandrapur thermal plant has been generating at a significantly lower level than their installed capacity. These units are designed to generate around 11 million units (MU) a day…More

TOI : PUNE: Unable to cope with the work pressure in the software world, an IIT alumnus committed suicide on Wednesday night by jumping from the terrace of the seven-floor building where he was working.

Sandeep Appasaheb Shelke (25) of Kakade city in Karvenagar was a software professional at Persistent Systems. According to Prakash Limaye, security officer and advisor to the company, Shelke jumped from the company terrace around 9.45 pm on Wednesday. Shelke was rushed to Sassoon Hospital, where he was declared dead around 11.00 pm.

Shelke’s suicide note, recovered by the Deccan police, mentions that no one is responsible for his act. “I am unable to do my work well and very depressed because of it. I tried my best to meet the work expectations but still unable to do it. I feel sorry for my loved ones but it’s just become unavoidable for me now,’’ the note says.

Before taking the extreme step, Shelke had SMSed his brother Yuvraj about his decision to end life. Yuvraj tried to call Shelke to stop him. His also went to the Karvenagar police chowki to inform the police.

However, Shelke had already killed himself. The family hails from Vasunde village in Ahmednagar district. The brothers (Sandepp and Yuvraj) stayed with their mother. Shelke’s brother also works with a software firm. His father is the sarpanch of Vasunde village. The family was looking for a bride for Shelke.

Shelke’s cousin Sujit Zhavare-Patil said he was quite emotional and was always engrossed in studies. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

TOI : PUNE: Ten months ago, the PMC general body (GB) approved a policy to ensure that enough trees were planted by developers at construction sites, but it is yet to be implemented.

Taking serious note of the shrinking green cover in the city due to large-scale construction activity, the PMC had passed the ‘tree policy’ and revised the standards for tree plantation on newly developed plots.

One of the most important clauses is that one tree should be planted per 100 square metres (sq. m) for plots measuring less than 500 sq. m and one tree per 80 sq. m for plots measuring more than 500 square m.

The other norms make it necessary for builders to seek a no-objection certificate from the garden department demarcating the number of trees to be planted on the plot. The PMC’s apathy has come to the fore as building construction plans are being passed without ensuring that the norms are followed.

Speaking to TOI, PMC city engineer Prashant Waghmare said ward engineers have been given fresh instructions to ensure that the building plans are sanctioned only if the tree policy norms are followed.

“Necessary action will be taken to ensure that the policy is executed. I have asked the engineers to conduct a random check on the past plans to see if the tree policy is being implemented. I have also asked for a report on that. Random files from the ward offices of the plans approved in the last few months will be checked,” he said.

Waghmare pointed out that a periodical review will be undertaken to ensure that all the ward offices are following the policy.
A senior member of the Pune Tree Authority pointed out that the PMC will have to establish a strong mechanism to keep a check on tree felling on plots to be newly…More

TOI : PUNE: What do social networking sites have to do with Alzheimer’s disease? A lot, says a PhD student from Pune, whose research has grabbed the attention of experts in the West.

Kaustubh Supekar, a PhD student with the department of biomedical informatics of the Stanford University School of Medicine (SUSM), has made a breakthrough research by using concepts borrowed from popular social networking sites like Facebook.
The research assumes significance as early diagnosis can prompt treatment of reversible symptoms and help in slowing down the progression of the disease and may ultimately help in finding a cure for the disease.

The test, which relies on common brain-imaging techniques, may be the first step towards a new diagnostic tool to differentiate early-stage Alzheimer’s disease from other disorders. “People struggle with memory loss as a part of healthy ageing or as a result of depression or non-Alzheimer’s dementia. It’s important to be able to tell the difference,” Supekar told TOI.

“Our research has shown that a healthy brain follows the principles of small-worldness that govern social network sites such as Facebook,” he said. For example, the brain consists of hub regions that communicate with other hub regions and non-hub brain regions. These hub regions can be thought of people who are very well connected in Facebook.

In Facebook, two users are likely to know each other through this popular person since he is very well connected. The popular person (social-hub) is a very critical person in the social network. If you take him out, it will be very difficult for non-social-hubs to communicate.

“We found that in Alzheimer’s disease, these hub regions are targeted first, which may explain memory loss and confusion — the characteristics of the disease,” Supekar said, adding that brain imaging data obtained from these hub brain regions can be used to diagnose Alzheimer’s.

With…More

TOI : PUNE: Additional Sessions Judge D P Waikar on Thursday rejected the bail applications of six suspects involved in the chinkara poaching case saying there was enough prima facie evidence against them.

According to the forest department, Suresh Biramane (38), Ravindra Wadkar (45), Mahesh Biramane (34), Ravi Sorap (45), Prabhakar Wagh (32) and Ankush Sanas (30), all from Mahabaleshwar and Mumbai, had allegedly hunted a chinkara, an endangered species, on June 14 in Choudharwadi village.

Former minister Dharmarao Atram and his party had allegedly taken the carcass of the deer to a farm house in Panchagani, where the meat was consumed.

The suspects have been charged with committing offences under the relevant sections of the Wild Life Protection Act and Forest Act.

Opposing the bail pleas, additional public prosecutor Ramesh Ghorpade submitted before the court that the suspects have committed a serious offence. He said the investigating officer had recorded their statements, which were admissible in evidence unlike the statements recorded by the police which were not admissible in law.

The prosecutor prayed to reject the bail applications as there was sufficient evidence against the suspects and cited others reasons like the investigation was yet to be completed, chinkara skin was to be recovered and that the suspects had not been subjected to an identification parade.

Defence lawyers Viraj Kakade, Chintamani Ghate and others prayed for the release of their clients on bail saying that they were falsely implicated in the case.

The lawyers claimed that nothing was recovered from their clients’ possession and took the defence of alibi that they were not present at the time of incident. They argued that the case was triable by the court of JMFC. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More