Category Archives: Science & Technology

Tricore Solutions opens office in India

Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion

TriCore Solutions, a Norwell-based company that provides a suite of scalable and reliable managed application, cloud, infrastructure hosting and consulting services to enterprise organizations, said today it has opened a new office in Hyderabad, India.

The additional office is designed to expand the company’s service delivery capabilities to its existing customers, officials said.

“The opening of our new office in India and entry into South India reinforces our commitment to the market — to better serve our customers and engage new business,” said TriCore’s CEO Robert Forman in a statement. “We chose Hyderabad, a global center for IT, for its highly skilled resources, developed infrastructure and global connectivity. As a technology services leader, we see great opportunity to grow our staff and expand both the breadth and depth of services we provide to new and existing customers.”

Kusum Varanasi will manage the office, officials said.

source: http://www.bostonherald.com / Home> Business> Business & Markets / by Ira Kantor / Tuesday, April 02nd, 2013

Gerdau picks up majority stake in Indian unit

Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Hyderabad : 

Gerdau, a leading producer of special steel in the Americas, today announced majority ownership of its first plant in Asia at Tadipatri, Anantapur District, Andhra Pradesh.

The company also changed the name of its domestic operations from Kalyani Gerdau to Gerdau.

In 2007, Gerdau had entered into a joint venture with Kalyani group company — Kalyani Steels Ltd to acquire SJK Steel Plant Ltd with an equal partnership of 45 per cent each. Post acquisition of Kalyani’s shares, the operation is now majority owned by Gerdau.

Recently, the plant has started operations of its blast furnace, melt shop, sinter plant, power plant and rolling mill. It has an installed capacity of 3,00,000 tonnes of special steels, mainly focused on the automotive market.

“As we begin our 112th year of business, the start of production of special steel in India represents our expansion to an important country,’’ said André B. Gerdau Johannpeter, Gerdau’s CEO.

“This move paves the way for Gerdau to come to India and cater to the domestic market,’’ said Arvind Mathur, Executive Director-India for Gerdau.

source: http://www.TheHinduBusinessLine.com / Home / by M. Somasekhar somasekhar.m@thehindu.co.in  / Hyderabad, March 18th, 2013

Autism: Early diagnosis key to treatment’s success

Education, Science & Technology

Hyderabad :

Around 60% parents of autistic children are seeking professional help much after the disability sets in. And this trend is being noticed at a time when the incidence of Autism  Spectrum Disorders (ASD) has reached epidemic proportions. As per latest data from the US-based Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 88 children worldwide suffer from autism as against its estimates of 1 in 150 children about a decade ago.

Experts say that early intervention is the key to the success of the treatment and reducing the symptoms of autism. But in reality, by the time most children with this mysterious neuro developmental disorder are being taken to the right doctor, it is getting too late.

Characterised by impaired social interactions and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior, autism is a development disability that remains for the entire life and affects the brain’s functions. It appears in the first three years of birth. There are milder and severe variations of ASD.

Dr Anand Prasad, consultant paediatric neurologist, says that majority of the parents report the disability late. “If there is delayed speech, parents normally compare their child with other children in the family or friends  circle. By chance if the child is taken to a doctor, most of them who are unfamiliar with diagnosing autism dismiss the concerns of the parents. As a result, the diagnosis and the opportunity for early intervention therapies, gets delayed,” the doctor said.

Even if the disability is diagnosed early, in most cases, the child is confronted with parental non-acceptance. The problem, experts said, is that with these children, it is difficult to figure out the problem at birth as it takes 1-2 years for symptoms of ASD to manifest. “Parents have the tendency to adopt a wait and watch policy and when they come to know that their child is autistic, they go into a state of shock and then denial mode sets in. By the time they accept and consult a specialist, there is crucial delay,” says Dr Om Sai Ramesh who works with National Institute for the Mentally Handicapped.

According to Dr Ramesh, when a child turns two-years-old, there is 75 % brain development and by the age of 5 years, 90% of the brain is developed. “This is the critical period of life and should not be missed,” he added. Therefore, early intervention is a must in order to detect any deviance and treat the child.

Experts suggest that as the parent of a child with autism or related developmental delays, the best thing to do is to start treatment right away and seek help as soon as there is any suspicion. “Don’t wait to see if your child will catch up later or outgrow the problem. Early intervention is the most effective way to speed up your child’s development and reduce the symptoms of autism,” said E V V Rajasekhar, who runs Development Centre for Children with Autism.

As part of World Autism Day on Tuesday, “Aarambh Association for Autism,” an organization that runs a special school and therapy centre for autistic children, is lighting up the Buddha statue at Tank Bund in blue.

Typical symptoms of autism

Difficulty in expressing needs or wants verbally or non-verbally

Repeating words or phrases rather than responding to questions

Making repeated movements such as rocking or hand flapping

Displaying a strong preference to routine, disliking any change in a daily routine

Displaying emotions, pleasure or distress, for no apparent reason

Not responding to questions by appearing not to hear

Displaying no interest in playing with children of the same age.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Hyderabad / by Bushra Baseerat, TNN / April 02nd, 2013

Unani hospital set to regain original splendour

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Science & Technology
A section of the Unani Hospital that underwent renovation work using traditional building materials. - Photo: G. Ramakrishna / The Hindu
A section of the Unani Hospital that underwent renovation work using traditional building materials. – Photo: G. Ramakrishna / The Hindu

A Grade II heritage structure, the Government Nizamia Tibbi College and Hospital near the Charminar is getting a much-needed facelift after years of neglect and damage

Finally it is getting the much needed facelift.

Situated bang opposite the historic Charminar, the condition of the Government Nizamia Tibbi College and Hospital is not much different. But now this Grade II heritage structure is getting the attention it deserves. A team of skilled labours are busy trying to undo years of neglect and damage.

Renovation work in progress on the Unani Hospital in Old City. - Photo: G. Ramakrishna / The Hindu
Renovation work in progress on the Unani Hospital in Old City. – Photo: G. Ramakrishna / The Hindu

The A.P. Health, Medical Housing and Health Infrastructure Development Corporation has stepped in to restore the pristine glory of this stately structure built in 1938 by the seventh Nizam. Right now, exterior of the building where plaster has peeled off at several places with vegetal growth sprouting all over is being attended to. Repair of the dome, scrubbing and scrapping of the top surface and re-plastering with ‘shivara’ rendering is proposed.

Before undertaking the work, photographic, architectural and material documentation of the Unani hospital was done. The material documentation was intended to find out the original and traditional material used in construction of the building.

A chemical test carried out showed lime mortar as the basic material used in construction of the edifice, according to Suryanarayana Murthy, heritage architecture. The same material is now being used in right proportion along with jaggery liquid, gallnut, egg white and aloe vera gum. The workers have been trained in preparation of the construction material, he said.

Originally, renovation of the Unani hospital building was linked with the Charminar Pedestrianisation Project but later the Department of Heath has taken over the works. The conservation plan has been approved by the Heritage Conservation Committee and the works are expected to be completed by December end.

The other day Majlis floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi visited the Unani Hospital and reviewed the progress of the work.

He favoured adoption of a comprehensive approach for conservation of the Unani hospital building in its totality. If necessary, funds from other departments should be tapped to improve the surroundings around the hospital. He suggested laying of pathways within and outside the hospital, remodelling of drainage line, horticulture and lighting work to be taken up.

The GHMC has a budget of Rs. 5 crore for heritage buildings and this could be tapped for the Unani hospital restoration, Mayor Majid Hussain said.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Special Correspondent / April 02nd, 2013

Sachin opens cancer research centre

Business & Economy, Science & Technology
Prateek Sharma, Professor of Medicine, Kansas School of Medicine, in conversation with cricketers Sachin Tendulkar and V. V. S. Laxman at the launch of the Gastro Intestinal and Liver Foundation for Research and Treatment of Cancers in Hyderabad on Tuesday. At left D. Nageswara Reddy, MD, Asian Institute of Gastroenterology. –/ Photo: P V Sivakumar / The Hindu
Prateek Sharma, Professor of Medicine, Kansas School of Medicine, in conversation with cricketers Sachin Tendulkar and V. V. S. Laxman at the launch of the Gastro Intestinal and Liver Foundation for Research and Treatment of Cancers in Hyderabad on Tuesday. At left D. Nageswara Reddy, MD, Asian Institute of Gastroenterology. –/ Photo: P V Sivakumar / The Hindu

Hyderabad : 

Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar has launched a research centre on gastrointestinal cancer. Started by the Asian Institute of Gastroenterology , the centre would study the prevalence and incidence of gastrointestinal (GI) cancers.

Addressing a gathering at the launch here on Tuesday, Dr D. Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman of AIG, said the Gastrointestinal and Liver Foundation for Research and Treatment of Cancers would collect and disseminate latest information on prevention and treatment of digestive cancers.

Besides educating lawmakers and the media on the burden of digestive cancers, the centre proposes to educate and train physicians on prevention and treatment of digestive cancers. Stating that the incidence of gastrointestinal cancers was extremely high in India, he said about 40 per cent of these cancers could be prevented if screened early. G. V. Rao, a senior gastroenterology consultant, said the foundation would start a screening programme to observe the risk factors and other parameters. Aerated drinks, food laced with preservatives and stored in fridges for long, could cause GI cancers.

With highest incidence and mortality rates among all cancers, GI cancers far outnumber lung and breast cancers in the developing countries. In 2008, 22 lakh new GI cancers were registered, with 18 lakh patients succumbing to such cancers.

Dr Prateek Sharma, Professor of Medicine (Gastroenterology and Hepatology) at the University of Kansas in the US, said deaths due to these GI cancers could cross the 1.2-crore mark by 2030.

The data on cancers in India, however, is limited. But quoting a survey done by the National Cancer Registry Programme (Bangalore), Nageshwar Reddy said India might have some of the highest cancer rates in the world.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Home> Features / The Hindu Bureau / kurmanath.kanchi@thehindu.co.in / Hyderabad, March 05th, 2013

USFDA lifts import alert on Aurobindo Pharma’s Hyderabad facility

Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion

The health regulator lifts the import alert for non-sterile products manufactured at Unit VI cephalosporin facility

The US health regulator had audited the cephalosporin facility, Unit VI of Aurobindo Pharma Ltd located at Chitkul Village, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, in December 2010. / Photo: Ramesh Pathania/ Mint
The US health regulator had audited the cephalosporin facility, Unit VI of Aurobindo Pharma Ltd located at Chitkul Village, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, in December 2010. / Photo: Ramesh Pathania/ Mint

New Delhi:

Aurobindo Pharma Ltd  on Thursday said the US health regulator has lifted the import alert on its Hyderabad-based antibiotics facility, thereby allowing the company to export 9 products from this plant to the US market.

 

US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has lifted the import alert for non-sterile products manufactured at Unit VI cephalosporin facility based in Hyderabad, thereby, paving the way for resumption of exports of 9 products to the US market, Aurobindo Pharma Ltd said in a statement.
“Prior to import alert, the unit was having annual US sales of $33 million for the said products,” it added. In 2011, the USFDA had issued an import alert on products from the company’s Hyderabad-based cephalosporin facility, as a result of which its exports to the US market were affected.
The US health regulator had audited the cephalosporin facility, Unit VI of Aurobindo Pharma Ltd located at Chitkul Village, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, in December 2010.
Subsequent to the audit findings, USFDA had imposed an import alert for detention on Aurobindo Pharma Unit VI products. Cephalosporins are a class of antibiotics which are indicated for the treatment of infections caused by bacteria.
Shares of Aurobindo Pharma were trading at Rs.141.90 on the BSE in the afternoon trade, up 8.61% from its previous close.
source: http://www.livemint.com / Live Mint & Wall Street Journal / Home> Companies / by PTI / Thursday, March 28th, 2013

Hyderabad’s pink lake to be colourless soon

Business & Economy, Green Initiatives / Environment, Nature, Science & Technology, World Opinion

The Noor Mohammed Kunta (NMK) near Kattedan Industrial Estate (KIE) in Rajendranagar, which earned its sobriquet of the pink lake of Hyderabad due to its pinkish hue caused by industrial pollution, will have clear water by the end of 2015.

NMK is the first and only lake in the country to have been identified for cleanup by the World Bank-assisted project on ‘Capacity Building and Industrial Pollution Management Project’ by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs in 2010. The consortium of Witteveen+Bos, Tauw, COWI A/S and Kadam Environmental Consultants under the name of Pollution Control Board Consultants (PCBC) will implement the 32-month pilot project.

The NMK has been dead since years due to heavy inflow of industrial wastes. Representing the consortium of consultants, M Van der Wijk Marten from Nederlands on Tuesday expressed his confidence in the speedy completion of the project.

Speaking to reporters about the remediation process, he said, “First, all highly toxic sediments would be dredged out, dewatered and contained within tubes of geo-textile. According to tests, the tubes a containment efficiency which is well above 99.5 per cent and a life-span of minimum 100 years.”

Adding more, he said these tubes would be made into a bund-like fencing around the lake over which greenery could be developed. The bottom of the lake will be covered with a clean layer of sand. To prevent further inflow of pollutants, the existing Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP), which was started in 2009, would be upgraded to deal with industrial waste treatment.

In Katedan Industrial Estate (KIE), about 3,500 m3 of temporarily stored waste will be collected and disposed to an off-site landfill for Municipal Solid Waste. As a remediation measure, construction of a sediment trap was also recommended at the inlet of drains from KIE to the NMK.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express News Service – Hyderabad / March 27th, 2013

Guntur nun Glowrey on way to sainthood

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Inspiration /Positive News and Features, Leaders, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

GunturNunHF29mar2013

Hyderabad: 

The first nun-doctor missionary, who spent her life in India, mostly in Guntur and Bengaluru serving poor patients, will take her first step to sainthood on Wednesday.

The Vatican gave the nod for Sister Dr Mary Glowrey, an Australian of Irish origin, to be declared ‘Servant of God in India’, the first step to become a Catholic saint. The announcement of her declaration as Servant of God will be made by Bishop Gali Bali of Guntur diocese at a ‘chrism mass’ on Wednesday.

Dr Glowrey first landed in Guntur in 1920 at the age of 33. She came as a missionary of the Society of Jesus, Mary and Joseph and ran a dispensary which turned into St Joseph’s Hospital.

Director-general of the Catholic Health Associat-ion of India, Dr Tomi Tho-mas, says, “Sister Glowrey founded the Catholic Health Association of India in 1943 which now has 3,500 health care institutions in the country and is the largest NGO in the health sector. She was born in Victoria in 1887 and studied medicine and worked at the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital and Saint Vincent’s Hospital in Melbourne and also had a private practice.”

Bishop Gali Bali called her a “special creation of God and a great soul who embraced the whole world”. She left her lucrative career as an ENT specialist after she chanced on a pamphlet in 1915 about the appalling infant mortality rate in India. It changed the direction of her life.

“Pope Pius XI later bestowed a special blessing on her medical work and, as Sister Mary of the Sacred Heart, she became the first nun-doctor missionary. At Guntur, she trained local women to be pharmacists, nurses and midwives. She often travelled to visit the sick and dying in remote villages. She also used Indian traditional medicine,” the Bishop said.

My Jesus, I love you, were her last words

The people of Guntur were thrilled on hearing the news that Sister Glowrey will be declared ‘Servant of God in India’, the first step to become a Catholic saint.

Elizabeth, 65, of Amaravathi Road, Guntur, said, “I was brought up by Sr Glowrey. I cannot forget her love and affection. She used to be a very caring person for the poor and a devout Christian.”

Sister Victoria who had worked at St Joseph’s said, “It is a great honour for St Joseph’s General Hospital at Guntur as its founder is in the process of canonisation. She converted a small dispensary into a huge hospital which today is serving the poor and the needy.”

Dr Glowrey died on May 5, 1957. Her last words are said to be, “Jesus, Mary and Joseph” and “My Jesus, I love you”.

She spent her last days in Bengaluru and her vision led to the establishment of one of the best Indian medical colleges, St John’s Medical College.

source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> News> Current Affairs / DC / by U. Sudhakar Reddy / March 27th, 2013

‘Nobody thought she could walk again’

Inspiration /Positive News and Features, Science & Technology

hospitalHF26mar2013

Neurosurgeon Y. V. Rama Prasad talking to Lakshmi Devi in Vijayawada on Saturday. / Photo: Ch.Vijaya Bhaskar / The Hindu

None of 22-year-old Lakshmi Devi’s relatives thought she will be able to walk again. They believed only a miracle will cure her. Both her lower limbs were paralysed. And nerves once damaged cannot be repaired.

Belonging to a poor family of Bhavanipuram there was little the relatives could do for the young woman. Fortunately the Smt. Subba Lakshmi Memorial Vijay Orthopaedic and Accident Care hospital offered to help. She came on a stretcher to the hospital, but walked out after the surgery. The hospital performed the surgery free of cost.

The cause of the patient’s condition was a benign tumour in a very crucial location in the spinal cord. According to consulting neuro surgeon Y.V.Ravi Prasad the neurofibroma (benign nerve sheath tumor) was intraspinal (inside the vertebral canal), but extradural (outside the dura mater–outer most layer of the spinal cord). The large tumour that formed between dorsal vertebra nine and ten was just pressing on the spinal cord, but did not damage it fortunately. A delicate surgery was performed to remove the neurofibroma to give the patient a new lease of life. The paralysis slowly disappeared after the surgery and Lakshmi Devi is able to walk normally today. Consulting orthopaedician S.Vijayakumar was in the surgical team.

Free medical camp

A free orthopaedic and neuro surgery camp will be conducted in Ibrahimpatnam for employees of thermal power station on Sunday.

The camp will begin at 10 a.m. and close at 5 p.m.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by Special Correspondent / March 24th, 2013

Progress Software signs MoU with IIT-Hyderabad

Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Under the MoU, Progress supports academic incubation centres, internship programmes and tech talks

Progress Software, a Nasdaq-listed software company, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad, to promote innovation and product entrepreneurial skills amongst the students.

Under the MoU, Progress supports academic incubation centres, internship programmes and tech talks, which helps in growing a pool of skilled professionals. The objective is to engage fresh talent and make them industry ready.

“With this relationship with IIT-H, we aim to further promote relevant research projects, research oriented startups in the institute and enhance the innovation ecosystem through talks, lectures on product architectures and Progress technologies and if required, we shall also engage the institute’s faculty on a commissioned project,” Ramesh Loganathan, Progress Software vice president – products and Hyderabad centre head, stated in a release.

As part of the MoU, Progress will also provide students with a collaborative environment that offers a hands-on experience to develop real-world business solutions with their technology.

source: http://www.Business-Standard.com / Home> Companies> News> News / by BS Reporter / Chennai/Hyderabad / March 20th, 2013