Two students from Sri Krishna College of Engineering have embarked upon a novel initiative. Anmol Vij and Nishanth Babu, third year B.Tech Information Technology students, have got together engineering students of various colleges and formed a Coimbatore User Group.
True to the function of user groups, this group would impart the best of technical knowledge to the engineering student fraternity and create opportunities for fruitful discussions with professionals from the industry. “The main aim of the group is updating technical knowledge and sharing recent trends in IT,” says Mr.Anmol.
125 members
Any engineering student who is interested in remaining up-to-date on the developments taking place in the technology sector can be part of the group. Currently, the group has about 125 members, all students from various engineering colleges.
“The very first meeting itself had a huge turn-out of students. This shows that the interest for IT is still very high” he adds. The members of the group, through their personal contacts, have forged ties with professionals in companies such as Microsoft, CTS, TCS, IBM and CSC. “Some of them have even agreed to conduct seminars and talk about recent trends in technology to the students,” Mr.Anmol adds. The group has an online presence too. It has a website, on which all the activities of the group would be uploaded. It is also hoping for approval from the international user group of developers who use or support the .NET standard put out by Microsoft, (iNeta).
Technical magazine
The Coimbatore User Group has plans to launch a technical magazine. This 20-page magazine would be sponsored by Shakthi Institute of Engineering and Technology.
It will contain news related to new software, technologies, hardware, technical companies and engineering colleges.
They would send 50 free copies of the magazine to every engineering college and also to IT companies in Chennai and Bangalore.
The team plans to bring out a book later that will speak about the lives of engineering students.
!They would do projects using VB, .net, Java and other languages. It would also organise group discussions about subjects in the engineering curriculum.
The team will meet every Sunday for three hours.
For details, visit the Coimbatore User Group at www.cugstudents.com. Or phone: Anmol Vij at 9944148650. For registration, send an e-mail to cugstudents@gmail.com.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Avanashi Road flyover maintenance plans
The underpass beneath the Avanashi Road flyover will be repaired and opened for traffic.
The District Collector, Neeraj Mittal; the City Police Commissioner, C.K. Gandhirajan; and the Corporation Commissioner, P. Muthuveeran; along with officials of the Corporation and Highways inspected the underpass beneath the flyover.
It was decided to provide more powerful lighting at the underpass so that it will be used by motorists without fear. The police have decided to post pickets and ply patrol vehicles to deter anti-social elements from converting the underpass into a den for unlawful activities.
The officials decided to carry out patch works and re-laying of the road. Officials have decided to divert the flow of vehicles especially two-wheelers and passenger auto-rickshaws through the underpass from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Collector said that the Corporation had already done enough works for arresting the seepage of water into the underpass which turned itslushy.
Motor pump sets have been repaired to prevent flooding of the underpass during rain.
The District Collector, Neeraj Mittal; the City Police Commissioner, C.K. Gandhirajan; and the Corporation Commissioner, P. Muthuveeran; along with officials of the Corporation and Highways inspected the underpass beneath the flyover.
It was decided to provide more powerful lighting at the underpass so that it will be used by motorists without fear. The police have decided to post pickets and ply patrol vehicles to deter anti-social elements from converting the underpass into a den for unlawful activities.
The officials decided to carry out patch works and re-laying of the road. Officials have decided to divert the flow of vehicles especially two-wheelers and passenger auto-rickshaws through the underpass from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Collector said that the Corporation had already done enough works for arresting the seepage of water into the underpass which turned itslushy.
Motor pump sets have been repaired to prevent flooding of the underpass during rain.
Friday, September 07, 2007
MBA programme in Airport and Airline Management
With the boom in aviation sector, scope for job opportunities are aplenty. This unique course, the first of its kind in the country, will provide you with an industry-specific programme. But, you have to work consistently to get a good job, R. Radhakrishnan, Vice-Chancellor of Anna University, Coimbatore, said here on Thursday.
Inaugurating the first MBA programme in Airport and Airline Management at the Nehru College of Aeronautics and Applied Sciences that would be conducted as a collaborative programme of the Anna University, Coimbatore, he urged students to learn one or two foreign languages to make them well equipped to work in airports outside the country. All post-graduate degree programmes of the university would have a compulsory foreign language paper shortly, he said. This would make students face international competition.
Website
Speaking on the uniqueness of the course, he said that the course material of the first semester along with the calendar schedule were loaded on the website. The fifth semester would be spent in the field to enable students get trained before getting a job.
K. Hemalatha, Director, Coimbatore Airport, said: “There are 35 non-metro airports lined up for development. The Coimbatore Airport itself will be expanded at a cost of Rs. 100 crore. However, this will be enough to sustain the growth only for the next five years.
Expansion and development should be able to face the growth for at least 25 years.”
She said that the aviation industry would offer more than two lakh jobs in the next 10 years.
An MBA in Airport and Airline Management was different from other management courses because all aspects of management were required in managing an airport.
“Nowadays airports face the added threat of terrorism. Disaster management and quick reaction to situations like grounding and air crashes are very important. If an airport team cannot react to a situation in three minutes, then it is poor management, because it involves saving lives.”
Effective
She urged the Vice-Chancellor to make the course effective and global in such a way that airport directors of small airports would also be treated on a par with those of metro airports and international airports.
P.C.K. Ravindran, Director, Aviation Management Studies and Advisor, Aeronautical Sciences of the college and N.G. Nair, Advisor, Nehru Group of Institutions, spoke.
Inaugurating the first MBA programme in Airport and Airline Management at the Nehru College of Aeronautics and Applied Sciences that would be conducted as a collaborative programme of the Anna University, Coimbatore, he urged students to learn one or two foreign languages to make them well equipped to work in airports outside the country. All post-graduate degree programmes of the university would have a compulsory foreign language paper shortly, he said. This would make students face international competition.
Website
Speaking on the uniqueness of the course, he said that the course material of the first semester along with the calendar schedule were loaded on the website. The fifth semester would be spent in the field to enable students get trained before getting a job.
K. Hemalatha, Director, Coimbatore Airport, said: “There are 35 non-metro airports lined up for development. The Coimbatore Airport itself will be expanded at a cost of Rs. 100 crore. However, this will be enough to sustain the growth only for the next five years.
Expansion and development should be able to face the growth for at least 25 years.”
She said that the aviation industry would offer more than two lakh jobs in the next 10 years.
An MBA in Airport and Airline Management was different from other management courses because all aspects of management were required in managing an airport.
“Nowadays airports face the added threat of terrorism. Disaster management and quick reaction to situations like grounding and air crashes are very important. If an airport team cannot react to a situation in three minutes, then it is poor management, because it involves saving lives.”
Effective
She urged the Vice-Chancellor to make the course effective and global in such a way that airport directors of small airports would also be treated on a par with those of metro airports and international airports.
P.C.K. Ravindran, Director, Aviation Management Studies and Advisor, Aeronautical Sciences of the college and N.G. Nair, Advisor, Nehru Group of Institutions, spoke.
'The Chamber Show 2007’ from October
The Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Coimbatore (ICCIC) will organise ‘The Chamber Show 2007’ from October 11 to 14 at Sri Ramakrishna Kalyana Mandapam here.
The show will feature a series of products, brands and services, with a special focus on products made in Coimbatore, D.Balasundaram, president of ICCIC, told presspersons here on Tuesday.
It would also serve as a platform for young manufacturers to showcase their new products and encourage young entrepreneurs too, he added.
Food, home appliances, interiors, home decorations, kitchen equipment, electrical gadgets, leather, stationery, security systems, building materials, jewellery, automobiles, insurance, home loans and textiles would be among the 117 exhibitors.
The show will feature a series of products, brands and services, with a special focus on products made in Coimbatore, D.Balasundaram, president of ICCIC, told presspersons here on Tuesday.
It would also serve as a platform for young manufacturers to showcase their new products and encourage young entrepreneurs too, he added.
Food, home appliances, interiors, home decorations, kitchen equipment, electrical gadgets, leather, stationery, security systems, building materials, jewellery, automobiles, insurance, home loans and textiles would be among the 117 exhibitors.
Rajagopuram thiruppani works at Koniamman temple
The State Government has accorded administrative and technical sanction for the construction of a Rajagopuram with seven tiers for the Koniamman Temple.
It would be built at a cost of Rs 30 lakh from the temple funds and Rs 80 lakh from donations.
The raja gopuram would soon become a landmark for identifying Coimbatore by virtue of aesthetic looking tallest gopuram in the City. It would be 83.2 ft tall, 46.7 ft width and 28 ft length. With the last kumbhabhiashekam having been performed on September 8, 1995 as per the ahama rules since it was 12 years since the last kumbhabiashkam, the raja goupram thiruppani works would be completed and a kumbhabiashkam would be performed.
It would be built at a cost of Rs 30 lakh from the temple funds and Rs 80 lakh from donations.
The raja gopuram would soon become a landmark for identifying Coimbatore by virtue of aesthetic looking tallest gopuram in the City. It would be 83.2 ft tall, 46.7 ft width and 28 ft length. With the last kumbhabhiashekam having been performed on September 8, 1995 as per the ahama rules since it was 12 years since the last kumbhabiashkam, the raja goupram thiruppani works would be completed and a kumbhabiashkam would be performed.
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
Speed up Tidel Park Project says BJP
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has demanded measures to speed up the Tidel Park project here.
In a letter to Union Communication and Information Technology Minister A. Raja, BJP State secretary G.K.S. Selvakumar has said that the project was first announced during the term of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government at the Centre.
Vajpayee’s visit
When Mr. Vajpayee had come here as Prime Minister, industry captains and experts had requested him and other Union Ministers for efforts to establish a Tidel park in Coimbatore, on the lines of the one in Chennai.
But, the pace at which the project progressed now, after the identification of the site and allocation of funds, only suggested that the Central and State Governments were ignoring it.
Dream of Coimbatore
Mr. Selvakumar requested the Minister for efforts to speed up the project as the park was the dream of Coimbatore.
It would provide direct and indirect employment to many youth qualified in information technology, the letter said.
In a letter to Union Communication and Information Technology Minister A. Raja, BJP State secretary G.K.S. Selvakumar has said that the project was first announced during the term of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government at the Centre.
Vajpayee’s visit
When Mr. Vajpayee had come here as Prime Minister, industry captains and experts had requested him and other Union Ministers for efforts to establish a Tidel park in Coimbatore, on the lines of the one in Chennai.
But, the pace at which the project progressed now, after the identification of the site and allocation of funds, only suggested that the Central and State Governments were ignoring it.
Dream of Coimbatore
Mr. Selvakumar requested the Minister for efforts to speed up the project as the park was the dream of Coimbatore.
It would provide direct and indirect employment to many youth qualified in information technology, the letter said.
GRD Matriculation to try online examinations
For the students of the GRD Matriculation Higher Secondary School here, examinations are going to be a different experience altogether. Students from Classes IV to IX will now take segments of the terminal and the final examinations online. The online exercise will be of 40 minutes duration.
The system does not substitute totally the conventional method of writing answers on paper but supplements it, says D. Prabha, school Principal. It is being introduced with the objective of making students more tech-savvy, and the school hopes to orient its students towards a life dominated by information technology.
Objective-type questions in mathematics, physical sciences, biology, social sciences and English will be taken online. The descriptive questions, however, will have to be attempted on paper, Ms. Prabha says.
The online system has its advantages. As the results are displayed immediately, students can assess themselves quickly. “All students will get an opportunity for direct and constructive feedback,” says Geetha Padmanabhan, secretary of the school. The evaluation is automated and without room for any bias. The online tests can sharpen various skills. According to clinical psychologist N. Lakshmanan, this kind of examination can reduce stress and anxiety of students.
The system does not substitute totally the conventional method of writing answers on paper but supplements it, says D. Prabha, school Principal. It is being introduced with the objective of making students more tech-savvy, and the school hopes to orient its students towards a life dominated by information technology.
Objective-type questions in mathematics, physical sciences, biology, social sciences and English will be taken online. The descriptive questions, however, will have to be attempted on paper, Ms. Prabha says.
The online system has its advantages. As the results are displayed immediately, students can assess themselves quickly. “All students will get an opportunity for direct and constructive feedback,” says Geetha Padmanabhan, secretary of the school. The evaluation is automated and without room for any bias. The online tests can sharpen various skills. According to clinical psychologist N. Lakshmanan, this kind of examination can reduce stress and anxiety of students.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Passenger traffic soaring in Coimbatore Airport
Passenger and aircraft movements at the Coimbatore Airport have soared thanks to economic boom and entry of low cost airlines. Airport Director K. Hemalatha said SilkAir was planning to operate a weekly thrice service from Coimbatore to Singapore (to and fro flight) from October 28. The flight scheduled for Wednesday, Friday and Sunday will arrive at 11.30 p.m. and depart at 00.20 a.m. The airline is planning to operate A319 or A320 aircraft (120 or 180 seats respectively).
The Coimbatore–Singapore flight service becomes the second international connectivity for Coimbatore next to the Coimbatore– Sharjah weekly thrice service by Indian. Airport sources said Sri Lankan Airlines had evinced interest in operating a service from Coimbatore to Colombo and was even planning to have five services a week.
A team from the airline is coming to Coimbatore this week to finalise arrangements. Sources said there had been enquiries for the feasibility of a Coimbatore–Dubai connectivity and one of the Gulf-based airlines was likely to grab it. Spice Jet Airways is planning to operate services from Coimbatore with Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai likely to be the destinations. A Chennai-based firm ‘Dravidian Air’ was planning to operate services connecting major airports in the four southern states.
The Coimbatore–Singapore flight service becomes the second international connectivity for Coimbatore next to the Coimbatore– Sharjah weekly thrice service by Indian. Airport sources said Sri Lankan Airlines had evinced interest in operating a service from Coimbatore to Colombo and was even planning to have five services a week.
A team from the airline is coming to Coimbatore this week to finalise arrangements. Sources said there had been enquiries for the feasibility of a Coimbatore–Dubai connectivity and one of the Gulf-based airlines was likely to grab it. Spice Jet Airways is planning to operate services from Coimbatore with Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai likely to be the destinations. A Chennai-based firm ‘Dravidian Air’ was planning to operate services connecting major airports in the four southern states.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Elgi Equipments bags a huge deal
The Coimbatore-based Elgi Equipments Ltd., one of the largest and most integrated compressor manufacturers in Asia, has sealed a major turnkey deal with Adani Power Ltd for the supply of 12 oil-free compressors. According to a company release, the order, which is worth Rs 6.1 crore, will consolidate Elgi’s strong position in the power sector in India.
These compressors will be installed in the 4X330 MW thermal power plant of Adani Power Ltd. at Mundra, Kutch. With an aggregate generation capacity of 1,320 MW, Adani’s new power plant is can produce 5, 000 MUs in the next five years. Elgi’s oil free compressors find great utility in major thermal power plants in India as they provide 100 per cent dry, oil-free air. Elgi’s clientele include Neyveli Lignite Corporation (1470 MW), Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (250 MW) and Andhra Pradesh Geno VTPS Thermal Power Plant (500 MW).
These compressors will be installed in the 4X330 MW thermal power plant of Adani Power Ltd. at Mundra, Kutch. With an aggregate generation capacity of 1,320 MW, Adani’s new power plant is can produce 5, 000 MUs in the next five years. Elgi’s oil free compressors find great utility in major thermal power plants in India as they provide 100 per cent dry, oil-free air. Elgi’s clientele include Neyveli Lignite Corporation (1470 MW), Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (250 MW) and Andhra Pradesh Geno VTPS Thermal Power Plant (500 MW).
New autorickshaw fare remains only on chart
The new meter fare for autorickshaws remained only in print on Monday – the day when it was supposed to take effect in Coimbatore. The minimum fare of Rs. 14 fixed by the Government was confined to the chart provided to the autorickshaw drivers by the Regional Transport Office.
As per the new rates, passengers should pay Rs. 14 if the meter reads Rs. 7. A combination of resistance on the part of the drivers and ignorance on the part of the passengers allowed fleecing to continue even on day one of the new fare.
Ignorance
Passengers at the railway station were either not aware of the new rates coming into effect or never got a chance to emphasise it with the autorickshaw drivers. So determined were the drivers to rubbish the new fare that they got away comfortably with their methods of collecting excess fare.
Despite the officials distributing the new fare charts, neither the drivers nor most of the passengers took note of it. While the drivers rejected the fare, many passengers saw no point in arguing with them when there was no scope for winning.
Enforcement
Responding to complaints of the new fare not being enforced on Monday, transport authorities said that the first two days were set aside for the distribution of the fare chart. Enforcement would begin on Wednesday. There was an indication that some stringent measures might be taken if the drivers refused to operate with the new fare.
But, the authorities also provided a hint that they would not rush into action and that was why the first day did not have visible enforcement. More than 1,000 cards were to have been distributed on Monday.
The 6,000 autorickshaws in the city would be covered by Tuesday night. The distribution of the charts on the first two days was expected to serve as an exercise to prepare the drivers to operate with the new fare.
Digital meters
The transport authorities have given time for the drivers to fix digital meters that will be calibrated to the new fare. Till then, the existing meters calibrated to the old fare of Rs. 7 will have to be used. The vehicles having the old meters will have to use the chart containing the new fares. But, the drivers themselves admitted that the meters in most of the autorickshaws either malfunctioned or did not function at all.
Chennai experience
Official sources said there was scepticism among the authorities over the district’s ability to enforce the new fare. Given the fact that the fare, introduced in Chennai on January 26, was rejected by the autorickshaw drivers, there was no illusion here of the drivers accepting the fare without protest.
President of the Federation of Autorickshaw Workers’ Unions of Coimbatore District P.K. Sukumaran said that around 3,000 drivers would stage a demonstration in the city on Tuesday to protest against the fare. “We cannot accept Rs.14 as the minimum fare. We have asked for Rs.20, only this amount is viable for us,” he said.
As per the new rates, passengers should pay Rs. 14 if the meter reads Rs. 7. A combination of resistance on the part of the drivers and ignorance on the part of the passengers allowed fleecing to continue even on day one of the new fare.
Ignorance
Passengers at the railway station were either not aware of the new rates coming into effect or never got a chance to emphasise it with the autorickshaw drivers. So determined were the drivers to rubbish the new fare that they got away comfortably with their methods of collecting excess fare.
Despite the officials distributing the new fare charts, neither the drivers nor most of the passengers took note of it. While the drivers rejected the fare, many passengers saw no point in arguing with them when there was no scope for winning.
Enforcement
Responding to complaints of the new fare not being enforced on Monday, transport authorities said that the first two days were set aside for the distribution of the fare chart. Enforcement would begin on Wednesday. There was an indication that some stringent measures might be taken if the drivers refused to operate with the new fare.
But, the authorities also provided a hint that they would not rush into action and that was why the first day did not have visible enforcement. More than 1,000 cards were to have been distributed on Monday.
The 6,000 autorickshaws in the city would be covered by Tuesday night. The distribution of the charts on the first two days was expected to serve as an exercise to prepare the drivers to operate with the new fare.
Digital meters
The transport authorities have given time for the drivers to fix digital meters that will be calibrated to the new fare. Till then, the existing meters calibrated to the old fare of Rs. 7 will have to be used. The vehicles having the old meters will have to use the chart containing the new fares. But, the drivers themselves admitted that the meters in most of the autorickshaws either malfunctioned or did not function at all.
Chennai experience
Official sources said there was scepticism among the authorities over the district’s ability to enforce the new fare. Given the fact that the fare, introduced in Chennai on January 26, was rejected by the autorickshaw drivers, there was no illusion here of the drivers accepting the fare without protest.
President of the Federation of Autorickshaw Workers’ Unions of Coimbatore District P.K. Sukumaran said that around 3,000 drivers would stage a demonstration in the city on Tuesday to protest against the fare. “We cannot accept Rs.14 as the minimum fare. We have asked for Rs.20, only this amount is viable for us,” he said.
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