Category Archives: Business & Economy

The ice cream hawker who takes out newspaper

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Inspiration / Positive News and Features

Meerut :

Dinesh Kumar, 44, an ice cream hawker in the city, believes in sharing his opinion about day-to-day issues concerning people’s lives. That’s why he spends hours outside the collectorate every day and comes out with a hand-written newspaper by the end of the day. With little means, the option of circulating the paper is ruled out, so Kumar takes out its photocopies and pastes it on city walls.

Kumar says he writes about issues that don’t even make it through the vernacular press. “I try to highlight those issues which are not covered by the mainstream on vernacular media. I start my day by reaching the collectorate office at 10.30 am and scanning Hindi newspapers. Sometimes when I witness something of consequence happening around me, I pen my thoughts on that too,” he says.

“There are three reasons why I started writing. First, I try to make suggestions to the administration on how to solve problems that affect the public. My second motive is to spread social awareness. And finally I am hopeful that people who indulge in criminal or immoral activities will change after reading my newspaper,” explains Kumar.

Master Vijay Singh, a local activist, is perhaps Kumar’s most loyal reader. Singh has been protesting outside the district magistrate’s office against land mafia for nearly 20 years, and says, “Though his writing skills are not exceptional, since he dropped out of school after class VIII, sometimes the issues that he touches upon really appeal to me. He had once told me that he wanted to become a lawyer. Despite not having acces to a television, internet or a smartphone, he is quite well-informed.”

Kumar says he sends a copy of his paper to Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and Prime Minister Narendra Modi every day. But does anybody take notice? “Additional district magistrate Indramani Tripathi tells me he likes my work. Former district magistrate Surendra Singh called me to his office and told me I was doing a good job,” he says

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Meerut / by Pankul Sharma, TNN / February 25th, 2015

Fashion Spectrum 2015 held at National Institute of Fashion Technology in Lucknow

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy

NIFTLucknow09mar2015

TWO MUCH FUN: The campus of National Institute of Fashion Technology, Raebareli buzzed with activities like poster making, painting, singing, dancing, basketball matches, fashion show and so much more during the two-day annual inter-college sports and cultural fest, Fashion Spectrum 2015, which ended recently. The fest saw students from NIFT as well as other colleges of Raebareli and Lucknow actively taking part in various competitions held during the extravaganza.

JUST A CLICK AWAY: Apart from various campus activities, the most sought-after corner on the campus on day one was the Selfie Station, where the students had to click and submit their selfies under various categories. While Ashlesha’s selfie with her yellow specs won her the Best Portrait, Supriya Rao’s selfie of her shadow not only earned her many compliments, but also helped her win the prize for Best Faceless Selfie.

KUCHH BHI: However, the real hero on the campus was Sanjeev Kumar Singh. Sanjeev, who was making jewellery out of scrap, had the girls coming up with requests to design pieces for them. The femme brigade especially loved the necklace he made using the bottom part of plastic bottles. Even teachers like Nivedita and Shresha made special requests to Sanjeev to design jewellery pieces for them.

WORTH THE WAIT: The real fun started on day two of the fest with activities like basketball and a fashion show being lined up for the students. The basketball competition saw Chandresh Mehta and Makush Mohan scoring some excellent baskets.

The evening was reserved for the most awaited part of the fest – the fashion show. The chief guest for the evening was Kumar Keshav, Managing Director, Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation. The first round saw the students showcasing various garments under the theme Deep Ocean. Choreographed by Prashant Kumar and Tini Komal, the students walked the ramp wearing attires in shades of blue, turquoise and white. Round two of the fashion show had the NIFT students showcasing futuristic garments under the theme Avant Garde.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / by Akash Wadhwa, TNN / March 09th, 2015

Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) launches EO Uttar Pradesh

Business & Economy, World Opinion

Lucknow :

The world’s largest peer-to-peer network of entrepreneurs have announced their arrival to Lucknow with the unveiling of the EO UP Chapter. Since 1987, EO has been transforming the lives of the entrepreneurs who seek to bring revolution in the world. As the global thought leader on entrepreneurship, EO plays an integral role in business, industry and the lives of leading entrepreneurs everywhere.

The latest entrant in the South Asia region, EO UP brings to the network a formidable array of entrepreneurs from across sectors: power, food, chemicals, dairy, leather, construction, auto and auto components, newspaper and railway components. With combined sales in excess of 4,000 crores, and total direct employee strength of more than 13,500 people, the chapter is charting a strategic growth plan for the next five years with the aim of bringing more entrepreneurs into the community.

EO undertakes several initiatives across its chapters to foster learning, development and inclusive growth within the entrepreneur community. It brings together the brightest minds across sectors and sparks intelligent discourse to drive the spirit of success, integrity and continued learning among its members. “With once-in-a-lifetime experiences and opportunities to engage with industry experts and mentors, EO brings its members closer to success”, said the company.

Speaking at the launch, Sanjay Jhunjhunwala, Founding President, EO UP said, “As entrepreneurs, we are all very busy building our own companies. EO serves as a binding force, bringing together entrepreneurs from different walks of life, drawing their individual strengths towards a shared goal of inclusive growth, learning and prosperity. We are very excited about the launch of the UP chapter and we hope to continue growing this network, building from one success to the next.”

The Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) is a global, peer-to-peer network of more than 10,000 influential business owners with 142 chapters in 46 countries. Founded in 1987, EO is the catalyst that enables leading entrepreneurs to learn and grow, leading to greater success in business and beyond.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / by Priyanka Singh, TNN / February 26th, 2015

79 tour operators from 27 countries to give global touch to UP’s first Travel Mart

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Travel, World Opinion

Lucknow :

The four-day long UP’s first Travel Mart, which would begin on February 22 is likely to witness participation of as many as 79 tour operators from 27 countries. This also includes 25 tour operators from India. Director general of tourism Amrit Abhijat said that the Travel Mart would be inaugurated by chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, and would be held at La Martiniere Boys College ground.

He further stated that earlier the event used to be held in Jaipur under the name of ‘great Indian Travel Bazaar’, but under an agreement between FICCI and UP Tourism, the event has been slated for Lucknow, and for the next five years, it would be held in Lucknow.

“The Travel Mart would prove to be useful both for domestic and international tour operators, and at the same time, it would add another dimension to the different tourist places of the state,” Abhijat said, and added that it will also help the foreign tour operators to design better tour packages keeping in mind the historical monuments of the state.

A meeting was also held recently to formalise the preparations of the Travel Mart. The meeting was attended by Amit Gupta (of FICCI), ASI director PK Mishra, head of Heritage Hotel Association PND Singh and Salim Ali and Tariq Khan (of Roomi Foundation). A meeting was also held under the chairmanship of Mahesh Kumar Gupta, divisional commissioner of Lucknow, which was also attended by Amrit Abhijat and other senior officials.

The meeting which is jointly organised by FICCI and UP Tourism is likely to see maximum participation of 8 tour operators from United Kingdom, followed by 7 each from China and Australia, 6 each from Germany and Thailand, and 5 from the USA.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / by Arunav Sinha, TNN / February 17th, 2015

Varanasi’s Gulabi meenakari awaits GI tag for revival

Business & Economy, Records, All, World Opinion

Varanasi:

Gulabi meenakari or pink enameling of Banaras, a unique art form of the city, is likely to join the coveted Geographical Indication (GI) club by April after being notified under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration & Protection) Rules, 2002 through Geographical Indications Journal issue dated November 21, 2014.

The famed Banarasi brocade and silk sari and Bhadohi carpet have obtained GI tag earlier. Another product of Varanasi, glass beads, is also likely to get GI certification along with Gulabi meenakari.

A flourishing and prosperous industry till a century ago, meenakari is confined to a few artisans today who are struggling to keep alive this art of colouring or decorating a metal surface by attaching or fusing pieces of different mineral substances over it. “It is considered as the most alluring and technical of all metal decorations. Earlier, Banarasi Gulabi Meenakari was done on gold but now we use other metals like silver and copper,” said meenakari artisan Kunj Behari Singh, who was awarded Ram Manohar Lohia Vishisth Pradeshik Puraskar at Lucknow for his mastery over the craft.

Singh, a resident of Lalghat, is also the secretary of Sahbhagi Welfare Samittee that applied for GI registry for GI tag in January 2013. “We are in this field for generations. In the past, the city had over 250 artisans of this craft but today only 50-60 people are engaged in it,” he lamented.

“Escalating cost of gold and silver has diminished its demand. We are hopeful that it will thrive after getting GI tag for its uniqueness,” he said adding, “I hope that the GI tag, a sort of intellectual property right, will go a long way in promoting this art form.”

According to specification given in GI notification, Banaras gulabi meenakari is basically an ancient form of art in India that has been praised since its introduction for the superb designs and combination of colours. It is characterized by pink strokes on white enamel. Unlike the vibrant enamelling in red, green and blue of Jaipur and Delhi, where the white enamel is left stark, the Varanasi craftsmen delicately add pink to the predominant white enamel. The motifs have been lotus blooms and buds. It is said to have been introduced in Varanasi by Persian enamellists who had come to India in early 17th century at the peak of Mughal court.

“The artisans are called meenakars. It is a unique craft in which meenakars make items like religious figures of gods and goddesses on silver and gold sheet, various types of traditional ornaments and decorative items, motifs, including flowers and birds and animals on gold and silver metal. The specialty is artistic quality. It is remembered by people for having a significant taste for design and fashion, which means something special for them. The colours used in the Banaras Gulabi Meenakari are predominately natural and leadless dyes,” an artisan informed.

Human Welfare Association, an NGO, is also facilitating the art to get GI tag. “The process of getting GI registration is in final stage. This tag will be a proof of uniqueness of Banaras Gulabi Meenakari,” said HWA director Rajani Kant.

Rai Krishnadas, founder director of Barat Kala Bhawan of Banaras Hindu University, had also written that Banaras stands next to Jaipur in the art of enamelling and the nature of Banaras pink is similar to Jaipur red. In 19th century and early 20th century, pink enamel was famous throughout the country and was much sought after by princes and the aristocracy, he said.

Unlike the red enamel of Jaipur, which has still maintained the high quality and fine workmanship of the 19th century, the pink enamel of Banaras was short-lived. It ended here in the first quarter of 20th century when its last hereditary master Babbu Singh passed away in 1923. After a gap of about half a century, there has been a revival of pink enamelling in Banaras, chiefly as a trade to meet the demands of tourists and of women, who have taken to old jewellery more as a fashion than out of love for its charm and grace. National Museum of India, New Delhi and Bharat Kala Bhawan have collections of this art.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Time of India / Home> City> Varanasi / by Binay Singh, TNN / January 31st, 2015

Dimple flags off Agra car rally

Business & Economy, Leaders, Sports, Travel

Lucknow :

Flagging off the Agra Taj rally from Etawah’s lion safari, Kannauj MP Dimple Yadav said the Uttar Pradesh government plans to promote tourism beyond the iconic Taj Mahal in the state. Saying the government will also develop places of interest around the monument of love in Agra.

“For the purpose, religious, cultural, wildlife tourism around Agra would be developed as well as adventure tourism so that the state can emerge as tourism-friendly,” Dimple said, while flagging off Agra Taj car rally. Laying emphasis on the state’s efforts to increase tourist footfall and employment opportunities around tourism in UP, Dimple said, “Tourists who come to Agra return from there. But with lion safari, they will come here leading to more employment opportunities for the locals and development of this region.”

The Agra car rally flagged off by Dimple will cover a distance of 450km passing through the Chambal, Jarar, Chakarnagar ravines and reach Agra in two days.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / TNN / February 01st, 2015

Our name and recipe was patented in 1995

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Records, All, Travel

Tunday kababi wins trademark infringement case

The most popular pit stop for all visitors to Lucknow, be it film stars, politicians or even tourists, is the Tunday Kabab shop. But not just for the outsiders, but for the city folk too, it had become increasingly difficult to differentiate the real from the copies, with kebab shops by the name of Tunday mushrooming all over the city in the last few years. But after Mohd Usman, grandson of the legendary Tunday or Haji Murad Ali won a case filed against him for infringement of trademark by his khala’s (paternal aunt) son, Mohd Muslim, who owns Lucknow Wale Tunday Kababi’s chain of restaurants, all shops bearing the name Tunday and not belonging to Usman had to take their signs down on Monday . They will now have to change the names of their outlets.

Muslim claimed that the name ‘Tunday’ belonged to him and his family and they were the rightful owners of it and anyone else using the name was doing so illegally . But in December 2014, the Delhi High Court declared Usman the rightful owner of the name ‘Tunday’.

The lineage

Haji Murad Ali, a one-handed royal khansama from Bhopal made the Galwati kababs and paranthas world famous and several shops in his name had sprung up in Lucknow and outside of it. Mohd Usman, who holds the patent of Tunday , is Murad’s brother’s son, as Ali himself had no children.

“It was our grandfather who started Tunday . Although I don’t remember much of him but my father tells us tales of how he used to work with one hand. The 109-year-old legacy of our grandfather was being misused and maligned. We had to put a stop to that. Allah has bestowed his blessings on us as we have won the case.It’s nothing else but the blessings of our dada jaan,” says Usman.

The patent and the problem

“We had got the name’Tunday’ patented in 1995, so no one could use the name without our permission or without our franchise. We had also got the secret recipe patented a decade back,” he says, adding, “Mere dada jaan ne, unke baad mere walid saab ne itni mehnat se yeh naam aur iski shaan banayi thi. Hamari origi nal dukaan Chowk mein Akbari Gate ke paas hai, aur 1996 main humne Aminabad wali dukaan shuru ki.”

Not happy with the circumstances that led to this lawsuit, Usman says, “It’s not nice when people within the family fight but I was forced to take this step as it was affecting the reputation of my forefathers. People would come up to me and complain about bad quality food being served at these outlets in our name. Ab main kitne logon ko batata ki yeh asli Tunday Kababi nahi hai?” says he. What also irked Usman was that tourists and celebrities were often taken for a ride, and led to the fake Tunday kabab outlets instead of the original ones.”Kitni baar hum akhbaar mein hi padhte thay ki falan-falan celebrity Faizabad Road ya Gomti Nagar gaya.Yeh log toh tourists ko bhi mislead kar rahe thay,” says Usman. He’s right on the mark. In November 2012, celebrity chef Vikas Khanna had promoted a TV show at the Faizabad Road outlet, which had to remove the Tunday signage on Monday .

Apart from Chowk and Aminabad, the other original Tunday outlets are at Kapoorthala, Alambagh, Kanpur Road, Telibagh, Rahim Nagar and Sahara Ganj.

In August 2014, Usman filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court to prevent anyone from using his grandfather’s name. “Those people – my khala’s family, went to court last year and filed a case against us for trademark infringement and demanded a compensation of 50 lakh from us, but now that they have lost the case, we are demanding a compensation of `20 lakh from them for misusing our grandfather’s name and bringing it ill repute,” says Usman, “Now it’s time for them to get worried,” says he with a smile.

Board of contention

The restaurants in Lucknow that had to take down their signboards displaying the name of Tunday are those in Vivek Khand, Gomti Nagar, Sapru Marg, Faizabad Road, Aashiana, apart from the one in Kanpur and in Raebareli.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / by Itishree Misra, TNN / January 07th, 2015

Varanasi weavers now come online

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion

E-commerce portal Snapdeal.com has tied up with the India Post to launch a pilot project to set up facilitation desks at Varanasi post offices to enable weavers to sell on its platform, a company statement said here Thursday.

This is an endeavour by Snapdeal and India Post to empower local artisans, small and medium entrepreneurs to sustain their livelihood by providing a platform to popularise their indigenous products, the statement said.

“India has a number of unique and highly specialised art forms and weaves; however, with the fast changing fashion trends and readily available products we are losing out on this rich heritage…We believe it is our responsibility to save these dying art forms by providing a platform to artisans and traditional weavers,” Kunal Bahl, chief executive officer and co-founder, Snapdeal.com, said.

“Through this partnership we will take the Banarasi weaves to customers in all corners of the country and extend this platform to include more weavers and artisans of our country,” he added.

India Post has 154,866 post offices across the country with 466,903 employees. The department with its huge network has taken up the role to serve as an agency for delivering products and also playing a vital role in the cash on delivery segment, the company stated.

source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> News-IANS> Business-Economy / IANS / New Delhi – December 25th, 2014

NRI trio brings hope of good health to UP

Business & Economy, Nri's / Pio's, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Lucknow :

Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav will sign an MoU with a US-based group to set up a healthcare infrastructure in the state under SVADESH (Silicon Valley and Avadh’s Development for Entrepreneurial Services for Humanity) an investment initiative by NRIs and also a way to bring East and West together.

SVADESH is the brainchild of three non-resident Indians, including sisters Dr Nandini and Priya Tandon from UP, and Dr B R Shetty, based in Abu Dhabi.

Investing in UP is like a “homecoming” for the sister duo. The hospital they own and run in Silicon Valley has made its standing among the best healthcare institutes. “Our mother wanted us to make a similar hospital in UP,” said Dr Nandini Tandon.

The Tandon sisters are set to invest more than a billion dollar in UP to develop a “teaching hospital”, an integrated healthcare system. “The eye hospital in Sitapur was set up by our great grandfather. My father is from Agra and we have relatives and friends across UP,” said Dr Nandini.

The Tandon family has been living in US since early 80s. “I did my schooling, my undergraduate and PhD from there,” said Dr Nandini. The two said they also wanted to invest in UP.

SVADESH aims at skill development and job creation, as also to bring Silicon Valley entrepreneurship to UP. “People would not need job when they set up their enterprise,” said Dr Nandini. The three NRIs wish to set up a multi-facility hospital and institute in UP patient care and research.

“We shared the aims of SVADESH with chief minister Akhilesh Yadav,” said Dr Nandini, adding that the group wants a big chunk of land at one place and expects UP government to help find it.

NRIs of UP origin can invest in their home state as the state government is eager to attract investment from them. NRI department created for the purpose has got its first investors in the Tandon sisters.

UP government will help the group obtain necessary permisisons/registrations/approvals/clearances as per existing facilities and rules and regulations of the Government of Uttar Pradesh (GoUP) and would also help them avail incentives under various schemes announced by state/Central government, wherever applicable.

GoUP has also thought of appointing a brand ambassador of UP to attract investment from US, especially from California, from US companies and NRI at large. The MoU is valid for 3 years.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / by Neha Shukla, TNN / December 21st, 2014

Muzzafar Ali and Dimple Yadav attend Oudh Fashion Summit in Lucknow

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Leaders, Uncategorized

Pehnawa – The Oudh Fashion Summit-2014, was organized by CII-Yi, Lucknow Chapter, in the city recently.

Muzzafar Ali and Dimple Yadav
Muzzafar Ali and Dimple Yadav

Muzzafar Ali, who was the guest of honour for the event, earned many wah-wahs for his lines on Lucknow: “Nazakat aur nafasat tujhe virasat mein mili hai, naaz hai humein tujhpe pe ae Lucknow.”

The chief guest on the occasion, MP Dimple Yadav took note of the suggestions made by panelists to improve the work conditions for craftsmen working in the fashion industry, and promised to bring them to her husband and UP CM Akhilesh Yadav’s notice. “Work has already started on courses to train workers in chikankari,” she said.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / by Akash Wadhwa, TNN / December 14th, 2014