02HYDERABAD, Monday, February 27, 2017

IN HIS ELEMENTS

Pandit Jasraj performs at Panchtatva, a musical event organised by Durga Jasraj, at Shilpa Kala Vedika on Sunday.

HYDERABADNews from

Telangana Today Al Forecast: Partly cloudy sky with dry weather l Max. tem: 350C l Min. tem: 160C l RH: 40% l Rainfall: Nil

CONTINUATION FROM PAGE 1

Lone-wolf attacks averted

The lone interim stay issued by theGreen Tribunal on the Palamuru-RangaReddy was vacated subsequently as theGovernment could impress upon thetribunal that the provision of drinkingwater was the immediate priority andthe construction of the head workswere common for both irrigation anddrinking water needs to be met by theproject.

As many as five PILs were filedagainst the Palamuru-Ranga Reddy liftirrigation scheme that was intended toirrigate upland areas in the erstwhileMahabubnagar, Ranga Reddy and Nal-gonda districts for an ayacut of 4,04,858hectares besides augmenting drinkingwater supply to villages en route andHyderabad. It would meet the industrialneeds in Mahabubnagar, Ranga Reddyand Nalgonda districts, by lifting 90TMC of flood water in 60 days from theforeshore of Srisailam reservoir.

The government had decided to takeup the works under the irrigation com-ponent of the project packages onlyafter obtaining the environmental clear-ance for the project. The Palamuru-Ranga Reddy is a massive project that isexpected to take three years for comple-tion. The time to be taken for disposalof cases is likely to have a cascading ef-fect. So far as the Rs 9,800 crore Mallan-nasagar project is concerned as many 10writ petitions were filed in the HighCourt, while another 29 writ petitionwere filed against GO 123 under whichsome 8000 acres of land was acquiredfor the project. Because of the legal

hurdles, the government has stoppedland acquisition under GO 123. Thenames of individuals who died quitesome time ago also figured in the list ofcomplainants in the petitions filedagainst the GO. There is no scope leftfor acquiring any more land for rest ofthe season under the GO for any of thekey projects. The land acquisitionprocess would be resumed only after theState Land Acquisition Bill, passed byboth the Legislative Assembly and Leg-islative Council in the last session, getsthe Presidential assent. The implemen-tation of the Kaleswaram project and afew other major irrigation schemeswould have been impacted due to thecourt cases, but for the pre-emptivemeasures initiated by the Governmentto sustain the momentum in the imple-mentation of works.

Irked by the number of developmentschemes getting shelved owing toinjunctions, the Centre is said to becontemplating an amendment that barsthe courts and tribunals from issuinginterim stays. The State government isalso weighing legal options to clear allhurdles for the projects in its priority list.

Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Raohas already set the tone for the budgetsession of the State Legislative Assem-bly stating that the Congress role installing projects would be exposed onthe floor of the House. Almost all hisCabinet colleagues launched a blitzkriegagainst the opposition for their at-tempts to stall developmental projects.

Projects mired in legal wrangles

“We have been keeping a close watch onthem since last three months, as theywere found to be in contact with ISISthrough Skype and other social mediaplatforms such as Telegram, Twitterand Whatsapp. We conducted raids inRajkot and Bhavnagar and nabbed theduo,” Bhatt told reporters in Ahmed-

abad on Sunday. Investigation revealedthe two had planned to attack the templeat Chotila town of Surendranagar.Hesaid to create terror, they planned torecord and upload the video of the at-tack on social media. They also plannedto carry out blasts at different places andset on fire vehicles to spread terror. PTI

For Dr Ch Mohan Rao ithas been a long andengaging career in

science and research. Onthe occasion of NationalScience Day on February28, the former director ofCentre for Cellular andMolecular Biology andpresently president ofTelangana Academy ofSciences, Rao shares hisviews on basic science re-search with M Sai Gopal.

Science research in TSIf you look at our ability inscience and technology re-search, Telangana is un-beatable. After bifurca-tion, the State gainedbecause all major researchinstitutions operate out ofHyderabad. The questionnow is if we can utilise thispotential to promote re-search. All these researchlabs are central govern-

ment institutions but theState government has totie-up with the institutesand aim to solve issuesthat impact all. State alsoneeds independent de-partment of Science.

Need for long-termstrategies topromote science

Governments must look atscience research as a toolfor social transformation.They have to recogniseand realise that investingtime and efforts will bringa lot of benefits for the so-ciety in the future. Costbenefit is not immediatelyvisible when one wants topromote research. Be-tween 1965 and 1975,India was the largest im-porter of rice and we usedto get free wheat and milkfrom the US. Now, we arethe largest exporter of riceand are independent. Allthis happened because alot of investment wasmade in science and agri-culture.

India lags in scienceand technology

From the begin-ning, India was aknowledge-

based so-ciety andmany topscientific

develop-

ments in the field ofnumber system, copper,iron, astronomy, calculustook place here. Due to theforeign rule, we lost mo-mentum and became de-pendent on others. Butthings started to change inthe last two decades.

Spending on science research India spends just 0.9 percent of its GDP on scienceresearch but Japan spendsclose to 3.5 per cent.Successive governmentspromised to hike thespending to 2 per cent butit is yet to materialise.Industry participation inscience research, which ina country like US is 70-80per cent, is not there inIndia.

Academy ofSciences in TSTo take science todistricts, we have set upfour regional centres ofthe academy inKarimnagar, Nizamabad,Nalgonda and Warangal.Our members frequentlyinteract with schoolstudents and teachers tomake science andtechnology popular. Verysoon, we plan to organisefirst Telangana ScienceCongress, which is likelyto be inaugurated by Chief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao.

TS unbeatable in science, tech

I.N.T.E.R.V.I.E.WShoppers’ Paradise

Sunday means business at AbidsFrom books to knives, this market has almost anything on sale at a reasonable price

FOR YOUR WARDROBE: A vendor shows garments to a woman at Abids on Sunday. One can choose their favourite T-shirt from the piles of clothes. — Photo: Surya Sridhar

ABHINAY DESHPANDEHYDERABAD

Come Sunday and the roadsof Abids spring to life withshoppers searching for lit-erary efforts of popular au-thors, a bunch of towels,shoes, garments or knives.

One of the oldest marketsin Hyderabad, both sides ofthe Abids road is dottedwith hawkers selling a vari-ety of merchandise at aprice most find reasonableand light on wallets. Whatalso appeals to shoppers isindulging in the artful hag-gling over prices that is acommon sight all the day.

While some Sunday mar-kets are known to offer onlyniche goods, this one isfilled with all kinds ofhousehold articles —clothes, books, shoes,watches and many more.

“This market is a habit forme for almost two decades.Every Sunday morning Itake a bus to Abids and afterbrowsing through books

and picking the best, I re-turn home in the evening,”says J Radheshyam ofVanasthalipuram.

People from all walks oflife come here to grab theirfavourite goods. The shop-ping centre is also wellknown for its knock-offmarket. For the vendorshere, the day begins at 5 amevery Sunday. “I work in agarment store as a helperand every Sunday, I set upmy own shop here,” RajeshYadav, a vendor, says.

Mohammed Ghouse, a 58-year-old book seller, saysthese days self-help ‘learnlanguages in 30 days’ booksare a top draw.

The hard work behind Parklane KOYADDA HARIHyderabad

No matter how many com-mercial complexes andmalls are added to the city’sskyline, the charm of shop-ping at small makeshiftshops of the Sunday marketat Paradise is unbeatable.

The Parklane on Sundayscomes alive with small-timebusinessmen hawking theirgoods by shouting on thetop their lungs to attractbuyers’ attention. It is oneof those destinations thatnot only attract buyers fromHyderabad but also cus-tomers from neighbouringdistricts, looking for a goodbargain and value for goods.

You name it and clothmerchants will have it. Witha history of over 40 years,the clothes market offers avariety of clothing at priceshard to ignore. “This markethas a variety of clothes and

accessories at reasonableprices,” a shopkeeper said.

It’s not just clothes, theSunday market is filled withmyriad articles such aswatches, belts, trinkets, accessories, faux-leatherbags, knock-off shoes, cellphones and many more.

“The market has gotsomething unique for every-one. Till recently, old citywas the only place for Ittar

but now we make it avail-able here,” says Waseem,who runs a perfume shop.

Shop owners arrive earlyon Sunday between 1 amand 2 am to prepare for along day ahead. “We openour shops at around 5.30am and shut down at 8 pmon Sundays. There are dayswhen we end up selling allour stock by afternoon,” ashopkeeper says.

Parklane is known for its perfume market.

MP leads clean drive at Kaidammakunta lakeCITY BUREAUHyderabad

The Justice Konda MadhavaReddy Foundation on Sun-day launched a clean-updrive to get rid of horseshoeweed that has infested inKaidammakunta lake atHafeezpet. The weed hasspread completely acrossthe 15 acres lake creatingconditions for rampantmosquito breeding.

“It has started to releasemethane gas and suckingout the Oxygen contentfrom the lake and making itimpossible for the marine

life including fishes to sus-tain. The lake ecosystem hasgone for a toss and mosqui-toes are breeding,” ChevellaMP, Konda VishweswarReddy, who launched theproject, said.

Vishweswar Reddy saidthe Foundation volunteerswere trained in varioustechnical skills and de-signed a machine to pull outthe weed. “We approachedGHMC and came to knowthat contractors charge Rs60 lakh to clean up 60 lakesin our constituency. Wecan’t use MPLADS funds,which are meant to create

new infrastructure and notfor maintenance. This madeus to improvise,” he said.

It took the Foundationvolunteers just Rs 2.60 lakhto rig-up a weed removingmachine, which will now beused in all the remaining 60lakes that are infested withthe same weed.

The Foundation plans tocovert the lake side into arecreational place for localswith fencing and roadaround the lake, parks,chairs, lighting etc. The MPwas also felicitated by theresidents on the occasion ofhis birthday.

GREEN BRIGADE: Chevella MP Konda Vishweswar Reddy clearshorseshoe weed in the 15-acre Kaidammakunta lake.

CITY BUREAUHyderabad

As part of their educationtour to South India, 31 Assis-tant Conservator of ForestProbationary Officers fromthe Central Academy ofState Forest Service,Dehradun, visited NehruZoological Park in Hyder-abad on Sunday.

Addressing the proba-tioners, zoo curator ShivaniDogra spoke about the roleof zoos in conservation of

wildlife, particularly endan-gered species. She alsospoke about the role playedby Nehru zoo in conserva-tion breeding, animalhealthcare and wildlife edu-cation. The probationerswere taken around the zooand were shown the enclo-

sures, night houses andplanning of display enclo-sures for various animals.

Later, they visited zooveterinary hospital wherethe assistant director (vet-erinary) MA Hakeemdemonstrated how to tran-quilise and capture animals.

Forest officers take lessons inwildlife conservation at zoo

Defence staffcelebrate goldenjubileeCITY BUREAUHyderabad

The Defence AccountsEmployees Co-operativeSociety celebrated itsgolden jubilee on Sunday.

A Visweswara Rao, con-troller of Defence Ac-counts, applauded the co-operative society for itsperformance over the last50 years and said startingwith 180 members, it nowhad 758 members.

Cooperative societysecretary P Somi Reddyhighlighted various wel-fare measures carried outby the society and saidcash awards were pre-sented for the meritoriouschildren of society mem-bers who secured morethan 90 per cent marks inSSC and Intermediate.Rao felicitated previousexecutive committeemembers on the occasion.

One of the oldestmarkets in the city,both sides of theAbids road are dottedwith hawkers selling avariety of goods

The probationers were taken around the zoo andshown the enclosures, night houses and planning ofdisplay enclosures for various animals