Baroda News

VCCI will organize 11th national industrial exhibition

The Vadodara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) will organize its 11th national industrial exhibition, VCCI Expo 2023 , from January 23 to January 30, 2023 at Navlakhi Palace ground.

Himanshu Patel, senior vice-president of VCCI and chairman of VCCI Expo 2023, told reporters on Saturday that two lakh representatives from various industries will be visiting the expo.

The expo is being organised with support of the Ministry of Micro Small & Medium Enterprise, Government of India, NSIC and Industries Commissionerate of Gujarat government.

VCCI’s honorary secretary Jalendu Pathak said 650 participants will be given two lakh square feet as product display space.

The expo will be organized on a total area covering nine lakh square feet. “In western India, it is the largest exhibition for MSMEs that will be held in a temporary structure,” said Pathak.

“Our focus will be on vendor development. For this, we have invited more than 100 large-scale companies from across Gujarat including government PSUs,” he said. (17-10-2022)

Vadodara to get cardiology institute

Vadodara will have a state-of-the-art cardiology institute and multi-speciality hospital.

The state government on Saturday announced that the foundation stone for setting up the new cardiology institute will be laid soon.

The institute will come up at Ansuya Leprosy campus on Ajwa Road. It will be managed by state-run SSG Hospital.

The state government has allotted Rs 22.50 crore for the initial construction.

The overall provision is said to be Rs 150 crore.

When made operational, the institute will have a 238-bed cardiac unit with facilities for angiography, angioplasty and other cardiac procedures.

A cath operation theatre will offer bypass surgery, valve replacement and all other surgeries for heart diseases, officials said. (17-10-2022)

Exhibition traces early years of Vadodara’s fine arts faculty

Art enthusiasts will get a peek into the work of artists from the founding days of the famed Faculty of Fine Arts of the MS University at an exhibition organized by the Sarjan Art Gallery.

The faculty is where the internationally renowned Baroda School of Fine Arts was born and nurtured.
The exhibition traces the evolution of art in the city through the works of 34 artists from the early decades of the faculty. Some of these artists had come to the faculty as teachers while others were students. Some others joined the faculty as students and went on to become teachers at their alma mater.

The works include those from amongst the first teachers at the faculty including a 1918 sketch by UP Rao. Works of stalwarts like NS Bendre, Sankho Chaudhuri, KG Subramanyan, Jyoti Bhatt, Bhupen Khakhar, GM Sheikh, Gyarsilal Varma, Mahendra Pandya, Shanti Dave, Nagji Patel, Jyotsna Bhatt, Jeram Patel, Vivan Sundaram, Nilima Sheikh, Rini Dhumal, Ratan Parimoo, Nasrin Mohammadi, Haku Shah and others are also on display.

The exhibition was under planning from 2019, but delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The art works have been displayed much like a museum.

The exhibition has been dedicated to the founder of the gallery Kanti Rana and also marks the 25th anniversary of the gallery. The exhibition will remain on view till November 12. (15-10-2022)

Partial solar eclipse on Oct 25

During the Diwali festival on October 25, there will be a partial solar eclipse which will be visible from the city as well as from most parts of the country, astrophysicist Debi Prasad Duari said. (12-10-2022)

Boards: School registration starts

The Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) has announced that registrations of schools and teachers for Class 10 and 12 board exams will begin from October 12, Wednesday. According to the schedule, Class 10 and 12 exams will be conducted from March 14 to 31. The first term ends on October 19 and the 21-day Diwali holiday begins from October 20. Registrations will enable board to get exact numbers of students and teachers. (12-10-2022)

Registration for NMMS test begins

The Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) announced that registrations for the National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship exams began on October 11.

The last day to submit applications will be November 5.

The NMMS is a Union-government programme which is aimed at providing financial support to the students of Class 8 in grant-in-aid schools or government schools coming from financially weak backgrounds so that they can complete their education till Class 12.

The exams will be conducted in December or January.

The schools will have to submit the forms to the district primary education officer by November 14.

The fees for application for OBC and general category students is Rs 75 while SC, ST students will have to pay Rs 50 as exam fees. (12-10-2022)

Furniture for rural kids that costs less than a pizza!

What if a set of chair and table for kids costs Rs 100 apiece?

The exhibition ‘packEDGES’ displayed 39 pieces of furniture, ranging from study desk to table to storage rake made by 13 students of Furniture & Interior Design course undergraduate students in a matter of one week.

While it’s recyclable, it’s generally dumped soon after the packages are opened.

On the other hand, we still see majority of the kids in rural schools sitting on the floor.

We thus devised a way where these cardboards can be put to use as kids’ furniture,” he said, adding that it’s probably the first such initiative. (12-10-2022)

If toys be the food of learning, teachers can play on

Toys have always been the prized possessions of children, but these are now fast evolving as teachers' trusted companions when it comes to explaining kids the concepts of numbers, patterns and sequences, thereby developing their imagination, motor skills and competencies.

The recently released handbook on 'toy-based pedagogy' by National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has experts from Gujarat throwing light on the rich tradition of toys in India, indigenous games and use of daily materials to make toys.

When you are indulging in role-play, you are communicating and learning the different aspects of social life. Aids concentration and helps improve logical reasoning, she said, adding that several workshops have been organized for teachers.

Dr. Manish Jain from the centre is part of the expert team that has developed several concepts for teachers' training. (12-10-2022)

Third round of intake begins for degree engineering courses

To fill up the vacant degree engineering seats in government-run and grant-in-aid engineering colleges, a third round of admissions has started in the state, the Admission Committee for Professional Courses (ACPC) said in a statement.

Sources said that there are about 4,000 seats still vacant in the government and grant-in-aid institutes in the state.

There are a total of 53,438 engineering degree course seats in 130 government-run, grant-in-aid and private colleges across the state.

As per the statement, the students who have been admitted in other colleges will have to give consent for admission by October 12 to get into the government or grant-in-aid colleges.

The students who have consented the admission will have to complete their choice filling and based on that the committee will allot colleges to students on October 14.

The committee will announce this round on October 14. (12-10-2022)

SDB pips Pentagon, is one of largest office bldgs

That it shines nine out of 11 diamonds polished in the world is already a fact, but that the Diamond City has added a new dimension to its glittering prospects by overthrowing the Pentagon as one of the largest office buildings in the world is a glorious chapter scripted in the city's realty sector.

Ninety per cent of the world's diamonds are manufactured in Surat but for trading, we have to go to Mumbai.

We needed infrastructure as a trading hub.

Each floor of the nine 15-storeyed towers is connected through spine corridors and has 4,500 offices.

The total cost of the project is Rs 3,200 crore spread across 35.54 acre land at the Diamond Research and Mercantile (DREAM) City.

Surat Diamond Bourse (SDB) is also a certified green building. SDB is a pre-certified platinum green building and despite it being the largest, the building design is such that a person can reach his office in a maximum of six minutes from the entry point, said Mahesh Gadhvi, CEO of SDB. (12-10-2022)

Modhera to be India's first solar-run village

Modhera, famous for the Sun temple, but it will get another distinction when PM Narendra Modi will declare it India's first round-the-clock solar-powered village on October 9, 2022, Sunday.

In a joint effort of the Union and state governments, Rs 80 crore has been spent on the project where more than 1,300 1-kV solar rooftop systems have been installed on houses, reducing the electricity bills of residents considerably.

The electricity requirements of the entire temple complex have also been shifted to solar power. The government allotted 12 hectares of land for the project. The heritage lighting and 3D projection at the Sun temple will use solar energy. The 3D projection, which will operate in the evenings, will educate visitors on Modhera's history. (08-10-2022)

MSU’s bright stars to get gold medals soon

After a delay of almost eight months, gold medalists will get their medals at MS University.

The officials said that the gold medals will be conferred to the students in presence of their parents on October 12 in a programme that will be held at C.C. Mehta auditorium.

A total of 15,019 students including 8,324 girl students and 6,695 boys were conferred degrees during the convocation on February 5.

These include 128 boys and 167 girl students.

While there are 57 students who will be receiving two or more gold medals, there are 126 students who will receive one gold medal each.

But since the convocation ceremony was organized online, the university had not conferred the medals during the ceremony. (08-10-2022)

78 crocs sunbathe at 58 sites along Vishwamitri

“The crux of the study to map crocodiles’ basking sites was to find the most suitable basking habitats by assessing the geomorphology of landscape in the riparian regions (banks) of the river,” said Dr Ranjitsinh Devkar, assistant professor of zoology in MSU.

We had initiated the study as part of dissertation thesis of a student.

Crocodiles belong to the schedule-1 of the Wildlife Protection Act.

Slope map generated was added to ArcScene to create a 3d image of that zone.

The study found that the slope angle zero to 40 degree was the most suitable where maximum crocodiles were seen basking. (07-10-2022)

Eco-activist turns wasteland into butterfly garden

Swapnali Dabke was overwhelmed with emotions when she turned 46 on September 30.

But Swapnali reached there, a fluttering gift was awaiting her - a butterfly garden made on a wasteland!.

The life of butterflies gives us a simple message of transformation of life from one form to another.

Suneet, an expert on solid waste management and founder of Kachare Se Azadi Foundation, had started developing the butterfly garden on April 22 marking Earth Day after entering into an agreement with the Manjusar gram panchayat.

I wanted to develop into a space which people coming to attend final rites of their near and dear ones at the crematorium can also use to get peace of mind,” said Suneet. (07-10-2022)

Akasa to allow pets up to 100 kg on its aircraft from November 1

India’s youngest airline, Akasa, will from November 1, 2022, allow pets — domesticated dogs and cats to start with— on its aircraft like the country’s longest-flying carrier, Air India.

Pet booking will start from October 15 for flying November 1 onwards,” said Dube, an avid dog lover.

Heavier pets weighing upto 100 kg will need to be checked in at cargo terminals because crates that hold large size dogs like Great Dane, Rottweiler, Mastiff, Greyhound or Irish Wolfhound are too big to go through airport counters.

Air India, which has been flying pets for decades, allows a maximum of two pets in cabin per flight — one in the last row of first/business class and one in the last row of economy along with the accompanying passenger.

Pets of larger size/weight will be carried in the cargo hold.

“Import/export of pets by passenger’s having the requisite clearance and permission from AQCS can only be done via six airports in India at present: Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai,” AI website says. (07-10-2022)

Railways plans to revamp 16 stations on PPP mode

After going for the ‘engineering, procurement and construction’ route to redevelop New Delhi, CST Mumbai and Ahmedabad stations, Indian Railways is looking to go back to its public private partnership (PPP) plan for upgrading 16 stations, including those in Vadodara, Anand Vihar, Nizamuddin, Old Delhi, Vijayawada, Dadar and Kalyan.

Pune, Coimbatore, Banglore City, Bhopal and Chennai Central stations have been on the redevelopment plan for quite a few years.

“We are exploring the options for PPP wherever it’s viable and cost effective.

Another ministry official said, even in the case of stations identified for redevelopment under PPP, the railways won’t levy any additional user charge or station development fee on passengers as the private investors would be able to recover their full investment amount.

He had also said the new model for station redevelopment would focus on vertical growth and using the open space over the platforms and stations located in congested areas. (07-10-2022)

India's heaviest rocket to make global foray on October 22

India's heaviest rocket is getting ready to make its entry into the global commercial launch service market with the milestone expected on October 22.

The newest rocket is capable of launching a four tonne class of satellite to Geosynchronous Transfer orbit (GTO).

"The launch is slated shortly after October 21 midnight.

We are looking at 00:12 hours on October 22," a senior official of the national space agency told PTI on condition of anonymity on October 7, 2022, Thursday.

India's Bharti Enterprises is a major investor and shareholder in OneWeb.

In an October 4 update on the mission, NSIL said two solid strap-on boosters and liquid core stage of LVM3 have been fully integrated at the second launch pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, SHAR, in Sriharikota. (07-10-2022)

GBRC inks pact with Canadian co

Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC) has signed MoU with Canada-based Scriptics Inc., a firm engaged in data analytics and software development using artificial intelligence (AI), for tackling antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

GBRC is generating data in animal health, agriculture and marine sectors which require analysis and interpretation so as to provide solutions related to AMR and other problems in these sectors.

Scriptics with its expertise in data analysis and interpretation will develop software products using AI, machine learning, computer vision and big data.

“World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared AMR as a global health and development threat and declared it as one of the top 10 global public health threats.

As a result of drug resistance, antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines become ineffective and infections become increasingly difficult or impossible to treat,” said Macwan, a native of Anand. (06-10-2022)

MSU fine arts student picked for Riyadh Season Festival

A student of MS University’s Faculty of Fine Arts has been selected for Riyadh Season Festival 2022 in Saudi Arabia.

Tapish Soni, who has completed his masters from the sculpture department of Faculty of Fine Arts, is the only artist from entire Gujarat selected for the international project.

“Last year too, I had got the opportunity to work for the international project.

We were given a theme to make a miniature of the Saudi Arabia Kingdom depicting their palaces, sand mountains, architectures, motifs and their culture.
The site acts as the venue for performances, sporting events, art exhibitions among others during the fest,” said Tapish.

The theme for the third edition is ‘beyond imaginations.’ (04-10-2022)

Vadodara boys to represent India at World Robotics Olympiad

Two teams from Vadodara will represent India at the international level competition of the World Robotics Olympiad (WRO) 2022 scheduled to be held at Germany’s Dortmund from November 17 to November 19.

After qualifying in the regional level contest held in August in Mumbai, both the teams won silver medals at the national level competition of WRO that was held in New Delhi last week.

The teams participated in the junior high age category and senior high age category.

"This team had built and programmed a robot that helps humans in factories. Suppose there is a fire in the factory area then a robot enters the factory, it senses and drops water in fire rooms, the robot senses hazardous chemical objects and collects them to avoid further dangerous blasts and the robot senses the people trapped inside a factory and it gives information to the command room so that command room takes appropriate action,” said coach Mukesh Bind.

Team ‘Life_TechTitans’ which took part in the senior high category included Dhyan Patel and Dhwanit Patel, both 15-year-old students from Navrachana. (04-10-2022)

Previous Baroda News

MSU teacher bags best paper award

Dr Ranjitsinh Devkar, assistant professor of MS University’s Department of Zoology has won Read More>>

Vadodara’s rank drops to 14th

The ranking of Vadodara dropped to 14th in the Swachh Survekshan results declared on Saturday. The Read More>>

Plan to make 6 airbags must in cars deferred by a year

The government has deferred the implementation of the proposal to make six airbags mandatory in Read More>>

Tech attuned to cardiac rhythms

The resting heartbeat of the Indian population on average is about 7-8 beats higher per minute Read More>>

Hair transplants only in hospitals

For the first time, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has issued a guideline on who can perform Read More>>

The PM will give the gift of Vande Bharat train to Gujarat

PM will give green signal to Vande Bharat train from Gandhinagar railway station. Semi high Read More>>

Karamsad to celebrate Vithalbhai’s 150th birth anniversary

Karamsad town in Anand district will celebrate 2023 as the 150th birth anniversary year of Read More>>

Lipstick effect on skin products's sale

After the second wave of Covid pandemic, websites like Nykaa registered higher sales of skin Read More>>

Dadasaheb Phalke award for Asha Parekh

Veteran actor Asha Parekh will be conferred the Dada Saheb Phalke award for 2020, the highest Read More>>

50-year-old garba faces group’s flak

For over half a century, M S University’s Faculty of Fine Arts is known for organising Read More>>

Covid-19 gives 65-year-old leg up to run marathon

This 65-year-old's dry run for a gruelling marathon in the Western Ghats abruptly ended when he was Read More>>

Barodians to run marathon after 2 years

In January next year, Barodians will sprint again on the city streets. The 10th edition of MG Read More>>

Ratan Tata join as trustee of PM Cares Fund

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has lauded the people for contributing wholeheartedly to the PM CARES Read More>>

Chhello Show: A Gujarati's ode to films is Oscars entry

Early in the movie Chhello Show (Last Film Show), wide-eyed protagonist Samay, a young boy in a Read More>>

India’s milk production to triple by 2047

Once a milk-deficit country, India has traversed a long journey to emerge as world’s largest Read More>>

Next-generation artisans go places

About a decade ago, Champa Siju Magariya used to weave conventional handloom products like her Read More>>

NRG bags queen’s award in Canada

Pathik Shukla, a Canada-based NRI from Bharuch, has been awarded ‘Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth Read More>>

MSU inks MoU for climate change study

MS University has signed an MoU on Saturday with Gujarat government’s climate change Read More>>

SVPI airport likely to get third terminal

A third terminal is likely to be built at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) airport in Read More>>

Sayajibaug aviary to get exotic foreign birds

The Sayajibaug Zoo is looking to purchase exotic birds to be kept at the large aviary that has been Read More>>

PM Modi to flag off Vande Bharat Express train

Union railway minister Ashwini Vaishnav on September 13, 2022, Tuesday announced that the work for Read More>>

MoU was signed by Foxconn and Vedanta Group

In the presence of Chief Minister Mr. Bhupendrabhai Patel and Union Minister for Science and Read More>>

Stray dog population rises despite sterilisation in Gujarat's larger cities

If the data furnished by the Union ministry of fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying is any Read More>>

Gujarat announces ‘Cinematic Tourism Policy 2022-2027’

Gujarat government announced state's first 'Cinematic Tourism Policy' in the presence of Read More>>

Non-toxic, non-stick tribal cookware to make entry into modern kitchens

Does the special recipe cooked in non-stick utensils invariably get burnt in your guilt-ridden Read More>>

City boys shine, scores low as difficulty level of questions high

Students from the city made a mark in the JEE (Advanced) 2022 with at least seven students Read More>>

SVPI Airport gets play area for kids

To add to the convenience of passengers travelling with kids via the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Read More>>

Vadodara girl ready to join AIIMS

Zeel Vyas from the city stood ninth in the all-India rank (AIR) for the National Eligibility Read More>>

Rear seat belt alarm to be made must: Nitin Gadkari

Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari said on September 6, 2022, Tuesday seat belt alarm will Read More>>

India’s 1st nasal Covid vaccine gets approval

Bharat Biotech’s Covid-19 vaccine candidate codenamed BBV154, which has now been rechristened Read More>>

MSU prof appointed VC of Sanskrit varsity in Puri

Professor Rabindra Kumar Panda from M S University has been appointed as vice-chancellor (VC) of Read More>>

MSU prof in Int’l Council of Museums’ executive board

Professor Ambika Patel, head of MS University’s museology department from faculty of fine Read More>>

URJA 2022: Royal family’s two-day exhibition

Works of over 25 artisans will be exhibited during URJA 2022 organized by Shree Maharani Chimnabai Read More>>

16th C aviary turns into modern veterinary hospital

‘The house of this hospital is small, a little room sufficing for many birds: yet I saw if Read More>>

Cheaper & eco-friendly cow dung idols

For most devotees, clay idols had been the best replacements while seeking eco-friendly options so Read More>>

MSU improves NAAC scorecard to A+

Gujarat’s only English medium university – the MS University – has improved its Read More>>

Gandhinagar scientists launch extraction mission for US soldiers

Buried in the northeast stretches of India lie American soldiers of World War II, saluted by their Read More>>

Adventure sports tag for Dahi Handi events

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday announced in the state Assembly that Dahi Handi will now Read More>>

Kadana dam releases water, 128 villages put on high alert

Four gates of the Kadana Dam on Mahi River were partially opened on August 18, 2022, Thursday to Read More>>

Two years on, Ahmedabad to expand again

For the first time in the city’s history, it will be expanded for a second time in just 26 Read More>>

Gujarat woman gifts hygienic lives to Kashmiri girls

For the women residents of remote hamlets in Kupwara district of strife-torn Kashmir, life is a Read More>>

Ahmedabad gas distributors reduce CNG, residential PNG prices

In a major relief to the transport industry and consumers, major city gas distribution (CGD) firms Read More>>

Priority to only Gujarat domicile for organ transplant irrational

A division bench of Gujarat high court on August 18, 2022, Thursday dismissed the state Read More>>

Road minister launched India’s first electric double decker

“My dream is to connect Nariman Point in Mumbai to Delhi by an electric AC luxury bus which Read More>>

DA hike for govt employees

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on August 15, 2022, Monday announced a three per cent hike Read More>>

MSU may get trademark for its logo

MS University may get its logo registered under the trademark act to prevent misuse of its logo and Read More>>

Prerna 2022 after 2 years gap

After a two years break, budding engineers of MS University’s Faculty of Technology and Read More>>

Here, have your cup of chai and eat it too!

The most annoying part of sipping tea in a roadside kilti is finding a bin to dispose of the paper Read More>>

Fostering entrepreneurial spirit

Five teams of students pitched their start-up ideas to the alumni of MS University during PitchFest Read More>>

GSHSEB announces secondary schools’ 2022-23 academic calendar

The Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) announced the calendar for the Read More>>

Baroda News Archive