Telangana varsity hosts global conference on functional materials

Over 200 delegates from 10 countries are attending an international conference on advanced functional materials which kicked-off on Monday at Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT) at Basar in Telangana.

Internationally acclaimed scientists came together to discuss and showcase their research findings to researchers from India and abroad at the three-day conference.

The conference aims to address the application aspect of the functional materials in areas of societal relevance, to discuss current scientific issues and to ignite scientific temper in young researchers.

Apparao M. Rao, Director of Clemson Nano-Material Institute, Clemson University, delivered the keynote address at the conference being held with the theme ‘Applications of smart materials in the areas of nano-science and nano-technology, synthetic chemistry, sensors and computational materials science’.

S. Jonnalagadda from University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, was among the key speakers.

A. Ashok, Vice-Chancellor of RGUKT Basar said that the conference is being organised to enthuse interest in the students and young faculty and encourage them to take up research and developmental activities.

Addressing the inaugural session, Ranjeev R. Acharya, Telangana’s Special Chief Secretary, Higher Education, said that technology is fundamentally innovation driven and universities must inculcate innovative thinking in students.

To encourage activity-based learning and teaching from school level, the government established more than 540 residential schools on par with international standards which is first of its kind in the country, the official said.

The integration of basic and applied research on nanostructured aspects of materials is encouraged in Telangana universities. The government is keen in developing research and developmental activities in the universities, she added.

Selection of materials, information on their composition, structure and surface are crucial for specific application. Physics and chemistry of how atoms are arranged in materials underpin the design, fabrication and applications, she said.

The Vice-Chancellor said that it is a matter of great pride that the 10-year-old university is organising an international conference on such a rare subject with speakers of international repute.

RGUKT is an autonomous body established in a 300 acre campus to cater the needs of rural meritorious students.

It is the first University to start integrated six years B.Tech programme just after completion of Class 10, Ashok informed.

Attivo Economic Zones Pvt Ltd will develop an infrastructure equipment manufacturing park in Telangana, it was announced on Wednesday.

The park will come up over 500 acres in the National Investment and Manufacturing Zone (NIMZ) near Zaheerabad town, according to the MoU signed by the company with Telangana government on Wednesday.

Telangana’s Department of Industries & Commerce and Attivo, an initiative of Kanoria Foundation entity Srei, signed the MoU in Bengaluru in the presence of Telangana’s Industries Minister K.T. Rama Rao, Srei Vice Chairman Sunil Kanoria and Attivo CEO Indranil Dasgupta.

According to a statement released here, the park to be formed in joint venture by Telangana government and Srei Infrastructure, will create a sustainable and comprehensive industrial zone of international standards.

Most of the world’s leading original equipment makers are expected to set up their units in the park, which has a potential to generate direct and indirect employment in excess of 10,000 jobs over the next 10 years.

“Attivo’s proposed park would be the most ideal location for all construction and mining equipment manufacturers as a plethora of road, irrigation and mining work is being awarded by the Government of Telangana and most of the contractors and construction companies are based there,” said Kanoria.

Rama Rao said the park to be developed with work to play concept will have the facilities. He announced that five first anchor investors in the park will get additional incentives.

Stating that land acquisition for the park was completed, the minister said foundation stone for the facility would be laid soon.

The minister, who was in Bengaluru to attend EXCON 2017, an international construction equipment and construction technology trade fair, met representatives of various companies manufacturing infrastructure equipment.

He told them that Hyderabad is ideal location for their operations as the city is centrally located and the Telangana government had also launched several industry-friendly measures. He said with several infrastructure projects being developed in Telangana, the state was a major consumer of the equipment.

In a sinister plot borrowed from a crime thriller, a woman murdered her husband and nearly swapped him with her paramour through plastic surgery but it was a bowl of mutton soup which spilled the beans.

Police in Telangana revealed the shocking facts unearthed during the investigations of the chilling crime in Nagarkurnool town.

M. Swati, a 27-year-old nurse at a private hospital in the town, was married to Sudhakar Reddy for three years and they also had a child. However, she came close to Rajesh, a physiotherapist. They hatched a plan to get rid of Reddy.

They executed the plan successfully by injecting anaesthesia to Reddy early on November 27 and when he fell unconscious, hit him on his head resulting in his death. They later dumped and burnt the body in the forests.

To ensure that nobody gets suspicious about Reddy’s disappearance, Swati hatched a plan to swap her dead husband with Rajesh by making some changes in his physical appearance through plastic surgery.

As part of their plan, she poured a small amount of acid on Rajesh’s face and informed Reddy’s relatives that unknown persons had attacked him.

‘Reddy’ was rushed to a corporate hospital in Hyderabad, where doctors advised plastic surgery. The treatment had started and when it looked Swati and Rajesh would succeed in their plan, the story took a dramatic turn.

Reddy’s relatives got suspicious when he refused to have mutton soup served to patients with burn injuries. They were shocked when he told the hospital staff that he is a vegetarian as the real Reddy used to take non-vegetarian food.

According to a police officer involved in the investigations, Reddy’s relatives grew suspicious on noticing change in his behaviour. When they started asking him some questions including the identity of some relatives, he stopped speaking and was conversing with signs.

Reddy’s family members alerted police. When the police grilled Swati, she confessed to killing her husband with the help of Rajesh.

Police arrested Swati on Sunday. She also confessed that she was inspired by Telugu movie “Yevadu” starring Ram Charan Teja and Allu Arjun. The story of this 2014 movie was about a youth (Allu Arjun) who gets injured and a lady plastic surgeon gives him the face of her deceased son (Ram Charan).

A police officer said Rajesh will be taken into custody after discharge from the hospital.