INS Kurusura Submarine. June 01, 2010 15:38
The Submarine Museum - Kurusura being set up at the Rama Krishna Beach in Visakhapatnam has a specialty which is the first one of its kind in this subcontinent. INS Kusura is a Russian built submarine. It was built on Dec 18th 1969 and began its journey on Feb 20, 1970 via the Baltic Sea and reached Visakhapatnam on the 11th of May, 1970. Since then INS Kusura was being used by the Indian Defence. The Navy developed it as a War-Memorial with a project cost of Rs.5.5 Crores. The length of Submarine is 91.3 Mtrs. while the breadth is 8.00 mtrs. This is the first of its kind in Asia and second in the world. The Museum opens for public from 9 am to 9 pm. Chief Minister Sri N Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated the Museum
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Simhachalam temple in vizag June 01, 2010 15:32
Simhachalam temple is well connected from Vizag city centers and there is a local station stop for trains. Long distance express trains usually do not stop here. From Vizag Railway station it is 45 minutes drive by road and 30 minutes from airport. Frequent buses available locally for hill top. There is a Trekking route available for trekking lovers from Madhavadhara side, two hours climbing to temple premises with steep natural stone steps and a beautiful view of Vizag city and at the other side the temple view from hill top. Simhachalam - the hill of the lion is located at a distance of 18 km from Visakhapatnam refers to the 11th century temple of Lord Narasimha - an incarnation of Vishnu. Millions of devotees from round the world visit this temple every year. The presiding deity here is Varaha Lakshminarasimha, combining the iconographic features of Varaha and Narasimha. The image resembles a Shivalingam covered with sandal paste. It is only once a year, during the Chandana Visarjana that the sandal paste is removed, and the image is seen by pilgrims. The artwork here has elements of similarity with that of Konark. Elephants, flowers and plants are portrayed in plenty. The outer walls of the sanctum depict images of a royal personality (said to be King Narasimha) in various postures. The Kalyana Mandapa within the temple has 16 pillars with bas relief depicting the incarnations of Vishnu. There is a rest house available for staying and performing puja, mirages , functions etc. For booking one can telephone to 2715276. Narasimaha Lodge and one Kalyana Mandap are available at the complex. Catering facility is also available. This is one of the famous temple in Andhra Pradesh. After a visit to the temple one can buy many Puja photos, items and devotional songs from the local market.
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Rama Krishna Beach June 01, 2010 15:30
Rama Krishna Beach: The Rama Krishna Beach, or RK Beach as it is commonly called, is one of the best tourist spot in Vizag. The beaches of Vizag enthrall the tourists and the clean beaches attract tourists in great numbers. Swimming, sun bathing, playing the beach volleyball or simply sitting under the cool shade of a tree and reading a book are the favorite pastime of many. R.K.Beach is a great picnic spot to spend time with your loved ones. Rama Krishna beach is a favorite beach resort for tourists visiting Vishakhapatnam. Both the Ramakrishna beach presents a picturesque and beautiful scenic beauty. It is Vizag's favorite evening sojourn. An aquarium, the Kali temple, Visakha Museum, Roadside restaurants offering seafood is the other attractions at this beautiful beach.
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Port of Visakhapatnam June 01, 2010 15:27
WELCOME to the Port of Visakhapatnam, the Gateway to the East Coast of India. It plays a crucial role as the middle point distribution base for Southern, Eastern, Central and Northern states of India. Described as the “Brightest Jewel” of all Indian major ports for its outstanding performance and productivity, Visakhapatnam Port serves as a catalyst in spurring domestic and international trade. We at Port of Visakhapatnam pledge to offer cost effective, reliable and trustworthy services to the full satisfaction of our customers and We will continue to co-operate with the federal/State Governments and naval authorities in management of the port in consonance with the best global practices. We will remain committed to making contributions to further development and advancement of Port of Visakhapatnam as well as industrial needs of the country.
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President's rule likely, says Dattatreya May 07, 2011 14:54
The present political scenario in the State is in a confused state and administration is in doldrums and major political changes can be seen once the result of the by-elections in Kadapa are announced, BJP senior leader Bandaru Dattatreya said here on Friday.There are many fence-sitters in the Congress with its workers a confused lot, and the most likely scenario that would emerge is imposition of the President's rule in the State since the Congress would like to hold on to power till the next elections and also because its position at the Centre was unstable thanks to the many major scams, he said at a press conference. s“It is very difficult for Chief Minster N. Kiran Kumar Reddy to survive, even with the support of Mr. Chiranjeevi. The party has no charismatic leader and it has borrowed Mr. Chiranjeevi for five days to campaign in Kadapa. The Chief Minister also has to tackle important issues of YSR Congress and Telangana in the immediate future,” the BJP leader said.He also blamed Telugu Desam president and leader of Opposition N. Chandrababu Naidu for not taking to task the Government, which was inefficient and corrupt.The Chief Minister or Mr. Naidu failed to take up the problem of farmers who were seeking good MSP for paddy and the Telugu Desam, which failed to gain the confidence of people even in this situation, was not fighting the hike in property tax in municipalities, Mr. Dattatreya said.He felt that BJP has a good chance to strengthen itself with the Congress and the Telugu Desam failing miserably. The party's State committee meeting to be held on May 16 and 17 would discuss the MSP for paddy and hike in property tax and plan agitations and other forms of protest all over the State. BJP city president M. Nagendra, State vice-president Bandaru Rangamohana Rao, leaders T. Subbarami Reddy, K. Ratnakumari, P.V.N. Madhav and Ch. Ramakotaiah were present.
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GVMC Officials levied abnormal tax September 05, 2010 20:11
The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) is in a fix with the growing opposition from people as well as main opposition parties over abnormal increase of property tax and is succumbing to the pressures from all circles.The Mayor, Mr P. Janardhana Rao, decided to convene a meeting with floor leaders of all parties on September 6. In the first round issuance of demand notices, many irregularities were committed in noting plinth area, and levying tax, which compounded the problem. Owner, of S.V.N. Computers and Peripherals, on the Diamond Park road, Dwarakanagar in Zone-10, Mr Karun Sridhar, was levied a tax of Rs 20,241 for six months against his earlier half-yearly tax of Rs 845.Mr Karun said that he was at a loss to understand how the officials levied abnormal tax, without even taking actual plinth area, or previous tax into account. He demanded that the corporation immediately reduce the tax.Meanwhile, the opposition parties have decided to intensify their stir demanding roll back of the tax hike as the corporation was not responding to their appeals at all.Mr Janardhana Rao, rushed to Hyderabad on Friday, and sources close to him said that he will meet the Chief Minister and the municipal administration minister to apprise them of strong opposition on the tax hike.“Chances are there that the mayor would convince higher-ups seeking considerable reduction in the recently modified tax structure,”
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He sent 11 SMSs to the Police Commissioner August 26, 2010 10:19
Two persons were arrested on the charge of sending SMSs threatening Police Commissioner J. Purnachandra Rao. T. Shivaji, the prime accused, is a resident of Kotnipalem village of Pendurthy mandal on the outskirts of the city. He sent 11 SMSs to the Police Commissioner stating that political rowdies and white collar criminals were growing in the city. He sought that the Commissioner should eliminate the criminals failing which he would be forced to conduct a yagna (to take up a crusade) to eliminate them. Mobile number The accused gave his mobile number as ‘9000816648'. Mr. Purnachandra Rao entrusted the case to Cyber Crimes Circle-Inspector C.M. Naidu. The mobile service provider didn't have the complete address of the subscriber. The Circle-Inspector, with the assistance of the City Task Force police, zeroed in on Shivaji, but the phone was in the name of his friend. Both the accused were arrested and a case was registered under the IT Act.
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Fire breaks out at Vizag steel plant April 12, 2011 18:18
Two separate fires broke out in the city on Sunday that might have turned serious. The first incident took place at the Continuous Casting Shop of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant at about 9.30 am when a slide gate broke down and molten steel, worth crores of rupees, overflowed into one of the casters (CCM -2) of the plant. Fortunately, no one was injured, said plant officials. In the second incident, a fire engulfed a small hillock in the Visakha Refinery premises of the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation. Though safety officials acted quickly and brought the fire under control, smoke covered the entire hill and this, combined with effluents from the chimney caused considerable inconvenience to the locals. Meanwhile at the steel plant, though production was disrupted at CCM-2, the other casters continued operations. An official release stated that CCM-2 started normal operations at around 3 pm. The release said that only electrical wires and other sundry items had been damaged and the 13 to 14 cubic metres of molten steel that had spilt would be used as scrap for the steel making process. At the HPCL site, though there was a lot of smoke, the locals did not panic as they said that it was a regular phenomenon. Last summer, there had been two incidents of fire on the same hillock which is located about half-a-kilometre from the processing units but is close to the administrative building. However, pipelines carrying fuel pass close to the hill. An official release stated that the fire was due to the prevailing wind conditions and dry grass. The refinery operations, however, were not affected and the situation was fully brought under control. HPCL sources said that sparks from the chimney might have started the fire when it came in contact with the dry grass.
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Gangavaram port firm on augmenting capacity April 30, 2011 17:18
Taking advantage of the optimism over growth of infrastructure and industry sectors, the Gangavaram Port is getting ready to expand its capacity. Promoted by the Gangavaram Port Ltd under Public Private Partnership format, the port management will seek mandate at a public hearing being conducted by the AP Pollution Control Board for its first phase expansion here on May 12. The port is investing Rs.995 crore to develop four more berths, including a mechanised berth, to handle coal. Three berths will handle multipurpose cargo, which includes liquid cargo for the first time. The port will enhance its capacity from the present 16.5 million tonne to 40.9 million tonne by 2013-14. The port, at present, has five berths. CPCB finding The Forum for Better Visakha and the Fishermen Youth Welfare Association have questioned the rationale behind the expansion plans with the contention that the Central Pollution Control Board has identified Visakhapatnam as a highly polluted industrial cluster, making it unfit to have any major industry or expansion of existing projects. The officials of GPL have rejected the criticism and expressed their resolve to go ahead with the expansion to meet the demand for handling cargo with efficiency with less turnaround and pre-berthing time for big size merchant vessels. “Our expansion will not have any adverse impact on the environment as we are installing most advanced technologies to keep the level of pollution at the bare minimum,” Director (corporate affairs) of GPL Suryaprakash Gutta told The Hindu. The port, which started its commercial operations during April 2009, had a turnover of Rs. 440 crore during 2010-11, earning a profit in the first year of its operation, Capt. Suryaprakash said. Gangavaram is an all-weather, multipurpose port capable of handling Super Cape size vessels carrying 2,00,000 tonne. Gifted with a deep draft of 21 metres, the port has a state-of-the-art fully automated handling system located on the backyard of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant. With Gangavaram snatching away part of its cargo, the Visakhapatnam Port, the main port in the government sector, could handle 68.04 million tonne, falling short of the target of 70 million tonne during 2010-11. The main port, however, retained the second slot after the Kandla, which had a throughput of 81.88 million tonne.
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Teacher killed by stalker at school April 21, 2011 18:44
A tribal teacher was hacked to death by a man on the school premises in R. Dumbriguda under Araku mandal on Wednesday afternoon. The killer, identified as Tangula Subba Rao, later surrendered to the police. According to the police, Subba Rao was earlier convicted for attempting to rape the teacher. The victim, L. Sundaramma, who was a native of Korra village under Dumbriguda mandal, was working as a teacher in the R. Dumbriguda primary school. Earlier, Sundaramma and Subba Rao used to work as vidya volunteers in Korra village. Subba Rao had been pestering Sundaramma for long to marry him. However, Sundaramma had bluntly turned him down saying that she did not like him. She had also warned Subba Rao that she would lodge a complaint with the police if he continued to pester her. Subba Rao though was not discouraged and continued to harass her. In 2002, he even tried to rape her. Based on a complaint by Sundaramma, Subba Rao was arrested and was sent to jail in 2004. He was recently released from the prison and had allegedly resumed harassing Sundaramma. On Monday, he had gone Sundaramma’s school to ask her to marry him and was warned by the teacher that another police complaint would be lodged against him. Angered by this, on Wednesday Subba Rao returned to the school and brutally hacked Sundaramma. The mid-day meal organiser, Ms Killo Munima, tried to save the woman but Subba Rao overpowered her. From the school, he went to the police station and surrendered. The district secretary of CPM and several women’s organisations sought better security for the women teachers in the Agency areas.
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Mango production hit by untimely rain April 26, 2011 19:39
Mango production in the State has been badly hit by the untimely rains. Contrary to expectations of a bumper harvest this year, mango productions is estimated to drop by half compared to last year. “During December and January, the night temperatures which are normally around 15 degree C, are congenial for flowering of mangoes. The temperature conducive to flowering was lost to a great extent due to the untimely rains,” Assistant Director of Horticulture S. Rammohan has said. The total extent under mango cultivation in the district is 15,351 hectares. The major mandals in the districts where mango cultivation is done are: Kotauratla, Nakkapalli, Sabbavaram, Padmanabham, Makavarapalem and K. Kotapadu. The main varieties produced in the district are: Banginapalli (Benishaan), Suvarnarekha and Rasalu. The untimely rain during November and December last year, and again in February this year has hit mango production badly. The second spell of rain during February has led to partial dropping of flowers and an estimated further drop in production. The rise in humidity after the rains has led to proliferation of pests and their attacks on the mango flowers. “Research conducted by A. Sujata, Principal Scientist at the Mango Research Centre of the Horticulture University in West Godavari district, has led to development of a light trap designed to control mango fruit borer moths that are causing immense loss to mango farmers in coastal districts,” Mr. Rammohan said. ‘A washout' “Mango is an alternate bearer. Though it was an ‘off-season' for the crop last year, the total production in the district was 8 MTs per hectare. This year, we have estimated that the production would be below 4 MT s per hectare. The Suvarnarekha variety, which flowers early, seems to be a total washout,” says Horticulture Officer K. Sailaja. Banginapalli variety has also been badly affected. The ‘collector' variety, which is a late flowering variety, is the least affected. Looks like buyers will find it disappointing at not seeing the ‘King of fruits' in their majestic best this year.
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