Monthly Archives: December 2017

IACS develops hydrogel to remove toxic dyes and metal ions

Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion
Useful tool: “The hydrogel can be used by the industries for effective treatment before wastewater disposal,” says Prof. Arindam Banerjee (Centre)

It could begin absorbing dyes within 15 minutes, metals in about 6 hours

Scientists from Indian Association for Cultivation of Sciences (IACS), Kolkata, have developed a new gel that can remove toxic organic dyes and metal ions from waste water. They found the hydrogel began absorbing various commonly used dyes within 15 minutes. The dyes tested were malachite green, congo red, brilliant blue and rhodomine B. In the case of metals, the hydrogel was able to considerably remove commonly found ones such as cobalt and nickel from industrial effluents in about six hours.

Basic amino acids like leucine and phenylalanine were used to make the gel; the gel is biodegradable. It was stable at room temperature and remained as a gel for several months.

Effective treatment

The current methods used for treating wastewater — adsorption using activated carbon, chemical precipitation or electrochemical techniques — are largely ineffective due to incomplete removal or high energy requirements. In comparison, the new hydrogel-based material is able to remove the hazardous waste effectively as it has high water permeability, large surface area for adsorption and is also simple to use.

“We monitored the uptake capacity of the hydrogel using UV spectroscopy and found that within a few hours the gel absorbed the dyes and the waste water turned almost colourless. The hydrogel can absorb the wastes for up to 60 hours before reaching a saturation point. The gel was able to remove 78-92% of the dyes and more than 80% metals ions,” explains Nibedita Nandi, research scholar at IACS and first author of the paper published in Peptide Science.

Reusable resource

“The hydrogel can be washed with sodium bicarbonate and ethyl acetate and reused. As the dyes and metal ions are soluble in water they get washed out from the gel and the hydrogel can be used for up to four cycles. It can be used by the industries for effective treatment before wastewater disposal,” says Prof. Arindam Banerjee, senior professor at the Department of Biological Chemistry, IACS, and corresponding author of the paper.

The researchers say that the production of the gel can be scaled up to the desired volume for use in water treatment at industries.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sci-Tech> Science / by Aswathi Pacha / December 23rd, 2017

Bengal mourns the demise of veteran singer-composer-songwriter Jatileshwar Mukhopadhyay

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Kolkata :

With the demise of Jatileshwar Mukhopadhyay, Bengal lost one of the most eminent personalities from the golden era of music who had the rare distinction of being a singer-composer-songwriter. Eighty three-year-old Mukhopadhyay succumbed to multi-organ dysfunction at a city nursing home on Thursday. He is survived by wife Sabita, daughter Subha and son Raja.

Born on December 13, 1934, at Chandernagore, Mukhopadhyay received his training under Satinath Mukhopadhay and Chinmoy Lahiri. Once he started working from the 60s, he created a niche for himself by writing the lyrics of 2000 songs and setting 1500 of them to music. Few know that he found inspiration in Mehndi Hassan’s ghazals.

While his own songs became popular, he churned out a number of hits when composing songs for Sandhya Mukherjee, Arati Mukhopadhyay, Haimanti Shukla, Banasree Sengupta, Pintu Bhattacharya, Sreeradha Bandopadhay and Pt Ajoy Chakraborty. Connoisseurs of modern Bengali songs remember his compositions like ‘E kon sokal rater cheyeo ondhokar’, ‘Keu bole falgun, keu bole polasher’, ‘Aamar swapan kinte pare’, ‘Aaami phoolke jedin dhore’, ‘Tomar songe dekha na hole’, ‘O sojon haay’ and ‘Amar onge jole’. His ‘Bodhua amar chokhe jol enechhe hai bina karone’ was a cult song and years later when Srikanto Acharya recorded it again, it generated equal interest among a new generation of listeners. Mukherjee had scored the music for Raja Sen’s ‘Damu’.

Tapan Basu, his disciple for over two decades, also highlighted his contribution as an author. “He has written Bengali essays and plays. ‘Krishnakumari Katha’ was a popular musical written by him. A lot of his research-based articles have been published as books. He also wrote in-depth articles on Begum Akhtar, Pankaj Mullick, Sudhin Dasgupta, Nachiketa Ghosh, among others,” Basu said.

Mukhopadhyay’s demise was deeply mourned by his music lovers. Composer Joy Sarkar described him as a most “underrated” talent who never got his due during his lifetime. Poet-and lyricist Srijato described Mukhopadhyay as a “smart” composer. “His compositions were smart, his lyrics had depth. He knew the art of expressing a lot while using few words. He is a perfect example of how to use knowledge with restraint,” Srijato said. Borrowing his own lyrics, noted elocutionist Urmimala Bose said: “Tomar songe dyakha na hole, bhalobashar deshta amar dyakha hoto na”.

His mortal remains will be kept at Rabindra Sadan on Friday to allow the people to pay their last respects before his final journey.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Kolkata News / by Priyanka Dasgupta / TNN / December 22nd, 2017

Smash hit with paddle, Naihati boy two-time state champ

Records, All, Sports
Anirban Ghosh during a practise session

Cossipore:

A 19-year-old whose mother sold her harmonium to buy his first table tennis kit has been the state champion in the game for two years in a row.

Anirban Ghosh spends more than four hours travelling from his Naihati home to a Cossipore club for practice everyday. The journey home in a crowded local train is particularly taxing after a long day’s practice.

The teenager’s father played para cricket to run the family before setting up a mini-recharge shop near Naihati station five years ago. The financial worries of Abhijit, 54, and wife Kakali, 46, have somewhat abated because of a sports stipend of Rs 18,000 that their son has been getting from the Airports Authority of India since last year.

Anirban won the state championships in both the youth (U-21) and men’s categories in 2016 and did an encore this year.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, Calcutta,India / Home> Calcutta / by Debraj Mitra / December 21st, 2017

Playing T20 of classical music in Kolkata

Arts, Culture & Entertainment
Anubrata with father Pt. Anindo Chaterjee

Kolkata :

In order to draw the attention of a young crowd not initiated to Indian classical music, tabla player Anubrata Chatterjee has come up with a unique concept. In an innovative fashion, Chatterjee has conceived a new show that will cater to the tastes of those who have a short-attention span.

On January 11, Chatterjee is bringing a unique concert to the city called Beats & Pieces. Chatterjee describes this as “T20 of classical music” and is being presented by Pt Anindo Chatterjee’s Music Academy for Tabla Research (MATRA). This concert will feature 20-minute individual solo acts of Mayookh Bhowmik on percussions, Pratik Shrivastav on sarod, Rageshri Das on thumri, Allarakha Kalavant on sarengi and Chatterjee on tabla. All the artistes will finally jam at the end for a 20-minute session.

“The usual audience for classical concerts is fast ageing. If classical artists can’t connect to the youngsters, we shall find the numbers of art connoisseurs fast declining. That’s how Beats & Pieces came to my mind. It has a young vibe with its roots in tradition.

I hope, a packed performance, full of fireworks of Indian music, shall catch the attention of youth just like T20 cricket did,” said Chatterjee, who is also looking forward to the Sur Festival on February 4 where he will be playing a duet with Pt Kishan Maharaj’s grandson Shub Maharaj.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Kolkata News / by Priyanka Dasgupta / TNN / December 18th, 2017

Big CAT is ready to land

Business & Economy, Records, All, Science & Technology

Dum Dum:

Precision landing in dense winter fog with a visibility limit of 50 metres will become possible at Calcutta airport from January 4, when the Category III-B instrument landing system makes it debut on the primary runway.

An official of the Airports Authority of India said on Monday that pilots trained to land aircraft in low visibility were practising assisted touchdown during non-peak hours. “Visibility is fine as of now but pilots are having drills in preparation for the launch.”

He said air traffic control personnel were also acquainting themselves with the new system.

CAT III-B, the answer to fog-induced flight delays almost every January, was sanctioned for the city airport in early 2014 and cost Rs 130 crore to install. Metro had reported on November 30 about the instrument landing system awaiting a final clearance by the directorate-general of civil aviation.

“All inspections have been completed and we are ready for operations. We will be providing the facility by the cut-off date and it is up to the airlines to use it,” the official said.

To be able to use the CAT III-B system, airlines need compatible aircraft and pilots trained to operate in low-visibility conditions.

Captain Sarvesh Gupta, the chairman of the airline operators’ committee in Calcutta, said most pilots flying in India were trained in CAT III-B operations. It pays for airlines to have pilots compliant with CAT III-B procedures because fog delays translate into loss of revenue.

Between late December and mid-February, flights are often disrupted because of dense fog in the morning and night. According to officials, such disruptions usually happen between 3am and 9am, when the maximum number of flights operate.

The CAT II instrument landing system currently in operation enables aircraft to land till visibility of 350m. This is inadequate for a city where visibility often dips much lower in winter.

Whenever flights have to be diverted, not only do passengers suffer but affected airlines also take a financial hit. Apart from burning additional fuel, an airline has to pay landing and parking charges at the alternative airport. If the delay is long, arranging accommodation for passengers entails more expenditure.

“When hundreds of passengers are stranded at an airport, infrastructure is tested as well. The washrooms are used by more people than they can handle and there is sometimes no place for passengers to even sit,” Gupta said.

Airport officials expect CAT III-B to almost eliminate fog-induced disruptions because visibility hardly, if ever, drops below 50m in Calcutta.

The number of lights along the centreline of the primary runway have been doubled as part of the upgrade from CAT-II to III-B.

The new instrument landing system has been installed on the southern side of the primary runway because the wind blows from north to south during winter in these parts. A tailwind would increase the possibility of an aircraft overshooting the runway while landing.

The new system also includes an advanced signalling mechanism.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, Calcutta,India / Home> Calutta / by Sanjay Mandal / December 19th, 2017

Kolkata boy defeats asthma, scales nine peaks in five years

Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Sports, Travel, World Opinion

Kolkata :

A mountaineer from Kolkata completed the rare feat of scaling nine peaks, including the Seven Summits (the highest peaks of each of the seven continents), on Saturday. Software engineer Satyarup Siddhanta, 34, climbed Mt Vinson in Antarctica shortly after 9am (local time) – his ninth summit since 2012.

An asthma patient who has never had any formal training in mountaineering, Siddhanta climbed the Everest in 2016. He has also scaled Mt Albrus, Mt Aconcagua, Mt Kilimanjaro, Puncak Jaya and Mt Denali. These apart, Siddhanta has also climbed Mont Blanc and Carsten’s Pyramid in Pappua New Guinea – the highest point in the Australian continent.

A resident of Kalitala Housing in Thakurpukur, Siddhanta is now based in Bangalore. According to his fellow climber Rudraprasad Haldar, Siddhanta once went to the Everest Base Camp and was inspired to begin his mountaineering journey, though he had no training. “It changed him forever and he decided to climb the Seven Summits,” said Haldar. Siddhanta’s website, however, mentions that he is a certified mountaineer from the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute in Darjeeling.

He overcame asthma which could have been a major barrier. “I realized I needed to reduce my dependency on inhalers when I was in college. I was also allergic to food items which triggered asthma. I struggled for years, continuously challenging myself by avoiding inhalers and consuming the food I was allergic to, without taking anti-allergic medicines,” Siddhanta wrote on his website.

But he didn’t give up. “I wanted to push limits to see how far I could go. Finally, with exercises, discipline, diet and some considerable will power and determination, I got rid of asthma,” he wrote.

His mother Gayatri, a homemaker, stayed up all night on Friday, following his march to the peak of Vinson.

“I couldn’t sleep a wink. I was more relieved than happy when he finally reached the summit,” she said. Siddhanta’s father Subhamoy is a doctor.

Gayatri said Siddhanta received funds from a few corporates for the climb. “He also auctioned some of his belongings and took a loan of Rs 30 lakh,” she added.

source: http://www.timesofindia.inditimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Kolkata News / by Monotosh Chakraborty / TNN / December 17th, 2017

Saturday history at high court

Leaders, Records, All

Calcutta:

When Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Rajarshi Bharadwaj took their seats in Court 308 at 10.30am on Saturday, history was made at Calcutta High Court.

For the first time in its 155 years, the court had opened on a Saturday, nudged by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra to clear its backlog of about 1.5 lakh criminal cases.

A handful of lawyers, law clerks and court employees had shown up, and the usual buzz along the corridors was missing. The tea stalls outside were shut.

The bench disposed of 17 cases – appeals against lower court convictions and sentences – hearing them all for the first time and taking about 10 minutes over each. Some of these had been pending since 2005, with the convicts close to completing their impugned sentences but unable to afford lawyers to present their case.

On Saturday, lawyers appointed by the state legal aid services represented them.

In the day’s first case, CRA 531 of 2010, the bench upheld the sex crime conviction of Rajkumar Barman but ordered his release since he had served out his seven-year term.

The bench freed one more convict, reduced the fine against two, and dismissed several appeals. Seventeen cases isn’t much but lawyers hailed the “new beginning”.

The last order was passed at 1.42pm, 12 minutes behind schedule. “I’m late by 12 minutes,” Justice Bagchi joked, and the lawyers tittered.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, Calcutta,India / Home> India / by Kinsuk Basu / December 17th, 2017

Kolkata driver wins award for shunning horn for 18 years

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All, Travel
Kolkata driver wins award for shunning horn for 18 years | Kolkata News – Times of India

Kolkata :

It will be tough to find people who can resist honking on the roads for 18 minutes. But this man from Kolkata has done wonders.

Meet Dipak Das, a city-based driver, who has not honked for 18 years. Seems incredible? His car even has this placard, ‘Horn is a Concept. I care for your heart.’ Das has won awards for this unique and rare habit.

With this no-horn policy, Das wants to inspire others to follow the practice. Thus noise pollution can be reduced, he believes, saying if a driver follows this no-horn policy, she/he will become more alert while driving.

He dreams of making Kolkata a “no-honking city” someday.

The 52-year-old, who lives with his wife and daughter, has worked as a Metro Rail helper. Dipak got his driving licence in 1991.

He says, “One day, I dropped a passenger in Golf Green area. I was taking rest in front of a school, but was woken up rudely because of senseless honking of cars.” On that day, he decided not to honk while driving. Das said, he was influenced by a poem of famous Bengali poet Jibanananda Das. Das’s daughter rides bycycle, but like her father she also does not honk.

Earlier, people used to call him ‘disturbed’. But today they respect Das’s ideology. He was awarded in this year’s Manush Mela. Eminent personalities who have travelled in Das’s car also appreciate this.

“I went to various places with him. He is special. His patience, sensibility has amazed me” says famous percussionist and tabla player Tanmoy Bose.

Singer Sidhu of the famous Cactus band also said, “I went to Mukutmanipur with Dipak. The guy has not honked for once. He is a rare talent.” Seriously!

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Kolkata News> Civic Issues / by Sumit Dey El Samay / December 13th, 2017

Masterclass for scientists

Business & Economy, Education, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Mohanpur:

The Newton Bhabha Fund on Thursday started a workshop for scientists on the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research’s Calcutta campus at Mohanpur in Nadia.

The three-day workshop aims to involve scientists from across the globe and the IISER in social and economic development, Sourav Pal, the IISER Calcutta director, said after inaugurating the workshop.

Scientific research should be industry-oriented instead of remaining confined within laboratories, Pal said.

“A huge amount of money is spent on research across the world. Many brains are being used at laboratories.

“But, it is high time that research findings are translated for the benefit of people through industries. It should be used for capacity-building of the researchers as well,” he said.

“A researcher should not be satisfied only by publishing his findings in a journal.”

The workshop, “Functional Nanomaterials: From Spectroscopy to Bioimaging”, is supported by a Researcher Link grant under the Newton Bhabha Fund.

Prasun Mandal of IISER Calcutta, who is the joint coordinator of the workshop, said the prime objective was to bring together chemists and researchers from various faculties to explore new ideas for social and economic development.

The Newton Bhabha Fund has organised the workshop in association with the University of Manchester, the British Council, the UK’s Royal Society of Chemistry, and IISER Calcutta, Mandal said.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, Calcutta,India / Home> Calcutta / by Subhasish Chaudhari / December 15th, 2017