Latest news with #Jayaprakash
The Hindu
25-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Kerala mulling credits, semester system for higher secondary classes
Introduction of credits and a semester system for higher secondary classes is one of the proposals being mulled as the State enters the last phase of its comprehensive curriculum revision for school education. A conclave held in the State capital on Friday to hold discussions with stakeholders and garner public opinion on the higher secondary curriculum revision that is set to begin soon underlined the need to consider the recent changes in the higher education sector, particularly the implementation of the four-year undergraduate programme (FYUGP) in the State, when deciding on the direction of the higher secondary curriculum reforms. Even though the credit system has not been fully realised nationally, the State is pondering if students can earn credits not only through project and assignments but also National Cadet Corps and National Service Scheme activities. Language subjects optional Reducing the academic burden on students is also under consideration. Making language subjects optional is one way being explored. Higher secondary students can study Indian or foreign languages online and earn credits. This will also allow students to focus more on core subjects. For instance, Humanities students currently unable to pursue Economics and Mathematics together can do so if they choose to study one language through SCOLE-Kerala. Decisions though will have to be taken on aspects such as the number of credits that students can earn and if schools have the wherewithal to implement such proposals – such as faculty and infrastructure. National, State levels Presenting the concept note for the higher secondary curriculum revision, State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) director Jayaprakash R.K. pointed out that curriculum revision at the national level was guided by the National Education Policy under which the National Credit Framework provided for 1,200 hours of learning and 160 credits for classes XI and XII. The FYUGP provided more choice to students in pursuing courses and gave importance to skill education. 'When thinking about higher secondary curriculum reforms, the transformations in higher education in the State have to be taken into account.' 21st century skills He also pointed out that importance of skill courses and competency development. The reforms also raised the question of how the 21st century skills could be passed on to students in the classroom, especially at a time when technology was making huge leaps and artificial intelligence had found its way into classrooms, he said. Dr. Jayaprakash explained the schedule for the revision process. Public discussions would be held at the district-levels from August 1 to 15. Workshops on conceptualising ideas, textbook writing, and editing will follow. Expert committee meetings will be held in December. Scrutiny and curriculum subcommittee meetings will follow. The curriculum steering committee will meet in February and the textbooks will be ready for printing by March 10. Minister for Finance K.N. Balagopal who inaugurated the conclave said the achievements in the public education sector could be carried forward only through constant improvements. Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty presided.
Time of India
15-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
From soil to sky: How Garuda's war room is arming India for the drone wars of tomorrow
Operation Sindoor didn't just showcase India's evolving drone capabilities. It also underscored a larger truth — that the very nature of warfare is changing. And in this new landscape, the future belongs to those who prepare, not those who scramble to catch up. When the Indian Army rolled out drones during Operation Sindoor, it wasn't to dazzle with payloads or fly-by firepower. These were not big drones dropping bombs. Instead, they were smaller, smarter, tactical assets operating in silence: scouting routes, mapping terrain, ferrying supplies, and aiding search-and-rescue teams in unforgiving environments. For years, India's defence drone playbook had been limited a mix of foreign imports and basic ISR systems used sparingly. However, Operation Sindoor signalled that India was finally waking up to the idea that drones weren't just sidekicks to traditional warfare. They were becoming central to how wars would be fought — and more importantly, won. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Indonesia: New Container Houses (Prices May Surprise You) Container House | Search ads Search Now Undo For Garuda Aerospace , that shift wasn't just a military moment. It was a validation of a slow-burning strategy that's been years in the making. Founded in 2015 by Agnishwar Jayaprakash, a former Indian swimming captain and Harvard Business School graduate, Garuda began as an agri-tech startup. Its drones sprayed fertiliser, mapped villages, inspected infrastructure, and operated in the kinds of civilian spaces most defence players wouldn't even consider. Live Events 'We always thought defence was for the big boys,' Jayaprakash told ET Online. 'We weren't ready for 300-day payment cycles or chasing massive procurement projects. So we built where the problems were immediate.' The firm grew quietly, selling over 4,000 agri-drones and dominating nearly 40% of the domestic market. But over time, something changed. 'We started seeing gaps in the defence sector, parts no one else was touching,' he said. 'Landmine detection, logistics in conflict zones, drones that could carry supplies, detect movement, and even defuse threats.' So Garuda pivoted. Thinking small, acting big At Aero India 2025, Garuda unveiled a range of indigenous defence drone systems: Landmine detection and diffusement drones Rocket-launcher UAVs Loitering munitions Logistics and firefighting UAVs for the SDRF Rescue drones, VR pilot simulators, and a Thales-backed air traffic management system for unmanned skies. Each is part of a growing portfolio aimed not at replacing existing defence systems but complementing them. These aren't headline-grabbing billion-dollar platforms. They're precision tools for complex missions in terrain where human movement is slow or risky. 'We don't focus on areas where people are already big,' Jayaprakash said. 'We look at multi-role drones, ISR systems, and platforms that solve multiple problems, from surveillance to search-and-rescue.' What sets Garuda apart is its conviction in being nimble. Unlike legacy firms, it isn't chasing size. It's building drones that switch roles mid-flight, that can sniff out a buried mine or carry medical kits across a hostile zone. They're investing in underwater and tethered drones. These aren't just prototypes. They're built for fieldwork. The reality check: Preparedness over panic India's awakening to the drone age hasn't been voluntary. It's been reactive. Jayaprakash is frank about it: 'We weren't ready during the initial days of the conflict between India and Pakistan. Many of our drones were getting shot down. Their drones were backed by China, Iran, Turkey and Pakistan and they had better endurance and payload capacity. We were up against a four-on-one attack.' The lesson was hard-hitting. Surveillance drones weren't enough anymore. India needed kamikaze drones, swarm drones, tethered surveillance units, and UAVs that could operate inside urban combat zones and explode on command. 'Until now, we've relied either on high-end imports from countries like Israel, or on low-grade drones built to outdated specs,' he said. 'That has to change.' Operation Sindoor is now being seen as a wake-up call across military planning circles — a moment where India was forced to acknowledge that the drone battlefield is real, and preparation must begin long before the first shot is fired. Manufacturing: Made at home, by design One of the biggest constraints to India's defence readiness has been dependence on foreign imports. Garuda is aggressively cutting that cord. Its Chennai facility — now expanded to 35,000 sq ft — manufactures seven drone subsystems and 33 parts in-house. That's about 80% of each drone built locally. 'To cut dependence on imports, we had to make things ourselves,' said Jayaprakash. 'Geopolitics changes overnight. We don't want to be stuck waiting.' Their roadmap includes a new dedicated defence drone manufacturing unit outside Chennai with a capacity of 15,000 drones per year, aimed at fully integrating motors, batteries, sensors and communications subsystems. The effort is backed by the government's Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and aligns with the national goal of becoming a drone hub by 2030. And it's not just about machines. Garuda also opened India's first Agri-Drone Indigenisation Facility and launched 300 pilot training centres. A DGCA-approved Train-the-Trainer programme ensures there's talent ready to deploy not just hardware. Partnerships that helped build Recognising the steep technical demands of modern defence tech, Garuda has turned to strategic partnerships to amplify its capabilities. Thales brings in cutting-edge radar and UTM systems. Tata Elxsi contributes AI and autonomy for smart-city and combat applications. DRDO, HAL, HFCL, and REIL work on communication, surveillance and R&D. Meanwhile, collaborations with Cognizant, BEML, and international partners like SAS (Greece) have helped fast-track advanced products like rocket-launcher drones and landmine diffusers. 'These partnerships aren't about logos,' Jayaprakash explained. 'They're about reliability. We learn from them. We co-develop. And we ensure the final product is ready for Indian conditions.' But even partnerships have their limits, while R&D in India remains hard, funding is tight, talent is mobile and attrition is high. 'We run a frugal ship. We can't always match salaries offered by the big players. So our best engineers often get poached,' he said. 'That's why partnerships are also our insurance as they keep the project alive even if people change.' The defence drone economy: A new theatre of growth As India wakes up to its strategic vulnerabilities, the defence drone sector is poised to become one of the most vital and volatile parts of the military industrial complex. Yet, the real opportunity may not lie in headline-grabbing billion-dollar contracts, but in the smaller, forgotten parts of warfare: ISR, logistics, detection, post-blast analysis, mine clearing, and disaster response. That's exactly where Garuda wants to play. Quietly, precisely, and with products no one else wants to build. 'Defence is a tough game,' Jayaprakash admits. 'Specs change. Payments are delayed. Overnight someone underbids you. But we've stayed profitable because we chose our entry carefully.' The numbers are starting to show it. Revenues have grown from ₹15 crore in FY22 to over ₹120 crore last year. A ₹100 crore Series B fundraise has pushed their valuation to $250 million. An IPO is in the works. But the mission is far from over. India's defence preparedness can no longer afford to lag behind. Whether it's drones that detect threats or ones that carry the fight forward, the need is no longer optional it's urgent. Operation Sindoor proved one thing: wars of the future will be won not just with brute force, but with better sensors, faster decision-making, and assets that can be deployed in hours, not months.
Indian Express
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘Congress leaders wanted Indira ji, JP to talk, find a meeting ground… But it didn't happen due to her coterie': Govindacharya
In the early 1970s, K N Govindacharya was the RSS Patna Vibhag pracharak, putting him at Ground Zero of the student-led protests that snowballed into a mass agitation against the Indira Gandhi government, and led to her invoking the Emergency. Now 82, the once powerful BJP general secretary, representative of the party's push beyond its Brahmin-Bania base, is more engaged in social and environmental activism. He talks to The Indian Express about his recollections of the Emergency, including his meeting with Jayaprakash Narayan. Excerpts: On March 18, 1974, there was firing in front of the Assembly in Patna when students tried to storm it, and the offices of two pro-agitation newspapers, Pradeep and Searchlight, were torched. That day a MISA warrant was issued against me and Ram Bahadur Rai. On March 19, we quietly met Jayaprakash ji; I had worked with him during drought relief in 1966. He first said you people are upadravi (troublemakers), and have torched two newspaper offices. I told him that both torched offices belonged to newspapers that were supportive of the students' agitation… I asked him to make enquiries to test my claim. It was then decided that on March 27, there would be a small protest. Shivanand Tiwari was arrested that day. Jayaprakash ji then announced that if curfew was not lifted by March 29, he would take to the streets. Curfew was lifted a day earlier. On April 8, JP held a rally at Gandhi Maidan, where he talked of vyavastha parivartan (systemic change). JP had to go to Vellore soon after that for treatment, as he was unwell. The students' agitation continued, with some support from other organisations, but began to lose steam. So we decided to make Opposition MLAs resign… In between, there was a police lathicharge in front of a girls' school in Gaya. JP said that this government cannot stay, and that the Assembly should be dissolved. From May 8- 9 (1974), Opposition MLAs began to resign. In early June, Jayaprakash ji returned from Vellore. On June 5, the Chhatra Sangharsh Samiti planned a protest. The procession was attacked by activists of the Indira brigade… The then district magistrate told the gathering that it should stay calm, and police would act action against only miscreants. JP endorsed what the DM said, and gave the gathering a slogan – Sampoorna kranti ab naara hai, bhaavi itihas hamara hai (Total revolution is our slogan now, the future will be ours). After that, the rains began, and all activities were carried on in-house. Early in October, a Bihar bandh was called. In November 1974, Indira Gandhi commented that since JP is 'so democratic', the coming elections would determine who had the support of the people. JP accepted the challenge, and said that the agitation would take an all-India form. No, she had begun to become intolerant. (Congress) Young Turks like Chandra Shekhar ji wanted talks between Indira ji and JP; they wanted to find a meeting ground… But that did not materialise because of her coterie – like Om Mehta, R K Dhawan, Makhanlal Fotedar… After the jolt from the court, there was a sudden change in her. We heard that she got to know that there would be a show of strength at the Congress Parliamentary Party meeting. So, she moved towards the imposition of internal Emergency. On June 25, 1975 (the day the Emergency was imposed), I was in Varanasi and heard something was about to happen. So I returned to Patna by Punjab Mail, and decided not to go to the RSS office but first assess the situation. I sent a student there to figure out what was happening, and he said there were police all around, and the premises were being searched… I had learnt from the (1974) Bihar agitation how to work underground. That same night, I met six of our workers to decide where all our prominent state leaders would take shelter. We decided to withdraw money collected during RSS guru dakshina (before bank accounts get frozen) and to hide the list of those who donated it. I managed to stay in hiding through the Emergency, and was eventually sent to jail for one day after (the 1977 Lok Sabha) elections had already been declared. On February 24, 1977, I had gone to Bhagalpur for a poll campaign. At the house where the meeting was being held, police came. An informer had given the tip-off. The cops asked for Govindacharya. People told them I had left. They asked me, I said I was Ram Bharose Tiwari, and my father was Jogeshwar Tiwari. Police left, but returned, because of what the informer had told them. I was to be sent to jail, but the Sangh had got the news. A bail application was immediately submitted. The next morning I got bail. I never stayed for more than a week at any place. I travelled through Bihar, Assam, Bengal, Odisha, Manipur and other parts of the Northeast. I used to stay in the homes of ordinary organisation workers. Jayaprakash ji was released from jail within months because of his kidney ailment, and came back to Patna after treatment. Bhaurao Deoras of the RSS wanted to meet him. We found ways for it. A professor, Ramakant Pandey, asked me to convey to JP that he should go for a morning walk each day. The plan was to decide beforehand where he would have breakfast, and to bring the person who wanted to meet him to that house in advance… Police and intelligence personnel would be stationed outside. In 15 minutes, the conversation would be over… Once JP met Bhaurao ji in this manner. We did this six-seven times. I went to JP with the RSS prant pracharak, and he said we should get sweets. We said you have diabetes and are on dialysis. He said it doesn't matter. He ate sweets that day. Many did not want to contest the elections, some were in jail. Some were released because they were candidates, and then many of those in jail wanted to contest to secure their own release. George Fernandes wasn't released. He won from jail. Till February (1977), we did not sense that people were supporting us. Then, there was a game changer: Jagjivan Ram, Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna and Abdullah Bukhari entered the campaign for us. This made a big change. Phir jwaar badhta hi chala gaya (the tide then kept on rising).
Time of India
12-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
First-of-its-kind in Kerala: Rest centre unveiled for cancer patients' bystanders at Kottayam medical college
K ottayam: In its diamond jubilee year, Kottayam medical college has unveiled a rest centre for bystanders of cancer patients — a first-of-its-kind for govt hospitals in Kerala. The initiative was spearheaded and funded by the 1985 MBBS batch of the college. Inaugurating the centre, devaswom, port and cooperation minister VN Vasavan lauded the alumni for their contribution. "A restroom for bystanders of cancer patients, unique and first of its kind in the state, reflects the humane side of healthcare that considers not just the patients but also those who stand by them in their most vulnerable moments," the minister said. Medical college principal Dr Varghese Punnose presided over the event. Medical college superintendent Dr TK Jayakumar, Kottayam Institute of Child Health (ICH) superintendent Dr Jayaprakash KP, senior cardiologist Dr Jabir A, Dr Jose Tom, Dr Sam Christie Mammen, Dr Susan Uthup, Dr Suresh Kumar and Dr Tigy Thomas Jacob spoke at the event. Dr Jayaprakash and Dr Jabir are also senior office-bearers of Class 1985 Kottayam medical college society. The 1,000 square foot building, adjacent to the cancer ward, features separate, hygienic resting areas for men and women, complete with modern bathrooms, two-tier beds, a secure access control system, CCTV surveillance, and a well-equipped dining area. The project, proposed by Dr TK Jayakumar was accepted by the 1985 alumni batch and completed at a cost of Rs 35 lakhs, Dr Jabir said. The announcements from the ICU of the cancer ward will be made audible in the restrooms via speakers. The facility will be maintained by the staff and nurses of the cancer ward, alongside the hospital's housekeeping department, Dr Jayaprakash said. Follow more information on Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad here . Get real-time live updates on rescue operations and check full list of passengers onboard AI 171 .
Time of India
04-06-2025
- General
- Time of India
Forest department officer in ACB net for taking bribe
Vijayawada: Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) officials arrested Gubbala Venkata Venu Jayaprakash, deputy range officer of forest dept in Machilipatnam, for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 18,000. According to ACB officials, the accused demanded the bribe from Vannamreddy Venkata Ravindranath, a resident of Balaramunipeta in Machilipatnam. Ravindranath submitted an application to renew the Form-II licence for his wood industry and depot. Jayaprakash allegedly sought the bribe in return for processing and recommending the application to higher officials. Unwilling to pay the bribe, the complainant approached ACB authorities in Vijayawada, who registered a case under Section 7(a) of Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018. Acting on the complaint, ACB officials laid a trap and caught Jayaprakash red-handed while accepting the bribe amount. Investigations revealed that this is not the first time the officer faced corruption charges. In 2017, while serving in Rajahmundry range, he was caught by the ACB in Eluru while taking a bribe of Rs 60,000. Jayaprakash was produced before the ACB special court in Vijayawada on Wednesday. ACB has appealed to the public to report any instances of corruption in govt depts by contacting their local ACB office or by using toll-free number 1064, mobile number 9440440057, or by sending an email to: complaints-acb@
