This Karnataka mom-daughter duo is set to circumnavigate earth in motor glider

News Network
November 30, 2017

Mysuru, Nov 30: In a first-of-its-kind sojourn to create a world record in a motor glider, a mother-daughter duo from Karnataka’s Mysuru is all set to circumnavigate around the world — 21 countries, covering 51,000 km — in a motor glider.

Capt Audrey Deepika Maben and Amy Mehta will fly around the planet in 80 days, criss-crossing over South East Asia, Japan, Russia, Alaska, North America, Iceland, Greenland, Europe, Iran and Pakistan before touching down in India. The jaunt will begin on February 18, 2018.

Maben’s plane ‘Mahi’ is a Sinus 912 that’s smaller than the size of an average kitchen, can fly around the world in lesser fuel than you need to make it to office and back, and has never been flown by a female pilot; until now. Given the size constraints, the pilot will be unable to fly across the globe with extra clothes and not always have her daughter alongside her, and will have to fly commercial from time to time.

The expedition was announced at the Jakkur Aerodrome on Wednesday. The journey is conceptualised by Social Access Communications as part of their campaign ‘WE! Women Empower’ and is supported by a private TV channel and the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Audrey, who started flying gliders in Jakkur as a 15-year-old NCC cadet, was the first woman microlight aircraft instructor in the country. She also set a record as the only woman ultralight pilot in the Air Race India in 2003.

Nineteen-year-old Amy has flown beside her mother from when she was a child and she is excited to be with her on this mission.

“I will be my mother’s eyes and ears during the journey. I will be looking after social media, where we will post about our journey,” she said.

Amy is a photography student and she will be taking special leave to be on this expedition. “I will be taking pictures and I hope to bring out a photography book at the end of the trip,” she said.

Audrey is now on a nutrition programme and is undergoing strength and endurance training to prepare for the physically and mentally demanding journey. “I am also preparing my children and family for this trip, because everybody perceives this journey as a risk. But I say the roads are much more dangerous than the skies,” Audrey said.

She hopes to empower young girls and women by showing them that they can also fly. The campaign has a crowdfunding drive to create ‘We! Udaan Scholarships’ to support underprivileged girls who want to fly.

Comments

Mohan
 - 
Thursday, 30 Nov 2017

Great expedition. All the best for future plans

Sruti Kotian
 - 
Thursday, 30 Nov 2017

Inspiring. I wish I can do atleast all India tour with my mom

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News Network
June 3,2020

Bengaluru, Jun 3: Lack of awareness on rail travel norms led to a tense situation on a Karnataka train as a female passenger was forced to disembark midway after her fellow passengers raised a hue and cry on seeing her knuckle stamped, mistaking it for a quarantine stamp, an official said on Tuesday.

"Many passengers on the train with the woman raised a hue and cry on seeing her stamped and complained to the TTE. She was later disembarked at Tumkur," a South Western Railway (SWR) zone official said.

The woman was travelling from Bengaluru to Belagavi as a transit passenger. Her status as such a passenger was stamped on her knuckle.

However, after some time, her fellow passengers observed her stamped hand and misunderstood that she was violating the quarantine norms.

Without realising that she was just a transit passenger who will be quarantined on reaching her destination, they created pandemonium and complained to the travelling ticket inspector.

"Following the public pressure, she was forcibly disembarked in Tumkur station," said the official.

Incidentally, the railways allows transit passengers to travel.

The official said the TTE would not have been aware of the rules and must have yielded to the passengers' pressure.

Later, the woman was allowed to board another train and reach her destination, the official said.

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News Network
July 4,2020

Bengaluru, Jul 4: A young woman doctor at the Kempegowda Institute of Medical Sciences, Bengaluru, who had raised an alarm about faulty PPE kits and shortage of N95 masks, has tested positive for the covid-19.

Taking note of this, Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha brought the issue to the attention on Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar on Twitter. Tagging the minister, the MP tweeted, “For your information and I feel, it is a genuine concern.” “Amulya Gowda treated Covid patients at KIMS.

Karnataka Medical Association took to social media to express concern over the development. In a Facebook post it wrote: "Amulya C Gowda is a frontline worker who risks her life every single day. Last week she raised an alarm about faulty PPE kits and shortage of N-95 masks. But the Administrative Medical Officer (AMO) at KIMS, shunned and chastised her for raising this issue. Ever since, she has been buying her own N-95 masks. Today, she tested positive for Covid-19 and appealed to the Hospital authorities and raised her genuine concerns over the faulty protective gear, but she was again harassed and humiliated for raising the issue."

Dr DH Ashwath Narayana, Medical Superintendent, KIMS Hospital, said that all PPE kits at KIMS were certified by SITRA (South India Textiles Research Association), Coimbatore and that they had purchased N-95 masks available in the market. "One cannot claim faulty PPEs are the reason for testing positive. We have purchased whatever PPE kits are available in the market. Healthcare workers across hospitals, private and government, and policemen are also getting infected."

As the new rules by the state government allow healthcare workers home isolation, Narayana said the doctor is recuperating at home and that she is doing fine.

Medical education minister Dr K Sudhakar tweeted, "Doctors are our frontline warriors battling the pandemic. Government has taken all necessary measures to ensure safety of our doctors. I have taken note of supply of defective masks and PPE kits to KIMS doctors and ordered an enquiry. Management will be held responsible if found guilty."

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News Network
March 11,2020

Bengaluru, Mar 11: DK Shivakumar has been appointed as the new president of the party's Karnataka unit, an official said on Wednesday.

"Congress president (Sonia Gandhi) has appointed D.K. Shivakumar as the president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC)," said party's general secretary K.C. Venugopal in a statement from New Delhi.

Party's state unit leaders Eshwar Khandre, Satish Jharkiholi and Saleem Ahammed are the working presidents in the southern state.

"Former chief minister Siddaramaiah will continue as the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader and opposition leader in the state legislative assembly.

MLC M. Narayanswamy and MLA Ajay Singh will be the party's chief whips in the state legislative council and assembly.

Congress appoints Anil Chaudhary as DPCC chief

The Congress on Wednesday appointed former MLA Anil Chaudhary as its Delhi unit chief, while also naming five vice-presidents for the DPCC.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi named Chaudhary president and Abhishek Dutt, Shivani Chopra, Jaikishan, Mudit Agarwal and Ali Hassan vice-presidents of the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC), a party statement said.

Subhash Chopra had resigned as the Delhi Congress chief in February, taking moral responsibility for the party's debacle in the Assembly polls.

The Congress drew a blank for the second time in a row in the Delhi Assembly polls and reduced its vote share from 9.7 per cent in 2015 to 4.27 per cent this time.

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