Bengaluru: Under the scheme of Karnataka government, 27 lakh kitchens are expected to become smoke-free as the needy families in the state will get free LPG cylinders soon.

In the first phase, 10 lakh beneficiaries have already been identified under this scheme. Letters on have also been dispatched to such recipients. In the next stage, remaining eligible beneficiaries will even get LPG cylinders free of cost.

Building and construction laborers will be identified under this scheme jointly by the labor department, social welfare department, and food and civil supplies department. The government has recognized food and civil supplies departments as the nodal agency for implementing this scheme.

The state government will bear the cost of providing LPG connections to the beneficiaries' houses, which comes to Rs. 4,040 per home. This includes a gas stow and a liter.

After utilizing first two cylinders, the beneficiary must pay to book for next cylinder. All beneficiaries have been identified through ration cards. Preference has been given for those covered under 'Antyodaya' scheme and those who are not using LPG cylinders currently.The other condition for the selection is that the families should not have been the beneficiaries of the central government's 'Ujwala' scheme.

For more details about the scheme, additional director of food and civil supplies department, Arundhathi Chandrashekhar, can be contacted on Mobile No. 9448849503.

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Bengaluru: The South Zone round of the WAVES VFX Challenge took place today in Bengaluru, organized by the Association of Bangalore Animation Industry (ABAI).

The day-long competition brought together talented participants from across southern India, with the goal of selecting top finalists who will go on to represent the region at the national finals next month during the WAVES Summit in Mumbai.

Finalists were selected in three categories:

Student Category

Winner: Soumya Das

Runner-up: Gagan HP

Professional Category

Winner: Mohamad Javeed

Runner-up: S Sai Chandan

Enthusiasts Category

Winner: Gagan Ajai

Over 1,500 entries were received from students, working professionals, and VFX enthusiasts, all centered around the theme “Super Hero Power.” Out of these, 14 entries were shortlisted to compete in today’s final round. One winner and one runner-up from each category were chosen to represent the South Zone in Mumbai.

ABAI Secretary R.K. Chand appreciated the strong participation and encouraged industry professionals to attend the Mumbai summit, which will host well-known personalities from films, advertising, and creative sectors. He also mentioned that the WAVES Challenge was recently launched in Bengaluru by Sanjay Jaju, Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

The event was inaugurated by Dr. Sagar Gulati, Director of the School of Creative Design and Information Technology at Jain (Deemed-to-be University), the zonal partner for the competition.

The day also featured two special sessions led by industry experts. Vijay Selvam from the global VFX studio MPC held a masterclass titled “Concept Reality,” where he discussed lighting, animation, compositing, and photorealistic effects. Students got the chance to interact with him during a Q&A session.

Another session was conducted by Rakesh H, Lead Head at The Mill, who spoke about how visual effects are used in advertising. Nearly 100 students attended these sessions, gaining valuable industry insights and learning opportunities.