PM Modi inaugurates Centre for Brain Research in Bengaluru
Bengaluru(PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the Centre for Brain Research (CBR) set up at a cost of Rs 280 crore at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) campus, the foundation stone of which was laid by himself.
During the Programme, the PM also laid the foundation stone for 832-bedded Bagchi Parthasarathy Multispeciality Hospital.
The CBR is developed as a one of its kind research facility and focuses on conducting vital research to provide evidence-based public health interventions to manage age-related brain disorders, officials said.
Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, co-founder of IT major Infosys S Gopalakrishnan and family were among those present at the event.
The Centre for Brain Research was established as an autonomous, non-profit research organization in the IISc, with the generous gift from Gopalakrishnan and his wife Sudha Gopalakrishnan, officials said.
CBR is funded by philanthropy and receives research grants for specific projects from several granting agencies, they said. Gopalakrishnan has also provided funds for the construction of the state-of-art building for use by CBR within IISc campus, and his philanthropic gift is the largest support provided by an individual for scientific research in the history of India.
The Bagchi Parthasarathy Multispeciality Hospital for which foundation was laid today will be developed in the campus of IISc Bengaluru and will help integrate science, engineering and medicine at the prestigious institute.
It will provide major fillip to clinical research in the country and will work towards finding innovative solutions that will help in improvement of healthcare services in the country, officials said.
IISc entered into a partnership with philanthropists Susmita and Subroto Bagchi, and Radha and N S Parthasarathy, in February to establish the Bagchi-Parthasarathy Hospital.
"The couples will collectively donate Rs 425 crore (equivalent to about USD 60 million) to help construct this 800-bed, not-for-profit, multi-speciality hospital. After its founding, this is the largest single private donation received by IISc", IISC Director Prof. Govindan Rangarajan had said.
Subroto Bagchi and N S Parthasarathy were co-founders of Mindtree, a Bengaluru-headquartered information technology services and consulting company.
"It is not about charity as much (as) it is about being charitable. The essence of being charitable is to build empathy for others. To feel for others. To be sensitive. These are values that were inculcated by parents on both sides of the family very early", Susmita had told PTI.
"We followed their footsteps in small ways all along. When we lived in the US in (the) 1990s, we were very touched by the way everyone in the community engages with issues. The way they volunteer and help. This helped us to get engaged with institutions upon our return to India", she added.
On what prompted the couple to do the big-ticket donation to IISc, Radha had said they had worked the hard way and now with the resources in their hands, they believed that these resources have reached them by destiny.
"We believe that these resources have been placed in our hands by destiny and it has to be used for Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam the common good of people. The pandemic pushed a sense of urgency. Our intention was to use these for education and/or healthcare", she told PTI.
The hospital is slated to be operational by the end of 2024.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
