Air Pollution Warning App Now on Android Platform

Blueair, a leading provider of indoor air purifiers, has released the Android version of its air pollution warning App, giving citizens living in India’s most polluted cities a means to avoid health threatening airborne dust and fumes.  

 Gathering real-time air pollution information from a host of monitoring stations in India cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata, the Blueair Air Quality App delivers it directly to Android mobile devices.

“The Blueair  air pollution App provides Indian smartphone users an early warning system that gives them the opportunity to take precautions against heavily polluted air,” said Vijay Kannan, head of Blueair India.

Noting that 90 per cent of smartphones sold in India are powered by Google’s Android system, Kannan said  the Android App release comes at a time when millions of people are being diagnosed with breathing and skin health issues related to pollution from cars, trucks and buses, industrial production and construction.

The Blueair Air Quality Monitor provides hourly updates about street level air pollution in key cities around India to help people enhance their health and wellness. The Blueair AQ Monitor empowers ordinary citizens to take pro-active action to avoid airborne contaminants that may endanger their quality of life and long-term health. Easy to install and use, the Blueair AQ Monitor rates urban air quality on a scale from zero (good) to 500 (hazardous) – and is updated regularly throughout the day. “A major problem has been people’s inability to detect what is in the air they are breathing, but the Blueair air quality Android app helps address that by giving people the chance to finally monitor how serious their air quality is in real time and do something about it to protect their health and wellbeing,”  Kannan said.

The Blueair Air Android App is available for free on Google Play (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.blueair). 

Daragh O’Byrne Appointed as VP, Global Head of Marketing at Nucleus Software

Nucleus Software, the leading provider of lending and transaction banking solutions to the global financial services industry, announced an addition to the senior leadership team. Daragh O’Byrne joins the company as Vice President, Global Head of Marketing & Alliances.

“Daragh has a strong track record of advising the industry’s leading organizations and working closely with customers to ensure they get the maximum return from their investment in technology in the shortest possible time,” said Vishnu R Dusad, CEO, Nucleus Software. “Daragh’s deep experience in financial services application software and proven ability to deliver results will help Nucleus Software to continue to grow worldwide. I am confident Daragh’s contribution will be instrumental in helping us drive the business impacts our customers demand”.

"I am delighted to join the Nucleus Software team, and I’m excited about the possibilities that lie ahead of us," said Daragh O’Byrne. "For three decades Nucleus Software has been helping some of the world’s leading financial institutions use technology to sharpen their competitive edge. Today, we are extremely well positioned, with a unique combination of deep business expertise and market leading solutions in lending and transaction banking, backed by a relentless focus on customer success. I look forward to working with the entire Nucleus Software team to share the benefits our solutions bring to organisations worldwide.”

Daragh has an extensive experience in the Financial Services application software sector. Prior to joining Nucleus Software he worked, for more than 20 years, with major organizations, including Misys and BPC Banking Technologies. Daragh joins Nucleus Software to lead the Marketing and Alliance function and to create a world class marketing operation. Nucleus Software is currently in a significant expansion phase aimed at becoming the largest provider of lending and transaction banking solutions worldwide. Having recently launched brand new, cloud-ready solutions built on the latest technology, it is now investing in expanding across the world.

Report Demands for Indian Smart City Tech - Self-Drive Cars, Route Planning and Car Sharing Apps

Population increase and congestion in cities is fuelling demand for ‘smart city’ transport technologies among consumers in India, one of the world’s fastest growing economies. According to a new report from the Future Foundation, commissioned by MasterCard, Indians in bigger cities likes Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai feel that the local governments could be doing more to leverage new technology to improve urban transport services.

Traffic congestion and pollution arising from the use of private cars has become unsustainable throughout the country. The provision of real-time travel information will be key factor in encouraging the use of public transport over private. According to the report, 37 per cent of Indians and 34 per cent of Chinese surveyed already use smartphone travel apps at least once a month. In addition, in India, 59 per cent of respondents mentioned that they are using cars less often for journeys. The focus has shifted towards public transport and the success of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in Ahmedabad has encouraged other Indian cities to adopt the system. As payments have a critical role to play in BRT system, the respondents acknowledge that contactless payments and innovation in the fare collection system can help ease congestion by incentivizing travel at less busy times.

The report, ‘Connecting Cities - Mobility: Unlocking Potential in Emerging Markets,’ has unveiled that the governments of emerging markets like India are recognizing the importance of data in providing better services, while over half of urban residents are happy to share their user data to improve transport in their city. The report also shows how effected mobile devices can be in aiding more efficient travel, through mobile payment, real-time travel updates or map services. 64 per cent of the respondents from India said they will be interested in a smartphone or tablet app that provided real-time travel updates.

Key Excerpts of the Report:

* Over half of urban residents surveyed are happy to share their user data to improve transport in their city, with Chinese (59%) and Indian (53%) residents most keen.

* 8% of city residents surveyed in China did not want to share their behavioural data in any circumstances, less than in India (13%) and Brazil (19%).

* Appetite for a service that monitors a travel route and advises on suitable alternative travel options was strongest in India (90%), with Brazil (85%) and China following closely (77%).

* The use of travel apps is growing rapidly; 37% of Indians and 34% of Chinese surveyed already use smartphone travel apps at least once a month.

* Residents in India and China’s biggest cities (Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Shanghai, Beijing, and Hong Kong) felt the local governments could be doing more to make improvements to the city using new technology.

* There was strong desire in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong for a bike and/or car sharing scheme that can be booked via a smartphone.

* There has been a step-change in behaviour across all the markets surveyed, with 65% of respondents in China claiming to have increased walking, cycling and public transport use. 59% in India and Brazil said the same.

* There was strong interest in cars that drive themselves in India (82%), China (77%) and Brazil (73%), as well as cars that can re-program a travel route to avoid congestion.

Commenting on the findings of the report, Vikas Varma, Executive Director, South Asia, MasterCard said, "Indian cities are becoming increasingly congested. To move around and commute with greater ease, Indians have developed an affinity for technology that simplify their lives and provide them access to services. The latest MasterCard report indicates consumers are willing to provide their usage data and information consumption patterns if there is a surety of that data improving everyday transport. Our report shows that people want local governments to take better advantage of technology to improve services. At MasterCard, we believe that an efficient transport system is crucial to a city’s growth and improves ease of living. We hope that the report will encourage governments and transport operators in the country to unlock the power of data when developing new services and adopting technology.”  

IT Software & Development Centre for Danske Bank in Bengaluru

Danske Bank, a European leading financial enterprise and one of the largest banks in Denmark, has established an IT and support services centre in Bengaluru. 

The centre, in collaborated with ITC Infotech, is the bank's first service centre in Asia and will provide development and support for its banking services. 

Speaking at a press conference, Jim Ditmore, COO of services and IT group, said, "We are very pleased to work with ITC. There is a need of critical delivery of mobile services and we look to leverage it with this." He also said the bank may look to set up a banking representative office in India in the future, to help serve customers better. 

The bank has hired around 800 people for the Bengaluru centre. The centre can accommodate 1,200 people and more hiring will happen as demand for IT services increases. The company has mostly hired those with MCA and engineering degrees. The Bengaluru centre will aim to provide digital services and better software.   

No Easy Ride for IISc to Emerge Among the Top: Prof Balaram

“Indian Institute of Science has always strived to be one of the best in the world. However, at every stage there have been constraints”, said Prof P Balaram, former Director, IISc. He was chairing a session on ‘IISc as a Global Institution - Reaching the top’ on the last day of the IISc Alumni Global Conference at J N Tata Auditorium, IISc. 

In reference to Global University Rankings, Prof Balaram said, “Institutes have to run very hard just to retain their rankings over years”. He also mentioned that funding for science is going down in India, and research institutes should brace for difficult times. Referring to rising the political interference in the higher education, he said, “Due to growing political interference, building institutes has become more like a game of snake and ladder”. Noting the growing influence of NRI’s in India’s policy, he urged the IISc alumni who hold top positions in reputed universities abroad to sensitise the Government on how important it is to support an institute which has survived a century. He urged the alumni, faculty, students, and everyone realise that we need to preserve and protect our institutes. 

Prof Sunil Kumar, Dean, Booth School of Business, University of Chicago suggested that IISc should embrace risk, if it wants to reach the top. “It should also be distinct from the global institutes, and leverage its research”, he said. Prof Usha Vijayaraghavan, Chairperson, International Cell, IISc took the audience through a virtual tour of formal collaborations IISc has with institutes in USA, Europe, Australia, and Japan. 

Prof B N Raghunandan gave a presentation on the new IISc campus that is shaping up in Challakere, 220 km away from Bangalore. Many research centres including Solar Power Generation and Research Centre, Climate Research Centre, Centre for Sustainable Technologies, Semi-arid Research Centre, Skill Development Centre, an air strip and a large scale wind tunnel are planned in the new campus. The campus is also running a Talent Development Centre, which has already trained thousands of high school teachers. It will also be home to Centre of Excellence in Science and Mathematics Education, an initiative which caught Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s attention, for which he quickly released Rs 1 crore. 

The session on ‘Mind to Market’ was organised to discuss ways to convert IISc research into usable products. Prof Chandra Kishen, Chairman, Centre for Scientific and Industrial Consultancy, said “Through the Centre, IISc faculty have shared their knowledge on a variety of projects from cyber security and lunar landing guidance”.

Prof Jayant Modak, Chairman, Society for Innovation and Development (SID), said that SID has interacted with about two hundred organisations, and earned Rs 175 crores. According to him, IISc faculty file upto 30 to 40 patents every year. 

KVS Hari, Professor, IISc, an entrepreneur himself, said, “Some of the IISc faculty think that making money is a sin. That may be one reason why many faculty may not be keen to take up entrepreneurship.” Comparing Indian and Western mindsets, he said, “Failure is not perceived as a disadvantage in the West. However, in India we are not allowed to fail. This mindset should change”.

Rajalakshmi Iyer, Chief Technology Officer, pro.com and an IISc Alumnus, suggested IISc to set celar targets on the number of business plans it wants to develop and the number of startups it wants to see in a year.

C S Murali, Chairperson, Entrepreneurship Cell, Society for Innovation and Development, IISc spoke about some of the promising businesses that are started by IISc alumni and faculty. He said, “IISc should be aiming to incubate 10-12 companies every year”. Shekhar Kirani, Partner, Accel Partners, said, “In India, providing quality education and healthcare to 800 million poor Indians is a great technological challenge, and an opportunity”.  

Sahasrat Installed at SERC is Fastest Supercomputer in India: Prof R Govindarajan

Earlier this year, IISc's Supercomputer Education and Research Centre (SERC) inaugurated the Cray XC40 petaflop supercomputer, christened as Sahasrat. The Centre acquired ‘Sahasrat’, a supercomputer for about Rs 33,000 crore, said Prof R Govindarajan, SERC, IISc.  Co-ordinating a session on ‘High Performance Computing and Big Data Analytics’, he said this is the fastest supercomputer in India, and IISc researchers use it for materials research, running climate models, data analytics of biological systems, and computational fluid dynamics.

Dr Michael L Norman of University of California, explained his group’s work in supercomputing. Speaking about big data, he said, “Big data is a commercial phenomenon. The scientific community has the opportunity to leverage some of the technologies behind the revolution”. Talking about IISc, he said, “IISc has spectacular atmosphere. I feel at home here”.

Dr Manish Gupta, Director, Xerox Research Centre India, in his talk explained how quality healthcare can be made accessible to all through the use of technology. Commenting on the rising cost of healthcare in India, he jokingly said, “ICUs in India have the most expensive beds in the country!”.

Dr Rajat Moona, Director General, Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), and an IISc alumnus, spoke about how supercomputers have evolved in India, and also gave a broad picture of the National Supercomputing Mission (NSM). NSM aims to drastically improve the number of supercomputers in India, and SERC, IISc is playing a major role in this initiative.

Prof Ram Akella, Director, Center for Knowledge, Information Systems, and Management of Technology, University of California Santa Cruz, and an IISc Alumnus spoke about how India and US could collaborate in the field of big data not only on academic problems, but also on problems relevant to society and commercial establishments.

Use Science to Improve Life of a Common Man: Sudha Murty

Sudha Murty, Chairperson of Infosys Foundation addressing at the IISc Alumni Global Conference at the J N Tata Auditorium on the topic of 'Reminiscence' recalls her student’s days in the IISc.  She said, ““What really matters is what you have done to your fellow human beings”, she said and adds that until I joined IISc, I hadn’t visited Bangalore at all. In IISc, Prof V P Sen Gupta and his wife Nandini were very friendly, and gave me the warmth I needed”. According to her, there were fourteen women students in IISc at that time. Speaking about science, she said, “The ultimate purpose of science is to improve the life of a common man”.

Prof G Padmanabhan, former Director of IISc, shared his days as the Director of IISc. Urging IISc to translate its research so that it can touch people’s lives, he said, “We have a great opportunity to translate. We need to translate science. Science should be applied”. He felt IISc could start ‘Translation Centre for Infectious Diseases’, which can have a great impact.

Prof Roddam Narasimha, one of the leading Indian scientists, and IISc alumnus, spoke about his association with IISc which has lasted more fifty years. “I visited IISc for the first time in 1951, and saw an aircraft parked under a tree. I touched it, and found it beautifully curved. I immediately decided to study aeronautics”, he said, while explaining his fascination with airplanes. He showed a lot of old photographs, and recalled a number of people who made a big difference to his own life and aeronautics in India. Speaking about Prof Satish Dhawan, he said, “He was a remarkable person in many different ways. He was different from others”.

Prof S Ranganathan, who worked on metallurgy in IISc, recalled his undergraduate days in the Institute. “In those days, we got the undergraduate degree in two years, and at the end, we had to give a lecture”, he said. He also proudly said that the foundation stone to the building of Department of Metallurgy was laid by none other than Sir M Vishveshwariah. His first visit to IISc was in 1961, to attend the Gandhi Memorial Lecture given by Sir C V Raman, in which Raman spoke about diamonds.