Dholera to become Semicon hub, will usher in for Gujarat’s Techade

 Driven by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi’s proactive policies and the launch of 5G services in India, Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, in Rajkot, Gujarat today, said that India will soon emerge as a leader in Electronics Manufacturing in the world with its youth playing a big role in this effort.

“Prime Minister, Shri Modi’s vision of India’s Techade can be realised by our young Indians through their hard work, determination and enterprise. The Government on its part can only be the enabler with its initiatives like the Digital India, Skill India etc,” said Shri Chandrasekhar addressing students of the Saurashtra University and Atmiya University in Rajkot.

Emphasising that the Government’s strategy was to encourage the “deepening and broadening” of the electronics space through investments in semiconductors, AI, machine learning, blockchain etc., the Minister said, “For this purpose, the Government was ready to give grant up to Rs 100 crore for investment in semi-conductor designs.”

Stating that he will soon embarking on roadshows in different parts of the country to encourage entrepreneurs to grab the opportunities, Shri Chandrasekhar said our strategy is to cut down on imports and aim to become a value creator to the supply and value chains and not just being a commodity exporter.

Referring to Gujarat’s initiative in the electronics sector, Shri Chandrasekhar said that the State has taken several proactive measures like announcing its own Semicon policy and establishing Dholera as Asia’s largest electronics hub. “Dholera will bring along a lot of opportunities for entrepreneurs of the State.”

Talking about how PM Shri Modi’s government has demolished old narratives about India as a dysfunctional, corrupt and low-growth economy, that favoured only the influential and the well-networked, the Minister said that there is democratisation of opportunity and democratisation of capital in today’s India. “We follow the dictum – maximum governance and minimum government”

Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi is building a New India for Young India with reimagined ambitions so that we can achieve our target of One Trillion USD Digital economy/ 5T USD Economy and also emerge as a trusted partner in technology. He does not believe in revdi economics or freebies culture as populated by some Opposition parties,” he emphasised.

Shri Chandrasekhar also met several young startups and entrepreneurs at the Marwari University and discussed with them their apps/innovations and how those could be escalated into marketable products.

Later he attended a meeting with industry leaders and other district officials, organized by CII. The Minister urged them to consider how Industry and Academia and the Government can together support incubated startups in commercialising their innovations. He also asked industry leaders as well as District administration officials to contribute towards framing District Skill Development Programme by mapping local aspirations.

The Minister who was on a two-day official tour of Rajkot and Surendranagar, since yesterday, met students, entrepreneurs, startups, leaders from the industry, academia and other eminent personalities and shared PM Shri Narendra Modi’s vision for empowering all Indians – Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas.

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Premium subscribers only get to watch 4k content on YouTube

Google has been able to acquire the best of the best in almost all the sections of the technology world. YouTube has been one of its prized possessions. But at the end of the day. There are some demerits of every app.

In the latest development, some YouTube users are getting a new trial run in their apps. Some premium users are able to see a premium sign alongside the 4k video resolution in their video settings. It means that 4k resolution will only be available for the premium subscribers.

This particular change will help Google in getting more subscribers and will also increase their revenue. But it is not confirmed, as the trial is still going on and the decision will be taken after some time. Until now, there is still no update from Google regarding this change.

In the recent past, Google has been trying to increase its revenue through different methods. One of them has been evident with the trial that is going on with the several ads for the free account users.

Google also shut down its Stadia gaming platform to redirect the revenue flow. It will also increase their focus on the selective few options, that are the real money maker for them.

Now, there has also been speculations that Google is trying various things to increase its user base for subscriptions because it has lesser revenue this year than the last year. But on the bright side, the number of subscriptions is increasing on various platforms for Google. One of them is YouTube music.

Now, on the evidence part, users are posting the screenshots of the new premium option on Reddit. In return, Google has confirmed that some of the users are getting such options as a part of the trial program. It will let them analyze that whether users are willing to pay for such options or not.

Now, it remains to be seen that whether users will accept such a change or not. On the contrary, users can also look at a future where there will be two different options for the users in various settings option of Google on various platforms like YouTube, YouTube Music, and many others.

Bigger subscriber base here does not mean that it is the end for the free account users because there are quite a few. Google will support the free users also as it is the first reason that users are using YouTube in the first place. The other reason is the rapidly increasing traffic on the platform for the content that allows the users to learn various things, that are related to various fields.

With 5G, taking on the world in different parts of the world, at a fast pace. As the network coverage will improve, the users will be willing to experience better and advanced forms of the technological world. They will like to experience a video in 4k resolution. So, in return it might help Google in getting more subscribers. On the other hand, it might not help Google as people will get comfortable with 2k or even Ful HD. All of these are just speculations, and the future is uncertain, but exciting.    

Premium subscribers only get to watch 4k content on YouTube

Google has been able to acquire the best of the best in almost all the sections of the technology world. YouTube has been one of its prized possessions. But at the end of the day. There are some demerits of every app.

In the latest development, some YouTube users are getting a new trial run in their apps. Some premium users are able to see a premium sign alongside the 4k video resolution in their video settings. It means that 4k resolution will only be available for the premium subscribers.

This particular change will help Google in getting more subscribers and will also increase their revenue. But it is not confirmed, as the trial is still going on and the decision will be taken after some time. Until now, there is still no update from Google regarding this change.

In the recent past, Google has been trying to increase its revenue through different methods. One of them has been evident with the trial that is going on with the several ads for the free account users.

Google also shut down its Stadia gaming platform to redirect the revenue flow. It will also increase their focus on the selective few options, that are the real money maker for them.

Now, there has also been speculations that Google is trying various things to increase its user base for subscriptions because it has lesser revenue this year than the last year. But on the bright side, the number of subscriptions is increasing on various platforms for Google. One of them is YouTube music.

Now, on the evidence part, users are posting the screenshots of the new premium option on Reddit. In return, Google has confirmed that some of the users are getting such options as a part of the trial program. It will let them analyze that whether users are willing to pay for such options or not.

Now, it remains to be seen that whether users will accept such a change or not. On the contrary, users can also look at a future where there will be two different options for the users in various settings option of Google on various platforms like YouTube, YouTube Music, and many others.

Bigger subscriber base here does not mean that it is the end for the free account users because there are quite a few. Google will support the free users also as it is the first reason that users are using YouTube in the first place. The other reason is the rapidly increasing traffic on the platform for the content that allows the users to learn various things, that are related to various fields.

With 5G, taking on the world in different parts of the world, at a fast pace. As the network coverage will improve, the users will be willing to experience better and advanced forms of the technological world. They will like to experience a video in 4k resolution. So, in return it might help Google in getting more subscribers. On the other hand, it might not help Google as people will get comfortable with 2k or even Ful HD. All of these are just speculations, and the future is uncertain, but exciting.    

Experts sees a strong consumer spending this festive season.

Coming out of the pandemic, consumers in India have expressed a strong desire to buy more discretionary products during the festive season, according to Deloitte’s Global State of Consumer Tracker.

Deloitte’s latest analysis indicates that consumers are willing to increase spend on both travel and hotel stays. They also intend to buy either a new or used vehicle within the next six months.

Consumers’ intent to purchase clothing, electronic and home furnishing, and recreation, entertainment and leisure, indicates a positive spending pattern triggered by the upcoming festive season.

“The survey findings clearly indicate that consumers plan to increase their discretionary spend by 30 per cent (on items such as recreation and entertainment, restaurants, and leisure travel) in August 2022, compared with April 2022,” it said.

The current wave indicates consumers surveyed were willing to travel to domestic and international destinations. With ‘mask-lift’ announcements and easing out of other COVID-related restrictions in some countries, about 88 per cent Indian consumers plan to spend on leisure travel in the next four weeks.

Clearly online purchases remain strong, albeit to a lesser extent than during the peak of the pandemic. Relevant sectors, such as consumer products and retail, automotive, and travel and hospitality, look to benefit from the buoyant mind set of the consumers covered in the survey.

Experts sees a strong consumer spending this festive season.

Coming out of the pandemic, consumers in India have expressed a strong desire to buy more discretionary products during the festive season, according to Deloitte’s Global State of Consumer Tracker.

Deloitte’s latest analysis indicates that consumers are willing to increase spend on both travel and hotel stays. They also intend to buy either a new or used vehicle within the next six months.

Consumers’ intent to purchase clothing, electronic and home furnishing, and recreation, entertainment and leisure, indicates a positive spending pattern triggered by the upcoming festive season.

“The survey findings clearly indicate that consumers plan to increase their discretionary spend by 30 per cent (on items such as recreation and entertainment, restaurants, and leisure travel) in August 2022, compared with April 2022,” it said.

The current wave indicates consumers surveyed were willing to travel to domestic and international destinations. With ‘mask-lift’ announcements and easing out of other COVID-related restrictions in some countries, about 88 per cent Indian consumers plan to spend on leisure travel in the next four weeks.

Clearly online purchases remain strong, albeit to a lesser extent than during the peak of the pandemic. Relevant sectors, such as consumer products and retail, automotive, and travel and hospitality, look to benefit from the buoyant mind set of the consumers covered in the survey.

‘Matdata Junction’ in collaboration with All India Radio for voter awareness

 Chief Election Commissioner Shri Rajiv Kumar along with Election Commissioner Shri Anup Chandra Pandey today launched a yearlong Voter Awareness Program – ‘Matdata Junction’ during an event organised at Akashvani Rang Bhavan, New Delhi. The ‘Matdata Junction’ is a 52 episode radio series produced by the Election Commission of India, in collaboration with All India Radio. Senior ECI officials, CEO Prasar Bharati, DG AIR News and ECI Icon & Actor Shri Pankaj Tripathi were also present on the occasion.

Addressing the gathering, CEC Shri Rajiv Kumar said that the program Matdata Junction, produced in collaboration with All India Radio, will be a strong platform to connect with the voters across the country. The program as a combination of information and entertainment, would specifically help address urban apathy and inform the audience about the election processes in the conduct of free, fair, transparent, inducement free, accessible and inclusive elections in an interactive communication format.

While complimenting Shri Pankaj Tripathi, Actor and ECI state icon for his association with ECI in creating awareness amongst voters, CEC Shri Rajiv Kumar announced Shri Pankaj Tripathi, would henceforth be the National Icon for Election Commission of India, keeping in view his commitment to the cause and wide appeal across the country.

EC Shri Anup Chandra Pandey during the launch event recalled that since time immemorial, All India Radio has been enthusing masses as a legendary storyteller with its voice appeal and strengthening the democratic spirit. Since the very first general elections, AIR with its extensive coverage and reach to diverse audiences, has been a primary medium of communication with citizens across the country. 

Addressing the audience, Shri Pankaj Tripathi, recollected his memories of becoming a first time voter and how that process gave him not only the right of Matdan but also Samman as a contributory voice in democracy. While appreciating the efforts made by ECI for reaching out to the voters, he urged all young voters to pro-actively participate in the elections to reflect their democratic choices and make their voices heard.

In her welcome address, Director General (Media) Ms. Sheyphali Sharan gave a detailed overview about the Programme – ‘Matdata Junction: Har voter ka apna station’. She pointed out that ECI & AIR, the two iconic institutions, known for their credibility and grassroot connect, have got into an apt collaboration to ensure extensive outreach.

The 15 minutes program will be broadcast every Friday during 7- 9 PM slot on All India Radio network covering 25 FM stations, 4 FM Gold stations, 42 Vividh Bharati stations, and 159 primary channels/local radio stations in 23 languages, i.e., Assamese, Bengali, English, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Bodo, Santhali, Maithili, and Dogri.  

The 52 episode series will cover various aspects of election and related processes from voters’ perspective. It will have thematic episodes on voter registration, Informed & Ethical Voting,  Value of Vote, Inclusive & Accessible Elections,  Model Code of Conduct, IT Applications, EVMs, stories of election officials, BLOs, etc. All episodes include interactive messaging aimed at encouraging eligible citizens and especially the young and first time voters to vote and make an informed decision during the elections. The series will be in the genre of infotainment program having a kaleidoscope of drama, storytelling, Quiz, Experts’ interview, and  Songs produced by the SVEEP (Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation) division of the Election Commission of India in every episode. The program includes a Citizen’s Corner where any citizen can ask a query or also provide suggestions for making elections inclusive and participative.

The first episode of the program on the theme – ‘Voter Registration’ will be broadcast on 7th October, 2022 Friday at 7:25 PM. Citizens can also listen to the Program on ‘Twitter on @airnewsalerts and @ECISVEEP, News On AIR’ App and YouTube channels of ECI & All India Radio. Tune in and be a part of India’s vibrant democracy.

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Top 5 exercises to do at home for a healthy body

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

When life gets busy, fitness always seems to be the first item dropped from our to-do list. But, if you are serious about your health and want to make fitness a part of your life, you need strategies that can help you fit exercise into your schedule no matter how busy life gets. Many people don’t have enough time and energy to go to the gym after their work, however, they can perform some exercises at home to remain healthy and fit.

1.Pushups

Pushups are one of the most basic yet effective bodyweight exercise one can perform because of the number of muscles that are recruited to perform them. It involves chest, triceps and shoulders. When done with proper form, It can build an impressive upper body strength. If you can’t perform with a good form, you can also perform pushups with drop down to a modified stance on your knees bend.

2. Squats

Squats increases lower body and core strength, as well as improves flexibility in your lower back and hips. It involves Quadriceps, glutes and hamstrings. Because, they engage some of the largest muscles in the body, they also play a major role in terms of burning calories.

3.Planks

Planks are an effective way to target your abdominal muscle and your whole body because your core works in every exercise. Planking stabilizes your core without straining your back the way sit-ups and crunches might. A healthy body requires a strong core as its foundation, so don’t neglect core specific exercises.

4. Burpees

Burpees are one of the most essential exercises for the whole body. This is an exercise everyone hates because of the whole body movement but, it is super effective. It involves almost most of the parts of the body which provides a great bang for your buck for cardiovascular endurance and muscle strength. Burpees may helps you to burn belly fat faster than any other exercise or diet if, perform regularly.

5. Lunges

Challenging your balance is an essential part of a well-rounded exercise routine. Lunges do just that. Lunges are a popular strength training exercise among people wanting to strengthen and tone their bodies. This resistance exercise improves overall strength in your legs, hips and back, while improving mobility and stability.

Top 5 exercises to do at home for a healthy body

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

When life gets busy, fitness always seems to be the first item dropped from our to-do list. But, if you are serious about your health and want to make fitness a part of your life, you need strategies that can help you fit exercise into your schedule no matter how busy life gets. Many people don’t have enough time and energy to go to the gym after their work, however, they can perform some exercises at home to remain healthy and fit.

1.Pushups

Pushups are one of the most basic yet effective bodyweight exercise one can perform because of the number of muscles that are recruited to perform them. It involves chest, triceps and shoulders. When done with proper form, It can build an impressive upper body strength. If you can’t perform with a good form, you can also perform pushups with drop down to a modified stance on your knees bend.

2. Squats

Squats increases lower body and core strength, as well as improves flexibility in your lower back and hips. It involves Quadriceps, glutes and hamstrings. Because, they engage some of the largest muscles in the body, they also play a major role in terms of burning calories.

3.Planks

Planks are an effective way to target your abdominal muscle and your whole body because your core works in every exercise. Planking stabilizes your core without straining your back the way sit-ups and crunches might. A healthy body requires a strong core as its foundation, so don’t neglect core specific exercises.

4. Burpees

Burpees are one of the most essential exercises for the whole body. This is an exercise everyone hates because of the whole body movement but, it is super effective. It involves almost most of the parts of the body which provides a great bang for your buck for cardiovascular endurance and muscle strength. Burpees may helps you to burn belly fat faster than any other exercise or diet if, perform regularly.

5. Lunges

Challenging your balance is an essential part of a well-rounded exercise routine. Lunges do just that. Lunges are a popular strength training exercise among people wanting to strengthen and tone their bodies. This resistance exercise improves overall strength in your legs, hips and back, while improving mobility and stability.

State owned BSNL may introduce 5g services in the next Independence day.

State-owned telecom operator BSNL will get 5G next year, Union Minister of Communications Ashwini Vaishnaw has said. The minister added that BSNL could launch 5G services on August 15, 2023. Vaishnaw was speaking at the ongoing India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2022 where Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched 5G services in the country.

Asked how BSNL could achieve that target by next year when it is only just launching 4G on its network now, Vaishnaw said that the transition from 4G to 5G is not long and can be achieved in that time frame. He also clarified that initially, BSNL’s 5G will be based on the non-standalone architecture. In the non-standalone architecture, operators can maximise the utilisation of their existing network infrastructure with relatively lower investment.

In July, the government had cleared a Rs 1.64 lakh crore booster shot for the loss-making BSNL with an aim to upgrade the operator’s network to 4G, while de-stressing its balance sheet. The four-year turnaround plan includes both a cash component and a non-cash component.

State owned BSNL may introduce 5g services in the next Independence day.

State-owned telecom operator BSNL will get 5G next year, Union Minister of Communications Ashwini Vaishnaw has said. The minister added that BSNL could launch 5G services on August 15, 2023. Vaishnaw was speaking at the ongoing India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2022 where Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched 5G services in the country.

Asked how BSNL could achieve that target by next year when it is only just launching 4G on its network now, Vaishnaw said that the transition from 4G to 5G is not long and can be achieved in that time frame. He also clarified that initially, BSNL’s 5G will be based on the non-standalone architecture. In the non-standalone architecture, operators can maximise the utilisation of their existing network infrastructure with relatively lower investment.

In July, the government had cleared a Rs 1.64 lakh crore booster shot for the loss-making BSNL with an aim to upgrade the operator’s network to 4G, while de-stressing its balance sheet. The four-year turnaround plan includes both a cash component and a non-cash component.

Importance of SEO?

Importance of SEO?

 Firstly before going to The importance of Seo we need to understand what is SEO.

SEO stands for search engine optimization and it is the practice of increasing the quality and quantity of traffic to Your website through organic search engine results. It increases your visibility online. This means that the more. People see your website, the more traffic your online traffic increases, and the better your chances to Provide or service to a greater number of people.

Importance of Seo:-

  • Visibility and rankings – when a consumer wants to purchase any product or service online and then it Mostly Prefers to Go Through the top 5 suggestions that the search engine shows them. Seo Helps you to Rank higher in search results and gain more visibility online, and making potential customers.
  •  Web traffic – if your customers can not Find your website then you can Miss sales opportunities but here Seo helps to increase your organic engine traffic, increasing the number of visitors on your page each day and this directly influences sales because the more relevant people see your site the chances of selling is more

  •  Trustworthy — the better your SEO is, the higher your chances of appearing on search engines increases like Google and Bing. It appeals to All brands because here there is also a second benefit Which is users tend to defer to The recommendations that a search engine generates, so Having a higher position for the keywords a user is searching for will, in turn, it increased trustworthiness in consumers’ minds about your product.

  • User experience – A full well-structured websites tell everything about what product or services are being offered by the company, how To Obtain them, and answer any questions surrounding it, so It helps search engine like Google and Bing To pull the information easily which it think they should provide to the user. If a user navigates to your site then chances are that the search engine doing well.

  • Growth – there is no doubt that SEO helps to grow your brand, the higher you rank on a search engine for a variety of high-volume keywords, the more organic web traffic comes to Your site ( which is non-paid). A website that is most structured is more likely to gain more customers and make More Sales Then another.

I will wind up my answer here but there are many more Advantages of Search Engine Optimization.

Hope it makes eases your understanding

seo for dentist?

seo for a dentist?

well, digital marketing has evolved and becomes a trending topic nowadays for every kind of business whether it is for a dentist because in this business the way of advertising has changed like we use print media and radio previously but now there is a significant change in it. Digital marketing for dentists involves many things like social media posts, email newsletters, and blogs through which the dentist can connect with their clients through social media platforms, search engines, and emails.

if you still do not practice or implement digital marketing in your business then you are missing a lot of patients. now we will understand why digital marketing is important for a dentist.

so let’s begin:-

Importance of digital marketing for dentists?

1:- Enhance brand awareness:-

there are two ways for building brand awareness traditional and online but digital marketing is a more effective way of creating brand awareness the question is why? so the reason is

  • 86% of people find the business through google maps
  • there are more than 2.38billions users on Facebook worldwide
  • over 500 million people daily use Instagram and 1 billion people are active users
  • around 46% of people check their phones before they get out of bed

so digital marketing helps to build and enhance your dentistry business presence to attract more clients.

2:-Decreased marketing cost:-

if we compared digital marketing to traditional marketing then it is less costly and has a higher translation ROI, for instance, the average cost of publishing a tv advertisement is around $342,000 for just a 30-second spot and in a newspaper is $113000 and the cost of telemarketing is $51.40 per order. now if we talk about the cost of PPC is just $0$0.05 to $3.00 per qualified visitor, and the cost of web content marketing and search engine optimization could be free.

so the low cost of digital marketing means that it is very easy to establish a digital marketing campaign and start attracting new patients to thrive in practice.

3:- Success rate can be measured:-

traditional marketing can be tricky as there is no real way to find how many people view my ads and how many are ready to invest in the business but if we talk about digital marketing it is very easy to get graphs and stats about your website traffic which will make you understand how many people visited your page and what device they used to reach out to your website so digital marketing helps you to get precise, real-time analytics regarding your campaign performance, user interaction with your website and daily visitors comes to your site.

so through digital marketing, you will let know which marketing campaign of yours is bringing leads and what kinds of changes and adjustments need do in budget allocation and can drop some ineffective campaigns.

4:-Consumer prefer email rather than direct mail:-

Email is the most effective marketing strategy for the dentist since it is patients’ preferred method of communication. Email provides a safe and comfortable environment and builds trust and hence people make their choices it connects you with your current and potential customers and you can send some helpful information that will show that you care aboutyour clients.

Digital marketing for dentists is all about bringing more clients (patients) which can be easily acquired by Email marketing. there are many benefits of using email marketing in your business if you want to update your client about your services u can easily do and if you want to know how many people come to you through your email marketing efforts you can easily measure it.

5:- Easy to segregate your audience:-

Digital marketing helps you to identify the ideal patient base. it is very easy to find your targeted audience from the crowd by seeing the most trending pages of your services for which u can check your blogs, social media accounts, and website. when u identify what type of content your audience wants to read then u can make some unique content for attracting more users to your site. well, it also helps you to get recommendations and keep a positive track record like u can save the people’s feedback which they shared on your website and can tackle negative feedback.

online marketing can be challenging sometimes like it can be difficult to be in front of your patients when traditional marketing such as television or radio or maybe a billboard as you generally end up wasting money on viewers and listeners who are not interested in investing in your product or service.

conclusion:-

if you are facing challenges in reaching a wider audience then start using digital marketing such as local SEO for dentists, PPC social media and content marketing, etc. digital marketing provides immense benefits to dentists’ business it is just as soon as u start using them. so it would be prudent to hire a digital marketing agency for effecting the implementation of digital marketing tactics . 

Shadow Puppetry in India;Gender role & Divisions

Shadow Puppetry

In India Puppetry has been one of the most ancient folk skill forms of traditional entertainment and has the richest variety of types and styles of shadow puppets.

Shadow puppets are made up of leather that has been carved into flat figures.

The audience is seated in front of the screen, and shadow puppets are pressed up against the screen with a powerful source of light behind it. The interaction between the light and the screen creates vibrant shadows for the audience. Popular regions for these puppets include Orissa, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu.

Indian shadow puppetry examples include: 

Togalu Gombeyatta (Karnataka),

Tholu Bommalata (Andhra Pradesh), 

and 

Ravanachhaya (Odisha)

Togalu Gombeyatta: 

Togalu Gombeyatta is the name of Karnataka’s shadow theatre. 

Most of these puppets are small in size. 

However, the puppets’ sizes vary according to their social standing; for example, kings and religious figures are larger than ordinary people or servants, who are smaller.

Tholu Bommalata:

The majority of it comes from the state of AP. The puppets have jointed shoulders, elbows, and knees and are quite huge. On both sides, they are colored. As a result, these puppets cast colorful shadows on the screen. The Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and the Puranas are used as the inspiration for the puppet plays’ themes, and the music is mostly influenced by local classical music.

Ravanachhaya, Orissa:

This is a type of puppet from that state. There are no joints and the puppets are in one piece. Since they lack color, they cast opaque shadows on the screen. Along with the usage of human and animal characters, several props are also employed, including trees, mountains, chariots, etc. Despite being smaller in size—the tallest Ravanachhaya puppets are less than two feet tall and lack jointed limbs—they cast incredibly tender and lyrical shadows.

Gender role and division on Shadow puppetry in India:

For a long time, this art has hampered the involvement of women in taking part in the playing role of puppets. Women are mostly hidden or invisible in play and men’s roles are exclusively visible. A study conducted on the role of women in the traditional puppeteer family in India on
two major forms of puppetry-‘String puppetry and Leather- Shadow puppetry which shows women are not involved in making puppets even in South India that are made of wood called string marionettes.

Women are mostly involved in the fabrication of natural dyes and colors, such as those made from dirt, mud, leaves, tree bark, seeds, and charcoal, on cloth, the preparation of appam (Wall putty) utilizing soft lay, tamarind seeds, and traditional glue, and the designing and dressing of costumes are all more commonly done by women. puppets that are stitched using a needle and thread.

What studies say?

Traditional puppeteers did not allow women to take part actively as in Kerala, Shadow puppetry and the place and performance going on are like a temple and puppets are made of Gods and goddesses to be played on stage where they are not allowing women for the reason by the Custom or their menstruation. Only Male members are allowed to connect the profession and play roles.

What’s now?

Nevertheless, Today Women from Traditional families and women who are interested in puppetry come under an umbrella called Contemporary puppeteers. As a result, women in puppetry are using puppetry to revive the art form,  to address some of India’s most pressing social problems, to impart education, awareness campaign, in theatre, and also as therapeutic value. 

Women artists today not only contribute to this rich art form, but they also hold their own as equal puppeteers and performers. The evident cultural rebirth can be seen in the appropriation of traditional art, modifications, exploration of interconnection, artistic and creative modules connecting the international models, for teaching, education, social cause, campaign, and lastly to entertain with a message.

Reference:

Many Voices, One World (1982). New Delhi: Oxford, IBH.
Melkote, S.R. (1991). Communication for Development in the Third World: Theory and Practice. New Delhi: Sage.
Mukhopadhyay, D. (1994). Folk Arts and Social Communication, New Delhi: Publications Division.

Rollout of 5g service in India.

India is close to getting its first taste of 5G for the masses. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to announce 5G network services in the country on October 1 during the sixth edition of the IMC (Indian Mobile Congress) event. Now, Indian telecom player Vodafone Idea has announced that it will also launch and demo its new cloud gaming capabilities at the event.

Reliance Jio is set to bring in its 5G plans by Diwali in India, around the period of October 22 – 26. The service will initially be available in four Indian cities. These are Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai Reliance Jio has also announced that other cities in the country will also get access to 5G services in a phased out manner by December 2023.

Airtel has announced that the telecom operator will rollout 5G services in eight Indian cities starting today. While Airtel hasn’t clarified which eight cities these are, expect metro cities like Mumbai and Delhi to be included. Airtel has also announced that it will bring 5G connectivity all across India by March 2024

However, Vodafone Idea did not announce any 5G-related developments during the launch.