Three “feel good” news items
Posted : July 27, 2004 at 6:40 am [IST]
1. Indian wine for European markets
Wine made from grapes grown in Maharashtra have become very popular in Sweden, the Netherlands, the U.K and believe it or not-France. Chateau indage, a wine manufacturing company based in Nasik, struggling with huge orders from Scandinavian countries.
Vintage wine has always been the preserve of France. But now India is fast penetrating this market. The grapes are grown in Nasik and the wine is bottled in Germany. Current production is about 1,67,000 cases. Market is expected to grow 35% per annum.
2. Indian patents for ‘improved’ pearls
India may replace Japan, Australia, America and several island countries as the home for the world’s largest cultured pearls. Through a technique patented by Indian researcher Ajai K Sonkar virtually no oysters actually die in the implantation process, vital to the formation of pearl.
A pearl “the only gem which is an animal product” forms when a foreign substance enters the oyster naturally or is artificially implanted in its flesh. Basically the pearl is a form of calcium secreted by the oyster as an immuno-reaction to prevent the foreign particle (nucleus) from irritating its tissues.
Dr. Sonkar has developed a special technique of implantation using the Pinctada margaritifera also known as the black lip oyster to produce pearls. Dr. Sonkar could not believe the results when he tried it with the first batch. In the very first batch of the 1000 oysters implanted, 905 produced pearls and none of them died.
3. Roads of Plastic Waste
K. Ahmed Khan, a small-scale industrialist in Bangalore has successfully mixed plastic waste with bitumen to produce a new compound called polymerized bitumen. He used the plastic waste collected from the heaps of Bangalore’s garbage to keep the whole process cost effective. Khan has applied for an international process and product patent to guard his innovation. Khan has gone ahead and built 40 km of plastic roads in and around Bangalore. A small stretch near Rajarajeswari Nagar was first inaugurated in April 2002. Khan’s innovation will be revolutionary as while it helps tackle the menace of plastic waste, as a product it helps building hard-wearing roads.
- Indra
Category: Employment/Education |
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