Urban Orissa dials more than Gujarat and Punjab

Penbetration of phones is gradually increasing in Orissa. Now, around 43 in every 100 persons have phones in Orissa. But the State average is still behind the national average. At present, around 57 in every 100 persons have phones in the country.However, the high pace of penetration seems to have fatigued in the quarter of April-June 2010, suggests the latest TRAI report. The State has seen net additions of 1.66 million only - the second lowest net addition after Haryana in the country - during the period.

However, the rural tele-density of Orissa has slightly moved upwards. Around 23 per 100 persons had phone connections as of June-end against around 21 per 100 in March 2010.

The net addition of only two per 100 reflects a bit slower growth this quarter. In rural tele-density, Orissa is still three per cent behind the national average.

 One thing is certain that the high tele-density in Orissa is mainly driven by growth in urban telephone penetration. The tele-density is 146 per cent - that means 146 per 100 persons have phones in urban areas. Even urban Orissa has more phones than urban Gujarat and Punjab.

 “Given that many in urban areas subscribe to more than one telecom service provider, this estimation of subscribers per 100 population is not the exact measurement and the urban figures are evident to it,” said a Reliance Communications (R-COM) official.  This is true with all other states too. As per TRAI report, this estimation captures the trend of phone penetration as a whole. And going by it, the trend shows that phone penetration is growing fast in urban Orissa.

Source: New Indian Express

Tourists in panic as cable car gets stuck

Tourists at Nandankanan Zoological Park had a mid-air scare when the cable car got stuck on Oct. 25. About two dozen visitors had to remain in a state of fear before being brought to safety. The rope-way operation has been suspended following the incident by the zoo management. The incident occurred at 1 pm. There were two cabins carrying about 24 tourists on the rope-way facility which connects the two ends of Kanjia lake.

 According to eyewitnesses, the rope-way came to a halt mid-way all of a sudden. As it did not move further after sometime, the visitors got panicked. There were children inside and the suspended position left the family members apprehensive. As soon as this matter came to notice of the cable car operators, they tried to fix the problem. Deputy Director of Nandankanan Zoological Park, Siba Narayan Mohapatra, said the problems persisted for 15 minutes while some tourists alleged that it lasted longer.

The cable car operation in the zoo has been outsourced to Kolkata-based Ropeway Resorts Pvt Ltd. The zoo authorities said the cable car operation has been suspended in the aftermath of the incident. A technical committee of the Forest Department will inquire into the incident and look into the safety certificate before giving the nod for operation, sources said. The rope-way facility originally had three cabins one of which developed snags a few days back and was removed. Earlier, the cable car was under the direct management of the zoo and had developed similar snags a few times. Later, the service was outsourced.

Source: New Indian Express 

Berhampur erupts in jubilation as Ravi Kumar strikes Gold at the CWG Delhi 2010

Silk city Berhampur erupted in jubilation and people came on to the streets to celebrate with fire crackers as soon as news broke about the record breaking performance of city lad Ravi Kumar at the Common Wealth Games. Despite rains, the sports lovers and his friends thronged Ravi's house at Golapalli street immediately after the news about his victory spread to congratulate his family members. Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Governor M C Bhandare congratulated Ravi, while the Indian Olympic Association announced a cash reward for him. Ravi has not only brought glory to the town, but entire state as well as the country, said Biswanath Patra, a former weightlifter in the town. India’s K. Ravi Kumar won the gold in the men’s 69 kg weightlifting event at the Commmonwealth Games in Delhi on wednesday, setting a new Games record in the process. Members of Veera Hanuman club of Berhampur, to which Ravi Kumar belongs, celebrated by distributing sweets and greeting the crowd. Ravi Kumar broke the Games record by lifting 321 kg (146+175) and surpassed Cameroon’s Venecelas Dabaya’s total of 310kg, achieved in the 2002 Manchester Games. It is also a new Commonwealth Championships record. The 22-year-old from Orissa was always the runaway favourite having lifted a combined 307kg to win the Commonwealth title in 2009, 22kg more than his closest rival in the field Mohammad Talib of Malaysia.