chankya

Chanakya was adviser and prime minister to the first Maurya Emperor Chandragupta (c. 340-293 BC), and architect of his rise to power. Kautilya and Vishnugupta, the names by which the political treatise Arthaśhāstra identifies its author, are traditionally identified with Chānakya. Some scholars consider Chanakya to be "the pioneer economist of the world and the "the Indian Machiavelli".Chankya was a professor at Taxila University and is widely believed to be responsible for the first Indian empire.He is generally called Chanakya but, in his capacity as author of the Arthaśhāstra, is generally referred to as Kautilya. The Arthaśhāstra identifies its author by the name Kautilya, except for one verse which refers to him by the name Vishnugupta. One of the earliest Sanskrit literature to explicitly identify Chanakya with Vishnugupta was Vishnu Sarma's Panchatantra in the 3rd century BC.K.C. Ojha puts forward the view that the traditional identification of Viṣṇugupta with Kauṭilya was caused by a confusion of editor and originator and suggests that Vishnugupta was a redactor of the original work of Kauṭilya. Thomas Burrow goes even further and suggests that Chanakya and Kautilya may have been two different people

Megastructures Bandra Varli Sealink

Mega structures In INDIA

Virupaksha Temple - Hampi, Karnataka



Karnataka has innumerable sites in the Temple Map of India, with its some of its still surviving monuments going back to the 7th century AD. The Badami Chalukyas were the builders of rock cut caves and ancient temple complexes. At Pattadakal, there are Temples in the Dravidian style along with Temples in styles that were later adopted in Eastern and Central India. The sculptural quality in these temples is outstanding.
The subordinate rulers of the Chalukyas were the Gangas and the Kadambas. The colossal monolithic statue of Gomateswara was built by the Gangas in the 10th century AD. The Badami Chalukyas were succeeded by the Rashtrakutas and the Kalyani Chalukyas. In Southern Karnataka, the Hoysalas reigned supreme. The Hoysalas were great builders and they built great temples at Halebidu, Belur and Somanathapura.
The Hoysalas built temples on raised complex star shaped platforms. This star shaped plan is carried all the way from the platform to the shikhara. Horizontal bands of sculptural motifs and monolithic pillars adorn these temples. There is a profusion of sculptural work in the Hoysala style of temple building.
Next, the Vijayanagar Empire marks the period of great Temple building activity in Karnataka and these temples are characterized by the building of pillared mandapas and lofty entrance towers. The Vijayanagar Empire was destroyed by the Deccan Sultanates in the 16th century and the ruins can be seen at Hampi. The Mysore Maharajas (Wodeyars) who ruled from around 1400 AD through the British period, with the brief lapse during Tipu Sultans rule, have also made contributions to temples in this State. The temples of the coastal region are markedly different in architectural styles and they resemble the Keralite temples to a larger extent.

Ranthambore Fort, India

This place was off the hook. Full of monkeys and 1000 year old structures. It is one of the oldest forts in India.

Dr. Monkombu S. Swaminathan

Dr. Monkombu S. Swaminathan is an outstanding world statesman and visionary in the agricultural and natural resources arena. Trained as a plant breeder and cytogeneticist in India, the United Kingdom, and the United States, he is acclaimed as the "Father of the Green Revolution in Asia." In India they say, "Gandhi gave us freedom, Swaminathan gave us food." He is the recipient of all three of India's civilian honors: high, higher, and highest. Dr. Swaminathan's achievements have led to dramatic increases in crop yields. He has provided international leadership in agriculture and resource conservation and is deeply concerned for the poor and disadvantaged. His continuing research and leadership ensure that they receive the opportunities they need to develop in ways that enhance the natural environment upon which they depend."Agriculture and Natural Resources: A Vision of the 21st Century"

Dr. Swaminathan has trained more than 65 Ph.D. candidates and has worked in collaboration with colleagues and students on a wide range of problems in basic and applied plant genetics, agricultural research and development, and the conservation and enhancement of natural resources over a period of fifty years. He is responsible for developing the concepts of crop cafeterias, mid-season corrections in crop-scheduling, risk distribution agronomy, and alternative cropping strategies for different weather conditions. He has succeeded in purposeful gene manipulation which has improved the yield, quality, and stability of performance for wheat, rice and potato and has done important work collecting and conserving plant genetic resources for these three crops.
Dr. Swaminathan also developed whole-village or watershed operational research projects, based on principles of ecology and economics and on the promotion of the concepts of ecological economics and economic or developmental ecology. These projects are effectively field tested through the National Demonstration, Lab to Land programs, which disseminate research results among small farmer households. The disaster management strategies he developed are based on relief and rehabilitation measures in the most seriously affected (MSA) areas, and on improved crop productivity in the most favorable (MFA) areas, as well as elaboration of the concepts "drought code" and "good weather code."
Other important scientific contributions include organization of coastal systems research and biovillages; the organization of Genetic Resources Centres for Sustainable Agriculture, and for adaptation to sea-level rise; promotion of a job-led economic growth strategy based on a pro-nature, pro-poor and pro-women orientation to technology development and dissemination; organization of Resource Centres for Farmers' Rights and Ecotechnology; organization of Biovillages and community-centered natural resources management strategies; and organizing a Community Gene, Seed and Grain management strategy, which involves concurrent attention to conservation, sustainable use, and equitable sharing of benefits.
Dr. Swaminathan's research studies and extension efforts have been published in over 250 scientific papers in national and international journals, as well as in several books. In addition to training Ph.D. students, in 1972 he introduced the "Techniracy" concept of imparting training in the latest technical skills entirely through work experience, in order to bypass the problems created by illiteracy. The Techniracy concept is fostered by a chain of Krishi Vigyan Kendras (Farm Sciences Centres) established for this purpose by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

Dr. Swaminathan has served as Director-General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Director-General of the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, and has held several senior government positions in India, including the Secretary of Agriculture in the early 1980s. He has also held numerous international honorary positions, including:
President of the International Federation of Agricultural Research Systems for Development
Independent Chairman of the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Council
President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, IUCN
Vice-president of the World Wildlife Fund
For a three-year term in the early 1980s, he was also chairman of the board of trustees of the International Center for Research in Agroforestry. His current honorary positions include:
Chairman, Global Board of Directors, The Hunger Project
Member, China International Council for Sustainable Development
Chairman, Genetic Resources Policy Committee of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research
Chairman of the Biodiversity Commission of the World Humanity Action Trust
Chairman, Board of Trustees, National Foundation for India
Director, Centre for Research on Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development
Time magazine chose Swaminathan as one of Asia's twenty most influential leaders of the 20th Century. He is widely recognized for his accomplishments and services. His awards and honors include thirty-nine honorary doctorate degrees from all over the world; seventeen fellowships in natural science academies around the world, including the USA, the UK, and the former USSR; and he was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership in 1971, the first World Food Prize (also known as The Nobel Prize in Agriculture) in 1987, the Sasakawa Environment Prize in 1994, the Albert Einstein World Science Award in 1986, and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Award in 2000. The award he received from the World Wilderness Trust in 1999, aptly describes him: "A Legend in his Lifetime."
In a stunning tribute, when Dr. Norman E. Borlaug (Inaugural York Lecturer, 1985) received his Nobel Peace Prize in 1970, Dr. Borlaug wrote, "The green revolution has been a team effort and much of the credit for its spectacular development must go to Indian officials, Organisations, Scientists and farmers. However, to you, Dr. Swaminathan, a great deal of the credit must go for first recognizing the potential value of the Mexican dwarfs. Had this not occurred, it is quite possible that there would not have been a green revolution in Asia."
Other tributes include comments made by the Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr. Javier Perez de Cuellar, on presenting to Dr. Swaminathan the First World Food Prize in 1987: "Dr. Swaminathan is a living legend. His contributions to Agricultural Science have made an indelible mark on food production in India and elsewhere in the developing world. By any standards, he will go into the annals of history as a world scientists of rare distinction."
Born in Tamil Nadu, India on August 7, 1925, he is currently a UNESCO-Cousteau Professor in Ecotechnology for Asia and Chairman of the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, based in Madras, India and established with the funds associated with the World Food Prize.

Pioneers of India

maha kavi kalidas

One of the greatest poets and dramatists in Sanskrit. His chronicle of the kings of the Raghu clan ('Raghuvamsha'), the great play 'Shakuntala' and other works depict, through many great characters, the highest ideals of life as seen by the ancientpeople of Bharat. There are hundreds of languages in the world. However, great and classical literature which people in all countries need to read is found only in a few languages. One such great language is Sanskrit. It is one of the oldest languages. It is the mother of several Indianlanguages such as Hindi, Bengali and Marathi in the North. Kannada, Telugu and other languages in the South have also been nourished by it. It needs the genius of poets who create literary epics and great thinkers for a language to achieve world-renown. Sanskrit is eminently lucky in this respect. Sages' celebration of the wonders of nature, the sky, the stars, mountains and rivers, the sun, the moon, the clouds, fire ('Agni') and their devout offering of prayers to the Universal Power are all found in the Vedic classics which/are in Sanskrit. Puranas and historical epics like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata vividly describe the battle between the good and the evil. They also portray the virtues like devotion to truth, a sense of sacrifice, heroism, cultured living, etc. In Sanskrit there are also beautiful stories of birds and animals like Panchatantra; stories extolling good and basic qualities of wisdom and intelligence. Sanskrit can also justly boast of a rich treasure house of plays, poems and many scientific and philosophical treatises. A poet who has made a distinct and glorious contribution to this sumptuous Sanskrit literature is Kalidasa. He has pictured in his works the beauty in life and pondered upon how we can give pleasure to others by generous and graceful behavior.His portrayals are vivid and heart- warming; his wordpower is unique. In a few words he is capable of bringing out the entire meaning intended. His writings touchingly show up a noble, meaningful mode of life for the people to pursue. His works are an intellectual treat to thinkers and common readers alike.

vikrant

i m trying to give information @ the progress of india and the forgotten heros of india who makes india more brighter in world