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How India’s Metro Man Is Revolutionizing The Face Of The Country’s Public Transport

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Sometimes in life, you can’t help but wonder if you have done enough for your country or even for yourself. For Indian Railway Man, Mr. E. Sreedharan that is clearly not the case. The man has not only been the master engineer behind various metro projects in our country but also completed various tasks well before the deadline.
At the age of 87, Elattuvalapil Sreedharan is the present Principal Advisor of the Kochi Metro Rail Project.

His story is one that should be revered because from the age of 30, he has astonished the country with his dedication and determination towards his work. Born in a remote village in the Palghat district of Kerala, he graduated from the Government Engineering College in Kakinada. He initially worked as a Lecturer in Civil Engineering in Kerala Polytechnic, Calicut, before joining the Bombay Port Trust as a Junior Apprentice.

In 1954 he joined Southern Railway as a Probationary Assistant Engineer when he was selected for the Indian Railway Service. Therein began his incredible journey to become the Metro Man of India. His first achievement was completing the repairs of Pamban Bridge that connected Rameswaram to mainland Tamil Nadu. The railway ministry set a target of six months, Sreedharan’s boss reduced it to 3 months and Sreedharan completed the work in all of 46 days! In a country used to delays, this came as a pleasant surprise. For his outstanding work, he was given the Railway Minister’s Award.

His story then took him to Kolkata in 1970 whereas the deputy chief engineer he was tasked with the construction of India’s first metro. Despite the 20-day national railway strike by 1.7 million workers, Sreedharan’s team continued with their ongoing work. This laid the foundation to all the metro works that have been taken up by the government all over India.

Metro Man wasn’t just equipped to work in the Railway departments. In 1979 he transformed the Cochin Shipping yard and was the mastermind behind the production of their first ship MV Rani Padmini by 1981. By July 1987, he was promoted to the general manager, Western Railway and to the post of Member Engineering Railway Board and ex officio Secretary to the Government of India.

Although he retired in 1990 from his post, the Government of India made him the Chief Managing Director for the Konkan Railway project by George Fernandes, the then railway minister. This unique project with 93 tunnels, covering 760 Km with 150 bridges was completed in 7 years despite a fuel shortage because of the first Gulf War. He completed the project without significant cost and time overruns by factoring all elements and setting up petrol pumps with backup supplies.

He then moved on to work on the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation when then Delhi Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma made him the managing director of DMRC. His stint in the DMRC earned him the nickname Metro Man for various reasons, with one of them being completing the scheduled sections by mid-1997. His work with the DMRC is praised not because he helped complete the projects but also for completing them within the deadlines and without crossing their respective budgets. Sixteen successful years later in December 2011, he retired after accomplishing the second phase of the project.

For his exemplary work in the Delhi Metro, he was awarded the ‘Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur’ (Knight of the Legion of Honour) by the government of France in 2005 and Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India in 2008.

Despite his retirement from DMRC, Sreedharan also is the Principal Advisor of the of the Kochi Metro Project. He is also the Chief Advisor for the Lucknow Metro Rail Project and has been working with the Jaipur Metro. Despite reports claiming him being denied a seat on the dais for the Kochi Metro launch, his dedication to watching the first metro train has not wavered.

This is the story of an outstanding man who still starts his day at 4 A.M., and never misses a day of meditation or reading the Bhagwad Gita. Every young aspiring entrepreneur has a lot to learn from the Metro Man of India, from his zeal to his disciplined life.

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Bengaluru’s Hypergro.ai Raises Rs 7 Crore to Enhance AI-Powered Advertising Solutions

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Hypergro.ai, a Bengaluru-based marketing technology startup, has raised Rs 7 crore in seed funding led by Silverneedle Ventures, with participation from Huddle, TDV Partners, HME Ventures, Dholakia Ventures, FiiRE, and angel investors. Founded in 2022 by Rituraj Biswas, Neha Soman, Abhijeet Kumar, and Arijit Mukhopadhyay, the company aims to revolutionize digital marketing by addressing challenges like high Customer Acquisition Costs (CAC) and low Return on Ad Spend (ROAS).

 

The startup leverages AI to create hyper-personalized video ads using user-generated content (UGC). The fresh capital will be used to enhance Hypergro.ai’s AI capabilities, expand operations, and build a specialized team focusing on data analysis, predictive algorithms, and automation.

 

Since its inception, Hypergro.ai has collaborated with over 70 brands, including several from Shark Tank India. The company’s innovative approach has led to its selection for Google’s Startups Accelerator: AI First (India) program in July 2024, providing access to critical training, mentorship, and state-of-the-art AI tools.

 

Hypergro.ai’s platform now supports a community of over 300,000 creators across India and has partnered with more than 100 brands, significantly enhancing its AI model’s accuracy and improving revenue generation for clients. As it continues to expand and refine its AI-powered marketing solutions, Hypergro.ai is set to transform the digital advertising landscape, offering businesses more effective and efficient customer acquisition and engagement strategies.

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Meta Faces Another Copyright Lawsuit Over AI Training Practices

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Meta Faces Another Copyright Lawsuit Over AI Training Practices

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is facing fresh legal challenges over allegations that it used copyrighted materials without permission to train its artificial intelligence models, including its LLaMA series. This lawsuit adds to the growing scrutiny of AI companies’ data sourcing methods.

The Allegations

Authors such as Sarah Silverman and Michael Chabon claim Meta trained its AI models on datasets containing their copyrighted works without authorization. Plaintiffs argue this constitutes copyright infringement, while Meta defends its actions under the “fair use” doctrine, asserting that the training process is transformative and legally permissible.

Internal Discussions Raise Concerns

Court documents reveal internal chats among Meta employees discussing the use of copyrighted materials. One researcher suggested acquiring books without permission, stating, “ask forgiveness, not for permission.” These discussions highlight potential awareness within Meta of the legal risks involved.

Fair Use Debate

Meta maintains that its use of copyrighted texts to train LLaMA models is transformative and falls under fair use. The company compares this practice to Google’s precedent in Authors Guild v. Google, where copying books for search tools was deemed fair use. However, critics argue that training AI for commercial purposes does not meet fair use criteria.

Broader Implications

This lawsuit reflects wider concerns about how AI developers source training data, often relying on publicly accessible yet potentially copyrighted materials. As litigation against companies like Meta, OpenAI, and Google increases, clearer regulations may be necessary to balance innovation with intellectual property rights.

The outcome of this case could significantly impact both AI development practices and copyright enforcement in the tech industry.

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Flipkart Partners with NCERT to Boost Textbook Accessibility

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Flipkart has joined hands with the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to enhance the accessibility of NCERT textbooks for students across India, particularly those in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. This strategic partnership aims to bridge the gap in access to quality education by leveraging Flipkart’s extensive reach and logistics network.

Key Benefits of the Partnership

  • Enhanced Accessibility: With this collaboration, students in remote areas can now order NCERT textbooks online and have them delivered directly to their doorstep. This initiative is particularly beneficial for families in regions where physical bookstores may be limited or non-existent.
  • Affordability: Flipkart’s platform will offer competitive prices on NCERT textbooks, making them more affordable for students and parents. Discounts and promotions may also be available, further reducing the financial burden on families.
  • Convenience: The partnership provides a seamless online shopping experience for parents and students alike. With an easy-to-navigate platform, users can quickly find and purchase the textbooks they need without the hassle of traveling to physical stores.

Alignment with Government Initiatives

This initiative aligns with the Indian government’s vision of promoting digital learning and making education more inclusive. By providing easy access to essential textbooks, Flipkart and NCERT are working together to empower students and contribute to the nation’s educational growth. This partnership supports the government’s broader goals of enhancing educational resources through technology and ensuring that quality learning materials are available to all students, regardless of their location.

Additional Context

The partnership comes at a time when there is a growing emphasis on digital education in India, especially following the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The shift towards online learning has highlighted the need for accessible educational resources. By collaborating with NCERT, Flipkart is not only expanding its product offerings but also playing a vital role in supporting educational equity across the country.

Authorized Sellers

Flipkart will work with authorized sellers designated by NCERT to ensure that students can easily purchase authentic NCERT textbooks through its platform. This collaboration guarantees that all textbooks are genuine and meet the quality standards set by NCERT.

Conclusion

The partnership between Flipkart and NCERT represents a significant step towards improving textbook accessibility for students in India. By leveraging technology and e-commerce capabilities, this collaboration aims to make quality educational resources more widely available, particularly in underserved regions. As both organizations work together to enhance educational outcomes, they are contributing to a more equitable learning environment that empowers students across the nation.

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