HAM RADIO, Vijayawada

HAM Radio Operators to Help J&K Victims

Hamfest India 2014

The countdown has started for Hamfest India 2014 which is slated to be conducted on 9^th & 10^th of November. After a long gape of 14 years again this event is going to be conducted in Hyderabad. Last time in the year 2000, Hyderabad has become host city for the “Ham fest” and it was well organized by OM Chalam, VU2CLM.

Ham fest 2014, is to be conducted in famous “Muffakham Jah College of Engineering and Technology’ one of the finest engineering colleges in the country and the building was originally the summer resort of the “Nizam” of Hyderabad.

So, far more than 530 people have registered themselves as delegates. This time the total delegates likely to touch the "1000 mark" since, still plenty of time is there for the event.  

The following are the  high-lights of the "Ham fest India 2014".            

                           *  1000+ Delegates,

*  More than 20 kit sellers,

*  Fleamarket, New Radio,

  

*  Accessories, Antennas

*  10 sessions – Satellites to CW,

*  Competitions: CW, Quiz, Fox, 

   

*  Hunt, Junkbox wars,

*  Auction of old equipment,

*  Workshop on Satellites, 

*  Arduino, SDRs.

For more information you are welcome to visit http://www2.hamfest.in

                                73’s                  

                     A. Ramesh Babu VU2RDM

OM Prasad VU2ICC and Ramesh VU2RDM along with the “Hamfest India 2014” convener OM Ashhar Farhan VU2ESE (in the middle).

Model letter for applying grant of "Ham Radio" License

Very happy to note the formalities with regard to issue of “Ham Radio licenses of most of “137 candidates”, of Academy of Ham Radio Vijayawada, have been completed. Already some of the applicants have received letters from the WPC, New Delhi informing them of their decision to grant Amateur Radio License.

We are getting numerous calls from the candidates expressing the procedure to be followed for applying grant of Amateur Radio license once after the receipt of such clearance letter from the WPC, New Delhi.

My suggestion to those individual aspirants, who already received the consent letter from the WPC,  respond quickly and   not to make any further delay in applying for Ham Radio License, lest it may further cause abnormal delay in grant of licenses.

For the benefit of the applicants here under I am publishing one model letter that may be followed while applying for grant of Amateur License. Any further information in this regarding, you may contact through my mobile: 92483 46843.    

                                                                                                                                                              

  "Model letter for applying  grant of Ham License."

                                               73's

                                                                                                                             A. Ramesh Babu

                                                                                      VU2RDM
                                           Mobile: 9248346843

                                                                                                                                                                                                           

Cyclone Lehar to cross Andhra Pradesh coast

After cyclone Phailin and cyclone Helen last week, a new severe cyclonic storm, named cyclone Lehar is looming over the southeast Bay of Bengal and is expected to cross Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam near Kakinada a little after noon on Thursday.

As of now the system is said to be moving westwards with a speed of 15 kmph till evening today, but the system would intensify further and move west-northwestwards. From moderate rains and squally winds at 45-55 km per hour tomorrow, windspeeds could be upto 200 km as the system comes closer.

33 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams are being deployed. There will be 16 teams in East Godavari, six each in Vizag and Krishna and five teams in West Godavari.

With the sea coast expected to be rough, extensive damage to kutcha houses, disruption of communication and power lines, road and rail traffic can be expected. There could be potential threat from flying debris and flooding of escape routes and also extensive damage to agricultural crops, a release issued by the state's disaster commissioner has warned.

Fishermen out at sea along and off Andhra Pradesh have been advised to return to coast. Evacuation from low-lying areas in four districts, Krishna, East and West Godavari and Visakhapatnam, will be undertaken from tomorrow. Special officers have been nominated for the nine coastal districts. Round the clock control rooms at Secretariathave been opened and operating.

The state government has also sought four helicopters from defence secretary to be stationed at Visakhapatnam. Along with the Army and Railways, the Coast Guard, Coastal Security wing, Marine Police, and district police have been alerted.

District Collectors have been asked to ensure adequate supplies of food, drinking water, medicines, fuel in vulnerable areas. Evacuation from low-lying areas could begin tomorrow afternoon. Relief centres are also being opened.

Out of 580 marine villages in nine coastal districts, 529 villages have been contacted so far. Out of 6160 boats that have ventured into sea 5550 boats have returned.

 Excerpt from NDTV 

Cyclone Phailin 'may be worse than Katrina' that hit US in 2005

NEW DELHI: The weather office may be underestimating the severity of a cyclone which is hurtling towards the east coast, a meteorologist warned on Friday, adding that it could be worse than Hurricane Katrina which devastated parts of the United States in 2005.

Cyclone Phailin is forecast to hit the coast between Kalingapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Paradip in Odisha late on Saturday with a maximum wind speed of 220kmph (135mph), the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said in its latest bulletin.

 However, both London-based Tropical Storm and the US navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Centre forecast winds reaching 315kmph (195mph) on landfall, classifying Phailin as a Category 5 storm — the most powerful .

 "Phailin is already worse than what the IMD is forecasting. A recent satellite estimate put Phailin's current intensity on par with 2005's Hurricane Katrina in the United States," said Eric Holthaus, meteorologist for Quartz, a US-based online magazine which covers global economy-related issues.

 "Everything I know as a meteorologist tells me this is the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane — among the strongest on earth in 2013. That would mean Phailin could be the strongest cyclone ever measured in the Indian Ocean."

 Hurricane Katrina hit the US Gulf coast on August 29, 2005, killing more than 1,800 people, driving 2.16 million from their homes and causing $75 billion of damage.

 Cyclones in the Bay of Bengal are common at this time of year, often causing deaths, mass evacuations of coastal villages, power and telecoms disruptions and widespread damage to crops and property in eastern India and Bangladesh.

 Some experts have compared Phailin with a super cyclone in 1999 that killed 10,000 people when it battered the coast of Odisha with wind speeds reaching 300kmph (185mph).

 Weather authorities were reluctant to make comparisons with Katrina and the 1999 cyclone, dismissing reports that Phailin is half the size of India.

 "It is very difficult to compare two cyclones and their possible impacts. They are different entities and their crossing point along the coast matters a lot. At the same time, there is a resemblance in terms of intensity, so there is some similarity with the 1999 cyclone," IMD director general LS Rathore told a news conference.

 The cyclone is pretty voluminous, but it's not half the size of the country and its radius keeps increasing and decreasing."

Millions affected

 Holthaus said he was not familiar with India's level of disaster preparedness but was concerned that any underestimation of the storm's intensity could put lives at risk.

 "I feel that IMD's underestimate of the strength and impact of this storm is potentially tragic and could catch many millions of people off guard," he said. "Anything short of a full-scale motivation may leave people stranded in flood waters. The highest possible precautions should be taken immediately."

 The cyclone could disrupt the lives of millions, the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS) run by the United Nations and the European Commission said.

 "Up to 6.1 million people can be affected by wind speeds of cyclone strength or above. In addition, 47,000 people are living in coastal areas below 5 metres above sea level and can be affected by storm surge," the GDACS website said.

 Authorities began moving thousands of people living along Odisha's coastline to shelters early on Friday, as weather officials warned of extensive damage to homes, power and telecoms disruptions and flooding.

 The local government cancelled workers' holidays during the popular Hindu festival of Dussehra to help prepare for the storm, and the Army, Navy and Air Force have been put on standby for rescue and relief operations.

 Rations are being prepositioned in cyclone shelters, schools and other buildings on higher ground, control rooms set up and fishing suspended.

 Aid workers said the authorities' level of disaster preparedness and early warnings looked satisfactory.

 "There has been a phenomenal change in disaster management in Odisha since the super cyclone in 1999. The action the leadership has taken is exactly what is needed," said Unni Krishnan, head of disaster response for Plan International.

 (An Excerpt from “The Times of India” )