Thanks: The Hindu
Zero Budget Farming soon in Erode
ERODE: The district is all set for the next level in agriculture by going for Zero Budget Farming, or ZBF. The move is to provide farmers a viable alternative farming practice to boost yields and incomes. It involves cultivation without external inputs. No fertilizer or pesticide, not even organic inputs, will be used.
“The practice involves using inputs available only in and around the farm, balancing the soil’s air-moisture ratio, mulching, and so on. It is a manner of organic farming,” says R. Selvam, secretary, Organic Farmers Association of Erode.
He says ZBF involves raising simultaneously different crops at a place, helping the farmer increase revenue. “Banana, drumstick, thoor dal, paddy, marigold and a few vegetables can be grown at the same time in a plot, and there are successful models that demonstrate the practice,” he says.
There are over 30,000 hectares under ZBF in Maharashtra and Karnataka, thanks largely to Subhash Palekar, who conceived it 15 years ago and propagated it.
According Mr. Selvam, Erode is going for it “to help farmers, who, after having burnt their fingers with chemical farming, are contemplating quitting the profession for want of sufficient returns.”
With support from the district administration and Myrada Krishi Vigyan Kendra, 54 farmers visited ZBF farms in Karnataka recently. Mr. Selvam, who was part of the team, says farmers are convinced that Subhash Palekar’s technique would help them increase yield with zero external input.
Following positive feedback from farmers, the district administration is to help them adopt the technique. Said Collector T. Udhayachandran: “We will soon hold a four-day residential training programme on ZBF for 1,000 farmers, 600 of who will be from the district.” Based on feedback from the trained farmers, the district administration will plan the next stage, he added.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
4ember 2007
Thanks: The Hindu
Investment in infrastructure to be hiked to 9 p.c. of GDP
NEW DELHI: The Centre proposes to raise the quantum of investment in the infrastructure sector to nine per cent of GDP (gross domestic product) within five years so as to achieve a high 9-10 per cent economic growth projected for the XI Plan (2007-12).
At a session on the prospects of achieving the projected growth rate titled ‘10 per cent growth: The infrastructure picture’ at the India Economic Summit here on Tuesday, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said: “The Cabinet has recently approved the draft of the XI Plan which envisages an increase in infrastructure investment from five per cent of GDP to nine per cent.”
As per the Plan draft, the Government is envisaging an average GDP growth rate of nine per cent during the first four years of the Plan period and an increase to 10 per cent by the terminal year of the five-year Plan.
To achieve the projected level of funding in infrastructure, Dr Ahluwalia said the country would require an investment of $500 billion in the sector during the Plan period. Of this, the major chunk of $350 billion would be ploughed in as per the business-as-usual forecast, he said. In effect, the balance funding of $150 billion would be required to be arranged from various other sources, including the global financial market.
Dr. Ahluwalia felt that such a level of financing would not be a problem as “specific policies are in place for achieving a jump in investment”. In an optimistic note, Asian Development Bank (ADB) Managing Director-General Rajat Nag felt that it would be possible for India to exceed the Planning Commission’s target and raise the level of investment in infrastructure to 10.5-12.5 per cent of the GDP in the years to come.
Thanks: The Hindu
More people visiting primary health centres
CHENNAI: Funds have been allotted to 30 Primary Health Centres, including 10 in Tiruvallur district, for upgrading infrastructure to enable them to provide round-the-clock services.
Commissioner for Maternal, Child Health and Welfare Apoorva told mediapersons, who were taken on a tour of various facilities around Chennai on Tuesday, that more people now were seeking medical help in the PHCs. Pregnant mothers regularly visited ante-natal clinics, had access to modern medical equipment, improved laboratory and were provided nutritious snacks and lunch.
Women delivered of babies in the hospital will also have the opportunity to watch their favourite television serial.
Television sets have been installed in wards and in the O.P. sections in health sub centres.
The PHCs and sub-health centres in Tiruvallur district receive anywhere between 250 to 300 patients a day. A doctor and nurse are now on call round-the-clock in the PHCs.
At the peri-urban PHC, such as the one at Naravarikuppam in Red Hills nine women were delivered of babies since December 1. Doctors here said the number of deliveries increased from 35 last year to 65 this year. Around one or two per cent so far tested positive for HIV/AIDS. In the remote PHC at Budur, a child is born almost every day.
A village sub-centre such as the one at Pandikavanur, which caters to a population of about 2,000, about 110 patients are received at its weekly outreach programme. Counselling and testing for HIV/AIDS is offered.
Investment in infrastructure to be hiked to 9 p.c. of GDP
NEW DELHI: The Centre proposes to raise the quantum of investment in the infrastructure sector to nine per cent of GDP (gross domestic product) within five years so as to achieve a high 9-10 per cent economic growth projected for the XI Plan (2007-12).
At a session on the prospects of achieving the projected growth rate titled ‘10 per cent growth: The infrastructure picture’ at the India Economic Summit here on Tuesday, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said: “The Cabinet has recently approved the draft of the XI Plan which envisages an increase in infrastructure investment from five per cent of GDP to nine per cent.”
As per the Plan draft, the Government is envisaging an average GDP growth rate of nine per cent during the first four years of the Plan period and an increase to 10 per cent by the terminal year of the five-year Plan.
To achieve the projected level of funding in infrastructure, Dr Ahluwalia said the country would require an investment of $500 billion in the sector during the Plan period. Of this, the major chunk of $350 billion would be ploughed in as per the business-as-usual forecast, he said. In effect, the balance funding of $150 billion would be required to be arranged from various other sources, including the global financial market.
Dr. Ahluwalia felt that such a level of financing would not be a problem as “specific policies are in place for achieving a jump in investment”. In an optimistic note, Asian Development Bank (ADB) Managing Director-General Rajat Nag felt that it would be possible for India to exceed the Planning Commission’s target and raise the level of investment in infrastructure to 10.5-12.5 per cent of the GDP in the years to come.
Thanks: The Hindu
More people visiting primary health centres
CHENNAI: Funds have been allotted to 30 Primary Health Centres, including 10 in Tiruvallur district, for upgrading infrastructure to enable them to provide round-the-clock services.
Commissioner for Maternal, Child Health and Welfare Apoorva told mediapersons, who were taken on a tour of various facilities around Chennai on Tuesday, that more people now were seeking medical help in the PHCs. Pregnant mothers regularly visited ante-natal clinics, had access to modern medical equipment, improved laboratory and were provided nutritious snacks and lunch.
Women delivered of babies in the hospital will also have the opportunity to watch their favourite television serial.
Television sets have been installed in wards and in the O.P. sections in health sub centres.
The PHCs and sub-health centres in Tiruvallur district receive anywhere between 250 to 300 patients a day. A doctor and nurse are now on call round-the-clock in the PHCs.
At the peri-urban PHC, such as the one at Naravarikuppam in Red Hills nine women were delivered of babies since December 1. Doctors here said the number of deliveries increased from 35 last year to 65 this year. Around one or two per cent so far tested positive for HIV/AIDS. In the remote PHC at Budur, a child is born almost every day.
A village sub-centre such as the one at Pandikavanur, which caters to a population of about 2,000, about 110 patients are received at its weekly outreach programme. Counselling and testing for HIV/AIDS is offered.
Monday, December 3, 2007
3vember 2007
Thanks: The Hindu
325 new MTC services from January
CHENNAI: Transport Minister K.N. Nehru on Monday said here that the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) would be introducing 325 new services by January first week. The existing services of MTC numbered 2,775, the Minister said.
He announced this at a public consultation organised by the MTC, in which hundreds of commuters and representatives of their associations participated. On the consultation process, Mr. Nehru said: “We value the people’s input in deciding on useful routes; this is why we decided to organise a meeting of this scale.” He said that the State Government had undertaken various studies to ascertain the number of routes and bus services a city like Chennai needed. Academics were consulted and extensive research was conducted for the purpose.
Transport Secretary Debendranath Sarangi said the meeting was also to obtain feedback on the new bus services and routes. He said the MTC had increased the fleet strength recently and also introduced luxury services. Plans are under way to add 500 buses soon.
Mayor M. Subramanian said that it was for the first time that such a large-scale consultation was being conducted by MTC. “The city is developing rapidly and there is need for modern transport facilities. The quality of the buses and related facilities are improving and becoming on a par with the developed nations,” he said.
MTC managing director M. Ramasubramanian, several councillors and ward members participated.
Thanks : The Hindu
Work on widening of Chowdiah Road begins
Bangalore: It is good news for motorists using the T. Chowdiah Road, popularly known as Sankey Road. The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has commenced work on widening the road to a six-lane carriageway from the existing four-lane. Sankey Road is the main link to the northern parts of Bangalore apart from the NH-4 (Pune highway) and NH-7 (to Hyderabad).
Construction of three underpasses in a stretch of about 200 metres will form part of the first phase of the road widening work leading up to the Bangalore International Airport at Devanahalli. The underpasses will facilitate a two-way movement of traffic on Cunningham Road. With the completion of the underpasses, vehicles from the Kumarakrupa Road moving towards High Grounds will have a free right turn and, similarly, vehicles moving from Bellary Road towards Kumarakrupa Road will have a free right turn. The offsite work on casting the concrete slabs for the underpasses has commenced.
All three underpasses are primarily aimed at ensuring a free flow of traffic which would have a direct effect at easing the traffic congestion along the Sankey Road stretch between the Windsor Manor underbridge and at the Cunningham Road-Sankey Road intersection. Estimated to cost about Rs 4.5 crore, the BBMP has acquired a strip of about five metres land on both sides of Sankey Road. The golf course will shrink by 2.5 metres to seven metres on the Sankey Road stretch and same will be the case with the Ministers’ quarters.
Commissioner of BBMP S. Subramanya told The Hindu here on Monday that the BBMP would work to a strict schedule to ensure a smooth flow of traffic up to the international airport.
“We will do our best to ensure a hassle-free movement of traffic,” he said. With the international airport set for inauguration in the last week of March, the BBMP has also set March 28 as the deadline for the completion of the road widening works between Ballabrooie and the Hebbal flyover (jurisdiction of the BBMP).
Thanks: The Hindu
Health centres in Salem to get more facilities
SALEM: Urban Health Posts (UHP) and maternity and child health centres in Salem city will be revamped shortly. Salem Corporation has planned to construct new buildings, renovate the existing structures and equip eight UHPs and nine health centres with modern medical facilities under a comprehensive scheme. The two major UHPs, Anna Hospital at Ammapet and MGR Hospital at Kitchipalayam, will be renovated at an estimated cost of Rs. 55 lakh under the first phase of the scheme.
Dilapidated buildings in the two hospitals will be demolished and new buildings will be constructed. Modern equipment will be provided to the two hospitals. “We have received government approval for these works and tenders have been called for,” health officials said.
“The maternity centre at Subramania Nagar will be demolished and a new building will be constructed in the first phase. Repair and maintenance works will be carried out at all other centres in the second phase. We are also replacing furniture, including cots, labour boards and chairs, at all UHPs and maternity centres with new ones. New weighing machines, emergency lamps and other equipment will be provided to all our health care delivery centres,” the officials added. The Corporation has also initiated the process to fill up vacancies in the health department.
Two doctors and 30 paramedical personnel will be appointed shortly. The Corporation has come up with the scheme following complaints from the public about poor conditions and service delivery at the health centres.
325 new MTC services from January
CHENNAI: Transport Minister K.N. Nehru on Monday said here that the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) would be introducing 325 new services by January first week. The existing services of MTC numbered 2,775, the Minister said.
He announced this at a public consultation organised by the MTC, in which hundreds of commuters and representatives of their associations participated. On the consultation process, Mr. Nehru said: “We value the people’s input in deciding on useful routes; this is why we decided to organise a meeting of this scale.” He said that the State Government had undertaken various studies to ascertain the number of routes and bus services a city like Chennai needed. Academics were consulted and extensive research was conducted for the purpose.
Transport Secretary Debendranath Sarangi said the meeting was also to obtain feedback on the new bus services and routes. He said the MTC had increased the fleet strength recently and also introduced luxury services. Plans are under way to add 500 buses soon.
Mayor M. Subramanian said that it was for the first time that such a large-scale consultation was being conducted by MTC. “The city is developing rapidly and there is need for modern transport facilities. The quality of the buses and related facilities are improving and becoming on a par with the developed nations,” he said.
MTC managing director M. Ramasubramanian, several councillors and ward members participated.
Thanks : The Hindu
Work on widening of Chowdiah Road begins
Bangalore: It is good news for motorists using the T. Chowdiah Road, popularly known as Sankey Road. The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has commenced work on widening the road to a six-lane carriageway from the existing four-lane. Sankey Road is the main link to the northern parts of Bangalore apart from the NH-4 (Pune highway) and NH-7 (to Hyderabad).
Construction of three underpasses in a stretch of about 200 metres will form part of the first phase of the road widening work leading up to the Bangalore International Airport at Devanahalli. The underpasses will facilitate a two-way movement of traffic on Cunningham Road. With the completion of the underpasses, vehicles from the Kumarakrupa Road moving towards High Grounds will have a free right turn and, similarly, vehicles moving from Bellary Road towards Kumarakrupa Road will have a free right turn. The offsite work on casting the concrete slabs for the underpasses has commenced.
All three underpasses are primarily aimed at ensuring a free flow of traffic which would have a direct effect at easing the traffic congestion along the Sankey Road stretch between the Windsor Manor underbridge and at the Cunningham Road-Sankey Road intersection. Estimated to cost about Rs 4.5 crore, the BBMP has acquired a strip of about five metres land on both sides of Sankey Road. The golf course will shrink by 2.5 metres to seven metres on the Sankey Road stretch and same will be the case with the Ministers’ quarters.
Commissioner of BBMP S. Subramanya told The Hindu here on Monday that the BBMP would work to a strict schedule to ensure a smooth flow of traffic up to the international airport.
“We will do our best to ensure a hassle-free movement of traffic,” he said. With the international airport set for inauguration in the last week of March, the BBMP has also set March 28 as the deadline for the completion of the road widening works between Ballabrooie and the Hebbal flyover (jurisdiction of the BBMP).
Thanks: The Hindu
Health centres in Salem to get more facilities
SALEM: Urban Health Posts (UHP) and maternity and child health centres in Salem city will be revamped shortly. Salem Corporation has planned to construct new buildings, renovate the existing structures and equip eight UHPs and nine health centres with modern medical facilities under a comprehensive scheme. The two major UHPs, Anna Hospital at Ammapet and MGR Hospital at Kitchipalayam, will be renovated at an estimated cost of Rs. 55 lakh under the first phase of the scheme.
Dilapidated buildings in the two hospitals will be demolished and new buildings will be constructed. Modern equipment will be provided to the two hospitals. “We have received government approval for these works and tenders have been called for,” health officials said.
“The maternity centre at Subramania Nagar will be demolished and a new building will be constructed in the first phase. Repair and maintenance works will be carried out at all other centres in the second phase. We are also replacing furniture, including cots, labour boards and chairs, at all UHPs and maternity centres with new ones. New weighing machines, emergency lamps and other equipment will be provided to all our health care delivery centres,” the officials added. The Corporation has also initiated the process to fill up vacancies in the health department.
Two doctors and 30 paramedical personnel will be appointed shortly. The Corporation has come up with the scheme following complaints from the public about poor conditions and service delivery at the health centres.
Saturday, December 1, 2007
1ember 2007
Thanks: The Hindu
Campaign to enhance awareness on TB
Udhagamandalam: An intensive campaign is on in the Nilgiris district to enhance awareness about tuberculosis (TB). In a systematic manner medical teams have, over the past few months, been fanning out to different parts of the district to teach various sections of society about how the malady can be kept at bay and how it can be prevented from spreading. Spearheading the campaign is the Nilgiris District Deputy Director of Medical Services (TB) P.J. Vasanthan.
Dr.Vasanthan told The Hindu that the biggest obstacle in combating the malady was lack of awarenes. During the campaign a message conveyed to the people is: “If you are coughing and suffering from sputum-related problems continuously for about three weeks rush to a TB specialist.”
Claiming that it was having a salutary effect, he said ignoring symptoms could not only be life-threatening but also harmful to society. Though people of all ages were equally vulnerable, those in the 15 to 45 age range were most prone to contracting the disease. Wherever the campaign caravan went, the paramount importance of early diagnosis and Directly Observed Treatment (DOT) was highlighted, Dr. Vasanthan said. Pointing out that the campaign team had already covered a number of schools and colleges, he said with the help of non-governmental organisations the benefits of the campaign were being extended to tribals. The campaign was laying special emphasis on conducting awareness programmes in tea gardens, he said.
Stating that insanitary conditions aggravated the problem, he said a major contributory factor was the habit of spitting in public places. There were eight microscopy centres run by the government and two attached to non-governmental organisations, he said. Every month about 20 pulmonary TB cases were reported. While the treatment cost worked out to about Rs. 1,500 a month in the private sector, the total cost in government hospitals was only Rs. 5,000. The intensive campaign would go on till March 2008. Dr.Vasanthan said a worldwide goal was to wipe out TB by 2050.
Thanks: The Hindu
Work on ECR project resumes
PUDUKOTTAI: Work on the World Bank-funded East Coast Road (ECR) project, which remained suspended for about a month following sharp showers in the coastal parts of the district, resumed recently.
Being a coastal belt with estuaries, rivulets and the Vellar, the major river of the district, the work involves construction of culverts and minor bridges at several places in the 36-km-long stretch. Work on construction of a minor bridge or culvert has been undertaken every couple of km between Kattumavadi and Kottaipattinam, about 70 km from here.
Authorities of the Tamil Nadu Road Sector Project (TNSRP), which is executing the Rs.2,160-crore project of laying the 742-km road from Arcot to Tuticorin, suspended the work as a vast stretch of newly laid and levelled earth on the ECR stretch turned slushy at places such as Kottaipattinam, Kattumavadi and Manamelkudi. The overflowing water from the culverts brought all work to a grinding halt.
The project, which started in February 2004, is expected to be completed by March 2009. Of the total outlay of Rs.2,160 crore, a sum of Rs.1,148 crore will be utilised to upgrade the ECR, TNSRP sources told The Hindu. The upgrading work includes strengthening of the earth and ensuring technical stability of the area to suit the huge volume of heavy vehicles. With the receding of rain water, work resumed last week, the sources said.
The project is being executed through meticulous planning, covering a stretch of 387 km between Arcot and Tiruvarur and 355 km between Nagapattinam and Tuticorin.
Campaign to enhance awareness on TB
Udhagamandalam: An intensive campaign is on in the Nilgiris district to enhance awareness about tuberculosis (TB). In a systematic manner medical teams have, over the past few months, been fanning out to different parts of the district to teach various sections of society about how the malady can be kept at bay and how it can be prevented from spreading. Spearheading the campaign is the Nilgiris District Deputy Director of Medical Services (TB) P.J. Vasanthan.
Dr.Vasanthan told The Hindu that the biggest obstacle in combating the malady was lack of awarenes. During the campaign a message conveyed to the people is: “If you are coughing and suffering from sputum-related problems continuously for about three weeks rush to a TB specialist.”
Claiming that it was having a salutary effect, he said ignoring symptoms could not only be life-threatening but also harmful to society. Though people of all ages were equally vulnerable, those in the 15 to 45 age range were most prone to contracting the disease. Wherever the campaign caravan went, the paramount importance of early diagnosis and Directly Observed Treatment (DOT) was highlighted, Dr. Vasanthan said. Pointing out that the campaign team had already covered a number of schools and colleges, he said with the help of non-governmental organisations the benefits of the campaign were being extended to tribals. The campaign was laying special emphasis on conducting awareness programmes in tea gardens, he said.
Stating that insanitary conditions aggravated the problem, he said a major contributory factor was the habit of spitting in public places. There were eight microscopy centres run by the government and two attached to non-governmental organisations, he said. Every month about 20 pulmonary TB cases were reported. While the treatment cost worked out to about Rs. 1,500 a month in the private sector, the total cost in government hospitals was only Rs. 5,000. The intensive campaign would go on till March 2008. Dr.Vasanthan said a worldwide goal was to wipe out TB by 2050.
Thanks: The Hindu
Work on ECR project resumes
PUDUKOTTAI: Work on the World Bank-funded East Coast Road (ECR) project, which remained suspended for about a month following sharp showers in the coastal parts of the district, resumed recently.
Being a coastal belt with estuaries, rivulets and the Vellar, the major river of the district, the work involves construction of culverts and minor bridges at several places in the 36-km-long stretch. Work on construction of a minor bridge or culvert has been undertaken every couple of km between Kattumavadi and Kottaipattinam, about 70 km from here.
Authorities of the Tamil Nadu Road Sector Project (TNSRP), which is executing the Rs.2,160-crore project of laying the 742-km road from Arcot to Tuticorin, suspended the work as a vast stretch of newly laid and levelled earth on the ECR stretch turned slushy at places such as Kottaipattinam, Kattumavadi and Manamelkudi. The overflowing water from the culverts brought all work to a grinding halt.
The project, which started in February 2004, is expected to be completed by March 2009. Of the total outlay of Rs.2,160 crore, a sum of Rs.1,148 crore will be utilised to upgrade the ECR, TNSRP sources told The Hindu. The upgrading work includes strengthening of the earth and ensuring technical stability of the area to suit the huge volume of heavy vehicles. With the receding of rain water, work resumed last week, the sources said.
The project is being executed through meticulous planning, covering a stretch of 387 km between Arcot and Tiruvarur and 355 km between Nagapattinam and Tuticorin.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
11ovember 2007
Thanks : NDTV
Lakshmi is doing very well: Doctor
Little Lakshmi who underwent a complex and risky surgery to remove her parasitic twin, is making good progress and had solid food on Sunday, doctors said.
''Lakshmi is doing very well. She not only took full oral liquids like water and milk but also had Idlis during the day,'' Dr Ashley D'Cruz, chief paediatric surgeon of the Sparsh hospital, where she was operate upon, said on Sunday.
''She continues to be quite stable with all her vital parameters functioning normally,'' he said.
''We (the team of doctors) will take a decision as to when to move her out of the ICU, probably tomorrow'', D'Cruz said adding her parents met her frequently during the day.
Two-year-old girl, with eight limbs, had arrived at the hospital on October 3 with an abnormal body structures. Her body was fused at the pelvis with her parasitic twin.
Thanks: IBN Live
Mumbai still a clean city after Diwali fireworks
New Delhi/Mumbai: After a grand Diwali celebration on Friday night, citizens across the metros had to deal with a grand mess of waste paper from firecrackers.
However, the streets of Mumbai looked spic and span even after Mumbaikars burst countless firecrackers. The city made sure that none of the night’s leftovers littered the spot.
And it was the combined efforts of the BMC, citizens and corporate houses in keeping the city clean.
The BMC cleaned the public places and citizens cleaned their personal spaces. The senior citizens also contributed their bit.
But the national capital, Delhi did not match up. The city woke up to roads full of waste material from the firecrackers. And though citizens admit they had a role to play in the clean-up process they were only quick to pass the buck.
Mumbaikars are setting an example for others so maybe it is time that citizens here take part in the collective responsibility of keeping the city clean
Thanks : IBN Live
Medical tests a must in schools: Health Ministry
New Delhi: Some good news for the kids in school. For the basic illnesses parents need not take them to the doctor but they can be screened in school. An initiative by the union health and the HRD ministry has come as happy tiding during Diwali.
It's a Diwali gift for schoolchildren across the country, from the health and the HRD ministries. A national school health program, under which all school children from class five to twelve will be screened for basic ailments, will take off next year.
The ministries say children in private and public schools will be screened regularly - free of cost - for vitamin deficiencies, heart ailments, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes, among other ailments.
Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss says, “School children all over the country will be screened. Yearly they will be given health card. This will be a yearly phenomenon.”
The program will be implemented under a public private partnership, but the details, like how often the screenings will be done, are yet to be worked out.
The ministries say child health is a priority, and have also declared that health will be taught as a separate subject in schools from next year.
Ramadoss adds, “Health subject is going to be at least once or twice a week. All the children in the school should learn what are the health issues. ”
This program is already there in states of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat but replicating it across the country would not be an easy task as experts say that enforcement, infrastructure and capacity building would be the major challenges.
Thanks: IBN Live
Mumbai website helps reunite missing children
Mumbai: Eleven-year-old Vivek Vishwakarma, who had run away from home after being shouted at, was reunited with his family after over a week of anxiety. Vivek, was tracked down by the Don Bosco shelter in Wadala and handed back to his parents.
“My mother had scolded me but I will not run away again,” Vivek said.
Vivek may have been found but many others are not so lucky. However, now there's hope for such parents. In a first-ever attempt of its kind in Mumbai, a website www. homelink.in is helping reunite missing children with their families.
Mumbai has a bad track record as far as missing children are concerned. On an average more than 650 children remain untraced every year.
More than 4,000 children were reported missing in 2007 of which 260 these children have been successfully tracked using the website.“We have 46 organisations working. We are a team of 15 in Vijaywada but we are never slack in searching lost children,” Sapna, who is part of a team that works for the website, said.
The shelter also keeps a tab on the children's lives after they are back with their families.
"We counsel the children as they sometimes don’t want to talk to people. We bring them back into the system,” Sapna said.
The website has certainly brought a ray of hope for children who go missing in maximum city. But the challenge now is to extend help to families of all missing children and ensure their safe return.
Lakshmi is doing very well: Doctor
Little Lakshmi who underwent a complex and risky surgery to remove her parasitic twin, is making good progress and had solid food on Sunday, doctors said.
''Lakshmi is doing very well. She not only took full oral liquids like water and milk but also had Idlis during the day,'' Dr Ashley D'Cruz, chief paediatric surgeon of the Sparsh hospital, where she was operate upon, said on Sunday.
''She continues to be quite stable with all her vital parameters functioning normally,'' he said.
''We (the team of doctors) will take a decision as to when to move her out of the ICU, probably tomorrow'', D'Cruz said adding her parents met her frequently during the day.
Two-year-old girl, with eight limbs, had arrived at the hospital on October 3 with an abnormal body structures. Her body was fused at the pelvis with her parasitic twin.
Thanks: IBN Live
Mumbai still a clean city after Diwali fireworks
New Delhi/Mumbai: After a grand Diwali celebration on Friday night, citizens across the metros had to deal with a grand mess of waste paper from firecrackers.
However, the streets of Mumbai looked spic and span even after Mumbaikars burst countless firecrackers. The city made sure that none of the night’s leftovers littered the spot.
And it was the combined efforts of the BMC, citizens and corporate houses in keeping the city clean.
The BMC cleaned the public places and citizens cleaned their personal spaces. The senior citizens also contributed their bit.
But the national capital, Delhi did not match up. The city woke up to roads full of waste material from the firecrackers. And though citizens admit they had a role to play in the clean-up process they were only quick to pass the buck.
Mumbaikars are setting an example for others so maybe it is time that citizens here take part in the collective responsibility of keeping the city clean
Thanks : IBN Live
Medical tests a must in schools: Health Ministry
New Delhi: Some good news for the kids in school. For the basic illnesses parents need not take them to the doctor but they can be screened in school. An initiative by the union health and the HRD ministry has come as happy tiding during Diwali.
It's a Diwali gift for schoolchildren across the country, from the health and the HRD ministries. A national school health program, under which all school children from class five to twelve will be screened for basic ailments, will take off next year.
The ministries say children in private and public schools will be screened regularly - free of cost - for vitamin deficiencies, heart ailments, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes, among other ailments.
Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss says, “School children all over the country will be screened. Yearly they will be given health card. This will be a yearly phenomenon.”
The program will be implemented under a public private partnership, but the details, like how often the screenings will be done, are yet to be worked out.
The ministries say child health is a priority, and have also declared that health will be taught as a separate subject in schools from next year.
Ramadoss adds, “Health subject is going to be at least once or twice a week. All the children in the school should learn what are the health issues. ”
This program is already there in states of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat but replicating it across the country would not be an easy task as experts say that enforcement, infrastructure and capacity building would be the major challenges.
Thanks: IBN Live
Mumbai website helps reunite missing children
Mumbai: Eleven-year-old Vivek Vishwakarma, who had run away from home after being shouted at, was reunited with his family after over a week of anxiety. Vivek, was tracked down by the Don Bosco shelter in Wadala and handed back to his parents.
“My mother had scolded me but I will not run away again,” Vivek said.
Vivek may have been found but many others are not so lucky. However, now there's hope for such parents. In a first-ever attempt of its kind in Mumbai, a website www. homelink.in is helping reunite missing children with their families.
Mumbai has a bad track record as far as missing children are concerned. On an average more than 650 children remain untraced every year.
More than 4,000 children were reported missing in 2007 of which 260 these children have been successfully tracked using the website.“We have 46 organisations working. We are a team of 15 in Vijaywada but we are never slack in searching lost children,” Sapna, who is part of a team that works for the website, said.
The shelter also keeps a tab on the children's lives after they are back with their families.
"We counsel the children as they sometimes don’t want to talk to people. We bring them back into the system,” Sapna said.
The website has certainly brought a ray of hope for children who go missing in maximum city. But the challenge now is to extend help to families of all missing children and ensure their safe return.
Friday, November 9, 2007
9ovember 2007
Thanks: The hindu
30 lakh IT refunds issued till October
NEW DELHI: The income-tax department has already issued more than 30 lakh refunds till October, entailing a total sum of Rs. 18,448 crore.
According to an official statement here, refund payouts in the non-corporate personal income-tax (PIT) category are ahead by 47.16 per cent at Rs 6,135 crore as compared to Rs 4,169 crore released during the first seven months of 2006-07.
The statement noted that over 11 lakh electronic returns have already been received during the current financial year.
More such returns are expected by November 15, up to which the last date for filing of mandatory electronic returns stands extended.
As against this, 3.44 lakh electronic returns were filed by various categories of taxpayers during fiscal year 2006-07. Out of these, 2.38 lakh electronic returns have already been processed by the IT department and refunds totalling Rs. 7,816.89 crore were issued till November 7. The balance 1.06 lakh electronic returns are to be processed by November 30. Refunds worth over Rs. 14,000 crore pertaining to large corporate cases have also been processed.
Out of these, refunds of over Rs. 5,400 crore have been issued and the remaining are to be completed by the end of this month.
The statement noted that the Refund Banker scheme — launched in Delhi and Patna towards the end of last fiscal and extended subsequently to Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Mumbai — has helped increase the pace of refunds. It will now be extended to the entire country for the non-corporate PIT category of taxpayers to facilitate quick and correct issue of refunds.
Taxpayers are advised to furnish their bank details and ECS number in their tax returns so that their refunds can be credited to their bank account electronically.
With the Refund Banker scheme in place all over the country shortly, the department envisages no difficulty in processing refund cases. Tax returns have been made annexure-less to facilitate electronic processing of the same.
Thanks: The Hindu
Railways’ bold step, goes in for dedicated power
CHENNAI: In another bold step to cut operational costs and improve efficiency, the Indian Railways has signed an agreement with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) to set up a 1,000 MW captive power plant at Nabinagar in Bihar. The NTPC will have a 74 per cent stake in the Rs. 5,352 crore project, which will be taken up on a 70:30 debt equity basis.
In 2000, the Railways started drawing power from the NTPC’s Dadri and Auriya power plants under a Central scheme to provide the Railways a share from the 15 per cent unallocated power from the Central share of electricity in its undertakings. That arrangement alone resulted in an annual saving of Rs. 50 crore to the Railways, because of the cheaper cost of power.
Over the years, the Railway Board has been repeated urging State governments to supply power from the State electricity boards (SEBs) at a concessional tariff. Except a few States such as Kerala, not many came forward to do that.
Cost of production
Consequently, the Railways decided to go in for captive power plants through joint ventures.
According to the Railway Board, the Nabinagar plant can lead to a saving of Rs. 400-600 crore annually. The cost of production in the unit has been estimated at Rs. 2.13 a unit, and along with wheeling and transmission charges, it will cost the Railways somewhere between Rs. 3.38 and Rs. 3.63 a unit.
That works out much cheaper than the average cost of electricity, which is now Rs. 4.28, to the Railways. This joint venture with the NTPC, therefore, promises to be just the first of such projects by the Railways to cut down its operational costs.
The annual power bill of the Railways is estimated at Rs. 5,700 crore for the 18,000 route km of electric traction in its 63,000 route km network across the country. Railway sources say that though diesel locomotive may work out cheaper than electric transmission costs, the unprecedented rise in global crude oil prices and the cost of importing fuel, makes the power alternative a better proposition. Operationally too, electric locomotives can accelerate faster and have a better pulling power.
Special concessions
Now that special concessions have been offered for ’mega power projects,’ and Central undertakings such as the NTPC, the Nuclear Power Corporation, and the Neyveli Lignite Corporation have taken the lead in setting up joint ventures, the Railways opted to go in for captive power plants through this route.
Over the next few months and years, the Railways will look at greenfield capacity at traction load centres. Power from these units can be drawn for use in the electrified routes in that region. For instance, the Nabinagar project can feed trains in Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The NTPC, on its part, will earmark 10 per cent of the power to other users.
“Even a 1 to 2 per cent saving in the power costs can make a big difference to us in the overall cost of operations and efficiency.
The board is now looking at every aspect of our operations to reduce costs and enhance efficiency, to become more competitive,” a senior board official explains.
Thanks: The Hindu
Cashew exports rise in volume
Kochi: The foreign exchange earned by the country through export of cashew kernels, cashew nut shell liquid, and allied products during 2006-07 was Rs. 2,465.44 crore. Among the agriculture commodities exported from India, cashew came third, contributing 0.44 per cent of the total export earnings during the period. This was announced by Walter D’Souza, outgoing Chairman of the Cashew Export Promotion Council of India, while addressing the annual general meeting here last week. Export of cashew kernels during 2006-07 was 1,18,540 tonnes, valued at Rs. 2,455.15crore, as against 1,14,143 tonnes, valued at Rs. 2,514.86 crore during 2005-06. There was an increase of 3.85 per cent in quantity and a decrease of 2.37 per cent in value. The average unit export price realised during 2006-07 was Rs. 207.12 a kg compared to Rs. 220.33 a kg during 2005-06, recording a decrease of 6 per cent. Export of cashew nut shell liquid during 2006-07 was 6,139 tonnes, valued at Rs. 10.29 crore, against 6,463 tonnes, valued at Rs. 7.21 crore, during the previous year. There was a decrease of 5.01 per cent in terms of quantity and an increase of 42.72 per cent in terms of value. The unit value realised for cashew nut shell liquid during 2006-07 was Rs. 16.76 a kg. In the previous year this was Rs. 11.16 a kg. The increase was 50.18 per cent.
Thanks : The Hindu
Calcutta Stock Exchange gets new lease of life
KOLKATA: The Calcutta Stock Exchange (CSE), the country’s second oldest exchange after Bombay, got a new lease of life on Friday as it started trading using the BSE platform. The BSE along with the Birlas, the Poddars and the Bangurs now have equity stake in the CSE which had remained in a moribund state for nearly six years now, owing mainly to low volume of trading with several other factors triggering a downslide. The CSE Secretary, P. K. De, told The Hindu that the one-hour symbolic Muhurat trading was set to pave the way for increased volumes for the CSE whose daily trading was an insignificant Rs. 1.50 crore. He said that there were 942 brokers registered with the exchange now and many of them enthusiastically traded on Friday, “using their own contract notes” but on the BSE platform. This, he said, was a unique system. BSE was on Friday linked with the CSE, he said.
Market sources said that along with low trading voumes, delisting by companies and archaic system, a scam that broke out in 2001, had spelt the final death knell of the exchange. Most big companies delisted from this exchange and moved onto the BSE and the NSE. However, many old timers were not too keen to share the exuberance saying that trading volumes would not swell as the exchange had long lost the prime position that it had held among the country’s bourses with volumes averaging Rs. 500 crore daily, even in the 1990s.
30 lakh IT refunds issued till October
NEW DELHI: The income-tax department has already issued more than 30 lakh refunds till October, entailing a total sum of Rs. 18,448 crore.
According to an official statement here, refund payouts in the non-corporate personal income-tax (PIT) category are ahead by 47.16 per cent at Rs 6,135 crore as compared to Rs 4,169 crore released during the first seven months of 2006-07.
The statement noted that over 11 lakh electronic returns have already been received during the current financial year.
More such returns are expected by November 15, up to which the last date for filing of mandatory electronic returns stands extended.
As against this, 3.44 lakh electronic returns were filed by various categories of taxpayers during fiscal year 2006-07. Out of these, 2.38 lakh electronic returns have already been processed by the IT department and refunds totalling Rs. 7,816.89 crore were issued till November 7. The balance 1.06 lakh electronic returns are to be processed by November 30. Refunds worth over Rs. 14,000 crore pertaining to large corporate cases have also been processed.
Out of these, refunds of over Rs. 5,400 crore have been issued and the remaining are to be completed by the end of this month.
The statement noted that the Refund Banker scheme — launched in Delhi and Patna towards the end of last fiscal and extended subsequently to Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Mumbai — has helped increase the pace of refunds. It will now be extended to the entire country for the non-corporate PIT category of taxpayers to facilitate quick and correct issue of refunds.
Taxpayers are advised to furnish their bank details and ECS number in their tax returns so that their refunds can be credited to their bank account electronically.
With the Refund Banker scheme in place all over the country shortly, the department envisages no difficulty in processing refund cases. Tax returns have been made annexure-less to facilitate electronic processing of the same.
Thanks: The Hindu
Railways’ bold step, goes in for dedicated power
CHENNAI: In another bold step to cut operational costs and improve efficiency, the Indian Railways has signed an agreement with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) to set up a 1,000 MW captive power plant at Nabinagar in Bihar. The NTPC will have a 74 per cent stake in the Rs. 5,352 crore project, which will be taken up on a 70:30 debt equity basis.
In 2000, the Railways started drawing power from the NTPC’s Dadri and Auriya power plants under a Central scheme to provide the Railways a share from the 15 per cent unallocated power from the Central share of electricity in its undertakings. That arrangement alone resulted in an annual saving of Rs. 50 crore to the Railways, because of the cheaper cost of power.
Over the years, the Railway Board has been repeated urging State governments to supply power from the State electricity boards (SEBs) at a concessional tariff. Except a few States such as Kerala, not many came forward to do that.
Cost of production
Consequently, the Railways decided to go in for captive power plants through joint ventures.
According to the Railway Board, the Nabinagar plant can lead to a saving of Rs. 400-600 crore annually. The cost of production in the unit has been estimated at Rs. 2.13 a unit, and along with wheeling and transmission charges, it will cost the Railways somewhere between Rs. 3.38 and Rs. 3.63 a unit.
That works out much cheaper than the average cost of electricity, which is now Rs. 4.28, to the Railways. This joint venture with the NTPC, therefore, promises to be just the first of such projects by the Railways to cut down its operational costs.
The annual power bill of the Railways is estimated at Rs. 5,700 crore for the 18,000 route km of electric traction in its 63,000 route km network across the country. Railway sources say that though diesel locomotive may work out cheaper than electric transmission costs, the unprecedented rise in global crude oil prices and the cost of importing fuel, makes the power alternative a better proposition. Operationally too, electric locomotives can accelerate faster and have a better pulling power.
Special concessions
Now that special concessions have been offered for ’mega power projects,’ and Central undertakings such as the NTPC, the Nuclear Power Corporation, and the Neyveli Lignite Corporation have taken the lead in setting up joint ventures, the Railways opted to go in for captive power plants through this route.
Over the next few months and years, the Railways will look at greenfield capacity at traction load centres. Power from these units can be drawn for use in the electrified routes in that region. For instance, the Nabinagar project can feed trains in Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The NTPC, on its part, will earmark 10 per cent of the power to other users.
“Even a 1 to 2 per cent saving in the power costs can make a big difference to us in the overall cost of operations and efficiency.
The board is now looking at every aspect of our operations to reduce costs and enhance efficiency, to become more competitive,” a senior board official explains.
Thanks: The Hindu
Cashew exports rise in volume
Kochi: The foreign exchange earned by the country through export of cashew kernels, cashew nut shell liquid, and allied products during 2006-07 was Rs. 2,465.44 crore. Among the agriculture commodities exported from India, cashew came third, contributing 0.44 per cent of the total export earnings during the period. This was announced by Walter D’Souza, outgoing Chairman of the Cashew Export Promotion Council of India, while addressing the annual general meeting here last week. Export of cashew kernels during 2006-07 was 1,18,540 tonnes, valued at Rs. 2,455.15crore, as against 1,14,143 tonnes, valued at Rs. 2,514.86 crore during 2005-06. There was an increase of 3.85 per cent in quantity and a decrease of 2.37 per cent in value. The average unit export price realised during 2006-07 was Rs. 207.12 a kg compared to Rs. 220.33 a kg during 2005-06, recording a decrease of 6 per cent. Export of cashew nut shell liquid during 2006-07 was 6,139 tonnes, valued at Rs. 10.29 crore, against 6,463 tonnes, valued at Rs. 7.21 crore, during the previous year. There was a decrease of 5.01 per cent in terms of quantity and an increase of 42.72 per cent in terms of value. The unit value realised for cashew nut shell liquid during 2006-07 was Rs. 16.76 a kg. In the previous year this was Rs. 11.16 a kg. The increase was 50.18 per cent.
Thanks : The Hindu
Calcutta Stock Exchange gets new lease of life
KOLKATA: The Calcutta Stock Exchange (CSE), the country’s second oldest exchange after Bombay, got a new lease of life on Friday as it started trading using the BSE platform. The BSE along with the Birlas, the Poddars and the Bangurs now have equity stake in the CSE which had remained in a moribund state for nearly six years now, owing mainly to low volume of trading with several other factors triggering a downslide. The CSE Secretary, P. K. De, told The Hindu that the one-hour symbolic Muhurat trading was set to pave the way for increased volumes for the CSE whose daily trading was an insignificant Rs. 1.50 crore. He said that there were 942 brokers registered with the exchange now and many of them enthusiastically traded on Friday, “using their own contract notes” but on the BSE platform. This, he said, was a unique system. BSE was on Friday linked with the CSE, he said.
Market sources said that along with low trading voumes, delisting by companies and archaic system, a scam that broke out in 2001, had spelt the final death knell of the exchange. Most big companies delisted from this exchange and moved onto the BSE and the NSE. However, many old timers were not too keen to share the exuberance saying that trading volumes would not swell as the exchange had long lost the prime position that it had held among the country’s bourses with volumes averaging Rs. 500 crore daily, even in the 1990s.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
8ovember 2007
Thanks: IBN Live
Saving Lakshmi: Doctor recalls miracle surgery
Dr Sharan Shivraj Patil, who lead the team of doctors which gave two-year-old Laksmi a new life by removing her ‘parasitic’ twin, doesn’t believe doctors are God but only his instruments to heal and cure people.
Lakshmi, who had eight limbs, is recovering after the marathon surgery at Bangalore’s Sparsh Hospital. And Dr Patil, Chairman, Chief Of Orthopaedics, Sparsh Hospital, has been flooded with congratulatory messages from the world over.
In a chat with IBNLive readers on Thursday evening, Dr Patil admitted he was nervous before the surgery but took it up as a challenge. “What I had was a good kind of nervousness but the sheer conference on my team skills made us go ahead and take up this challenge,” he said.
“Medicine is all about having the right attitude towards other human beings,” he said
Thanks : The hindu
Call for national strategies to deal with disasters
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday called upon modern societies to come together to deal with manmade disasters – be they industrial or those caused by terror attacks.
“The threat of terrorism looms large in our region and could trigger disasters across borders,” he said inaugurating the second Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction here.
Noting that earthquakes, cyclones, floods and tsunami caused havoc across Asia in the recent past, Dr. Singh said the important aspect was to have “coherent national strategies and national capabilities to handle disasters.”
“Disasters know no political boundaries and we are all equally vulnerable to them.” It was one area where nations must cooperate to find collective solutions to the challenges. “It is in difficult times that we need the best of relations. As the old wise saying goes, a friend in need is a friend indeed.”
Citing the example of regional cooperation in creating a Tsunami Early Warning System in the wake of the December 2004 havoc, the Prime Minister stressed the need for more bilateral and regional cooperation to make effective use of capabilities. India adopted a forward-looking approach to disaster management and mitigation. National and State-level disaster management authorities had been constituted. “The paradigm shift that they have advocated is based on moving away from a relief-centric, post-event approach to a holistic, integrated and preventive approach. The focus will be on disaster prevention, preparedness and mitigation.”
In her keynote address, United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi advocated “pro-active” policies as part of long-term measures to anticipate and minimise the destructive power of disasters.
Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil suggested intensive research and development to manage disasters, and said contingency plans to help people should be kept ready.
Thanks : The hindu
Cabinet nod for metro rail
CHENNAI: The State Cabinet on Wednesday approved the Rs.9,757-crore metro rail project at the policy-level and the two routes prepared by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) in its Detailed Project Report (DPR).
The first route will be from Washermanpet to Meenambakkam via Egmore and Teynampet. The second route will be from Anna Nagar to St. Thomas Mount via Vadapalani, Ashok Nagar and Alandur. The total distance covered by both the routes is 46.5 km. About 20 km will be underground and the remaining, on the surface.
The Cabinet decided to approach the Centre for financial assistance and loans for the project. A release issued after the Cabinet meeting said that Japan’s Bank for International Cooperation would also render financial assistance.
It was also decided to implement the project through the ‘Chennai Metro Rail Limited,’ a company that would be set up with contributions from both the Central and State governments.
The government took up the mass rapid transit project to reduce traffic congestion in Chennai.
It shelved the monorail scheme, proposed by the previous government, and opted for the metro rail because it could carry more passengers at a lower cost.
The DMRC was requested to prepare the DPR at a cost of Rs.3.3 crore in 2005. The DPR was submitted late in October this year. Initially, the government considered having a major part of the 46.5-km structure underground. It was estimated to cost Rs.13,000 crore. The cost came down significantly after the decision was taken to have the structure underground for only nearly half the distance.
The issue of carving out a new district out of Perambalur and headquartered at Ariyalur was debated at length at the Cabinet meeting. It was decided to create a new district on the basis of the wishes of the people and for administrative reasons, the note said. The new district will comprise Ariyalur, Udayarpalayam and Senthurai circles. Perambalur district will now consist of Perambalur, Kunnam and Veppamthattai circles.
The Cabinet decided to revive the Maduranthakam Cooperative Sugar Mills in Padalam and Mathura Sugar Mills in Pandiarajapuram.
Thanks : The hindu
BSNL slashes rates
New Delhi: BSNL on Wednesday slashed call rates to the U.S., Canada and Saudi Arabia by up to 20 % and reduced intra-circle local rates by 33.33-50 % from its landline and WLL phones. The new rates would be effective from Thursday.
Thanks: The hindu
City traffic police for hike in fine
HYDERABAD: The city police will write to the government for a hike in penalty amount for various traffic rule violations. Stating this at a press conference here on Friday, Additional Commissioner (Traffic) V.S.K. Kaumudi felt the present penalty structure was not a deterrent to the rule violators. This hike would apply to all types of violations.
Till the end of October this year, the traffic police had collected Rs. 12.63 crore towards fines under provisions of Motor Vehicle Act. This was in addition to the Rs. 29.46 lakh collected under the sections of City Police Act for physical obstruction of traffic flow and encroachment of public places.
The police were also planning to study the crackdown of the Mumbai police on persons driving vehicles while speaking over mobile phones.
“We learnt drivers booked for speaking over phones while driving are being sent to jail by the Mumbai police,” Mr. Kaumudi explained. He, however, made it clear that similar enforcement would be taken up only after analysing pros and cons of the situation.
The Additional Commissioner appealed to all persons served with e-challan to pay the fine amounts at the nearest eSeva centre or the traffic police control room opposite Public Garden, Nampally.
It was found that some persons were not paying the fine amounts within the stipulated time despite being served with challans for more than one violation. The data of persons who hadn’t paid the fine amounts was being compiled and would be sent to the courts for prosecution.
Different junctions
More than 100 cameras would be installed at different junctions to record video images of vehicles jumping signals, crossing stop lines and other violations. These cameras include speed dome cameras that can be tilted, panned and zoomed.
Thanks: The indian express
India-born Prahalad is world's most influential thinker
New Delhi, November 8: C K Prahalad, the India-born management guru and academician, has been voted the world's most influential living management thinker ahead of hands-on managers like Bill Gates, Alan Greenspan and Richard Branson.
Prahalad, who is the first Indian-origin thinker to claim the title, was ranked number three in last year's Thinkers 50 list brought out by Suntop Media.
A professor at the University of Michigans' Stephen M Ross School of Business, Prahalad specialises in corporate strategy research and is a globally known figure consulted by the top management of many of the world's foremost companies.
"Best known for his work with Gary Hamel (ranked 5th) on resource-based strategy, which gave rise to the term core competences, more recently, Prahalad has turned his attention to the plight of the worlds poor," said Stuart Crainer and Des Dearlove of Suntop Media.
"'In The Bottom of the Pyramid', his 2004 book, he argues that capitalism can be the engine to eradicate poverty," Crainer and Dearlove said in a statement posted on the website Thinkers50.com.
If we stop thinking of the poor as victims or as a burden, and start recognising them as resilient and creative entrepreneurs, a whole new world of opportunity will open up, Prahalad explains in his book.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates has been ranked second and former US Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan third.
Virgin group founder Richard Branson is placed at number nine.
Three more Indians have made it to the top 50 list include include CEO coach Ram Charan (22), and Vijay Govindarajan of the Tuck Business School (23) and Harvards' Rakesh Khurana (45
Saving Lakshmi: Doctor recalls miracle surgery
Dr Sharan Shivraj Patil, who lead the team of doctors which gave two-year-old Laksmi a new life by removing her ‘parasitic’ twin, doesn’t believe doctors are God but only his instruments to heal and cure people.
Lakshmi, who had eight limbs, is recovering after the marathon surgery at Bangalore’s Sparsh Hospital. And Dr Patil, Chairman, Chief Of Orthopaedics, Sparsh Hospital, has been flooded with congratulatory messages from the world over.
In a chat with IBNLive readers on Thursday evening, Dr Patil admitted he was nervous before the surgery but took it up as a challenge. “What I had was a good kind of nervousness but the sheer conference on my team skills made us go ahead and take up this challenge,” he said.
“Medicine is all about having the right attitude towards other human beings,” he said
Thanks : The hindu
Call for national strategies to deal with disasters
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday called upon modern societies to come together to deal with manmade disasters – be they industrial or those caused by terror attacks.
“The threat of terrorism looms large in our region and could trigger disasters across borders,” he said inaugurating the second Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction here.
Noting that earthquakes, cyclones, floods and tsunami caused havoc across Asia in the recent past, Dr. Singh said the important aspect was to have “coherent national strategies and national capabilities to handle disasters.”
“Disasters know no political boundaries and we are all equally vulnerable to them.” It was one area where nations must cooperate to find collective solutions to the challenges. “It is in difficult times that we need the best of relations. As the old wise saying goes, a friend in need is a friend indeed.”
Citing the example of regional cooperation in creating a Tsunami Early Warning System in the wake of the December 2004 havoc, the Prime Minister stressed the need for more bilateral and regional cooperation to make effective use of capabilities. India adopted a forward-looking approach to disaster management and mitigation. National and State-level disaster management authorities had been constituted. “The paradigm shift that they have advocated is based on moving away from a relief-centric, post-event approach to a holistic, integrated and preventive approach. The focus will be on disaster prevention, preparedness and mitigation.”
In her keynote address, United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi advocated “pro-active” policies as part of long-term measures to anticipate and minimise the destructive power of disasters.
Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil suggested intensive research and development to manage disasters, and said contingency plans to help people should be kept ready.
Thanks : The hindu
Cabinet nod for metro rail
CHENNAI: The State Cabinet on Wednesday approved the Rs.9,757-crore metro rail project at the policy-level and the two routes prepared by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) in its Detailed Project Report (DPR).
The first route will be from Washermanpet to Meenambakkam via Egmore and Teynampet. The second route will be from Anna Nagar to St. Thomas Mount via Vadapalani, Ashok Nagar and Alandur. The total distance covered by both the routes is 46.5 km. About 20 km will be underground and the remaining, on the surface.
The Cabinet decided to approach the Centre for financial assistance and loans for the project. A release issued after the Cabinet meeting said that Japan’s Bank for International Cooperation would also render financial assistance.
It was also decided to implement the project through the ‘Chennai Metro Rail Limited,’ a company that would be set up with contributions from both the Central and State governments.
The government took up the mass rapid transit project to reduce traffic congestion in Chennai.
It shelved the monorail scheme, proposed by the previous government, and opted for the metro rail because it could carry more passengers at a lower cost.
The DMRC was requested to prepare the DPR at a cost of Rs.3.3 crore in 2005. The DPR was submitted late in October this year. Initially, the government considered having a major part of the 46.5-km structure underground. It was estimated to cost Rs.13,000 crore. The cost came down significantly after the decision was taken to have the structure underground for only nearly half the distance.
The issue of carving out a new district out of Perambalur and headquartered at Ariyalur was debated at length at the Cabinet meeting. It was decided to create a new district on the basis of the wishes of the people and for administrative reasons, the note said. The new district will comprise Ariyalur, Udayarpalayam and Senthurai circles. Perambalur district will now consist of Perambalur, Kunnam and Veppamthattai circles.
The Cabinet decided to revive the Maduranthakam Cooperative Sugar Mills in Padalam and Mathura Sugar Mills in Pandiarajapuram.
Thanks : The hindu
BSNL slashes rates
New Delhi: BSNL on Wednesday slashed call rates to the U.S., Canada and Saudi Arabia by up to 20 % and reduced intra-circle local rates by 33.33-50 % from its landline and WLL phones. The new rates would be effective from Thursday.
Thanks: The hindu
City traffic police for hike in fine
HYDERABAD: The city police will write to the government for a hike in penalty amount for various traffic rule violations. Stating this at a press conference here on Friday, Additional Commissioner (Traffic) V.S.K. Kaumudi felt the present penalty structure was not a deterrent to the rule violators. This hike would apply to all types of violations.
Till the end of October this year, the traffic police had collected Rs. 12.63 crore towards fines under provisions of Motor Vehicle Act. This was in addition to the Rs. 29.46 lakh collected under the sections of City Police Act for physical obstruction of traffic flow and encroachment of public places.
The police were also planning to study the crackdown of the Mumbai police on persons driving vehicles while speaking over mobile phones.
“We learnt drivers booked for speaking over phones while driving are being sent to jail by the Mumbai police,” Mr. Kaumudi explained. He, however, made it clear that similar enforcement would be taken up only after analysing pros and cons of the situation.
The Additional Commissioner appealed to all persons served with e-challan to pay the fine amounts at the nearest eSeva centre or the traffic police control room opposite Public Garden, Nampally.
It was found that some persons were not paying the fine amounts within the stipulated time despite being served with challans for more than one violation. The data of persons who hadn’t paid the fine amounts was being compiled and would be sent to the courts for prosecution.
Different junctions
More than 100 cameras would be installed at different junctions to record video images of vehicles jumping signals, crossing stop lines and other violations. These cameras include speed dome cameras that can be tilted, panned and zoomed.
Thanks: The indian express
India-born Prahalad is world's most influential thinker
New Delhi, November 8: C K Prahalad, the India-born management guru and academician, has been voted the world's most influential living management thinker ahead of hands-on managers like Bill Gates, Alan Greenspan and Richard Branson.
Prahalad, who is the first Indian-origin thinker to claim the title, was ranked number three in last year's Thinkers 50 list brought out by Suntop Media.
A professor at the University of Michigans' Stephen M Ross School of Business, Prahalad specialises in corporate strategy research and is a globally known figure consulted by the top management of many of the world's foremost companies.
"Best known for his work with Gary Hamel (ranked 5th) on resource-based strategy, which gave rise to the term core competences, more recently, Prahalad has turned his attention to the plight of the worlds poor," said Stuart Crainer and Des Dearlove of Suntop Media.
"'In The Bottom of the Pyramid', his 2004 book, he argues that capitalism can be the engine to eradicate poverty," Crainer and Dearlove said in a statement posted on the website Thinkers50.com.
If we stop thinking of the poor as victims or as a burden, and start recognising them as resilient and creative entrepreneurs, a whole new world of opportunity will open up, Prahalad explains in his book.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates has been ranked second and former US Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan third.
Virgin group founder Richard Branson is placed at number nine.
Three more Indians have made it to the top 50 list include include CEO coach Ram Charan (22), and Vijay Govindarajan of the Tuck Business School (23) and Harvards' Rakesh Khurana (45
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