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.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
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
Sunday, November 4, 2007
5ovember 2007
Thanks : NDTV
Videocon to buy Planet M
You know Venugopal Dhoot for his consumer durables empire. But he now wants to be the retail rajah.
Dhoot's first consumer durables retail venture Next is already a hit and now NDTV has learnt that Videocon is getting into music retail by picking up majority stake in Planet M.
Planet M stores were owned by Bennett Coleman and Co Ltd which was set up in 1999. It has 150 stores across the country and has been planning to open 500 stores in the next four years across metros, mini metros and Tier II cities.
Planet M has been growing at 40 per cent over the last four years. Even though no official announcement has been made yet sources say that the deal was sealed last weekend.
Strategic fit
What is interesting is that BCCL itself is a strategic investor in Videocon. But with Dhoot looking at the retail space aggressively, it makes a strategic fit. According to the sources, the deal could be worth around Rs 125 crore-Rs150 crore.
While Planet M's turnover is a little over Rs 100 crore BCCL is unlikely to sell the real estate that Planet M owns. Videocon may use either Videocon Appliances or subsidiary E-Mart India Private Limited as the vehicle for the deal. E Mart houses the Next chain of stores.
While BCCL officials could not be reached, the Videocon management refused to give details. When contacted, Videocon's boss Venugopal N Dhoot told NDTV "Nothing has been finalised yet. We will let you know when we are in the position to inform the media."
But investors saw good value in the deal with Videocon Appliances closing more than 16 per cent higher after the story broke.
Specialty retail
"As a group they have been making lot of acquisitions. They are in backend, this will help them to get into front end," said Anil Advani, Head-Research, SBI Capital.
Planet M has been diversifying on its own. It is getting into digital downloads with CD sales taking a hit, next in line was DVD rentals. Videocon, a hardware company, also wants to enter the specialty retail space in a big way and Planet M offers them yet another vertical.
Retail analysts say both Next and Planet M can grow and diversify further in future as separate entities or Dhoot may even try to synergise Planet M's operations with that of Next to create a retail giant.
Thanks: IBS LIVE
ICICI fined Rs 55 lakh for using goons on customer
New Delhi: Days after the Reserve Bank of India sent out a strict warning to banks to stop using recovery agents with strong arm tactics to recover loans, the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission of Delhi has fined the ICICI Bank a whopping Rs 55 lakh for employing 'goons' to recover loan from a customer.
Deploring the practice of the banks intimidating consumers to pay the installments, the consumer court held ICICI Bank guilty of using goons to harass a consumer, Tapan Bose, and his friend's son Vinod Chowdhary.
Vinod had to be admitted to hospital after the recovery agents mercilessly beat him up while they snatched a loaned car from him in January this year. The incident occurred when Vinod was driving Bose's car, which was bought on a car loan from the ICICI Bank.
While passing the order, the court warned all banks against using musclemen for loan recovery and asked the Delhi police commissioner to instruct all SHOs to register FIRs against such complaints.
The commission deprecated the 'audacity and impunity' with which the banks have been effecting forcible possession of vehicles. "No civilised society governed by rule of law can brook such kind of conduct," the Commission's President Justice JD Kapoor said.
He also described the violent methods adopted by the recovery agents as a serious violation of 'human rights'. Holding the ICICI Bank guilty of 'unfair trade practice', the commission termed such miscreants as 'yahoos' and said they are boorish and a brutal lout, who care a fig for legal and judicial authorities, including the Supreme Court.
While taking to task the leading bank, it vented its anger on the ICICI for flouting the apex court's direction that restrained all the financial institutions from employing musclemen to recover a loan amount or possession of a vehicle.
Thanks : Mondycontrol.com
Land Rover-Jaguar bid race: Will Tata Motors win?
Mumbai: According to CNBC analysis, Tata Motors has the edge in the Land Rover-Jaguar race primarily because it’s the only automaker to submit a bid and so many analysts are saying that could give it the edge.
The other reason is it could offer a higher price as well because Tata’s have the economies of scale right now with its current production facilities to offset the cost and more importantly the third reason could be that the jobs of 13,000 Jaguar and Land Rover workers could be in line and Tata in its mood for expansion may offer better terms in terms of job security.
Ford has told labour leaders to prepare for a meeting with potential buyers, which indicates that sale could in the final stages.
Ford paid over $5 billion for both and is hoping for a good price but analysts are doubtful whether or not Ford can fetch that sort of price and they sight factors like exchange rate, high operating costs in UK, and also potentially expensive new environmental regulations and all of which impact the final sale price.
Merrill Lynch had estimated before that the sale of both could fetch anywhere between $1.3 to 1.5 billion and that is well below what Ford has paid; not forgetting that its invested about $10 billion in Jaguar and Land Rover.
In the meantime Tata Motors have been on a buying spree and for the past three years it has bought in South Korea, Brazil, Thailand, Argentina and has most recently said that it intends to keep growing organically and outside of India as well.
Thanks: The Hindu
Land bank for industrial parks soon
CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government will develop a land bank of 10,000 acres with quality infrastructure over the next five years to provide space for industrial parks, according to the new industrial policy released by Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi on Monday.
“The land bank will be mostly developed in dry and barren lands. Prime agricultural lands will be avoided,” the policy said. The government will also take steps to amend relevant laws to enable automatic conversion of dry agricultural lands for industrial use.
Private industrial parks must directly purchase land, which should be barren, non-irrigated and dry, as far as possible. Proposals with more than 10 per cent wet land or double crop land will be rejected, according to the new criteria for an approved industrial park. Parks should be located at least 50 km away from the Chennai city limits and should not include more than 5 per cent of government land.
At least 10 per cent of the area in industrial parks developed by SIPCOT and TIDCO will be set apart for social infrastructure, such as skill development centres, financial services, housing, schools and hospitals. Another 20 per cent of allottable area will be reserved for small and medium entrepreneurs.
Special economic zones and industrial parks promoted by SIPCOT, TIDCO or private developers will all be given equal incentives and facilities. Parks located 50 km away from the Chennai city limits will be granted a back-ended Industrial Park Infrastructure Grant of Rs. 2 crore or 25 per cent of the investment in eligible fixed assets, whichever is lower. Such parks must attract at least 20 new manufacturing units with a minimum total direct employment of 2,000 persons.
A back-ended state capital subsidy and tax exemption on power bought from the TNEB or from captive sources will be sanctioned for all manufacturing units, including raw-material based manufacturers. New manufacturing facilities and expansion projects located in Chennai, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts, investing Rs. 350 crore over three years can avail themselves of a structured package of incentives, while the minimum investment for those outside those districts will be Rs. 250 crore. The minimum investment levels will be reduced by Rs. 100 crore in the case of electronic hardware units. Units which invest more than Rs. 1500 crore or which have been in the State for over ten years will receive extra benefits. In a press release, the government also promised extra concessions for firms which gave priority to local workers and followed its reservation policy.
Industrial corridors of excellence will be developed, first in the Chennai-Manali-Ennore and the Chengalpattu-Sriperumbudur-Ranipet corridors, and later in the Madurai-Tuticorin and Coimbatore-Salem corridors.
Developers investing Rs. 300 crore over three years in specific industrial infrastructure projects, including desalination plants, rail, road, port and water recycling infrastructure for SEZs and industrial parks, can avail themselves of a Rs. 2 crore subsidy.
All incentives for manufacturing industries under the new policy will also be applicable to agro-industries and agri-machinery and micro-irrigation equipment manufacturers. Special Agro Economic Zones will be promoted. A wine manufacturing policy will be announced soon and mega orchards of 50 hectares and above will be exempted from the Land Reforms Act for the cultivation of high value crops.
With the growing importance of the biotechnology sector, the government will announce an updated Life Sciences Policy and TIDCO will create a Life Sciences Innovation Fund. SIPCOT will develop a 2,000-acre Nanotechnology Park. To encourage clean and efficient energy technology, a Tamil Nadu Technology and Efficiency Upgradation Initiative will be launched through a TIIC-administered fund, which will offer soft loans to SMEs.
A number of skill development initiatives will be launched, including cluster-based, grass-root level and collaborative industry-institute schemes. The government is considering a Business Facilitation Act to formally empower and regulate single window clearance committees.
Videocon to buy Planet M
You know Venugopal Dhoot for his consumer durables empire. But he now wants to be the retail rajah.
Dhoot's first consumer durables retail venture Next is already a hit and now NDTV has learnt that Videocon is getting into music retail by picking up majority stake in Planet M.
Planet M stores were owned by Bennett Coleman and Co Ltd which was set up in 1999. It has 150 stores across the country and has been planning to open 500 stores in the next four years across metros, mini metros and Tier II cities.
Planet M has been growing at 40 per cent over the last four years. Even though no official announcement has been made yet sources say that the deal was sealed last weekend.
Strategic fit
What is interesting is that BCCL itself is a strategic investor in Videocon. But with Dhoot looking at the retail space aggressively, it makes a strategic fit. According to the sources, the deal could be worth around Rs 125 crore-Rs150 crore.
While Planet M's turnover is a little over Rs 100 crore BCCL is unlikely to sell the real estate that Planet M owns. Videocon may use either Videocon Appliances or subsidiary E-Mart India Private Limited as the vehicle for the deal. E Mart houses the Next chain of stores.
While BCCL officials could not be reached, the Videocon management refused to give details. When contacted, Videocon's boss Venugopal N Dhoot told NDTV "Nothing has been finalised yet. We will let you know when we are in the position to inform the media."
But investors saw good value in the deal with Videocon Appliances closing more than 16 per cent higher after the story broke.
Specialty retail
"As a group they have been making lot of acquisitions. They are in backend, this will help them to get into front end," said Anil Advani, Head-Research, SBI Capital.
Planet M has been diversifying on its own. It is getting into digital downloads with CD sales taking a hit, next in line was DVD rentals. Videocon, a hardware company, also wants to enter the specialty retail space in a big way and Planet M offers them yet another vertical.
Retail analysts say both Next and Planet M can grow and diversify further in future as separate entities or Dhoot may even try to synergise Planet M's operations with that of Next to create a retail giant.
Thanks: IBS LIVE
ICICI fined Rs 55 lakh for using goons on customer
New Delhi: Days after the Reserve Bank of India sent out a strict warning to banks to stop using recovery agents with strong arm tactics to recover loans, the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission of Delhi has fined the ICICI Bank a whopping Rs 55 lakh for employing 'goons' to recover loan from a customer.
Deploring the practice of the banks intimidating consumers to pay the installments, the consumer court held ICICI Bank guilty of using goons to harass a consumer, Tapan Bose, and his friend's son Vinod Chowdhary.
Vinod had to be admitted to hospital after the recovery agents mercilessly beat him up while they snatched a loaned car from him in January this year. The incident occurred when Vinod was driving Bose's car, which was bought on a car loan from the ICICI Bank.
While passing the order, the court warned all banks against using musclemen for loan recovery and asked the Delhi police commissioner to instruct all SHOs to register FIRs against such complaints.
The commission deprecated the 'audacity and impunity' with which the banks have been effecting forcible possession of vehicles. "No civilised society governed by rule of law can brook such kind of conduct," the Commission's President Justice JD Kapoor said.
He also described the violent methods adopted by the recovery agents as a serious violation of 'human rights'. Holding the ICICI Bank guilty of 'unfair trade practice', the commission termed such miscreants as 'yahoos' and said they are boorish and a brutal lout, who care a fig for legal and judicial authorities, including the Supreme Court.
While taking to task the leading bank, it vented its anger on the ICICI for flouting the apex court's direction that restrained all the financial institutions from employing musclemen to recover a loan amount or possession of a vehicle.
Thanks : Mondycontrol.com
Land Rover-Jaguar bid race: Will Tata Motors win?
Mumbai: According to CNBC analysis, Tata Motors has the edge in the Land Rover-Jaguar race primarily because it’s the only automaker to submit a bid and so many analysts are saying that could give it the edge.
The other reason is it could offer a higher price as well because Tata’s have the economies of scale right now with its current production facilities to offset the cost and more importantly the third reason could be that the jobs of 13,000 Jaguar and Land Rover workers could be in line and Tata in its mood for expansion may offer better terms in terms of job security.
Ford has told labour leaders to prepare for a meeting with potential buyers, which indicates that sale could in the final stages.
Ford paid over $5 billion for both and is hoping for a good price but analysts are doubtful whether or not Ford can fetch that sort of price and they sight factors like exchange rate, high operating costs in UK, and also potentially expensive new environmental regulations and all of which impact the final sale price.
Merrill Lynch had estimated before that the sale of both could fetch anywhere between $1.3 to 1.5 billion and that is well below what Ford has paid; not forgetting that its invested about $10 billion in Jaguar and Land Rover.
In the meantime Tata Motors have been on a buying spree and for the past three years it has bought in South Korea, Brazil, Thailand, Argentina and has most recently said that it intends to keep growing organically and outside of India as well.
Thanks: The Hindu
Land bank for industrial parks soon
CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government will develop a land bank of 10,000 acres with quality infrastructure over the next five years to provide space for industrial parks, according to the new industrial policy released by Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi on Monday.
“The land bank will be mostly developed in dry and barren lands. Prime agricultural lands will be avoided,” the policy said. The government will also take steps to amend relevant laws to enable automatic conversion of dry agricultural lands for industrial use.
Private industrial parks must directly purchase land, which should be barren, non-irrigated and dry, as far as possible. Proposals with more than 10 per cent wet land or double crop land will be rejected, according to the new criteria for an approved industrial park. Parks should be located at least 50 km away from the Chennai city limits and should not include more than 5 per cent of government land.
At least 10 per cent of the area in industrial parks developed by SIPCOT and TIDCO will be set apart for social infrastructure, such as skill development centres, financial services, housing, schools and hospitals. Another 20 per cent of allottable area will be reserved for small and medium entrepreneurs.
Special economic zones and industrial parks promoted by SIPCOT, TIDCO or private developers will all be given equal incentives and facilities. Parks located 50 km away from the Chennai city limits will be granted a back-ended Industrial Park Infrastructure Grant of Rs. 2 crore or 25 per cent of the investment in eligible fixed assets, whichever is lower. Such parks must attract at least 20 new manufacturing units with a minimum total direct employment of 2,000 persons.
A back-ended state capital subsidy and tax exemption on power bought from the TNEB or from captive sources will be sanctioned for all manufacturing units, including raw-material based manufacturers. New manufacturing facilities and expansion projects located in Chennai, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts, investing Rs. 350 crore over three years can avail themselves of a structured package of incentives, while the minimum investment for those outside those districts will be Rs. 250 crore. The minimum investment levels will be reduced by Rs. 100 crore in the case of electronic hardware units. Units which invest more than Rs. 1500 crore or which have been in the State for over ten years will receive extra benefits. In a press release, the government also promised extra concessions for firms which gave priority to local workers and followed its reservation policy.
Industrial corridors of excellence will be developed, first in the Chennai-Manali-Ennore and the Chengalpattu-Sriperumbudur-Ranipet corridors, and later in the Madurai-Tuticorin and Coimbatore-Salem corridors.
Developers investing Rs. 300 crore over three years in specific industrial infrastructure projects, including desalination plants, rail, road, port and water recycling infrastructure for SEZs and industrial parks, can avail themselves of a Rs. 2 crore subsidy.
All incentives for manufacturing industries under the new policy will also be applicable to agro-industries and agri-machinery and micro-irrigation equipment manufacturers. Special Agro Economic Zones will be promoted. A wine manufacturing policy will be announced soon and mega orchards of 50 hectares and above will be exempted from the Land Reforms Act for the cultivation of high value crops.
With the growing importance of the biotechnology sector, the government will announce an updated Life Sciences Policy and TIDCO will create a Life Sciences Innovation Fund. SIPCOT will develop a 2,000-acre Nanotechnology Park. To encourage clean and efficient energy technology, a Tamil Nadu Technology and Efficiency Upgradation Initiative will be launched through a TIIC-administered fund, which will offer soft loans to SMEs.
A number of skill development initiatives will be launched, including cluster-based, grass-root level and collaborative industry-institute schemes. The government is considering a Business Facilitation Act to formally empower and regulate single window clearance committees.
4ovember 2008
Thanks : The Hindu
‘Traffic improvement plans taking shape’
COIMBATORE: Traffic and transportation improvement plans for Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai are taking shape. Short, medium and long-term plans have been received from these cities and these may be finalised in a month, Chief Secretary L.K. Tripathy told presspersons here on Sunday.
The sub-committees comprising district administration, corporation and transport officials and also experts have submitted good suggestions to improve traffic engineering and also modes of transportation.
The Chief Secretary reviewed the study of the requirements of Coimbatore city by the sub-committees. The Government ordered the formation of the committees in these cities after they had been chosen by the Central Government for infrastructure development projects under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. Collector Neeraj Mittal, City Police Commissioner C.K. Gandhirajan and Corporation Commissioner P. Muthuveeran took part in the review meeting.
“The picture is getting clear. There are certain missing links in the road network in Coimbatore city. There are proposals to complete the link for improving the traffic system.
Flyovers and road overbridges and parking facilities were the other important measures planned for smooth flow of traffic on city roads. “By the end of this month, we will get a final shape of what is to be done in all the three cities,” Mr. Tripathy said. Some of the schemes such as improving the geometry of traffic junctions could begin immediately as they involved only decisions at the local level and did not require clearance by the Government.
“You can see a lot of development taking place in your (Coimbatore) city,” he said. The Government was keen on improving all the roads across the State. The National Highways were also into widening the roads. On charges of low schedule of rates (for construction materials) fixed by the Public Works Department holding up development works of local bodies, Mr. Tripathy said: “We are trying to find out how to index it to the current prices.”
Thanks: The hindu
Sri Lanka frees fishermen
NAGAPATTINAM: All the 97 Indian fishermen, detained by the Sri Lankan Navy for allegedly straying into the island nation’s waters, were released on Sunday. The release follows a request from the Centre to the Sri Lankan government.
Thanks : The Indian Express
Young India raring to build homes, says a survey
NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 4: While it may have taken the earlier generation a lifetime to own a brick and mortar place to call home, the age-ownership gap is increasingly narrowing, reveals a study conducted by Assocham.
The boom in real estate activities may not have brought housing for all as yet, but their average buyer’s age has come down by nearly 20 years. This development, says Assocham, can be attributed to the intensifying desire in youngsters to own dwelling units and save money on high property rentals. An analysis carried out by the chamber on ‘emerging age trends for buying dwelling units for self-use’, reveals that from 2000 onwards, the age group for property registration for personal use in majority of cases is ranging between 30 and 38. The study was based on the feedback received from real estate developers like DLF, Prasvnath, Omaxe and Unitech.
However, 15-20 years ago the housing ownership pattern was between 55 to 58. The factors responsible for the emerging trends include high rentals, non-sustainable lease agreements between property owners and those of tenants, rising income levels as a result of eruption of opportunities and easy availability of finances. Assocham president Venugopal N Dhoot said that the pervasive impression is that due to high interest rates, number of aspirants for home loans have declined but the fact remains that the effective interest rate on a loan of Rs 15 lakhs works out to 6.1 per cent upon an interest rate charged at 11.25 per cent. “This rate of 6.1 per cent is effective after home loan seekers has availed of all tax benefits and this is one solid reason which encourages youngsters between age group of 30-38 to register properties in their name for self-use,” said Dhoot.
‘Traffic improvement plans taking shape’
COIMBATORE: Traffic and transportation improvement plans for Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai are taking shape. Short, medium and long-term plans have been received from these cities and these may be finalised in a month, Chief Secretary L.K. Tripathy told presspersons here on Sunday.
The sub-committees comprising district administration, corporation and transport officials and also experts have submitted good suggestions to improve traffic engineering and also modes of transportation.
The Chief Secretary reviewed the study of the requirements of Coimbatore city by the sub-committees. The Government ordered the formation of the committees in these cities after they had been chosen by the Central Government for infrastructure development projects under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. Collector Neeraj Mittal, City Police Commissioner C.K. Gandhirajan and Corporation Commissioner P. Muthuveeran took part in the review meeting.
“The picture is getting clear. There are certain missing links in the road network in Coimbatore city. There are proposals to complete the link for improving the traffic system.
Flyovers and road overbridges and parking facilities were the other important measures planned for smooth flow of traffic on city roads. “By the end of this month, we will get a final shape of what is to be done in all the three cities,” Mr. Tripathy said. Some of the schemes such as improving the geometry of traffic junctions could begin immediately as they involved only decisions at the local level and did not require clearance by the Government.
“You can see a lot of development taking place in your (Coimbatore) city,” he said. The Government was keen on improving all the roads across the State. The National Highways were also into widening the roads. On charges of low schedule of rates (for construction materials) fixed by the Public Works Department holding up development works of local bodies, Mr. Tripathy said: “We are trying to find out how to index it to the current prices.”
Thanks: The hindu
Sri Lanka frees fishermen
NAGAPATTINAM: All the 97 Indian fishermen, detained by the Sri Lankan Navy for allegedly straying into the island nation’s waters, were released on Sunday. The release follows a request from the Centre to the Sri Lankan government.
Thanks : The Indian Express
Young India raring to build homes, says a survey
NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 4: While it may have taken the earlier generation a lifetime to own a brick and mortar place to call home, the age-ownership gap is increasingly narrowing, reveals a study conducted by Assocham.
The boom in real estate activities may not have brought housing for all as yet, but their average buyer’s age has come down by nearly 20 years. This development, says Assocham, can be attributed to the intensifying desire in youngsters to own dwelling units and save money on high property rentals. An analysis carried out by the chamber on ‘emerging age trends for buying dwelling units for self-use’, reveals that from 2000 onwards, the age group for property registration for personal use in majority of cases is ranging between 30 and 38. The study was based on the feedback received from real estate developers like DLF, Prasvnath, Omaxe and Unitech.
However, 15-20 years ago the housing ownership pattern was between 55 to 58. The factors responsible for the emerging trends include high rentals, non-sustainable lease agreements between property owners and those of tenants, rising income levels as a result of eruption of opportunities and easy availability of finances. Assocham president Venugopal N Dhoot said that the pervasive impression is that due to high interest rates, number of aspirants for home loans have declined but the fact remains that the effective interest rate on a loan of Rs 15 lakhs works out to 6.1 per cent upon an interest rate charged at 11.25 per cent. “This rate of 6.1 per cent is effective after home loan seekers has availed of all tax benefits and this is one solid reason which encourages youngsters between age group of 30-38 to register properties in their name for self-use,” said Dhoot.
Saturday, November 3, 2007
3ovember 2007
Thanks: The Hindu
Complaints can now be SMSed to Corporation
Chennai: Chennai residents can now send complaints on civic problems via SMS to the Corporation.
Mayor M. Subramanian, who inaugurated the facility on Saturday, said the SMS-based complaints helpline was a progressive scheme that would allow people to text their complaints to the number 9789951111.
The civic body has tied up with IT solutions firm eLogistics to offer the service. The associate firm was chosen through a tender process. It would be paid Rs.6.83 lakh to run and maintain the system for three years. Once an SMS is received, an automatically generated acknowledgement message with a complaint identification number is sent in response.
Text messages will be stored on an SMS data base along with the numbers they were sent from and forwarded to the departments concerned by e-mail and SMS. Feedback from officials would be sent to the complainant via SMS.Many cell phone users, who messaged their complaints on Saturday, did not get a response despite several attempts. Thinking the problem could lie with their service provider, they sent messages through other connections but to no avail.
The problem was rectified at 9 p.m. on Saturday.
Thanks: IBN Live
Sincere thanks to Anubha Bhonsle for such a very good stuff.
PT Usha's second coming: mentor, mother, coach
Tintu, Aswathy, Sonia and Shilpa are training with a single goal on their mind: a medal at the 2012 London Olympics.
Helping them to achieve that dream is India's best athlete ever: Pilavullakandi Thekkeparampil Usha or PT Usha or the Payyoli express.
Tintu Luka is the current 400 m national champion and one of the most talent students at the Usha School of Athletics. "There is no doubt in our minds that we will achieve our goal in 2012 London Olympics. All of us are striving hard for it and we have all set individual targets to clear before we reach there. What Usha missed in 1984, we will get in 2012. That's our aim," says Luka.
That pain of missing the bronze in 1984 is still written large on Usha's face, and it’s from this sense of loss the idea of Usha School of Athletics took birth. Today 11 athletes of this school are hoping to take the baton forward.
When Usha made a debut in 1979, athletics was very much a male preserve and track-suited women a rarity. But the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi, and Usha's later progress led to a resurgence of women's sport.
“Without any facilities I could come very near the Olympics medal but missed it only by 1100th of a second. That day If I had got the medal I might not have started this school. I missed it because of my lack of experience and exposure. So I know that if I can come near the medal, why not others. Twenty years of experience I want to give my experience to the youngsters and get them there,” says Usha.
Usha's golden girls come from poor families in Kerala and they train at a rented house which doubles up as a hostel and a mini-gym. A new school with all modern facilities including a synthetic track is all set to come up in the next one year on 30 acres of land.
Running would have been just a dream for Steffi Abraham but for Usha’s school. “I have been here for the last six years. Its only after I came here that we learned how professional and competitive athletics is. Back home we never had the situation to do all this. My family was supporting my keen interests in athletics but they didn't have the money to give me the training,” says Steffi.
So till the Rs 50-crore school comes up with the help of Shobha Developers and Infosys, it's the beaches of Payolli and Municipal stadium at Koyilandi that serves as their training grounds.
Under the watchful eyes of Usha, the athletes start early in the morning and top it up with evening sessions. Usha is a mother figure here, her words are like sermons and dedication is often the only thing she asks from her students
“They are scared of me while training but after the training they share all their problems with me. All the 11 are different from each other. Even though we have prescribed food we give them what they want,” says Usha.
It almost seems Usha has never been out of breath. Marriage in 1991 was followed by retirement, but encouraged by her husband she returned in 1994. The new Usha was wiser, and though not all was heroic there were moments of history too. In 1998, with 30 Asian medals behind her, she went to the Asian Track and Field championships in Japan as a veteran. Today all these are treasured memories.
“I go for training at 6.45 a.m. Whenever the athletes go for jogging, say for 40 minutes, I immediately call up home to check on my son. When I am at the field only my athletes are on my mind. But after I get home I now I have to take care of my family also.”
Complaints can now be SMSed to Corporation
Chennai: Chennai residents can now send complaints on civic problems via SMS to the Corporation.
Mayor M. Subramanian, who inaugurated the facility on Saturday, said the SMS-based complaints helpline was a progressive scheme that would allow people to text their complaints to the number 9789951111.
The civic body has tied up with IT solutions firm eLogistics to offer the service. The associate firm was chosen through a tender process. It would be paid Rs.6.83 lakh to run and maintain the system for three years. Once an SMS is received, an automatically generated acknowledgement message with a complaint identification number is sent in response.
Text messages will be stored on an SMS data base along with the numbers they were sent from and forwarded to the departments concerned by e-mail and SMS. Feedback from officials would be sent to the complainant via SMS.Many cell phone users, who messaged their complaints on Saturday, did not get a response despite several attempts. Thinking the problem could lie with their service provider, they sent messages through other connections but to no avail.
The problem was rectified at 9 p.m. on Saturday.
Thanks: IBN Live
Sincere thanks to Anubha Bhonsle for such a very good stuff.
PT Usha's second coming: mentor, mother, coach
Tintu, Aswathy, Sonia and Shilpa are training with a single goal on their mind: a medal at the 2012 London Olympics.
Helping them to achieve that dream is India's best athlete ever: Pilavullakandi Thekkeparampil Usha or PT Usha or the Payyoli express.
Tintu Luka is the current 400 m national champion and one of the most talent students at the Usha School of Athletics. "There is no doubt in our minds that we will achieve our goal in 2012 London Olympics. All of us are striving hard for it and we have all set individual targets to clear before we reach there. What Usha missed in 1984, we will get in 2012. That's our aim," says Luka.
That pain of missing the bronze in 1984 is still written large on Usha's face, and it’s from this sense of loss the idea of Usha School of Athletics took birth. Today 11 athletes of this school are hoping to take the baton forward.
When Usha made a debut in 1979, athletics was very much a male preserve and track-suited women a rarity. But the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi, and Usha's later progress led to a resurgence of women's sport.
“Without any facilities I could come very near the Olympics medal but missed it only by 1100th of a second. That day If I had got the medal I might not have started this school. I missed it because of my lack of experience and exposure. So I know that if I can come near the medal, why not others. Twenty years of experience I want to give my experience to the youngsters and get them there,” says Usha.
Usha's golden girls come from poor families in Kerala and they train at a rented house which doubles up as a hostel and a mini-gym. A new school with all modern facilities including a synthetic track is all set to come up in the next one year on 30 acres of land.
Running would have been just a dream for Steffi Abraham but for Usha’s school. “I have been here for the last six years. Its only after I came here that we learned how professional and competitive athletics is. Back home we never had the situation to do all this. My family was supporting my keen interests in athletics but they didn't have the money to give me the training,” says Steffi.
So till the Rs 50-crore school comes up with the help of Shobha Developers and Infosys, it's the beaches of Payolli and Municipal stadium at Koyilandi that serves as their training grounds.
Under the watchful eyes of Usha, the athletes start early in the morning and top it up with evening sessions. Usha is a mother figure here, her words are like sermons and dedication is often the only thing she asks from her students
“They are scared of me while training but after the training they share all their problems with me. All the 11 are different from each other. Even though we have prescribed food we give them what they want,” says Usha.
It almost seems Usha has never been out of breath. Marriage in 1991 was followed by retirement, but encouraged by her husband she returned in 1994. The new Usha was wiser, and though not all was heroic there were moments of history too. In 1998, with 30 Asian medals behind her, she went to the Asian Track and Field championships in Japan as a veteran. Today all these are treasured memories.
“I go for training at 6.45 a.m. Whenever the athletes go for jogging, say for 40 minutes, I immediately call up home to check on my son. When I am at the field only my athletes are on my mind. But after I get home I now I have to take care of my family also.”
Friday, November 2, 2007
2ovember 2007
Thanks : IBN Live
Brand India conquering tourism market
New Delhi: The tourism industry in India is at an all-time high. The number of international tourists has swelled a lot, as has the industry's contribution to the GDP. Till July 2007 alone, foreign tourists numbered a whopping 5 million.
"India has been voted Most Favoured Destination by the Conde Nast Traveller," says Tourism Secretary S Banerjee.
India's offer to the world market has been a bouquet. While there are Goan beaches, there is also Himalayan splendour. If there is are spiritual circuits, there are equal doses of heritage and even adventure.
With a calendar dotted with festivities, India also promises exclusive festival bonanzas for travellers.
So far, India has seen a 5.5 per cent growth in foreign tourists and foreign exchange earnings (in US dollars) have seen a 5 per cent growth. Most of the foreign tourists hail fro the UK, the US, Canada, France and Germany.
Even distant Indian states have seen an overall rise of 6 per cent in tourism.
"We target about 10 million foreign tourist arrivals by 2010," Banerjee says.
There are still numerous deficiencies in the infrastructure for the government to grapple with, such as poor connectivity, international hospitality standards seldom getting met in the service sector, lack of sufficient hotel rooms and informed tour guides.
However, Banerjee says, "The future is only brighter."
Thanks: The Hindu
Inflation rate declines to 3.02 p.c.
NEW DELHI: The inflation rate slumped to a new five-year low at 3.02 per cent for the week ended October 20 from 3.07 per cent in the previous week.
At this level, the inflation rate is only a wee bit higher than the target of three per cent set by the Reserve Bank of India for the medium term.
Despite the higher base effect, the sharp drop in the inflation rate can be gauged from the fact that it was 5.61 per cent in the same week a year ago.
While the RBI hiked the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 0.5 percentage point on October 30 as a precautionary measure to suck out excess liquidity, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram on Friday attributed the drop in the inflation rate to steps taken on the monetary front and noted that the Government would continue to monitor the price situation. “Inflation is down because we have taken steps on [the] monetary side. We will continue to watch inflation,” he told newspersons here.
Even as the inflation rate based on the wholesale price index (WPI) is down to its five-year low of 3.02 per cent for the week ended October 20, Mr Chidambaram pointed out that the consumer price index-based inflation was also down by 80 basis points in September over the previous month.
The point-to-point rate of inflation, based on the CPI, decreased from 7.26 per cent in August to 6.40 per cent in September, he said. Although the inflation rate has dropped, the RBI has warned that the spiralling international oil prices could push it up.
In fact, on Thursday, as crude oil prices peaked to over $90 a barrel, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora met Mr Chidambaram to devise ways of addressing the issue and cushion its impact on the margins of domestic oil companies. To a query on global oil prices, the Finance Minister refused comment saying “I have no comments on [the] oil issue.”
During the week ended October 20, prices of various products moved in a narrow range.
In fact, the price index inched up in most groups, implying thereby that prices did move up, but at a slower pace. Food articles such as maize, arhar, masur and wheat turned dearer.
Brand India conquering tourism market
New Delhi: The tourism industry in India is at an all-time high. The number of international tourists has swelled a lot, as has the industry's contribution to the GDP. Till July 2007 alone, foreign tourists numbered a whopping 5 million.
"India has been voted Most Favoured Destination by the Conde Nast Traveller," says Tourism Secretary S Banerjee.
India's offer to the world market has been a bouquet. While there are Goan beaches, there is also Himalayan splendour. If there is are spiritual circuits, there are equal doses of heritage and even adventure.
With a calendar dotted with festivities, India also promises exclusive festival bonanzas for travellers.
So far, India has seen a 5.5 per cent growth in foreign tourists and foreign exchange earnings (in US dollars) have seen a 5 per cent growth. Most of the foreign tourists hail fro the UK, the US, Canada, France and Germany.
Even distant Indian states have seen an overall rise of 6 per cent in tourism.
"We target about 10 million foreign tourist arrivals by 2010," Banerjee says.
There are still numerous deficiencies in the infrastructure for the government to grapple with, such as poor connectivity, international hospitality standards seldom getting met in the service sector, lack of sufficient hotel rooms and informed tour guides.
However, Banerjee says, "The future is only brighter."
Thanks: The Hindu
Inflation rate declines to 3.02 p.c.
NEW DELHI: The inflation rate slumped to a new five-year low at 3.02 per cent for the week ended October 20 from 3.07 per cent in the previous week.
At this level, the inflation rate is only a wee bit higher than the target of three per cent set by the Reserve Bank of India for the medium term.
Despite the higher base effect, the sharp drop in the inflation rate can be gauged from the fact that it was 5.61 per cent in the same week a year ago.
While the RBI hiked the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 0.5 percentage point on October 30 as a precautionary measure to suck out excess liquidity, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram on Friday attributed the drop in the inflation rate to steps taken on the monetary front and noted that the Government would continue to monitor the price situation. “Inflation is down because we have taken steps on [the] monetary side. We will continue to watch inflation,” he told newspersons here.
Even as the inflation rate based on the wholesale price index (WPI) is down to its five-year low of 3.02 per cent for the week ended October 20, Mr Chidambaram pointed out that the consumer price index-based inflation was also down by 80 basis points in September over the previous month.
The point-to-point rate of inflation, based on the CPI, decreased from 7.26 per cent in August to 6.40 per cent in September, he said. Although the inflation rate has dropped, the RBI has warned that the spiralling international oil prices could push it up.
In fact, on Thursday, as crude oil prices peaked to over $90 a barrel, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora met Mr Chidambaram to devise ways of addressing the issue and cushion its impact on the margins of domestic oil companies. To a query on global oil prices, the Finance Minister refused comment saying “I have no comments on [the] oil issue.”
During the week ended October 20, prices of various products moved in a narrow range.
In fact, the price index inched up in most groups, implying thereby that prices did move up, but at a slower pace. Food articles such as maize, arhar, masur and wheat turned dearer.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
1vember 2007
Thanks : The Indian Express
Green buildings to get a rating system
NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 1: There is an attempt to promote green, energy-efficient buildings in the country. On Thursday, energy and resources institute TERI signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Ministry for New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) for the development of a national rating system, GRIHA, for green buildings.
Using various qualitative and quantitative assessment criteria, GRIHA would be able to “rate” a building on the degree of its “greenness”. The rating would be applied to different types of new buildings, whether commercial, institutional or residential.
A National Advisory Council (NAC) and Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) will be constituted to provide advice, direction, modification and constant upgradation of the GRIHA framework. The rating system confirms the building code and guidelines developed by the bureau of energy efficiency and MNRE. In fact, it is a broader guideline than the one developed by these agencies.
“The GRIHA system is proof that near self-sufficiency in energy is not a utopian idea but a reality cast in brick and mortar. India needs to devise such technologies customised for the needs of our people,” said Dr RK Pachauri, Director General of TERI, which has developed this rating over the last two years. MNRE proposes to incentivise the rating system so that more architects are inclined to use it.
MNRE Secretary V Subramanian suggested that a syllabus be developed to be made mandatory in all engineering courses and all municipal corporations in the country should give tax break on properties developed on GRIHA.
The rating system, based on accepted energy and environmental principles, will seek to strike a balance between the known established practices and emerging concepts. The guidelines/criteria appraisal may be revised every three years to take into account the latest scientific developments during the period. These buildings will use less artificial resources thereby reducing GHG emissions, improving energy security, and reducing stress on natural resources.
Thanks : The Indian Express
IIT to Centre: Reward young teachers to draw fresh blood
New Delhi, October 31 In Keeping with its latest initiatives to recruit more teachers, the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi has asked the government to launch at least a thousand fellowships for young teachers of Science across the country.
In a proposal sent to the Department of Science and Technology, IIT-Delhi has suggested that the fellowships, amounting to Rs 1 lakh each, must be created to recognise and reward outstanding young faculty members.
“Creating fellowships is most important to us than anything else now — return on money invested in a young faculty usually exceeds everything else,” Prof B N Jain, Deputy Dean (Faculty), said. “They are young, enthusiastic and several of them have left lucrative jobs abroad to join us.”
But much before the proposal was sent, IIT-Delhi had launched the Outstanding Young Faculty Fellowships for its new breed of teachers who have taken charge in the past one year. The fellowships, currently 26 in number, offer Rs 1 lakh per annum to the select faculty for a period of five years.
Jain said the premier institution hopes to launch some 500 such fellowships over the next five years. “The biggest problem that the country faces today is quality manpower,” he said. But “we can achieve the target through incentives like these fellowships.”
The proposal, sent to the Department of Science and Technology, also suggests that once launched, the initiative would infuse a healthy competition among teachers, as fellowships would be open to faculty members in all the engineering colleges in the country. “Similar proposals, with lesser number of fellowships, have also been sent to departments of Biotechnology and Information Technology,” Jain said.
Thanks: The Hindu
Merkel offers help to develop Indian cities
MUMBAI: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday that fast-growing cities needed all the attention of national policy but to help cities “we must not stop developing the countryside.”
“Helping cities means also developing the countryside. This has been a basic rule of our policy in Germany. Developing the countryside is as important as helping the city, struggling with climate change, migration and poverty,” she said, delivering the keynote address at the Deutsche Bank Urban Age Award presentation function here.
“You cannot compare German cities like Berlin, with its 3.5 million inhabitants, to Mumbai. But German cities have also had to deal with a lot of problems like the integration of migrants. Education is very important for integrating migrants and spreading economic opportunities in cities.” Germany would be willing to extend assistance to Mumbai to help it deal with urban problems, she said.
Dr. Merkel said the presence of the German Minister for Science and Technology in her entourage and the government’s programme to work with the Indian government and universities to improve life in global cities underlined that German and Indian politics shared the same challenges.
Urban age
“Kofi Annan has said that the 21st century will be the urban age. Therefore, I lay emphasis on the creation of global networks for cities, like the Deutsche Bank Urban Age network,” she added.
Deutsche Bank CEO Josef Ackermann announced the winners of the first Deutsche Bank Urban Age Award in the presence of Dr. Merkel and Maharashtra Governor S.M. Krishna. The award of $1,00,000 would be shared by two Mumbai-based projects: the Triratna Prerana Mandal initiative and the Mumbai Waterfronts Development Centre. The Urban Design Research Institute’s Fort Management Project gets a special commendation.
“In scope, quality, and quantity, the submissions to the jury exceeded expectations for the award, the first of its kind. Seventy-four applications were received from organisations working in the slums and the historic districts, from government and non-governmental organisations, from groups working with children and women,” said jury member and MP Shabana Azmi.
Green buildings to get a rating system
NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 1: There is an attempt to promote green, energy-efficient buildings in the country. On Thursday, energy and resources institute TERI signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Ministry for New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) for the development of a national rating system, GRIHA, for green buildings.
Using various qualitative and quantitative assessment criteria, GRIHA would be able to “rate” a building on the degree of its “greenness”. The rating would be applied to different types of new buildings, whether commercial, institutional or residential.
A National Advisory Council (NAC) and Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) will be constituted to provide advice, direction, modification and constant upgradation of the GRIHA framework. The rating system confirms the building code and guidelines developed by the bureau of energy efficiency and MNRE. In fact, it is a broader guideline than the one developed by these agencies.
“The GRIHA system is proof that near self-sufficiency in energy is not a utopian idea but a reality cast in brick and mortar. India needs to devise such technologies customised for the needs of our people,” said Dr RK Pachauri, Director General of TERI, which has developed this rating over the last two years. MNRE proposes to incentivise the rating system so that more architects are inclined to use it.
MNRE Secretary V Subramanian suggested that a syllabus be developed to be made mandatory in all engineering courses and all municipal corporations in the country should give tax break on properties developed on GRIHA.
The rating system, based on accepted energy and environmental principles, will seek to strike a balance between the known established practices and emerging concepts. The guidelines/criteria appraisal may be revised every three years to take into account the latest scientific developments during the period. These buildings will use less artificial resources thereby reducing GHG emissions, improving energy security, and reducing stress on natural resources.
Thanks : The Indian Express
IIT to Centre: Reward young teachers to draw fresh blood
New Delhi, October 31 In Keeping with its latest initiatives to recruit more teachers, the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi has asked the government to launch at least a thousand fellowships for young teachers of Science across the country.
In a proposal sent to the Department of Science and Technology, IIT-Delhi has suggested that the fellowships, amounting to Rs 1 lakh each, must be created to recognise and reward outstanding young faculty members.
“Creating fellowships is most important to us than anything else now — return on money invested in a young faculty usually exceeds everything else,” Prof B N Jain, Deputy Dean (Faculty), said. “They are young, enthusiastic and several of them have left lucrative jobs abroad to join us.”
But much before the proposal was sent, IIT-Delhi had launched the Outstanding Young Faculty Fellowships for its new breed of teachers who have taken charge in the past one year. The fellowships, currently 26 in number, offer Rs 1 lakh per annum to the select faculty for a period of five years.
Jain said the premier institution hopes to launch some 500 such fellowships over the next five years. “The biggest problem that the country faces today is quality manpower,” he said. But “we can achieve the target through incentives like these fellowships.”
The proposal, sent to the Department of Science and Technology, also suggests that once launched, the initiative would infuse a healthy competition among teachers, as fellowships would be open to faculty members in all the engineering colleges in the country. “Similar proposals, with lesser number of fellowships, have also been sent to departments of Biotechnology and Information Technology,” Jain said.
Thanks: The Hindu
Merkel offers help to develop Indian cities
MUMBAI: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday that fast-growing cities needed all the attention of national policy but to help cities “we must not stop developing the countryside.”
“Helping cities means also developing the countryside. This has been a basic rule of our policy in Germany. Developing the countryside is as important as helping the city, struggling with climate change, migration and poverty,” she said, delivering the keynote address at the Deutsche Bank Urban Age Award presentation function here.
“You cannot compare German cities like Berlin, with its 3.5 million inhabitants, to Mumbai. But German cities have also had to deal with a lot of problems like the integration of migrants. Education is very important for integrating migrants and spreading economic opportunities in cities.” Germany would be willing to extend assistance to Mumbai to help it deal with urban problems, she said.
Dr. Merkel said the presence of the German Minister for Science and Technology in her entourage and the government’s programme to work with the Indian government and universities to improve life in global cities underlined that German and Indian politics shared the same challenges.
Urban age
“Kofi Annan has said that the 21st century will be the urban age. Therefore, I lay emphasis on the creation of global networks for cities, like the Deutsche Bank Urban Age network,” she added.
Deutsche Bank CEO Josef Ackermann announced the winners of the first Deutsche Bank Urban Age Award in the presence of Dr. Merkel and Maharashtra Governor S.M. Krishna. The award of $1,00,000 would be shared by two Mumbai-based projects: the Triratna Prerana Mandal initiative and the Mumbai Waterfronts Development Centre. The Urban Design Research Institute’s Fort Management Project gets a special commendation.
“In scope, quality, and quantity, the submissions to the jury exceeded expectations for the award, the first of its kind. Seventy-four applications were received from organisations working in the slums and the historic districts, from government and non-governmental organisations, from groups working with children and women,” said jury member and MP Shabana Azmi.
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