Sagar News of Global Order

Paes in mixed doubles final : Australian Open

2012-01-28T00:30:00.000-08:00

Paes in mixed doubles final, Sania-Hesh ousted

Leander Paes is in line to win two Slam titles as he and Elena Vesnina reached the mixed doubles summit clash even as Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi bowed out after their semifinal defeat at the Australian Open on Friday.

Fifth seeds Paes and Vesnina came from behind to tame a fighting Italian pair of Roberta Vinci and Daniele Bracciali 5-7 6-2 10-7 in the semifinals.

Paes has already made it to the men's doubles final with Czech partner Radek Stepanek and they face top seeds Americans Bob and Mike Bryan.

Meanwhile, the sixth seeded Sania-Bhupathi's campaign ended after they lost 3-6 3-6 to the eighth seeded combo of Bethanie Mattek-Sands of the United States and Romania's Horia Tecau in just 68 minutes at the Rod Laver Arena.

Although the match was a closely-contested affair, the American-Romanian duo played better as far as the crucial points were concerned. The Indians could hit only 17 winners as compared to 24 by their opponents.

In the opening set, the Indians managed to convert only breakpoint out of the three that they got, besides losing their serve on two occasions to hand their opponents the advantage.

The second set was on serve till 3-3 but the eighth seeds broke Sania and Bhupathi to go up 4-3 and then held their serve to make it 5-3.

The Indians once again failed to keep their serve and the opponents claimed their second consecutive break to book a place in the final

2012-01-27T08:50:00.001-08:00

Tax rebate to Companies in safe -haven funded by Indian Banks

Honorable Members ofParliament,

I was shocked to findyesterday Essar Steel had commissioned Rs.37,500 crore Flat Products Steel Plantbut soon Firstly found out in 2008 Annual Report it was 93% owned by CaymanIsland company. Secondly this Indian Funded project would not contribute muchto taxes in India, thirdlyit would cause all the pollution in high population density Surat district and fourthly displace existingfacilities in other states due to excess capacity.

Ø With Rs.37,500Crores India could have promoted 10,000 Agro Industries – 20 in each districtadding atleast 10% GDP and to benefit 5 crore farmers directly and indirectlycompared to NEGATIVE contribution – reducing net employment and increasing costcompared to existing units.

My NRI returned friendinvested in Essar Steel subscribing to IPO – purchased 10,000 shares for Rs.220each when Ruias paid just Rs.10 for each share, for several years ES didn’tregister the share – finally when registered its value Rs.15-Rs.18 and he thansold it. Had he purchased some plot it would have been worth Rs.10 crores.

Thus Essar Steel largelyfinancially promoted by Indians and debt funded by Indian Bank and Indian moneywas owned by Ruias almost free is now owned and operated by Ruia company fromCayman Island. Essar Steel retained over subscription as permitted and investedFree Cash in its control to fund (Oil and Gas, Power, Infrastructure, Ports, Projects,Services, Shipping, BPO, Telecom, Realty, Information technology, Publishing, Agribusiness,Essar TV, Partner with Essar, Other businesses.)

Ø Ruiastransferred ESSAR STEEL to Cayman Islands –foreign ownership is 93%. So entire group funded by Indian Equity and IndianDeposits is not registered in Indiaand not contributing to Taxes in India.

Ø This alone is$30b to $50b Loss to Indiaor transfer of $50b to CAYMAN Island. (Essar Hutch wasworth $18.9b)

You wondered how Gujarat asclaimed by Narendra Modi is growing fast but firstly not reflected in GDPfigures and secondly Gujarati people continues to be Malnourished, Stunted andUnder Weight. Essar Projects, RIL, Tata, Adani and others contribute nothing toGujarat – subsidies are more than tax revenuewhen most are owned and operated from Tax Heavens. These Foreign Ownedcompanies also claim Corporate Tax Concessions called Tax Forgone.

http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=73098

As per latest Monthly PerCapita Expenditure Gujarat Ranks 8th and 9th among major states.

I quick succession we foundjust one family Essar was involved in Foreign Transactions and Illegal Subsidyto

1. Sales tax subsidy of 125%of project cost i.e. Rs.9100 crores to Essar Refinery.

2. $20b Essar Hutch sold outto Vodafone for $12b – Indiagot nothing – even IT case was lost.

3. Essar Steel too is CaymanIsland Company 93% directly owned and controlled by Ruias.

4. Tata, Ambanis, Mittals,Ruias, Agarwals etc operate foreign companies from Foreign Heavens with IndianMoney.

Similarly many morecompanies Funded By Indian Banks and Indian money are Registered in ForeignCompanies contributing nothing to the states and center as Taxes and little byway of employment – but polluting our Environment.

Ravinder Singh

Progressindia008@yahoo.com

January27, 2012

2012-01-27T06:54:00.000-08:00

India Art Fair2012

2012-01-27T00:00:00.000-08:00

“Vivekananda Memorial Programme for Museum Excellence”

Union Finance Minster Shri Pranab Mukherjeewould be leaving for the two day official visit to Chicago, US on the early morning ofSaturday,28^th January, 2012. During his visit, the FinanceMinister’s first engagement on arrival would be to address the Chicago Councilon Global Affairs where large number of business leaders ofthe Corporate World are likely to participate.
Finance Minister Shri Mukherjeeinclude unveiling of Swami Vivekananda Memorial Plaque at the Art Institute of Chicago, inaugurationof exhibitions of Tagore Paintings at ArtInstitute of Chicago and signing of two agreements by the Ministry of Culture,Government of India with the (a)Art Institute of Chicago for the “VivekanandaMemorial Programme for Museum Excellence” and (b)with the University of Chicago for an endowment to establish “The IndianMinistry of Culture Vivekananda Chair.”
During his visit, the FinanceMinister’s first engagement on arrival would be to address the Chicago Councilon Global Affairs where large number of business leaders ofthe Corporate World are likely to participate. These business leaderswould mainly be from Fortune 500 companies as Chicago is Headquarter of 32 suchcompanies including Boeing, Caterpillar, McDonalds, Kraft, Abbott Laboratoriesand Sara Lee among others. During his address, theFinance Minister Shri Mukherjee is likely to sharehis perception about the Indian and Global economy especially when the worldeconomic situation is in a state of flux. On the other hand, India todayoccupies the leadership position in the world order across various fields andhas enormous resources, technology and skills with a pre eminent position. TheFinance Minister Shri Mukherjee is likely to envisagethe shared goals and objectives with these business leaders and invite them tobecome an active partner in India growth story.

2012-01-26T21:09:00.000-08:00

PM Dr Singh welcome First woman PM of Thailand, Ms.Yingluck Shinawatra

63rd Republic Day- 63 Things to Admire About India

2012-01-25T21:07:00.000-08:00

63rd Republic Day- 63 Things to Admire About India

By SiliconIndia,Wednesday, 25 January 2012, 18:23 IST

Bangalore: We are 63 years old as a Republic. It is the time to celebrate the fact that we are the citizens of India and live in a democracy; a blessing we sometimes take for granted. It is time to appreciate our founding fathers that had the conviction and wisdom to give us this Constitution; which for all its frailties has stood the test of time. Here are the 62 things in our national life that define us and make us proud.

The Indian Armed Forces: Nothing matches the untamable courage of the Indian jawans and officers. They live to defend our borders; stay awake so we get a good night's rest. They are truly the brave forces. Jai Jawan!

Hospitality: One of the most evident things any person or even a visitor in India will notice is its hospitality. Indians are full of warmth and hospitality. For instance just board a train and you will see that the family on the next berth will open their tiffin, with rotis and sabzi and pickles and generously offer to share their food with you. Guests in a small Indian home! No issues because they eventually offer their bed while they sleep in the hall. Hospitality like this would only be seen in a place like India.

Economic Renaissance: It has been such a pleasure to see that since the beginning of the 1990s, India has taken an upbeat turn in the economic field. Prime Minister Narasimha Rao and his Finance Minister Manmohan Singh will be remembered in history as those who dared to abandon the old Soviet path of a planned economy.

Supreme Court: It is our tough cookie that serves justice and gets to rap our leaders. The apex court that has had a very busy year, pulling up governments, public servants and criminals along with all the scams bursting into the scene one after another.

Election Commission: Whether it is about thinking of a new political party or a fancy symbol for your existing one, or wanting to nail a guy for his hate speech. The Election Commission is here to meet your every electoral need.

Indian Railways: Our very own essence of India, the Indian Railways, something no one can miss to travel in. The experience of hot chaai, garam vadas, even a three-course meal in the train, ensures you get a ride you'll never forget! It is 'India's Lifeline' without a doubt.

EU agrees to begin lifting sanctions against Myanmar

2012-01-24T22:17:00.001-08:00

EU foreign ministers agreed on Monday to begin easing sanctions against Myanmar to encourage reform but will await further positive signals before calling an end to restrictive measures, diplomats said.

"We will begin by suspending some visa bans as a first stage from today," said a diplomat speaking on condition of anonymity as EU foreign ministers began a day of talks in Brussels.
Lifting all sanctions will be "conditional on the continuation of positive action by the authorities," the source added.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton hailed "the quite extraordinary changes in the last weeks and months" and announced she would visit the country in April as she went into the ministerial meetings.
The 27-nation bloc has been divided over how soon to lift sanctions, with some insisting on waiting for by-elections on April 1, which will see a historic bid for parliament by Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Ashton said the European Union had been in contact with her on the issue

Growth rate of 9% cent during the 12th Five Year Plan.

2012-01-24T04:13:00.001-08:00

Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Dr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia says the country is aiming to achieve a growth rate of nine per cent during the 12th Five Year Plan.

Speaking at a Seminar on the Approach to the 12th Plan in Kochi, Dr. Ahluwalia said the focus of the plan period is to achieve a much faster, sustainable and inclusive growth in the country.

He said there is a need to pull more people out of agriculture sector and to focus on non-agricultural activities, such as manufacturing. He pointed out that if a large part of the population is left in such low productive sector such as agriculture, they will be deprived of the benefits of higher growth rate.

Dr. Ahluwalia said attempts should be made to curtail the growth of subsidies to achieve a growth rate of nine per cent. He said creation of employment opportunities, skill development of labour force, access to quality education, infrastructure development, curtailing energy requirements and efficient usage of water are important components of achieving inclusive growth.

Rajasthan retain Ranji Trophy

2012-01-23T21:21:00.001-08:00

Rajasthan completed formalities on the fifth and final day as they successfully defended the Ranji Trophy by virtue of first-innings lead against Tamil Nadu, at the Chepauk, in Chennai on Monday.

The match was dead as a contest on the fourth day itself, when Rajasthan managed a huge 326-run first innings lead.

Rajasthan walked away with a winners' cheque of Rs 2 crore while Tamil Nadu got half that amount.

With only academic interest left in the match, Rajasthan declared at 204 for five in the second innings, leaving Tamil Nadu to bat out a few mandatory overs which would have ended the drudgery. The match was called off after the hosts had managed eight runs for the loss of two wickets in 13 overs.

The man who has turned a bunch of 'also-rans' into a gutsy domestic outfit is undoubtedly Hrishikesh Kanitkar.

With back-to-back domestic titles under his belt, Kanitkar will certainly now be remembered as one of the finest domestic captains in recent times rather than a 'one-shot wonder' which has been his claim to fame for past 12 years.

Kanitkar, who became a journeyman cricketer six season back when his own state Maharashtra dumped him, though, admitted that the title should be attributed to "a bit of luck and loads of hardwork" that his boys put in.

"It's an amazing feeling. At the group stage, we had a few results going our way. We won a few matches and then a combination of favourable results got us in the knock-out. We played superb cricket after that," Kanitkar stated at the post-match presentation ceremony.

Strengthening Research & Development in Power Sector

2012-01-23T21:13:00.001-08:00

Union Power Minister Calls for Strengthening Research & Development in Power Sector

Union Minister of Power, Shri Sushilkumar Shinde has called for strengthening research and development in power generation, transmission and distribution sectors. He was addressing the delegates of the India Energy Congress 2012 in New Delhi today. Shri Shinde said that while the country has made remarkable progress in the power sector during the 11th Plan, a lot more still has to be done. He said that during the 11th Plan period the country has added about two-and-a-half times of the capacity that was added during the 10th Plan period. He said that 80,000 MW capacity is under construction for the 12th Plan. Emphasising on the need of energy conservation through efficiency improvement, the Minister reiterated India’s commitment to cheaper, sustainable and clean power. He said that through various initiatives such as star labelling of products, the achievement in the avoided generation capacity during the 11th Plan will be over 10,000 MW.

Shri Shinde asked the delegates to look into the issues affecting the power sector such as prices of fuels and the local problems. Regarding AT&C losses Shri Shinde said that while the Government has launched the schemes such as Restructured-Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme (R-APDRP). Adding that Smart Grid can be another answer in this direction, he said that it is also necessary to find out other causes of transmission losses such as theft and non-billing. He said the Ministry is taking steps to bifurcate the losses between the commercial losses and losses due to other reasons including technical and theft.

Underlining the importance of renewable energy, the Minister said that the cost of solar power is gradually coming down. He said that there is a need for a greater focus on research and development in the field of solar photo-voltaic.

Speaking on the occasion Secretary (Power), Shri P. Uma Shankar said that there are a number of issues which need to be deliberated including availability of ports and rail facilities for transporting imported coal, availability of land, water and ash disposal facilities for thermal power plants and financial health of distribution companies.

The two-day conference being attended by delegates from India and abroad is deliberating on emerging opportunities and challenges in energy sector.

Hosni Mubarak still President:

2012-01-23T00:00:00.000-08:00

Hosni Mubarak is still president of Egypt as he never signed a resignation letter, his lawyer asserted in court on Sunday as he began wrapping up the defence case in the trial of the ousted strongman.

"Mubarak did not write a letter of resignation,"Farid al- Deep told the court.

"The document was signed by Omar Suleiman," Egypt's former spy chief who was appointed by Mubarak as vice-president during a popular uprising last year demanding that the veteran leader quit. As a result, Deeb said, the Cairo criminal court is not competent to try Mubarak, who should be referred to a "special tribunal." Mubarak stepped down on February 11 last year, pushed out of power after an 18-day revolt against his regime. He has been on trial since August charged over the deaths of hundreds of protesters killed during the uprising.Being tried with him are his former interior minister and six ex-security officials.
The prosecution wants Mubarak to hang for the killings.

Mubarak is also facing charges of corruption along with his sons Gamal and Alaa in a separate trial in the same court. The defence began on Tuesday a five-day challenge and is due to wrap up the case concerning Mubarak and his sons later on Sunday. The trial will continue with defence teams for ex-interior minister Habib al-Adly and the six security officials arguing their cases.The last hearing is set for February 16.
The court is then expected to recess for deliberation after which the judge will set a date for the verdict.

Why the Commission cannot have Negative Vote on the EVMs.

2012-01-22T04:03:00.001-08:00

Dear friends of nnfi

In a PIL, for adding negative vote in the EVMs, hearing on 19th January 2012, Advocate Jamshed Mistry while intervening for AGNI drew the attention of the Court of the 2007 Supreme Court ruling which ordered the Election Commission of India to have braille also in the EVMs for the blind. This was also to maintain secrecy. Earlier the blind were being guided by some one to cast their vote thus violating Rule 49[M] Vote on Secrecy..
Judge Sinha asked, similarly why the Commission cannot have Negative Vote on the EVMs. After all in both cases it was to maintain secrecy of the voter.
Mr. Mistry also objected to the State Election Commission that it was too late to add this extra button in the EVMs for NONE OF THE ABOVE. He said the Commission would be announcing the names of candidates only on 4th February 2012 and only after that date the candidate names can be added. Hence it is the right time he mentioned.
The court gave 8 days time to Election Commission to confirm why a button for Negative Vote cannot be added just like the braille and kept the next hearing for Wednesday 25th January 2012.
Sharad Kumar
Trustee i/c Elections
AGNI [Action for good Governance & Networking in India]

National Painting Competition on Water Conservation

2012-01-21T09:14:00.001-08:00

Second National Painting Competition on Water Conservation Organised. Union Minister of State for Water Resources and Minority Affairs Shri Vincent H. Pala presented the prizes to the winners of the second National Painting Competition organised by the Central Ground Water Board, Ministry of Water Resources at a function in New Delhi toady. The theme of the competition was “Role of Children in Water Conservation”.

Speaking on the occasion Shri Pala underlined the need to harvest the rainwater in view of limited availability of fresh ground water resources. He said It is necessary that the young generation is fully aware about the water resource scenario of the country and understands the concerns and steps to mitigate the challenges in water resource management, in particular the water conservation efforts. He called for actively involving children in spreading of awareness on water conservation and efficient water use practices in the country.

The first prize at the competition was won by Disha Roy Choudhury of Siliguri, West Bengal. She was awarded cash prize of Rs. one lakh. There were four second prizes of Rs. 50,000/ each. The winners included Bhavika Dugar of Coimbatore, A.Yokaran of Chennai, Yeerandip Debnath of Sealdah and Devjit Choudhury of Jamshedpur. The eight third prize winners with cash prize of Rs. 25,000/ each included Shreya Das of Faridabad, Kshitiz Rawat of Delhi, Sayani Das of Jamshedpur, A.Esha Rayal of Hyderabad, Shreeraksha of Mangalore, A.Priya Darsini of Coimbatore, Bhagyashree Kunwar of Mumbai and Imon Chetia Phukan of Guwahati. All

Tell President Obama: Support Democracy and Civilian Rule in Egypt!

2012-01-20T21:25:00.000-08:00

Tell President Obama: Support Democracy and Civilian Rule in Egypt!

20.01.2012 18:08:50 - Dear Naresh,

In January 2011, the people of Egypt took to the streets and brought down their president of thirty years, Hosni Mubarak. Next week will mark the anniversary of the protests in Tahrir Square. While Mubarak is gone, his military and much of his regime still rule the country.

(live-PR.com) - On Tuesday, when President Obama delivers the State of the Union address, he should tell Americans and our allies throughout the Middle East and the world that the United States supports civilian, democratic rule in Egypt. And that the United States stands with all those who struggle for human rights and democracy.

"It's time for the Egyptian military to hand power

to civilian rule!" That's what I heard from the human rights activists I met with in Egypt this month. They are putting their faith in advancing the democratic transition process and in remaining mobilized and vigilant against any backsliding on human rights from Egypt's new rulers. One human rights activist there told me that the military leadership "threatens our very existence".

In recent months, the Supreme Council for the Armed Forces (SCAF) has presided over:

the killing of scores of peaceful protestors calling for the end of military rule;
raids on the offices of American, German, and Egyptian NGO's working to promote a transparent democratic process in the country;
fueling divisions within Egyptian society by targeting Christians and implementing an election timetable and system that favored the Islamists and the Muslim Brotherhood; and
the trial of over 12,000 civilians in military courts.

If the United States wants to build a positive relationship with a new democratic Egypt, President Obama should state unequivocally that Egypt's future lies with a democratic civilian government and that the military rulers do not have the unconditional support of the U.S. government.

Ask President Obama to state his support for a democratic Egypt in next week's State of the Union address. Tell him to support civilian rule in Egypt!

Sincerely,

Neil Hicks,
Human Rights First

Contact information:
Sagar Media Inc

Zayed Future Energy Prize

2012-01-20T00:00:00.000-08:00

Zayed Future Energy Prize

20.01.2012 03:52:09 - Nksagar-Sagar Media Inc:General Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, on Tuesday presented the 2012 Zayed Future Energy Prize to three winners and two runners up.

(live-PR.com) - Dr Ashok Gadgil from the US won the Lifetime Achievement award while French company Schneider Electric received a Recognition Award in the Large Corporations category.
Carbon Disclosure Project based in the UK secured the top award of $1.5 million while India's Orb Energy was the runner up with a cash prize of $1 million, followed by Environmental Defence Fund of the

US getting $500,000.

General Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed at the prestigious award said: "The Zayed Future Energy Prize has become a beacon of light, stimulating thinkers and creators while encouraging the world to accelerate innovation in renewable energy and sustainability.This Prize is a clear manifestation of the vision of the late founding father of the UAE,Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who placed a priority on investing in human capital and the preservation of our natural resources for generations to come."

"Encouraging these innovators allows us keep them motivated, and as such, ensures that our communities keep benefiting from their inventions. In light of the challenges facing the world today be it energy security or safeguarding our natural resources these innovators offer their concerted efforts. The United Arab Emirates, led by the President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is committed to exerting every effort towards encouraging such ambitious initiatives aimed at improving our collective quality of life."

Abu Dhabi Investment Authority
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority the sovereign wealth fund of the United Arab Emirates, Monday expressed "keen interest" in increasing investment in India, especially in infrastructure sector.

"This is an opportunity to enter this huge market," said Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, managing director of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, who is on a visit here.

Sheikh Hamed discussed the investment opportunities with Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma during a meeting at Udyog Bhawan here.

"We will be very happy to see your participation in Indias infrastructure building, Sharma said.

The two country have agreed to set up a joint working group to facilitate the flow of investments, commerce and industry ministry said in a statement after the meeting.

Contact information:
Sagar Media Inc

ICWAI gets its Name Changed to ICAI

2012-01-19T09:20:00.000-08:00

ICWAI gets its Name Changed to ICAI and its Members to use ACMA and FCMA The Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India (ICWAI) will be henceforth be known as The Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICAI). The change is a sequel to the passing of of ICWAI Amendment Act 2011, to enable their members to use the designation ACMA and FCMA denoting Associate and Fellow membership of the Institute respectively. This will enable the members working in India and abroad, being recognized by a common designation by which similar members are known throughout the globe. This is a major boost to the members of the Institute who serve in various countries across the world and were facing discrimination due to their earlier designation AICWA and FICWA. This was stated by the President of ICWAI Mr. M.Gopalakrishnan in the press meet on the sidelines of the Regional Conference being held at Bangalore today.

ICWAI is a Statutory Professional Body constituted under the special act of Parliament, namely, the Cost and Works Accountant Act, 1959. It acts with the objectives of promoting, regulating, and developing the profession of Cost Accountancy.

South Africa clinch ODI series aginst Sri Lanka

2012-01-18T09:42:00.000-08:00

South Africa sneaked a four-run win over Sri Lanka on the Duckworth/Lewis method in a rain-affected third one-day international on Tuesday to clinch the five-match series 3-0.

South Africa was 179-5 after 34 overs chasing Sri Lanka's 266-9 when rain came down at Chevrolet Park.

Umpires called the game off about an hour and 20 minutes later, handing South Africa a narrow victory and first series win under new skipper AB de Villiers.

De Villiers was 39 not out at the end and Albie Morkel 7 not out, but Faf du Plessis's career-best ODI score of 72 from 99 balls had pushed South Africa within reach of victory.

Du Plessis' innings was crucial after Lasith Malinga (2-20) struck twice and the home team slipped to 113-4.

"I would have liked the game to go to the end,'' De Villiers said, "but I am proud of the boys. We pulled it back with the ball and were solid with the bat.''

Sri Lanka's competitive total was earlier set up by a second successive half-century by Upul Tharanga in a 94-run opening stand with captain Tillakaratne Dilshan (33).

Sri Lanka couldn't capitalize on its strong start, however, as Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara (38) and Dinesh Chandimal (36) didn't go on to make big scores when well-set.

Nuwan Kulasekara hit a quickfire 40 down the order but the tourists were reined in when a 300-plus scores was possible.

South Africa spinners Robin Peterson and JP Duminy had a wicket each to remove the openers, while fast bowler Morne Morkel finished with 2-65.

Sri Lankans were still unfortunate not to have the chance to see the game through and apply late pressure on the home team, which still needed 88 runs off 16 overs when the weather intervened."We're definitely disappointed to lose the series like this,'' Dilshan said.

"We had a great chance to win today, with Lasith (Malinga) still having five overs with almost 90 runs to go. We'll try to finish strongly in the last two games.''

Tharanga made a rapid start, crashing five fours and two sixes in his 58 from 65 balls before Peterson had him caught off a top-edged sweep by Colin Ingram. Dilshan fell eight runs and two overs later.

Sangakkara and Chandimal added 52 for the third wicket but their stand was ended with a Du Plessis direct hit from backward point to run out Sangakkara.

Sri Lanka slipped from a strong position at 154-2 to add just 112 more runs in the last 20 overs, despite late rallies from Nuwan Kulasekara and Kosala Kulasekara, who made 19 from 20 balls.

Malinga fired out Graeme Smith and Ingram in a deadly opening spell and recalled opener Alviro Petersen fell for 17 trying a reverse sweep off Dilshan to leave South Africa 52-3.

Du Plessis and Duminy rebuilt with their 61-run partnership until Duminy was given run out for 25 when Nuwan Kulasekara threw down the stumps.

TV replays appeared to show Duminy just home and the surprise decision by third umpire Billy Doctrove left South Africa's players shaking their heads in bewilderment and coach Gary Kirsten clearly angry. In his disappointment, Duminy took a long time to leave the field.

Du Plessis hit seven fours in his third ODI half-century and even though he was also run out after struggling with cramp the fifth run out in the match No. 6 De Villiers dragged South Africa above the required run rate with three fours in his 39 from 36 deliveries.

It was just enough for a fifth ODI series win in their last six for the Proteas and sent Sri Lanka to a fifth straight loss in limited-overs contests

2012-01-17T23:01:00.000-08:00

22nd MULTIDISCIPLINARY ACADEMIC CONFERENCE

INTELLECTBASE INTERNATIONAL CONSORTIUM – 22nd MULTIDISCIPLINARY ACADEMIC
CONFERENCE - INTELLECTUAL PERSPECTIVES
12 to 14 April 2012
SAN ANTONIO, United States

Intellectbase International Academic Consortium
invites Abstracts, Case Studies, RIP and FP from
BUSINESS, EDUCATION, SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, MUSIC,
POLITICS, SOCIAL, HOSPITALITY, etc.
Intellectbase publishes 15 Refereed Academic
Journals.

The deadline for abstracts/proposals is 16 March
2012.

SAPA Workshop Series

2012-01-17T04:50:00.000-08:00

SAPA Workshop Series

Empowering South Asian Youth in Peace Activism

Workshop Partners:

QPSW, Ekta Parishad, HMI and Indian committee of Youth Organizations (ICYO)

Feb 4-9, 2012, Bhubaneshwar, Odisha (India)

Peace building in South Asia is a challenge for youth. Youth from South Asia do not have much access to non violent conflict transformation training. Moving from a national to a South Asian identity is an important step for strengthening grassroots democracies.

South Asia Peace Alliance (SAPA) works on nonviolence and peace issues in South Asia. There is an identified need for youth from South Asia to learn about peace activism, facilitation skills and social engagement

To this end, SAPA plans a series of 5 day Training in India for Youth from selected youth from organizations from across South Asia.

This workshop is happening at a time when historic Jan Satyagraha Campaign 2011-2012 (of SAPA partner organization Ekta Parishad, Year long Gandhian action In India.) is in progress. This gives opportunity to be part of this process as a part of non-violent training.

Participants Targeted: 25 from South Asian countries

Programme content

Youth will learn the practicalities of non-violent action and thus gain confidence to be able see demonstration of putting theory into action by taking part in on-going nonviolent campaign in India. It will provide empowerment through dialogue and provide a toolkit for future action.

In this workshop the “Turning the Tide” tools for Nonviolent power for Social change.

Ekta Parishad module on Pedagogy of Nonviolent action and an Introduction to the Basic Facilitation skills for youth to work with community will be shared.

For Whom?

This is programme is open to those who believe practicing nonviolence by applying at the community level. Those desiring to become facilitators in the process at the grassroot level. We prefer senior youth (Above 25) working with voluntary organizations, Institutes, Civil Society groups, Committed individuals.

Registration

There is token registration fees is Rs.1000.for a 5 days workshop. Those part of the workshop can opt for optional exposure programme.to be with Shri P.VRajagopal, noted Gandhian, peace activist and leader of Jan-Satyagraha Campaign, for 3 days. For more details http://js2012.wordpress.com/

Travel

Participants will have travel on their own or get sponsorship for individuals or representing organizations.

Last Date for applying Jan 20, 2012, application form enclosed.

For any further details write to secretariat.sapa@gmail.com

Contact Person

Vijay Bharatiya & Rita Roy

Mobile: 91-9427700762

SAPA Website: http://southasiapeacealliance.weebly.com/index.html

SAPA Regional Secretariat

2/3 A, Block-A, Jungpura,

New Delhi-110014 (INDIA)

Going Green in 2012:

2012-01-17T04:48:00.001-08:00

Going Green in 2012: 12 Steps for the Developing World

As we start the new year, here are 12 steps we can take to reduce our impact on the environment.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia----Many of us are thinking about the changes we want to make this year. For some, these changes will be financial; for others, physical or spiritual. But for all of us, there are important resolutions we can make to "green" our lives. Although this is often a subject focused on by industrialized nations, people in developing countries can also take important steps to reduce their growing environmental impact.

"We in the developing world must embark on a more vigorous 'going green' program," says Sue Edwards, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD). "As incomes rise and urbanization increases, a growing middle class must work with city planners to ensure our communities are sustainable."

ISD's Tigray Project recently received the Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development 2011, shared with Kofi Annan, Chairman of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). Since 1996, Tigray has worked to help Ethiopian farmers rehabilitate ecosystems, raise land productivity, and increase incomes through such practices as composting, biodiversity enhancement, the conservation of water and soil, and the empowerment of local communities to manage their own development.

Broadening sustainability efforts is essential to solving many of the world's challenges, including food production, security, and poverty. The United Nations has designated 2012 as the International Year of Sustainable Energy for All. "With so many hungry and poor in the world, addressing these issues is critical," says Danielle Nierenberg, director of the Worldwatch Institute's Nourishing the Planet project. "Fortunately, the solutions to these problems can come from simple innovations and practices."

Worldwatch's Nourishing the Planet team recently traveled to 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, and will soon be traveling to Latin America, to research and highlight such solutions. The project shines a spotlight on innovations in agriculture that can help alleviate hunger and poverty while also protecting the environment. These innovations are elaborated in Worldwatch's flagship annual report, State of the World 2011: Innovations that Nourish the Planet.

Hunger, poverty, and climate change are issues that we in the developing world can help address. Here are 12 simple steps to go green in 2012:

1. Recycle:

Urbanization is on the rise throughout the developing world. According to the United Nations, the highest urban-area growth is 3.5 percent per year in Africa. But waste management is not keeping up with population growth. It is inefficient in urban areas and virtually nonexistent in rural areas, resulting in the pervasive unloading of waste in unmanaged dump sites and bodies of water and endangering public health.

What you can do:

Collect your household's waste in two separate containers----one for organic waste like scraps of food and one for other waste like plastic, glass, metal, and paper. You can compost the organic waste (see #11).
Cities such as Johannesburg have recycling drop-off sites. If your city doesn't, look for neighbors who are interested in salvaging and reselling items like cans. Brazil, for example, boasts a 96.5 percent aluminum can recycle rate due in large part to the 180,000 Brazilians who collect and resell cans for profit.

2. Reduce fossil fuel consumption.

Over the last two decades, roughly 75 percent of human-made carbon dioxide emissions were produced by fossil fuel burning. Coal and other environmentally polluting fossil fuels can be replaced by renewable resources, including biofuels.Globally, some 25 million homes convert biogas into energy for lighting and cooking, including 20 million households in China and 3.9 million in India.

What you can do:

Instead of burning coal or wood, use biogas converted from the methane produced by either livestock manure or weeds such as water hyacinth. In Rwanda, the government is working to make biogas stoves more affordable----by the end of 2011 they had hoped to see them being used in 15,000 households, and in Ethiopia, the target is 14,000 biogas digester plants with rural households by the end of 2013.
Use an environmentally friendly solar cooker to utilize solar energy instead of fossil fuels. The Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves is committing $50 million to advance the goal of securing 100 million such stoves in developing countries by 2020.

3. Make the switch.

In 2007, Australia became the first country to "ban the bulb" and began a process to replace incandescent light bulbs with more efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. By late 2010, incandescent bulbs had been totally phased out, and, according to the country's environment minister, this move has made a big difference, cutting an estimated 4 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions by 2012. The Ethiopian government is the first in the developing world to consider banning incandescent bulbs. Its distribution of 5 million compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) has created energy savings of 75 percent.

What you can do:

Although CFLs are initially more expensive, they use 75 percent less energy and last 10 times as long. The government of Australia estimates that the country's switch to CFLs will save the average household 66 percent on their electricity bill.
Encourage your local and national governments to follow Ethiopia's example and give free CFLs to consumers in exchange for their old incandescent bulbs.

4. Re-use water bottles

Worldwide, 900 million people do not have access to safe drinking water, and more than 4,000 children die each year from preventable diseases. As a result, many consumers use bottled water. We consume 200 billion bottles of water globally. It takes 1.5 million barrels of crude oil to produce these bottles and 2.7 tons of plastic, 86 percent of which ends up as garbage or litter.

What you can do:

Stainless steel reusable water bottles are the best solution, but you can also reuse plastic bottles every time you encounter a clean water source. When it is time for a new bottle, recycle the old one.
The Life and Water Development Group Cameroon has partnered with Thirst Relief International USA to bring clean water to those without access. One filtration unit uses layers of crushed rock, sand, and naturally forming bacteria to remove 99 percent of harmful bacteria from drinking water.

5. Conserve water.

Each of us requires 3,000 liters of water a day to meet our dietary needs. Yet half of people worldwide live in countries where water tables are falling. Because 70 percent of water is used to irrigate agriculture, it is important that we better conserve water as we grow our food.

What you can do:

Growing one ton of grain requires 1,500 tons of water, but many crops indigenous to the developing world require much less. In Asia and Africa, the pigeon pea is drought-resistant and can grow in low-nutrient soil with little water while still producing a yield that is 20 percent protein.
Rainwater Concepts in India is working to popularize simple rainwater harvesting techniques, successfully recharging 90,000 wells.

6. Turn down the AC.

Thirty of the world's 50 most populous cities are located in the developing world, mostly in hot climates. Use of air conditioners increases 20-35 percent annually in developing countries, and the related chemicals emitted are stalling the global effort to heal the ozone layer, the part of our atmosphere that protects the planet from harmful solar rays.

What you can do:

Use fans instead of air conditioning to reduce the amount of harmful chemicals released into our air.
If you want to install air conditioning in your home or business, use ozone-friendly units instead of those that emit hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs).

7. Support food recovery.

Each year, roughly a third of all food produced for human consumption----approximately 1.3 billion tons----gets lost or wasted, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. In the developing world, this often happens because of premature harvests or a lack of proper storage facilities, sufficient infrastructure, or appropriate preservation methods. Every metric ton of food waste sent to landfills emits 4.5 times the amount of carbon dioxide, and decomposing food in landfills produces methane, a greenhouse gas that is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide.

What you can do:

Farmers in Pakistan have saved 70 percent of their harvest by switching from jute bags and containers constructed with mud to more durable metal containers.
In West Africa, farmers use solar dryers to save the 100,000 tons of mangos that would otherwise go to waste annually. This technique can be used with other fruit to save them from perishing after harvest.

8. Buy local, indigenous crops.

Rice, wheat, corn, and soy are the crops that modern agriculture focuses on most. Reliance on so few crops is dangerous. The 2010 drought in Russia decimated a third of the country's wheat harvest, and the developing world felt the shock as food prices skyrocketed. Indigenous and traditional crops, however, are often hardier and more resistant to pests and disease.

What you can do:

Find out what crops are indigenous to your area and which farmers are growing them. Buy directly from those farmers or ask your local market to carry their products.
Grow indigenous crops in your own garden (see #10) and share with your neighbors.

9. Plant a tree.

Globally, we have lost 13 million acres of forest each year since 2000. In Latin America, the expanding popularity of cattle operations and soybean farms trumps preservation of the Amazon. Brazil is the fourth largest emitter of carbon dioxide, not because of industry or automobiles, but because of deforestation.

What you can do:

Plant a tree or two at home. In addition to the environmental benefits, it will provide shade and keep your home cooler. If you plant a citrus or nut tree, you'll enjoy the extra food as well.
Agroforestry, or planting trees among crops, can provide shade and help control erosion. In addition, leguminous trees can add nutrients to the soil naturally, making the soil more fertile and increasing crop yields.

10. Plant a garden.

Fourteen million people in Africa migrate from rural to urban areas each year, and studies suggest that by 2020, an estimated 40 million Africans living in cities will depend on urban agriculture to meet their food requirements. Home gardens helped families in Kibera, Nairobi, survive when unrest after the 2008 elections shut down roads and prevented food from coming into the city. And the sale of garden surplus is an excellent way to supplement family income.

What you can do:

If your access to land is limited, you can create a "vertical garden." Fill tall sacks with soil, poke holes on different levels, and plant seeds in the holes. Use waste water from your home and compost (see #11) to keep your soil rich and healthy, improving the quality of your food. If you live in an urban area and don't have access to land, reuse old tires or buckets to create portable planters.

11. Compost organic waste.

The World Bank estimates that 50 percent of an average developing country's solid waste can be composted. By repurposing compostable waste such as food scraps, wood waste, and paper and cardboard products, we can reduce landfill space and add reclaimed nutrients to our agricultural efforts

What you can do:

Work within your family to compost your own organic waste, or work with your community to establish a collective compost site.
To make the most of your compost, use it to nourish local gardening efforts.

12. Eat meat that is raised right...and eat less of it.

Livestock are raised on a third of the Earth's land, accounting for approximately 18 percent of all human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. In the developing world alone, 1 to 2 trillion cubic meters of water per year is needed to raise crops for these animals. Global meat production has increased 20 percent since 2000, and nearly 90 percent of additional growth is expected to occur in the developing world, predominantly on large, industrial farms.

What you can do:

Think about where your meat comes from. Giant, industrial farms pollute the environment through heavy use of pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and other harmful inputs. Pastoral farms can help reduce pollution and supports the livelihoods of local farming families.
If you're a farmer, consider building a biodigester so that you can convert the organic waste from your animals into a nutrient-rich fertilizer and biogas, a renewable energy source that you can use for heating and electricity.

The most successful and lasting new year changes are those that are practiced regularly and have an important goal. As we embark on this new year, let's all resolve to make 2012 a healthier, happier, and greener year for all.

Twenty-Nine Missing in Costa Concordia wreck

2012-01-16T20:58:00.001-08:00

Indians rescued in Italy cruise mishap-Hunt is on for one missing Indian.

Hundred thirty Indians were rescued on lifeboats after a luxury cruise liner ran aground off the Tuscan coast in Italy. At least five people died and 17 remained unaccounted for. None of them are Indian. Divers are trying to find more survivors. The 290-metre-long, 1,500-cabin Costa Concordia liner hit a reef near the Giglio island at around 8 pm local time, after which the ship tilted heavily to one side.Most of the 3,200 passengers and 1,000 crew members had been evacuated.“We were dining when the lights went out,” one of the passengers told Ansa. “We heard a bang and a roar, and dishes crashed to the floor.” It was first reported that the ship suffered an electrical failure, but soon afterwards, everyone was ordered to wear life-jackets, media report. Tourist on board were Indians Italians, Germans, French and British among the 3,200 passengers.Helicopters with spotlights are used to help rescuers.

Costa Concordia liner with nearly 4,200 passengers on board, ran aground off the Isola del Giglio island late on Friday initial reports said at least 16 people were missing.And confirmed death toll in this disaster rose to six on Monday after rescuers discovered three more victims, including the bodies of two elderly men wearing life vests inside the vessel.“I have received a report from the Grosseto prefecture saying that 29 people are listed as missing 25 passengers and four crew members,” port official Marco Brusco said late on Monday.10 Germans and six Italians among the missing and the fate of four French citizens and two Americans was also unknown.

Russians aboard the ship at 108 were found alive in an cruise shipwreck near the coast of Tuscany,
Indian tourists on board ,are safe and back found alive in an Italian cruise shipwreck near the coast of Tuscany and those missing are being traced.Italian prosecutors said they detained Captain Francesco Schettino and First Mate Ciro Ambrosio. They are suspected of manslaughter and abandoning ship in distress.media agencies

Malaysia 13th general election will be held soon

2012-01-16T05:12:00.001-08:00

Riding on the crest of his growing popularity, the Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has said the country's 13th general elections will be held as soon as the government's reform initiatives produce real results.

"Essentially, it's a call you have to make on the basis of a feel-good factor, and that's when you press the button," Najib told the Wall Street Journal, noting that the Government had to fulfil its promises to the people.
"You can have all the polling numbers but you must have the sense that this is the right time. I hope it will be the right time soon enough, but we still have not delivered on our promises and it's important for people to have the feeling that the reforms we have promised will actually benefit them," he said.
Najib acknowledged that the deteriorating global economic environment, especially with Europe's debt crisis, could be a factor on when to dissolve parliament.
"But so far we are still quite comfortable because our exposure to the EU in terms of total trade is only about 9 per cent.So, we are less vulnerable".
"But a Euro-zone collapse or some other catastrophe there will affect the whole world," he said.
The general election has to be called before April 2013, but speculation has been rife that it could be held in the coming months.
Acknowledging the recent acquittal of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim of the sodomy charge, Najib also said it underscored the depth of the reform process.
"It shows that, as chief executive of the country, I don't interfere in the judiciary," Najib said.
Anwar was acquitted last week on a charge of sodomising his former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.
The judge ruled that there was a lack of corroborative evidence in the two-year long trial to penalise the former deputy prime minister.
Once the verdict was released, "all of the tension surrounding the trial suddenly fell away and people suddenly realised that there are more important things than just the Anwar issue".
"What is important now is that we move forward," Star newspaper quoted Najib as saying

China offers $ 135 Million aid to Nepal

2012-01-15T00:00:00.000-08:00

In a bid to woo its land-locked southern neighbour, China on Saturday offered USD 135 million aid to Nepal to beef up its infrastructure and security during a brief and surprise visit by the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.

Holding hectic parleys with Nepalese counterpart Baburam Bhattarai, the country's President Ram Baran Yadav, Maoist chief Prachanda and leaders of other parties, Wen inked as many as eight agreements amid a virtual media blackout.

His trip was conducted in complete secrecy and under heavy security lockdown with police and paramilitary forces deployed in strengths in and around the capital. The security forces had as a precautionary measure detained large number of Tibetan refugees apparently to bar them from holding demonstration.

"The visit has proven a milestone in the development of friendly ties between the two neighbouring countries," Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha told reporters.

The delegation level talks headed by Bhattarai and Wen were held in a cordial atmosphere and the two sides agreed to strengthen bilateral relations, expanding economic cooperation, he said.

Under a series of agreements, Beijing agreed to provide massive assistance for a number of Nepal's infrastructure projects and also bankroll the modernisation of the country's police.

China offered a 750 million RMB (USD 113) in aid to Nepal during the visit by Wen. Wen announced USD 20 million as one time special grant to Nepal. He also pledged to provide an annual grant assistance of 200 million RMB to Nepal this year as part of 750 million RMB worth three years grant assistance under economic and technical cooperation, according to Shrestha.

China has also pledged to provide 4 million RMB to strengthen the Armed Police Force of Nepal and 10 million RMB to Nepal Police for enhancing its capacity.

The agreements include among other things, relating to Management of Dry Ports along Nepal-China border, MoU on strengthening cooperation between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of the two countries, agreement on economic and technical cooperation between the two governments.

The agreements also include, exchange on notes between the two countries on building Armed Police Force college, agreement relating to providing police equipment to the Ministry of Home and MoU on operationalisation of loan mechanism between the two governments and Exim Bank of China.

China is one of the biggest investors in Nepal, financing highways, power projects and other development projects. Wen is the first high-ranking Chinese leader to visit Nepal in a decade after a visit by then premier Zhu Rongji in 2001.

During the talk, the two sides also clarified their policies governing the bilateral relations and expressed views that both the countries have common stand in many regional and international issues, Shrestha said.

During the bilateral meeting, Premier Bhattarai briefed the Wen about the current political situation of Nepal and progress made in the ongoing peace process and the constitution drafting process, he said.

Prime Minister Bhattarai told Premier Wen that Nepal government is moving forward in concluding the peace process and constitution drafting by forging cooperation and collaboration, Shrestha said.

The Chinese premier is accompanied by around a dozen ministers including those carrying foreign, commerce and National Development and Reforms portfolios. The visit was reportedly kept under wraps due to security reasons and threats of protests by the Tibetan refugees. Nepal in the recent months tightened restrictions on the Tibetan refugees following pressure from China.

The Chinese Prime Minister's visit was held amidst tightest security with even newsmen not allowed to enter the airport as well as Singhdurbar where the talks were held. Only few photographers and cameramen belonging to state run media were allowed inside where talks were held.

The Chinese leader said that he is fully hopeful that the peace process and the constitution making process will be complete at the earliest.

On the occasion Wen appreciated Nepal's one China policy and its ways to handle the Tibetan issues.

During the luncheon, the top leaders of various political parties had interaction with Chinese Prime Minister in a cordial atmosphere, Shrestha said.

"All the political leaders on the occasion expressed their common views regarding Nepal-China relations. All the political leaders reiterated their commitment that Nepal always upholds one-China policy. They also expressed their view that Nepal will always honour genuine concerns and worries of the northern neighbour," he said.

They also said in one voice that Nepal will not allow any activity directed against Chinese interest from Nepalese soil. He said China will always extend its cooperation to Nepal in attaining peace, stability, development and achieving economic progress and defending sovereignty of the country.

The Chinese leader's tour here comes apparently to compensate the sudden cancellation of his scheduled tour to the country last month.

Wen arrived in Kathmandu on a special aircraft at 11.45 am local time amidst extra-ordinarily beefed up security and media restrictions.

An hour before the Chinese PM's arrival four persons including two women carrying Chinese passports were detained from Narayanhity Palace Museum area with the suspicion of being Tibetan activists. Two of them were wearing monk dress.

Earlier, Bhattarai and his two deputies Foreign Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha and Home Minister BIjaya Kumar Gachhadar reached the Tribhuvan International Airport for his welcome.

Pakistan Military’s Desire to Slip Into The Driving Seat Once Again

2012-01-14T23:34:00.001-08:00

Pakistan Military’s Desire to Slip Into The Driving Seat Once Again

P. K. Upadhyay-
Some very strange developments seem to be unfolding in Pakistani politics. A political dogfight between the civilian and military leaderships has been unheard off in the country’s history so far. The generals never had to air their differences with the political masters in the public as they are doing at present. When faced with a ‘defiance’ of their writ at any stage, the generals have always taken over power after booting-out the civilian government. In a rare case, as during the time of General Waheed Kakar, the Army did not directly take over power, but forced the feuding President (Ghulam Ishaq Khan) and Prime Minister (Nawaz Sharief) to quit and brought in a new government. The story, as told by Pakistani columnist Azeem Chaudhary, goes that General Kakar, in his full ceremonial uniform with a pistol holster by his side, called a meeting of Ishaq Khan and Nawaz Sharief and, when they tried to resist his gentle persuasions, just tapped his baton on the table and asked them to quit, which they complied with meekly. Then why this time around is General Kayani not able to push out the President and Prime Minister and has let the current army-civil tug-of-war drag on since May, when the present political crisis seems to have started in the wake of the Abbottabad raid? The simple answer is that the Pakistan Army in 2012 is not what it used to be during the Ayub Khan to Musharraf eras. At present, it does not have the confidence to enforce its diktat due to a weakening of its earlier hold on the power structure on account of the sharp deterioration in the Pakistan-US military-to-military relationship, changes in the social complexion and the background of the current crop of military officers as well as the deep penetration of jehadi influence in the Armed Forces.
The US raid on Osama’s hideout marked a watershed in more sense than one in the contemporary history of Pakistan. On the one hand it further accentuated the already deepening rift between the US and Pakistan establishments over Afghanistan as well as the relationship with the Taliban and, on the other, rocked the fledgling post-Musharraf relationship between Pakistan’s civilian government and the Army leadership. For the western world and particularly the United States, the raid exposed the Pakistan Army’s duplicity in dealing with Osama and Taliban and raised serious questions about its role and commitment to fight Islamic radicalism. For the Pakistanis it exposed their Army’s (lack of) capability and even commitment to defend the country’s ‘honour’ and ‘principles’ by standing up to the Americans. These sentiments did not engulf just the civilian society but also reverberated in the barracks. Soon after the US raid, General Kayani and his Corps Commanders had to face many difficult questions from junior officers about the Army’s response to the US action. On May 5, the Corps Commanders’ meeting decided to institute an enquiry into the ‘intelligence failure’ about US plans, as also to enforce an immediate reduction in the presence of US military personnel in the country. Pakistan’s civilian government, on its part, was confused and vague in its reaction. It tried to score some brownie points by contending that the US raid was made possible by intelligence Pakistan provided and that the “killing of Osama Bin Laden showed the commitment of Pakistan and the world community in the war against terrorism” (Prime Minister Gilani’s statement). At the same time, it ‘warned’ the US that the Abbottabad raid should not set a precedent for such “unilateral actions” in future.
The Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) was quick to move to exploit the situation for its political agenda by targeting both the Zardari government and the Army. Taking advantage of the anti-American and anti-establishment mood in the country, as demonstrated by the media focus on the role and performance of the Army not in just harbouring Osama bin-Laden but also in handling the US action, the PML(N) called for the setting up of an independent enquiry commission to investigate the Abbottabad raid. Later, just a week before the budget session of the National Assembly was to commence, it requested an emergency session of the House to discuss “the delay” in the setting-up of the Commission. The Zardari-Gilani regime yielded ground and held an in-camera session of both houses of Parliament (May 13), during which the entire top-brass of the military was present. ISI Chief General Shuza Pasha admitted to intelligence failure and surrendered himself to full parliamentary accountability. But at the same time, he also held the provincial government, the local police and other agencies responsible for this failure. Parliament adopted a resolution to set up an enquiry commission to ascertain the full facts about the presence of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan as well as the circumstances and full facts about the US raid, determine the nature, background and causes of the lapses of the concerned authorities and make recommendations to prevent such incidents in future.
Sensing that they had gained an upper hand, Nawaz Sharief and his party stepped up their assault. Sharief made an open demand for parliamentary scrutiny of the budgets of the Army and the ISI. He held out a thinly veiled threat to the government by declaring that his party would support the government only if it was ready to stand on its own legs and not live with a begging bowl. Later, PML (N) convened a meeting of various opposition parties to give the government an ultimatum to set-up the enquiry into the Abbottabad raid by June 3 and subsequently submitted a notice to the Speaker of the National Assembly for the purpose. Buckling down, the government announced on May 31 the setting up of the enquiry commission under the chairmanship of Justice Javed Iqbal, a sitting judge of the Supreme Court, which commenced its proceedings from July 25 and summoned the Chief of the ISI, the DG of Military Intelligence, and the heads of various police and intelligence agencies to present their testimonies. The Pakistani media carried reports to the effect that the commission raised many awkward questions about the presence of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan and the security cooperation between the US and the Pakistani militaries, which made the Army feel uncomfortable.
The Army was already making moves to counter all this challenge. Maulana Fazal-ur Rehman, whose Jamiat-ul Ulema-e-Islam (F) had initially joined the PML (N)-led campaign for an enquiry into the Abbottabad raid, disassociated itself from the move, terming it as against “national interests” apparently under the Army’s persuasion. The Army seems to have also put pressure on the government to scuttle the enquiry, or consign it to the cold storage. As the government found itself on a politically weak wicket but at the same time unwilling to yield, the Army’s veiled hints became more open and ominous. What must have increased the discomfiture of the Army was the government’s thinly veiled efforts to distance itself from the Army and the Abbottabad episode. When the Army began to huff-and-puff in its efforts to bring the government down to its point of view, Zardari, or someone close to him, appears to have thought about approaching the Americans to exercise their influence over the Army and restrain it, thus giving birth to the ‘Memogate’ affair. The former Ambassador to US Hussein Haqqani, considered close to Zardari, has been accused of writing to Adm. Mullen seeking his assistance in installing a “new security team” in Islamabad that would be friendlier towards Washington.
Nawaz Sharief’s efforts to fish in troubled waters as also to move closer to the Army’s position on ‘Memogate’ on the one hand and to force early general elections in the wake of the ouster of the Zardari regime in an Army putsch on the other, intensified. By the second half of November, after describing the parliamentary enquiry commission as a sham, he petitioned the Supreme Court to investigate the Memogate affair and punish “without any leniency” those who had “taken the country into abyss of despair”. ‘Memogate’ was indeed the last straw for the Army and Zardari was forced to go abroad for ‘treatment’ on December 18, after seeing Kayani a day before. However, as the Army showed no inclinations to take over power and no alternative arrangements to fill the post-Zardari void were in place, the PPP Government continued and Zardari also came back to the country, vowing on the eve of the anniversary of Benazir’s assassination that he would continue to fight for the ‘infant democracy’ in the country.
It was clear that the Army was reluctant to assume power and, at the same time, also reluctant to let the Zardari-led PPP government continue. It appears to have chosen the judicial route to hound out the government. Apparently, a deal between the Army and the Chief Justice of Pakistan allowed not just a renewed focus on the old National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) cases against Zardari and others, but also the setting up of a four-judge judicial enquiry into Memogate under the chairmanship of the Chief Justice of the Baluchistan High Court, to “investigate” the episode and report in four weeks. In response to the Court’s orders for submissions, the government denied any link between the mysterious memo to Mike Mullen and the President and wanted the Court action to be quashed. However, Kayani highlighted it as high treason and an attempt to demoralize the military. Interestingly, the submissions by Kayani and Shuza Pasha were made to the Court directly through the Attorney General, totally by-passing the civilian government. On its part, the Ministry of Defence submitted through its Secretary Lt. Gen (Retd.) Naeem Khalid Lodhi that the government had no operational control over either the Army or the ISI. This pushed the polemics between the Army and the government to a new and bitter high and both Zardari and Gilani chose to speak out against “conspiracies to pack up the elected government”. In a clear move to enlist Chinese support, while Kayani went to Beijing, Gilani gave an interview to the Chinese People’s Daily (January 9) where he described the Army commanders’ submissions to the Supreme Court as “unconstitutional and illegal”. The Army joined issue with the government by issuing a press release warning it of “serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the country”. In continuing tit-for-tat responses, the regime responded by sacking the Defence Secretary and the Army, in turn, called a meeting of the senior generals to discuss the situation.
Why is this unprecedented and uncharacteristic spat between the Army and the civilian government continuing? Apparently, the United States is a factor. Although, for the record, the US Administration and Pentagon had dismissed the memo to Mullen, they seem to have quietly acted on it by heavily leaning on the Pakistan Army. Despite the recent breakdown in their relationship, the US military still has a considerable hold over the Pakistan Army in the form of continuing supply of spares and other vital equipment, apart from training and intelligence cooperation. The Americans could have conveyed to Kayani and company that ousting the civilian regime in a coup would mean a total break in links, including the supply of spares and other wherewithal. The Pakistan Army cannot resist this pressure, since without using US supplied armour and attack helicopters, it cannot continue its operations against the Taliban in FATA or the Baluchi rebels in Baluchistan. Another inhibiting factor for Kayani and his generals could be the extent of penetration of the Army by jehadi elements. For sometime now, there appears to be a lull in clashes between Islamic radicals and the Army. While a let-up in US drone strikes (after the handing over of the Shamsi airbase) appears to be a significant facilitating factor for this lull, it cannot be the key trigger for it. The possibility of a JUI (F) brokered truce between the Army and Taliban should not be ruled out. The Army wants to preserve this truce for the present and, therefore, is reluctant to rock the boat by staging a coup at this juncture. It possibly fears that in case it ousts the Zardari government and becomes all powerful, that may have some destabilizing impact on the current truce with the Taliban. Lastly, Kayani and other senior generals may still not be out of the shock they suffered from the violent outbursts of junior officers after the Abbottabad raid. They recognize that the younger lot of Pakistan Army Officers does not come from traditional sections of the society known for its contempt for ‘civilians’ and their ways. These officers are the off-spring of former JCOs/NCOs of the military, as also the urban middle and lower middle classes, and may be harbouring a strong antipathy towards the bourgeois attitudes of their superiors.
This, however, does not mean that Kayani and company are going to let the Zardari-Gilani combine continue to spite them. Army backed judicial action against the regime is a strong possibility. For the post Zardari period, one may watch the rise of Imran Khan (despite his strong anti-Army and pro-democracy postures) and the planned return of Pervez Musharraf with interest.

Chinese premier Wen set for Nepal visit

2012-01-14T21:43:00.001-08:00

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will arrive Kathmandu on Saturday on a brief stopover en-route to Qatar after a planned tour last month was abruptly postponed apparently over security concerns.

Wen is schedule to arrive at 11 am for a five-hour visit before flying to Qatar, said a source at the Prime Minister's office.

High security alert is issued and extra-security forces have been mobilised for the visit, a top security official said.

"All the four security agencies, Nepal Army, Armed Police Force, Nepal Police and National Investigation Department have been mobilised for the visiting Chinese leader," Ratna Raj Pandey, Chief District Officer of Kathmandu District Administration Office, said.

Wen's visit has been kept secret till last night after his planed three-day visit from December 20 last year was postponed due to security concerns.

Last month, the Chinese Embassy officials had expressed displeasure over the early announcement of the date of the premier's visit without consulting Beijing.

The postponement of the visit had raised question about the government's diplomatic capability.

Wen is scheduled to call on President Dr Ram Baran Yadav, hold bilateral with his Nepalese counterpart Baburam Bhattarai and meet other senior government officials and political leaders during the brief stay in Kathmandu.

Nepal government has expressed its commitment not to allow anti-Beijing protests as it has underlined its 'one-China policy' and intensified crackdown against Tibetans.

The Nepalese authorities have taken extraordinary steps to enforce security, particularly keeping a close watch on the thousands of Tibetans living in Kathmandu in exile.

On the eve of Wen's visit, the police had detained a total of 154 Tibetan nationals from Kathmandu, according to a top government official.

The Tibetans arrested in Kathmandu were not planning to protest during Wen's visit.

They were here on a pilgrimage tour and had left their travel documents at the hotel in Kathmandu before going outside in the capital, the official said adding they will be released on Friday.

During the bilateral meeting Chinese Premier is likely to announced a credit line of USD 500 million, including USD 150 million for the construction of proposed Pokhara International Airport.

China is also expected to provide an assistance of around USD 55 million for upgrading the existing ring-road in Kathmandu Valley, according to media reports in Kathmandu.

Nepal government is likely to seek assistance from China for the development of four major projects, including Pokhara International Airport, the 750-MW West Seti Hydropower Project, 600-MW Budi Gandaki Hydropower Project and 400-MW Nalshyagugad Hydropower Project.

Nepal government is also likely to request China to grant duty free market access to hundreds of Nepalese manufactured goods in a bid to boost its export trade aiming to reduce trade deficit with China.

President Ma Ying-jeou re-elected

2012-01-14T21:26:00.001-08:00

Taiwan's China-friendly president Ma Ying-jeou re-elected

Taiwan voters re-elected incumbent President Ma Ying-jeou on Saturday, endorsing his push for closer ties with Beijing and removing a potential irritant in Sino-U.S. relations as those two powers head for a year of political transition.

The election had been expected to be tight, but the Central Election Commission said the Nationalist Party's Ma Ying-jeou won about 51.6 percent of the vote versus about 45.6 percent for Tsai Ing-wen of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party.

"In the next four years, cross-strait relations will be more peaceful, with greater mutual trust and the chance of conflict will be less," Ma, 61, told thousands of his supporters, many clapping, waving red and blue Taiwan flags and cheering in the pouring rain outside the party headquarters in downtown Taipei.

There was no official comment from Beijing, but the Communist Party's official newspaper, the People's Daily, welcomed the outcome.

"This result shows that striving for peace, development and stability has become mainstream public opinion on the island of Taiwan, and this will promote the advance of cross-strait relations," said a commentary on its website (www.people.com.cn)

"In recent years, the peaceful development of cross-strait relations has brought dividends, and many members of Taiwan's public feel this deeply."

The election outcome would be a relief to China. The opposition DPP's independence-leaning stance has long angered Beijing, even though Tsai had tried to distance herself from that position in the campaign.

Analysts had said a DPP win would have put ties with China in limbo, and sharpened Beijing's differences with the United States.

2012-01-13T10:56:00.000-08:00

1st Patna Marathon 2012

1st Patna Marathon 2012

Patna, Jan 10, 2012: The organizing team of, 1st Patna Marathon announced few major developments over last few weeks. Since its inception of Patna Marathon by BEN (Bihar Entrepreneur Network) a series of developments have taken place. For administrative and logistics reasons and upon request of Deputy Chief Minister Shree Sushil Modi, the scheduled date of Patna Marathon has been postponed from Feb 19, 2012 to Feb 26, 2012.The organizers have been continuously working hard to rope in corporate as well as government to work together and celebrate growth process of Bihar through first ever Marathon in Patna.

In the recent days a more vigorous efforts have been made through a series of meetings with Partners, Sponsors, Government Departments and the global teams regarding successful conduct of this event. The Government of Bihar, including Deputy Chief Minister Shree Sushil Modi, Tourism Minister, Sunil Pinto, Minister of Youth, Art & Culture Sukhda Pandey, and top officials have shown their keen interest in making this event a grand success.

While Feb 19, 2012 being end date of Global Summit will host a series of NRI´s, scholars and investors of Bihar including a few heads of state from neighboring countries like Nepal, Bhutan, they may also have to reschedule their stay in Patna for additional one week until Feb 26, 2012 to participate in Patna Marathon and be part of this historic moment of run for progress of Bihar through its 1st Global Scale sports event where elite runners from Africa, other countries, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, UP, neighboring states and rest of India are expected to participate.

Many government departments including HRD (Education); Art, Youth & Culture; Health; Tourism; Rural Development; Police and Armed Forces have expressed solidarity & support to the event that got expressed in the official letter issued by Principal Secretary Shri C Lalsota to his colleagues to ensure full support to the event. It is very encouraging to note that there is a tremendous excitement amongst youth and mass of Patna regarding their participation in this event. Various educational institutions of Bihar including Armed Forces and Police Forces, schools, colleges, NIT Patna, BIT Patna, NIFT have also been extending full support.

As a preparation for event, the organizers under leadership of Shri Atul Kumar, CEO of Patna Marathon have also started operating out of a Camp office at Shaligram Complex on Ashok Rajpath, Patna which is in close proximity to Gandhi Maidan (start point and finish point) and various educational institutions. The Camp Office at Shaligram Complex, will be formally inaugurated after Makar Sankranti via a Pooja and press conference.

It is an earnest appeal to all to give a wider publicity to this event and make it a grand success.

Sd/

Ravi Kumar

Director (Media & Outreach) I PATNA MARATHON

M: +91-9810268481

Posted 20 hours ago by Nksagar

India And Japan to Cooperate in Infrastructure Sector

2012-01-12T08:56:00.000-08:00

India And Japan to Cooperate in Infrastructure Sector

India And Japan to Cooperate in Infrastructure Sector
Japanese Minister for Transport and Tourism Calls on CP Joshi Mr. Takeshi Maeda, Minister for Land, Infrastructure, Transport & Tourism (MLITT), Government of Japan along with a high level delegation from the Policy Bureau of the MLITT called on Dr. CP Joshi, Minister of Road Transport and Highways in New Delhi today. Both the Ministers discussed bilateral cooperation in infrastructure sector with special reference to road construction

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is in the process of finalizing a Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) proposed to be signed with its Japanese counterpart Ministry for Land, Infrastructure, and Transport & Tourism. The proposed MOC will enable Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to exchange technical knowledge and expertise in the Road Transportation and Highways sector including capacity building and advanced technology for roads road transport management system and intelligent transport system.

Japanese companies have been participating in National Highways Development Programme (NHDP) of India as “Supervision Consultants”. Four projects have already been completed where their performance has been satisfactory. India is also a beneficiary of Japanese cooperation through Japan Bank for International Co-operation (JBIC) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Mr. Maeda’s visit is in the context of State visit by Mr. Yoshihiko Noda, Prime Minister of Japan to India wherein a Joint Statement was issued by both the Prime Ministers, inter-alia recognizing the bilateral co-operation in the infrastructure sector including cooperation in the development of expressways in India and capacity building,

Posted by Nareshkumarsagar

2012-01-11T08:40:00.000-08:00

Lawyers blame police, Mubarak for Egypt deaths

Lawyers for victims' families in the trial of ousted president Hosni Mubarak charged that Egyptian police were ordered to use lethal fire against protesters in the revolt which brought him down.

The ailing, 83-year-old Mubarak lay on a stretcher in the defendants' cage at the trial in which the prosecution has called for him to be hanged for the killing of hundreds of demonstrators in the January-February 2011 revolt.
Sameh Ashour, lead counsel for victims' families in the Cairo trial, submitted official documents which he said showed that 160 police officers had been armed with automatic weapons and 4,800 live rounds.
The lawyer also showed a report from the Central Security Forces that four units, each made up of 50 policemen, had been supplied with automatic weapons and ammunition.
A speech by Mubarak on January 28, three days after the outbreak of the unrest, amounted to "implicit recognition of the use of force against demonstrators," according to Ashour.
Mubarak said he had given instructions for police "to protect the demonstrations... before they turn into riots."
Lawyers for civil plaintiffs have until Tuesday to present their case before the defence takes its turn, after the prosecution last week urged the court to sentence the fallen strongman to hang.
"The law punishes premeditated murder with execution. The prosecution demands the maximum punishment," Mustafa Khater told the presiding judge, Ahmed Refaat.
Mubarak, detained in a military hospital where he is being treated for a heart condition, is on trial along with seven former security chiefs.
The defence is to argue their innocence.
Chief prosecutor Mustafa Suleiman told the court that Mubarak must have ordered police to open fire on protesters during the 18-day uprising that ended his three-decade rule on February 11, leaving more than 850 dead.
Essam el-Batawy, a defence lawyer, told the news agency the prosecution's closing arguments were based, in part, on statements from witnesses they had questioned during their investigation who had not taken the stand.
"They used partial quotes from their testimony," he said.
"We will insist on listening to these witnesses in court," saying they will be called to testify.
Mubarak went to trial on August 3, after protesters stepped up demonstrations calling on the ruling military to try him and other former regime officials.
None of the police witnesses summoned by the prosecution has directly implicated Mubarak

2012-01-10T08:39:00.001-08:00

Syria's president says he won't leave power

Syrian President Bashar Assad said on Tuesday he will not step down, insisting that he still has his people's support.

"We will declare victory soon," he said in the speech at Damascus University.

"When I leave this post it will be also based upon the people's wishes," he said in his first speech since he agreed last month to an Arab League plan to halt the government crackdown on dissent.

Assad repeated his claim that a foreign conspiracy is behind the unrest, and he said it was failing.

The president has made few public appearances since the anti-government uprising began in March, inspired by the revolutions sweeping the Arab world.

The regime's crackdown on dissent has killed thousands and led to international isolation and sanctions.

Assad also accused hundreds of media outlets of working against Syria to "push us toward ... collapse." "They failed, but they have not given up," he said, standing at a podium between two Syrian flags.

Since the start of the uprising, Assad has blamed a foreign conspiracy and media fabrications for the unrest, allegations that the opposition and most observers dismiss.

The regime has banned most foreign news outlets and prevented independent reporting.

In recent months, Syria's conflict has turned increasingly violent as army defectors turn their weapons on the regime and some protesters take up arms to protect themselves.

Syria agreed in December to an Arab League-brokered plan that calls for an end to the military crackdown on protesters, but killings have continued.

About 165 Arab League monitors are in Syria to determine whether the regime is abiding by the plan to stop violence and pull heavy weapons out of the cities.

The UN estimated several weeks ago that more than 5,000 people have been killed since March. Since that report, opposition activists say hundreds more have died.

Adnan al-Khudeir, head of the Cairo operations room that the monitors report to, said more observers will head to Syria in the coming days and the delegation should reach 200.

He said the mission then will expand its work in Syria to reach the eastern province of Deir el-Zour and predominantly Kurdish areas to the northeast.

2012-01-10T08:08:00.001-08:00

Indo-American Friends Group

Celebrating

10^th Pravasi Divas [NRI Day]

Seminar on

“Role of NRIS in the Development of Their Country and India.”

Laxmipat Singhania Auditorium ,

PHD House, August Kranti Marg, Near Siri Fort, New Delhi

On Thursday, the 12^th January, 2012, at 6.00P.M.

Contact No. 011-41512251, 99109 15369

2012-01-09T21:40:00.000-08:00

US' Special Envoy Derek Mitchell arrives in Yangon

US' Special Envoy Derek Mitchell arrives in Yangon,United States ' Special Envoy Derek Mitchell arrived in Yangon on Monday in an attempt to further look into Myanmar 's most recent developments. The U.S. State Department described Mitchell's trip as a follow- up one to that of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in December last year.

It is Mitchell's fourth visit to Myanmar . Besides meeting with government officials in Nay Pyi Taw, Mitchell , U.S. special representative and policy coordinator for Myanmar , will also travel to Bagan to see microfinance programmes and other development work in the country's dry zone. Mitchell's visit will last for four days through to Thursday.

Along with Mitchell, senior U.S. diplomat Luis CdeBaca, who is U.S. Ambassador at Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, will also pay a three-day visit to Myanmar to assess the human trafficking situation in the country and to explore opportunities to strengthen the government's anti-trafficking efforts.

‘EKMATRA’ Redefines Khadi

2012-01-07T01:00:00.000-08:00

Ekmatra brand the Sarvoday Ashram Trust sells premium lifestyle fashion for men and women.

The brand targets the urban customers.Shri Virbhadra Singh, Minister for Micro Small & Medium Enterprises inaugurated the Sarvoday Ashram’s Ekmatra store here today.

Following the Gandhian philosophy of simplicity the store has Handspun & Handwoven khadi.

Speaking on the occasion Shri Virbhadra Singh said “From being synonymous to Mahatma Gandhi’s Swadeshi movement to becoming a fashion symbol, Khadi has come a long way. Woven with a hand spun yarn, Khadi breaks away from the monotony of machine made textiles.

Sarvoday Ashram has constantly worked towards creation of employment for weavers & artisans and promotion of this handicraft industry.”

LAUNCHES ONLINE AGENT TRAINING & CERTIFICATION PROGRAM

2012-01-06T21:47:00.000-08:00

LAUNCHES ONLINE AGENT TRAINING CERTIFICATION PROGRAM

TOURISMAUTHORITY OF THAILAND LAUNCHES ONLINE AGENT TRAINING ; CERTIFICATIONPROGRAM
SETSA TARGET OF 1,500 AGENTS FOR 2012
Mumbai, 29th December 2011: The Tourism Authority of Thailand, Mumbai has announced the launch ofits online travel trade training & certification program. Theambitious program will aim to train and certify 1,500 tour operators and agentson a pan India basis over 12 calendar months beginning January 2012.
Commenting onthe planned launch, Mr. Sethaphan Buddhani, Director, Tourism Authority ofThailand said, "The program has been branded as the ‘Amazing Thailand Champion Agents’ and would enable travel agents& tour operators to familiarize themselves with various wonders of Thailandsuch as heritage, culture, cuisine in addition to other aspects suchas wellness, adventure and leisure opportunities for their clients. We willalso highlight various destinations within Thailand that will provide anopportunity to further increase the length of stay and quality ofexperience."
Mr. Buddhanifurther added, "Earlier on ground training programs initiated by ouroffices in New Delhi and Mumbai had met with a high level of intrigue andsubscription from front liners and senior management of travel agents and touroperators. In order to further expand the opportunity to all regions of Indiaand widen the base of knowledge of agents promoting Amazing Thailand, it wasdecided to take the program online with specific modules designed especiallyfor the Indian market."
During thecourse of the training, enrolled members will also appear for anonline test on the various offerings and destinations in Thailand. Agentssecuring the highest scores would also be offered an opportunity of aneducational tour to Thailand and experience the destination first hand.Incentivizing early registrations, the TAT office has announced limited 'earlybird' gift hampers.
To avail ofthis opportunity, trade members in India would need to log on to www.thaitravelmart.com and register their company.Upon registering, they would then need to proceed to the E-learning section andin particular ‘Lesson 3’ which has been specially designed for the Indianmarket.
The onlinetraining or e-learning program has been divided into 4 modules for the Indianmarket. These modules include General information, Seven Wonders of AmazingThailand, Destinations and Special Information. Travel agents and touroperators are required to study these four modules and appear for an onlinetest for each module. Upon successfully completing all four modules, the travelagent will be certified as an ‘Amazing Thailand Champion Agent’.
Sagar Media Inc

GOPIO_INDIA DIASPORA - Inter Linkage and Synergy

2012-01-06T21:46:00.000-08:00

GOPIO joins hands with the Department of Study Abroad Program at the Gujarat University to organize a conference with the theme, INDIA DIASPORA - Inter Linkage and Synergy at Gujarat University campus in Ahmedabad on January 12 and 13th, 2012. See announcement below:

The impact of Indian Diaspora has motivated its homeland to map its history and factors for migration. Concerns for economic, political, cultural and social engagements of Indian Diaspora have been widely shown in the society. It has also brought sociologists and researchers to look into the process of migration and have found themselves into pondering upon the trends of Indian Diaspora.

The considerable presence of the Indian Diaspora in almost all parts of the world and its insistence upon sending success stories back home in spheres inspired homeland India to connect India with her Diaspora with renewed passion. This conference will look into the cultural, social, economic and political spheres of India's relations with its Diaspora and map on Diaspora history and its contribution to India in IT, infrastructure, education, research and technology, finance and banking, remittances, investments and oriental arts and cultures.

The conference organizing chairs are: Dr. Neerja Arun (Study Abroad Program of Gujarat University, Ahmedabad, India), Dr. Thomas Abraham (Founder President and Chairman Emeritus, GOPIO International) and Dr. Jagat Motwani (GOPIO Academic Council Chair 2004-2009).

Although, the deadline to submit an abstract was November 10th, one may contact Dr. Neerja Arun to see whether there are any slots available for presentation. Papers are invited for the following categories:

INDIA DIASPORA - Inter Linkage and Synergy

Here and there: merging spheres
Transforming the local with global initiatives
Funder's agenda: pitching ideas for development

And finally, Role of Indian Diaspora in re-conceiving and reconstituting faith in physical and virtual places of spiritualism: India and Abroad

Contact: Dr. Neerja Arun, Study Abroad Program, Gujarat University, Ahmedabad, India, drneerjaarun@yahoo.com or Dr. Thomas Abraham of GOPIO at gopio@optonline.net.

The International Indian Diaspora Conference

12th and 13th January, 2012, GOPIO & SAP at Gujarat University, Ahmedabad, India

For a registration form, contact the Conference Secretariat. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Dr Neerja Arun. Tel: +91-79-26303153 or +91- 9825012984 Fax: ++91-79-27910213 E-mail: drneerjaarun@yahoo.com

SC seeks response from CBI for not booking Telecom Comps in 2G case

2012-01-06T00:00:00.000-08:00

The Supreme Court sought response from CBI and the Enforcement Directorate over a charge that they were going soft on companies like Essar, Loop and their promoters by not slapping corruption charges against them in the case arising out of the 2G spectrum scam.

A bench of Justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly issued notice to them to also respond on the probe done against the former Union Minister Dayanidhi Maran after it was alleged that CBI was not doing anything after registering FIR.
The court passed the order on an application filed by an NGO alleging that CBI's decision not to book Essar Group and its promoters under the Prevention of Corruption Act has been "facilitated" by the intervention of CBI Director and Law Minister Salman Khurshid.
The bench, after holding a brief hearing in the case, asked the agencies to file their response in 10 days on all these allegation and posted the matter for further hearing on January 20.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation, contended that CBI's decision not to slap charges under PCA was in contradiction of the investigation officers' report which had found "strong evidence in the case and had apparently/reportedly proposed charges even under the Act."
"Therefore, not charging the accused under the Prevention of Corruption Act ignoring the findings of the Investigating Officers, is unwarranted.
This is unacceptable, especially, in a case where the investigations are being monitored by this Court and investigating officers are reporting to the Court," he told the told court.
Bhushan alleged that the present Law Minister was trying to "influence" the probe against Essar group.
"The interference of an influential Minister in the Government, the Law Minister Mr Salman Khurshid, is evident. He is publicly giving clean chit to Essar/Loop," Bhushan said.
"It is to be noted that this case is similar to that of Swan-Reliance wherein CBI has already filed charge-sheets against officials of Swan, Reliance and also the public officials".
The charge sheets include charges under Prevention of Corruption Act.
"The above developments are likely to weaken the prosecution case in the matter of Swan-Reliance as well," the NGO said.
The agency had on December 12 filed the third charge sheet against Essar Group promoters Anshuman and Ravi Ruia, Essar Group director (Strategy and Planning) Vikas Saraf, Loop Telecom promoters Kiran Khaitan and her husband I P Khaitan.
The agency also named three companies- Loop Telecom Pvt Ltd, Loop Mobile India Ltd and Essar Tele Holding as accused in the case. All of them have been charge sheeted under section 120 B (criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of the IPC.
Essar Group in a statement had denied the allegations against them.
The NGO also demanded that the agency should probe the role another company Shyam Telelink Ltd, which had got licences, during the tenure of former Telecom Minister A Raja, and in which Russian billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov has invested money

'Kalinga Chair' award to Prof Trinh Xuan Thuan of Vietnam

2012-01-05T00:00:00.000-08:00

'Kalinga Chair' award to Prof Trinh Xuan Thuan of Vietnam

Eminent scientist, Professor Trinh Xuan Thuan of Vietnam has been conferred with the prestigious 'Kalinga Chair' award at the 99th Indian Science Congress being held in Bhubaneswar.
Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik, gave away the award marking 60th anniversary of the prestigious UNESCO Kalinga Prize.

The award was given by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in association with Bhubaneswar based Kalinga Foundation Trust and Union Ministry of Human Resources Development and Department of Science and Technology.

Kalinga Chair is awarded to one among the winners of the UNESCO Kalinga Prize and was introduced by the Central Government to mark the 50th anniversary of Kalinga Prize.Thuan was winner of the UNESCO Kalinga Prize in 2009.Eleven former winners of the coveted UNESCO Kalinga Prize were also felicitated by Naveen Patnaik at the function.

Posted 1 minute ago by Nksagar

Oil jumps to above USD 101

2012-01-04T00:00:00.000-08:00

Oil prices jumped to over USD 101 a barrel on Tuesday amid concerns that rising tensions between Western powers and Iran could lead to crude supply disruptions.

By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark crude for February delivery was up USD 2.67 to USD 101.50 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The contract fell 82 cents to settle at USD 98.83 in New York on Friday.

Global oil markets were closed Monday for the New Year's Day holiday.

In London, Brent crude was up USD 2.70 at USD 110.08 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

On Monday, Iran test-fired a surface-to-surface cruise missile, part of 10-day naval maneuvers scheduled to end Tuesday.

Iran's navy chief Adm. Habibollah Sayyari said the test showed the key oil passageway Strait of Hormuz is "completely under our control."

"The ever-growing frequency of intense saber-rattling and muscle flexing between Iran and the US should keep the markets jittery and vulnerable to sudden price jumps," analysts at JBC Energy in Vienna said.

Iran has threatened to close the strait, where one-sixth of global crude exports pass, as possible retaliation to new US economic sanctions over Iran's nuclear programme.

"Renewed rhetoric out of Iran could force another rush of geopolitical risk premium into the market," energy consultant Ritterbusch and Associates said in a report.

Optimism over survey data from China and India indicating expansion in the manufacturing and services sectors helped allay concerns about demand in emerging markets, while crude prices also benefited from a weaker dollar, which makes the commodity cheaper and a more attractive investment for traders holding other currencies.

35 member business delegation Saudi Arab;visiting;FICCI, Federation House, New Delhi

2012-01-03T20:23:00.000-08:00

35 member business delegation Saudi Arab isvisiting Indiain January, 2012. On this occasion FICCI is organizing business tobusiness meetings with the visiting delegation as per the following schedule:

Date: January 4, 2012

Time: 10:30 a.m.

Venue: FICCI, FederationHouse, New Delhi

TheBusiness Delegation is drawn from the Sectors like: Engineering, Oil& Gas, Drilling, Construction & Infrastructure, Project Development,Consultancy, Mergers & Acquisitions, Telecommunications, Instrumentation& Plant Automation, Power Systems & Transmissions, Renewable energy,Cement & Ales, Mining (Gold, Copper, Salt & Refinery), Real Estate,Hotels, Restaurants, Investment & Trade, Building Material &Sanitary Products, Industrial Projects (Stainless Steel , Electricity, PowerSupply, Transportation & Agriculture), Stainless Steel, AgricultureMachinery, Poultry Farming, Packaging, Clothing, Shoes, Gifts Items, Leather& Accessories, Carbonated Drinks, Frozen Foods, Sweets, Aluminum Cans, IceCream, Juices, Artificial Turf, Environment De-polluting, Alternative Energies, Office Furniture, Fire Safety & Security Equipment, Household &Kitchen Ware Utensils, Melamine & Plastics, Tempered Glass, GeneralTrading, Electrical & Mechanical Equipments, Cable Management System,Information Technology & Hardware, Travel & Tourism, Hospital Operations,Education, Research & Development etc.

There isa registration fee of Rs.1000/- to attend the meeting. There is no fee forB2B portal subscribers.

Kindly log on to http://www.ficci-b2b.com/forthcoming.asp and register your nameONLINE (Registration Link can be accessed by both Subscribers & NonSubscribers). The composition of the Business Delegation can be accessed usingthe above-mentioned link.

Thelast date of the registration is 31^st Dec, 2011.

Iran tests missiles near key oil-transit strait

2012-01-03T19:47:00.000-08:00

Iran on Monday tested missiles near the Strait of Hormuz, underlining its threats to close the vital oil-transit waterway as the West prepares to impose more economic sanctions.

The launch of two missiles took place on the final day of war games in waters east of the strait at the entrance to the Gulf, a navy spokesman, Commodore Mahmoud Mousavi, was quoted as saying by official media.
Another missile was also to be tested, he said.
The longest range of the missiles tested today was some 200 kilometres. Yesterday, a medium-range surface-to-air missile was also test-fired during the exercises, according to Mousavi.
The show of military muscle was designed to show Iran's ability to close the Strait of Hormuz -through which 20 per cent of the world's oil flows if it chooses.
The United States, which keeps its Fifth Fleet based in the Gulf, has warned it will not tolerate a closure of the strategic channel.
Halfway through the 10 days of Iranian navy manoeuvres it sent an aircraft carrier, the USS John C Stennis, through the strait on what the Pentagon said was a "routine" passage.
But Iranian political and military officials insist they could take that drastic step if the West imposes more sanctions, on top of others that have already taken their toll on Iran's oil-dependent economy.
US President Barack Obama imposed pressure at the weekend, signing into law new unilateral sanctions targeting Iran's central bank and financial sector.

Israeli and Palestinian meet for peace

2012-01-03T05:19:00.000-08:00

JERUSALEM: Israeli and Palestinian negotiators to meet this week after more than a year of deadlocked peacemaking, officials said on Sunday, but both sides played down prospects of any imminent resumption of talks.Yitzhak Molcho of Israel and Palestinian counterpart Saeb Erekat will meet on Tuesday in Jordan alongside representatives of the Quartet of Middle East mediators - the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations.An official Israeli government representatives will meet with Palestinian officials in Amman on Tuesday, at the behest of King Abdullah of Jordan. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's special envoy expected to discuss security arrangements and border issues with chief PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat.Issac Molho, is expected to discuss security arrangements and border issues with chief PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat, with the participation of Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh, who will mediate between the parties.
Palestinian sources stressed that they have no expectation of a diplomatic breakthrough in the short term, both because of the composition of the Israeli government and because of the U.S. presidential election campaign that is starting to get under way. They believe that there will be no progress in peace negotiations until after the American election in November.

Negotiations stalled in late 2010 after Israel refused to renew a partial freeze on Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank as demanded by the Palestinians.Palestinians say they cannot negotiate while Israel builds settlements on land where they intend to found a state. Israel says talks should have no preconditions.

Kayed said the Israelis and Palestinians would meet bilaterally as well as with the Quartet, "to build upon" their respective contacts with the international brokers.

This year was difficult one-2011:PM

2012-01-01T00:17:00.000-08:00

Dr MM Singh said, "The year that has just ended was a very difficult year for the world" and in this regard cited the economic crisis, socio economic tensions, "political upheavals in many developing countries" and "a revolution of rising expectations fostered by the extraordinary reach of the electronic media and the connectivity provided by new social networking platforms."
These issues kept governments around the world "on their toes", he said, adding that "we in India have had our share of problems."
Talking in the context of India specifically, Singh said the economy slowed down, inflation edged up and "concern about corruption moved to the centre stage".
Counselling against despondency, he said, "we must address the new concerns that have arisen while remaining steadfast in our commitment to put the nation on a development path which ensures rapid, inclusive and sustainable growth".
"I want to assure you all on this New Year's day that I personally will work to provide an honest and more efficient government, a more productive, competitive and robust economy and a more equitable and just social and political order."
Singh, who was one of the architects of liberalisation initiated in 1991, said that process was aimed at freeing the citizens from the "dead weight" of bureaucracy and corruption.
"...Old forms of corruption have vanished, new forms of corruption have emerged which need to be tackled. Elimination of corruption is critical to support genuine entrepreneurship," he said, adding "It is also the demand of the ordinary citizen who encounters corruption all too often in everyday transactions with those in authority.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

2011-12-31T03:22:00.000-08:00

Rotate photo View full size

Cyclonic storm “Thane” hits Tamil Nadu coast near Puducherry

2011-12-30T09:00:00.000-08:00

The cyclonic storm “Thane” has crossed the Tamil Nadu shore hitting landmass between Cuddalore and Puducherry Friday morning.

The storm claimed two lives and left a trail of destruction in union territory of Pudducherry.

The two causalities were due to house collapse. A few houses in the coastal areas collapsed and a several others damaged under very strong winds with a speed of about 140 kmph.

Puducherians woke up to see their historic place virtually turned into a ghost town, with a large number of trees, high mast lamps, traffic signals and transformers uprooted across the roads.

Sivagiri pilgrimage begins in Kerala

2011-12-30T08:33:00.001-08:00

79th Sivagiri pilgrimage begins in Kerala

In Kerala, the 79th Sivagiri pilgrimage has been inaugurated by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy at Varkala on Friday at a mammoth gathering. Recalling the priceless contribution of Sree Narayana Guru in bringing about social reformation in Kerala, the Chief Minister said that the Guru harmoniously combined spiritual and material thoughts.

Chandy said a number of developmental activities will be taken up in Shivagiri. Swami Prakashananda, Union Minister K .V. Thomas, KPCC President Ramesh Chennithala and a host of eminent persons graced the function.

Sagar31news _Lokpal and Lokayukta Bill, 2011

2011-12-29T09:04:00.000-08:00

India-Japan 60th Anniversary Global Partnership

2011-12-28T22:05:00.001-08:00

Vision for the Enhancement of India-Japan Strategic and Global Partnership upon entering the year of the 60th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations

December 28, 2011

1. The Prime Minister of Japan, H.E. Mr. Yoshihiko Noda, is currently paying a State Visit to India for the Annual Summit of the Prime Ministers on 27-28 December 2011 at the invitation of the Prime Minister of India, H.E. Dr. Manmohan Singh. The two Prime Ministers held extensive talks on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest on 28 December 2011.

2. In the context of the two countries commemorating the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2012, the two Prime Ministers reaffirmed that India and Japan enjoy deep mutual understanding and vibrant people-to-people contact as the relationship is based on universal values such as democracy, human rights and rule of law, as well as wide-ranging strategic and economic interests. They stressed the need to enhance the Strategic and Global Partnership for peace and prosperity.

3. Prime Minister Noda expressed, on behalf of the Government and people of Japan, his profound gratitude for the heartfelt sympathy and support extended to them from the Government and people of India following the Great East Japan Earthquake, and emphasised his resolve to make utmost efforts for a reconstruction open to the world. Prime Minister Singh reiterated his solidarity with Japan and expressed his confidence that the people of Japan will overcome the calamity with their unwavering spirit and that Japan’s economy will recover to its full strength soon. Prime Minister Singh welcomed Japan’s initiative to strengthen international cooperation in the area of disaster risk reduction, including the holding of an international conference in the Tohoku region in 2012. Prime Minister Noda conveyed his decision to invite approximately six hundred Indian youth under the new “Kizuna (bond) Project” aimed at promoting global understanding of Japan’s revival in response to the Great East Japan Earthquake. Prime Minister Singh welcomed the project and assured cooperation by the Government of India for its success

4. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed the significance of Annual Summits between them. They expressed satisfaction at Ministerial-level and other policy dialogues such as those between Foreign Ministers and Defense Ministers. They noted that the Ministerial Level Economic Dialogue, to be held at the earliest possible opportunity in 2012, would further enhance their economic partnership by giving it strategic and long-term policy orientation. The two Prime Ministers expressed hope that the India-Japan Ministerial Business-Government Policy Dialogue between the Minister of Commerce and Industry of India and the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan will be held in 2012. The two Prime Ministers stressed the importance of various working-level discussions between the two countries, and welcomed the launch of the India-Japan-US trilateral dialogue, which would deepen strategic and global partnership amongst the three countries.

5. Recognising the growing security and defense cooperation between the two countries, the two Prime Ministers welcomed the bilateral exercise between the Indian Navy and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force to be held in 2012.

6. The two Prime Ministers welcomed the entry into force of India-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on 1 August 2011. Asserting that CEPA is an important milestone in the trade and economic relations between the two countries, they expressed hope that CEPA will further deepen their economic engagement in terms of trade in goods, services, investment and contribute immensely to mutual prosperity.

7. The two Prime Ministers welcomed the commencement of negotiations on an agreement between India and Japan on Social Security, which will contribute to the promotion of economic activities by private sectors of both countries. They instructed their relevant authorities to work towards an early conclusion of the negotiations.

8. Prime Minister Singh expressed his appreciation to the Government and the people of Japan for their unwavering support to India's development, even in the midst of Japan’s reconstruction efforts following the Great East Japan Earthquake. Prime Minister Noda reaffirmed that the Government of Japan would continue to provide its Official Development Assistance (ODA) at a substantial level to encourage India’s efforts towards social and economic development including in the area of infrastructure development. In this context, Prime Minister Noda pledged that the Government of Japan would extend loans totaling 134.288 billion yen to two new projects, namely, “Delhi Mass Rapid Transport System Project Phase III” and “West Bengal Forest and Biodiversity Conservation Project” as the projects of first batch in the fiscal year 2011. Prime Minister Singh appreciated the commitment by Prime Minister Noda.

9. The two Prime Ministers emphasised the importance of an early realisation of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) which runs through the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) with Japan’s support. In this context, both sides will expedite work on Phase II of the DFC with a view to starting implementation of the project as early as possible.

10. The two Prime Ministers shared the vision for the development of the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) that the governments and private sectors of the two countries cooperate in a mutually complementary manner to develop an environmentally sustainable, long-lasting and technologically advanced infrastructure in the region of DMIC. The two Prime Ministers welcomed the launch of a 9 billion dollar India-Japan DMIC facility. Noting the significant progress made by India’s contribution of a 175 billion rupee fund for development of trunk infrastructure, Prime Minister Noda announced the intention of the Government of Japan to make available for DMIC projects Japan’s public and private finance totaling 4.5 billion dollars in the next five years, which includes appropriate financing from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) as well as ODA loan. The two Prime Ministers felt that the DMIC Project would redefine the character of infrastructure growth in India through advanced technology and green growth.

They also felt that active involvement of Japanese agencies and companies would provide an impetus for the development of DMIC. Towards this end, they welcomed Japan’s active involvement through equity participation in DMIC Development Corporation (DMICDC) as well as provision of technical expertise, board members and experts. In order to effectively utilise the facility and to facilitate investments by Japanese companies, India will endeavour to resolve issues within the existing regulatory framework and guidelines of capital regulations, and an inter-departmental consultation mechanism will also be established by India to provide expeditious solutions to issues raised by Japan during the course of implementation of the DMIC Project. To meet the energy requirements in the DMIC region, adequate gas for power projects of DMIC would be made available at reasonable rates and in a timely manner. They expressed satisfaction at the steady progress of the individual Early Bird Projects and Smart Community Projects in the DMIC. In particular, the two Prime Ministers decided to accelerate the efforts by the relevant authorities for an early realisation of the following projects: seawater desalination at Dahej, Gujarat; a microgrid system using large-scale photo-voltaic (PV) power generation at Neemrana Industrial Area in Rajasthan; and gas-fired independent power producer (IPP) in Maharashtra, recognising their potential to serve as a successful model of India-Japan cooperation on the DMIC.

11. The two Prime Ministers stressed the importance of infrastructure development in the areas between Chennai and Bengaluru, where an increasing number of Japanese companies including SMEs have made direct investments to establish their manufacturing base or other forms of business presence. Against this background, they decided to strengthen efforts to improve infrastructure such as ports, industrial parks and their surrounding facilities in Ennore, Chennai and the adjoining areas. Prime Minister Noda conveyed Japan’s intention to extend financial and technical support to the preparation of India’s Comprehensive Integrated Master Plan of this region based on which planned development and work on related facilities could be taken up expeditiously. The two Prime Ministers directed their officials concerned to speedily operationalise the modalities for preparation of the Comprehensive Integrated Master Plan and get it completed at the earliest.

12. Prime Minister Noda expressed his desire that Japan’s technologies and expertise be utilised in the development of India’s high-speed railway system. Prime Minister Singh welcomed Japan’s interest in promoting the development of high-speed railway system in India.

13. Recognising the importance of upgradation of speed of passenger trains to 160-200 kmph on existing Delhi-Mumbai route of the western leg of the Golden Rail Corridor for India’s economic development, the two Prime Ministers looked forward to continued cooperation. They welcomed the progress of pre-feasibility study with Japan’s financial and technical assistance, and expressed hope that the final report will be ready by February 2012 and feasibility study of the project will be undertaken with Japan’s cooperation in 2012.

14. The two Prime Ministers recognised the importance of cooperation in the development of expressways in India including through capacity building.

15. Amid global economic uncertainties, ensuring the stability of the financial markets is all the more important for the stable economic development of the two countries. To this end, the two Prime Ministers decided to enhance the earlier bilateral currency swap arrangement from 3 to 15 billion US dollars. The two Prime Ministers expressed hope that this enhancement will further strengthen financial cooperation, contribute to ensuring financial market stability and further develop growing economic and trade ties between the two countries.

16. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed the importance of civil nuclear cooperation between the two countries. Prime Minister Noda stated that Japan would provide information with transparency regarding the status of the ongoing investigation on the causes of the nuclear accident at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, as well as its efforts to enhance nuclear safety. The two Prime Ministers welcomed the progress made to date in negotiations between India and Japan on an Agreement for Cooperation in the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy, and directed their negotiators to exert further efforts towards a conclusion of the Agreement, having due regard to each side’s relevant interests, including nuclear safety. In this regard, Prime Minister Noda explained Japan’s position.

17. The two Prime Ministers reiterated the importance of energy cooperation. In this context, they expressed hope that the 5th meeting of the India-Japan Energy Dialogue will be held in 2012.

18. Recognising the importance of rare earths and rare metals in industries of both countries, the two Prime Ministers decided to enhance bilateral cooperation in this area by enterprises of their countries. They decided that Indian and Japanese enterprises would jointly undertake industrial activities to produce and export rare earths at the earliest.

19. The two Prime Ministers welcomed the progress made in 2011 on facilitation of trade in high technology between the two countries. They asked the relevant authorities to maintain dialogue to maximise the potential of high technology trade keeping in mind the strategic partnership between the two countries.

20. The two Prime Ministers welcomed progress on bilateral engagements in Science and Technology (S&T), including the India-Japan Cooperative Science Programme. The maturity of the S&T relationship is reflected in the cutting edge joint R&D projects being implemented in frontier areas like molecular sciences, advanced materials including surface & interface sciences, modern biology & biotechnology, astronomy & space sciences, and manufacturing sciences. The establishment of a beam-line facility at the Photon Factory of KEK, Tsukuba preferentially for use by Indian researchers in the area of material sciences is another aspect of the mature S&T relationship. The two Prime Ministers welcomed the developments under “Committee on India-Japan ICT (Information and Communication Technology) Strategy for Economic Growth”, including joint researches in the fields of mobile broadcasting and e-learning systems. They shared the view that they will further enhance business tie-ups, explore opportunities for Japanese industries in electronics system design and manufacturing in India, collaborative R&D activities and policy cooperation in the field of ICT including smart network and digital contents, through close bilateral cooperation.

21. The two Prime Ministers welcomed the expansion of India-Japan collaboration for the development of the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad (IIT-H) including campus development, and the steady progress in the establishment of the Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing Jabalpur (IIITDM-J) with Japan’s support. The two Prime Ministers appreciated the progress of the Visionary Leaders for Manufacturing (VLFM) Programme and acknowledged that the programme not only helps India’s manufacturing sector but has become a showcase of bilateral cooperation between the two countries. They welcomed the extension of the programme till March 2013. The two Prime Ministers noted with satisfaction that since 2007, approximately 2,300 Indian youth have visited Japan through “Japan-East Asia Network of Exchange for Students and Youth” (JENESYS) programme, and expressed their resolve to continue efforts to facilitate people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

22. The two Prime Ministers expressed their expectation that the strengthening of cooperation in creative industries, which range from design, apparel, fashion, food, house-hold goods, music, movies, animation and manga, and traditional craft, would further promote and deepen mutual understanding of the two countries.

23. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed their support for the East Asia Summit (EAS) as a forum for dialogue on broad strategic, political and economic issues of common interest and concern with the aim of promoting peace, stability and economic prosperity in East Asia. They acknowledged the significant role the EAS can play as a forum for building an open, inclusive and transparent architecture of regional cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. They welcomed the participation of the United States of America and the Russian Federation in the EAS. They expressed support for the EAS as a Leaders-led forum with ASEAN as the driving force. In the context of the Declaration of the East Asia Summit on the Principles for Mutually Beneficial Relations and the Declaration on ASEAN Connectivity adopted at the 6th EAS, the two Prime Ministers reiterated their commitment to the promotion of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership in East Asia (CEPEA) as a step towards attaining economic integration in East Asia. They also welcomed the progress to establish ASEAN Plus Working Groups and decided to cooperate in the Groups. They also expressed their support for ASEAN Connectivity and considered the possibility of having a “Connectivity Master Plan Plus” which would develop further linkages between ASEAN and its partners, with appropriate reference to the “Comprehensive Asia Development Plan”, and welcomed support and inputs from Economic Research Institute of ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) for attaining economic integration in East Asia. They noted with satisfaction that CEPA between India and Japan is an important step for regional integration.

24. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed the commitment of India and Japan, as two maritime nations in Asia, to the universally-agreed principles of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and other relevant international maritime law. They affirmed expansion of cooperation in maritime security including safety and freedom of navigation and anti-piracy activities, by promoting bilateral and multilateral exercises, and through information sharing, as well as dialogues. In this context, they also welcomed the joint exercise between the Indian Coast Guard and the Japan Coast Guard to be held in January 2012.

25. The two Prime Ministers appreciated the progress made with regard to the establishment of the Nalanda University and reiterated their support to its revival as an icon of Asian renaissance and as an international institute of excellence. India welcomed Japan’s intention to provide tangible contribution to this initiative including through measures to enhance academic exchange and human resource development.

26. The two Prime Ministers noted with satisfaction that three rounds of India-Japan Dialogue on Africa have been concluded. They expressed satisfaction that areas of cooperation on Africa have been identified including peace keeping operations and economic development.

27. The two Prime Ministers expressed their commitment to continuing their assistance to Afghanistan so that it would become a stable, democratic and pluralistic state, free from terrorism and extremism. They emphasised the importance of a coherent and united international commitment to Afghan-led initiatives, in order to make transition irreversible through reconciliation and re-integration, sustainable development and regional cooperation, while adhering to the principles expressed in the Bonn Conference. In this context, Prime Minister Singh welcomed Japan’s intention to host a ministerial conference in Tokyo in July 2012. The two Prime Ministers pledged to explore opportunities for consultation on their respective assistance projects, including those projects implemented in the neighbouring countries, that advance Afghanistan’s mid- and long-term development and build its civilian capacity.

28. The two Prime Ministers condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, committed by whomever, wherever and for whatever purpose. Prime Minister Noda strongly condemned the terrorist attacks in Mumbai on 13 July 2011 and in Delhi on 7 September 2011. They resolved to develop greater cooperation in combating terrorism through sharing information and utilising the India-Japan Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism, as well as cooperation in multilateral forums such as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum (GCTF). Reaffirming the importance of counter-terrorism cooperation at the United Nations, the two Prime Ministers recognised the urgent need to finalise and adopt the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism in the United Nations and called upon all States to cooperate in resolving the outstanding issues expeditiously.

29. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed their shared commitment to the total elimination of nuclear weapons. Prime Minister Noda stressed the importance of bringing into force the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) at an early date. Prime Minister Singh reiterated India's commitment to a unilateral and voluntary moratorium on nuclear explosive testing. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to working together for immediate commencement and an early conclusion of negotiations on a non-discriminatory, multilateral and internationally and effectively verifiable Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT) in the Conference on Disarmament, bearing in mind the United Nations General Assembly resolution on “Treaty banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices” (A/RES/66/44). They decided that both countries would enhance cooperation in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation through dialogues, including at bilateral nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation meetings as well as at the Conference on Disarmament. They reiterated that nuclear disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation are mutually reinforcing processes. They called upon the need to address the challenges of nuclear terrorism and clandestine proliferation. They also reaffirmed the importance of working together towards the success of the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit in March 2012.

30. The two Prime Ministers welcomed the outcome of the 17th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Durban in December 2011 and stressed the need for maintaining close cooperation to ensure a mutually acceptable outcome of the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action. Prime Minister Noda emphasised the importance of global efforts toward low-carbon growth and climate resilient world, referring to Japan’s vision and actions to that end. In this context, the two Prime Ministers reaffirmed the need to strengthen bilateral and regional cooperation to promote sustainable development, including actions for GHG emissions reductions, promotion of low-carbon technologies, products and services, etc. Prime Minister Singh noted the East Asia Low Carbon Growth Partnership Initiative proposed by Prime Minister Noda at the East Asia Summit. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed that the two countries cooperate with each other for a successful outcome of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in 2012. The two Prime Ministers expressed their hope for the success of the 11th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD-COP11) to be held in Hyderabad, India in 2012.

31. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed their resolve to realise reform of the United Nations Security Council, including its expansion in both permanent and non-permanent categories. They concurred in participating actively on this basis in the intergovernmental negotiations in the UN General Assembly and decided to redouble their efforts, so as to make the Security Council more representative, legitimate, effective, and responsive to the realities of the international community in the 21st century.

32. The two Prime Ministers expressed their resolve to continue to maintain and strengthen multilateral trading system, based on the outcome of the 8th WTO Ministerial Conference held in Geneva this month.

33. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed the role of the G-20 as the premier forum for international economic cooperation that offers opportunities for developed and emerging countries to have discussions and promote cooperation. Considering various risks that the world economy is facing today, they reiterated their commitment to ensure effective implementation of the G-20 Cannes Summit decisions including the Cannes Action Plan, which aims to achieve the Strong, Sustainable and Balanced Growth. They expressed concern over the slowing of global economic growth and tensions in the financial markets due to sovereign risks in Europe. They shared an expectation that the decisions of the European Council of 9 December 2011 towards stabilisation of the financial markets and strengthening of economic policy coordination and governance would be implemented effectively and in a timely manner through coordinated efforts by the European leaders. The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed their commitment made at G-20 Cannes Summit on anti-protectionism.

34. The two Prime Ministers expressed their determination to promote their cooperative efforts in the remaining period for attaining the Millennium Development Goals and even beyond 2015, focusing on individuals and human welfare.

35. Prime Minister Noda expressed his appreciation for the warm welcome and hospitality of Prime Minister Singh and the Government of India. Prime Minister Noda extended an invitation to Prime Minister Singh for the next Annual Bilateral Summit in Japan in 2012 at a mutually convenient date to be decided through diplomatic channels. Prime Minister Singh accepted the invitation with pleasure.

New Delhi
December 28, 2011

Dr. Manmohan Singh
Prime Minister of
the Republic of India

Mr. Yoshihiko Noda
Prime Minister of Japan

International Conference on Software and Information Engineering (ICSIE 2012)

2011-12-28T07:17:00.000-08:00

2012 International Conference on Software and
Information Engineering (ICSIE 2012)
12 to 13 May 2012
Bangkok, Thailand

ICSIE 2012 will be published in the IPCSIT
(ISSN: 2010-460X) as one volume, and will be
indexed by WorldCat, Google Scholar,
Engineering & Technology Digital Library,
sent to be reviewed by Ei Compendex and ISI Proceedings.

The deadline for abstracts/proposals is 15
February 2012.

E-Governance

2011-12-28T06:30:00.000-08:00

Mission Mode Projects (MMP)- 4 New MMPs (Education, Health, PDS and Posts)have been added under NeGP taking the total number of MMPs under NeGP to ThirtyOne (31). Posts has been added as a Central MMP while the remaining three (3)MMPs (Education, Health and PDS) have been added as State MMPs.

Amajor initiative of the Government for ushering in e-Governance on nationalscale, called National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) was approved on 16^thMay 2006. NeGP consists of Mission Mode Projects (MMPs) and program supportcomponents which aim at creating the right governance and institutionalmechanisms, core infrastructure, policies & standards and the necessarylegal framework for adoption of e-Governance in the country. It is implementedat the Central, State and Local Government levels. Significant achievements inthis area are as under:

Electronic Delivery of Services (EDS) Bill provisioning mandatory delivery of all public services in e-mode innext five years has been approved by the Union Cabinet on 20.12.2011 andintroduced in Lok Sabha on 27.12.2011.

CommonService Centres - As on 30^thNovember, 2011, a total of 97,439 Common Service Centres (CSCs) have been rolledout in thirty three States and UTs. 100% CSCs have been rolled out in 13States. A proposal to set up additional 1.5 lakh Bharat Nirman Common ServiceCentres so as to have one CSC in each Panchayat in whole of rural India hasbeen prepared.

State WideArea Networks - The State Wide AreaNetworks (SWANs) are already operational in 29 States.

StateData Centres - The State DataCentres have been made operational in 16 States.

e-District -e-District Pilot project has gone live in 12 States. Scheme for NationalRollout of e-District MMP has been approved. Guidelines for National Rollout ofe-District MMP has been finalized.

Capacity Building (CB) - Under the CBScheme, State e-Mission Teams (SeMTs) have been setup in 32 States and UTs. Over 1000 Government officials have beentrained under Specialized Training for e-Governance Programme (STeP). The firstChief Information Officer (CIO) training for officers of Central and State& UT officials has started on 7th November, 2011.

Standards – To ensure sharingof information and seamless interoperability of data and e-Governanceapplications, Policy on OpenStandards, Biometric standards, Metadata and Data Standards, Localization andLanguage Technology standards, Network and Information Security, DigitalSignature, Quality Assurance, Website Design Guidelines have been notified byDIT.

Mobile Governance - ADraft Policy on Mobile Governance has been formulated.

Japan PM Visit India

2011-12-27T08:28:00.000-08:00

Dec 27_2011New Delhi: Nksagar-Sagar Media Inc:Japan PM Yoshihiko Noda is on his first visit to India as Prime Minister of Japan.Key issues in bilateral talks will be Infrastructure,science and technology and industrial co-operation for exchange of high and green technology.

Civil nuclear cooperation will be high on the agenda in the summit level discussions between Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and his Japanese counterpart Yoshihiko Noda who reached New Delhi this evening.
He will hold sixth annual meeting with his counterpart. AIR correspondent reports that India held three rounds of negotiations with Japanese authority but the talks were suspended due to Fukushima disaster. The two Prime Ministers will also discuss regional issues, including the new developments in North Korea after the death of its leader Kim Jong-il.
This is Mr. Noda's first visit to India as Prime Minister of Japan. He will be accorded ceremonial reception at the forecourt of Rastrapati Bhavan in the morning. During his visit, Mr. Noda will call on Vice President Mohammed Hamid Ansari and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi among others.
He will hold talks with External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna and address a conclave to strengthen India- Japan strategic partnership apart from exchanging views with the Captains of Industry to realize full potential of India-Japan business cooperation.

Sai Stadia to open for Schools, Colleges, Societies, Associations & Federations – Ajay Maken

2011-12-26T05:37:00.000-08:00

Sai Stadia to open for Schools, Colleges, Societies, Associations and Federations at Nominal Charges – Ajay Maken

Shri Ajay Maken , Union Minister of State (I/C), Youth affairs & Sports has announced the opening up of the Sports Authority of India (SAI) Stadia in the Capital for use by Government Schools, Colleges, Universities, State federations, sports associations, Registered societies and clubs at a nominal rate of Rs 1000. While National federations will be charged Rs. 5000 for their competitions, Private institutions and Corporates will also be able use the Sporting infrastructure at premium charges, Shri Maken said this at a press conference here today. Shri Maken underlined that the use thereof will remain restricted to Sporting events, competitions and activities. He however added that the weight lifting auditorium in the JLN Stadium Complex will be opened for non-sporting activities and the tariff and other conditions for the same were in the process of being worked out.

After opening up of the SAI Stadia for the use of children, students and the people at large under the Come & Play scheme- an initiative that saw about 13,000 sports enthusiasts participating in various sports like Swimming, Hockey, Cricket, Badminton, Cycling, Gymnastics and Shooting etc- in May this year, the current proposal will firmly put the legacy utilization plan for the CWG 2010 infrastructure in the domain of public utilization, Shri Maken hoped.
The Sports minister informed that soon after taking charge of the Ministry of Youth affairs and Sports, he had set up a committee of sports person with Secretary, sports as its chairperson to suggest the way forward for the utilization of the CWG 2010 infrastructure, and it was in line with its recommendations that these initiatives were being taken.
It was decided that the Stadia will be used for,
1. People at large under the Come & Play Scheme.
2. Holding of Competitions by Schools, Colleges and other stake holders and
3. Establishing Training Centres/ Academies for various disciplines.

The Come & Play scheme was not only running successfully in the Capital but had also been introduced in over 80 SAI facilities across the Country. A national level competition of the participants of the scheme was also scheduled to be held in Delhi in January next year. Similarly, the SAI governing body had approved the setting up of Centre for training in Hockey at a cost of Rs 25 Cr in the MDC National Stadium Complex.

It has been now decided to open up these Stadia complexes for Sporting activities and a detailed tariff structure has been finalized which is available on the website of Sports Authority of India www.sportsauthorityofindia.nic.in. The detailed category wise tariff is available as Annexure.

The response of various organizations for making use of the Stadia for sporting activities has been very encouraging and some of the events which have already taken place or are planned in the future are as follows:

JLN Stadia Complex: Airtel Half Marathon, Air Force Station Sports Control Board, All India Football Federation for SAFF Championship, AIFF for International Football match between Bayern Munich and best of India, Delhi Police, Indian Navy Sports Control Board, YMCA, Father Angel School etc.

MDC National Stadium: LB Shastri Hockey Tournament, JL Nehru Hockey Tournament, National Camps for Men and Women, PNB Team coaching, Olympic Qualifier Tournament, International matches between India and South Africa/Azerbaizan etc.

IG Stadia Complex: Asian Junior Chess Championship, National Sub-Junior Badminton Championship, National Camp for Basketball for Junior/ Senior both Men and Women, National Camps for Gymnastics for both Men and Women etc.

Dr SPMSPC: National Swimming Coaching Camp, Delhi State Sub- Junior/Junior Aquatics Championship, Delhi State Open Tiny Tot Swimming Championship, Delhi State Swimming Championship, Delhi State Veteran’s Swimming Championship, KVS National Swimming Sports Meet for Girls etc.
KSSR: National Camp for Men and Women in all events, Haryana State Shooting Championship etc.

Click here to see Annexure

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T10:10:00.000-08:00

Christmas being celebrated across the globe

Christmas festivities have gripped the country and abroad as thousands of Christian pilgrims and tourists from around the world are flocking to Bethlehem, where Jesus Christ was born more than two thousand years ago.

Celebrations there will culminate in Midnight Mass at the 1,700-year-old Church of the Nativity, built on the spot where Jesus was born.

Million Man march at Tahrir Square to protest

2011-12-23T03:00:00.000-08:00

Egypt, a Million Man march has been organized at Tahrir Square in the capital Cairo to protest against the assaults on women during recent clashes between the security forces and the protesters. The rally named,” The Restoration of Honor,” is in protest of the assault on women last week. Video footage showing Egyptian soldiers beating women and throwing them had surfaced during recent protests in Cairo.

However, Muslim Brotherhood says it is against preponing the Presidential elections to end the military rule as it will create chaos.

The youth activists are demanding that presidential elections be held on 25th January and the new president should be sworn in on 11 February to coincide it with the stepping down of Mubarak regime on the same day a year ago.

Employment to Skilled Work Force on Priority Basis

2011-12-22T07:55:00.000-08:00

Ministry of Labour & Employment22-December, 2011 14:57 IST Consultative Committee Meeting of the Ministry of Labour & Employment Emphasises Upon Providing Employment to Skilled Work Force on Priority Basis
The Consultative Committee members of the Ministry of Labour & Employment have called for providing employment on priority basis to the work force trained by the various skill development institutes under the administrative ambit of the Ministry. The request came during the meeting of the Consultative Committee of the Ministry of Labour & Employment held in the Parliament Annexe yesterday. Union Labour & Employment Minister Shri Mallikarjun Kharge while chairing the meeting on this said a holistic approach to skill development is necessary so that training imparted is according to national standards, of quality excellent and can meet the specific needs of various sectors of economy.
Shri Kharge said a low-skill, low-productivity, low-wage economy is unsustainable in the long run. It is also contrary to the poverty reduction paradigm. There is a vicious circle of low education, low skill, low productivity , poor quality jobs and low wages that traps the working poor. This also negatively affects the competitiveness of enterprises and their capacity to contribute to economic and social development. Within this vicious circle, skills development is an essential factor for achieving the objective of decent work both by increasing productivity and sustainability of enterprises and improving the working conditions and employability of workers.
The Minister said, in any system, Governments have the overall responsibility of creating an enabling framework to meet current and future skills needs. International experience shows that countries that have succeeded in linking skills to productivity, employment, development and decent work, have targeted skills development agenda towards three main objectives:
(a) Matching supply to current demand for skills;

(b) Holistic approach and effective Policy for Skill Development.; and
(c) Active participation of stake holders, particularly employers.
Referring to the “National Policy on Skill Development” approved by the Cabinet on 23rd February, 2009 he said this policy addresses the need of skill development of a huge population, by providing them with skills that make them employable and help them secure a ‘decent’ job. The Policy has identified the unprecedented challenge faced by India, for skilling or up-grading skills of the youth. It lays down a roadmap for all the Ministries/Departments and State Governments to achieve the vision of the Hon’ble Prime Minister.
Shri Kharge said, the current capacity of skill development in the country is about 53 lakh per annum. Since the Prime Minister has set a target of skilling 50 crore people by 2022 to meet the challenges of India.This is a very ambitious goal. With this challenge in view, there is an urgent need for expansion of Skill Development over the next decade in a big way.
Due to demographic advantage, both in terms of numbers and age, the entire world is looking towards India as a great reservoir of skilled manpower. Therefore, we are taking steps to increase the pace of skill development. We also have to keep pace with technological changes and provide necessary support for skill development as per the requirement of the industry.

Giving an account of the initiatives taken by the Ministry Shri Kharge said many reforms like re-engineering of National Council for Vocational Training by making it a statutory body; design and development of National Vocation Qualification Frame- work and creating a Labour Market Information System by modernizing all the employment exchanges in the country have been initiated by his ministry.

He said to boost skill development in the country, a “National Council on Skill Development” under the chairmanship of Prime Minister, and a “National Skill Development Coordination Board” under the chairmanship of Dy. Chairman, Planning Commission, have been constituted. As apex institutions, they provide policy direction and a coordination mechanism. A “National Skill Development Corporation” under the chairmanship of a leading industrialist, has also been set up under the Companies Act, 1956 to support private efforts in skill development . The Corporation is also setting up Sector Skills Councils for identification of skill development needs and formulating sectoral skills development plans. Sector Skills Councils would also work as a link between trainees and institutes on one side, and Government and industries on the other. State level Skill Development Missions have also been constituted by 26 States and 5 Union Territories. In addition, there are 17 Ministries/Departments/Organizations offering various training programmes to meet the requirement of skilled persons for sectors under their control.
During the 11th Plan period, Government of India has taken a number of initiatives to improve the quantitative and qualitative aspects of skill development. While the numbers of Government and Private ITIs have almost doubled from 5114 to 9404 in the last 5 years, the Government has taken up two major schemes for the modernization of Government ITIs. Under the first Scheme, 500 ITIs are being upgraded, 100 from domestic resources and 400 with World Bank assistance with a total outlay of Rs 1,741. Multi-skill courses have been introduced in selected ITIs by upgrading their infrastructure facility under the scheme. The second Scheme is “Upgradation of 1396 Government ITIs in PPP mode" . This scheme was launched during 2007-08 with an outlay of Rs. 3550 crores for a period of 5 years.
In the last couple of years, the Central Government has released around Rs.3713 crores to State Govts for upgrading ITIs under the above mentioned two Schemes so as to bring about qualitative changes in the ITIs.
Another significant scheme titled ‘Skill Development Initiative’ (SDI) based on the Modular Employable Skills was started in 2007-08 with a total outlay of Rs.550 crores. The scheme offers skill development programmes for early school leavers and existing workers of 14 years of age or above. A total of 6753 vocational training providers have been registered across the country. 1386 course modules covering 60 sectors of economy have been developed. Testing and Certification under the scheme is being done by independent agencies and 36 organizations have been empanelled as Assessing Bodies.
The members expressed concern on the current practice of direct recruitment by the employers byepassing the Employment Exchanges and called for ensuring/prioritizing the employment only through the Employment Offices in the States. In response the members were told that this is happening due to 1996 verdict of Hon’ble Supreme Court that allows the employers to go for direct recruitment. They were assured for remedial measures. The Members also ratified the minutes of the previous meeting and a a presentation on “Skill Development” was made by the DGE&T during the meeting.
The meeting was attended by following MPs: S/Shri R.K.Singh Patel (SP), Ram Sunder Das (JDU), N.Peethambara (INC), Badri Ram Jakhar (INC) and Shri MangalaKisan (BJD). Secretary Labour & Employment Dr. M. Sarangi and senior Officials from the Ministry were present during the meeting.

Mariano RajoySpain's new PM

2011-12-21T19:52:00.000-08:00

Spain's new PM sworn in, names Cabinet

Spain's new conservative prime minister was sworn in on Wednesday and he later appointed his Cabinet, including ministers charged with lifting the country out of its severe economic crisis.

Mariano Rajoy was sworn in as premier before King Juan Carlos. Rajoy then appointed 12 ministers and said close party colleague Soraya Saenz de Santamaria would be government spokeswoman and deputy premier.

Rajoy's Popular Party won a landslide victory in 20^th Nov elections on promises to lift Spain out of economic turmoil.

Spain has a eurozone-high unemployment rate of 21.5 percent, a swollen deficit and a stalled economy after a near two-year recession triggered by the collapse of a real estate bubble in 2009.

Luis de Guindos was appointed economy minister and he will be aided by Cristobal Montoro, who was appointed finance minister.

Rajoy named Jose Manuel Garcia Margallo as foreign minister and placed Jorge Fernandez Diaz in charge of security as interior minister.

Madrid Mayor Alberto Ruiz Gallardon was named justice minister and Pedro Morenes will hold the defense portfolio.

Rajoy and the Popular Party replaced the Socialists, who under Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero had been in office since 2004 but were punished heavily in the elections for their handling of the crisis.

Spain has already made sharp cuts to its national spending and introduced several reforms under Zapatero in a bid to convince investors and the European Union but the measures have so far failed to boost the economy to any great extent.

The country's borrowing costs spiraled amid fears it might need a bailout like Greece, Ireland and Portugal but in recent weeks they have begun to slip back.

Rajoy on Monday pledged more austerity cuts totaling USD 21.6 billion. The conservative leader promised reforms to encourage companies to hire and tax breaks for small and medium-sized firms that make up the bulk of the economy.

He also intends trimming government personnel with a hiring freeze for most civil servant groups.

He is expected to announce further measures on Friday after his first weekly Cabinet meeting.

A property registrar by training, Rajoy held four ministerial portfolios in the governments of Jose Maria Aznar between 1996 and 2004.

He was the party's candidate twice before being elected in Novembe

Chhattisgarh: No-confidence motion defeated

2011-12-20T22:40:00.001-08:00

Chhattisgarh: No-confidence motion defeatedDec 21, 9:52 AMThe Chhattisgarh assembly on Tuesday defeated the no-confidence motion against the 3 year old Raman Singh-led government. The motion, which was brought by the main Opposition Congress, was opposed by 48 MLAs of the BJP and supported by 37 MLAs of the Congress in the 91 member strong Assembly. Chhattisgarh Vidhan Sabha now has 49 members from the BJP, 39 from the Congress, 2 from the BSP and one nominated member. Discussion on the motion went on for three day

Indo-Christian hosted the Parliamentarians’ Christmas Celebration 2011

2011-12-19T01:13:00.000-08:00

Parliamentarians’ Christmas Celebration 2011. The CSF Gen Sec get IICCC Award*

The Indo International Christian Chamber of Commerce (IICCC) hosted the Parliamentarians’ Christmas Celebration 2011, chaired by former union minister, Dhanaskodi Athithan, which was well-attended by a number of union ministers and MPs cutting across party lines. Among the prominent persons seen were - Pawankumar Pansal (Union Cabinet Minister for Parliamentary Affairs), GK Vasan (Union Cabinet Minister for Shipping), KH Muniappa (Union Minister of State for Railways), B. Narayana Swamy (Union Minister of State for Personnel & PMO), Oscar Fernandes (Congress General Secretary), etc. Prominet among the MPs who attended were PC Chacko, Jesudas Selam, Charles Dias, PT Thomas, PJ Kurian, Mohd Kansal, Mohindarkumar Rai, Anto Anthony, Helen Davidson, CM Chang, SS Ramasubbu, Mithlesh Kumar, Rishang Kesing, MS Swaminathan, Shashi Tharoor, KP Dhanebalam, Helen Davidson, etc.

The students of Ryan International School sang Christmas carols, while bishops of various denominations gave the message of love, peace and joy. The objective of the program was to pray that God blesses India to become a prosperous and powerful nation, with peace and harmony among all. It also gave the message that God loves all irrespective of caste, creed, colour or any other distinction. Earlier in the day, Mr. Vincent Pala, Minister of State for Minority Affairs presented awards to select Christians, who served as role model for the community. Some of these are Dr. Augustine Pinto (Educationist), Dharamprakash Sharma (Ex-MP & Author), Anand Varghese (Pro Chancellor, Chennai Hindustan University), Dr. Joseph D’souza (Operation Mobilisation), Pratap Philip, IPS (TN IGP), Joseph Dias (The Catholic-Christian Secular Forum), Franklin Ceasar (Dalit Christian issue),

The following resolutions were also passed to be included in memorandums to be given to the President, Prime Minister and UPA chairperson at the meeting of businesspersons, professionals and institutional heads. The IICCC herein resolves to raise the awareness of the citizens of India and sensitize the powers-that-be at the union and state levels to the following issues in the national interest:

1. The government both at the Centre and State level should provide businesspersons, professionals and NGOs protection especially from ulterior motivated bureaucrats, who create obstacles in their nation-building activities.

2. There is a need for elected representatives, like Parliamentarians and Legislators to execute their responsibilities towards those who elected them, with the knowledge that the Almighty is watching their actions always.

3. The bills or acts which are in favour of the least and the underprivileged sections of society, like the Right to Information, Education, Food, etc. is streamlined and implemented at the central and state levels effectively.

4. There should be no discrimination on the grounds of religion, caste or any other distinction and ensure that the Constitutional freedom of religion is safeguarded and the secular fabric of the nation is strengthened.

5. The special needs of women, youth, children and senior citizens, who are all productive sections of the Indian economy and assets or resources of the nation must be given special priority and their development given greater attention.

6. The issue of Dalit Christians and Muslims which is long pending since almost 60 years be resolved and Other Backward Class (OBC) status be given to minorities, who are economically backward or from the lower castes.

7. We need to ensure better Centre and State relations, in order that maximum benefit flows to the common citizens through proper framing of required laws and rules, avoiding confrontation that is not in the nation’s interests.

8. The governments both at the national and state levels needs to pay special attention to the modern-day social evils and divisive forces that have risen to great heights in the nation, namely – terrorism, communalism, corruption, etc.

The above resolutions were passed unanimously with a voice vote and the IICCC was advised to send the same to the authorities concerned, notably the President, Prime Minister, UPA Chairperson, the concerned union ministers and chief ministers of the states.

PM raises Gorshkov aircraft carrier issue with Russia

2011-12-18T20:46:00.000-08:00

PM raises Gorshkov aircraft carrier issue with Russia

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has raised with Russia the issue of delay in the delivery of Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier to the Indian navy, saying it was important for India that the ship arrives in time.

The Gorshkov issue was raised by the Prime Minister during the 12th Indo-Russian Summit talks with President Dmitry Medvedev at the Kremlin in Moscow on Friday.

Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai told newsmen that both India and Russia were clear that they would take necessary action to ensure there was "no slippages" in the delivery of the aircraft carrier which will be rechristened 'INS Vikramaditya'.

Mathai said Singh told Medvedev that "it is very important for us (India) that the ship arrives in time."According to the Russian side, the delivery would be delayed till 2012.

They also claimed that since last year New Delhi has not made any payments although the extra work to the tune of USD 1.7 billion has been done by the shipyard.

The 44.5-thousand tonner Kiev class aircraft carrier was to be initially commissioned as INS Vikramaditya in August this year under the USD 1.5 billion deal signed in January 2004, which included the refit of the vessel and supply of 16 MiG-29K fighters.

Sea going and flying trials of the refitted aircraft carrier will be conducted by the Russian crew trained on the 'Admiral Kuznetsov' aircraft carrier in service

All India Workshop on Campaign Clean India

2011-12-18T20:18:00.001-08:00

Ministry of tourism is organizing an All India Workshop on “Campaign Clean India” in New Delhi on December 20, 2011. The workshop has been organized to hold wider consultations on the campaign, strategize the campaign as people’ programme, to strive for a synergy of efforts with other Ministries concerned, State Governments, Industry and corporate, other institutions / interested individuals and Schools/ colleges / private institutes, to secure the support and commitment of the regulatory agencies to the campaign, such as the Police and Municipalities to develop implementable program of action and to give the campaign the desired visibility and momentum by taking the media on board.

The Inaugural Session of the Workshop (1030 hrs. to 1145 hrs.) will be graced by the former President of India Shri APJ Abdul Kalam as Chief Guest. Union Minister of Tourism Shri Subodh Kant Sahai will preside over the workshop in the presence of Minister of State for Tourism Sri Sultan Ahmed. Union Ministers like the Railway Minister and Corporate Affairs Minister are also expected to grace the occasion and participate in the workshop.

The Workshop will have participants representing possible action groups on a wide sweep including students, teachers, parent-teacher associations, NGOs, INTACH, Sulabh International, professional bodies, clubs of repute, hotels, hotel associations, MNCs, Banks Adventure Clubs, Adventure Tour Operators, Tour Operators, Domestic Tour Operators, Travel Agents, Transport, Operators, Tourist Guides Federation of India , Representative Associations, media persons, film personalities, travel media, DAVP, print media, TV Channels, Archaeological Survey of India, Municipalities, Police, State Governments, Central Ministries, etc.

The workshop will have five groups : Academic Group, Group of Institutional Volunteers, Travel Trade Group, Corporate Group and Media Group.

In the year 2009, the Ministry conducted an independent study to identify major gaps that existed in terms of infrastructure and service delivery at major tourist destinations. Five destinations having substantial tourist footfalls were selected for the study. In the study, various infrastructure and service related attributes were categorized based on their perceived level of importance and satisfaction levels. The study concluded that both for foreign and domestic tourist, the key factors that were categorized as low in satisfaction and high in importance included , Hygiene and Sanitation conditions in and around the monuments/ destinations, Solid Waste Management around the monuments/destinations, and absence of hygienically maintained public amenities like Toilets

The Ministry of Tourism has all along been alive to and seized of this problem. It has been undertaking a major domestic social awareness media campaign under the brand of “Atithi Devo Bhawah”. Shri Aamir Khan, Film Actor is the Brand Ambassador of the campaign since the year 2008. The campaign is being run on Television channels, FM Radio channels, print and internet media under various themes. These include “campaign against defacement of monuments” and “Hygiene, sanitation and solid waste management”. The campaign has been well received and effective in sensitizing the domestic stakeholders on these issues.

However, it was felt that the social awareness campaign though a step forward was not enough to meet the magnitude and pervasiveness of the problem of lack of hygiene and cleanliness. The need was to put in a comprehensive strategy, in consultation and partnership with the key stakeholders, providing for multi pronged action. Hence, the Campaign Clean India has been proposed.

The campaign will aim at creating a collective mindset of hygiene and cleanliness. It will employ a balance of persuasion, education, sensitization, training, demonstration and regulation for achieving its goal. The approach will be comprehensive and inclusive. It will involve every strata of the society, people of every age, Institutions on a wide spectrum – schools, colleges, NGOs, professional bodies and the governments.

Though, cleanliness is every one’s mandate, the Ministry of Tourism is justified in taking the lead as clean-India is a pre-requisite to achieving the targeted growth of tourism. A time indeed has come to back up the universally conveyed sentiment ‘Atithi Devo Bhav’ with results on the ground and is not dubbed as a mere rhetoric.

Tourism is now being recognized as one of the key drivers of growth and employment generation in the country. Its contribution (both direct and indirect) to the GDP is estimated at about 6 % and it generates over 9 % of total employment in our country. The growing dimension of tourism in the country is evident from the fact Domestic tourist visits (DTVs) increased from 236.5 million in 2001 to 740.2 million in 2010. The Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in the year 2010 were 5.78 million. Foreign exchange earnings (FEE) grew by 18% during the period 2001 to 2010 and stood at US$ 14.19 billion in the year 2010.

However, despite these encouraging trends, the tourism potential of the country, especially in a global context, remains far from realized. This will be evident from the fact that the country attracts only 0.6 per cent of the global tourist arrivals. The scope for growth could thus be phenomenal.

It is in appreciation of this possible growth that the PM’s National Skill Development Council has identified Construction, Tourism & Hospitality, Health care and Information Technology, as sectors for focus for maximum job creation. The Ministry of Tourism envisages a target of 12 % growth rate in in-bound as well as domestic tourists for the 12th Five Year Plan period. It is projected that with this growth rate, the sector will generate 2.5 crore additional jobs.

"Capacity of Indian Ports to Reach 3,130 Million Tonnes by 2020”

2011-12-17T20:43:00.000-08:00

“Capacity of Indian Ports to Reach 3,130 Million Tonnes by 2020”says G.K Vasan Indian ports handled total cargo traffic of around 870 million tonnes in 2010-11. While the major ports handled 570 million tonnes, non-major ports handled around 34% of the total cargo at 300 million tones. Kandla, Vishakhapatnam, JNPT and Chennai handled 48.4% of the major ports’ cargo in 2010-11. Shri G.K. Vasan Union Minister of Shipping said this at the seminar on “Development of Ports in Tamil Nadu” in Chennai today.

Shri Vasan said, about 80% of our total exports is carried by sea, out of which 60% is carried through containerized cargo. Our country enjoys a vibrant port sector comprising of 12 major ports and 176 notified non-major ports. Of the major ports, Chennai port ranks 4th in terms of volume of cargo handled in 2010 -2011, with around 12 % of the total cargo handled. Container traffic has witnessed sizeable increase, especially in the recent years across all major ports. Between 2005-06 and 2010-11, containerized traffic grew at the rate 13% per annum.

The total traffic handled in 2010-11 by Indian ports was 870 million tonnes and is expected to go up to around to 2,495 million tonnes by the year 2020. For the purpose of handling this volume of traffic, the capacity at the ports is expected to enhance to 3,130 million tonnes by 2020. The proposed investment during the next 10 years to create the expected capacity will be Rs.2.77 lakh crores, the Minister added.

Shri Vasan said, “in India, Tamil Nadu has the second longest coastline of 1,076 km next only to Gujarat. The state has 3 major ports and 22 minor ports. It is the only state in India to have 3 major ports viz., Chennai, Ennore and Tuticorin. It is heartening that Tamil Nadu boasts of the only corporate port under the Union Government with Ennore Port Limited being the first Corporate port in the country.”

The Minister referred to certain practical issues like the connectivity and the congestion issues faced by the Chennai Port. He said, in order to solve the problems arising out of these issues, the Government was taking all efforts to speedily execute the Chennai-Ennore Port Road Connectivity Project (formerly EMRIP), the elevated road project from Maduravoyal to Chennai Port, and the setting up of an integrated dry port and multimodal logistics hub at Sriperumbudur for creating off dock space for handling and storing of cargoes, especially for containerisation.

He thanked the Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the Study conducted by them with a detailed analysis of the major and minor ports in the State and the current infrastructure support available, the trends in EXIM trade in the recent past and the future projections etc. The study has also made a comparative analysis with select ports in other states as well as in other countries

Russia to provide additional 42 Sukhoi fighters to India

2011-12-16T23:13:00.000-08:00

An additional 42 Sukhoi frontline fighters will be provided to India by Russia under an agreement inked between the two sides during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit in Moscow.

With this pact, the total number of acquired or contracted aircraft by India in various stages of manufacture of the frontline Su-30 MKI fighters would increase to 272.

The agreement for the upgraded Sukhois was signed by Defence Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma and Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation Director M A Dmitriev in the presence of Prime Minister Singh and President Dmitry Medvedev after their talks at the 12th annual Indo-Russian Summit at the Kremlin on Friday.

The pact, which was among the five agreements initialled between the two countries, came against the backdrop of a crash of an Indian Air Force's Sukhoi-30 near Pune.

The mishap, in which the two pilots ejected safely, raised some technical questions and also led to the grounding of the entire fleet of 120 planes pending investigations.

An Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) and a general contract were signed in 2000 for the manufacture of 140 Su-30 MKI aircraft by HAL.

A 2007 protocol envisaged manufacture of a further 40 aircraft.

Earlier, 50 Su-30 aircraft were purchased in phases prior to signing of IGA and deliveries started in the late 90s.

The latest version is expected to include a new cockpit, upgraded radar and certain stealth features to avoid radar detection.

Significantly, the upgraded Sukhoi-30 MKIs will be able to carry a heavier weapons load, especially the airborne version of the Brahmos cruise missile.

The first delivery of the upgraded Sukhois is expected in 2014 and the last by 2018.

Transcript of PM’s Interview with Russian journalists

2011-12-15T20:54:00.000-08:00

Visit of PM to Moscow ( Russia)Transcript of Prime Minister’s Interview with Russian journalists

Question: You are visiting Moscow right after the Parliamentary elections and on the eve of the Russian Presidential election, which almost coincide with an important date – the 65th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between our countries. Are you expecting any new accents in Russian-Indian relationship and what are their prospects?

Answer: Our relations with Russia have stood the test of time. In the decades gone by our relations have gained enormously in strength. They rest on a firm footing, and I see them expanding and diversifying in new areas in the future. This is because of the rapid progress both our societies have made which has opened opportunities for cooperation that did not exist before. There is also great mutual trust and convergence of views between our two countries. The practice of Annual Summits has played a major role in the evolution of our partnership. The intensity of contacts between us is quite extraordinary.

Today we have a ‘special and privileged’ partnership. It is a partnership which produces concrete results. We have bilateral mechanisms at all levels, governmental as also private. Our cooperation in defence, space, hydrocarbons and nuclear energy has seen steady benefits accruing to both countries. On international issues, there is convergence and commonality of views between India and Russia on major issues like the revival of the global economy, cooperation within BRICS, the situation in West Asia and North Africa and the challenges we face in Afghanistan.

I am looking forward to holding detailed discussions with President Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin on all these aspects.

I believe the time has come to place a much greater focus on the economic aspects of our relationship. Our trade and commercial cooperation needs to be become more contemporary and reflective of our capacities. We are already making efforts in this direction.

Over the last one year, there has been greater interaction in fields like information technology, pharmaceuticals, steel and diamonds. New ideas have been discussed such as exploring the possibility of creating a joint investment fund, studying a possible Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement with the broader Eurasian region, encouraging greater connectivity through the North South Transport Corridor, and linking Indian States with Russian regions. We should build upon these proposals.

[Note : The 65th Anniversary of establishment of India-Soviet Union diplomatic relations falls on April 13, 2012.]

Question: Next year our military and technical collaboration will celebrate the 50th anniversary. How do you assess its importance and what are the main features and major areas of the bilateral interaction in this sphere nowadays?

Answer: Our defence cooperation has always been an important pillar of our strategic partnership with Russia. Russia is India’s largest supplier of defence equipment and a most reliable partner.

Over time the nature of our defence relationship has changed from one of ‘buyer-seller’ to that of being partners in joint development of systems and in research and development. We would like this trend to gather further momentum, and I am confident that we are moving in the right direction. Overall, I see this aspect of our relationship as a mutually beneficial and essential link in our multifaceted relationship.

Question: The recent protest movement in Tamil Nadu has been hampering the timely start-up of Kudankulam NPP. Do you believe that it will not hinder the large scale Indian atomic energy programme, including implementation of Russian-Indian plans in this sphere?

Answer: The protests in Kudankulam reflect the concern among people about the safety of nuclear energy. People are also worried that such plants should not affect their livelihood and environment.

The Government takes these concerns seriously. We have set up an independent group of experts to respond to all the legitimate and genuine concerns and fears of the local people.

If we have to develop nuclear energy in the country it is essential that it is done with the support of the people. In India we are giving the highest priority to nuclear safety. I know that the Russian leadership also has the same priority and has taken several initiatives, including in the international arena, which we welcome.

As far as India-Russia cooperation in the nuclear field is concerned, this will continue and we will fulfil our commitments. India has always regarded Russia as partner who was with us in times of difficulty and even when there were restrictions on nuclear commerce with India. I wish to thank all the Russian experts who are working with us in the Kudankulam project.

Question: Russia is heading for modernization and innovative economic development. India has accumulated great positive experience in this area, including bio-nano-and information technologies. Is India ready to bring them to Russia? Whether Indian leading public and private companies are interested in joining such projects as Skolkovo or establishing joint ventures in advanced areas?

Answer: The Integrated Long Term Programme for Cooperation in the field of Science and Technology is India's biggest scientific collaboration programme with any country. This covers the full range of activities from basic research to developing industrial scale technologies in frontline areas such as nano-technology and biotechnology. Together with Russian scientists and R&D institutions, 500 projects have been implemented so far in a large number of areas.

At the last Summit in New Delhi in 2010, a new Agreement was signed that remains valid for the next 10 years and gives a fresh mandate for creating new innovation-based technology partnerships. A significant new feature of this programme is that it will implement joint mega projects in fields such as sustainable energy, affordable healthcare and informatics.

Both sides are also working to put in place a system to ensure rapid commercialization of R&D that is being done in laboratories. This includes the establishment of India-Russia Centres of Science and Technology in each other countries.

Indian participation in the Skolkovo Innovation Center and the Skolkovo Fund has been discussed between the two sides.

These are important areas and we would like to encourage much greater cooperation in these sectors among our industry associations.

Question: After South Africa’s accession to the BRICS, the forum has not only become more representative but also activated concerted actions in the international arena on burning global and regional issues. What do you think about the role of this dialogue mechanism in the changing world order and in tackling major present-day challenges?

Answer: It was Russia which took the initiative to host the first standalone Summit of BRIC countries in Yekaterinburg in 2009 which I had the privilege to attend. Since then the BRIC forum has been expanded to include South Africa. We have high regard for Russia’s role in BRICS.

The relevance of BRICS to the international order has increased over time. BRICS countries share similar positions on issues such as the reforms of the Bretton Woods Institutions, trade protectionism and the Doha Development Round, achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and support for a multi-polar, equitable and democratic world order.

At a time of economic uncertainty, especially in the Eurozone, growth and prosperity in the BRICS economies can play a significant role in ensuring economic and financial stability at a global level.

The agenda of BRICS has gone beyond the purely economic to include issues such as international terrorism, climate change and food and energy security. The world is also witnessing political and security challenges, especially in West Asia.

It is therefore all the more essential for BRICS countries to closely consult with each other at this time.

India will host the next BRICS Summit in New Delhi in March next year and we look forward to further strengthening our dialogue with all the BRICS partners.

Question: Combating terrorism is the key problem for both India and Russia, which are actively interacting both globally and regionally in this sphere. Which mechanisms of international cooperation – both established and emerging – do you consider most efficient in terms of establishing peace, security and stability in Afghanistan and eliminating the terror threat in general?

Answer: Large multiethnic and open democracies like India and Russia are especially vulnerable to terrorism. We are both united in our strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. There can be no justification whatsoever for acts of terrorism.

We closely cooperate in combating the threat of terrorism both at the bilateral and international levels. Our National Security Councils and special services are in touch with each other. At the multilateral level, we are working together for an early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the United Nations.

Afghanistan is going through a crucial stage of transition. As neighbours, both India and Russia have a vital stake in peace and stability in Afghanistan. There should be regular consultation between our sides on the situation in Afghanistan.

Everyone wishes to see an end to terrorism in Afghanistan, most of all the people of Afghanistan themselves. We should support the people of Afghanistan in their process of transition and nation building and respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan.

Question : One Indian proverb says that managing 1000 people is as hard as managing 3 persons. You have to manage the country of a billion population. What is the core of your approach and what are your main principles in managing this big and great India?

Answer: India is a large country of great diversity and complexity. We are an ancient civilisation but a young nation characterised by a vibrant economy.

Our task in government is to lift the millions of our countrymen out of poverty and to eradicate the scourge of illiteracy, hunger and disease. Our growth has to be balanced and inclusive, benefiting all sections of our society. At the international level, India cooperates with all countries to create an atmosphere that is conducive to meeting our national goals and realising the aspirations of our people. We strive to build peace, stability and harmony in the world.

I consider it a deep honour and privilege to have the opportunity to serve the people of India as Prime Minister.

New Delhi
December 15, 2011

“Global Economic Situation: New Order Emerging?”

2011-12-15T18:29:00.001-08:00

Text of the Speech of Union Finance Minister, Shri Pranab Mukherjee at Conference on “Global Economic Situation: New Order Emerging?”in Delhi Economics Conclave

“Global Economic Situation: New Order Emerging?” in Delhi Economic Conclave, here today.

“I am very happy to be here today at the inauguration of this CII event. I understand this conference, which is being organised as a part of the Delhi Economics Conclave, to dwell on contemporary economic issues and challenges before us, would be an annual feature from this year. I welcome this initiative.

The world economy is facing renewed challenges on several fronts in the aftermath of the global financial turmoil of 2008. The persisting Euro zone sovereign debt crisis has continued to fuel uncertainty in the financial markets, undermining business sentiments globally. Post-financial crisis, the world saw a two-paced recovery with advanced economies growing more slowly than before, while emerging economies like China and India leading the way.

After the initial phase of harmonising the use of macro-economic policy and keeping markets open, countries in the developed and the developing world adopted revival strategies, in keeping with the needs of their respective contexts, though with varying degree of success. Thus, in recent months, while recovery in the advanced economies is showing signs of stalling, there is slowdown in the emerging economies. This does not augur well for the global economy. Indeed, it is becoming one of the most challenging periods for policy makers the world over.

It is in time like these that the need for putting our heads together to come up with practical policy options in addressing the challenges before us becomes vital. Emerging economies including India have a prominent and ever increasing role in the global economic and financial system. Consequently, their intellectual engagement in the field of economic policy analysis also needs to increase. A realignment of how the world integrates various human dimensions, across social, political, and economic spheres, for an interdisciplinary approach to problem solving needs to emerge. Fortunately, we now have the tools of technology and communication to assist in this process. I would like to believe that the idea of having a Delhi Economics Conclave is a step in that direction. India has to make progress as a centre for intellectual discourse and knowledge creation in the fields of economic, financial and social policy-making, to complement its growing economy and role in global policy matters.

As you dwell on some of the policy challenges before us, particularly in the emerging market economies, it is important for us to strike a fine balance between the short run and the long run policy issues and options to help restore market confidence. Post-financial crisis, as the global recovery was taking root our attention was on rebalancing of the global economy, to make the recovery stronger and sustainable in the medium to long-term. In retrospect, perhaps we did not pay adequate attention to internal imbalances i.e. shifting demand back from the public sector to the private. The present indicators show that both private consumption and investment sentiments have weakened. It is this weakening of sentiments that makes it necessary to shift some of our focus back to near term issues even as we recognize that some structural imbalances remain to be addressed.

The economic restructuring process of troubled nations is going to be protracted and would throw up many more challenges over the medium term for the rest of the world. Likewise, the world’s largest economy the US is also struggling with high debt levels and continued balance sheet troubles for firms and households. In fact, the OECD has recently cut its growth forecast for advanced economies over the coming two years. The conditions in the advanced economies have inevitably transmitted to developing economies through various channels including loss of demand volumes, volatile fund flows, fluctuating commodity prices, and others. All nations have become vulnerable to lesser or larger extent. India is no exception although the impact has been relatively muted and macroeconomic fundamental remain strong.

It is necessary in this context for policy makers to send clear signals, mindful of the fact that our options today are much more limited. On the one hand, markets are wary of mounting public debt in the absence of strong growth, which is a long-term issue. On the other hand, strong injections of liquidity by Central Banks seem to have done little to stimulate lending and borrowing, so far. Instead we are witnessing damaging spillover consequences, especially on asset and commodity prices and more recently in the foreign exchange markets that have strengthened inflation in some emerging markets.

The real danger to the global economy lies in the rapid contagion possible through today’s globally integrated financial markets. Imbalances even in relatively small economies can be magnified by integrated financial markets, especially through mechanisms such as the currency unions. We cannot afford to have a piecemeal stop-go approach. A concerted and coordinated response is the need of the hour for the collective global well-being.

The global economy is perhaps better positioned today than what it was in the 1930’s. At the time of the Great Depression, global growth was entirely dependent on industrialized countries fed by raw material producing colonies. The latter were entirely dependent on demand in the former. Both advanced economies and their colonies therefore went down together. The situation today is different. Former colonies are now emerging markets undergoing their own industrial revolutions and with their own endogenous sources of rising demand. Although emerging markets cannot be entirely decoupled in an integrated world, nevertheless this is the main reason why the world continued to grow even as advanced countries went into recession. It is important not to weaken the growth impulse in the new nodes of demand, but should indeed strengthen it.

One way of doing that is to leverage global imbalances to address developmental imbalances. If we need to add demand to the global economy, to offset the moderation of demand in industrialized countries, a good way of doing that is to expand infrastructure investment in developing economies. This suggestion may well be extended to increasing investment in infrastructure generally, and a more liberal flow of technology to developing countries, which in turn could spur output and productivity growth in both advanced and developing countries.

Let me turn to the Indian economy. The challenges facing the country are daunting. The primary challenge is of human development, where India still ranks low in global terms, particularly in critical areas such as infant and maternal mortality, nutrition, and literacy. India cannot afford to relax on its efforts to promote growth and to leverage the fruits of that growth for fostering more equitable and inclusive development. Domestically, the struggle against inflation and tightening interest rate regime has contributed to lowering of growth in demand and investment. The slowdown in industrial growth is of particular concern as it impacts employment.

Despite declining trend, inflation is at unacceptable levels. There are also immediate concerns related to fiscal deficit and current account deficit. Over the medium term, employment creation is a key challenge as some 250-300 million new entrants to the workforce are expected over the next decade or so. Skill development and training efforts will need to be stepped up. Financial inclusion and reforms are high priority and so is infrastructure across all sectors. Challenges of land availability and environmental sustainability have to be also addressed effectively over a longer time horizon.

Innovative remedies would be required to address these challenges simultaneously. The options for fiscal steps as well as monetary measures are increasingly limited. However, there is potential for policymaking in other areas. In recent months, the government has sought to unlock economic bottlenecks through initiatives such as the National Manufacturing Policy, permitting greater FDI in retail sector, Direct Taxes Code, Goods and Services Tax, and various legislations including in the financial sector. We hope that greater consensus on these initiatives will help speed up their implementation.

In today’s context, macroeconomic management can no longer be confined only to economic issues. Economists must also be adept at addressing political and social outcomes of policy decisions. In a complex and interconnected world, it is no longer enough to merely state the desirable steps – we need to go beyond the ‘what’ to also lay out the ‘how’. The success of our navigation through a complex multi-layered environment is what will determine future economic growth and development.

No nation can afford to be insular in its decision-making process. Democratisation demands globally acceptable solutions within the interest matrix of each nation. We need to work together for building consensus within domestic and international communities. For this, a new form of communication and dialogue is needed, between nations, between communities, between political entities, between social classes and economic stakeholders.

Let me conclude by thanking you for giving me this opportunity to share some thoughts. I greatly look forward to the discussions at the Delhi Economics Conclave and await its outcomes with anticipation.”

New Companies Bill

2011-12-14T19:20:00.000-08:00

The Government on Wednesday introduced the new Companies Bill, retaining some contentious provisions like 2 per cent yearly spend on CSR activities and a fix term for independent directors.

According to the Companies Bill 2011, every company with a networth of Rs 500 crore or more, or turnover of Rs 1,000 crore or more, or net profit of Rs 5 crore or more in a financial year will have to form a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Committee, consisting of three or more directors, of which at least one director should be an independent director.

"The Board of every company shall make every endeavour to ensure that the company spends, in every financial year, at least two per cent of the average net profits of the company made during the three immediately preceding years in pursuance of its CSR Policy," the Bill said.

It added that in case the company "fails to spend such amount, the board shall...specify the reasons for spending the amount".

The Bill also limits the term of independent director in a company to five consecutive years.

The independent director can be reappointed on the board after passing of a special resolution by the company and disclosure of such appointment on the board's report.

Further, regarding appointment of auditors, the Bill said that a company will have to rotate an audit firm or an auditor every five years.

Introduced in the wake of the Rs 14,000-crore Satyam fraud, the fresh bill proposes to enhance the accountability of companies, seeking greater disclosure and protection of investors and minority shareholders, the Statement on Objects and Reasons of the Bill said.

In view of changes in the national and international economic environment and growth in the economy, the need was felt to enact a new law, it said.

The Bill was first introduced in August 2008, but had to be withdrawn because of the dissolution of Lok Sabha.

It was again introduced i

$1500b Indian Dirty Money in Foreign Tax Heaven

2011-12-14T18:40:00.001-08:00

$1500b Indian Dirty Money in Foreign Tax Heaven

The Supreme Court of IndiaCourt No.1,New Delhi 110001Petitioner: -Ravinder SinghProgressindia008@yahoo.comPetitioner Respectfully submits,1. That in finding the petitioners behind $1500b Indian Dirty Money in Foreign Tax Heavens are all 70 plus old did nothing earlier when they were in power and had in fact repealed FERA implying the law to deal with Biggest Offenders is toothless considering it was difficult to extradite Abu Salem,2. And that Honorable Chief Minister of Bihar has introduced a new law to Confiscate Property of Corrupt Public Servants and build schools in them,3. And there appears to be Hidden Agenda to pressurize Government of India to let Money Launderers of Dirty Money bring back their ‘Dirty Money’ that in Foreign Accounts Earn No Interest therefore rapidly getting ‘Devalued’, after paying say 20% or 30% tax thus ‘Doubling Their Dirty Businesses’, indirectly legitimizing their past Dirty Businesses also,4. Petitioner an inventor invented a New Fast Strategy to Deal with Twin Problems of $1500b Dirty Money and Punishing Money Launderers – Confiscate the Properties of Money Launderers in India that are surely in excess of $1500b instead of Bringing Back Dirty Money in Their Foreign Accounts.The Procedure and its advantages are –1. Since India doesn’t want ‘Dirty Money’ as National Policy and would takeover assets and properties of Money Launderer in India – Foreign Missions would have no hesitation in giving the full details of the ‘Secret Bank Accounts.’2. When India shall takeover all the Properties of Money Launderers, they would be ‘Out of Dirty Business’ and may prefer to locate out of India to use their Dirty Money and for that India May also give them ‘Exit Passports’. (Britain used to send their hardened criminals to Australia & Indian Political prisoners to Andaman Jail.)3. These two procedures shall ‘Minimize Litigations’ – in Democratic India even petty thieves have to be convicted in courts before putting them in jails that are notorious breeding grounds of criminals.4. India Shall ‘Recover’ much more than $1500b within few months, use the recovered assets to build Hospitals, Colleges, Schools, Hand over factories to MSMEs, IITs, Engineering Colleges and food production units to farmer’s cooperatives. Thus completely Cleaning India of Dirty Money Launderers.Thank you,FaithfullyRavinder Singh*

Reforms do not mean just FDI and FII

2011-12-13T19:48:00.001-08:00

Reforms do not mean just FDI and FII

Posted By Professor Vaidyanathan on December 9, 2011

Whether it is the Pink business papers or Economic experts on TV, the word reform immediately evokes talk of allowing Wal-Mart in retail or increasing the limit for foreign capital in insurance from 26 percent to 50 percent. We have reached a pathetic situation where reforms are equated to FDI and FII only. This shows our mindset which is connected with umbilical cord to London and Washington. Our policy formulators are also US trained and reflect the thinking of the US corporations. If someone says that reforms are far more needed at lower levels then he is painted as Swadeshi left or worse socialist. Actually our economic policy formulation has been hijacked rootless wonders trained in investment banks or think tanks of Europe/USA.

Corporate Sector Focused

Unfortunately the reforms initiated in the early nineties when Manmohan Singh was Finance Minister under PVN have focused only on the corporate sector and Government at the Centre.

The focus of the reforms has been

• Industrial Policy (Licensing, MRTP, FDI)

• Private [Domestic/Foreign] sector in Infrastructure—Ports/ Containers/ Airports/Airlines/Telecom/TV/etc

• Opening up of Defense Manufacturing for Private sector

• FDI in manufacturing/Infrastructure

• Forex & Trade Policy (Negative lists for imports/exports, capital goods imports and customs tariff rates)

• Foreign investments (more than 50% equity allowed, technology imports, usage of foreign brands etc).

• Tax structure (reduction in Tax rates, tax incentives to FII, Reduction in exemption notifications)

• No tax on Dividends

• Capital market (Pricing of shares, Regulations on MB/ MF/ FII/ etc)

• Completely computerized exchanges in Shares/derivatives

• Holding/trading/clearing /settlement all using IT.

• Investments abroad by MF’s /Corporates /individuals

• Banking sector (Interest rates de-regulation, Policy on asset classification and provisioning, Capital adequacy norms, and starting new Pvt. banks)

• Opening up of Insurance Sector

• Moving from Defined Benefit [DB] to Defined Contribution [DC]in pensions in Government sector

We find from the above that the focus of reforms is mainly on the Corporate India and its interface with Government. Most helped crony capital crooks

‘Unincorporated’ India

But the economic structure of India is different from that of the USA. Nearly 65 percent of our GDP comes from partnership /Proprietorship firms or “Unincorporated” India. Contrast it to USA where more than 70 percent is from corporate activities. Less than fifteen percent of our GDP is only from the corporate India even though we spend maximum time and energy in discussing the Corporate India and changes in Sensex. Even in manufacturing activities nearly 50 percent of the share of value addition is from “unorganized” or non-corporate sector

Not only that, the share of service sector consisting of Construction, Whole sale and Retail trade, Transport, Hotels and Restaurant and other services like fitter ,plumber ,carpenter, priest- in our GDP is around 65 Percent and more than 80 percent of the service sector is Partnership Proprietorship firms. Service sector is growing at more than 8 percent real growth rate in the last decade and the India Unincorporated which is the engine of our growth is crying for reforms.

Same thing on employment side. Nearly 90 percent of our economy is self-employed while as nearly 90 percent of US economy is salary-employed. The structure of our economies is totally different and imposing that model here will be disastrous. If one state this bare fact one is considered as “anti-modern” and “traditionalist” and back ward looking or worst “ Swadeshi left”

The Financing of our growth is due to domestic savings which is around 38 percent of our national income. Substantial portion of our domestic savings more than 75 % is due to household savings. And from that point of view average Indian housewife is more responsible for our growth process than the FDI and FII which are considered as all curing Chawanprash. FDI and FII put together is never more than 8 percent of our investment since more than ninety percent of our investment comes from our domestic savings.

Reforms Needed

The actual areas where reforms are needed are

Ø Commercial Tax

Ø Road Tax

Ø Entertainment Tax

Ø Excise duty on liquor

Ø Urban land ceiling and regulations (ULCRA)

Ø Shops and establishments Act

Ø Laws governing educational, medical etc institutions

Ø Money lending regulations.

Ø Stamp duties Act

Ø Food and Adulteration acts—municipalities

Ø Water/Power/Drainage regulations—Acts

Ø Registrations / Contracts act

These regulations pertaining to the activities in which Uninc sector dominates are in the realm of State Governments. There is a need to have an Inter State council only to focus on reforms in all the above mentioned areas instead of just being obsessed with FDI and FII.

When the Tsunami stuck the Indian coast I got lots of mails from Insurance professors abroad about possibility of Insurance companies going down under similar to 9/11 terror attack. But interestingly no insurance company was affected substantially since most establishments were not insured. The reason is that they do not have “clean paper” of ownership. Same is about bank loans against lands and other assets of poorer segment. No clean paper no loans, no insurance. Creating clean paper to establish ownership rights of poor groups is critical for economic growth. Not exotic derivative products which no one understands including those who create them!

We do not want to have basic and important reforms and do not even discuss it since they are not “sexy” and sadly unimportant to the CNBC crowd. We think having more funds from abroad will solve all problems. That is not a sign of free marketer but a sign of sold out sepoy of global capital.

Unless and until we focus on the reforms at the State and lower levels we are not going to sustain our growth rates. We must come out of our thinking on the corporate or put it colorfully “Sensex” economy. Our corporate sector is only an “item number” in our economy full of glamour and that “ooch” factor. But from substance point of view it does not have much importance. Still we as a nation have an uncanny ability to focus on the inconsequential and immaterial and spend lots of time and effort on them and abuse others as Swadeshi left or worst socialist.

Delhi centric reforms can only benefit fat cats and not the most productive sectors and engines of our economic growth namely India “Unincorporated”. They are struggling to get adequate credit at reasonable rates of interest and deal with corruption at the lower levels of our system. What India needs is reforming our reform process to focus on the real India.

_______________

The author is Professor of Finance, Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore.The views are personal and do not reflect that of his organization.

_______________________________________

R.VAIDYANATHAN

PROFESSOR OF FINANCE

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT

BANNERGHATTA ROAD

BANGALORE

INDIA_560076

TEL: 91-80-2699-3086

FAX:91-80-2658-4050

E mail:vaidya@iimb.ernet.in