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Prime Minister meets Kalam
New Delhi, Jun 19 (PTI) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met President A P J Abdul Kalam this evening during which the two leaders discussed issues of national importance.
During the 25-minute meeting, the Prime Minister briefed Kalam about his recent visit to Germany for the G-8 meeting, Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesman S M Khan said.
The two sides also discussed some issues about the rural development, he said.
There was no official word on whether the two discussed the Presidential election. The meeting came a day after the Third Front favoured second term for Kalam and with Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat endorsing the suggestion if there is political consensus. PTI
India, Singapore to set up Joint Ministerial Committee
Jaishree Balasubramanian
Singapore, June 19 (PTI) India and Singapore today decided to set up a Joint Ministerial Committee to give further impetus to the rapidly developing bilateral ties, specially in the areas of trade and economy.
After talks between External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and his Singaporean counterpart George Yeo here, the two sides also announced setting up of a Nalanda University Mentor Group to work out the modalities to restore the ancient seat of learning in Bihar.
The two leaders held extensive discussions on bilateral and international issues of mutual interest during their talks.
The Joint Ministerial Committee will monitor the progress of cooperation between the two countries in various fields and look into the maturity, depth and range of the rapidly developing bilateral ties, Mukherjee told a joint press conference with his Singaporean counterpart.
Describing the agreement as a "landmark" treaty, Yeo noted that it was the first time the two countries had set up a regular forum at ministerial level to discuss and look into the growing bilateral cooperation.
The Indian minister expressed appreciation for measures taken by Singapore towards creating the International University at Nalanda on Buddhist religion.
He said the two countries have decided to set up a "Nalanda Mentor Group" and that Yeo would be a part of the group to guide the project.
Mukherjee also noted that defence cooperation was proceeding well between the two countries with joint exercises taking place. PTI
Siachen nears zero casuality syndrome in two decades
Jammu, Jun 19 (PTI) The Indian Army can now stake its claim to be capable of guarding the highest and coldest battle field, Siachen glacier, with "ease" with only three casualities being reported in the region, a senior official said.
"With better mountain-warfare training and management, medi-care facilities and best living standards, the battlefield casualities are virtually nil. We are nearing the zero casuality syndrome in the glacier region," General Officer Commanding in Chief (GOC-in-C), Northern command, Lt Gen H S Panag has said.
This year there were only three casualties, including that of two pilots, who died in a chopper crash, he said adding one jawan was killed in accidental fire.
It is after two decades of occupation that the army is nearing a zero casualty syndrome on the Siachen glacier, with no casualty being recorded due to cold.
With the availability of state of art medicare facilities, best battle field robes and equipment, high living conditions and Indo-Pak border truce since November 2003, the Siachen casualities have declined.
"Now Indian Army is considered to have expertise in mountain warfare, because of its successful stint in Siachen glacier, which is a live battle field where troops have to fight for their survival," Gen Panag said.
Gen Panag claimed that army is now capable of guarding the Siachen glacier, the strategically important point to India, with ease.
As per statistics, till November 2003, Siachen have had over 2020 casualities, largely due to cold conditions, inhospitable terrains. PTI
Commodity exchange, traders raided by I-T sleuths
Mumbai, Jun 19 (PTI) Income Tax authorities today raided commodity exchange traders all over the country, including 50 locations in the financial capital.
"We have carried out raids on Multi Commodity Exchange and some other places. The raids are on all over India. Investigation is still on," a senior Income Tax official told PTI.
Raids were carried out in the offices of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) and the some trading members, the official said, without giving further details.
Confirming the development, a MCX spokesman said the investigation was routine as part of reconciliation of accounts.
A report from Ahmedabad said, I-T officals raided the house and office premises of a senior MCX official. The raid in Ahmedabad was conducted in connection with the certain discrepencies in the official's tax record, agency sources said. PTI
E-sales to touch Rs 5,500 cr this fiscal: Assocham
New Delhi, June 19 (PTI) With e-shopping gaining more popularity among netizens, the total value of products and services being sold online is likely to grow by 150 per cent to touch Rs 5,500 crore this fiscal, according to industry body Assocham.
"Total e-shopping volumes are expected to grow by 150 per cent to touch Rs 5,500 crore in 2007-08 from Rs 2,200 crore last fiscal....Share of Delhi e-shoppers will go beyond 30 per cent and Mumbai's share would be 40 per cent," Assocham said in a statement.
Delhi and Mumbai e-shoppers population was 20 per cent and 24 per cent respectively in 2006-07, with electronic gadgets, apparel and design, railways, air and movie tickets among the most shopped items on the net.
Changing lifestyles and shopping habits and large number of people and merchants becoming net savvy will be primary reasons for pushing up e-commerce transactions by at least 150 per cent in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Banaglore, Chennai and Kolkata, the statement said.
"Products that will gain popularity in e-sale could include gems and jewellery, online books sale, accessories, apparel, gift products, music and movies, hotel room besides tickets for transportation," Assocham President Venugopal N Dhoot said.
In Chennai, seven per cent of population chose to buy daily routine products through e-commerce in 2006-07, which will go to 11-12 per cent in the current fiscal.
Likewise, Kolkata's share was seven per cent, which might go up another 3-4 per cent, the chamber said. PTI
Thailand invites Indian companies for exhibitions
Kumar Shankar Roy
Bangkok, June 19 (PTI) Thailand is rolling out a red carpet for Indian companies to participate in trade fairs in the country, even as it intends to become a premier exhibition hub in ASEAN by 2011.
"As forces of globalisation intensify...It provides Thailand excellent opportunities to capitalise on its strategic geographical advantage at the heart of a global market place of nearly three billion consumers," Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) Acting Director General Nipat Dithipen said.
TCEB is the government agency which promotes and markets Thai exhibition industry, which has clocked a 10-15 per cent growth in its business from global fairs in the last few years.
The emergence of Thailand, as a 'hub of choice' for Indian companies, especially SMEs and mid-sized firms, is a result of "severe under-capacity" of their home country.
"Indian trade fair business is taking place in substandard facilities," Jochen Witt, President, UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry said.
"As a direct consequence, some of the Indian business is being exported to the Middle East, where top of the class facilities have been constructed over the past few years. However, if the Indians do their homework, we could see them competing with leading trade fair nations," he said.
TCEB said Indian manufacturers and traders coming to exhibitions and trade shows in Thailand can source suppliers for raw materials, upstream products as well as products from major producers spanning a wide range of industries, both from ASEAN and in other regions. PTI
Hyundai Heavy to set up plant near Pune; invest Rs 260 cr
Mumbai, Jun 19 (PTI) South Korean firm Hyundai Heavy Industries today signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Maharashtra Government for setting up a construction equipment plant in the state.
Hyundai would invest about Rs 260 crore in the proposed plant at Chakan near Pune.
The MoU was signed by Maharashtra's Principal Secretary (Industries) V K Jairath and Hyundai Chief Operating Officer K H Park in the presence of Industries Minister Ashok Chavan here. PTI
Emaar MGF, Whitbread in JV; to invest Rs 2,500 cr on hotels
New Delhi, June 18 (PTI) Real estate major Emaar MGF today said it will invest up to 600 million dollars (about Rs 2,500 crore) through a joint venture with UK's largest hospitality firm Whitbread to develop 80 hotels across India.
The company said it has signed a 50:50 JV with Premier Travel Inn, a subsidiary of Whitbread, to set up 80 limited service hotels by 2017 across the country.
"The joint venture is in line with our ambitious hospitality plans and will serve to be a quantum leap for the sector in the country," Emaar MGF Executive Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Shravan Gupta said in a statement.
Limited service hotels are being positioned between a business and budget category and will be developed under the 'Premier Travel Inn' brand, having over 12,000 rooms, it said.
"Our entry into India will fill a gap in the country's hotel market by providing a high quality branded budget hotel product," Whitbread Chief Executive Alan Parker said.
This is the second major announcement in the hospitality sector by Emmar MGF -- a JV between Dubai-based property firm Emaar and capital-based MGF -- after its tie up with ACCOR, a global leader in economy and budget hotels last year.
The partners had said they planned to bring 100 Formule 1 hotels across India with an investment of 300 million dollars.
Premier Travel Inn is targeting a price segment of Rs 2,400 and Rs 3,600 a day to attract business and leisure travellers seeking high quality branded budget hotel accomodation, the statement added.
Premier Travel Inn is UK's biggest hotel brand with over 480 hotels and more than 32,600 rooms. PTI
Jet Airways to mull raising $400 mn
Mumbai, Jun 19 (PTI) Private carrier Jet Airways, which recently acquired rival Air Sahara, today said it plans to raise 400 million dollar (about Rs 1,600 crore).
"The board of directors at its meeting on June 26 would consider issuance of equity shares on a rights basis for an amount of up to 400 million dollar or an equivalent amount in Indian Rupees," Jet Airways informed Bombay Stock Exchange.
The proposal comes close on the heels of Jet Airways buying Air Sahara in April this year and its plans to launch low-cost arm, JetLite, in the next few months.
The company would also consider the audited financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended March 31 and recommend dividend for 2006-07.
The shares of Jet were up 1.06 per cent in intra-day trading at Rs 793.10 on the BSE.
Jet Airways Executive Director Saroj Dutta had said earlier this month the company was open to raise additional resources to fund its expansion plans.
The airline chief Naresh Goyal had said earlier that all necessary government clearances for JetLite had been received and the company might operate JetLite on international sectors in the future. PTI
European Tour event, Khel Ratna recommendation excite Jeev
Amlan Chakraborty
New Delhi, June 19 (PTI) A golfing nomad, Jeev Milkha Singh has been living out of a suitcase indeed, hitch-hiking his way to Asian, European and PGA Tour events across the globe. Little wonder, country's top golfer is excited as back home, Delhi is all set to host a European Tour event early next year.
"I heard the development and can assure you that it's great news for golf in India," Jeev told PTI from Munich, where he tees off this week in the BMW International Open.
Though Jeev did not commit his participation in the watershed event, he did not rule it out either.
"I'm not too sure about the timing of the event and it would depend on my schedule. But if it's in February, it's still a long way to go. This would be a significant development for Indian golf," said an excited Jeev.
In case he turns up to tee off at the Delhi Golf Club for the prestigious event, this would be a welcome break for the glob-trotting Chandigarh golfer, whose Frequent Flyer points keep swelling thanks to a staggering 40-weeks-a-year playing schedule.
"Playing 40 weeks a year in diverse conditions maybe punishing for others but I enjoy playing golf and after all this is what I have opted for. It's not a worry for me. Actually this is the way I prepare myself.
"Some golfers practise hard to finetune their game. But I like to play in more and more tournaments and practise in competitions," he said. PTI
Sania ousted in the first round of Ordina Open
New Delhi, Jun 19 (PTI) Sania Mirza has crashed out in the first round of women's singles event at the USD 175,000 Ordina Open tennis tournament at Rosmalen, The Netherlands.
The Indian ace lost 6-3 4-6 4-6 to Francesca Schiavone of Italy in the close to two-hour battle at the Tier III event yesterday.
Sania's serve was erratic throughout as she committed six double faults in all against Francesca, who got her act together after committing as many as five double faults in the opening set.
Sania was off to a good start and broke Francesca twice in the first set to go 1-0 up but things went haywire for the 20-year-old after that as her opponent staged a comeback.
Francesca broke Sania twice in the second set before making it 1-1 and take the match into a decider.
In the decider, Francesca broke Sania once besides holding her own serve after saving five break points to come out on top. Francesca will now be up against Russia's Anna Chakvetadze in the second round. PTI
Another Chinese athlete faces paralysis
Beijing, Jun 19 (PTI) A national volleyball player, who is an Olympic hopeful, may be permanently paralysed due to neck and spinal cord injuries he suffered during training for a friendly match in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Tang Miao, the second Chinese sportsperson to break his neck in less then a week, was attempting to play a ball that was going out of bounds when he hit a wall last Wednesday, the state-run China Daily newspaper reported today.
Tang was unlikely to play competitive volleyball again, Chinese consular official in St. Petersburg, Li Zhi, was quoted as saying by the paper.
Tang has been a member of the national team for five years and one of the team's key offensive players.
Teenage gymnast Wang Yan, also an Olympic hopeful, had broken her neck in the national gymnastics championships in Shanghai on June 10 when she fell from the uneven parallel bars. PTI
J-K not to hold Santosh Trophy this year, says Minister
Srinagar, June 19 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir will not host the prestigious Santosh Trophy football tournament this year due to clash of dates with the Amarnath Yatra, state Sports Minister Babu Singh said here today.
Singh, however, said that the tournament would come to the state next year.
Since July 10, the proposed date of inauguration of the Santosh Trophy this year, was coinciding with the Amarnath Yatra, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has decided to allot the event to Jammu and Kashmir next year,Singh told PTI.
The Minister said the deployment of a major chunk of security forces for Amarnath Yatra, scheduled to be held from June 30 to August 30, was the reason behind not holding the football tournament.
"AIFF President Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi must have talked to Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad about the availability of security forces to ensure safe conduct of the tournament. Since the focus of the security apparatus would be on the Amarnath Yatra, it was decided that the Santosh Trophy would be held in the state next year," Singh said.
Last month, a high power committee of AIFF, headed by its vice president Subroto Dutta, had visited the venues and had given the nod for holding the tournament.
The Minister said all the arrangements for conducting the tournament this year had been completed.
"All the venues are ready and facilities have been put in place as per the guidelines given by AIFF," he added.
Singh said it had been decided to hold the premier football event of the country in May next year.
Although Jammu and Kashmir had expressed desire to host the Santosh Trophy in 2006, it was turned down by AIFF because of security concerns and lack of proper facilities. PTI
Authors behind report on Chhattisgarh bag UN award
Dharam Shourie
New York, Jun 19 (PTI) A team of authors who investigated the quality of life in one of India's youngest states have been awarded the prestigious Human Development Award of the United Nations.
The independent Chhattisgarh state Human Development Report, commissioned by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and published in 2005, recounts the voices of more than 19,128 villagers from across the state.
It is one of the five reports from around the world which would be lauded at the ceremony tomorrow, taking first place in the category for "excellent in participation".
The team will be joined in the spotlight by four other winning entries hailing from China, Costa Rica and Guinea- Bissau, along with an Asia-Pacific regional report on trade.
The villagers who participated provided detailed information about their experiences, concerns and aspirations, speaking out against inequality in education and health and sharing their local insight -which often contrasted with state views - on such topics as the use of water, forests and land.
The result of the report: more informed debate between all sectors in the young state, according to analysts, and the voluminous data collected is now being used by the Government to better chart Chhattisgarh's future.
"The Chhattisgarh Human Development Report is path- breaking, as it expresses the people's aspirations in their own voice from 19,000 villages," said Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Raman Singh.
"This will help us in evolving a development model for inclusive growth that factors local needs, and at the same time help retain the state's culture and traditional wisdom while restoring the ecological balance," Singh said. PTI
Military must not involve in Bangladesh politics: US envoy
Dhaka, Jun 19 (PTI) The United States has said that it does not want to see any sort of military involvement in Bangladesh politics, as it thinks it will be a mistake.
"We've been pretty straight forward saying that any military personnel can retire or resign from military and decide to take politics, that's their business, but direct military role in politics will be a mistake," the US ambassador in Dhaka Patricia A Butenis was quoted as saying by the private UNB news agency.
"I do not want to see anybody coerced or forced to join a new party, and certainly we do not want to see military involvement in politics. I have made this point before that military should not take any sort of political role," said outgoing envoy Butenis, who leaves Dhaka shortly for her next assignment in Iraq.
The current army backed non-party government was installed to power on January 12, a day after President Iajuddin Ahmed proclaimed a state of emergency scrapping the general elections scheduled for January 22 this year amid heightened political tensions and protracted conflicts between major political parties.
But the country's army chief earlier ruled out chances of military takeover saying they were not the "proper institution" to run the government while it had resisted "all temptations" because as military did not want to be involved in politics or run the government.
"We're encouraged by the steps the government is taking to put reforms in place," Butenis said but warned against any attempt or plan to "impose" changes on political parties. "It was going to have troubles," she added. PTI
US expresses support for Musharraf, but seeks free polls
Washington, Jun 19 (PTI) Maintaining a delicate balance, United States has expressed its support for embattled Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf while stressing the need for "free and fair" elections and more rights for opposition groups.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who met her Pakistani counterpart Khurshid Kasuri yesterday in the backdrop of continuing anti-Musharraf demonstrations in Pakistan and rising demands for a democratic set up, made it clear that the United States is not thinking of abandoning support for Musharraf saying that he is a key ally in the war against terror.
But the United States, she asserted, is "second to none in continuing to press for openness in Pakistan, for the rights of opposition in Pakistan and for free and fair elections." Giving credit to Musharraf for reforms, Rice said Pakistan has come a "very long way" since 2001 in its commitment to try and root out extremism and try to make reforms.
"We have a very intense engagement with Pakistani officials at this important time," she said.
Asked whether she was concerned about the situation in Pakistan, Rice said the United States is always concerned when violence breaks out anywhere.
Rice's remarks, analysts say, show that Washington is no mood to withdraw support from Musharraf despite violent demonstrations and the muzzling the press but it also want to appear to be supporting and seeking more and more reforms and movement towards democracy. PTI
Flood situation worsens in northeastern Bangladesh
Dhaka, Jun 19 (PTI) Heavy monsoon rains and gushing water from cross-border upstream hilly regions worsened the flood situation in northeastern Bangladesh inundating vast tracks of land and snapping road links.
Two major rivers of the region-- the Surma and Kushiara-- were flowing as high as 273 cm and 124 cm above their danger levels at places of greater Sylhet inundating at least 150 villages and forcing thousands of people to take refuge at makeshift shelters like closed schools.
"The people are complaining about severe scarcity of drinking water," a district administration official in Sylhet said.
There are also fears of an outbreak of water-borne diseases in the affected areas, media reports said.
The New Age reported that road communications among different districts and divisional headquarters snapped yesterday as roads in many areas went under knee to waist deep water.
Meanwhile, food ministry officials in Dhaka said the government has decided to import 2.5 lakh tonnes of rice and 1.38 lakh tonnes of wheat to build a sufficient food stock as a buffer against possible contingencies like monsoon flood.
Currently, the government has a buffer stock of five lakh tonnes of food grains as against 8-9 lakh tonnes of stock which is supposed to be maintained as per the food policy, officials said.
Bangladesh is criss-crossed by nearly 230 rivers originating mostly in upstream India, Nepal and China. PTI
Now, resumes that talk!
Heena Jhingan
New Delhi, Jun 19 (PTI) 'Let Your resume speak for you' was considered as the key mantra for jobseekers a few decades back, but in the era of e-recruitment what can actually give a candidate an edge is a "talking resume" or "video resume".
Considering the popularity of such multi-media based CV in US and UK, an Indian jobsite recently launched a free video resume uploading service, the first such service in the domestic market. And now another jobsite is measuring the prospects of this concept and may also soon introduce a similar service.
A video resume which essentially means presentation of an applicant's details and credentials through various media like video and audio might not revolutionise the online recruitment in the country, but experts foresee that is capable of easing out the preliminary selection process. "The concept of video resume is here to stay," believes monsterindia.Com's Vice President Products and Technology Vikas Aggarwal. Monsterindia.Com is the first to launch video resume.
According to Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), the online recruitment market has leaped to Rs 240 crore in 2006-07 from Rs 145 crore in 2005-06. During the same period, says an IAMAI study, the number of online job seekers has grown from 6.5 million to 9.2 million. The online recruitment growth rate is a remarkable 60- 70 per cent. A recent media survey showed that about 87 per cent of recruiters in America would watch a video resume if submitted to them.
Interestingly, it is now a myth that only e-recruitment serves the purpose of a handful in India. IAMAI research says India's Internet users population stands at 38.5 million and is all set to grow to a 100 million by 2007-08. PTI
Kashmir Newsletter: Kashmir, the economy looks up
A M Sofi
Srinagar, June 18 (PTI) Militancy in Jammu and Kashmir may have severely damaged the economic structure of the state but has not been able to decimate it.
While the state remains dependent on the central grants, parts of the economy have not just survived but thrived.
The production and sales of handicrafts and agro-products ensured that the state maintained its economic activity.
The state's infrastructure lies in ruins, more money is being spent on government personnel than on development,there has been flight of capital from medium and large units,small scale sector is plagued by sickness but in the midst of this scenario, exports from the state rose from Rs 150 crores in 1989-90 (when the militancy spread its tentacles), to Rs 1,150 crores in 2005-06. It is likely to exceed Rs 1,500 crores in the current fiscal.
In economic terms the buoyancy in the handicrafts, fruits, horticulture and agro-products, especially carpets, seems to have offset the losses in tourist trade.
This has also removed the myth that tourism is the backbone of state's economy as the tourism in the valley suffered because of militancy.
In the initial couple of years after the militancy set in, the sales of handicrafts plummeted as there were no tourists in the state to buy the products. The traders then spread out and set up a network of shops in the country to sell their wares, experts say.
This was supplemented by the efforts of the government which organized special exhibitions in the cities like Delhi, Udaipur, Chandigarh, Bangalore and Ahmedabad to provide sales outlets to the producers. PTI
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