Archive for February, 2008

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Zardari, Sharif claim majority

Friday, February 29th, 2008
Asif Zardari and Nawaz Sharif have claimed that they have two-thirds majority in the National Assembly and that President Pervez Musharraf should invite them to form a government immediately. The demand incidentally comes after speculation of a deal between President Musharraf and Zardari grew stronger on Wednesday. As per constitutional experts though, they are still eight per cent short of numbers required in order to impeach Musharraf. There are rumours that Zardari and Musharraf have an understanding after the Supreme Court dismissed three petitions challenging the amnesty given to Zardari under the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO); the ordinance was promulgated by Musharraf to absolve Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari of all corruption charges. But the petitioners including Nawaz Sharif’s brother Shahbaz Sharif failed to pursue the case. Shahbaz Sharif’s turnaround comes a day after the PML-N agreed to support the PPP government from outside. In return for the amnesty, the PPP leaders had agreed not to boycott the presidential poll, giving credibility to Musharraf’s re-election. The PPP has however denied any deal with Musharraf.   source: google news http://blogs.mindbodynsoul.com http://www.currentnewsaffairs.com Tags:

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UN praises India for ’swift’ action in bird flu outbreak

Thursday, February 28th, 2008
The United Nations has praised the “swift and comprehensive” measures taken by India to bring under control the “worst-ever” outbreak of bird flu in West Bengal, while urging the country to maintain vigilance in view of similar incidents reported in its neighbourhood. The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation’s veterinary expert Mohinder Oberoi said that intensive culling in the predominantly backyard poultry sector of West Bengal appears to have stopped the disease in its tracks. Oberoi made the comment after a recent field trip to the affected areas, where no new outbreaks have been reported since February 2. FAO’s Chief Veterinary Officer Joseph Domenech, however, urged the country to maintain intensive surveillance in high-risk areas as the possibility of new occurrences remains high. “The virus could still be present in the environment despite heavy slaughtering and extensive disinfection of affected areas, or it could be reintroduced from other countries,” he said. The FAO officials praised the national and state governments’ political and financial commitment to stamp out the disease. They said public awareness campaigns, a strong command chain from districts to villages, compensation payments and an effective collaboration between animal and human health departments at field level have been the key factors for the success. source: google news http://blogs.mindbodynsoul.com http://www.currentnewsaffairs.com Tags:

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IPL ticket muddle remains unresolved

Wednesday, February 27th, 2008

Sparks didn’t fly at the CAB special general body meeting on Tuesday. Sensing the mood, the ruling group was forced to go by the opinion of the majority on hosting of the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches.

The “frank and cordial discussion”, as president Prasun Mukherjee put it, lasted close to two hours and left everyone happy and satisfied. The ticket impasse, though, remained unresolved.

The presence of former president Jagmohan Dalmiya did add to the opposition firepower. A total of 87 of the 109 affiliated units present supported the opposition’s demand on distribution of grant and in the end, they had their way. It, however, came through with a rider.

Seventy per cent of the grant will be put into a fixed deposit and the annual interest generated from it will be equally distributed among the 121 units. The members agreed to this formula, as proposed on the floor, to prevent any misuse of funds.

Dalmiya said this amount was needed to build the infrastructure and groom future talent.

“If the Ranadeb Boses and Manoj Tiwarys decide to leave the state to play for an Elite team in the forthcoming season, the grooming at the grassroots has to be perfect or else we will never get promoted in the next few years.”

There was confusion about the grant amount though. Prasun Mukherjee had announced that it would be Rs 10 crore but on Tuesday clarified that it was just a verbal assurance from the BCCI. The documents presented at the meeting showed the grant to be Rs 7 crore. There was no guarantee on the balance of Rs 3 crore as the IPL profits would be known only in September, the CAB president told the members.

The ticket issue, however, remained pending. Mukherjee has been given the responsibility of negotiating with Red Chillies Entertainment Pvt Ltd on a reworked plan where the CAB will get around 70 per cent of the total seats.

Dalmiya proposed that the franchise owners couldn’t force the 80:20 distribution ratio on the CAB since the Eden’s capacity was much more than other stadiums. “You cannot compare an apple with a banana,” Dalmiya said.

“Five of the eight stadiums have a capacity below 45000. According to the ratio, the franchise owners at such venues will be getting around 36000 tickets. So let Red Chillies Entertainment Pvt Ltd be satisfied with a similar number of tickets here too. We have to remain flexible but in no way can they remain adamant on 80 per cent share. This will ensure that the members (life, annual, associate and honorary) get to watch every match,” Dalmiya said.

Asked when this would be sorted out, the former president said: “Let him get some breathing space.”

The members, though, unanimously agreed on the hosting of matches at the Eden. “We all want the IPL to be held here. But the interest of affiliates and members have to be kept in mind,” Dalmiya said.

“The CAB has spent crores on Eden. Now somebody can’t suddenly come and take advantage of that. If they don’t agree, we can’t help. We can only say sorry,” he added.

 

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Rail Budget 2008: Aam Aadmi speaks

Tuesday, February 26th, 2008
A surfer Tushar Garg shared his ‘travelling’ woes on the Shamli - Delhi DMU route that he experienced recently. Ahead of Railway Minister Lalu Yadav’s Rail Budget presentation in the Parliament, he voiced his opinion on NDTV’s feedback platform. ‘’In relation to the current Railway scenario, I would recommend, try travelling by a passenger train ‘’Shamli-Delhi DMU'’ that starts at 6:40 am from Shamli. Shamli is located on Delhi-Saharanpur Railway track, and by yardstick of distance is a double-digit figure - merely 90 kms. But the train always take at least 3-4 hours to cover this, i.e. a speed of 22.5 kms/per hour. You can find people on the top of the track, playing around. Also, there is at least three times the original number of stopovers. People halt the train as per their convenience. You might be surprised, but Loni is the second last stopover before the Delhi station, and it has around 12-15 unofficial stops. Another way we can investigate the connectivity of Shamli-Delhi is via buses. They are equally pathetic, but a little better than railways. What is causing concern is the quality of buses. They are very dangerous to go along with. The seats are almost like a mutilated old film theatre. The have some iron rods, which have pointed ends, and hence the passenger cannot sleep. Who knows, if the sober passenger sleeps, and in the process that pointed ends of iron rods, may pierce and make a way into human flesh, including precious eyes. I would advice, please check it both a rail and road journey. Shamli is 90 km away from Delhi, and you will never feel this proximity, neither in terms of connectivity nor in terms of comfort. I would love to know, if you can achieve this today itself, so that we can just analyze the Railway and general budget, at least in terms of the aforesaid.'’
 
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Here’s what is happening in India:

Tuesday, February 26th, 2008
The two Ambani brothers can buy 100 percent of every company listed on the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) and would still be left with $30 billion to spare. The four richest Indians can buy up all goods and services produced over a year by 169 million Pakistanis and still be left with $60 billion to spare. The four richest Indians are now richer than the forty richest Chinese.In November, Bombay Stock Exchange’s benchmark Sensex flirted with 20,000 points. As a consequence, Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries became a $100 billion company (the entire KSE is capitalized at $65 billion). Mukesh owns 48 percent of Reliance. In November, comes Neeta’s birthday. Neeta turned f orty-four three weeks ago. Look what she got from her husband as her birthday present: A sixty-million dollar jet with a custom fitted master bedroom, bathroom with mood lighting, a sky bar, entertainment cabins, satellite television, wireless communication and a separate cabin with game consoles. Neeta is Mukesh Ambani’s wife, and Mukesh is not India’s richest but t he second richest. Mukesh is now building his new home, Residence Antillia (after a mythical, phantom island somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean). At a cost of $1 billion this would be the most expensive home on the face of the planet. At 173 meters tall Mukesh’s new family residence, for a family of six, will be the equivalent of a 60-storeyed building. The first six floors are reserved for parking. The seventh floor is for car servicing and maintenance. The eighth floor houses a mini-theatre. Then there’s a health club, a gym and a swimming pool. Two floors are reserved for Ambani family’s guests. Four flo ors above the guest floors are family floors all with a superb view of the Arabian Sea. On top of everything are three helipads. A staff of 600 is expected to care for the family and their family home. In 2004, India became the 3rd most attractive foreign direct investment destination. Pakistan wasn’t even in the top 25 countries. In 2004, the United Nations, the representative body of 192 sovereign member states, had requested the Election Commission of India to assist the UN in the holding elections in Al Jumhuriyah al Iraqiyah and Dowlat-e Eslami-ye Afghanestan. Why the Election Commission of India and not the Election Commission of Pakistan? After all, Islamabad is closer to Kabul than is Delhi. Imagine, 12 percent of all American scientists are of Indian origin; 38 percent of doctors in America are Indian; 36 percent of NASA scientists are Indians; 34 percent of Microsoft employees are Indians; and 28 percent of IBM employees are Indians. For the record: Sabeer Bhatia created and founded Hotmail. Sun Microsystems was founded by Vinod Khosla. The Intel Pentium processor, that runs 90 percent of all computers, was fathered by Vinod Dham. Rajiv Gupta co-invented Hewlett Packard’s E-speak project. Four out of ten Silicon Valley start-ups are run by Indians. Bollywood produces 800 movies per year and s ix Indian ladies have won Miss Universe/Miss World titles over the past 10 years. For the record: Azim Premji, the richest Muslim entrepreneur on the face of the planet, was born in Bombay and now lives in Bangalore.India now has more than three dozen billionaires; Pakistan has none (not a single dollar billionaire). The other amazing aspect is the rapid pace at which India is creating wealth. In 2002, Dhirubhai Ambani, Mukesh and Anil Ambani’s father, left his two sons a fortune worth $2.8 billion. In 2007, their combined wealth stood at $94 billion. On 29 October 2007, as a result of the stock market rally and the appreciation of the Indian rupee, Mukesh became the richest person in the world, with net worth climbing to US$63.2 billion (Bill Gates, the richest American, stands at around $56 billion).
Indians and Pakistanis have the same Y-chromosome haplogroup. We have the same genetic sequence and the same genetic marker (namely: M124). We have the sam e DNA molecule, the same DNA sequence. Our culture, our traditions and our cuisine are all the same. We watch the same movies and sing the same songs. What is it that Indians have and we don’t? http://www.currentnewsaffairs.com http://blogs.mindbodynsoul.com
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Music is good for Stroke Patients

Monday, February 25th, 2008
Music helps the stroke patients to recover soon. Patients go on listening after getting recovered from their diseases. Verbal memory as well as it improves their mood. Music becomes part of their life. http://www.currentnewsaffairs.com http://blogs.mindbodynsoul.com Tags:

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Laser could provide breath test for cancer, asthma

Wednesday, February 20th, 2008
A new laser analyzer might be able to help doctors detect cancer, asthma or other diseases by sampling a patient’s breath, researchers reported on Tuesday.The device uses mirrors to bounce the laser’s light back and forth until it has touched every molecule a patient exhales in a single breath, the team reported in the journal Optics Express. This can help detect minute traces of compounds that can point to various diseases, including cancer, asthma, diabetes and kidney malfunction. “This technique can give a broad picture of many different molecules in the breath all at once,” Jun Ye, who led the research at the University of Colorado. Ye’s team at a joint institute of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the university developed a new technique, called cavity-enhanced direct optical frequency comb spectroscopy. When animals and people breathe out, they exhale not only gases that are not needed, such as carbon dioxide, but also compounds that result from the metabolism of cells. “To date, researchers have identified over 1,000 different compounds contained in human breath,”  Some point to abnormal function — such as methylamine, produced in higher amounts by liver and kidney disease, ammonia produced when the kidneys are failing or elevated acetone caused by diabetes. People with asthma may produce too much nitric oxide, exhaled in the breath, while smokers produce high levels of carbon monoxide.  source: google news http://www.currentnewsaffairs.com http://blogs.mindbodynsoul.com   Tags:

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RBI changes its mind, allows UBS India entry

Tuesday, February 19th, 2008
Less than a fortnight after the Reserve Bank of India said the grant of banking licence to UBS was on hold, the regulator on Monday said that a licence has been issued to the Swiss banking group. So what has changed? According to an RBI official, the Enforcement Directorate has cleared UBS’s name in a year-long investigation into alleged irregular foreign currency transactions. This is the first time since 2002-03 that RBI has issued a new licence to a foreign bank. The last foreign bank to enter India was Antwerp Diamond Bank and RBI is in the final stages of allowing the Singapore-based DBS to open more branches. Speaking to reporters after a conference in Mumbai, RBI deputy governor V Leeladhar said: “There were some transactions which needed to be clarified, which is why the UBS application had to be put on hold. But now those have been cleared and UBS has been permitted to go ahead with opening a branch.” UBS had earlier submitted a proposal to take over Standard Chartered Bank’s mutual fund (AMC) operations, which was rejected by the central bank. UBS had run foul of the regulator after it was said to have refused to offer the Enforcement Directorate money transfer details relating to Hassan Ali, a stud-farm owner who is under the ED scanner. The directorate subsequently advised the government not to clear the AMC deal. Stanchart is already looking for a new buyer for its AMC and is unlikely to revive talks with UBS.
UBS had applied for a banking licence nearly four years ago. The new licence would help UBS in its fixed-income and foreign exchange businesses, apart from forex derivatives products. UBS is present in India through UBS Securities, which was opened in 1990. It also has a merchant banking licence from stock market regulator Sebi. UBS’s Mumbai office offers advisory, equity sales and trading and employs nearly 80 people. The Swiss bank is also likely to kick off its private banking operations here, making India the fourth centre in Asia (after Singapore, Hong Kong and Tokyo) where it provides such services. Sources said UBS, which has total assets of CHF2.272 trillion, may also be looking at AMC operations in India. UBS runs an outsourcing unit - UBS India Service Centre - in India since June 2006. The division, which was kicked off with 500 employees, now has work force of 1,750 people and may grow further soon. The centre offers information technology, accounting and other back-office operations, including knowledge process outsourcing. On the Singapore-based DBS’s application for branch expansion, RBI’s Leeladhar said it was in the final stages of discussions. DBS, which has one branch each in Delhi and Mumbai, is the only Singapore-based bank currently operating in India. The bank will get new branches on the back of the Comprehensive Economic Co-operation Agreement signed between India and Singapore. The United Overseas Bank is the other Singapore entity that has applied for a branch licence in India. source: google news http://www.currentnewsaffirs.com http://blogs.mindbodynsoul.com   Tags:

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Kidney Kumar’s brother arrested in Delh

Monday, February 18th, 2008
The CBI achieved a major breakthrough in the Gurgaon kidney racket case when it arrested Jeevan Raut, brother of kingpin Amit Kumar, in a smooth operation in the Capital on Sunday. Jeevan, on the run since the racket was busted, was a key operative in the chain of donors, touts and recipients. Jeevan, the 13th person to be arrested in the case, was picked up from the Lodhi Garden area, said sources who expressed satisfaction that the main members of Amit Kumar’s gang had been apprehended. Jeevan’s wife, Pooja, has already been arrested and is in judicial custody. The brothers, who hail from Maharashtra’s Akola district, have been linked to hundreds of illegal kidney transplants. CBI sources said Jeevan was arrested following technical surveillance tracking his movements through phone calls. He has been absconding ever since raids on Kumar’s Gurgaon clinic revealed the illegal operations. Jeevan will be produced in court on Monday when the agency will seek his custody for interrogation, they added. An Interpol Red Corner Notice had been pending against Jeevan since February 1. Though Haryana and UP police` initially suspected Jeevan might have fled India like his brother following raids in Gurgaon, CBI maintained close surveillance, assisted by some clues of his whereabouts and possible “contacts” provided by Kumar and other accused, including doctors Upender and Saraj. Jeevan, who claims to have an MBBS degree, is a prize catch for CBI as besides helping his brother in the operation theatre, he was also an interface with touts while arranging clients. His arrest, particularly when all the main accused are still in CBI custody, would help the agency “confront” him with others. This would help CBI in ironing out inconsistencies and cross-check events and the crime chain. An official explained that had Jeevan’s arrest been delayed, CBI would not have been able to question him in front of other accused, including Kumar, Upender, Saraj and K K Agarwal. Sources said Jeevan would first be questioned alone on the basis of what CBI had gathered so far during the eight days since it took charge of the probe and also what Kumar has claimed during his custodial interrogation. Jeevan’s wife will also be questioned, they added. The claims made by Kumar would be corroborated once both brothers are brought face to face. Kumar, who has an Ayurvedic degree, claimed that all surgeries had actually been done by him. Others, including his brother, used to assist him in the operations. Incidentally, a group of experts including nephrologists and urologists from AIIMS — who were present during Kumar’s questioning — appeared to be convinced of Kumar’s claims about his expertise in transplant surgeries. source: google news http://blogs.mindbodynsoul.com http://www.currentnewsaffairs.com   Tags:

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Save the tiger by export to better custody

Thursday, February 14th, 2008
The tiger, living fire of the Indian forest, might soon be snuffed out forever. According to the latest National Tiger Conservation Authority’s report there are only 1,411 tigers in the wild in the country.   Indeed, the NTCA has added that its study has an error margin, which could bring the estimated tiger population down to less than 1,200. With human encroachments and poaching on the rise, the magnificent lord of the wilderness, rippling like liquid flame through the jungle, could face extinction unless drastic steps are taken. How do we save the tiger? A number of practical measures have been suggested. Concentrate on areas where the tiger remains the best protected, for example in Corbett National Park, Kanha, Bandhavgarh. Strictly enforce anti-encroachment laws. Provide more sophisticated firearms to forest guards. Involve local communities in tiger preservation projects. Make poaching a crime equivalent to murder, carrying a life sentence. Reward informants who help in the apprehension and conviction of poachers. Synchronise an international clampdown on the clandestine, but booming, trade in tiger skins and organs, the latter prized - particularly in China - for their supposedly aphrodisiacal qualities. All these measures could, and should, be adopted. But if the Indian tiger is to be preserved outside of zoos, perhaps its best hope of survival would lie in being exported to a more economically advanced and environmentally conscious country where it can breed in the wild with minimal fear of poaching or diminution of its habitat through human encroachment. The truth is that we have only too tragically proved that we don’t deserve the striped splendour of the tiger, any more than we do our man-made heritage of monuments and ancient artworks, many if not most of which are in a disgraceful state of malign neglect or have been spirited out of the country by smugglers, often aided and abetted by officials whose function it is precisely to prevent such theft. It’s not just the tiger that is dying out. The Gir lion, once the pride of Gujarat, has become a cruel travesty of its former glory. Not only has the lion population shrunk to a little more than a couple of hundred, but the few pitiful survivors, overexposed to unchecked hordes of tourists and sightseers, have virtually been reduced to the status of domestic pets, gratefully accepting vegetarian snacks from shudh shakahari visitors. Lions, tigers and leopards are not cuddly toys, to be figuratively hugged out of an access of dewy-eyed sentimentalism. Left unmolested in their natural habitat they are marvellously efficient predators, at the pinnacle of the food chain which in its totality ensures the overall health of the environment. This is the ecological and scientific rationale behind preservation: the pug mark as a medical certificate for the habitat as a whole. Already we have laid waste to much of the big cats’ natural domain: far short of the government target of bringing 33 per cent of the total land area under tree cover, currently only 20.6 per cent of the country is forested, of which some 8 per cent is ‘open’ (degraded) forest. In the past two years, a 728-sq-km aggregate area of forest has been chopped down. We seem to be unable, or unwilling, or both, to save our forests. How do we then dare to presume that we can, or even want to, save the tiger? It’s like saying we want to save the child even as we busy ourselves destroying the physical and emotional landscape of childhood. Do we really want to save the tiger, other than as a zoological curio, a museum exhibit? Then export it en masse to less savagely exploitative climes. Else a future Blake could well write of us in scornful bewilderment: Tiger! Tiger! dying light/ In the forest of our blight,/ What immoral land of lies/ Could unframe thy wondrous symmetries? source:google news. http://www.currentnewsaffairs.com http://blogs.mindbodynsoul.com
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