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| Tuesday, September 5, 2000, Chandigarh, India   
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Punjab signs MoU for
18,000 cr worth projects NEW DELHI, Sept 4 — SGI plans to fund Indian start-ups which focuses on scientific technologies and use Linux open source system, the CEO and Chairman of the company, Mr Robert Bishop, said here today.
FDI for airports likely When work is just a way to fund hobbies Rice millers
oppose Punsup action NIIT to open
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Punjab signs MoU
for 18,000 cr worth projects CHANDIGARH, Sept 4 — Al Manhal International Group and Vavasi Oil and Gas Pvt Ltd will set up mega projects in Punjab with a total investment of Rs 18,000 crore. An MoU to this effect was signed here today by the Punjab State Industrial Development Corporation with the two companies in the presence of Mr Parkash Singh Badal, . The projects proposed by this group in the state include a petro chemical complex with an estimated capital outlay of Rs 7,000 crore, a 2000 MW gas-based power project worth Rs 8,000 crore, distribution and marketing of town gas supplies, setting up of industrial parks at Mohali, Bathinda and Patiala, developing and operating a fibre communication system along the gas line and setting up of institutions to undertake distribution and marketing of natural gas and petro products. All the preliminary issues pertaining to the projects have been tied up, the foremost being the signing of the confirmation of intent with Australia LNG, which is a consortium of six leading global companies. Subsequently tie-ups with various states and agencies are being formalised for participation in the pipelines and the offtake of gas, said Mr R.I. Singh, Secretary, Industries and Commerce. The commissioning of the projects will make available natural gas at competitive prices, apart from providing revenue to the exchequer at the local, state and central levels, direct and indirect employment and development of related industries. Al Manhal International Group is a business house based at Abu Dhabi. Vavasi Oil and Gas will execute the mega projects. |
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SGI to fund
Linux based start-ups NEW DELHI, Sept 4 — SGI plans to fund Indian start-ups which focuses on scientific technologies and use Linux open source system, the CEO and Chairman of the company, Mr Robert Bishop, said here today. ‘‘We will invest in start-ups focusing in areas of media convergence, oil exploration, climate management and bio sciences. We are willing to entertain start-ups proposals from anywhere including India,’’ Mr Bishop told newspersons here. The SGI chairman said he would like India to be SGI’s major partner in driving the future growth of the software industry through Linux. ‘‘India should be connected to Linux movement as it will get you open source code and you can be sure that no secret backdoor code is there, which is worrysome as a nation,’’ he said. Mr Bishop said the next trigger for the growth of the Indian software industry would come from Linux. ‘‘Advantage in India is that the new university and IIT graduates will be Linux trained. We will identify projects with Indian schools and colleges, some projects are underway and some announcement could be expected in India soon,’’ he said. India would soon have trouble in keeping pace with the demand for professionals from the USA, Europe and East Asian countries, he said, adding that all this would lead to an immense advantage for the country. ‘‘India will be a technological powerhouse in the early 21st century,’’ he stated. |
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FDI for airports likely New Delhi, Sept 4 — The government is considering to allow foreign investment in airport development and management, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Chaman Lal Gupta said at the Transport India, 2000, fair, which opened here today. The Minister said this measure would go a long way in improving the airport infrastructure and raise the functioning of airports to the world standards. The government would also accord top priority to encouraging fleet augmentation of all airlines operating in India. Various measures were on the anvil to boost air traffic for accessibility to remote and far-flung areas and enlist the operation of smaller aircraft on feeder routes with a view to providing hub and spoke system. Earlier, inaugurating the fair, Minister for Surface Transport Rajnath Singh said the government is considering further simplification of procedures to help Indian hub ports to attract mainline ships which at present terminate in Colombo and Singapore. On the progress over developing the container terminal at Chennai, he said the award of project to the successful bidder had been finalised. This would ensure that mainline vessels call at this port within three years. He said the government was committed to the development of Jawaharlal Nehru Port and the Chennai port as hub container ports of international standards. Mr Rajnath Singh expressed the hope that the development of these two ports to the international standards and augmentation of various feeder services between these two ports and other major ports would attract a major chunk of Indian container traffic now going to Colombo. The total container traffic handled by the Indian ports is just 1 per cent of the international container traffic. The government has decided to involve private sector in the development of major ports in view of the massive task of capacity creation and huge fund requirements. On the road sector, the Minister said the highway sector had been opened up for the private sector participation. The award and implementation of projects under the build, operate and transfer scheme had been streamlined and made transparent. Under the new tender procedure, contracts would be given within 40 days of opening of tenders. |
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When work is just a way to fund hobbies “IT’S about being in control and being free,’’ says New Zealander Tracey Ward, (30) who has worked as a temp for 12 years. “I love the flexibility of being able to take holiday whenever I like, particularly as I have family on the other side of the world. No full-time employer would let me take 10 weeks holiday a year, or accept that I would work for them for only six months. But temping offers me the freedom to have total control over my life — when and where I work, how long for and how many weeks holiday I want to take.” Ward is one of an increasing number of people who see temping as a permanent career choice, rather than as a stop-gap between jobs, post-college or pre-travelling. With contract and flexible working on the increase, temping is more acceptable than ever — and more appealing to a generation of workers who don’t want the restrictions of a permanent job. “We have temps who have been on our books for five years,” says Samantha Webster, manager at Gordon Yates. “There are all sorts of advantages to temping, primarily the flexibility, but also there is less responsibility, less involvement in office politics, and the chance constantly to meet new people and experience different situations. A lot of the long-term temps on our books use temping to finance another career — acting or writing — and they temp between those jobs.’’ “Temping is a fantastic way to keep regular money coming in if you have an irregular career,’’ confirms freelance magazine journalist Joanne Morrison. “Some months I can have a lot of commissions and don’t need to temp; other times money can be really tight. It’s great to know I can ring my agency one day, be in work the next, and have money in my bank account at the end of the following week. And it breaks up the isolation of working from home — I get to be in an office, chatting to new people, which really helps with generating ideas for my writing.’’ “Increasingly, I think a lot of people see work as a way to fund other interests — and temping is a perfect way to do this,’’ says Helene Miller, director of the temporaries division at Roc Recruitment. “Some people temp to enable them to travel - they work, go away for a few months and then come back and work again. I have other long-term temps who are mothers, who want the flexibility of not working in the school holidays.’’ Convenience aside, Morrison believes that even if she were to make a comfortable living from writing, she would still temp now and then. “I’ve been temping on and off for four years,’’ she says, ``and I have several companies that always ask for me — and I’ve worked for them often enough to have made lots of friends. I really enjoy the social side of temping. You’re often invited down to the pub, or for drinks after work, but rather than the same faces week after week, it’s a different crowd.’’ Many people dismiss temping as a career choice, believing that most temp positions consist of little more than endless typing and stuffing envelopes, but for long-term temps, this is rarely the case. As the structure of the workplace changes, the perception of temping as an insecure, inadequate way to make a living is no longer relevant. Instead it is a seriously viable option for the increasing number of people who value freedom and flexibility — and fresh faces every few weeks. “I’ve been offered plenty of jobs,’’ says Ward. “But I’m rarely tempted to take them. I love the fact that each job is only as permanent as I want it to be — and that there’s always something new on the horizon.”
— by arrangement with The Guardian |
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Rice millers
oppose Punsup action JALALABAD, Sept 4 — The Rice Millers Association here has condemned Punsup for initiating arbitration proceedings for the delivery of custom milled rice of crop year 1996-97 in that extended period of the agreement. A press note said, according to the custom milling agreement, the millers were to deliver the custom milled rice directly to the FCI till February 28, 1997. As there was paucity of storage space with the FCI in 1996-97, the period for delivery of rice was extended till August 31, 1997, on the direction of Ministry of Food. Even the then Managing Director of Punsup also issued instruction for the amendment of the agreement. The entire custom milled rice was delivered within the extended period. Punsup also settled all bills pertaining to the custom milling done till the extended date and the securities were also released without any precondition. But now after three years Punsup has issued notices for violation of contract and referred the matter to arbitration. Moreover, arbitration has also been issued in those cases in which the fees of the arbitrator is more than the sum involved. Punsup should follow other state procurement agencies like Markfed/PSWC which have claimed the overheads incurred for the extended period from FCI. |
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Knitwearing for competition LUDHIANA, Sept 4 — The liberalisation of the Indian economy, dismantling of various import restrictions and abolition of remaining trade restrictions by April 2001, as committed under WTO have put the knitwear industry like other small and medium scale industries in a piquant situation. It has either to face the global competition by improving quality and cutting prices or perish unceremoniously. About a hundred year old Ludhiana knitwear industry has successfully overcome different crises like partition, militancy, collapse of Soviet Union and slump in the market from time to time. Now it is facing threat not only from developing countries like China and Bangladesh but also developed countries like Italy. To what extent the industry is prepared to face the fast changing scenario, on being asked this question Mr M.R. Goel, a knitwear exporter says,”we have found the key of manufacturing ‘high quality and low priced products’ to face the competition. All our efforts are now concentrated on improving our products.” In this regard Mr Ramesh Garg of Garg Knits (India) adds,”we have set-up latest fully computerised knitting machines to give clients the latest fashions. Our men are busy throughout the year creating new style and design to cater to the need of ever changing fashion.” There are about 10,000 knitwear units making all types of non-textile garments like baby suits, socks, summer wear, pullovers and cardigans. Industry representatives claim, about Rs 7,500 crore worth goods are produced annually. Of this about Rs 1,000 crore goods are exported to different countries like Japan, the U.K. and America. About 5 lakh persons are directly or indirectly employed in the industry. Referring to the problems faced by the industry, Mr Vinod Thapar, president, Knitwear Club, a premier organisation engaged in activities for promoting knitwear and allied industry says,”lack of awareness among manufacturers, obsolete machinery, poor infrastructure and semi-skilled labour force are the major problems. Moreover, we have to pay double taxes, 4 per cent on yarn and 4 per cent on finished goods. On the other hand, Chinese heavily subsidise their products.” Commenting on the present situation Mr Thapar says,”though we are optimistic about future. However, due to government’s indifferent attitude, our position is like that of a good swimmer who has been thrown into the sea with tied hands and legs.” Explaining further, he says, “the government has not tried to create awareness among industrialists after signing GATT agreement. The so-called voluntary disclosure scheme of the Punjab State Electricity Board has so many formalities like getting ‘No objection certificate’ from municipal corporation which is almost impossible to get for the sanction of increased load for the new machines.” However, the efforts of the industry itself have started producing results. Knitwear Club which claims about 1000 membership including affiliated members is organising seminars, workshops, fashion shows in association with various organisations. Mr Ramesh Garg sums up the mood of industry, “we will have to become efficient, plan managerial and integrated strategies with the active involvement of State and Central Governments only then can we survive and grow.” |
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NIIT to open new centre in Delhi NEW DELHI, Sept 4 (PTI) — NIIT is planning to expand its software operations in the country by setting up a new 500-seat development centre in New Delhi. “The company has embarked on the next phase of software expansion and is planning to set up a new development facility in Delhi. The new unit will take up routine development work initially and then graduate to new software projects,” Arvind Thakur, President, software business of NIIT told PTI. The centre, which is expected to be operational by January, 2001, would have a capacity to house 500 software professionals, making it NIIT’s second largest development facility in Delhi. “The unit is expected to come up near the Mathura road, as we are looking at a proximity with the company’s other development centres in the Capital,” he said. NIIT, currently, has five development centres in Delhi, three at Okhla, and one each at Safdarjung and Kalkaji. In addition NIIT will also expand its R&D operations at Bangalore to undertake application development in the areas of mobile and wireless application protocol (WAP), by October. “The new development plans for Bangalore will envisage a 70-seat operation focussing on the two upcoming areas which the company feels has a huge market potential,” he said. Mr Thakur, however, declined to divulge details of the amount of funds earmarked for total software expansion. NIIT which currently has its software bases in Delhi, Chennai, and Mumbai is also looking for foraying into the broadband applications market. “We are currently negotiating with various IT players to forge business alliances in this segment,” he said adding that the tie-ups would not include equity participation. NIIT which transformed itself from a pure infotech education to a software cum education company reported a 27.9 per cent increase in the net profit at Rs 78.02 crore for the third quarter ended June 30 compared to Rs 60.98 crore in the same period last year. During the period, global revenues of NIIT and its overseas subsidiaries rose by 44.2 per cent to Rs 308.4 crore compared to Rs 213.8 crore in the corresponding period last year. |
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Talented & still normal MARBURG(GERMANY): They are regarded as loners or even neurotic and tales of them being shunned by their own siblings and schoolfriends are legion. Talented kids who score highly in iq tests are traditionally thought to have a hard time. Not according to Marburg psychology Professor Detlef H. Rost, who has been monitoring above average intelligence children and young people for 13 years now. Last autumn, Rost and three of his employees set up a new initiative, a talent diagnostic centre called Brain, a catchy acronym of its German name. He claims that children of above average intelligence are perfectly normal in every respect, only their brainpower sets them apart. A study called “7000’’, carried out in 1987 picked a random group of children in the third grade of school from roughly similar social backgrounds. They were subject to complex intelligence tests, with the result that 151 were found to be exceptionally talented and the remaining 136 of average intelligence. The research team kept a close watch on the girls and boys as they progressed through school and found that the pupils did not turn into unbearable know-alls or frustrated, maladjusted outsiders. The top flight kids were interested in the same things as their fellows, they paid no more attention to natural sciences of medicine that their contemporaries and displayed a high level of social competence. “There were no more ‘problem children’ in the group that in a parallel control group,’’ said Rost. The survey showed that most bright children felt fine, had numerous friends and enjoyed their leisure time. Introverted stay-at-home types were the exception. “The problem is not so much the talent as teaching methods,’’ said Rost. The Professor has little time for elite schools or fast-track learning classes but believes the above average achievers should be fully integrated in a normal class. “but you musn’t dumb down the high performers in a class, after all the less able are given special help.”—DPA The unstable
& the crazies LAST week, at the University of Arkansas, a student commemorated the first day of term by shooting dead his English professor. It was a small news item from far away and got less coverage than the recent assault on a local English professor by a deranged student, convinced that the author of The Female Eunuch was her surrogate mum. Higher education gets a disproportionate share of crazies. Entrants are selected on one criterion only — exam grade. In the bad old days, when places at university were hard to come by, candidates were required to affirm they were in tip-top physical and mental shape before taking on the gruelling task of a degree course. Nowadays such questions are discriminatory and illegal. Nor would a referee dare write: ``This pupil is very clever — but extremely unstable.’’ Many are. Universities have become sieves that exclude the dumb but not the mad. The asylums are empty, the quads are full of them. There is also something deeply contradictory in the teaching situation. Your friendly tutor during the term is — at the end of the year —your ruthless examiner. The department is, in its day-to-day dealings, artificially friendly and then they crap on you with a C, or a lower second, or refer your thesis. Who is the real professor, the student wonders, fairy godmother or wicked stepmother ?
— The Guardian KBC forces Zee
to shift soaps NEW
DELHI: Alarmed by a sharp dip in popularity due to the growing graph of Kaun Banega Crorepati (kbc), Zee tv has decided to shift some of its major soaps/sitcoms from the competitive prime time 9-10 pm slot to less competitive earlier time bands. Admitting a shift in viewer preference from Zee, ceo of Zee Telefilms R.K. Singh said “Our grps (gross rating points) have come down to 50 per cent.... four of our programmes have given way to kbc in the weekly top 10 list”. The programming reschedule has been effected to offer viewers a five-day-a-week soap in the 9-10 pm band. “The success of kbc is beyond our expectations. Our otherwise popular 9 o’clock serials have been registering lower trps (television rating points) for a long time now due to kbc. We have thus decided to shift these programmes to the earlier 8-9 pm slot and instead air a five-day-a-week serial,” he told
PTI. |
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ITC Infotech getstop certification CALCUTTA, Sept 4 (PTI) — ITC Infotech Limited, the recently-launched IT subsidiary of ITC Limited, has become one of the select software organisations in the world to achieve the distinction of being certified at level-5 on the prestigious Capability Maturity Model (CMM). CMM level-5 certification for the ITC Infotech was announced by the assessment team led by Richard F. Storch of Global Systems Technology, USA, a few days ago, according to a release by the ITC Limited here today. The CMM is a certification framework designed by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI), Carnegie Mellon University, USA to evaluate the standard of total quality management in a software organisation and CMM level-5 is the highest process maturity level that a software organisation can attain. ITC Infotech is one of the few organisations to attain CMM level-5 in one single assessment as normally this is accorded in calibrated steps from level 1 to 5. The assessment process includes a detailed review of organisational and project documentation and comprehensive evaluative interviews with nearly 50 per cent of the employees of the organisation. These findings were then measured against the SEI’s CMM norms. The ITC Chairman, Y.C. Deveshwar, said this certification was a recognition of the ITC Group’s constant endeavour to globally benchmark itself in each of its business. Barely a month ago, ITC had launched its infotech subsidiary after getting necessary approval from the AGM on July 28 as per its plan to enter infotech sector in a big way.
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Visualmove CHANDIGARH, Sept 4 — To deliver video capabilities on hand-held devices, Visual Quest India today announced the development of Visualmove which will enable mobile users to use applications such as video e-mail, news broadcast, movie clips, video conferencing, interactive online games and m-commerce.
Site on Jind JIND, Sept 4 — A website on Jind was inaugurated by Mr B.M. Setia, Divisional Engineer Telegraph, at a function here today. The website www.jindcity.com. provides interesting and useful information about the city.
R. Rajagopalan CHANDIGARH, Sept 4 — The Association of Indian Management Schools has chosen Prof R. Rajagopalan of TA Pai Management Institute, Manipal, as the Teacher of the Year.
Eureka Forbes CHANDIGARH, Sept 4 — Eureka Forbes has launched two solutions for safe drinking water — Forbes 3-in-1 water purifier and Forbes aquaflo water purifier.
Indica sales NEW DELHI, Sept 4 (PTI) — Tata Engineering has registered a sharp 23.54 per cent fall in car sales at 3,469 units in August 2000 as against 4,537 units in the same month a year ago. The premium small car ‘Indica’ had sold 3,534 cars in July this year.
ECC MUMBAI, Sept 4 (PTI) — ECC, the construction division of Larsen & Toubro Ltd, has bagged a contract worth Rs 168.85 crore from the National Highway Authority of India for rehabilitation and upgradation of ‘package 3’ of the Surat-Manor road.
Leather imports NEW DELHI, Sept 4 (PTI) — A core advisory group has been set up to ward off the threat of cheap leather imports from China and Taiwan and hike exports, Assocham today said.
HCL Infosys NEW DELHI, Sept 4 (PTI) — HCL Infosystems today said it has tied up with BroadVision Inc, to provide end-to-end solutions.
PNB rates New Delhi, Sept 4 — Punjab National Bank has increased the rate of interest on Foreign Currency Non-Resident (Banks) scheme for DEM and Euro deposits from today. The deposits under DEM and Euro will earn an interest of 3.75 per annum for maturity one year to less than two years. The Euro deposits two years and above and upto three years will earn interest of 4.25 per cent per annum. The interest rates offered by PNB for USD deposits are 6.50 per cent for one year and less than two years, 6.75 per cent for two years to less than three years and 6.75 per cent for three years. GBP deposits are earning 5.75 per cent of one year to less than two years, 6 per cent for two years and less than three years and 6.25 per cent for three years. There has been no revision in the rates for USD and GBP deposits.
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