29-12-06

Seismological Research: The work on the building for India's first Institute of Seismological Research (ISR), a World Bank aided project, will soon begin near Koba on the Gandhinagar-Ahmedabad highway. This project was conceived after the Kutch earthquake of 2001. The state government has allotted 12 acres of land for the Rs. 150 million project. The ISR campus will have modern laboratories for marine and engineering geophysics, hydrocarbon studies, dam safety and tsunami research.

NRI Deposits: Gujarat has over 800,000 NRI accounts, and the total NRI deposits are Rs. 174 billion. Out of these deposits, Rs. 83 billion is contributed by just four districts - Kutch, Anand, Kheda and Navsari. Remittances from NRIs make a higher contribution to India's forex reserves of $160 billion than FII and FDI.

28-12-06

Gujarati Poetry Translation: Major Gujarati and Hindi poets of the 19th century and 20th century are being translated into English by the S.H. Gardi Institute of English and Comparative Literary Studies at Saurashtra University. The exercise is part of a research project assisted by the University Grants Commission (UGC). The translated poems may be published by the Gujarat Sahitya Academy and Sahitya Kala Academy, New Delhi. Prior to this the translation of reform essays, art and aesthetics essays, short stories and travelogues by Gujarati and Hindi writers was undertaken at Saurashtra University.

22-12-06

Alternative To Braille: To reduce the dependence of visually impaired persons on Braille, the Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIO) has developed a hand-held reading machine that can scan and read out texts. The Ministry of Communications funded the project. Two cameras in the device scan the text matter, which is then read out by a special software. CSIO has filed a patent for the device. It weighs less than 500 gms and will cost about Rs. 50,000. One does not need to learn Braille to use the device. It can presently read English and Hindi.

Mid-Day Meals In Schools: India's Human Resource Development Ministry is so satisfied by the efficiency of the mid-day meal programme in Gujarat's schools that it has sanctioned a special grant of Rs. 220 million to build 4,000 more kitchen sheds in primary schools and another Rs. 52.5 million to purpose new utensils. The scheme is being implemented in 30,000 government aided primary schools. The state government will also pitch in with Rs. 110 million. The mid-day meal scheme has helped to decrease the dropout rate of school children and also improved their nutrition level. The number of beneficiaries is 3.8 million children.

19-12-06

Road Projects Approved: Two major road projects in Gujarat have been approved by the Indian government: four-laning of the 100-km Rajkot-Jamnagar-Vadinar road and the 150-km Halol-Godhra-Shamlaji road. Both roads will be built on a public-private partnership basis; 51 % of the funding will be by a private party. Among other proposals pending clearance: the Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar metro railway, convention centre at Ahmedabad, special economic zone (SEZ) at Dahej, Bhavnagar-Surat ro-ro ferry service, four-laning of Ahmedabad-Viramgam road and Surat-Hazira road.

Turmeric Versus Malaria: Curcumin, the active ingredient of turmeric (haldi), is already known to have anti-oxidant, anti-infectious and anti-inflammatory properties. It has been used in attempts to lower cholesterol and glucose and combat cancer. It is now being roped in to try and fight malaria. Scientists from Bangalore's Indian Institute of Science (IIS) and New Delhi's National Institute of Malarial Research (NIMR) will start human trials using curcumin as one of the ingredients. The trials will be funded by the Department of Biotechnology and will take place at IIS, Institute of Life Science, Bhubaneshwar, NIMR and ISPAT General Hospital, Rourkela.

Satellite Survey Of Encroachments: In an innovative exercise, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation will use satellite surveys to zero in on illegal constructions that encroach on public land. The satellite images will be provided by the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA). A conventional survey may cost Rs. 50 million, while this new method may reduce the cost by 50 per cent. The satellite images will be superimposed on plans of the existing town-planning schemes to determine the extent of encroachments.

18-12-06

Stove-Burst Deaths Of Women: A recent newspaper report reveals some sad statistics pertaining to what are now called 'stove-burst deaths' of women in Gujarat. These are deaths caused by apparent stove explosions while cooking. In 2005, 343 women in Gujarat died in kerosene stove explosions; in 2006 there have been 330 deaths so far. Most victims are young (22 to 35 years) and recently married. In 62 per cent of the cases, the stoves that burst are ISI-approved brands. The police have to treat the cases as accidents based on the dying declarations of the victims. However, burns specialists and forensic experts say that most of the cases are probably suicides or murders, not accidents.

New Gadgets For Policing: In an effort to modernise the state's police, the Gujarat government will provide hands-free wireless sets to the entire force. The first phase will cover the Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS), Traffic Police, Detection of Crime Branch (DCB), Local Crime Branch (LCB), Special Action Groups and Chetak Commandos. The police presently use manually operated wireless sets that leave the operator with only one hand to work.

16-12-06

Jain Potato: Girish Akbari, a farmer in Patarpur village of Junagadh district has developed a potato that grows above the ground. Assuming that Jains may find this variety to be acceptable (some members of this community do not consume any vegetable that is grown under the ground), Akbari has named his find the 'Jain potato'. Tests at the Saurashtra University's biotechnology department suggest that this variety may have more protein than potatoes grown under the ground. It also contains less starch and calories, and the same amount of fibre.

14-12-06

Mobile Stats In Gujarat: By the end of December 2006, one out of every five persons in Gujarat will have a mobile phone. With a grand total of 10 million subscribers, mobile operators have managed to add 5 million subscribers in 2006 alone. It had taken them 9 years to achieve the first 5 million. These figures have been provided by the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) and the Associaton of Unified Telecom Service Providers of India (AUSPI). Incidentally, the total number of telecom subscribers including mobile, landline and fixed wireless phones, had crossed the 11 million mark in August 2006. Thanks to the fact that it has the highest levels of self-employed people in India, Gujarat is among the top three mobile markets in the country. Another contributing factor is that entry-level handset costs have come down from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 1,500.

Hazardous Chemical Units: Gujarat has the highest number of 'major-hazard' chemical units in India. Of the 31,000 factories registered in Gujarat, 4,500 are chemical units and, among them, 540 are in the 'major-hazard' category. Gujarat has 43 per cent of India's 'major-hazard' chemical units.

Women Pilots: Did you know that there are presently 137 women pilots in India? The number of men pilots is over 1,300. Air Deccan has 40 women pilots, Jet Airways has 25, Kingfisher Airlines has 15, Indian has 5, Paramount Airways has 2.

11-12-06

Coke Doesn't Rule: Did you know that Coca-Cola is ranked third in theCoca-Cola India portfolio? The number two brand is Sprite (the clear lime beverage). The leader in the company, and also in the overall Indian market, is Thums Up. This makes India a unique market for Coca-Cola, a market in which its flagship brand Coca-Cola (ranked as the most valuable brand in the world by Interbrand) is in third position within the company. Coca-Cola acquired Thums Up from Parle on its return to the Indian market in 1993. Despite its larger marketing budget, Coke has not been able to match the brand equity of the indigenous Thums Up.

Sex Ratio: If Unicef's latest 'State of the World's Children' report is to be believed more and more girl children are being killed at or before birth; 80 % of India's districts recorded a decline in sex ratios since 1991. Punjab is closely followed by Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Arunachal Pradesh. Delhi has a 47-point drop from 915 girls to 868. In Kerala the sex ratio increased from 958 girls in 1991 to 960. The all-India average is 927 girls for 1000 boys, worse than Nigeria (965) and Pakistan (958). China has 832 girlsper 1,000 boys. The report says that female foeticide is more prevalent in urban areas than in rural regions.

Gram Panchayat Elections: Between 65 % and 70 % of the electorate voted in Gujarat's gram panchayat elections on 10th December. Just look at the statistics: 7,283 village panchayats, 43,269 panchayat seats, 10 million voters, 150,000 candidates, 16,619 polling booths, 100,000 polling personnel! Out of the 10,310 village panchayats, 3,017 had been declared as uncontested. The counting of votes will be on December 12.

GSM Subscriber Base: The total GSM subscriber base in India has now crossed the 100 million mark (5 million new subscribers were added in November 2006). India now ranks third globally, after China (401.7 million) and Russia (152.2). The players in India Bharti Airtel (30.03 %), BSNL (22.8 %), Hutchison Essar (22.1 %), Idea (11.75 %), Aircel (4.2 %), Reliance Telecom (3.38 %), MTNL (2.36 %), Spice (2.34 %), BPL (1.04 %).

Surveillance Centre: The Indian Navy is setting up a hi-tech surveillance centre at Porbandar to monitor terror threats to economic installations in Gujarat. It will be equipped with radars and will become the surveillance centre for the entire Western region. India has major oil refineries on Gujarat's shores. A memorandum has been signed between the Indian Navy and the Gujarat Maritime Board to facilitate necessary berths as per the requirements and needs of the navy.

Demand For Hotel Rooms: There are about 105, 000 hotel rooms in India, and another 100,000 will be needed over the next five years to meet the increasing demand. Incidentally, Shanghai alone has 135, 000 rooms. Only 25 % of the rooms in India are in the branded segment. At $ 150 to $300 in premium hotels, the room rates are among the highest in the Asia-Pacific region. They go up to $ 550 to $ 650 in the peak tourist season (November to March).

09-12-06

Foreign Tourists: At the recent National Tourism Conclave held in Ahmedabad, industry experts revealed that out of the total tourist traffic to Gujarat, 42 % headed towards Saurashtra, 27 % towards central and east Gujarat and 15 % towards North Gujarat. In terms of the type of tourist traffic, 55 % came to Gujarat for business, 36 % for religious visits and only 5 % for leisure.

Timber Processing: Gujarat's Forest Department has declared four talukas of Kutch district - Gandhidham, Anjar, Bachau and Mundra - an imported timber conversion zone (ITCZ). Kutch will therefore become Asia's biggest timber processing Zone. Kutch is already the largest timber processing region in India; it imports about 2 million tonnes of timber from the Kandla port. The industry presently employs 50,000 workers, and it will absorb another 50,000 in 500 new saw mills over the next two years.

07-12-06

Private Hill Station: Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) is building India's first private hill station, Lavasa, on 15,000 acres in Mose Valley, 50 km from Pune. Situated 2000 feet above sea level between the Mulshi and Warasgaon dams, it will cost about Rs. 250 billion. The Maharashtra government has framed special regulations for the development of tourist resorts, holiday homes and townships in hill stations. in November 1996. Lavasa will have apartments, hotels, entertainment halls, convention centres, multiplexes and educational institutions. The project is still at a planning stage. Thirty per cent of the land will be utilised, and the rest will be kept green. HCC will plant three million trees. HCC is also involved with the Bandra-Worli sea link in Mumbai. The first phase will be completed by 2008. Among the partners: Lalit Thapar (15 %) and Venketeshwara Hatcheries (12 %).

Integrated Township Policy: To help the further development of urban Gujarat, the state government has drafted an integrated township policy. The idea is to open up the urban corridors from Vapi to Ahmedabad and Ahmedabad to Rajkot to private developers, local and foreign. Six different types of townships are proposed to be encouraged: technology parks, education based townships, medical and healthcare townships, tourism related townships, logistics parks and residential townships. The government will provide infrastructure like access roads, bulk water supply and bulk power. The government also intends to give fast-track clearances to these projects. Developers may of course have to a mandatory CRISIL-NAREDCO rating.

Night Courts: Gujarat will soon have four more night courts following the success of this experiment in Ahmedabad and Rajkot. Gujarat is the first state in India to introduce night courts to reduce the massive backlog of pending cases. In just one fortnight, the night courts in the two cities settled 6.200 petty cases. Bhavnagar, Surat, Mehsana and Jamnagar will now have night courts too. There are over 3 million pending cases in Gujarat's lower courts; out of these cases 1.1 million deal with petty offences. Night courts function for an additional two hours from 6.15 p.m.

NRI Remittances: The money remitted by the Indian diaspora is not only for the family back home. A Reserve Bank of India (RBI) study says that 20 % is parked in bank deposits, 13 % in real estate and shares and 13 % in other instruments. In FY06, India received $ 24.6 billion as remittance. The families of the diaspora invested $ 11.04 billion in various instruments. The study was conducted in cities like Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Chandigarh, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kochi and Kolkata. India is the largest recipient of global remittances after Mexico and China. Both Pakistan and Bangladesh figure among the top 10 recipients of remittance. North America and the Gulf countries are major sources of remittance, together accounting for 68 %, with a share of 44 % and 24%, respectively.

Pre-Natal Diagnosis: The Gujarat government is determined to go after rogue doctors who do pre-natal sex determination to destroy female fetuses. The state has engaged a top-flight legal firm to fight cases under the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PNDT) Act. The firm has held a seminar for the health officers who are directly involved in preparing the case files. The PNDT Act was explained to them and they were told how to prepare the 'panchnama' so that cases against erring doctors can stand in court. Setting an example with more convict ions should help reduce the malpractice. Even district panchayats have been informed that the state government will bear the cost of employing senior counsels to fight PNDT cases.

Linguistic Survey: The Indian government plans to conduct a linguistic survey of the country over the next ten years. The total cost: Rs. 5.88 billion. Incidentally, about 350 languages in the country that have fewer than 10,000 speakers, and some of these languages are on the verge of extinction. The last such survey of India was done by the British 1898 and 1927, and that survey had excluded the presidency of Madras, Hyderabad and the state of Mysore. The new survey will be conducted by the Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore.

Bombay Parsi Punchayat: According to a newspaper report the Bombay Parsi Punchayat (BPP) has a corpus of Rs. 850 million, controls 4,500 community flats and holds land in the city worth tens of thousands of crores (including the sprawling Towers of Silence property at Malabar Hill). The Punchayat has now moved the Bombay High Court seeking to introduce universal adult franchise so that every community member over 21 years may cast a vote to appoint a trustee. Currently, a Parsi can become a voter only if he donates Rs 25,000 to the Punchayat or gets elected through an electoral college. If the high court approves the universal franchise, then 40,000 eligible Parsi voters will be able to participate in the electoral process. It was in 1908 that the Bombay High Court had framed the election scheme for the BPP.

01-12-06

Fortified Wheat For Children: The Gujarat government has decided to distribute fortified wheat flour containing iron and Vitamin A to all anganwaadis in Gujarat. This decision follows a successful experimental project in the anganwaadis of Dashkroi taluka in Ahmedabad district. Officials of the state’s Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) say that the distribution will be done in all the 25 districts of Gujarat. Vadodara district alone has 1,958 anganwaadis and 40,000 children will benefit from the scheme.

30-11-06

Two-Year B.Tech Course: Delhi University may introduce a two-year B.Tech course for B.Sc degree holders. The course will offer specialisation in robotics, microelectronics, software engineering, nuclear technology, biomedical sciences and biotechnology. This should help inter-disciplinary movement between science and technology and also increase the job prospects of 1.6 million science graduates.

Ambaji-Abu Railway Line: The Indian Railway Board is considering the possibility of linking the pilgrim town of Ambaji in Gujarat with the Abu hill station in Rajasthan. Ambaji plays host to 10 million pilgrims every year. The Ambaji-Abu belt is rich in minerals, copper, zinc and marble.

Weigh-In-Motion Technology: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will try out weigh-in-motion equipment at 12 locations in the country. This will be the first time in India that vehicles will be weighed while moving on roads at high speeds. The 12 locations will be in Orissa, Jharkhand, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, in the proximity of major ports and large industrial installations.

29-11-06

NFIA Elections In USA: Elections were held recently in Los Angeles to elect office bearers for the National Federation of Indian-American Associations (NFIA), the body that represents the 2.5 million Indians living in USA. Forty per cent of the elected office bearers now happen to be Gujaratis. According to NFIA, 50 per cent of the Indians in USA are Gujaratis.

27-11-06

Monuments Up For Adoption: The Maharashtra government plansto allow private companies and trusts to 'adopt' 244 state-protected monuments. Among them are 34 forts, 14 caves, 101 places of worship and 95 other historical places. Included in the list are the Gateway of India, five forts (Dharavi, St. Gorge, Mahim, Bandra and Sewri) and August Kranti Maidan in Mumbai. The private bodies will maintain and improve the monuments for a five-year period. They will be allowed to charge an entry fee. The ownership of the monuments will remain with the state.

24-11-06

Most Reputed Companies: Eight Indian business houses are included in the Forbes list of the world's most reputed companies. The Tata group is among the top 20. Maruti Suzuki, Hero Honda Motors, HLL, ITC, SBI, Infosys and M&M are among the top 200. Italian Food and Tobacco major Barilla Holdings has been ranked first position, followed by Denmark's consumer products firm Lego Holdings and German airline Lufthansa. Maruti has been ranked 91, Hero Honda Motors 108, HLL 116, ITC 137, Infosys 155 and Mahindra & Mahindra 189. The Tata group has over 90 operating companies, with strong international presence in automobile, steel, IT and services sectors, with a total revenue of US $ 24 billion and a market capitalisation of US $ 47 billion.

Help For Abused Women: Men who abuse their wives or live-in girlfriends can now be jailed and fined under India's new law that is aimed at curbing domestic violence. The law, which came into effect recently, also applies to men or their families who harass wives for dowries. The Domestic Violence Act defines abuse broadly, including verbal, physical,sexual, emotional and economic mistreatment. Violators face up to a year in prison, a fine of Rs. 20,000 or both. The law has provisions for abused women to complain directly to judges instead of to police. The onus is on the man to prove that he did not abuse his wife. The law also ensures the woman's right to stay in the family home. According to a report published by the United Nations Population Fund, up to 70 per cent of India's married women aged 15 to 49 are victims of beating or coerced sex.

23-11-06

Pay Panel Seeks Feedback: Believe it or not, India's Sixth Central Pay Commission has invited the views of taxpayers, citizens and consumer organisations on how the government should run itself and reward its staff. An elaborate 37-point questionnaire has been put up on the commission's website http://india.gov.in/govt/paycommission.php.
Some sample questions:
... In order to ensure a fair comparison based on principles of equity and social justice, would it not also be appropriate to take into account the economic conditions of large sections of the community that are less privileged than Government employees?
... How should we determine the salary to be paid to a Secretary in the Central Government? Can appointment to this post be made on a contractual basis where salaries and tenure are linked to the performance?
... Is there any need to revise the pay scales periodically especially when 100 % neutralisation for inflation is available in form of dearness allowance?
... Should all vestiges of feudalism (huge residential bungalows, large servants' quarters, personal staff, peons) be abolished?
... Do you think the concepts of contractual appointment, part-time work, flexible job description, flexi-time, etc., need to be introduced?
... For improving punctuality should biometric entry/exit be introduced?
... In what manner can Government employees be made personally accountable for their acts of omission or commission, without any special safeguards?
... Kindly comment on the appropriateness of adopting a five-day week in Government offices when other sectors follow a six day week.
... Please whether the number of Gazetted holidays in Government offices should be reduced.
... Please also comment on the appropriateness of declaring Gazetted holidays for all major religious festivals.

Private-Public Railway: Gujarat's third private-public railway line will soon start functioning. The Kutch Railway Company is setting up a 301-km line between Palanpur and Gandhidham. On November 7, trial runs were conducted on the 53-km Samakhyali-Gandhidham stretch; the 248-km Samakhyali-Palanpur stretch is already operational. The Kutch Railway Company Ltd. (KRC) is a joint venture promoted by the Gujarat government, which has invested Rs. 80 million, the Kandla Port Trust (Rs. 520 million), the Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd. (Rs. 1 billion) and the Gujarat Adani Port Ltd. (Rs. 400 million). KRC will operate and maintain the line for 32 years under an agreement with Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd. KRC's Palanpur-Gandhidham line is the third in Gujarat to be built with private participation. The other two are the 271-km Pipavav-Surendranagar line run by the Pipavav Rail Corporation (promoted by Gujarat Pipavav Port Ltd.and Indian Railways) and the 57-km Mundra-Adipur line (run by Gujarat Adani Port Ltd., this is the longest privately owned railway line in India).

Sandalwood Farming: According to a recent newspaper report, Shantibhai Desai of Pariya village in Valsad district runs India's biggest sandalwood nursery. He sells white sandalwood saplings to other farmers. It takes seven years for a sandalwood sapling to grow into a tree. However, once the cycle starts, farmers get a regular income every year by selling old trees and planting new saplings in their place. A kilogram of sandalwood costs about Rs. 2,000. Sandalwood oil costs Rs. 50,000 per litre. Between 16 kg and 20 kg of wood is obtained from a single tree; this wood sells for Rs. 2,600 per kg. After cultivating sandalwood for 10 years, six to seven per cent of sandalwood oil can be extracted. This oil can be used for medicinal purposes and also as a fixative in the perfume industry.

Private Transmission Lines: Reliance Energy Ltd. has outbid seven other companies, including Tata Power and GMR, to emerge as the top bidder to build India's first fully independent private power transmission lines at a cost of about Rs. 18 billion. The bids were invited by the Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. to construct grid lines in Gujarat and Maharashtra.

Remarried Mothers: In a recent radical ruling, India's Supreme Court has held that a divorced mother's remarriage should not affect her right to custody of the child, provided the latter is willing. Remarriage of the mother cannot be taken as a ground for not granting custody of the child to the mother. The ruling undercuts provisions of the Hindu Law which treats the father as the natural guardian, besides giving the child a say in deciding with whom he would stay if the parents split.

22-11-06

Conference On Desertification: An international conference has been organised at Bhuj, Kutch, from December 18 to 20 by the Gujarat Institute of Desert Ecology (GUIDE). The year 2006 is being observed as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Gujarat has India's second largest dry tract (62,180 sq km); Kutch district alone has 45,652 sq km. Desertification is the process by which an area becomes a desert. In the process there is rapid depletion of plant life and loss of top soil at desert boundaries and in semi-arid regions.

21-11-06

Cheaper Air Fares: Foreign nationals and non-resident Indians booking ticketsabroad for India's full-service airlines will soon get a hefty reduction in ticket prices with the carriers planning to discontinue the dual-pricing strategy on dollar fares. The dollar fares will be charged on the exact conversion rates against the rupee and not at a premium.

Admissions On NRI Seats: The Gujarat High Court has ruled that only the parents can be the legal guardians of a minor, unless the parents are found unfit for the role. Therefore, students will get admission on NRI seats only if their parents are NRIs. A college in Surat had given admissions on NRI seats to students whose parents were in India but their relatives living abroad had become their legal guardians so that they could get admission onNRI seats. The court observed that as long as the father is alive, no one else can be appointed as the guardian of a minor. In the absence of the father, the mother takes on the role.

Gold Jewellery Hallmarking: Gold jewellery hallmarking will be made compulsory in India January 1, 2007. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) believes that this will ensure that buyers are not cheated. In a recent survey in Delhi, more than 90 per cent of non-hallmarked jewellery failed purity tests.

20-11-06

Two-Child Norm In Elections: In next month's elections to over 10,000 village panchayats in Gujarat, candidates with more than two children will not be eligible. A law to this effect was passed by the Gujarat Assembly in March 2005 and it came into force in August 2006. All candidates who have given birth to more than two children after August 4, 2006 will be disqualified.

06-11-06

PAN Compulsory: Thanks to initiatives by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), no transactions may be permitted in demat depository accounts without a PAN after December 31, 2006. This is not the first time that the possession of PAN has been made mandatory. You cannot open a bank account or enter into a real estate deal without furnishing your PAN. Now, unlike in the case of bank accounts, it is not only the opening of new demat accounts that is subject to the production of a PAN card. Even the continuance of existing accounts is conditional on possessing it. Also, since the PAN card has to be produced in person it is not possible to give a false PAN.

Chopper To Girnar Hills: The Gujarat government, Deccan Aviation and Shree Dwarkadish Aviation, have signed an MoU to start a helicopter service to the Girnar hills. The eight-km trip from Zafer Maidan in Junagadh to Ambaji Hill in Girnar will take eight to ten minutes, traversing a distance of eight km. The two helipads are ready and approval is awaited from the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The charges for the seven-seat helicopter may be Rs. 7,000 (to and fro). A similar service is available at Vaishno Devi shrine in Jammu. Mount Girnar has some of the finest Jain temples, dating back to the third century BC. Also, there is a Muslim shrine on the peak, and Damodar Kund at the foot of Mount Girnar.

Bangalore Renamed Bengalooru: Bangalore changed its name to its vernacular original Bengalooru on 1st November 2006. The name change marked the 50th anniversary of the formation of Karnataka state. The change may take about a month to come into effect legally as it needs the central government's approval.

14-10-06

Indore's New Bus System: Indore's municipal corporation operates India's first fleet of 53 modern low-floor buses equipped with GPS and computerised ticket-vending machines. Since the launch of this service in February 2006 the corporation has made a profit of Rs. 10 million. The new transport system is based on a private-public partnership. The buses are colour-coded according to routes. The staff is trained by a management agency. Indore plans to have 96 such buses by the end of the year and 500 in five years. The remarkably successful Indore experiment is now being studied by Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Jaipur, Kota, Udaipur, Rourkela and Raipur.

Desalination Plant In Kutch: The Gujarat Infrastructure Development Board (GIDB) has initiated the bidding process to set up a 150 million litres per day (MLD) desalination plant in Kutch on a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) basis. It will be India's largest desalination plant. Presently, the industries between Mundra and Samkhiyali get only 45 MLD of Narmada water through Gujarat Water Infrastructure Ltd. (GWIL), whereas the demand is for 200 MLD. To be set up at a cost of over Rs. 7 billion, the plant may be located in Wondh or Nani Chirali villages between Mundhra port and Mandvi. Work is likely to start in the next six months.

11-10-06

Coloured Kerosene: The Indian government has made it mandatory for oil companies to colour kerosene with an imported, irremovable marker to detect whether this cooking fuel is used to adulterate diesel and petrol. A recent NCAER (National Council of Applied Economic Research) study found that 38.6 per cent of the kerosene meant for the PDS (Public distribution System) was diverted to adulterate petrol and diesel. A litre of kerosene costs about Rs. 9 in Delhi, while the same quantity of petrol costs Rs. 47.50 and diesel Rs. 32.40. The marker cannot be removed.

Blood Donations: The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) has reported that Gujarat tops the country in terms of blood donors per thousand persons. The report is based on the units of blood collected by blood banks supported by the Gujarat State AIDS Control Society (GSACS) and Gujarat Council for Blood Transfusion. In 2005, 513,203 units of blood were collected, which is 11.4 per cent of the country's total. In 2006, the collection till June was 234,475 units, with 66.21 per cent coming through voluntary donations. More than 35 per cent of the blood collected is separated into its various components. Gujarat has 7.74 persons per thousand donating blood voluntarily, with only Andaman & Nicobar Islands (8.07 per cent) and Mizoram (8.02 per cent) ahead. For every 10 persons coming to donate blood, six are turned back because they are anaemic.

IRMA to Help NGOs: India's only centre for training rural managers, the Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA) now has one more role. It will assist NGOs working for the Endogenous Tourism Project (ETP) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). IRMA will collaborate with UNDP to provide sustainable rural tourism and livelihood. The objective of the ETP is to improve the livelihood or income of communities in different villages.

New Packaging Norms: India's Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has issued a notification barring companies from using the picture of a food item on the packaging of their product unless it is actually an ingredient. This means that an eatable with, say, a mango 'flavour' cannot use the picture of a mango on the pack since the fruit is not really an ingredient. If the ingredient is not actually present, manufacturers cannot hint through a visual that it is included. Companies have been given one year to change the packaging of their products. The ministry has also made it mandatory for companies to specify nutritional and quantitative values of their products on the packaging. They will also have to specify if the product contains any 'trans fats'.

08-09-06

Photo Identification: The Directorate of Forensic Sciences (DFS) at Gandhinagar has taken up a project to develop a method to convincingly identify a particular person from a photograph, media clip or image. It will set up a data bank containing anthropological data of various people of different age group and professions. Called the Gujarat State Biometric Consortium, the Rs. 850,000 project has been sanctioned by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. It is often necessary for forensic experts to confirm the identity of a person in an image, photo or media clip. This project may be very helpful for forensic scientists. The findings of the project will also be helpful in cases where a decomposed body has been found or where the face of the person has been defaced.

NID's Mini Mobile: A mini cellphone designed at Ahmedabad's National Institute of Design (NID) could possible be marketed at below Rs. 500. The instrument, which is ideal for those who use cellphones for urgent communication, has five buttons to which specific phone numbers can be assigned. Calls can be received from or made to only these numbers. The 80 mm x 35 mm phone can work on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) as well as on Global System for Mobile (GSM) technology. It is useful for elderly people or those with disabilities who often find it difficult to manipulate keys on an otherwise cluttered instrument.

Ten Million Dormant Accounts: India's banks are happily sitting on a bounty of Rs. 9.29 billion. This is the total cash balance on over 10 million bank accounts which have not been operated for over 10 years. As per Reserve Bank of India data on unclaimed deposits as on December 31, 2005, over Rs. 91.3 million has been levied by the banks on these accounts by way of service charges in the preceding ten years. The interest credited to these accounts in the same period was about Rs. 78.4 million.

Crorepati Traffic Department: Ahmedabad's traffic police 'earned' over Rs. 10 million in seven months, thanks to Amdavadis who drove two-wheelers without wearing helmets and cars without fastening seat-belts. They collected Rs. 7,394,850 as fines from two-wheeler drivers and Rs. 4,282,800 from car drivers. Ahmedabad city has 1.342 million two-wheelers and 219,000 four-wheelers.

06-09-06

A Merc For Rs. 50 Million: Did you know that India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has only two bullet-proof Mercedes cars for visiting VIPs? In preparation of the SAARC summit in April 2007, the government has placed urgent orders for six bullet-proof Mercedes cars. The SPG (Special Protection Group) does not allow the Prime Minister's fleet of cars to be disturbed. India does have several bullet-proof Ambassador cars, but times have changed and VIP security now demands state-of-the-art cars. Each Merc will cost about Rs. 50 million.

Post Bank of India: To tackle its current deficit of Rs. 100 billion India Post proposes to set up the 'Post Bank of India', with about 1,500 branches across the country. The proposal is at a very preliminary stage. The department has a network of over 155,000 post offices and already provides various financial services, including a post office savings bank (POSB), postal life insurance, pension payments and money transfer services. Under the POSB, the department handles Rs. 3,750 billion worth of savings bank account deposits of 180 million customers.

Electricity From Bamboo: A bamboo-fuelled power station will be set up at Sairang village in Mizoram at a cost of Rs. 28.5 million. MIzoram produces 3.2 million tonnes of bamboo annually, on an area of 9,000 sq km. This project has been conceived by the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, and Ankur Scientific Energy Technologies. Bamboo will be dried before it is processed for feedstock to produce gas, which will finally get converted to electricity. India, the world's largest producer of bamboo after China, grows about 80 million tonnes each year, more than half of it in the northeast.

Kutch's NRI Deposits: Kutch district recorded Rs. 31.7 billion worth of NRI deposits in 2005-06, compared to last year's Rs. Rs 25.6 billion. Kutch topped in Gujarat (the state's total was Rs. 166.6 billion). Small Kutchi towns like Madhapar, Badadia, Kera, Mankuva, Sukhpar, Rampar and Meghpar are the hot-spots for banks. Barring Madhapar, the other towns have a population of less than 5,000. Madhapar, near Gandhidham, has a population of 28,000. Its total deposits were Rs 22 billion as on March 31, 2006. Of this, NRI deposits were Rs. 8.2 billion. The town has branches of 9 banks. Most Kutchi NRIs have settled in UK, USA, Gulf and African countries. The younger generation of Kutchis prefers to park funds overseas.

Public Health Schools: The Public Health Foundation of India has received a grant of Rs. 650 million each from the Indian government as well as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The Gates Foundation became the first private donor for the Rs. 2 billion private-public initiative launched to strengthen the public health system in India. Under this programme five public health schools will be set up in three years (the locations have still to be finalised).

Gutka Advertising Banned: Gutka and chewing tobacco will no longer be food products; they will now come under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003. Therefore, companies manufacturing and selling gutka and chewing tobacco products will not be able to directly or indirectly advertise the products.

25-08-06

Postmen Deliver Medicines: The ordinary postman, long associated only with letters, now has a new assignment in Jharkhand. He joins the large army of school teachers, forest guards, village chowkidars and other social workers who participate voluntarily in the massive malaria eradication programme to deliver anti-malaria drugs. According to experts in the vector borne disease control programme, malaria is endemic in 20 out of 22 districts of Jharkhand. Before the introduction of this novel scheme, patients had to visit the public health centres (PHCs) to collect the drugs free of cost.

Biometric Data Bank: The Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, has developed software which can create a biometric date bank comprising fingerprints, retinal scans and signatures that can be used by financial institutions and security agencies. The software, developed with help from India's Communication & IT Ministry, has diverse uses - such as keeping records of terrorists and criminals, monitoring the attendance in classrooms with a large number of students, etc.

Smallest Rose: A pink rose, grown by Sudhir Khetawat in Indore, is just one centimetre in width. It has been recognised by the Limca Book of Records as the 'smallest perfectly formed' variety of the flower. Named Diamond Rose, it has 10 petals.

23-08-06

Somnath Temple Website: Not all devotees who were eager to witness the 'maha aarti' of Somnath temple during the Shravan month traveled all the way to the temple town. They logged on to the website www.somnath.org for an online view of the 'maha aarti'. The website features many interesting details concerning the temple.

Chennai Turns 368: On August 22, Chennai or Madras or Chennaipattinam entered its 368th year of existence. Originally called Chennaipattinam - the city was a popular trading centre for spices and clothes for over 2,000 years. The name 'Madras' was changed to 'Chennai' in 1996.

Rajul Sheth, TT Coach: The India Community Centre table tennis team won 13 medals (6 gold) at the 2006 AAU Junior Olympics held from July 28 to 31 at Hampton Roads, Virginia, USA. The ICC team won more medals than any other club in USA. One of the team's three coaches was Rajul Sheth, ICC's table tennis coordinator. Rajul, a qualified international table tennis umpire, is a former Gujarat Men's Single's Champion. He played at the national level in India for 15 years. He played in Russia and USA, coached by world class coaches. He coaches only at ICC; five of his young students are in the top 13 in USA.

22-08-06

Website On Satyajit Ray: A website on film-maker Satyajit Ray, created by the Society of Satyajit Ray Films, will be inaugurated by Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee 26th August. The inauguration of the website (www.worldofray.com) coincides with the 51st anniversary of the commercial release of Ray's Pather Panchali in Kolkata.

Freedom Hits
(Forwarded to Baroda-Online By Jalpa Patel)
Adil Marawala recently listed (in the Times of India) 20 chartbuster tracks that normally fill Indians with the nationalistic spirit. Baroda-Online's viewers may also be interested in his list.

Aye Mere Watan (Kabuliwala)
Aye Mere Watan Ke Logon (Lata Mangeshkar)
Aye Watan Humko Teri Kasam (Shaheed)
Kar Chale Hum Fida (Haqeekat)
Mera Rang de Basanti Chola (Shaheed)
Sarfaroshi ki Tamanna (Miscellaneous)
Jahan Daal Daal Par (Rustom aur Sohrab)
Yeh Desh Hai veer Jawano Ka (Naya Daur)
Hai Preet Jahan Ki Reet Sada (Purab aur Paschim)
Mere Desh Ki Dharti (Upkaar)
Chhodo kal ki Baatein (Hum Hindustani)
Dulhan Chali (Purab aur Paschim)
Insaaf Ki Dagar Pe (Ganga Jamuna)
I love my India (Pardes)
Bharat humko Jaan se pyara hai (Roja)
Yeh jo desh hai tera (Swadesh)
Rang De Basanti (Rang De Basanti)
Zindagi Maut na Ban Jaaye (Sarfarosh)
Vande Mataram (A.R. Rehman)
Suno Gaur se Duniya walo (Dus)

22-07-06

Robotic Under-Sea Vehicle: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) at Kharagpur has developed an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) which can bring back deep-sea images, read oceanographic data, collect water samples and perform military surveillance like pinpointing mines. The wireless, intelligent vehicle can manoeuvre on its own up to depths of 150 metres for five hours. Unlike a remote-operated vehicle (ROV) which has to be guided by a surface platform, the AUV is pre-programmed to carry out specific tasks. IIT' Department of Ocean Engineering & Naval Architecture is handling this Rs. 70-million for the Union Ministry of Ocean Development.

Belgium Honours Indian Diamantaire: Belgium has conferred its highest honour on Dilip Mehta, the Antwerp based Indian diamantaire who heads Rosy Blue, the world's largest diamond company. He will receive the title of 'baron' in Belgium's annual honours list. About 300 Indian families, mainly from Gujarat, live in the port city of Antwerp, the world’s rough diamond trading capital. Indians control 60 % of Antwerp's rough and polished diamond trade, which has a turnover of $ 36 billion and contributes 8 % of Belgium's exports. Rosy Blue (with an annual turnover of US $ 1.7 billion in 2005) is operates in 15 countries and has over 10,000 employees. Dilip Mehta became a Belgian national in 2001.

07-07-06

Plea Bargaining: Plea bargaining, a radical reform that gives an accused person an incentive to plead guilty in exchange for a reduced has now come into effect. The system of plea bargaining is designed to pre-empt trial for offences punishable with imprisonment of up to  seven years. The judgment based on plea bargaining will be final and there will be no statutory right of appeal against it.

Maruti Woos NRIs: In order to open up new selling channels and address newer customer groups, auto manufacturer Maruti Udyog Ltd. (MUL) has launched a new programme under which non-resident Indians can place an online order from any part of the world to gift a Maruti car to a friend or a relative residing in India. Under this initiative titled 'Dil Se', NRIs can place an order online to gift a Maruti car to a friend or relative by simply logging on to www.marutinri.com and placing an order.

Drug Labels In Hindi Too: From October 2006 all medicines sold in the retail market will be labelled in both Hindi and English, and the maximum retail price (MRP) mentioned on the pack will be inclusive of all taxes.

Facility For Paraplegic Soldiers: The Sir Dorabji Tata Trust has donated Rs. 3 million to help build an international standard, state-of-the-art indoor sports complex at the Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre (PRC) at Khadki, near Pune. PRC rehabilitates Armed Forces personnel with spinal injuries. The 64,000 sq ft sports complex will include basketball, throwball and tennis facilities and a heated swimming pool. The complex will also be used by the neighbouring Queen Mary Technical Institute (QMTI) for disabled soldiers.

29-06-06

Kesar Mangoes At Harrods: It is claimed that Jamnagar Farms Pvt. Ltd. at Moti Khavadi (Jamnagar) has Asia's largest mango orchard. Harrods, the London retail giant, has now placed a large order for Kesar mangoes with Jamnagar Farms, a 100 per cent subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL). Reliance will supply three tonnes this season, but over 200 tonnes are planned for next year. RIL subsidiary Reliance Global Management Services Pvt. Ltd. Will also export canned mango pulp and slices. The products will adhere to EURO-GAP norms.

Kalpen Modi In Hollywood: Did you know that Hollywood movie 'Superman Returns' has a Gujarati actor featured in it? One of the bad guys in the super hero venture is Hollywood actor Kal Penn. And Kal Penn's real name is Kalpen Modi. He was born to Gujarati parents in New Jersey. He will also be seen this year in the cinematic version of 'The Namesake', authored by Pulitzer Prize winner Jhumpa Lahiri, to be directed by Mira Nair.

27-06-06

Turnaround At Indian Railways: The Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad) is so impressed with the turnaround at Indian Railways that it may become a case study for its students. It was only in 2001 that an expert committee had said that the government's largest departmental enterprise was on the verge of financial collapse. The growth of the Railways under the present railway minister is quite noticeable. The committee had said that the government would be saddled with an additional financial burden of over Rs. 610 billion. However, the Railways have generated nearly Rs. 130 billion internally and had fund balances of Rs. 113 billion at the end of March 2006. In its latest report on the Indian automobiles and components industry, Deutsche Bank has said that truck manufacturers may be hit because of the railway turnaround, since it is getting back freight traffic that it had lost for over 20 years.

150 Million Phones: India now has more than 100 million cellular subscribers, a feat achieved just 11 years after the introduction of mobile phone in the country. The other four countries to have over 100 million cellular subscribers are China, USA, Japan and Russia. Including landlines, India now has 150 million phone connections.

Indian CAs In UK: Indian Chartered Accountants may now be able to practice in Singapore and the UK. Besides mutual recognition of degrees, many other areas are being looked into for possible cooperation. SAARC nations like Nepal and Sri Lanka had also evinced interest in having similar agreements.

24-06-06

Dress Code For CAs: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) may soon come up with a 'dress code' to discourage the casual dressing habits of CAs. The proposal is along the lines of 'full-sleeve shirt, tie and shoes'. Pyjama-kurta or dhoti may also be permitted. The dress code will be optional and subject to approval by ICAI's 130,000 member CAs. Members may also be allowed to use 'CA' before their names, just like doctors use 'Dr'. ICAI may also have a unique logo for use by its members.

15-06-06

Course For NRI Children: The University of Mumbai will begin a special programme for children of Non-Resident Indians (NRI) who want to learn about India's history and tradition. The Study India Programme (SIP) will be a three-month, multi-disciplinary and credit-based course. It will cover India's economy, polity, literature, cinema, mythology, music, etc. The course is self-financed. There will also be weekend sessions for corporate executives from multinational companies and officers from various consulates in the city.

Tourism Properties For Sale: The loss-making Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd. (TCGL) has put 26 properties and over 750,000 square metres of land on sale. The properties will be used by private investors for tourism purposes only. In the first phase are seven properties: Palace Beach Resort (Chorwad), Hotel Sumeru (Palitana), Tourist Bungalow (Veraval), Toran Cafeteria (Modhera), Tourist Complex (Valthan), Dwarka Guest House (Dwarka) and a cafeteria in Gandhinagar. The other properties includes Ubhrat Holiday Camp, Nargol Beach Resort, Ankleshwar Motel, Ahmedpur-Mandvi Beach Resort, Sasangir Forest Lounge, Kuba Huts, Holiday Home (Shukaltirth), Hazira Holiday Home, Saputara Girimathak, Balaram Ujani Gruh (Banaskantha), Tourist Complex (Nalsarovar), Hotel Champaner (Panchamahals), Holiday Camp at Lothal and Dholavira Tourist complex.

14-06-06

NRI Remittances: India is the largest recipient of remittances by overseas workers. The amount is estimated to be $21 billion, according to a study by investment bankers JP Morgan. About 25 million Indians are based overseas in 110 countries. Recent Reserve Bank of India figures suggest that remittance were double the amount of net foreign institutional investor inflows and one-fourth of the merchandise export earnings of the country. At around $32 billion, the deposits by NRIs amount to 23 % of foreign exchange reserves.

02-06-06

PG Course On Naturopathy: The Veer Narmad South Gujarat University (VNSGU) plans to set up a department of holistic health and start a postgraduate course in Yoga and Naturopathy. Prof Yagnesh Vyas of Gujarat Ayurvedic College, Vadodara's Dr. Bharat Shah and other naturopaths like Dr. Vipul Shah, Dr. Tejal Shah and Dr. Bhaskar Oza are in the committee formed to design the course.The course will include topics such as nutrition, herbal medicine, lifestyle counselling, massage, aromatherapy, reflexology, flower remedies, iridology, yoga, meditation, Pranayam, Prekshadhyan, etc.

21-05-06

Cybercafes At Railway Stations: RailTel Corporation of India Ltd. (RCIL) plans to set up cybercafes at 216 important railway stations in the country. RailTel has been formed to expand, modernise and make commercial utilisation of telecom facilities in the railways. A, B and C category railway stations have been identified for the service, along with stations that earn more than Rs. 60 million. Vadodara is a B category station. Under the Vadodara railway division, stations such as Vadodara, Nadiad, Anand, Ankleshwar and Bharuch have been identified as possible place where the facility will be provided.

02-05-06

Hospital Ratings: The Indian government wants to introduce an international rating system for hospitals. The rating will be done by an accredited body in association with the Bureau of Indian Standard. Initially, this will be for those hospitals which want to be rated.

Plastic Roads: Using waste plastic materials for laying roads increases the life of a road and reduces pollution. Hyderabad will now follow the example of Bangalore and go in for plastic roads. Melted plastic is mixed with bitumen to lay such roads. Plastic is a good binding agent for tar and increases the road quality, making these roads three times better than the conventional ones. One kilometre needs two tones of poly blend. Using plastic helps to reduce non-biodegradable waste. The Bangalore Municipal Corporation has laid over 500 km of plastic roads.

ISO Approval For Police Station: The Worli Police Station in Mumbai has been accorded International Standards Organisation (ISO) certification, the first of its kind for city police. The certification comes with a condition: the honour will be taken back if the quality is not maintained. Mumbai Police Commissioner A.N. Roy hopes that all 83 police stations in the city will qualify for ISO certification.

29-04-06

'My Lord' Has Changed: 'My Lord' and 'Your Lordship', the phrases used to address judges of the Supreme Court and high courts, have been replaced by 'Your Honour' and 'Honourable Court'. The Bar Council of India (BCI) has recently amended the rules to this effect. In the lower courts, lawyers can address the presiding officers as 'Sir' or the equivalent in the regional languages. BCI has not made it mandatory for lawyers to follow the new system of address.