IndiaLive.org

Tata plans hybrid cars on Nano platform

editor — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 02:23:32 +0000

Tata motors has plans to use its Nano platform to build electric and hybrid cars and to produce more high-end models. “The Nano is just not a car for Tata Motors, it is also a platform to create more high-end models that will sell for higher prices and yield better margins,” Tata Group said highlighting the Innovation and Innovativeness of the company.

“Tata Motors has plans to use the Nano platform to build electric and hybrid cars,” the Tata Group in its report on innovations. Tata Motors should target exports of the car in the developing countries like Brazil, China, Indonesia and Russia, where the growth rate is over 10%, it added.

The introduction of Nano car was compared to that of the Ford Model T, the car that completely revolutionised the automobile industry. Nano is also expected to create a new distinct category in the auto industry the People’s Car. pti

Tata Motors to launch Jaguar, Land Rover in India MUMBAI: Tata group company,Jaguar and Land Rover, on Friday said...
Companies book Nano in bulk to offer staff as rewards KOLKATA: Is Nano fever about to be the homegrown antidote...
Tata to raise £1bn to keep Jaguar Land Rover afloat LONDON: Tata group-owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is planning to...

“Don’t come to this country. I was lucky to have escaped”

editor — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 02:09:18 +0000

NEW DELHI: Twenty-year-old Sunny bajaj has made up his mind. He will leave Australia for good. The Shalimar Bagh boy, who studied at Sachdeva Public School in west Delhi and is pursuing accounting at Deakins University in Australia for the past one-and-a-half years now, has been left badly shaken by the attack on him at Melbourne on Friday night when he was racially abused and bashed up, leaving him with bruises and a fractured finger.

Sunnybajaj was so traumatised by the incident that he skipped his exams on Monday. Speaking to TOI from Melbourne, he said: “If Indian students really think they can cope with such abuses, they should come Australia. But my suggestion is don’t come to Australia. I was lucky to have escaped - otherwise I would have been in coma now.”

Sunnybajaj is the latest victim of the racial attacks that have been unleashed in Australia in the past two months and seem to be continuing unabated.

It was on Friday night, around 8.15 pm local time, that he was assaulted by two men in Boronia, Melbourne.
“I was returning to my car after shopping when two men accosted me and asked for money. When I said I didn’t have any, they began abusing me and then attacked me without any provocation. One of them was white and the other seemed to be of African origin.”

Sunnybajaj said the men clearly knew he was an Indian because “they abused me saying “f****** Indian c***. They slammed the car door on my hand, fracturing my finger, hit me on my head and punched me in the stomach and face.” He said he had reported the matter to the police and given them a description of the two men.

Bajaj was preparing for his exams before going back to India for his vacations. He says racial abuse is very common in Australia and students are used to it. “Things are coming out into the open only now. I personally know of so many cases of racial abuse, which may not have resulted in physical assault like it has been happening of late. All kind of dirty things are said to us. Even after the protests, things have not changed at all,” he said.

Asked whether he would like to continue staying in Australia, Sunny bajaj said: “I can’t do much right now as I have my exams. In fact, I missed one today. But the first thing I really want to do now is to get back to India as soon as possible. My parents have been worried ever since these things started coming out into the open and now they don’t want me to be here any longer. They want me to return or to go to some place like Singapore.”

Bajaj said he was yet to get over his trauma. “I am completely out of my wits at present thinking that it could have been much worse. I was plain lucky with a few bruises, a broken finger and these injuries. I was saved because of an approaching car; otherwise, I would have been in hospital,” he recalled with a shudder.

The Federation of Indian Students of Australia (FISA) is alleging that no help has come their way, accusing the Indian consulate of not taking the issue seriously and playing politics with the life of students.

Media coordinator of FISA Gautam Gupta told TOI: “Indian students have been spending millions and this is what they get in return. We have been in touch with the consulate but they are simply not interested in mediation. Why is there no visit by any ministry of external affairs team to see how the consulate is working?” He alleged that the Indian government wasn’t exerting any pressure.

Bajaj, however, feels that the Australian government is doing its bit to bring the situation under control and so are the cops. “They can’t assign a policeman to each student. But believe me, things are bad on the ground and it is not safe at all. First the attacks were happening late at night and in desolate locations, but now the incidents are taking place in the evening hours.”

“Australia is a beautiful country, but I am really scared and want to go home,” he says.

Thousands rally against racism in Melbourne MELBOURNE: Shaken by a wave of racial assaults, thousands of...
Abhi Ash third time lucky with Mani! Aishwarya and Abhishek Bachchan’s previous film Guru with the talented...

Retail investors take MF route to join mid-cap rally

editor — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 02:55:12 +0000

MUMBAI: Having burnt their fingers in small- and mid-cap shares ast year, retail investors have taken a more cautious approach this time: they are playing the mid-cap rally through the mutual fund (MF) route. Market watchers say this could further fuel the rally in second-line stocks as fund managers will have to deploy the money collected through these schemes, even if it means having to chase prices.

As per May figures, renewed inflows and appreciation in portfolio value have boosted the asset base of mid- and small-cap schemes by 18-30%.

“The idea is to invest in these schemes with a very short-term view — say 3-5 weeks. When the investor touches a preset target (about 20-25%), he’ll redeem his investments ,” said Emkay Global Financial Services wealth management head, Akhilesh Singh.

“Even if the investor pays a 2% exit load for prematurely redeeming his fund investments, he’s still making good money. Moreover, the investor is free from traps such as illiquid counters or rigged stocks,” Mr Singh added.

Several stock brokers hold the view that even if there is a broader market correction, mid-cap stocks will have more ‘price upside’ (than their large cap peers) when the market turns around. The BSE Midcap index and BSE SmallCap index have risen 51% and 62%, respectively, over the past one month compared with a 30% rise in the Sensex.

Make long-term moves for maximum returns MUMBAI: “Every investor is a long-term investor until the stock...
Stocks seen ranged; 3300 on Nifty watched MUMBAI: Stocks are likely to remain ranged on Monday tracking...
Profit taking drags sensex 337 pts MUMBAI: BSE sensex’s eight-session winning streak came to a sudden...

Make long-term moves for maximum returns

editor — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 02:16:23 +0000

MUMBAI: “Every investor is a long-term investor until the stock market tanks,’’ says Amar Pandit, certified financial planner (CFP) with my Financial Advisor, a wealth management firm. “You get to know his mental make up only by how he reacts to the market fall. If he stops or discontinues his regular investments, it becomes clear that he doesn’t have the stomach for risk. Also, he can’t think of his investments in the long term,’’ adds Amar Pandit.

Financial experts have many such stories identify the so-called long-term investor from others. This is because most of them aver that planning investments with a long-term perspective is vital to one’s financial well being. Though one often comes across well meaning advice about long-term planning, people often fail to stick to it—especially when it comes to equity investments.

“It is not that equity is the only long-term investment. When one invests in real estate, public provident fund or employee’s provident fund, one knows they are long-term commitments. For example, PPF is a 15-year account and EPF can be of 30 years, depending on one’s working life. In all these, people have long-term view,’’ says Amar Pandit.

“They wouldn’t quit these investments based on short-term trends, either due to emotional reasons or because they can’t be easily liquidated. However, when it comes to equity—an instrument only meant for long-term investors—people take decisions based on short-term trends in the market,’’ Amar Pandit adds.

However, advisors add that one shouldn’t conclude that people haven’t realised the importance of a long-term investment perspective. “People who have been investing for some time in the market realise the importance of long-term commitment. For example, when the market was down, the impression was created that most people would discontinue their SIPs, but it was not the case,’’ says D Sundararajan, investment consultant, Trendy Investments, an investment advisory firm. “Most seasoned investors continued with their investment programme, as they perhaps realised that it was beneficial to buy stocks when the market was down,’’ Amar Pandit adds.

In short, if you haven’t taken a long-term view of your financial needs and planned your investments accordingly, you are very unlikely to achieve your goals.

“When we talk about a life goal like retirement or child’s education, we are talking about at least 10-15 years ahead. If you don’t include the possible return over that period or the impact of inflation on your corpus, you wouldn’t get a realistic picture,’’ says a wealth manager in private sector bank. “In such a scenario, a person will have to face unpleasant surprises in the last moment, when he wouldn’t be in a position to take remedial actions,’’ Amar Pandit adds.

Having a long-term perspective will also come handy when you reallocate assets in your portfolio to mitigate the volatility in a certain segment. Sundararajan offers an example of how having a long-term perspective could help prune the portfolio in times of uncertainties.

“When the stock market was down, we decided to include gold in the portfolio of many clients. We took this decision on the basis of our view that the stock market may take a long term to recover because of the uncertainties in the global economy and gold would add the much needed stability to the portfolio,’’ Amar Pandit says.

Retail investors take MF route to join mid-cap rally MUMBAI: Having burnt their fingers in small- and mid-cap shares...
Safe bet: Gold shines with 26% returns MUMBAI: Even as the current economic conditions have dwindled returns...
MRPL (Rs 37.65): Buy We recommend a buy in Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL)...

Thousands rally against racism in Melbourne

editor — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 02:06:17 +0000

MELBOURNE: Shaken by a wave of racial assaults, thousands of Indian students and supporters rallied here on Sunday, demanding justice for victims of recent attacks as Australia scrambled to contain the rising anger and frustration within the community.

The `peace rally’, organized by the Federation of Indian Students in Australia (FISA) and National Union of Students among others, kicked off from outside the Royal Melbourne Hospital, where 25-year-old Shravan Kumar has been admitted since May 9 when he was stabbed with a screwdriver by a group of teenagers. The protesters had something to cheer about as doctors pronounced Kumar, who had slipped into a coma, “out of danger”.

“He (Kumar) has come out of coma and moved his hands,” said T J Rao, a former consul-general of India in Melbourne who participated in the rally.

Kumar has been taken off life support but Rao added that doctors were unsure if the 25-year-old would recover fully.
The marchers numbering over 5,000 walked down to the Victorian Parliament House on Spring street, holding placards with slogans reading `We want Justice’, `We are the Economy Builders’ and `End Racist Attacks’. Joined by state opposition leader Ted Baillieu and other leading community members, the marchers proposed to hand over their list of demands to lawmakers but that did not materialize.

FISA founder Gautam Gupta, who led the rally, said, “we believe in Gandhigiri and peaceful ways to present the demands of the student community”. Among those demands were a multicultural police force for Victoria, which houses 47,000 of the 95,000 Indian students in Australia. They also demanded that crime statistics be made public and sought racial tolerance and awareness.

The Australian government appeared to be reaching out, with foreign minister Stephen Smith admitting that the attacks were a “current problem” facing the Indian community. “We’re doing everything that we can, both with the Indian community in Australia and India itself… but also working very closely with the relevant state authorities,” Smith said.

In a bid to assuage fears, Australia’s first Asia-born Cabinet minister said racism in the country was confined to “a minority” with extreme views. “On the whole, I think Australians are tolerant,” Malaysia-born Penny Wong, federal climate change minister, said. “It is a minority of people in Australia who hold those sort of extreme and intolerant views.”

FISA leader Gupta, however, said the massive rally proved that they were not “soft targets” and the situation might get out of hand if the community was attacked again. He was, however, confident that the Australian government would take action against the perpetrators immediately.That sentiment was echoed by Sydney-based cardiologist Yadu Singh among others who opposed branding the country as “racist” and stressed that the government be given some time to resolve the problem. Insisting that Australia was not a “racist” country and that all attacks against Indians were not racist in nature, Singh said, “We believe that this is not the correct picture of the unfortunate events.

“Most of the attacks are what we call `opportunistic attacks’ and due to the impression by the criminal elements about our students being the easy target for various reasons,” Singh said.

“No doubt, our students have several significant issues and these issues have been raised with government and police authorities here. We are confident that these would be acted upon seriously. It must be accepted that Australia risks more than $15 billion in business if the students’ issues are not given due importance soon,” he said.

Indian-origin CEO of leading company Primus, Ravi Bhatia, who took part the rally, seconded him. “There are many examples of highly successful members in the Indian community. Just like any other society, there are small minority of miscreants and malcontents,” he said.

“Don’t come to this country. I was lucky to have escaped” NEW DELHI: Twenty-year-old Sunny bajaj has made up his mind....
Pak groups rope in Babbar Khalsa to launch attacks NEW DELHI: As part of their larger plan to target...
Retail investors take MF route to join mid-cap rally MUMBAI: Having burnt their fingers in small- and mid-cap shares...

Congress struggles with Cabinet berths

editor — Wed, 27 May 2009 03:03:20 +0000

NEW DELHI: A surge in Lok Sabha numbers has brought a plenty of problem for Congress, with party brass juggling names for the third consecutive day to finalize the list of Manmohan Singh’s ministry.

The party has to accommodate states which it has swept by giving them proportionate numbers while it is also being forced to take token faces from states it has been swept out from.

Meetings on Tuesday between PM Manmohan Singh and party chief Sonia Gandhi, followed by one at 10, Janpath, is said to have finalised the list, which would be given a final touch on Wednesday in a meeting between the PM Manmohan Singh and party chief Sonia Gandhi. The swearing-in is scheduled for Thursday.

The unexpected delay in finalising the list is on account of the complicated task of balancing names with caste-regional considerations. While a jump in the number of MPs is forcing the list towards the upper permissible limit of 81 members, sources said the party is keen to keep a decent number vacant for a later-day expansion.

Indications are that Uttar Pradesh may see a big contingent in the ministry, in view of the party’s eagerness to consolidate gains made by winning 21 seats. The party sees revival in UP-Bihar as critical if it is to return as the umbrella party of yore.

Andhra Pradesh, which surpassed the doomsday predictions by returning 33 MPs, has placed a high demand too.

It’s a tightrope walk in states Congress has swept. While Rajasthan MPs are a hopeful lot, the party has had to look at who besides C P Joshi, accommodated in the first list, could make the cut.

Representation for Jat community may be the conundrum. If octogenarian Sisram Ola is dropped, the five-term Jhunjhunu MP’s replacement has to be from five first-timers, at best a choice for MoS. Ola was left out of 19 ministers sworn in with the PM. The party is toying with a Meena and a Gujjar leader for MoS.

Choice of two Karnataka ex-CMs — S M Krishna and Veerappa Moily — has led to a lot of heartburn with senior leaders Dharam Singh and Mallikarjuna Kharge having won LS seats. While ex-CM Dharam Singh is eyeing a berth, Kharge, a dalit leader, is hoping for reward after having agreed to demit the leader of Opposition’s post in the state. It took a lot of prodding to convince Kharge for Lok Sabha plunge. Their seniority, however, seems to be the constraint in view of limited Cabinet or MoS (independent) posts.

While there is jostling from Tamil Nadu for ministry, with Rajya Sabha MPs also having thrown their hat in the ring, Congress in Maharashtra is veering towards taking in one MP each from Marathwada, Vidarbha and Mumbai, besides Prithviraj Chavan. The state seems to be high on priority owing to polls inOctober.

Gujarat, where Congress staved off a mauling predicted by pre-poll surveys, is likely to see a few in the list. The defeat of Shankarsinh Vaghela and Madhusudan Mistry has opened the doors for others. Bharatsinh Solanki is a strong contender.

Uttarakhand, where Congress won all five seats, may be accommodated this time.

In J&K, Congress has offered National Conference an MoS berth while talks are on over Farooq Abdullah’s inclusion. Saiffuddin Soz is a claimant from Congress.

At the same time, the party is working out options in low-performance states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh. A leg-up for Anand Sharma as Cabinet minister has raised the enviable task of leaving out former CM Virbhadra Singh, the sole winner from the four-seat state. Jharkhand goes to polls in coming months and representation to Subodh Kant Sahay is seen by strategists as a must. Accommodation of Charan Das Mahant, sole winner from Chhattisgarh, is a question which may be clear by Wednesday.

Congress invites Samajwadi Party to join govt NEW DELHI: The congress is brimming with confidence. In anticipation...
Congress strategises on govt formation NEW DELHI: The congress held a stock-taking meeting after the...
Cong’s own allies have proved PM is weak:BJP NEW DELHI: Continuing to hit out at rival congress and...

Bharti relaunches MTN merger bid

editor — Tue, 26 May 2009 01:35:06 +0000

NEW DELHI: Recessionary times hold little fear for visionaries. Especially if they happen to be leaders in the one industry where India is the world’s fastest growing market.

At a time when global giants are complaining about a cash crunch and putting ambitious plans on hold, Bharti Airtel has relaunched an audacious merger bid with South Africa’s MTN that could create a $61-billion transnational telecom goliath with combined revenues of $20 billion and over 200 million subscribers across Africa, Asia and Middle East.

The two firms Bharti Airtel and MTN on Monday revealed a potential transaction that involves a complex share swap deal. It could ultimately be worth $23 billion to $29 billion, and will be discussed exclusively between the Bharti Airtel and MTN till July 31.

The strategic objective is to achieve a full merger of MTN and Bharti Airtel. Broadly, Bharti Airtel will pay in cash and shares for 49% of MTN while MTN will pony up cash and stock for an effective 36% stake in Bharti Airtel. Bharti Airtel is offering 86 rand ($10.31) in cash and half a Bharti Airtel share for each MTN share. The offer values MTN at about 35% more than its closing price of about 120 rand on Friday, May 22. Sunil Bharti Mittal, CMD of Bharti, said, “We are delighted at the prospect of developing a partnership with MTN to create an emerging market telecom powerhouse. Both companies would stand to gain significant benefits, including reduced costs from enhanced scale”. MTN CEO Phuthuma Nhleko said, “We are excited at the prospect of teaming up with Bharti Airtel, India’s number one wireless operator and one of the most strongly capitalised players amongst its emerging market peer group. This would create a highly visible commercial partnership between South Africa and India.”

The deal would be the world’s biggest non-pharma transaction so far this year (Pfizer bought Wyeth for $64 billion and Merck acquired Schering-Plough for $46 billion). It would also be India’s largest cross-border deal, almost twice the size of Tata Steel’s near $13-billion acquisition of Corus in 2006.

“Bharti Airtel is in a far stronger position today than a year ago. It has strengthened its subscriber base, maintained Ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) margin and paid its first dividend. It is cash rich. Talks broke down last year over cash and ownership issues,” said Kunal Bajaj, MD of telecom consultant BDA India.

Talks collapsed in May 2008 when MTN proposed a new structure that would have seen Bharti Airtel become an MTN unit.

CLB approves Tech Mahindra’s bid for Satyam Company Law Board (CLB) on Thursday approved the takeover of...
Yahoo, Microsoft approach endgame on search SAN FRANCISCO: It’s been more than a year since Microsoft...
‘The Wall’ of Indian hockey to bid adieu after 2010 CWG NEW DELHI: At 31, Dilip Tirkey, the impregnable ‘Wall’ of...

Fewer rainy days in future: Study

editor — Thu, 21 May 2009 02:42:03 +0000

PUNE: Climate change will alter the pattern of the monsoon in the country in the next 50 years, reducing the number of rainy days in a year and increasing the intensity of rainfall. This observation was made by scientists at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, a leading meteorological research institute in the country.

“Our study says that the number of rainy days will decrease by 8 to 10 per cent and the intensity of rainfall will increase,” said K Krishna Kumar, programme manager, climate change, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology(IITM). “As more moisture builds up in the surroundings, it will help increase precipitation. These changes in the characteristics of the monsoon are because of climate change.”

K Krishna Kumar, programme manager,climate change, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology(IITM) said that the effects of these changes will be more visible in the latter part of this century, i.e. after 2050. “No major changes will be visible in the next 30 to 40 years. On an average, the country witnesses 50 to 60 rainy days, which will go down by about 5 to 6 days,” he said.

Climate change will also affect temperature. “This is a more serious concern, as an increase in temperature will have an impact on the agriculture and health of the people,” he observed.

K Krishna Kumar, programme manager,climate change, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology(IITM) said the temperature is expected to rise by around 2 degrees Celsius by the end of this century, with a gradual hike in day as well as night temperatures. The impact of these changes will be more visible in regions like central and North India, he said.

Thousands rally against racism in Melbourne MELBOURNE: Shaken by a wave of racial assaults, thousands of...
Bajaj Auto to shut Waluj plant for 10 days Pune, Dec. 15 Two-wheeler manufacturer Bajaj Auto Ltd (BAL) has...
India, China may see largest gains in IMF quotas WASHINGTON: India, China, South Korea, Brazil and Mexico will see...

I’m a Kajol fan: Stepmom Kareena

editor — Fri, 15 May 2009 03:01:29 +0000

Everyone knows Karan Johar is remaking Stepmom with Kajol and Kareena Kapoor playing the roles done to ‘depth’ by Susan Sarandon and julia Roberts. What nobody knows is that the original screenplay is being considerably rewritten to etch out Julia Roberts part so that there would be many more confrontational sequences between ‘mom’ Kajol and ‘stepmom’ Kareena.

The fact that Kareena happens to be a self-confessed fan of both Kajol and Julia Roberts certainly helps the situation.

Kareena, currently holidaying with Aaif Ali Khan in Italy, said, “When I recently got an award from Erin Brockovich I enjoyed the moment doubly because Julia Roberts had played Erin. I love the spunky militant roles she plays. And Kajol is my favourite actress, to be pitched against her is a dream for me. We didn’t have many scenes together in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. But here it’s the two of us all the way. Julia Roberts had rocked in the original. I want to make my role in the remake just as exciting.”

Kareena will cut her hair for the first time in her career for this role. “I want to get experimental with my look this time,” she admitted. recently, both Raj Kumar Hirani’s 3 Idiots and Rensil D’Silva’s film have taken more of Kareena’s time and energy than she had bargained for. “I had to give a hundred days each to both. Now there’s Karan’s film with Kajol.”

Britney’s fan lands in jail An over enthusiastic Britney Spears fan was taken in to...
Abhi Ash third time lucky with Mani! Aishwarya and Abhishek Bachchan’s previous film Guru with the talented...

Nike to cut about 1,750 jobs worldwide

editor — Fri, 15 May 2009 02:50:32 +0000

PORTLAND, OREGON: Nike says it will cut about 1,750 jobs worldwide. That represents 5 per cent of the global work force at the shoe and apparel company About 500 of the jobs lost will be at Nike’s world headquarters in Oregon.

The company had announced in February that it is realigning its business and would cut jobs. Like many companies, Nike Inc has seen demand for its products slow as the global economic meltdown hurt consumer spending.

The company plans to complete the reductions in the coming weeks.

Slowdown tremors jolt Reliances pharma foray Reliance Industries’ ambitious plans to enter the pharmaceuticals business through...
ArcelorMittal to lay off 400 workers in Indiana PITTSBURGH: Steel producer ArcelorMittal SA plans to idle a plant...
Scope for another fuel price cut, says oil ministry Last weeks fuel price cut will impact margins of oil...