India needs 203 bn dollar by 2012 for healthcare

Access to quality healthcare in India is gradually diminishing, and to solve the crisis the sector would need an investment of about $202.75 billion over the next five years, says an industry body.India's healthcare situation requires a much faster growth rate as it would require about 2.2 million beds and the investment needed for that is almost $77.9 billion, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) said in a presentation to the government.FICCI has suggested a five-pronged PPP (public-private-partnership) model to bridge this huge deficit.

India most expensive equity market in Asia-Pacific

India is the the most expensive equity market in Asia-Pacific region for 2007, excluding Japan, though the country can give the second-highest returns to investors after Indonesia, says a study by the global brokerage firm Citigroup.According to a new report from Citigroup, India is the overall most expensive market in the region for 2007 after considering various metrics such as price-to-earnings ratio,book value, dividend yield, cash flow, return on equity and enterprise value.Citigroup has termed India more expensive than China, Hong Kong, Philippines and Australia, while it has named Thailand, Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia as the cheapest.

Unique bone marrow transplant in Chennai

A hospital has scripted medical history by successfully conducting a unrelated bone marrow transplant in an eight-year-old Ugandan boy using the cord blood cells from an American donor, at a fraction of what the procedure would internationally.Howard Kafeero from Uganda suffered from Fanconi anaemia (FA), a genetic disease that could have been fatal. Seven months ago, he was brought to the Apollo Specialty Hospital here.The doctors successfully networked an unrelated but compatible American donor whose cord blood matched Howard's needs and carried out the bone marrow transplant that saved the boy's life. Doctors say that Howard is now almost 100 percent normal.

Hatshepsut’s mummy

Egyptologists at the University of Manchester have carried out a DNA test on the mummy discovered by an Egyptian archaeological team earlier, and confirmed that it did belong to Queen Hatshepsut, Egypt’s greatest female pharaoh.An archaeological team led by Zahi Hawass, Egypt's Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, recently located her mummy in Luxor’s Valley of the Kings, following a one-year study.They used CT scans to link distinct physical traits of Queen Hatshepsut to that of her ancestors, and narrow the search for the Pharaoh to the couple of female mummies in the KV60 tomb.

First step to register pregnancy

The Union Health Ministry and Women and Child Development Ministry will start registering pregnancies in 10 blocks shortly.The project — a first of its type which received flak from many women’s organisations — will be used to prepare a database of pregnancies and keep a track on the number of pregnancies that ultimately result in childbirth.The government expects that by October 2007, the pilot project will be implemented in 10 blocks with a high child malnutrition rate and skewed sex ratio. The WCD ministry will also implement a new scheme for girl children in these 10 blocks. Under the scheme, the girl child will get over Rs 7,000 and an insurance cover of Rs one lakh immediately after birth.Thereafter, the government will pay for her immunisation charges and education expenses till she clears her class X examinations. And after she is 18 years old, the government will give another small amount to make her financially stable.

First proof of water found on planet outside Earth’s solar system

At about 370.3 trillion miles from the Earth, the best evidence to date has been found concerning the existence of water on an extrasolar planet, or a planet circling a star other than our Sun. And, the abundance of water on such planets is key to finding alien life.Astronomers using an infrared camera onboard NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope have identified clear signs of water on a planet that is 63 light-years (about 370.3 trillion miles) from the Earth. HD 189733b is a planet classified as a gas giant, sometimes also called a Hot Jupiter because of its similarity with the planet Jupiter.Hot Jupiters are also similar to Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, which also reside in our own Solar System. They are a class of extrasolar planets (exoplanets) whose mass is equal to or more than Jupiter.However, Hot Jupiters are normally within 0.05 astronomical units (AU, or about 4.6 million miles) of their parent star, unlike Jupiter, which is about 5 AU (or about 464.8 million miles) from the Sun.

India, Brazil sign seven pacts

India and Brazil invigorated their bourgeoning strategic and economic ties by signing seven pacts in areas ranging from space, trade and energy to academic exchanges.The pacts were signed in the presence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at the stately Hyderabad House here.The two leaders held talks on a wide spectrum of bilateral, regional and global issues including quadrupling their bilateral trade to $10 billion by 2010, civilian nuclear energy cooperation, promotion of bio-fuels, UN reforms and cooperation in multilateral forums like the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

India, Ethiopia sign five pacts

India and Ethiopia, Africa's second largest country signed five pacts to intensify their relations as Addis Ababa came out strongly in support of India's bid for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council.The agreements were signed in the presence of External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is currently on a four-day visit to Ethiopia, and his Ethiopian counterpart Seyoum Mesfin.Three agreements were signed on bilateral investment protection, establishment of a joint ministerial committee and foreign office consultations between the two countries.Two more pacts were signed in the area of science and technology and education, said an external affairs ministry statement here.The minister will launch pilot projects of India's dream project in Africa - the Pan-African e-network being built with Indian funds and technical assistance - that will bring benefits of tele-education and tele-medicine to the entire African continent.

Mexican Slim beats Gates in rich ranks

Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim is the world's richest man, worth an estimated $67.8 billion, after overtaking Microsoft Corp founder Bill Gates, according to a respected tracker of Mexican financial wealth.A 27 per cent surge in the share price of America Movil, Latin America's largest cell phone operator controlled by Slim, from March to June made him close to $8.6 billion wealthier than Gates, said Eduardo Garcia in Sentido Comun, the online financial publication he founded.Garcia estimated that Gates was worth $59.2 billion.Forbes magazine reported in April that Slim had overtaken billionaire investor Warren Buffett for the No 2 spot in the world's richest stakes but was still behind Gates.Mexico has a huge rich-poor divide, with a tiny elite holding most of the country's wealth and around half the population living on less than $5 a day.Forbes bumped up Slim because gains from his holding company Carso and fixed-line telecom Telmex added to the Mexican's fortune while shares of Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway fell in the same period.

terrorism course

Scottish university's pioneering new terrorism course went live this week -- via Internet. The Certificate in Terrorism Studies from the University of St Andrews is the first transnational e-learning course offering an understanding of the latest terrorist thinking.According to reports, some 140 people have already signed up for this web-based course. Participants include police, military, coastguard and aviation officials from Britain, Australia, Canada, Scandinavia and Thailand, among other countries.

All Efforts On To Acquire Gandhi Letter

The Indian government has launched all out efforts to acquire a rare letter Mahatma Gandhi wrote 19 days before his 1948 assassination which is up for auction in London next week.In the Jan 11, 1948 letter written for the 'Harijan' newspaper, which he edited, Gandhi makes an emotive appeal for tolerance towards Muslims.'My view remains unalterable especially at this critical juncture in our history. It is wrong to ruffle Muslim or any other person's feeling when there is no question of ethics,' Gandhi wrote, just 19 days before Nathuram Godse shot him dead.The rare letter is part of a collection titled 'the Albin Schram Collection of Autograph Letters', a personal collection by Albin Schram, a Switzerland-based collector. It also includes some of the greatest letters written by legends like Napoleon, Winston Churchill, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde.

Memorial to come up for 1857 martyrs

The Haryana government announced that a memorial would be set up at Ambala in memory of those who sacrificed their lives in the country's first war of independence in 1857.He was addressing a public meeting organised to observe the martyrdom day of Ch Udmi Ram Nambardar of village Liwaspur, who was crushed to death along with his wife and 22 others of the village, as the villagers had killed some British soldiers who were going to join troops at Ambala from Delhi in 1857.

Red Fort is World Heritage site

The Red Fort, the imposing 17th century Mughal architectural marvel in the capital, was Thursday declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco - a rare honour expected to attract more tourists to the fortress from where the Indian tricolour is unfurled on Independence Day.The honour to the Red Fort, located in old Delhi, makes it the third for the Indian capital - after Qutub Minar, the 239 ft-high sandstone minaret completed in the 13th century, and the 16th century Humayun Tomb.The planning of the palace is based on Islamic prototypes, but each pavilion reveals architectural elements typical of Mughal buildings, reflecting a fusion of Persian, Timurid and Hindu traditions, Unesco underlined.

Millionaire club expands to 1,00,000

India has added over 17,000-dollar-millionaires in 2006, recording the highest growth in high net worth individuals (HNIs) after Singapore. At the end of the year, the number of millionaires in India rose to 1,00,000 from 83,000 in the previous year.This comes in the back of a record 8.8% real growth in gross domestic product, second only to China. Also, there has been a sharp increase in the asset values with the Sensex being among the best performing in emerging markets. According to the 11th annual world wealth report brought out by Capgemini and Merrill Lynch, Singapore, India, Indonesia and Russia witnessed the highest growth in HNI populations

Internet Protocol Television

Shakti Extratainment, the first Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) channel
one of the very first from India, will be launched here at a cultural ‘Bani Festival’ to be inaugurated July 4. People can choose what to view and when, rather than rely on a channel’s programming schedules, using superior technology that offers higher than DVD quality resolution, with encryption to protect content providers and artists against piracy.The programmes are in five broad categories — Classic Shakti (classical music, dance and culture), Kala Shakti (popular entertainment including films and serials), Gyan Shakti (educational shows), Atma Shakti (devotional, philosophical/spiritual) and Jan Shakti (community centric).

IPOs market

India's IPOs market According to the study, India's increasing number of larger deals has been driven by the growth of Indian corporations and their need for additional capital for potential acquisitionsemerged as the eighth largest with $7.23 billion (Rs 30,000 crore) in net proceeds through 78 public issues, global research and consultancy firm Ernst & Young said in its Global IPO report.Across the world, the companies raised $246 billion, up from $167 billion in 2005, through a total of 1,729 IPOs, led by Chinese companies at the top with net proceeds of $56.6 billion.However, the biggest number of IPOs came from the United States with 187 offerings, followed by Japan with 185 and China with 175 IPOs.According to the study, India's increasing number of larger deals has been driven by the growth of Indian corporations and their need for additional capital for potential acquisitions.

UNESCO's Memory of the World Register

The Rig Veda manuscripts from Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, have been selected for inscription in UNESCO's Memory of the World Register, 2007. India has had three other nominations inscribed on the Register, The IAS Tamil Medic Manuscript Collection (1997), Archives of the Dutch East India Company (2003), a Dutch nomination, and the Saiva Manuscripts in Pondicherry (2005).The Rig Veda, oldest of the four Vedas, is among the 38 items of documentary heritage of exceptional value which have been added to the prestigious World Register, bringing the total number of inscriptions since 1997 to 158.The Memory of the World programme seeks to guard against collective amnesia, calling upon the preservation of the valuable archival holdings and library collections all over the world, ensuring their wide dissemination.The Vedas are the first literary documents in the history of humankind, and they transcend far beyond their identity as scriptures.The Rig Veda, oldest among the four Vedas and a collection of 1028 hymns of exceptional literay qualities eulogising the Vedic deities, is the fountain source of the Aryan culture in all its manifestations that spread beyond the Indian subcontinent to large parts of South and South East Asia as well as parts of Central Asia.Out of the total number of 28,000 Manuscripts housed at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, the 30 manuscripts of the Rig Veda form a valuable part of the collection.Besides the Rig Veda, the list of 38 items of documentary heritage includes Unpublished Papers of Christopher Okigbo, considered one of the most renowned African poets of the 20th century, killed during the civil war in Nigeria.

e-passports

India's largest IT-ITeS firm, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), is all set to
tap the emerging business for e-passports across the world, and the company has already bid for pilot projects in a couple of countries.An e-passport makes the document machine-readable making the passport not only tamper-proof but also enabling quick processing at airports.e-passports come with in-built security (biometric) features including an IC (integrated circuit) chip embedded in the back cover that stores the data (including photo) that is typically displayed on the photo page of a regular passport.As of now just 4-5 countries, including the US, use the RFID (radio frequency identification) technology, which at best helps their own countrymen on their return for speedy identification and processing of their documents since it is not universally applicable.

Astrosat

India's multi-wavelength astronomical observatory "Astrosat" will be launched in 2008.Orbiting 600 km above the earth's surface, the Rs 200 crore Astrosat would facilitate study of astrophysical objects ranging from nearby solar system objects to distant stars and objects at cosmological distances.Since most astronomical objects in the known universe emit radiations from long wavelength radio emission to extremely short wavelength gamma rays, understanding of the physical processes causing frequency dependent, time-variable phenomena would require near simultaneous multi-frequency observations.Astrosat would also enable timing studies of variables from pulsations of the 'hot white dwarfs' to active galactic nuclei with time scales ranging from millisecond to few hours to days.

food park

The government is likely to accord special economic zone (SEZ) status to the proposed mega food parks that come up during the 11th Five-Year Plan (2007-12).
Each food park is expected to see substantial investments in cold storage, refrigerated vans, transport services, grading centres, laboratories as well as other supporting services.In a proposal sent to the Planning Commission, the ministry has also said that since food processing units are not typically spread over a large area, the minimum area limit applicable for food SEZs should be relaxed.The ministry of food processing industries has envisaged an initial investment of Rs 120 crore for setting up the common infrastructure in a park. It is of the view that by providing a grant of Rs 1,500 crore for 30 parks, Rs 50 crore for each, the private sector would be encouraged to invest up to Rs 9,000 crore in various parks across the country.Considering the higher risks involved in the food processing sector, the central government will also provide a subsidy of Rs 50 crore per park to private investors. Thus, the total financial outlay proposed for 30 parks, to be spread across 1,50,000 hectares in next five years, would be Rs 1,500 crore. The government has also appointed Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd (IL&FS) as a consultant to look into the infrastructure constraints for the project. IL&FS has been given two months to submit its report to the government.

industrial growth

industrial growth in April this year stood at a massive 13.6 per cent against 9.9 per cent in the same month last year.Manufacturing sector led the surge — figures for which were released today in the index for industrial production (IIP) — expanding by 15.1 per cent in April against the 11 per cent growth in April 2006. Manufacturing, which makes up about 15 per cent of gross domestic product and nearly 80 per cent of industrial output, has the highest weight in the index.The index also gave revised data for March, showing annual growth of 14.5 per cent instead of a provisional 12.9 per cent. While the mining sector recorded a flat 3.4 per cent growth, there was a slight improvement in the power generation sector, which recorded a 8.7 per cent growth this April against 5.9 per cent in April last year.

wireless power

A U.S. research team reports moving closer to wireless power transfer by lighting a 60-watt light bulb from a power source located seven feet away.The Massachusetts Institute of Technology team called their accomplishment 'WiTricity.Although various methods of transmitting power wirelessly have long been known -- think of radio waves -- they are not feasible to use for power transmission.In contrast, WiTricity is based on using coupled resonant objects, in which two resonant objects of the same resonant frequency tend to exchange energy efficiently, while interacting weakly with extraneous off-resonant objects.

KPO

India is likely to capture 15 per cent of over 54 billion dollars in the upcoming Knowledge Processing Outsourcing (KPO) industry by 2010.Pointing out that India is one of the few economies expanding at fast pace, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath said the country has huge potential in the KPO sector.

global warming

Indians are far more concerned about global warming than any other nationality, despite the emerging economy being accused of resisting the need to tackle climate change, a global survey has said.Indians cared most about carbon emissions, with 55 per cent describing themselves as "very concerned" about the issue while just 32 per cent of Britons felt the same way, the survey conducted by Seattle-based research group Global Market Insite found.While emerging economies like India and China are often accused of resisting the need to tackle climate change, the survey suggested that people of these two countries are more worried about climate change, the survey said.

TELECOM SECTOR

Hutchison Essar (HEL) has become the second largest GSM player in the country, displacing state-owned BSNL. The company, in which UK-based Vodafone had recently picked up a majority stake, surpassed BSNL after it recorded a 5.4 per cent growth in its subscriber base during May 2007, with the addition of over 1.5 million subscribers during this period, when compared to 0.24 million for the public-sector giant.According to the latest data compiled by the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the industry association representing all GSM operators, HEL had a little over 29.2 million subscribers and a market share of 22.36 per cent (in the GSM space) as of May-end, against 27.9 million and 21.43 per cent respectively for BSNL. Overall, HEL is now the third largest cellular operator in the country after Bharti Airtel, which has over 40.7 million subscribers and Reliance Communications (RCOM) at 30.5 million.

TELECOM SECTOR

The GSM operators have added over 5 million subscribers in May as telecom services are becoming increasingly affordable in the country.This takes the total number of users to 130.6 million in the month, compared with 125.57 million recorded in April, an increase of 4.02 per cent.Bharti Airtel added 18.5 lakh users during the month, followed by Hutch at 15.1 lakh and Idea had an additional 7 lakh. BSNL had 2 lakh and MTNL, 64, 098.In terms of subscriber base, Bharti Airtel had 4.07 crore subscribers and a market share of 31.20 per cent, Hutch-Essar had 2.92 crore and a market share of 22.36 per cent, while BSNL had 2.79 crore users, with a market share of 21.43 per cent.The metro subscribers in the country grew by 3.04 per cent over the previous month, with Delhi recording the highest growth at 3.93 per cent followed by Chennai at 3.59 per cent.

Urban Health Mission

The government will launch a National Urban Health Mission to provide health care services to people in cities and towns especially those living in the slums.Meanwhile a WHO resolution making polio immunisation certificate, a mandatory travel document for India, Pakistan and two other affected countries has been defeated with a majority of member nations voting against it.The government has earmarked Rs 1300 crore to fight polio this year alone.

Sunita Williams

Indian American astronaut Sunita Williams is set to break the US record for the longest stay in space as her ride back to Earth is expected to be delayed.The delay it is being pointed out has to do with a ripple effect from the delay of the next shuttle mission, Atlantis, which could not meet its planned March launch because of damages to the external tank from hail recently leaving "thousands of dings" in its foam insulation.

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna

Ace golfer Jeev Milkha Singh, who had a fairytale season last year yielding four titles, has been nominated for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, country's highest sports award.Jeev won twin Asian Tour titles in 1995 by lifting the Philippine Classic and Asian matchplay championship and added the Philip Morris Asia Cup to his collection next year.Jeev thus joins Indian cricket captain Rahul Dravid, tennis ace Mahesh Bhupathi and woman pugilist MC Marykom in the race for the coveted honour, which carries a cash award of Rs five lakh.

free seats

Delhi High Court today directed all unaided, recognised and private schools to mandatorily slot minimum 10 per cent free seats for economically weak students and another five percent for children of its staffers, including those in teaching and non-teaching category, for the next academic session of 2008-2009. The court explained in its order that “financial viability” of the institution would suffer if an increased percentage of freeship was decided upon, even as it took note of submissions by the schools that they would have to substantially hike the fee of the “able-bodied” students to afford the free seats.

Miss Universe

Miss Japan, Riyo Mori, became the new Miss Universe late Monday at a gala held at the National Auditorium as Miss India Puja Gupta finished among the top 10 beautiful women in the contest.Mori, 20, received the crown adorned with 800 diamonds and 120 pearls - valued at 250,000 dollars - from Miss Universe 2006, Puerto Rican Zuleyka Rivera.Miss Brazil Natalia Guimaraes was the first runner-up while another Latin American, Venezuelan Ly Jonaitis, took the third place.The remaining finalists were South Korean Honey Lee and American Rachel Smith, despite the fact that the latter fell to the ground on stage during the evening gown competition.China's Ningning Zhang was chosen Miss Congeniality and Filipino Anna Theresa Licaros was named Miss Photogenic.

Parimarjan Negi

World`s youngest Grandmaster Parimarjan Negi had to be content with a shared first position in the World Youth Star Chess Tournament after losing the final round against GM Sergei Zhigalko of Belarus.The losses of tournament leaders in the final round paved the way for Mamedov and top seed Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia to finish in a four-way tie at the top on 7 points each. In the final round game, Nepomniachtchi drew with GM Yuriy Kuzubov of Ukraine. In the final standings, Nepomniachtchi was declared the winner on the best tiebreak score while Mamedov, who was the only undefeated player in the tournament finished second. Negi ended third while Andriasian had to be satisfied with a fourth place finish.

trillionaire

Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani is now the only trillionaire in the country. A sharp surge in the share prices of his group companies has helped him cross the landmark.The combined market capitalisation of the four Mukesh Ambani-group companies — RIL, Reliance Petroleum, Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd and Reliance Industrial Infrastructure Ltd — has crossed the Rs 2,50,000-crore mark. The promoter holding in these companies is over Rs 1,30,000 crore.Younger brother Anil Ambani is also close to the landmark. He has around Rs 90,000 crore of wealth in the stock market through his holdings in various group companies. The investor wealth in the four Anil Ambani- group firms — Reliance Communications, Reliance Capital, Reliance Energy and Reliance Natural Resources Ltd — has reached Rs 1,42,384 crore, while the total promoter holding is estimated at Rs 87,000 crore.PTI

WTO REPORT

India needs further reforms to sustain its rapid economic growth, particularly in the infrastructure sector that continues to cripple its potential, the world trade organization said in a report today."India's economic performance has continued to be impressive since 2001-02 and growth has been particularly rapid since 2003-04 averaging over 8.5 percent with over 9 percent expected for 2006-07," the WTO said its trade policy review on India. However, if India's high rates of economic growth are to be sustained, reforms need to be deepened, in particular to address infrastructure bottlenecks such as transport and electricity, which continue to constrain growth, it added.

FDI

The union Cabinet has hinted that it is likely to consider a proposal to increase FDI cap in joint sector refinery projects to 74 per cent from the current 26 per cent.The government move will allow India-born billionaire Lakshmi Narayan Mittal to have 49 per cent in state-run HPCL's Bhatinda project.The Petroleum Ministry has moved a Cabinet note for raising the FDI limit. The proposal is likely to be considered at today's meeting of the Union Cabinet.The proposal has come after a cooperation agreement that Mittal signed with HPCL in January to acquire 49 per cent in the PSU's three billion dollar refinery project in Punjab.

top 10 expensive locations

As India witnesses a spurt in property prices, its financial capital Mumbai has been ranked as one of the world's top 10 expensive locations in terms of accommodation cost.Mumbai, which is ranked seventh, is followed by Shanghai, on whose lines the government is planning to develop the Indian financial hub.The list comprises Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York, Moscow, Seoul, London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Caracas (Venezuela) and Paris (in order of their position), according to a study by International Human Resource organisation ECA International.

service tex

The tax on seven new services, brought under the net in this year’s budget, will be payable from June 1. Other service tax changes made through the Finance Act, 2007, will also be effective from that date.now in the case of renting out of commercial properties, the service tax is payable on the rental amount received less the property tax paid.In situations where property tax is paid after the payment of service tax on the rental (and the deduction of property tax paid from rental could not be availed of at the time of payment of service tax), Rule 4C of the Service Tax Rules, 1994, provide for self-adjustment of excess service tax paid without any limit.Commercial or industrial construction services provided in relation to the execution of work contracts in relation to construction of a port have been exempted from tax. Services such as completion and finishing, repair, alteration, renovation, restoration, maintenance or repair provided in relation to existing ports, however, will be leviable to service tax.For services provided in relation to the execution of a works contract, the service provider can avail of an optional scheme for paying the tax. As a trade facilitation measure and also for ease of administrative convenience, the Works Contract (Composition Scheme for Payment of Service Tax) Rules, 2007, has been notified. Under this, the service provider has an option to pay service tax equivalent to 2% of the total value of the works contract instead of paying service tax at the rate specified in Section 66. Rule 2A of Service Tax (Determination of Value) Rules, 2006 provide for valuation of services provided in relation to the execution of a works contract.

Prithvi-1 missile

The Indian Army successfully conducted on 9 may a user trial of the surface-to-surface medium-range Prithvi-1 missile from a military base in Orissa.The missile soared at 10.40 a.m. from launch complex no. 3 of the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur in Balasore district, 230 km from Bhubaneswar.Prithvi is one of the five missiles under various stages of development by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Prithvi-1 has already been inducted with the Indian Army's Hyderabad-based 333 Missile Regiment.The 8.56-metre-high and one metre thick missile, with a launch weight of 4.4 tonnes excluding the payload, has a range of 50-150 km. It can carry a 1,000 kg payload.

tomb of Herod

Israeli scientists said on Tuesday that they had discovered the tomb of Herod the Great - the notorious, Rome-appointed 'King of the Jews', who ruled over the Biblical kingdom of Judaea at the time of the birth of Jesus.Herodium is one of the main palaces built by Herod during his nearly four-decade rule over Judaea as a Roman client king in the first century BC.Located around 12 km south of Jerusalem, it is a double-walled structure whose outer ring was filled with earth, creating an artificial hill.Historians and archaeologists led by Netzer had been searching for the tomb since 1972, but initially excavated in the wrong sections of the compound.Herod the Great, who ruled over Judaea from about 37 to 4 BC, is perhaps best known for his cruelty as described in the New Testament, but also for the grand ancient buildings he constructed in what is now Israel.

Airbus

European aviation giant Airbus plans to invest over one billion dollars in the Indian aviation industry in the next 10 years.The investment will cover training, setting up a maintenance facility, and a design and engineering centre.Airbus, part of the EADS group, has said it expects Indian firms to place orders for 1,100 passenger and freighter aircraft valued at about $105 billion over 20 years.

COROT

COROT has provided its first image of a giant planet orbiting another star and the first bit of 'seismic' information on a far away, Sun-like star- with unexpected accuracy.COROT, a CNES project with ESA participation, is a mission with a dual goal. It is the first space mission dedicated entirely to the search of extra-solar planets. It provides a wide-field survey of planets like our own at an unprecedented level of accuracy. It is also making the most comprehensive study ever of the interior of stars other than our Sun. Both objectives are achieved by analysing the behaviour of light emitted by a target star.

railway bridges

About 40 per cent of the country's railway bridges are more than 100 years old, the Rajya Sabha was told.Indian Railways has approximately 127,000 railway bridges of which about 51,000 are more than 100 years old.The life of a bridge is not based on its age but on physical condition as ascertained by inspections. The railways have a well laid down system of multi-tier inspection of bridges. Bridges showing signs of deterioration of physical condition indicate need for repair and are classified as distressed bridges. These are neither unsafe nor dilapidated bridges. In 2001-02, the railways identified 2,370 bridges as distressed for which Rs15,300 million was given under Special Railway Safety Fund (SRSF) for their repair. During the five-year period 2001-02 to 2006-07, Rs8,758.4 million was given under the SRSF for repair of 2,087 bridges. Under the Depreciation Reserve Fund (DRF) Rs6,758.7 million was given for 5,476 bridges to be repaired.During the current 2007-08, the railways had identified 190 bridges for repair under SRSF, for which Rs4,455 million has been given, while for repair of 1,254 bridges under DRF, Rs15,710 million has been given.

World Junior Tennis

The Indian girls’ under-14 team made it to the World Junior Tennis Finals in the Czech Republic, winning both singles as well as doubles matches in straight sets to send seventh seeds Uzbekistan back home. Rishika Sunkara faltered while serving for the match, but got back on track to defeat Alisa Ogorodova 6-2, 7-5 in the first singles match. Aishwarya Aggarwal, playing next against Karolina Chernaya, clinched the semi-final berth for her team with a 6-3, 6-1 win. The home team, fielding Nova Patel and Rishika Sunkara for doubles, underlined their dominance with a 6-4, 6-3 result against Nigina Abduraimova and Chernaya. In the semis, India play Thailand.

india,s GDP

India’s GDP crossed the $1 trillion mark at current market prices becoming the world’s 12th economy to surge past that defining milestone. The historic moment was orchestrated when the rupee rose over the 41 level in relation to the US dollar, touching its highest value in nine years.The RBI had reported that India’s GDP at current market prices was Rs41,00,636 crore, or just a shade over Rs41 trillion. On that count, when the rupee closed at 40.94 on Wednesday, India’s GDP, at current market prices, edged just a notch above the $1 trillion mark for the first time.

mineral

Scientists have discovered a new mineral that matches the composition of kryptonite, the mythical rock that could sap Superman's strength in comic books.The rock — named jadarite — was discovered in a mine in Jadar, Serbia, by the Rio Tinto company and identified by London's Natural History Museum.Though the white rock didn't resemble anything known to real-life man, it did match the one substance known to destroy Superman's power.The new mineral does not contain fluorine and is white rather than green, but in all other respects the chemistry matches that for the rock containing kryptonite.The mineral is sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide, which "probably won't do Superman or us any harm whatsoever.

National Tobacco Regulatory Body

The Health Ministry is setting up a National Tobacco Regulatory Body under the 11th five year plan to enforce the anti-tobacco Act strictly.It will be an independent body and will coordinate between states and the industry.Bhutan is the only nation where no tobacco products are found. a survey showed in the Bollywood movies of the 1950s, fifty per cent of heroes smoked, which grew to 71 per cent in the 1990s and 86 per cent currently

Award

Recognising the innovative works done by civil servants, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today presented the first-ever Award of Excellence in Public Administration to two senior IAS officers - Rajeev Chawla, Secretary to Government of Karnataka and R.S. Pandey, Secretary in the Ministry of Steel.The awards, which comprised a medal, scroll and cash of Rs. one lakh, were given to them on the second Civil Service Day.Forty five-year old Chawla, a 1987 batch IAS officer of Karnataka cadre, has been chosen for the award for implementing 'Bhoomi', a computerised system for delivery, updating and safe storing of land records in Karnataka.A 1972 batch officer of Nagaland cadre, 57-year old Pandey won the award for his initiative in enabling participation of the user community in the management of public institutions and services in the northeastern state.Pandey, a former Chief Secretary of Nagaland, conceptualised and implemented the programme to involve user communities in fields like education, health and power.The Prime Minister also inaugurated an exhibition on "Best Practices" and released a book compiled by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances.

Retail Sector

Indian retail, with the coming in of conglomerates like Bharti Enterprises, Reliance and some foreign players, is set to generate business worth $430 billion by 2010, says a report by a leading industry lobby.The share of organised retail is estimated to go up to 20-22 percent to become a $90 billion industry while the unorganised sector is set to touch $340 billion in the next three years, according to the Federation of India Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). This exponential growth is expected to generate 18 million jobs, thereby becoming the second largest employment-generating sector after agriculture. However, according to FICCI, the retail sector is currently reeling under the pressure of human resource crunch. Currently none of the educational institutions in India offer a comprehensive course on retail. FICCI has suggested measures such as introduction of retail as a curriculum subject in schools and universities. It has also asked for simpler tax laws with a tax holiday .

Lakshmi Mittal

Only one of Britain's five wealthiest people was born in the UK, according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2007.The £19bn fortune of Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal ensured he kept his title as Britain's richest person.Analysts said a growing number of mega-rich foreigners are attracted to the UK by a generous tax regime. As well as Russia and India, the wealthy from Scandinavia and France are also looking to base themselves in the UK. The continuing high steel price has helped Mr Mittal, whose Mittal Steel bought rival Arcelor last year boost his wealth from the $14.8bn he had last year.

sporting record

Sunita Williams set a new sporting record running the 26.2 mile Boston Marathon in space. Sunita got into the spirit of the 111-year-old race by following the progress of the earth marathon on her laptop. The space station was salubrious at 78 degrees Fahrenheit.Her unofficial completion time was four hours and 24 minutes as she completed the race at 2:24 p.m. EDT. Sunita, 41, an accomplished marathoner, attempted something no other astronaut has ever done. She is now the first astronaut in space to have ran a marathon while in orbit.Sunita started the race on time at 10 a.m. EDT with race No. 14,000 taped to the front of the treadmill. She had placed two laptop computers on either side of the treadmill and was closely watching a live feed of the race from Boston and keep track of where the ISS was flying

Entrance Examination

The Central Board of Secondary Education conducts the All India Pre-Medical/Dental Entrance Examination for the all-India seats in all medical colleges of the country except in Jammu & Kashmir in May. The notification is issued around December/January.
Eligibility: 10+2 examination with 50 per cent marks in Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Selection procedure: A merit waiting list from number 1 to 2000 is made on the basis of marks obtained in the competition. The candidates are assigned their merit list and choice. Results are announced in July.

physiotherapy

Among disciplines within the domain of paramedical sciences, physiotherapy seems to have acquired a new status. Far from its image of a supplementary science, a technician's domain, it is increasingly being recognised as a discipline in its own right. The undergraduate programmes cover subjects including Sociology, Psychology, Human Anatomy and Physiology. Students would be introduced to subjects such as Microbiology, General Medicine, Pharmacology and Biochemistry in the second year. Core areas of physiotherapy such as therapeutic exercises, biomechanics, and massage would be covered in the third and fourth year. The content in some of the universities including deemed universities provide students opportunities to learn Orthopaedics, Neurology, Cardiology, and Sports therapy in the final year. The students then do internship for six months to be eligible for the degree. At the postgraduation level, students can choose from a range of electives and specialise in their area of interest.

MBA

A postgraduate degree in management is considered a prestigious one and it opens up various career opportunities that are satisfying both in terms of remuneration as well as professional livelihood. The postgraduate degree also offers better insight into diversified aspects of business such as marketing, human resources, finance, systems and production. The Masters in Business Administration (MBA) course offered by various universities provides students an overall approach to a business and its management, which most of the companies expect in an aspiring candidate. Today's industries require skilled professionals, so an MBA degree from a reputed university has become a norm. From the student's point of view, there are various fields of specialisation available in the industry today. This article attempts to highlight certain aspects that a student considers while choosing his specialisation.Students choose their specialisation based on their interest and, have the drive to become entrepreneurs after gaining some professional experience. Students select their specialisation under the influence of market demand, job scenario and the influence of their parents. Students select their specialisation keeping in mind his/her degree in the undergraduate level. The first category decides their career mainly based on their attitude and the people belonging to this category are keen to start an industry of their own after gaining some experience. The second category decides a career mainly under the influence of their parents, market demand, job profile and attractive pay packets. The people belonging to this category overweigh the other two categories; and the third category decides the career based on their undergraduation.

"Compass"

China has commissioned a new "Compass" navigation satellite, rivalling the Global Positioning System (GPS) of the United States.it is part of the country's ambitious "Compass" navigational system, which is expected to provide services to customers all over China and neighbouring countries by 2008. It will be expanded to become a global navigation and positioning network. The "Compass" navigational system is mainly designed for the country's economic development, providing navigation and positioning services in transportation, meteorology, petroleum prospecting, forest fire monitoring, disaster forecast, telecommunications and public security, among others.

NET

Applications have been invited for the Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) and National Eligibility Tests (NETs) for lectureship in science and humanities subjects. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the University Grant Commission (UGC) will jointly hold the test for science subjects on June 17. The examination fee for general students is Rs. 400, OBC Rs. 200 and SC, ST, PH and VH Rs. 100. Application forms and information bulletins can be obtained up to April 12 from select branches of Indian Bank. The completed application forms, with requisite enclosures, should be sent under certificate of posting to the Controller of Examinations, Examination Unit, HRS Group, CSIR Complex, Pusa, New Delhi - 110 012, to reach the addressee on or before April 19. For details, visit www.csirhrdg.res.in

Infosys

Beating market expectations, information technology major Infosys closed the last quarter of 2006-07 on a high, registering a 56.9 per cent growth in profit for the year at Rs 3,856 crore. The total income rose to Rs 13,893 crore for 2006-07, a 45.9 per cent increase over the previous year. For the quarter ended March 2007 alone, the company’s profits jumped by 70 per cent, year-on-year, notching Rs 1,144 crore. Though anticipating no downturn in business in the 2007-08 fiscal, on account of a US economy slowdown, the company has provided a conservative outlook, projecting a 23 to 25 per cent growth for revenues in the range of Rs 17,038 crore and Rs 17,308 crore.

ASIAN GAMES

The Union Cabinet on gave a call to other countries in the Asian region to support India's bid to host the 2014 Asian Games here. In a straight contest, New Delhi is taking on the South Korean city of Incheon in its bid to host the Games. The call comes even as a delegation of the Indian Olympic Association is on its way to present New Delhi's bid for the Games in Kuwait City on April 17.

iPod

Apple said it has sold its 100 millionth iPod -- the fastest selling music player in history. The first iPod was sold five-and-a-half-years ago, in November 2001 and since then Apple has introduced more than 10 new iPod models, including five generations of iPod, two generations of iPod mini, iPod nano and iPod shuffle.

IMF

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has forecast continued impressive growth in emerging markets and developing countries led by India and China in 2007, even with global growth slowing mildly to 4.9 percent. However, the United States may witness somewhat slower growth, while Europe and Japan would have continued solid growth, he said describing 2006 as "another robust year for the global economy.While the US economy has slowed, the rest of the world has remained on track. The euro area grew at its fastest pace in six years in 2006, and the economy's forward momentum looks solid. Turning to emerging market and developing countries IMF expects them to continue to grow strongly this year albeit at a somewhat less brisk pace than 2006, drawing continuous support from favourable financial conditions and in many cases from strong commodity prices. China and India continue to lead the way, he said. India's broad-based expansion gathered momentum in the course of last year, running at around 9 percent, but growth should moderate some in 2007. However, spare capacity in the Indian economy remains very low, and overheating remains a risk, despite monetary policy tightening.Elsewhere in emerging Asia, the near-term outlook remains very positive, partly reflecting intraregional trade linkages and China's strong economy as well as prudent macroeconomic managementIn China, growth moderated slightly in the second half of 2006 partly reflecting measures to cool fixed asset investment from its recent rapid pace. But nevertheless, the economy is expected to grow by around 10 percent in 2007, and IMF sees risks in China to be on the upside. In recent years, the combination of technological progress and increasingly open global trading and financial systems and more resilient macroeconomic policy frameworks have laid the foundation for superlative growth.

Agni 3

India tested its most powerful nuclear-capable ballistic missile, which can hit targets as far away as China, from a military range off the country's eastern coast, media reports said. The indigenously-made Agni III, which is India's longest-range missile - covering distances up to 3,500 kilometres - was test fired from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in the eastern Orissa.This was the second launch of the Agni III after an unsuccessful test on July 9, 2006 from the same range. The test had come as a big disappointment for the defence establishment as the projectile failed to separate in its second stage and fell into the Bay of Bengal over 2,000 kilometres short of its designated 3,500 kilometre target. Scientists from the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) had since then reconfigured the missile - rectifying a flaw which was found in a defective shield that failed to withstand the heat generated due to friction with air during the flight. Named after the Hindu god of fire, Agni III is a surface-to-surface missile which can take a payload upto 1.8 tonnes and is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.

Sanjaya Malakar

A website known as VoteAgainstTheWorst.com is pushing an elaborate plan to eliminate Malakar by having millions of people place additional votes for the seven other contestants: "If we can spread the word to organize our voting, we just might be able to make this American Idol results show fi lled with a little more integrity. Imagine the joy you'll feel knowing that the right people are going home each week!" The campaign is a direct response to the massive campaign led by shock jock Howard Stern and the website VoteForTheWorst.com that is working to keep Malakar on the hit show, which tops the ratings in both Canada and the United States. The No. 1 show in television and it's getting ruined." So far, Malakar has proven immune to tough criticism from all of the show's judges, even the usually kind Paula Abdul. Judge Simon Cowell has quipped he will quit the show if Malakar wins the competition.VoteAgainstTheWorst.com's campaign involves splitting up America into seven large sections, with each section assigned to vote for one of seven other remaining contestants, but not for Malakar.For instance, the website says people in Alaska, Colorado, California and Delaware (total population, 42.3 million) should vote for Melinda Doolittle, while voters in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland and New Mexico should vote for LaKisha Jones (42.7 million).While many want him off the show, Malakar got a boost from an unlikely source, singer Gina Glocksen, who was voted off last week instead of Malakar.

Space Tourist

A Russian spacecraft carrying two crew and billionaire space tourist Charles Simonyi has docked with the International Space Station (ISS).The three men transferred to the ISS after a two-day flight from Earth. Mr Simonyi, 58, paid $25m (£12.7m) for the trip. He is the fifth space tourist and will spend 10 days aboard the ISS. The Hungarian-born US software engineer is the 450th person to enter orbit.

Aral sea

The Kazakhstan government has secured a multi-million dollar loan from the World Bank to help save the Aral Sea. The money will be used to implement the second stage of a project aimed at saving the northern part of the sea. The United Nations has said the disappearance of the Aral is the worst man-made environmental disaster. this new project could mean that at least part of the Aral - once the world's fourth largest inland body of water - will be saved.

child abuse

Two out of every three children in India are physically abused, according to a landmark government study. Commissioned by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the study says 53% of the surveyed children reported one or more forms of sexual abuse. This is the first time the government has done such an exhaustive survey on the controversial issue of child abuse. Abuse of children, particularly sexual abuse, is rarely admitted in India and activists have welcomed the study.

miss india

Delhi girl Puja Gupta was crowned Pantaloons Femina Miss India Universe, Mumbai's Sarah Jane Dias Miss India World and New Zealand's Pooja Chitgopekar Miss India Earth here amid much razzle-dazzle and suspense.Millions witnessed the trio's triumphs Sunday night.Puja dazzled renowned filmmaker and one of the pageant judges Madhur Bhandarkar with her wit and confidence in the semi-final round when he asked:" What matters to you - style or fashion and why?" Puja answered: "I think they both go hand in hand. Style is created by fashion and fashion makes you comfortable in your own skin."When the jury asked Sarah Jane, "If you had to convince a rural woman to compete in the Miss India pageant, what would you tell her?" she said: "I would prompt her that she possesses every quality to be Miss India. And if she wins, she would bring numerous improvements in her village that will make her win indispensable."Singer Adnan Sami's question - 'What is the one invention that has changed the face of the world?" - brought on Pooja's reply: "Electricity, as it has brought the industrial revolution. Today we depend on electricity for everything."

The panel of judges included Rohit Bal, Subhash Ghai, Rathi Vinay Jha, Malvinder Singer, Priyanka Chopra, Sanjay Dutt and Ujwala Raut.

The crown designed by Tanishq contained a special spring mechanism to fit any head shape

petrochemical project

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid the foundation stone of a Rs.54-billion integrated Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will lay the foundation stone of a Rs.54-billion integrated petrochemical project in Assam in Assam. The gas cracker project was proposed as a part of the implementation of the historic Assam accord signed in 1985. The project was gathering dust since 1991 when the central government issued a letter of intent (LoI) to the Assam Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC), an Assam government undertaking.In February 1997, the LoI was transferred to the Reliance Assam Petrochemicals Limited (RAPL) - a joint venture company of AIDC and Reliance Industries Limited.RAPL was granted various concessions by the government for implementation of the project. But the deal with RAPL was shelved in 2005 with Reliance virtually backing out of the project, citing technical reasons like non-availability of sufficient feedstock.The petrochemical complex would comprise a cracker unit, downstream polymer and integrated off-site utilities plants. The products from the proposed project would be 2,20,000 tonnes of polythene, 60,000 tonnes of polypropylene, 55,000 tonnes of raw pyrolysis gasoline and 12,500 tonnes of fuel oil per year.The project, popularly referred to as the Assam gas cracker project but christened the Brahmaputra Cracker and Polymer Ltd, is to be implemented by the Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) with 70 percent equity participation in five years' time.

catalog

A 6-year-old worldwide effort to catalog every living species has topped 1 million, researchers report. They hope to complete the listing by 2011, reaching an expected total of about 1.75 million species. Thomas M. Orrell, a biologist at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, said the finished catalog would include all known living organisms — not just plants and animals but fungi and microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses.

Adolescence Education

The Adolescence Education Programme (APE) designed to impart life skills like self awareness, coping with stress, understanding the mental health, peer pressure, anxiety personal fears was launched by the Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry.The APE will be started in all secondary and higher secondary classes. The schools will be monitored By National Council of Education Research and Training NCERT). The programme will be supported by United Nations Population Fund
(UNFPA) and would be carried out by Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS) and Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS).

Source: Indiaedunews.net

Global warming

Global warming could be heating Mars four times faster than Earth due to a mutually reinforcing interplay of wind-swept dust and changes in reflected heat from the Sun, according to a study released .Scientsts have long observed a correlation on Mars between its fluctuating temperatures — which range from -87 C to -5 C depending on the season and the location — and the darkening or lightening of swathes of the planet’s surface

unemployment rate

The US unemployment rate fell to an historic low last month, according to government figures, triggering a plunge in bond prices during a holiday-shortened trading session on Wall Street.Investors abandoned bets that the Federal Reserve would be forced to cut interest rates after figures showed employers created far more jobs than Wall Street expected last month, while the unemployment rate fell to 4.4 per cent – the lowest level in nearly six years.

Agni-III

homegrown nuclear capable long ranged ballistic missile Agni-III from Chandipur Testing Range in Orissa next week.The missile, having a range of over 3,000 km, is expected to be test-fired from launching complex No. 4 of Inner Wheeler Island, a new launch site of the integrated test range (ITR) at the Chandipur defence base.Agni-III was last tested on July 9, 2006 from the same base. After the launch, it was reported that the second stage of the rocket had failed to separate from the missile quickly and had fallen short of its target.The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) had attributed the failure to 'material-related fault', besides problems with the protective heat shield, design and propulsion

Aeronautical Engineer

Aerospace Engineers who work specifically with aircraft are known as Aeronautical Engineers and those working with Spacecraft are known as Astronautical Engineers. Aeronautical Engineering is not a very big field in India as there is only one aircraft manufacturer in the country namely HAL. However, many Aeronautical Engineers get jobs in Airlines for aircraft maintenance and overhauling.
There are two ways to became an Aeronautical Engineer after 10+2 with PCM. Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, Kanpur, Kharagpur and Chennai offer 4 years B.Tech course. Otherwise one become an associate member of the “Aeronautical Society of India” after passing Part A & Part B examination conducted by the society which is equivalent to a Bachelor’s Degree in Aeronautics. This certificate course is a correspondence course but one will have to undergo practical training through some affiliated institutes like.
Indian Institute of Aeronautical Engineering, Kalidas Road, Dehradun.
National Institute of Aeronautical Engineering, Ballapur, Dehradun.
Delhi Institute of Aeronautical Studies, Chirag Delhi, Delhi.
For more details of correspondence courses, you may get in touch with Aeronautical Society of India,
13 B Indraprastha Estate, New Delhi 110-002, Website: aesi.org

Animation Engineering

The current demand for a good animator is very high. It is estimated that within the next three years, this requirement shall grow up to five times as of today. Cartoon films are in great demand, more and more advertisements are using animation and video games which are very popular amongst young people, but there still exists a huge shortage of trained animators. Training in computer animation can be undertaken even after 10+2 if you have a creative mind, artistic skill, patience and willingness to work very hard. There are many institutes where one can get this training in computer animation can be undertaken even after 10+2 if you have a creative mind, artistic skill, patience and willingness to work very hard. There are many institutes where one can get this training in Animation like:
National Institute of Design - Ahmedabad
JNT University - Hyderabad
Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar University - Agra.
In Kolkata one can receive training at:
Arena Multimedia (An Aptech associate institute).
ZED - CA (A Zee Education associate institute).

Indian Police Service

The Indian Police Service (IPS) : The IPS is responsible for public safety and internal security (Home affairs). The IPS mainly takes care of law and order and at the district level, it is a shared responsibility with the IAS. Crime prevention and detection, traffic management and accident prevention are the main jobs of the IPS. In order to fulfil these functions with greater efficiency, this service is divided into various functional departments. Crime branch, Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Home Guards, Traffic Bureau are the main departments of the IPS.
A number of Central Policing Agencies like Intelligence Bureau (IB), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Border Security Force (BSF) Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) are headed by IPS officers. On completion of probation an IPS begins his career as an Assistant Superintendent of Police of a sub-division and can hope to go up to the level of Director General of Police in the State.

Civil Service examination

Civil Service Examination is divided into Preliminary and Mains. In the Preliminary the candidate has to appear for two objective papers, one in general studies and the other is a subject of candidate’s choice. One clearing the Preliminary, candidates are eligible for the Main Examination which has a total of nine papers. The Preliminary papers are of the Degree level and Main papers are of the Masters level.After the Mains, candidates go for the Personality test which is in the form of an interview. The interviewer quizzes the candidate on matters of general interest in an effort to assess the suitability of the candidate for a career in Public Service. After successful completion of the Mains and the interview, the selected candidates are sent to the Lal Bahadur National Academy of Administration, Moussourie, for a four months foundation course, following which IAS, IPS and IFS trainees undergo a specialised training programme, before getting a final posting. The notification of the preliminary examination is made in December. The Preliminary Examination is held in the month of May. The Main Examination and personal interview is held in the month of Oct/ Nov every year. The marks obtained in Main Examination and Interview, determine the final ranking. The candidates are the allotted the various services on the basis of their ranks and preference expressed by them. Details of Preliminary and Main Examination are as follows.
CS (Preliminary) Examination
The preliminary examination consists of two papers of objective type (Multiple-choice questions) carrying a maximum of 450 marks.
Paper - I General Studies : 150 marks
Paper - II One of the following 23 subjects : 300 marks
Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Service, Botany, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Commerce, Economics, Electrical Engineering, Geography, Geology, Indian History, Law, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Medical Science, Philosophy, Physics, Political Science, Psychology, Public Administration, Sociology, Statistics, Zoology.
CS (Main) Examination
The main examination consists of 9 papers carrying a maximum 2000 marks.
Paper - I : One of the 18 Indian languages - 300
(Qualifying Papers)
Paper - II : English
(Qualifying Papers) - 300
These two papers are qualifying in Nature. The minimum standard for qualifying are fixed by the UPSC at the their discretion. Marks obtained in these papers are not counted for ranking.
Paper III: Essay -200
Paper IV and V: General Studies - 600 (300 each)
Paper VI, VIII: Any two out of 25 subjects*
Paper VIII, IX each having 2 papers - 1200
Interview - 300
* All subjects mentioned in Preliminary plus Anthropology & Management.
Educational Qualification and age
Graduate in any discipline, within 21 years to 30 years of age are eligible for Civil Service Examination.
Training Institutes
There are no organised training courses available for CSE. However, there are many training institutes which conduct special courses and train candidates for CSE.

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Governor

Former IAS officer Tejendra Khanna was today appointed as Lieutenant Governor of the national capital replacing B L Joshi who has been moved as Khanna, a 1961 batch IAS officer, retired as Commerce Secretary and served as Lieutenant Governor of Delhi from January 4, 1997 to April 14, 1998. He also headed a committee that went into the violation of building laws in the capital. Khanna was a part of the WTO negotiations team during the United Front Government in the late 1990s. The 73-year-old Joshi, who was appointed Lt Governor on June 9, 2004, has been appointed as Governor of Meghalaya with effect from the date he assumes the post. Governor of Nagaland K Sankaranarayanan has been asked to assume the additional charge of Arunachal Pradesh in addition to his own duties during the absence on leave of S K Singh.

IAS probationers

A group of 90 A group of 90 IAS probationers will criss-cross Uttar Pradesh during the upcoming Assembly elections to gain first-hand experience in conducting polls. The Election Commission has agreed to a request in this regard from the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, which imparts training to IAS probationers, poll panel sources said. The young probationers will tour several districts that will go to polls in the first phase of the assembly elections on April seven to get experience in the management of elections. The Election Commission is deploying over 500 senior IAS officers as observers for the conduct of elections to the 403-member House.

SEZ

After months of controversy, the empowered group of Union ministers (EGoM) lifted the political freeze on special economic zones permitting the commerce ministry to approve and notify more zones.However, while doing this, the government imposed a cap of 5,000 hectares on the maximum permissible land size of a zone, directly impacting the plans of four large developers – Reliance Industries, Gujarat Positra and real estate firms DLF and Omaxe.The state governments have also been given the flexibility to reduce the land size from the new limit.

IIM-A

The Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIM-A) has launched a new post-graduate programme in Public Management and Policy (PGP-PMP) for mid-career managers, administrators and professionals.The annual fee for the first year will be Rs 1.90 lakh, while for the second year of the course it will be Rs 1.95 lakh, IIM-K director Prof Krishna Kumar said. The fee for the first year currently is Rs 1.5 lakh and second year Rs 1.65 lakh.

Ahmad Shah Massoud

India on named a road in the national capital after the slain Afghan war hero, Ahmad Shah Massoud, the first such honour extended to a leader from that country.The road, near the Afghanistan embassy in the diplomatic enclave of Chanakyapuri.Massoud joins world leaders like Uruguay's national hero Jose Artigas, Kazakh poet Abai Kunanbaiuly, Irish leader Eamon De Valera, novelist Andre Malraux and Argentinian icon Jose De San Martin who have roads named after them in Delhi.

medical university

The Haryana government proposed a medical university in the state to provide better healthcare to its people.

Quality of Living Survey

Cities in Australia and New Zealand rank among the best in the world for quality of life, a new global survey has found.The Worldwide Quality of Living Survey, conducted by human resources consultancy firm Mercer, is based on an evaluation of 39 criteria contributing to the overall livability of each city.Sydney ranks ninth on the list, ahead of Melbourne at 17, Perth at 21, Brisbane at 31 and Adelaide at 32.In what may spark trans-Tasman envy, the New Zealand city of Auckland ranks as the fifth best city in the world, behind Zurich, Geneva, Vancouver and Vienna.Wellington is also in the top 20.

Solomons Islands (GEOGRAPHY)

The archipelago comprises six main islands and more than 950 smaller ones, an area of around 27,500 square kilometres (11,600 square miles) of generally rugged mountain terrain but also some low-lying coral atolls.Its population of a little over 500,000 is overwhelmingly Christian and ethnic Melanesian. English is the official language, but most people speak one of the more than 100 local dialectsIts main island Guadalcanal was a strategic military prize, notably because of its airstrip, and after months of bitter combat US and allied troops drove off the Japanese forces.The Solomons Islands gained independence in 1978. Although Britain's Queen Elizabeth II remains its head of state the country is run by a prime minister who is elected by parliament.Recent years have seen bloody ethnic strife however. Fighting broke out in 1998 and led to a coup two years later. The unrest continued despite a peace agreement and has crippled the country economically.In mid-2003 Australia led in an armed intervention force that has restored some stability. It is still involved although Solomons Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has been seeking to reduce Canberra's leading role.Most people rely on agriculture, fishing and forestry for their livelihoods, although there are undeveloped mineral resources such as lead, zinc, nickel and gold. The major exports are timber, fish and palm oil.
China is the Solomons' biggest export market while Australia and Singapore supply much of its imports. In 2005, economic growth was 4.7 per cent and gross domestic product per person was just $600.The Solomons' early history indicates hunter-gatherers living on the large islands as early as 1,000 BC. Some islanders are descendants of peoples who migrated from Southeast Asia.The European discoverer of the islands was a Spanish explorer in the 16th century .

DNA fingerprint

A bill providing for creation of a database of DNA fingerprints of criminals is likely to be tabled in parliament soon.The Hyderabad-based Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) and the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (Nalsar) have together drafted the bill.The bill facilitates creation of a database of DNA fingerprints of convicts and provides for quality control and quality assurance in DNA fingerprinting and diagnostics

Adarsh school

Freedom fighter Bhagat Singh's native village here got an Adarsh (ideal) school on his martyrdom day. The Punjab government promised to open similar schools in every block of the state for poor and rural students.

NSSO survey

The number of usually employed males aged 15 years and above has declined in class I cities like Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata in 2004-05 according to the 61st round National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) survey. The number of employed males per 1000 persons for the three metros in 1999-2000 was 743, 764 and 780 respectively. Women employment has, however, increased in Kolkata from 187 to 190 during the period. The number of usually employed women declined in Chennai and Delhi from 260 in 1999-2000 to 168 in 2004-05 and from 147 to 112 during the same period. Male employment has, however, increased in other class I cities like Mumbai, Surat, Hyderabad and Bangalore in 2004-05.

lending rate

RBI stepped up its fight against inflation and persistently high credit growth by raising its short-term lending rate by 25 basis points for the second time this year.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), acting after local markets closed, lifted its repo rate to 7.75 percent, its highest in nearly 4-1/2 years, saying it was critical to take "demonstrable and determined action" to cool inflationary pressures.The central bank, which last raised the repo rate in January, said it was also increasing its cash reserve ratio, the proportion of cash banks have to keep with it on deposit, by half a percentage point to 6.5 percent.Annual inflation, as measured by wholesale prices is running at nearly 6.5 percent, which is well above the central bank's comfort zone of 5.0-5.5 percent, while bank lending is growing at about 30 percent year-on-year.

IAS

Bureaucrats are eyeing the lure and lucre of the IT sector — not to help its further growth but to join it. A horde of Indian Administrative Services (IAS) officers are putting in their papers, only to take charge of assignments in IT companies or starting one of their own.BV Naidu of Karnataka has just quit his government job as the director of the Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) in Bangalore, to head a semiconductor company. He is not the first and won’t be the last to board IT’s gravy train, say officials. “Many officers are waiting for a chance to make a move,” says Naidu, who will be the India Managing Director of SemiIndia Systems after some fifteen years of working closely with the IT industry. SimiIndia plans to invest $ 3 billion in India to make chips. Vivek Harinarayan, who was Tamil Nadu’s IT secretary till June last, has quit the IAS and will become an IT consultant next week. In Karnataka, it was Vivek Kulkarni and in Tamil Nadu it was D Prakash, who kicked off the trend many years ago, when the quit as IT secretaries and hitched onto the IT bandwagon. Kulkarni now heads a successful Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) company.
from. ..DNA

Anirban Banerjee

Anirban Banerjee is the first Indian to receive Nobel Laureate Signature Award in Chemistry for his work on human DNA. Mr. Banerjee is now a US citizen. The award sanctioned by the Alfred Nobel Society is as one of the most acclaimed awards in the world of science and given by the American Chemical Society (ACS) Chicago. The award carries $3000 and a plaque signed by resident Nobel laureates in chemistry of United States. The award bears the ratification of Alfred Nobel Society

reservation

The Supreme Court stayed until August the 27 percent reservation of seats in elite central educational institutions for backward class students.In an interim order on a bunch of petitions by Youth for Equality and other student bodies, Justices Arijit Pasayat and L.S Panta stayed the quota meant for socially and educationally backward classes (SEBC) students for the coming academic session of institutions like the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs).

good genes

UK scientists believe they have discovered why the spread of "good genes" throughout the population does not make everyone good-looking. If women select the most attractive men, the genes should quickly become commonplace, according to Darwin. But the new research suggests that genetic mutations routinely affect the DNA repair kit, resulting in greater variations as damage goes unrepaired.

Astra

The indigenously developed air-to-air missile Astra was testfired from the Interim Test Range (ITR).Developed by the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad, Astra is an advanced missile capable of engaging targets over 80 km away.

Satheeswaran

19-year-old polytechnic student in Coimbatore, who gained fame for performing a record number of push- ups with the palms facing upward, has killed himself because his feat wasn't good enough to take him to the Guinness Book of World Records.Satheeswaran, a resident of Pappanaicken Palayam area of Coimbatore, had made it to the Limca Book of Records for 141 non-stop backhand push-ups two years ago, left a suicide note.

Nalanda international varsity

Two hundred villages around a proposed international varsity at Nalanda will be developed in Bihar. Bihar assembly unanimously approved the University of Nalanda Bill for setting up an international university, the villages around the proposed site are hopeful that the university will establish linkages with them that will result in their economic development.

Aryabhata award

Astronautical Society of India (ASI), Bangalore, has announced its annual awards for the year 2005, including the prestigious Aryabhata award to Dr P S Goel, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences.ASI, set up in 1990, said in a statement it has instituted several awards to recognise talented Indian individuals who have made significant contributions to astronautics.The list of awardees for the year 2005 is:
Aryabhata Award 2005 - Dr P S Goel, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, New Delhi; ASI Awards 2005 Rocket related technology - P Vardaraj, Defence Research and Development Laboratory, Hyderabad; Space sciences and applications - Dr V K Agarwal, ISRO Satellite Centre, Bangalore, and Prof R Sridharan, Space Physics Laboratory, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram; Space systems management - S K Shivakumar, ISRO Telemetry, Tracking & Command Network, Bangalore.

china

China's oil dependency, or net oil imports against oil consumption, went up 4.1 percentage points year-on-year to 47 percent in 2006, according to the Ministry of Commerce.It is predicted that China's crude oil imports will reach 160 million tonnes.Besides oil deposits in Bohai Sea, China has discovered oil resources in Tarim Basin of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and in central part of the country over recent years. It also found natural gas deposits in Tarim, Ordos and Sichuan basins.

technology in development

Denmark came out top for the first time of a worldwide study measuring the most effective use of technology in development and improving competitiveness in 122 economies. Sweden, Singapore and Finland were ranked second, third and fourth respectively while the US slipped from first, last year, to seventh place in the Global Information Technology Report 2006-2007, published in Geneva by the World Economic Forum, WEF. to fifth places this year, followed by the Netherlands, the US, Iceland, Britain, and Norway completing the top 10 rankings.Countries from Asia and the Pacific continue did well this year, with Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Australia and Korea occupying 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 19th positions respectively. India slipped four places to 44th and China fell 9 places to 59th.

ISRO

Satellite technology supplied by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will soon come in aid of nearly 600,000 fishermen in Kerala for identifying shoals of fish in nine fishing districts.satellites will identify the potential fishing zones (PFZ) and would pass on information to the fishermen in Kerala on a regular basis with the help of the fisheries department.In Kerala, there are 222 marine fishing villages with the capital district having a maximum of 42.Currently, the fisheries sector accounts for a mere 1.44 percent of the state's gross domestic product. The total production of fish in the country stands at 6.3 million tonnes, with Kerala accounting for 637,000 tonnes

Mars probe

China and Russia plan to jointly explore Mars and one of its moons with a Chinese micro-satellite aboard the Russian spacecraft "Phobos Explorer." The agreement was signed in Moscow in the presence of Chinese President Hu Jintao and Russian President Vladimir Putin.The Chinese micro-satellite and the "Phobos Explorer" will be launched atop a Russian rocket in 2009. After entering Mars ' orbit, the Chinese micro-satellite will detach from the Russian spacecraft and probe the planet ' s environment. The "Phobos Explorer" will land the Martian moon Phobos and return to Earth with soil samples.

scholarship

Indian Alumni of the International House of New York, a graduate-level residential and cultural centre, have established a $10,000 scholarship for Indians pursuing studies in New York.The scholarship endowment will be awarded annually to Indians keen on graduate studies in the US city, though the number of recipients is yet to be finalized.

Science Village

75-acre Science Village is soon to be established in Assam by Gramya Jana Bigyan Mancha (GJBM), an NGO. The village, first of its kind is being planned in Jamugurihat village, about 250 km from Guwahati. The project, estimated to cost Rs 10 crore would come up in two phases.The Science Village will have a planetarium, botanical garden, heritage Park, a wetland project, bird sanctuary, science museum, library, auditorium, laboratory, aquarium, and a children's park.

increase of fees

In response to the recommendations made by National Knowledge Commission (NKC) for increasing fees in universities to meet at least 20 per cent of their total expenditure, the union HRD Ministry ruled out any possibility of increase of fees in universities.The NKC had finalized, earlier this year and recommended a more rational fee structure for resource generation. "As a norm, fees should meet at least 20 per cent of the total expenditure in universities. This should be subject to two conditions: needy students should be provided with a fee waiver plus scholarships to meet their costs and universities should not be penalised by the University Grants Commission for the resources raised from higher fees through matching deductions from their grants-in-aid.

education loan

Pursuing higher education is becoming more affordable as Punjab National Bank (PNB) will be reducing its education loan rates from April 1. Now, education loan will not be a matter of two much worry for students and parents. The bank has reduced interest rates on educational loan by up to Rs 4 lakh under the 'PNB Vidya Lakshya Purti Scheme' by 1.25 percent to 11.50 percent and under the 'PNB Sarvotam Shiksha Scheme' by 0.5 percent to 10.50 percent.

PIO university

The government has given its approval to a policy framework for establishing a university in India for children of Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIO). The policy envisages establishing an NRI/PIO university within the demarcated Special Educational Zone (SEdZ) in the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) to provide affordable and quality education to children of NRIs and PIOs. The university will be a deemed university under the University Grants Commission (UGC) Act as an Institution of Excellence.It will be set up by overseas Indian trusts or societies with credible standing and experience in the field of education under the overall supervision of the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs.An inter-ministerial screening committee will be set up for scrutinizing the applications submitted by societies/trusts desiring to set up the university.An advisory board comprising representative from the UGC, the ministries of Overseas Indian Affairs, External affairs, Human Resource Development, Health and Family Welfare, Indian Medical Council and Dental Council will evaluate the academic and infrastructure standards of the university

exam reforms committee

The exam reforms committee of Delhi University (DU) has recently recommended that instead of awarding marks, the students should be given Grade Point Average (GPA) score. The reform panel has come up with this plan, realizing that the grading system is a broader and fairer method of identifying a student's level of knowledge. The CBSE had earlier mooted a similar plan for class X exams and is gearing to implement the grading system for class X from 2008. According to the panel, a high powered committee is to be set up by the Vice Chancellor to examine the feasibility of introducing the grading system. The report of the reforms panel also tells about a centralized evaluation process. At present teachers merely collect the answer scripts from the evaluation centre and submit them after checking along with the award lists .

De Bono training

Inspired by the globally renowned lateral thinking expert Edward de Bono, his centre of thinking management is planning to reach out to rural India by introducing its cognitive training skills for the farmers to improve their mental skills.The Cognitive Research Trust (CoRT) training would be first given to the school teachers in the rural areas. They will then disseminate their knowledge to their students.Founded in 1969, CoRT is one of Edward de Bono's contributions to management sciences that aims at promoting and fostering creative thought. Bangladesh is one of the countries that benefited from this training. The 60-lesson CoRT module is teaching millions of students in Europe and America.a comprehensive presentation on the de Bono tools and techniques has already been shown to the union ministry and there will be a discussion with the ministry March 17 for introducing this training in rural India.

Financial Market Management

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is going to start a new course in Financial Market Management (FMM) for the Senior Secondary Classes. For the new course CBSE will be training teachers and the training will be arranged at the BLB Institute of Financial Markets.The course is designed keeping in mind the changing global and economic pattern of the country. The curriculum development committee is designing the course under the chairmanship of GC Sharma, Director, BLB Institute of Financial Markets.

Bill Gates

Harvard University has announced that Bill Gates will be the principal speaker at the commencement ceremony later this year - 30 years after starting an undergraduate degree that he never completed.Gates entered Harvard in 1973, but in 1975 left to concentrate his efforts on Microsoft, the fledgling company he had co-founded with Paul Allen. Steve Ballmer, now Microsoft's CEO, was a classmate of Gates and lived in the same Harvard residence

joint naval exercises

The navies of India and Japan will hold their first-ever joint naval exercises soon, Foreign Minister Pranab Mukerjee announced .He, however, emphasised that the purpose of such a step was "not for aggression.""I am particularly happy to note that the first Joint Goodwill Exercise between the Japan Maritime Self Defence Force and the Indian Navy will also take place very shortly," Mukherjee said at the prestigious Japan Institute of International Affairs."Our cooperation in ensuring the safety and security of sea lanes of communication, combating piracy and terrorism, search and rescue, and disaster relief must define our shared desire to contribute to Asian economic growth and security," he said.

Management Aptitude Test

All India Management Association (AIMA) is going to have its next Management Aptitude Test (MAT) for screening candidates for the MBA programme on 6th may 2007 i.e. Sunday. The MAT bulletin for the exam on 6th may is now on sale. The form is available at all the AIMA nodal centres, selected branches of UTI bank and at some of the participating B-schools. The consolidated charge for the MAT bulletin is Rs. 650/- by cash from these outlets. The candidates who wish to get the form by post should send a demand draft for Rs.690/- in favour of All India Management Association - CMS, payable at New Delhi along with two self- addressed slips. The last date for the sale of MAT bulletin is 18 April 2007 (Wednesday) and the last date for submitting forms is 20th April 2007(Friday). Students have to submit their forms at AIMA New Delhi.

OBC reservation

Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad is expected to add 34 seats during the 2007-08 following the implementation of the 27 per cent OBC reservation in the Central Government-funded institutions of higher learning.The report of Outcome Budget of Department of Higher Education placed on the table of Parliament said that a plan outlay of Rs 576 crore has been earmarked in the 2007-08 Budget for increasing seats in central universities. The students intake capacity in six Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) is expected to increase by 157 during 2007-08, the report said adding IIM Lucknow will add 45 more students, IIM Ahmedabad (34), IIM Bangalore (30), IIM Calcutta (18) and IIM Indore and IIM Kozhikode 15 each. The implementation of the recommendations of the Oversight Committee would see a phased increase of intake capacity over a period of three years, besides augmenting infrastructural capacities as also the strength of the faculty in 17 Central universities, it said.
The intake capacity of seven Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) is expected to increase by 1,788 during the year. While IIT Roorkee will increase its capacity 309, IIT Kharagpur will take additional 295 students, IIT Kanpur (267), IIT Mumbai (209), IIT Chennai (204), IIT Delhi (151) and IIT Guwahati (101). A plan outlay of Rs 988 crore has been earmarked in the Budget.

semiconductor policy

The government expects to attract an investment of around $6-10 billion (approx. Rs 24,000-44,000 crore) by luring two-three fabrication units with at an investment of $2-3 billion each by 2010 now that it has notified (given formal consent) to the semiconductor policy it had announced on February 22.the government had announced a host of incentives in the semiconductor policy that include bearing 20% of the capital expenditure during the first 10 years if a unit is located inside special economic zones (SEZ) and 25% in case of other units. The countervailing duty (CVD) on capital goods too would be exempted in case of units outside the SEZs. The policy further entails that for semiconductor manufacturing (wafer fabs) plants, the investment would be Rs 2,500 crore and Rs 1,000 crore for manufacturing of other productsthat include bearing 20% of the capital expenditure during the first 10 years if a unit is located inside special economic zones (SEZ) and 25% in case of other units. The countervailing duty (CVD) on capital goods too would be exempted in case of units outside the SEZs. The policy further entails that for semiconductor manufacturing (wafer fabs) plants, the investment would be Rs 2,500 crore and Rs 1,000 crore for manufacturing of other products

B. Ed.

The Delhi High Court has held that B. Ed. degree holders are also eligible to apply for the post of primary school teachers. The order came on a bunch of petitions by a batch of 29 B. Ed. degree holders challenging a judgment by the CAT in 2005 holding that only Junior Basic Teacher diploma holders were eligible for being appointed as primary school teachers in Kendriya Vidyalayas. Counsel for the petitioners Surat Singh submitted that the KVS had in its advertisement in February 2005 invited applications from JBT diploma holders as well as B. Ed. degree holders for recruiting 1,000 primary teachers. Some JBT-trained candidates had moved the CAT against the decision of the Sangathan . The CAT had allowed their petitions holding that B. Ed. degree holders were not eligible to apply.

World Cup

international hockey federation (FIH) is acknowledging that India is central to the the game. FIH executive board took a decision to approach the Indian Hockey Confederation (IHC) to find out whether India can host the 2010 World Cup in New Delhi. The last time India hosted the World Cup was in 1982 in Mumbai .FIH board has allotted the 2010 women's World Cup to Argentina.

BlackBerry 8800

Research in Motion (RIM) today launched it's highly anticipated "BlackBerry 8800" smart phone in the country. At 14mm, the BlackBerry 8800 is the thinnest Blackberry handset yet. It is equipped with a highly tactile, full Qwerty keyboard; multimedia features; a microSD expandable memory; and trackball navigation system which was first introduced with BlackBerry Pearl. Moreover, it is the first smart phone from the company to feature built-in GPS

MiG-23MF

The MiG-23MF fighter aircraft, which played a key role in countering a possible threat from Pakistan's F-16s for the last 25 years in the western sector, bid adieu to the force with one last ceremonial flight.The Russian-made MiG-23s were phased out because heavy financial costs were being incurred on their maintenance. `It is too costly to maintain them because of non-availability of spare parts. Maintaining these aircraft was like maintaining vintage cars. Hence, the Air Force had to take the decision to phase these aircraft out.

reservation

The political science paper of the class XII exam got an interesting question related to the issue of 27% reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in central educational institutions. Question number 17 in Set 3 required the students to give their views regarding the reservation policy for OBCs in institutions of higher education.

Harvard University

The Harvard University is in the spotlight with the release of the annual list of its most embarrassing graduates and students, which includes Kaavya Viswanathan, a student of Indian origin.Apart from Kaavya, who was caught for plagiarism, the list includes former Cardinal Bernard Law, accused of protecting child-molesting priests. Former Mexican president Carlos Salinas de Gortari, now charged with corruption, and former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling, currently in jail, also find place on the embarrassing list

E8

AFTER four years of intensive collaboration, 18 top mathematicians and computer scientists from the US and Europe have mapped E8, one of the largest and most complicated structures in mathematics.Project leader Jeffrey Adams said that E8 was discovered in 1887, and until now no one thought the structure could ever be understood.E8 belongs to so-called Lie groups that were invented by a 19th century Norwegian mathematician, Sophus Lie, to study symmetry. The theory holds that underlying any symmetrical object is a Lie group. Balls or cones are examples of symmetric three-dimensional objects. But mathematicians also study symmetries in higher dimensions. In fact, E8 itself is 248-dimensional.

Dearness Allowance

Announcing sops for the Central government employees, the government has announced a six per cent increase of Dearness Allowance. The government has also brought relief for pensioners entailing a total extra expenditure of Rs 3900.43 crore during financial year 2007-08.The decision was taken at a Union Cabinet held yesterday. The Cabinet has decided to hike the DA from the current 29 per cent to 35 per cent. The hike will come into effect retrospectively from January this year.The additional financial implications on account of increase in DA for employees will be Rs 2265.12 crore per annum. For 2007-08 the burden would be Rs 2642.64 crore because of arrears.
The extra outgo on account of Dearness Relief to pensioners will be Rs 1079.08 crore per annum. The extra expenditure for 2007-08 would be Rs 1275.78 crore.

solar eclipse

parts of the country today witnessed partially eclipsed Sun.The partial solar eclipse began at 6:08 am (IST) across the country. The shadow of the moon first touched the earth during local sunrise at a point in the Bay of Bengal near the coast of Chennai. The beginning of the eclipse was visible only from the eastern, North Eastern and some parts of North India.The remaining parts of India will see sunrise after the eclipse begins. The eclipse was visible in the region covering most of Alaska, eastern and central Asia except the central parts of Japan and western parts of Russia.

Underground caves found on Mars

Researchers from the US Geological Survey (USGS) have found underground caves on Mars. The seven sister cave holes have been named Dena, Chloë, Wendy, Annie, Abbey, Nikki and Jeanne. Glen Cushing from the USGS in Flagstaff, Arizona, got his first hint of the underground cave system from THEMIS (Mars Odyssey's Thermal Emission Imaging System) images of the Arsia Mons region near the equator of Mars. He spotted a system of pit craters, indicative of collapsed areas, and nestled among them half a dozen dark spots ranging in diameter from 100 to 252 metres.

NASA

A new measurement of Mars' South Polar Region indicates that it contains enough frozen water to cover the whole planet in a liquid layer approximately 36 feet deep, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASA. ( A new measurement of Mars' South Polar Region indicates that it contains enough frozen water to cover the whole planet in a liquid layer approximately 36 feet deep, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).A joint NASA-Italian Space Agency instrument, the Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounding (MARSIS), installed on the European Space Agency's Mars Express spacecraft provided these data.A joint NASA-Italian Space Agency instrument, the Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounding (MARSIS), installed on the European Space Agency's Mars Express spacecraft provided these data.

PPSC

The Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) has proposed a new syllabus for Punjab Civil Services examination (PCS). As per the recommendations made by PPSC, the PCS executive exams will be on the pattern of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examination held for Indian Administration Services (IAS). The said recommendations have already been sent to the government for final approval.

social forestry

Alarmed over the massive degradation of its lush green cover, Kerala is to launch an ambitious social forestry project aimed at instilling a love for nature in the student community, labourers and coastal inhabitants. The programme, conceived by the state forest department and to be launched in June, will have three elements - 'My Tree' for students, 'Vazhiyorathanal' (roadside tree shades) for labourers, and a coastal forest element for those who live in such areas.The forest department will provide saplings of around 25 varieties of trees including teak, jackfruit, anjili (Artocarpus hirsuta), and gooseberry that would be planted as part of the programme.A district-level organising committee has been formed with the district collector as chairman and the deputy director of education as convenor. The committee comprises heads of various departments, representatives of the teachers' unions, parent-teacher associations and environmental activists.

Naxalites

biggest ever strike by Maoists on security forces in Chhattisgarh, at least 55 police personnel were killed and 11 injured today when more than 300 heavily armed rebels stormed a police station in the Bastar region.The Naxalites, led by the military wing of the banned CPI-Maoist attacked Rani Bodli police outpost, 525 km from here, in the wee hours today, police sources told PTI on phone from Bijapur district.Sixteen Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) jawans and 39 special police officers were killed, while four CAF jawans and seven officers were injured in the incident. Nine other policemen who were at the outpost escaped without any injuries.The Naxalites looted 48 weapons from the security forces, including rifles and a two-inch mortar

Taslima Nasreen

An Indian Muslim group has offered a 500,000 rupees ($11,319; BD4,267) bounty for the beheading of controversial Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen.The president of the All India Ibtehad Council said he had declared the reward for anyone who carried out the "qatal" or "extermination" of the "notorious woman".

mental disorder

Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss has said that nearly 75,000 people commit suicide in India every year for varied reasons, including mental disorder. Suicide in India is a major threat and nearly 75,000 people commit suicide every year. Poverty, debt, illiteracy and mental imbalance are the main reasons for this menace,” said the minister. “Seven to eight percent of the Indian population is facing some sort of mental problem, of which over 1.5 percent (15 million) needs special care

Vodafone Essar

Vodafone chief Arun Sarin has announced that his company has now reached an agreement with the Essar group on the Hutch deal. The company would now be called Vodafone Essar and Ravi Ruia is new chairman of the company. Asim Ghosh has been retained as the CEO of the company.

BSNL

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) plans to invest Rs 800 crore to expand its broadband network across the country over the next three years. The state-owned telecom major will also invest Rs 27,000 crore over the next three years for the expansion of the cellular network primarily in rural areas. The company expects to get the 3G spectrum by the end of 2007. BSNL is also planning to roll out the multiplay services in Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata and Hyderabad over the next three to six months.

Railway

1,72,689 posts related to A,B,C,D categories were lying vacant in Railways till December 31 last year, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad informed the Lok Sabha. While the highest number of vacancies (1,27,400) are lying in Group "C", there are about 43,781 posts to be filled up in Group "D".There are about 1,908 vacancies in Group "A and B", he said and added that action for filling of vacancies is a continuous process.

coaching industry

Indians’ fetish for education, poor educational infrastructure and ambitious parents is giving rise to a booming coaching industry in the country. The coaching industry, estimated at Rs 5,000 crore, is growing annually at 20%. From board exams to school tuitions, IITs, medical, IIMs and now GRE, there is demand at all education and income levels. There are at least eight big players in the organised sector like Career Launcher, IMS, TIME, Brilliant Tutorials, FIITJEE, Pie Education, Raus’s IAS, who comprise 20% of the market.

Sanjivani Booti

The famous herb of Indian mythology, Sanjivani Booti, which saved the life of Laxman in Ramayana, is being studied these days by scientists for its gifted quality of surviving without water.Scientists from the National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI) are trying to know what made the plant to survive for 300 years, and for this they have also started a five year programme for studying the factors or genes that help the herb to live so long and survive from drought conditions.

Templeton Prize

The world's largest monetary award, the Templeton Prize, went to Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor, who for half a century has argued that violence and bigotry can be solved by studying their secular and spiritual dimensions.Named after world financier John Templeton, the prize valued at $1.5 million, is given each year to those who work "for progress toward research or discoveries about spiritual realities."Taylor, a Catholic in French-speaking Quebec province and a Rhodes Scholar, has been investigating the secular and spiritual to help resolve conflicts in society

warmest winter

This has been the world's warmest winter since record-keeping began more than a century ago, the U.S. government agency that tracks weather reported on Thursday.The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said the combined global land and ocean surface temperature from December through February was at its highest since records began in 1880.A record-warm January was responsible for pushing up the combined winter temperature, according to the agency's Web site, http://www.noaa.gov.