Global Foundation for Civilizational Harmony (India)

Cordially Invites You To A

SYMPOSIUM

On

PLIGHT OF RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN PAKISTAN

Saturday, 15^th September, 2012 at 3:00 pm

Venue: Plenary Hall, Indian Law Institute, Bhagwan Dass Road,

        (Opp. Supreme Court of India) New Delhi - 110 001

Chief Guest:

Shri Vijai Kapoor

Former Lt. Governor, Delhi

Dr. Ravindra Nagar (Chief Acharya, Birla Mandir)

Syed Babar Ashraf (Gen. Secy, All India Ulama & Mashaikh Board)

Maulana Mohd. Ali Mohsin Thuvi (Imam, Shia Jama Masjid, Delhi)

Very. Rev Mskariah Ramban (Secretary, Delhi Diocese of Orthodax Church)

Rabbi Ezekiel Isaac Malekar (Delhi Jewish Synagogue)

Dr. A K Merchant (National Trustee, Lotus Temple)

Shri Vivek Goyal (Advocate, Supreme Court of India)

Moderator:

Prof. (Dr.) Madan Mohan Verma

President, Inter Faith Foundation

                                                K. G. Suresh

                                                 (Director)                                                                              www.gfchindia.com

                                                9818617350                                                                            indiagfch@gmail.com

1. VUCLIP TO SPEAK AT AD:TECH BANGALORE 2012

   VUCLIP TO SPEAK AT AD:TECH BANGALORE 2012

    

   Bangalore, 13 September, 2012: Vuclip, the world’s largest independent mobile video service, has been invited to speak at the upcoming edition of ad:tech, the world's no.1 interactive advertising and technology conference and exhibition. Vuclip’s Vice President and Head of Advertising, APAC and Middle East, Meera Chopra, will be speaking at the morning panel session titled Integrated Video Planning, along with Ravi Kiran, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Friends of Ambition and Co-Founder, VentureNursery; comScore Inc.’s Vice President - Southeast Asia, Joe Nguyen; Kiran Gopinath, Founder and CEO, Ozone Media Solutions; and Lk Gupta, CMO, LG Electronics India.

    

   The event, to be held at India's own Silicon Valley, Bangalore, on Thursday, September 27 at Sheraton, is being organized by Networkplay Media Pvt. Ltd. in partnership with dmg::events, and aims to “bring together marketing giants with technology geniuses.”

    

   With a boom in mobile video consumption and with the emergence of multiple screens, brands and advertisers often find it perplexing to decide the most suitable placement avenues for their video content to reach the right audience. The panel session will explore today’s video consumption habits and delve into video planning to help the delegates know where to spend, how to measure and how to position their brand effectively through videos. It will also deliberate on how to make video assets work seamlessly across mobile, web and TV, and will try to find the mantra for successfully balancing pure digital media buys with a more traditional TV spend.

    

   The increased mobile and web connectivity and the fast growing internet population in India have paved the way for a digital explosion. There is a growing trend of using internet through mobile devices rather than personal computers. As per Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers (KPCB), global mobile traffic is growing rapidly to 10% of the total internet traffic. KPCB research also reveals that, in India, mobile internet usage surpassed desktop internet usage in May 2012. In spite of this phenomenal rise in global mobile internet penetration, there were only 953 M Smartphone subscriptions as against 6.1 B global mobile phone subscriptions by the end of 2011, according to Morgan Stanley Research.

    

   Says Meera, “While last year, we were still hearing people talking about the next mobile advertising revolution, it is exciting to see how the industry is embracing it so quickly now. In just over six months since the last ad:tech in Delhi, we are seeing a very positive uptake among Indian brands where mobile advertising is becoming an essential instead of an option. But it is imperative to note that basic feature phones still constitute a large chunk of all mobile internet users in the country. Any mobile advertising strategy is incomplete unless it reaches the bottom of the pyramid in addition to the top.”

    

   As Vuclip’s Vice President and Head of Advertising, APAC and Middle East, Meera's core responsibility is to build new partnerships with brands and advertising agencies alike, as well as strengthening existing relationships. Prior to joining Vuclip, Meera was the National Sales Head with Times Internet Ltd. Meera has over a decade of experience in business development and corporate sales having worked with leading media houses such as Networkplay and Komli Media.

    

   Each month, Vuclip delivers over 560 million videos on as many as 5500 different mobile handsets globally. In India, Vuclip has over 14 million monthly active users. Some of the leading brands that advertise on Vuclip in India include Maruti, Sonata, Fastrack, PizzaHut and Pepsi.

    

   About Vuclip

   For millions of people around the world, Vuclip is an essential part of their daily lives. Vuclip serves video on-the-fly, on any device, and in any country, providing unparalleled reach for its partners. Every day Vuclip delivers more than 20 million videos to consumers in over 200 countries. Vuclip is headquartered in Milpitas, California with offices in Los Angeles, New Delhi, Mumbai, Singapore, Shenzhen and Beijing. Check out Vuclip on your phone: m.vuclip.com.

   Posted 5 minutes ago by Nksagar
2. Sep

   13

   The World Investment Conferences,

   Dear Mr. Sagar,

    

   The World Investment Conferences, in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), with support from the Government of Rajasthan is organizing the World Investment Conference India 2012 from 7-9 October 2012 at the Jaipur Marriott Hotel, Rajasthan.

   Under the theme, “India’s Attractiveness on the Global FDI Map,” the conference will bring together over 300 business, government, media, academia and civil society leaders from India and abroad along with other key stakeholders of the economy at the conference to get updated on the latest investment opportunities in India’s key growth sectors.

   The investors you can have B2B meetings with at the WIC 2012 are :- 

   UHY Hacker Young LLP	Safran	Areva	Enel
   Alcatel Lucent	ICBC		Ubisoft Entertainment
   Redcliffe Capital	Adecco	Bureau Veritas	Macfarlane Telesystems Ltd
   Assystem	Laboratoires Bongert	Velcan Energy	PVL Media Consultants
   ipawrld	Tridevi Capital Limited	Bolloré Group	Avelar Energy
   Pierre Fabre	Wisekey	Swarovski	Carlson
   Cisco	Pernod-Ricard	Holcim	Chevron Energy Solutions
   Viadéo	Unigrains	eMeter	Europ Assistance
   Euronews	Suez Environnement

   The key session that will be discussed at WIC 2012 will focus on a wide range of topics : –

   ·         India in the New Global Reality

   ·         Understanding Indian Global Players

   ·         Young and Ambitious Indians

   ·         Role of PEs and FIs in Indian infrastructure

   ·         Healthcare Scenario 2020

   ·         India as an R&D hub

   ·         Logistics as a key driver for economy

   ·         India’s demographic dividend

   ·         Long-term growth of value-added manufacturing in India

   And some of the expert panelist along with the overseas investors who will address the above mentioned sessions are :-

   ·         Mr Anil Arora, MD MJ Logistics Pvt Ltd

   ·         Ms Anupama Arya, National Chairperson, Yi & MD, Mobera Group

   ·         Mr Dileep Baid, Chairman, CII Rajasthan State Council

   ·         Mr Pierre Benham, Country Head - India operations, Pierre Fabre Group

   ·         Mr Dilip Chenoy, CEO & MD, National Skills Development Council

   ·         Dr K Ganapathy, President, Apollo Telemedicine Networking Foundation

   ·         Ms Bhairavi Jani, Director, SCA Group of Companies

   ·         Prof Prem K Kalra, Director, IIT Jodhpur

   ·         Dr A K Mukherjee, Director General, Indian Spinal Injuries Centre

   ·         Ms Chhavi Rajawat, Sarpanch, Municipal Government of Soda

   ·         Mr Ajay Shankar, Member (Secretary), National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC), Government of India

   ·         Mr Sunand Sharma, Country President, ALSTOM India & South Asia Ltd

   ·         Dr Shubnum Singh, Dean – Nursing, Allied, Health & Wellness Programs, Max Healthcare Institute Ltd

   ·         Mr John Yates, CEO, Manipal-City & Guilds Skills Training Pvt Ltd

   We are writing to invite your participation to this unique conference

   Your office can confirm your participation at :-  http://www.worldinvestmentconferences.com/conferences/india-2012/register. 

   In case you are unable to participate, then do please consider nominating your senior colleagues who may benefit from this conference. 

   We look forward to your kind confirmation and to receiving you in Jaipur.

   Posted 6 minutes ago by Nksagar
3. Sep

   13

   Seasoned Smriti makes it look easy, wins 4th leg of Hero-WGAI by four shots

   Seasoned Smriti makes it look easy, wins 4^th leg of Hero-WGAI by four shots
   

   SRINAGAR, September 13: Smriti Mehra brought in all her experience to overhaul Nalini Singh Siwach and win the fourth leg of Hero-WGAI Women’s Pro Tour on Thursday. Smriti shot her second successive two-under 70 to finish with a total of 214, as against Nalini Singh’s 218 following a final round 75. It also sealed a second title of the season for Smriti.

   Saaniya Sharma (73) finished third at 224 and Shraddhanjali Singh (71) was fourth at 225. Vani Kapoor (76) was fifth at 226 and Neha Tripathi (78) was sixth at 227.

   Nalini, leading by one shot overnight, failed to land any birdies through the round. She bogeyed the third and fourth and fell behind. When Smriti birdied the fifth and then eighth, Nalini was virtually out of the race. Smriti bogeyed the 10^th and Nalini bogeyed the 17^th. Then Smriti ended the tournament in style with a birdie on 18^th to finish at 70 and 214.

   Nalini was just not able to hole her putts and had only three bogeys.

   Saaniya had two bogeys and one birdie in her 73 as she ended third. Vani Kapoor once again disappointed with a 76 and ended fifth, while Shraddhanjali Singh (71) had a sub-par round during a week when her fortunes fluctuated wildly with rounds of 75, 79 and 71.

   This was the first-ever women’s professional event at the picturesque Royal Springs Golf Course in Srinagar and it elicited a great response and the course itself was a challenge for the golfers.

   Ankita Tiwana (75) and Meghna Bal (77) were tied for seventh at 232.

   Smriti Mehra became the first multiple winner this season, as she had also won the second leg in Bengaluru. Sharmila Nicollet won the first leg, Smriti the second and rookie Vani Kapoor took the third, before Smriti added a second title.

   The Hero-WGAI Tour will now arrive into the National Capital Region with next four legs will be held in the National Capital Region. The  fifth leg will be held at the DLF Golf and Country Club September 19.

   Posted 8 minutes ago by Nksagar
4. Sep

   13

   Thailand Medical & Wellness Tourism

   
   

   Thailand Medical & Wellness Tourism Trade Fam Trip
   2012 Highlights Country's Leadership as Health & Wellness Destination.

   Mumbai 13 September 2012: Nearly 90 tourism facilitators, health tourism organizations and health insurance companies from 18 countries gathered at the Centara Grand at Central World in Bangkok for the Thailand Medical & Wellness Tourism Trade Fam Trip 2012 organized by the Tourism Authority Of Thailand (TAT).

   TAT Governor Suraphon Svetasreni said, The Thailand Medical & Wellness Tourism Trade FAM Trip is the first trade event targeting medical tourism organizations and health insurance companies. During the first day of the event, the visiting tourism facilitators had meetings with over 110 Thai medical and wellness providers to earn about the tremendous variety and high quality of services available in the Kingdom.

   In addition to the meetings, the TAT also organized a 3-day trip that will provide the opportunity for those on the Fam Trip to experience Thai health and wellness providers, hospitals, spas, and specialized clinics onsite.

   Governor Suraphon added, Thai medical providers are well prepared and ready to expand into the global market. For example, 18 Thai hospitals have received JCI Accreditation, which is the highest number of any Asian country. In the wellness spa sector, Thailand is recognized by various international agencies as the Spa Capital of Asia.

   Mrs. Vilaiwan Twichasri, Deputy Governor for Tourism Business and Products for the TAT, said, "Prospective buyers visiting Thailand are interested in a wide range of medical tourism products, including wellness spas, medical spas, and especially integrated medicine and anti-aging products. Thai herbal medicines and therapy, as well as an array of Eastern medical knowledge, are also focal points for many international tourism operators, especially in the Russian market, TAT believes that this is a great opportunity for the Thai health tourism sector, since the high standards of the Thai medical profession are well-known around the world

   Governor Suraphon concluded that the Thailand Medical & Wellness Tourism Trade FAM Trip 2012 is an excellent opportunity for Thai medical providers to meet their international counterparts to help expand the market into countries such as China and Russia. In addition, the Fam Trip emphasizes Thailand reputation - in the eyes of tourism facilitators from all over the globe - as the world leader in wellness tourism and beauty.

   The TAT believes that the Thai health & wellness tourism sector will help generate a significant portion of the total expected national tourism revenue of two trillion Baht in 2014.

JindalⳊpower plant causing health crisis


September 12, 2012



JindalⳊpower plant causing health crisis in residential areas, High Court adjourns case for umpteenth time.Union Environment Minister Misleads Parlaiment, Ecological lawlessness unfolding in national capital with impunity.Untested, unapproved Chinese incinerator technology violates laws



September 12, 2012, New Delhi: Amidst bitter opposition from residents, waste pickers and environmental groups a Writ Petition (Civil) NO. 9901/2009 in the Delhi High Court against the power plant by DelhiⳠTimarpur-Okhla Waste Management Co Pvt Ltd (TOWMCL) of M/s Jindal Urban Infrastructure Limited (JUIL), a company of M/s Jindal Saw Group Limited came for hearing in Court No. 1 of Acting Chief Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw on September 4, 2012 but was adjourned once again for the umpteenth time since 2009. The next date of hearing is on October 19. In the Supreme Court a related matter [Writ Petition (Civil) 888/1996] in which there was an order passed putting a stay on power plants based on waste incineration, is listed for hearing on October 1, 2012.



The 31 page report of the Union Environment & Forests Ministry constituted Technical Experts Evaluation Committee of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) on the Timarpur-Okhla Waste to Energy Incinerator Plant has condemned the Timarpur-Okhla Waste to Energy Incinerator Plant by JITF Urban Infrastructure Limited (Jindal Ecopolis) has violated every rule in the rule book including environmental clearance conditions. It revealed to the Experts Committee in September 2011 that it is using untested and unapproved Chinese incinerator technology in complete violation all laws and environmental clearance of 2007 including its own project design document and environment impact assessment report. Chinese technology provider is from Hangzhou New Century Company Ltd of Hangzhou Boiler Group. The critique of the report is attached.



But Union Minister for Environment & Forests, Jayanthi Natarajan stated in Rajya Sabha that although 㣯mplaints were received against the incineration of municipal waste and its likely harmful effects on the air quality and health of people in the Sukhdev Vihar/Okhla area due to the emissions from Waste-toEnergy plant at Okhla堯n four occasions out of ten, levels of Particulate matter (PM) exceeded the standard of 150 mg/Nm3䠨owever 㴨e Minister said that as per the Central pollution Control Board, the technology being used by the Waste-to-Energy plant at Okhla is as specified in the Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000.䠔his is far from truth as is evident from the CPCBⳠreport which is now in public domain.



In the report, Dr A B Akolkar, Director, CPCB emphasized that as per Municipal Solid Waste (Management & Handling) Rules ᢩodegrdable waste⠩s to be treated using biological method rather than deriving RDF or by incineration as is being done by Jindal Ecopolis. This clearly demonstrates that the Timarpur-Okhla Waste to Energy Incinerator Plant violates the Municipal Solid Waste (Management & Handling) Rules framed under Environment Protection Act, 1986.࠼/span>



In the Writ Petition (Civil) No. 9901 of 2009 in Delhi High Court, legal officials like Mr A S Chandiok Additional Solicitor General and Standing Counsel for the Delhi Government and for the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, Najmi Waziri has been misleading and misrepresenting facts about waste to energy plants in Andhra Pradesh by saying that 㴨e Refuse Derived Fuel incineration technology was already in use at Hyderabad and Vijayawada䮠The fact is that there is no plant in Hyderabad. The plant that became functional as per legal officials now stands defunct is in Shadnagar, Mahboobnagar district of Andhra Pradesh. On 18th July, 2011, Delhi High Court asked CPCB and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) to conduct a joint inquiry about India’s first waste-to-energy plant and file a report on the allegations that it posed health risks to citizens. “A joint report be submitted by the DPCC and the CPCB after an inquiry of the site of the energy plant about the alleged risks posed to citizens,” ordered a bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Delhi High Court. This has not been done so far. A bizarre situation has emerged because the arguments for ᒥfuse Derived Fuel incineration technology⠴hat was advanced by the law officers is no more relevant because the plant is using an experimental Chinese technology which was never ever mentioned at the time of submitting the project proposal.ࠠ࠼/span>



There have been incessant demonstrations and protest rallies against this project. There is an ongoing campaign against it. The plant that has been built despite protest is 150 m from the residential areas. The area has a bird sanctuary, a university and three hospitals within a radius of 10 kilometres. All will be adversely affected by toxic fumes of the plant. The idea of waste to energy plants which is based on a tried, tested and failed incineration technology in Okhla.



MCD, Delhi government and central government has shown unpardonable callousness towards hazardous emissions from municipal incinerators that cause serious environmental and health problems both to people living near them and thousands of kilometres from the source. These projects are destroying the livelihood of about 3.5 lakh waste recycling workers and valuable resource material for compost that is required to be treated by composting/anaerobic digestion/vermin composting/other biological processing for stabilization as per Municipal Solid Waste (Management & Handling) Rules.



Representatives of GTZ (German Technical Cooperation) led by Dr. Juergen Porst, Senior Advisor have stressed the need for a Disaster Management Plan in the very first meeting of the CPCBⳊTechnical Expert Committee, which is annexed to the CPCBⳠreport. But this does not find mention in the recommendations of the report. This finds reference in the minutes of the meeting annexed with the report. It underlines the possibility of disaster from the Timarpur-Okhla Waste to Energy Incinerator Plant, which is situated in a residential area. It is noteworthy that a hazardous plant in BhopalⳠresidential area that led to world worst industrial disaster in 1984 also did not have any disaster management plan.࠼br>



The Review of Technical Evaluation by Anant Trivedi, Member, Technical Evaluation Committee, CPCB reads: “The Okhla plant has a capacity of 2050 tpd of domestic waste input. However the plant design allows upto 10,000 tpd of input for incineration. Toxic bottom ash quantity produced will be 20-30% of input. This amounts to at least 410 tpd rising to a maximum of 3,000 tpd.dditionally there will be toxic flyash of about 10% of the bottom ash.None of the landfill sites have the capacity to take in so much toxic waste and mulba has been dumped every where including all public spaces.” He asks, “so what is proposed to safeguard public health from this toxic substance?



The report apprehended that the information that is submitted to the experts committee of CPCB might be used in the on-going case in the Delhi High Court. It makes a shocking revelation that although High Court has been hearing the case since 2009, the project proponent did not inform the court about gross deviations from the project design plan envisaged in the EIA report. As per the minutes of the second meeting of the technical experts committee, non-cooperative approach of the senior officials of Timarpur-Okhla Waste to Energy Incinerator Plant was condemned on August 11, 2011. Representatives of GTZ underlined that there was lack of transparency with regard to environmental and health impact on the neighborhood residents. It was also noted that the fugitive emissions and the expected emission of Dioxins and Furans has not been quantified. The characteristic of ash and required standards was not mentioned. Prof. T R Sreekrishnan, Department of Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology stated that disposal option for incineration instead of bio-methanation proposed for green waste is in violation of what was mentioned in the EIA report.



CPCB report steers clear of the fact that fiscal incentives for projects of power generation from MSW through new technologies violates Supreme CourtⳠOrder: The court has put a stay on subsidy for waste to energy projects except 5 pilot projects based on Biomethanation technology. It has come to light that none of DelhiⳠthree projects are based on biomethanation technology and are not the pilot projects approved by the court. The Timarpir-Okhla project is getting incentives from the government although the apex court has put a stay on subsidy. Although the courtⳠorder applies to DelhiⳠother waste to energy incinerator projects it is functioning with impunity.࠼/span>



A Fact Finding team visited the plant site in Andhra Pradesh of SELCO International LtdⳠRefuse Derived Fuel (RDF) incineration technology based waste to energy project at Elikatta village, Shadnagar Mandal, Mahboobnagar District, Andhra Pradesh and found it to be lying in defunct, rusting and abandoned condition where cows were seen grazing in the dilapidated factory premises. It is the same plant which was cited as a successful plant in the High Court to advocate OkhlaⳠpower plant.



Earlier, Asian Development Bank (ADB) withdrew from this Rs 200-crore power project at Okhla in south Delhi. The bank had promised about Rs 10 crore to the plant under the Asia Pacific Carbon Fund. ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA) had written to the ADB. In a reply, ADB informed: びia Pacific Carbon Fund is no longer associated with TOWMCL integrated waste-to-energy project in Delhi and no funds were released to this project䠢esides that it has also decided to stop providing technical assistance to the project.



A site visit by social and environmental researchers and activists like Leo F. Saldanha, Benny Kuruvilla, Ravindranath, Afsar Jafri, Sumesh Mangalashery and Gaurav Dwivedi who were in the national capital for a meeting on International Financial Institutions revealed the close proximity of the residential colonies to the hazardous plant which is belching out a cocktail of toxic smoke in the households. The survey team took testimonies from the residents who are suffering from the adverse impact of industrial smoke in the houses on August 12, 2012.For Details: Gopal Krishna, Convener, ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA), Mb: 9818089660, Email: krishna1715@gmail.com, Web: toxicswatch.blogspot.com Okhla Anti-incinerator Committee, http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/ghoslaokhla

STAR PLUS:LAKHON MEIN EK: DIYA AUR BAATI HUM


Filed under: Uncategorized — Leave a comment September 11, 2012RAM SNEHI: LAKHON MEIN EK!



Prostitution is termed as the biggest social evil of the society but yet it is carried out in various parts of the world on a very large scale. This Sunday STAR PLUS⠌AKHON MEIN EK would like to draw the attention of the viewers to the story of Ram Snehi who belongs from the small town of Madhya Pradesh, Morena made an impossible job of stopping this evil possible. The story belongs to a community where fathers sell their daughters under the garb of tradition and how Ram Snehi decides to eradicate this menace and saves thousands of innocent lives from the clutches of prostitution.



Popular actor Rahul Vohra who will play the role of Ram Snehi said, 㐲ostitution is prevailing in the society but not many are bold enough to try and stop it. When I came to know about this role play Ram Snehi I was happy to contribute in my own way and eradicate this meanness.䠂havna Balsavar and Rajesh Jais will also be seen sharing the screen along with Rahul Vohra. To find out how this manⳠefforts leads to freedom of thousands of girls donⴠforget to catch Lakhon Mein Ek.



Catch Ram SnehiⳠstory on LAKHON MEIN EK on Sunday, 16th September at 11 am only on star plus!



DIYA AUR BAATI HUM INSPIRES FANS!



While most of the television audience watches the show for their entertainment, there are few people who take inspiration and make it part of their life. Recently Sandhya and Sooraj from STAR Plus⠳how Diya aur Baati hum visited Delhi for the promotion for their show. While the actors were interacting with their fans, one of them came up to them and said 㔨ank you for making me realized her importance in my life and her dreams. I want my wife to live her dream and I will support her even if my family protests.伯span>



The entire team was very touched with what the man said. In fact Anas aka Sooraj also added, ㉠am so glad that our show⠨ard work is actually resulting in change in our fans lives. This is the biggest achievement not only for me but also my team and STAR Plus. I hope our efforts continue to make a positive change.伯span>



Catch Sooraj and Sandhya on Diya aur Baati hum from Monday to Friday at 9pm only on STAR Plus!







TRAUMATIZED DISHA!



Pankhuri Gupta aka Disha from STAR Plus⠐yaar Ka Dard is very much traumatized these days. While you all might think that the reason for her trauma is AdityaⳠMother Avantika but strangely thatⳠnot the case. Recently Pankhuri aka Disha had a back to back marathon of horror movies at her place with her friends being completely being unaware of the after effects. The actress got so scared after the session that she would refuses to stay any where alone on the set.



But the worst came when Nakuul aka Aditya learnt about the incident and decided to play a prank on his co-actress. The prank scared her so much that she ran out of the set screaming bhooth bhooth! When contacted Disha, she laughed and confirmed, 㙥s I was very much scared to be left alone be on the set or in my room. I would always ensure there was someone with me every time but thanks to NakuulⳠprank it actually helped me get over my fear and now I am no more traumatized.伳pan style>ࠠ࠼/span>



Comment Filed under: Uncategorized — Leave a comment September 11, 2012



PRESS RELEASE



Tuesday, September 11, 2012







Contact: Supriya Kumar, skumar@worldwatch.org, (+1) 202-452-1992, ext. 510



For more information: http://www.worldwatch.org/auto-production-roars-new-records





Auto Production Roars to New Records







New Worldwatch Institute report discusses the role of China and other emerging economies in rising global automobile production and use



Washington, D.C.—-Production of passenger vehicles (cars and light trucks) rose from 74.4 million in 2010 to 76.8 million in 2011—-and 2012 may bring an all-time high of 80 million or more vehicles, according to new research conducted by the Worldwatch Institute (www.worldwatch.org) for its Vital Signs Online service. Global sales of passenger vehicles increased from 75.4 million to 78.6 million over the same period, with a projected 81.8 million in 2012, writes report author and Worldwatch Senior Researcher Michael Renner. The major driver of increased production and sales are the so-called emerging economies, especially China.







Rising sales translate into ever-expanding fleets. An estimated 691 million passenger cars were on the world’s roads in 2011. When both light- and heavy-duty trucks are included, the number rises to 979 million vehicles, which was 30 million more than just a year earlier. By the end of 2012, the global fleet could top 1 billion vehicles—-one for every seven people on the planet.







Electric vehicle (EV) production remains at barely perceptible levels. Although several countries have issued targets for future EV fleets, it remains to be seen whether these goals can be met. China, for instance, wants to put 5 million plug-in hybrid-electric and fully electric vehicles on its roads by 2020—-which could account for more than 40 percent of the global EV fleet that year. An analysis by Deutsche Bank Climate Advisors, however, suggests that production of 1.1 million EVs and a fleet of 3.5 million in China is a more realistic projection.







“Automobiles are major contributors to air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions,” said Renner. “Greater fuel efficiency, along with the use of cleaner fuels, can help mitigate these impacts, although increases in the numbers of cars and the distances driven threaten to overwhelm fuel economy advances.”







Discussions about reducing the environmental impacts of vehicles tend to focus on technical improvements, such as engines, aerodynamic design, and fuels—-yet another concern is the distances traveled. Even though the United States has just 25 percent of the total population of the group of wealthy nations known as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in 2008 it alone accounted for just over 40 percent of the 10.3 trillion passenger-kilometers driven in all OECD member countries. Still, U.S. car travel is down slightly from its peak of 4.3 trillion passenger kilometers in 2005, to 4.1 trillion passenger kilometers in 2008.







Further highlights from the report:



•The passenger vehicle fleet in China grew at an annual average rate of 25 percent during 2000-11, from fewer than 10 million cars to 73 million cars.

•The top four producers of light vehicles—-China, the United States, Japan, and Germany—-together account for more than half of global output.

•Hybrid vehicles are growing in number, but they remain below 2 percent of total vehicle output.

•Car travel in non-OECD countries doubled between 1975 and 2000, but it then picked up pace by doubling again in just the decade to 2010.









Comment VHP asked JNU to take strongly action against Beef Party organisers

Filed under: Uncategorized — Leave a comment September 11, 2012VHP asked JNU to take strongly action against Beef Party organisers and anti social/anti-national elements



New Delhi. Sept.11, 2012. Vishwa Hindu Parishad today sent letter to the Vice Chancellor Jawahar lal Nehru University seeking immediate action against those trying to organise beef party & involved in anti-social and anti-national activities in the campus through different means. In a letter signed by the secretary general VHP Delhi shri Satyendra Mohan, VHP said that in the past few years JNU is becoming heaven for those spreading haterate amongst different segments of the society and promoting anti national elements. Sometimes they advocate separation of Kashmir from Bharat, some times they denigrate Hindu dieties and now they have dared to eat the mother of nation – Cow. A copy of the letter addressed to the VC Prof SK Sopory has also been sent to the chancellor Prof. K Kasturirangan and the president of Bharat HH shri Pranav Mukharjee for their information and strict action, said shri Vinod Bansal, media ChiefVHP Delhi. I have personally spoken to the VC over phone and appraised him about the boiling sentiments of Hindus after reading the news about beef party in JNU. We have requested VC to take immediate strong action against such elements, shri Bansal added.



Comment CPI Concern ON POLICE FIRING AND VIOLENCE NEAR KOODANKULAM

Filed under: Uncategorized — Leave a comment September 11, 2012The Communist Party of India expresses its profound concern at the turn of the situation in Koodankulam nuclear plant site. The police action including firing against the people who were agitating and against the people who were expressing solidarity led to the killing of a fisherman and death of a child. This police action should have been avoided. The party condemns, police firing and violence unleashed on the people situation is very tense in that area. CPI conveys its condolences to the members of family, who were killed in yesterday’s incidents.



The people, particularly the fisherman community, living around Koodamkulam, have been expressing their fears over their safety and livelihood. The centre and state government are duty bound to alleviate the fears of the people explaining the issues related to public safety scientifically

Srinagar welcomes it’s first ever women’s professional golf tournament

Posted on September 10, 2012 by sagarmedia

 

September 10, 2012

Srinagar, September 10 : Brave heart women’s professional golfers are all set to debut at the Royal Srinagar Golf Course for the fourth leg of the Hero Women’s Professional Golf Tour 2012-13. The three-day tournament will be played at the picturesque course located at the foothills of the Zabarwan Mountains in the valley state of J&K from the 11^th-13^th of September 2012.

Rookie Vani Kapoor who currently leads the Order of Merit has her eyes set on a consecutive winners cheque, after showcasing excellent form in the just concluded third leg at the Prestigeshire Golf Club, Bangalore. Others to watch out for would be Delhi Golfers Smriti Mehra and Nalini Singh Siwach, while Kolkata Golfer Neha Tripathi will look forward to seal her maiden victory in the 2012-13 season of the Hero women’s Professional Golf Tour.
To get more info on Hero Women’s Professional Golf Tour please visit us on our websitewww.wgai.co.in and join us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter or contact Abhoy Chattopadhyay / Deependra Chetri on +91 98113 25251 / +91 98111 82106.

RELEASE THE ARRESTED CARTOONIST

The Central Secretariat of the Communist Party of India (CPI) condemns the arrest of award winning young political cartoonist Aseem Trivedi in Mumbai. He was held on charges of sedition, cyber crime and of insulting the national flag, Parliament and the Constitution of India through his cartoons. His sin is that he sketched cartoons against corruption. Exposing corruption is sedition in the eyes of the law in our country. It is a shame.

          The CPI condemns the unjustifiable wrongful arrest and demands his immediate release. The party also demands exemplary action against these who masterminded his arrest.

Analysis of Donations received by Political Parties in India

Analysis of Donations received by Political Parties in India



· Section 29-C of the Representation of People Act 1951 says that it is mandatory for political parties to submit details of contributions/donations received in excess Rs. 20,000 every year to the Election Commission of India (ECI).



· Any political party which fails to submit the donation reports every year is not entitled to any tax relief under the provisions of Income Tax Act and Companies’ Act.



· Political Parties are not eligible to accept any contributions from any foreign source.



· ADR had filed RTIs to the ECI as well as Income Tax authorities across the country to obtain the contribution reports filed by the 6 national parties and 36 regional parties for FY 2003-2004 till FY 2010-2011.



· The analysis and the report have been prepared on the basis of the records thus collected till 10th July, 2012.



Highlights of this report



Analysis of Donations and Income



· The top 5 political parties with the highest total income between FY 2004-05 and FY 2010-11 (last 7 years) are: INC: Rs 2008 Cr followed by BJP: Rs 994 Cr, BSP: Rs 484 Cr, CPM: Rs 417 Cr and SP: Rs 279 Cr.



· Donations and Voluntary Contributions seem to be one of the major sources of income for most of the political parties.



· However, donations from named contributors (i.e. contributors who made donations above Rs 20,000 which is to be mandatorily declared) form a very small percentage of total Income of political parties. Of the National Parties for FY 2009-2010 and FY 2010-2011, BJP’s donations from named donors amount to 22.76% of the total income. INC has shown a mere 11.89% of their income from contributions, followed by NCP with 4.64% and CPM, 1.29%



· Bahujan Samaj Party has declared that it has not received any donations above Rs 20,000 in FY 2009-2010 and FY 2010-2011 even though its total income for the two years is Rs 172.67 Cr.



· CPI has shown 57.02% of total Income from donations above Rs 20,000



· Out of the Regional Parties analyzed for FY 2009-2010 and 2010-2011, Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) has 99.98% of its income coming from donations followed by Janata Dal (United) with 95.96% and Lok Janshakti Party with 89.88%.



· Rashtriya Janata Dal (56.13%) and Telugu Desham Party (37%) derive maximum income from donations above Rs 20,000.



· BJP had the maximum number of donors donating above Rs 20000 for FY 2009-2010 (279) and FY 2010-2011 (502) while for INC it was 226 in 2009-2010 and 417 in 2010-2011.















Donations from Electoral Trusts



· Several Electoral Trusts are now making contributions to Poitical Parties. They include trusts like the General Electoral Trust, the Public and Political Awareness Trust, Bharti Electoral Trust, Electoral Trust, Harmony Electoral Trust, Satya Electoral Trust, Chowgule Charitable Trust and the Corporate Electoral Trust



· The trust which has made the maximum contributions to the political parties is the General Electoral Trust with contributions of Rs 36.46 Cr to INC between FY 2003-04 and 2010-11 and Rs 26.07 Cr to the BJP during the same time.



· Bharti Electoral Trust has made a contribution of Rs 11.00 Cr to INC during FY 2008-09 and Rs 6.10 Cr to BJP during the same period.



· This is followed by The Public and Political awareness Trust making an overall contribution of Rs 9.5 Crores to BJP during the FYs 2003-04 and 2004-05.



· The trust, Electoral trust made contributions amounting to Rs 9.96 Cr to INC in FY 2004-05 & FY 2009-10, Rs 6.82 Cr to BJP in FY 2004-05 & 2009-10, Rs 0.30 Cr to JD(U) in 2009-10, Rs 1.58 Cr to SP in FY 2004-05 & 2009-10.



· Harmony Electoral Trust made a contribution of Rs 2.00 Cr to INC and Rs 1.50 Cr to BJP during the FY 2009-10 while Satya Electoral Trust had made donations amounting to Rs 2.00 Cr to INC and Rs 1.00 Cr to NCP during the FY 2009-10.







Donations from Corporates/Companies



· Similar to the Electoral Trusts, several companies/corporates have donated to the Political Parties between the FYs 2003-04 and 2010-11 a few of which are Torrent Power Ltd, Asianet TV Holding Pvt.Ltd., Sterlite Industries, ITC Ltd, Videocon Industries Ltd, Larsen & Tubro Ltd, Infrastructure Development & Consultant (I) (P) Ltd, Russel Credit Ltd



· The top ten companies which made the maximum contributions are the Torrent Power Ltd donating Rs 14.15 Cr to INC during the FYs 2003-04, 2007-08, 2009-10 and 2010-11 and Rs 13.00 Cr to BJP during the FYs 2007-08 to 2010-11.



· Asianet V Holding Pvt. Ltd donating Rs 10.00 Cr to BJP during the FY 2009-10 and Rs 2.50 Cr to INC during the FY 2009-10.



· Sterlite Industries, a subsidiary of the Vedanta Group, donated Rs 6.00 Cr to INC during FY 2004-05 and FY 2009-10 while The Madras Aluminium Co Ltd, also a subsidiary of the Vedanta Group had contributed Rs 3.50 Cr to BJP.



· Southern Engineering Works (SEW) Constructions, SEW Infrastructure and Videocon Industries are other major donors who contributed to INC, BJP, CPI and NCP.ITC is also a major donor making contributions to SP (Rs 78 lacs), AIADMK (Rs 55 Lacs) and to RJD (Rs 33 lacs) between FY 2003-04 and FY 2010-11



Status of filing of Contribution reports by political parties to Election Commission



· ADR had filed RTI to the ECI to obtain the contribution reports filed by the 6 national parties and 36 recognized regional/state parties for FY 2004-2005 till FY 2010-2011.



· As per the records maintained with the ECI and the response received from the CPIO/Appellate Authority, five national parties (INC, BJP, BSP, CPI and CPM) have filed their contribution reports from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011. NCP is the only national party who has not submitted its contribution reports from FY 2004-2005 till FY 2006-2007. However, it has submitted its contribution reports from FY 2007-2008 till 2010-2011.



· As per ECI records, only 5 regional/state parties have regularly filed their contribution reports from FY 2004-2005 till FY 2010-2011. These are Samajwadi Party, AIADMK, Janata Dal (United), Shiv Sena and Telugu Desham Party.



· 18 regional/state parties have never filed their contribution reports to the Election Commission from FY 2004-2005 till FY 2010-2011. Many of these defaulting political parties who have never filed their contribution reports for the mentioned time period are ruling parties/major opposition parties in their respective states. These are:



Party

State



J&K National Conference

Jammu & Kashmir



J&K Peoples Democratic Party

Jammu & Kashmir



All India Trinamool Congress

West Bengal



Indian National Lok Dal

Haryana



Asom Gana Parishad

Assam



Bodoland Peoples Front

Assam



Manipur State Congress Party

Manipur



Maharashtrawadi Gomantak

Goa



Save Goa Front

Goa



Jharkhand Mukti Morcha

Jharkhand



Jharkhand Vikas Morcha

Jharkhand



Kerala Congress

Kerala



Muslim League Kerala State Committee

Kerala



United Democratic Party

Meghalaya



Mizo National Front

Mizoram



Mizoram Peoples Conference

Mizoram



Zoram Nationalist Party

Mizoram



Nagaland Peoples Front

Nagaland









· In addition to the above, many of the major regional/state parties have not filed their contribution reports for all the years with the ECI. These are Shiromani Akali Dal, DMK, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Lok Janshakti Party and Janata Dal Secular who filed only from FY 2008-2009 till 2010-2011 while some have filed only once across the seven year period considered. These are Biju Janata Dal (2010-2011), Telangana Rashtra Samiti (2010-2011) and Sikkim Democratic Front (2009-2010).



Laws relating to donations to Political Parties



Section 29C of the Representation of People Act, 1951 states that Political Parties are required to submit contribution details received in excess of Rs 20,000 from any individual or a company. This section has been interpreted by Political Parties as to include every single donation made only above Rs 20,000 by any person at one time. However, as per the provisions of this section, it must also include in it, multiple donations made by the same person, entity or company aggregating to Rs 20,000 or above during the said financial year.



In addition to this, the coupon system adopted by Political Parties makes it difficult to establish the identity of the donor since coupons are issued in lieu of receipts and transactions are made in cash. This implies that a lot of cash donations received remain unaccounted for in the books of accounts since only those amounts for which a receipt has been issued would be accounted for. These donation coupons are ostensibly below Rs 20,000 though these may aggregate to be more than Rs 20,000.



Thus, it is vital to have a strict regulatory mechanism wherein political parties have to report the correct quantum and source of donations received