BCCI announces 30 probables for ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 team

THE BOARD of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) today announced a 30-man preliminary squad for the biggest cricketing event, ICC World Cup Cricket 2011. The Cricket World Cup is going to start from February 19 at Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium in Dhaka and it is being jointly organised by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The mega final of the 2011 World Cup cricket  tournament will be played at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on April 2.
BCCI selection committee members headed by chief selector Kris Srikkanth and other members picked a 30-man preliminary squad today. According to ICC rules, all the participating nations will have to announce probable list before Sunday December 19 and the final squad of 15 players will have to be announced by the 19th of next month.
The 30-man preliminary squad includes MS Dhoni, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Sreesanth, Munaf Patel, Ishant Sharma, Vinay Kumar, Murali Vijay, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Ajinkya Rahane, Saurabh Tiwary, Yusuf Pathan, Parthiv Patel , R Ashwin, Wriddhiman Saha, Dinesh Karthik, Shikhar Dhawan, Amit Mishra, Piyush Chawla, Cheteshwar Pujara, Pragyan Ojha, Praveen Kumar.
In the 43 days long event, fourteen countries including India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand, South Africa, West Indies, England, Zimbabwe, Netherlands, Ireland, Kenya and Canada, will play a total of 49 matches including semi- finals and final matches.

Samsung to showcase Galaxy Player at CES in January

SOUTH KOREA based electronic giant Samsung Electronics Co. has announced to launch a new Android-based Galaxy Player that will be showcased in January' 2011 at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Samsung's Galaxy Player, will be based on Galaxy S smartphone, without its mobile phone capabilities.
Samsung Galaxy Player will run Google's Android OS 2.2 Froyo, available in 8GB, 16GB or 32GB flash drives. It features also include SoundAlive audio enhancement technology, HD video playback, microSD card slot, a 1200mAh battery, Android Market and Samsung Apps access.
Samsung Galaxy Player will be 9. 9mm thick, weighs 121 grams with a 4-inch touch-screen LCD screen with WVGA resolution, a 3.2 megapixal rear camera with front facing camera for video calling. The device will also have Bluetooth 3.0 and built-in Wi-Fi, 1GHz Samsung Hummingbird processor, GPS.
The new product from Samsung, Galaxy Player will compete with Apple's iPod Touch. Korean based electronic giant has sold its 7-inch Galaxy Tab more than 1 million units worldwide within two months of first release. According to the reports, Samsung Galaxy will roll out in the market from April next year.
According to Samsung Hub, Samsung is also expected to show during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in January 2011 other Android PMPs like YP-G50 and hopefully the recently certified YP-GB70.

Read More on>>  Technology News, Technology News Articles

New Year messages sms and New Year greetings

THE NEW Year is around. When the clock strikes twelve on December 31, people all over the world cheer and wish each other a 'Happy New Year!'.
As the tradition goes, for most people the New Year symbolises the fresh beginning and a resolve for a better future.
According to G K Chesterton, the object of a new year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul.
Thus, the New Year celebration is all about optimism and an occasion to look forward to good times ahead and spread happiness. Much of all this is expressed through New Year wishes and messages.

Here are some new year messages and wished to exchange.

• May the dawning of this New Year fill you with new zest and zeal. Wishing you a very...very... very prosperous 2011!

• Have a joyous and wonderful 2011! Wishing you and you family happy and glorious New Year!

• May your life be fragrant with new opportunities and new hopes because it is New Year. Happy 2011!

• May happy times and warm memories brighten your new year. Have a great year. Happy New Year!

• May the year 2011 brings for you happiness, success and hope. Wishing you a Happy New Year!

• I wish in 2011, every moment is enjoyed. May God bless you through out the New Year. Happy New Year!

• May this New Year bring newly found prosperity, love, happiness and delight in your life. Wishing you a truly fulfilling 2011!

• May the New Year fill your heart with new hopes and brighter tomorrows. May you have a great New Year!

Related Topics >> New Year Eve , New Year Deals

Top New Year health resolutions of 2011

THE NEW Year is close and it’s that time of the year to make new year resolutions – the top resolutions of 2011 are learning to ride a bike and losing those extra pounds – say experts.
“Maybe it was the shock of seeing oneself in recent holiday photos, or not being able to fit into desired party attire that causes a vow to lose weight, and for many more it is a medical event such as a heart attack, the threat of diabetes or high blood pressure,” said Dr. Jessica Bartfield at the Loyola University Health System.
“Behaviour change is the cornerstone of healthy, successful weight loss and it takes about three months to establish a new behaviour. At Gottlieb, a team of tried-and-true medical experts can teach you the skills you need to achieve and maintain behaviour change,” she added.
Top weight-loss behaviours from Bartfield and the NWCR:
• Eat breakfast – “Eating within one hour of awakening can boost your metabolism up to 20 percent for the rest of the day,” Bartfield said.
• Weigh yourself once per week - “Monitoring your weight on a weekly basis provides a fairly accurate weight trend and, more importantly, an early detection of any weight regain, which allows you to adjust behaviors accordingly,” Bartfield said.
• Get in one hour of moderate physical activity each day - “Snow shoveling, vacuuming, taking the stairs – you don’t have to run like a hamster on a wheel for 60 minutes. Take three, 20-minute brisk walks, or compile the one hour based on a series of activities,” Bartfield said.
• Watch less than 10 hours of TV per week - “Many argue they don’t have time to exercise, but when I ask them to count the hours they spend watching TV or surfing the Net, they are able to find the time for activities where they are moving instead of sitting,” Bartfield said.
What not to do - Barriers that prevent people from losing weight
• Overestimate amount of physical activity -“Park your car farther away, take the stairs, manually change TV channels – these are all simple ways to get more physical activity and you need to write them down as they are performed to keep yourself honest,” Bartfield said.
• Underestimate caloric intake – Keeping a food journal helps you document the calories you take in.
• Set unrealistic goals - “Patients often set vague and outcome-related goals such as “weigh 150 pounds by summer” or “exercise more.”
Set specific and attainable goals. Instead of trying to get to a certain weight, start by trying to lose 10 percent of your weight – that amount has been shown to have a statistically significant improvement in health and reduction in risk of obesity-related disease.
• Lack of consistency - “Eat at regular intervals seven days per week,” she said.
• Failure to plan for setbacks – “Enlist a trusted friend, or enroll in a program to learn and master the rules of weight loss,” Bartfield said.

Related Topics >> New Year Eve , New Year Deals

2011 New Year Parties in Delhi with fine dining, dancing

ON DECEMBER 31^st, Delhiites will witness the biggest ever new year bash which is all set to enthrall audiences from far and near. In order to usher in the new decade, many clubs, lounges and discs are offering an opportunity to party all night long at unbeatable prices. Here is a list of places where one can keep all his troubles in the backseat and hop on to a journey which can be very well reminisced for the rest of his life.

BluO:- Starting from December 29, BluO will usher in the new year in advance with the presence of rock band Nasha who have got quite an enviable resume. The band who has earlier performed with the likes of Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy, Aamir Khan and Mohit Chauhan apart from Sufi guru, Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan will strum their guitars and vocal chords on an entirely different level and create a psychedelic environment in Gurgaon ALL DAY LONG!

Elevate:- Rightly accredited as one of the best clubs in Delhi, Elevate will play host to “Quantum” with its NYE Celebrations along with DJ Juggy D and DJ Vishnu on December 31^st.

BluO:- After its day long carnival on 29^th, BluO will welcome the New Year in style along with world renowned DJ Bally Sagoo.

Taj Palace Hotel:- Located in the heart of Delhi, Taj Palace will play host to Punjabi singing sensation, Sukhbir as he lends his voice to songs ranging from rap, techno and reggae.

More ON >> New Year Parties in Delhi

Related Topics >> New Year Eve , New Year Deals

Is the tradition of New Year resolutions an absurdity?

A RESOLUTION is a mental commitment that an individual makes for reforming a habit or lifestyle or relationship by learning lessons from the past experiences.
And, New Year resolutions are the change-affecting commitments made by an individual that normally go into effect on New Year's Day. For this one is to reflect upon self-improvement annually and resolve to accomplish the improvement.
While stressing the need of resolution, Eric Zorn said, "Making resolutions is a cleansing ritual of self assessment and repentance that demands personal honesty and, ultimately, reinforces humility. Breaking them is part of the cycle."

On the other hand, there are critics of the New Year resolutions too. As Mark Twain has aptly remarked, "New Year is a harmless annual institution, of no particular use to anybody save as a scapegoat for promiscuous drunks, and friendly calls and humbug resolutions."
But the absurdities of the New Year resolutions can’t escape the mind of the wise. Here are some funny quotes describing the New Year resolutions as a foolery of mind:

• Oscar Wilde: Good resolutions are simply cheques that men draw on a bank where they have no account.
• Joey Adams: May all your troubles last as long as your New Year's resolutions!
• Jay Leno: Now there are more overweight people in America than average-weight people. So overweight people are now average…which means, you have met your New Year's resolution.
• James Agate: New Year's Resolution: To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time.
• Anonymous: Many people look forward to the New Year for a new start on old habits.
• Anais Nin: I made no resolutions for the New Year. The habit of making plans, of criticising, sanctioning and molding my life, is too much of a daily event for me.

A few research studies inform that only about 12 per cent actually achieved their goals through the resolutions made on the eve of New Year. Anyway, about 10 per cent people of any group achieve their whether they resolve or do not. 

Related Topics >> New Year Eve , New Year Deals

New Year Eve: Better reflect and get perfect

THOUGH REFLECTING on our experiences in 2010 on the eve of New Year 2011 may prove discomforting, but it is not a bad idea at all.

Read the following and perhaps you may feel motivated to reflect on the past year and plan consciously for the New Year.

An autobiography of New Year titled "I Am the New Year" in a Bible Illustrator goes as follows.

"I am the new year. I am an unspoiled page in your book of time. I am your. I am your opportunity to practice what you have learned about life during the last twelve months. All that you sought and didn’t find is hidden in me, waiting for you to search it but with more determination. All the good that you tried for and didn’t achieve is mine to grant when you have fewer conflicting desires. All that you dreamed but didn’t dare to do, all that you hoped but did not will, all the faith that you claimed but did not have—these slumber lightly, waiting to be awakened by the touch of a strong purpose. I am your opportunity to renew your allegiance to Him who said, 'Behold, I make all things new.''

Here is my acrostic verse on the significance of reflection on the eve of New Year.

N: Next chance at improving oneself
E: Efforts be made consciously to achieve the purpose of life
W: Wealth of time be planned and used adequately
Y: Yesteryear is lost for ever but the new can planned in advance
E: Every moment should count in future
A: All the good that you tried for earlier, continue that and have fewer conflicting desires
R: Reflect on the past year and yourself to find what needs to be done in the New Year

Likewise, Steven B. Cloud, in his write-up titled "A Year of Time" says the following.

"As we look into 2011 we look at a block of time. We see 12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days, 8,760 hours, 525,600 minutes, 31,536,000 seconds. And all is a gift from God. We have done nothing to deserve it, earn it, or purchased it. Like the air we breathe, time comes to us as a part of life. The gift of time is not ours alone. It is given equally to each person. Rich and poor, educated and ignorant, strong and weak—every man, woman and child has the same twenty-four hours every day. Another important thing about time is that you cannot stop it. There is no way to slow it down, turn it off, or adjust it. Time marches on. And you cannot bring back time. Once it is gone, it is gone. Yesterday is lost forever. If yesterday is lost, tomorrow is uncertain. We may look ahead at a full year’s block of time, but we really have no guarantee that we will experience any of it.

Obviously, time is one of our most precious possessions. We can waste it. We can worry over it. We can spend it on ourselves. Or, as good stewards, we can invest it in the kingdom of God. The New Year is full of time. As the seconds tick away, will you be tossing time out the window, or will you make every minute count?"

So, on the eve of New Year, reflect, plan and move ahead. Wish you all a Happy New Year!

Related Topics >> New Year Eve , New Year Deals

Happy New Year 2011 wishes and messages

THE ENTIRE world gears up and puts on its dancing shoes to welcome the new year 2011. People across the globe celebrate the world's biggest celebration to make life more beautiful, peaceful and meaningful.

People across the globe have kicked off exchanging greetings and wishing their relatives, friends and colleagues to start all things with a new beginning and the completion of all desires which were left unfulfilled last year on the occasion of Happy New Year 2011.
Some of the popular Happy New Year messages are here:
Oh my Dear, Forget ur Fear,
Let all ur Dreams be Clear,
Never put Tear, Please Hear,
I want to tell one thing in ur Ear
Wishing u a very "HAPPY NEW YEAR"!

More On >> New Year 2011 Wishes

Related Topics >> New Year Eve , New Year Deals

India launches its first aerostat radar

DURING THE Commonwealth Games 2010, an aerostat (helium balloon) stole the show. Now, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has launched first aerostat radar and scientists have successfully tested the surveillance probe-on-balloon in Agra.

The indigenous aerostat is a giant helium-filled balloon tethered to the ground with long cables, carrying electro-optic and COMINT (communication intelligence) payloads and has night vision cameras and sound recorders, weighs around 300 kg.

The medium-sized 32-foot-long aerostat with a capacity of 2,000 cubic metres was under development for the past four years. DRDO has spent around Rs 70 crore on research and development of the device. It can survey areas up to 20 km away and with advanced cameras; its range can go beyond 100 kms.

Aerial Delivery Research Development Establishment designed and fabricated it at high-tech platform. The aerostat will be used for communication and surveillance. The platform integrates high-end technology, aerodynamics, balloon techniques, hydraulics and high-pressure cylinder technology.

The Indian army and Air Force till now relied on Israeli aerostats’ manufacturer Elta for the radars that are deployed along the country's western borders but it had not been performing well. In addition, the Indian version would be a cheaper option. The aerostat can carry out steering, scanning and tracking with high precision. The payload also contains a thermal-imaging camera for surveillance during night and in low visibility conditions.

The radars on aerostats can be operated in a 360-degree search mode and can stay afloat round-the-clock for four to five weeks at one go. On 25th December 2010, the scientists at Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment in Agra carried out surveillance all over Agra and intercepted a variety of communications by flying the aerostat up to an altitude of one km. The complete balloon system, ground-based command and control systems and the payloads were integrated for the three-day trial that culminated on 28th December successfully.

The electronic intelligence payload carries a communication intelligence system for capturing and analysing all types of communication in air.

It will help in surveillance along the Pakistan and China border; the forces are in the need of aerostats to plug the gaping security holes along India’s 7,500 km coastline, which is increasingly becoming vital from a strategic perspective. Trials had been completed and the aerostat is ready for induction.

Read More on>>>> Technology News, Technology News Articles

Blizzard delays $1 billion in U.S. holiday sales

A BLIZZARD in the Northeast this weekend postponed about $1 billion in holiday retail sales by keeping shoppers out of stores in the days after Christmas, research firm ShopperTrak said on Wednesday.

The snowstorm shut roads and canceled flights in New York City and created havoc across the Northeast, where shopper traffic was 11.2 percent below ShopperTrak's expectations for Sunday December 26 and off 13.9 percent on Monday December 27.

The firm said sales for the entire November and December holiday period are on track to be up 4 percent, helped by strong sales in November and December 23, a particularly heavy day for shopping before Christmas.

It expects consumers who stayed home because of the snowstorm will venture out and shop more in the coming days.

"While we do think there will be some retail strength later this week and into the weekend as folks begin to dig out, it will be interesting to see if levels recover in time to boost December sales and the overall holiday shopping season," ShopperTrak co-founder Bill Martin said in a statement.

Other analysts agreed that the blizzard, which dropped 20 inches of snow on Central Park in New York City and more in suburban areas, should only put a small dent into holiday season.

International Council of Shopping Centers chief economist Michael Niemira told Reuters the snowstorm could lower the December sales growth rate by 0.5 percentage point, though some purchases may show up in January.

Scott Bernhardt, the chief operating officer of Planalytics, put the hit at 0.25 percentage point, saying that people will eventually go to malls to redeem gift cards and exchange gifts, which they normally do on December 26 and the following days.

While the gift cards themselves don't generate new sales, customers often end up buying more items when they redeem gift cards or exchange gifts they didn't like.

Shares tracked by the Standard & Poor's Retail Index rose 0.4 percent on Wednesday, slightly better than a 0.3 percent increase for the wider stock market. The retail index is trading close to a 3-1/2 year high reached earlier in December on hopes a strong holiday season will add momentum to consumer spending into 2011 and propel an economic recovery.

Most analysts and research firms are expecting holiday retail sales to improve from 2009's sales.

The National Retail Federation sees holiday sales up 3.3 percent, compared with a 0.4 percent increase last year and a 3.9 percent fall in 2008 due to the financial crisis.

Online sales were up 13 percent to a record $30.8 billion for the November 1 to December 26 holiday period, data company comScore said later on Wednesday.

SALES OFF BEFORE BLIZZARD

U.S. retail sales fell 4. 1 percent in the week ending on Christmas Day, according to ShopperTrak, largely because December 26 fell on a Sunday this year and was not included in the week's sales.

December 26 was the third biggest shopping day a year ago. The day could be as low as 10th in sales this year, ShopperTrak said.

ShopperTrak said that the start of inclement weather in the Midwest, Northeast and South regions likely lowered spending for the week too.

ShopperTrak noted that December 23 was the season's biggest shopping day after Black Friday, the day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday in November and the unofficial beginning of the holiday spending rush.

Americans spent $7.86 billion on December 23, while Black Friday accounted for $10.69 billion in sales, ShopperTrak said.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to draft changes in direct tax laws

Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee is likely to introduce in the upcoming Budget some major changes in direct tax laws with huge tax arrears of about Rs 2,50,000 crore that could help in recovery of a significant portion of the arrears.Untill March 31, 2010 the total arrears were Rs 2,30,000 crore, and in the new fiscal year another Rs 20,000 crore has been added to this figure.The tax arrears have  almost doubled in the last 2 years to Rs 2.50 lakh crore, almost 66% of the total direct taxes collection of 2009-10.

The matter was discussed by finance minister in a pre Budget review meeting with officials of the Central Board of Direct Taxes last week.CBDT is working on the details to be incorporated in the Budget.

Proposed changes could include reducing the limits to approach Income Tax Settlement Commission.Other changes could include measures to improve settlement mechanism functioning of the direct tax laws,bringing all types of cases under the ITSC and giving a security of tenure to the members of the commission.Pranab Mukherjee acknowledged the role of the settlement commission in reducing litigation with taxpayers and its potential for reducing tax arrears.

To speed up  recovery process, IT department has circulated details of at least 550 high worth individuals and entities , who have willfully defaulted or have unpaid tax of Rs 25 crore and above.

Related News on >> Business News in India , Business News India

Mahindra and Mahindra to launch new pick-up truck

Mahindra & Mahindra  to launch a new pick up truck of above 1.2 tonne capacity in 2011, and is planning to increase prices in January With margins under pressure due to rising costs of raw materials.

 

One of the India’s largest vehicle maker Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd to launch a new pick - up truck in the first half of 2011.

Mahindra & Mahindra , Arun Malhotra , senior vice-president of sales and customer care said “We are working on a lot of models. There will be a pick up on a completely new platform. It will be  near the top end of our commercial vehicle pickup range, with a payload capability of over 1 tonne.” Mahindra currently has five pickups in its commercial vehicles division starting with the Gio, Maxximo, and three wheelers Alfa and Champion models, and Maxx.

Sales of Mahindra & Mahindra utility vehicles increased to 56,639 units in the September quarter from 55,280 a year earlier, boosting the  sales by 15% to Rs5,311 crore.

Company is also planning to revise prices across all the segments including heavy commercial vehicles of all its models in January. The prices of rubber and steel components have rose up, this has forced company do a price revision, said company official.

Earlier  Hyundai Motors and General Motors have decided to increase prices across models upto 2.5%. The country’s largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki , had said  that it will hike prices of its vehicles soon to offset rising material costs .

Rising prices of consumer goods and services

PRICES IN India have continued to rise, especially of consumer goods and services. Prices of consumers’ goods are likely to rise further over the next six months, according to the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM).

Over 80 percent of the business leaders, who participated in the survey, expected higher prices especially of consumer durables, consumer non-durables, intermediate goods, capital goods and services and infrastructure.

It is said that while private sectors firms remained upbeat about the price rise of their products, the public sector firms were not so optimistic about the same in near future. It is also expected that the various strategies will not help to check inflationary pressure during the first half of the present fiscal (20010-11).

The reasons for this rise are core and non-core factors. The basic core factor to push the prices to high level is petrol and diesel. The only way to control these prices, in the short period, is by lowering down the liquidity, which can be done by increasing the interest rates. But once the interest rate become higher, the liquidity comes down, and people buy less.

Lesser is the demand, lower become the prices. This is one side of the story. Lower demand also has an effect on employment, and thus on growth prospects. In fact, it is a dilemma in the sense that higher interest rates affect both demand and supply, and, therefore, the Government has to find an optimal mix of demand and supply situations in the country.

2010 Roundup: Top Initial Public Offerings (IPO's) in this year

THIS DECADE saw the rise and fall of many investment opportunities in the Indian financial sector. The dramatic rise of the Sensex from the 5,000 to 20,000 mark brought India in the league of extraordinary investment options. It was a decade which saw more than 400 companies raising over Rs 2 lakh crore through the IPO route.
The IPO offering also raised an astounding amount of Rs 69,192 crore which is three and a half times higher against 2009's Rs.19,567 crore and 53 per cent even higher than 2007's Rs.45,142 crore.
However, year 2011 also has a a lot of expectations pinned upon it as industry estimates claim that over Rs. 90,000 crore can be raised from over 100 public offerings which also includes government divestments, IPO's and follow-on offers from the private sector companies. Given below is the list of IPO's who have made a considerable impact in the Indian financial sector.
Coal India:- Coal India's IPO was undoubtedly the largest IPO which single handedly accounted for 22 per cent of the year's total mobilisation. Although a disinvestment from the government, the Ipo managed to raise Rs.15,199 crore.
NMDC:- The NMDC IPO was also seen as the next big disinvestment from the government. Although it did later on issue an FPO (Follow-on Public Offer) to meet its disinvestment target, retail investors have not shown any keen interest of late. The NMDC IPO managed to raise Rs 9,930 crore through its IPO.
NTPC:- The largest power generating company in India raised Rs 8,480 crore. Another disinvestment option, it did not issue fresh lot of shares but instead sold the existing shares of the promoters. The money generated from the offering was forwarded to the government's treasury and not the company.
Power Grid:- The Power Grid IPO raised Rs.7,442 crore through the 84.2 crore shares it sold. Out of the shares, 50 per cent shares were freshly issued shares while the remaining 50 per cent was disinvested by the government.
Rural Electrification Corporation (REC):- The REC IPO issued 15.6 crore equity shares with a price tag of Rs. 90 to Rs. 105. The IPO which went on sale in 2008 had 39 lakh equity shares reserved for its employees had raised Rs. 3,530 crore.
Jaypee Infratech:- Japyee Infratech's IPO was the largest private sector issue which raised Rs.2,262 crore. Part of the Jaypee group, the company purpose was to develop, operate and maintain the Yamuna Expressway in Uttar Pradesh that connects Noida and Agra.

Citibank caught in Rs 400 crore fraud orcshestrated by manager

A RELATIONSHIP manager from Citibank's Gurgaon branch was accused of engineering a fraud worth Rs 400 crore. The accused Shiv Raj Puri from the DLF-II branch has now aroused fear amongst officials about his possible escape from the country for which the police have already issued Look Out Circular (LOC) notice against him and has also alerted the ministry of home affairs and ministry of civil aviation.

A police official, who was also involved in the look out notice told media persons that the details, along with the photograph of Puri, have been sent to all airports across the country with help of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security. In case he tries to flee the country, he will be apprehended at the airports.

As per the police reports, Puri had been employed with Citibank for over 10 years and was a permanent employee, who used to deal with account holders. In order to swindle money from the bank, Puri had opened three accounts by the names of his relatives and made other customers deposit money into those accounts by using fake Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) documents which promised higher rate of returns. The police, however, is also looking into the role played by his relatives and other employees of the bank.

The investigating officer further added that the details are lying with the bank and police has initiated the process to look for them. Also, the statement of those, who have invested the money is important and a team has been set up to get information.

Lady Gaga's ''The Fame Monster'' biggest selling album of 2010

LADY GAGA'S ''The Fame Monster'' has been named the biggest selling album of 2010. According to the United World Chart, compiled by website mediatraffic dot de, the ''Telephone'' singer's record a repackaged version of her earlier disc, ''The Fame'', with an additional eight tracks, sold 5.8 million copies across the globe, reports Contactmusic.
When she heard the news, Gaga tweeted, writing: "The Fame Monster' was named the best-selling album of 2010! I'm so excited for the future, believe plus work hard, you will achieve your dreams (sic)."
Eminem, who's ''Recovery'' sold 5.7 million copies, came second while Canadian teen singing sensation Justin Bieber landed the third spot with 5.6 million sales of his ''My World'' albums. United World Chart top 20, as complied by mediatraffic.de:
1. Lady Gaga - The Fame (Monster) - 5.8 million copies
2. Eminem - Recovery - 5.7 million copies
3. Justin Bieber - My Worlds - 5.6 million copies
4. Lady Antebellum - Need You Now - 3.6 million copies
5. Taylor Swift - Speak Now - 3.5 million copies
6. Susan Boyle - The Gift - 3.0 million copies
7. Black Eyed Peas - The E.N.D. - 3.0 million copies
8. Michael Buble - Crazy Love - 3.0 million copies
9. Sade - Soldier Of Love - 2.3 million copies
10. Alicia Keys - The Element Of Freedom - 2.3 million copies
11. Katy Perry - Teenage Dream - 2.2 million copies
12. Take That - Progress - 2.2 million copies
13. Susan Boyle - I Dreamed A Dream - 2.1 million copies
14. Ke$ha - Animal - 2.1 million copies
15. Rihanna - Loud - 2.0 million copies
16. Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More - 1.8 million copies
17. Kings Of Leon - Come Around Sundown - 1.7 million copies
18. Bon Jovi - Greatest Hits - 1.7 million copies
19. Usher - Raymond V Raymond - 1.7 million copies
20. Linkin Park - A Thousand Suns - 1.7 million copies

Banking on the potential of wind energy

TODAY, WE live in an environment full of machines and gadgets, but at the same time all these developments have led to deterioration of our environment. Humans owe a lot to the world and it is their duty and responsibility to save the earth in whatever way feasible- and we are at a stage where if we do not prioritise our duties towards our planet earth- then the situation will definitely go out of hands.

Amid growing concern for the environmental degradation, the policy makers across the world have been forced to think about option of renewable energy resources to meet the demands. In such a case, wind is commercially and operationally the most viable renewable energy resource, and accordingly, has emerged as one of the largest source in terms of the renewable energy sector in the recent times.

According to latest data, wind power is growing at the rate of 30% annually, and is widely used in Europe, Asia, and the United States. Apart from being environment friendly, it also the cheapest source of electrical energy.

From an Indian perspective, the trend in the recent times has been encouraging and a major transformation has been witnessed in renewable energy sector, especially wind power. Not only is wind energy seen as a cheap and safe mode of generating power, but at the same time, it enables to ring in a higher growth trajectory. Today, in India, a number of large companies, including some foreign ones, are putting up wind farms in the country with Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra emerging as the preferred location.

Right since its inception in 1990s, the government adopted a market-oriented strategy which has led to the successful commercial development of the technology. Today India is a major player in wind power, and stands fifth with regards to total installed capacity behind USA, China, Germany and Spain.

The Indian wind energy sector has a potential of around 48500 MW at 50 m above ground level, and as of March 31, 2010, the installed capacity of the wind sector in the country has been around 11807.00 MW. So far, wind farms have been installed in 11 states wherein more than 95% of installed capacity belongs to Private Sector in seven states.

The Central Ministry and several State Nodal Agencies have stood up to the task to encourage growth of Wind Energy Sector through financial incentives and policy support, and quite evidently India has emerged as a major player in the global wind energy market. However, a lot still needs to be done, as the potential is far from exhausted.

Apart from government and big organisations working towards this cause, more effort needs to be put in towards a larger participation of the common man- as a majority of people, hardly know, or care, about these much-touted events and development. In order to make our earth a safe place to live, and preserve it for our future generations, we definitely need to redefine the values and principles that underlie our relationship with the Earth.

India has a great untapped potential for wind energy. The need of the hour is to urgently realise the country's full wind energy potential and reap the benefits- that will not only help preserve our planet earth but help our booming economy as well.

Intex to launch Android phone for Rs 5,500

ANDROID PHONES have created quite a stir in the Indian markets. The latest to join the bandwagon is Intex which will be releasing its first set of Android phones in February 2011 and it will also be the cheapest android phone available in India for a price tag of Rs 5,500. The phone which is slated for a release during the first week of February is seen as a contender for Micromax's Andro A60 which was launched earlier this month. Micromax's Andro A60 which is priced at Rs 6,999 will be a tough competitor when Intex releases its phone.

Intex's android will run on Android 2.2 (Froyo), complete with a 3. 2MP camera, 2.8 inch resistive full-touch screen, Wi-Fi and GPS. However, the company is also planning to launch four more models in the same range. The Intex V Show projector phones will also support office applications, which is seen as a blessing for working professionals.

As the word spread, Sudhir Kumar, Assistant General Manager of the Telecom Division of Intex said that the company will launch an Android 2.2 phone in the first week of February and it will priced at around Rs 5,500 and people who want to watch movies, videos, picture galleries and even read e-books on their mobile phones will also find some interesting applications in the new model.

Apple sued over apps privacy issue, Google may be next

TWO SEPARATE groups of iPhone and iPad users have sued Apple Inc alleging that certain software applications were passing personal user information to third-party advertisers without consent.

In the lawsuits seeking class action, filed in a federal court in California, the plaintiffs sought a ban on passing of user information without consent and monetary compensation, according to case documents.

At some point, both cases may be consolidated into one by the judges presiding over the cases, said Majed Nachawati, a partner at law firm Fears& Nachawati, one of the attorneys for the complainants.

Along with Apple, makers of popular apps such as Textplus4, Paper Toss, Weather Channel, Dictionary.com, Talking Tom Cat and Pumpkin Maker were also named co-defendants in the lawsuits filed on December 23.

The lawsuits follow a December 18 report in the Wall Street Journal that said smartphones apps may be sharing personal data "widely and regularly," and that iPhone apps transmitted more data than apps on phones using Google's Android operating system.

"We are also looking at Google's Android platform and a lawsuit against them has not been ruled out," Nachawati said.

Concerns about user privacy have emerged with the rapid growth of smartphones that spawn apps, and social networking websites such as Twitter and Facebook.

The Unique Device ID that Apple assigns to its devices has become an attractive feature for third-party advertisers looking for a way to reliably track mobile device users' online activities, one of the lawsuits said.

"None of the defendants adequately informed plaintiffs of their practices, and none of the defendants obtained plaintiffs' consent to do so," one lawsuit alleged.

NO MAJOR THREAT

In April, Apple amended its developer agreement to ban apps from sending data to third parties except for information directly necessary for the functionality of the apps.

However, the lawsuits allege that Apple has taken no steps to actually implement its revised developer agreement or enforce it in any meaningful way due to criticism from advertising networks.

Apple could not be immediately reached for a comment.

Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry said the lawsuits would have little impact on investors.

"If this were a major issue, all web browsers would have to shut down and there would not be any advertising on the Internet," Chowdhry said.

Apple shares were up 74 cents at $325.42 in afternoon trade on Tuesday on Nasdaq. They touched an all-time high of $326.66 earlier in the session, as investors were unperturbed by the lawsuits.

ThinkEquity analyst Rajesh Ghai said although there is scope for social media companies to tighten their policies to prevent the leakage of sensitive personal information, he did not expect the current lawsuits to have any impact on Apple in the long term.

Last month, Facebook said some of its applications violated the social networking company's policies against sharing user information and had promised to fix the problem.

Earlier this year, microblogging service Twitter agreed to settle with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission over charges that it put its customers' privacy at risk by failing to safeguard their personal information.

On December 16, the U.S. Commerce Department's Internet Policy Task Force said in a report that the department should have its own privacy office and develop voluntary, enforceable codes of conduct for data companies and advertisers that track people on the Internet.

The cases are in re: Freeman et al v. Apple Inc et al, No. 5:10-cv-05881-HRL and the other case is in re: Lalo v. Apple Inc et al, No. 5:10-cv-05878-PSG, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, San Jose division.

Federal-Mogul recalls parts in some Chrysler vehicles

FEDERAL-MOGUL Corp is recalling 22,689 replacement control arm assemblies in certain older model Chrysler vehicles after it found a fault that could cause vehicles to crash.

Michigan based Federal-Mogul Corp is an innovative and diversified $5.3 billion global supplier of quality products, trusted brands and creative solutions to manufacturers of automotive, light commercial, heavy-duty and off-highway vehicles.

The Michigan-based auto parts supplier said a part of the assembly, a ball stud, could wear through the assembly housing, causing the driver to lose steering control, said a notice filed with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The control arm assembly is the main link between the vehicle frame and the wheels and allows the wheels to go up and down independently of the chassis.

While more than 22,000 assemblies have been recalled, Federal-Mogul said it was not sure how many vehicles are affected by the recall.

Federal-Mogul spokesman Jim Burke said the number of these parts in each vehicle depends on the type of suspension, but usually is one or two per wheel.

The recall affects six Chrysler vehicles from the model years 1995 to 2006. It includes the Chrysler Sebring convertible and the Chrysler Sebring sedan for the model years 1996 to 2006.

Oil Trades 26 Month High at $91 ahead of US inventory data

US oil prices surged to a 26 month high of $91.88 a barrel , as forecasts for warmer weather in the US Northeast offset expectations for a further drawdown in crude stocks in the world's largest oil user driven by unusually cold weather, rising appetite for risk assets and signals from OPEC it would not arrest the rally.NYMEX crude for February delivery slipped 12 cents to $91.37 a barrel ,while Brent crude fell 14 cents to $94.24.

Oil also found support from heavy US holiday travel, which boosted retail gasoline demand by 4.6 percent last week. US gasoline futures rose 0.57 cents to $2.4101 a gallon.

Crude inventories in the world's biggest economy were pegged to have fallen 2.9 million barrels, while gasoline stocks were seen up 1.5 million barrels.Cool weather has boosted the needs, which includes heating oil and diesel fuel, and US stocks were expected to have fallen 500,000 barrels last week.

US Energy Information Administration (EIA) will issue its weekly inventory data report  on thursday, delayed by a day due to the Christmas holiday.

Evidence of growing bullish sentiment was provided by a record high of net long crude oil positions on the New York Mercantile Exchange in the week to Dec 21.Technicals point to oil prices consolidating between $90.12 and $91.50.

Amul hikes milk prices by Rs 2

After vegetables, now milk prices will also pinch consumers,largest milk producer Amul, on Tuesday announced a pan-India hike in milk prices by Rs 2 per litre.This is the third time in the year when the milk prices have been hiked.

Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation managing director RS Sodhi said "We have increased prices of our various brands by Rs 1 to Rs 2, which will come in to effect from December 30 in Gujarat and Delhi and by January 3 in other parts of the country . He furthur added "Prices of our Gold and Shakti brand will be hiked by Rs 2 per litre and Tazza and Slim and Trim by Rs 1.

After the hike, price of Amul Gold will be Rs 34 per litre in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and in few districts of Gujarat, and prices of its Shakti brand shall be Rs 30, Taaza Rs 25 per litre and Slim and Trim Rs 23 per litre.In Mumbai, the prices of our Taaza brand shall only be increased by Re 1 per litre, as the price of Gold is already ruling at Rs 34 per lt.

In Kolkata the prices of Gold will be hiked by Rs 2 and Re 1 of Taaza brand respectively from January 3.

Citibank Gurgaon hits scam of 400cr

A case of possible fraud was reported at Citibank DLF-II branch, Gurgaon and is reportedly estimated at Gurgaon is caught in an estimated 400 crore fraud by staff at its retail banking unit in Gurgaon, involving funds from wealthy individuals and corporate clients.Citibank has intimated the Reserve Bank of India and Sebi about the fraud.

The scam was engineered as per the reports, by none other than an employee Shiv Raj Puri who was working as a Relationship Manager for the past 7-8 years, and is alleged to forged the letterhead of the bank to offer a scheme claimed to have been approved by Citibank to clients that could yield high returns in a short span.Puri has also been charged with producing forged circulars from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to indulge people into investing in a non-existent scheme and making people believe that the scheme was only available in that particular branch.The people at Citibank involved in the process were supposedly paid bribes by those brokers.

Citibank fraud was discovered early this month when a customer told a relationship manager that he had invested in a Citibank scheme that promised high returns in a short period, whereas no such scheme existed.Citibank immediately reported the matter to all the relevant and law enforcement authorities.

Amul hikes milk prices by Rs 2

After vegetables, now milk prices will also pinch consumers,largest milk producer Amul, on Tuesday announced a pan-India hike in milk prices by Rs 2 per litre.This is the third time in the year when the milk prices have been hiked.

Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation managing director RS Sodhi said "We have increased prices of our various brands by Rs 1 to Rs 2, which will come in to effect from December 30 in Gujarat and Delhi and by January 3 in other parts of the country . He furthur added "Prices of our Gold and Shakti brand will be hiked by Rs 2 per litre and Tazza and Slim and Trim by Rs 1.

After the hike, price of Amul-Gold will be Rs 34 per litre in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and in few districts of Gujarat, and prices of its Shakti brand shall be Rs 30, Taaza Rs 25 per litre and Slim and Trim Rs 23 per litre.In Mumbai, the prices of our Taaza brand shall only be increased by Re 1 per litre, as the price of Gold is already ruling at Rs 34 per lt.

In Kolkata the prices of Gold will be hiked by Rs 2 and Re 1 of Taaza brand respectively from January 3.

Hyundai to set up diesel engine plant in Gujarat

India's second largest carmaker Hyundai Motors,world's fourth-largest carmaker, Hyundai Motor Company ( HMC )), has shown interest in setting up a manufacturing unit in Gujarat.The company's two car manufacturing plants are allready located in Chennai.

Hyundai Motor Company will spend Rs 400 crore over the next three years to build the 1.5 lakh diesel engine plant, hoping to cater to the rising requirements from domestic market.The plant is expected to go on stream by 2013-14.Hyundai Motors is also looking for a third car plant in India to meet the growing demand.The company has already increased the allocation to the domestic market to 65% for calendar year 2011, up from the 3.56 lakh cars sold in India, aggregating 60% of its total year production.

HW Park, MD, Hyundai Motor India said, plant's location, however, is not finalised ,"While we are channelising more production to India and cutting down exports, the new diesel engines would be fitted into our existing and future cars as local customers are gradually preferring diesel over petrol ,".

Hyundai also plans to roll out its new small car from the Chennai plant. The small car will be the smallest model from Hyundai's global line-up and India would be one of its lead markets.

FCC set to back Internet traffic rules

U.S. COMMUNICATIONS regulators were poised to adopt Internet traffic rules on Tuesday that would allow providers to ration access to their networks.
Federal Communications Commission members Michael Copps and Mignon Clyburn issued statements on Monday saying they would support the proposal laid out by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski early this month despite some misgivings.
The rules would ban high-speed Internet providers like Comcast Corp and Verizon Communications from blocking lawful traffic, while recognizing the need to manage network congestion and perhaps charge based on Internet usage.
The rules, to be somewhat looser for wireless Internet, could help cable companies in competition with plans by Microsoft Corp, Google Inc and Amazon.com to deliver competing video content over the same Internet lines the cable companies run to customers' homes.
"We're adopting a framework that will increase certainty for businesses, investors, and entrepreneurs. We're taking an approach that will help foster a cycle of massive investment, innovation and consumer demand both at the edge and in the core of our broadband networks," Genachowski said in excerpts of a statement he is due to deliver on Tuesday.
Charging consumers more for data-intensive tasks like downloading videos could tip the economics of Internet-delivered television back toward cable. The FCC said it would monitor usage-based pricing for abuses.
"Without regulation, rates could go up and up and up and emerging providers like Netflix and Hulu could have problems attracting users," said Daniel Ernst, an analyst at Hudson Square Research.
Level 3 Communications, a company that helps Netflix Inc stream videos online, has already accused Comcast of charging it unfair fees to deliver content to Comcast subscribers.
The FCC's ability to regulate the Internet has been in doubt since an appeals court in April said the agency lacked the authority to stop Comcast from blocking bandwidth-hogging applications.
LITIGATION RISK
Court challenges are also expected over this latest rule-making effort, although senior FCC officials have said they will invoke new legal arguments not employed in the Comcast case.
Public interest groups were skeptical of the protections for consumers under the traffic rules.
"These rules appear to be flush with giant loopholes," said Craig Aaron, managing director of Free Press, who accused Genachowski of favoring the endorsement of industry over the public interest.
Copps had wanted the FCC to reclassify Internet traffic under tougher rules applying to telephone service, while Clyburn has said she is uneasy about giving wireless Internet providers more freedom to manage their networks than wireline services.
"While I cannot vote wholeheartedly to approve the item, I will not block it by voting against it," Copps said in a statement on Monday.
Clyburn said in a separate statement that the rules, "while not as strong as they could be, will nonetheless protect consumers as they explore, learn, and innovate online."
Support from Copps and Clyburn, both Democrats, would give Genachowski the votes he needs to overcome expected opposition from the agency's two Republicans.
"Nothing is broken and needs fixing," Commissioner Robert McDowell wrote in Monday's Wall Street Journal, adding "Ample laws to protect consumers already exist. "
"REASONABLY" MANAGE
Senior FCC officials said the "open" Internet order, to be considered Tuesday at a public FCC meeting, will give both landline and mobile broadband services the flexibility to "reasonably" manage their networks.
They told a briefing for reporters that the order would institute a no-blocking policy for landline Internet providers that covers all lawful content, applications, services and devices.
Landline services would also be prohibited from discriminating against bandwidth-heavy content. The FCC officials said this provision would help prevent paid prioritization of content, where Internet providers charge websites more to reach users quickly.
The rules for wireless carriers, reflecting limited bandwidth and a more recent technology, only ban the blocking of access to websites, or competing voice and video applications.
At stake is how quickly handheld devices, like Research in Motion Ltd's BlackBerry and Apple Inc's iPhone, can receive videos and other data-heavy content.

Skype outage strands 20 million users globally

THE TECHNICAL snag with VoIP player Skype which affected its free services across the globe on Wednesday morning is being blamed on the Supernodes. Its inaccessibility came into light when users across Asia, Europe and the United States started posting complaints. As per reports, nearly 20 million people were affected.
Peter Parkes, who is Skype's official blogger posted an apology on the company's behalf saying that some of the computers, which they call Supernodes due to some problem which affected accessibility to some versions of Skype. This is the second time in this year where the low cost calling service was affected with a major snag and had more adverse affects since its 2 day outage which took place in 2007. The company tried to pacify its apparently irritated users by reaching out to them via blogs and popular micro blogging as well as social networking sites.
The posts read, some of you may have problems signing in to Skype — we're investigating, and we're sorry for the disruption to your conversations and the company's engineers and site operations team are working non-stop to get things back to normal — thanks for your continued patience.
Although the company has not revealed the actual cause that left millions of users stranded, it is believed that its engineers are creating new “ mega- supernodes” which will help in stabilising the situation and help in return things to normal.

First seaplane service launched in India

Making history in aviation industry in India, Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd the country's first commercial seaplane — a Marylyn Cessna aircraft.It promises to connect most of the Andaman & Nicobar islands through these seaplanes. PHHL plans to extend the service to Lakshadweep and Goa.

Mr. Praful Patel launched the first seaplane service in the country at the Juhu aerodrome and named it “Jal Hans”. The launch of the seaplane service promises to open up new ways for tourists wanting to visit islands that don’t have an airport.

Mr Praful Patel, Minister for Civil Aviation, said the public sector chopper firm to look at the option of forming subsidiaries and getting partners from various parts of the globe for operating sea plane services.

Cessna seaplane

Cessna seaplane can ferry passengers and their baggage to distances within 250 km in about an hour and can land on most calm waters.It can also land using the wheels configuration.To facilitate the operation of seaplane services, one speed boat and one stand boat will also be available.

The Cessna 208A seaplane, which has capacity of eight passengers and two pilots, is Canada made and costs around Rs. 8 crore.

Toyota settles suit over California crash for $10 million

TOYOTA HAS agreed to pay $10 million to settle legal claims from the family of a California state trooper and three relatives whose fatal car wreck helped spark the automaker's wide-ranging safety recall, lawyers said on Thursday.
The family's lawsuit, filed in March in San Diego Superior Court, was part of a wave of product-liability and wrongful-death actions brought against Toyota Motor Corp and subsidiaries over complaints of sudden, unintended acceleration in its vehicles.
But the fiery August 28, 2009, crash near San Diego of a Lexus ES 350 sedan driven by off-duty California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor drew intense media attention and renewed government scrutiny of safety problems leading to the recall of over 6.5 million Toyota vehicles in the United States.
Those recalls in 2009 and 2010 were ordered by Toyota for repairs of ill-fitting floor mats that can jam the accelerator and for gas pedals that did not spring back as designed.
The amount of the Saylor settlement had been kept confidential since it was reached in September. But ruling in favor of the media and others, the judge on Monday ordered the sum made public, and two lawyers connected with the case revealed the amount to Reuters before a non-redacted version of the settlement documents could be filed in court.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating reports that as many as 89 crash deaths since 2000 may be linked to sudden, unintended acceleration in Toyotas and the company's luxury-line Lexus vehicles.
But the circumstances of the Saylor crash stood out, even to Toyota President Akio Toyoda, grandson of the founder of the Japanese automaker, who extended his condolences to the Saylor family in an apology he delivered to a congressional hearing in February.
According to the lawsuit, Saylor was driving his wife, their 13-year-old daughter and his brother-in-law on a family outing when their car "began to accelerate on its own" and sped out of control despite Saylor's attempts "to apply the brakes and otherwise do everything possible to stop" the car.
CHILLING CALL FOR HELP CAUGHT ON TAPE
The vehicle reached speeds of up to 120 miles per hour before it struck another vehicle, plowed through a fence, hit a berm and flew through the air, then rolled several times into a field and burst into flames.
The family's final moments before impact were captured in the recording of a frantic 911-emergency cell phone call placed by Saylor's brother-in-law, Christopher Lastrella, in which he is heard telling the dispatcher, "Our accelerator is stuck ... We're in trouble ... there is no brakes."
Others in the car are heard saying, "hold on" and "pray" as the call ended.
San Diego County Sheriff's investigators concluded the crash likely was caused by the gas pedal becoming stuck in an all-weather rubber floor mat designed for a larger vehicle but placed by the Lexus dealership in the sedan loaned to Saylor.
But the accident report said "other avenues of unintended acceleration could not be explored," mechanical or electrical, due to catastrophic damage to the vehicle.
The report also revealed that another driver who had been loaned the same car a few days earlier told investigators the vehicle raced out of control on him when the gas pedal jammed in the floor mat, which he managed to free after placing the gear shift into neutral.
He complained to a dealership receptionist when he returned the car, the receptionist told investigators she alerted the detail specialist on duty, but the detailer claimed never to have received such a complaint, the report said.
Attorney John Gomez, representing plaintiffs in the Saylor case, said the settlement allows them to press ahead with claims against the San Diego dealer, Bob Baker Lexus, which was a defendant in the original suit but not a party to the agreement.
A lawyer for Baker, Larry Willis, also confirmed the $10 million settlement amount and added that Toyota did not admit liability as part of the agreement.
Toyota has declined to comment on the terms of the settlement, but said Baker "wants the amount publicized in an apparent effort to shift the focus away from his dealership as he continues to litigate this case with the families."
Gomez said the plaintiffs regard the dealership as the "overwhelmingly responsible party," adding, "we'll ask for a lot more than $10 million against Bob Baker."

iGate may acquire 63% stake in Patni Computers

Patni brothers are looking to sell their 46% stake, while private equity firm General Atlantic plans to sell its roughly 17% holding. Patni is  a mid-sized Indian IT services firm,  also listed in New York, provides technology outsourcing services to industries such as insurance, telecom, utilities and retail.

A consortium of private equity firms Apax Partners and iGate Corp being the lead bidder at Rs 525 to Rs 530 a share,  is likely to buy 63%  of Patni Computer Systems in a deal valued at about $915 million and an announcement about the deal may be made this week, according to various reports. The value of the deal could be around $1 billion.The deal will be backed by Apex Partners. iGate will make an open offer to acquire further 20% of the Indian IT firm.

Prosecutors to sue Ernst & Young over Lehman collapse

PROSECUTORS IN New York are set to file civil fraud charges against accounting firm Ernst & Young LLC over the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

The suit, led by Andrew Cuomo, could come as early as this week and may seek to impose fines and other penalties, the paper said.

No one at Ernst & Young was available for comment outside regular U.S. business hours. Andrew Cuomo's office could not be reached for comment.

The lawsuit stems from Lehman's use of a controversial accounting technique called Repo 105, the paper said.

Lehman's court-appointed examiner, Anton Valukas, has said that the use of Repo 105, which dated back to 2001 and was used without telling investors or regulators, gave the appearance that Lehman was reducing its overall leverage levels in 2008 when it was not.

Lehman used Repo 105 to temporarily remove $50 billion of assets from its balance sheet in 2008, according to his report released in March.

On September 15, 2008 Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection which is invariably the largest bankruptcy filing in the history of the United States financial market's history with the organisation holding more than $600 billion in assets.

Top 10 car recalls 2010

YEAR 2010 will be remembered as the worst year for automobile industry. A number of leading car makers including Toyota, Honda, GM, BMW, Hyundai, Nissan, Ford, Chevrolet recalled lakhs of vehicles because of various defects and safety problems.

Toyota: World's one of the biggest automaker Toyota recalled maximum cars in this list in 2010. Toyota recalls included models like Avalon, Camry, Corolla, Highlander, Prius, Sienna, etc.

Honda: One of the leading automobile maker and Japan based Honda recalled cars due to the brake fluid issue that included models like Accord, Civic and Element models.

Chevrolet: General Motors (GM) recalled models like Avalanche, Camaro, Cobalt, Colorado, Equinox, Impala, Silverado, Traverse, etc.

Nissan: Japanese car maker Nissan Motor Company, Ltd recalled cars that included models like Sentra, Rogue, Armada, Versa, Pathfinder, Frontier, Xterra, etc.

Chrysler: The United States based automobile manufacturer Chrysler recalled models like Chrysler Town and Country, Chrysler 300, Chrysler Sebring.

Ford: American automobile manufacturer Ford Motor Company recalled in 2010 models that included Edge, Fusion, Escape, Ranger, etc.

Hyundai: Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Company recalled Sonata and Tucson models due to a problem with a faulty steering.

BMW: German automobile maker BMW recalled models including BMW 745i/Li, 750i/Li, 760i/Li; BMW Alpina B7, BMW 645i, 650i, BMW 545i, 550i, Rolls Royce Phantom, etc.

Mazda: Japanese automotive manufacturer Mazda Motor Corporation recalled Mazda 3 and Mazda 5 Sedan models due to a problem involving power steering.

Mitsubishi: The sixth largest automaker in Japan and the seventeenth largest in the world by vehicle production, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation recalled Endeavour and Lancer models.

2010 Top 10 cars in India

INDIA IS being recognised as emerging auto market in the current years and is the fifth largest commercial vehicle manufacturer in the world. India is the fourth largest car market in Asia after Japan, South Korea and Thailand, has recently crossed the 1 million mark.
India is also a huge market in small car segment as it covers about 80% of market share in the Indian car market. In 2010 many international car makers including Toyota Motors, Nissan Motors, Chevrolet, Volkswagen, etc. launched small cars and mid size cars for the Indian roads.
Etios: Japanese car maker Toyota Motors launched the entry-level sedan Etios. The Etios is powered by a newly developed 1.5 liter 16 valve DOHC engine that produces 90 hp and has a torque of 132 Nm.
New Skoda Fabia: The new Skoda Fabia comes with 1.6 MPI, 1.2 TDI CR and 1.2 MPI engine. The car has Dual Front Airbags, ABS (Antilock Brake Syatem), EBC, height and reach adjustable steering wheel.
Nissan Micra: Nissan Motor Company launched Nissan Micra features a 1.2L three-cylinder petrol engine that delivers maximum power of 76 bhp @ 6000 rpm and 104Nm torque @ 4000 rpm.
Chevrolet Beat: World largest auto manufacturer, General Motors' Chevrolet Beat is powered by a 1.2 liter 4 cylinder engine which would produce 70 bhp, 5-speed manual gearbox.
Volkswagen Polo: Volkswagen (VW) launched Volkswagen Polo equipped with a 1.2 litre engine which produces an output of 74 bhp @ 5400 rpm and a Torque of 110NM @ 3750 rpm.
Hyundai Verna Transform: Hyndai Motors' Hyundai Verna Transform has 1599cc VTVT, 5 Speed Manual transmission, Max Power: 103.2 ps @ 5500 rpm, Max Torque: 14.9 kgm @ 3000 rpm.
Ford Figo: Ford has launched the Ford Figo in India, powered by 1.2 Duratec engines, with SEFI technology, 70 bhp at 6,250 rpm and a torque of 102 Nm at 4000 rpm.
Indica V2 Turbomax: Tata Motors launched this car and the Tata Indica V2 Turbomax has new 71 PS BS4 turbo diesel engine, maximum torque of 135 Nm @2500rpm, ARAI certified mileage of 19 kmpl.
New Wagon R: Top selling car from Maruti Udyog Ltd., WagonR come with a major re-haul and an all-new attitude. The car features a 1.1L In-line 4 engine capable of producing 64 bhp and 84 Nm of torque.
Alto K10: Maruti Udyog Ltd.'s new Alto K10 is loaded with a 1.0L, 998cc, 3-Cylinders, 12-Valve KB10 petrol engine and a maximum torque of 90Nm at 3500 rpm.

Reliance tops in creation of wealth: study

ACCORDING TO the study conducted by Motilal Oswal Financial Services, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) spearheaded by Mukesh Ambani, has topped the list of the most successful wealth creators from FY05 to FY10 followed by ONGC and NMDC close behind. The study reported that Reliance has been largest wealth creator for last 4 studies continuously, making it one of the most successful and prosperous enterprises running in India today.

India`s top 100 wealth creating companies created over Rs 26,000 billion of wealth in the last 5 years. Reliance Industries contributed Rs 2,600 billion to the pool.

RIL’s share price has grown at a compounded annual rate of 37.1% over the past five years. It is being followed closely by realty firm Unitech and Hero Honda.

With consistency in wealth generation, valuation of share prices and generally high level of goodwill that is attached to Reliance, it can be predicted that it will be able to manage a successful stride in the next few years as well. The current firm trend in crude prices is likely to ensure no major change in the above equation of standing for some more time to come.

Boxing Day History ,traditions

BOXING DAY takes place a day after Christmas every year, i.e. on December 26. Boxing Day is also a public holiday in U.S., Canada, Austalia, New Zealand, European countries, African nations, North American countries and all over the world dominated with the Christan majority. The day is also considered as St. Stephen's Day.

Under the rule of Queen Victoria in the 19th century, the Boxing Day originated in England. Boxing Day history provides multiple theories behind its tradition.

One of the tradition behind the Boxing Day was said that in older times servants would bring boxes to work with them on the next working day for their lords to put coins in. Another story about Boxing day is also popular that the boxes placed in churches where parishioners deposited coins for the poor were opened and the contents distributed on December 26.

In modern traditions, people exchange gifts in a box to family and friends with lots of food, gift, etc. They also present gifts to people, who have helped them like tradesmen, mail carriers, doormen, porters and others.

December 26 is also celebrated as the second day of the twelve Days of Christmas festive days popular as Christmastide, beginning from Christmas Day.

More On >> Christmas 2010 , Christmas Celebrations

Coimbatore students celebrate arrival of Christmas

STUDENTS OF a private college in Coimbatore celebrated advent of the Christmas festival to spread communal amity. As part of the celebrations, they staged drama skits from the Holy Bible and presented a cultural programme on Wednesday.
Students from all faiths jointly sang Christmas carols to promote the humane idea of living in peace with all religions and enacted a skit to mark the birth of baby Jesus.
Ashika, a Muslim student, said she was very happy to be a part of the celebrations that gave her an opportunity to learn about other religions.
"As a part of Christmas celebration we are celebrating Christmas function in our college. We are very happy to celebrate this function in our college because we don''t mind any caste or any religion. We all are celebrating this function very happily," said Ashika.
The students danced with the Santa Claus who also shared sweets and chocolates with the huge audience, which watched the gala event.
"The Christmas day is celebrated across the world and as a part of it we also enjoy it a lot and we celebrate our Christmas day by distributing the kids sweets, chocolates and even dancing, singing Carols and doing some other cultural activities," said Sewin Kumar, a student who had dressed up as Santa Claus.
Christmas is celebrated with a lot of festivity and fervour every year on December 25 to mark the birth of Jesus Christ.

Christian beliefs: Know them concisely

CHRISTIANITY BELIEVES in one God and its central figure is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In Christianity, Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit are considered to be an essence of the God.
Jesus Christ performed many charities and miracles. He also spoke to people about his father in heaven. He was arrested for claiming to be God's son and was crucified by the Romans at age of 33.

Here is a sentence- acrostic that describes JESUS briefly.

• J: Jew born by Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary who

• E: Effected many miracles and

• S: Spoke to many people about his father in heaven but

• U: Ultimately got crucified by Romans to pay for the sins of all mankind and proved that he was the

• S: Son of God who lived a life without sin.

Christians believe that he rose from the grave after three days and spoke to his followers about the kingdom of God to which he was going.

The beliefs of Christianity can be learnt briefly in the document called the ‘Apostles' Creed’ which goes as follows.
'I believe in God the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth
And in Jesus Christ,
His only Son, our Lord;
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
Born of the Virgin Mary,
Suffered under Pontius Pilate,
Was crucified, died and was buried.
He descended into hell;
The third day He rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven
And is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
From there He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
The holy Christian Church,
The Communion of Saints,
The Forgiveness of sins,
The Resurrection of the body,
And the Life everlasting.
Amen'.

Christmas cake festival organised in Guwahati

TO CELEBRATE the advent of Christmas, a cake festival was organised in Guwahati. Assamese actresses Nishita Goswami, Gayatri Mahanta and Kashmiri Saikia Baruah inaugurated the festival.

The festival was organised by the cookery and bakery section of the Centre for Alternative Vocation (CAV), a voluntary organisation which works in the north-eastern states and mainly focuses on the development of youth and women, by providing livelihood support and strengthening educational status.

Goswami said the festival is a good platform for women who are interested in baking. 

“The special thing about this festival is it does not only display cakes, and it displays various confectionaries as well. What I fell is it's a huge platform for the ladies who are interested in this particular field, and it's a good platform for them,” she said.

The flavour and colours of Christmas were everywhere as customers purchased cakes and a man dressed up as Santa Claus delighted children.

“Like the cake is sweet, in the same way people of Assam and whole northeast are sweet, and I would like to give my wishes that peace remains in the whole of Assam and northeast,” said Shidartha Mukharjee, who had donned the Santa Claus costume.

This festival was an exhibition as well as a sale programme where Christmas cakes like plum cake, fruitcake, rum cake and other non-vegetarian cakes were on sale.

The festival is being organised from December 21 to 23. Christmas will be celebrated across the world on Saturday December 25.

People to shop online than going church on Christmas Day

An estimated 4.8 million people will  shop online on Christmas Day, get out their credit cards, and buy products,according to the trade body IMRG which represents online retailers.This is 9% increase on last year and compares with an estimated 4.5 million people who attend an Anglican, Catholic, Methodist, Baptist or Pentecostal church services on Christmas Day.

It will be for the first time that more people likely to shop than worshiping on December 25, proving how the internet has rendered the Sunday Trading Laws obsolete. It is also  demonstration of how many consumers spend their lives with almost immediate access to the internet, with either a mobile phone, laptop or computer or even camera able to surf the web at the touch of a button.

It is expected that the hundreds and thousands of so-called tablet computers such as the Apple iPad and Samsung Galaxy which will be given as presents this year will result in many people unwrapping them and immediately going online to buy applications, games or films to watch on these small touch-screen computers.

IMRG  also said that on Christmas Day itself £153 million would be expected to spent, with a further £300 million spent on Boxing Day.

More On >>> Christmas Gift Ideas , Christmas Deals