Harper's media chief rsigns

BBC Apologizes for Calling Hindu Festival Holi “Filthy”

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has apologized for labeling Hindu festival of Holi as “filthy festival”, which had upset the Hindus worldwide.
In an email to Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, BBC News’ Editor On Demand Mark Barlex wrote: “…we apologise for any offence that was caused.”
BBC News website posted a short video on March 29 under its “week’s weird videos” in “Newsbeat’s odd box” showing youth playing Holi in Utah (USA) and titled the segment as “Filthy festival”.
Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, had complained to BBC saying that terming the “festival of color” celebrated by Hindus and others worldwide as “filthy” was very insensitive and belittling of the entire community.
Admitting “original headline was an error” and saying “we are sorry”, Barlex informed in the email that they have changed the headline to “Festival of colour”. I understand your concern that the use of the word “filthy” in our headline, in the context of this festival, could offend some audiences, Barlex added.
Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, commended BBC for showing maturity and responsibility in immediately removing the inappropriate terminology used for the Hindu festival Holi, which hurt the feelings of one billion Hindus spread around the world. It was a “step in the right direction”, he added.
Zed suggested BBC to provide training to their editorial staff in world religions as religion was powerful and complex and world was becoming increasingly diverse. Stereotypes, prejudices and caricatures passed on to us from previous generations needed to go. Journalism should take religion more seriously, help us build interconnections and create harmony instead of adding to religious conflict, confusion and bigotry.
Rajan Zed pointed out in his earlier complaint that although under its “our values”, BBC claimed “we respect each other and celebrate our diversity”, but describing a festival of world’s oldest religion as “filthy” was highly “disrespectful”. Was calling Holi “filthy” BBC’s way of educating and informing the world correctly; whose “mission” was listed as: “to enrich people’s lives with programmes and services that inform, educate and entertain”? Zed had asked.
Founded in 1922, headquartered in Westminster London, and established under the Royal Charter; world’s largest broadcaster BBC (autonomous public service broadcaster) has been blamed in the past for racism, imperialist stance, Indophobic bias, anti-Hindu bigotry, anti-American bias, etc. Mark Thompson is BBC Director-General, Helen Boaden is Director of BBC News, and Lord Patten of Barnes and Diane Coyle are Chairman and Vice Chairman respectively of BBC Trustees.
Joie de vivre festival of Holi welcomes the beginning of spring and starts about ten days before the full moon of Phalguna. The ceremonies include the lighting of the bonfires, during which all evils are symbolically burnt. Holi also commemorates the frolics of youthful Lord Krishna; celebrates the death of demoness Putana, burning of demoness Holika, and destruction of Kama by Shiva. Holi fell on March eight this year.
Webster’s New World Dictionary describes “filthy” as “full of filth, disgustingly foul; grossly obscene; morally vicious or corrupt”.
Hinduism is the third largest religion of the world and moksha (liberation) is its ultimate goal.

IIT-Delhi country's top ranked institution

Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi is the country's highest ranking institution in world with a global rank of 218, the Rajya Sabha was informed today.

Minister of state for HRD D Purandeswari said during Question Hour that as per the Quacquarelli Symonds global system of ranking of higher education institutions for 2011, IIT-Delhi is the overall highest ranking institution in India at serial number 218.

"As per the Times Higher Education World University Rankings for 2011, IIT-Bombay is the highest ranked institution at serial 317, while the Academic Ranking of World Universities has ranked Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore at serial 321," she said.

As per the 2011 QS Engineering & Technology Rankings, IIT-Bombay is at serial 43, IIT-Delhi at 50, IIT-Kanpur at 59 and IIT-Madras at 60 in Computer Science and Information Technology.

In the same ranking system in Civil and Structural Engineering, IIT-Bombay is ranked at serial 30, IIT-Kanpur at serial 38 and IIT-Delhi at serial 43.

As per QS Global Business School Report, 2012, Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad has been ranked second in the Asia Pacific region, next to INSEAD (Institut Europeen d Administration des Affairs), Singapore while IIM-Bangalore, Indian School of Business, IIM-Calcutta and SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai figure in the top 20 institutes.

According to Financial Times London Global Buiness School rankings, IIM-Ahmedabad is at serial 11 and Indian School of Business at serial 13.

Jim Balsillie resigns from RIM board

Jim Balsillie, the brash, hockey-loving executive who helped build Research in Motion into a global force with the BlackBerry smartphones, is retiring from the struggling technology company as its new CEO attempts to rebuild RIM.

The announcement, symbolic of the changes afoot at RIM, came along with a financial report that fell short of analysts’ already low expectations on Thursday. The company announced a loss, rather than the reduced profit that many had expected, and fewer BlackBerrys were sold than anticipated.

While Balsillie’s retirement from RIM’s board of directors at age 52 will have little real impact on the company — he and company founder Mike Lazaridis had were replaced as co-chief executive and co-chairman in January — his departure is another indication that Canada’s premier technology company is in trouble.

Thorsten Heins, who has the job of steering the company as its new chief executive and president, told analysts Thursday that RIM’s management and board would consider a sale if an offer came forward but added, “it’s not the main direction we are pursuing right now.”

Heins didn’t deny what many outside observers have been saying for months — that RIM needs a new approach in a world where Apple’s iPhone, iPad and devices using Google’s Android operating system are winning market share, especially among consumers.

“I did my own reality check on where the entire company really is,” Heins said. “It’s now very clear to me that substantial change is what RIM needs.”

He said Research In Motion now will put more attention on its core business users: “We plan to refocus on the enterprise business and capitalize on our leading position in this segment.”

Balsillie had become one of Canada’s best-known businessmen both because of his role at the company, but also because of his failed attempts to use his personal fortune from his part ownership of RIM to bring another National Hockey League team to southern Ontario.

He often frustrated analysts who cover RIM, who privately griped about Balsillie “overpromising and underdelivering” and just talking too much. Some of Balsillie’s favourite expressions on conference calls were: “Just you wait and see. Just wait until you see our roadmap. It’s very exciting.”

Balsillie issued a brief comment in RIM’s announcement.

“As I complete my retirement from RIM, I’m grateful for this remarkable experience and for the opportunity to have worked with outstanding professionals who helped turn a Canadian idea into a global success.”

Heins said RIM won’t release its BlackBerry 10 smartphones — the next-generation of BlackBerry smartphones with a new operating system based on the system in PlayBook tablet computer — until later this year. That leaves the company with few new products to sell.

William Blair & Co. analyst Anil Doradla said RIM will be better off without Balsillie on the company’s board.

“We don’t want his invisible hand out there,” Doradla said from Chicago.

RIM is now going to focus more on its business customers after not being totally successful in the consumer market, he said.

They’re saying, ‘Let’s focus on our core strength. Let’s focus on enterprise. Once we get that stability on that front, then we will start looking at the consumer side,’” Doradla said.

It shows that RIM is willing to have partnerships and “not fight battles it can’t win” and the company will support iPhones and Android devices in the workplace, he added.

Activist shareholder Vic Alboini and chief executive of Jaguar Financial, who had been pushing for Balsillie to leave the company, said the departure of the former co-CEO was expected.

He also said the decision to pursue a strategic review has been a long time coming and could help push up the company’s value.

“This is the key to creating shareholder value,” Alboini said in an email.

“Jaguar believes selecting and implementing smart strategic opportunities could result in an overall minimum share value of $30,” Alboini said.

That’s more than twice the current value of RIM’s stock.

Research In Motion announced from its headquarters in Waterloo, Ont., that it had a loss in the final quarter of its 2012 financial year, rather than the profit that had been expected, as a result of writing down some of its assets.

Sales of the BlackBerry were also below many analysts expectations and the company, which usually provides guidance about where it expects revenue and profit will be in the near future, said it’s not continuing that practice.

Heins also said the BlackBerry maker can’t excel in every field, noting the consumer market.

“We believe that BlackBerry cannot succeed if we try to be everybody’s darling and all things to all people. We will seek strong partnerships to deliver those consumer features and content that are not central to the BlackBerry value proposition, for example, media consumption applications.”

RIM, known for its technical strengths, produces its own hardware, software, operating system and applications such as the BlackBerry Messenger Service, a popular instant messaging service that is exclusive to BlackBerry users.

While this has been an advantage for RIM in the past, the company has seen software developers choose to focus on applications for more popular iPhones and Androids.

The company said two of its senior executives are out. Chief technology officer for software David Yach will be retiring and RIM’s chief of global operations, Jim Rowan, is leaving “to pursue other interests.”

Heins also said his message was simple: “We’re making the necessary changes at the company.”

In its financial results, RIM reported a loss for its latest quarter of US$125 million or 24 cents per share as it took a $355-million charge to goodwill.

The loss compared with a profit of $934 million or $1.78 per diluted share a year ago. Revenue fell to $4.2 billion, down from $5.6 billion.

During the quarter, RIM shipped approximately 11.1 million BlackBerry smartphones and over 500,000 PlayBook tablets.

Excluding one-time times, RIM reported an adjusted profit of $418 million or 80 cents per share.

The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 81 cents per share and revenue of $4.54 billion, according to estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters.

Analysts had expected the company to ship 11.5 million BlackBerrys in the quarter.

Indian Gold medalist archer Nisha Rani sells archery equipment for poverty

 

RANCHI: Succumbing to "abject poverty",Bangkok Grand Prix medallist Nisha Rani Duttahas sold her world-class archery equipment for money. 

"I went to her house at Bundu in Ranchi district and spoke with her. She said that she had sold her bow because of poverty," said Sub-Divisional Officer Rajesh Rai. 

"She had been trained by Tata Archery Academy and won gold medal at international archery championships, but discontinued the sport because of poverty," he said. 

Rai said Dutta had told him that a world class bow cost more than Rs one lakh and Rs 20,000 for a quiver of 20 arrows. 

"She has requested the government to help her to take coaching in archery from NIS, Patiala. Because it can land her a job and financial security," the SDO said. 

Dutta, an archer in her early twenties, also told the SDO that she was released after completing training at Tata Archery Academy but could not move on due to lack of money. 

Tata Archery Academy's chief coach Dharmendra Tiwari said Dutta was with them before switching to another group. 

"She won a few medals, including at Bangkok grand prix archery championship," Tiwari said.

First Look: When a Tibetan set himself on fire

Rajinikanth website really runs without Internet

Kolkata: It may sound like another Rajinikanth joke, but a new website dedicated to the superstar runs 'without an Internet connection'! Visitors to www.allaboutrajni.com are greeted with a warning that "He is no ordinary man, this is no ordinary website. It runs on Rajini Power" and are advised to switch off their Internet connection to enter the website.

Only when the web is disconnected, one is allowed to explore the site.

Netizens can trace the story of the legend from the beginning, read inside scoops from his films and get a glimpse of behind-the-scenes action, while browsing through famous Rajini jokes about impossible feats only he can achieve.

"The unbelievable spectacle of running a website without the Internet is a tribute to Rajinikant's larger than life image," claimed Webchutney's creative director Gurbaksh Singh, who developed the site for Desimartini.com.

With a heady mix of foot-tapping music, vibrant splash of colours, quirky quotes and illustrations, and icons in true Rajni style and lingo, the unique website reflects Rajini's signature style.

Singh told PTI that the website is based on a complex algorithm running in the back-end that keeps an eye on the propagation of data packets between two terminals.

Magic kicks in soon as the Internet speed is down to zero, which is the basic premise on which the site and the concept have been constructed.

The humour element on the website is accentuated by the error message in typical Rajini style that appears if a visitor attempts to re-connect the Internet.

"Aiyyo! That was unexpected. To keep browsing, switch off your Internet," reads the message.

"The website has received a phenomenal response and has gone viral with several thousand hits and counting, along with innumerable shares and mentions across the web, especially on popular social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter," Singh said.

"After a few iterations and testing, we cracked the code required to build the world's first website that runs without the Internet - a website that runs offline - which is as awesome and unbelievable as miracles and stunts associated or performed by Rajni himself," he said.

Bringing macrobiotic food to Indian kitchens her mission

 

Dehradun, March 24
From Delhi’s Metropolitan Hotel to Rishikesh’s Ananda Resort, all have benefited from Mona Schwartz’s culinary expertise and belief in macrobiotic dietary principle of “cooking food with consciousness”.

She has made several converts to macrobiotic food all over the country, including Shonali Sabherwal, the author of The Beauty Diet, who learnt macrobiotic cooking at her kitchen, after her father was diagnosed with cancer.

On Sundays in Dehradun, her lawn buzzes with activity with farmers from Rishikesh and villages setting up kiosks loaded with organic vegetables. “I provide space to the farmers, who sell organic vegetables. This is the first step towards making people aware of healthy food. They can taste scrumptious macrobiotic food made to suit the Indian taste. It comes loaded with the goodness of brown rice and oil-free snacks. All sourced from my kitchen,” averred Schwartz.

Living in India for the past 22 years, it is her mission to promote and propagate macrobiotic food which she says is in consonance with the principles of Ayurveda. “Today, the children have unlimited choices. They are keen to experiment with other food and are forgetting the traditional Indian thali. Even parents are giving in to their children’s whims and do not mind pandering to their demands. Now in Indian homes, two types of foods are being served- one for the parents and the other for the children. It is creating a divide. I am all for reintroducing thali to Indian homes with an organic touch,” she said.

Enumerating the virtues of macrobiotic diet that combines elements of Buddhism with dietary principles based on simplicity and avoidance of toxins that come from eating dairy products, Schwartz says she was introduced to the diet when she came in touch with Denny Waxman while living in the USA. “I was battling a host of health problems and undergoing treatment for leukaemia and sluggish liver. The pills that I was made to pop every day left me physically drained. Then I came in touch with Denny, who put me on a macrobiotic diet meant for patients recovering from cancer. Soon I was on the path of recovery and my faith in the diet grew by leaps and bounds,” she pointed out.

While in the USA, the macrobiotic caught up solely as a cancer diet. Schwartz has managed to promote it as a food that can be consumed by healthy people also. “I believe, if the simple principle of proportion and balance is followed, the food that you eat can never cause any harm,” she expressed.

Terming her innings in India as a second life, Schwartz said she was already in the middle of finalising a book that she hopes would spread awareness about macrobiotic diet. “I have already written seven books and this one would try to give an insight into the food habits of ancient India and how macrobiotic living complements the spirit of yoga and satvik food,” she added.

Alberta election called for April 23 as Tories face unprecedented Wildrose fight

Alberta premier Alison Redford made the long-awaited call for an election Monday, starting what is expected to be the most contentious campaign in the province in almost 20 years.

After locking in 41 years of majority governments, the Progressive Conservatives are facing a well-organized, well-funded scrap against the right-leaning Wildrose Party, led by former journalist Danielle Smith.

Smith took over the helm of the rag-tag team of libertarians and fiscal conservatives in 2009, and has since transformed the party into the de facto opposition, although it currently holds only four of the Alberta legislature’s 83 seats — half that of the Alberta Liberal Party.

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Yet some poll numbers show the Wildrose may be gaining enough support to form the official opposition, if not topple the ruling PCs altogether.

If that weren’t uncommon enough, this election call comes after several scandal-plagued weeks for the Tories.

Albertans are still railing about the funding that went to MLAs who sat on a committee that rarely met. The chair of the “no meet” panel, Ray Prins, announced he would not seek re-election last Tuesday.

Then there’s the recently released report from Elections Alberta, which announced it had found 23 examples of illegal campaign funding from tax-payer funded institutions — although it refused to disclose to which party the money had gone, or who would be facing sanctions.

Redford defended Elections Alberta’s secrecy when she spoke to Postmedia last week.

Ed Kaiser/Edmonton Journal

Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith unveils her new campaign bus last week outside the Legislature in Edmonton.

“The discussion was to avoid exactly these sorts of circumstances where you start to see these sort of McCarthyism approaches to ongoing investigations,” she told reporters

Gary Mar, who was bested by Redford during the PC’s October leadership campaign, remains suspended from his far-flung job as Asian envoy as he faces an investigation into a fundraiser he held in Edmonton earlier in the year.

And the Tories are likely to continue to take flak for their budget, passed last week, that increased government spending, pulls $3.7-billion from the Sustainability Fund, and still relies on an optimistic forecast of oil revenues from a predicted oil price of $105-per barrel.

Amid that turmoil, both the PCs and the Wildrose have launched pointed advertisements at each other; earlier this month, the Tories released a radio spot in Calgary trashing Smith’s opposition to tougher drunk driving laws.

“Danielle Smith and the Wildrose: not worth the risk,” it stated.

Wildrose responded in kind, launching a video ad that took aim at Redford’s record since taking over the leadership of the PCs in October.

The 28-day campaign will end with voting day slated for April 23.

Alberta election fever up

 

The four-week sprint to determine whether Alberta’s long-ruling Progressive Conservatives get to add another four years to their four decades in power is almost certain to start today.
Premier Alison Redford, who spent Sunday in meetings and with her family, is expected to visit Lt.-Gov. Don Ethell this morning to ask for the legislature to be dissolved and a provincial election campaign to commence.
Tory campaign manager Susan Elliott said Sunday she didn’t know definitively if the writ would be dropped, but is preparing for the 28-day campaign to start today, which would put the election on April 23.
For the provincial race, last-minute preparations involve prepping the leader’s bus, getting candidate websites up and putting the finishing touches on the opening stages of Redford’s tour, her first as Tory leader.
Across the province, candidates spent the weekend gearing up for what is expected to be the most competitive election in Alberta since Ralph Klein’s first victory in 1993.
“What they should be doing is door-knocking and talking to Albertans,” said Elliott. “We’re going to have ads and air-game stuff and so on, but this is a ground game. We’re going to win this on the ground.”
The PCs have been under fire in recent weeks over a string of controversies, and polls have shown the upstart, right-wing Wildrose party as their biggest threat.
Tory TV and radio ads will begin running today if the writ is dropped, but pre-campaign volleys between the parties have already struck a negative, critical tone.
Wildrose launched their own television attack ads aimed at Redford last week. Those followed negative PC radio ads on the government’s 0.05 impaired driving legislation blasting Wildrose.
A fundraising e-mail sent out under Redford’s name to Tory supporters Sunday asked for financial support to counteract what it called “misinformation” spread by the party’s opponents.
Elliott said the PCs will run more commercials taking aim at other parties’ positions, but their campaign will have an “upbeat and positive” message.
“Don’t listen to all the people who just tell you everything that’s wrong with this place. Because there’s not that much wrong with it. I think people will get tired of hearing all the things that are wrong with Alberta,” Elliott said.
Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith, heading to Edmonton Sunday afternoon in preparation for the expected election launch, said her party’s platform, ads and candidates are in place and raring to go.
She said the Wildrose campaign will be mainly positive, but won’t hesitate to draw a contrast to the ruling PCs.
“It’s very important for Ms. Redford to run on her record and I think her record has already demonstrated she is not much different than the regime that was there before her. She talks a lot about change but what we’re seeing is the same-old, same old,” said Smith.
“People don’t have to give this government another majority. They sure don’t deserve it. We want them to know that there’s something positive they can vote for.”
Late Sunday, the Wildrose also released the list of Smith’s campaign donors from her successful 2009 leadership campaign, something the party had previously resisted making public due to what she had said was fear from donors of retribution from the governing Tories.
“Things have changed since I became Wildrose leader. I am the leader of a party that is now capable of defeating the Progressive Conservatives,” Smith said in the statement. “We are going to be running a campaign on transparency, accountability and better democracy, and it has to start with me.”
The party said Smith raised $488,000 from 2,666 donors, with 173 contributing more than $375, including 20 that reached $5,000 or higher. Among the largest contributors was Pirie Resource Management Ltd. giving $25,000, as well as $10,000 each from oilpatch giant Encana Corp. and Pacific Western Transportation.
The Liberals, who finished second in the 2008 election but have dropped in public support and gone through two leaders since then, believe recent well-publicized problems within the health system have helped the party gain ground since Christmas under Leader Raj Sherman.
Sherman, working his last shift Sunday as an emergency room doctor before the campaign, said the Liberals will differentiate themselves with a platform that calls for measures such as a boost to corporate income tax and personal income taxes for those that make more than $100,000 to help pay for social programs.
He expects the well-heeled Tories and Wildrose to blanket the province with advertising.
“They want to be able to buy an election but they’ve got no plan to govern.
“They can’t balance the books. I want to know from both of them, how are you going to fix health care and education, and where are they going to get the money from?” he said.
“We’ve got the plan to govern this province. We don’t need to spend millions on advertising,”
The Liberals are still getting candidates in place — there are slightly more than 70 nominated at this point — but campaign chair Cory Hogan said the party will have a full slate of 87. The party wants to ensure that anyone who wants to vote Liberal has the opportunity to do so.
NDP Leader Brian Mason was already in campaign mode with a full day of events in his party’s base of Edmonton on Sunday.
He said while Wildrose and the Tories are fighting a high-profile battle over the conservative vote, that leaves significant opportunities for the NDP.
“While some of the coverage may suggest it is a two-way fight between those two parties, what is actually happening is a split among conservative voters that will favour the NDP,” said Mason.
Mount Royal University political analyst David Taras said the timing of the election has not worked exactly in the Tories’s favour given the 41-year government’s recent problems.
The party ended up being “trapped” by the law passed under Redford requiring an election be held between March 1 and May 31.
“It took away their flexibility and they now have to go. It’s too late to turn back,” said Taras.
“The great thing that the Tories have now is the strong economy going for them.”

"Red Bull" drink billionaire Chaleo dies in Thailand

BANGKOK — Chaleo Yoovidhya, who rose from poverty to become one of the world's richest men thanks to astute marketing of the "Red Bull" energy drink, has died in his native Thailand.

Local media said he had died of natural causes in hospital in Bangkok on Saturday. His age was variously put at 89 or 90, although some sources gave his date of birth as Aug. 17, 1923, making him 88.

Chaleo was ranked 205th on the Forbes list of the world's wealthiest people, with a fortune it put at $5 billion.

Born into a Chinese immigrant family, he never flaunted the wealth he accumulated and avoided publicity. According to Thailand's Nation newspaper, he had not given a media interview or made any public appearances for 30 years.

The Nation said it had interviewed his son, Saravudh, as part of a multimedia series to run next month.

Saravudh recalled how his father developed the Red Bull brand at home and abroad after his small pharmaceutical company started producing energy drinks in the 1970s.

"While the market leader of the energy-drink market mainly targeted the capital, Red Bull pushed into the provincial market first, gaining a foothold by distributing free samples to truck drivers," he said.

Only then did he market it in the capital, Bangkok, with brand-building that was quite novel for Thailand at the time, before going international with Austrian partner Dietrich Mateschitz in the mid-1980s.

Mateschitz, who had discovered the powers of Red Bull as a cure for jet lag, is now number 193 on the Forbes list.

Chaleo never had the benefit of higher education but his son said he studied English and law by himself. His acumen and experience led governments to turn to him for help and he had sat on health committees and advised the prime minister.

The Red Bull brand has been promoted internationally through a Formula One racing team and in the United States by soccer team the New York Red Bulls.

Coke to roll out 7.2 lakh Sachin cans

 

Coca Cola India will roll out 7.2 lakh 'golden cans' featuring batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar to commemorate his historic 100th century earlier this month.

"We have put 7.2 lakh golden cans and we don't think they will last many days," Coca Cola India, director  marketing told.

"Wherever we traditionally distribute cans, these cans would be available there," he added.

The 38-year-old cricketer scored his 100th international century against Bangladesh in an Asia Cup match on March 16, scoring 114 off 147 deliveries.

While nine of such cans in different colours have been launched in the markets in 2011, displaying the centuries personally picked by Sachin, the 10th limited edition Golden Can was put on hold awaiting his 100th hundred.

The golden cans will be available for Rs 20.

"This is the first time in history of Coca Cola India we are honouring someone....This is the first time we have agreed to put a face on our cans," he said.

The Gold Cans are designed by Arun Narayan from Coca-Cola India along with Mumbai-based agency, Design Orb.

Conference on trends in energy engineering

Dehradun, March 23
A two-day All India National Conference on ‘The emerging trends in energy engineering’ began at the Dehradun Institute of Technology (DIT) here today. The conference aims at providing a common platform to researchers, academicians and industrial experts to share their knowledge and expertise in the field of energy engineering and formulate recommendations for the implementation by stakeholders.
The conference is being jointly organised by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, and the Uttarakhand State Council for Science and Technology (UCOST). The event would witness participation of experts, researchers, scientists, professors and students from all across the country.
Dr Krishna Kumar, Executive-Director, DIT, said, “Modern world is unimaginable without energy. It is of paramount importance that adequate efforts should be made to increase the generation of energy to cope up with the rapid expansion of the industrial sector. Research in the field of generation and management of energy is the need of the hour. Therefore, we are organising this conference to provide a platform to experts and researchers in the multidisciplinary fields to meet and discuss the related issues and challenges,” he added.
Dr JS Raini, an expert in thermal energy and a faculty at DIT, asserted that the conference would draw excellent response from researchers from all over the country. “35 research papers out of 100 have been selected to be presented at the conference. These research papers are related to engineering areas, including energy resources, energy efficiency and management, heat transfer and fluid flow, energy storage and many others. The convention would serve as a useful forum for the exchange of ideas and views of technical experts and students,” he emphasised.

‘Weather watch group to benefit farm sector’ in India

Dehradun, March 23
Setting up of mandatory crop weather watch group will greatly benefit Uttarakhand in increasing its agriculture yield in the state. This was stated by Director, Dehradun Meteorological Centre, Dr Anand Sharma, while interacting with the The Tribune on World Meteorological Organisation Day today.
He said several states of the country had the mandatory crop weather watch group that was proving useful for the agriculture sector.
The group that comprises stakeholders linked to agriculture like irrigation, power, seed resources, weather and others, holds regular meetings in order to have a look at all factors that affect the agriculture and take necessary measures. “The state needs to have such groups for strengthening its agriculture sector,” said Dr Sharma.
Referring to the role of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) in the country, he said the IMD was providing services in almost every sector of the economy such as food security, transport, health, tourism, management of water energy and other resources in environment monitoring and protection, disaster management and in the sustainable development. “We have to make judicious use of the climate information and services to maximise benefits and minimise risks”, he said, adding that timely forecast in the state had helped prevent hazards from turning into disasters.
Dr Sharma also held that the centre had been receiving appreciation for its services from all quarters. “Very recently we received a letter of appreciation from Uttarakhand Chief Electoral Officer Radha Raturi for the weather forecast details provided to the commission in the recently concluded Assembly elections in the state,” he stated. He said even the External Affairs Ministry and Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force had lauded their services linked to weather forecast during Kailash Mansarovar Yatra every year.
Meanwhile, the meteorological centre was open today for students and general public as a part of the day. Students who visited the centre in big numbers were informed about various issues related to atmospheric sciences. They also had a look on the meteorological instruments.

2 booked for hacking kin’s facebook account

Chandigarh, March 23
The UT police has booked two residents of Karnal for hacking the facebook account of a person and posting obscene comments and pictures on it. Sahil Pandhir and Neeraj Pandhir, both residents of Old Housing Board Colony, Karnal (Haryana), have been booked for hacking the account of the complainant’s son and posting obscene comments of her daughter on it.
A case under Section 66 of the Information Technology Act has been registered in the police station of Sector 17.
The hacking came to light when the brother of the woman in Sector 22 started receiving dirty phone calls and then noticed comments of facebook visitors on his account.
Neeraj Pandhir is the husband of the woman.
The police said a matrimonial dispute between Neeraj and his wife was already pending with the crime against women cell (CAW) of the Chandigarh police. Though Neeraj is pursuing his engineering in a private institute at Rohtak, co-accused Neeraj is studying in Chandigarh. Police sources said the suspects had hacked the his brother-in-law’s facebook account from their computer in Rohtak. 

EcoSikh ropes in gurdwaras for green drive

Chandigarh, March 23
Ecosikh, an organisation working to check pollution, has said it had persuaded over a thousand gurdwaras to plant trees.
Ravneet Singh, who is Ecosikh project director (India), said thousands of saplings were planted over the last one week in various gurdwaras across the country following an initiative by the organisation.
Singh said the Ecosikh, which had its branches in various countries, was committed to enhance the green cover in states like Punjab, which were highly deficient in this regard. He said responding to their appeal, the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee had agreed to turn all gurdwaras in Delhi into “green places of worship”.
The Ecosikh said Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee chief Paramjit Singh Sarna had promised to use solar energy in all gurdwaras in Delhi and also to stop the use of plastic disposables at such places. Besides planting trees, the managements will also hold prayers on a daily basis for the betterment of the ecosystem.

More uranium trouble for Punjab

New Delhi,India - March 23
The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre has found traces of uranium in groundwater in regions beyond Malwa. The government has confirmed that traces of radioactive elements were detected in samples collected from 13 new districts, including Tarn Taran, Moga, Barnala, Sangrur, Ludhiana, Fatehgarh Sahib, Mohali, Ropar, Nawanshehar, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Amritsar and Pathankot.
Reaching beyond established problem areas of Bathinda, Mansa, Faridkot and Ferozepur, BARC collected 92 samples from 13 new districts under a collaborative project with Guru Nanak Dev University. The uranium content in these samples varied between 0.1 and 153 ppb (parts per billion), Minister of state in PMO V Narayanasamy told the Rajya Sabha in response to a question by nominated member HK Dua yesterday.
Narayanasamy, in fact, urged Punjab to conduct epidemiological studies at its population-based cancer registry in Patiala to ascertain whether presence of uranium in sub-soils could be a cause for high prevalence of cancer in the region.
Though BARC has not carried out studies related to high prevalence of cancer in the region, Narayanasamy struck an assuring note by saying that several studies focusing on health effects had been carried out in Finland among people who use drilled wells as source of drinking water, “having uranium concentrations much higher than that observed in the Malwa region”.
“These include case-cohort studies of uranium intake and risks of leukaemia, stomach and urinary tract cancers as well as chemical toxicity studies of uranium intake and renal and bone effects. Nevertheless, none of the human studies reported so far has shown a clear association between chronic uranium exposure and cancer risk, clinical symptoms, or toxicity,” the minister declared.
Gopal Krishna of the Toxics Watch Alliance, however, is certain that exposure to uranium at every level is unsafe.
“Uranium is an endocrine-disrupting chemical and populations exposed to environmental uranium must be followed for increased risk of fertility problems and reproductive cancers,” says Krishna.
In 2009, BARC, in collaboration with GNDU, had collected water samples from Bathinda, Mansa, Faridkot and Ferozepur, detecting “elevated” levels of uranium concentration ranging from 2.1 to 644 ppb in 520 samples. 

3 killed in snowmobile crash near Wainwright, Alta.

Three people were killed in a snowmobile crash near Wainwright, Alta., Wednesday night.

RCMP said four snowmobiles were heading east around 9:45 p.m. when they went off a six-metre embankment and crashed onto the highway near the town of Edgerton.

"Part of it, we believe, is that they didn't think they were as close to the highway as they were," said Cpl. Jerry Nutbrown. "We think they had lost their bearings a little bit in the area they were at."

A 24-year-old woman and two men in their 20s died at the scene. Two others were treated at the hospital in Provost and released.

"It's a big tragedy. Edgerton's a small town," Nutbrown said.

Edgerton Mayor Barbara Sjoquist says the community is trying to come to terms with the loss.

"When any tragedy happens, whether it's one individual or three, it definitely impacts the entire community," she said. "We know each other. People feel it and they reach out to the families and they reach out to each other."

RCMP said alcohol is not believed to be a factor in the crash. However, police noticed a case of beer strapped to one of the snowmobiles.

The medical examiner is expected to perform tests to determine the victims' level of alcohol consumption.

Spring snowy blast blew into Edmonton

A man walks across the High Level Bridge in the heavy snowfall today. Photo taken in Edmonton, Alberta on March 22, 2012.

World Water Day: What’s your water footprint?

Did you know it takes about 1,500 litres of water to produce one kilogram of wheat, and 10 times that amount — 15,000 litres — to produce the same amount of beef?

The United Nations is drawing attention to numbers like these as it marks World Water Day Thursday.

As the world’s population grows, so too does the global demand for food and water. This year’s theme, water and food security, highlights the global need to produce food with less water.

Consider this:

If you take a whole-wheat bun from Saskatchewan, add an all-beef patty from Alberta, and top it off with some slices of Ontario cheese, you’ll end up with a hamburger that required 2,400 litres of water, according to Canada Water Week.

Even though a person needs to drink about 3 litres of water each day, the amount that goes into producing daily food intake worldwide is between 2,000 litres and 5,000 litres. In fact, about 90 per cent of the water a person consumes comes from the food they eat or the water used to make it.

And, the average water footprint for a Canadian is 6,392 litres a day — that’s the total volume of freshwater used to produce the goods and services we consume.

Here’s the down low on H2O:

70 per cent of the world’s water is used for agriculture

1,755 litres of water required to make one sausage.

160 litres of water is used to produce one large banana

230 litres of water are used to make one 200-ml glass of apple juice.

1,040 litres of water are used for 1 kg of potato chips

50 litres of water is used to produce one tomato; about 530 litres to produce 1 kg of tomato ketchup

500 litres of water goes into producing 100 grams of cheese

1,260 litres of water goes into one margherita pizza

120 litres of water is used to make a 125-ml glass of wine

74 litres of water is used to make a 250-ml glass of beer

30 litres of water is required to grow enough tea leaves to make a single cup of tea

30 percent of the food produced worldwide is lost or wasted every year.

50 per cent reduction of food losses and waste at the global level would save 1,350 cubic kms of water a year. (By comparison, the volume of Lake Ontario is 1,640 cubic kms.)

Sources: United Nations, Canada Water Week, Water Footprint Network and One Drop.

Reduce waste, recycle food, reuse water and review menu planning.

Those are some words of advice from Montreal chef François Martin, director of food services at Cirque du Soleil.

“Don’t waste food,” implores the chef, noting that tossing out food items is akin to wasting countless litres of water.

He suggests crumbling up old muffins and re-using them to bake a cake or a fresh batch; recycling leftover Shepherd’s Pie into a soup; and saving the water used to cook pasta and reusing it in soups, bouillons and sauces.

Carefully planning upcoming meals before going grocery shopping should help cut food waste, he says. That is, provided that you don’t end up eating out for dinner.

Martin became aware of his water footprint after getting involved with ONE DROP, a non-governmental organization started by Cirque founder Guy Laliberté that is committed to fighting poverty by supporting access to water.

Martin says he’s become much more conscientious about his water use and food consumption, opting to use more grains and cereals in his recipes because their production requires less water.

To help mark World Water Day, Martin developed low-water recipes for ONE DROP as part of an initiative called, ‘There’s Water on Our Plates.’ The awareness campaign is aimed at making people aware about their food choices and promoting eco-friendly food behaviours.

The Amazing story of Mumbai Dabbawalas..!!

Four thousand five hundred semi-literate dabbawalas collect and deliver 175,000 packages within hours. What should we learn from this unique, simple and highly efficient 120-year-old logistics system?

The Dabbawalas who provide a lunch delivery service in Mumbai have been in the business for over 100 years. In 1998, Forbes Global magazine conducted an analysis and gave them a Six Sigma rating of efficiency.

The system the dabbawalas have developed over the years revolves around strong teamwork and strict time-management. At 9am every morning, home-made meals are picked up in special boxes, which are loaded onto trolleys and pushed to a railway station. They then make their way by train to an unloading station. The boxes are rearranged so that those going to similar destinations, indicated by a system of coloured lettering, end up on the same trolley. The meals are then delivered—99.9999% of the time, to the right address.

Harvard Business School has produced a case study of the dabbawalas, urging its students to learn from the organisation, which relies entirely on human endeavour and employs no technology.

"A model of managerial and organizational simplicity" says  Ck Prahlad for the dabbawalas

Six sigma performance

Every day, battling the traffic and crowds of Mumbai city, the Dabbawalas^, also known as Tiffin wallahs^,  unfailingly delivered thousands of dabbas to hungry people and later returned the empty dabbas to where they came from. The Dabbawalas delivered either home-cooked meals from clients' homes or lunches ordered for a monthly fee, from women who cook at their homes according to the clients' specifications. The Dabbawalas' service was used by both working people and school children.

• In 1998, Forbes Global magazine, conducted a quality assurance study on the Dabbawalas' operations and gave it a Six Sigma efficiency rating of 99.999999; the Dabbawalas made one error in six million transactions.
• In 1998, two Dutch filmmakers, Jascha De Wilde and Chris Relleke made a documentary called 'Dabbawallahs, Mumbai's unique lunch service'.
• In July 2001, The Christian Science Monitor, an international newspaper published from Boston, Mass., USA, covered the Dabbawalas in an article called 'Fastest Food: It's Big Mac vs. Bombay's dabbawallahs'.
• In 2002, Jonathan Harley, a reporter, did a story on the Dabbawalas with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). In 2003, BBC also aired a program on the Dabbawalas, which was part of a series on unique businesses of the world.
• In 2003, Paul S. Goodman and Denise Rousseau, both faculty at the Graduate School of Industrial Administration of Carnegie Mellon University, made their first full-length documentary called 'The Dabbawallas'. Instead of asking how knowledge in developing countries can help less developed countries, this film focuses on how developed countries can learn from less developed countries".
• Back home, the Dabbawalas were invited to speak at Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) meets and at leading Indian business schools such as IIM, Bangalore and Lucknow.

The organisation structure and the working style..

The Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers' Charity Trust had a very flat structure with only three levels, the Governing Council, the Mukadams and the Dabbawalas . From the Governing Council, a President and a Secretary were elected. The Governing Council held meetings once a month which were attended by the Mukadams and Dabbawalas. At these meetings, the Dabbawalas discussed their problems and explored possible solutions. The problems could be with the police, municipal corporation, customers, etc. They also adjudicated disputes among Dabbawalas using their own system. The Trust collected Rs.15 from each Dabbawala every month to maintain a welfare fund...

Here is a video of "A day in the life of Mumbai Dabbawalas." .This will give you a clear picture about their efforts and their working style.

Uninterrupted services

Would you expect your tiffin man to deliver tiffin to you on a heavy monsoon day?

The answer would be No.  Except for people using the dabbawalas service. Because they have  a record of uninterrupted even on the days of severe weather such as Mumbai's characteristic monsoons. The local dabbawalas at the receiving and the sending ends are known to the customers personally, so that there is no question of lack of trust.

Team work

The entire system depends on teamwork and meticulous timing. Tiffins are collected from homes between 7.00 am and 9.00 am, and taken to the nearest railway station. At various intermediary stations, they are hauled onto platforms and sorted out for area-wise distribution, so that a single tiffin could change hands three to four times in the course of its daily journey.

At Mumbai's downtown stations, the last link in the chain, a final relay of dabbawalas fan out to the tiffins' destined bellies. Lunch hour over, the whole process moves into reverse and the tiffins return to suburban homes by 6.00 pm.

Elegant logistics

In the dabbawalas' elegant logistics system, using 25 kms of public transport, 10 km of footwork and involving multiple transfer points, mistakes rarely happen. According to a Forbes 1998 article, one mistake for every eight million deliveries is the norm. How do they achieve virtual six-sigma quality with zero documentation? For one, the system limits the routing and sorting to a few central points. Secondly, a simple color code determines not only packet routing but packet prioritising as lunches transfer from train to bicycle to foot.

So friends what all can you learn from them? Aren't they great..!!!

In this high technologically advanced time these people are working absolutely without it. They have an excellent supply chain, they dont even know what it means. Most of the people working with them are semi-literate but still they read the tiffin code correctly and deliver it Their attitude of competitive collaboration is equally unusual, particularly in India. 

The operation process is competitive at the customers' end but united at the delivery end, ensuring their survival since a century and more. Is their business model worth replicating in the digital age is the big question.

There are many more things to learn from them..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dabbawala