E Paper Feb. 16, 2009

VOL: 2 ISSUE 40

Feb. 16, 2009

Big allocation for flagship schemes, no tinkering in tax rates New Delhi Feb.16 : Refraining from tinkering with tax and duty

rates in the interim Budget,

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Monday made a huge allocation of R s 30,100 crore to Govern ment's flagship r u r a l employ m e n t program me and m a n y other scheme s in a bid t o counter the economic recession.

Despite the fact that revised estimates for tax collections during 2008-09 is projected at Rs 627,949 crore as against the budget estimate of Rs 687,715 crore, the Minister resisted the temptation of giving sops since it is an interim budget with General Elections just a few months away. In view of the fact that security environment has d e t e r i o r a t e d considerably with the Mumbai terror attacks giving an entirely new dimension to cross-

Interim Budget raises defence outlay by 34% New Delhi, Feb. 16, Pranab Mukherjee has presented the interim budget in the Lok Sabha for the next fiscal. There were expectations that measures would be announced to cushion the impact of global meltdown on the Indian economy, and help revive consumer demand, but no major announcement was made, ( Watch ) The exercise began with Mukherjee reading out his budget speech in the Lok Sabha, during which he sought approval to finance the government's expenditure, till such time the regular budget is presented by a new government after elections, and passed by Parliament. The speech largely fell short of expectations with no major sops being announced by the stand-in finance minister. Despite the fact that revised estimates for tax collections during 2008-09 is projected at Rs 627,949 crore as against

the budget estimate of Rs 687,715 crore, the minister resisted the temptation of giving sops since it is an interim budget with general elections just a few months away. One of the key highlights of the interim Budget was the allocation to defence with the govt increasing the defence expenditure to Rs 1,41,703 crore. Mukherjee said the increased plan expenditure for defence this year would be Rs 86,879 crore. Last year's plan expenditure was only Rs 73,600 crore, thereby providing an increase of Rs 13,279 crore this year. " M u m b a i attacks have given a new dimension to crossborder terrorism. In this context, I propose to raise defence allocation to Rs.1,41,703 crore," said Mukherjee. I n o t h e r highlights, Pranab Mukherjee announced an

extension of interest subsidies to debt-hit farmers, one of the first measures in his budget speech. H e a l s o announced that the India Infrastructure Finance Company will raise Rs 10,000 crore from the market by end of March 2009. India Infrastructure Finance Company will finance 60 percent of commercial loans in private public partnership in critical projects, he said. The organisation is to raise Rs 30,000 crore from the market in the next fiscal year. The finance minister refrained from tinkering with tax and duty rates in the interim Budget and made a huge allocation of Rs 30,100 crore to Government's f l a g s h i p r u r a l employment programme and many other schemes in a bid to counter the economic recession. - Agencies

border terrorism, the Budget increased the allocation for defence to Rs 141,703 crore including Rs 54,824 c r o r e c a p i t a l expenditure. Aiming at enhancing expenditure on schemes to provide employment and lift the

economy, the interim Budget for 2009-10 has planned a total expenditure of Rs 953,231 crore comprising Rs 285,149 crore in plan and Rs 668,082 crore in nonplan spending. To counter the negative impact on

exports due to the global economic crisis, the interest subvention of two per cent on pre and post shipment for certain employment sectors is proposed to be extended. - Agencies

Fiscal deficit quadruples New Delhi, Feb. 16 The interim Budget presented in the Parliament on Monday indicated that the revenue deficit quadrupled due to the impact of the fiscal stimulus to various sectors. Mukherjee extended a Rs 40,000 crore relief through tax

cuts to counter economic slowdown. I n d i a ' s economy has slipped from a growth rate of about nine per cent in the past three years, but still looks healthy compared with most developed economies, many of which are in recession. Policymakers and analysts say the

country needs to grow at 8.0-9.0 per cent per year on a sustained basis to wipe out mass poverty and promote employment. If economic expansion slips below six per cent as some economists expect in 2009-10, it could lead to more unemployment. - Agencies

Budget fails to address recession: Opposition parties New Delhi, Feb. 16 : The interim budget presented by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee had failed to address the economic recession, most opposition parties, including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left, said Monday. Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Basudeb Acharya said the budget did not address the key issues facing the country. "There is nothing in the interim budget to address the major problems being faced by the nation, including job cuts and other implications of the economic meltdown." He added that what acting finance minister Mukherjee had presented was a "repetition of President Pratibha Patil's opening address to the budget

session" of parliament. According to Communist Party of India (CPI) leader Gurudas Dasgupta: "It is an election budget; it is a Sonia (Gandhi) budget and the platform of the parliament has been misused to launch the (Congress party's) election crusade." Expressing his party's disappointment, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the interim budget aimed to confuse the people of the country. " I t i s a temporary budget by a temporary central government and a temporary finance minister. Instead of giving any relief to the common man, the budget aims to confuse people," Naqvi said. The budget

"does not reflect any economic stability and has been prepared keeping in view the upcoming Lok Sabha elections", he added. Convenor of the BJP-led National Democratic Aliance (NDA), Sharad Yadav of the Janata Dal-United, said the government had claimed that "it had done lots of things for youth, farmers and aam aadmi (common man). Actually, it has not done anything at all for these sections". He described it as a "desperate budget". Samajwadi Party MP Ramji Lal Suman welcomed the budget but said the government should have give more attention of agriculture. "Farmers should be given more power and water at cheap rates," he said. - Agencies

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DMK Youth wing to organise statewide human chain on Feb 21 Chennai, Feb 16: The Youth wing of the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu today decided to

organise a state-wide human chain rally on February 21 to espouse the cause of Sri Lankan Tamils. Protests and demonstrations for the cause of the Lankan Tamils were again picking up in the state with the ruling DMK and opposition parties, barring the AIADMK, vying with each other in organising protest demonstrations, demanding ceasefire in Lanka. After Union Home Minister P Chidambaram suggested last night that both the Lankan forces and the LTTE should come forward for cessation of hostilities, the DMK youth wing called for a human chain rally in support of the view expressed by the Minister. DMK Treasurer and Youth wing secretary M K Stalin, in a statement here, said ''As Mr

Chidambaram had pointed out, there can be a ceasefire in true sense only if both the parties, involved in the war (Lankan forces and the LTTE) come forward to lay down arms.'' ''The youth wing of the DMK calls upon both the parties to end hostilities and save the innocent Tamils,'' he said, adding to press the point that the party volunteers would join hands throughout the state at 1600 hrs on February 21. The Sri Lankan Tamils Welfare and Rights Forum, constituted by the DMK executive on February 3 to take up the cause of Lankan Tamils and the sub-committee formed to mobile world support, pledged support to the human chain rally. The Sri Lankan Ta m i l s P r o t e c t i o n Committee, an umbrella organisation formed by the opposition parties, including the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), Marumalarchi DMK (MDMK), CPI and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) has called for a human chain rally tomorrow. This committee, however, demanded that there should be an immediate ceasefire and the Indian government should prevail upon the Lankan government to declare

ceasefire. T h e Committee, however, do not subscribe to the view that the LTTE should lay down arms. Committee coordinator and Tamil National Movement leader P Nedumaran had said there was no question of LTTE laying down arms as a precondition for ceasefire as it would help the Lankan forces to wipe out the Tamils. M r Chidambaram, while addressing a public meeting here last night, said the LTTE should lay down arms or at least declare it, so that the Indian government would exert pressure on the Lankan government to declare ceasefire and bring both the parties to the negotiating table to find a solution. Meanwhile, a group of lawyers today burnt their Voter Identity cards, driving home the point that they no more wanted to be Indian citizens, when their brethern were getting killed in Lanka and the Indian government remaining ''mute spectators.'' Hunger strikes and mass prayers were also held in other parts of Tamil Nadu, demanding the ceasefire. - Agencies

Prof M Viswanathan Gold Medal award conferred on Seth chennai,Feb 16: The National Programme for Prevention and Control of diabetes, Cardiovascular and stroke, which was launched last year, would

be implemented across the country in a phased manner,Dr N K Sethi, M D Advisor (Health) Planning Commission of India, said on Sunday The Central Government had allocated Rs 1,660.50 crore in this regard, said Sethi, who was conferred the Prof M Viswanathan Gold Medal award by M V Hospital for Diabetes, the WHO collaborating centre for Research and Education

and Training in Diabetes at a function here. " I n d i a i s experiencing a rapid epidemilogical transition, w i t h a large and r i s i n g burden of chronic diseases, w h i c h w e r e estimated to account for 53 per cent of all deaths and 44 per cent of Disability Adjusted Life Years (DAYS) lost in 2005". Sethi said the burden of cardiovascular diseases was rising in India and it may become the largest cause of death and disability by 2015. Elango also conferred lifetime achievement awards on Dr Binode Kumar Sahay, senior consultant

physician and diabetologist, Hyderabad a n d D r C Munichoodappa, P h y s i c a n a n d diabetologists, Managing D i r e c t o r, B a n g a l o r e Hospital for their exemplary contributions towards diabetes care in India. Dr B Kasinath, professor of medicine, University of Texas, US on 'Recent Advances in Undertaking and Treatment of Diabetic Nephropathy', received the DRC Gold Medal Oration award-2008. K a s i n a t h highlighted the growing prevalence of kidney failure among people with diabetes. Earlier Dr S Elango, Director of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Tamil Nadu Government, conferred the award on Sethi for his contributions to medical science during 2008. - Bureau Report

Feb. 16, 2009

MK resumes official work with final touches to the budget Chennai, Feb 16: Ta m i l N a d u C h i e f Minister M Karunanidhi, who is recuperating after undergoing a spine surgery on February 11, today virtually resumed official work, by giving final touches to the State Budget to be presented in the assembly tomorrow. The Chief Minister who was shifted from the Intensive Care Unit(ICU) on Februry 13, after he underwent the L u m b a r C a n a l Decompression(LCD) surgery on Februray 11 at Sri Ramachandra Medical College Hospital at suburban Porur ''is recovering good'' and virtually taken up some official work, sources said. This morning,

the Octogenarian Chief Minister went through the budget proposals for the year 2009-10 and gave his final touches. The budget is to be presented tomorrow by his senior colleague and Finance Minister K Anbazhagan in the House. A s M r Karunanidhi would not be able to make it to the House tomorrow, when the budget is presented, Mr Anbazhagan is likely to receive the budget papers from the hands of Chief Minister and seek his blessings at the hospital, before proceeding to the Assembly to present the same. T h e D M K Government is presenting the budget,

this year, at least a month in advance, in view of the coming Lok Sabha elections. The shadow of the Lok Sabha poll is expected to cast on the budget proposals and the Government is expected to come out with welfare schemes for the people. Last year the budget for the year 200809 was presented by Mr Anbazhagan on March 20. C h i e f Orthopaedic Surgeon S S K Marthandam, heading a team of doctors, had on Februry 13, said that the Chief Minister looked cheerful and keen on resuming his normal work at the earliest, though doctors advised him to take rest for few more days. - Agencies

Barnala commissions new war ships, inspects guard of honour Chennai, Feb 16: Ta m i l N a d u Governor Surjit Singh Barnala today commissioned two new war ships into the Indian Navy and inspected a ceremonial guard of honour at the Chennai Port. I N S C a r Nicobar and INS Chetlat were the first in the class of Water Jet Propelled Fast Attack Crafts, conceived designed and built indigeneously by the Kolkata-based GRSE Limited. The ships were about 52 metres long with a displacement of 325 tonnes and a speed upto 30 knots. The ships had advanced MTU engines and the latest communication sets and they were built for

extended coastal and o f f s h o r e surveillance/patrol. The ships would be based at the Chennai port under the Naval Officer-in-Charge (Tamil Nadu) and would enhance the force levels for the coastal security of Tamil Nadu. Addressing the function, the Governor said the two ships, named after islands of A n d a m a n a n d Lakshadweep, would strengthen the defence of this region. The Fast Attack Crafts were most suited for interception of fast moving enemy surface craft, apart from performing antismuggling, fisheries protection, as well as in search and rescue

operation in coastal waters, Mr Baranala said. The Governor said the nation was firmly committed to peace. ''We stand as a symbol for peaceful co-existence and for friendly relations with the neighbouring countries. But we are not silent spectators to any threat to our territorial integrity and national unity'', the Governor added. He said the move of by outside elements in indulging and encouraging violence to disrupt and destablise the country's economy should be nipped in the bud. ''Our defence forces have proved their mettle and are a shining example of vigour and valour'', Mr Barnala added. - Agencies

Differently abled black belt Bal for world karate meet Chennai, Feb 16 : There cannot be a more typical example for the popular adage where there's will, there is a way, than 16 year-old differently abled Gujarat boy Srimanth Bal, who is all set to represent India in the forthcoming world karate championships in Isshinryu style, at Pittsburg in United States. S i g n i f i c a n t l y, rather ubelievably, Bal will be taking on regular (able bodied) karatekas in his bid to win the world crown, according to his 'guru' Shihan Hussaini, an eighth dan black belt

and President of the All India Isshiryu Karate Association. Five years ago, Bal could not even walk five steps without help, Hussaini said. Hussaini, who o r g a n i s e d a demonstration by Bal here this morning of taking on able bodied karatekas, said the Gujarat boy could ''rise above his disability'', thanks to karate therapy in his training school. ''Eleven years ago his parents contacted me after learning about this therapy through internet and sent the boy here'',

he said. Hussaini said Bal had made remarkable progress in karate in the last five years and became a black belt. ''As part of the black belt test, Srimanth was required to jog 25 km non-stop and do endurance repetitions hundreds of times.'' ''He had to do open hand katas, weapons and sparring correctly'', he pointed out. Hussaini said karate training has put Bal on to a miraculous road to recovery and control of his limbs. ''He was severely affected by Qudruplegia'', he added. - Agencies

Feb. 16, 2009

Times Chennai E-Paper

Highlights of interim budget Following are the highlights of the interim budget presented by Minister for External Affairs Pranab Mukherjee in the Lok Sabha on Monday: * Plan expenditure for 2009-10 pegged at Rs.952,231 crore (Rs.9.52 trillion) * Budgetary support for 2009-10 at Rs.2,85,149 crore (Rs.2.85 trillion), 17.16 percent * Additional plan expenditure between 0.5 percent to 1 percent of GDP may be considered * Fiscal deficit forecast 5.5 percent of GDP for 2009-10 * Revenue deficit forecast 4 percent of GDP for 2009-10 * Subsidy for food, fertiliser and petroleum at Rs.95,579 crore * Defence allocation increased to Rs.141,703 crore (Rs.1.417 trillion) * Urban renewal spending pegged at Rs.11,842 crore (Rs.118.42 billion) * Rural sanitation spending at Rs.1,200 crore (Rs.12 billion) * National rural health mission spending at Rs.12,070 crore (Rs.120.7 billion) * Rural infrastructure development outlay at Rs.14,000 crore (Rs.140 billion) * Midday meal scheme spending at Rs.8,000 crore (Rs.80 billion) * India remains second-fastest growing economy in the world * Economy expected to grow 7.1 percent this fiscal * Need to make economic growth inclusive * Government spent Rs.70,000 crore (Rs.700 billion) on 37 infrastructure projects in 2008-09 * Under public-private partnership (PPP), 54 central infrastructure projects approved * Total expenditure of PPP projects estimated at Rs.67,700 crore (Rs.677 billion) * India Infrastructure Finance Company to raise Rs.10,000 crore (Rs.100 billion) by end-March * India has weathered inflation crisis, but no room for complacency * Country's agriculture outlook is encouraging * Focussed attention to agriculture * Plan allocation for farm sector hiked 300 percent in past five years * Three-fold increase in short-term agriculture credit to Rs.250,000 crore (Rs.2.5 trillion) * Farm debt worth Rs.65,300 crore (Rs.653 billion) waived * Government will continue to provide additional subsidy to farmers * Corpus of Rural Infrastructure Development Fund hiked to Rs.14,000 crore (Rs.140 billion) from Rs.5,500 crore (Rs.55 billion) * Outlay for higher education hiked 900 percent for 11th Five Year Plan * Country's social security net will be strengthened * New scheme unveiled for young widows in the age group of 18-40 * New disability pension scheme introduced for age group of 18-40 * 15 point programme for welfare of minorities set up * Record foreign direct investment of $32.4 billion attracted * Global economic situation not encouraging * Extraordinary situation merits extraordinary measures * Need to consider additional fiscal measures in regular budget * Financial sector reforms need to be accelerated * Non-performing assets (NPAs) of public sector banks have declined * State-run banks see NPAs drop from 7.8 percent to 2.3 percent in four years * Number of loss-making state-run units down from 73 to 58 * Profit-making units up from 143 units to 158 units * In past three years, India grew by average of over 9 percent * Per capita income expanded by 4.7 percent per annum * Fiscal deficit was brought down from 4.5 percent to 2.7 percent * Revenue deficit was cut from 3.6 percent to 1.1 percent * Exports increased 26.4 percent per annum * Foreign trade increased from 27.3 percent to 35.5 percent * Tax to gross domestic product ratio expanded by 9.2 to 12.5 percent * Agriculture grew by 3.7 percent per annum * Revised estimates for 2009-09 peg plan expenditure at Rs.282,957 crore (Rs.2.83 trillion) * Central plan increased for host of areas like telecom, rural development * Tax collections expected to fall to Rs.627,949 crore (Rs.6.28 trillion) * Revised revenue deficit is 4.4 percent of GDP against 1 percent * Revised fiscal deficit at 6 percent of GDP against 2.5 percent

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Industry disappointed, says interim budget a non-event New Delhi, Feb. 16 : India Inc on Monday gave a thumbs down to the interim budget 2009-10, proposed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, saying it is a non-event and more of a political statement. " I t w a s completely (a) nonevent. It was (more a) political statement than (an) interim budget.

There was nothing for any sector, forget about real estate," Parsvnath Developers Chairman Pradeep Jain said. Expressing similar sentiments, Kotak Mahindra Bank Managing Director Uday Kotak said, "Acting finance minister Pranab Mukherjee has stuck to w h a t i s g o o d convention." TCS ED and

CFO S Mahalingam said there were two stimulus packages given in the past couple of months and they were going to stay as they were. "I am disappointed," he added. Stating that the government did not have much of a choice, Hinduja Group CFO Prabal Banerjee said: "They did what they could best do." - Agencies

RTI brought more accountability in public servants: Pranab New Delhi Feb. 16 : The Right to Information Act has brought about greater accountability among public servants, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Monday. Presenting the Interim Budget in Lok Sabha, he said the enactment of the Act by the Centre and many

states has "bridged a critical gap in the public decision-making process and ushered in greater accountability of public servants." He said the Second Administrative Reforms Commission had brought out a number of reports with " p r a c t i c a l recommendations, providing a starting point

for improving efficiency in the delivery of public services." The Commission was set up in August 2005 with a mandate to suggest measures to achieve "a pro-active, responsive, accountable, sustainable and efficient administration for the country at all levels of the government," Mukherjee said. - Agencies

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Feb. 16, 2009

Browsing child porn will land you in jail Train movement resumes on Howrah-Chennai route Bhubaneswar, Feb. 16: Train movement resumed on the busy Howrah-Chennai route on completion of restoration work on Saturday, a day after the Coromandel Express mishap that claimed nine lives even as a high-level team is likely to visit the site soon to ascertain cause of the derailment. "Both the tracks were thrown open to traffic as the restoration work, which would have taken about 72 hours, was completed in just 36 hours due to guidance of top officials, sincere efforts by railway staff and

cooperation of local people," an East Coast Railway official said. About 500 personnel with sophisticated equipment had been pressed to clear the debris and restore the tracks as rails of about half-a-kilometre stretch had been damaged under the impact of derailment near Jajpur, about 100 km from here on Saturday, sources said. Apart from men and machines of railways, Tata Steel, Jindal Group, Orissa Disaster Rapid Action Force had chipped in to

rescue provided aid and mangled said.

to injured, them medical also clear the bogies, they

Meanwhile, an inquiry is likely to begin in a day or two at the mishap site as part of the high-level probe ordered by Railways. Nine persons were killed and over 150 injured as 14 bogies of the Howrah-Chennai Coromandel Express derailed leading to cancellation of about two dozen trains and diversion of more than 20. - Agencies

Assam on a mission to be first cleft lip free state Guwahati: Feb. 16 Assam has embarked on a mission to become the first state in the country to be free from cleft lip and palate deformities within the next two years. Operation Smile India (OSI), an organisation conducting corrective surgeries, will work in partnership with the state government to set up a permanent cleft care centre at the Mahendra Mohan Choudhury Hospital here, OSI Chairman Ranjit Borthakur said. " W e h a v e

selected MMCH as it has the best infrastructure in comparison to other states of the country and our organisation's mission is to make the state first in the country to be free from such deformities," he said. Borthakur suggested that the centre be named North East Centre for Cleft Development and Training to widen its ambit. Operation Smile India will help the state health department by running regular training camps to hone the skills of medical

volunteers. Assam Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarmah said that more than 500 children with deformities have turned up at MMCH, but currently only 200 surgeries could be performed. "As the rest will have to go back, we have requested OSI to undertake another round of surgery in the last week of May. We assure t h e m t h a t o u r involvement will be more intense both physically and financially," he said. - Agencies

Maha minister hits tribal woman Nagpur: Feb. 16: Maharashtra’s Tribal Affairs Minister Vijay Vadetivar has landed in a soup for allegedly hitting a tribal woman in Nagpur. According to reports, the incident took place when the minister lost his cool after an altercation with the tribal

woman, who is a district Congress leader, over some issues. The minister then threw a bundle of files at the woman, who lost consciousness immediately. The woman was then rushed to a near by hospital for medical aid.

The tribal woman is still in hospital but said to be out of danger. No police complaint has been lodged against the m i n i s t e r, w h o h a s categorically denied hitting the woman. - Agencies

Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s condition improving New Delhi, Feb 15: The pneumonic infection of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Va j p a y e e , w h o i s undergoing treatment at AIIMS, is under control and he is doing well without ventilatory support, a senior doctor said on Monday. "He is fully conscious and breathing on his own. The infection is

under control. We are waiting for the chest to clear now. We have kept him under observation," Dr Sampath Kumar, chief of Cardio Thoracic Va s c u l a r S c i e n c e s Department at the hospital, told a news agency. Kumar said Vajpayee is doing well without the respiratory support. "We have

removed the ventilatory support and all the basic parameters are normal," he said. The 84-year-old veteran BJP leader was admitted to AIIMS on February 3 following chest infection. He was later diagnosed with pneumonia and put on ventilatory support. -Agencies

Mumbai, Feb. 16 : The newly passed Information Technology Bill is set to make it illegal to not only create and transmit child pornography in any electronic form, but even to browse it. The punishment for a first offence of publishing, creating, exchanging, downloading or browsing any electronic depiction of children in "obscene or indecent or sexually explicit manner" can attract five years in jail and a fine of Rs 10 lakh. In its first comprehensive amendment nine years after it was first enacted, the Act proposes to bring "cyber terrorism", "identity theft" and "violation of privacy" into the domain of cyber crime. Critics of the Bill, which is awaiting Presidential assent, say it enables the government to snoop into citizens’ computers while investigating "any offence". The bill has, however, broken new ground by identifying

several new offences and making them punishable. Section 67 of the existing act deals with "publishing obscene information in electronic form". It is a generally worded section that does not specifically define "pornography" or make it an offence, and does not mention "child pornography" at all. But in its amended avatar, Section 67B proposes specifically to punish involvement in sexually explicit online or electronic content that depicts children. It will also be an offence to "cultivate, entice or induce children to online relationship with other children for a sexual act." " T h e amendments will certainly have a huge impact on the way cyber crimes are handled and investigated in India," said advocate Pavan Duggal, a cyber law specialist in Delhi. Mumbai-based cyber security expert Vijay Mukhi concurred. Both

experts noted that an offence of "cyber terrorism" punishable with life imprisonment, for instance, is a vital new addition, and that its definition is exhaustive. Duggal said, "Once the bill becomes an act, Section 67B will have a huge positive impact, primarily because India does not have a special legislation to tackle child pornography. To that extent, the new IT law is path-breaking". Legal experts note that while the amendments don’t make it illegal to view adult porn, they do make watching child porn an offence (the law would apply to "whoever creates text or digital images, collects, seeks, browses, downloads" child porn). The fear is that the section would kick in even if sites were opened accidentally, because a computer may store information about such a site being accessed. - Agencies

Fog disrupts flights at IGI New Delhi, Feb 16: Early morning fog on Monday once again disrupted operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here, affecting the schedule of around 20 d o m e s t i c a n d international flights. "About 18 flights, coming to the national capital or going out, have been delayed by upto two to three hours due to dense fog which wrapped the airport early this morning," sources at the

airport said. Two flights have to be diverted to other cities due to poor visibility at the airport, they said. The general visibility dropped to below 50 metres at around 5.30 am while the runway visibility to 100 metres, much below the required minima of 150 metres for flights to take off. Some flights landed using CAT-IIIB instrument landing system (ILS), which allows planes to land when the runway visibility

is as low as 50 metres. Fog began to develop around 4.30 am when the visibility dropped to 100 metres and the runway visibility to 250 metres. For next three hours, the general visibility remained below 50 metres while the runway visibility fluctuated between 100 metres to 150 metres. At one point, the runway visibility dropped to 75 metres at the new runway, sources said. - Agencies

Will arrange for talks if LTTE lays down arms: Chidambaram Chennai, Feb.16: India would arrange for a dialogue between Sri Lanka and LT T E t o s t o p t h e hostilities in the island nation if the government suspended military operations against the Tigers and the outfit laid down arms, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram said here on Sunday. "If this fructifies, the union government will arrange a dialogue between the two warring parties," he told a public meeting at Mylapore here yesterday night.

He said the situation in the island nation would not have reached such a grave stage had the LTTE utilised the 48-hour window period given by Sri Lanka recently to allow civilians to move to safer areas. He pointed out that India cannot directly interfere in the war against the LTTE, as demanded by some, since the country had itself not held talks with militant outfits in the North-East and Kashmir, who had refused to give

up arms. “This fact has been understood only by the DMK, Congress and AIADMK in the state," he said, adding that PMK leader Dr S Ramadoss and Viduthulai Chiruthaigal K a t c h i l e a d e r To l Tirumavalavan (pro-Eelam parties) should also try to see this viewpoint. Chidambaram opined that the LTTE would have got political status long back had they accepted the 1987 India-Sri Lanka accord. - Agencies

Feb. 16, 2009

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Feb. 16, 2009

Dashing Strauss century puts England on top St John`s, Feb 16: E n g l a n d captain Andrew Strauss put the disastrous first Test behind him as he struck 169 to lead England to an impressive

Fight for No 1 position will pressurise SA: Ponting Sydney, Feb 16: W i t h Te s t cricket`s number one position at stake, Australia skipper Ricky Ponting feels South Africa will be under more pressure than them

when the two sides clash in the return Test series. Australia, who were humiliated 1-2 at home by Greame Smith`s men last December, have a slender five-point lead going into the three-match Test series starting in Johannesburg from February 26. South Africa, following their series triumph over Australia in the one-dayers Down U n d e r, h a v e a l r e a d y cornered the top spot in the shorter version of the game. They now have a chance to snatch the top Test ranking also if they beat Australia in the home series.

"They have probably been striving for a long time to be the number one or recognised as being the number one Test team in the world," Ponting said prior to the t e a m ` s departure for South Africa. "Mayb e that will weigh on their minds more than on ours," he s a i d , stepping up the mind g a m e s started by rival captain Smith who in his column wrote he s a w a n opportunity "to open a few cracks" if his team played well in the first Test. Ponting made it clear they would do everything possible to stop Smith`s men from attaining the Test double and said the burden of expectations could go against the hosts. "With them being favourites and with a lot of expectation from their people and the crowds, then who knows, things could turn against them pretty quickly," Ponting told reporters. He also felt winning this series in South Africa would rank

alongside the 5-0 Ashes whitewash of England. "I`ve been around a long time, I`ve played a lot of games, but this will be as big a series for me as any I`ve every played in, I think," he said. The skipper also pinned his hopes on pacers Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus and Doug Bollinger to make a mark in the rainbow nation. "It`s a great opportunity here for a Siddle or a Hilfenhaus or a Bollinger to really make a name for themselves and forge their own identity at international level," said Ponting and hoped Bryce McGain`s spin could unsettle the Proteas. "It`s always nice to have a very good and highly skilled leg spinner in your side, which Bryce is. There`s every chance he could be that factor that we need over there." Ponting also said they have plans in place to nullify the threat of middle-order batsman J P Duminy. "We`ve had an opportunity to have a good look at him (Duminy) for a long period of time. We`ve got some things up our sleeve that we will be able to execute well when we get the opportunity against him over there." - Agencies

RBS blew up 200 mn pounds on Sachin and other sports stars London, Feb 16: The Royal Bank of Scotland blew up as much as 200 million pound on top sports stars, including Indian cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar, under the bank`s former chief Executive Fred Goodwin, media report says. "Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), bailed out with billions of pounds of taxpayers money, hired top sports stars on "reckless" contracts to entertain clients as part of a 200 million pound sponsorship binge," it said.

S i r F r e d Goodwin, the bank`s former chief executive, agreed contracts of up to five years just weeks before he was ousted last October, a business daily said, adding that "Sachin Tendulkar, the Indian cricket hero, signed a five-year deal, just weeks before Goodwin was ousted." RBS, which announced a 28 billion pound loss last month, the biggest in British commercial history, said it was obliged to honour deals agreed under

Goodwin. This news follows a row over RBS`s plan to defy public opinion by paying almost one billion pound in bonuses. Reacting to this J o h n M a n n M P, a member of the Treasury select committee, said: "They (RBS) have been reckless yet again. This doesn`t seem to be a bank that could do anything in moderation. It now needs to realise the golden days are over.” -Agencies

301 for three at stumps on the first day of the third Test. Strauss was ably assisted by Alastair Cook (52) and Owais Shah (57) as England bounced back from their mauling in Kingston to put themselves in a strong position at the Antigua Recreation Ground. West Indies won the first Test of the series in Jamaica by an innings after bowling England out for 51 in their second innings. After all the problems with the ground in Antigua, resulting in the second Test being abandoned, that defeat felt a long time ago but no doubt the batting collapse remained in the minds of the upper order. It took just one and a half sessions for England to show that they are a much better side than the one that surrendered so meekly at Sabina Park.

"We`ve had a hard couple of weeks. After being bowled out 51 in the last Test you want to come out and play positively and prove to everyone that as a batting unit we have a lot of good players.” "In that respect it`s very satisfying," he said. After batting all day, with 24 fours and a big six to bring up England`s hundred, Strauss looked well set to continue his innings into the second day but a tired attempted pull shot near the close resulted in a simple caught and bowled for Fidel Edwards. The game at the Antigua Recreation Ground had been hastily arranged following the abandonment of the second Test Friday after just ten balls, when the field at the Sir Vivian Richards stadium was deemed unfit. T h e replacement venue, the traditional home of Test matches on the island, provided a more intimate and authentic Caribbean cricket atmosphere and a wicket that offered plenty for strokeplayers. After rain delayed the start by 45 minutes, England made just the kind of start they needed, bringing up 40 in the first eleven overs and forcing West Indies skipper Chris Gayle to turn to spin before lunch. Jerome Taylor, who had ripped through England`s top order in Kingston, was far less of a threat against the sturdy Strauss. The largely

English crowd in a ground that had been rapidly turned from a training venue into a Test match facility, made a point of applauding as England passed the 51 mark. There was a nostalgic feel to the game with the ramshackle stands, old-fashioned West Indian food stands and an absence of giant screens and umpire referrals. But there was also something in England`s display that recalled the past. In 1994, England bounced back from a humiliating low score - 46 in Trinidad - to score 355 and 394 as they won by 208 runs with Alec Stewart commanding with two centuries. Strauss has helped his team to achieve at least the first part of that performance - bouncing back from the potentially confidence-shattering defeat. Fellow opener Alastair Cook helped put on 123 for the first wicket before Cook went caught by Devon Smith off Chris Gayle`s off-spin for 52. Strauss had survived a scare when he was dropped by Gayle at slip off Suliemen Benn. Then Owais Shah, drafted in for Ian Bell, struck a confident 57 off 100 balls before he was run out looking for a quick single. After Strauss`s departure nightwatchman James Anderson (3 not out) saw out the final overs of the evening with Kevin Pietersen (8 not out). -Agencies

Sania returns to top 100 in WTA rankings New Delhi, Feb 16: Her sizzling run at the Pattaya Open, where she made the title clash, has propelled Sania Mirza back to the top 100 as she jumped 39 places to be at 87 in the latest WTA rankings issued today. The semi-final appearance in the doubles competition at the same event also

helped Sania gain seven places and she is now 63 in the doubles ranking. Sania's ranking had plummeted to 126 as she spent almost half the 2008 season out of courts due to a wrist injury. I n t h e AT P rankings, appearance in the doubles final at the SAP Open in the United States helped Rohan

Bopanna gain seven places and he now stands at 78. H o w e v e r, t h e same result for Leander Paes at the World Tennis tournament did no help improve his current ranking of seven. M a h e s h Bhupathi, who did not play last week, remained stationary at number five. - Agencies

Bopanna-Niemenin finish runners-up at SAP Open New Delhi, Feb 16: R o h a n Bopanna and Jarrko Niemenin's dream run at the USD 600,00 SAP Open ended in disappointment as they lost the title clash 2-6, 3-6 to Germany's Tommy Haas and Czech Radek Stepanek.

The unseeded Indo-Finnish pair, who had created a flutter upsetting Mike and Bob Bryan in the quarterfinals, found the going tough against their opponents and lost the encounter in just 50 minutes. Haas and

Stepanek converted all the four breakpoints and dropped their serve to run away with the winners trophy. Bopanna and Niemenin fetched 150 ATP ranking points for their brilliant effort and split the USD 15,800 prize money between them. - Agencies

Times Chennai E-Paper

Feb. 16, 2009

Markets extend losses as Pranab presents Interim Budget Mumbai, Feb 16: I India stock markets extended losses minutes after acting Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee began presenting the Interim Budget in Parliament on Monday. The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex, which opened more than 82 points lower, was trading 141.92 points or 1.47% lower at 9,492.82 at 11:23 hrs. The broader National Stock Exchange Nifty lost -1.72% to 2897.65 points. Stock brokers said that investors were reluctant to create fresh positions ahead of the Interim Budget and even booked profits at prevailing levels in some counters, dragging the Sensex down.

They said, however, that market is likely to stage a comeback later in the day after the announcements of budgetary proposals which may unveil a stimulus package to revive economy and some sops for the corporate sector. Major losers which pulled down the Sensex were Reliance Industries by 0.79 percent to Rs 1,379.90, State Bank of India by 1.18 percent to Rs 1,179.90, Infosys Technologies by 0.53 percent to Rs 1,248, HDFC Bank by 2.17 percent to Rs 925, BHEL by 1.35 percent to Rs 1,446.95, Bharti Airtel by 2.63 percent to Rs 635 and ACC by 1.45 percent to Rs 569. In other Asian

markets, a key Japanese index, the Nikkei of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, was ruling at 7,767.41 points, 0.15 percent lower than its previous close. The Hang Seng, a key index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, was trading 1.71 percent down. In the US, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 82.35 points, or 1.04 percent, to close at 7,850.41 points. The broader Standard and Poor's 500 Index fell 8.35 points, or 1 percent, to close at 826.84 points. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index lost 7.35 points, or 0.48 percent, taking it to 1,534.36. -Agencies

Cos not filing full disclosures face fine Mumbai, Feb. 16 Companies delaying or not filing full disclosures with stock exchanges and with market watchdog SEBI as mandated, will have to face a penalty of up to Rs 1 c r o r e , a S E B I representative said. "Under certain categories, companies which acquire shares beyond a certain percentage stipulated under the regulations, are required to make dislosures. Under the SEBI Act, offenders are liable for a maximum penalty of up to of Rs 1 crore for not filing diclosures," a SEBI representative said at a seminar on corporate governance organised by the Institute of Company

Secretaries of India (ICSI) here. "The names of offending companies will be put up on our website, which people and investors can read. That is the only way to punish them," he added. The SEBI representative said the standard of corporate governance in the country still had a long way to go. "We have taken action against offenders in the past and will impose penalties even in the future," the representative said. The SEBI official said many questions need to be addressed in this regard and cautioned investors not to get carried away with anyone who says he

is compliant with Clause 49. Clause 49 is an important aspect of corporate governance relating to independent directors on a company's board. The Sebi representative said that "it is indicative and is only about 10% of corporate governance." On the Satyam fraud, he said the scam had been concocted in collusion with the entire system and would take time to unravel. "It (the scam) has been going on for so many years...a very well-planned incident like this cannot be unlocked so easily and quickly," he said. - Agencies

LIC credit card before end-fiscal: Official Mumbai, Feb 16: Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), which had earlier scheduled the launch its credit card for January will now do so before endMarch, a senior company official said. "We plan to launch our credit card before the end of this fiscal," a LIC spokesperson said here. LIC has tied-up with Karnataka-based Corporation Bank for its white-labelled credit cards.

The bank will be the card issuer. The launch was deferred due to "some technical reasons," the LIC spokesperson said. LIC had asked Corporation Bank to sort out the problems before the launch itself so that there were no issues later on, the spokesperson said. W h e n contacted, a Corporation Bank official said that the bank had sorted out all technical problems and

was now ready for the launch. "The launch was delayed since the card is a white- label credit card which requires some formalities (to be completed). But now we are ready and awaiting the launch date," Corporation Bank's General Manager (New Initiatives), B R Bhat, said. “In any case, we will launch the credit card in this financial year itself," Bhat said. -Agencies

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Tainted PW auditor appointed to 11 ICAI committees Hyderabad, Feb. 16 : Tainted Price Waterhouse partner S Gopalakrishnan may be in jail for his alleged involvement in the Satyam fraud, but that hasn't stopped Institute o f C h a r t e r e d Accountants of India (ICAI) from appointing him member of 11 of its 41 non-standing committees for the year 2 0 0 9 - 1 0 . T h e appointments were made last week after a new president - Uttam Agarwal - took over on February 5. T h e committees to which Gopalakrishnan has been appointed include that on internal audit standards - which reviews internal audit practices in the country - the expert advisory

committee, and the assurance and auditing standards board, that reviews existing and emerging auditing practices worldwide, among others. A g a r w a l confirmed that he had indeed appointed Gopalakrishnan to the committees but argued that "until the charges against Gopalakrishnan are not established in the court of law and as long as he continues to be member of the central council of ICAI, he has to be included in some committees." He asserted that the jailed auditor had not been given the chairmanship of any committee. S e v e r a l chartered accountants t o l d t h a t Gopalakrishnan's

appointment was not just "disappointing but also unethical". A senior CA said: "Apart from being under scrutiny for the Satyam fiasco, ICAI itself has pointed fingers of suspicion towards Gopalakrishnan's involvement in the Global Trust Bank case. To then appoint him member of so many important committees is rather disgraceful." Interestingly, the new ICAI chief who was on Hyderabad on Febraury 6 - the day after he took over - wanted to visit Chanchalguda jail to call on Gopalkrishnan and Ta l l u r i . " T h e j a i l authorities had given me permission but I could not m a k e i t e v e n t u a l l y, " Agarwal said. - TNN

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Times Chennai E-Paper

Feb. 16, 2009

Milan 2009 celebrating life Chennai, Feb. 16 Milan 2009 an intercollegiate culturals conducted by the SRM University concluded on Sunday with a bang. Over 70 colleges with student strength touching 1200 stormed the culturals with their inherent talent. The programme saw some excellent talent of college students spread all over India. The overall performance was judged with parameters not only highlighting talent but also team performance and execution of the event. In the choreography event NIT Trichy topped the list followed by Dream Team of Loyala and James Dance School of St. Josephs Arts and Science. Chennai It was a dream come true for the Dream Team from Loyala College Chennai to bag the overall championship and Gurunanak Chennai were the runner up. Addressing the gathering the Vice Chancellor Prof. P Sathyanarayanan said, "We always felt that education alone is not enough for a person to develop but the culturals and sports also play an important role. These programmes definitely is a platform to express and develop one's skill which will benefit them in future." The chief guest G. Ramkumar Managing Director of Shivaji productions awarded the Sivaji award to C Yokesh a second year BCS student of Gurunanak College, Chennai, whose performance was spell bound. Prof. P. Sathyanarayanan Vice Chancellor of SRM University presenting the Sivaji award to C Yokesh a Ramkumar showering encomiums on the second year BCS student of Gurunanak College in the presence of University said that, " He would extend all support to the G. Ramkumar Managing Director of Shivaji productions proposed SRM Shivaji Institute of Film Technology which is slated to be opened in July or August this year wherein all celebrities of the filmdom including Rajnikanth, Kamal Hassan and Senior technical personnel and Directors would visit the institute as faculty to train the students. He also said he would invite Bharat Ratna Dr. Lata Mangeshkar on Oct. 01 to the SRM University to inaugurate the programmes of the Film Institute. Earlier, Anuradha Parakat welcomed the gathering. Officials from various departments of the University including the Registrar N Sethuraman were present on the occasion. - Staff Reporter

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