Thursday, July 29, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Friday, January 29, 2010
Indian made e-reader to take on Kindle
Mehta, who is having an engineering degree from Cornell and an MBA from MIT-Sloan, worked in Amozon.com for five years and was a Senior Manager at the company in 2007. To start his own online retail venture, Mehta quit his job, sold his house and his car.
The Infibeam Pi, which is priced at Rs.10,000, can be ordered online now and is likely to be shipped in February, is priced at Rs. 10,000. The Amazon Kindle, when shipped to India, costs about Rs.18,000. The Pi supports 13 Indian languages. Infibeam.com, an online retailer that sells everything from flowers to jewellery to books to electronic goods, has more than one lakh ebooks.
Mehta said, "It's pointless in India, there is no 3G. When we have wireless connectivity, we probably won't restrict what users can browse. Our essential philosophy is to be as open as possible."
The Pi has also a micro USB port to connect to a PC. Users will just be needed to create an account with Infibeam.com, register the device and then download the ebooks. The ebooks can be read on the PC as well as on the Pi. The ebooks typically cost 5-20 percent less than the hard copy versions, but in some cases, especially with bestsellers, digital rights are expensive and it's cheaper to buy the physical books. With the help of Pi, users will be able to read any documents documents (word or pdf, for instance). "A test prep firm can load their proprietary content on this device and give it to students, without worrying that the material will get passed around," said Mehta.
The company plans to sell about 10,000 devices in the first few months. The company has started accepting pre-orders on the website and is motivated by the initial response.
Once a billionaire, Raju declared pauper
[Source: http://www.siliconindia.com/shownews/US_court_declares_Ramalinga_Raju_a_pauper-nid-64937.html?utm_campaign=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Subscriber]
Once a billionaire, Raju declared pauper
New York: Ramalinga Raju, Former Chairman of Satyam Computers, who had confessed about inflating his company's assets by over $1 billion, has been declared a 'pauper' by New York judge Barabara S Jones. With this declaration, Raju has been exempted from paying court costs.
The court also approved 'pauper' status for Ramalinga's brother Rama Raju, Satyam's former chief executive officer, and Srinivas Vadlamani. The defendants had filed an "in forma pauperis" and for the appointment for a pro bono counsel in October 2009, reports PTI.
According to the documents submitted in the court, the accused said that they are unable to engage an attorney in the U.S. to defend (themselves) in the class action litigation and to pay any court fees or to meet any financial obligations which might be imposed by this court. U.S. District Judge Jones said, "The court finds that defendants have adequately demonstrated that they are unable to pay costs as described in the federal law."
However, the court denied the request for a pro bono counsel as the defendants are incarcerated in a foreign country and it would be unusually difficult for the appointed counsel to meet and otherwise competently represent Defendants under the circumstances.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
CASE STUDY: Marketers Can Learn From Rio's Olympic Victory [Forbes.com]
Olympics
Marketers Can Learn From Rio's Olympic Victory
Allen Adamson, 10.13.09, 07:30 PM EDTThe city won its Olympic bid based on gold-medal branding.
[Link: http://www.forbes.com/2009/10/13/olympics-branding-rio-cmo-network-adamson.html] 
While the conservative and liberal media continue to go at each other regarding Chicago's loss of its bid to host the 2016 Olympics (and before they get really revved on the recent Nobel Peace Prize announcement), I suggest they give it a rest and look at the International Olympic Committee's decision from a branding perspective.
I happen to think that the folks who were in charge of the Olympics branding strategy in Rio de Janeiro did a phenomenal job of differentiating Rio's promise from the other cities in contention, and then clearly establishing its relevance to the IOC. In other words, the "Brand Rio" team followed a couple of the basic rules of smart brand management and came out the category leader as a result.
There is almost no brand category that isn't awash in choices. Whether cars or cosmetics, beverages or baby carriages, there is a lot of stuff out there and most of it is pretty similar. The competition for consumer attention is fierce and it can't be won on table stakes. The only way a decent brand can ever hope of becoming the chosen brand is to make a promise that's completely different from any its competitors' and ensure that this difference is meaningful to its target audience. In an ever-expanding global marketplace, this is getting harder and harder to do.
When the cities vying for the attention of the IOC began their brand strategizing, each had to identify a point of relevant differentiation with which to wow the judges. Taking a look at the video portion of these presentations, it was easy to see that each city had the table stakes down pat. The happy, friendly people, evocative cityscapes, the financial wherewithal and the political clout to get things done and, of course, the respect for athletics were all well expressed.
But although the branding execution was clever across the board, only one bidding city was able to promise something none of the others could promise. Rio found something simple and unique on which to base its claim and it made its point loud and clear. No amount of branding acumen, no matter how brilliant, could have offered the IOC judges what Rio gave them. Its promise was focused and distinct.
Aside from the above-mentioned table stakes, despite its sexy beaches and bathing suits, world-famous carnival and world-renowned HIV/AIDS program, the Rio brand team's differentiating factor was Brazil's growing international influence and leadership among emerging nations. It communicated skillfully that, under its current president, it had become one of the hottest countries on the world market and that its current economic boom has placed it among the world's wealthiest nations. Core to its brand promise was the fact that Brazil is the only one of these nations never to have hosted the Olympics and, if chosen, would also be the first country in South America to enjoy the privilege of having the world's athletes as its guests.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
High Prices
It seems that the West Bengal Government is making an attempt to win back some of its lost faith among the general populace or at least to stem the tide of bad press that it has been getting lately.
Whatever the reason, I am sure we all welcome the move.
Kudos.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
Students campaign for Green manifesto
Students campaign for Green manifesto
Source:
THE HINDU [Mar 15, 2009]
[epaper: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/03/15/stories/2009031560021100.htm]
KOLKATA: It is a signature campaign with a difference; it is not aimed at protesting against any issue or garnering support for narrow gains.
It is an initiative by the future generation to raise awareness among leaders of political parties to address climate change and its consequences and make it an issue in the Lok Sabha elections.
Signed on by school and college students from New Delhi, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Assam and Tripura, the campaign urges political leaders, cutting across party lines, to include their parties' vision on climate change and their commitment to use of renewable energy in their manifestos.
For a liveable world
The letter accompanying the signatures states: "To keep the world liveable, it is extremely important that we start using green energy resources… this cannot be achieved only through awareness. The new government may make it clear about its positive initiatives towards addressing climate-related issues and transition from fossil fuel energy sources to renewable energy sources."
10,000 signatures collected
A brainchild of S.P. Gon Chaudhuri, director, West Bengal Green Energy Development Corporation Limited, the campaign has already gathered 10,000 signatures. He told The Hindu on Saturday that the campaign, which was kick-started on February 20, had signatures coming in even after the closing date of February 28.
Copies of the letter along with some 1,000 'sample' signatures have already been submitted to United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Lal Krishna Advani, Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Prakash Karat, Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee.
Kolkata airport-city project being reworked
Kolkata airport-city project being reworked
Source:
THE HINDU
Mar 15, 2009
Special Correspondent
[epaper: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/03/15/stories/2009031555251200.htm]
1.4 billion tonnes of prime Raniganj coal will be blocked if the scheme is implemented.
Rs. 10,000 crore to be spent in four phases. CIL to press for relocating three steel projects.
KOLKATA: Following a high-level meeting between officials of the State Government and Coal India Ltd (CIL), it has now been decided to rework the proposed airport-city project at Andal near Durgapur in West Bengal.
With their stand being vindicated, the Navratna public sector unit has now decided to press for a re-look at three more industrial projects, which they claim, are proposed to be set up on areas bearing prime quality coal.
A study done by the Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI) had revealed that coal reserves of about 1.4 billion tonnes of prime Ranigunj coal will get blocked if the aerotropolis project, proposed by a consortium of companies for setting up an airport and a mini-township in the Andal-Fardipur block in Burdwan, is implemented.
The study revealed that about 350 million tonnes is under the licensed area of Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL), a CIL subsidiary.
The reworked project will also have to take into account the Sharpi 'longwall mining' project of ECL which is being developed by a U.K.-based company on a contract-basis.
"This is the best project of ECL using longwall mining technology and this should not be disrupted in the interest of increased coal output from underground mines," a CIL official said.
The commissioning of the CMPDI study came after CIL received the detailed map of the airport project which is proposed to be implemented as a private project assisted by the State's apex industry promotion agency. While the airport would come up by developing an existing airstrip at Andal near Asansol, a mini-township is proposed to be set up.
Bengal Aerotroplis Projects Ltd (BAPL), a special purpose vehicle which has been floated for this purpose, proposed to spend Rs. 10,000 crore in four phases over seven years to create this infrastructure, with the airport coming up in 30 months from getting the land. It also planned to replicate the model in other States.
At the meeting, which was chaired by the State Chief Secretary, it was decided that of the 3,500 acres required for the project, 2,300 acres were required for the airport, around 500 acres would have to be taken out of the project area, in order to protect existing coal reserves of ECL. Further modification of around six sq. km may be required to protect coal reserves outside ECL's leasehold area.
CIL officials will now study this new plan and a meeting has been scheduled later this month.
However, CIL is keen to follow-up in a similar manner the coal reserves, which they feel will get blocked if three steel projects of Bhusan Steel, Videocon and Abhijeet group come up in the same region.
It now proposes to press the government for relocating these units too in order to protect the coal reserves.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Timesofindia.com: President okays 7-year hitch for arrests
--------------------------------
President okays 7-year hitch for arrests
The recently revamped Criminal Procedure Code, which divests police of arrest powers in cases where maximum sentence is upto seven years, has become law.
Log on to : http://www.timesofindia.com
----------------------------------
Message from Monojit Banerjee
CrPC(Amendment) Act 2008 Read this. Quite Interesting news in The Times Of India , 19th Jan 2009.
----------------------------------
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Friday, December 12, 2008
49-O
of the candidates many times! this one is a great option !
It is the most powerful weapon we have as
citizens to oust corrupt politicians. ..
Section 49-O of the Constitution:
Did you know that there is a system in our constitution, as per the 1969
act, in section "49-O" that a person can go to the polling booth, confirm
his identity, get his finger marked and convey the presiding election
officer that he doesn't want to vote anyone!
Yes such a feature is available, but obviously these seemingly notorious
leaders have never disclosed it. This is called "49-O".
Why should you go and say "I VOTE NOBODY"... because, in a ward, if a
candidate wins, say by 123 votes, and that particular ward has received
"49-O" votes more than 123, then that polling will be cancelled and will
have to be re-polled. Not only that, but the candidature of the
contestants will be removed and they cannot contest the re-polling, since
people had already expressed their decision on them. This would bring fear
into parties and hence look for genuine candidates for their parties for
election.. This would change the way, of our whole political system... it
is seemingly surprising why the election commission has not revealed such
a feature to the public....
Please spread this news to as many as you know... Seems to be a wonderful
weapon against corrupt parties in India... show your power,expressing your
desire not to vote for anybody, is even more powerful than voting... so
don't miss your chance. So either vote, or vote not to vote (vote 49-O)
and pass this info on...
"Please forward this mail to as many as possible, so that we, the people
of India, can really use this power to save our nation". Use your voting
right for a better INDIA.
"Mistakes are Painful when they happen, But years later a collection of mistakes is called EXPERIENCE, Which leads U to SUCCESS......."
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Mumbai Attacks by Jihadis
The audacious attack which took a year to plan
The attack was planned with military precision.
By Rahul Bedi in Bombay and Sean Rayment, Security correspondent
Last Updated: 10:44PM GMT 29 Nov 2008 
Ten terrorists dedicated to fighting for an independent Kashmir were selected for an operation from which they were likely never to return.
The tactics were relatively simple: to strike at multiple targets while simultaneously slaughtering as many civilians as possible before going "static" in three of the locations within the city.
But such a plan would require a year of planning, reconnaissance, the covert acquisition of ships and speed boats as well as the forward basing of weapons and ammunition secretly hidden inside at least one hotel.
Nothing would be left to chance. Even the times of the tides were checked and rechecked to ensure that the terrorists would be able to arrive when their first target, the Café Leopold, was full of unsuspecting tourists enjoying the balmy Bombay (Mumbai) evening.
The preparations for the atrocity began a year earlier in a remote mountain camp in Muzaffarabad, in Pakistan- administered Kashmir, according to the interrogation of a 19-year-old believed to be the only member of the terrorist unit to be captured alive.
The Sunday Telegraph has been shown details of the interrogation which provide the first clues to the identity of the terrorists and the amount of detail which went into the planning of the operation.
Kamal has revealed to his interrogators that most of the volunteers spoke his native Punjabi and that all of them were given false names and were discouraged from interacting with each other beyond what was barely necessary.
During the months of training they were taught the use of explosives and close quarter combat. It was ingrained upon every man that ammunition would be in short supply and therefore every bullet should count.
The terrorists were also taught marine commando techniques such as beach landings at another camp at the Mangla Dam, located on the border between Pakistan-administered Kashmir and India's Punjab province.
Kamal revealed that once their training was complete, his team of four travelled to the garrison town of Rawalpindi, where they were joined by another six terrorists, who had been trained at other camps close by.
It was in Rawalpindi that the 10-man team were briefed in detail with digitised images of their prospective targets – the Taj Mahal and Oberoi Hotels, the Jewish Centre and the Victoria Terminus railway station. Each member of the team memorised street names and routes to each location. Kamal told his interrogators that most of the targeting information came from a reconnaissance team which had selected the targets earlier in the year.
From Rawalpindi, the team then moved to the eastern port of Karachi where they chartered the merchant ship MV Alpha and headed for Bombay.
It was during this crucial phase, as the cargo ship headed into the Arabian Sea, that the terrorists appeared to almost lose their nerve. The Indian navy, Kamal revealed, were very active, boarding foreign vessels and searching their holds. The terrorists thought their plan might be compromised so on the night of 15th/16th November, the teams used their inflatable speed boats to hijack a local fishing boat, the Kuber.
Kamal also admitted to his interrogators that three of the Kuber's four crew were immediately murdered, while the ship's captain was ordered to sail for the Indian coast. When the Kuber was within five miles of the coast, the terrorists slit the captain's throat and transferred back into their inflatable speed boats and headed for the lights of Bombay.
On landing the 10-man team, stripped off their orange wind breakers and began hoisting large heavy packs onto their shoulders.
Kashinath Patil, the 72-year-old harbour master, who spotted the boats moor alongside the harbour wall was immediately suspicious and asked them what they were doing. "I said: 'Where are you going? What's in your bags?'" Mr Patil recalled. "They said: 'We don't want any attention. Don't bother us."
The terrorists then split into two-man teams and launched their attacks.
Major General RK Hooda, the senior Indian commander, acknowledged the group, the Deccan Mujadeen, were better equipped and had a better knowledge of the battleground than India's soldiers.
After the battle, one member of India's National Security Guard, who led one of the assault groups against the terrorists occupying the Taj Mahal hotel, said they were the "best fighters" he had ever encountered.
He said: "They were obviously trained by professionals in urban guerrilla fighting. They used their environment and situation brilliantly, leading us (the NSG) on a dangerous chase through various tiers of the hotel which they obviously knew well. Their fire discipline too was excellent and they used their ammunition judiciously, mostly to draw us out.
"It was amply clear they came to kill a large number of people and to eventually perish in their horrific endeavour," he said. "Negotiating with the Indian authorities or escaping was not an option for them."
India faces a reckoning as terror toll eclipses 180
MUMBAI, India: Death still hung over Mumbai on Sunday, as the Indian government reckoned with troubling questions about its ability to respond to escalating terror attacks.
A day after the standoff ended at the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower Hotel, the official death toll rose to 183. But the police said they were still waiting for the final figures of dead bodies pulled from the wreckage from the hotel, a 105-year-old landmark. Funerals were scheduled to continue throughout Sunday, for the second day in a row.
As an investigation moved forward, there were questions about whether Indian authorities could have anticipated the attack and had better security in place, especially after a 2007 report to Parliament that the country's shores were inadequately protected from infiltration by sea — which is how the attackers sneaked into Mumbai.
Shivraj Patil, the home minister of India and responsible for public safety and internal security as one of the most senior members of the government, resigned on Sunday to take responsibility for the failure of the country's intelligence services and military to prevent the deadly terrorist attacks in Mumbai.
Patil's resignation is the clearest sign yet that the current government is feeling pressure from the general public in India to make amends for not preventing the attack.
There was considerable speculation in the Indian media that Chidambaram, the finance minister, might become the next home minister, but no immediate announcement of who would take the important ministerial role.
All the while, tensions swelled with Pakistan, where officials promised that they would act swiftly if any connection to Pakistani-based militants were found, but also warned that troops could be moved to the border quickly if relations with India worsened.
It was still unclear whether the attackers had collaborators already in the city, or whether others in their group had escaped. And perhaps the most troubling question to emerge for the Indian authorities was how, if official estimates are accurate, just 10 gunmen could have caused so much carnage and repelled Indian security forces for more than three days in three different buildings.
Part of the answer may lie in continuing signs that despite the country's long vulnerability to terrorist attacks, Indian law enforcement remains ill-prepared. The siege exposed problems caused by inexperienced security forces and inadequate equipment, including a lack of high-power rifle scopes and other optics to help discriminate between the attackers and civilians.
Café Leopold, the site of one of the attacks on Wednesday, opened for 15 minutes at midday on Sunday. A few men were first to enter yelling "victory to mother India" followed by a crush of reporters. Farzad Jehani, 44, the second generation owner, served his friend, Saleem Sharaf Ali, 39, a mug of beer. "Bombay rocks," Ali said. In the nonsmoking section a bullet had punctured a hole through a mirrored wall.
Amid the cleanup effort on Saturday, the brutality of the gunmen became plain, as accounts from investigators and survivors portrayed a wide trail of destruction and indiscriminate killing.
On Wednesday night, when a married couple in their 70s went to their third-floor window to see what was happening after hearing gunfire, the attackers blazed away with assault rifles, killing them both. Shards of glass still hung in the panes on Saturday.
When several attackers seized a Jewish outreach center, Nariman House, on Wednesday, neighbors mistook the initial shots for firecrackers in celebration of India's imminent cricket victory over England. But then two attackers stepped out on a balcony of Nariman House and opened fire on passers-by in an alley nearby. They killed a 22-year-old call center worker who was the sole financial supporter of his widowed mother.
When a tailor locked up his store for the night, half a block from the Taj Hotel, a gunman spotted him and killed him instantly, said Rony Dass, a cable television installer. "We still don't know why they did this," he said, mourning his lifelong friend.
At the Taj, the gunmen broke in room after room and shot occupants at point-blank range. Some were shot in the back. At the Oberoi Hotel, the second luxury hotel to be attacked, one gunman chased diners up a stairwell and at one point turned around and shot dead an elderly man standing behind him.
"I think their intention was to kill as many people as possible and do as much physical damage as possible," said P. R. Oberoi, chairman of the Oberoi Group, which manages the Oberoi and Trident Hotels, adjacent buildings that were both attacked.
Evidence unfolded that the gunmen had killed their victims early on in the siege and left the bodies, apparently fooling Indian security forces into thinking that they were still holding hostages. At the Sir J. J. Hospital morgue, an official in charge of the post-mortems, not authorized to speak to the news media, said that of the 87 bodies he had examined by midafternoon, all but a handful had been killed Wednesday night and early Thursday. By Saturday night, 239 people had been reported wounded. more
Mumbai photographer: I wish I'd had a gun, not a camera. Armed police would not fire back
Jerome Taylor talks to the photographer whose picture went around the world
It is the photograph that has dominated the world's front pages, casting an astonishing light on the fresh-faced killers who brought terror to the heart of India's most vibrant city. Now it can be revealed how the astonishing picture came to be taken by a newspaper photographer who hid inside a train carriage as gunfire erupted all around him.
Sebastian D'Souza, a picture editor at the Mumbai Mirror, whose offices are just opposite the city's Chhatrapati Shivaji station, heard the gunfire erupt and ran towards the terminus. "I ran into the first carriage of one of the trains on the platform to try and get a shot but couldn't get a good angle, so I moved to the second carriage and waited for the gunmen to walk by," he said. "They were shooting from waist height and fired at anything that moved. I briefly had time to take a couple of frames using a telephoto lens. I think they saw me taking photographs but theydidn't seem to care."
The gunmen were terrifyingly professional, making sure at least one of them was able to fire their rifle while the other reloaded. By the time he managed to capture the killer on camera, Mr D'Souza had already seen two gunmen calmly stroll across the station concourse shooting both civilians and policemen, many of whom, he said, were armed but did not fire back. "I first saw the gunmen outside the station," Mr D'Souza said. "With their rucksacks and Western clothes they looked like backpackers, not terrorists, but they were very heavily armed and clearly knew how to use their rifles.
Sebastian D'Souza
A gunman walks at the Chatrapathi Sivaji Terminal railway station in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2008. Teams of gunmen stormed luxury hotels, a popular restaurant, hospitals and a crowded train station in coordinated attacks across India's financial capital, killing people, taking Westerners hostage and leaving parts of the city under siege Thursday, police said. A group of suspected Muslim militants claimed responsibility. AP
More picturesBut what angered Mr D'Souza almost as much were the masses of armed police hiding in the area who simply refused to shoot back. "There were armed policemen hiding all around the station but none of them did anything," he said. "At one point, I ran up to them and told them to use their weapons. I said, 'Shoot them, they're sitting ducks!' but they just didn't shoot back."
As the gunmen fired at policemen taking cover across the street, Mr D'Souza realised a train was pulling into the station unaware of the horror within. "I couldn't believe it. We rushed to the platform and told everyone to head towards the back of the station. Those who were older and couldn't run, we told them to stay put."
The militants returned inside the station and headed towards a rear exit towards Chowpatty Beach. Mr D'Souza added: "I told some policemen the gunmen had moved towards the rear of the station but they refused to follow them. What is the point if having policemen with guns if they refuse to use them? I only wish I had a gun rather than a camera."
Mumbai cop, left for dead, rides with gunmen
MUMBAI: The militants waited in the shadows for the police van to pass, and when it slowed down in the narrow road, they sprayed it with gunfire.
The gunmen opened the doors and dumped five slumped officers' bodies into the streets, then piled into the van to continue their siege.
What they did not know was that two officers, including constable Arun Jadhav, were in the backseat, alive.
Jadhav was taken on a chilling 10-minute ride through the dark streets of Mumbai with some of the gunmen who had launched a siege that would last for 60 more hours and leave at least 174 people dead. While one of the men drove the van, another pointed his rifle out the window and fired on a crowd milling outside a cinema. Later, he threw a grenade outside a state government building.
The young gunmen said little during the harrowing drive, but spoke Hindi with a strong Punjabi, north-Indian accent. They scoffed when they saw that the police officers they had killed had been wearing bulletproof vests. 'One of them laughed and said, 'Look, they're wearing jackets,' Jadhav said, recounting his ordeal to AP.
He was in the backseat, with an officer who was unconscious, both left for dead.
Jadhav had been hit by three bullets, two of which left his hands nearly paralyzed. At one point, a cell phone trilled from the pocket of Jadhav's colleague. The gunman in the front seat turned around and fired. 'He didn't even look back properly, he just fired,' Jadhav said. 'I think my colleague had been still alive. He died with those bullets.' Before the carjacking, Jadhav and his colleagues — including Hemant Karkare, head of the Anti-Terror Squad — were racing to respond to emergency calls of a shooting inside Mumbai's main railway station, the attack that began the siege. Then a report came in that a car was seen speeding away from the terminal, and Jadhav's van rushed to follow it.
While they were searching for the gunmen, the gunmen found them.
From the backseat, Jadhav could not reach his weapon. 'I kept trying to lift my gun, but I couldn't reach it,' he said.
Finally, one of the van's tires went flat, and the gunmen abandoned the vehicle.
They stopped another car, pulled out the driver and drove away, he said. Jadhav climbed forward and used the police radio to call for backup and tell the authorities what direction the gunmen had gone. Minutes later, a team of officers blockaded a road lining the coast, and opened fire at the hijacked car.. One gunman was killed and another arrested — the only militant to be captured during the entire two-and-a-half day ordeal.
Jadhav is now recuperating from his injuries at a city hospital, and replaying the episode again and again in his mind.
'I wish I could have lifted my gun,' he said.
Doctors shocked at hostages's torture
Krishnakumar P and Vicky Nanjappa in Mumbai | November 30, 2008 19:53 IST
They said that just one look at the bodies of the dead hostages as well as terrorists showed it was a battle of attrition that was fought over three days at the Oberoi and the Taj hotels in Mumbai.
Doctors working in a hospital where all the bodies, including that of the terrorists, were taken said they had not seen anything like this in their lives.
"Bombay has a long history of terror. I have seen bodies of riot victims, gang war and previous terror attacks like bomb blasts. But this was entirely different. It was shocking and disturbing," a doctor said.
Asked what was different about the victims of the incident, another doctor said: "It was very strange. I have seen so many dead bodies in my life, and was yet traumatised. A bomb blast victim's body might have been torn apart and could be a very disturbing sight. But the bodies of the victims in this attack bore such signs about the kind of violence of urban warfare that I am still unable to put my thoughts to words," he said.
Asked specifically if he was talking of torture marks, he said: "It was apparent that most of the dead were tortured. What shocked me were the telltale signs showing clearly how the hostages were executed in cold blood," one doctor said.
The other doctor, who had also conducted the post-mortem of the victims, said: "Of all the bodies, the Israeli victims bore the maximum torture marks. It was clear that they were killed on the 26th itself. It was obvious that they were tied up and tortured before they were killed. It was so bad that I do not want to go over the details even in my head again," he said.
Corroborating the doctors' claims about torture was the information that the Intelligence Bureau had about the terror plan. "During his interrogation, Ajmal Kamal said they were specifically asked to target the foreigners, especially the Israelis," an IB source said.
It is also said that the Israeli hostages were killed on the first day as keeping them hostage for too long would have focused too much international attention. "They also might have feared the chances of Israeli security agencies taking over the operations at the Nariman House," he reasoned.
On the other hand, there is enough to suggest that the terrorists also did not meet a clean, death.
The doctors who conducted the post mortem said the bodies of the terrorists were beyond recognition. "Their faces were beyond recognition."
There was no way of identifying them," he said. Asked how, if this is the case, they knew the bodies were indeed those of the terrorists, he said: "The security forces that brought the bodies told us that those were the bodies of the terrorists," he said, adding there was no other way they could have identified the bodies.
An intelligence agency source added: "One of the terrorists was shot through either eye."
A senior National Security Guard officer, who had earlier explained the operation in detail to rediff.com, said the commandos went all out after they ascertained that there were no more hostages left. When asked if the commandos attempted to capture them alive at that stage, he replied: "Unko bachana kaun chahega (Who will want to save them)?"
__,_._,___
Thursday, November 27, 2008
News item from NDTV.COM
Read this account of Mumbai Terror Attacks using AK-47 & grenades Nov
26-27, 2008 [Courtesy NDTV.com]
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Sunday, November 16, 2008
Live Surgeries Using Internet may Soon be A Reality
Source: http://www.medindia.com/news/Live-Surgeries-Using-Internet-may-Soon-be-A-Reality-44102-1.htm]
The technology was recently tested by a team led by the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, which has now been joined by researchers from Rochester Institute of Technology.
An endoscopic surgery at the University of Puerto Rico was broadcast to multiple locations in the U.S. with the aid of a high-speed network.
The experiment also included a multipoint videoconference that was connected to the video stream, allowing for live interaction between participants.
"The University of Puerto Rico has been performing this type of transmission between two sites for more than a year, but we are now able to utilize a combination of technologies that allows us to transmit to multiple sites simultaneously," says Jose Conde, director of the Center for Information Architecture in Research at the University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus.
"Being isolated geographically from major research centers, we need to use information technology to foster research collaborations with scientists around the world," Conde adds.
Gurcharan Khanna, director of research computing at RIT and a member of the research team, says: "Previous efforts in telemedicine have been hampered by the quality of the video stream produced and the potential for network interruptions. This test demonstrates that by using the speed and advanced protocols support provided by the Internet2 network, we have the potential to develop real-time, remote consultation and diagnosis during surgery, taking telemedicine to the next level."
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
INDYAROCKS
Join indyarocks.com
This is very similar to orkut.
In some ways it is even better.
You can send unlimited free SMS to your friends.
You can create your own profiles, create and join communities, etc.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
CAN U BEAT THIS RESUME !!!
[Contributed by: Debdatta Ghosal <debdatta.ghosal@gmail.com>]
RESUME
EDUCATION /Qualification:
1950: Stood first in BA (Hons), Economics, Punjab University, Chandigarh ,
1952; Stood first in MA (Economics), Punjab University , Chandigarh ,
1954; Wright's Prize for distinguished performance at St John's College, Cambridge,
1955 and 1957; Wrenbury scholar, University of Cambridge ,
1957; DPhil ( Oxford ), DLitt (Honoris Causa); PhD thesis on India 's export competitiveness
OCCUPATION /Teaching Experience :
Professor (Senior lecturer, Economics, 1957-59;
Reader, Economics, 1959-63;
Professor, Economics, Punjab University , Chandigarh , 1963-65;
Professor,International Trade, Delhi School of Economics,University of Delhi,1969-71 ;
Honorary professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University ,New Delhi,1976 and Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi ,1996 and Civil Servant
Working Experience/ POSITIONS :
1971-72: Economic advisor, ministry of foreign trade
1972-76: Chief economic advisor, ministry of finance
1976-80: Director, Reserve Bank of India ;
Director, Industrial Development Bank of India;
Alternate governor for India, Board of governors, Asian Development Bank;
Alternate governor for India, Board of governors, IBRD
November 1976 - April 1980: Secretary, ministry of finance (Department of economic affairs);
Member, finance, Atomic Energy Commission; Member,finance, Space Commission
April 1980 - September 15, 1982 : Member-secretary, Planning Commission
1980-83: Chairman , India Committee of the Indo-Japan joint study committee
September 16, 1982 - January 14, 1985 : Governor, Reserve Bank of India .
1982-85: Alternate Governor for India , Board of governors, International Monetary Fund
1983-84: Member, economic advisory council to the Prime Minister
1985: President, Indian Economic Association
January 15, 1985 - July 31, 1987 : Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission
August 1, 1987 - November 10, 19! 90: Secretary-general and commissioner,
south commission, Geneva
December 10, 1990 - March 14, 1991 : Advisor to the Prime Minister on economic affairs
March 15, 1991 - June 20, 1991 : Chairman, UGC
June 21, 1991 - May 15, 1996 : Union finance minister
October 1991: Elected to Rajya Sabha from Assam on Congress ticket
June 1995: Re-elected to Rajya Sabha
1996 onwards: Member, Consultative Committee for the ministry of finance
August 1, 1996 - December 4, 1997: Chairman, Parliamentary standing committee on commerce
March 21, 1998 onwards: Leader of the Opposition, Rajya Sabha
June 5, 1998 onwards: Member, committee on finance
August 13, 1998 onwards: Member, committee on rules
Aug 1998-2001: Member, committee of privileges 2000 onwards: Member, executive committee, Indian parliamentary group
June 2001: Re-elected to Rajya Sabha
Aug 2001 onwards: Member, general purposes committee
BOOKS:
India 's Export Trends and Prospects for Self-Sustained Growth -
Clarendon Press, Oxford University , 1964; also published a large number of articles in various economic journals.
OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
Adam Smith Prize, University of Cambridge , 1956
Padma Vibhushan, 1987
Euro money Award, Finance Minister of the Year, 1993;
Asia money Award, Finance Minister of the Year for Asia, 1993 and 1994
INTERNATIONAL ASSIGNMENTS:
1966: Economic Affairs Officer
1966-69: Chief, financing for trade section, UNCTAD
1972-74: Deputy for India in IMF Committee of Twenty on
International Monetary Reform
1977-79: Indian delegation to Aid-India Consortium Meetings
1980-82: Indo-Soviet joint planning group meeting
1982: Indo-Soviet monitoring group meeting
1993: Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Cyprus 1993: Human Rights World Conference, Vienna
RECREATION :
Gymkhana Club, New Delhi; Life Member, India International Centre,
New Delhi
PERSONAL DETAIL:
Name: Dr Manmohan Singh
DOB: September 26, 1932
Place of Birth: Gah ( West Punjab )
Father: S. Gurmukh Singh
Mother: Mrs Amrit Kaur
Married on: September 14, 1958
Wife: Mrs Gursharan Kaur
Children: Three daughters
Our Prime Minister seems to be the most qualified PM all over the world.
__,_._,___
Monday, January 28, 2008
In The Line Of Fire
IN THE LINE OF FIRE.......a short story..... a must read..... for all!
Vivek Pradhan was not a happy man. Even the plush comfort of the
air-conditioned compartment of the Shatabdi express could not cool his
frayed nerves. He was the Project Manager and still not entitled to air
travel. It was not the prestige he sought, he had tried to reason with the
admin person, it was the savings in time. As PM, he had so many things to
do!!
He opened his case and took out the laptop, determined to put the time to
some good use.
'Are you from the software industry sir,' the man beside him was staring
appreciatively at the laptop.
Vivek glanced briefly and mumbled in affirmation, handling the laptop now
with exaggerated care and importance as if it were an expensive car.
'You people have brought so much advancement to the country, Sir. Today
everything is getting computerized.'
'Thanks,' smiled Vivek, turning around to give the man a look.
He always found it difficult to resist appreciation. The man was young and
stockily built like a sportsman. He looked simple and strangely out of
place in that little lap of luxury like a small town boy in a prep school.
He probably was a railway sportsman making the most of his free traveling
pass.
'You people always amaze me,' the man continued, 'You sit in an office and
write something on a computer and it does so many big things outside.'
Vivek smiled deprecatingly. Naiveness demanded reasoning not anger. 'It is
not as simple as that my friend.. It is not just a question of writing a few
lines. There is a lot of process that goes behind it.'
For a moment, he was tempted to explain the entire Software Development
Lifecycle but restrained himself to a single statement. 'It is complex,
very complex.'
'It has to be. No wonder you people are so highly paid,' came the reply.
This was not turning out as Vivek had thought. A hint of belligerence crept
into his so far affable, persuasive tone. ' Everyone just sees the money.
No one sees the amount of hard work we have to put in. Indians have such a
narrow concept of hard work. Just because we sit in an air-conditioned
office, does not mean our brows do not sweat. You exercise the muscle; we
exercise the mind and believe me that is no less taxing..' He could see, he
had the man where he wanted, and it was time to drive home the point.
'Let me give you an example. Take this train. The entire railway
reservation system is computerized. You can book a train ticket between any
two stations from any of the hundreds of computerized booking centres
across the country. Thousands of transactions accessing a single database,
at a time concurrently; data integrity, locking, data security. Do you
understand the complexity in designing and coding such a system?'
The man was awestuck; quite like a child at a planetarium.
This was something big and beyond his imagination. 'You design and code
such things.'
'I used to,' Vivek paused for effect, 'but now I am the Project Manager.'
'Oh!' sighed the man, as if the storm had passed over, 'so your life is
easy now.'
This was like the last straw for Vivek. He retorted, 'Oh come on, does life
ever get easy as you go up the ladder. Responsibility only brings more
work. Design and coding! That is the easier part. Now I do not do it, but I
am responsible for it and believe me, that is far more stressful. My job is
to get the work done in time and with the highest quality. To tell you
about the pressures, there is the customer at one end, always changing his
requirements, the user at the other, wanting something else, and your boss,
always expecting you to have finished it yesterday.'
Vivek paused in his diatribe, his belligerence fading with
self-realisation. What he had said, was not merely the outburst of a
wronged man, it was the truth. And one need not get angry while defending
the truth. 'My friend,' he concluded triumphantly, 'you don't know what it
is to be in the Line of Fire'.
The man sat back in his chair, his eyes closed as if in realization. When
he spoke after sometime, it was with a calm certainty that surprised Vivek.
'I know sir, I know what it is to be in the Line of Fire.' He was staring
blankly, as if no passenger, no train existed, just a vast expanse of time.
'There were 30 of us when we were ordered to capture Point 4875 in the
cover of the night. The enemy was firing from the top. There was no knowing
where the next bullet was going to come from and for whom. In the morning
when we finally hoisted the tricolour at the top only 4 of us were alive.'
'You are a...'
'I am Subedar Sushant from the 13 J&K Rifles on duty at Peak 4875 in
Kargil. They tell me I have completed my term and can opt for a soft
assignment. But, tell me sir, can one give up duty just because it makes
life easier. On the dawn of that capture, one of my colleagues lay injured
in the snow, open to enemy fire while we were hiding behind a bunker. It
was my job to go and fetch that soldier to safety. But my captain sahib
refused me permission and went ahead himself. He said that the first pledge
he had taken as a Gentleman Cadet was to put the safety and welfare of the
nation foremost followed by the safety and welfare of the men he
commanded.......h is own personal safety came last, always and every
time.'
'He was killed as he shielded and brought that injured soldier into the
bunker. Every morning thereafter, as we stood guard, I could see him taking
all those bullets, which were actually meant for me. I know sir....I know,
what it is to be in the Line of Fire.'
Vivek looked at him in disbelief not sure of how to respond. Abruptly, he
switched off the laptop. It seemed trivial, even insulting to edit a Word
document in the presence of a man for whom valour and duty was a daily part
of life; valour and sense of duty which he had so far attributed only to
epical heroes.
The train slowed down as it pulled into the station, and Subedar Sushant
picked up his bags to alight.
'It was nice meeting you sir.'
Vivek fumbled with the handshake. This hand... had climbed mountains,
pressed the trigger, and hoisted the tricolour. Suddenly, as if by impulse,
he stood up at attention and his right hand went up in an impromptu salute.
It was the least he felt he could do for the country.
PS: The incident he narrated during the capture of Peak 4875 is a true-life
incident during the Kargil war. Capt. Batra sacrificed his life while
trying to save one of the men he commanded, as victory was within sight.
For this and various other acts of bravery, he was awarded the Param Vir
Chakra, the nation's highest military award.
Live humbly, there are great people around us, let us learn!
Winners are too busy to be sad, too positive to be doubtful, too optimistic
to be fearful and too determined to be defeated!
Monday, January 07, 2008
SAD DAY FOR CRICKET
I know many die hard fans of Australia. I would like to ask them what they think of that team now?
Umpires are tired of just watching the game and they have started to participate now. Thus we have 3 teams playing: India, Australia and Umpires(which is behaving like a subsidiary of Australia)
Australians are alleging that Harbhajan Singh made racial comments against Andrew Symonds. This is funny, since we all know what "gentlemen" Autralians are on the field.
This is a painful and unforgettable moment for all cricket/ sports lovers.
What do you think?
send in your views to:
blogmonojit.mailpost@blogger.com
Friday, December 28, 2007
Fishing Story
Fishing Story
The Japanese have always loved fresh fish. But the waters close to Japan have not held many fish for decades. So to feed the Japanese population, fishing boats got bigger and went farther than ever.
The farther the fishermen went, the longer it took to bring in the fish. If the return trip took more than a few days, the fish were not fresh. The Japanese did not like the taste.
To solve this problem, fishing companies installed freezers on their boats. They would catch the fish and freeze them at sea. Freezers allowed the boats to go farther and stay longer.
However, the Japanese could taste the difference between fresh and frozen and they did not like frozen fish. The frozen fish brought a lower price.
So fishing companies installed fish tanks. They would catch the fish and stuff them in the tanks, fin to fin. After a little thrashing around, the fish stopped moving. They were tired and dull, but alive.
Unfortunately, the Japanese could still taste the difference. Because the fish did not move for days, they lost their fresh-fish taste. The Japanese preferred the lively taste of fresh fish, not sluggish fish.
So how did Japanese fishing companies solve this problem? How do they get fresh-tasting fish to Japan?
If you were consulting the fish industry, what would you recommend?
Too Much Money!!!!!
As soon as you reach your goals, such as finding a wonderful mate, starting a successful company, paying off your debts or whatever, you might lose your passion. You don't need to work so hard so you relax.
You experience the same problem as lottery winners who waste their money, wealthy heirs who never grow up and bored homemakers who get addicted to prescription drugs.
Like the Japanese fish problem, the best solution is simple. It was observed by L. Ron Hubbard in the early 1950's.
"Man thrives, oddly enough, only in the presence of a challenging environment. "- L. Ron Hubbard
The Benefits of a Challenge
The more intelligent, persistent and competent you are, the more you
enjoy a good problem.
If your challenges are the correct size, and if you are steadily
conquering those challenges, you are happy.
You think of your challenges and get energized. You are excited to try
new solutions. You have fun.
You are alive!
How Japanese Fish Stay Fresh?!?
To keep the fish tasting fresh, the Japanese fishing companies still
put the fish in the tanks. But now they add a small shark to each tank
The shark eats a few fish, but most of the fish arrive in a very lively
state.
The fish are challenged.
Recommendations
Instead of avoiding challenges, jump into them. Beat the heck out of
them.
Enjoy the game.
If your challenges are too large or too numerous, do not give up.
Failing makes you tired. Instead, reorganize. Find more determination, more knowledge, more help.
If you have met your goals, set some bigger goals. Once you meet your personal or family needs, move onto goals for your group, the society, even mankind
Don't create success and lie in it. You have resources, skills and
abilities to make a difference.
Put a shark in your tank and see how far you can really go!