Communal tensions fester due to inaction
bY Nitish Sengupta

Whether it is Kandhamal in Orissa or Mangalore in Karnataka or parts of Kerala, the story is the same. There is provocative action by a few Christians, and in reprisal, mobs of Hindu fanatics start killing Christians and desecrating churches, forcing innocent Christians to flee for succour.

The Hindu mobs belong to the extremist fringes of the Sangh Parivar viz. the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal. The police remain inactive at the start, only to swing into action when it is too late. The entirety of this reminds me of a wise observation in the Oxford History of India, which remains valid even after seven or eight decades: “The incident deserves notice because it is a good illustration of the way in which the unexpected happens in India and the facility with which an ordinary complaint against the administration can be used to excite a fanatical outburst of religious enthusiasm”.

In Kandhamal, which apparently has a history of such troubles, the VHP leader and Hindu monk Swami Laxmananda Saraswati is murdered by unknown miscreants. Normally, one would have expected the police to immediately take charge of the situation, register an FIR, interrogate witnesses and others who had known the victim and arrest a large number of people including the suspects, and basically, in general, make a decisive show of force. The local leaders of Bajrang Dal could have been cautioned or even taken in custody for interrogation. The magistrate could have clamped Section 144 in the area, making it impossible for a mob to gather. Obviously, no such action was taken by the authorities, thereby allowing tension to express itself. There was no trace of visible police action in the initial stages. The mobs could gather with impunity and proceed on their marauding action. The administration became active only after the proverbial horse had bolted. Strangely, there’s been no evidence of the intelligence branch being active in a district like Kandhamal, considering its past history.

In Mangalore, it was reported that a new convert into Christianity, with the proverbial zeal of a convert, had written against the Hindu religion in abusive language, decrying its Gods and criticising some of its practices. Now this could not have happened in a day or two. The administration should have been alert about this and should have taken timely penal action against him. This would have driven the message to the local Hindu community and their leaders that the authorities were taking deterrent action. Also, leaders of the local Christian community should have restrained the errant co-religionists. A visible show of action on from the authorities could have avoided much of what happened subsequently. In Kerala also, by and large, the same pattern was repeated.

In all these cases, the essential point to emphasise is that there has been a lack of decisive show of force and intention from the administration. Deterrent force, at initial stages, along with other remedial measures, can prevent a lot of unpleasant aforementioned events.

It should be remembered that Christianity is not an import by European colonial rulers. It reached the shores of India in the 1st century after Christ and has existed ever since with a general record of harmony. Christians comprise only two per cent of India’s total population, but are the overwhelming majority in three northeastern states - Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya. They are also a strong force in Kerala and Karnataka.

It is only in recent times that one section in Christianity has garnered notoriety and annoyance with a section of the extremist fringes in the Sangh Parivar, namely, the Catholic Church, for carrying on conversions. Both sides must face reason.

The Hindus should remember that the Upanishads and the Gita, which hold the real essence of true Hinduism, prescribe tolerance of other faiths. They should recall the following dictum of Lord Krishna in the Gita: “Whoever worships me in whichever form, I accept that worship. Men, following different paths, arrive at the same destination”.

Also, on this line, is a famous statement of Swami Vivekananda: “Those who are born Christians, should become good Christians. Those who are born Muslims, should become good Muslims and those born Hindus, should become good Hindus and there is no need for any conversion as such.”

If the VHP, Bajrang Dal and the proselytising Catholics would bear these principles in mind, there will be no need for any conflict. We should never forget India’s long tradition of secularism and religious tolerance and if we all respect each other’s religious beliefs, there will be no occasion for conflict.

Everyone has the right under our Constitution to practise and profess his/her religious beliefs and all must show corresponding tolerance towards other faiths. This should bring about peace and remove discords. It is the duty of the administration to foster this spirit and take deterrent action whenever there is any departure from this.

Dr Nitish Sengupta, an academic and an author, is a former Member of Parliament and a former secretary to the Government of India

Above all, US needs a gallon-savvy President
By Thomas L. Friedman

The 2 is back. Last week, US retail gasoline prices fell below $3 a gallon - to an average of $2.91 - the lowest level in almost a year. Why does this news leave me with mixed feelings?

Because in the middle of this wrenching economic crisis, with unemployment rising and 401(k)’s shrinking, it would be a real source of relief for many Americans to get a break at the pump. Today’s declining gasoline prices act like a tax cut for consumers and can save $15 to $20 a tank-full for an SUV-driving family, compared with when gasoline was $4.11 a gallon in July.

Yet, it is impossible for me to ignore the fact that when gasoline hit $4.11 a gallon we changed - a lot. Americans drove less, polluted less, exercised more, rode more public transportation and, most importantly, overwhelmed Detroit with demands for smaller, more fuel-efficient, hybrid and electric cars. The clean energy and efficiency industries saw record growth - one of our few remaining engines of real quality job creation.

But with little credit available today for new energy start-ups, and lower oil prices making it harder for existing renewables like wind and solar to scale, and a weak economy making it nearly impossible for Congress to pass a carbon tax or gasoline tax that would make clean energy more competitive, what will become of our budding clean-tech revolution?

This moment feels to me like a bad B-movie rerun of the 1980s. And I know how this movie ends - with our re-addiction to oil and Opec, as well as corrosive uncertainty for our economy, trade balance, security and environment.

“Is the economic crisis going to be the end of green?” asks David Rothkopf, energy consultant and author of Superclass. “Or, could green be the way to end the economic crisis?”

It has to be the latter. We can’t afford a financial bailout that also isn’t a green build-up - a build-up of a new clean energy industry that strengthens America and helps the planet.

But how do we do that without any policy to affect the price signal for gasoline and carbon?

Here are some ideas: First, Washington could impose a national renewable energy standard that would require every utility in the country to produce 20 per cent of its power from clean, non-CO2-emitting, energy sources - wind, solar, hydro, nuclear, biomass - by 2025. About half the states already have these in place, but they are all different.

It would create a huge domestic pull for renewable energy if we had a uniform national mandate.

Second, Washington could impose a national requirement that every state move its utilities to a system of “decoupling-plus”.

This is the technical term for changing the way utilities make money - shifting them from getting paid for how much electricity or gas they get you to consume to getting paid for how much electricity or gas they get you to save. Several states have already moved down this path.

Third, an idea offered by Andy Karsner, former assistant secretary of energy, would be to modify the tax code so that any company that invests in new domestic manufacturing capacity for clean energy technology - or procures any clean energy system or energy savings device that is made by an American manufacturer - can write down the entire cost of the investment via a tax credit and/or accelerated depreciation in the first year.

“I’m talking about anything from energy efficient windows to water heaters to industrial boilers to solar panels, and the job creating, manufacturing facilities that produce them - anything that makes us more efficient, lean and economically competitive and comes from a domestic, American source,” said Karsner.

He also suggests using some of the money from any stimulus package to directly incentivise and support states’ efforts to implement and intelligently modernise their building codes to get already well-established national “best practices” quickly into their marketplaces.

Lastly, we need the next President to be an energy efficiency trendsetter, starting by reinventing the inaugural parade. Get rid of the black stretch limos and double-plated armoured Chevy Tahoes inching down Pennsylvania Avenue. Instead, let the next President announce that he will use no vehicles on inauguration day that get less than 30 miles per gallon. He could invite all car companies to participate in the historic drive with their best available American-made, fuel-efficient, innovative vehicle.

Finally, if Congress passes another stimulus package, it can’t just be another round of $600 cheques to go buy flat-screen TVs made in China. It has to also include bridges to somewhere - targeted investments in scientific research, mass transit, domestic clean-tech manufacturing and energy efficiency that will make us a more productive and innovative society, one with more skills, more competitiveness, more productivity and better infrastructure to lead the next great industrial revolution: ET - energy technology.

Sarkozy, a catalyst for a new economic order
By S. Nihal Singh

As the world lurches from one crisis to another in the hope of stemming the flood of economic woes, France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy has emerged as the key to a more predictable future.

The hyperactive politician that he is, he happens to occupy the rotating presidency of the European Union, a position he has used to win support from the grouping and to chivvy US President George W. Bush to look beyond his nose.

Even as President Sarkozy has won his US counterpart’s agreement to holding an economic summit of the developed and major developing countries, some time after the US presidential election in early November, there are important philosophical and ideological differences between the two sides. The American preference seems to be to tinker with the present system to guard against the kind of abuses that have taken place, while the French-led European view is to overhaul the post-World War II Bretton Woods institutions to bring them in tune with the 21st century.

As a recent swing through Europe I undertook revealed, Europeans, who had by and large resigned themselves to the inevitability of adopting American methods of capitalism and diluted their social welfare systems to meet competition, have now woken up to the merits of their mixed economies. Although social welfare schemes have been cut in many European countries, there is renewed recognition that a kinder capitalism benefits their people by preserving social peace and harmony.

Europeans are still recovering from the shock of the gross abuses indulged in by American chief executives and a system that permitted a few to feather their own nests at the cost of their shareholders and the public. Even more mortifying for Europeans is the stark fact that their renowned banking and other institutions were so tempted by easy money to be made that they skirted ingrained principles of prudence to expose their venerable institutions to economic ruin. Who could have imagined the supposedly rock solid Swiss banking institutions have had to be rescued by their government?

Partly, of course, the scale of banking losses across the European continent and in Britain is the flip side of globalisation and the chain effects the American sub-prime crisis has had on institutions across the world. It shows how important American economy remains in influencing the world. But President Bush has been swearing his commitment to “democratic capitalism” and unfettered free markets, despite the disaster the unrestrained conduct of its hoary banking institutions and their chief executives has brought on his country and the world.

President Bush must cope with the immediate problems of his own and the world’s economy in the sunset days of his presidency.

The longer term consequences of the economic meltdown will fall into the lap of his successor, but the world’s economic health is simply too important to tailor it to the presidential changeover. The coming weeks will show how much of a prisoner President Bush and his advisers are to their neoconservative ideology. There is first the domestic problem of devising foolproof regulatory systems to ensure that chief executives do not walk away with millions in golden handshakes leaving their shareholders and country in the lurch. But the more important question is the restructuring of the world’s financial institutions to cope with present and future demands.

To an extent, the Group of Eight industrialised countries have been making largely symbolic gestures to the emerging countries to involve them in the consultation process.

But Europeans, led by President Sarkozy, are more attuned to the need of making major emerging economies - the countries most commonly mentioned are China, India and Brazil - part of the new system of global economic management than mere adjuncts to them.

American reluctance radically to alter the Bretton Woods institutions and the basis on which they work is understandable.

The United States enjoys immense clout in the functioning of these institutions and often uses them as levers to pursue its foreign policy objectives. At the same time, Washington recognises that with the emergence of BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) and the vast transfer of resources in the oil and gas-producing countries of West Asia, new actors will have to be brought into the system.

The argument taking place in many world capitals is the extent and manner in which new nations are brought in. In other words, how radically should Bretton Woods institutions be restructured? President Sarkozy is seeking to maintain the momentum gained by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown showing the way in nationalising key faltering British banks.

This remedy has been followed across Europe and, more reluctantly, by President Bush.

President Sarkozy has crossed the first hurdle by persuading President Bush to convene a conference of many economies of the developed and developing world.

But Washington is resisting the European view that there must be limits to unfettered trade and economic interactions and a strict regimen of regulations is required to curb the greed of those who seek to make money at the expense of the people and the State.

All that the envisaged summit, expected before the end of December, can achieve is to be a curtain raiser for the hard decisions that must be taken by the next US President. The reform of institutions always lags behind changing reality, but the scale of the world economic crisis drawing parallels with the Great Depression of the 1930s has made the urgency of changing the way present institutions work self-evident.

President Sarkozy’s term as the European Union president ends in December, but he, together with Germany, is expected to remain a key player in promoting a more rational world economic order. There are, of course, divisions in European ranks, revealed recently by the rebellion of some to meeting the ambitious global warming targets set by the EU. Even more importantly, the former Communist States look towards Washington for guidance while enjoying the economic benefits of belonging to the EU.

Look what He has done… made my life so beautiful
By Aruna Irani

Whatever I have seen in life has been because of God. I always ask Him for strength. I devote some time for prayer each morning. It is in those minutes of solitude that my inner self awakens. Whatever I do in life, whatever I create, stems from these precious moments.

God cannot fulfil all your desires. But that is not the purpose of prayer.

When one wants to achieve something in life, it is very easy to go wrong and get depressed if your wishes are not fulfilled.

Destiny cannot be changed. I simply pray to keep myself on the right path. The older you grow, the less you want to hurt others, and the more you want to grow closer to God.

I have had a strong faith in God since I was a child. Usually one learns this from one’s parents. But for me it was the other way round. My parents were not religious. I taught them to pray. I am not educated; I knew that I won’t be able to come up in life. But look what He has done for me. He made my life beautiful.

He is always with me, behind me, wrong or right. If I unintentionally do something wrong, I ask forgiveness for hurting others. Whether it happened because of me or it was His intention, I always ask Him to set things right and He always does that.

- Aruna Irani is a well-known actor

Powell speaks for Muslims, Obama
By Maureen Dowd

Colin Powell had been bugged by many things in his party’s campaign this fall: The insidious merging of rumours that Barack Obama was Muslim with intimations that he was a terrorist sympathiser; the assertion that Sarah Palin was ready to be President; the uniformed sheriff who introduced governor Palin by sneering about Barack Hussein Obama; the scorn with which Republicans spit out the words “community organiser”; the Republicans’ argument that using taxes to “spread the wealth” was socialist when the purpose of taxes is to spread the wealth; Palin’s insidious notion that small towns in states that went for W. were “the real America”.

But what sent him over the edge and made him realise he had to speak out was when he opened his New Yorker three weeks ago and saw a picture of a mother pressing her head against the gravestone of her son, a 20-year-old soldier who had been killed in Iraq. On the headstone were engraved his name, Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, his awards - the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star - and a crescent and a star to denote his Islamic faith.

Khan was an all-American kid. A 2005 graduate of Southern Regional High School in Manahawkin, New Jersey, he loved the Dallas Cowboys and playing video games with his 12-year-old stepsister, Aliya. His obituary in the Star-Ledger of Newark said that he had sent his family back pictures of himself playing soccer with Iraqi children. His father said Kareem had been eager to enlist since he was 14 and was outraged by the 9/11 attacks. “His Muslim faith did not make him not want to go,” Feroze Khan, told the Gannett News Service after his son died. “He looked at it that he’s American and he has a job to do”. In a gratifying “have you no sense of decency, Sir and Madam?” moment, Colin Powell on Sunday talked about Khan, and the unseemly ways John McCain and Palin have been polarising the country. Even the Obama campaign has shied away from Muslims. The candidate has gone to synagogues but no mosques, and the campaign was embarrassed when it turned out that two young women in headscarves had not been allowed to stand behind Obama during a speech in Detroit because aides did not want them in the TV shot. The former secretary of state has dealt with prejudice in his life, in and out of the Army, and he is keenly aware of how many millions of Muslims around the world are being offended by the slimy tenor of the race against Obama.

He told Tom Brokaw that he was troubled by what other Republicans, not McCain, had said: ” ‘Well, you know that Mr Obama is a Muslim’. Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim. He’s a Christian. He’s always been a Christian. But the really right answer is, what if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer’s no. That’s not America. Is something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be President?”

Powell got a note from Feroze Khan this week thanking him.

Deccan Chronicle

Hoax job offers to the UK
 

The British Council, the United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational and cultural relations, manages a wide range of activities covering the arts, science, technology and education. The Council also facilitates a range of educational scholarships - Chevening scholarships, the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan, British Overseas Indu-strial Placement Scheme (BOND) and the Charles Wallace scheme.

After completing their studies, Non-European Economic Area (EEA) students are allowed to stay on and work for up to a year in Britain under the International Graduates Scheme (IGS). Launch-ed in May 2007, in place of the Science and Engineering Gradua-tes Scheme, the IGS is for students who have successfully completed their first or Master’s degree, doctorate, postgraduate certificate or diploma programme. In addition to this is the Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland scheme for non-EEA nationals who have completed an HND, degree, Masters or Ph.D. studies at a Scottish university, to apply to live and work in Scotland for up to two years after completing their studies.

However, the British Council has warned all students that if they received any e-mails offering jobs in the UK they were to be ignored and reported. “It has come to our notice that a company or recruitment agency by the name of England Subsea Oil Company (ESOC) is fraudulently using the British Council name in offering jobs with huge salaries in the UK by e-mail,” said a spokesperson for the Council.
The Council said that ESOC’s operations were apparently entirely fraudulent and warned students to contact local British Council offices or the local British High Commission or email the Council at mumbai.enquiry@in.britishcouncil.org in the event of any untoward communication.

“The British Council has no connection or affiliation to ESOC,” said the spokesperson adding that the Council never offers jobs in the UK. The Council said that all information pertaining to job opportunities at the British Council or work attachments through their Bond scheme were always advertised on their website. “You will NEVER receive emails from us asking you to remit money to a bank account towards Work Permit Papers,” said the official. Any student receiving such mails should alert the Council immediately.

Education needs a face-lift
 

In its recommendations for reforms in higher education, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) said that India’s education sector requires huge investments. According to the Chamber, the 11th Plan allocation for higher and technical education, which is Rs. 849.43 billion, is insufficient to meet the needs of the country.

“The Government has allocated Rs. 306.82 billion to establish 16 central universities, 370 colleges, eight Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), seven Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), 10 National Institutes of Techno-logy (NITs), 20 Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs), five Indian Institutes Of Science Education and Research (IISERs), and 50 centres for training and research in frontier areas,” the report said.

“However, according to estimates by the Planning Commi-ssion, this fund is not enough and the required resource gap will remain Rs. 2.22 trillion,” FICCI said. “As per the Planning Commission, the country needs an additional 200 universities. It is thus clear that, public resources would not be sufficient to meet the ever-growing demand for quality in higher education, and increasing private sector investment and participation will be required to meet such demands,” it added.

The Govern-ment has already asked the FICCI to identify private partners to develop 20 IITs during the 11th Plan period. According to FICCI, the Government’s decision to accord deemed university status to foreign universities in India and de-link the quality assurance mechanism from the regulatory authority was in sync with the Chamber’s recommendations to the Government on giving a face-lift to the higher education system.

New courses
 

The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and the India branch (Mumbai) of Orlando-based American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AH&LEI) have tied up to start a ‘School of Tourism and Hospitality Service Sectoral Management (SOTHSSM)’. The school is foraying into hospitality programmes as well. Both the tourism, as well as hospitality courses will be imparted via a mixture of online, face-to-face and the Open and Distance Learning (ODL) mode. The range of new courses in hospitality will be offered spanning the line from Certificate to Ph.D. levels.

An integrated five year Ph.D. programme in hospitality will be on offer from the January 2009 session as will a bridge course for Diploma holders to enable them join the a PG programme, besides an already launched BA-IHA programme.

Academic courses have been divided into two parts - Hospitality Administra-tion and Tourism. IGNOU has tied up with 45 institutions for the hospitality segment, of which 28 are Special Programme Centres (SPCs) having infrastructure and facilities to educate, train and groom young professionals for the job-market.

Says department coordinator, K.V. Simon, “The growth in hospitality activities during the past few years has been huge. I believe we will need over a million of hospitality professionals in next 10 years and we will groom them to become world-class professionals.”

Loan lifeline
 
By Jyoti Verma

ῠ
Neeru Shukla, mother of Aditi, is now a brand ambassador for the State Bank of India. Reason? The quick Rs 20 lakh loan she managed from the national bank recently to send her daughter to the USA to do an MBA. Asking how her journey was from putting up the request to taking the amount home calls for surprises. “It was a matter of four days,” she says, adding, “The application form was downloadable and simple to fill. The bank personnel then visited us to check the facts, and gave us the funds in a week.”

Were the Shuklas a special case, or do loans these days really come through a single window? Well, say industry watchers, matters pertaining to education loans have just got better. With markets getting global, so is the workforce - there are no boundaries for people. And money. Investing in a customer base that has good degrees in hand or in the pipeline, is a safe bet for banks. “The number of requests for loans is increasing year-on-year. This has not only made the regulations easy, but also made the delivery refined,” says Suresh Chander, DGM, Personal Banking, State Bank of India.

Though the concept of loans has been there for ages, there is now more convenience and flexibility offered. Loans can be taken for all educational courses - at all levels - with employment prospects (graduation, postgraduation and professional courses, besides others approved by UGC/Government/ AICTE etc). They can be availed on factors like fees (hostel to laboratory), buying computers/books/uniforms, air fares for studies abroad or as caution deposits. Students can repay their loans after they join a job. The fund transfer happens faster in the case of ‘bright’ students, well known and established universities and reputed study destinations. And what’s more, applications can move faster only if students/parents are ready to provide collateral in the form of shares or fixed deposits.

Experts advise students/parents to check all the options and support from the universities/institutes they are joining. “If one is going for a specialised and in-demand course, the university supports the student with funds and enough time to pay back. After figuring out the best combination (the university and how much funding is available to them) students can fill the gap with a loan,” advises career counsellor Usha Albuquerque.
Albuquerque finds the overall education loan scene positive. However, putting the available options under the scanner, she finds nationalised banks (SBI, Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, et al) more encouraging over privatised ones (ICICI, HDFC, etc), with the major difference being the comfort level given to the prospective student. However as Albuquerque says “there are still many who back out once they come to know of a bank’s tax regulations. We all know that parents of most outgoing students have some funds, as they are aware of the upcoming need. But, banks shouldn’t ask for huge amounts as interest or upfront money and push one to keep everything in mortgage,” she advises.

“For example if you were to take a loan of Rs 15 lakhs, you need to show a sum of Rs 7.5 lakhs,” says Bhuvan Oberoi who backed out of the deal the bank was offering him.ῠ On the other hand, according to the taxation expert, Subhash Lakhotia, those applying for higher loans are eligible for tax benefits once they begin repaying the loans. Under the Income Tax Act, there exists a provision in Section 80E whereby tax deduction is admissible in respect of repayment ofῠ loans.
All in all, there is no doubt that loans have become easier to get and easier to repay.

Innovation is the need of the hour
 

Entrepreneurship is the need of the hour and the Mudra Institute of Communications (MICA), Ahmedabad’s centre of excellence is gearing up to churn out a fresh breed of entrepreneurs. “The need of the hour is innovators who can come up with what the customer wants,” said Gautam Raj Jain, Senior Professor and Executive Vice Chairman, MICA-EDC.

MICA aims to promote innovators who are skilled in every facet of business management and to this end the institute’s Entrepreneur-ship Develop-ment Centre (MICA-EDC) will launch a course that will help students manage innovations efficiently. The joint postgraduate programme in Inno-vations Management, which is of a two year duration will be part of MICA’s international collaboration with the University of Essex, UK. “An innovator creates a product but sometimes lacks the ability to judge the market demand. Through this course, we plan to train innovators to create products at the customer level and create more buyers of innovation,” said Professor Jain.

The course will cover all the aspects of innovations and business management like creativity, technology management, finance, brand building and management.
In the meantime, the 8th International Entrepreneur-ship Forum conference on the theme ‘Creativity and Entrepreneur-ship: Imperatives for Sustainable Global Based Knowledge Economy,’ will be held by MICA-EDC in Ahmedabad in December 2008, in collaboration with the Essex Business School, and the OECD LEED Pro-gramme in Paris.

Discover to invent
 

I am reminded of one thought regarding inventors and inventions, discoverers and discoveries.ῠ They have emanated from creative minds that have been constantly working and imaging the outcome in the mind. With imaging and constant effort, all the forces of the universe work for that inspired mind, thereby leading to inventions or discoveries. Higher the number of creative minds in an organization, the best results of innovation in all the three sectors of the economy will emerge.

I would like to share two important developments in robotics carried out by the scientists and engineers of Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburg for land and moon applications which I saw during my visit to US in October 2007.

Robotics in land and moonῠ While I was in Carnegie Mellon University, I came to know about the development of Boss - A Robotic car developed by Carnegie Mellon University. This car won the 2007 Defense Advance Research Project Agency (DARPA) Urban Challenge first place price of $2 million in the autonomous vehicle competition held in November 2007. This is the first time that autonomous (driverless) vehicles traversed suburban roads at speed with real traffic represented by 50 moving cars with human drivers and the 11 race finalists in robot-on-robot competition.

The autonomous vehicles in the DARPA Urban Challenge were required to navigate, park, and handle traffic on a 60-mile urban course within a six-hour time limit. The vehicles operated without human guidance and relied only on sensors and computers. The robotic cars also had to obey traffic laws, merge into moving traffic, avoid obstacles, and negotiate intersections. The robotic technology is indeed taking shape and we may see in this decade Robotic Cars in many parts of the world.

I also visited and interacted with the Carnegie Mellon - Google Lunar X Prize team, who are developing a robot which will land on the Moon, travel at least 500 meter on the lunar surface and transmit images to Earth by 2012 with the intent of winning a $20 million challenge announced by the X Prize Foundation and Google Inc. This will be the first private off-planet exploration. The result of this experiment will pave the way more robotic landing in Mars and Moon for exploration. Both these developments give me the confidence that the world is not far off from realizing pilot-less combat aircraft and reusable missile.

Courting cricketing issues
 

Cricket is considered to be a religion in India, and cricketers as Gods. But with Sourav Ganguly’s recent announcement of retirement and Anil Kumble hinting at following the league soon, many say that the face of Indian cricket is undergoing tremendous change. While some believe it is too much control by the regulatory bodies over the cricketers that stands as the reason, according to some others it is only because of bad performance. Deccan Chronicle spoke to seven students of SRN Adarsh College to find out their opinion on the issue and on what they think could be the possible ways out of this crisis.

What started off as a discussion among friends, soon took the shape of a heated debate. Meghna M. strongly emphasised upon the fact that cricket was unnecessarily being given excessive publicity. “There are so many other sports in the country and many players from those also retire every few months. We do not make such a big issue out of it. Let’s accept the fact that Ganguly is old enough to quit now. He has had his share of achievements and now is the time to move on,” said Meghna.

Adding to Meghna’s point, Sadiq Suhail Ahmed said: “Senior cricketers have got their dues and he need to give youngsters a chance. If they do not retire, how does fresh talent get a chance? Moreover, I believe it wasn’t a sudden enforcement by the BCCI. They have issued a notification to all cricketers asking them to plan their retirement.”

But Sheela P. had a contradictory opinion. “I do not agree to the sudden retirement announcement that happened in Ganguly’s case. It was evident that it was against his free will. Players should not be asked to leave on the basis of age but on how they perform.” Concurring with Sheela’s views, Nitesh Kumar said: “If we consider Ganguly’s case, he was performed much better than few of the other players and yet he was asked to retire first. There is a big discrepancy in the system and only those who have influence over the regulatory bodies continue to pass out clear. Others have to face the brunt.”

However, Mithila Mohan had a deeper insight to offer into the issue. “It is true that selection and retention do not happen fairly, but at the same time we need to realise that the players too are getting digressed from what they were chosen to do. The reason no one wants to take retirement from cricket is that they are always in the limelight, earn money through endorsements, dance on shows and hardly play good cricket.”

Vaibhav Kothari strongly disagreed to it. “It isn’t just money that lures cricketers. The profession is their passion and they have an emotional attachment with it. Hence, it is not easy to let it go off. No single regulatory body should be allowed to dictate rules. This can stop only when more players come in to form regulations, more young talents get a chance to play and there is more opportunity to take the game to an international level, like that of the Olympics. It is then that the politicization of the game will stop,” said Vaibhav. 

Khemchand H. pitched in the debate. “More corporate players also need to participate and pool in money for the benefit of promoting the game. Every talented player should get a chance to show his performance. Organising more leagues can be a way out. Also, the motto should be perform or perish,” he said.  The discussion took a slightly different turn when Meghna emphasised upon the importance of media’s role in all of this. “Media should not promote one person or one game too much. They need to strike a balance so that every good thing gets publicity. It is true that people want to hear more about cricket, but it is also essential to see that only an IPL does not get all the hype, just because it has all the big sponsors. Smaller players, smaller leagues should also receive their due respect,” she said.

Nitesh further added that there was a need for the country to realise the importance of retired players. “A player does not have to be a cricketer to promote the game. If they are given enough opportunities to work as mentors by putting in what they have learnt as players, allowed to start leagues like Kapil Dev did ICL, given the power to form a team of their own, say Sourav-Tendulkar league, the problems can be solved to a great extent,” he said.

Monopoly and bureaucracy should be kept aside in sports is what Sheela reflected upon and nearly everyone in the group agreed to what she said. Sadiq ended the debate on a very positive note. “The Indian players also need to realise that retirement is not the end of their contribution to cricket. They have to promote the youth because youth is not useless, but they are used less.”

Been hair and done that
 
By Asha Sachdeva

 

Have you ever wondered who gave President APJ Kalam his Einstein look? No marks for guessing. His “official” hair stylist Amjad Habib, brother of the famous Jawed Habib. Between them, the Habibs - at present there are five in the trade, including octogenarian Habib Ahmed - India’s first family of hair stylists runs close to 50 outlets in India and abroad. Contrary to belief, most saunter into the profession not by accident but by design. Jawed Habib, for instance was training to be a hotel management graduate when he quit his studies mid-stream to pick up the scissors.

Amjad’s story is no different. “The career choice was not imposed on any of us. But since so many of my childhood memories were associated with my Dad’s saloon, where I ran all kind of errands as a shampoo boy after school, the thought of doing anything else never crossed my mind.”  An empathetic attitude, the ability to tune into clients “needs and your own well-groomed look are also important if you want to impress and inspire a client,” remarks Vandana Luthra, Director, VLCC. 
To this catalogue of soft skills, renowned hair stylist Jawed Habib adds a few of his own: “You must be a good stress manager with a flair for interaction and a plastic bent of mind.” 

Asked who makes for a better stylist, a man or a woman, Amjad says, “I would presume it’s the opposite for each group. We run unisex saloons and where possible we ensure that a man styles a woman’s hair and vice versa.”   The training at most cosmetology institutes requires theory as well as practical demonstrations on dummy heads, with a bit of hair biology (oops, Trichology) thrown in for good measure. 

“There is money in it, and these days, also respect,” assures Ashish Grover (16), who has come all the way from Ferozpur in Punjab to train at Habib’s. He plans to join his mother’s saloon later. 
 ”Every new client is a challenge but the reward comes from the smile you catch in his/her eye after a session,” says Amjad. “That’s our Moment of Truth,” concurs Luthra.

Let into the light
 
By Rai Umraopati Ray

 
The seven decade old lighting market in India is currently experiencing a growth rate of 12 per cent, while the lamp and luminaire market stands at 11 per cent and 14 per cent respectively. Sounds impressive, doesn’t it?  The above figures clearly indicate that the lighting industry in India is on an upward trajectory. Not many of us know that the Rs. 1250 crore lighting industry (US $ 290 mn), registers a 20 per cent turnover from the unorganised sector, receives around Rs. 50 crore from imports and some Rs. 30 crore from exports across the nation.

But sadly, in spite of its impressive annual growth rate, nothing much has been done to develop professionals who could take the industry to further heights of glory using more scientific and innovative approaches.  Says Anil Valia, Lighting Designer and Educator, Inter-national Lighting Academy, which offer short-term lighting education courses, “The lighting industry faces an acute shortage of trained professionals who are capable of marketing products. We still have to depend on electrical and electronic engineers, who take at least 18 months to get familiar with the nuances of marketing products.”

Though, the industry is making its mark all over the world, there are not many institutes that can provide the appropriate educational programmes in this vital field of lighting. Adds Valia, “A career in lighting is a good option for aspiring students as the industry is developing at a fast pace.  Short term lighting education courses should also be on offer for practicing professionals of different groups.”

The sector not only holds great potential but also promises a bright future to those who venture into the field of lighting including illumination engineering that incorporates the art, science and technology of lighting. In India, recruiters are the major players in the field like Philips, Crompton Greaves, Bajaj Electricals, Wipro, Osram, GE, Sylvania, Asian Electronics and Siemens etc. There are lots of job opportunities available for specialised professionals in the USA and in Europe.

Now it’s time for some fun
 

The Indian Institute of Management Bangalore conducted its business fest Vista ‘08 from 10th to 12th October. B- School students from all over the country attended the three day extravaganza that had over 10,000 footfalls. For students it was definitely a moment to rejoice and learn at the same time.

Bzzwings:
Another trademark event of IIMB Vista, the Bzzwings B-plan competition, sponsored by BNP Paribas, was contested by over three hundred and saw participation from twenty teams all over India. The day was filled with interesting ideas ranging from tourism companies to health and fitness drives. But the pick of the day were the winners and runners up, both from IIM Bangalore. Pritam Sarkar and Smriti Khullar bagged the first prize with their venture.

Media Conclave:
The Media Conclave on day one saw bigwigs from the newspaper industry debating it out on - “The Great Indian Media Circus - Just who is watching whom?”

The finals of debating competition Drishtikoneplayed to a packed auditorium, with even the aisles filled with members of the audience.  IIM-Bians Shyam U and Pritam Sarkar bagged the first prize in the close race, beating out the team from XLRI Jamshedpur.
Every sector of the industry was represented on this day- while Hire Wise challenged participants to solve the HR problems of a company, Retailor focused on marketing through pricing and operations. Baadshah searched for the savviest individual in advertising, a distinction that was vied for by over 200 contestants. Trojan Horse, the strategy game, had 6 teams being tested on strategy - pitting them against each other in a simulated retail market.

Numero Uno:
The flagship event of IIMB Vista , the Numero Uno, the hunt for the next CEO turned truly international this year with students representing McGill University, Yale and Lahore University of Management studies joining in. The search was for a global leader who could bring about a major difference.

Finesse:
Finesse, the flagship event of the finance club had 250 people participating in the elimination round, showing just how attractive private equity is today. The 10 shortlisted teams were taken through a  multi-year simulation game, a grueling test of the participants’ judgment, strategy and risk-taking abilities. All the sessions witnessed an enthusiastic participation.

It’s give back time
 

Prof. Bharat Bhasker, Professor of Information Technology and Systems, IIM Lucknow, was conferred  the “Best Professor of Information Technology” at the recently concluded AsianBrand Summit and Dewang Mehta Business School Awards.   

Prof. Bhasker is a Senior Professor at IIM Lucknow in the area of Information Technology and Systems. In addition, as a principal investigator, he is responsible for setting up Internet Commerce Research Center in IIM Lucknow, to conduct research and development in the focus area of Internet Commerce with the objective of growth of Internet Commerce in India. He received a grant for implementing the IIMNet (an Intranet of four Indian Institute of Management in India) worth Rs.1,000,000 from Digital Equipment Corporation  (India) Ltd. 

He has rich and diverse experience in academia  and has been a visiting professor at ESSEC Business School , Paris, France and University of Texas, Dallas, USA. He was a Distinguished Professor at Chung-Ang University, Seoul, Korea, was a research professor at University of California, Riverside, USA and Adjunct Faculty at Information Systems, Univ. of Maryland, College Park.   A Ph.D in Computer Science, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Dissertation. He has published over 80 research papers in International Journals and is the author of three   books.

Deccan Chronicle

PARIS: It appears that there is no love for John Travolta, as location filming for his new film in a Paris suburb has been suspended after arsonists burnt a fleet of stunt cars.

Scenes from the thriller “From Paris With Love” were due to be shot at Montfermeil this week, but the shoot has been postponed “indefinitely” after ten stunt cars were torched late Sunday night.

Montfermeil, a northeast Paris suburb riddled with poverty, unemployment, and criminality, was at the epicentre of 2005 youth riots in immigrant-populated French towns.

Investigations are underway, as security guards spotted someone with a jerrycan of petrol at the car park where the cars were burnt.

Montfermeil mayor Xavier Lemoine has expressed “deep disappointment” at the cancellation of the shoots for which 100 locals were hired as extras, cooks and security staff.

Directed by Frenchman Pierre Morel, the US$56 million action feature which stars Travolta as a US secret agent and “The Tudors” actor Jonathan Rhys Meyer, highlights problems in the rough neighbourhoods surrounding Paris.

It began shooting in the Alpine town of Annecy late last month and will continue for the next two and half months in various locations across France.

- CNA/sl/il

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