"I came here to tell the world that India is not lagging behind. I came here to put up the India flag. I am convinced that if there is any country in the eastern part of the world that matches the United States in terms of legal, banking and financial market infrastructure, it is India. We should collaborate more and more," said Jignesh Shah, chief executive of Multi-Commodity Exchange, 48 hours after completing the deal between MCX and New York Stock Exchange.

The NYSE has bought a 5 per cent stake in MCX. Financial majors like Merrill Lynch and Citigroup, and 14 nationalized Indian banks already have a stake in MCX.

For Shah, 41, it is nice to make it to the Forbes list of India's 40 richest people, but it is nicer to get $55 million from the world's largest stock exchange.



Full Story: India matches US in banking infrastructure: Jignesh Shah

Get Quote ] , Essar, BP Plc and BHP Billiton, for oil and gas exploration blocks under the seventh round of NELP auction.

However, there were no bids for 12 out of 57 blocks that were on the offer under the New Exploration Licensing Policy. The winners would be decided by August 31, 2008 ONGC is understood to have bid for the maximum number of blocks, while Essar Exploration and Production Ltd has bid for four shallow water blocks along with US-based Nobel Energy, in addition to one deep water block with GSPC.

Reliance Industries (RIL), which has a major presence in upstream operations particularly after the gigantic gas find in Krishna Godavari basin, is understood to have bid for an estimated half-a-dozen blocks.



Full Story: Oil majors vie for oil blocks under NELP-VII

Reader Jolly Gupta sends us a photograph.

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Full Story: Spotted: Owen Wilson catches a train

ate actor Health Ledger's Joker in the new Batman movie The Dark Knight has been dubbed as 'best villain in a superhero movie of all time'.

Los Angeles entertainment reporter Sam Rubin said on his KTLA-TV blog that Ledger's role as The Joker is 'amazing work', eports Daily Telegraph .

He said that Ledger 'gives a blockbuster performance' and 'will absolutely be nominated for an Oscar, and at this point in the year, Ledger is also a hands-down favourite to win it posthumously'.



Full Story: Ledger's Joker dubbed 'best villain of all time'

Patients' rating of the quality of their NHS care will affect hospitals' and GPs' funding in England in the future, ministers have announced.

Information on service quality is also set to be displayed on "dashboards" in hospitals, GP surgeries and on the web.

The plans for the next 10 years were launched alongside an NHS Constitution setting out rights including speeding up assessments of new drugs.



Full Story: Quality ranking key to NHS funds

A two-pronged initiative aims to speed up diagnosis and treatment of people with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in developing countries.

The World Health Organization is working with partners to make a rapid test - which gives results in two days - more widely available.

There are also plans to boost the supply of drugs to treat MDR-TB in 54 countries - and cut their cost.



Full Story: Rapid test for drug resistant TB

June 30, 2008 11:56 IST Rising prices are luring an increasing number of private investors to Africa's food sector, where they are convinced of making profits -- for the first time in decades, a media report said.

Commercial banks, charities and governments have set up funds worth hundreds of millions of dollars over the past few years to invest in private farm and food projects in Africa, while several major companies have expanded operations there, the leading financial daily Wall Street Journal said.

Vast lots of empty, arable land, rising food prices and, since 2001, zero tariffs for exports from poor countries to the lucrative European Union market are some of the factors that make the African food sector look like a business opportunity, the Journal quoted private investors as saying.



Full Story: Rising prices draw investors to Africa

Ties between India and China have witnessed dramatic changes recently and the two Asian giants have many stakes in common in future, including development and environmental concerns, India's ambassador to Beijing Nirupama Rao has said.

"We share issues in common", which dictates the 'logical base' for the relationship, she said, adding the relations between the two neighbours had ramifications 'far beyond the bilateral'.

Both countries shared many common stakes in the future, such as developing their economies and grappling with environmental issues, Rao said at a reception hosted for a 100-member strong visiting Indian Youth Delegation in Beijing.



Full Story: Common stakes in future guide ties with China: India

] can be described as a romantic action thriller which stands out for its distinct narrative style. Despite many negative points, Meravanige appeals largely because of it's lively and engaging moments that mixes well with the story.

The film stars young Prajwal and fresh-face Andrita Ray in the lead, who are able to make a mark effectively. And credit for this goes to Mahesh Babu.

However the pace of the film staggers in a few places, and there is inconsistency too. The film moves in a faster pace in the first half, but as soon as the story shifts to the forests, the film's narration takes a slower pace.



Full Story: Watch Meravanige for it's freshness

] , Sadhu Kokila and Doddanna, the Kannada film falls flat. And partly to blame is the wayward script, which defies logic.

The story goes like this: Ravi and Jaggu are the sons of a rich tycoon, who are prepared to do anything for money. The father kicks out these two irresponsible pranksters from his home by arranging a funny contract on their heads.

Jennifer and Pooja Gandhi are seen mostly in song and dance sequences. The other girls just come and go.    Only a fan of Ravichandran and Jaggesh will call this even a time pass film.



Full Story: Nee Tata Naa Birla is ordinary

Using a child's body mass index (BMI) as a measure of the success of exercise targets may be misleading, say experts.

Writing in the Archives of Disease in Childhood, they said blood testing might be the only way to measure exercise benefits.

The government recommends that children have an hour's moderate exercise or more every day to reduce the chance that they will become obese adults, with a higher risk of diseases such as diabetes or heart disease.



Full Story: Call to rethink child BMI testing

Sexually-transmitted infections have doubled in under a decade in people over 45 and are now rising faster than in the young, research suggests.

The number of sexually transmitted infections is rising in both young and old, despite sexual health campaigns urging people to avoid unsafe sex.

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) looked at people coming to clinics in the West Midlands between 1996 and 2003.



Full Story: Sex diseases 'double in over-45s'

O ffice employees who sit at their computers for eight or more hours daily report frequent aches and pains, ranging from stiff necks to lower backaches to numb wrists. Add to that list "BlackBerry thumb," the throbbing sensation many users feel in their digit from too much typing on the hand-held device.

The good news is a few small adjustments to your workstation and your daily routine should alleviate, or even prevent, the pain.

How to keep your weight from holding back your career The most important thing office workers can do, according to those who study ergonomics, is to take short breaks every 30 minutes. That might seem frequent, but you don't even need to leave your desk. Just stand up and roll your shoulders back a few times. Holding the same posture for hours and repeating the same activities--typing and clicking a mouse--puts strain on muscles over time. Taking breaks eases that tension.



Full Story: How to ease office aches and pains

E ither this is going to change the world or go down in history as one of the toughest ideas to sell--ever.

The difficult part is getting past the notion that you can work in the most productive office in the company--and the industry, for that matter--while allowing employees to show up when they want.

. Ressler and Thompson tell readers in 201 pages how ROWE is the answer. The book even contains a "yeah, but" section meant to dispel any skepticism or cynicism surrounding the ROWE principles, called "guideposts," like making every meeting optional and not judging how employees spend their time. If readers aren't convinced, they can take the 24-question, multiple-choice ROWE test.



Full Story: How to motivate your staff and win big

Kismat Konnection , and, borrowing heavily from current market trends and influences, comes up with a couple of nice tracks -- and then spends over half the CD making us listen to them again and again.

song. Singer Neeraj Shridhar takes turning sounding like Apache Indian and Himesh- bhai , and frightening as that combination sounds, it's not bad.

The segue into track 2 couldn't be more abrupt. Balladeer Atif Aslam embraces Bakhuda Tumhi Ho with open arms, and the song sounds like his typical spirited self until his voice collides with that of Alka Yagnik almost exactly midway through the song. It's an interesting, unusual pairing and -- save for the church-choir style chorus -- works well on first listen, unless, that is, you're tiring of Aslam by now.



Full Story: Grab just a handful of Kismat

] and her husband Guy Ritchie are heading for a split soon after it emerged that the couple have sought advice from divorce lawyers.

"Guy and Madonna are at breaking point and have both separately talked to lawyers. Their friends have not ruled out all hope but the situation is dire, to say the least," an unnamed source, close to the couple, was quoted as saying.

] looked frail and pale, like someone under tremendous strain, and he seemed utterly miserable," a source reportedly said.



Full Story: Madonna and Guy call in divorce lawyers

My name is Jess Lee and I am 17 years old. I live in Liverpool with my mum, dad and sisters.

I don't know why I was picked out of the crowd and given this condition, as it affects only one in 70,000 people in the UK.

My eyes were widely spaced and protruding, my nose and mouth were unusually small - rather cute I like to think. My fingers were also fused together. They looked like little mittens.



Full Story: 'My aim is to get a boyfriend'

People hospitalised for sudden hearing loss had more strokes in the following five years than otherwise healthy appendicitis patients.

The article, in the journal Stroke, suggested no reason why the hearing problem could be linked to strokes.

UK stroke specialist Dr Tony Rudd, of Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, described it as "an unusual" finding.



Full Story: Hearing loss link to stroke risk

Indian students pursuing education in British universities can now work in the UK for two years after completing their courses, instead of one year as allowed earlier.

Starting from Monday, students can seek employment for up to two years under Tier 1 of the Points-Based System introduced by the government earlier this year to replace an earlier scheme, according to official sources. The students were allowed to stay in the country only for one year after completion of their studies under the previous International Graduate Scheme.

Full Story: Indian students in UK can now work for 2 years

Day two of the Glastonbury Festival has seen stars such as Duffy, James Blunt and Shakin' Stevens wowing crowds, with two hotly-anticipated sets to come.

All eyes will be on US rapper Jay-Z and troubled singer Amy Winehouse when they play the main Pyramid Stage later.

Winehouse returned to hospital on Friday night to continue treatment for a lung problem after singing two tracks at the Nelson Mandela birthday concert.



Full Story: Glastonbury awaits Amy and Jay-Z

Nearly 40 years after the virtual world started, companies and individuals will be able to apply for any address on the Internet and not be limited to just the 21 suffixes like .com (accounting for 80 per cent), .net and .info or country-specific appendages like .in for India.

Top-level domain names till date were restricted by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) -- an international not-for-profit body that oversees the structure of the Internet. Its board, according to Paul Twomey, president and CEO of ICANN, has now given the go-ahead for total freedom on domain name and the final version is expected to be published in early-2009. paris , .timbuctoo, .dilipkumar, .amitabhbachhan or .whateveryouwant. Like all desired things, these would come for a price: Rs 40 lakh to Rs 2 crore.

Full Story: Get the domain name you want

is a clarion call for people to unite and fight for what is rightfully and legitimately theirs even if the enemy is a politician-cum-don-cum-land shark. To some extent it reflects reality with the underlying message woven in.

The Telugu film begins with mother Earth talking about her woes -- how mankind is trying to destroy her and how resilient she is. She also mentions the war for territory and the ensuing bloodshed. From here the general introduction zooms to a specific region (Andhra) and a specific person (Devraj) -- a land shark bent on terrorising people.

Vijay, who hails from a middle class family wants to join the police force. Janaki (Mamta Mohandas) is an independent girl who finds her match (Vijay) on an online matrimonial site (his parents posted his profile). Janaki with the help of Vijay's parents gets him to stop smoking and the occasional drinking.



Full Story: Victory is watchable

Nelson Mandela has joined music stars on stage at a concert in central London celebrating his 90th birthday.

Mr Mandela told the crowd: "We are honoured to be back in London for this wonderful occasion." Amy Winehouse, Annie Lennox and Queen were among those who took part in the Hyde Park event.

As well as marking the former South African president's birthday, the concert raised funds for Mr Mandela's HIV/Aids charity 46664.



Full Story: Mandela joins stars at London gig

Wipro has plunged 6.9% Rs 440. Reliance Infra and Mahindra & Mahindra are down 6.6% each to Rs 881 and Rs 505, respectively.



Full Story: Sensex sinks below 14,000 mark; down by over 600 points

on the same day, and plastering the film posters side-by-side . Unfortunately, the Jackie Shroff-starrer is vague, with many questions left unanswered, and is quite a bore.

The film begins with a frantic search for MK (Shroff), a simple, unpretentious and undemanding man, who finds happiness in the small things of life. He lives for the moment and materialistic things do not excite him.

MK is happiest when surrounded by underprivileged kids. His life revolves around ordinary people and in their happiness lies his happiness. But soon, he is transported to an extraordinary world, which does not go down well with him.



Full Story: No Magic in Thodi Life

Stars including Annie Lennox, Queen and Leona Lewis are set to perform at a concert for Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday in London later.

The Soweto Gospel Choir and US singer Josh Groban will also feature at the concert in Hyde Park.

"What better way to celebrate your 90th birthday than to have this great concert - it's going to be a lot of fun," Groban told the BBC News website.



Full Story: Stars set for Nelson Mandela gig

There is no end in sight to the Centre's inflation woes. The wholesale price index-based inflation is expected to rise to 11.42 per cent for the week ended June 14, data for which will be released on Friday.

The latest rise is being attributed to an increase in commodity prices, especially steel, and the continuing pass-through of higher fuel prices. Experts did not foresee a further tightening of monetary policy between now and the first quarter review of the policy scheduled for July 31. But they cautioned that the RBI had resolved to respond swiftly with both conventional and unconventional measures if inflation was not tamed.

Full Story: Inflation seen nearing 11.42%

T he Indian stock markets move up one day and crash by more than 300 points the other. They have become very volatile and many investors who have invested -- either directly or through mutual funds -- seem to have made huge notional losses.

In a chat with Get Ahead readers on June 25, financial planning expert Vetapalem Sridhar answered these and several other queries related to mutual fund investments, financial planning and how to achieve financial freedom for you and your family. Vetapalem Sridhar says,  Hi Friends!!! "Risk comes from not knowing what you're doing."  Warren Buffet. A clear focus/strategy with discipline and patience would open the doors to the world of gud returns that lay ahead. Welcome to the session on investing and financial planning.

Full Story: How to deal with stock market volatility

Mysore's Mandakalli airport is almost set for operating ATR charter flights in about two months' time and will be ready for regular ATR flights by February 2009, by when the Rs 70 crore (Rs 700 million) first phase works will have been completed, a delay by two months.

"The runway is more or less completed. Along with it, facilities for taxying, six-km length peripheral road, security wall, office premises and other facilities were in place before March alone, instead of scheduled April. Chartered flights can be allowed once some openings in the security wall are closed, by providing an alternative route to the Mandakalli village," Mysore MP C H Vijayashankar said. Delay in acquiring about three acres of land required for creating an alternative route to the villagers, is holding up the plugings in the security wall. The Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board was directed at the meeting to take up the acquisition work without further delay.

Full Story: Mysore airport to be ready soon

A few months ago when Pulkit walked out of Balaji Telefilms , Yash was anything but the obvious choice since he was neither a television star nor a successful movie star. So how did he bag the role? "Balaji was looking out for the new Lakshya and they got in touch with me. When I met Nivedita Basu, creative head of Balaji, she discussed several roles with me, including Lakshya. I took an instant decision and asked for Lakshya's role. This character is the most positive character in the Virani family and most popular one after Baa and Tulsi," Yash says.

Images ] are working on the small screen. It means a lot in terms of money and popularity.

"Nothing went wrong with my career," he clarifies. "I am an actor and for an actor, it's not good to be jobless. But yes, the big screen has its own charisma. I have a film lined up with Rituparno Ghosh, which will start early next year.



Full Story: 'Lakshya: Most popular after Baa and Tulsi'

Kanye West says criticism over keeping fans waiting at the Bonnaroo festival in Tennessee last week has left him "the most offended I've ever been".

Writing on his blog, the rapper said he had been more than an hour-and-a-half late because organisers had not allowed enough time to build his elaborate set.

In the entry, peppered with swear words and written in capital letters, he said he was "the maddest I will ever be".



Full Story: Angry West defends festival delay

has bought 50 per cent in the Netherlands-based power generation company, InterGen NV for $1.1 billion (approximately Rs 4,694 crore).

InterGen, which operates 12 power plants in England, Mexico, the Netherlands and Australia, has 8,086 MW of operational capacity and about 5,000 Mw of assets under development. The company had a turnover of $1.65 billion with profits of $613 million for the year ended December 2007. It employs about 700 people at various locations. Bangalore-headquartered GMR has interests in airports, energy, highways and urban infrastructure. GMR bought 50 per cent in InterGen from AIG Highstar, a private equity group. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (Teachers), the largest single-profession pension plan in Canada, holds the balance 50 per cent equity stake in InterGen. The deal will be closed before December.

Full Story: GMR pays $1.1 bn for 50% in Dutch power firm

on of Raj Babbar and the legendary Smita Patil, Prateik is going to make an appearance in Abbas Tyrewala 's directorial debut, Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na . He plays leading lady Genelia D'Souza's brother, in a tiny role.

If sources are to be believed, Raj Babbar is none too pleased with his son for taking up this film, as he feels that Prateik could have got a better launch had he not been in haste to get in front of the camera.

But Prateik is quick to announce that this is not his formal launch. "I just want to learn how the movie industry works," the 21-year-old actor says, defending his decision.



Full Story: Raj Babbar upset with his son's debut in Jaane Tu

I f a 50 basis point hike in repo rate was not enough to tackle inflation the Reserve Bank of India in an all-out war against inflation increased the repo rate and the cash reserve ratio each by 50 basis points on June 24. This takes the repo rate -- the rate at which RBI lends money to the banks -- to 8.5 per cent and the CRR to 8.75 per cent.

This hike comes close on heels of a 50 basis points (100 basis points = one per cent) hike in repo rate that the RBI announced on June 11. Perhaps the inflation numbers -- it touched 11.05 per cent for the week ending June 7 -- announced on Friday the 13th of June seems to have necessitated such a drastic move. The first victim of such a double whammy are likely to be home loan borrowers. For there is every chance that banks will soon increase interest rates on money they lend to you and me to finance our purchases. Interestingly, mots banks desisted from increasing their lending rate post June 11 hike in the repo rate.

Full Story: Why you will soon pay more on your home loan

] has emerged as the largest taxpayer in the country by paying as much as Rs 1,333 crore (Rs 13.33 billion) advance tax for the first quarter this year.

The oil major had paid Rs 1,010 crore (10.10 billion) as advance tax during the same period last fiscal. Meanwhile, belying fears of industrial slowdown, the government's revenue collections from direct tax such as corporate and income tax continued the growth momentum and was up by 43.45 per cent at Rs 49,411 crore (Rs 494.11 billion) during the April-June 21 period over the corresponding period last fiscal.

Full Story: ONGC is India's highest taxpayer

Silsila . Chopra struggled to find the desired 'old-world music' for this film until Madan Mohan's son, Sanjeev Kohli (who is the CEO of Yash Raj Films), suggested some of his father's unused tunes. About 35 tunes were shortlisted, of which 11 were eventually used in the film.

Chopra struggled to find the desired 'old-world music' for this film until Madan Mohan's son, Sanjeev Kohli (who is the CEO of Yash Raj Films), suggested some of his father's unused tunes. About 35 tunes were shortlisted, of which 11 were eventually used in the film.

2. The composer duo of Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and Hari Prasad Chaurasia, better known as Shiv-Hari, once gave music for Yash Raj Films on a regular basis. Name their first collaboration.



Full Story: How well do you know Yash Raj Films?

Kanye West and hip-hop group UGK have won two awards each at this year's Black Entertainment TV (BET) awards.

West took home the prize for best male hip-hop artist and best collaboration for Good Life, which featured T-Pain.

UGK was named best group and also won video of the year for International Player's Anthem (I Choose You) featuring Outkast.



Full Story: Rapper West scoops two BET awards

IT-BPO firms, which are already facing a US slowdown and currency fluctuations, are now busy in firming up their plans to tackle a rising inflation in the country and its impact on salary, sales, general and administrative (SG&A) and travel costs, which can dent their profit margins.

] do it during the year. If inflation continues throughout the year the firms would have to effect a mid-term hike or raise the salary by a good measure in the next financial year. Next in line comes transport costs as many transport associations are planning to increase their rates. The Maharashtra Call Centre Drivers' and Owners' Association (MCCDOA) has asked for an increase in remuneration. "All BPO units pay us Rs 6 per kilometre. Considering the increase in petrol and diesel prices, we now want the charges hiked to Rs 10 per kilometre," said Nana Kshirsagar, president, MCCDOA.

Full Story: BPOs grapple with inflation

The actor is in India to hunt out locations for his next movie Racing the Monsoon, a thriller about a diamond robbery aboard an Indian train. The movie also stars the actor's wife Catherine Zeta Jones and Matt Damon.

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Full Story: Wanted: A place for Michael Douglas

Singer Amy Winehouse has begun to rehearse for her upcoming concerts, despite having treatment in hospital for traces of lung disease emphysema.

A spokesman for the star confirmed she has returned to work, but must go back to hospital for further treatment.

She is due to perform at a gig to mark Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday and Glastonbury festival at the weekend.



Full Story: Winehouse begins gig rehearsals

nflation is the latest buzzword! From the prime minister to the aam aadmi all and sundry are worried about how fast the rate of inflation is increasing. For the record inflation entered into double digits at 11.05 per cent for the week ending June 7. And with crude prices touching new highs inflation is only expected to go higher.

Though everyone knows what inflation is by now because it is the latest buzz, a quick guide as to what it means would only be apt. Inflation reflects the rate at which the general prices of food and other commodities increase over a period of time. This ultimately leads to a decrease in purchasing power of money and that is what actually affects you and me. This means that what you can buy for Rs 10 today will cost you almost Rs 17 five years down the line for the same commodity considering inflation rate stays put at 11 per cent.

Full Story: How to beat inflation

India, China and other developing countries told the United States and the European Union on Sunday that they will not agree to an anti-concentration proposal that would severely whittle away their flexibilities in Doha package on market-opening for industrial goods.

"India will not agree if sectoral tariff elimination is made mandatory," India's chief trade negotiator Rahul Khullar told Business Standard ahead of an all-important members of Group of 12 countries at the US mission. Senior officials from G-12, including the US, EU, India and China, stepped up efforts to keep the Doha trade negotiations on rails by placating Brazil, Argentina and South Africa, which have specific concerns with trade in industrial goods.

Full Story: India against mandatory Doha tariff reductions

really needs, basically, is enough music for the stunner to groove to, so a servicable 'fun' album is all one can look forward to.

song by Hard Kaur, using her as the intro singer and fusing standard-issue Punjabi 'patiala-peg ' chirpiness with some generic dancefloor rhythm.

The problem lies with singer Anmol Malik, who has a distinctive voice, in the least pleasant sense. Perhaps it's only to sing this particular track's oh-I'm-sloshed lyrics that Anmol has been distorted into cacophony -- one can only hope she hasn't inherited her dad's vocal genes -- but the result is just annoying to the ears, not to mention repetitive.



Full Story: Not Ugly, but needs more Pagli

Boy George's US solo summer tour is in doubt after authorities refused to issue him with a visa, citing looming overseas legal issues.

A statement from the singer and DJ's management said it was in relation to a forthcoming London trial on false imprisonment charges.

The former Culture Club frontman's 24-date tour is scheduled to begin on 11 July in Las Vegas.



Full Story: Boy George denied visa for tour

The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) have decided to create more chairs in the institutes to help professors top up their salaries. The money that comes to these chairs from corporations will be the additional incentive for the professors.

to the professors. But now we use it to give their top-up salaries," says Ashok Misra, director, IIT-Bombay. In order to attract and retain quality faculty, the institute will provide a 'signing bonus' of Rs 3 lakh over three years --Rs 1 lakh over each year to its new professors. The professors would have to sign a three-year bond with the premier institution to avail of the same. Faculty members who joined the institute from January 2008 will also be entitled for the signing bonus.

Full Story: More faculty chairs at IITs, IIMs

Singer Amy Winehouse has "traces" of the lung disease emphysema but is "responding brilliantly to treatment", her father has said.

Mitch Winehouse told BBC Radio 1 his daughter would recover "completely" as long as she stopped smoking.

The star has now been in hospital for a week, but her father said she would perform at the Glastonbury Festival and Nelson Mandela concert this weekend.



Full Story: Singer Winehouse has lung disease

C hoosing right home loan tenure is as important an option as choosing an interest rate for the loan or focus on repayment and prepayment options.

In recent times, as the rate of inflation has touched double-digit figure choosing the right home loan tenure becomes even more important as interest rates show signs of going up further. There are several factors to be considered when one decides to take a home loan for a specific period.

Full Story: Home loans: Why your age and tenure are important

] on Monday said it has started 'intensive examination' of the issues and options for managing demand and easing inflationary pressures.

RBI Governor Y V Reddy said that after evaluating the emerging inflation scenario he had met the prime minister and the finance minister on Saturday for a detailed discussion, and the RBI 'will play its part in moderating and managing aggregate demand so that pressures on prices are not intensified.' Emphasising that RBI had been taking 'pre-emptive' measures to curb inflation, Reddy said besides hiking cash reserve ratio twice by 25 and 50 basis points, respectively, the apex bank also increased the rates for short-term lending to banks by 0.25 per cent after the government increased the domestic fuel prices on June 5. "We will now have further internal assessment to consider our stance and measures in the light of the discussions I had with the government on Saturday," he said, adding that further consultations would be held quickly with all concerned including the Technical Advisory Committee on the Monetary Policy.

Full Story: RBI eyes ways to ease inflation pressure

Katherine Heigl has been named the Most Desirable Woman in a poll by AskMen.com. The Grey's Anatomy star pipped the likes of Jessica Alba and Scarlett Johansson to land the top spot at AskMen.com's annual list of Top 99 Most Desirable Women.

Guitar Straps  |  Bra Straps  |  Jock Straps

Full Story: Men find Katherine Heigl most desirable!

Grammy-award winning comedian George Carlin, best known for his Seven Words You Can Never Say On TV routine, has died of heart failure aged 71.

The star was admitted to a hospital in Los Angeles on Sunday with chest pains and died later that day.

Jack Burns, Carlin's comedy partner in the early 1960s, told the Associated Press agency: "He was a genius and I will miss him dearly." Carlin performed as recently as last weekend in Las Vegas.



Full Story: US comedian George Carlin dies

It takes great amount of work and boldness to make a fortune but it takes 10 times those qualities to preserve it -- Ralph Waldo Emerson.

The power of passive income I concluded that selecting a good wealth manager is a significant decision and evidence of investment ability is the most important selection factor. In addition to harnessing immense power of passive income, an effective wealth manager can add value in multiple other ways as discussed below. I am often asked to compare my two diverse professions. While both are important, in certain respects, wealth manager has even greater impact than a medical doctor. While health is limited to an individual's life span, wealth management has major legacy effect: it shapes future generations too.

Full Story: Investing: Role of a wealth fund manager

O n June16, Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England (BoE, the UK central bank), wrote a letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alastair Darling, which was placed on the bank's website. It is unlikely that King was particularly keen to write the letter since it is effectively a public admission that the UK's monetary policy had failed to deliver its remit.

The bank's remit is to keep the inflation rate at or below 2 per cent. King's terms of contract compel him to write this public letter if the actual inflation rate exceeds the target by one percentage point. The May Consumer Price Index for the UK printed at 3.3 per cent. Across the channel, King's counterpart, Jean Claude Trichet, President of the European Central Bank, has a similar problem. Fortunately for him, he is not forced to give a public explanation.

Full Story: The case for inflation targeting

Ekta Kapoor has now ventured into mythology with her new show, Kahaani Hammaray Mahabharat.

Safety Harness Straps  |  elastic straps  |  Ratchet Straps

Full Story: First look: Ekta Kapoor's Mahabharat

Ellen DeGeneres has won her fourth Daytime Emmy in a row for best talk show host at a Hollywood ceremony.

The comic and presenter beat US TV veteran Regis Philbin to the prize, as well as Barbara Walters and Whoopi Goldberg for their series The View.

She said she had no plans to follow Oprah Winfrey and withdraw from entering the Daytime Emmys, which also honour soap operas and game shows.



Full Story: Ellen scoops Daytime Emmy honour

Leading oil exporters have acknowledged the need to boost supplies to curb soaring prices but stopped short of specific commitments on extra output.

Following their crisis summit in Saudi Arabia, officials noted price levels were "hostile" and more investment was needed to ensure "adequate" supplies.

Saudi Arabia blamed speculation, not lack of supply, for surging prices but said it was willing to raise output.



Full Story: Oil summit calls for supply boost

Saudi Arabia is set to host a meeting of oil producing and consuming nations to discuss soaring oil prices.

The US and other consumers have urged producers to boost supply, blaming lack of capacity for the recent price surge.

Top world supplier Saudi Arabia has made slight increases but says market speculation, not lack of supply, has driven prices to nearly $140 a barrel.



Full Story: Saudis to host oil price summit

Company CEO and MD says Ranbaxy will continue to be Indian and will keep growing.



Full Story: Ranbaxy will continue acquisition, says CEO

as executive director to kick off its social protection initiative in 2000, it couldn't have found a man with better credentials for the job.

Diop, one of Africa's well-known trade unionists, served as labour minister for three years in his native Senegal and, more importantly, was twice minister of health. Diop, who was in New Delhi recently for an Asia-Pacific meeting on socially inclusive strategies, tells Business Standard that these initiatives make for good economics as these are vital investments in a country's human resources.

Is inclusive healthcare an important part of social security coverage? Every year, around 150 million people slip into poverty because of out-of-pocket medical expenses. In most developing countries, healthcare is available only to formal sector workers. Governments say they provide universal healthcare but for me it is not universal if people have to pay for basic healthcare.



Full Story: 'Employers are not being transparent in good times'

Images ] . It was India's unique contribution to the inaugural edition of the shorter version of the game. But it was eight years later that he etched a name for himself in Indian cricketing folklore.

In the 1983 Prudential Cup, he snared 17 wickets @ 16.76. More importantly, his performances were ones that won matches for India -- be it his 3/27 against Zimbabwe at Leicester, his 3/42 vs Zimbabwe again at Tunbridge Wells, his 4/20 against Australia at Chelmsford or his 3/31 in the final.

The 57-year-old has since retired, and had coaching stints with UAE, India, besides being a member of the selection committee.



Full Story: Bagging three wickets in the final was special: Madan Lal

Finance Minister P Chidambaram said there is no room for panic and promised more measures both from the government and the RBI to stem prices.



Full Story: Chidambaram promises more measures to check inflation

Car giant Ford has said it will cut its production of large trucks and large sports utility vehicles (SUVs) in favour of more fuel efficient models.

The US economic slowdown has reduced sales and soaring fuel prices have put consumers off buying bigger vehicles.

Ford said it will make a loss this year and predicted that the worsening US economic situation would make it difficult for it to break even in 2009.



Full Story: Ford 'to make fewer big vehicles'

HSBC will become the third big fund house in the country to launch a fund allowing investors to invest in companies operating in emerging economies.Full Story: HSBC Emerging Markets Fund

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Finance Minister Chidambaram has asked PSU banks to come out with the farmers list for the debt waiver scheme by June 25, the day the UPA-Left meet on the N-deal.Full Story: Govt to rollout farm loan waiver by month-end

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The South African mobile giant MTN would hold its AGM on Thursday which comes amid a controversy on whether Mukesh Ambani-led RIL has first right of refusal for a controlling stake in RCOM or not.Full Story: MTN to hold AGM on Thursday

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Stocks opened lower on Tuesday extending losses in other Asian markets, as the overnight rise in crude oil sparked concerns over inflation.Full Story: Indices open lower; Bharti, Satyam drag

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The market kicked off the week on a positive note on Monday fueled by firm global cues and as oil prices eased over the weekend.Full Story: Global cues lift stocks; Sensex up 280 pts

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Swaraj Narrow Fabrics has recently launched new website.

You can see the website for information on Elastic Straps, Nylon Straps and other elastic and non elastic straps products

Products manufactured by Swaraj Narrow are used in automobile, luggage, garment, hosiery and footwear industries.

Please see the website for further information.
Straps and Belts

According to sources, govt is working on a roadmap that would help the transport corporations become self-sufficient and turn around their loss-making operations.Full Story: SRTCs may get more autonomy

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