Epmployment News 7 October 2013

Epmployment News 7 October 2013 Current Affairs 7 October 2013 News Of October 2013

Tata inks deal with Singapore Airlines to start a new carrier

Tata Sons have signed an agreement with Singapore Airlines and applied for necessary regulatory approval to set up a new airline in India, the two companies said in a joint statement.

Tata Sons will control the majority 51 percent stake, while Singapore Airlines will own 49 percent in the proposed carrier.

The initial board would have three members, two nominated by Tata Sons and one nominated by Singapore Airlines. The Chairman will be Prasad Menon, nominated by Tata Sons.

It is Tata Sons’ evaluation that civil aviation in India offers sustainable growth potential. We now have the opportunity to launch a world-class full-service airline in India," said Menon, Chairman of the proposed joint venture.

India, Sri Lanka to ink agreement on 500 MW power project

India and Sri Lanka will on Monday ink an agreement for the execution of the 500 MW thermal power project at Sampur in Trincomalee at a cost of Rs. 4,000 crore.

State-run NTPC and Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) had signed an agreement in 2011 to set up a coal-based power project which had got delayed due to various reasons. 

About two years after the agreement was signed, the initiative — NTPC’s first overseas coal-fired power project — saw little progress due to various disagreements between the two partners.

The proposed signing of pacts for the Sri Lanka plant comes close on the heels of India and Bangladesh inaugurating two power projects on October 5 and reflect stronger regional co-operation in this sector. India’s External Affairs Minister, Salmaan Khurshid along with his Sri Lankan counterpart, G.L. Peiris are going to be present in Colombo when the agreement is signed on Monday. 

The agreements will be related to power purchase, land lease and coal supply.Electricity generated from the plant, which would have two units of 250 MW, would be supplied to CEB.

NTPC and CEB had been delaying further progress. NTPC has an installed generation capacity of 41,184 MW.

BSNL launches festive offers to boost sales of celebrating its 13th anniversary

Target for add more users and increase its revenue by around 6 to 7 per cent on monthly basis, state-run BSNL today launched a host of promotional offers for the festive season.

"The offers are for the forthcoming festive season. 

We are looking to add more subscribers and are targetting a jump of 6-7 per cent in our revenues on the back of the offers," BSNL Director ( Consumer Mobility) Anupam Srivastava told. 

Regarding data, the company has come out with a plan, wherein it will provide 10 per cent additional data usage free of charge on special tariff vouchers of Rs 98 onwards.

BAI panel recommends life ban for Jwala

e Badminton Association of India (BAI) has recommended a life-ban on doubles specialist G. Jwala for her role in delaying the Indian Badminton League fixture between Delhi Smashers and Banga Beats in Bangalore on August 25.

Jwala was served a show-cause notice on September 4 after the matter was discussed in the BAI’s general body meeting in Mumbai on August 31. 

She sent her reply within 14 days. S. Muralidharan, who headed the disciplinary committee, said if Jwala apologised to the BAI president Akhilesh Kumar Das, she could escape a life-ban.

The BAI went by tournament referee Girish Natu’s report in which he held Jwala responsible for “coercing her team members for uncalled for indiscipline,” for causing “harm to the spirit and interest of the tournament,” for “failing to maintain the stature of the tournament,” for “imposing unwarranted hardship to the TV viewers, spectators and all other concerned,” besides preventing and compelling teammate B. Sai Praneeth from playing the opening match of the tie.

Pakistan army chief Kayani to retire on November 29

Pakistan Army chief Ashfaq Pervez Kayani on Sunday said that he would retire from his post at the end of his extended tenure on November 29.

"My tenure ends on 29th November 2013. On that day I will retire...," Kayani was quoted as saying by a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

Rumours did the rounds in Islamabad that Kayani, 61, could be appointed the new head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff committee, a largely ceremonial post.

Egypt issues tough warning against anti-army protests

Egyptian authorities said on Saturday anyone who protests against the army on Sunday when the country celebrates the anniversary of an attack on Israel forces during the 1973 war will be regarded as agents of foreign powers.

Presidential spokeman Ahmed al-Muslimani was speaking to the state news agency in anticipation of demonstrations by the Muslim Brotherhood, which has been staging protests against the army's ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in July.

Egyptian authorities tightened security around the country after clashes on Friday killed at least four people.

"Protesters, against the army on the anniversary of victory (October 6, 1973 war) will be carrying out the duties of agents, not activists," the presidential spokesman said. "It is not befitting to go from a struggle against authorities to a conflict with the nation."

The interior ministry said security had been stepped up on highways, in all cities and at important installations.

S.R. Bansal is Corporation Bank CMD

Corporation Bank has a new Chairman and Managing Director in S.R. Bansal. Prior to this elevation, Bansal was an Executive Director at Punjab National Bank.

Bansal is a postgraduate in English, a Certified Associate of the Indian Institute of Bankers (CAIIB) and an Associate of the Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (AIIBF).

Bansal has over 32 years of experience in various administrative and functional capacities at the branch, regional office, zonal office and also at the head office level.

He started his banking career as a direct officer recruit at Dena Bank in 1981 and went on to hold the office of the Field General Manager (North India) covering eight States. 

He was appointed as the Executive Director of Punjab National Bank in June 2012.

Malala invited to meet Queen Elizabeth

the bravery of Pakistani girls’ education campaigner Malala Yousafzai, Queen Elizabeth II has invited her to the Buckingham Palace.

The Queen has also asked Pakistan’s high commissioner to the UK, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, about her recovery, the Sunday Times reported on Sunday.

Malala has given her first detailed account to the British newspaper of what happened when she was shot on the way home from school in Pakistan a year ago. 

All-women Sharia Court starts functioning in Pune

A Sharia Court conducted solely by women with an aim to redress the grievances of Muslim women has started functioning in the city.

Set up here by Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA), the first all-women Sharia Court will deal with various family issues, including marital discord, divorce as well as property related disputes.

In reality, however, women are often discriminated against by the all-men Sharia Courts traditionally run by All India Muslim Personal Law Board,” said Saeeda Jamadar, President of the Court’s Pune branch, which opened on Wednesday.

Saeeda, along with Zubeda Khatoon, BMMA’s Maharashtra Convenor, will be on the two-Judge Bench of the new court, seen as part of the alternative dispute resolution mechanism in the judicial system.

The BMMA courts would aim at delivering justice to Muslim women without harbouring any bias against men who, too, are welcome to approach its forum, she said.

Besides this new initiative, BMMA is also working to create awareness among Muslim women about their property rights, Saeeda, a city based teacher, said.

Indian-American Arun Kumar nominated to key administration post

Indian-American Arun M. Kumar has been nominated by President Barack Obama to a key administration post, giving him charge of international trade at a critical juncture when the U.S. is looking to increase its export.

Arun M. Kumar, till recently a partner and member of the Board of Directors at consultancy firm KPMG, was nominated on Friday, by Mr. Obama to be the Assistant Secretary and Director General of the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service, International Trade Administration in the Department of Commerce.

“The extraordinary dedication these men and women bring to their new roles will greatly serve the American people,” Mr. Obama said as he announced nomination to several other key administration positions.

Mr. Kumar joined KPMG in 1995 as a Finance Management Leader and from 2005 until his retirement in September 2013, he led the firm’s West Coast Finance Management Consulting practice.

He also led the firm’s U.S.-India practice from 2007 to 2013.

Mr. Kumar received a Bachelors degree in Physics from the University of Kerala in India, and an S.M. in Management from the Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the U.S.

From 1993 to 1995, he was the founder and CEO of Planning & Logic, Inc, a software company. Prior to that, he was co-founder and CFO of Netlabs, Inc from 1991 to 1993; the CFO of Elite Microelectronics, Inc. from 1990 to 1991.

He also held important positions in several organisations from 1980 to 1990.

Indian-American nominated as county prosecutor

An Indian-American Sikh lawyer has been nominated as a county prosecutor in New Jersey.

Gurbir Grewal was formally nominated by Governor Chris Christie to be the next Bergen county prosecutor, a local media report said.

Grewal, a Glen Rock resident, has worked since 2010 as the deputy chief of the Economic Crimes and Computer Hacking and IP Crimes Unit at the US Attorney’s Office in Newark. 

He previously worked as assistant US Attorney at the Business and Securities Fraud Unit in the Eastern District here.

Grewal earned his undergraduate degree from Georgetown University and holds a Juris doctorate from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law from the College of William & Mary.

He is a past president of the South Asian Bar Association of New York, and a member of the New Jersey Asian Pacific American Lawyers Association.

Retired government employees can be Politicians

The government has decided to scrap a controversial proposal backed by three key ministries for the introduction of a cooling-off period for the officers who want to join politics and contest elections after retirement.

The proposal supported by ministries of home, law and personnel was shown the red flag by the government’s top law officer, attorney general GE Vahanvati, who stated such a move would be against the basic features of the constitution.

“Any such restriction whether by way of service rules or by way of an amendment of the election laws may not stand the test of valid classification under the article of the constitution which deals with equality before law.

The commission suggested that a certain cooling-off period may be provided for government officers between their retirement or quitting the job and joining a political party.

The home ministry and the department of personnel and training (DoPT), in their comments, favoured an amendment in the Representation of the People Act to add a clause for specifying this time period, but the law ministry stated that no change in law was required since this could be done by changing the relevant service rules.

India student bags British enterprise prize

An Indian engineering student from the University of Nottingham fought off stiff worldwide competition to be awarded the overall prize at a British government-backed entrepreneurial contest.

Ashutosh Pathak is working on developing a much cheaper, more efficient pipe inspection and leakage detection system. 

His impressive skills secured his Brobotics team, which boasted participants from seven countries and five continents, USD 7,500 in Amazon web credits and a working space to help them develop their ideas further. 

The international enterprise competition was held to mark the launch of UK Trade and Investment's (UKTI) Sirius Programme, a pioneering scheme to bring the world's best entrepreneurial talent to the UK.

UKTI had announced the launch of Sirius at the annual Entrepreneurs' Festival in Manchester last month, which attracted a diverse range of business ideas from across 40 countries including as many as 14 from India. 

Nick Baird, chief executive of UKTI, said, 

The Sirius Programme is part of UKTI's commitment to supporting global graduate talent by helping young people from around the world develop and make their business ideas a reality in Britain. 

Haruki Murakami, Malala Yousafzai tipped for Nobels

A Pakistani teenage activist shot by the Taliban and a Japanese author who writes about alienation and a fractured modern world are tipped as Nobel Prize winners ahead of the annual awards

Murakami is very popular in Japan, but has also become well known abroad for his works which deal with isolation and love and bring the surreal into everyday life.

His first novel, Hear the Wind Sing, was published in 1979, but Murakami first leaped to literary stardom in 1987 with Norwegian Wood, a bleak coming-of-age story dominated by grief and loss and named after a Beatles song. 

The discussions on the prizes are wrapped in secrecy. 

The 18 members of the Swedish Academy who award the Nobel prize for literature are only allowed to discuss the prize within the walls of the Academy itself. Minutes are only made public half a century after the meetings.

It is extremely rare for the name of any winner to leak out, though 2010 was an exception when Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet got a tip that test-tube-baby pioneer Robert Edwards had won the award for medicine.

The annual prizes created in the will of dynamite tycoon Alfred Nobel were cut by 20 percent to 8 million crowns last year as returns on its roughly $450 million fund fell amid years of global financial downturn.

Shyam Benegal to head APSA jury

Veteran director Shyam Benegal will head the accomplished jury for the Seventh Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) to be held in Brisbane on December 12. 

The announcement was made by the APSA executive chairman Michael Hawkins in Busan on Friday

Benegal, most famous for his parallel classics like 'Ankur', 'Mandi', 'Bhumika' and 'Manthan', has been appointed as the Presidentof the jury whichincludes Korean screenwriter and director Kim Tae-yong, "Queen of Sri Lankan Cinema" actress Malini Fonseka, Turkish actor Tamer Levent, Swiss director Christoph Schaub and Hong Kong producer Albert Lee.

As India celebrates 100 years of cinema, it is fitting that the International Jury be led by a filmmaker of such gravitas as Shyam Benegal. 

The APSA International Jury will meet in Brisbane in the lead-up to the ceremony to view nominees and determine the winners of six award categories. 

The Asia Pacific Screen Awards are managed by economic development board Brisbane Marketing in a unique collaboration with Paris-based UNESCO and FIAPF-International Federation of Film Producers Associations

Total Current News September 2013