Posts tagged ‘India’

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06/12/2013

Narendra Modi, a challenge to Cong: Manmohan – The Hindu

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday acknowledged that BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi did pose a challenge to the Congress and declared that “there is no room for complacency”.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addresses the media persons at the Parliament, in New Delhi. File photo

Taking questions from the audience during the Hindustan Time Leadership Summit here, Dr. Singh while responding to a query on which Mr. Modi was indeed a challenge that Congress party should take very seriously said: “As an organised political party we can not underestimate the power of opposition to unsettle the ship of the State. Therefore I am one of those who take very seriously our opposition, there is no room for complacency.”

The Congress, he said, “is going into the elections with a spirit of self confidence and that should not be mistaken whatever the may be the outcome of the Assembly elections.”

via Narendra Modi, a challenge to Cong: Manmohan – The Hindu.

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06/12/2013

No end to suffering for Bhopal gas victims | India Insight

Twenty-nine years have passed since a poison gas leak from the Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal killed thousands of people. For the estimated 100,000  survivors and their children who cope with birth defects, illness and a variety of other health problems, it might as well still be the 1980s.

English: Wall painting outside Union Carbide s...

English: Wall painting outside Union Carbide site, Bhopal, India. Français : Grafitti sur le site de Union Carbide, Bhopal, Inde. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It was 12 a.m. on Dec. 3, 1984 when 40 tons of toxic methyl isocyanate leaked from the plant. In the J.P. Nagar neighbourhood that was worst affected, many people died instantly. The death toll is more than 5,295, according to the Indian government though projections based on an Indian Council of Medical Research study put the figure as high as 25,000. An estimated 574,372 people have been affected in some way by the gas; health activists say more than 150,000 have been seriously affected.

Lung and eye complications are common among people in this area. Many also suffer from loss of limb function along with severe palpitations and recurring chest pain.

“I do not have the strength left to do anything now,” said Mazid Khan, 52, who was employed as a security guard at the Union Carbide Corporation factory. Mazid was exposed to the gas, and now suffers from weak eyesight and swelling in his limbs.

Most victims have received 25,000 to 50,000 rupees ($400 to $800 at today’s conversion rates) in compensation, an amount that is far too small for effective medical treatment or as restitution, said Rachna Dhingra of the Bhopal Group for Information and Action (BGIA), an organization that works with victims of the disaster.

This is because the process of medical categorization was an extremely flawed process. Less than 6 percent of survivors underwent the crucial tests of urine thiocyanate, exercise tolerance test and lung function test. The other 94 percent received the small payment.

via No end to suffering for Bhopal gas victims | India Insight.

Posted in China alert, Economics, Environment, Pollution | 1 Comment »

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04/12/2013

Connecting borrowers and lenders: Indians try peer-to-peer model | India Insight

Srinivas Porika tried for months to get a loan of 250,000 rupees ($4,000) to pay for his sister’s wedding, but every bank he tried turned him down. The problem: Porika’s employer, a tech start-up company, was not on the banks’ lists of pre-approved companies.

“They were ready to give me a credit card, but were not ready to give me a loan,” said the 28-year-old from Hyderabad, who met several bank managers and officials to plead his case.

The wedding went ahead in 2012, but only after Porika dipped into his savings and borrowed from friends. With an insufficient bonus at work and pressure mounting to pay off his debts this year, Porika turned to a peer-to-peer (P2P) lending website.

Entrepreneurs in India are now experimenting with the P2P business model, helping people like Porika, with websites such as i-lend.in and faircent.com providing a meeting ground for borrowers and lenders.

Such portals charge an upfront fee from both groups and get the borrower’s documents and employment details verified by a third party. A contract with terms and conditions is signed within a week, with a recovery process in place for those who default on payments.

Lenders can choose from a list of verified borrowers on the website. They are also advised to spread their investment among borrowers to lessen the risk of default.

via Connecting borrowers and lenders: Indians try peer-to-peer model | India Insight.

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03/12/2013

Confusion over Indian election symbols used for millions of illiterate voters | The Times

A curious contest is heating up among India’s political parties as the country prepares for the biggest democratic exercise in history when 714 million voters go to the polls in the spring.

Parties are fighting to secure the right to symbols they hope will appeal to hundreds of millions of India’s illiterate voters.

For decades, when Indians have entered the polling booth they have been presented not just with a list of parties and candidates, but also a variety of household items sketched on the ballot paper to help the 1 in 4 voters who cannot read.

For the ruling Congress Party it is an open palm. For India’s main opposition party, the BJP, it is a blossoming lotus flower.

Whistles, coconuts, walking sticks, nail clippers, cauliflowers and toothbrushes have all been used as political symbols upon which illiterate voters can press a thumb print to mark their choice of party.

The Rashtriya Ulama Council uses a kettle, while the Republican Party of India uses a refrigerator. The Aadarshwadi Congress Party uses a batsman at the crease.

However, in India’s vibrant and chaotic democracy, some popular symbols such as the elephant or clock are often claimed by several parties, leading to squabbles over which one has the right to use them.

A foretaste of the turmoil ahead was offered this week, when two parties in the Delhi assembly elections, due to be held tomorrow, clashed over the right to use the bicycle, a perennial favourite.

Only after intervention by election officials did the parties grudgingly agree to a compromise deal under which the Samajwadi Party (SP) will fight under the banner of the glass tumbler, while the Jammu and Kashmir Panthers Party (JKPP) will plump for the instant camera.

Adding to potential confusion among voters, in another nearby constituency, Ballimaran, the SP is fighting under the symbol of the cup-and-saucer while the JKPP is running under the ceiling fan.

via Confusion over Indian election symbols used for millions of illiterate voters | The Times.

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03/12/2013

Prithvi-II missile successfully test-fired – The Times of India

India on Tuesday successfully test-fired indigenously developed nuclear-capable Prithvi-II missile with a strike range of 350 km from a test range at Chandipur in Odisha as part of a user trial by defence forces.

Test flight of the Prithvi SS-150

Test flight of the Prithvi SS-150 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The surface-to-surface missile was test-fired at around 10:05am from a mobile launcher in salvo mode from launch complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range, about 15 km from here, defence sources said.

Describing the launch of the sophisticated missile as a complete success, ITR Director MVKV Prasad said all the mission parameters were met during the trial.

\”The missile was randomly chosen from the production stock and the launch activities were carried out by the specially formed Strategic Force Command (SFC) and monitored by scientists of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) as part of training exercise,\” the sources said.

via Prithvi-II missile successfully test-fired – The Times of India.

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02/12/2013

India’s Mars mission enters second stage; outpaces space rival China | Reuters

India\’s first mission to Mars left Earth\’s orbit early on Sunday, clearing a critical hurdle in its journey to the red planet and overtaking the efforts in space of rival Asian giant China.

India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C25), carrying the Mars orbiter, lifts off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, about 100 km (62 miles) north of the southern Indian city of Chennai November 5, 2013 file photo. REUTERS/Babu

The success of the spacecraft, scheduled to orbit Mars by next September, would carry India into a small club, which includes the United States, Europe and Russia, whose probes have orbited or landed on Mars.

India\’s venture, called Mangalyaan, faces more hurdles on its journey to Mars. Fewer than half of missions to the planet are successful.

\”While Mangalyaan takes 1.2 billion dreams to Mars, we wish you sweet dreams!\” India\’s space agency said in a tweet soon after the event, referring to the citizens of the world\’s second-most populous country.

China, a keen competitor in the space race, has considered the possibility of putting a man on the moon sometime after 2020 and aims to land its first probe on the moon on Monday.

via India’s Mars mission enters second stage; outpaces space rival China | Reuters.

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01/12/2013

China, India spar over disputed border | Reuters

China on Saturday urged India not to aggravate problems on the border shared by the two nations, a day after the Indian president toured a disputed region and called it an integral part of the country.

China's President Xi Jinping (R) talks with India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (L) during a meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing October 23, 2013. REUTERS/Peng Sun/Pool

The two countries, which fought a brief border war in 1962, only last month signed a pact to ensure that differences on the border do not spark a confrontation.

But Indian President Pranab Mukherjee\’s visit to the state of Arunachal Pradesh in the remote eastern stretch of the Himalayas that China claims as its own provoked a fresh exchange of words.

\”We hope that India will proceed along with China, protecting our broad relationship, and will not take any measures that could complicate the problem, and together we can protect peace and security in the border regions,\” China\’s official news agency, Xinhua, quoted Qin Gang, a spokesman of the country\’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as saying.

\”Currently Sino-India relations are developing favorably and both sides are going through special envoy meetings and amicable discussions to resolve the border dispute between our two countries.\”

Mukherjee was on a routine visit to Arunachal which has been part of the Indian state for decades, and where India has regularly been holding elections. But China has of late grown increasingly assertive and questioned New Delhi\’s claims over the territory, calling it instead South Tibet.

Mukherjee told members of the state\’s legislative assembly it was \”a core stakeholder in India\’s Look East foreign policy\” that intends to link the country\’s northeast with South East Asia.

\”We seek to make our neighbors partners in our development,\” Mukherjee said in Itanagar, the state capital. \”We believe that India\’s future and our own best economic interests are served by closer integration with Asia.\”

China lays claim to more than 90,000 sq km (35,000 sq miles) disputed by New Delhi in the eastern sector of the Himalayas, while India says China occupies 38,000 square km of its territory on the Aksai Chin plateau in the west.

via China, India spar over disputed border | Reuters.

Posted in China alert, Chindia Alert, Defence, Diplomacy, Foreign invasion, GeoPolitics, History, India alert, Neighbour conflict, Politics, Territorial dispute | 3 Comments »

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01/12/2013

India’s political parties pump up the radio volume | India Insight

Anyone who keeps a radio turned on in India’s National Capital Region knows that election fever has settled on Delhi ahead of the Dec. 4 state polls. The ruling Congress party, main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and newcomer Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are betting big on radio campaigning — a medium that reaches millions of people across economic classes and backgrounds.

Overall, about 250 million to 500 million rupees ($4 million to $8 million) have been spent on radio advertising in this year’s assembly election in Delhi – at least 200 percent more than during the 2008 state elections, Sunil Kumar of radio consulting firm Big River Radio estimated.

The AAP, or “common man party,” led by Arvind Kejriwal, has allocated 20 million to 30 million rupees ($320,000 to $480,000) for advertising, with 60 to 70 percent for radio and phone calls, said Dilip K. Pandey, an AAP secretary responsible for their communication strategy.

“The best thing about FM campaign is that it reaches out to everyone … there is an imbalance in society — there are rich people, there are poor people — but it reaches out to everybody,” Pandey said.

Eight private radio channels and seven central government-owned channels cater to a population of about 16 million residents in New Delhi, according to government data.

Average rates for on-air time can vary from 400 rupees per 10 seconds ($6.40) to 2,000 rupees ($32) depending on the radio station’s reach and the time of broadcast, Pandey said. Prices also depend on how long the ad is.

via India’s political parties pump up the radio volume | India Insight.

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01/12/2013

China Poised to Surpass India in Gold Purchases – Businessweek

Yang Cuiyan, a 41-year-old housekeeper from Anhui province, is one reason China is poised to topple India as the world’s top consumer of gold. Standing outside Beijing’s busiest jewelry store, wearing a thick coat against the autumn chill, she clasps a gold necklace that cost her 10,000 yuan ($1,640), or five months’ wages. “I can put it on when I go back home to show everyone that I’m doing well.”

Yang is one of the legions of middle-aged Chinese women, respectfully referred to as aunties, who bought coins and jewelry this year. Gold purchases in the world’s second-largest economy will surge 29 percent in 2013, to a record 1,000 metric tons, according to the median of 13 estimates from analysts, traders, and gold producers in China surveyed by Bloomberg News. China’s purchases of gold climbed 30 percent, to 996.3 tons, in the 12 months through September, while sales in India rose 24 percent, to 977.6 tons, according to the London-based World Gold Council. India was No. 1 in 2012. Each country buys more gold than the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East combined.

Gold’s burnished appeal in China stems in part from a lack of alternative investments. While the MSCI All-Country World Index of equities rose 18 percent this year through Nov. 22, the Shanghai Composite Index slumped 3.2 percent. Policymakers clamped down on property investments in March to cool the housing market, ordering the central bank to raise down-payment requirements for second mortgages in cities with excessive price gains. “In China, you look around and see very few places to put your money,” says Duan Shihua, a partner at Shanghai Leading Investment Management. “With the share market down and the government nudging people away from real estate, gold will remain a favored choice.”

via China Poised to Surpass India in Gold Purchases – Businessweek.

Posted in Affluence, China alert, Economics | Leave a Comment »

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01/12/2013

China claims territories of 23 countries, but only has borders with 14

This article does not give a source ref. However, if it is correct, then together with the new “air defence zone” (https://chindia-alert.org/2013/12/01/china-japan-and-america-face-off-the-economist/), the requirement for Uighur students to demonstrate “approved political views” (https://chindia-alert.org/2013/12/01/xinjiang-college-says-approved-political-views-needed-to-graduate-reuters/) and recent spar with India (https://chindia-alert.org/2013/12/01/china-india-spar-over-disputed-border-reuters/) all point to a new belligerent China. Not good news at all for the world community.

See also: https://chindia-alert.org/political-factors/chinese-tensions/

Posted in China alert, Neighbour conflict, Politics, Territorial dispute | Leave a Comment »

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