08.07.2007

• While answering some of your shout-box queries, I came across two important web links that are worth noting by everybody. Here they go:
• The Employment News at: http://employmentnews.gov.in/
• The India Year book in Hindi at: http://publicationsdivision.nic.in/others/Bharat_2007.pdf
• What made Buddhadeb accept the monumental truth that socialist alternatives are not practical? One of you asked me to react to this. I have done so in today’s Discover It. Take a look at it here.
• India’s wealthy
• There were more than 1 lakh Indian individuals worth at least $ 1 mn in 2006.
• This is according to a study by Merrill Lynch – CapGemini.
• Let’s look at the costs of some defence equipment
• A Bofors 155 mm gun would cost about Rs. 25 to 30 crore today.
• India’s order for 126 MRCA – Multi Role Combat Aircraft is expected to be of the order of Rs. 40,000 crores.
• SEZ Panel
• The Parliamentary standing committee on commerce is headed by BJP’s Murli Majohar Joshi. This committee has recommended a freeze on further SEZ clearances.
• Football
• Asian Cup 2007 is being held in Bangkok, Thailand from 7^th July to 29^th July.

• The logo comprises of four separate elements, depicting the unity and cooperation between the four hosts, and the creativity and vibrancy of these ASEAN countries. The dynamic use of colour embodies not only the ambition of these four host countries, but also the hopes and aspirations of all participating national associations.
• It reflects energy, respects diversity, celebrates unity and targets the youth.
• 2007 will be the first time in the Asian Cup’s proud history that the competition will have not one, but four national hosts: Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.
• India’s ITIs
• India has about 5100 Industrial Training Institutes and 1745 Polytechnics, compared with 500,000 in China.
• About our economic reforms
• By now most of you would have heard somebody uttering the need for progress on the reform front. While we have abolished industrial licensing and lowered tariffs and have made some progress on the external and financial sectors, what else can we further reform?
• If you are presented with such a question what could you think of? The answer could be “We will have to reform our labour, judiciary and governance sectors.”
• Further the ability to take tough decisions also is called for. Two examples where tough decisions are called for include:
• Oil prices: Whenever the international prices of crude are going down, there is a clamour for reducing domestic prices of petroleum. But the same clamour is rarely seen when the international prices go up and call for an upward revision. Effectively we have not been able to usher in the dismantling of APM – administered pricing mechanism in petroleum sector.
• Rate of interest on small savings: On the EPF savings, there is a disconnect between what the investments made by it are able to give and that demanded by the polity. This disconnect needs to be done away with.
• Monsoon dependence
• Remember what we noted on 27.06.2007 regarding this?
• Continuing with that, we should also have a look at this to get a good picture. Read this.
• Two problems with monsoons:
• Uneven distribution
• Timing of rains
• The severe draught in 2002, resulted in a loss of 10 mn tonnes of foodgrain.
• About 40 mn hectares of our landmass is susceptible for floods.
• Tennis @Wimbledon
• In the women’s final, Venus Williams beat Marion Bartoli to clinch the title for a fourth time. She won the title in 2000, 2001 and 2005.
• The women’s title has the Venus Rosewater Dish as the prize.
• Tennis – other
• What is the order of the four tennis tournaments of the grand slam from oldest to newest. Which was the first one to start...historically?
• I was asked the above question today in mail. My reply was:
• Wimbledon: 1877; US Open: 1881; French Open: 1891; Australian Open: 1905.
  
  There is a lot of history behind them. There will be differences over the years from when they could be considered as Open tournaments. An Open tournament is one in which players from anywhere in the world can participate. And these players can be professionals or amateurs. The Open era in tennis has come about in 1968 with US Open and Wimbledon throwing themselves open for amateurs and professionals alike. French Open became Open in 1925 for international players. The Australian Open became Open in 1969.
• Some primitive hunter gatherer tribes of our Andaman and Nicobar islands
• Jarawas, Shompen, Andamanese, Onges and Sentinelese.