23.08.2007

• NPA provisioning in Indian banks
• Even as the world is reeling under the sub-prime vortex, Indian banks have registered a sharp increase, as high as 265%, in the capital they have to set aside for non-performing assets and doubtful debts in financial year 2006-07 over 2005-06.
• Can the sub-prime crisis rock the international financial system? What role can central banks play in this? Take a look at what I wrote in today’s Discover It blog. That is an excerpt from Prof. TT Ram Mohan’s article that appeared in today’s ET.
• Lighting future
• Some figures and stats discussed in ET Think Turf, an event held by ET and Philips jointly.
• There are close to 650 mn sockets (power sockets) in India, which if replaced with CFLs (Compact Flourescent Lights) will result in saving of 55 mn tonnes of CO2 emissions.
• Even if one CFL replaces one bulb in every household in India, 100 MW of power can be saved. This would be sufficient to light 1,00,000 households.
• Incandescent bulbs are the most widely used source for domestic lighting due to their simple operation and lower cost. But they are one of the most inefficient sources, converting nearly 90% of the input energy into heat and only 8 to 10% as usable light.
• A typical CFL can convert nearly 30% of the energy into light.
• Almost 19% of world’s electricity is consumed in lighting. If the world were to switch to energy efficient lamps, the results would include 555 mn fewer tonnes of CO2 emissions, more than 1560 mn fewer barrels of oil consumed each year. This is equivalent to switching off 530 one thousand MW plants.
• Titanium mining policy – 100% FDI may be allowed
• The government is thinking of moving the mineral from the restricted category to the general list.
• India has almost 30% of the world’s titanium resources. With identified reserves of about 400 mn tonnes of Ilmenite ore (which yields titanium dioxide and titanium metals) on the sandy beaches, India is favourably placed to shift from steel to titanium.
• The country’s 400 mn tonnes of Ilmenite represents only 10% of the total potential in the country.
• Titanium is recognized as a strong metal light in weight, non-corrosive and able to withstand extreme temperature (melting point of 1800 centigrade). It is as strong as steel and twice as strong as aluminium with its strength to weight ratio superior to that of any other metal known till date.
• India’s cement industry
• It has an installed capacity of 172 mn tonnes and is working at a capacity utilization of 97%. There is a demand supply mismatch in the country with demand growing at an estimated 10% and production at only 7% in the past four months.
• It is in this context that Pakistani cement has been given BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) certification. This will allow the import of Pakistani cement into India.
• A novel suggestion for ensuring deeper broadband penetration in India
• As lack of a computer is one of the topmost reasons for poor penetration of broadband in India, this should be offered as a service that is charged but maintained and upgraded by the broadband service provider. This will obviate the need for customer investments in a piece of hardware that is open to complications in operations, obsolescence and risk of virus attack. A case in point is network PC, a relatively low-cost PC designed for internet access and specialized business use, but without the full capabilities of today’s personal computer.
• More options could be monitors or basic computing power PCs connected over the network to centralized higher computing resources run on non-proprietary software to keep costs low. Such a configuration could also reduce the power required at the customer end, a problem that continues to plague all such solutions in India and is not faced in fixed telephone networks as the fixed phone is powered from the local exchange which always has a power backup. For an additional recurring charge, the service provider could also provide secure storage of customer data at his end, thus eliminating the need for hard disks at the customer end.
• Shibu Soren acquitted in murder case
• The Delhi High Court acquitted the former Union Minister and JMM chief, and four others in the Shashinath Jha murder case.
• What limits insect size?
• Tracheal tubes – which deliver oxygen to insects’ cells – are considered to be holding the key to this question.
• In the late Paleozoic era, with atmospheric oxygen levels reaching record highs, some insects evolved into giants. When oxygen levels returned to lower levels, the insect giants went extinct.
• The basis of this gigantism is thought to lie in the insect respiratory system.
• What is DST and should India adopt one?
• Daylight Savings Time. Setting the clock in tune with the sky would be natural, convenient and saving on energy consumption.
• Europe and the US shift their clocks by one hour every April and October in order to save daylight and economise on energy.
• It is estimated that if India also were to adopt DST and shift times in clocks twice every year instead of having different time zones, it could result in tremendous savings in energy consumption.
• Take a look at this article, if you have stomach for details: http://www.ias.ac.in/currsci/aug102007/298.pdf
• Tata group is the largest tax payer in India
• It has paid a whopping Rs. 15,130.83 crore in 2006-07.