Think India Foundation

Haryana govt to act tough on illegal sale of drugs

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:39:34 PST

Chandigarh (PTI) : Fearing misuse of drugs particularly by the youth, the Haryana Government today said it will take stringent action against chemists found guilty of selling schedule H drugs without valid prescription. "The Government is concerned and serious to prevent the misuse. Schedule H drugs cannot be sold without prescription and we will take strict action against those found violating the norms," Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Randeep Singh Surjewala informed the State Assembly here. He said that 30 raids had been conducted so far to check if such drugs were being sold without prescription. Surjewala was speaking during a calling...

Confusing DC rules bring just two proposals in two months

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:34:36 PST

Mumbai : The implementation of the new Development Control (DC) rules has brought the real estate development in the city to a grinding halt. TheBrihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) received only two proposals in the last two months compared to 15 a day during peak time. The civic body has not cleared either of the proposals. “Only two developers dared to submit their proposals in two months. The poor response will have a long cascading effect on the city’s development and real estate prices. The market moves on the calculation of demand and supply. If the supply dries up, prices will...

Girders put up as part of freeway project in Mumbai

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:29:21 PST

MUMBAI: Engineers of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) installed ten 40-m long girders, each weighing 145 tonnes, at the site of the Trombay rail overbridge, a critical part of the Rs 847-crore Eastern Freeway Project. "The idea is to finish the project and push forward work on the freeway, which is to be completed by the end of the year," said an MMRDA official. The Eastern Freeway Project will link P D'Mello Road to Ghatkopar. Read more Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Self-assessment of property on the cards in Mumbai

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:24:49 PST

Mumbaikars may soon be able to evaluate their property tax liability and pay the same online, much in the way they file income tax returns. A proposal to introduce self-assessment is awaiting clearance from municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar. It can be implemented after the newly elected civic standing committee approves the BMC's pending proposal to impose a capital value-based system of computing property taxes. Replacing the annual rateable value system of calculation with the capital value method will be one of the first proposals to be taken up by the body when it meets in March. Read more Source :...

States to get half of Central scheme funds

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:19:19 PST

Patna : States will now have greater flexibility with Centrally-sponsored schemes. The Union government has given its nod to a new plan that will facilitate transfer of 50 per cent of the scheme amount to the states. Rural development minister Jairam Ramesh says the Centre plans to spend more than Rs 88,000 crore this financial year on rural development. “This ought to boost development, but the inflexibility of Central government sponsored schemes are a major hurdle. We want to remove this,” he told reporters here. Read more Source : business-standard.com

Auto rickshaw crucial for sustainable transport: Study

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:12:15 PST

NAIROBI: The auto rickshaw may be losing its way in the transport debate in India, but the ubiquitous three-wheeler is being discussed in global forums as a possible option for sustainable transport. While autos lose out to cars in the Indian consciousness, but when it comes to sustainable urbanisation and transport, they are being touted as a vital last-mile link of giant mass transportation system, something that needs to be encouraged. Read more Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com

'Pune municipality's river navigation project not feasible'

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:09:08 PST

PUNE: Noted water expert Madhav Chitale on Friday said that river navigation project planned by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) on Mula-Mutha is not feasible. "The rivers are in a pathetic condition and do not have the required water level for such a project. Even in the next 20 years, the project will not be possible," he said. Addressing a news conference on problems of rivers in the state, as part of the Vasundhara International Film Festival, Chitale said looking at the state of the rivers the PMC should take the responsibility of restoring the water bodies and see that...

New Traffic rule, JnNURM buses and present roads

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:02:23 PST

It was with the motive of easing traffic congestion in Imphal city that the state government came up with a new traffic rule on February 13th, thereby prohibiting entry of all vehicles in Paona and Thangal Bazaar. The state government also allotted 17 authorised parking lots in different parts of the city. Semi-low floor bus for ferrying passengers within the market areas in Imphal on February 23 2012 - Pix :: David M Mayum The new traffic regulation, though, was put on a trial basis, did not go well with the public. Shopkeepers of Thangal and Paona Bazaar even went...

Tamil Nadu loses battle in green court

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 10:57:06 PST

Chennai : The green court for south India was opened in Chennai on Friday. On the first day, this National Green Tribunal (NGT), Chennai circuit court, heard six major cases and disposed two of them including the three-year-old Pallikaranai case. Setting aside the environment clearance given by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) to the Chennai Corporation to set up an integrated waste management plant in Pallikaranai marshland, the court said, “The state of Tamil Nadu has no jurisdiction to grant environment clearance of this nature. Guindy national Park is located within 10 kms from the Pallikaranai project site.”...

Reform villages, Kalam urges youth on Facebook

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 10:49:24 PST

New Delhi : Former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, India’s missile man, on Friday urged the nation’s youth to target reforming villages in the country as “vibrant engines of growth”. Dr Kalam interacted with an enthusiastic group of young men and women on the social networking website Facebook. Organised by Penguin Books India to promote Dr Kalam’s latest book, Target 3 Billion, the Facebook chat attracted a large number of users hooking onto their screen in wait of his response to their questions. Read more Source : asianage.com

Over 2,000 weather stations to come up in Maharashtra

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 10:37:02 PST

The 100-cr project expected to benefit farmers MUMBAI : With the Maharashtra Government planning to set up 2,025 automatic weather stations (AWSs) across the State, farmers could benefit from the information obtained to decide on the cropping pattern and take preventive steps to protect the standing crop in case of weather changes. The Rs 100-crore project will get a viability-gap funding from the Centre. The farmers could realise the advantage of the AWS from the kharif season of 2013. AWSs would be located in every revenue circle, comprising a cluster of 20-30 villages. Read more Source : thehindubusinessline.com

US firm plans to light up rural homes through solar energy

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 08:55:19 PST

Mangalore : Duron Solar has announced its plans to expand into rural markets by serving families which have no access or have partial access to electricity. After having conducted pilot tests for over one and half year in Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka, the Company has decided to set up service network in rural areas of Mangalore, Udupi, Shimoga, Dakshina Kannada, Uttar Kannada and Kodagu. The Company is now all set to spread its operations in five new States- Tamilnadu, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Bihar and Rajasthan. Read more Source : deccanherald.com

India needs ‘intelligent' cars

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 08:49:39 PST

Automobiles need technologies to address mobility problems on Indian roads. Delhi is expected to grow more in the next three years than London in two decades. India is listed as the sixth largest auto market globally, based on the sales for the year 2010 and 2011, with a projected growth of 7 per cent for the next year. Extracts reveal that by 2016, the size of the Indian automobile industry is expected to grow by 13 per cent, approaching the target of US$ 120-159 billion. Presently, India is the second-largest two-wheeler and fourth-largest commercial vehicle market. Strategic alliances in the...

Karnataka CM to hand out Rs 500 cr worth grants in Mysore

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 08:41:48 PST

Chennai/ Mysore : Karnataka Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda will visit Mysore on March 3 to handover Rs 500 crore worth entitlements to one lakh beneficiaries of the district. At a programme planned on the Maharaja’s College Grounds, the Chief Minister will inaugurate the day-long ‘fair’ on which the district officials are busy planning the details. Besides distributing benefits under various schemes, the chief minister will also lay foundation stone for some projects. A big contingent of ministers and senior officials of the state are expected to take part in the fair, the arrangements for which were reviewed by...

IT sector urged to participate in development activities

ThinkIndia — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 08:35:41 PST

BANGALORE : ‘Reorient your CSR to create social infrastructure for the city' Information technology companies and professionals were on Thursday urged to reorient their corporate social responsibility (CSR) towards creating social infrastructure for Bangalore. Ravi Chandran, Ashwin Mahesh, V Naresh Narasimhan and Rd Ashwin Verma at the "GIREM :Destination Bangalore" conference to bring together committed minds to discuss and share views on future of Bangalore City , in Bangalore on Thursday. Photo: G.P.Sampath Kumar. ‘LARGE PRESENCE' Participating in the ‘Destination Bangalore' summit organised by the Global Initiative for Restructuring Environment and Management (GIREM), V. Naresh Narasimhan, managing partner of Venkataramanan...