US House Speaker Pelosi to visit India tomorrow

WASHINGTON: The Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi will be visiting India tomorrow on a five-day trip, with the Indo-US nuclear deal as an agenda.

Pelosi, a powerful Democrat on Capitol Hill, will have her official meetings on March 20 with the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other senior leaders.

Unlike other top lawmakers who include a few countries in their visits overseas, Pelosi is on a "India Only" visit.

She is expected to discuss major issues in the bilateral relations between India and the United States including the civilian nuclear deal.

Like her colleagues in the US Senate, who have visited India recently, Pelosi may also stress on a time-frame for the submission of the deal to the Congress, where she will be the major player in case of a final vote in the House.

The environment issue is also likely to attract considerable attention both in her official and non-official meetings.

Besides, the issue of Tibet may also be into the focus during Pelosi's visit to India especially in the context of the recent crackdown by China in the capital city of Lhasa.

The Speaker is an admirer of the Dalai Lama and has backed his calls for dialogue while generally being sharply critical of Beijing.

After China, TCS is looking to expand elsewhere in the region

One of India's leading software companies, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), has joined the fray in Thailand's software industry with the aim of becoming a leading player and catering to other parts of the region from the Bangkok-based office.

"This is a market that we have been looking at for a very long time and have finally got the approval from the Board of Investment (BoI)," Grija Pande, the chief executive for Asia Pacific, said in a recent interview.

"Our hope is to be able to add value to the various industries that we have our strengths in, be it financial services, telecommunications services or the government."

Although the move by TCS into the Thai market comes after some of its rivals have already made their presence felt, Mr Pande says that competition in the market would only help drive the overall industry's growth.

Pande: Banking, telecoms to be focus

TCS, which caters to some of the world's largest clients including GE, says that the presence of the multinationals in Thailand would be the driving factor for TCS.

TCS, which has a presence in key Asean markets, such as the Philippines, Indonesia and now Thailand, wants to use these offices as its centres for the region, although there are times when the company believes that countries such as Vietnam may be of interest in the future.

"The region has always been of great interest to us but we had to delay the plans because we were focusing on the major expansion in China," Mr Pande said, adding that currently there were 1,200 staff in its Chinese operations.

"We have a philosophy that unless we do not have a strong business, we do not like to go to that market," he said, noting that Thailand was the 45th country where TCS had a presence.

With the rising cost of doing business in India, Mr Pande said there had been been talk of shifting the industry to cheaper countries, which he believes is a wrong notion.

The only activities that should be shifted, in his view, are call centres that rely on low costs, but programming and other complex activities need to remain in India, where technological know-how is still stronger than in most parts of the world.

India's cost structure is rising at "unsustainable" levels of more than 15% annually, he says, Despite this, TCS has shown a strong performance by posting a 50% cumulative average revenue growth rate over the past five years and this year, despite the global gloom and doom. The key, he says, is to diversify the exposure.

"We have taken a conscious decision for five years to diversify our exposure to the United States and now the US accounts for less than 50% of our revenue," Mr Pande said.

He added that Europe now accounted for 20% of TCS's business and the rest of the world or the emerging markets 20%.

The emerging markets have the biggest potential, with growth rates of more than 40% that could help offset the slowdown in the United States.

Mr Pande said that in Thailand TCS would focus on banking, telecommunications and the government sector. Lately, TCS has entered into a joint-venture agreement with Thai Reinsurance to set up a company to provide IT outsourcing for medium-sized and small insurers. The company holds 20% of the new venture and the first customer is Falcon Insurance which has a five-year application service provider agreement.

TCS has set up a company in Thailand to provide three main services: IT services, business-solution services and outsourcing. It focuses on banks, telecoms and the government sector, the areas where the company has gained experience from serving worldwide customers.

This year, banking customers will invest more in IT, especially core banking systems. In the past, TCS developed software packages for the core banking system and bought other software companies that provide the core banking system to add to its current services.

Furthermore, it has experience installing core systems for large banks worldwide such as Bank of China, which has 22,000 branches and 380 million accounts, and State Bank of India. It is expected that within 12 to 18 months, TCS will have more customers, five or six of which are Thai and foreign banks.

The telecoms business is expected to grow as well and the proposed solutions for target telecommunication customers are the billing system and operating system for service and support.

The company also has built up experience providing billing solutions to service providers in Asia such as SingTel, Indosat and Telekom Malaysia.

Last week, the company had a chance to propose its own technology for government agencies to Deputy Prime Minister Suwit Khunkitti.

The proposed solution is a company registration system via the internet which helps foreigners set up companies within two days.

No discrimination against India in new visa system: UK

Britain on Monday assured India that there will be no discrimination against Indian professionals in the new point-based system for work visa.

In a meeting with Minister of State for Industry Ashwani Kumar here, Duke of York and Special Representative of UK's Department of Trade and Investment Andrew Albert Christian Edward said there would be "no discrimination against Indian professionals for work visas in the UK".

Kumar hoped that the new visa system would give greater fairness to Indian professionals for entry in the UK.

The new point-based system for managing migration would ensure only workers with skills to benefit Britain's economy come to the UK and put in place a licensing system for businesses who want to recruit from overseas.

Both sides also stressed on the need to increase business contacts between SMEs, service sectors, education as well as skill upgradation.

Referring to the overall outward investment profile of the UK, Edward said there is tremendous scope for an exponential growth in trade as well as investments.

He further said he hoped India will take next level of steps for improved market access.

UK is the third largest investor in India with cumulative FDI of 4.13 billion dollars. Indian investment in the UK during 2006-07 in 76 projects generated 1450 jobs making it one of the major investors.

Total investment in these 76 projects was to the tune of over two billion dollars in sectors like telecom and IT.

One million new jobs in India in 2008

It is good news for those fresh out of college or for those who are keen for a job change, as a leading HR consultancy firm has predicted one million new jobs in India this year.

Ma Foi Employment Trends Survey (METS), conducted by Ma Foi, one of India's largest HR consultancy firm has predicted a three per cent increase in employment in 2008.

The largest chunk of the new jobs according to the survey would be generated by hospitality sector which is riding high with the tourism boom in the country.

"The Hospitality sector will generate the maximum number of employment in 2008. 426,668 jobs are going to be generated by the Hospitality sector. This sector is closely followed by Health at 295,829 and Education Training & Consultancy at 166,005," says the survey.

It adds that an estimated USD 11.41 billion is expected to be seen in the Hospitality sector in the next two years and that India is likely to have around 40 international hotel brands by 2011.

"The boom in the tourism industry has had a cascading effect on the hospitality sector, which was a result of the increase in the occupancy ratios and average room rates. With the demand continuing to surge, many global hospitality majors have evinced a keen interest in the Indian hospitality sector," says K. Pandia Rajan, Managing Director, Ma Foi Management Consultants Ltd.

While, IT and ITES sector continues with high growth in recruitment at 7.3 and 7.2 per cent, the survey says that it is the Health sector which shows the highest growth in recruitment at 8.9 per cent.

India-born delivers a 'sleeper hit' in US

WASHINGTON: In American showbiz, "sleeper hit" is a term used to refer to a film (and sometimes even a book or an album) that gains unexpected success or recognition. Among the big sleepers in recent years are: The Full Monty , Little Miss Sunshine , and My Big Fat Greek Wedding . Breaking news for India is that a Hollywood sleeper has just begun to stir — and it comes from a debutant Indian-origin director who's not in the same bracket as Mira Nair, Deepa Mehta, or Shekhar Kapur — not yet.

His name is Bharat Nalluri and his debut directorial venture is the rather unusually titled Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day . But in a week that saw mega-movies such as 10000 BC and The Bank Job hit the screens in the US, it is Nalluri's limited release Miss Pettigrew that has the critics excited.

From the New York Times : "As it stands, the movie, directed by Bharat Nalluri from a screenplay by David Magee and Simon Beaufoy, is an example of how a little nothing of a story can be inflated into a little something of a movie with perfect casting, dexterous tonal manipulation and an astute eye and ear for detail."

From Washington Post : "After a particularly dour Oscar season, the jolly romantic romp Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day sparkles like a rhinestone in the muck. Set in 1930s London, the story of a dowdy governess (Frances McDonald) who finds adventure and love when she works as a starlet's (Amy Adams) personal assistant for 24 hours is just the tonic for filmgoers eager for a film that celebrates the bearable lightness of being."

And from USA Today : "Based on the 1938 novel by Winifred Watson, Miss Pettigrew is a veritable treat. Wisely cast, this handsome production is a delightful farcical fairy tale, bolstered by moments of depth and emotion."

The movie is not about to rake in big box-office bucks just this week because, typical of sleepers, it has a limited screen release in the US. But, with '10000 BC' looking like a dud at the box office, Pettigrew looks set to grow in size.

Nalluri was born in Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, came to England with his family when he was six, and grew up in Newcastle upon Tyne. This is his first full-length film, and according to his filmography on a movie database, he has directed episodes of the serials 'Life on Mars', 'Hustle', and 'Spooks' for BBC One, besides a two-part TV film titled 'Tsunami: The Aftermath'.

In an interview to India-West, Nalluri joked that 'Pettigrew' was a tribute to his early familiarity with Bollywood. "This is my homage to my Sunday afternoons, growing up in India," he said. "My parents would put on a movie, and invite loads of people, and make a big Indian meal, and kids would be running around."

Nalluri said there typically is a "Bollywood moment" in all his ventures and there is one in Miss Pettigrew too.

Tata's Nano: High-end version to hit Europe

Just minutes after the unveiling of the Nano at the Geneva Motor Show, Prodrive boss and now CEO of Aston Martin David Richards pumped Tata Motors MD Ravi Kant’s hand warmly saying, "there are so many beautiful cars around but you guys have stolen the show." A visibly thrilled Kant replied, "Coming from you that’s a huge compliment."

The exchange continued, with some friendly asides about Jaguar Land Rover — "I understand we are soon to be neighbours," Mr Richards said so which Mr Kant replied, "We are trying very hard" — till the Tata official was pulled away by local media.

David Richards wasn’t the only global auto CEO to sit up and take notice of the Nano. Minutes before the unveiling, Fiat boss Luca de Montezemolo dropped into the Tata pavillion for some congratulatory words and a warm hug for Mr Tata. Of course, not all reactions were quite that cheer-leading.

Earlier in the morning, Honda Motor Company CEO Takeo Fukui answered questions on the Nano effect saying: "The Nano I don’t understand. The Jazz is the smallest car for Honda but we need smaller and cheaper vehicles for India in future. Of course ecology is important and safety is important too." Honda is already working on another small car to complement the Jazz in India in an effort to shore up its compact presence.

For the man of the moment though these bytes are just that...bytes. And he takes them with equanimity just like he did when the top names in the business dismissed the Nano project as a can’t be done. "It’s interesting that the auto majors are talking about better fuel efficiency," he said.

"A lot of these people said such a car could not be made in the first place."

The Nano’s Euro debut and the interest it has generated both in the industry and media will of course come in handy when the car actually goes to Europe.

At the unveiling, Mr Tata said that the top-end variant on display could find its way to Europe one day, though there’s nothing planned for now. "The Nano will address global markets in due course but when it will do so has not been decided."

And when it does, the Euro Nano will be a different animal even though design wise it would remain the same. "We will upgrade the car when we do decide to sell it in Europe or elsewhere—not the design but it will meet all the regulatory and legislative requirements," Mr Tata said. "The car for Europe and other developed markets will be an evolution of the current model. But that will happen only after we establish the product in India."

Mr Tata also indicated that if his capacity did not catch up with the demand for the Nano at home and abroad, he would be open to licencing arrangements with other auto companies. "If there’s demand we can’t meet, we will look at licenced production agreements but if we can meet that demand ourselves we will do so," Mr Tata said.

Apart from Europe, the Nano could also find a big market in Latin America. As for whether Fiat will be involved in marketing the car in Latin America where the Italian company has a large footprint, he said: "Everybody will wait for the car to come out first and then look at the business case."

Meanwhile, Tata Motors will use its satellite manufacturing concept to ramp up its distribution footprint for the Nano. "We intend to have satellite manufacturing units that would be low cost and these would be sold of entrepreneurs to them franchise manufacturers of the Nano," Mr Tata said. "This structure will not be in lieu of but in addition to our existing distribution system," he added.

The Nano’s Euro outing though will not position it very differently from what it is elsewhere. "We’ve made a commitment to develop products that can extended to markets beyond India and Nano too is part of that," Mr Tata said. "In Europe too the Nano will be a compliant vehicle at a never-made-available-before price point."

However the recent 4% cut in excise duty will not make the Nano sub-Rs 1 lakh. "We said we will give a Rs 1 lakh car and we will give a Rs 1 lakh car," Mr Tata said.

"To expect the Nano price to go down even further would be unfair. We didn’t raise prices when steel prices went up. Steel prices have started to firm up again and will pinch us further this year." The excise cut, he said, will "perhaps" help hold the Nano price to Rs 1 lakh.

Indeed the excise lolly was the only silver lining in an industry that’s readying for some really tough times, he said. That included lack of capital, high interest rates and creeping prices of inputs. "I was watching the news on the US auto market and it was so depressing I could barely drink my coffee," Mr Tata said. Any relief, whether on input costs or excise, will be a "contribution for a project whose costs have been pared down to the bone," he said.

For Tata though the headline hour was not just for the Nano. On the Jaguar-Land Rover deal, Mr Tata said: "These are two iconic brands. It wasn’t a hostile bid but an invitation to pursue and we are fortunate to be in this line of discussion with them. The plan would be to retain the image of these brand sand not hamper them anyway. If the deal is complete our ambition is to nurture and grow these brands through our support."

That’s right up Ford’s alley given that the American company trying to work out a repeat of its Aston Martin experience with JLR. Aston Martin’s engines were and continue to be made by Ford in a separate unit of its Cologne factory. In JLR’s case, the engine supply agreement was reportedly the most important point in the negotiations.

According to Ford sources, the reason why the deal has not been sewn up yet is because "the idea is to make sure everyone understands their obligations". Ford does not want to end its relationship with JLR once it is sold to Tata Motors. "It wants to retain long term relationship and make sure it is mutually beneficial for JLR, Ford and Tata Motors," said the source.

Clearly there’s more to David Richards’ banter with Bombay House brass than the Nano.

Selling the largest Hindu temple in the world

Angkor Wat is celebrated, the world over, as a temple of steroid-induced proportions, buried for centuries in the forests of northern Cambodia before being rediscovered by modernity. Visitors such as I, expect to ‘stumble upon’ a giant temple rising about 700 feet in the air amidst the isolation of an intrusive forest.

In today’s global tourism industry, Angkor Wat is portrayed as that rarity, the last chance to truly discover.

There is some truth to this image. Before it was ‘discovered’ in 1840 by a French adventurer, it had not yet entered European imagination. During much of the late twentieth century, when global tourism really took off, Angkor Wat (means city temple) remained inaccessible due to a catastrophic civil war in Cambodia.

Besides, Angkor Wat is probably the largest Hindu temple in the world.

Built by King Surya Varman in the early 12th century, it is dedicated to lord Vishnu. Even the Creator of the Universe would have gasped at the scale of this creation—one square kilometer in size, and built on multiple levels. The artistry of each panel is intricate.

I spot a horde of Hindu tourists, aggressively explaining to their befuddled Cambodian guide that this is actually ‘their’ culture.

The truth is Hinduism in Cambodia dates back to the first century AD, brought by Indian traders from the kingdoms of Magadha (East Bihar) and Tamil Nadu. By the time of the Angkor era, this influence had flowered into a distinct culture of which Angkor Wat is the most enduring example.

So much for the product. Now the packaging.

Even at the time of its so called discovery, Angkor Wat was being administered by some one thousand Buddhist monks. Today, chattering groups of pliant tourists arrive in chartered planes to the nearby airport, Siem Reap. The scatter of shops around the temple sites—some mom and pop, some more enticing—sell every possible packaged memory. The entire area seems like a giant well run hotel.

This gilt-edged wrapping paper, however, is torn at places, revealing contradictions. In sharp contrast to the booming Asian Tigers that surround it, the Cambodian countryside is stark, famished and numbingly poor. Entirely different is Siem Reap, an artificial city, meant to service the many rich western and Japanese tourists who come to visit the Angkor temples. There are super markets everywhere, and the architecture is Baroque-meets-Surya Varman.

The obvious poverty of Cambodia seems to give way to a bubble of smooth highways and air-conditioned modernity. The economy seems as fissured: I could pay in Riel (the Cambodian currency), Baht or in US dollars.

Even the culture that was peddled as Khmer (the majority ethnic group in Cambodia) seemed hybrid. Like in neighbouring Thailand, the Angkor massages on offer in Siem Reap reflected the specific tastes of our globalised times. Eastern European women offer their white skin for the post-colonial Asian, and Nigerians peddle their bodies, rumoured to be well endowed, to Japanese women.

It may seem petulant to emphasise this lack of ‘authentic’ history here. After all every country packages its attractions in bubble wrap for outside tourists. But Angkor Wat’s history has been repackaged for its own people. For Cambodia has had to wrestle with notions of history like few others.

From 1974 to 1979, a far left Maoist regime controlled Cambodia. Until it was overthrown, the Khmer Rouge had succeeded in killing a tenth of Cambodia, forced the entire urban population to the countryside, and sought to radically reshape Cambodian society. Worse (if at all possible) was to follow.

During their fourteen years of exile and guerrilla warfare from the northern jungles, it laid ten million landmines across north Cambodia—one for each Cambodian.

Today, Cambodia enjoys a tenuous peace, and seeks to put behind its immediate past. The Angkor temples are now packaged for Cambodians, as a symbol of national unification.

Even the current Cambodian national flag carries an etching of Angkor Wat. But the phantoms of a grisly past cannot be wished away. Some temples in the Angkor area are still inaccessible due to landmines, and I saw many amputees hobbling across the temple stones.

Volvo plans to launch SUV XC60 in India next year

Volvo Car Corporation on Tuesday said it plans to launch its sports utility vehicle XC60 in India next year.

The company, which unveiled the XC60 at the ongoing Geneva Motor show, said the new SUV would find its way into India in 2009 as part of its product portfolio expansion in the country.

"With the launch of Volvo XC60 in India we will be broadening our model range to attract more customers with an active, urban lifestyle," Volvo Car India Managing Director Paul de Voijs said in a statement.

"With the expansion of our product offerings in 2009 we will further expand our customer base in the country," he added.

Volvo Car India, a division of Ford Motor Company launched two of its flagship models, Volvo S80 and Volvo XC90 in the country in September 2007.

The company currently market its products through 3 dealerships, one each in Delhi, Mumbai and Chandigarh.

India's latest research ship inaugurated

A new jewel of the ocean, glistening in the Bay of Bengal, is India's latest research ship the Sagar Nidhi.

Inaugurated by Science Minister Kapil Sibal and Shipping Minister T R Baalu in Chennai on Monday, the ship sailed off to try out the new equipment.

A rupees 232 crore floating laboratory, the ship will help map India's marine resources. It will aid in exploring undersea deposits of methane, the future's energy reserve.

''The Sagar Nidhi is a world class vessel, few of its kind exist in the world. It can be deployed to protect the common man in the event of a tsunami, to investigate the wealth of the bottom of the ocean and our national wealth.

''It will be used to solve the energy problems of India, because of a large amount of methane is entrapped in gas hydrates deep in the ocean,'' said Kapil Sibal, Minister, Science and Technology.

Custom built in Italy, the ship is equipped not just for difficult deep-sea missions along India's 7500-km coastline, but can also sail to Antarctica in summers by effectively cutting through ice.

The seventh in India's fleet of research vessels, 30 scientists live on it for 45 days at a time using the ship's artificial eyes and ears to explore the deepest part of the ocean.

An underwater robot, which can travel down to a depth of six km can study marine life.

The remotely operated vehicle on board is equipped to take underwater photos and to survey and monitor the sea bed.

India claims final tri-series title

Australia crash-tackled and shoulder-charged but it was India who tonight finally up-ended the world champions with a tri-series finals whitewash.

The jubilant Indians finished their controversial tour in triumph with a nail-biting nine-run win at the Gabba to send Australian vice-captain Adam Gilchrist into retirement in defeat.

A career-best 63 from James Hopes ensured the second final went down to the wire with the home side needing 13 off the last over but he fell from the third last ball.

Instead of a fitting one-day farewell for retiring wicketkeeper Gilchrist, it was controversial spinner Harbhajan Singh who laughed last and loudest, lapping up the triumph on the Gabba boundary in front of ecstatic expat fans.

Australia's loss saw them crashing out of the best-of-three finals series in straight sets for the second consecutive season as they never fully recovered from another top-order collapse in chasing India's 9-258.

Gilchrist lasted just three balls, walking for two after edging behind rookie Praveen Kumar in the first over, in his final international match.

Swing discovery Kumar (4-46) proved the destroyer, the man of the match reducing Australia to 3-32, before a fightback by fishing mates Matthew Hayden and Andrew Symonds.

But just when the Queenslanders had got back on level ground with an freewheeling 89-run stand, Harbhajan undid both within three balls.

Hayden (55 off 68) walked off giving Symonds a gobful after a mid-pitch mix-up which finished with Harbhajan running out the opener.

Two balls later, India celebrated like they had the series wrapped up when the spinner trapped Symonds (42 off 56) plumb leg before.

Symonds' innings included a rib-rattling shoulder charge of a streaker just after he came to the crease with his team in dire straits.

It's unclear whether the all-rounder, an avid rugby league fan, will find himself in hot water for the pole-axing.

Symonds could face a fine or ban if the International Cricket Council decides he breached section 4.2 of the code of conduct relating to physical assault of a rival player, official or a spectator.

The shoulder charge came hours after a frustrated Michael Clarke crash tackled the in-form Sachin Tendulkar when the opener inadvertently prevented him fielding a shot off his own bowling.

A second streaker invaded the ground when Mike Hussey and James Hopes were mounting a second rescue mission, entering the field from long-off behind Harbhajan who immediately complained to umpire Simon Taufel.
The distraction also got the better of Hussey (44 off 42) who edged behind Shantha Sreesanth that over to end their 76-run stand when 60 were needed off 48 balls.

Taufel referred the low catch to third umpire Bruce Oxenford who strangely appeared to view TV's snicko-meter technology before adjudging him out.

Looking to send the finals series to a decider in Adelaide, Hopes kept the home side in the hunt until he was the last wicket to fall.

India entered the match without lanky seamer Ishant Sharma (finger) but Kumar ensured he wasn't missed.

In what is likely to be the last triangular series, Australia's failure marks the first time in 23 years the host nation has been knocked out of back-to-back tournaments.

After winning the toss and batting, India were eying a 300-plus total with first-final hero Tendulkar (91 off 121 balls) in control at 2-175 in the 35th over.

But part-time spinner Clarke (3-52) was the surprise innings-turner for the world champions before Nathan Bracken (3-31) followed up to restrict India to 9-258.

The tourists slumped to 5-209 when Clarke took his third wicket and the momentum was lost.

Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (36 off 37) ensured his team surpassed 250 but couldn't deliver enough lusty late-innings blows with the tail as Hopes and Bracken kept it tight at the death.

India to invest millions in 'green' train toilets

Indian Rail has allocated £512 million to install 'green' toilets in around 36,000 coaches to prevent human waste from corroding rail tracks.

Some 300,000 litres of human waste from "open-discharge" toilets across India's 40,000-mile rail network force railway workers to replace some tracks every two years, despite the tracks normally lasting 30 years. In last week's rail budget, which is always presented separately because of its enormity, railway minister Lallu Prasad Yadav said three toilet models would be fitted on passengers coaches: controlled discharge, biodegradable and vacuum-retention toilets.

In the first, controlled discharge model waste from toilets would be discarded onto the tracks only when any train travelled more than 18 miles an hour, while the biodegradable toilet converted the litter via a microbial or chemical process into non-corrosive carbon dioxide or chlorinated liquid.

Vacuum-retention toilets, similar to the ones in aircraft, retained the waste in a storage tank.

"We are probably the only railway system in the world that has open-discharge of faecal matter," Ganeshan Raghuram of the Indian Institute in Ahmedabad in western Gujarat state told the recent World Toilet Summit in New Delhi.

Apart from the bad smell, he added, the problem was becoming a lot more significant because of the high public cost as rail tracks and associated fittings wore out faster.

The railway's old-fashioned toilets also contaminated soil and water, particularly when monsoon rains washed the accumulated waste into rivers and lakes.

Indian Rail is the world's second largest network annually transporting over 5 billion passengers and over 350 million tons of freight.

It operates more than 12,000 passenger trains between 7000 railway stations.

India Announces $13 Million in Funding to Protect Tigers

India's government plans to spend nearly $13 million to create a special force to protect the endangered tiger population.

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram announced to parliament Friday that the money will be used to raise, arm and deploy a special tiger protection force.

A recent survey found India's tiger population has declined to just over 1,400 from 3,600 in 2002. Chidambaram said the number should ring an alarm bell and that the tiger is under grave threat.

India's government last month pledged to spend $150 million to create new tiger reserves and shift villages and tribal communities out of tiger habitats.

Officials have also opened a national wildlife crime bureau to counter the poaching of tigers and other endangered animals.

Tiger hunting is illegal worldwide. Poachers often sell tiger skins and other body parts to China for use in traditional medicine.

New Russian President has an India link

Russian president-elect Dmitry Medvedev apparently shares an India link unknown to many. The 42-year-old successor of Vladimir Putin has a surname which can trace its origin to Sanskrit.

Medvedev is derived from 'medved' the Russian word for bear. For pre-Christian Russians, who were the worshippers of wooden idols of 'Balvan' (almighty god), the use of the word 'ber' was a taboo and so they preferred to call the animal "Medved'.

While in Russian, 'Medved' would have translated to 'someone having the knowledge of honey', in Sanskrit, the word 'Madhu Vedi' has the same meaning.

Outstanding Indian scholar of Vedas and freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak in his book 'The Arctic Home in Vedas' has also mentioned about the common roots of the Russians and Indians.

Tycoon Branson launches Virgin Mobile in India

British billionaire Sir Richard Branson launched Virgin Mobile in India on Sunday aiming to tap the huge number of young people in the world's fastest-growing cellular market.

The flamboyant tycoon was lowered by wires down the face of a 35-storey hotel in Mumbai, unveiling the Virgin logo in mid-air, to herald the firm's entry in a tie-up with India's sprawling tea-to-steel Tata Group.

"India looks very, very promising," said Branson, who is tying up with Tata Teleservices.

The service will be marketed under the Virgin Mobile brand name in India, whose cellular market is expanding by eight million subscribers per month.

Virgin sought to deliver a "more tailored, more relevant offering" aimed at India's young population, he said. Some 51 percent of India's population of 1.1 billion people is under 25 and two-thirds under 35.

The venture will offer music, entertainment and news on India's film industry, sports and stock market.

Virgin needs to grab "only a small percentage of the market to do well," the tycoon told reporters in Mumbai on the weekend, adding that "the vibrancy of its youth and culture truly makes it Virgin territory."

To start, Virgin will launch its service in 50 cities, expanding to more than 1,000 cities by December.

Virgin is seeking to tap India after Britain-based Vodafone, the world's largest mobile company, made its entry last year by buying Indian cell phone operator Hutchison Essar for 11.1 billion dollars.

Virgin Mobile "can capture more than 10 per cent" of the growing youth market within three years and generate more than 350 billion dollars in annual revenues, Jamie Heywood, deputy chief executive of Virgin Mobile India, said.

It can do that by focusing on a single segment and by delivering innovative services, he said.

Branson said he expected the Indian operation would be profitable within three years. It will sell Virgin mobile branded handsets at prices ranging from 50 to 125 dollars.

Tendulkar slices apart Australia with surgical ton

Sachin Tendulkar's sublime unbeaten century led India to a thrilling six-wicket victory over Australia in the opening match of the Commonwealth Bank Series final in Sydney yesterday.

India secured the win in the 45th over when Mahendra Singh Dhoni found the boundary to hand the tourists the early initiative in the best-of-three final.

Tendulkar's masterly 117 – his 42nd ODI ton – came off just 120 deliveries and included 10 boundaries. The veteran opener was ably supported by Rohit Sharma, who hit a brisk 66 off 87 balls to bolster India's run chase.

Tendulkar was positive post-match but admitted that India still had their work cut out for the next game on Tuesday: "To beat them is extremely important and now we have to beat them a second time," he said. "It won't be easy but we have shown that we can do it."

Earlier Matthew Hayden made 82 to help the home side recover after being reduced to 24 for three. Australia passed 100 in the 18th over when Andrew Symonds effortlessly lofted Harbhajan Singh over mid-off for four.

Harbhajan picked up the wicket of Hayden after the opener was caught on the run by Piyush Chawla at deep mid-wicket when attempting a sweep.

Australia captain Ricky Ponting has called for a vast improvement from his side.

"The bottom line was we didn't get enough runs and we didn't bowl well enough and we didn't field well enough," said Ponting. "I'm expecting a better performance from us on Tuesday."