MI vs KTK: Kochi Tuskers Kerala shock Mumbai Indians by 8 wickets

MUMBAI: It has to be for some good reason that former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara reckons his teammate and close friend Mahela Jayawardene to be a very good Twenty20 batsman. 

The reasons were quite obvious at the Wankhede on Friday evening when Jayawardene - leading a side that coming into this match had looked listless - led from the front and scored a clinical half century that set the pace for what has to be one of Indian Premier League's best chases. 

Mumbai Indians lost the toss, but made good use of the opportunity to bat first and set a formidable 182. Sachin Tendulkar scored 100 of those runs in 66 balls with 12 boundaries and three sixes when it began to seem like the Tuskers had been throttled again. In the end, it was Mumbai Indians who were left to bite the dust as Kochi finally arrived in IPL, making a mockery of what was supposed to be Tendulkar's evening. 

Chasing under lights in front of the Wankhede crowd, especially when it's not exactly cheering for you, can be intimidating. But chasing under lights can get better in these conditions no doubt as India showed two weeks ago in the World Cup final. Jayawardene seemed to have taken enough notes from that game to keep for the future. 

On Friday, the time arrived for the Sri Lankan to use that bit of experience and he did it with aplomb, winning the toss and yet deciding to bat second. The pitch eased wonderfully and along with New Zealander Brendon McCullum, who scored a blistering 81, the skipper saw his team through. 

Jayawardene had spoken of how it would be ideal for Kochi to beat a team that has been looking in top form. In the run up to this game, the Tuskers had been slammed as too weak against a very powerful Mumbai line up. The odds too were heavily in Mumbai Indians' favour, considering the matches that both teams have played so far in the tournament. 

The Tuskers defied it all thanks to the top order finally finding its feet in the middle and Jayawardene's astute skills paving the way for what has got to be an important victory for Kochi. 

Mumbai can blame themselves for the defeat. Tendulkar's century alone was never going to be enough if the bowling failed to live up to the expectation. That's precisely what happened when McCullum got the opportunity to free his arms and strike 10 boundaries and two sixes during the chase. It was the innings that rode on the platform provided by Jaywardene's 56 and in the end, the two openers made Mumbai Indians pay heavily. 

As far as scoring rate goes, Jayawardene's half century was more brisk than McCullum's. However, the prolific Sri Lankan's knock was void of any flashy batting unlike his Kiwi teammate. 

Towards the end, when the equation came down to 35 runs from 17 balls, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja - who seems to have taken a liking for IPL - smashed 25 off 11 balls which made difference.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/ipl-2011/news/MI-vs-KTK-Kochi-Tuskers-Kerala-shock-Mumbai-Indians-by-8-wickets/articleshow/7991234.cms

IPL-4 set to start with a bang on high viewership

MUMBAI: The fourth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is expected to be bigger, if not better, in terms of business even without Lalit Modi at the helm. It will be bigger largely on account of ticket sales and sponsorship deals clinched individually by the ten teams has been able to muscle in for itself. 

To top it all, television viewership-the big money spinner for the IPL-is expected to grow by 20% from 143 million that the tournament clocked last year. On the back of this figurencreased viewership , SET Max, the official broadcaster of the tournament, expects to rake in a plum Rs 1,000 crore in ad revenue, up from about Rs 700 crore it pocketed last year. 

The growth has been consistent over the last three editions of IPL. 

"We have seen this trend from the first edition of the tournament, when the viewership was about 90 million. The number has now jumped significantly. The trajectory is expected to continue this year too," said Rohit Gupta, president, Multi Screen Media, which owns SET Max. 

However, nothe tea may not be on a roll. While some of the bigger teams have been able to command a premium of about 20-25% compared to last year from sponsors, others have not had it that great. Things are not all rosy for these franchisees as they battle a format change, rebuilding teams and lack of time between the end of the high-pressure World Cup and the IPLstart of the Twenty20 tournament. 

"At the moment, we are not sure about how much better we will do this year in terms of business. But there has been a steady increase in all the revenue streams. But it will be a watershed year considering the kind of changes we have gone through," said Amrit Mathur, CEO, Delhi Daredevils, one of the few teams which has consistently made profits. Mathur said Delhi Daredevils has almost sold out tickets for its opening match against Mumbai Indians and expects the same for its other fixtures. Franchisees can earn anywhere between Rs 20-25 crore from ticket sales alone if it's a full house. 

Even on the commercial side, most contracts have been renegotiated or signed afresh for this year considering the sponsorship deals were for three years. "We have been able to add 17 sponsors this year and expect ticket sales also to grow substantially," said Raghu Iyer, CMO, Rajasthan Royals. But what is worrying the teams is that they cannot raise the entry prices for tickets as it will deter fans from making it to the stadium. 

Besides, the local revenue where the team sells sponsorship for player's uniforms and earns through ticket sales, franchisees also earn a share of the central pool. The central sponsorship is pegged at Rs 35-40 crore per brand annually. DLF, Vodafone, Citibank and Volkswagen are the official partners. 

Team owners said what has really taken a toll this year on most of the teams is the lack of brand building before the tournament, specially for the two new teams -Kochi Tuskers Kerala and Pune Warriors-since the World Cup ended just a week before the IPL was to start.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/IPL-4-set-to-start-with-a-bang-on-high-viewership/articleshow/7907897.cms

NRIs fare no better on sex ratio front

NEW DELHI: It isn't just at home that India in particular, and Asia generally, have a problem of a low sex ratio. The sex ratio at birth among Indians and other Asian communities in the US is much lower than among the white and the black communities. This is a trend that was also found among Indians in the UK. 

The US trend was revealed in a paper published recently in the journal Prenatal Diagnosis, which compared the sex ratios of blacks, Chinese, Filipinos, Asian Indians and Koreans, relative to the whites. This was done by reviewing all US live births from 1975 to 2002 using National Centre for Health Statistics birth certificates in 4-year intervals. However, separate figures for Indians and Koreans were available only from 1991. 

In 1999-2002, the sex ratio at birth among Indians was 938 girls to 1,000 boys compared to 952 for the whites and 969 for the blacks, which was the highest. 

In 2007, a study at Oxford University by Sylvie Dubuc had shown that for children born to India-born mothers, between 1990 and 2005, the sex ratio was between 926 and 962 girls for every 1,000 boys. In cases where there was a third child, the ratio was even more skewed, 884 girls for 1,000 boys. 

Dubuc, who studied birth rates of different ethnic groups in England and Wales, found that in the 1970s, 971 girls were born for every 1,000 boys among those of Indian origin. But between 2000 and 2005, there were just 877 girls for every 1,000 boys. Dubuc wrote that the most plausible explanation for this trend was sex-selective abortion. 

The US study clearly shows that Indians are not alone in this practice as several other Asian communities too have skewed sex ratio at birth suggesting prenatal gender selection by these populations. However, the Indian community recorded the least fall in sex ratio among the Asians and thus seemed the most virtuous in comparison. 

In the absence of extrinsic factors, the sex ratio at birth is widely considered to be consistent across human populations ranging from 935 to 971 girls per 1,000 boys. The sex ratio for all US births from 1975 to 2002 was 952. However, in China, India, Korea and some other countries it was found to be less than 926 and this has been interpreted as having arisen through prenatal gender selection. 

Between 1999 and 2002, the sex ratio at birth of the Indian community in the US was 938, but other Asian groups like the Chinese with 928, Filipinos with 931 and Koreans with 934 fared even worse. 

On the other hand, Indians have recorded the steepest decline in sex ratio for the first birth. It was 976 in 1991-94, which was higher than even the black and the white communities. It fell to 943 by 1999-2002. In contrast, sex ratio at birth for second and third children in the Indian community has actually improved over this period. 

This could mean that sex selection is now happening right from the first birth and the pressure to select for subsequent children has hence come down compared to the past.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/nri/news/NRIs-fare-no-better-on-sex-ratio-front/articleshow/7893770.cms

IT majors on hiring overdrive

CHENNAI: The hiring numbers of IT majors leave nothing to doubt about how far the companies have left behind the recession. From the quarter ended March 31, 2010 to the one ended December 31, 2010, the top 5 IT majors in India-Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Cognizant, Infosys, Wipro and HCL Technologies-together clocked a staggering figure of 1,14,038 net additions in terms of headcount. This stands in sharp contrast to the net addition figure of 47,462 in the corresponding year ago period. 

Net addition subtracts the number of people leaving the company from the gross additions, and, therefore, is a better indicator of the actual increase in staff numbers. 

"It reflects the buoyancy in the market. 2009 numbers show the uncertainty and the low sentiments prevailing at that point. Companies are feeling a lot more confident now and can afford some redundancy in anticipation of big projects which wasn't the case earlier," said E Balaji, MD and CEO, MaFoi Randstad, a HR consulting firm. 

The numbers have shown a marked increase for each of the big IT companies. The net addition of TCS for the period from March quarter to the December quarter in 2010 was 37,260 which is almost double the figure of 19,311 clocked in the year ago. 

Cognizant's net addition numbers increased from 16,700 in 2009 to 25,557 in 2010. Much bigger increases were seen for the other 3 IT majors-Infosys, Wipro and HCL Technologies. The same numbers for Wipro for instance, increased from 3,977 in 2009 to 16,745 in 2010; for HCL Tech, the number rose from 670 to 16,579; and for Infosys, from 6,804 to 17,897. 

"During recession, companies weren't recruiting freshers. So there was a deficit, especially at lower levels. So what is happening now is that companies are replenishing the stock, with freshers accounting for a big part of it. The higher attrition in the current buoyant mood in the market is also playing a role in increasing these hiring numbers," said Amitabh Das, CEO of Vati Consulting, a recruitment firm. 

Not only are the companies compensating for the lull in hiring, they also anticipate bigger and more valuable projects in the coming times. They are building up bench strengths to handle the bigger size and variety of projects they expect to come their way. "Companies are bullish on future. Such an outlook is not totally off the mark given the kind of growth we are seeing," said James Agrawal, consulting director and business head at BTI consultants India, an executive hiring firm. 

The current optimism has a lot to do with the increasing confidence in the western markets which constitute the major markets for most Indian IT companies. "Tech is more of a support industry, an enabler. So if sectors like telecom, pharma, banking etc are booming or experiencing a slowdown, the same is reflected in the numbers of IT companies too. With the global outlook much more positive, things are looking up in a big way for IT companies," said Sunil Goel, director at Golbal-Hunt, an executive search firm. 

Picking up from the December 2009 quarter, the net addition numbers have remained strong in every quarter of 2010 signaling solid growth. Recruiters expect this trend to sustain in the coming years. "Globally, jobs might be shrinking but that's certainly not the case in India. In fact, increasing attrition today is itself indicator of the fact that the overall number of jobs in the economy is increasing," said Goel. "I expect the strong hiring trend to sustain at least for next 2-3 years." 

"We have begun 2011 in an economy that is considerably more stable than it was at this time in 2010. After recession, it's clear that our industry is again at an inflection point," said Shankar Srinivasan, chief people officer at Cognizant.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/IT-majors-on-hiring-overdrive/articleshow/7783558.cms

At $309bn, Japan quake costliest-ever disaster

TOKYO: The Japanese government on Wednesday said this month's tsunami which has killed over 9,000 people so far may have caused damages of up to $309 billion (nearly Rs 13.85 lakh crore), making it the largest ever natural catastrophe in terms of economic damage. 

So far the record was held by Hurricane Katrina, which is said to have caused damages of around $75 billion. The first official estimates from Japan mean that the tsunami's economic impact is nearly four times that of Katrina. 

At this scale, the damage caused by the tsunami is 10% higher than India's total spending in 2011-12 , which is budgeted at Rs 12.58 lakh crore. 

The damage is over 30 times of what was caused by the Asian tsunami that hit India and other countries in December 2004, killed nearly 2.3 lakh people in the Indian Ocean region and affected around 5 lakh in all. The economic damage from this was estimated to be in the region of $10 billion (Rs 45,000 crore at today's exchange rate). 

According to latest reports, the death toll in Japan is estimated at 9,400, while 14,700 persons have been reported missing and another 2,750 are injured . On Wednesday, the Japanese government said it estimated damage from the tsunami at anywhere between $197 billion (around Rs 8.8 lakh crore) and $308 billion. The estimate covers damage to infrastructure in seven prefectures affected by the disaster, including damages to nuclear power facilities north of Tokyo. Wider implications on the economy, including how radiation will affect food and water supply, are not included in the estimate. 

Economists had initially estimated losses of up to $184 billion (Rs 8.2 lakh crore). Encyclopedia Britannica had estimated that the damage caused by World War II was of the order of $1 trillion. 

The official Japanese government report didn't include specific forecasts for how the damage would affect GDP, which economists at Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities forecast may contract as much as an annualized 12% in the second quarter. GDP expanded at a 3.2% in the second quarter after the 1995 Kobe quake. 

The destruction will push down GDP by as much as 2.75 trillion yen (around $34 billion ) for the year starting April 1, Wednesday's report showed. The figure, about 0.5% of the 530 trillion yen ($6.5 trillion) economy, reflects a decline in production from supply disruptions and damage to corporate facilities without taking into account the effects of possible power outages. 

Japan may set up a reconstruction agency to oversee the rebuilding effort and the central bank has injected record cash to stabilize financial markets. 

Bank of Japan board member Ryuzo Miyao said on Wednesday that it may take more time to overcome the damage of the tsunami than it did after the 1995 quake in Kobe, western Japan. 

"The ability to depress economic activity from the supply side is larger than the Great Kobe earthquake and we must bear in mind that these effects could linger for some time," Miyao said in a speech. "The short-term effects are not insignificant."

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/At-309bn-Japan-quake-costliest-ever-disaster/articleshow/7777917.cms

Ind vs Aus: India on the edge as Men in Blue face Australia

AHMEDABAD: This is it. Hold your breath whenIndia take on Australia on Thursday, for there will be no second chances. The biggest stage, and the crucial moment, has arrived. 

Where India and Australia stand in ODIs/World Cup 

Reputations are at stake for MS Dhoni and his beleaguered counterpart Ricky Ponting. India lost to Australia in the 2003 World Cup final and endured an awful campaign in 2007, but the scales have tilted since. This isn't the invincible Australia of old. Rather than a sublime and uplifting battle between two powerhouses of the international game, current form indicates this second quarterfinal might be more of a scrap. 

Neither side has been awe-inspiring in the build-up to this moment. Both have obvious chinks in the armour just waiting to be exploited, and both need to shed the blow-hot, blow-cold approach which has characterized their campaign so far. 

Then there's the enormous pressure breathing down their necks, especially Dhoni's men. India are playing at home and millions expect nothing less than victory. The backlash, in case of defeat, will be painful. Australia have dominated this stage for so long that this bunch of players wouldn't like to be remembered as children of a lesser god. Whichever team can raise its game now will go through to meet Pakistan. 

As many as six players in Dhoni's current squad were losing finalists in 2003 and will be looking to make amends. It's a great opportunity to settle an old score. Yet, making a statement of intent might not be easy, even though the Motera is expected to be dry and spin-friendly. India's bowling, apart from Zaheer Khan, has been ordinary. Time and again, they have faltered in the Batting Powerplay. Even the middle-order has collapsed twice. Australia's pacers can be a handful. Can the sight of a familiar opponent get the competitive juices flowing? 

The issue of Virender Sehwag's fitness is another complication the team could have done without. The opener is struggling with a troublesome knee and Dhoni said a call on his availability would be taken in the morning. Sehwag, however, spent a lot of time at the nets fielding and batting, and seems more likely to play than not. 

The Australians too have been anything but impressive. Ponting's time seems to be running out. His form and confidence is under the scanner and his fierce temper has shown through. Controversy and bad blood seems to be hounding the Aussies and they've been forced to maintain a quieter profile. The loss to Pakistan meant drawing the curtains on a 34-game unbeaten streak in this tournament and this loss of aura is a boost for opponents. 

Will this be India's turn to deliver a knockout blow?

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2011/news/Ind-vs-Aus-India-on-the-edge-as-Men-in-Blue-face-Australia/articleshow/7775807.cms

Life's about planting trees for others: Warren Buffett

BANGALORE: On the second day of his India trip on Wednesday, Warren Buffett was a busy man, having a brief chat with the Karnataka CM before a factory visit to the only Buffett investment in India, TaeguTec India, a high-end tooling company. After pounding the shop floor, addressing employees and planting a sapling, it was time for a meeting with city CEOs. Before leaving for Delhi, the 'Sage of Omaha' spoke exclusively to TOI. Excerpts. 

Q. We noticed that when you were planting the tree, there was a different Warren Buffett, different from the persona of an investor or a philanthropist. You seemed to open up in a different way. 

A. Well, I like to think that I open up even otherwise (laughs). But part of life is to plant trees that other people will sit under. Somebody planted a tree for me long ago in the form of an educational institution and I sat under that tree, metaphorically. The same happened in one area after another in my life. 

Q. The chairman of Infosys, Narayana Murthy, talks of compassionate capitalism. Is philanthropy going to be the compassionate side of capitalism? 

A. I think philanthropy should be part of humanity. I don't relate it to capitalism or to business. When you have everything that you possibly could need yourself and other people need what you have that is of no use to you and has enormous use to them, I think you need to do something about it. 

Q. Philanthropy till now largely has been an individual effort. As it becomes bigger, it might become an institutional effort with its own systems, processes, checks and balances. Will it take away from the spontaneity of the individual effort that it is today? 

A. No, I don't think so. What we are encouraging is more individual effort. We are not asking people to join us or to give to what we believe in. We are encouraging people to enjoy giving and do it their own way. They can do it when they want, with whom they want. Maybe they can learn from each other. I have learnt from other people I have met. It's not designed to centralize anything. It's designed to encourage people individually and in their families to do the things we found so enjoyable. 

Q. In India, the greatest potential is in the infrastructure sector. Would you be looking at gas, power, steel, utilities in general for investment? You did say on Tuesday that you would look at making one big investment a year in India. 

A. I would like to make a big one, but it will have to be in a field that I understand. A company in which I have a good feeling about where it will be in 5/10 years, competitively. 

Q. From what we have read, gut instinct plays a large role in your investment decisions. Many investors like to kick the tiles, go to the shop floor to see if an investment makes sense. Are you that kind of an investor? 

A. No, I look at the people who run it. I would not know what to do if tomorrow morning you make me in charge of a plant (laughs). But I do know who should be in charge of it. 

Q. Your only investment in India so far is in Bangalore-based TaeguTec. Would you future investments here be in such specialist, high-end manufacturing companies? 

A. These kind of companies will do very well. But there are a whole group of companies that will do well in India. So, I will not limit my interest to something like this.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Lifes-about-planting-trees-for-others-Warren-Buffett/articleshow/7776690.cms

Batcha's driver fled with Rs 6 crore, wife tells cops

CHENNAI: Sadiq Batcha's driver had escaped with Rs 6 crore from his car last August, his widow Reha Banu told cops investigating the suicide of A Raja's aide on Wednesday, according to police sources. 

Police, questioning several people as part of the probe into the death of Batcha, quoted Reha Banu as saying that Batcha, who was found dead on March 16, was upset after his driver disappeared with the money but preferred not to file a police complaint. 

The investigation has revealed that Batcha spoke to a friend called Subbudu (Subramanian) 40 times on the day before he allegedly took his life. Subramanian is a partner in Sadiq Real Estate Agency based in Perambalur, Raja's hometown. 

A Mylapore police district officer said: "We have been instructed not to probe the 2G spectrum case. We have been told to only probe Batcha's suicide." 

Reha Banu appeared upset during the questioning, police said. They also quoted her as saying that the money he had dreamt of making claimed his life. "Driver Salim was very loyal initially and Batcha took him along on business trips. But when Batcha left his briefcase containing Rs 6 crore in his car and came home, Salim took it and never returned. I insisted that he file a police complaint but Batcha ignored it as the driver belonged to his hometown Lebbai Kudi Kadu near Perambalur," Reha Banu was quoted as saying by the police. 

Another police officer, assigned to look into Batcha's mobile call records, said, "Batcha spoke to his close friend Subramanian Subbudu at least 40 times on March 15, a day before his suicide. He even mentioned Subbudu in his suicide note, which was found in his room on March 16." 

Subramanian had also been questioned by the CBI in connection with the 2G spectrum scam case. "Subramanian and Batcha jointly started Sadiq Real Estate Agency on Elambalur Road in Perambalur. Batcha later moved to Chennai and started Green House Promoters and made Raja's wife and a few others directors of the company," the officer said.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Batchas-driver-fled-with-Rs-6-crore-wife-tells-cops/articleshow/7776622.cms

Enrolment in primary schools plunges 2.6 million in 2 years

MUMBAI: It is a lesson in misplaced enthusiasm. While the Centre has been busy tom-tomming its efforts to send more children to school, enrolment in primary classes across the country has, in actuality, dropped since 2007. Between 2008-09 and 2009-10, enrolment in classes I to IV in Indian schools dropped by over 2.6 million. 

The biggest setback was witnessed in Uttar Pradesh, where admissions plummeted by over a million in the last two years, according to the latest data released by the ministry of human resource development.

The slide in national figures began between 2007-08 and 2008-09 and became, ironically, steeper between 2008-09 and 2009-10, when the Centre cleared the Right to Education Act making education a fundamental right. 

After years of ignoring the worrying statistics, the central government has finally decided to wake up and take action. It recently pulled up state governments and demanded reasons for the decline in numbers. 

Most large Indian states, including Maharashtra, have seen student numbers come down in classes I to V, though Assam has been one of the biggest offenders. 

"This definitely cannot be just a demographic change. In fact, in Uttar Pradesh, enrolment has come down in just about seven to eight districts. The state government has been alerted and it is investigating what went wrong," said R Govinda, vice chancellor of the National University of Education Planning and Administration. Experts are at a loss to accurately explain the drop in enrolment in northern states, where birth rates have essentially remained the same. In some southern states, where population planners had predicted a slowdown in birth rate, primary school enrolments have unsurprisingly declined. 

In other states like Delhi, Tamil Nadu and in the northeast, the figures have begun to plateau. In Bihar, Rajasthan, Assam, the struggle stems from ground-level problems like data keeping, children moving out, introduction of new schools and rationalization of data, said Madhav Chavan, the founder of educational non-profit group Pratham.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Enrolment-in-primary-schools-plunges-26-million-in-2-years/articleshow/7749672.cms

Tax demand on Hasan Ali and associates pegged at Rs 71,845 crore

NEW DELHI: What exactly is the tax demand onHasan Ali Khan and his associates? For a while, a figure of Rs 40,000 crore has been doing the rounds, though some tax officials were questioning the veracity of this amount. However, the income-tax department is now learnt to have raised a demand of Rs 71,845 crore. 

This figure — which is larger than the country's health budget and its annual service tax collections — includes a demand of Rs 50,329 crore on Khan himself, Rs 49 crore on his wife, Rheema; Rs 591 crore on his alleged associate Kashi Nath Tapuriah and Rs 20,540 crore on his wife, Chandrika Tapuriah, revealed I-T department sources 

Of the total tax demand of Rs 71,845 crore, the I-T department has adjusted only Rs 60 lakh which was recovered from raids on Khan and the Tapuriahs. The appeal is now pending before theIncome Tax Appellate Tribunal. Even the Comptroller & Auditor General is learnt to be looking into the issue. 

Although investigations have been on since 2007, tax authorities were not really seen to be pushing the case till the Supreme Court turned up the heat. Interestingly, the Centre had filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court in 2009 itself stating that the I-T department had raised a demand of Rs 71,848.59 crore against Khan, his wife Rheema and other associates (reported by TOI in a front-page article, 'Pune man holds secret billions' on May 3, 2009). 

Government officials, however, said the recent demand was made following information collected by them from a pen drive and laptop recovered during raids on Hasan Ali and the Tapuriahs. They further said the scope of the probe has been widened to include at least six more countries, which may further push up the demand on Khan. The I-T department is investigating Khan's investment links in these countries. 

At nearly Rs 72,000 crore, the tax demand is nearly half the amount locked up in all tax disputes (direct and indirect), which were estimated at Rs 1.43 lakh crore at the end of March 2010 — not including the demand on Khan. 

The amount is more than what is being spent on food subsidy (Rs 60,000 crore), primary and secondary education (Rs 63,300 crore) or even the health ministry's budget (Rs 30,456 crore) in 2011-12. If the government manages to realize the amount from Khan and his associates, which officials admit is a remote possibility, it would be marginally higher than the Rs 69,400 crore that the government hopes to collect as service tax during the current financial year.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Tax-demand-on-Hasan-Ali-and-associates-pegged-at-Rs-71845-crore/articleshow/7667407.cms

IAF aircraft to join evacuation operations from Libya

NEW DELHI: As Libya swiftly descended into civil war, India decided to use an Il-76 transport aircraft of the IAF to ferry stranded citizens. From Thursday, the "Gajraj" aircraft will ferry people between Sirde in Libya and Cairo. 

A wide-bodied aircraft has also been requisitioned by Air India to ferry people out of Sebha, sources said. 

Sirde and Sebha are two towns with 2,000-strong concentrations of Indians each. 

Officials acknowledged that India had been slow to start evacuation, but was currently taking out about 1,000 people every day and promised to complete the process by next week. 

Even as China seemed on the verge of completing evacuation operations in Libya, having already pulled out over 32,000 of its nationals from the country, India only had a little over 6,000 evacuees to show for its efforts till Wednesday evening. The Chinese figure of 32,000 evacuees, mostly being doled out by official news agencies, however, seemed to have stirred a debate with foreign secretary Nirupama Rao herself saying that there was "no clarity'' over the number of Chinese evacuees. 

"Incidentally, no real clarity about nos. of Chinese evacuees so far,'' said Rao in a tweet on Wednesday evening. Earlier in the day, she tweeted, "India has chartered ships and aircraft. Please believe me when I say this. I will not comment on the Chinese statistics.'' 

Close to 12,000 Indians though are still stranded in the country, many of them in the interiors who are finding it increasingly difficult to reach Tripoli from where evacuation flights are operating. 

A ship, MV Scotia Prince, carrying 1,188 Indians docked in Alexandria on Wednesday night. After their papers are processed, they will travel back to India on EgyptAir flights. The ship will turn around to go back to Benghazi, reaching on March 5 to pick up another 1,100 Indians. 

A second ship may be put into service in a more sensitive part of Libya where some Indians are stuck. 

Officials said Indian companies were actually sending their managers back into Libya to help bring back their employees. This is very different from companies from other countries who are leaving their Asian employees behind. 

Three flights -- two Boeing 747s and one Airbus-330 -- brought back 1,045 Indians from Tripoli early Wednesday. Another three flights have left for Tripoli and are expected to ferry back 1,002 people. Three daily flights to Tripoli will continue over the coming days and these may be stepped up, said the foreign ministry. 

Separately, a chartered flight carrying 78 Indians from Sirde (Libya) reached Larnaca ( Cyprus) on Tuesday evening. These people will be booked on commercial flights to India. 

So far 126 Indians have left Libya in small numbers on their own, in coordination with Indian missions in and around Libya, the MEA said. As many as 267 Indians have, by now, crossed over to Salloum ( Egypt) by the land route and the Indian embassy in Cairo has already facilitated the return of some 180 of them in batches, to Mumbai by regular Gulf Air flights, it said. 

Also, close to 1,400 people persons have reached Djerba in Algeria, where the Indian embassy staff from Tunis have put them up in hotels. 

Read more: IAF aircraft to join evacuation operations from Libya - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/IAF-aircraft-to-join-evacuation-operations-from-Libya/articleshow/7613076.cms#ixzz1FVRo3IoH

Sachin and India: Tale of two majestic growth stories

The 1990s was a time of awakening for the Indian economy. It was a time of VCRs, Walkmans and Maruti-800s. It was an age when still cameras needed roll film, there was only one Bachchan, Air India was still making money and the gift-toting NRI uncle was treated as a VIP. It was also the era of Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

If Manmohan Singh broke the shackles of the nation's economy in 1991, the same happened on the cricket field through the bulky bat of a 5-foot-5 batsman with a squeaky voice and the most vicious on-drive ever. Tendulkar, with his middle-class upbringing in suburban Mumbai's Sahitya Sahawas, went where no man had gone before.

As our economy began its majestic rise, the nation saw hope in this genius from Indian cricket's capital. Finally, we had a player who went after the impossible. If Gavaskar was the man who staved off defeat, Tendulkar was the prodigy who always eyed victory... he was the competitor who gave the opposition a taste of their own medicine. Cowed down for years, it was time for India to hit back, whether in business or on the cricket pitch — and hit back we did, with aplomb.

In Sachin, Indians saw the aggression of Richards, the technique of Gavaskar, and the heart of Kapil. And when he entertained them, they forgot their troubles, rooting for the "little bundle of dynamite" who made 'blond bombers' look pedestrian. For Sachin, failure was not an option. Old women prayed for him, executives skipped office, and an entire generation dreamt of becoming cricketers. While the 'Little Champion' was at the crease, there was always hope.

Carrying a super-heavy bat, synonymous with the burden of the nation he bore, he had his days on the pitch and as had our roaring economy. If there was desert storm in Sharjah where he single-handedly destroyed the Australian attack), then there was also the sensex crossing the 10,000 mark. 'Sensexational' said one TOI headline, 'Batman Begins' said another. Our forex reserves went up at the same speed with which 'Tendlya' accumulated hundreds. "We lost to Sachin," Aussie captain Steve Waugh once said.

As India's software engineers began putting their stamp on global markets, a resurgent Team India, inspired by Sachin, started doing something they had rarely done before — winning abroad. Once that barrier was breached, there was no looking back.

Of course, it's not just his batting talent that has always been revered (or the fact that he turns the ball more than any Indian spinner)...but also the humility that this magician brings to the turf. This is the same person who sits atop a mountain of advertizing cash. Remember the commercial where every kid wears a Sachin mask, or the one where the soundtrack screams 'Sachin aala re', echoing the thoughts of millions of Indians. Even now, he seems omnipresent.

Through the years, as India's economy gained momentum, the economy of the Tendulkar household didn't do too badly either. Sachin's pathbreaking multi-crore deal with WorldTel made him cricket's first millionaire. Not that he let it affect his game. He stayed in the zone, the monk with the Ferrari.

Now, 20 years after the reforms that transformed our sleeping economy into a crouching tiger, and ages after an enthusiastic boy convinced his skipper to let him open the innings, we are one of the two fastest growing big economies in the world, while that teen with the squeaky voice has become a legend. Still, when he goes out to bat, India holds its breath.

Batting for posterity

• Sachin has scored highest aggregate runs and maximum 100s and 50s in both Tests and ODIs game. He also holds the record of most 90s in ODI, getting out 18 times in the 90s

• Has hit 1,943 ODI and 1,892 Test fours, which is the highest for any batsman

• Played 177 Tests and 446 ODIs, the highest by any player

• His 21-year, 71-day career is the longest among current players as well as cricketers who have played more than 100 Tests

• Is the only player to score more than 1000 Test runs six times and 1000 ODI runs seven times in a calendar year

• In the 2002-03 ICC World Cup, he scored 673 runs, the highest for any player

• In 1998, he scored 1,894 runs in ODIs, the highest number of runs scored by any batsman in a calendar year

• Has scored 9 hundreds against Australia, the highest against any team by a single batsman

• Has scored 1,778 runs in the 42 innings he has played at the Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium in UAE, his highest on any ground

• Has faced 778 different bowlers, of whom 528 have failed to get him out even once

• Of the 250 bowlers who managed to get him out, Brett Lee has been the most successful, scalping him 14 times

• Sachin has scored 600 runs off Muralitharan, his highest off any bowler

• Has faced 47,788 balls in international cricket. This is equal to 7,965 overs

• In his over 21-year career, he has spent 1,145 hours on t

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