Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Berlusconi to do community service

15042014

Berlusconi to do community service for tax fraud conviction

An Italian court ruled that former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi should serve a one-year sentence for tax fraud by doing community service, Media reports  a legal source as saying on Tuesday. It was not immediately clear what kind of community service he has been ordered to do. The Milan court also set travel restrictions on the former prime minister. Berlusconi’s lawyers described the ruling as satisfactory given his political activity needs.


 

Afghan deputy minister kidnapped in Kabul

15042014

A senior Afghan government official was kidnapped along with his driver on his way to work in Kabul on Tuesday, according to an Interior Ministry official. Ahmad Shah Waheed, deputy minister for public works, was taken by gunmen at around 7am (02:30 GMT) from the Khairkhana neighborhood of the capital, AFP reported. Kabul police spokesman Hashmatullah Stanikzai confirmed the incident, adding that Afghan police forces have launched a search to secure his release. Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for Taliban militants, said they had no knowledge of Waheed’s kidnapping.


 

Robotic submarine stops hunting

15042014

Robotic submarine stops hunting for missing Malaysian jet in deep area

A robotic submarine hunting for the missing Malaysian jet aborted its first mission after only six hours, AP reported. It surfaced with no new clues when it exceeded its maximum depth along the floor of the Indian Ocean, officials said on Tuesday. Search crews sent the US Navy’s Bluefin 21 into the depths on Monday to begin scouring the seabed for the missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777. The previous six-day search failed to detect any new signals thought to coming from its black boxes. The 16-hour mission was cut short when the unmanned sub entered a patch that was deeper than its maximum depth of 4,500 meters.


 

Latvia suspends broadcasting of Russia’s Rossiya RTR TV

15042014

Latvia has suspended broadcasting Russia’s Rossiya RTR television channel for three months, the BBC said. An “administration process” was reportedly launched against the First Baltic Channel, and Rossiya 24 TV channel was labeled as “creating problems” over their coverage of the events in Ukraine. Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian public broadcasters are considering a plan to set up a new Russian-language TV channel. Chairman of the Russian Presidential Human Rights Council Mikhail Fedotov had said the ban on Russian TV channels in Latvia and Lithuania would violate the rights of television audience.


 

Rajnath Singh: BJP Karyakartas in Chandauli met me on the highway

15042014
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    BJP Karyakartas in Chandauli met me on the highway and requested me to visit the local election office. 
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India and the World – an Update

15042014
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The emergence of India as a strong economic power is receiving widespread recognition in the region and beyond. Today, it has expanded its footprints and engagement in multiple fields across all continents. Accordingly, India’s foreign policy and international conducts should reflect upon its new global stature. In this backdrop, Ananta Aspen Centre is pleased to launch a new initiative — a bi-weekly digest of all the major news related to India’s Foreign Policy. Our sincere effort is to keep you informed and updated on all the major international developments that have implications on India’s foreign policy. Hope you will benefit from the initiative. We value your feedback, comments and recommendations.   

India and the World – an Update

A bi-weekly News Digest on India’s Foreign Policy
(Volume – 7)
April 1st – April 14th, 2014
Neighbourhood
South Asia
Pakistan
To re-engage with India as soon as new govt is formed: Pak FM 
PTI / Zee News | April 9th, 2014″The non-discriminatory market access (NDMA) is a new term we have coined for mutual expansion of the trade. We wish to minimise the negative list of both the countries,” Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said.

Afghanistan
Wary Afghanistan goes to polls today under shadow of Taliban threat 
Times of India | April 5th, 2014
A joint task force report by two Indian think tanks, Ananta-Aspen Centre and Delhi Policy Group, which was released by PM’s special envoy on Af-Pak S K Lambah on Friday to coincide with the elections, makes a strong case for India to equip Afghans militarily.
India hopes new Afghan administration will be inclusive 
Live Mint | April 5th, 2014
Speaking after the launch of a report titled Afghanistan Task Force Report: What India Can Doby two Delhi-based think-tanks, the Ananta Aspen Centre and the Delhi Policy Group, Satinder K. Lambah, the Prime Minister’s special envoy on Afghanistan, also called on the international community to “remain committed” to supporting the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), which is playing the central role in tackling the resurgent Taliban insurgency in the country.
India has no exit strategy in Afghanistan: Foreign Secretary 
PTI / Business Standard | April 9th, 2014
Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh said India would like to see a strong and stable Afghanistan and exhuded confidence that the country will manage its transition in 2014 and beyond.
PM congratulates Hamid Karzai for successful conduct of polls 
PTI / Zee News | April 7th, 2014
The polls in Afghanistan will end 13 years of rule by Karzai, who has held power since 2001. Preliminary election results are expected on April 24.

Bangladesh
Likely govt change in India unlikely to hit ties with Bangladesh 
PTI / Business Standard | April 7th, 2014
The Indian High Commissioner said as long as the fundamental principles of relations stayed, India’s Bangladesh policy would continue to remain unchanged as it would be led by same interests.
Sri Lanka
Govt: Decision on Lanka was political 
Asian Age | April 5th, 2014
Speaking to a news agency, foreign secretary Sujatha Singh said: “Any decision relating to foreign policy is a political decision, is it not? And no official will take a decision without taking a political sign off.”

Bhutan
Bhutan to hire Indian students for hydel project
PTI / The Economic Times | April 10th, 2014
Bhutan’s Minister for commerce and foreign affairs Liyonopo Narbo Wangchuk, who is currently leading a Bhutanese delegation here, said Bhutan has tremendous hydro power potential and wants to harness the Indian expertise in the field to tap it to the maximum.

Asia Pacific
China
India, China to hold strategic dialogue on April 14
PTI / Zee News | April 9th, 2014
China is in touch with India to explore way forward in Afghanistan to deal with the war-ravaged country after the draw-dawn of the US-led NATO troops by the end of this year.
India, China to discuss border pinpricks 
DNA | April 12th, 2014
After the two countries signed the Border Defence Cooperation Agreement (BDCA), they had agreed to have a hotline between their DGMO-rank officers to resolve issues cropping up on the LAC during face-offs between the soldiers of the two sides, defence sources said.
Foreign secretary Sujatha Singh to test Beijing waters before new government checks in 
The Economic Times | April 14th, 2014
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said last week that the two sides will have deep exchanges on bilateral ties, high-level exchanges, and practical cooperation, international and regional issues of mutual concern.

The United States
US faces trade barriers from India, China in telecom 
PTI / India TV News | April 5th, 2014
The report among other things mentions ongoing restrictions on the provision of voice-over the Internet (VOIP) services in China and India. It expresses concerns about undue restrictions on the ability of US satellite service suppliers to provide satellite transmission capacity to customers in both China and India.
Time to get past tensions and move on: US on ties with India 
PTI / NDTV | April 5th, 2014
“We have said we want to get past some of the tensions that have been there over the past several months and move on,” State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf told reporters.
Space Cooperation: A Vital New Front for India-U.S. Relations 
Space News | April 7th, 2014
India’s Megha-Tropiques, a satellite mission to study the water cycle in the tropical region in the context of climate change, will now form part of the Global Precipitation Measurement mission being led by the U.S. and Japan.
India refuses to consider Khobragade episode as closed 
The Hindu | April 7th, 2014
Though the first indictment against her was rejected by a U.S. court, prosecutors last month re-indicted her on visa fraud charges and accused her of “illegally” underpaying and “exploiting” her domestic maid.
US lawmakers look forward to new government in India after general elections 
PTI / The Economic Times | April 8th, 2014
Congressman Eliot Engel said he is pleased by the transformation that has occurred in the US-India relationship over the past couple of decades and noted that this transformation could not have happened without the strong leadership of both major political parties in India and the United States.
Americans facing competition from India, China: Obama 
PTI / The Hindu | April 8th, 2014
“Young people in India and China, they’re all interested in trying to figure out how they get a foothold in this world economy,” Mr. Obama said while addressing students in Maryland.  

Europe
Russia
India, Russia sign Rs 2,600 crore deal for anti-tank ammunition
PTI / DNA | March 31st, 2014
The two sides signed the deal on March 27 for the supply of anti-tank shells to the Army and agreement in this regard was inked by Defence Ministry officials from India and Rosoboronexport officials from the Russia side, the Defence Ministry said in New Delhi.

Middle East
3 Israel diplomats sent home
Asian Age | April 9th, 2014
According to reports, one of the three diplomats had even slapped the immigration official while the other too also roughed him up. All three were headed for work to Kathmandu, Nepal.

Miscellaneous
FS engages envoys in ‘interactive sessions’ 
The Asian Age | April 7th, 2014
These sessions have evoked a huge response amongst the diplomatic corps with large numbers — some 80 to 100 — including high commissioners and ambassadors turning up to brainstorm with the FS on issues that might be of concern or interest.
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WEC India Energy Portal

15042014

WEC India Energy Portal 

One Stop Energy Resource Center
Energy Portal

The menu for Global Scenarios has been enabled.  Comparison of Scenarios of IEA, EIA and WEC is presented for Primary Energy Consumption, Electricity Generation and Co2 Emissions.

  1. Google buys solar-powered drone maker Titan Aerospace
    Acquisition of solar-powered drone maker to help boost Internet access in remote areas
  2. Growth goes beyond a strong coalition
    Weakest coalition since 1989, the United Front govt from 1996-98 delivered faster GDP growth than much stronger govts
  3. Ajai Shukla: Come out of the nuclear closet
    While the ‘no first use’ pledge must quickly be scrapped, the ill-conceived commitment to ‘massive retaliation’ is even more damaging to our nuclear credibility
  4. Rays Power commissions 14 solar power projects in FY’14
    Rays Power is now starting two new parks in Rajasthan for 100 MW of capacity and its solar power capacity is now 85 MW with 56 projects.
  5. Climate change: UN panel’s latest tocsin
    Planned action just not enough, it pleads; new target cuts in emissions and deal to allocate these needed by 2015
  6. Punjab State Power Corporation petitions APTEL about CERC’s compensatory tariff order
    Punjab State Power Corp has petitioned APTEL challenging CERC’s order about compensatory tariff to two Mundra projects of Tata Power and Adani Power.
  7. Parakh set to reignite coal fire
    Former coal secretary Prakash Chandra Parakh is gearing up to put up a strong fight against the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s allegations of criminal conspiracy in the coal block allocation scam, with the launch of his book, Crusaders or …
  8. Finance ministry steps in to rescue Dabhol power project
    The project, which was built by Enron Corp, has been in trouble since last year, when dwindling gas supply from Reliance Industries’ KG-D6 block forced it to shut down.
  9. Govt receives 36 applications for three coal mines
    Applicants include JSPL and Tata Steel
  10. Solar energy sector sees $7 billion corporate funding in first quarter of 2014
    Besides the number of merger and acquisition deals in the solar sector jumped to 38 in the 2014 first quarter compared to 25 transactions seen in the year-ago period.
  11. NTPC pays dues, ends conflict with Coal India
    NTPC has settled the dues of two Coal India subsidiaries, bringing to a close a protracted tussle over quality of fuel the state-run miner was providing.
  12. Suzlon Energy sells 240 mw Illinois-based wind farm to EverPower
    Suzlon did not disclose the consideration for the sale of the wind farm. The sale may have happened at 50% discount to the original price.
  13. Boiler light-up achieved for fourth unit of Reliance Power’s Sasan UMPP
    Boiler lightup achieved for fourth 660 mw unit of Reliance Power’s 3,960 mw Sasan Ultra Mega Power Plant.
  14. GVK coal mine gets conditional clearance from Australia court
    GVK’s Alpha Coal Mine is located in the Galilee Basin, Australia with the first coal expected to be extracted by 2016
  15. Coal India signs 160 fuel supply deals with power plants
    The company is likely to sign more fuel supply agreements
  16. BLP aims at 1GW power generation capacity in 5 years
    The firm is raising capital and building power plants across the country to augment capacity, says founder Tejpreet Singh Chopra
  17. Adani Power commissions 4th unit of Tiroda power plant in Gujarat
    With that, Adani Power has overtaken Tata Power in total installed power generation capacity
  18. India to award 1 gigawatt solar permits by 2015, boosting plan
    The planned new capacity is about 30% more than originally targeted and is about half of what has been built so far
  19. A clarification on why CERC’s compensation to Tata, Adani for high coal prices sets dangerous precedents
    This is with reference to inaccuracies in “Why CERC’s compensation to Tata, Adani for high coal prices sets dangerous precedents and dents competition’” published in ET Magazine, dated March 2, 2014.
For more information Contact – WEC India Secretariat, C/o NTPC Limited, 7th Floor, Core-6, SCOPE Complex, New Delhi-110 003, India 
Email: info@wecindia.in, Phone: 011-2436 3719, Fax: 011-2436 9530, Website: http://www.wecindia.in
 

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Special Invitation for LED Lighting Workshop at Jaipur on 30th May 2014

15042014

Sub:Special Invitation for LED Lighting Workshop at Jaipur 
on 30th May 2014

Dear Sir/Madam
Greetings!!!
We are please to inform you that ELCOMA, an apex body of Lighting Manufacturers in India, in consultation with bureau of energy efficiency (BEE) and Ministry of Power we are organizing LED Lighting workshops in all state capitals to aware municipalities about street lighting, LED Standards, and architects to indoor and industrial lighting. You being an important stakeholder in adopting the national program on energy efficient lighting and play an important role in energy conservation and renewable energy are cordially invited to attend the workshop and also depute other officials in your organization.
Please note there is no fee for the workshop. Just fill the registration form and send us back for confirmation. Due to restricted seating, the registration will be done on priority basis.
During the workshop, you will listen to presentations from global experts on new developments in technology and applications in LED and Off-grid lighting. There will be special focus on LED Street Lighting, tools to understand on planning for street Lighting, pay-back period, various government support and schemes  and other LED products like down lights for retails outlets and retrofit LED Bulb for domestic use.
Special arrangement has been made to give ”on the spot” training on use of special street light tool for designing street light on road, prepared by DOE, USA which will be undertaken by CLASP. If you are interested in attending this program can also mention in the registration form so that necessary arrangements can be made.
We shall appreciate an early response and confirmation on list of delegates from your organization.You may write to us for any query or details or Visit our website www.elcomaindia.com
A confirmation will be highly appreciated. Looking forward to meeting you also at the workshop.


SHYAM SUJAN
Secretary General

Encl: Copy of Registration form

ELCOMA
202, DLF TOWER-A, JASOLA VIHAR
NEW DELHI-25
TEL: 011 41556644, 46604947

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