'Dosar' goes to Cannes Monday, April 30, 2007 | AY
Bengali filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh's two-year-old movie 'Dosar', a chronicle of a crumbling marriage, has been selected for the 60th Cannes Film Festival in the Les Cinema Du Monde section. 'Dosar', which stars the talented Konkona Sen Sharma and superstar of Bengali films Prosenjit Chatterjee, will be screened at Cannes on May 20. Devoted to filtering the best of world cinema, Les Cinema Du Monde (All the cinema of the world) brings auteur cinema from the world under one umbrella.
Slow death from arsenic poisoning Sunday, April 29, 2007 | AY
Scientists fighting to save 30 million people in West Bengal from death and crippling diseases caused by arsenic in their drinking water have discovered that arsenic is so addictive that millions who regularly drink the toxic water find it more palatable than rainwater. For nearly 15 years, Chakraborty's team has been fighting the insidious, subterranean threat posed by arsenic — in quantities around 30 times higher than is regarded as safe by the World Health Organisation — in the drinking water in eight districts. Poisoned by the wells they dig to provide fresh water, millions in the eastern state are slowly dying. Arsenic in the form of insoluble salts occurs naturally in the bedrock that underlies most of West Bengal's 88,000 square kilometres. Under normal conditions, the ground water stays relatively free of arsenic. A small regular intake gradually builds up in the body until it reaches poisonous levels. The victims are easily recognisable; they have inflamed eyes, skin lesions, gangrene and skin growths.
Auto-emission control process lauded Saturday, April 28, 2007 | AY
The BSF’s South Bengal Frontier has carried out a novel experiment in which one of its cars was treated by a bio-technological process. The car (no. DL 9-CC 1679) was subjected to this process to improve its performance in terms of better mileage, pick-up and lower pollution levels. The process was carried out by SMG-HAI which is a Kolkata-based solution provider on Environment Management Service in association with the Chennai-based Lalan Chemical. The entire process consisted of a three-pronged strategy involving first descaling the radiator and then treating it with an antiscaling agent, followed up by decarbonisation of engine exhaust and then eventually introducing an improved engine oil in the engine chamber. This engine oil, claimed the solution provider, will form a multi-layered bio-coating on the metallic surface inside the engine chamber.
Hindustan Copper to use bacteria for extraction Thursday, April 26, 2007 | AY
Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL), the sole domestic integrated copper producer, will now use a cluster of bacteria to improve recovery of copper from low grade ore available with it. This will be through use of a technology developed for HCL by Institute of Minerals & Materials Technology (IIMT), formerly the Regional Research Laboratory (RRL) under CSIR. The technology of using bacteria for extraction of metal is known as bio-leaching. It involves ‘inoculating’ a heap of low grade ore with a group of bacteria like Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidants, Acidithiobacillus thiooxidants and Leptospirillum ferrooxidants to yield leach liquor. This is subsequently processed through solvent extraction and electrolysis to get 99.98% pure copper, the extraction of which from low grade copper ore available at Indian mines would have been prohibitively expensive.
Hartford pays Rs 90cr for Metalogic software Wednesday, April 25, 2007 | AY
In a deal valued at about $20 million (Rs 90 crore), US-based Fortune 100 company, the $27-billion Hartford Financial Services Group, has acquired exclusive rights to market Kolkata-based Metalogic Systems’ proprietary software Meta-Insure in the US. The deal with Hartford for Meta-Insure is for five years and includes payments for selling rights, maintenance rights, royalty for the software as well as usage by third parties. The deal terms include implementation of projects by Metalogic. The projects, however, will be executed by Trumbull Services LLC — a Hartford group company. Meta-Insure is an proprietary insurance software tool that enables generation of customised software applications for property and casualty insurance in the US. It refers to property insurance, liability insurance and reinsurance. The software enables tracking of issued policies or managing it, paying an agent’s commission or paying up the insured. It can take care of aspects like policy administration, premium cycle, claims management and reinsurance.
Human ‘bones factory’ in W.Bengal Tuesday, April 24, 2007 | AY
Police discovered a human “bones factory” in West Bengal yesterday and arrested six people for illegally trading in skeletons. The arrested men told police the bones were sold to medical students and used in traditional medicine. Investigators found dozens of skeletons – treated with chemicals – laid out to dry in the sun when they reached a river bank in Keshia, 200km north of Kolkata. The accused would take largely unburnt bodies from Hindu cremation sites as well as from rivers where the dead are often disposed by the poor who cannot afford to cremate them. The men were also suspected to have dug up Muslim graves to get bones which could fetch them thousands of rupees in the black market. Trade in human bones and skeletons is banned in India and medical students are asked to study bone structure with skeletons made of fibre or plastic.
NRI doctor protests patient's death Monday, April 23, 2007 | AY
US-based doctor has lodged a complaint with the West Bengal Human Rights Commission (WBHRC) against a private hospital in Kolkata after a patient died because the management allegedly stopped medication due to non-payment of dues. Patrick Trackson, 57, died on Saturday at the Mission of Mercy Hospital. He had been admitted three days earlier on April 18 with diabetes, abdominal problem and cardiac ailments. His medical bill had reportedly exceeded Rs.24,000, which was far higher than the hospital's permissible limit of Rs.5,000. The People for Better Treatment (PBT), India's largest patients' body fighting for medical rights spearheaded by Ohio-based NRI Kunal Saha, has sent a memorandum to both the office of the West Bengal Health Minister Surya Kanta Mishra and the WBHRC Chairperson Shyamal Sen condemning the action of the hospital authority. The PBT memorandum said: "Chapters 1 and 2 of the MCI Act (Code of Medical Ethics) also mandate that no hospital or doctor can refuse treatment of a patient in urgent need of medical therapy."
AIFF may run Bagan-SAIL soccer academy Sunday, April 22, 2007 | AY
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) may come forward to run the four-year-old Mohun Bagan-SAIL Football Academy in Durgapur. The academy, at present, is sponsored by Sambad Pratidin, a Bengali daily owned by Mohun Bagan president Swapan Sadhan Basu. The AIFF has asked MB to submit the annual reports, audit reports and other related papers so that it can have a clear picture about the club. The AFC also has asked the AIFF to consider the matter. The academy was inaugurated on July 29, 2003. SAIL does not contribute financially, but provides the necessary infrastructure. It depends heavily on Rs 50 lakh that Mohun Bagan president spends per year to run it.
WIP Labs First Indian Centre in Kolkata Saturday, April 21, 2007 | AY
Platform (WIP) Labs is going to set up its first Indian centre in Kolkata. The West Bengal government’s department of information technology (IT) is set to sign a joint-venture MoU with WIP Labs. The company will invest Rs 200 crore over a two-year period on the centre. Taking the initiative, WIP Labs has acquired 20-acres land in New Town, Rajarhat. The company holds 15 patents and plans to give shape to five 'concepts' that are on the drawing boards. It will build solutions for new communication platforms such as 3G, 4G, Wi-Fi and WiMax. The first product will be launched in 2008-09. Besides product development, WIP Labs will provide consultancy services to the cellular companies.
COTTI plans integrated textile park near Kolkata Thursday, April 19, 2007 | AY
The Chamber of Textile Trade and Industry (COTTI) has plans to establish an integrated textile park near Kolkata at an outlay of Rs 500-600 crore. The proposed park would facilitate the promotion of the manufacture and export of textiles, apparel and ancillaries. The West Bengal government will assist us in locating anything between 100-300 acres for the project around Kolkata, preferably within a radius of 30 km. As per the requirements of the SITP (Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks), a special purpose vehicle (SPV) in the name of Bengal Integrated Textile Park Ltd has been formed to proceed with the project.
Rapid access chest pain clinic Wednesday, April 18, 2007 | AY
Concerned over the lack of public awareness about heart diseases, some leading cardiologists have joined hands in setting up eastern India's first Rapid Access Chest Pain Clinic for immediate diagnosis. Being set up as part of a 'Healthy Heart Initiative' by cardiologists, it would be manned by specialist doctors round-the-clock for immediate diagnosis of chest pain. Initially, the clinics will be at Appollo Gleneagles, B M Birla Heart Research Institute and the Rabindranath Tagore International Institute of Cardiac Sciences. Pointing out that the highest number of deaths would be due to heart diseases by 2015, he said that as part of its action plan to guard against cardiac diseases, 'Healthy Heart Initiative' would begin a month-long mass awareness programme and health camps in the districts and later in states neighbouring West Bengal.
Siliguri to get Rs 200 crore city centre Tuesday, April 17, 2007 | AY
After Kolkata, it is Siliguri's turn to receive a mall-multiplex-hotel-entertainment zone. Bengal Ambuja is investing Rs 200 crore to build a mall-hotel in Siliguri, in the name of City Centre, on the model of its namesake Rajarhat in Kolkata. Like Rajarhat's City Centre II, Siliguri's mall hotel would house 4-levels of mall, one level of multiplex, hotel and banquets, and 2 levels of hotels. It would also have a business centre of 3 lakh sq. ft for corporate offices. Siliguri's City Centre, however, is expected to be 1.5 to 2 times bigger than City Centre II in Rajarhat with the latter being built on 5 acre with an investment of Rs 150 crore.
Automatic underground parking system Monday, April 16, 2007 | AY
The parkomat—a completely automatic underground parking plaza adjacent to the New Market—will be inaugurated on April 20. The project is a public-private partnership (PPP) between the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and Simplex Project Ltd, and its profits would be divided in the ratio of 5:95. The parkomat has four entrance points attached to escalators that would automatically carry the cars to an underground parking lot. Drivers would not be allowed inside the parking premises. Instead, they will be handed smart cards as identity cards. The in-built computer system at parkomat would detect the parking space for each car and then place it in the right spot. The moment a driver shows his smart card, the highly advanced technology used at the parkomat would automatically detect his car. The escalator will then bring the car out of the underground space.
Hi-tech lab to test viral diseases Sunday, April 15, 2007 | AY
The state health department will set up a state-of-the-art Bio-Safety III laboratory to carry out confirmation tests of such critical viral diseases as avian influenza or chikungunya. The laboratory is proposed to be set up at the School of Tropical Medicine, Kolkata. Though the primary tests of these diseases are done at the Indian Council of Medical Research’s city-based virus unit or School of Tropical Medicine, for confirmation tests, the state has to depend on the National Institute of Virology, Pune or the hi-tech laboratory in Bhopal. State health department officials said if the laboratory comes up in the state, confirmation tests can be carried out here to save valuable time.
Religious package on cruise liner Saturday, April 14, 2007 | AY
A large group of Jain devotees from Kolkata and other parts of the country will hold a religious meet onboard a luxury cruise ship this year. TravelCorp, a Kolkata-based tour operator will be organising this unique event. A group of around 500 devotees will be flown to Singapore from where they will set sail for a week-long religious meeting along the South China Sea onboard a cruise liner. During the course of the journey the devotees will listen to lectures delivered by religious leaders, attend prayer meetings, satsang and religious discourses. A yagna has also been planned onboard.
Bengal sanctions technical study for BRTS Thursday, April 12, 2007 | AY
West Bengal will be the first State in the country to have the Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS). Close on the heels of Bengal are Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Bhopal who are planning to float tenders for having BRTS in the capital cities. The State government has asked a reputed Canadian firm, McCormick Rankin International, having expertise in running BRTS in Canada to carry out a technical study for operating the BRTS on the 85-km stretch of the East-West Corridor. Passing through some parts of the city, the BRTS would connect Basirhat in North 24 Parganas with Santragachi in Howrah. After the State government showed interest to carry out the technical study for BRTS in the city, the Canadian government got in touch with the State transport department and offered grant for the study. Travelling at a speed of 130 km/hr with an aerodynamic body, each bus would carry 62 passengers. And the bus service would be every 10 minutes. It is estimated that Rs 6,000 crore would be spent for this project, but that is not a problem for the State government as Srei Capital has already come forward with lease loan.
Intel Corp plans training centre in West Bengal Wednesday, April 11, 2007 | AY
Intel Corp plans to set up very large-scale integration (VLSI) training and methodology developing centre in association with the state’s engineering colleges for the growth of semiconductor industry in the country. World’s largest $35-billion semiconductor company—, Intel Corp—has for the first time, planned to have a stake in the chip designing area in the state’s engineering and technology institutes. After National Semiconductor chose to develop various aspects of chip design and prototype development, and electronic design automation two-three years back, companies like Cadence and Synopsis started supplying design tools to the labs of IIT-K and BE College.
Siemens to turn Kolkata into a global IT hub Tuesday, April 10, 2007 | AY
Siemens India — the Rs 9000-crore Indian arm of technology conglomerate Siemens AG — has decided to make Kolkata one of its principal information technology hubs and increase the headcount of IT staff here by a few thousand over the next three to four years. It being the lifeline of the flagship Siemens Ltd and its subsidiaries like Siemens Information Systems Ltd, the company has decided to make use of its Kolkata infrastructure. This way, it will also cash in on its business experience in the city as well as on Kolkata’s IT talent. Siemens and its subsidiaries plan to increase their employees in Kolkata from the current around 1000 to 10,000 in the next three to four years.
Pranab Mukherjee in Army hospital Monday, April 9, 2007 | AY
The police in West Bengal have initiated an inquiry into last night's road accident at Nakashipara in Nadia district that left External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee seriously injured. The State's Intelligence Branch (Special Security) Director A K Maliwal told PTI on the phone from Delhi that a special team had also rushed to the site to probe the accident. The probe by the State Police, particularly by the IB, was important since the Congress has alleged there were lapses in Mukherjee's security and demanded an inquiry to find out how a truck could hit the minister's car. The accident could have been fatal had Mukherjee not travelled in a bulletproof car, the Congress said. Mukherjee, who was returning to Kolkata from Murshidabad district, was today flown to New Delhi by a special aircraft for treatment.
Urdu not yet the official language in Kolkata Saturday, April 7, 2007 | AY
While Urdu is in the process of becoming an official language in Asansol, Islampur and South 24-Parganas, the situation is a little different in Kolkata. The Anjuman Taraqqi-e-Urdu Hind claimed that way back in the early 1980s, a similar government order had been issued and Kolkata was included in the order. While the order was never considered seriously for implementation, a similar order was re-issued last February. The exclusion of Kolkata, which is believed to have almost half of the state’s Urdu-speaking population, has come as a shock to the campaigners.
Babul Supriyo in a Bengali film Thursday, April 5, 2007 | AY
Singer Babul Supriyo has joined the ranks of singer actors, by agreeing to play the lead in Tarun Majumdar's next directorial venture, a Bangla film titled Chandrer Bari. Rituparna Sen Gupta will play the female lead and the shooting for the film will start from 22 April 2007 in Kolkata. Supriyo, who started his career singing cover versions of popular Kishore Kumar songs for T-Series in 1992, got his first break in Prem Rog (Zindagi chaar din ki..) in 1994.
West Bengal planning its first mega chip centre Wednesday, April 4, 2007 | AY
The West Bengal government will soon invite tenders for constructing a 14-storey building, using the public-private route, to set up a chip and tool design centre with a prototype fabrication facility under one roof. The state Cabinet has already cleared the proposal for setting up of a semiconductor building at the Salt Lake Electronics Complex. The state has already asked for Rs 400 crore assistance from the department of science and technology, government of India, for its planned India Design Centre which is to be developed over a three lakh sq ft area within a year’s time. There is no unit in India now which fabricates chip prototypes except the public sector unit, Semiconductor Complex Ltd (SCL), in Chandigarh. The company develops tools for chip-designing companies.
Kolkata has more jobs than Delhi, Chennai Tuesday, April 3, 2007 | AY
According to the latest report of the National Sample Survey Organisation, the employment situation outshining that of Delhi, Chennai and Pune. The study covered Class 1 cities (those with a population of 10 lakh and above), Class 2 and Class 3 towns — the former with a population over 50,000 and the latter, less. According to the report for 2004-05, the employment status for males in Kolkata is 751 per thousand, while the number of females employed is 190 per thousand. The employment status for males in Delhi is 714 per thousand and female employment is 112 per thousand. The figure for Chennai is 749 for male and 168 for female per thousand.
Kolkata has more jobs than Delhi, Chennai Tuesday, April 3, 2007 | AY
According to the latest report of the National Sample Survey Organisation, the employment situation outshining that of Delhi, Chennai and Pune. The study covered Class 1 cities (those with a population of 10 lakh and above), Class 2 and Class 3 towns — the former with a population over 50,000 and the latter, less. According to the report for 2004-05, the employment status for males in Kolkata is 751 per thousand, while the number of females employed is 190 per thousand. The employment status for males in Delhi is 714 per thousand and female employment is 112 per thousand. The figure for Chennai is 749 for male and 168 for female per thousand.
IIM placements to cost more now Monday, April 2, 2007 | AY
In a decision taken by IIM-Kolkata’s Board of Governors, firms that recruit management grads from the campus will have to shell out more money to hire the creamiest lot. Top-notch companies that queue up at the campuses, used to pay Rs 30,000 as the participation fee and Rs 40,000-50,000 per student on recruitment. Now, they will have to pay even higher. IIM-Kolkata increased its annual fees this year from Rs 1.75 lakh to Rs 2 lakh per annum for the Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management programme. The institute intends to use funds to develop infrastructure and the quality of education. The institute claims that it spends around Rs 4 lakh per annum on each student, even after subsidizing the education. To cope with this expenditure, the institute has decided to pass on some of the financial burden on recruiting companies.
Bengal to soon have an advanced VLSI facility Sunday, April 1, 2007 | AY
Bengal will soon have an advanced IT Park specially dedicated for VLSI and chip related design firms. The state is also taking steps to spread the IT revolution beyond Kolkata to Kharagpur, Durgapur and Siliguri. IT Department is also finalising the formalities for selecting a private partner for the proposed ‘India Design Centre’ facility coming up at the Electronics Complex in Salt Lake. The Design Centre has been specially designed for semi-conductor companies. Besides, Kolkata will soon have the country’s first research centre for fourth generation network technology. To be set up by a Danish outfit, the Centre will conduct high-research on wireless technology.
