source:The Economist

Outstanding Fiscal Liabilities Trend In Sikkim

Source: Haalkhabar

Gangtok, March 31: Overall fiscal liabilities of the State of Sikkim is increased by Rs 470.86 crore (21.80 per cent) from Rs 2,155.81 crore in 2008-09 to Rs 2,625.87 crore in 2009-10. As per the report of Comptroller Auditor General (CAG) of India The increase in fiscal liabilities was mainly due to increase in Internal debt (Rs 324.31 crore) and Public Accounts liabilities (Rs 164.34 crore), which was partially offset by a decrease in loans and advances form Government of India (Rs 18.48 crore). The ratio of these liabilities to Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) increased from 83 per cent in 2008-09 to 89per cent in 2009-10.

Houseboats,Amsterdam

Downtown Los Angeles, California

Data source: Economic Times * Data till October 31, 2011

A mantra worth marketing?

SANGEETA BAROOAH PISHAROTY

Source:The Hindu  

Ayurvedic medicines being prepared at a facility in Chennai. Photo: Bijoy Ghosh

 

A first-ever status report on Indian medicine and folk healing suggests a high-level commission to globalise Ayurveda

It is common knowledge that Ayurveda has been in practice in India for the last 3000 years. Yet, the popular mode of diagnosis in this country is generally allopathic. However, with growing awareness about the benefits of alternative medicine and possible side effects of allopathic drugs in more and more people, one sees a renewed interest in our traditional methods of treatment and healing. It is then at an opportune time that the Government has commissioned a first-ever status report on Indian medicine and folk healing. The report, funded by the Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy (AYUSH) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, has recently been submitted to the Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, strongly suggesting the establishment of a high-level commission to propagate and globalise Ayurveda. The report, over 300 pages long gives the example of China suggesting our Government “study and document” how China has succeeded in doing so with their traditional medicine.

To drive home the point, the report compiler, Shailaja Chandra, former Secretary, Department of AYUSH, and former Chief Secretary of Delhi Government, has called for “establishing a high-level Commission like the L.M. Singhvi Commission, which addressed issues related to NRI/PIOs.” The mandate should be to follow a promotional plan for our traditional medicines akin to that of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), charted out by China since 1972, primarily for Acupuncture and herbal medicine.

“The website of the U.S. National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) indicate that TCM is widely used in the United States. According to the 2007 National Health Interview Survey, which included questions on the use of various Complementary and Alternative (CAM) therapies, an estimated 3.1 million U.S. adults had used Acupuncture in the previous year,” says the report, a copy of which is with The Hindu Metro Plus. Chandra, in the report, also mentions that the U.S. Government-recognised Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACAOM) accredits schools that teach Acupuncture and TCM. “About a third of the U.S. states that license acupuncture require graduation from an ACAOM-accredited school.”

Panchakarma

The status report has particularly called for positioning Panchakarma like Acupuncture. “There is a need to reposition Panchkarma as a recognised therapy for muskulo-skeletal and neurological problems including rheumatoid arthritis, Parkinsonianism and in Behavioural Science. A beginning could be made by demonstrating Panchakarma procedures on veterans suffering from post-trauma stress disorder to be observed by Veteran Affairs Department of U.S. Defence. Were a high-level policy decision to be announced — for example if Indian Railways as the biggest employer in the public sector recognised Ayurvedic treatment for insuring accident cases, it would instil confidence,” it says.

“Our missions abroad stock few CDs and leaflets here and there but efforts to market Indian medicine have been lack-lustre and unconvincing.”

Among other suggestions, the report, compiled after an exhaustive research spanning close to a year, puts the thrust on research in Ayurveda. “Only clinical outcomes published in international journals would lead to recognition of Ayurveda. The ground reality is that there is no legal scope to practice Ayurveda in most countries, primarily because of a lack of credible research.” This has necessitated the need to study and document the policies and strategies that China adopted over the years for globalisation of TCM.

Significantly, the report calls for the need to offer postgraduate interdisciplinary training to modern scientists to increase the dialogue between Ayurveda and modern science. While lauding the efforts of the Kerala Government in promoting Ayurvedic Tourism, Chandra also highlights the fact that the influential American Medical Association is “hugely exercised about heavy metal content in Ayurvedic formulations.”

“The issue alone is enough to distort the globalisation discourse for a very long time. It already occupies centre-stage on the NCCAM's website on Ayurveda. The situation demands that massive attention be paid to GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) and testing for heavy metals and impurities, without which few will take us seriously.”

The report, made with “a focus on benefits that the systems have given to the public”, ends with the submission, “The 12th Five year Plan is on the anvil. The time is to act now.”

The tragedy of the 21st century life is that sitting amidst increasing comforts and luxuries man is comfortably and luxuriously miserable!!

 

WHY IS NO ONE HAPPY?

Yesterday, I was driving, and the FM radio went off for few seconds. I thought, I should have an iPod. Then suddenly I realized that I have not used my iPod in last 6 months. And then, more things, Handy cam in last 2 years, Digital Camera in last 2 months, DVD player in last 1 month and many more. Now I can say that I bought that Handy cam just out of impulse, I have used it twice only in last 4 years.

So, what's wrong and where? When I look at myself or my friends I can see it everywhere. We are not happy with what we have, but all are stressed and not happy for the things we don't have. One has a Santro, but he wants a Honda City; one has a Honda City, but he wants Skoda. Just after buying a new phone, we need another one, better laptop, bigger TV, faster car, bigger house, more money, etc. I mean, these examples are endless. The point is, is it actually worth it? Do we ever think if we actually need those things before we want them? Do objects of comforts and luxuries really determine our level of happiness? Or is it something else?

After this, I was forced to think what I need and what I don't. May be I didn't need this Handy cam or the iPod or that DVD player. When I see my father back at home. He has a simple BPL colour TV, he doesn't need 32" Sony LCD wall mount. He has a cell phone worth Rs 2,500. Whenever I ask him to change the phone, he always says, "Its a phone, I need this just for calls."

And believe me; he is much happier in life than me with those limited resources and simple gadgets. The very basic reason why he is happy with so little is that he doesn't want things in life to make it luxurious, but he wants only those things which are making his life easier. It's a very fine line between these two, but after looking at my father's life style closely, I got the point. He needs a cell phone but not the iPhone. He needs a TV but not the 32" plasma. He needs a car but not an expensive one.
 Initially I had a lot of questions.

I am earning good, still I am not happy,...why ?

I have all luxuries, still I am stressed.... ....... why ?

I had a great weekend, still I am feeling tired...... why?
I met lot of people, I thought over it again and again, I still don't know if I got the answers, but certainly figured out few things. I realize that one thing which is keeping me stressed is the "stay connected" syndrome. I realized that, at home also I am logged in on messengers, checking mails, using social networks, and on the top of that, the windows mobile is not letting me disconnected. On the weekend itself, trying to avoid unwanted calls, and that is keeping my mind always full of stress. I realized that I am spending far lesser money than what I earn, even then I am always worried about money and more money. I realized that I am saving enough money I would ever need, whenever needed. Still I am stressed about job, salary and expenditure.

May be, many people will call this approach "not progressive attitude", but I want my life back. Ultimately it's a single life, a day gone is a day gone. I believe if I am not happy here and now, I'll never be happy anywhere anytime. I finally realized that meeting friends, spending quality time with our loved one's; spending time with ourselves is the most important thing.

If on Sunday we are alone and we don't have anybody to talk with, then all that luxurious life, all that money is wasted. The tragedy of the 21st century life is that sitting amidst increasing comforts and luxuries man is comfortably and luxuriously miserable!! May be cutting down our requirements, re-calculating our future goal in the light of today's happiness is a worthwhile thing to do. May be selling off the Santro and buying Honda City on EMIs is not a good idea. I believe putting our happiness ahead of money is the choice we need to make.

I think, a lot can be said and done but what we need the most is re-evaluation of the value of happiness and time we are giving to our life and people associated with it. Perhaps we are not seeking happiness where we should seek it. We ususally seek it in place, time, objects, beings, relationships, situations, circumstances, environment, etc. But they are all ephemeral, ever changing and being impermanent do not give permanent happiness. Therefore, no event or experience gives us total satisfaction.  

Permanent happiness lies elsewhere. We need to seek it there. WITHIN.
 Think about it.

Swami Avadhutananda

TOP WOMEN CEOS IN INDIA

1. Chand Kochhar-CEO-ICICI BANK
2.Kiran Majumdar-Head Biotechnology reserach
3. Chairman Biocon Ltd
4. Naina Kidwai- Head HSBC India
5. Monisha narang-CEO Sauber Formula

AP External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna with his Pakistani counterpart Hina Rabbani Khar as they arrive for the SAARC Foreign Ministers meeting in Addu, Maldives on Wednesday.

India may not rank that high on the Human Development Index when compared to many other countries. But that does not mean that it has not seen improvements. As today's chart of the day shows, both India and China have seen significant change in human development since 1980. And one of the reasons for this has been the stupendous growth in GDP. In contrast, the US has hardly seen much growth in this regard and the current recession is not expected to do much for the country either.

*Human Development Index Data Source: The Economist

The survey also found that the youth was driving the usage of the Internet in the country, with schoolchildren (21 per cent), college children (27 per cent) and young men (27 per cent) in the 21-35 age group accounting for 75 per cent of urban Internet usage.

Among India's cities, Mumbai (6.2 million) had the highest number of active Internet users, followed by Delhi/NCR (5 million), Kolkata (2.4 million) and Chennai (2.2 million). IT city Bangalore with 1.7 million had the same number of users as Ahmadabad, while Hyderabad (1.8 million) had marginally higher users.

The Art of Giving

"Rivers do not drink their own water, nor do trees eat their own fruit, nor do rain clouds eat the grains reared by them. The wealth of the noble is used solely for the benefit of others!"

Even after accepting that giving is good and that one must learn to give, several questions need to be answered.

The first question is:

When should one give?

We all know the famous incident from Mahabharat.

Yudhisthir asks a beggar seeking alms to come the next day. On this, Bhim rejoices that Yudhisthir his brother, has conquered death! For he is sure that he will be around the next day to give. Yudhisthir gets the message.

One does not know really whether one will be there tomorrow to give!

Moreover when the thought to give comes one should give immediately before the mind changes.

The time to give therefore is now.

The next question is:

'How much to give?'

One recalls the famous incident from history.

Rana Pratap was reeling after defeat from the Mughals. He had lost his army, he had lost his wealth, and most important, he had lost hope, his will to fight. At that time, in his darkest hour, his erstwhile minister, Bhamasha, came seeking him and placed his entire fortune at the disposal of Rana Pratap. With this, Rana Pratap raised an army and lived to fight another day.

The answer to this question how much to give is:

"Give as much as one can!

The next question is:

'What to give?'

It is not only money that can be given away. It could be anything. It could be food, service at the physical level, love and affection, knowledge, a flower or even a smile.

It is not how much one gives but how one gives that really matters. When you give a smile to a stranger that may be the only good thing received by him in days and weeks!

When you feed a hungry man a fish you feed him for a day. When you teach him how to fish you feed him for life. Therefore giving knowledge is higher than everything.

The highest giving is the giving of that knowledge which liberates a person from the bondage of all limitations, all miseries and the recurrent cycles of birth and death. 

"You can give anything but you must give with all your heart!"

Whom to give?

Many times we avoid giving by finding fault with the person who is seeking. However, being judgmental and rejecting a person on the presumption that he may not be the most deserving is not justified.

Give without being judgmental!"

Next we have to answer:

'How to give?'

Coming to the manner of giving, one has to ensure that the receiver does not feel humiliated, nor the giver feels proud by giving.

In giving, follow the advice 'Let not your left hand know what your right hand gives? Charity without publicity and fanfare is the best form of charity.'

'Give quietly!'

While giving, let not the recipient feel small or humiliated. After all, what we give never really belonged to us. We come to this world with nothing and will go with nothing. The thing gifted was only with us for a temporary period. Why then take pride in giving away something which really did not belong to us?

We should give with grace and with a feeling of gratitude that we got an opportunity to serve.

"What should one feel after giving?"

We all know the story of Eklavya. When Dronacharya asked him for his right thumb as "Guru Dakshina, he unhesitatingly cut off the thumb and gave it to Dronacharya.

There is a little known sequel to this story.

Eklavya was asked whether he ever regretted the act of giving away his thumb. He replied, and the reply has to be believed to be true, as it was asked to him when he was dying.

His reply was "Yes! I regretted this only once in my life. It was when Pandavas were coming to kill Dronacharya who was broken hearted on the false news of death of his son, Ashwathama, and had stopped fighting. It was then that I regretted the loss of my thumb. If the thumb was there, no one could have dared hurt my Guru?

The message to us is clear.

Give and never regret giving!

And the last question is:

How much should we provide for our heirs?

We should ask ourselves "are we taking away from them the gift of work? - A source of happiness?

The answer is given by Warren Buffett:

"Leave your kids enough to do anything, but not enough to do nothing!"

Conclusion:

Let us learn the Art of Giving,

Quoting Saint Kabir:

"When the wealth in the house increases, when water fills a boat, throw them out with both hands!"

THIS IS THE WISE THING TO DO!!!

 

Let pressure on Delhi ease

Kamal Nath gives “in-principle” approval to the concept proposal of Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) for NCR; emphasizes on need to focus on effective sub-urbanization in the region

Urban Development Minister Mr. Kamal Nath has approved “in-principle” the concept proposal of implementing Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) in three important corridors in the NCR viz. Delhi-Gurgaon-Alwar, Delhi-Sonepat-Panipat and Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut. Mr. Nath directed the NCR Planning Board(NCRPB) to explore innovative funding mechanisms like exploiting transit-oriented development potential, monetization of land and PPP model for implementing these capital-intensive projects. He said that high speed connectivity between the regional centres of NCR and Delhi will make the physical distance shorter and allow these regional towns to capture the economic impulse and density generated by Delhi. He emphasized that the RRTS should be integrated with the Delhi Metro. This faster connectivity will reduce pressure on the National Capital’s infrastructure by opening up the region including regional housing market.

Sizing up: The Lodha Fiorenza project, at Goregaon.

 

Heard about the 12-acre India Bulls Bleu project at Worli in Central Mumbai? It will have five towers of 75-storeys, with three- and four-bedroom flats, with saleable area starting at 3,900 sq ft, and living space a little over 1,500 sq ft. This translates into a rate of Rs 80,000 per carpet sq ft, with the cost of the smallest flat exceeding Rs 12 crore. And the developers are calling it affordable luxury!

Grand Pushkar Mela in Rajasthan

Sikkim Can go for Community Radio Station. Get inspiration from this news

source:MINT

PNGS HALL

SC continues stay on HC order on commercial rent service tax


The Supreme Court today maintained its stay on a Delhi High Court order that sought to restrain the Centre from recovering service tax on renting property for commercial use.

A bench comprising Justices Mukundakam Sharma and A R Dave said that the apex court''s interim order of January 13 will continue till further orders.
The bench said the order would continue till the High Court takes a final decision on the matter.

The direction follows the centre''s plea, challenging the interim order passed by the Delhi High Court on May 18, 2010.



The court had allowed the appeal of around 20 firms, including Home Solutions Retail, and stayed the amendments made by the government in the Budget 2010-11.

In the Finance Act, 2010, the government had amended the taxing entry of "Renting of Immovable Property service", retrospective from June 1, 2007.

The High Court had observed that its earlier order, passed on April 18, 2009, had held that renting of real estate cannot be regarded as a service.

It had observed that renting of any immovable property by itself did not entail any value addition, and therefore, cannot be regarded as a service.

"Prima facie, it appears that renting of immovable property itself has been regarded as a service by virtue of the recent amendment even though this Court by virtue of the said decision on April 18, 2009 had categorically concluded that renting of immovable property by itself cannot be regarded as a service," the Delhi High Court had said while staying the recovery.

"In the meanwhile, there shall be no recovery of Service tax from the petitioner in respect of renting of immovable property alone. No such service tax would be recovered from respondents 5-10 in the meanwhile," it said.