Today's Hot Stories - April 11, 2014
10 Headlines for Today(1) Kejriwal admits impulsive exit in Delhi was a mistake
(2) Narendra Modi’s wife ‘on pilgrimage’ as media looks for her
(3) Satellites show Russia mobilizing near Ukraine, Nato says
(4) Domestic car sales down 5% in March
(5) Political donations should get tax breaks, says new CII chief
(6) US stocks: Nasdaq marks worst day since November 2011 as biotechs sink
(7) Tennis: Williams sisters will not face France
(8) Badminton: Srikanth, Sindhu in Singapore Open quarters
(9) NBA: San Antonio Spurs beat Dallas Mavericks
(10) Gautala sanctuary to get cameras for tracking animals
5 Stories for Today
(1) Shakti Mills gang rape: ‘Her evidence is standing like rock’
(2) Malaysian Airlines MH370: More ‘pings’ raise hopes Flight 370 will be found
(3) For India Inc, wealth lies in the hinterland
(4) Etihad CEO says near finalising next stage of Air Berlin partnership
(5) No country's forex reserves large enough to ward off external shocks: Rajan
(1) Shakti Mills gang rape: ‘Her evidence is standing like rock’
Drawing a parallel between the gang rape of a photojournalist and that of Nirbhaya, the Principal Sessions judge Shalini Phansalkar Joshi observed while awarding the death sentence to three repeat offenders in the case: “Social abhorrence and the national shock created by this incident was just parallel to the one evoked by Nirbhaya incident in Delhi. In that case the victim was not left alive. In this case, the victim is left alive but society is yet to recover from the aftermath of the shock.”
Asserting the point that the incident had shook the collective conscience of society, the judgement reads, “This incident has happened even before the uproar and anguish created by Nirbhaya incident calmed down, despite stringent laws being made, young youths are repeatedly indulging into such barbaric inhuman offence, having least regard to the sanctity of human life and individual dignity, totally defying law and order, was beyond toleration and understanding of the society.”
The judge also remarked that the incident had dented the image of the city, for being a safe city for women. “In the heart of the city, like Mahalaxmi area also, young girls are not secure or safe but subjected to most savaged form of sexual assault by the young boys of this very city, was shocking to one and all. It created a feeling of helplessness in parents, in women, in girls and in every section of the society.”
On the point of awarding the death sentence Ms. Joshi observed, “The repetitiveness of the acts of gang rape in planned, systematic manner was shocking. To give lesser punishment to the accused in such situation would be to render the justice delivery system of the country a suspect.”
The judge also applauded the valour of the victim and opined that her statement was of such sterling quality that no can afford to not believe it. “Her sole testimony is of such sterling quality, giving vivid and truthful account of entire incident, that it clinches the fate of the case. It is alone sufficient to prove the guilt of the accused on all the counts. Her evidence is standing like rock. The trauma faced by her reliving the entire incident at the time of giving evidence in the court is so touching and heartrending that no one can afford or dare to disbelieve her.”
Also appreciating the courage shown by the male friend, the judge stated, “The courageous stand taken by both the victim and her male friend in lodging the report immediately with the police and of the male friend in supporting her in entire endeavour, not only during the incident or thereafter in the trial also needs to be encouraged and appreciated.”
Source: The Hindu
(2) Malaysian Airlines MH370: More ‘pings’ raise hopes Flight 370 will be found
Australian vessel searching for flight MH370 detects signals consistent with black boxes
Planes and ships hunting for the missing Malaysian jetliner zeroed in on a targeted patch of the Indian Ocean on Thursday, after a navy ship picked up underwater signals that are consistent with a plane’s black box.
Thursday’s search zone was the smallest yet in the monthlong hunt for Flight 370, and comes a day after the Australian official in charge of the search expressed hope that crews were closing in on the “final resting place” of the vanished jet.
Angus Houston, who is coordinating the search off Australia’s west coast, said Wednesday that equipment on the Australian vessel Ocean Shield had picked up two sounds from deep below the surface on Tuesday, and an analysis of two other sounds detected in the same general area on Saturday showed they were consistent with a plane’s flight recorders, or “black boxes.”
“I’m now optimistic that we will find the aircraft, or what is left of the aircraft, in the not-too-distant future,” Houston said Wednesday.
No further sounds had been picked up overnight, Houston’s search coordination center said Thursday. But the Ocean Shield was continuing its hunt, slowly dragging a U.S. navy pinger locator through the ocean’s depths, hoping to find the signal again and get a more specific fix on its location.
Meanwhile, 14 planes and 13 ships were looking for floating debris across the 57,900 square kilometer (22,300 square mile) search zone, about 2,300 kilometers (1,400 miles) northwest of Perth, and China’s Haixun 01 was using underwater acoustic equipment to search for signals in an area several hundred miles south of the Ocean Shield. A “large number of objects” had been spotted by crews combing the area on Wednesday, but the few that had been retrieved by search vessels were not believed to be related to the missing plane, the coordination center said.
Search crews hunting for debris have already looked in the area they were crisscrossing on Thursday, but were moving in tighter patterns, now that the search zone has been narrowed to about a quarter the size it was a few days ago, Houston said.
Finding the flight data and cockpit voice recorders soon is important because their locator beacons have a battery life of about a month, and Tuesday marked one month since Flight 370 vanished en route from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Beijing with 239 people aboard.
If the batteries fail before the recorders are located, finding them in such deep water _ about 4,500 meters, or 15,000 feet _ would be difficult, if not impossible.
“I believe we are searching in the right area, but we need to visually identify aircraft wreckage before we can confirm with certainty that this is the final resting place of MH370,” Houston said. “For the sake of the 239 families, this is absolutely imperative.”
The hope expressed by Houston on Wednesday contrasted with the frustrating monthlong search for the Boeing 777, which disappeared shortly after takeoff in one of the biggest mysteries in aviation history. The plane veered off-course for an unknown reason, with officials saying that satellite data indicates it went down in the southern Indian Ocean. The black boxes could help solve that mystery.
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The signals detected 1,645 kilometers (1,020 miles) northwest of Perth by the Ocean Shield are the strongest indication yet that the plane crashed and is now at the bottom of the ocean in the area where the search is now focused.
A data analysis of the signals heard on Saturday determined they were distinct, man-made and pulsed consistently, Houston said.
“They believe the signals to be consistent with the specification and description of a flight data recorder,” he said.
To assist the Ocean Shield, the Australian navy dropped buoys by parachute in a pattern near where the signals were last heard.
Royal Australian Navy Commodore Peter Leavy said each buoy will dangle a hydrophone listening device about 300 meters (1,000 feet) below the surface. The hope, he said, is the buoys will help better pinpoint the signals.
Houston acknowledged searchers were running out of time, noting the last two signals were weaker and briefer than the first pair heard Saturday, suggesting the batteries are failing.
“So we need to, as we say in Australia, `make hay while the sun shines,”’ Houston said.
The weakening of the signals also could indicate the device was farther away, U.S. Navy Capt. Mark Matthews said. Temperature, water pressure or the saltiness of the sea could also be factors. Thick silt on the ocean floor could also distort the sounds and may hide wreckage from the eventual visual search, he said.
Houston said a decision had not yet been made on how long to use the towed ping locator before launching an unmanned submarine to create a sonar map of a potential debris field on the seabed. The Bluefin 21 sub takes six times longer to cover the same area as the ping locator.
Matthews said the detections indicate the beacon is within about a 20-kilometer (12-mile) radius, equal to a 1,300-square-kilometer (500-square-mile) chunk of the ocean floor _ an area the size of Los Angeles.
It would take the sub about six weeks to two months to canvass an area that big, which is why the ping locator is still being used to hone in on a more precise location, Matthews said. The underwater search zone falls within the larger 58,000 square kilometer area that is being scoured for floating debris.
The underwater search was narrowed to its current position after engineers predicted a flight path by analyzing signals between the plane and a satellite and investigators used radar data to determine the plane’s speed and where it may have run out of fuel.
Houston noted that all four of the pings detected since Saturday were near the site of a final, partial “handshake” signal revealed earlier in the investigation.
Source: The Indian Express
(3) For India Inc, wealth lies in the hinterland
If the previous decade saw one of the largest "Bharat" reach-out plans by FMCG companies, this decade will mark a turning point for any entity with a consumer interface — be it automobile makers, telecom firms, healthcare service providers or banking and finance companies. And they are all cashing in on the opportunity being thrown up by the rural market, which is a unique combination of growing incomes and rising aspirations of around 850 million consumers living in 6,50,000 villages of India.
The journey has already begun with some companies generating almost a third of their businesses or consumers from the rural markets. Hindustan Unilever (HUL) is seen to be generating 40% of its total business from rural markets, while Maruti and Coca-Cola get around 30% of their turnover from the countryside. Similarly, a third of Airtel's 8.6 million DTH customers come from rural India.
Now, the second stage of rural forays for products that are tough to deliver in the countryside — such as ice-creams — has begun. Amul has opened parlours in rural areas and their sales are said to be much higher than those in cities. Contrary to common assumption, there is a huge demand for seemingly urban products such as ice cream, chocolates, butter, cheese and pizzas.
Rural consumption per person is said to have increased by 19% yearly between 2009 and 2012, which includes certain impulse-driven categories too. R S Sodhi, MD, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation, which markets Amul, said high preference has been observed for its products in rural areas. Infant milk food and dairy whitener packs at the price points of Rs 5 and Rs 10 are said to be popular in rural areas. Smaller packs of butter (20gm and 10gm) are also helping Amul create a new set of customers in rural areas.
It's small wonder then that Coca-Cola India, has now decided to aggressively pursue the rural markets with a new price point of Rs 5. Venkatesh Kinny, president and CEO, Coca-Cola India, describes the rural market as their "fastest growing segment". And most thought soft drinks are for city slickers.
Companies describe rural markets as those with a population of less than 10,000, or where they depend on agriculture for employment, or even a combination of both.
Automobiles: In fifth gear The fervour of fighting all odds to deliver products in rural areas is not without reason. Rural India, which is growing faster than urban, is being looked upon as a game changer of sorts by India Inc. Maruti India's rural contribution to national retail sales stands at 31%. Five years ago, contribution of rural sales was merely 8-9%. "While urban markets continue to be sluggish, rural is the silver lining. We target to reach at least 1,00,000 villages this fiscal," said Mayank Pareek, COO, marketing & sales, Maruti Suzuki.
Mobile: Ringing in profits Over the last decade, the mobile revolution in India too has seen networks penetrate deep into rural areas with demand driven by availability of cheap handsets and affordable tariffs. "Services like 'airtel Money' empower people to transfer money anywhere in the country, pay utility bills and their adoption in rural India is growing rapidly. We believe many in rural areas are having their first internet experience over a mobile device," said an Airtel official. The Airtel mobile network covers over 4,60,000 non-census towns and villages across India.
"End 2013, rural India had a mobile penetration of 41%, while handset penetration was a little over 30%. Our estimates suggest there are over 250 million handsets in rural India, of which close to 30 million users are already accessing internet on mobiles. We expect demand from rural markets to expand due to upward mobility of consumers, expanding base of middle-class buyers, content and service availability and telecom voice and data penetration," said Vineet Taneja, country head (mobiles & IT), Samsung India.
Banking/health: Safe bets If rural consumers are buying cars and smart phones, they would certainly not remain unbanked. For ICICI Bank, one in two of its branches today is in rural and semi-urban areas. Up to 60% of its new branches set up in the last 18 months are in rural areas. Of these, in excess of 400 branches have been set up in unbanked villages, which were devoid of any banking facility earlier. "We have opened close to 17 million basic savings accounts over the last three years," said Rajiv Sabharwal, executive director, ICICI Bank.
Besides consumer products, lack of healthcare products and services in rural India has prompted firms like Philips to make inroads. "Providing technology solutions in healthcare and lighting in an affordable manner is one way of enhancing productivity and income in rural markets," said Vivek Sharma, head (marketing) and VP (Indian subcontinent), Philips Electronics India.
Experts say robust farm growth, rising rural wages and increased government spending has fuelled demand in rural areas. "Those in manufacturing and services, can grow faster sending overall growth impulses in the otherwise sagging economy," according to a study by Ashok Gulati, former chairman of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices, and his team. That, in a way, also sums up how rural India is driving the tepid economy right now.
Source: The Times of India
(4) Etihad CEO says near finalising next stage of Air Berlin partnership
Etihad Airways' chief executive said on Monday that the airline was close to sealing the next phase of its partnership with Air Berlin and that it was still in due diligence over a possible tie-up with Alitalia.
"All our objectives have been met and we are in the final stages of negotiating the next stage of that (Air Berlin) partnership," James Hogan told an aerospace conference in Abu Dhabi, without elaborating.
German media reports last month said the United Arab Emirates-based airline could increase its stake in the struggling German carrier to 49.9 percent from the current 30 percent.
Etihad has also been studying a possible investment in Italian carrier Alitalia in recent months, but the CEO said on Monday that this process was still ongoing.
"We are in due diligence at the moment. The mandate we have from shareholders is if we can achieve an agreement that meets the commercial mandate, we'll come back and present that to the board. That's where we are at the moment," Hogan said.
Source: Hindustan Times
(5) No country's forex reserves large enough to ward off external shocks: Rajan
Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan has said though the country has enough foreign exchange reserves, no nation can fully insulate itself from external vulnerabilities.
"We are well-buffered with substantial reserves, though no country can be de-coupled from the international system," Rajan said at a conference organized by the Brookings Institution in Washington on Thursday.
In the just-concluded financial year, the country's forex reserves crossed USD 300 billion-mark, the highest since December 2011.
For the week to March 28, the reserves rose by a whopping USD 5.038 billion to USD 303.673 billion, the second highest in the fiscal. During the period, foreign currency assets also jumped by USD 5.011 billion to USD 276.406 billion.
"My remarks are motivated by the desire for a more stable international system, a system that works equally for rich and poor, large and small, and not the specifics of our situation," Rajan said.
Talking about the unconventional policy in industrial countries, he said when monetary policy in large countries is extremely and unconventionally accommodative, capital flows into recipient countries tend to increase local leverage.
"This is not just due to the direct effect of cross-border banking flows but also the indirect effect, as the appreciating exchange rate and rising asset prices, especially of real estate, make it seem that borrowers have more equity than they really have," he said.
Exchange rate flexibility in recipient countries in these circumstances sometimes exacerbates booms rather than equilibrates, he added.
In the recent episode of emerging market volatility after the Fed started discussing taper in May 2013, countries that allowed the real exchange rate to appreciate the most during the prior period of quantitative easing suffered the greatest adverse impact vis-a-vis financial conditions, Rajan said.
It can be recalled that at the customary post-policy concall with analysts on April 2, Rajan had said that forex reserves below Chinese level was not a comfort zone.
"We have a lot of forex reserves. Right now, it is USD 300 billion plus. So, the key question is at what point you feel safe. I think, if you focus only on reserves, there is really no point at which you feel safe...400, 500, 600...any level of reserves, until you get to Chinese level, it is probably not enough," he had told researchers and analysts.
The comments assumed importance as the traditional position of the central bank has been not to set a forex reserves target. China's foreign exchange reserves stood at a staggering USD 3.66 trillion as of end 2013, making it the largest in the world, while at the best of times, India could not shore up more than USD 322 billion.
Source: The Economic Times
Disclaimer: All news stories and content sourced from freely available material on the internet. All sources are acknowledged.
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