posted 10.30 p.m.

Sathish Nambiar Panel Wins ISC Election, Namboothiri too wins

Four Keralites in ISC committee - Abraham Mathew, Babu Rajendran, Dr.Sathish Nambiar and C.N.P.Nampoothiri

MUSCAT - April 25, 2003 The much talked about election in the Indian Social Club witnessed more than 75 per cent polling and the panel led by Dr. Sathish Nambiar, Chairman ISC won with a thumping majority. Except two, other members of the 11 member panel presented by Dr. Nambiar won the election. The pro saffron panel presented by Kiran Ramaiyya, Mr. Shah and others representing the Hindu Maha Sabha failed to cheer voters and lost miserably. However, C.N.P.Namboothiri, former Convenor of ISC Malayalam Wing and Bankim Kothari of the rival panel got elected.

The women candidate representing the Khimji family Mrs. Khimji was unanimously elected. According to ISC Sources, the new ISC Board comprise of four Keralites - Dr. Sathish Nambiar, ISC Chairman, Cultural Secretary Babu Rajendran, Abraham Mathew (former convenor ISC Malayalam Wing) and C.N.P. Namboothiri (former convenor ISC Malayalam Wing). While Mr. Rajendra Ved, a Gujarathi businessmen won the maximum votes, due to the predominance of Gujarathi community in the club, Nambiar and Babu Rajendran also performed well. Out of nearly 240 members only 179 participated in the elections.

The rival panel which came out with a lot of complaints about lack of transparency and accountability in ISC function could not succeed because they are proved not better than their rivals. Some of the leaders who made complaints about the functioning of ISC Chairman Dr. Sathish Nambiar have been doing the same thing in some of the Indian community schools in which they are represented. This is the second time that the saffron brigade failed to capture power from Dr. Sathish Nambiar, a secular minded Indian. However, the ISC continues to remain an elite organisation, which do not represent even one per cent of the Indian community in Oman. It is high time that they made it into a more democratic organisation by involving the common man.

Kuwait will boost economy by US$ 375 million based on expected drop in software piracy to 66% says study

Anti-piracy efforts will create around 500 more job opportunities

KUWAIT April 25, 2003 The IT sector in Kuwait is expected to grow from US $400 million at present to US$712 million by the year 2006 if the concerted campaign against piracy continues to bring down the software piracy rates from the existing 76% to 66% in the near future according to the results of a study conducted by International Data Corporation (IDC). The study has concluded that Kuwait has already begun to acquire the benefits received from a 13-point drop in piracy rates since 1996. This has helped triple the growth of the software industry in the country and the IT sector in general has also doubled in size.

"The research results are a compelling evidence of how the commitment to reduce software piracy by governments in the region such as Kuwait can stimulate tremendous growth in the software industry. The study has clearly shown that lesser piracy could mean faster growth. Cutting Kuwait's piracy rate by 10% to reach 66% could mean additional revenue of US$375 million to the economy. These positive figures once again bring to the forefront the key role that the protection of Intellectual Property Rights plays in achieving a healthy economic climate and creating new opportunities for entrepreneurs and the Kuwaiti job force in general," said Jawad Al-Redha, Co-Chairman, Middle East, Business Software Alliance.

The IDC study says that the continued efforts to reduce software piracy will also reflect positively on the employment sector by creating more than 500 jobs for Kuwaiti nationals within the IT sector. The local IT industry revenues are also expected to increase by more than US$72 million. The beneficiaries of the Intellectual Property Rights protection campaign will also include the Kuwaiti government, which is expected to collect an extra US$1million in tax revenues.

"The BSA is satisfied to note that the worldwide campaign to protect Intellectual Property Rights has shown tremendous progress and yielded positive results in Kuwait," Al-Redha added.

The study highlighted the direct relationship between usage of legal software and progress in the IT sector. As Kuwait reduced its piracy rate by 13% between 1996 and 2002, its software industry grew by 320%. This helped fuel the growth of the IT sector which now accounts for 1.3 % of the country's overall economy. The study also tabled the major achievements of Kuwait between 1995 and 2001, which were direct result of its anti-piracy efforts. During this period, the IT sector added US $880 million in sales to the local economy and created 1,700 high-tech jobs for Kuwaiti nationals.