'Looking for tomorrow's high fliers at Gulf Air - Ten Omani students embark on summer training programme in Bahrain' Photo caption: Hisham Fateh (Public Relations Manager, Gulf Air) (far left) and Ian Waterhouse (Vice President of Human Resources, Gulf Air) (far right) with trainees who are taking part in Gulf Air's summer training programme.
LOOKING FOR TOMORROW'S HIGH FLIERS AT GULF AIR
Ten Omani students embark on summer training programme in Bahrain
Muscat, Oman - 7 July 2004] Gulf Air is an airline that is going places and it is now giving a number of Omani students an opportunity to be part of its future growth."The road to re-establishing ourselves as a leading airline of the world is based on a long term strategy, so we are constantly on the look-out for the next generation of high fliers to steer Gulf Air to new heights," explained Ian Waterhouse, Gulf Air's Vice President Human Resources. "Summer provides the ideal opportunity to take in students and as a consequence ten young Omanis have started a two-month familiarisation programme at the airline."
The ten, who will be part of a total group of 30 youngsters drawn from the airline's three owner states, have been allocated positions to gain general work experience in the various areas of the airline's operations from Finance, Marketing and our World Wide Call Centre facility in Muscat to Engineering. This programme provides the students with the opportunity to transfer the theory they are learning in their studies to the practical application of the workplace. Gulf Air's summer work experience programme enables young people to gain an insight into the professional and personal attributes required to be successful in a large international organization.
"As well as looking for the next generation of potential employees, we also use this programme as part of our corporate responsibility to empower our people and facilitate their development in rewarding careers," said Mr. Waterhouse. "We have a role to play in the economic development of the region. This can only be achieved by empowering people and building up Gulf Air and our industry."
The Summer Trainee Programme is one of several training programmes to have been introduced for Gulf nationals. Gulf Air also offers training opportunities in its Graduate Entry Management Programme, the Apprentice Engineer Programme and the Cadet Pilot Scheme, all of which form part of the Gulf National Programme.
Taxing NRIs a Major Blow to Gulf Malayalis: Shamsuddin
We NRIs consider the budget 2004-2005 is very disappointing. Neglecting our request; the Finance Ministor's decision to tax interest on NRE deposit is a blow to us. That will lead to pull back of huge foreign currency deposits from India. Finance minister has introduced a special investment scheme for senior citizens with 9% returm, that must be extended to middle and low income NRIs also. That will help them for rehabilitation when they go back for permanent settlement, we were demanding for a such scheme since long time.
The increase of tax excemption limit to Rs. One Lakh, the abolishment of long-term capital gain tax and reduction of short-term capital gain tax to 10% is a great advantage to investors in India.
With regards
K V Shamsudheen
Director, Barjeel Geojit Securities LLC
Chairman, Pravasi Bandhu Welfare Trust
Sharjah UAEState Government Revamps Police, IAS bureaucracy as Police I.Gs and collectors Rotated
Thiruvananthapuram July 7: A total revamp of the police Inspector General has occred in the state as 9 new I.Gs have been appointed to various posts. Ramesh Chandra Bhanu is the new I.G. of the Southern Zone, while Aravind Ranjan is given charge of the Northern Zone. The Headquarters charge has been given to V.R.Rajeevan and the K.S.E.B Vigilance has been handed over to M.N.Krishnamoorthy. Paul Lesley is the new Excise Commissioner and the charge of human rights Commission has been handed over to Prem Shankar. C.P.Senkumar is in charge of the Vigilance and Anti-corruption Bureau and Asthana is in charge of the Crime Records Bureau. Venugopal K.Nair is the new M.D of Beverages Corporation. -Keralamonitor.com
6 collectors changed; Tinku Biswal is new Thiruvananthapuram collectorThiruvananthapuram July 7: The state government has reshuffled the I.A.S, I.P.S officials including the Trivandrum Collector. A ministerial meeting decided to change 6 district collectors. 5 I.A.S officers have been made principal secretaries. Tinku Biswal, is the new Thiruvananthapuram collector. R.Sreenivasan is the new collector of Kollam district, while K.S.Premachandra Kurup has been appointed as new collector of Thrissur and Rachna Shah as collector of Kozhikkode.
The new collector of Ernakulam is Muhammed Hanish and that of Idukki district is K.Ajayakumar. C.Ramachandran has been conferred the rank and grade of Additional Chief Secretary. Crime Branch Additional D.G.P, M.G.A.Raman has been conferred the rank of D.G.P. There are also changes in Forest Service officials. R.P.Sharma has been conferred the rank of Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest. Along with that, a few new principal secretaries have been appointed including Alphonse Kannanthanam, L.C.Goyal, E.K.Bharathbhooshan, V.Somasundaram and Romanus Horro.
K.R.Muraleedharan has been appointed as the Director of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan. Other than that the other appointments at the I.A.S level include that of Sayan Chatterjee as Land Revenue Commissioner, Mohammed Riyasuddin as Sports and Youth welfare Principal secretary and Rajesh Sinha as Revenue Department Joint Secretary. Satyajith Rajan has been appointed as Additional Resident Commissioner at Kerala House. T.O.Sooraj has been appointed as Tourism Director, Rajan Khobragade as Water resource director, V.M.Gopalamenon as Employment and Training Director and Dr. Beena as Deputy Secretary, M.G.P.
A.K.Goyal, K.P.Ousep, N.Gopinathan, R.R.Shukla have been promoted as Chief Forest Conservators and they would continue in their present responsibilites. K.E.Muhammed Noushad has been promoted as Forest Conservator and I.P.S officer Sanjeev Patnaik has been given selection grade. -Keralamonitor.com
Salam International sponsors Nada Zeidan, first Qatari female rally driverInitiative part of company's 'Partner in Sports' strategy to promote and develop sporting activities in the Middle East
July 05, 2004 Salam International, the Qatar-based public shareholding conglomerate with operations in the Gulf region and across the Middle East, has announced that it has recently entered into an agreement with the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF). According to the agreement, Salam International will be the official sponsor of Nada Zeidan, the first Qatari female driver, for a period of two years.As a part of its commitment to QMMF, Salam International will provide financial support to cover the purchase of Zeidan's new rally car; a bright yellow Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, and spare parts in return for exclusive rights to sponsor her participation for all future rallies in Qatar, Lebanon and the UAE, including the Rally of Lebanon on July 2, 2004. In addition, Salam International will lead and organise all media campaigns and promotions of the rally driver.
Speaking about the new initiative, Issa Abdul Salam Abu Issa, Chairman and CEO, Salam International, stated: "We have, over the last few decades grown from a local Qatari company into a regional and Middle Eastern group of companies with diversified activities. The company has registered phenomenal growth and is well recognized among customers as a name that stands for quality and value. Side by side with our success, we have taken a strategic decision to serve the community through several programmes and initiatives, sports being one of them."
"Motor-rallying has fast developed into a popular sport in the Middle East region and Salam International is proud to partner with one of the leading lights of this sport. Being the first female rally driver, Nada Zeidan represents the brave new sporting generation that is driven to break barriers and create a place in sporting history. We have dubbed her the 'Queen of Challenge', a reputation we are confident that she will live up to, with our support," added Abu Issa.
An active sportsperson, Nada Zeidan has been a member of the Qatari Archery Team and participated in the 14th Asian Games, Busan, South Korea. "I am delighted that Salam International has come forward to support me in my sporting career. Rally driving is an expensive sport and Salam's backing will definitely help me participate in international rallies with the right equipment and confidence. I am committed to make the most of my opportunities by forging a name for Arab women in the international sporting arena. As one of the few successful sportswomen in the region, I would like to be a source of encouragement for other aspirants from the Arab world," said Nada Zeidan.
As part of its 'Partner in Sports' strategy, Salam International has been involved in promoting several sporting activities for decades. In the motor-rally arena, the company was also the official sponsor of Said Al Hajiry, the first Qatari male rally driver. The company has also announced that it is currently one of the three official sponsors for the Qatar National Olympic Committee until the end of 2005.
DNRD announces Distinguished Guest Project to offer simplified solutions for frequent business visitors
Companies can now buy a pre-loaded electronic card for specified duration, instead of applying for several visit visas
July 6, 2004 In an effort to offer card-operated access to regular business visitors, Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department (DNRD) has announced the launch of the Distinguished Guest Project, a new service that eliminates the need for applying repeated visit visas for frequent visitors.Announcing the new service at a press conference today (Tuesday, July 6) Brigadier Saeed bin Belailah, Director, DNRD, said: "The Distinguished Guest Project has been launched for the benefit of companies that need to bring professionals and partners on business tips several times during the year. Under the Distinguished Guest Project, companies can buy an electronic card that gives entry access a number of times, depending on the value of the card."
The Distinguished Guest Project eliminates the normal requirement of renewing the visit visas at the end of two months, or applying for a fresh at the end of the stipulated period. The special Distinguished Guest Card will enable the holder to make regular trips and thus save time by bypassing the routine channels.
"For business people, time is money. Keeping this in mind, we have developed the Distinguished Guest Project in response to a demand from corporate visitors and multi national companies that need to sponsor the same persons several times in a year," said Brigadier Saeed bin Belailah, Director, DNRD. "This forms part of our strategy to create solutions that will eliminate time-consuming procedures. The Distinguished Guest Project is our brand new solution that will not only dispenses with visit visas but also offer accelerated passport control through eGate."
The Distinguished Guest Project will allow a company to open an account in the name of a designated person. An electronic pre-loaded card will be issued in the name of the holder, with a validity of two years. Each time he enters the country, a certain fee will be deducted electronically from the amount.
Brigadier bin Belailah pointed out that the facility was introduced for the benefit of citizens of those countries that do not qualify for visa-on-arrival status given only to certain countries by the UAE authorities. It will be particularly useful for employees of multinational companies as well as diplomats.
The DNRD staff has been handling an increasing volume of passengers from all over the world. According to the Department of Civil Aviation's statistics, the Dubai International Airport handled nearly 18 million passengers in 2003, compared to just 5 million in 1992. Most of these visitors arrived on pre-arranged visas and did not belong to the 33 countries that are exempt from these visa procedures.
"DNRD's major focus has been to introduce innovative systems and procedures that eliminate delays and queues," said Brigadier bin Belailah. "With Dubai emerging as a regional commercial dynamo, business traffic has been on the rise. We anticipate further dramatic increase in visitors in the next few years, as a result of mega projects that will consolidate Dubai's status as the region's premier business and tourism centre, under the leadership of HH General Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE Defence Minister."
"The Distinguished Guest Project will bring benefits to all parties concerned. The sponsoring company and the end-users will save time and enjoy comfort. There will be reduced pressure on our staff because the number of visit visas to be processed will come down," Brigadier bin Belailah added.
Prime Minister sanctions Rs. 50000 to victims of landslide
July 7: The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, has expressed shock over the death of pilgrims in the landslides near Badrinath. He has conveyed his condolences to the bereaved families and announced an ex gratia payment of Rs. 50,000 to each family from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. -Keralamonitor.com
FTA will spur Indo-Thai trade
Thai Vice Minister of Trade calls on Kamal Nath
July 7: The proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and Thailand is expected to help in significantly increasing bilateral trade which, at the present level of US $ 1.5 billion annually, is negligible compared to the existing potential. This was stated by the visiting Thai Vice Minister of Trade, Dr. Parnpree Bahiddha Nukara, when he along with his delegation called on Shri Kamal Nath, Union Minister of Commerce & industry, here this evening.
A Framework Agreement was signed between India and Thailand in October 2003 to lead to a free trade area. The agreement covering goods, services and investments as well as areas of economic cooperation also provides for an Early Harvest Scheme (EHS) with a common list of items on which tariffs are to be gradually eliminated during the period 1/7/2004 to 1/3/2006. The Early Harvest Programme is currently in the process of finalisation based on what is agreed on both sides. Negative list of items where both the countries have sensitivities will also be identified thereafter.
During the discussions, Shri Kamal Nath indicated that the momentum of the framework agreement process would be maintained on the basis of mutual benefit. He also emphasised the need to look at ways of stepping up investment along with trade between the two countries. -Keralamonitor.com
SC/ST commissions want budget in tune with population
July 7: A Conference of Chairpersons of the State Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Commissions held here today, demanded that the Central Budget allocation should be equal to the percentage of population of these groups. Even 57 years after independence we have not been able to bring these people into the national main stream. In case of Scheduled tribes it is all the more worst, the Conference felt.
Inaugurating the Conference, the Chairman of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes Dr.Suraj Bhan said, still a majority of these population do not know that there are National Commissions committed for their development. He said, the impression that governments, both Centre and States, are not doing anything for their uplift should be wiped out. He regretted that the Special Component Plan for SC/STs and Sub-Tribal Plans for SC/STs have not been implemented effectively and the fruits of development do not reach them fully. He wanted an enquiry into the amount allocated and spent on SC/ST programes in the last 10 years. This will reveal the true picture including the lacunae and loopholes. He suggested unofficial watch-dog village committees to over see the implementation of these development programmes. He said, he will request the Prime Minister to call a meeting of Chief Ministers to discuss issues relating to SC/ST development and a special massive wasteland development programme involving the SC/STs. This will help in not only providing them gainful employment to begin with but also can make them land owners, in the process.
The Chairman of the Scheduled Tribes Commission Mr.Kunwar Singh said that Adivasis are still landless, after five decades of freedom. There is no proper monitoring of the implementation of the Tribal Sub-Plans. Various atrocities continue to dog them. He regretted that State governments legislate, without even consulting either the National Commissions or the State-own Commissions.
The Conference was attended among others by representatives from Rajasthan, Uttranchal, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh(SC/ST), Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. This was the first conference after bifurcation into two separate Commissions for SC and ST. -Keralamonitor.com
Loading norms for good transport vehiclesJuly 7: Lok Sabha
A decision was taken to withhold the Central assistance from the Central Road Fund to seven states, namely Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, due to issue of special passes/tokens/cards by these states, which facilitated overloading of vehicles in violation of the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. All the seven state Governments later informed that the special passes/tokens/cards had been withdrawn. Thereafter, Central assistance has been restored to these states. At present, Central assistance is being provided to all states.
This information was given in the Lok Sabha today in a written reply by the Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways Shri K.H. Muniyappa. -Keralamonitor.com
SUMMARY – ECONOMIC SURVEY 2003-2004
The economy is in a upward swing mode, with a growth of 8.1 per cent during 2003-04. It is in a resilient mode in terms of growth, inflation and balance of payments. This combination offers ample scope for consolidation of the growth momentum with continued macro economic stability. Industry and services also assisted the GDP growth along with agricultural recovery of 9.1 per cent. The year also marked continued maintenance of relative stability of prices. Inflation was 4.6 per cent at end March 2004, compared to 5.5 per cent average. Manufacturing sector somewhat contributed to rise in prices.
EDUCATION EFFORTS OVERTAKE GROWTH IN POPULATION FOR THE FIRST TIMENUMBER OF ILLETERATES DECLINING
FEMALE LITERACY GROWTH FASTER THAN MALE
CONVERGING RURAL-URBAN LITERACY GAP
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Literacy rates in India have risen dramatically from only 18.3 per cent in 1951 to 64.8 per cent in 2001. The number of literates grew by 59 per cent in 1991-2000. During this period literacy improved by 12.6 percentage points The absolute number of literates, however, substantially declined during the same period. For the first time, education efforts have overtaken the growth in population and the absolute number of illiterates has started declining. This is reported in the Economic Survey of 2003-04.
According to this Economic Survey, in the five decades after Independence, the increase in literacy rate during the decade 1991-2001 has been the highest, i.e. from 52.2 to 64.8 per cent. For the first time, the country witnessed the faster growth in female literacy i.e. 14.9 percentage points (from 39 to 54 per cent) compared to that of males, which increased by only 11.7 percentage points (from 64 to 75 per cent). Thus there was a narrowing of the gender gap in literacy from 25 per cent in 1991 to 22 percent in 2001. There is also, for the first time, a converging trend in the rural urban literacy gap. Between 1991 and 2001 rural literacy increased by 7 per cent, thereby reducing the rural-urban gap from 28.4 per cent in 1991 to 20.9 percent in 2002.
The number of primary school increased from 6.39 lakh in 2000-2001 to 6.64 lakh in 2001-02, while the number of upper primary schools increased from 2.06 lakhs to 2.19 lakh in the same period. The total enrolment in primary and upper primary school levels in India also witnessed a steady increase. Of the estimated population of 193 million in the age group of 6-14 years in 2001-02, nearly 82.2 per cent were enrolled in schools. Significantly the growth rate of enrolments for girls at the elementary level was higher than that of boys. Participation of girls at all levels of school education has improved appreciably over the years, but vast disparities among the States in gross enrolment ratio persists with States in the North-East performing better than the others.
The number of Secondary and Senior Secondary Schools during 2001-02 was 1.33 lakh with an enrolment of 30.5 million. There has also been an impressive growth in the area of University and Higher Education. Student enrolment in higher education rose from 7.26 million in 1997-98 to 9.2 million in 2002-03. Enrolment of women students rose to 3.69 million with women constituting 40 per cent of the total in 2002-03. A significant increase has also been registered in the student enrolment under Open and Distance Education System.The Survey adds that social infrastructure like education, is as important as physical infrastructure, not only for sustaining high growth but also for enhancing welfare. The root of poverty often lies in illiteracy . The National Common Minimum Program announced an increase in public spending on education to 6 percent of GDP from 2003-04 (BE) level of 3.1 percent in a phased manner. These measures, according to the Economic Survey of 2003-04, will go a long way in addressing the social sector problems.EQUITY MARKET STAGED STRONG RECOVERY
The Economic Survey 2003-2004 tabled in Parliament today notes that the equity market staged a strong recovery during the year after disappointing performance in the previous year. The NSE-50 Index which was subdued for the early part of 2003 sharply rose by August to reach a level of about 1880 in December. The Index which had dropped by 13.4% in 2002-03 rose by 81.1% in 2003-04.The progress in the securities market in terms of dimensions like institutional structure, efficient and transparent price discovery and robust settlement systems continued during the year. Trading volumes surged and primary markets revived.
The equity market capitalization grew from Rs.7.25 trillion in March 2003 to Rs.13.77 trillion in March 2004. Expressed in US dollars, the equity market capitalization thus worked out to 310 billion dollars which makes India one of the biggest equity markets in the developing world. The Public Issue market also made important advances in terms of market design where it moved closer to pure computerization auctions. This served to remove the human element, non-transparency and cost from the Public Issue process.
The Economic Survey says a key enabling infrastructural institution which registered growth in the Indian Stock Markets was the concept of holding shares in a dematerialized form where individuals across the country interact with a depository and are able to effectively obtained account balance statements, execute transfers of securities.
