OASIS LEASING APPOINTS NEW CFO

DUBAI - November 11, 2004 Oasis International Leasing, the Abu Dhabi-based big ticket leasing company, has appointed Australian Kenneth Edmondson as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO).Prior to joining Oasis Leasing, Edmondson, 46, was CFO of HP Financial Services in Asia Pacific and Japan. Before the merger between HP and Compaq he had been CFO for Compaq in Australasia. “Kenneth has more than 20 years of financial experience in the banking, asset management and telecommunications sectors,” said Gordon Dixon, CEO, Oasis Leasing. “Following our successful AED 200 million rights issue, his extensive experience and knowledge will be invaluable in assessing emerging business opportunities and ensuring that our investments in new assets will deliver future profits and attractive shareholder returns.” Oasis Leasing is currently in discussions with Etihad Airways, the UAE’s national airline, to finance a number of new aircraft the airline has ordered from Airbus and Boeing. “Leasing is one of the options Etihad Airways is considering for financing its new fleet of aircraft,” said Dixon. “It is still too early to say how many aircraft will be leased but we are optimistic that there will be a considerable role for Oasis Leasing.”

Al-Falak wins HP Achievement Award

Company nominated the best Supplies Reseller in the Middle East for the
year 2004

November 10, 2004 Al-Falak, the leading IT and Communications solutions provider in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) region, have won the coveted HP Achievement Award. The awards are designed to recognise and reward channel partners
who have displayed excellence in their performance over a year. Al-Falak was nominated as the best Supplies Reseller for the year 2004.

Receiving the award, Ahmed Ali Ashadawi, President and CEO, Al-Falak said, "We are committed to bring the best in IT Technology to end-users in the Middle East region. Over the years, we have devised a clearly articulated
strategy to increase our presence in the region and to heighten end-user awareness about the technological superiority and potential commercial benefits of the products in our portfolio. This has resulted in growth in our client-base, translating into higher revenues for our vendor partners. This award is industry recognition of Al-Falak's vision of excellence."

According to Ashadawi, Al-Falak's consistent success and the award of Supplies Reseller of the year is due to a focused plan that has helped the company put in place a sophisticated back-office administration system capable of tracking inventories, customer profiles, and customer requirements. As a result, the company is able to deliver quick and efficient service to its customer-base and expand its market share.The nominees for 'HP Supplies Reseller of the Year' were judged on the basis of the company's year on year growth in sales revenues; Target achievements for the Financial Year 2004; the availability of trained staff to provide pre and post-sales technical support; and the companies marketing activities to promote the HP band. Al-Falak registered high scores for every criterion.

Meanwhile, Al-Falak's sister organisation, Al-Khaleej Computers & Electronic Systems, Saudi Arabia, has won the award for HP Sales & Service Partner for the year 2004."Success, in the role of a reseller, can only be achieved through a high
degree of awareness of market requirements at any given time. Besides the products currently in the market, the reseller must also keep track of potential technological innovation to be able to keep his finger on the pulse of IT trends. However, all this could not achieve the required results in terms of revenues, if the reseller does not display extraordinary responsiveness
in terms of response to customer requirements. This has been Al-Falak's area of strength. While our inventory is stocked with the best available technology and we have experienced IT experts on our team, it is our commitment to customer service above all that has won us this award," said Yousuf Abu Idrees, General Manager, Al-Falak Computer Supplies and Accessories
Division.

QATAR AIRWAYS DOUBLES FREQUENCY BETWEEN BAHRAIN AND QATAR TO 28 WEEKLY FLIGHTS

Extra Capacity Services Local Customers On Airline’s Global Network

7/11/04

Manama, Bahrain: Award-winning Qatar Airways has announced that it will be doubling the number of daily flights from the Kingdom of Bahrain to Doha to four starting 10 November 2004.The increased capacity is intended to better service local customers and provide greater connection opportunities over Doha to more than 50 Qatar Airways destinations worldwide.

“Bahrain is a key market for Qatar Airways and we want the public to be able to take full advantage of the high levels of service we provide,” said Mohammed Ali, Bahrain Area Manager, Qatar Airways.“The substantial increase in the number of flights to Qatar will allow our customers to minimise transit times and increase their flight experience.”

The announcement comes as Qatar Airways gears up for an exciting few weeks with the launch of six new routes in a bid to further expand the airline’s global reach and presence.Qatar Airlines will be launching flights to high profile destinations such as London Gatwick, Beijing, Seychelles, Johannesburg, Cape Town and Yangon. Members of the airline’s Privilege Club will earn double miles for the first month of operations as part of a special promotion.

Passengers will be able to experience Qatar Airways’ Five Star service, one of only three airlines worldwide to have been recognised by Skytrax, the independent aviation monitoring agency, with the highest accolade for airline service.

“Qatar Airways is expanding at a phenomenal rate with new routes opening up from Doha to different parts of the world,” said Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, Akbar Al Baker.

“We want to give our business and leisure travellers a diverse choice of destinations to fly to from Doha.”

He explained that the route expansion programme reinforced the carrier’s position as one of the fastest growing airlines in the world.

The new routes starting this winter from Doha are:

Beijing 3 times a week beginning 25 November 2004

London Gatwick daily beginning 26 November 2004

Seychelles 4 times a week beginning 1 December 2004

Yangon 4 times a week beginning 8 January 2005

Johannesburg 4 times a week beginning 16 January 2005

Cape Town 4 times a week beginning 16 January 2005

Qatar Airways operates to 53 destinations across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Indian subcontinent and the Far East. By the end of 2005, Qatar Airways will serve at least 70 destinations, including North America and Australia.

Beijing becomes Qatar Airways’ 9th destination in the Far East that already includes Shanghai, Seoul, Bangkok, Singapore, Cebu, Manila, Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur.

“Since the launch of our Shanghai flights last year, the route had proved very popular and it was only natural for us to extend our Five Star service to business and leisure travellers by introducing Beijing as our second destination in China,” added Al Baker.

The addition of London Gatwick would strengthen Qatar Airways’ UK operations where the airline already serves London Heathrow with two daily flights.

The diverse and tranquil settings of the Seychelles, made up of 115 islands scattered over 1 million square kilometres, provides holidaymakers with a perfect place to relax and unwind in the Indian Ocean.

The vibrant commercial hub of Johannesburg and the leisure retreat of Cape Town provide Qatar Airways with its first foray into Southern Africa.

And Yangon, capital of Myanmar, is the gateway to the country’s breathtaking beauty and scenery.

Qatar Airways is one of the youngest airlines in the world with an all-Airbus fleet of 36 modern aircraft, which will double over the next few years following a $5.1bn order for 34 additional Airbus jets.

Photo Caption: Winners 1– (Middle) Al-Thahranee celebrates his win with second place’s Fahad Al Mussalam (left) and third place’s Khalid Al-Faisal (right)

BMF CLINCH VICTORY IN MINI CHALLENGE ‘SEEF SPRINTS’

Unstopabulls Top Series Leader Board

Khalid Al-Thahranee of the Bahrain Motor Federation (BMF) racing team took his first win of the MINI Challenge, the Middle East’s first one make car series, by racing to victory in the ‘Seef Sprints’ event held at a special track at the Seef Mall.

A new addition to the calendar, the event was a break away from typical circuit racing and was designed to offer a different forum for the teams to compete. Drivers had three attempts to set the fastest lap in individual sprint races around a tightly wound track.

In the fourth race of the now eight-round challenge, organised by Euro Motors – the exclusive importer for MINI in the Kingdom - Al-Thahranee finished ahead of Fahad Al Mussalam of HH Shaikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Khalifa’s ‘The Unstoppabulls’ Racing Team, and KSA racing’s Khalid Al-Faisal, whose times placed them in second and third places respectively.

“By adding a different element to the MINI Challenge Series, we were able to ‘mix up’ the event and allow others to excel who perhaps hadn’t in previous races at the Bahrain International Circuit,” said Nawaf Al Zayani, Deputy Managing Director, Euro Motors. “The fundamentals of this race series are to promote the use of safe and responsible driving and we need to get that message across to as many people as possible.

“The Seef Mall was the perfect place to stage the races as it is accessible to everyone.”

Al Musalam now leads the series on 73 points with Al-Faisal trailing by two, both having received their third podium finish of the series. Castrol’s Ali Al-Kobaisi falls to joint third with Ebrahim Kanoo of Al Ayam, who just missed out on a top three placing in the ‘Seef Sprints’.

The event was organised by Euro Motors and held in conjunction with the Bahrain Motor Federation. It featured 14 Mini Cooper Club Sport cars, each sponsored by local companies, with identical specifications and engine capacity.

The ‘MINI Cooper Club Sport’ Edition, a modified racing version of the MINI Cooper, features a fully FIA-approved roll cage, a racing seat with five point racing harness, a fire extinguisher and both external and internal electronic and fuel safety cut-off switches. The car also comes with up-rated brakes, lowered and stiffened suspension with up-rated dampers and springs to ensure optimum handling under both road and race conditions.

The ‘MINI Cooper Club Sport’ is converted by the renowned John Cooper Garages in the UK, which have over 40 years of motorsport experience. Featuring a standard 115 bhp MINI Cooper, 4-cylinder engine with 1.6 litre displacement, the conversion has been designed to be a dual-purpose car satisfying requirements of both daily road use and competitive motorsports.

The participating teams are (in given numbers order) 1. Unstoppabulls, 2. Intercol, 3. Al Ayam Al Riadi, 4. Total Floor Solutions, 5. NoNoo Exchange, 6. Castrol, 7. AFI, 8. DHL, 9.GOYS 10. BMF, 11. National Car Rental, 12. KSA Racing, 13. Al Wardi Group, 14. Bison Energy Drink Racing Team.

Jebel Dhanna resort to open soon UAE?s west coast is set to become major new tourism destination

(Abu Dhabi, November 2004): Countdown is underway for the opening this autumn of a new deluxe resort at Jebel Dhanna, 240km west of Abu Dhabi city, the first move in the development of the area as a major tourism destination.

The 109-room five-star Danat Resort Jebel Dhanna is owned and operated by Danat Hotels & Resorts, a division of National Corporation of Tourism & Hotels (NCT&H). The launch of the new resort ? the first 5-Star deluxe hotel on the undeveloped west coast of the UAE - marks a new phase in its development with the addition of the upscale property. Key to the leisure sector, the resort is a ?breakaway? destination: one of its key selling points is a full kilometre of unspoilt beach.

According to general manager Manoj Kanwal, the resort will offer its guests the chance to experience the more preserved parts of the UAE. He said: ?Everybody is looking for the chance to discover something different, whether they are UAE residents looking for a weekend getaway, or visitors and tour operators from further afield.

?We are confident that our product offering is something that stands out from the rest of the crowd.? Combined with a fresh look at the Emirates? landscape, the resort also offers top-of-the-range facilities to attract sectors such as the conference and incentive markets to the west coast for the first time.

He said: ?Thanks to its location and extensive banqueting and meeting facilities, Danat Resort Jebel Dhanna is an excellent solution for team-building, company retreats and corporate guests. We can cater for up to 1,000 people at events like this, making it one of the most comprehensive corporate offerings in the UAE marketplace.

For leisure guests, Danat Resort Jebel Dhanna, has a Body and Soul spa and health centre, where dedicated therapists are on hand to offer a full range of aromatherapy treatments, massages and the latest hot stone treatments through to physical relaxation and beauty facials.

Turning to food and beverage, Danat Resort Jebel Dhanna offers an innovative approach to cuisine, with a range of menu options available throughout the day at its five restaurants and bars.

Tides - All day dining restaurant, offers a full range of Continental and Asian dishes as well as exotic theme nights. Snacks and salads are available by the pool and beach until late, and the C-View lobby café serves drinks and pastries, cakes or pizzas.

The resort?s flagship restaurant is Zaytoun, offering pan-Arab dining featuring delicacies from the Mediterranean, while L?Attitude is open until late, perfect for live entertainment, cocktails and dancing.

Danat resort?s leisure offering encompasses two floodlit tennis courts, two squash courts and a nine-hole, par-36 sand golf course and driving range, ensuring sports enthusiasts are well looked after.

Offshore, there are opportunities for surfing and sailing, while fishing, dive and drive safaris are available as well as exclusive tours of the Sir Bani Yas Island wildlife reserve, located just 9km off the coast.

Danat Resort Jebel Dhanna is owned and operated by Danat Hotels & Resorts, a division of the National Corporation of Tourism & Hotels based in Abu Dhabi. The property is the first 5-Star deluxe resort on the west coast of the UAE and is set to spearhead development of the area?s tourism infrastructure.

The National Corporation for Tourism & Hotels (NCT&H) was formed in 1996 in response to the need to develop both tourism and commerce in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), especially Abu Dhabi.

The Corporation was formed as a semi-government organisation. NCT&H?s primary objective is to promote Abu Dhabi as an international destination, manage hotels and provide transportation and industrial catering services.

Houseboats in Alappuzha to make way to U.A.E.

The houseboats in Alappuzha are geared up for a wonderful change. These gentle riders of the Kerala backwaters are all set to metamorphose as sea-faring vessels in the Middle East. The businessmen in the tourism industry in the Middle East have evinced their keen interest in tapping the potential of Kerala's houseboats. According to Mr. Muhammed Muneer, the Managing Partner of Travelcap, a tour operating company that owns houseboats in Alappuzha, the company has received enquiries from a UAE-based business group about the possibilities of exporting houseboats constructed in Alappuzha.

He added that Mr. Mehmood Muhammed, a UAE-based businessman, who visited Alappuzha for the purpose, had reached an agreement with his group. The deal would be finalized in December when a UAE business team once again visits Alappuzha. Mr. Muneer pointed out that as there are no backwaters in the Middle East, the houseboats exported from Kerala would be utilized as sea-faring vessels. These houseboats, anchored in shallow seas there, would also function as floating hotels. He remarked that talks are on with shipping companies regarding the transportation of the houseboats from Alappuzha.

Joint Task Force for Health and tourism to Examine Medical Tourism

A joint task force is to be constituted consisting of experts from both health and tourism to examine issues concerning medical tourism. This was decided in a meeting between Union Health and Family Welfare Minister, Dr. A. Ramadoss and the Minister of State for Tourism, Smt. Renuka Choudhury here today. The task force is to look into issues relating to accreditation of hospitals and a price band for various kinds of treatment to be offered as part of promotion of medical tourism. The Minister for Tourism also desired that the committee should look into the recognition of spas and ayurveda Centres in India. The committee will also look into other issues like insurance and staying facilities while according accreditation. Dr. Ramadoss informed Smt. Choudhury that a decision had been taken to standardize and accredit all hospitals in India but the exercise may take two years. The task force will submit its recommendations to a key committee to be headed by the Health and Family Welfare Minister and Minister of State for Tourism.

Kerala University's degree courses to be started in Bahrain

The Indian School in Manama, Bahrain would soon start offering Bachelor's degree courses of the Kerala University in Bahrain. According to the Chairman of the Indian School's Executive Committee, Mr. P. V. Radhakrishna Pillai, the school authorities have already sought the permission of the Government of Bahrain to upgrade school's status to that of a college. The school authorities had held discussions with the senior officials of the Government of Kerala; Mr. K.Mohandas, Principal Secretary, Higher Education and Mr. C. K. Vishwanathan, Commissioner for Entrance Examinations whowere on a three-day official visit to Bahrain.

Jobs in U.A.E.: Fingerprinting mandatory for expatriate workers

As per the new regulation in U.A.E, finger printing has been made mandatory for all expatriate workers who wish to procure jobs in the country. The regulation aims to prevent fraud cases, such as those involving medical certificates. According to Dr. Abdul Gaffar Abdul Ghafour, the Assistant Undersecretary in the Ministry of Health, U.A.E., the Labour and Health ministries have agreed up on the idea of taking fingerprints as well as conducting blood tests for all workers. The two ministries would be fully coordinated and the fingerprints along with the results of the blood test would be sent to the Labour Ministry's database. The fingerprints would help in dealing with the fraud committed by certain employers who obtain illegal medical fitness certificates for persons other than those who have been issued work visas.

MOU Signed for Setting up of Satellite based village resource Centers

In a rare assembly of several prominent IT industries like HP, INTEL, TCS, CISCO and MICROSOFT, individual Memorandum of Understandings (MOU) were signed by these industries with Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham today at Kochi for the establishment of satellite-based Village Resource Centre (VRC) across the country. The MOUs, were signed in the presence of Mr G Madhavan Nair, Chairman, ISRO at Antariksh Bhavan, Bangalore, the headquarters of ISRO. The MOUs are a follow-up to the understanding between ISRO and Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham for setting up such VRCs. The industries are associating with Amrita in the VRC Project, by providing ground infrastructure and other IT based systems. To start with, 25 such VRCs will be set up across the country.

It may be noted that ISRO has embarked upon the VRC initiatives with a view to integrate its capabilities in satellite communications and satellite based earth observations to disseminate a variety of services emanating from the space systems and other IT tools to address the changing and critical needs of rural communities. The VRC is a totally interactive VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) based network. These nodes can be further extended using other technologies like Wi-Fi, Wireless and Optical Fibre. These extensions may serve as local clusters around the areas where the VRC is located.

Space enabled information will include geo-referenced land record, natural resources, suitable sites for drinking water as well as sites for recharging to replenish ground water, water harvesting, wastelands that can be reclaimed, rural employment creation, watershed, environment, infrastructure, alternate cropping pattern, and so on. By suitably blending the information derived from earth observation satellites with ground derived and weather related information, locale-specific community advisory services can be provided. Community based vulnerability and risk related information, provision of timely early warning and dissemination of severe weather related information could lead to reliable disaster management support at the village level. VRCs will also provide a variety of services like tele-education, telemedicine, online decision support, interactive farmers' advisory services, tele-fishery, e-governance services, weather services and water management. By providing tele-education services, the VRCs act as virtual community centric learning centres. At the same time, VRCs will provide connectivity to speciality hospitals thus bringing the services of expert doctors closer to the villages.

It may be noted that the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, inaugurated on October 18, 2004, the first cluster of three VRCs established jointly by ISRO and the M S Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF). Today's signing of MOUs is yet another landmark for expanding the VRC network in the country. Speaking on the occasion Mr Madhavan Nair said that it is indeed a rare combination of ISRO, a Government R&D organization, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham which is a Trust engaged in education and social services and some of the leading IT industries, committed to reach the benefits of high technology to the remotest part of the country. He said that even though it is a Herculean task to cover all the 600,000 villages, the agreement signed today is a signal that we are committed to this project. Dr P Venkat Rangan, Vice Chancellor of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, said that his university is very happy to join one of the premier R & D organizations like ISRO and reputed IT industries in helping Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham to spread its services to the rural community. The representatives of all the industries were unanimous in their commitment to the task of reaching the benefits of high technology to the rural population.

E-TICKETING ON RAILWAYS

Indian Railways have planned to introduce E-Ticketing as a pilot scheme on selected Shatabdi Express trains by allowing the passengers to print their own tickets. It is intended to do away with the hard ticket in this regard.E-Ticketing will lead to decongestion of the computerized Passenger Reservation System (PRS) counters, besides enabling the passengers to buy tickets upto the time of charting of reservations, which is not presently available on the internet ticketing system.In the scheme of E-ticketing, passengers will also not be required to cancel waitlist tickets, as it will be cancelled automatically and amount due will be refunded electronically to the passenger’s account.

TERRORISM – PRIMARY SECURITY CONCERN TO INDIA DEFENCE MINISTRY ANNUAL REPORT RELEASED

Terrorism continues to be India’s primary and most immediate security concern. This has been stated in the Annual Report of the Ministry of Defence for the year 2003-2004 released in New Delhi today. The report says, Pakistan has been the source of infiltration, cross-border terrorism, military adventurism, nuclear and missile posturing and threats. India’s strategic location at the centre of the arc of extremist activism and terrorism, amplified by a history of Pakistan’s use of it to wage a low-intensity proxy war against India; the prospect of terrorists getting access to weapons of mass destruction and the wanton disregard they have for the lives of other and themselves, require that India be particularly on guard against the phenomenon.The Defence Ministry feels that the principal threat to peace and stability in the region remains the combinations of fundamentalism and terrorism nurtured in madarssas and training camps in the area and the history ingrained adventurism of a section of the Pakistan military motivated by its obsessive and compulsive hostility towards India.

The report says that unlike the non-state nature of most domestic and local manifestations of terrorism and the international terrorism of Al Qaeda or the Jemmah Islamiyah, the terrorism faced by India is typically cross-border and State – sponsored.

According to the Defence Ministry, diplomacy remains India’s chosen means of dealing with these challenges, but effective diplomacy has to be backed by credible military power. India’s strategic and security interest require a mix of land based, maritime and air capabilities and a minimum credible deterrent to thwart the threat of use of nuclear weapons against it, the report says.

Referring to India’s security preoccupations which are determined by the dynamics of the global and regional strategic and security environment, the report says, India’s location at the centre of an arc of terrorism between North Africa and South East Asia, its close proximity to a key source of nuclear proliferation and the continuing acts of terrorism from across her western border require it to maintain a high level of vigilance and defence preparedness. According to the Annual Report of the Ministry of Defence, the nature of new threats has also reinforced the need for international cooperation to combat terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and underline the role that India could play in the global response against such forces. Few countries in the world face the range of security challenges, concern and threats that India faces today, says the report.

The Defence Ministry report says India has faced a series of low intensity conflicts such as a proxy war fanned by radical Jehadi outfits and supported by state institutions; insurgencies, in many cases tolerated, aided or abetted by sources from outside India and spillovers of conflicts in neighbouring states. At the other end, it inhabits an environment in which two of its neighbours have nuclear weapons and missiles and its immediate neighbourhood has been a source of nuclear proliferation, the report adds.

Expressing concern over the activities of the superpowers close to our coastlines, the report says the seas surrounding India have been a theatre of super power rivalry in the past and continue to be a region of heightened activity from and by extra-regional navies on account of global security concerns.

Dealing with the situation in the Indian sub-continent the report says, despite close and good relations with most of its other immediate neighbours, lesser security problems continue to complicate relationships. Bangladesh has not been responsive to India’s concerns regarding the presence and activities of Indian insurgent groups from the northeast and the Pakistani Inter–Services Intelligence (ISI) on Bangladesh soil, large-scale illegal immigration and border crimes. In Nepal, the growing influence and grip of the Maoists throughout the country particularly in the Terai areas bordering India’s and their links with left extremist outfits in parts of India are a cause of serious concern. Appreciating the efforts of Bhutan, the report says that it displayed courage and good-neighbouriless in acting against military camps and bases of operations of Indian insurgent groups within its territory in the interest of mutual security. About Myanmar, the report says that despite periodic coordination of efforts, Indian insurgent groups from the north-east continue to operate from camps in Myanmar.

Referring to the menace of terrorism and trafficking in and proliferation of arms and drugs in the region, the report says in the midst of this, India stands as a center of economic gravity in the region, a bastion of stability and a symbol of peaceful coexistence and non-violence. An appreciation of India’s security concerns and its security is thus critical to regional and global stability and security, the report adds.

India and China have stepped up efforts to build mutual trust and confidence. Both sides are trying to address differences over the boundary question and are agreed that pending an ultimate boundary settlement, the two countries would work together to maintain peace and tranquility in their border areas and continue to implement the agreement signed for this purpose.

At the same time, China’s close defence relationships with and regular military assistance to Pakistan, including assistance in the latter’s nuclear missile programmes at critical stages, it build up in the Tibet Autonomous Region, its military modernization, its nuclear and missile arsenals and its continental and maritime aspirations, require observations.

The report has highlighted four key elements fundamental to India’s security planning, they are:-

(a) The Indian Armed Forces have to be prepared for the full spectrum of security challenges from terrorism and low-intensity conflict to conventional war and the possibility of the use of nuclear weapons and missiles.

(b) India not being a member of any military alliance or strategic grouping, requires a certain independent deterrent capability.

(c) Due to an externally inspired low-intensity proxy war, India’s Armed Forces are involved in internal security functions – more than most other armed forces – requiring a corresponding force structure and orientation.

(d) India’s interest and responsibilities in the North Indian Ocean, including security of her EEZ and island territories, and shipping in the region, highlight the need for a blue water naval capability commensurate with its responsibilities.

The Defence Ministry Report says India remains fully committed to maintaining peace with its neighbours and stability in the region through a combination of defence-preparedness, unilateral restraint, confidence building and dialogue and expanding bilateral interactions. According to the Report, in the area of defence preparedness, India has reformed its higher defence management and streamlined procurement procedures. Its force postures remain defensive in orientation while its nuclear polity is characterized by a commitment to no-first-use, moratorium on nuclear testing, minimum credible nuclear deterrence and the rejection of an arms race or concepts and postures from the Cold War era.

United Arab Emirates names new president . More News

04 November 2004 ABU DHABI: The United Arab Emirates has named a new president in a smooth handover of power after the death of President Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahayan.The UAE Federal Council, comprising leaders of the seven emirates of the Opec member, unanimously elected as president Sheikh Khalifa, Sheikh Zayed's eldest son, official media said."The Federal Council unanimously elected this evening his highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed, ruler of Abu Dhabi emirate, as president of the United Arab Emirates," said WAM news agency.

Sheikh Khalifa, 56, has been increasingly running the UAE. He heads Abu Dhabi's Supreme Petroleum Council, which drafts oil policy, and is deputy supreme commander of the armed forces. The pro-Western moderniser also heads the UAE's economic body. "Sheikh Khalifa affirmed he would follow in the footsteps of (Sheikh Zayed) in cooperating and uniting with his brothers their highnesses, members of the Federal Council," WAM said.

Sheikh Zayed, who ruled the UAE since its founding in 1971, died on Tuesday after a long illness.He was laid to rest on Wednesday as fellow leaders assembled and paid tribute to the man who is credited with turning the UAE from a desert country into an economic success.

The presidents and rulers of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Morocco, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Syria, Jordan, Yemen and Kuwait gathered at the Sultan bin Zayed Mosque to pray over the body which was shrouded in the UAE flag.Britain's Prince Charles and Prince Andrew also arrived to offer condolences.

In New York, flags at UN headquarters were flown at half mast to commemorate the death of a leader from a UN member state. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan called Zayed a "most distinguished," wise and generous statesman.Thousands of Emiratis and expats lined the streets, to see the funeral procession, amid high security with helicopters flying overhead and police in the streets to control the crowd.

"It is impossible to express how important Sheikh Zayed was to us. He was a father and a guardian who protected the rights of both locals and expatriates," said Muslim preacher Sheikh Sabri. "He was the best of all the Arab and Muslim rulers." Grief engulfed the UAE where life came to a standstill with businesses closed. Koranic prayers blared from loudspeakers and thousands of people converged on mosques to say prayers. "Farewell our father, our Sheikh and sage of the Arab world," said al-Khaleej newspaper in its banner headline.

The UAE founder, who received a kidney transplant in 2000, used oil income to transform seven mostly poor and feuding sheikhdoms into modern cities. The country of 4 million people has one of the world's highest per capita incomes and expatriates make up over 85 per cent of the population.Sheikh Zayed's generosity, moderation and diplomacy won him a prominent place in the Arab and Muslim world.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell said: "Sheikh Zayed was a model of generosity, wisdom and leadership. The whole world knew him as a man of development, justice and civilisation."In a region where rulers are often resented for their autocracy, Sheikh Zayed seemed to enjoy genuine affection. "It was a big loss for the people of the UAE. He knew how to lead. He had a gift from God," said Mansour al-Meheirby. Many were confident about the future. "He fixed the basis so that his policies could be continued in the future, so we're not worried", said Mattar al-Niyaby.

INDIAN LAW INSTITUTE, NEW DELHI AND JAYPEE INSTITUTE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, NOIDA GRANTED DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITY STATUS

The Government has conferred deemed to be University status on the Indian Law Institute, New Delhi and the Jaypee Institute of Information Technology (JIIT), Noida, Uttar Pradesh in exercise of powers conferred by Section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956.The grant of deemed to be University status to Indian Law Institute is subject to the conditions that it will adhere to the guidelines and instructions issued by UGC from time to time as applicable to the deemed universities.

The JIIT has been granted deemed to be University status under De-novo category with immediate effect subject to review after three years. The grant of De-novo deemed to be University status to Jaypee Institute of Information Technology is subject to the conditions that it will revise/amend its rules as per UGC Model Rules for deemed universities. JIIT will get its land transferred in the name of JIIT Society and it will adhere to the guidelines/instructions issued by UGC and AICTE from time to time as applicable to the deemed universities.

RATIFICATION OF MUTUAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE TREATY BETWEEN INDIA AND USA
20:59 IST

The Union Cabinet today approved the ratification of Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty in Criminal Matters with USA. The understanding/conditions of the Treaty would be:

1. that assistance provided under the Treaty by India shall not be transferred to or otherwise used to assist any international court or tribunal, unless India has expressly accepted the jurisdiction of such court or tribunal;

2. that assistance shall be denied if according to information available to the Government of India, any official of the requesting State having access to the information is engaged in a felony, including the facilitation of the production or distribution of illegal drugs; and

3. that no action under the Treaty could be taken in contravention of the Constitution of India.

The above understanding/conditions would be applied on reciprocal basis, avoiding unilateral use.

UAE Supreme Council elects Khalifa as president

Nov 3, 2004 - 09:21 - UAE Supreme Council elects Khalifa as president -- Flash ABU DHABI, 3 Nov. 04 (WAM)-- The Supreme Council of the UAE this evening unanimously elected H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler of Abu Dhabi, as the President of the UAE.

INNOVATIVE HEAT EXCHANGER TO SAVE ENERGY

"Environment is a mirror which reflect our error". So, efforts continue working towards achieving technologies, which are environment friendly, and application of those in industry will lead to considerable energy conservation. Innovative Heat Exchanger is one such device which has the potential to make the Indian fertilizer industry the most efficient in the world, in terms of energy savings and reduction in the heat exchanger area. Heat exchangers are the backbone of the fertilizer industry, since the energy efficiency depends largely on how much waste heat can be recovered and reused. Further improved heat exchange in turn, conserves use of natural resources like coal, oil, gas etc.

Developed in-house by the Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT Delhi under Prof. K.D. P. Nigam, the pilot plant facility of the Innovative Heat Exchanger was recently inaugurated by Shri Ram Vilas Paswan, Union Minister of Chemicals & Fertilizers and Steel. The cost of the Pilot project is Rs. 2.46 crores and took three years of research and design to materialize.

Heat exchangers contribute to about 25 % of the equipments installed in fertilizer industry. Presently, shell and tube heat exchangers, plate type exchangers and helical pipe exchangers are in practice in the process industries. Fertilizer plants are highly energy intensive and 70 - 80% of the total production cost of Fertilizer is spent on energy alone. The Fertilizer industry reached a landmark, when it achieved about 11.20 million tons production during 1996 - 97, comprising of about 8.38 million tons of nitrogenous production and 2.82 million tons of phosphatic production. Today, the industry is not only an essential link in the food chain, but also has made its impact on the national economy. Plant designers continue to design and build ammonia plants with lower energy consumption. This has resulted in reduction of energy consumption from the earlier levels of 16 - 18 Giga Calories/Matric Tonnes to the present levels of 7.5 - 8.0 G Cal/MT of ammonia for Naptha based plants.

Energy conservation measures in Fertilizer industries have gained importance in the recent past and all new plants are constructed with the latest concept of low energy consumption. The theoretical thermodynamic heat requirement for ammonia production is about 4.47 G Cal/MT, as against the current average consumption of 8 G Cal/MT for natural gas based and 9 G Cal/ MT for oil based ammonia plants. Thus, about 3.5 G cal/MT to 4.5 G Cal /MT is lost in cooling water or ambient air through stack or radiation losses. Though all processes will have some losses of energy from the system, the potential to reduce the energy consumption is substantial.

The innovative heat exchanger consists of flatter velocity profiles and lower temperature gradient, which improves its performance. Narrower residence time and thermal time distributions can be obtained by increasing the mixing between the fluid elements of different age groups and temperatures. Innovative Heat Exchanger also finds extensive use owing to the cross-sectional mixing induced by centrifugal force. Uniform thermal environment is an extremely desirous factor for the improved performance of any heat exchanger. Presently, shell and tube heat exchangers, plate type exchangers and helical pipe exchangers are in practice in the process industries.

The idea of the innovative heat exchanger is based on the concept of centrifugal force. In the present device technique has been innovated for the effective utilization of the centrifugal force to advantage. The flow generated in this device due to curvature of a stationary surface bounding the flow changes direction continuously causing a local deflection of the velocity vector. This results in complex secondary flows, which is one of the principal features of fluid flow in this device. The new flow geometry is capable of rotating the plane of vortex formation by any angle thereby exploiting the advantage of centrifugal force. The occurrence of this phenomenon increases mixing between the fluid elements of different age groups and temperatures. This leads to considerable increase in the heat transfer coefficient.

After the technical discussion with the management and technical group in Fertilizer industry, various potential areas where this innovative heat exchanger can replace the existing heat exchangers were identified. Some of which are: In Ammonia plants:Methanator feed preheater, CO2 strip reboil/shift effluent coolers feed gas, CO2 stripper overhead trim cooler, Lean-solution cooler (Air cooler), CO2 stripper condenser air cooler, CO2 ejector steam generator, CO2 ejector steam reboiler, NH3 refrigeration condenser, Lean solution/BFW exchanger and in the Urea plants: Distillation pre-heater, HP hydrolyzer preheater and Distillation tower reboiler.

There is 15 – 20 % improvement in heat transfer with 60-70 % reduction in the exchanger area as compared to shell and tube heat exchanger. This device has two-fold advantage of intensifying the convective transfer processes (i.e. increase heat and mass transfer coefficients) and also provide increased transfer area per unit volume of space. It offers higher film coefficient (i.e. the rate at which heat is transferred through a wall from one fluid to another) and more effective use of available pressure drop result in efficient and less expensive designs. The Innovative Heat Exchanger geometry permits handling of high temperatures and extreme temperature differentials without high-induced stresses or costly expansion joints. The compact size provides a distinct benefit and ease of fabrication and its performance is substantially closer to plug flow system.

It can, not only work as a heat exchanger but also as inline mixer, separation devices and in chemical reactor. It has a variety of applications: in coiled membranes blood oxygenators, kidney dialysis devices due to their effectiveness in reducing concentration polarization, chemical reactors due to increased residence time and minimized axial dispersion, heat exchangers, cryogenic systems, bio-sensors, clean steam generators, natural gas heaters, freeze condensers, chromatographic columns, sample coolers and room heaters. (PIB Feature).