Tata Education and Development Trust donate a whooping $50 million to US

Tata Education and Development Trust, a philanthropic entity of the Tata Group, has decided to donate a whooping $50 million (about Rs 240 crore at current exchange rates) to the prestigious Cornell University in New York.

University President David Skorton has called this donation coming from Tata as "one of the most generous endowments ever received from an international benefactor by an American university."

An agreement in this regard was signed by Ratan Tata, head of the Tata Group, and David Skorton, president of the Cornell University early this week. Ratan Tata is an alumnus of the university. Skorton made this announcement during the course of his State of the University Address on October 17.

The $50 million (about Rs 240 crores) is expected to give a major boost to the research and other activities of this private university located in Ithaca, New York. The university's entire endowment for international financial aid is about $1.5 million per year.

As per the agreement, the endowment consists of $25 million to establish the Tata-Cornell Initiative in Agriculture and Nutrition. This will contribute to advances in nutrition and agriculture for India, the university said.

The goal of the new agriculture initiative is to improve the productivity, sustainability and profitability of India's food system, with the aim of reducing poverty and malnutrition, said Alice Pell, Cornell vice provost for international relations.

The advisory board to be set up for this purpose would be co-chaired by Ratan Tata.

The remaining $25 million of the endowment would be used for the Tata Scholarship Fund for Students from India. This is to help attract more of the best and brightest students to Cornell from India. The scholarships will be offered to between six and 10 students annually, depending on level of need, and could ultimately support up to 25 Tata scholars at Cornell at any one time.

Mohan Sehgal

Original article at :

Tata Education and Development Trust donate a whooping $50 million to US

Sensex tumbled to lowest levels in nearly three years

Joining a global equity rout on worries about a sharp global recession, domestic indices fell to their lowest levels in nearly three years on "Black Friday" as the benchmark BSE 30 Share Sensex tumbled by 1070.63 points to close at 8701.07.

The index had last tumbled below 9000 in November 2005.

The sell off began in the morning session itself led by realty, oil and gas, bank and metal stocks as the half yearly review of the Reserve Bank of India disappointed the markets, which were expecting some more measures from the central bank to expand liquidity in the system.

Signalling what could be a dark Diwali on Dalal Street, as many as 350 securities hit their all-time lows.

These included big names like Reliance Power, Cipla, Ranbaxy, Ambuja Cement, Hindalco, Jet Airways, Suzlon Energy, Idea Cellular and realty majors DLF Ltd. and Unitech.

The RBI had announced a slew of measures to assuage markets in the last one month, including the repo rate cut by 100 basis points four days back and a cut in the Cash Reserve Ratio a portion of the deposits that banks have to keep as a reserve to 6.5 per cent from October 11.

However, the sell off intensified with the domestic as well as the foreign funds hammering Indian stocks in line with its Asian peers whose stocks tumbled on fears of a severe global downturn.

In the bloodbath, 20 stocks from the 30 Share Sensex fell more than 10 per cent. This was the steepest fall in any single trading session after a 1,408-point plunge on January 21 this year. A broader index, the NSE 50 Share Nifty, lost 359.15 points to close at 2584. The Sensex fell 1204.88 points at the day's low of 8566.82 in late trade, its lowest level since November 23, 2005. Nifty hit a low of 2525.05 in late trade, its lowest level since November 11, 2005.

Meanwhile, announcing its stance of monetary policy for the remaining period of 2008-09, the RBI kept all the key rates unchanged even as it lowered its 2008-09 growth forecast to 7.5 per cent to 8 per cent from a previous forecast of around 8 per cent.

"The global downturn may be deeper, and the recovery longer than expected earlier," said RBI Governor D. Subbarao, here. The central task for the conduct of monetary policy has become more complex than before, with increasing priority being given to financial stability. The current challenge, according to Dr. Subbarao, is to strike an optimal balance between preserving financial stability, maintaining price stability, anchoring inflation expectations and sustaining the growth momentum.

European shares the U.K., French and German lost between 8.1 and 9.79 per cent on data suggesting Britain would enter a prolonged recession.

The rupee breached the historic 50 mark intra day against the U.S. dollar on sustained demand for the greenback amid its sharp rise against major currencies. It, however, recovered after the announcement of the monetary policy review and closed the day a little lower at 49.95/96.

Mohan Sehgal

Original article at : Sensex tumbled to lowest levels in nearly three years

New zero emission hydrogen fuel cell car by Honda Motors

Honda Motor Co has begun commercial production of its new zero-emission, hydrogen fuel cell car, called the FCX Clarity.

The midsize four-seat sedan, which runs on hydrogen and electricity, emits only water vapour and none of the gases believed to be responsible for global warming.

Honda says the vehicle offers two times better fuel efficiency than a gas-electric hybrid and three times that of a traditional gasoline-powered vehicle.

The car will initially be available for lease starting July to a limited number of customers in southern California and then in Japan later this year.

Honda says it expects to lease a few dozen units in the US and Japan within a year, and about 200 units within three years.

One of the biggest obstacles standing in the way of wider adoption of fuel cell vehicles is cost and the lack of hydrogen fueling stations.

Mohan Sehgal

Original article at :

New zero emission hydrogen fuel cell car by Honda Motors

Omar Abdullah politician from Kashmir enter Bollywood in 'Mission Istanbul'

National Conference president Omar Abdullah, is all set for his Bollywood debut in Mission Istanbul. It's a first ever for any politician. The scion of the first political family of Kashmir,

Omar Abdullah says 'I have played myself in the movie', which stars Sunil Shetty, Vivek Oberoi and Zayed Khan. The movie is based on terrorism, in which Omar talks about the ill effects of terror and its reflections on the Valley, which has had its own tryst with bloodshed for nearly two decades.

Omar Abdullah , who survived countless assassination attempts, talks about how global terrorism at this point of time is "dangerous for Kashmir" where normalcy is returning. "I have given an interview in the movie reflecting on the dangers of terrorism, particularly in reference to Kashmir."

Omar Abdullah further says, "You don't see anything good happening in Kashmir; all you report is death and destruction."

Omar is eagerly waiting to see himself on the big screen. He agreed to "act" in the movie as a favour to his school friend.

Mission Istanbul is a mix of violence, politics and terrorism, and is scheduled to be released next month.

Mohan Sehgal

Original article at : Omar Abdullah politician from Kashmir enter Bollywood in 'Mission Istanbul'

After Big B its Ram Gopal Varma to turn Blogger

The latest to mount the blogwagon is none other than our own Ram Gopal Verma. Ramu, who has taken to blogging at Amitabh Bachchan's behest, reportedly loves the blog experience.

Ramu, who earlier had sworn that he would never blog, has started his own blog site. He says in his blog entry, "But blogging sounded like so much fun. It sounded like a very naughty activity."

"Besides, everyone who is worth anything these days is blogging. I couldn't be left out, could I?" reasons the man who loves to do the unpredictable.

Varma admits Big B influenced him to take to blogging. In fact, the super star urged the director to take the plunge.

"At first I laughed off the very thought of starting my own blog. I kept wondering how Amitji would sustain the blog on a day-to-day basis. Then I saw how passionately devoted he was to it. I grew interested," said Varma.

However, Varma's intentions and purpose are very different from Big B. he says, "The Big B's big blog is a full on day-to-day affair. He talks about his day-to-day activities. I think he basically sees it as a platform to express his thoughts unhampered and to communicate his thoughts with his audience. I won't be going to my blog site every day."

Well, Ramu's blog comes a week before the release of his "Sarkar Raj" on June 6. Just the right time to promote his film! Well, when his contemporaries like Aamir, SRK and Salman bank on blog, then why would our Ramu be far behind

Mohan Sehgal

Original article at : After Big B its Ram Gopal Varma to turn Blogger

EMRAAN HASHMI KISSING CHEERLEADER'S AT IPL MATCH

Emraan Hashmi is rarely away from the news, most of it controversial. According to him, the"serial kisser" tag seems to be too heavy a price he is paying for kissing on screen. After all, there have been other actors who kissed on screen.

Recently, ex-cricketer and commentator Navjot Singh Sidhu commented on Emraan's kissing act with cheerleaders during an Indian Premier League match. According to Sidhu, instead of banning cheerleaders from IPL matches, Emraan should be banned from kissing on screen. Bored of the hype over his kiss, Emraan said, "I think the censor board is capable of deciding what scenes should be cut from a film. I do not think he is capable of deciding what should remain and what shouldn't."

As for kissing during the IPL match, when Emraan reached the venue, perhaps the cheerleaders couldn't contain themselves and kissed him in public. Having nothing to say about it, Emraan said, "You need to ask them why they kissed me. I think this is being blown out of proportion."

Emraan had declared while shooting for his last flick, Awaarapan, that he would not kiss on screen. However, his latest release Jannat has him doing what he's best known for. Ask him to comment on that and Emraan says, "I lied then. Forgive me."

In Video IMRAN HASHMI AT IPL MATCH HYDERABAD

IMRAN HASHMI AT IPL MATCH HYDERABAD - Entertainment Videos

Emraan Hashimi Refutes to Navjot Singh Sidhu - Entertainment Videos

Mohan Sehgal

Original article at : EMRAAN HASHMI KISSING CHEERLEADER'S AT IPL MATCH

Juhi Chawla Kolkata Knight Riders co-owner says, IPL exciting but also stressful

On being asked whether she prefers Shah Rukh as a friend, as a co-actor or as a business partner, Juhi flashed her million-dollar smile and replied, "I like Shah Rukh everywhere! He is a sharp person and great fun to be with. He is great in whatever he does and, yes, he is truly a joy."

Besides acting, it is her involvement in the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches that sets her pulse racing. Juhi, who is co-owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders team along with Shah Rukh, said, "IPL is really exciting, but it is also stressful for me."

Dressed in a simple kurti and pants with no accessories, Juhi spoke about her recently released film. The initial response to the film has not been good, but Juhi asserted that it was being appreciated the world over. "I am so happy that the film is being appreciated. I had a great time working with the child (Aman Siddiqui) and Amitji (Amitabh Bachchan), and it is a special film for me," she said. Since the film was centred on Amitabh and Aman, didn't she feel overshadowed? "I have been asked about this many times but, frankly, I could neither have played the ghost nor the child! So, there is nothing like being overshadowed in the film. I feel that as long as we play our given parts well, we are noticed and our work is also appreciated," Juhi said.

Talking about her future projects, Juhi said she was playing the role of a fortune-teller in Aziz Mirza's Kismet Konnection. 'It's a small role but a very different one,' she said.

Mohan Sehgal

Original article at : Juhi Chawla Kolkata Knight Riders co-owner says, IPL exciting but also stressful