India / All Themes
Saudi SABIC, Chinese Sinopec plan to expand their cooperation
04.07.2008 03:24
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Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) and China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) are reportedly planning to expand their cooperation in an ethylene derivatives complex in the northern Chinese port of Tianjin. SABIC may raise its investment in the project to four billion dollars, instead of 1.7 billion dollars initially agreed between the two firms last January. Saudi Basic Industries Corp, which is one of the biggest petrochemical companies in the world, wishes to gain a solid foothold in the fast growing Chinese petrochemical sector. The project is considered an important component in the corporate strategy of the giant Saudi company to expand in China which imports half the petrochemicals its booming economy needs.SABIC already has a strong relationship with Sinopec Corp. and Chinese engineers from Sinopec Corp. are currently helping to construct a world-scale polyolefins complex for SABIC affiliate Yanbu National Petrochemicals Company in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia Ethylene is the basic building-block for petrochemical products ranging from plastics to paints and synthetic fabrics. (ANI)
India
Economics & Finance
Indian shares provisionally end 4.45 percent lower
04.07.2008 03:24
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Indian shares slid on Thursday after global oil prices climbed to a record above 144 dollars a barrel, spooking markets across the region, and rattled by U.S. economic woes. Indian shares provisionally fell 4.45 per cent on Thursday, led by ICICI Bank and Reliance Industries, as record oil prices and political uncertainty rattled investors. Traders said political concerns also kept investors edgy, with the government wooing a regional party for support if the communists withdrew their parliamentary votes in protest against a civilian nuclear deal with the United States. “This is panic selling whenever there is political instability the market fluctuates like today morning it went down 700 points,” said Ramesh Padmanabhan, an investor. While some investors expressed apprehension over the current market trends. “Still the market is in negative sentiments we don't see any change and that is what we can see the reaction today itself. Yesterday it was 700 plus today it is right now 700 minus so the effect has been neutralized,” said Siddharth Akuawala, another investor. The 30-share Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) index provisionally closed 607.88 points lower at 13,056.74. The 50-issue National Stock Exchange (NSE) index provisionally fell 4.2 per cent to 3,920.45. Oil, India's biggest import, hit records for the fifth time in six sessions, as the dollar fell on the gloomy U.S. jobs data, and a higher expected fall in U.S. crude stocks raised supply concerns. Apart from the record oil prices, the Dow Jones index closed more than 20 per cent below its October peak on Wednesday, slipping into a bear market after a report showed U.S. private employers cut the most jobs in nearly six years, intensifying concerns about the health of the economy. (ANI)
India
Economics & Finance
Left to decide on modalities of withdrawing support from UPA
04.07.2008 03:24
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The Left parties will meet here today to decide on the modalities of withdrawing support from the UPA government even as the Third Front i.e. UNPA, led by the Samajwadi Party asserted its unity yesterday after a crucial meeting. Though the UNPA said that it was yet to decide whether to give support to the UPA or not, in political circles it is assumed that the SP leaders Mulayam Singh Yadav and Amar Singh would succeed in persuading other UNPA constituents, including the INLD, TDP, etc. in extending their support to the Congress-led UPA. Ahead of today’s meeting, the CPI leaders said that the Left parties would decide the modalities for further course of action on the issue of withdrawing support to the government. Meanwhile, the UNPA leaders wanted a national debate on the nuclear issue. INLD chief Om Prakash Chautala yesterday said: “On Indo-US civil nuclear deal many things have been said but our stand from day one has been same. For us, it's a matter of national concern, but Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh said that it's a matter of the cabinet. But people of the country are suspicious about the deal, as they fear it might compel them to live under the US domination. The government should explain the deal to the people. It should be made a matter of national debate.” If the Left parties withdraw their support, the government needs the support of the SP to avoid losing a vote of confidence in parliament and facing an early election. Fearing that early elections could pave the way for the BJP to come to power, the SP has hinted it is willing to negotiate with the Congress-led government. The Indo-US nuclear deal, which gives India access to US nuclear fuel and technology, is potentially worth billions of dollars to U.S. and European nuclear supplier companies and would give India more energy alternatives to drive a booming, trillion-dollar economy. (ANI)
India
Social Life
RJD national executive meet in Patna today
04.07.2008 02:39
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A crucial meeting of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) national executive will be held here today to chalk out party's strategy in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls. Earlier, the party had formed a committee to plan the party's political, economic and foreign policy drafts in view of the polls. Senior RJD leader and Union Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, who chairs the committee, will prepare the foreign policy draft. Senior party members Jagtanand Singh, Ram Chandra Purve, Shyam Rajak, Mangni Lal Mandal and Akhilesh Singh are included in the committee. Meanwhile, national office bearers and in-charge of respective state units of the party have already been asked to conduct meetings and submit a report to the party chief on how to expand the party base there. After chairing two important meetings of the party core committee and office bearers here on June 28, RJD chief Lalu Prasad had dropped some hints of the possible course of action that that party would take in future. He had indicated at broadening of the alliance of "secular parties" against "communal forces." (ANI)
India
Social Life
Country's seventh IIM starts from today
04.07.2008 02:39
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The first academic session of the country's seventh Indian Institute of Management (IIM), the Rajiv Gandhi Indian Institute of Management (RGIIM) in Shillong, will begin today. Meghalaya Chief Minister Donkupar Roy will inaugurate the first batch of Post Graduate Diploma in Management in the presence of Chairman, Board of Governors, RGIIM, professor R N Dutta, Chairman Headstrong Inc USA and founder member of HCL Arjun Malhotra and Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister T K Nair. The institute will commence its first academic session in Nongthymmai in Shillong, which previously housed the North Eastern Hill University. Work will soon commence on a 120-acre site for construction of the permanent campus. The institute will conduct courses in Post-Graduate Diploma in Business Management, fellowship programme in management, management development programmes, tourism and hospitality management, tele-services and telemedicine, information systems and technology and subjects of local relevance such as tourism, horticulture and hydel power. For its flagship programme, Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management (PGDBM), the Institute envisages an annual student intake capacity of 60 in the first year, which would be increased to 120 in the third year and 180 in the sixth year. (ANI)
India
Social Life
Police kills operation chief of Lashkar-e-Toiba
04.07.2008 02:38
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Police on Thursday eliminated two top militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) outfit including its operation chief in an encounter at Naina Batpora in Pulwama district. Addressing a press conference after the successful operation, Inspector General of Police Kashmir Zone S. M. Sahai said that after receiving specific information about the presence of two dreaded LeT militants in Naina Batpora Sangam, Anantnag Police launched an operation today along with Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and 55 Rashtriya Rifles (RR). The IGP said that when the area was being searched the police parties they were fired upon by the militants and also grenades were lobbed on them. The Police parties retaliated and in the ensuing encounter two dreaded militants of LeT namely Abu Atif alias Shadak, resident of Gujranwalian Pakistan and Syed Moin, resident of Pakistan were killed. Large quantity of arms and ammunition including two AK rifles and magazine were recovered from the slain militants. The killed militant Atif was active in the area for the last ten years and presently was operational chief of LeT outfit not only for valley but for carrying-planning attacks in different parts of the country. He was instrumental in attack on CRPF personnel at Rampur, and at Science Congress in Bangalore by supplying arms to the militants who attacked it. Besides killing of Station House Officer Police Station Pampore, Inspector Manzoor Ahmad in the year 2006 and killing of a computer operator Qazi at Pampore, he was also responsible for killing of at least fifty civilians and security force personnel in South Kashmir Range. IGP further said that Atif was also responsible for grenade attack on tourists in Shalimar and Charsoo Sangam. This is a big blow to the militant organisation. Another militant killed was his body guard. (ANI)
India
Social Life
Five PULF militants formally surrender before chief minister
04.07.2008 02:38
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Five cadres of different factions of the People's United Liberation Front (PULF) have surrendered formally with arms and ammunition before Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh on Wednesday. On the occasion, the Chief Minister said that violence and killing were not the ultimate solution to the conflict situation in Manipur. Of the five cadres, three surrendered through the SP, Imphal east district police while the remaining two through the SP, Thoubal district police. The three who surrendered through the SP, Imphal east were Mohammad Amu alias Tayb Ali (33), Mohammad Ramijuddin (20), and Mohammad Riyajuddin alias Ibai alais Rohid (25). Amu surrendered with a Thomson carbine and magazine, a 9 mm pistol with magazine and six live rounds. He had joined the outfit in the year 2005 through a self-styled deputy finance secretary, Safi and got military training at Kasom, Ukhrul district under the National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) and served the outfit as self-styled project director. Ramijuddin who surrendered with an AK-56 rifle and 30 rounds of ammunition joined the outfit through self-styled DC Mohammad Malik of PULF (MI) faction and worked under him. Mohammad Riyajuddin joined PULF (Azad) group in January 2007 and got military training at old Mandu, Tamenglong district in the same year. He surrendered with two 9 mm pistols with seven rounds of ammunition, which was issued to him by the self-styled finance in-charge Ithem of Azad faction. They surrendered to the SP, Imphal East police on July 2, June 29 and July 1 respectively. The last two cadres who surrendered through the Thoubal district police, SP were Mohammad Hafizuddin alias Mohammad Alimuddin alias Inao (26), and Loubuktongbam Mohammad Amu alias Boby (22). Both hail from Sora Mamang Leikai of Thoubal district. The duo surrendered to the SP, Thoubal district police on June 9 this year. Even though cadres of different factions of PULF are performing prejudicial activities with arms, so far the group has not been declared as an outlawed organization. The government is considering declaring the group as a proscribed one, the Chief Minister said today during the surrender ceremony held at his official bungalow. The chief minister said that almost all the surrendered people were absorbed in government jobs suited for them. Those who qualified for joining as constables or riflemen were accommodated in the police department, IRB and Manipur Rifles, he said. Even those who were not physically fit for being constables or riflemen were considered for absorption as grade-IV or followers in the police department, he added while reiterating that maximum benefits were being given to the surrenderees. Ibobi Singh also once again said that the underground can hold political dialogue with the Centre or with the state government according to their wish for peace in the state as everybody was yearning for peace. Several ministers of the Ibobi led SPF government, top officials of the state police department, SP of Imphal west L Kailun, Imphal east Thoubal Radheshyam and Thoubal Clay Khongsai and SP CID, SB, Achin attended the function during which the state DGP Y Joykumar read out the names and details of the weapons surrendered by the cadres. (ANI)
India
Social Life
Nuke deal in national interest: Kalam
04.07.2008 02:38
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Former President and scientist A.P.J. Abdul Kalam on Thursday told the Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav that the Indo-US civil nuclear deal was beneficial for the country and they should keep national interest above politics while firming up their stand on the issue. Mulayam Singh Yadav and General Secretary Amar Singh called on former president’s residence after a meeting of United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA) where it was decided to seek the opinion of experts of eminent scientists on the issue before future course of action could be chalked out. “Kalam told us the nuclear deal is in the interest of the nation and without it there is no politics. Kalam has spoken to us, now we will decide in the interest of the nation,” said Yadav. In an effort to ensure that SP is brought to its fold, the government on Wednesday gave special briefing to its leaders Amar Singh and Ram Gopal Yadav on the nuclear deal to address their concerns over the agreement. Singh later said the arguments given by National Security Adviser M K Narayanan to them would be put before the UNPA meeting so that these could be discussed. (ANI)
India
Social Life
Soon, a non-invasive tool to monitor lung cancer treatment progress
04.07.2008 02:38
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Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Centre in Boston are developing a blood test that would help in monitoring lung cancer progression by detecting tumour cells circulating in the bloodstream. With the new non-invasive technique, doctors would be able to perform genetic tests on these spreading cancer cells and help them decide the treatment that would be most effective in inhibiting tumours. “If they can scale this up for commercial use, it could be a marked breakthrough,” Nature quoted Joan Schiller, an oncologist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, as saying Tumour cells can enter the bloodstream during even the earliest stages of cancer. Although these cells may not promote new cancers elsewhere in the body, researchers have observed that an increase in the total number of circulating tumour cells can lead to poorer diagnosis in some forms of the disease. In 2007, lead researcher Daniel Haber developed a new way of isolating circulating tumour cells with help of a device that thrusts blood samples through tiny channels. These tiny channels contain microscopic columns coated with an antibody for a protein released by epithelial cells. Tumour cells hook onto the columns, allowing them to be separated from the blood. In the present study, involving 27 lung cancer patients, Haber’s team isolated the circulating tumour with the help of their device. They are now using those tumour cells to carry out genetic tests in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer. Some non-small-cell lung cancer tumours have a mutation in a protein called epidermal growth factor receptor. The mutation makes the protein vulnerable to drugs that inhibit receptor and stall tumour progression. Currently used technique for lung tumour biopsies involve inserting fine needle into the tumour and drawing off a small number of cells. “It’s not just a needle stick, it’s an invasive procedure — it's painful,” said Haber. They researchers could isolate an average of about 100 cells for every millilitre of blood they analysed. While comparing the genetic makeup of the circulating tumour cells with the biopsies, the researchers found that analysis of the circulating tumour cells matched the biopsy 92pct of the time. Haber said that the new technique not quite ready for clinical use. For now, the procedure is slow and laborious, and the collaborators are working to optimize the device for high-throughput use. The results are published in the New England Journal of Medicine. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
Imbalance of key brain chemical linked to crib deaths
04.07.2008 02:38
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A pioneering study has found that an imbalance of a key brain chemical could cause crib death, better known as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) – a finding that could one day lead to babies being screened to identify those at high risk of the devastating and inexplicable syndrome. SIDS is a condition that unexpectedly and unexplainably takes the lives of seemingly healthy babies aged between a month and a year. Now researchers of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Monterotondo, Italy, have developed a mouse model of the so-called crib or cot death, which remains the leading cause of death during the first year of life in developed countries. The model reveals that an imbalance of the neuronal signal serotonin in the brainstem is sufficient to cause sudden death in mice. The brainstem, the lower part of the brain that forms the link to the spinal cord, coordinates many fundamental functions including control over cardiovascular and respiratory systems. Victims of SIDS show alterations in those brainstem neurons that communicate using the signalling molecule serotonin. Cornelius Gross and his group at the EMBL Mouse Biology Unit modified the serotonin system of mice to understand the role of this signalling molecule in the brainstem. They overexpressed an important receptor that regulates serotonin signalling, called serotonin 1A autoreceptor. "At first sight the mice were normal. But then they suffered sporadic and unpredictable drops in heart rate and body temperature. More than half of the mice eventually died of these crises during a restricted period of early life. It was at that point that we thought it might have something to do with SIDS," said Gross. Until now it was unclear how changes in serotonin signalling in the brainstem of SIDS infants are involved in sudden death. The findings in the mouse show that deficits in serotonin signalling in the brainstem can be sufficient to cause sudden death and strongly support the idea that a congenital serotonin defect could play a critical role in SIDS. Serotonin neurons in the brainstem communicate to nerve cells in the spinal cord that innervate the heart and organs involved in temperature regulation such as brown fat tissue. This signalling is defective in the mouse model of SIDS. For example, when placed into a cold chamber the animals cannot properly activate brown fat tissue to produce heat. This inability to activate fundamental body systems under certain conditions is likely to explain why the mice succumb to sudden death. While a complete block of serotonin signalling does not lead to death, upsetting its intricate balance by overexpressing serotonin 1A autoreceptor can. In response to serotonin the receptor initiates a negative feedback mechanism that reduces serotonin release and dampens down the signal to the body. The researchers caution, however, that it is unlikely that the exact same molecular mechanism leads to SIDS in humans. Nevertheless, the mouse model will help to shed light on how serotonin signalling, when dysfunctional, can be life-threatening. "We hope the mouse model will help identify risk factors for SIDS. One open question is whether like in SIDS, the animals die during sleep and whether we can identify which mice will die by looking at their heart rate or body temperature before the crisis. Ultimately, we hope it will give new ideas to doctors about how to diagnose babies at risk for SIDS," said Enrica Audero, who carried out the research in Gross' lab. The study is published in this week's issue of Science. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
Scientists uncover new target for potential treatment of TB
04.07.2008 02:38
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Scientists have revealed a new target for the potential treatment of tuberculosis, by identifying several molecules that could be developed into drugs to treat the deadly infectious disease. The researchers say that their findings may finally resolve a long-running debate about how the bacterial cell wall is built. Multi drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes TB, sparked concern but the recent emergence of extensively drug-resistant strains (XDR-TB) means the search for new treatments is imperative, the authors noted. Unlike human cells, bacteria have cell walls. Molecules called mycolic acids form a vital part of these walls. To produce them, bacteria carry out several processes but until recently, scientists were unsure of the genes that control each step. One vital step is dehydration - the removal of a water molecule to lengthen the acid chain. Researchers from the University of Birmingham have shown that the gene Rv0636 controls this step, which provides new avenues for the development of treatments for TB. "FAS-II is a group of enzymes that work together to carry out dehydration," said Professor Gurdyal Besra from the University of Birmingham. "We know that the molecules NAS-21 and NAS-91 can stop these enzymes from building cell walls, so we looked at their effect on Mycobacteria. We also wanted to find out if one of the enzymes is coded for by the gene Rv0636." Professor Besra and his colleagues made modifications to NAS-21 and NAS-91, making several analogues based on the original molecules. They then tested these analogues to see if they stopped the enzymes from working. "Both series of compounds demonstrated activity against the FAS-II enzymes alone," said Professor Besra. "When we tested them against live bacterial cells we noticed that some of the analogues stopped the cells from building mycolic acids, which effectively killed them. "We also tested them on bacteria that were overexpressing Rv0636, which meant they were producing extra enzymes. These cells were resistant to NAS-21 and NAS-91, suggesting that the gene Rv0636 does code for an enzyme in the FAS-II complex. So we have solved the mystery,” he added. The researchers have also identified a new class of compounds that could be developed into successful treatments for tuberculosis that are urgently required in the future. "The emergence of drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis has highlighted the need for new TB drugs. We hope our discovery will lead to a new rationale for the design of treatments," said Professor Besra. The study is published in the July issue of Microbiology. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
Researchers shed light on function of glucose transport molecule
04.07.2008 02:38
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A team of scientists at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA have solved the structure of a class of proteins known as sodium glucose co-transporters (SGLTs), which pump glucose into cells – paving the way for improved treatments for diabetes, obesity and cancer. These transport proteins are used in the treatment of chronic diarrhea via oral rehydration therapy, saving the lives of millions of children each year. The research team, led by Jeff Abramson and Ernest Wright of the UCLA Department of Physiology, produced an ‘atomic snap shot’ of an SGLT protein. With the help of a specialized technique known as X-ray crystallography, the researchers generated the first high-resolution, three-dimensional picture of a glucose transport protein. "This was a very challenging study that required innovation at each step of the process," said Abramson. "We literally had to invent new approaches to entice the protein into a crystal and then spent years optimizing these crystals to reach a quality suitable for visualization by X-rays. This would not have been possible without high-throughput protein production and purification capabilities," he added. A tantalizing observation made during the determination of the glucose transporter structure was the possibility for structural similarities with a previously crystallized neurotransmitter transporter molecule. Exploiting these similarities, along with computer modelling of structural dynamics, the researchers obtained the first atomic-level evidence for the mechanism underlying transport of glucose and neurotransmitters (such as serotonin) into cells. These results provide a fundamental understanding of how membrane proteins function in a dynamic manner. Pharmaceutical companies already have extensive clinical trials underway to evaluate the use of inhibitors targeting SGLT1 and SGLT2 proteins to control blood glucose levels in diabetic patients by blocking intestinal glucose absorption and increasing glucose excretion into the urine. The new findings will dramatically enhance the ability to rationally design these drugs. Currently, Wright and Abramson are examining the manner in which inhibitors of the transporter proteins modulate function with the goal of facilitating better drug design for the treatment of diabetes, obesity, and cancer. The study is published in an online edition of the journal Science. (ANI)
India
Health & Beauty
‘Anaconda’, the rubber snake, may revolutionise wave power generation
04.07.2008 02:38
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US scientists have invented the ‘Anaconda’, a device consisting of a giant rubber tube, which may hold the key to producing affordable electricity from the energy in sea waves. The developer of the rubber snake, Checkmate SeaEnergy, describe it as a totally innovative wave energy concept. Its ultra-simple design means it would be cheap to manufacture and maintain, enabling it to produce clean electricity at lower cost than other types of wave energy converter. The Anaconda is closed at both ends, and filled completely with water. It has been designed in such a manner that it can be anchored just below the sea’s surface, with one end facing the oncoming waves. A waves hitting the end squeezes it, and causes a 'bulge wave' to form inside the tube. While the bulge wave runs through the tube, the sea wave that created it runs along the outside of the tube at the same speed, and thereby squeezes the tube further and causes the bulge wave to grow bigger and bigger. A turbine fitted at the far end of the device is turned by the bulge, and the power thus produced is fed to shore through a cable. Since the Anaconda is made of rubber, it is much lighter than other wave energy devices that are primarily made of metal, and dispenses with the need for hydraulic rams, hinges and articulated joints. This characteristic of the device may help reduce capital and maintenance costs, as well as scope for breakdowns. However, this concept is still at an early stage of development, and has only been proven at very small laboratory-scale thus far. Engineers at the University of Southampton are now planning larger-scale laboratory experiments, and novel mathematical studies designed to determine the Anaconda’s potential performance as part of a programme that will be funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). Using tubes with diameters of 0.25 and 0.5 metres, the experiments will assess the Anaconda's behaviour in regular, irregular and extreme waves. Parameters measured will include internal pressures, changes in tube shape, and the forces that mooring cables would be subjected to. The study will also help estimate exactly how much power a full-scale Anaconda would produce. When built, each full-scale Anaconda device would be 200 metres long and 7 metres in diameter, and it will be deployed in water depths of between 40 and 100 metres. "The Anaconda could make a valuable contribution to environmental protection by encouraging the use of wave power. A one-third scale model of the Anaconda could be built next year for sea testing and we could see the first full-size device deployed off the UK coast in around five years' time," says Professor John Chaplin, who is leading the EPSRC-funded project. (ANI)
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