Month: December 2013

Commercial real estate segment to remain subdued: CBRE

by

Demand for commercial real estate is likely to remain subdued in the medium term as corporates continue to be in a consolidation mode while excess supply may put pressure on capital and rental values, property consultant CBRE said today.

The economic downturn has subdued office and retail markets that has affected sales and put pressure on capital values as well across major cities, CBRE South Asia Chairman and Managing Director Anshuman Magazine said in a statement.

Internet might not necessarily help you save more: Study

by

Despite providing a fast and easy way of comparing products and purchase them, Internet might not be necessarily helping consumers save the extra dollar, a new survey has revealed.

The survey conducted for MoneyRates.com by Op4G suggests that the Internet may actually be a mixed blessing for consumers who want to save money this holiday season.

Americans fail to repeat tongue twister ‘pad kid poured curd pulled cold’

by

While studying the brain’s speech-planning processes, researchers found that Americans find it hard to repeat the phrase “pad kid poured curd pulled cold”.

For research proposes, lead researcher Dr Stefanie Shattuck-Hufnagel, from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston , asked participants to repeat the tongue twister 10 times at a fast lick, News.com.au reported.

The study found that many of the participants clammed up and stopped talking altogether. (ANI)

India needs an electronics manufacturing base: PM

by

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Thursday India needs to develop a strong domestic manufacturing base in electronics and telecommunications to arrest the import bill for such equipment. He also added that the usage of internet is quite low in the country and “this is a challenge that should worry all of us”.

Meet US couple who have had 18 weddings till now

by

In an attempt to keep to romance alive in their marriage, a couple from Tucson, Arizona, have tied the knot 18 times in places like Scotland, the Bahamas and Maui, among others.

According to Arizona Daily Star, when Roberta O’Key and Chris O’Key went on their first honeymoon, they decided to get married every year after Roberta made a casual comment wishing they could replicate newlywed bliss year by year.

The couple, who will soon celebrate their 19th anniversary, recite different vows every year in front of a pastor and sometimes a photographer.

Parrot drones vulnerable to ‘hack attack’

by

A security researcher has created a flying contraption that can hijack Parrot drones due to its entirely insecure network, which is one of the industry’s leading manufacturers.

Samy Kamkar said it was easy to hijack the company’s products as they do not support a way of authenticating their Wi-Fi data, the BBC reports.

According to the report, the company is looking into the allegation.

Meanwhile, the experts said Parrot appeared to have ignored well-known guidelines.

Have to do 100 crore films to be commercially viable: Priyanka

by

Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra says it is necessity to be part of 100 crore films in order to be commercially viable in the industry.

“I always try to do films which I find interesting. But, we also have to be part of the 100 or 200 crore films to be commercially viable, so that we can go and do women oriented films. It is a give and take thing,” Priyanka said today.

The 31-year-old actress lamented that till date no female-centric Bollywood film has made it to the elite 100 crore club.

J&K DG prisons reviewed Srinagar Central Jail security

by

Jammu and Kashmir Director General of prisons has reviewed security of the Central Jail here and directed the jail authorities to provide all assistance to the inmates and their visitors as laid down under the jail manual.

K Rajendra Kumar visited the Central Jail Srinagar yesterday and chaired a security review meeting which was attended by senior CRPF officers, Srinagar Deputy Commissioner Farooq Ahmad Shah, SSP Srinagar S A H Bukhari and SP Central Jail Mohammad Ayub, a police spokesman said today.

India win toss, elect to bowl against South Africa

by

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and elected to bowl in the first cricket one-dayer against South Africa here today.

India are playing the same side which beat West Indies in the final of a home series last month.
For South Africa, Dale Steyn and Jacques Kallis are back in the side.

Teams:

India: MS Dhoni (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohd. Shami, Mohit Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar

It is our job to build Indian football: Bhutia

by

Former India captain Bhaichung Bhutia Thursday said it was for the state associations, clubs and federations to build up Indian football and not rely on outside help.

Bhutia speaking on the sidelines of an Etihad and Jet Airways Manchester City football clinic here, said it was great that international clubs are coming to India but the growth in the sport needs to take place indigenously.

“Clubs, state associations and federations need to get serious and promote football. It is our job and no one else’s to make the game grow and produce better players,” Bhutia told reporters.

Sensex ends with 250-pt gain after exit poll results

by

After galloping over 450 points on exit polls predicting gains for the BJP in key state elections, the benchmark Sensex today closed below 21,000-mark as profit booking curbed the rise to about 250 points.

Banking, capital goods and PSU shares were the leaders as nine 9 of the 13 sectoral indices on the BSE rose. However, healthcare, FMCG and IT shares fell.

The Sensex, which lost 189.30 points in the previous two sessions, shot up to day’s high of 21,165.60 before ending at 20,957.81 — a gain of 249.10 points, or 1.20 per cent.

Karnataka to set up Nano Park in Bangalore: Siddaramaiah

by

The Karnataka government plans to establish a ‘Nano Park’ here, which will have nano incubation centre, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said today.

“Our government proposes to establish a state-of-the-art Nano Park in Bangalore, which will have nano incubation centre along with necessary physical infrastructure and support system including common facilities,” Siddaramaih said at the inauguration of ‘6th Bangalore India Nano’ here.

“I’m sure this initiative will give a major fillip to the nanotechnology industry to blossom in the state in the coming years,” he added.

We seek consensus on important legislation: PM

by

As a controversy rages on a bill to curb communal violence, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Thursday his government was making efforts to build consensus on “all matters of legislative importance”.

His comments came after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi wrote to him seeking “wider consultation” on the bill.

Communal Violence Bill: Congress, BJP spar over Modi’s critical letter, tweets

by

The ruling Congress Party and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday engaged in verbal sparring over Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s critical letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and on a series of tweets that labelled the government’s proposed Communal Violence Bill suspicious, violative of the Indian federal structure, malafide and guilty of framenting or polarising society.

Toyota Kirloskar sales up 12 per cent in November

by

Toyota Kirloskar Motor’s total sales went up by a little over 12 per cent in November at 12,748 units. The company had sold 11,357 units in the same month last year.

Domestic sales of the company dipped slightly to 10,208 units in November this year compared to 10,352 units in the same month last year.

“The market continues to be sluggish and market sentiments are not expected to improve in the coming months,” said company’s Deputy Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer (Marketing and Commercial) Sandeep Singh.

GM India sales fall 14.14% in November

by

General Motors India on Monday reported a 14.14 per cent decline in sales at 6,214 units in November 2013.

The company had sold 7,238 units in the same month of 2012, GM India said in a statement.

Last month’s sales included 2,151 units of Beat, 1,206 units of multi-purpose vehicle Enjoy and 1,347 units of Tavera, it added.

Commenting on sales performance, GM India Vice-President P Balendran said: “As expected, the market has gone down drastically after a small spike during the festive season.”

Ghulam Nabi Azad meets Mamata to discuss health projects

by

Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to discuss various health projects in the state.

Azad said they discussed setting up of a new medical college in the state, as well as a cancer hospital and a super-speciality hospital.

“It was a very good discussion. Once these projects start, Bengal would be benefited immensely,” Azad told reporters after the meeting.

A new 200-bedded super-speciality block would be built at the Calcutta Medical College at an estimated cost of Rs 120 crore, he added.

—PTI

Bajaj Auto bike sales decline 14.69% in November

by

Bajaj Auto Ltd (BAL) on Tuesday reported a decline of 14.69 per cent in motorcycle sales at 2,78,703 units in November 2013.

The company had sold 3,26,727 units in the corresponding month last year, Bajaj Auto Ltd (BAL) said in a statement.

BAL said exports were up 8 per cent during the month at 1,33,731 units compared to 1,24,115 units in November 2012.

In the commercial vehicles category, the company said its sales stood at 31,888 units as against 45,566 units in the same month last year, a decline of 30 per cent.

Muzaffaranagar riots: Gangrape victim deposes before court

by

A riot victim living at a relief camp who was gangraped by two youths deposed before a local court in Muzaffarnagar and recorded her statement. The 20-year-old victim has alleged that she was gangraped by two youths and threatened for life if she mentioned the incident to anyone.

The victim’s statement was recorded in Court, following which a Special Investigation Team (SIT) filed a chargesheet against the two accused. The girl, whose family was displaced from their home at Fugana village, was allegedly raped on November 2.

Honda Cars to hike prices of entire range from January

by

Honda Cars India Ltd (HCIL) is looking to hike prices of its entire product range in the country from the first week of January as it aims to partially offset the effects of adverse exchange rate and inflation.

“We are looking to hike prices from the beginning of January. The price hike will be across our entire model range comprising Amaze, Brio, CR-V and Accord,” said HCIL Senior Vice-President Jnaneshwar Sen.

When asked about the quantum of increase in prices, Sen said the company is “still working on the details”.

NY businesswoman wants to change city into ‘Chinese Disneyland’

by

A businesswoman in Long Island in New York is wanting to build a massive ‘Chinese Disneyland’ in the Catskills.

The Disneyland would include an amusement park, huge mansions and a ‘Forbidden City’ laid out according to the principles of Feng Shui.

The China City of America scheme could bring thousands of wealthy Chinese immigrants to the town of Thompson, under a federal program that lets foreigners get visas by investing $500,000 in the US, the New York Post reports.

UP govt transfers 9 IPS officers

by

Uttar Pradesh government on Thursday transferred nine IPS officers, an official sources said in Lucknow. Promoted to Additional Director General of Police (ADG) from Inspector General(IG)-Security Vishwajeet Mahapatra has been posted as ADG-Human Rights, while ADG/IG (CB-CID) DL Ratnam has been posted as ADG-PIC Sitapur, he said.

ADG technical services Bhavesh Kumar Singh has been shifted to personnel department. He would be replaced by IG (law and order) R K Vishwakarma.

Indian woman dies of burn injuries in Australia

by

An Indian woman died here of burn injuries she sustained in a fire accident at her house earlier this week, a leading daily reported Thursday.

Parwinder Kaur, 32, who came to Sydney from India with her husband five years ago, died of her burn injuries Tuesday at a hospital in Sydney.

She suffered 85 percent burns on her body in the incident Dec 2 (Monday), Sydney Morning Herald reported Thursday.

Police are investigating the incident. Kaur had called on 000 (helpline number) for help on the day of the incident.