Chennai to be made world class city, says minister

Fri, Aug 22 07:29 PM
Chennai, Aug 22 (IANS) The Tamil Nadu government is committed to developing Chennai as a world class city with matching infrastructure and living standards, a state government minister said here Friday.
'My ministry would take all necessary steps to make Chennai a happening place in the world with respect to infrastructure and other long term planning,' said the state's Information Minister Parithi Ellamvazhuthi.
He was addressing the Chennai Version 3.0, a conference organised by industry lobby Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to mark the 369th anniversary of Chennai's formation.
Speaking on the occasion, R. Sellamuthu, principal secretary, housing and urban department, Tamil Nadu government said that public-private partnership was the key to infrastructure development in the state.
He said that the Government of Tamil Nadu would spend Rs.500 billion in the next 10 years for several infrastructure projects including Metro Rail, elevated express highways and connectivity roads.
'Chennai Version 3.0 aspires to take up the challenge of eradicating illiteracy, unemployment and poverty in the city by 2025,' said G.R.K. Reddy, chairman of CII Chennai Zone.
'The goal is to develop Chennai into a new metropolis which is peaceful and safe, eco-sensitive and modern, yet culturally conscious,' he said.
He said that it is time for the public and private sectors to join hands and come together with a view to make Chennai a source of global innovations - new businesses, new technologies and new business models.
Stressing the importance of inclusive and balanced development engaging people in the lower strata of the society, Kanimozhi, MP, said corporate social responsibility should focus more on providing education and better healthcare for the underprivileged youth.
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2008 Honda FCX Clarity: Hydrogen Power Coming to Honda Dealers

Posted 1/29/2008 3:55 PM
One year after the introduction of its sleek fuel cell-powered FCX concept, Honda's unveiled the production version. The 2008 FCX Clarity uses hydrogen to power its V Flow fuel cell, which charges its lithium ion batteries, which ultimately power the electric motor. The result is a zero-emissions car with seating for five and a range of 270 miles. The interior features plant-derived fabric and other renewable materials. Refueling station limitations confine sales to Southern California residents only, who can enter into a three-year lease for around $600 a month. The FCX Clarity goes on sale in the summer of 2008.

http://www.kbb.com/kbb/LatestNews/Story.aspx?StoryUniqueName=KBBWebContent-2353&CategoryUniqueName=KBBWebContent-2350

Rupee up by 10 paise at 43.42/43 against a dollar

Fri, Aug 22 08:35 PM
Mumbai, Aug 22 (PTI) Continuing its gains for the second day in a row the Indian rupee today closed higher by 10 paise at 43.42/43 against greenback on alternate bouts of buying and selling amidst oil prices' climbing and recovery by US dollar. Dealers said they were anticipating further intervention by the apex bank to contain the sustain fall in the rupee, which hit 17-month intra-trade low of 43.86 on August 20.
However, suspected intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in last two days helped the local currency to recover some lost ground. The local currency today resumed barely steady at 43.53/54 a dollar from overnight close of Rs 43.52/53 a dollar on uncertainty as the benchmark Sensex resumed lower.
However, recovery in equity market where the Sensex rebounded to end up by nearly 158 points on the back of firm European opening helped the rupee gain ground. It touched a high of 43.30 per dollar in late afternoon deals but some dollar buying at lower levels by oil corporates for their import requirements pulled the rupee down to close at Rs 43.42/43 a dollar.
Yesterday, it had gained 18 paise. Dollar recovery from overnight sharp correction against a basket of major currencies today also partly put some pressure on the rupee at the fag end.
Global crude oil prices were trading above USD 120 a barrel in Asian trade today. PTI.

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FINANCIAL EXPERT

HE MAY NOT BE A FINANCIAL EXPERT
Do you feel your stock broker is a wizard? Don’t bet on it, for intelligent and informed as he might appear, he may not quite be the financial expert you think he is. A stock broker is, first and foremost, a sales guy. Now, how’ that?
Arthur Levitt, former chairman of the US securities Exchange Commission tells us in take on the street – how to fight for your financial future, “Brokers may seem like clever financial experts, but they are first and foremost sales people. Many brokers are paid a commission, or a service fee, on every transaction in accounts they manage. They want you to buy stocks you do., because that’s how they make money for themselves and their firms. They earn commissions even when you lose money.”
At times, they are just catering to your inherent need to look for answers on the way the market is moving. Adam Smith (not to be confused with the famous economist) writes in his book, The Money Game, “The investors who really follow the market, the ones who call up all the time, ninety percent of them really don’t care whether they make money or not. “If they make a little money, they’re happy, if they lose a little money, they’re not too unhappy. What they want to do is to call you up. They want to say, ‘How’s my stock? Is it up? Is it down” What about the earnings? What about the merger? What’s going on? And they want to do this everyday, they want a friend, they want someone on the telephone, they want to be a part of what’s going on,” he writes. Somehow, brokers always seem to have an answer to all these questions. Very few will tell you ‘I don’t know’.
Also, no broker ever made money by getting investors to hold on to their investments.
“They could put you in some stock that would go up ten times, but then they would starve to death. They only get commissions when you buy and sell. So they keep you moving, “writes Smith.
Levitt gives the examples of warren buffet to make much the same point. “Warren Buffett, the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Inc and one of the smartest investor I have ever met, knows all about broker conflicts. He likes to point that any broker who recommended buying and holding Berkshire Hathaway stock from 1956 to now would have made his clients fabulously wealthy.
A single share of Berkshire Hathaway purchased for $12 in 1965 would be worth $71,000 as of April 2002. But, any broker who did that would have starved to death.”