Milestone of India - Milestone in Indo - China ties.

BEIJING: On Monday, the People’s Republic of China got its first ashram.

Located a two-hour drive away from here and nestled amid the industrial suburbs of this fast-expanding metropolis, the 165-acre retreat for yoga and meditation was opened by Sri Sri Ravishankar’s Art of Living foundation. Billing itself as the first authentic Indian retreat in a country where spirituality is on the rise, the ashram will offer a range of courses.

“There is a yearning for spiritual thought in today’s China, and this centre will provide people [with] a path to have cleaner, calmer and happier lives,” Sri Sri Ravishankar told The Hindu.

This is his first visit to China. On Monday, he interacted with religious leaders as well as officials of the Communist Party, who had given sanction for the project. The centre will accommodate 160 students at a time. The teachers, who are from all over China, had undergone training in India.

On Sunday, the centre held a ceremony with dance performances and lectures. It was attended by around 500 people. The organisers said they could have received a greater audience “of more than 3,000,” but doing so would have required a special permission from the local authorities.

Interaction

Most of the questions from the Chinese audience in an interaction with Sri Sri Ravishankar on Sunday revolved round how people could deal with the stress of modern life and preserving family values in a society that is being increasingly influenced by Western ideas.

Among those who attended was Man Hu, a middle-aged entrepreneur from Shanghai, who runs a manufacturing plant. “Like everyone else in today’s China, I am under great stress and looking for a way to manage by life in a better way and find some purpose,” she said.

Those connected with the project said they were surprised by the positive response from the authorities, who are usually careful about allowing foreign institutions, particularly those with spiritual leanings, to spread their word in China.

On Monday, Sri Sri Ravishankar met with Chen Haosu, a former vice-minister in the Propaganda Department and the president of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), which invited him to China. “India and China are naturally close, in culture, family values, music and dance,” he told Mr. Chen. “The East has a lot to offer to the world to counter the stress and ills of society that the West is facing.”

“Great expectations”

Mr. Chen said he had “great expectations” of the visit. “We hope this will bring happiness to people. Chinese people have an enthusiasm and passion for Indian culture. In the past 30 years, we have seen fast development of the Chinese economy. Now, people will also require more spiritual activities.”

Sri Sri Ravishankar said the centre would look to engage with the Chinese civil society, and even involve itself, as it has in the United States, Canada and Germany where it has centres, in environmental campaigns such as tree-planting drives. It is also in talks with the local police here to involve itself in a drug rehabilitation programme.

As Sri Sri Ravishankar left Monday’s meeting with Chinese officials, he was surprised by a gift he did not quite expect, and one that was at odds with the message of peace he was looking to bring to China — a bamboo panel with engravings from Sun Tzu’s Art of War.

Milestone of India - india's Exports at new high.

NEW DELHI: Reaching a two-year high, exports registered a jump of 23.2 per cent at $18.02 billion in September compared to the same month last year, while the massive rise in imports raised concerns over widening of the trade gap.

Asserting that India was on track to surpass the $200-billion exports target, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said on Monday that during the April-September period of this fiscal, exports aggregated $103.30 billion, a 27.6 per cent increase compared to last year.
Releasing the trade figures to newsmen here, Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar said the growth could be partly attributed to the low base in the previous year and increasing prices. “This is the first month in which, in the last two years, exports are higher than 2008-09 and 2009-10.''

However, imports outstripped exports growing by 26.1 per cent to $27.14 billion in September compared to the same month in the previous year. Cumulative imports in April-September, 2010, were $166.5 billion, translating into a massive trade gap of $63.2 billion during the six-month period. “We still need to be concerned over the balance of trade deficit,'' Mr. Khullar said.

Crude oil, gems and jewellery and edible oil constitute the major part of the country's import bill. In the first six months, imports of petroleum and related items went up by 54 per cent, gems and jewellery by 21 per cent and engineering items by 41 per cent.

The trade deficit in September alone stood at $9.12 billion, Mr. Khullar said. However, this was lower than the $13-billion deficit in August.

Except for iron ore, electronic items, man-made fibre and handicrafts, exports from other sectors, including gems and jewellery, engineering goods and apparels, witnessed growth.

The Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) expressed concern over the strengthening rupee against the U.S. dollar and said the Reserve Bank of India should intervene to check the volatility. The rupee had appreciated by about 5 per cent against the dollar since January. Mr. Khullar too said the exchange rate would not affect export contracts that had already been entered into with buyers, but might impact future contracts. The sectors that performed well in the April-September period in exports include plastics (34 per cent growth), gems and jewellery (21 per cent), engineering goods (41 per cent), iron-ore (60 per cent), spices (35 per cent), drugs (12 per cent) and chemicals (26 per cent). “In most sectors, we are seeing rebound. Even in areas like textiles,'' he said.

Milestone of India - Girija Pandey, Kanchana donate crores to Lord Balaji at Tirumala.

TIRUPATI: Girija Pandey and Vasundara alias Kanchana, a leading film actress of yesteryear, donated their property in Chennai worth Rs. 15 crore to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) on Monday.

Accompanied by their family members, they handed over the registered documents of the land and building to the Executive Officer of the TTD I. Y. R. Krishna Rao at his official residence here.

According to a TTD release, the property is located on G. N. Chetty Street, a prime commercial area in Chennai. The actors have requested the TTD to construct Kalyana Mandapam or community hall on the site. N. Yuvaraj, Joint Executive Officer, and Seshaiah, Estate Officer, TTD, were present at the brief ceremony.

OM NAMO VENKATESAYA !

Milestone of India - Milestone in Indo - Japan ties.

TOKYO: India and Japan on Monday decided to extend their cooperation to areas such as joint ventures in rare earth minerals, some hitherto unexplored areas in defence, and transport and industrial corridors in south India.

These will build on a recently finalised economic pact, more intimate security ties, two mega infrastructure projects in north-western India and ongoing talks on a nuclear agreement.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Japanese counterpart Naoto Kan, during restricted and delegation-level talks, resolved to continue the talks on a civil nuclear agreement. They instructed officials to ensure the smooth implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and accelerate discussions on the reform of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), to which both countries are aspirants as permanent members.

“In the discussions, the point consistently emphasised was that both India and Japan believe they need to develop a strong, vigorous and an all-encompassing relationship in political, economic and security spheres,” Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao told newspersons after the meeting. She termed the economic pact an alliance between Japanese technology and capital and a young Indian labour force.

Dr. Singh and Mr. Naoto Kan also discussed China.

Ms. Rao said: “Both discussed the need for open and transparent dialogue with China… they agreed that engaging China in more productive dialogue and developing structures of cooperation is the way forward. It requires deep analysis, close engagement and lots of patience… the reality is that both will have to develop in-depth ties with China.”

Both India and Japan would move towards long-term cooperation — including the implementation of joint ventures in rare earth minerals — and denied that this was directed against a third country (China recently halted the export of rare earth minerals to Japan).

On civil nuclear cooperation, India and Japan will hold the third round of talks here in November third week. While Japan is keen on some sort of Indian political commitment on moving closer to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty regime, India has pointed out that its civil nuclear agreement with Japan cannot be materially different from the agreements signed with other countries.

They also touched on trade in high technology, with Dr. Singh hoping that Japan will make its norms in this area “easier and predictable.” India appreciated Japan's paring down of the list of Indian companies on the export control list early this year.

The two countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding on simplifying visa procedures that would supplement the CEPA by catering for India's areas of strength in pharmaceuticals, healthcare personnel and information technology.

Dr. Singh earlier had an audience with the Emperor of Japan and Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara.

Milestone of India - Milestone in Indo - Bangladesh ties.

NEW DELHI: India has decided to export 5 lakh tonnes of rice and wheat to Bangladesh despite ban on outward shipments of the foodgrains. Both nations have also agreed to establish ‘Border Haats' along the Meghalaya-Bangladesh border and open the Chittagong and Mongla ports to boost trade ties.

The two countries have signed $1 billion Line of Credit agreement and some important pacts for power transmission, Union Commerce and Industry Ministry Anand Sharma told journalists after meeting his Bangladeshi counterpart Muhammad Faruk Khan here on Saturday.

“Apart from the Line of Credit, the bulk power transmission agreement and an MoU between NTPC and the Bangladesh Power Development Board have also been signed in the power sector,” he said, and pointed out that after Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's successful visit to India, both countries had been actively engaged in implementing the joint communiqué that reflected the understanding reached between the prime ministers of the two countries.

Mr. Sharma said the two-way trade had the potential to touch $5 billion in the next two years from the current $3 billion. He also announced that arrangements for supply of 3-lakh tonnes of par-boiled rice and 2-lakh tonnes of wheat from India to Bangladesh were being put in place and that the supply would take place soon.

Out of the quota of duty free export of 80-lakh pieces of textiles from Bangladesh to India, around 17-lakh pieces could be exported for the last quarter ending December 2010. A fresh quota of 80-lakh pieces of textiles would be available from January 2011, he added.

The Minister further said both sides had recently visited several land customs stations to review the state of infrastructure. India was now constructing seven integrated check posts and eight land custom stations under a $125-million scheme. The two sides were also in discussion to construct the bridge across Feni to begin trade between Sabroom and Ramgarh, he said.

Milestone of India - Religious, political leaders meet the Archbishop of Canterbur.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Douglas Williams, and wife, Jane Williams, had a hectic day in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday.

The Archbishop's engagements got under way with a dialogue with religious and political leaders in the morning. The religious leaders who met him included the bishops of other churches such as Susaipakiam, Samuel Mar Irenius, Gabriel Mar Gregorios, Vasantha Kumar and Thomas Mar Anthonios. The political leaders who met him included Education Minister M.A. Baby, Public Works Minister M. Vijayakumar, Ports Minister V. Surendran Pillai, and Congress leader V.S. Sivakumar. Swami Jnana Tapaswini of the Shantigiri Ashram, Palayam Imam Moulavi Jamaluddin Mankada, jurist K. Narayana Kurup, M.M. Philip, general secretary, and Bennet Avraham, treasurer of the Church of South India Synod, A. Dharmaraj Rasalam, vice-chairman of the CSI's South Kerala diocese and Col. Jaipaul Devapally of the Salvation Army were among the others who held discussion with him.

The Archbishop had a meeting with the ecumenical youth of the Kerala United Theological Seminary, Kannamoola, and with women in the LMS Compound thereafter.

The highlight of the Archbishop's programmes was a visit to the St. Joseph's cathedral at Palayam. The visit by the head of the Church of England to a church of the Catholic Church was described as a historic event by Church circles here.

The programmes of the day ended with his participation in the graduation ceremony of the Dr. Somervell Memorial CSI Medical College at Karakonam in the district.

He will grace the golden jubilee celebrations of the CSI South Kerala diocese being inaugurated by Uthradam Tirunal Marthanda Varma, head of the royal family of erstwhile Travancore, on Sunday evening.

It will be followed by a cultural programme. Prior to that, he will be participating in a thanks-giving service at the Mateer Memorial church here.

Milestone of India - Tamil Nadu Newsprint net up.

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers has reported a total revenue of Rs. 579.60 crore for the half year ended September 30, 2010 against Rs. 439.93 crore in the same period in the previous year. The profit after tax has spurted to Rs. 82.99 crore from Rs. 36.80 crore.