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Archive for April 14, 2007

Pune’s software exports grow at 66 per cent, touch Rs 15,150 cr

April 14, 2007 at 7:49 am

· City

indianexpress:  Pune’s software exports have hit the high growth trajectory, fetching up at Rs 15,150 crore for the fiscal gone by, a 66 per cent growth over the 2005-06 when it was a modest Rs 9,100 crore.

“Pune’s growth rate of 66 per cent is way above Bangalore’s 34 per cent. It is among the top five software destinations in India as the aggregate billing by the companies this year been on the rise,” P Venugopal, STPI director, Pune and Navi Mumbai said.

Of the 1,000-odd new companies that have been registered in India during this fiscal, 114 companies have set shop in Pune and are projected to contribute exports worth Rs 5,168 crore in the coming five years generating 38,000 jobs in the industry. As on date, there are 7,688 software companies in India of which 708 are located in the city.

The statistics are quite revealing — of the top 20 software companies in India, 11 companies have operations in Pune. The number of multinationals wanting to set up base in Pune is increasing. “There were 13 MNCs registered in Pune in 2005-06 and now the figure is up to 20,” Venugopal said, while speaking at the Dewang Mehta Memorial annual lecture here on Friday.

One significant growth area was the BPO sector, with eight out of 12 BPOs in Maharashtra being located at Pune. The outsourcing trend was set to continue as countries like the USA and the UK manage to save 0.67 per cent per dollar that they spent in India, he said.

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Express group funds computer centre for tetraplegics in Army

April 14, 2007 at 7:48 am

· City

indianexpress: The Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre (PRC), Khadki, will soon have a new computer centre with 14 computers, for the use of its tetraplegic inmates. Paraplegics who are keen to learn computers will also be allowed use of the new centre.

Being set up at a cost of Rs 13.90 lakh, the centre is slated to come up in three phases — building, furniture and computer centre — and will be ready in two months. The facility is an initiative by The Indian Express and will be inaugurated on the occasion of PRC’s Foundation Day celebrations on June 27.
 
The PRC looks after the rehabilitation of disabled defence personnel.

The centre will consist of computers with the latest configuration, inverters, printers and internet connection and will impart training to tetraplegics — who have lost all four limbs and have no control over their bladder and bowels.

The Pune Sub Area Commander Brigadier RJ Sharma was handed over the cheque for Rs 13.90 lakh by The Indian Express Deputy Resident Editor Pune Vinod Mathew Jacob.

Accepting the cheque at the Pune Sub Area office, Sharma said, “It is a generous gesture on the part of the Express group and it is acknowledged with full gratitude. Initiatives like this infuse fresh enthusiasm amongst the PRC inmates and boost their morale.”

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PMC gears up to tackle malaria, dengue; notices to 340 building sites

April 14, 2007 at 7:46 am

· City · Health

indianexpress:  The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has issued notices to nearly 340 major constructions in the city to exercise caution while storing water for a long period as they could turn into a breeding ground for mosquitoes and lead to diseases like malaria and dengue. For added effect, a blister pack that includes an anti-malaria drug has been given to labourers at construction sites.

Cases of malaria have started showing up which include a few patients who are migrant workers from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. While the figure is not alarming as the PMC has reported 26 cases of malaria from January to March this year, the civic body has taken note of the migrant labourers coming in from these states and undertaken an anti-malaria campaign at construction sites.

An extensive survey of 800 new and upcoming constructions is underway, says Dr Sadashiv Patole, in-charge of the insect control department at the PMC. “There are several new constructions which are coming up at suburbs like Hadapsar, Aundh, Yerawada and builders do not take the necessary precautions at construction sites. Water that is stored for more than a week is a breeding ground for the aedes aegypti mosquito. Overhead tanks are not cleaned and then diseases like dengue spread quickly,” says Patole.

Last year, the PMC had reported 76 cases of dengue in the city, 58 cases of chikungunya (most were from Marathwada areas) and 112 cases of malaria, Patole said. The PMC has a team of 70 active workers who are in the field meeting supervisors at construction sites and informing them about health hazards. This ‘anti larval’ team also has the responsibility of administering the anti-malaria drug to the construction labourers.

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Education fair in Pune from April 14-15

April 14, 2007 at 7:45 am

· City · Education

indianexpress:  Want to know about education in India and abroad, and don’t know where to go? ‘Education Worldwide India’, an international education fair, due to be held on April 14 and 15, is just the thing for you. With stalls put up by noted educational institutions and universities from countries like the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Germany and New Zealand, students will get an opportunity to know about opportunities at educational institutions across the world — all under one roof.

With an expected student turnout of 3 to 4,000, the international education exhibition has been organised for the fourth time in Pune. Students can avail of information on professional courses and programmes in various streams like management, medicine, fashion, multimedia, graphic design, language, and even call center training for students beyond Std XII.
 
Among the institutes that will participate in the fair are Johnson and Wales University — the US, AIS St Helen’s — New Zealand, Student Recruitment Media — the UK, German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Dina Institute of Hotel Studies — India, RAK Medical and Health Sciences University — UAE and so on.

Consultants from each of these institutes will be available at the stalls to interact personally with the students, provide them information on the courses offered. “All these institutes will be targetting admissions during the fall intake period, which is usually between July and September,” said Siddharth Jain of Global Events and Expositions, which has organised the fair.

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Now, PMC will fix old structures

April 14, 2007 at 7:44 am

· City

indianexpress: Tetants or owners of dilipidated buildings or houses can now awail of help from the Pune Municipal Corporation. In the wake of the arriving monsoon season, the PMC has alerted residents staying in dilipidated houses to get the houses assessed from expert structural engineers.

There are number of old wadas and structures in the city which are in a dilipidated state. Such structures are in danger of collapsing during the rainy season. The PMC has appealed to owners of all such buildings to get the strength verified from structural engineers. On bringing to the notice of the civic administration of a dilipidated structure, the PMC make an inspection and fix the damage.
 
In the event that owners refuse to get repairs done, the occupiers or tenants will be given permission to undertake the repairs after the architect or engineers submit a written application with the maps of the structure.

Residents can call PMC (2551000, 25501244, 25501312) or the Kasba Peth fire brigade (24458950) or the central fire brigade, Bhavani Peth (26451700, 26442101) or Emergency (101).

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Two die in hit-and-run road mishaps

April 14, 2007 at 7:43 am

· City · Mishaps

indianexpress: Two people were killed in separate hit-and-run road mishaps within 12 hours of each other on Wednesday.

Vikram Lalbahaddur Sahi, a 28-year-old resident of Bavdhan, was killed on the spot when an unidentified vehicle ran over him at Tanaji Patilnagar. Elsewhere in Bhavani Peth, Krishna Sopan Gote (25) was killed when an unknown vehicle ran over him on the road to Ramoshi Gate from Palakhi Vithoba Chowk. Both unidentified drivers have been booked for rash driving and causing death due to negligence.
 

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Bangla girls rescued from brothel

April 14, 2007 at 7:42 am

· City · Crime

indianexpress: Two teenage girls, who were kidnapped from Bangladesh and sold to the owner of a brothel in Budhwar Peth, have been rescued by the police.

The duo was spotted and rescued by a team from the Faraskhana police station on Thursday. Brothel owner Pramila Khandu Kambale (44) has been arrested and charged under the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act. Both girls — 16 and 17 years of age who hail from Joshur in Bangladesh — were brought to Pune with the false promise of providing them jobs.

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CBS’ Interactive Audience Network

April 14, 2007 at 7:40 am

· Technology

techtree: CBS has announced the CBS Interactive Audience Network to distribute its shows on the Internet.

For this network, CBS has gotten into content deals with a host of online distributors, including AOL, Microsoft, CNET Networks, Comcast, Joost, Bebo, Brightcove, Netvibes, Sling Media, and Veoh.

Under the deal, all content will be advertiser supported and free to the consumer. CBS will begin selling the network in the coming weeks, including the upcoming upfront marketplace. All content will be available domestically, with select clips and full-length sports programming distributed worldwide.

The network will offer programs from entertainment, news, and sports including CSI: Crime scene investigation, Late show with David Letterman, Survivor, Showtime championship boxing, CSTV Game of the week, CBS Evening news with Katie Couric, among others.

Some big names involved in the content deal include: Microsoft that will make CBS content available on MSN Video; CNET Networks that will make content available on TV.com; and Joost that will offer viewers CBS content via a customizable platform having advanced TV viewing features and plug-in applications like IM, message boards, and news tickers.

With this move, CBS claims it would become the most widely distributed professional content provider on the Web. The network already has online distribution deals with Yahoo!, Apple iTunes, Microsoft’s Xbox, Amazon UnBox, and others.

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Samsung to Launch ‘Duo HD’ Player

April 14, 2007 at 7:39 am

· Technology

techtree: Samsung Electronics has announced plans to introduce its ‘Duo HD player’ (BD-UP5000), a dual format high definition (HD) optical disc player - in time for the holidays.

The ‘Duo-HD’ player fully supports both HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats, and their interactive technologies, HDi and BD-Java.

With ‘Duo HD,’ consumers can enjoy additional studio content including trailers, director’s comments, more elaborate interactive menus, and behind the scene footage.

Ron Sanders, President of Warner Home Video, said, “We welcome Samsung’s ‘Duo HD’ player as another solution in the marketplace that will help reduce consumer confusion and buyer hesitancy towards HD media. This is an innovative product that can move us closer to mainstream consumer adoption of HD technologies.”

Dongsoo Jun, Executive Vice President of the Digital AV Division at Samsung Electronics, said, “As a member of the DVD Forum and contributor to the DVD Industry, we recognize that both HD-DVD and BD formats have merits. As such, we have decided to market a dual format player. Samsung is flexible to market a stand-alone HD-DVD player whenever consumers demand it. Our main concern is not technology but consumer choice.”

The ‘Duo HD’ joins the company’s Gen-Next DVD line-up that includes its second generation Blu-ray player available at retail this month.

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Thecus Launches N4100 NAS Device

April 14, 2007 at 7:38 am

· Technology

techtree: Thecus has launched its all-in-one N4100 NAS Device, a data backup and management solution for businesses of all sizes. The device boasts multiple RAID modes, a bevy of data management features, and 4-bay expandability, among others.

Housed in a 167mm x 199mm x 223mm cabinet, the N4100 NAS Device incorporates an Intel XScale 80219 processor for quick processing of data in and out of storage.

Up to 4 3.5-inch SATA hard disks are accommodated by 4 SATA hard drive bays in the N4100, which has up to 3TB of storage capacity.

The device offers RAID 0, 1, 5, and JBOD for maximizing data speed, security, or both.

N4100 comes with Dual Gigabit Ethernet, or can be optionally outfitted with a single Gigabit Ethernet port and Wi-Fi capability, allowing users to connect their network to N4100 the way they want to.

And, the NAS device is compatible with Windows, Max OS X, UNIX, and Linux, even featuring AppleTalk compatibility for ultimate convenience.

N4100 has gotten kudos from the likes of Tom’s Hardware, Hexus, etc.

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