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TOI : NEW DELHI: If you can’t study at Oxford, the university will come to you. For the first time in its 800-year history, Oxford University has announced that it will set up an offshore facility - at Lavasa near Pune.

Oxford University vice chancellor John Hood, who is a part of the high-level UK delegation to India, on Monday announced the establishment of Oxford University India Business Centre (OUIBC) which will be part of the Said Business School at Oxford.

OUIBC is opening an offshore campus at Lavasa which will also offer an executive management programme. “We are going to develop a range of executive education programmes which would be delivered in India through a new facility at Lavasa, which will be visited by our faculty at Oxford,” he said.

The primary objective of the Lavasa centre, however, will be to research and understand the “extraordinary developments” in the Indian business scenario in the recent years.

The business centre will be funded by Ajit Gulabchand, chairman of Lavasa Corporation.

He will also endow a new chair, Ajit Gulabchand Professor of Indian Business Studies at the University of Oxford, to be based at the Said Business School at Oxford.

On choosing India as the university’s first offshore establishment, Hood said: “India has become increasingly important for Oxford and the world at large.

And the university is committed to expand its collaboration with India which has enriched Oxford’s intellectual heritage for over 400 years.” Print Save EMail Write to Editor Related Stories Foreign ties aid varsities most Welcom…More

TOI : PUNE: Noted builder Avinash Bhosale and his wife have paid Rs 40 crore advance income-tax in the current financial year, 2007-2008.

“Rs 20 crore has been paid on his wife’s account and the remaining on his account,” V.K. Shridhar, director-general of income tax (investigation), said on Friday.

When asked whether Bhosale is the highest individual income-tax payer from Pune region, the official refused to comment. The only thing he said was that the advance tax paid by Bhosales up to December 2007 was Rs 40 crore…More

TOI : PUNE: Deputy commissioner of police C.H. Wakade on Monday ordered an inquiry against a police constable who allegedly beat up motorcycle rider Rahul Patil of Dattawadi for violating the no-entry rule on a road near the Ganesh Peth police chowkie on Sunday.

Wakade told TOI on Monday that he has directed senior police inspector V.T. Pawar. in charge of the Faraskhana police station, to submit a report.

Patil entered the no-entry area when the constable, identified as Kadam, signalled him to stop. However, the student lost control over his bike and fell on another motorcycle and received internal injuries. The victim has alleged that the constable beat him up with a stick, but he did not register any complaint with the police.

Surprisingly, Patil has given a letter to the police saying that the constable was not responsible for the incident. Police are conducting further inquiry…More

TOI : PUNE: In order to prevent incidents of prisoners escaping from police custody while undergoing medical treatment, the city police have submitted a proposal to the Sassoon General Hospital here for starting a special prisoners’ ward. It has been suggested that convicts, undertrials and criminals be kept in the prisoners’ ward while undergoing medical treatment and routine check-ups, said additional commissioner of police Rajender Singh (crime) on Monday.

The proposal submitted to the hospital dean sometime back, if implemented, will do away with the practise of treating prisoners in different wards, Singh told TOI.

The proposal was prepared keeping in mind several incidents of prisoners escaping from custody. As many as 10 criminals escaped from custody in 2007.

He said that a team of four armed policemen are deputed at the hospital whenever a prisoner is admitted.

On an average, seven to eight prisoners from the Yerwada Central Prison are brought to the hospital for treatment on a daily basis.

Suspects are also brought to the hospital for medical check-up every 48 hours as per the directions of the Human Rights Commission.

According to Singh, the police have identified the place for starting the new ward. The place will have to be developed from the security point of view. The ward should be well equipped so that there will be no need of shifting patients to other wards.

He pointed out many criminals visit the hospital premises to meet associates and relatives. He suggested that the examination of undertrials by the doctors be done in the presence of the police.

Singh also suggested that arrangement be made so that specialist doctors are allowed to visit the undertrials in the jail itself. This could go a long way in curbing their repeated visits to the hospital and eliminate the possibily of…More

TOI : PUNE: Pune-based provider of enterprise resource planning (ERP) and Oracle database administrator Spider Systems Pvt Ltd has been acquired by California-based Infogain Corporation, which is in the business of CRM, ERP, integration and business intelligence solutions and services. With the acquisition of Spider, Infogain has expanded its Oracle ERP business. The amount of the deal was not disclosed by the company.

Commenting on the acquisition, former head of Spider, Rajan Bhatnagar said, “Its a win-win situation for both the companies. Now, clients of both the companies will get a complete ERP solution. The company is planning to focus on the emerging market of retail business in India.”

After the acquisition, the company expects a rise of 15 to 20 per cent in its business. The company caters to Oracle Applications, Peoplesoft, Seibel, Oracle Fusion, as well as Oracle Retail…More