Phoney Deal

Rapid technological change can make useless old things into priceless antiques

http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/jugglebandhi/entry/phoney-deal

-The Times of India, March 9, 2012

'Indian cities have hidden wealth - they just have to be well-planned.'

Q&A


Andre Dzikus, chief of water and sanitation at the United Nations Habitat Agency, is one of the key coordinators of the UN's 'I am a city changer' campaign, focussing on how to make cities a better place to inhabit. Dzikus spoke with Pratiksha Ramkumar on cities that are 'green' in shade, but not in substance, factors making a city ideal - and how India can still get there: 


http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/opinion/edit-page/Indian-cities-have-hidden-wealth-they-just-have-to-be-well-planned/articleshow/12189419.cms

-The Times of India, March 9, 2012

Curing Our Hospitals

To keep patients safe, we must transform the quality of our healthcare system


http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/opinion/edit-page/Curing-our-hospitals/articleshow/12189373.cms

"The scale of this quality problem is enormous even in high-end urban medical centres, leave alone rural health clinics. Inappropriate treatment, malpractice, excessive use of certain procedures and negligence are rampant."

-The Times of India, March 9, 2012

A New Degree

Vocational education must be mainstreamed

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/opinion/edit-page/A-new-degree/articleshow/12189406.cms

The proposal to introduce a Bachelor's degree in vocational education is most welcome. It will enhance job prospects tremendously in India. The vocational education, for that very reason, must be mainstreamed.

-The Times of India, March 9, 2012

Leadership Lessons

Lack of credible regional leaders is affecting Congress's prospects

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/opinion/edit-page/Leadership-lessons/articleshow/12189357.cms

The Congress is losing ground at an alarming pace, says the editorial. It can be attributed to the over-centralization of the Congress leadership, and a lack of credible regional leaders, as is the trend in most states, especially Southern states, in India.

-The Times of India, March 9, 2012

Decentralisation lessons for parties

Ever since the 1991 elections, India has not had a majority government. While it may be looked as congress' failure to reach the masses, it is also in general, the inability of national parties (including BJP) to reach out. This article talks of the need to decentralize the national parties which have too many leaders, and focus on problems at ground level.

http://expressbuzz.com/opinion/editorials/decentralisation-lessons-for-parties/370465.html

Real estate business needs a regulatory body

A critical view of how the real estate business looks like an unorganized sector, even though it generates a lot of revenue. The editorial calls for a regulatory body to ensure that this sector too gets its fair share of limelight and recognition, especially in the recent problems of loan repayment as the financial year approaching an end.

http://expressbuzz.com/opinion/editorials/real-estate-business-needs-a-regulatory-body/370804.html

A new lease of life for BSY

The State High Court of Karnataka dismissed all FIR's lodged against illegal mining pertaining to former Chief Minister of State, B S Yedddyurrappa against illegal mining.

BSY was forced to resign from the Chief ministerial post due to this and many other cases which are pending yet.

Having got a life from the judgement, it will be difficult for his party and his detractors to shun down when many believed he had already made hay while the Sun shone.

It is not easy to stop BS Yeddyurrappa now

Vodafone case's influence in this year's financial budget

The budget session is just around the corner.

The landmark judgement by the SC in favour of the Vodafone telecom company should mean that this year's budget should incorporate a mechanism to prevent such severe loss to the exchequer or a direct ruling in accordance with the SC verdict, whichever it seems deemed fit...

Vodafone had filed a case against the government for demanding tax for shares bought by the company from the Hutchinson-Essar limited. This was a sensitive issue which was very keenly watched by the corporate world...

Will the budget revisit the supreme court ruling on Vodafone?