If you are a religious people always remain depression

विज्ञान ने भी यह साबित किया है कि धार्मिक एवं आध्यात्मिक प्रवृत्ति वाले लोग अवसाद का शिकार कम होते हैं। इसकी वजह यह है कि ऐसे लोगों के मस्तिष्क की बाहरी सतह यानी कॉर्टेक्स मोटी होती है। अमेरिका की कोलंबिया यूनिवर्सिटी के ताजा शोध में यह जानकारी सामने आई है।

शोध का नेतृत्व कर रही डॉ माइरना वाइजमैन कहती हैं, 'हमारा मस्तिष्क हमारे विचारों और मनोदशाओं का आईना होता है। इमेजिंग की नई तकनीक से यह सब कुछ देखना संभव हुआ है। हमारा मस्तिष्क एक असाधारण अंग है, जो न सिर्फ हम पर नियंत्रण रखता है बल्कि हमारी मनोदशाओं से नियंत्रित भी होता है।'

नए शोध से पता चलता है कि मस्तिष्क की बाहरी सतह की मोटाई और आध्यात्मिकता में गहरा रिश्ता है। लेकिन यह नहीं कहा जा सकता है कि जिन लोगों के मस्तिष्क के कॉर्टेक्स की मोटाई अधिक होती है वे आध्यात्मिक भी होते हैं।

यह तय है कि जो धार्मिक एवं आध्यात्मिक प्रवृत्ति के होते हैं उनके कॉर्टेक्स की मोटाई अधिक होती है। पता चला है कि जो लोग अवसाद का शिकार होते हैं उनके कॉर्टेक्स की सतह धार्मिक लोगों के मुकाबले पतली होती है।

इस शोध में ऐसे लोगों को शामिल किया गया जिनके माता-पिता या दादा-दादी अवसाद से संबंधित पहले के अध्ययन में शामिल थे। इनमें से कुछ के परिवार में अवसाद पीढ़ीगत बीमारी के रूप में थी। इस समूह की तुलना ऐसे लोगों के साथ की गई, जिनमें अवसाद के कोई लक्षण नहीं थे।

जिन बातों को हम पहले से जानते हैं, उन पर विज्ञान की मुहर लगती है तो उनमें हमारा विश्वास और प्रबल होता है।

 

Source: Spiritual News in Hindi & Horoscope 2014

Fed draws criticism from abroad as EMs still reeling

The Federal Reserve's decision to keep trimming its economic stimulus drew fire on Friday as the Reserve Bank of India's chief said Americans should be more attuned to the global impact of their policies, and the IMF called for vigilance given strains in financial markets. The push-back came on Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's last day on the job and two days after the US central bank reduced the pace of its huge asset purchase program. 

The Fed made the move on Wednesday despite a bruising selloff in emerging markets that was prompted in part by the prospect of less US monetary support. With the turmoil in currencies and stocks spreading into more emerging markets on Friday, Fed officials, addressing the rout for the first time, offered no hint the sell-off would influence their policy stance unless the US economy were threatened. But in Mumbai, India's central bank governor Raghuram Rajan said the United States "should worry about the effects of its policies on the rest of the world." "We would like to live in a world where countries take into account the effect of their policies on other countries and do what is right, rather than what is just right given the circumstances of their own country," he said at an event on organised by The Times of India newspaper. 

Financial markets in India, Turkey, Argentina and elsewhere have boomed in recent years as the Fed's measures to bolster economic growth at home - including asset purchases and ultra-low interest rates - encouraged investors to seek higher returns in emerging economies. As the Fed began to talk of unwinding its policy last year, the money began to flow back out, a trend that ramped up again in the last two weeks on signs that China's economy is slowing. Rajan, a former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, is well respected by central bankers globally as being among the few who spoke out about signs of trouble in markets well before the 2007-09 financial crisis set off the Great Recession.

 His comments were echoed by the IMF, which on Friday called on central banks to ensure that a financial market rout in the developing world does not lead to an international funding crunch. "The turbulence also underscores the need for vigilance among central banks over liquidity conditions in international capital markets," an IMF spokesman said. FED UNMOVED The pressure, however, is unlikely to dissuade the Fed from ramping down its asset purchases by later this year unless the turbulence starts to derail recent momentum in the US economy. 

Fed policymakers did not mention emerging markets in a statement on Wednesday, when they unanimously decided to trim bond-buying by another USD 10 billion per month. "So far I don't see anything that's happened in the last month around markets as fundamentally shifting an improving outlook for the US economy and improving labor markets," 

San Francisco Fed President John Williams said on Fox Business television. Williams, a centrist, said fellow policymakers discussed emerging markets at their meeting this week, but added the Fed should not focus too much on "short-term developments. Speaking in South Africa, one of the countries hit by the recent turmoil, Kansas City Fed President Esther George backed the withdrawal of accommodation and warned that easy U.S. policies will only work to distort exchange rates, capital flows, and other international connections. Richard Fisher of the Dallas Fed went even further, saying countries like Poland and Mexico that used the influx of funds to restructure their economies will do well as the Fed reduces accommodation. Others, such as Brazil, will have a hard time, he said in Fort Worth, Texas. 

The debate, which amplified a day before Fed Vice Chair Janet Yellen is to succeed Bernanke, highlights how central banks and governments can get whip-sawed by the trillions of dollars of investment seeking easy returns. In the so-called cross-border currency trade, investors borrow in countries with lower yields and invest in those with higher yields. The IMF spokesman said some emerging market countries need to take urgent action to improve their economies. 

Turkey and South Africa, two of the hardest-hit in recent days, responded by raising interest rates this week to help support their currencies. The Reserve Bank of India also tightened monetary policy, saying the action was aimed at pushing down high consumer inflation. Rajan, who took charge at the Reserve Bank of India last September during the country's worst financial crisis since 1991, complained on Thursday that global monetary policy coordination had broken down. "Industrial countries have to play a part in restoring that, and they cannot at this point wash their hands off and say: 'We will do what we need to, and you do the adjustment you need to,'" he said on Bloomberg India TV.

Source: Hindi News

From MC News

Sensex posts worst month since rupee cratered in August

The BSE Sensex edged higher on Friday, snapping a five-day losing streak as blue chips such as ICICI Bank rebounded, but indexes still suffered their worst monthly performance since the rupee slumped to a record low in August. Domestic shares have tumbled, marking a sharp turnaround since indexes posted record closing highs on January 23, on the back of a rout in emerging markets and the Reserve Bank of India's unexpected hike in interest rates on Tuesday. 

The falls since last week have sent the Nifty down 3.4 percent for January, its worst monthly performance since August, when domestic markets had cratered. The index hit its lowest intraday level since November on Thursday. Like then, Indian markets now are being caught in an emerging market storm caused by fears of foreign investor outflows after the Federal Reserve started cutting down its monetary stimulus since last month. Foreign institutional investors have sold heavily since last week, cutting their net inflows into domestic shares so far this month to just $85.4 million. "Going ahead, the concerns on growth and inflation / interest rates remain. 

Even after the recent market fall, valuations at 14x - 14.5x consensus FY15 earnings are not undemanding, we feel," said Dipen Shah, head of private client group research at Kotak Securities. Nifty rose 0.26 percent, or 15.80 points, to end at 6,089.50, but fell 2.83 percent for the week. The benchmark BSE Sebnsex rose 0.08 percent, or 15.60 points, to end at 20,513.85, but fell 2.9 percent for the week. For the month, the index fell 3.1 percent. Blue chips, especially lenders, rebounded after recent sharp losses. ICICI Bank Ltd (ICBK.NS) rose 1.4 percent, while among state-owned banks, Punjab National Bank (PNBK.NS) rose 5.8 percent while Bank of Baroda (BOB.NS) ended 3.2 percent higher. The NSE bank sub-index fell 10.1 percent in January, its worst month since July. 

Banking stocks are among those most heavily owned by foreign investors, but caution has risen after the central bank unexpectedly hiked interest rates this week although it also signalled it may be more accommodative should inflation ease. 

Among other blue chips, Reliance Industries Ltd (RELI.NS) ended 0.8 percent higher. Software exporters gained on hopes the U.S. demand outlook will be sturdier than other countries, dealers said. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS.NS) rose 1.1 percent, while Wipro Ltd (WIPR.NS) gained 0.7 percent. Oberoi Realty Ltd (OEBO.NS) rose 2.3 percent after it said on Thursday India's apex court dismissed a lower court judgement declaring as private forest certain properties that a unit of the real estate developer wanted to develop. 

Lupin Ltd (LUPN.NS) rose 1.4 percent ahead of its quarterly earnings on Monday. However, the company's operating profit may lag consensus estimates, Thomson Reuters StarMine's SmartEstimates shows. Shares in Hero MotoCorp (HROM.NS), India's largest two-wheeled vehicle maker, fell 1.5 percent after it posted on Thursday a slower-than-expected 7.5 percent rise in third-quarter profit, hurt by a rise in input costs and currency fluctuations.

Source: Hindi News

From FP News

Non-cricket sports to gain momentum in 2014: Deloitte India

The number of smartphone users in urban India will cross 104 million in 2014 compared with 51 million users in 2013, according to the 4th edition of Deloitte’s predictions for the technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) in India in 2014. Further, smartphone users are expected to drive the highest video consumption on mobile. The report adds that consumers are increasingly becoming screen agnostic, and are viewing video content on their smartphones both inside and outside the home. 

 “In 2014, mobile video is likely to be the preferred service over other mobile value added services,” said PN Sudarshan, Senior Director, Deloitte in India. “We anticipate 50-60 per cent of all the mobile data consumption in India to be driven by video over next 2-3 years.” With improved networks and connectivity, users will increasingly consume higher resolution video. While pre-downloaded and side-loaded form of video will continue to be a major part of the overall video consumption on mobile, Deloitte envisages emergence of innovative business models in mobile video streaming/ time-restricted download space in 2014.

Instant messaging (MIM) services on mobile phones may win the battle for volume in 2014, but short messaging service (SMS) will be victorious in revenue terms. Deloitte predicts that in 2014, MIMs will be more than twice the volume of messages sent via a SMS. However, despite the burgeoning volumes of MIMs, SMS is expected to generate more than $100 billion globally in 2014, equivalent to approximately 50 times the total revenues from all MIM services. This might be slightly different in India as operators have reduced low cost SMS plans due to regulatory changes; resulting in subscribers using other means to communicate.

Local language content will be crucial in 2014. Deloitte predicts that India would witness a surge in the development of local language applications and localisation of content, as any incremental increase in mobile data and internet subscriber base would be achieved among the section of the population whose digital accessibility is limited by language constraints. Additionally, Deloitte predicts that regional print industry will continue to surge primarily driven by factors such as under penetration in regional markets, rise in regional ad-rates and sustained pressure on English print advertising by digital media.

Some of the other highlights and details of this year’s TMT predictions to impact the marketplace in 2014 include:

Media and Entertainment

Distribution Networks: The digital leap – Deloitte predicts that the digital TV distribution space – both digital cable and direct-to-home (DTH) – will find ample room for growth given the catalysing effect of digitisation and the headroom for growth provided by non-TV households in the country. Digital cable is expected to gain more out of the densely populated areas with adequate cable infrastructure, while DTH is expected to gain more in sparsely populated areas with minimal cable infrastructure.

Social Media: The urge to connect – Social media will continue to grow as a favoured platform for targeted advertising as its adoption surges, driven by increasing mobile usage and higher penetration of smartphones and a young population.

Sports: Winds of change – Though cricket still reigns supreme in the country, new non-cricket sports properties are expected to emerge and gain popularity in the country. Driven by the success of IPL, other sports such as hockey, badminton and football have also leveraged the model to build similar properties, which are being lapped-up by broadcasters and sponsors alike. Further, the popularity of such sports is expected to continue to witness an upswing.

Technology

Mobility and e-Commerce: Driving innovations in payments and cash displacement – Lack of the right kind of payment or cashless transaction mechanism is holding back segments ranging from e-commerce to more inclusive banking services like remittances. A few key innovations would lead the way in 2014 to usher in change in this space. Innovations would be witnessed in Mobile POS, alternate solutions for cash on delivery and technology that would considerably reduce transaction failures.

Rise of Machine to Machine communication: Deloitte predicts that a sizeable number among the approximately 350 million Internet-enabled, but unconnected devices in India would be connected to the web. With technology providers coming up with more applications that would facilitate smart connectivity among devices and standardisation of communications protocols, there is a strong case for the development of a large set of interconnected machine clusters that would be marketed as integrated electronic lifestyle solutions.

Multichannel Enterprise Applications: Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and multichannel customer facing applications would be the two most important drivers for enterprises to adopt a completely new range of applications. These will pose significant challenges to organisations in areas like security, inter-operability and data/ device management. There could be a significant number of local application vendors who would provide innovative solutions for security, process and workflow management, multichannel CRM and mobile enablement.

Telecom

Phablets are not a phad: In 2014 shipments of phablets, smartphones with 5.0-6.9 inch screens, will represent a quarter of smartphones sold. After initial rapid consumer success, 2014 may mark a ‘peak phablet’ year, as only a (sizeable) minority of smartphones users will want to handle such a large device. Two thirds of phablets in 2014 will be less than 5.1 inches, just meeting the definition, and less than 10 per cent are likely to be 6 inches or larger.

Emergence of Mobile Video: Deloitte envisages emergence of innovative business models in mobile video streaming/ time-restricted download space in 2014. Telecom companies will alter their position from high cost dumb pipes to affordable smart networks that will support third party video service providers as well as help developing video consumption habits among customers.

‘Ruggedised’ Data Devices: Reinventing the business case for mobile field force – The Indian market for rugged devices would double in size in 2014, driven primarily by new device introductions by manufacturers targeting business and government users. Multiple new smartphones/ phablets are likely to be launched in ‘semi-rugged’ device category, blurring the demarcation between consumer and rugged devices.

Source: Latest Technology News

From E4M News

Satya Nadella outran better-known candidates for Microsoft CEO

The race to determine the next head of Microsoft Corp looks to have ended where it began, with the software giant poised to take the route of least risk and tap rising internal star Satya Nadella for the job.


After a bruising, five-month selection process, the list of contenders was cut to six serious candidates, with the chief executive job nearly going to Ford Motor Co CEO Alan Mulally, an outsider favored by investors lobbying for radical change. If Nadella wins the day, as expected, it will be for his innovative work on Microsoft’s growing server and tools business, which provides online computing and storage for companies, said a source briefed on the search process.


Nadella is in discussions with the board, and is likely to ask that Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates drop his chairman role and help Nadella more closely on technology, two sources said. It is not clear why Nadella might want a role change for Gates. The presence of Gates and current CEO Steve Ballmer on the board has deterred some external candidates who feared they would meet resistance if they want to make fundamental changes, sources have told Reuters over the past few months.


Nadella is praised for his role in overseeing growth in the company’s cloud computing and Bing search engine business, and as a technologist with a talent for marketing. Critics say he failed to halt Google Inc’s dominance in the search engine business. They say Microsoft’s entry into the cloud-computing arena was late and clunky, allowing Amazon.com Inc to set the standard in providing online computing platforms for companies.


It remains unclear whether the 46-year old Indian-born executive will meet some investors’ desire for more radical moves at the software maker, after Ballmer announced in August that he planned to retire.”From the technical side, Nadella is a good choice,” said Rick Sherlund, an analyst at Nomura who publicly lobbied for an outside candidate who would shake up Microsoft and maximize returns to shareholders.”We do not want to see a continuation of the existing direction for the business, so it will be important that Nadella be free to make changes,” said Sherlund. Read more.

Source: Technology News in Hindi

From T2 News

Quick-Read Review: Lava Iris Pro 30 is a stunner that promises decent all round performance

After having garnered the numbers with affordable devices, Indian smartphone makers are slowly testing the upper segments with premium high-spec devices that can take on the bigwigs like Samsung and Apple right where it hurts. While Micromax has been successful with its Canvas series and Lava with Xolo, the latter has just announced a new Iris Pro series with similar ambitions at lower price points. Here we test the first of the lot, the Lava Iris Pro 30.

Quick Tech Specs: 4.7” IPS display (1280x720p) | 1.2GHz quad-core Mediatek MT6589 processor | 1GB RAM | 4GB storage + microSD slot | 8MP rear camera, 3MP front | Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n | Bluetooth 3.0 | Dual-SIM | 2000mAh battery | Android 4.2 Jelly Bean

Iris pro30 side MasterDesign: The Iris Pro 30 does not look like anything you have paid for. In fact, it is a stunner with one of the thinnest bodies in any smartphone, let alone a medium range one. It is slim at just 7.5 mm thickness and feels light at just 114 grams. Adding to this lightweight feel is the matte finish soft plastic back that gives it a superior feel. All ticks marks when it comes to design.

Screen: The Iris Pro 30 has a 720p HD screen from Sharp. But it feels better than some of the other phones with the same resolution thanks to the One Glass Solution that reduces on negates any gap between the touch panel and screen. It is also a very bright screen which makes reading stuff in the sunlight easier.

Performance: The Quadrant and Atuntu benchmark rating put this device between the Samsung Galaxy S2 and the Google Nexus 4, which is quite good considering the price point. Multi-tasking is easy, but then you would expect that with a quad core phone. We did not notice any heating up even while playing games. The phone really shone when I played some HD videos from YouTube even as I had the Robocop game paused in the background.

Iris Pro 30 Slide 1Memory: Lava has been stingy with on board memory before too. This one

Source: Latest Technology News

From TFE News

Oppo N1 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 3 vs Nokia Lumia 1520: Phablet specs face-off

January end marked the official entry of China’s popular phone maker Oppo in the Indian market. The company forayed into the growing and competitive Indian mobile space with its Oppo N1 priced at Rs 39,999. Considering its 6-inch display and the price tag, the device outright competes with the Nokia Lumia 1520 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Here’s a quick specs comparison of the three massive devices, to find who has the best specs on paper.

Oppo N1

Oppo N1 with a rotating camera

Unlike most of the other Chinese brands that target the budget Indian market, Oppo has entered the premium marketplace. The USP of the N1 is its rotating 13MP camera that can be used as a rear as well as front-facing camera. Oppo says the rotation has been tested 100,000 times and this means you can swivel it 40 times a day for 7 years, before it decides to conk off. Besides, it is also the first phone to officially support CyanogenMod, the most popular aftermarket Android ROM. The smartphone also runs Oppo’s Color OS, based on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. Sporting a large 5.9-inch 1080p IPS display, it comes powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 600 SoC clocked at 1.7GHz coupled with 2GB of RAM. It offers16GB and 32GB onboard storage options but there is no room for external memory.

The N1 packs in a 3610mAh battery, so at least usage time should be close to if not more than a day. However, we can confirm this only when the device reaches our test labs for a review. The connectivity options include 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The O Click – a Bluetooth accessory – can be attached in a keyring and used to take pictures remotely or sound an alarm if you can’t find the phone.  Read more.. 

 

Source: Technology News in Hindi

From T2 News

Sony VAIO Fit 13A: Costs a pretty penny for a novelty feature

Sony’s love affair with Ultrabooks has been a rather steamy one and their latest fling, dubbed the VAIO Pro 13, has been our favourite thus far. However, they’ve never managed to get it right when it comes to hybrids. The VAIO Duo 11 was their last attempt at a premium convertible and while it was good as a tablet, it never quite made the cut as a notebook. Their VAIO Flip series is about to change all that however. This is also the first hybrid of its kind to be available in three screen sizes. Today, we’ll be reviewing the tiniest member in the family, the Fit 13A or SVF13N1ASN if you want to get official.

Design and Build
In our first outing with the hybrid, we quite liked what Sony had developed and after living with it for a week, that notion has only been strengthened. The Fit 13A is handsomely built and will easily survive a few knocks of everyday use. The chassis is built mostly of plastic and is reinforced with aluminium sheets that form visible layers on the notebook. It looks incredibly premium and the same goes for the feel of the device.

You’ll notice the slit on the lid and that’s where Sony has added the second hinge for flipping the screen over. With the release of a small switch on the primary hinge, this otherwise unassuming notebook can flip it’s display over, to become a tablet. There are small magnets that hold the lid in either place so it doesn’t flop about. The mechanism itself feels very sturdy and it doesn’t seem like it’s in any hurry to fall apart. We’ve seen this trick in Dell’s XPS 12 hybrid but Sony’s seems a more elegant solution. Read more..

Source: Technology News

From T2 News

Cars to watch out for at the Auto Expo 2014

The 12th edition of the Auto Expo is all set to begin. For the first time, this mega automotive event will be organised over two venues. While the Components Show will be held at Pragati Maidan in Delhi from February 6-9, the Motor Show will take place at the new venue called the India Expo Mart in Greater Noida from February 7-11.

Organisers believe that such a step will ensure that the event is of global standards and is without the chaos and crowd mismanagement that marred previous shows. The overall display space this time is up by 30%.

Buying a new car? Check Prices

Last year was a very tough year for the automobile industry in India on the whole with factors such as the slowdown in the economy, rising fuel costs, less disposable income and poor sentiment negatively affecting sales.

The Auto Expo 2014 is expected to infuse some amount of positive sentiment into the industry; this may just revive the auto industry to an extent. As many as 70 new vehicles will be unveiled at the Motor Show, with 26 global unveilings, of which 15 are cars. Alongside, there will be a special theme pavilion to promote hybrid and electric mobility.

Buying a used car? Check Prices

This is going to be the biggest show India has ever witnessed, and we are gearing up for comprehensive coverage. But before that, let’s have a look at some of the hottest car unveilings.

Source: Automobile News

From TFE News

Mysterious powers hidden in peacock feather

एक छोटा सा मोर पंख आपकी किस्मत चमका सकता है। आपके नवग्रह दोष शांत कर सकता है। आपकी पढ़ाई-लिखाई को और भी ज्यादा बेहतर बना सकता है।

अगर जातक की कुंडली में उसकी दशा खराब चल रही हो तो उसे भी मोर का एक पंख दूर कर सकता है। यह हम नहीं बल्कि हमारे धर्म ग्रंथ कहते हैं। मोर पंख आपकी जिंदगी की कई समस्याओं का समाधान कर सकता है। इसके लिए हमारे धर्मग्रंथों में एक सुंदर कथा है।

भगवान विष्णु थे विवश

आदिकाल में संध्यासुर का नाम का एक बहुत दैत्य था। वह भगवान शिव का परम भक्त था। उसने शिव से अतिवीर होने का वरदान भी लिया था। वर पाने के बाद उसे इतना अहंकार हुआ कि उसने विष्णु भक्तों को ही परेशान करना शुरु कर दिया और कई देवताओं को बंदी बना लिया। उसने भक्ति से इतनी शक्ति प्राप्त कर ली थी कि भगवान विष्णु भी उसका वध करने में समर्थ नहीं थे।

दिव्य मोर में छिपी शक्तियां

कहते हैं जब देवताओं दैत्यासुर के अत्याचार से बहुत दुःखी हो गए तो उन्होंने योगमाया को सहायता के लिए पुकारा योगमाया ने नवग्रहों और देवताओं के तेज से एक पक्षी की रचना की जिसे नाम दिया गया 'मोर'। इस 'दिव्य मोर' के पंखों में छिपकर अपनी शक्तियां बढ़ाईं और एक दिन मोर के साथ असुर पर आक्रमण कर दिया।

33 करोड़ देवता और मोर

संध्यासुर मोर के आगे टिक नहीं पाया और मोर के सामने घुटने टेक दिए। तभी से मोर पंख में नवग्रहों और तैंतीस करोड़ देवी देवताओं की शक्ति समाहित हो गई।

करियर में तरक्की

कहते हैं मोर पंख की पूजा विधि विधान से की जाए तो मोर पंख से ग्रह दशा ठीक हो जाती है।यही नहीं धन प्राप्ति और वास्तु दोष की के लिए भी मोर पंख की सहायता ली जाती है। पढ़ाई में सफलता और करियर में तरक्की के लिए भी मोर पंख लाभकारी सिद्ध होता है।

Source: Spiritual News in Hindi & Horoscope 2014

Satya Nadella likely to be next Microsoft CEO: Report

Senior Microsoft executive Satya Nadella would replace Steve Ballmer as Microsoft CEO, two media reports said today, citing sources familiar with the processes of selecting the new leader at the Redmond-based company.

Bloomberg reported that the Microsoft board was set to name Nadella, an Indian who was born in Hyderabad and who completed his engineering from Manipal University before heading to the US for higher studies, as the company's next CEO. The report also said that the board was discussing replacing Bill Gates as chairman.

The Bloomberg report came several hours after Kara Swisher, who has a fairly reliable record of breaking stories, wrote on technology website Re/code that Microsoft has apparently finalized Nadella as the next CEO of the company. Swisher wrote that a formal announcement was expected within a week.

While Bloomberg report indicated that Nadella was certain to be the next CEO, Re/code report hinted that he was among the three insiders shortlisted for the job and was the strongest candidate.

"And, at this moment, those who have watched the process think that insider Satya Nadella, who is currently leading its enterprise effort, is the likeliest internal candidate to prevail. That's due to a number of reasons, including his familiarity with the company, where he has spent much of his career, as well as a strong technical background and a varied work history at Microsoft," noted the report. "The two other insiders -- strategy head Tony Bates and Nokia leader and former Microsoft exec Stephen Elop -- seem further behind."

Currently, Nadella is the president of server & tools business at Microsoft. He landed his current assignment in 2011. Before that he was senior vice-president of R&D for the online services division and vice-president of the Microsoft business division. In total he has been with Microsoft for nearly 23 years and is considered a person who is familiar with the internal culture within the company, which has an incredibly complex corporate structure.

Nadella's appointment as CEO is likely to have mixed reactions. He is considered a person who is familiar with the Microsoft's enterprise-focussed products like MS Office, online services like Bing and cloud services like Azure. In the last few years, Microsoft has seen good adoption of products like Office 365, Azure and Windows Servers and many industry insiders believe that for the company, enterprise services and the products are the future. If that is the same consensus Microsoft board has reached, Nadella seems like an obvious and good choice as the next CEO of the company.

But at the same time Microsoft has found going a little difficult in the consumer space. Windows 8 has been considered a flop and the company is trying to fix the OS by dialling down on the Metro user interface. Also, Windows Phone has so far failed to take off even as Google's Android and Apple's iOS continue to woo consumers. In the smartphone and tablet market Microsoft has negligible share. In the personal computer market, the sale is slowing and that has hurt Microsoft and its hardware partners.

While Microsoft's financial performance remains strong, the company seems to have lost mind-share. Google and Apple are now considered more innovating and exciting technology firms compared Microsoft.

Patrick Moorhead, president at Moor Insights & Strategy and a veteran of computer industry, says that Nadella may face challenging time in fixing Microsoft's problems in consumer space.

"Satya Nadella has a lot of experience, but not as much as someone who typically runs a company of the size of Microsoft. He has spent most of his time in the enterprise space, so I think he would need a very strong lieutenant who gets the consumer market. Microsoft's biggest challenge is consumer and Satya doesn't have experience in this market," Moorhead told TOI.

Nadella is said to have little experience with smartphone, personal computer and Xbox divisions at Microsoft. This is a concern that many will raise if Nadella turns out to be the CEO of Microsoft. On Friday when Bloomberg story appeared, Peter Bright, who is Microsoft editor at technology website ArsTechnica, tweeted, "The question is: who will be the champion for mass-market consumer/end-user products?"

As focus turns on him, Nadella has been more active in talking to media in the last few months. A few months earlier in Paris he was meeting startups. He told a French publication, "Meeting with startups is important because the tech cycle is such that the small guys make it big and the big guys die".

Before that he talked to Mary Jo Foley, a long-time Microsoft watcher, for Zdnet website. He told the website that Steve Ballmer taught him "there's nothing in this industry -- and definitely in this particular segment -- that's built to last... It's all about being able to reinvent yourself."

Given the fast-changing technology market and the advances Google and Apple have made in the last few years, leaving Microsoft behind, Nadella will definitely have to reinvent Microsoft if he is its next CEO and if the company does not decide to give up its business in the consumer market.

Source: Technology News in Hindi

From TOI News

How Lenovo Built a Chinese Tech Giant

China's Lenovo Group Ltd. 0992.HK -8.21% , once known as Legend, grew from a tiny government-funded venture in the 1980s to a global powerhouse that last year became the No. 1 personal-computer maker in the world.


With its proposed $2.91 billion purchase of Google Inc. GOOG +2.57% 's unprofitable Motorola Mobility handset business, Lenovo is making a risky bet it can replicate that success in smartphones.

"This will be a good start to challenge the big players in smartphones," said Chief Executive Yang Yuanqing in an interview after the company announced the deal. "We want to become a global player."

The deal represents one of the boldest steps yet in the evolution of Lenovo, which started out in a tiny, one-story bungalow in Beijing, distributing foreign-made computers to Chinese homes. The company so far has built its successes largely on a ruthless ability to cut costs by manufacturing its PCs in-house, while building a reputation as a solid, reliable brand abroad. Lenovo's acquisition of International Business Machines Corp.'s IBM +0.54% PC business in 2005 helped establish the company's credibility globally, though many of its biggest sales inroads have been with businesses or in emerging markets.

But the Motorola purchase pushes Lenovo farther into the world of smartphones, with their picky, brand-conscious buyers. It puts the Chinese maker up against industry leaders Apple Inc. AAPL -0.19% and Samsung Electronics Co. 005930.SE -0.23% , two of the world's most recognized consumer brands. Neither Lenovo nor Motorola was on the list of top 100 brands in consultancy Interbrand's Best Global Brands 2013 survey, while Apple ranked No. 1 and Samsung came in at No. 8. Read more..

Source: Technology News

From WSJ News

Facebook’s news app Paper is like Flipboard with friends

Facebook has finally taken the wraps off Paper, its news-aggregator application, which will release on 3 February, a day before the social networking website celebrates its 10th birthday. The timing of the app’s release comes right on cue, with rumours swirling around Facebook’s expansion into mobiles, but the app itself is completely unexpected.


For one, Paper only seems to be aimed at iOS devices for now. The video preview and the advertisements see no mention of Paper for Android devices. However, the features of the app indicate that this could be because it is very similar to the launcher, Facebook Home, that is already available on Android devices. The menu, the shortcuts on the application, the options to share, like and dislike are very reminiscent of Facebook’s Android launcher experience.


In terms of interface, Paper relies on a visually-heavy layout to draw users in and entice them to flip page after page of handpicked stories. The app also allows you to view stories from your Facebook feed in a horizontal scrolling fashion, something that Android users are already able to do.


According to Facebook, Paper allows you to swipe your thumb across the screen to run through stories naturally, tilt the phone to get a better look at the images, check out panoramic, high-res pictures and more. Auto-playing videos will take up the whole screen for a more immersive experience. 

Source: Technology News in Hindi 

From T2 News

Rajan to govt: LPG reform rollback is misdirected subsidy

The United Progressive Alliance government, which yesterday sounded the poll bugle by announcing a partial roll back of LPG reforms, just got a reality check from Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan. 

Hours after the government announced the decision, made after an impassioned plea made by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, Rajan has reminded that by taking such a step, the government is "expanding misdirected subsidy". “We need to spend on important things that we are not spending on,” 

Rajan said in an exclusive interview with CNN-IBN’s Karan Thapar. He also discussed a host of issues including the recent Urjit Patel committee report on monetary policy, which started off a debate on whether inflation targeting should be made the central bank's mandate, and the Federal Reserve’s decision to scale back its monthly bond-buying for the second time.

The governor said one of the recommendations in the report recently submitted by a panel led by the central bank’s deputy governor Urjit Patel – to create a dedicated committee to take monetary policy decisions – would enhance the credibility of the RBI. “A monetary policy committee would create an institutional structure that would help take good decisions and would send a signal that the RBI is working on its mandate,” he said. Read more..

Source: Hindi News

From Frist Post News

Five reasons why Indian markets are brushing off QE taper

The markets seem to be undecided on a bias, thanks to the US cutting its quantitative easing programme by another $10 billion to $65 billion.

It was just last month that the US Fed had announced a taper of $10 billion from the $85-billion stimulus.

Indian stock market's benchmark index, that is Sensex, is trading at 20,531.59, up 33.34 points.

Yesterday, the Sensex lost more than 280 points in intraday trade, but pared losses in late trade, ending the day with a loss of 149 points.

Here are five reasons why the Indian stock market is not reacting much to QE tapering:

Rupee factor

A large part of the bearishness seen on Indian stock markets last year was attributed to the rupee fall.

The rupee had hit near 69 levels in late August on account of fears that the US would start to taper its $85 billion stimulus.

Experts see the rupee not having any big impact this time around in the face of the QE cut announced late on Wednesday.

"The rupee will weaken on both domestic and external factors; but only gradually. This is because RBI has made some moves and that should actually sort of provide a cushion for the INR. I see the currency stabilising at about 64 for now," Nizam Idris, Managing Director and Head of Strategy, Fixed Income and Currencies, Macquarie, tells ET Now. Read more..

Source: News in Hindi

From ET News

Oberoi Realty jumps after favourable court ruling

Oberoi Realty jumped 4.77% to Rs 209.80 at 11:27 IST on BSE after Supreme Court on Thursday, 30 January 2014, dismissed the previous Bombay High Court order that restricted several acres of forest land in suburban Mumbai for development.

The company made the announcement after market hours on Thursday, 30 January 2014.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was up 4.04 points, or 0.02%, to 20,502.29.

On BSE, so far 1.02 lakh shares were traded in the counter, compared with an average volume of 8,663 shares in the past one quarter.

The stock hit a high of Rs 230 and a low of Rs 208.30 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 297 on 19 February 2013. The stock hit a record low of Rs 154 on 4 September 2013.

The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 30 January 2014, sliding 12.61% compared with the Sensex's 3.05% fall. The scrip had, however, outperformed the market in past one quarter, rising 7.95% as against Sensex's 2.55% fall.

The mid-cap company has an equity capital of Rs 328.23 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.

Oberoi Realty said that certain properties of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Oberoi Constructions (OCL), situated in village Nahur and village Mulund were declared as private forest. OCL had challenged decision by a writ petition in Bombay High Court against the State of Maharashtra and others. This writ petition was dismissed by the Bombay High Court vide an order dated 24 March 2008.

OCL later filed a special leave petition before the Supreme Court challenging the said order of the Bombay High Court.

The Supreme Court in the said Special Leave Petition on Thursday, 30 January 2014, pronounced a judgement setting aside the said order of the Bombay High Court, Oberoi Realty said in a statement.

Oberoi Realty's consolidated net profit fell 48.4% to Rs 64.14 crore on 27.7% decline in net sales to Rs 185.50 crore in Q2 September 2013 over Q2 September 2012. The company unveils Q3 results on 1 February 2014.

Oberoi Realty is a real estate developer headquartered in Mumbai.

Source: Hindi News

From BS News

SBI raises Rs 8,032 cr via QIP issue

 State Bank of India has raised 8,032 crore by selling shares through Qualified Institutions Placement (QIP) issue.

The country’s largest public sector bank issued 51,320,436 (5.13 crore) equity shares of face value 10 at 1,565 per equity share.

The gross issue size, upon allotment of equity shares, is 8,032 crore, the bank said in a statement. The fund-raising is claimed to be the largest QIP equity issuance till date in India.

The issue will increase the overall capital adequacy ratio of the bank to 12.81 per cent and Tier I capital adequacy ratio to over 9.67 per cent (based on risk weighted assets as on September 30, 2013).

The QIP will result in dilution of the Government of India stake to 58.6 per cent post-transaction.

Earlier on January 2, 2014, the Government of India had infused 2,000 crore into the bank through a preferential allotment.

Arundhati Bhattacharya, Chairman of SBI, said: “The QIP saw participation from a wide range of domestic and international investors. That the offering successfully withstood a challenging global and emerging market backdrop underlines the strength of SBI and investor confidence in its equity story.”

She further said: “After the conclusion of the QIP offering, the bank will meet its target of capital raising for the current year. The fresh inflow will substantially augment our capital adequacy ratio.”

Source: Hindi News

From BL News

AI to join Star Alliance this summer, will IndiGo, SpiceJet be next ?

Will India become the first market where global airline grouping Star Alliance looks to partner a low cost carrier (LCC)? This prestigious grouping has already decided to take Air India into its fold after an earlier failed attempt and makes no bones about wanting a second airline from India to also join in. 

 CEO Mark F Schwab made it clear that the new full service airline, being set up by Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines, is not an obvious choice for the Alliance. AI should get integrated into the alliance by the summer of 2014 and then, the field will be open for LCCs like IndiGo, SpiceJet to woo Star Alliance. 

Will they? More importantly, will Star Alliance want its first ever LCC member from India? This alliance comprises 28 of the world's powerful airlines like Singapore Airlines, Air Canada and Lufthansa and has no LCC member till now. Through the alliance, AI will get enhanced connectivity and greater passenger revenue besides opportunity to code share with big global airlines. Schwab spoke at length on several issues in a chat with journalists last night. Excerpts: Read more.. 

Source: Latest Automobile News

From Frist Post News

Analysis: Only time will define Bernanke's crisis-era legacy at Fed

Ben Bernanke did not hesitate when asked whether he was confident that his signature response to the Great Recession would work.

"Well, the problem with QE is that it works in practice but it doesn't work in theory," the head of the U.S. Federal Reserve quipped earlier this month during his last public appearance.

He was referring to his decision during the darkest days of the financial crisis to launch an unprecedented program of massive bond purchases, a policy known as quantitative easing, or QE. The aim was to push long-term interest rates lower given that overnight rates, the Fed's main economic lever, were already near zero.

The purchases Bernanke kicked off in late 2008 have continued, off and on, to this day. They have already led to a quadrupling of the Fed's balance sheet to $4 trillion.

On Wednesday, Bernanke, 60, quietly adjourned his final policy-setting meeting after an unusually tumultuous eight-year stint atop the world's most influential central bank.

When he steps down on Friday, the Fed's bloated balance sheet will hang over his legacy. Critics have warned it contains seeds that could lead to inflation or asset price bubbles.

Early assessments have been mostly positive. The former Princeton professor has been praised as the steady hand who helped steer the United States and world economies clear of a far more painful recession.

He flooded financial markets with liquidity from an alphabet soup of programs set up on the fly; he printed trillions of dollars through three rounds of QE; and he made bold promises to keep stimulus in place for years to come, tying low interest rates to particular economic outcomes in an approach emulated by other central banks.

As a leading scholar of the Great Depression, Bernanke had a deep theoretical understanding of what to do in the face of a fast-moving banking panic. He put that knowledge into practice when the financial crisis struck.

"Bernanke was willing to do creative and aggressive things," said Laurence Meyer, a former Fed governor who co-founded the forecasting firm Macroeconomic Advisers. "He put a lot of balls in the air and likely thought that not all of them will work - but some of them will. That was the kind of spirit and leadership and willingness to take risks."

But like his predecessor, Alan Greenspan - who was showered with accolades when he stepped down in 2006 only to later be labeled a main architect of the subsequent crisis - Bernanke's legacy will only become clear over time.

$4 TRILLION AND COUNTING

A good part of that legacy will be written by Fed Vice Chair Janet Yellen, who takes the central bank's reins on Saturday.

She inherits the job of dialing down the bond-buying and deciding when to raise rates.

Yellen will also need to figure out how to smoothly shrink the Fed's balance sheet to a more comfortable size of around $1 trillion without knocking the economy off the rails.

To Allan Meltzer, a leading Fed historian, no outcome looks good for Bernanke. "If they go too fast, we're going to get a recession. If they go too slowly, we are going to get serious inflation. If they do neither, we could get both," he said. Read more.

Source: Hindi News

From Reuters News

Frauds ripped public sector banks of Rs. 23,000 crore

Public sector banks have cumulatively lost a massive sum of Rs. 22,743 crore due to cheating and forgery in the last three years alone, HT has found through a right to information RTI) reply.

Indian Overseas Bank is the worst hit with a loss of Rs. 3,200 cores as against State Bank of India (SBI) which lost Rs. 2,712 crore.  Between April 2010 and September 2013, the number of bank fraud cases has shown a slight decrease yearly but the amount of money lost has been increasing year on year.

The number of fraud cases, for instance, came down to 2996 in April 2012 to March 13, from 3748 in April 2010 to March 2011, but the amount shot up to Rs. 10179.42 crore from Rs. 3275 crore. 

The Reserve bank of India (RBI) issued detailed instructions to banks on July 2, 2012 containing details related to how banks should examine fraud cases and report them to CBI, the police and the special fraud investigation office (SFIO). Even after this, the money lost in fraud cases have increased.  

Interestingly, by way of comparison, Indian Overseas Bank lost more to fraud  than it earned in profits. It registered a net profit of 2848 crore between 2010 and 2013 but leaked Rs. 3200 crore for the same period. 

For SBI, the blow was cushioned. It registered a profit of Rs. 39692 crore between April 2010 and September 2013. In the corresponding period, the bank lost Rs. 2712 crores to fraud.

As per the documents available, more than 6000 employees of different banks are under the scanner for involvement in these cases.  These are not just lower or mid-level employees, but in some cases, CMDs and directors of different banks.  For Instance, in May 2013, a CBI special judge convicted M Gopalakrishnan, former Chairman-cum-Managing Director of Indian Bank, Chennai as he had sanctioned credit facilities of huge amounts to a company without sufficient securities and also by surpassing the rules of the bank.

Analysis of cases investigated by the CBI reveal that bankers sometimes exceed their discretionary powers and give loans to unscrupulous borrowers on fake or forged documents. After getting the money, the borrower escapes causing huge loses to the banks.

While loans on forged documents are the main component of these losses, there are other reasons too. Ashvin Parekh, National Leader, Global financial services, EY, said, “The increase in alternate channels including internet banking and even use of ATMs which has reduced as human interface with the customer and banks has led to an increase in fraudulent activities.”

“We have already taken corrective measures to ensure preventive vigilance. Policy tightening is also being undertaken,” said M Narendra, Chairman and Managing Director, Indian Overseas Bank. He also added that adequate training is being provided to the staff and the bank is ‘fine-tuning operations aspects’. Canara Bank, UCO Bank and United Bank did not respond despite numerous reminders.

A senior official at SBI said the amount is a cumulative one. “In the last one year several stringent measures of checks and balances have been put in place and in the last one year the number of cases has substantially come down,” the official, who did not wish to be identified, said.

Source: Hindi News

From HT News

Time to jump to emerging market shares? Maybe not

Credit Suisse chief investment strategist for Australian private banking David McDonald remains cautious about adding to emerging market assets at the moment as he expects better entry points to emerge, but agreed the current volatility might be a good opportunity for sophisticated investors without any emerging market exposures “to consider taking a small position within an overall diversified portfolio”.

Morgans senior strategy analyst Rebecca Sullivan said at the moment she would only consider recommending an increased allocation to emerging markets for portfolios of $1 million or more.

For those wealthy investors already considering buying more emerging market assets, advisers stressed the importance of considering market risks individually rather than lumping all emerging economies together.

The consensus is to avoid commodity-driven markets such as Brazil and Russia and look to industrialised exporting nations that are running large current account surpluses, such as China, South Korea, and Taiwan, Mr Mileski said.

Credit Suisse favours Taiwan, China and Hong Kong, but also sees some value in Eastern European markets and Mexico.

Macquarie Private Wealth advisers have a preference for China, but Mr Lakos said the best way for retail investors to benefit from Chinese growth was probably through investing in global companies that are exposed to it, such as major US-listed consumer companies.

Mr Ryder also said the best way for Australian retail investors to benefit from emerging market growth is through investment in big multinational companies that are listed in developed markets. “BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto which provide significant exposure to Chinese growth,” he said.

Ms Sullivan is less bullish on China. She said the emerging markets that offer the best opportunities are South Korea, Vietnam and Taiwan, but agreed with the strategy of investing in ASX-listed companies that are growing earnings from these Asian markets. Stocks she highlighted included Toll Holdings, which has an Asian transport business and ANZ Banking Group which has expanded into Vietnam and other parts of South East Asia.

For those investors who do decide to invest in emerging markets different regulatory standards and less access to stock research mean less transparency making stock picking and direct investment perilous.

Those with enough to invest can place a mandate with a fund manager focused on the region they want exposure to. But for most investors, choosing an exchange traded fund (ETF) is widely considered the easiest and most cost effective way to access emerging markets.

Another investment tool are wrap accounts - managed investments that require much lower minimum investments than investing directly with a specialist emerging market equities fund manager.

Source:News in Hindi

From SMH News

Israeli start-up develops app to detect bogus Facebook accounts

An Israel-based start-up has developed an application, FakeOff, that helps to identify fake accounts on Facebook.

The app on the world's largest social networking platform claims to protects users from scams devised by fake Facebook users, who are mistaken for genuine 'new friends'.

"Recent statistics show that at least 10 per cent of about 1.35 billion Facebook users are not authentic. Besides, there are millions of users who create fake identities and appear as regular users," FakeOff creator Eliran Shachar told PTI.

Fake profiles are divided into several groups including criminals, commercial and psychological, that can risk reputations (identity theft), children (paedophiles and sexual abuse), property (home break-ins) and personal safety, he added.

"FakeOff app uses sophisticated algorithm to investigate the behaviour of suspect 'friends' and rank them according to a 1-10 credibility score. It scans up to 365 days of timeline activity for every suspect Facebook friend and checks for abnormal activity," Shachar said.

The app checks timeline activity of the suspect and tries to locate abnormal activity that indicates a non-normal way of usage. It allows the user to scan the photos of the suspect to find out if it was stolen from someplace online, he added.

Also, FakeOff crosses information from all investigations and calculates results of a user based on other investigations on the same suspect, he said.

FakeOff has been live for two months now and has over 15,000 users so far.

"Twenty-four per cent of investigations conducted in the app return as fake. A fake profile can be very complex and some of the fakes that we help the users find is only for their eyes so we can't know the final result from the photo scan results, but the user easily can," he said.

According to Facebook, about 14.3 crore accounts on the social networking site may be false or duplicate, with a major chunk of them coming from developing markets like India and Turkey.

The firm said it estimates up to 7.9 per cent accounts being duplicate and up to 2.1 per cent and up to 1.2 per cent accounts being user-misclassified and un-desirable, respectively.

Facebook's monthly active users (MAUs) stood at 1.19 billion as of September 30, 2013.

Source: Technology News in Hindi

From BT News

Karbonn A91 with 3.2MP camera, Android 4.2 up for grab online for Rs 4,490

Karbonn, India’s second largest domestic handset maker after Micromax, is all set to launch a low budget  smartphone, Karbonn A91 for Indian customers for Rs  4,490.

The device available in three colours, Red, Black and White features a 3.9-inch display (WVGA) with 480 x 800 pixels resolution and runs on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. It is powered by a 1.3GHz dual-core processor with 256MB RAM.

Karbonn A91 sports a 3.2MP rear camera and a 0.3MP front-facing camera. The phone has 512MB of built-in storage, expandable to 32GB via microSD. It packs in a 1,500 mAh battery.

The phone has Wi-FI, Bluetooth, GPRS, EDGE as connectivity options.

Source: Latest Technology News

From TT News

Here’s how to check if your Gmail account has been hacked

With news of more hacks and leaks emerging every day, its pretty safe to say that you’re not necessarily paranoid if you constantly worry about your email being hacked. What with online vigilante hacker groups like the SEA and Anonymous leaking millions of passwords onto the web, and the NSA snooping on the email accounts of even world leaders, the chances that your mail could be hacked are not really that slim. But the good news is that if you have a Gmail account, you can easily check whether or not you have been hacked.

Google has provided users with tools right within the Gmail inbox that can help keep your account secured. Here’s how it works:

To check if your account has been targeted and hacked into without your knowledge, you need to log into your Gmail account using a desktop browser.

Now scroll down to the bottom of your inbox and locate a link called “Details”. When you click on it, a pop-up window will appear, and it will show you a detailed list of the last ten times you – or anyone else –has accessed your account. It will also show you not just when your account was accessed but also how it was viewed. You’ll know if the inbox was opened using an email app, browser, smartphone app and the IP address through which it was accessed.


If you see a suspicious device or IP address, you may want to change your password as soon as possible.

To strengthen the security on your Gmail account, you can even turn the two-factor authentication system on. You can store your IP addresses of the various computers and devices you use to access Gmail, in order to ensure nothing fishy is going on around your account.


While Google has been very particular about ensuring account safety from sleuths, it has been going through a rough couple of weeks with Gmail. An outage late last week caused about 10 percent of Google’s global users to lose access to their Gmail accounts for a good 30 minutes or so. This week, it was also revealed that a bug affecting certain Gmail apps was marking out wrong messages to be deleted or sent into spam folders.

Source: Technology News in Hindi

From T2 News

$108-billion Indian IT industry enters 'middle age', advantage lost

 

The executive suite is not the only place that is greying in India's 40-year-old IT industry. As the $108-billion industry enters middle age and its growth slows, the three-million-strong workforce is also getting older, making it harder to extract some of the cost advantages of the young, cheap labour for which it is known.

Firms have had to change in order to attract and support employees with a more mature set of priorities, as the bright youngsters they recruited years earlier have become earnest family types.

"Middle-aged or married couples prefer to go back home on time, so don't like to stay back at work till late or do weekends," said Megha Jain, 34, a Bangalore-based employee of an Indian IT company. "There is more focus by the company to fine-tune policies around work from home and overtime."

LESS PARTYING, MORE PARENTING

The likes of Bangalore-based Infosys and

Wipro were built on a young, cheap and educated workforce that also drew global giants such as IBM Corp and Accenture to the country.

And the vibrancy of the new industry was epitomised by a corporate culture that was far more influenced by Silicon Valley than traditional Indian attitudes.

In India, many in their first jobs continue to live with parents, whereas working in IT often meant moving to another city, such as Bangalore, Hyderabad or Pune.

Organised weekend outings for staff were a common way of building bonds in the workplace for IT firms whose employees had mostly come straight from college.

Some firms also gave employees free movie tickets and let them expense meals with boyfriends or girlfriends.

Flush with money and new-found independence, these IT staffers were known both for working late and partying hard.   Read more..

Source: Technology News

From TFE News

Lava Iris Pro 30 review: First truly premium budget Android

During the past couple of years that Lava has been actively bringing out Android smartphones, they’ve always been a small fish in a big pond. That’s because the company has been catering primarily to the entry-level segment while their sister brand, Xolo, took care of the more premium segment. Now, Lava aims at branching into the premium segment and the Iris Pro 30 is the first phone that’s designed in-house. Indian companies seemed to have caught on to the fact that the general public want more than just a cheap, Chinese clone stamped with an Indian brand name. Lava is the first Indian company to make this shift and we think they’re onto something here.

Design and build
The Lava Iris Pro 30 looks and feels unlike anything Lava has produced so far. It’s a giant leap forward from their previous offerings in this range, and if we may be so bold to say that it’s easily the best looking and built handset, after the Lumia 720. The chassis is made of a magnesium alloy, which gives makes the frame rigid yet, incredibly light. At just 114g and 7.5mm in depth, it’s extremely pocketable too.  Read more..

Source: Technology News in Hindi

From T2 News

it is hidden from earthly years enjoyment of life mysteries

 

'रीति रिवाजों के बिना जीवन थोड़ा रूखा और एक रस हो जाता है। रीति रिवाज ही हैं, जो जीवन में कुछ स्वाद, कुछ मस्ती, कुछ रंग भर देते हैं, इसलिए मैं कहूंगा कि हमें समय समय पर कुछ रीति रिवाजों को शामिल करते रहना चाहिए, यह अच्छा है।'

एक बार किसी शिष्य ने मुझसे पूछा था कि जब ईश्वर सर्वव्यापक है तो फिर मंदिरों की जरूरत क्यों है? जब ईश्वर का मन में वास है तो ये रीति रिवाज क्यों? मैंने उनके प्रश्न को बहुत ध्यान से सुना। मैं उनके प्रश्न के आधे हिस्से से सहमत था लेकिन आधे हिस्से पर कुछ कहना चाहता था।

मैं सोचता हूं कि ईश्वर को पाने के लिए आपको किसी भी मंदिर, मस्जिद अथवा चर्च में जाने की आवश्यकता नहीं है। जहां भी आप हैं, बैठ जाएं और ध्यान करें, वहीं आप को ईश्वर दिखाई देंगे । परंतु जीवन में रीति रिवाजों का होना भी अच्छा है। बहुत ज्यादा नहीं, बस थोड़ा सा ही।

रीति रिवाजों के बिना जीवन थोड़ा रूखा और एक रस हो जाता है। रीति रिवाज ही हैं, जो जीवन में कुछ स्वाद, कुछ मस्ती, कुछ रंग भर देते हैं, इसलिए मैं कहूंगा कि हमें समय समय पर कुछ रीति रिवाजों को शामिल करते रहना चाहिए, यह अच्छा है।

देखिए, किसी ऐसे घर में जाएं जहां बिल्कुल भी रीति- रिवाज न निभाए जाते हों, और फिर ऐसे घर में जाएं जहां हर दिन दिया जलाया जाता है, अगरबत्ती जलाई जाती है, और जहां शुद्धता हो; तो दोनों के वातावरण में अंतर होता है। आप में से कितने लोगों ने यह अनुभव किया है ? कुछ अंतर होता है। यह एक तरह के वातावरण का निर्माण करता है। सूक्ष्म भी वहां जीवंत हो जाता है। ऐसा ही है न?

इसलिए रोजमर्रा के जीवन में थोड़े से रीति रिवाज अच्छे रहते हैं। प्रात: जब आप उठते हैं, तो बैठ जाएं और ध्यान करें। हां, आपको ध्यान के साथ प्राणायाम भी अवश्य चाहिए।

चाहे घर का एक सदस्य ही घर में कहीं दिया जलाए, हरेक को ऐसा करने की आवश्यकता नहीं है, घर का एक सदस्य ही दीपक जलाता है तो यह सारे वातावरण को जीवंत कर देता है। मैंने व्यवहारिक रूप से यही देखा है। मैं कितने ही घरों में गया हूं, छोटे, बड़े, झोपड़े, बंगले और सब जगह, मैंने एक बात अवश्य देखी है,यहां तक कि एक छोटी झोंपड़ी में भी ,उन्होंने एक छोटा सा आला बना रखा है और उसमें मोमबत्ती या कुछ और रख रखा है, और सारे वातावरण में इसका प्रभाव है।

यदि किसी ऐसे घर में आप जाएं, जहां कुछ नहीं है, पवित्रता का कोई भी प्रतीक या दिया आदि नहीं जलाया जाता, वहां एक प्रकार की नीरसता की अनुभूति होती है ।

मैंने ऐसा देखा है, इसीलिये मैं कहूंगा कि, घर में आले का होना, थोड़ी रीतियों का होना आवश्यक है। घर में कोई एक ऐसा कर सकता है। घर की स्त्री या पुरुष कोई भी। बच्चों के लिए भी यह देखना ठीक है कि उन्हें भी धर्म या अध्यात्म के स्वाद को ग्रहण करने के लिये कुछ करना चाहिए।

इस देश में आपको ऐसा बसों में भी मिल जाएगा। हर बस, टैक्सी, कार, रिक्शा का चालक सुबह सब से पहले एक छोटा फूल रखकर या अगरबत्ती जला कर सिर झुकाता है और यह छोटी सी चीज उनके जीवन में गुणकारी परिवर्तन लाती है । भारत में दुकानों और होटलों में भी दीपक रखने का आला बना रहता है।

आप उनसे पूछ सकते हैं कि 'ऐसा क्यों करते हैं? शायद कोई इस पर शोध भी कर सकता है। यह उन्हें एक प्रकार का मानसिक बल प्रदान करता है । एक प्रकार से यह वातावरण को जीवंत बनाता है। मुझे ऐसा ही लगता है। भारत में, सरकारी दफ्तरों में भी ऐसा किया जाता है।]

अपने दफ्तर में हर अफसर ने दिया जलाने का स्थान बना रखा होता है। कर्नाटक में तो यह कुछ ज्यादा ही है। यदि मुख्यमंत्री को शपथ लेनी होती है, या फिर नए दफ्तर में जाना होता है, तो वह वहां एक सम्पूर्ण पूजा या और सबका आयोजन किया जाता है।

विश्वभर में ऐसा ही है। यूएस की सीनेट में और कनाडा के सदन में, हर रोज प्रार्थना का समय होता है। हर सदन के लिए एक पादरी है, जो आता है और पवित्र बाइबल का पाठ करता है। केवल भारत में ही हम धर्म निरपेक्षता और धर्म निरपेक्षता की बात करते हैं।

यह एक प्रकार की बीमारी है जिस से कि हम स्वयं को सारी समझ, ज्ञान और प्राचीन परम्पराओं से दूर रखने का प्रयत्न करते हैं। लोग ऐसा करने का प्रयत्न तो करते हैं, परंतु ऐसा होता नहीं है । यह हर एक में इतने गहरे से धंसा है।

रीतियों में बंध जाना ठीक नहीं लेकिन कुछ रीतियों को बचाने से हमारे जीवन में आनंद आता रहता है। उन रीतियों की वजह से जिनसे किसी का अहित नहीं होता हो उन्हें मानने में कोई बुराई नहीं। आखिरकर रीतियां हमारे श्रद्धा निवेश का परिचय ही तो है।

Source: Spiritual News in Hindi  & Rashifal 2014

It may be possible gold wedding

 

इस महंगाई में खुशियों का आशियाना बनाना महंगाई से भी महंगा है। इस बात में कोई दोराय नहीं पर आप अपने आशियाने को अगर वास्तु के लिहाज से बनाएं तो खुशियां और बरकत आपके आशियाने को और भी सुहाना बना बना सकतीं है।

1. जमीन कही भी हो और अगर चौकोर, आयताकार, गोल, तिकोनी, तिरछी, पूर्व से कटी, नैऋत्य में बडी या वायव्य में बडी हो, अग्निकोण बडा हो, ऐसी जमीन मुफ्त में भी मिले तो त्यागने योग्य है।

2. ईशान यानी पूर्व-उत्तर दिशा वाला भाग बड़ा होना चाहिए। जमीन का ढलान पूर्व-उत्तर में हो तो शुभ रहेगा। दक्षिण-पश्चिम में ढलान नहीं होना चाहिए। ईशान कोण में मुख्य दरवाजा ठीक नहीं रहता। ईशान में शौचालय भी बर्बादी का कारण बनता है। स्नान घर हो तो चल जाएगा।

3.सीढ़ियो के नीचे मंदिर नहीं होना चाहिए। अमूमन जगह के उपयोग को देखते हुए ऐसे अधिकांश घरों में मंदिर बना लेते हैं, जो गलत है। आग्नेय कोण में रसोई घर होना शुभ रहता है।

4. आग्नेय-पश्चिम में शौचालय रखें। बडे-बुजुर्गों को सोने का स्थान नैऋत्य में होना चाहिए। अविवाहितों को वायव्य दिशा ( जहां से वायु घर में प्रवेश करती है) में सुलाएं तो विवाह शीघ्र हो। पढाई का स्थान उत्तर-पूर्व में हो व पूर्व या उत्तर की तरह मुंह कर बैठे शुभ रहेगा। सुदृढ़ आर्थिक स्थिति के लिए उत्तर में अलमारी या तिजोरी होना चाहिए।

5. उत्तर दिशा में पानी रखना शुभ होता है। आग्नेय में पानी या बोरिंग नहीं होना चाहिए। कोई भी कमरा तिरछा नहीं होना चाहिए। उत्तर-पूर्व में बगीचा शुभ रहेगा। वहीं दक्षिण-पश्चिम में शुभ नहीं रहता। आग्नेय में देवालय व ईशान में रसोई बर्बादी का कारण बनता है।

Source: Spiritual News in Hindi & Aaj Ka Rashifal

Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway battle closer to resolution as lenders agree to remove toll plaza

 

In what could provide major relief for commuters along the Delhi-Gurgaon expressway, the lead lender for the project, Infrastructure Development Finance CompanyBSE 0.16 % (IDFC), has filed a settlement proposal in the Delhi High Court on Monday.

According to the affidavit filed in Delhi High Court, IDFCBSE 0.16 % has finally agreed to NHAI's proposal of tolling only at one location, which would mean that the contentious toll plaza along the Delhi-Gurgaon border, which had been causing serious inconvenience to the public, would be removed.

IDFC will also replace the current concessionaire Delhi Gurgaon Super Connectivity Ltd (DGSCL) with another suitable party to take-over the project.

In its affidavit, IDFC has stated that senior lenders are agreeable to NHAI Board's 'option 3' according to which only the toll plaza at km 42 will remain. Read more..

Source: Hindi News

From ET News      

Bank workers to strike work on Feb 10, 11

The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) has revived its call for a 48-hour nationwide strike to begin from February 10, in view of "meagre" improvement to the initial wage revision offer made by bank managements.

The bank managements represented by IBA increased their offer from 9.5 per cent to 10 per cent on payslip cost at their bipartite talks with UFBU on Monday. 

As this improvement is seen to be inadequate, it has been decided to revive the strike call for February 10 and 11, said C.H. Venkatachalam, General Secretary of All India Bank Employees Association. 

UFBU, a representative body of nine bank unions, had earlier given a strike call for January 20 and 21. But this strike plan was deferred after the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) increased their initial offer from five per cent to 9.5 per cent on January 17.Read more..   

Source: News in Hindi

From BL News