News: 15 October

The crisis within the Jet Airways has just begun, it seems. Jet Airways CEO Wolfgang Prock-Schaeur revealed that his airlines will terminate 1,900 out of a total of 13,000 employees in a phased manner. According to Jet CEO, those employees were hired as part of the expansion plan, but it was held back for some reason. He also said that 800 employees have already been served termination notice and 1,100 more will soon get the boot. Mr. Wolfgang Prock-Schaeur termed the process of termination of employees as completely legal and maintained that adequate compensation will be given to sacked employees as per the contract. He also said that decision to fire the employees had nothing to with the alliance with Kingfisher Airlines. “It was a tough decision, but we had to take it. We have sacked employees for the first time in 15 years”, said Mr. Wolfgang Prock-Schaeur.

The current turmoil within the Jet Airways, has taken an interesting turn with MNS (Maharashtra Navnirman Sena) chief Raj Thackeray deciding to support the sacked Jet Airways employees. Jet Airways has sacked around 1,000 employees today, who were on probation and were supposed to get their confirmation letter on November 1. After getting a snub from Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, the sacked Jet Airways employees decided to approach MNS chief Raj Thackeray, who in return echoed their sentiments. Raj Thackeray warned the Jet Airways of dire consequences if the sacked employees are not reinstated with immediate effect. “No Jet Airways flight will be allowed to take off from Mumbai if needed”, thundered Raj Thackeray. A MNS delegation will meet Jet Airways management tomorrow to discuss the issue.

As the Jet Airways sacked around 1,000 employees without giving any prior notice, the sacked staff went on a rampage outside the Jet Airways office in Mumbai. All sacked employees were on probation and they were supposed to get their confirmation letter on November 1, but they never expected a sudden termination letter as ‘Diwali Gifts’. The employees are now considering legal options, as Jet Airways did not keep its promise of one month termination notice to its employees. The sacked Jet Airways employees included the cabin crew and customer service officers. They are in a state of shock at this latest development. The Jet Airways Chairman Naresh Goyal defended the decision to lay off around 1,000 staff saying they were non-permanent and unconfirmed employees. He also said that his company would do everything possible to reduce costs. The Jet Airways also decided to reduce its flights by 10-12 percent during the coming winter. According to latest reports, Jet Airways will sack more employees in the categories of cabin cockpit crew and management. Kingfisher Airlines also said that it would soon fire a sizable number of employees to reduce costs. Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has refused the government intervention on this matter, saying the companies reserve the right to hire/fire their staff. The sacked Jet Airways employees have decided to approach MNS chief Raj Thackeray for his support to their cause.

Alibaba.com is the official website of the Alibaba Group, which is considered as the world’s largest B2B marketing website. Alibaba.com is a big name in the field of B2B e-commerce. Jack Ma, a former English teacher from the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou founded Alibaba.com in 1999 along with 18 other founder members. Today, Alibaba.com has over 32 million registered users from over 240 countries and regions. Alibaba.com has offices in over 30 cities across China as well as in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Europe and the US. The company has around 7,000 full-time employees today. Alibaba.com connects millions of buyers and suppliers through three marketplaces – http://www.alibaba.com/, http://www.alibaba.com.cn/ and http://www.alibaba.com.jp/. Alibaba.com is a certified B2B marketing website is considered as the most trusted among all available e-commerce websites.

Captain GR Gopinath, vice chairman of Kingfisher Airlines, is planning to buy back Air Deccan. He is reportedly unhappy over the alliance between Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways struck a couple of days ago. Gopinath is planning to offer a package to buy back Air Deccan from Kingfisher Airlines. Currently, UB Group Chairman Vijay Mallya has 65% share in Kingfisher Airlines, while Captain Gopinath has only 5.58% stake.

In a shocking development, Father Chellan, the lone eyewitness in the sensational nun rape case in Kandhamal, Orissa, refused to cooperate in the investigation, saying he did not have faith in the system. Father Chellan’s refusal to help the Orissa Police, came as a shocker for all and it provided ammo to critics who have already raised questions on the alleged rape of the nun. In 1999, a similar incident occurred in Baripada, where a nun alleged that she was raped by Hindu extremists. But the later the allegations turned out to be false. Although the state police have arrested eight persons in connections with the nun rape case in Kandhamal, Father Chellan’s refusal to cooperate with the police, raised several questions that remain unanswered.

The Jet Airways has decided to lay off over 800 employees citing reasons of ill health and cost-cutting measures. Jet Airways’ decision to fire over 800 employees sent a panic across the aviation industry. The cabin crew and customer service officials will be fired as part of a cost-cutting exercise. According to sources, Kingfisher Airlines is also planning to lay off a sizeable number of staff soon. According to major Ailrlines in the country, the aviation sector is in a bad shape and it requires a bailout package to move up. Airlines across the world are suffering huge losses due to the steep rise in jet fuel. Aviation Minister Prafulla Patel has expressed concerns over the latest deveopment and assured that he would take up the case with the Finance Minister.

India continued their dominance on the third day of the Commonwealth Youth Games on Tuesday and consolidated their position atop the standings, taking their medals tally to seven golds, five silver and four bronze. England closely follow the hosts with six golds, one silver and two bronze. India bagged four golds, four silvers and four bronze at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex at Balewadi on Tuesday to add to their Mondays tally of three golds and one silver. Meanwhile in girls’ badminton event, Beijing quarter-finalist Saina Nehwal eased past Deborah Godfrey of South Africa to 21-7 21-4 to storm into the pre-quarterfinals, while national champion Guru Sai Dutt beat Joel Debel of Seychelles 21-04 21-02 to move into third round. Not considered as India’s forte, athletics however earned India a gold through Maharashtra’s Dheeraj Mishra who leapt 15.42m to emerge on top in the triple jump. England’s Benjamin Williams (15.41m) finished second, while Boipelo Molahatlhego of South Africa secured the bronze with a distance of 15.20m. Indians also bagged two silver and three bronze medals in athletics. Though the hosts missed a gold in the men’s hammer-throw which was topped by Peter Smith of England with a distance of 68.38m, Indian duo of Narayan Chandrodaya (68.38m) and Ejaj Ahmed (64.97m) took the silver and bronze respectively. The other silver came from Gayathri Govindharaj, who with a timing of 14.00s finished second in 100m hurdles. Kierre Beckles (Barbados) and Australia’s Brianna Beahan took the gold and bronze respectively. The other two bronze medals came through Jasdeep Singh (shot put) and Poonam Rani (women’s javelin). Meanwhile, India shooters continued to shine for the second day in succession with Hyderabad’s Kynan Darius Chenai bagging a gold in the boys trap event and Ankush Bharadwaj clinching his second medal, a bronze in 10m Air Pistol event. Mistake-ridden Darius, however, had a nervous final round where he shot 17, while the eventual bronze medalist Michael McNabb of Australia shot 19. But his earlier rounds scores of 111 was enough for the Hyderabad sharp shooter to finish on top with 128. Having shot a poor 106 in the earlier rounds, Australian McNabb’s splendid comeback in the final round took his tally to 106 and thus a bronze. Malta’s Ryan Bugeja, who shot on par with the Indian with the final round score of 17, had to settle for the silver medal after finishing one point shy of Darius. Monday’s gold medalist in 50m pistol event, Bhardwaj added a bronze to his tally after firing 94.9 in the final round to finish with a total of 645.9. Gold went to James Hendry Matthews of Canada with a final score of 96.1 and a total of 653.1. Singapore’s Chen Christopher finished with the silver with a total score of 650.7 and in the final he shot 95.7. Loss of concentration due to a lighting problem cost Rushad Damania of India a medal, who missed the bronze by a margin of less than two points in the boys 50m rifle prone event. Bad light forced Rushad to change his place and he shot 97.3 in the final to take his total to 679.3. But Rory McAlpine of Scotland with a final round score of 99.4 took his tally to 681.4 en route to a silver, while James Huckle took the gold with 687.6. India had a poor fifth place finish in the girls 50m rifle prone event with Aparajita Tivary totalling 579. Kay Copland (Scotland) clinched the gold with 585, while Nurfarah Afiqah of Malaysia took the silver totalling 582. Sheree Cox of England had to contend with the bronze, finishing one point adrift of the Malaysian. Monday saw shooting earn two gold for India with Bhardwaj emerging winner in a two-way race in the 50m pistol and Rahi Sarnobat in the girls 25m pistol. Taking advantage of the thin participation, India also bagged two gold medals in wrestling event. Ajit Patil opened the medal account in wrestling for the hosts when he emerged on top in the 39- 42kg category which saw representation from four countries. In his first round bout, the Kolhapur lad beat Pakistan’s Salamat Ali 8-0 to ensure a medal for India and then knocked out England’s Jack Longthrone 6-1 in the second bout to finish on top in the round robin. In the gold medal bout, the Bombay Engineering Group (BEG) grappler pinned down Jonathan Babulall of Canada to pocket the gold. In the 46kg category, which saw a three-way race, Delhi’s Deepak Kumar emerged on top. Trained under his father Ramnath, the gold on Tuesday was his third international medal. He has a gold in a Russian meet in 2007, while in Uzbekistan last year he had bagged a bronze. Yukar Sibi and Laxmi N fetched two silvers for India in the men’s 62kg and women’s 53kg categories of weightlifting. The Army Sports Institute’s (ASI) girl Sibi lifted 112kg in snatch and 147kg in the clean and jerk category to finish with a total of 259kg and settle for a silver behind Aricco Jumitih of Malaysia. Uganda’s Charles Ssekyaaya took the bronze. Laxmi, who trains in SAI Bangalore, lifted 149kg (snatch 67kg, jerk 82kg) to finish with 149kg for the silver. Zoe Smith of England took the gold, while Bangladesh’s Fayema Akther had to settle for the bronze. The top two seeded paddlers Neha Aggarwal and Soumi Mondal also maintained their winning streak to make the last eight of the table tennis event.

In one of the largest layoffs in Indian aviation sector, Jet Airways hands in the pink slip to more than 800 cabin crew and customer care executives. Earlier CNBC-TV18 had reported that Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines had announced a cost-cutting collaboration on Monday October 13. Meanwhile, sources say that Kingfisher Airlines is also likely to lay off employees. Sources further reported that Jet and Kingfisher would meet to discuss route rationalization in the next two to three days. Here is a verbatim transcript of Karma Paljor’s comments on CNBC-TV18. Also watch the accompanying video. Q: Explain the likely quantum of attrition from a Kingfisher perspective and how important is the alliance factor, considering small players are meeting to form an alliance, which is similar to the Jet Kingfisher pact? A: Yes, this is in line with what the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) have been talking about. Jet Airways said that they were would lay off some 800 odd staff and this is not the confirmed staff, this is the staff which was on probation, which was taken for expansion plan. Sources said that those on probation, those who are taken to fly the new routes that they are going to charter may be dismisses. The US operations has been suspended, due to which a sizeable chunk of around 800 staff would be asked to go off, which means that they will not be confirmed. These staff were essential for expansion. All the experienced staff is going to move to international operations to fly to Europe now.. So as far as Kingfisher is concerned we are expecting the same. The aviation industry is expected to incur a loss of over Rs 4,000 crore. It is a very difficult time for them right now. The CEOs are meeting to discuss this issue with the Aviation Minister in Hyderabad. Q: There are also newspaper reports that Captain Gopinath may be actually vying a Deccan buyback with support from some PE players and that he is unhappy over the Jet alliance and he also looking at meeting Vijay Mallya today. Did you pick up anything from your sources? A: Captain Gopinath said he was going to meet Vijay Mallya, where the Kingfisher Airlines chairman would try and explain the model that they working out with Jet Airways. But he may be very clear that should Vijay Mallya and Naresh Goyal plan to kill the low cost model of Air Deccan or Kingfisher Red which they call it now, then he would certainly try and combat and buy Kingfisher Red back from Vijay Mallya, so that would be a significant move. But the clause being that Captain Gopinath would need the funds to do that and since he has made this Air Deccan dream come true a lot of people would love to back him at this point. Q: Getting back to the labour issue considering that assurances were given to employees post the pact. Do you see a lot of trouble brewing in right now that this news of lay off has come in? A: I don’t think so. As far as the Jet Airways and Kingfisher are concerned, most of the employees that they are going to lay off were on probation and Jet Airways made this statement that they were laying off probationers. So I don’t think there will be any problems. They said that they would give them good compensations. Q: Are you also picking up any news on the small players now forming an alliance of their own, which includes Indigo? A: Possible at this point but we will really have to see how they can get together. The aircraft, fleet size and the make will have to match Boeing. If SpiceJet is flying all Boeing fleets then Indigo would be flying then all the Airbus fleets. So all these factors will have to be taken in to see how they can really come together.

India’s Arvind Adiga created history by winning the Man Booker Prize 2008 for his much-publicized debut novel “The White Tiger”. Arvind Adiga’s book “The White Tiger” is all about the poverty in India and the wealth gap between the rich and the poor. The Chairman of the judges described Arvind Adiga’s “The White Tiger” as a revelation of “the dark side of India”. The Booker Awards ceremony was held in London’s Guildhall. “The White Tiger” narrates the story of a village boy Balram Halwai, who became an entrepreneur through villainous means. According to Arvind Adiga, most of the poor people in India can make it to the top either through crime or politics. It’s a dream came true for Arvind Adiga, who beat five other competitors including India’s Amitabh Ghosh (Sea of Poppies), Steve Toltz of Australia (A Fraction of the Whole), Sebastian Barry of Ireland (The Secret Scripture), and British writers Linda Grant (The Clothes on Their Backs), and Philip Hensher (The Northern Clemency). Arvind Adiga is the third writer to win the prestigious Man Booker Prize on debut after Arundhati Roy (1997) and DBC Pierer (2003). He is the fifth Indian-origin writer to win the coveted award after V.S. Naipul, Salman Rushdie, Arundhati Roy and Kiran Desai. Arvind Adiga, who was born in Chennai, dedicated his award to New Delhi, where he has lived for many years.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi has decided to take heads on Uttar Pradesh CM Mayawati. Sonia defied the prohibitory orders (Section 144) imposed by Mayawati government and entered Rae Bareli amid a huge welcome crowd. People defied Section 144 to welcome Sonia Gandhi and shouted slogans against Mayawati. “Rai Bareli is my Karmabhoomi. No one can stop me from coming to my home. I am ready to go to jail on this issue if required”, thundered Sonia Gandhi. Earlier Sonia Gandhi had cancelled her public rally in the wake of prohibitory orders imposed in the area. Although Mayawati had diverted Sonia Gandhi’s route to Rae Bareli, a defiant Sonia took the same route and snubbed Mayawati and her administration. The UP police was pain to explain why they could not stop Sonia from entering Rae Bareli and meeting with the public despite the prohibitory orders. Sonia did not comment on the cancellation of land allotment for the Rail Coach Factory, terming it “sub-judice”. Meanwhile, Congress legislator Ashok Singh and eight of his supporters were booked by the UP government for vandalism against the state government. Manuwadi Sonia breaks the law so every indian can break law as pr their comfort.

 

Breaking News

Mayawati has cancelled the allotment of land for a railway coach factory in Sonia Gandhi’s constituency Rae Bareli, just three days before the Congress chief was scheduled to attend a ceremony at the site to mark the beginning of construction. The Uttar Pradesh chief minister’s decision is being seen by state Congress leaders as a move targeted at Sonia Gandhi. She is believed to have been unhappy with a rally Sonia Gandhi held last month in Dadri against land acquisition from farmers in Badalpur, Mayawati’s village. Considered a dream project of the Congress chief, the rail factory with an investment of Rs 1,689.25 crore was expected to provide employment to at least 10,000 people from the area. The move marks a new low in the relationship between Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party and the Congress-led coalition at the Centre, which she had supported from outside till early this year. It is expected to raise the temperature in the run-up to the general elections next year. But state government officials said Mayawati’s order on Saturday canceling the allotment of 189.25 hectare near Lalganj had everything to do with opposition from villagers. Principal Secretary (Information) Vijay Shankar Pandey told reporters on Sunday that the government’s decision was based on the district magistrate’s report about resentment among farmers over the acquisition of land. The government had allotted the land on May 19 this year. Rae Bareli district magistrate Santosh Srivastava in his October 10 report to the state government said that “land acquisition could lead to law and order problems in Rae Bareli”, Pandey said. The DM said the proposed factory required nearly 700 acre land and farmers were afraid that their land might be acquired for the purpose. Pandey added that instructions had been issued for the arrangement of alternative land for the project. “As of now there is no land for the project,” Pandey said. Reacting sharply, Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) spokesman Akhilesh Pratap Singh said: “The decision had once again demonstrated that the BSP government was against development of the state.” Local Congress leaders said though Sonia Gandhi won’t have the Bhoomi Pujan of the rail project to attend, she might still address a scheduled rally at Lalganj on October 14. “Sonia Gandhi’s programme is still on. It may take place in some form or the other,” said Kishori Lal Sharma, a party leader making preparations for the rally. UPCC chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi said people of Dehar, Sohawal and Bannamau villages had given their consent in writing for the acquisition and that the “state government’s move will stall development”. She said the state government had not given the go-ahead to three other projects being set up in Rae Bareli.

Australia captain Ricky Ponting said India had a negative approach during the drawn first Test on Monday. “We were the only ones trying to take the game forward,” said Ponting after India finished on 177-4 having been set an unlikely winning target of 299. “We played aggressive cricket. I am not surprised by the way they played, the Indian team play a lot of drawn games. We dominated this Test match.” The sides now head to Mohali for the second Test, which starts on Friday. Ponting said he went into the final day in Bangalore expecting “a really good contest”. “We got some extra runs we thought might have needed. We gave it our best shot with the ball but we just didn’t create enough opportunities,” he added. “We could not win it at the end, but it was a pretty good start to the series for us.” India paceman Zaheer Khan, who was man-of-the-match after claiming five wickets in the tourists’ first innings and also scoring an unbeaten 57, said Australia’s failure to force victory meant they would be under more pressure in the rest of the series. “They know they can’t take our 20 wickets. They couldn’t get me and Bhajji (Harbhajan Singh) out, what else do you want? They are under pressure, we know that,” he said. “On a fifth day wicket their spinners couldn’t do us any harm. That tells everyone what their spin attack is all about. “Even their pacers, they didn’t look like getting a wicket, especially on the fifth day on a wicket like this.”

– By Sagar Satapathy, Editor-in-Chief (Breaking News online) There has been a huge hue and cry over the financial health of ICICI Bank during the recent market meltdown. The ICICI Bank suffered huge losses, causing panic among the investors. But everyone forgot that ICICI Bank remains a big power in the banking sector and it has enough money to overcome any temporary crisis. The rumours, speculations and all permutations and combinations proved wrong, as the ICICI Bank led the market surge yesterday. Only a few days ago, situation was so bad that ICICI Bank MD and CEO KV Kamath, Finance Minister P Chidambaram and the RBI had to step in to assure the investors of ICICI Bank’s stability and growth. It is not known whether some vested interests played the spoilsport by indulging in a malicious campaign against the ICICI Bank. But the bank proved anyone wrong and emerged as a strong force to reckon with in the banking industry. ICICI Bank not only managed to generate trust and confidence among its investors, but led the way in market surge. As a result, other banks such as HDFC Bank, SBI and others also witnessed good results. The ICICI Prulife from ICICI Prudential still remains a big hit among the investors. The ICICI Prulife is rated high among other insurance and unit-linked products. It has been a huge relief to see ICICI Bank on top again. Millions of investors in India can now feel safe and secure. Their money should be always safe with ICICI Bank. There is no doubt about this.

Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways have entered into a code sharing alliance. The two airliners signed a pact for common fuel management, ground handling, network rationalisation and cross-crew use. They will also work together on cross-sales and staff training. The new alliance between Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines has much significance, as it does not have any equity implication.

The National Integration Council (NIC) meeting was dominated by the issues such as terrorism and anti-Christian violence. While the UPA leaders tried to focus only on anti-Christian violence and Communalism, the BJP-led NDA tried to take a swipe at the UPA government on the issue of rising terror activities in the country. Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh expressed deep regret and anguish over the communal violence in Assam, Orissa and Karnataka. The NIC adopted a resolution condemning all acts of violence and terrorism and resolved to deal with such activities firmly. Gujarat CM Narendra Modi stole the show by taking the UPA government into task on the issue of terrorism. The BJP CMs demanded a tough terror law, which was rejected by Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil. On the expected lines, Samajwadi Party, CPI and CPM warned against targeting the Muslim community as terrorists. The Prime Minister also supported their views. The NIC meet also witnessed a war-of-words between Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik and Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil. Naveen Patnaik refuted all charges against his government and revealed that Centre had delayed sending forces to tackle the communal violence. Later, he urged everyone to forget all political difference and work together towards the growth and development of all sections of the society. The NIC, which met after a gap of 3 years, is comprised of 146 members including all Union Ministers, Chief Ministers, leaders of national and regional political parties and eminent personalities. Senior BJPO leader, former Deputy PM and leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, LK Advani, who was invited as #134 to the NIC meet, did not attend, taking it as an insult to his stature. Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Jaswant Singh was also not invited to the NIC meet.

Even as the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court ordered a stay on the cancellation of land allotment for Sonia Gandhi’s dream Rail Coach Factory in Rae Bareli, Mayawati sprung another surprise by imposing Section 144 in Rae Bareli on the eve of Sonia Gandhi’s rally. The government has denied permission for the rally citing law and order problem. The latest development could lead to a bitter face-off between Maywati and Sonia Gandhi. Mayawati took this decition after some congress minister supports the terrorist. And may be possible that sonia will announce some fund/relief for terrorists. So Mayawati impossess Section 144 in Rae Bareli. As we know that Arjun Singh, Amar singh Supports the terrorist and blam on Delhi Police and ignore the death of mohan chand sharma ( who died in fighiting with terrorist in jamiya nagar). We are very happy and with Mayawati for imposing Section 144 in Rae Bareli. Mayawati and Narendra Modi only two breave leaders in India rest of all are bharwa(hijra).

Paul Krugman, a Professor at Princeton University, United States, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics. Paul Krugman is an Op-Ed columnist for New York Times. Mr. Paul Krugman received the Nobel Prize for Economics for his commendable work on international trade and economic geography. Paul Krugman developed models that explained observed patters of trade between the countries. He also explained what goods are produced where and why. Paul Krugman’s theories explained why worldwide trade is dominated by a few countries that have similar policies and why some countries import the same goods they export.

 

Maya shows her strength to Sonia

UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi’s proposed dream Rail Coach Factory in Rae Bareli received a huge setback today, as Mayawati government in Uttar Pradesh has cancelled the allotment of land for the factory. Sonia Gandhi and Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav were scheduled to inaugurate the land for the Rail Coach Factory on October 14.

The Uttar Pradesh government had earlier given 189.25 hectare of land for the factory in Rae Bareli on May 19, when BSP and Congress were on good terms. The situation has changed now, as the Congress has joined hands with Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party. Mayawati had tried her best to topple the UPA government during the recent trust vote in Lok Sabha. While cancelling the land allotment, the UPA government has attributed it to the resentment among the farmers and law and order problems.