ANDAMAN-2008

ANDAMAN DURING THIS WINTER...30 DEGREE HOT

IN HIS NAME.

violin in hands Father McGuire

It was 1954 that Fr Mc Guire came to India as a young Canadian Jesuit priest. Father taught in Darjeeling in St. Joseph's and St. Robert's school and in St. Mary's school in Kurseong before coming to Kalimpong in 1990. In 1993 the Jesuit superior asked him to start a school for poor children and Gandhi Ashram was born.

I am one of the first children to be taken in by Fr. Mc Guire. "I did not know that life could be so different"

Father noticed that Nepali children were interested in their own music and they had proved that they could go very far in St. Robert's when Father taught a group of poor boys known as Gandhi Youth Group. He chose the violin as an instrument for the children to play because he feels the violin is the most beautiful instrument.

Gandhi Ashram Orchestra began with 11 children in 1993. We gave our first performance in Kalimpong only after 11 months of our encounter with the violin. Later on we were 15. Afterwards we were 30 and now there are almost 80 of us in the school orchestra. Rudramani Biswakarma conducts and teaches the orchestra. Father McGuire picked him up from the streets in Darjeeling when he was a small boy. 'Rudra' is a highly talented, dedicated man, who lives in his world of music. He interprets the music of the great masters and teaches us with love and care. He can relate to us who come from a similar background.

"All children in the school play the violin except the Kindergarten class"

In 1999 eight children were given scholarships to ICSE Schools in Kalimpong. Four of us were taken by Dr. Grahams Homes and five others by Saptashri Gyanpeeth. The principals of the schools heard us playing the violin and wanted to help us. It meant more than a dream coming true for us to be able to study in these schools.

Seema, a tenth grader from the first batch to the Homes says:
"I am very grateful to the people who have given children like us an opportunity to study in such a good school like the Homes".

Now we have 31 students going to different schools in Kalimpong.
We stay in the hostel of Gandhi Ashram School and go to these schools every morning.

Father McGuire is doing a lot for us. He is a channel through whom God's goodness is flowing into our lives. I know I have dared to dream 'big' because of the hope father gives us. We are given the self worth and dignity that helps us to grow and be what we are now.

By Sony Rai, Class 11, 2004

Father McGuire died on August 15,2005 but his legacy continues........
www.gandhi-ashram-school.org/home.php

http://colbyinindia2008.blogspot.com/search?q=saptashri

World Aids Day. -1st December

World AIDS Day raises awareness

Jakarta (1 December) - Today is World AIDS Day: the United Nations says 33 million people are infected with the HIV virus which can cause the disease.

The figures indicate that Indonesia currently has the world's highest rate of infection. Indonesia's first ever campaign against HIV/AIDS, which will encourage the use of condoms, is being launched today.

China is also marking World AIDS Day, with even the Miss World pageant, taking place at a Chinese resort, being used to raise HIV/AIDS awareness.

Earlier this week, the Chinese government announced that it will open a centre for research into the disease. For many years, China has viewed HIV/AIDS as a foreign problem which did not greatly affect the country.

source-Radio netherlands

Download CBSE sample questions-2008

The students of Andaman and Sikkim study in CBSE schools .They can download sample questions from CBSE site.This year new pattern is adopted by the CBSE..therefore this sample questions are very helpful and a must for them ,as the Exams(AISSE-08/AISSCE-08) are scheduled in March 2008.http://www.cbse.nic.in/curric~1/sample2008.htm
GO GET IT !

OBSESSED !

Two traveling monks reached a river where they met a young woman. Wary of the current, she asked if they could carry her across. One of the monks hesitated, but the other quickly picked her up onto his shoulders, transported her across the water, and put her down on the other bank. She thanked him and departed.
As the monks continued on their way, the one was brooding and preoccupied. Unable to hold his silence, he spoke out.
"Brother, our spiritual training teaches us to avoid any contact with women, but you picked that one up on your shoulders and carried her!"
"Brother," the second monk replied,"I set her down on the other side, while you are still carrying her."

SEEING RED !

Ever wondered about the colour on the sky during dawn or dusk, sindoor on the temple of married Hindu women,the danger light..What I am talking about...What is common.!!.Yes the colour RED. Why this colour red is used? Why the flowers are always of the shades of Red?The Jarawas of Andaman like Red clothes!

We all studied it in the school about the colour spectrum..VIBGYOR.Starting from violet, the lowest wavelength to the highest/longest..What is the last colour..ofcourse it is RED.The colour red can reach our eyes faster than the Blue.So to be get noticed this colour is used or present in the nature to attract. When the sun goes down the horizon or rises, the last or first colour reaching our eyes is Red.

Look at the above colour presentation prepared by me,to prove the wavelengths..your eyes are attacked by two different colours(blue and red)of opposite wavelengths..what you feel?The blue is reaching you slower than the red,that’s why the illusion!

ANDAMAN SIKKIM

FAITH ?

Carrying his fathers burden of faith!

Yours faithfully,
IN THE NAME OF GOD.

HAPPY DIWALI-2007

Happy Diwali-2007

My dial-up GPRS is playing hide and seek with me,anyway this post comes to you after three hours of play.

HAPPY DIWALI

MUSHARRAF IMPOSES EMERGENCY

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf on Saturday declared a state of emergency and replaced the nation’s top judge, saying the judiciary was interfering with the government and that Islamic militancy posed a grave threat.

Troops and police surrounded the Supreme Court in Islamabad, which had been due in the coming days to give a verdict on the legality of the military ruler’s victory in the October 6 presidential election.

The government replaced Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, a thorn in the government’s side since Gen. Musharraf’s botched bid to sack him earlier this year, by Hameed Dogar.

Later in the night, Gen. Musharraf in an address to the nation said he imposed the emergency to maintain national unity in the face of “serious internal strife.” Terrorism in Pakistan had reached an extreme level and extremists had challenged the writ of the government. If tough and uncomfortable decisions were not taken now, Pakistan might plunge into a crisis.

Mr. Justice Chaudhry and other judges drove out the court building in a convoy under police escort hours after the emergency was declared.

“Justice Hameed Dogar was administered the oath as Chief Justice by President Pervez Musharraf under the new provisional constitutional order,” the government spokesman said.

The government also appointed new Chief Justices for the Sindh, Lahore and Balochistan High Courts.

Justice Abdul Mohammed Somroo has been appointed the new Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court while Justice Amanula Yasim Zai will be the new Chief Justice of the Balochistan High Court, the state-run PTV reported.

Justice Iftikhar Hussain Chaudhry has been appointed the Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court.

The former Premier, Benazir Bhutto, who warned earlier this week that the opposition would never accept the imposition of an emergency, has returned to Pakistan from Dubai.

The Supreme Court earlier ordered the suspension of emergency rule, which puts the nuclear-armed Islamic republic’s constitution on hold, but the government rejected the move.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called Gen. Musharraf’s decision to declare emergency “very regrettable,” in comments broadcast on CNN.

Nawaz Sharif, the former Premier, condemned the emergency and called upon Gen. Musharraf to step down.

All land and mobile telephone lines went down shortly after the declaration, while private TV channels were taken off the air as tension gripped the capital.

Gen. Musharraf has been at loggerheads with the Supreme Court since his bid to sack Mr. Justice Chaudhry, in March. — Agencies

News Week

This week brought lot of happenings. Panchayat Elections were over and the SDF party is the winner.Bombs exploded in Pakistan targeting Bhutto. Once again 123 agreement was in the news.Governors Gold Cup football in Gangtok,Prashant to perform in Gangtok.. Rizvanur issue of Kolkata,Increased Naxalite activity in the country, Mukesh Ambani become the worlds richest man..it means bill Gates lost this title.

Word this week: NAXALITE-THIS MOVEMENT STARTED IN INDIA WITH THE MARXIST-LENINIST IDEOLOGY TO CHANGE THE SOCIAL PATTERN THROUGH ARMED REBELLION TO EXISTING NORMS.NAXALBARI(WEST BENGAL)WAS THE CENTRE AND THE FIRST PLACE TO SUCCESSFULLY MOBILISE THE PEASANTS IN THIS MOVEMENT THATS WHY THE NAME NAXALITE MOVEMENT. NOW IT IS MAOIST MOVEMENT OR PEOLES WAR GROUP.

BALIDHAN DIWAS

KNOWLEDGE,HARD WORK OR ATTITUDE

It is a different kind of numerology. If you give the letters A to Z values of 1 to 26, Hard work gets 98 per cent, knowledge gets 96 per cent, love gets 54 per cent, luck gets 47 per cent, money, 72 per cent, leadership, 89 per cent. But your attitude adds up to 100 per cent, "Attitude is everything. You change your attitude and you change your life as well."

TWO NEW FM STATIONS FROM SILIGURI-MISTY & Hi

Two new FM test runs are on the Air from Siliguri .Radio Mishti-(Gungunaate raho)- is to air Hindi,Bengali and Nepali songs and Hi FM -(hai hit hai)-is to come up with Hindi,Bengali , Nepali and English numbers,the test run is going on for the past two weeks.The reception is clear in Central Pendam,East Sikkim.The target audience is from Siliguri,Darjeeling Hills,North Bengal and Sikkim.This region is having a good potential for advertising and marketing.The FM stations also can give exposure to local musicians and singers.For the last two days I am listening to this.Till now AIR Purnia,Guwahati and Kanchanjunga FM were recieved well here.I sometimes(during winter-when the sky is clear) even recieved good quality signals of FM stations from Kolkatta -(like radio Mirchi,Power FM)here at Pendam. read more

Gregorian-Chinese and Indian daily Calendar

These calendars are popular for its remainders of the days importance,quotations,thoughts,Astrological information etc.Tamilians and Gujaratis use it.The idea of daily calendar is from China,the paper is very thin and torn daily.Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu is famous for printing this cheaper (10-15 Rs.) Calendars.The photo of the Chinese one is from a Kalimpong momo restaurant,and the Tamil one is from my home.

HAPPY DASAIN

Happy Dassain!

The Chief Minister, Dr. Pawan Chamling and Mrs. Tika Maya Chamling, have extended their greetings to the people of Sikkim on the auspicious occasion of Dassain festival which begins from October18 .

On the auspicious cccasion of BADA DASSAIN Sikkim Chief Minister Extended their's warmest Vijaya Dasami Greetings and season's felicitations to all the people of Sikkim. In their messages, they have wished the people of Sikkim a happy and joyful celebrations of festival and its true spirit.

GOOGLE NUMERO UNO !

Google is the global most searched engine San Francisco, Oct 12

Google powered more than half of all search requests carried out around the world in August, according to a report. The global study by Internet research firm comScore revealed that more than 61 billion searches were performed by more than 750 million users in the month, with Google accounting for 37 billion searches - more than all the other major search engines combined. However, search engines in China and South Korea are challenging the search company in their own countries.

Yahoo was the second most used engine with 8.5 billion searches, while Beijing-based language search engine Baidu.com was third with more than 3.2 billion searches, comScore said. Microsoft's web sites ranked fourth with 2.1 billion searches, and Korea's Naver.com, owned by NHN, ranked fifth with two billion searches worldwide. Some five billion of Google's searches were conducted via its video site YouTube, the study found.

The most searches were conducted in the Asia-Pacific region, which includes China, Japan and India, where 258 million users performed 20.3 billion searches. In Europe, 210 million users performed 18 billion searches and in North America, 206 million users performed 16 billion searches. In the Middle East and Africa, which ranked at the bottom of the pack, 30 million people conducted two billion searches, comScore said.

"Seeing Asian search engines like China's Baidu.com and Korea's NHN ranked alongside Google and Yahoo underscores the fact that search has become a truly global phenomenon," said Bob Ivins, comScore vice president of international markets.

Rupee at all time high since 1998

Mumbai, Oct 04

Rupee rose to its strongest level against the dollar in 9-½ years on Thursday as dealers bought the local unit aggressively in anticipation of strong overseas investments into the stock market.

At 2:04 p.m., the partially convertible rupee was up 0.4 percent at 39.42 per dollar, its strongest level since March 1998 and above Wednesday`s close of 39.575/585.

Earlier, in volatile trade at the interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the local currency resumed slightly lower at 39.58/60 per dollar from yesterday`s close of 39.5750/5850 a dollar and later was quoted 39.57/58 a dollar in late morning deals.

There was little activity in forex market but the rupee activity was largely influenced by sustained and unprecedented portfolio investments in equity markets, dealers said. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIS) have poured in about USD 4 billion since September 19 after the US Federal Reserve cut the key interest rates.

BAAPU.

What I know about Gandhiji is from teachers,readings and the movies. I learned about his simplicity in my school days. A story of the small pencil gifted by a school girl was inspiring, and it shows his humility and respect to small things in life.Gandhi's' three monkeys is an inspiration. I was a child when I stumbled upon the books written on Gandhi in my house, which was kept in a old trunk box. The books were in Tamil. My father was a keen reader of his writings. Gandhi and Brahamacharya was a title which I didn’t understood in my childhood .His dress, walk, non-violence all influenced me.

I later as a teacher taught Gandhism as a lesson in high school. This is the turning point where I delved into his psyche. Teaching it repeatedly for fifteen years gave me an opportunity to understand him. The essence is ‘He practiced what he preached’.Some of his ideas are not practicable even though we cannot ignore the genius in him. He borrowed from many sources and tried to practice those moral principles which made him the Mahatma.

Later I read a book called Gandhian Principles,a small but was compiled topic wise. When I was in college, in the library I saw a long set of about twenty or more volumes in Gandhian Thoughts in light blue coloured cloth binding..not touched by anyone…the dust..Cobwebs proved it. I didn’t like the large volumes then. I read his Autobiography My Experiments with Truth. I cannot write about it here, read it and find what Gandhi is all about. If you don’t read it now you will never! There are certain things in life which we may miss if we don’t go through it now. I learned more about this man through the eyes of Attenborough .

Screenage generation can have a taste of Gandhi in Lage Raho Munnabhai,but his ideas are not as simple as it was portrayed.Satyagraha is a tool for the strong,not for the weak minded.

Nonagenarians.

One from the state another from the Union Territory.One in the Island and another in the Highland,but they are the two nonagenarians.

International Day of Older Persons

The world is getting older. in the next 50 years, the number of older persons will nearly quadruple, growing from about 600 million to almost 2 billion people. Today, one in every ten is 60 years and older. By 2050, one out of every five will be an older person, and by 2150, one third of the people in the world are expected to be 60 years of age or older.
International Day for the Elderly is dedicated to honor, respect and care for the world's elderly. Remember, someday you hope to be included among this group!

In 1990, the United Nations General Assembly designated October 1st as the International Day for the Elderly, also known as the "International Day for Older Persons". The holiday is the result of the UN World Assembly on Aging which was formed in 1982 to explore and tend to the needs of the elderly in the world.

Idea from Africa

This kind of attachment to a bicycle can serve as an ambulance during emergencies.This innovation is from Africa,and it also can be useful in the plain areas of India.Anyone interested!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO GOOGLE!

THANK YOU BLOGGER.COM

MY SCHOOL BLOG
http://www.centralpendamschool.blogspot.com

HUMOUR BLOG
http://humosapiens.blogspot.com

POLITICAL SCIENCE (CBSE) BLOG

MY CREATIONS-graphic designs..wallpapers

TAMIL BLOG

FOR LEARNERS WHO TEACH

TAVEL EASY
http://sikkim-andaman.blogspot.com

WONDER-PONDER
http://ajoobaachamba.blogspot.com

Pay revision risk to state finances: RBI

Chennai, Sept 24

State governments should guard against slippage in their fiscal consolidation process due to any increase in salaries for the government workforce by making their budgets more robust, Reserve Bank of India Governor Yaga Venugopal Reddy said.

"There are certain risks for the fiscal consolidation process such as the expected increase in expenditure from the revision of pay scales or the implementation of the recommendation of sixth pay commission," Reddy said, speaking at a seminar in Chennai.

"In this connection, state governments would need to make their budgets robust enough to enable them to steadfastly adhere to the provisions of their fiscal responsibility legislations," he said. The Congress party-led coalition set up a panel, known as the pay commission, to review the salaries of Central government employees in July 2006 and the report is to be submitted by early 2008.

Analysts expect about 30 percent increases in salaries of Central government civil servants, which could trigger demand for a similar raise from state government workers. The last pay commission in 1997 had severely damaged public finances and widened the combined state and Central deficit to nearly 10 percent of GDP for several years.

"Fiscal empowerment through revenue augmentation holds the key to address such fiscal risks," Reddy said. Reddy noted that state governments have since consolidated their positions after allowing their finances in the aftermath of the last pay commission revisions. The fiscal deficit of state`s was expected to be brought down to 2.4 percent of gross domestic product in the current fiscal year ending in March, from more than 4 percent in the first half of the present decade, he said.

ONE WORLD..ONE HUMANITY

The story of the human race is characterized by efforts to get along much more than by violent disputes, although it’s the latter that make the history books. Violence is actually exceptional. The human race has survived because of cooperation, not aggression.-Gerard Vanderhaar

EXPLORE SIKKIM: A New Magazine

Today I read a new magazine- EXPLORE SIKKIM .Really, clean and elite in its presentation.
This Black&White first issue (I wish later it becomes colourful) is like a journal on Sikkim,because of its decent presentation and broad outlook to preserve the socio-cultural
diversity of this region. The content shows the passion and philosophy behind the publication.
Nostalgia,sports,history,culture,society,hobbies etc.are the major topics.Photos are also of good quality..I don't know why one of the models face is censored and later she appeared in another page. The Tourism column is useful to everyone. Cartoons of Padam-Malay which I use to enjoy in the SUNCHARI also one of the attractions of this Mag.Mr.Shital Pradhan is the Editor ,so you can expect more good quality articles on Sikkim.I am eagerly waiting for the next issue.

PRASHANT: INDIAN IDOL-3- Pahad ko Gaurav

23 Sep 2007, 2206 hrs IST,PTI

NEW DELHI: Prashant Tamang, a constable in the West Bengal Police, was on Sunday crowned Indian Idol after vanquishing his rival Amit Paul in a grand finale of the over-two month long talent hunt.

Tamang, 24, who hails from Darjeeling, has undergone a journey from being a member in the police band in Kolkata to becoming the heart throb of millions of TV viewers all over the country.

The grand finale was an all North-East affair as Tamang took on 24-year-old Paul, who hails from Shillong.

The results of the talent hunt were announced at a gala in New Delhi with the final witnessing a whopping seven crore people sending in their votes.

Tamang stole the centrestage with his rendition of the song Yeh Kali Kali Ankhen from the Hindi film Baazigar .

As Bollywood actor John Abraham announced Tamang the winner, the constable thanked his mother in a voice choked with emotion.

"I thank my mother, public and Bengal police for granting me the permission for participating in the show," he said.(Times Of India)

TWO DAYS ..

without electricity..came as a blessing for me.I switched to my Radio and listened to my alltime favorite Radio Netherlands.A dutch women's plight in the Colombian forests with the Revolutionary Armed forces - FARC ,was reported..next day I listened to the Radio Book of Al Galidi an Iraqi writing in Dutch..these two real life stories of two different people made me realise the state of affairs in this world of militancy and war...Bangaladesh & Nepal dominated the News in BBC Nepali Service and in the Bengali service.Unique oral Tradition of Madagaskar was reported in the BBC World service.Aap ki Baat BBC ke Saath is another programme which I like in the BBC-Hindi service.Tamil prog. begins at 9.15 PM which I miss often. Now we can listen to the missed bulletins online.

C.M. greets the people on Vishwakarma Puja

Gangtok,Sept16: Sikkim Chief Minister Dr.Pawan Chamling and Tika Maya Chamling have extended their warm greetings to the people of Sikkim on the auspicious occassion of Shri Vishwakarma Puja, which falls on September 17,2007 tomorrow.

In their greetings, They have extended to the people to celebrate the occassion in its true spirit.

PRIYADARSHAN-Remaker of remakes

He made a mulitilingual Kalapaani (1996) which told the story of freedom fighters in the jail at Andaman and Nicobar islands. It became as showcase for talented technicians from Malayalam to get noticed at the national level. It bagged 4 National Awards including awards for Santosh Sivan (cinematography) and Sabu Cyril (art direction).

Viraasat was the remake of Devar magan(Tamil)

His first Hindi Film GARDISH was the remake of malayalam movie Kereedom (for which Mohan lal won national award)

Muskurahat was remake of his own blockbuster KILLUKKAM

Doli sajaake rakhna was the remake of the superhit ANIYATHI PRAVU

HERA PHERI of the super hit RAMJIRAO SPEAKING

YEH THERA GHAR YE MEERA GHAR is the remake of Sanmanasullavarku samaadhaanam,one of the best comedy films.

His rescently released TAMIL FILM LAYSA LAYSA was the remake of The Malayalam HIT SUMMER IN BETHLAHEM (for which he was temperorily banned from malayalam industry)

The famous DIRECTOR has even stole from films of hollywood
malayalam film "TALAVATTOM" was the Remake of a hollywood movie"once flew over
Cookkos nest .

Now it is Bhool Bhulayya..the copy of Fazil's malayalam movie Manichitrathazhu.-Chandramukhi-in Tamil/Telugu,it was also made in Kannad.
In an interview, he claimed that it was not difficult for him to conceive a story like Bhool Bhulayya because he is an MA in Psychology and put a lot of effort and research into this horror humour movie.

Eighty percent of his hit movies in Hindi were not his original creations.Great Malayalam comedy movies of some other director were made into Hindi ..to get a national exposure.

Anyways his movies are more entertaining and I love watching them..comparing them with the originals in malayalam..thanks to the ASIANET TV.

VOTE FOR PRASHANT

Gangtok: The entire hills of Darjeeling District and Sikkim state are gearing up for Prasant Tamang featuring among the last two candidates of the 'Indian idol' television singing talent contest. Chief Minister Shri.Pawan Kumar Chamling appointed him as the Brand Ambassador of Sikkim and appealed the people to vote for Prashant Tamang.Every evening Sikkim Police Band perfroms from 5pm onwards at Titanic Park of Gangtok in "Prashant Campaign". Many Sikkim Ministers are appearing on local television appealing to people of Sikkim for SMS's for Prashant Tamang.Fund collection drive all over Sikkim & Darjeeling to boost Votes of Prashant in finals are on going at very hectic pace.

For Most ,Prashant Tamang is already winner of Indian Idol crown no matter what the results.

Karnataka bans mobile phone use by school children

Bangalore, Sep 12: Karnataka government has decided to ban use of mobile phones by school children aged below 16 and sale of handsets to them in order to protect their health.

The decision was adopted at a meeting of Education and Health Department here.

The measure comes in the wake of several studies which pointed to adverse effects radiation from mobile phones will have on the brain and the IQ level of children of this age group.

Minister for Health R. Ashok and Minister Primary and Secondary Education Basavaraj Horatti, speaking to reporters after chairing the high-level meeting here today, said a government order would be issued to this effect in a week's time.

Experts have been saying that the use of mobile phones had affected studies of students in several cases, they said.

The government also decided to ban sale of mobile handsets to children aged below 16 but has not decided on any punitive action on those who violate the ban.

Ashok said that school authorities would be asked to confiscate mobile handsets found in possession of students in schools and they would not be returned.

The government would also seek the cooperation of parents to ensure that their children do not use mobile phones even at homes in the interest of their wards, they said.
-(Sahara Samay)

Complex ULIP(BAJAJ ALLIANZ & AIVA) face Irda whip

Irda bans unit-linked insurance plans which charges are based on complex structure.

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irda) has banned unit-linked insurance plans (ULIPs) in which charges are based on a complex structure, making it difficult for policyholders to comprehend.

Such products in insurance parlance are called acturial-funded products. The ban would require Aviva Life Insurance to withdraw all its 14 ULIP products, while Bajaj Allianz one of its ULIPs called Capital Unit Gain.

Bajaj Allianz has been directed to withdraw Capital Unit Gain, the deadline for which is the end of next week, while the regulator has been a little considerate with Aviva Life Insurance. Irda has not set any deadline for Aviva to withdraw its ULIP products as the company would need more time to develop new products and then seek the regulator's approval.

“Bajaj Allianz has been given a time frame of 15 days. Aviva Life will have to introduce a new set of products to replace the ones they are using right now and will, therefore, be given more time,” said C S Rao, chairman, Irda.

Insurance sources said Bajaj Allianz Life reported a profit of Rs 30 crore in the first quarter of 2007-08 and Rs 63 crore in 2006-07 mainly on account of Capital Unit Gain.

Under the other ULIP schemes, charges are deducted upfront when the premiums are paid, which could range up to 40 per cent in the first year.

In acturial funded products, the first-year premium is treated as initial premium and is put under an initial management account called acturial funding. Every year 5 per cent of the premium is deducted as initial management cost and 5 per cent as premium allocation charge.

In the second policy year, again a 5 per cent charge is deducted as premium allocation and another 5 per cent from the first year premium as initial management cost. So, for every year a customer loses 5 per cent as premium allocation and 5 per cent as initial management charges.

Assuming that the policy tenure is 20 years and the customer wants to withdraw after three years, the policyholder loses 100 per cent of premium net of charges, 75 per cent if his policy tenure is a 15-year policy and 50 per cent if it is a 10-year policy.

“Acturial-funded products mislead customers into feeling that they have more benefits. While normal ULIP products charge policyholders upfront for all administration and fund management expenses, an acturial funded product will spread it over a period of time. So, a policyholder feels that he has got a larger number of units. Such products are not in the larger interests of the policyholders,” said Rao.

“In several western countries, regulators realised that these products are misleading and have asked companies to withdraw them,” said Rao.

When asked why the Irda approved these products in the first place, Rao said, “It is only after a product is marketed that you realise all the loopholes and then you make a correction. Three weeks ago, the Irda had asked the Acturial Society of India to give its opinion on acturial funded products and it was suggested that these products are not appropriate.”

Bajaj Allianz officials were unavailable for comment. An Aviva spokesperson said: “We have had no communication from Irda on any ban of actuarial-funded products. All our products, including the ones where actuarial funding has been used, have been pre-approved by Irda and are designed on sound actuarial principles. We have been selling these products for years in the country, and these have been approved by the regulator as they follow all guidelines and regulations laid down by the Irda. None of our products is detrimental to the interest of any existing or prospective customers. One of our actuarial funded products was approved as recently as May 2007.” THE ORDER The ban would require Aviva Life Insurance to withdraw all its 14 ULIP products Bajaj Allianz will have to withdraw one of its ULIPs called Capital Unit Gain Bajaj Allianz has been directed to withdraw Capital Unit Gain, the deadline for which is the end of next week IRDA has not set any deadline for Aviva to withdraw its ULIP products as the company would need more time to develop new products and then seek the regulator's approval

Why dont we think of SMS Direct-Democracy !

Now it is time to think of SMS Democracy,as everyone is holding a mobile phone,it will be easy to take decisions at least on issues which directly affect people.It will be a mix of Direct-Indirect
Democracy.But it should not be like the TV reality shows where you can vote as much as you can,but a voter should be given only one opinion vote.News papers use it,TV now is another name for SMS,Banking services,train reservation status...!.In federations the geography/region plays an important role..issues of one region should be put forward to only the people of that region..here the voter i.card number can be used to settle this issue.Some kind of software developed for this purpose can solve this and help us to get the vox populi.

Possibility of Tsunami in Northern Bay of Bengal

MELBOURNE: Millions of people living around the northern Bay of Bengal face the threat of a giant tsunami as devastating as the one in 2004, an Australian scientist has claimed.

There has been concern about the likelihood of another large earthquake off central Sumatra, just east of where the 2004 temblor struck triggering the Indian Ocean tsunami almost three years ago.

However, Phil Cummins, a senior seismologist at Geoscience Australia, has now found "compelling evidence" of a potential tsunami risk in the northern Bay of Bengal, particularly along the coasts of Burma and Bangladesh.

More than 60 million people lived within 10 metres of sea level at the bay's northern tip, he said, and heavily populated towns such as Chittagong, Dhaka and Kolkata could also be affected by such an event.

His findings, published in Nature today , are based on a review of geological data, combined with a study of precise measurements of movements in the Earth's surface.

This work suggested that the boundary between tectonic plates near the Burmese coast was much more active than previously thought.

The movements of the plates were consistent with a so-called "locked-thrust" fault, the kind needed to generate tsunamis, but may have been masked by a 20-kilometre thick layer of sediment known as the Bengal Fan.

Cummins said it may be more than 200 years before the next giant earthquake strikes. And while smaller events could occur earlier, "the risk of a major tsunami in the northern Bay of Bengal should be taken seriously".

He warned against panic or the introduction of any "drastic mitigation measures", but hoped his study would lead to further research into the potential risk.(PTI)

My note: Don't panic about Tsunami or Earth Quake..there is no predicting method invented yet.

MESSAGE

Message

Some occasions remind us of our indebtedness to the great people of our country who enriched our lives in many ways.

We owe a great deal to our teachers who paved the path for our progress. Teacher's Day is an occasion when every citizen of the country should pay homage to the great teachers of the Nation, because whatever we have achieved in our lives is due to the contribution of teachers who taught us what is right and what is wrong; what to do and what not to do, and how to address the numerous problems we face.

Teachers are regarded as equivalent to parents. We must not forget the people who shaped our values and outlook in the formative years of our life.

On this occasion I join you in paying homage to great teachers like Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan and others like him who have contributed so much towards our society and the Nation.

Sd/-

(Lt Gen (Retd) Bhopinder Singh)

Lieutenant Governor,

A & N Islands