The police in eastern Assam’s Bokakhat town arrested a man on the basis of a woman’s dying declaration that he had sexually assaulted her before setting her on fire.However, they added that they have visual evidence that the woman committed suicide and that the man could have been framed.Minutes before the woman died at the Jorhat Medical College Hospital on Wednesday night, she accused one Tirtha Sarma of setting her on fire. She also said the man, a resident of Bokakhat, had sexually exploited her.Jorhat is about 70 km east of Bokakhat, the administrative centre for Kaziranga National Park.The police on Thursday said that evidence pointed to the woman having committed suicide. “There is nothing in the CCTV footage to suggest the man set her on fire. But he has been arrested on the basis of her dying declaration. We are awaiting the autopsy report,” Manabendra Deb Roy, Golaghat district superintendent of police, said.The woman, an Adivasi in her early 20s, had been a domestic help at the residence of Badan Sarma, the father of the accused, for three years. She was fired a year ago, police said. read more
The governments of northeastern States adjoining Assam have alerted their citizens to a possible increase in influx of outsiders following the publication of the NRC draft.Nagaland’s Home Department has issued advisories asking all village, town and municipal authorities to strictly monitor the influx of people from outside the State in violation of the existing rules and norms.According to the department’s advisory, “Any unusual influx of outsiders should be promptly brought to the knowledge of the district administration and police.” read more
Security forces on Wednesday killed two militants in an operation in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.An Army spokesman said the bodies of two militants were found at the encounter site at Anantnag’s Muniward. Arms and ammunition were also recovered from the encounter site. “The identity of the militants is being established,” said the police.The gunfight started at around 5 a.m. in Muniward area when a joint team of the security forces cordoned off the area. The exchange of fire lasted for many hours. Director General of Police (DGP) S.P. Vaid described the operation as “clean one with precision”.Meanwhile, internet services have been suspended in Anantnag. Train services were also suspended in south Kashmir. read more
In what can be considered as an outreach to the Hindu community during Navratri, the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday approved proposals to fund fairs held by three religious trusts in the State. These are the Maa Lalita Devi Shaktipeeth Amavasya Mela, Naimisharanya in Sitapur; Maa Pateshwari Shaktipeeth, Devipatan Tulsipur Mela in Balrampur and Maa Vindhyavasini Shaktipeeth Mela in Mirzapur.The government will provide them funds of ₹60 lakh, ₹48 lakh and ₹41.49 lakh respectively, it said in a statement.Cabinet nodThe decisions were passed by the State Cabinet headed by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. While earlier the local municipal corporations would arrange for these religious fairs, now it will be the responsibility of the respective District Magistrates.The decision was taken with the view of providing proper facilities and successful arrangement of the fairs keeping in mind their inter-district, inter-State and international appeal, the government said, adding it had received proposals from the District Collectors. Suresh Kumar Khanna, Uttar Pradesh Urban Development Minister, said the fairs would be funded so that basic facilities are ensured for all devotees who come there. “So they don’t face any kind of trouble,” said Mr. Khanna. read more
Two infiltrators were killed by the Army personnel manning the Line of Control (LoC) in north Kashmir’s Keran Sector. One intruder was killed in Jammu.A Srinagar-based Army spokesman said they foiled an infiltration bid in the Keram Sector on Tuesday. “Two militants have been killed. The operation is on,” said the spokesman. A group of militants was trying to infiltrate and was spotted, triggering an encounter.In Jammu, the Army said it killed a heavily-armed Pakistani intruder along the LoC in the Akhnoor Sector.“An armed intruder was noticed trying to infiltrate into this side in the Pallanwalla area of the Akhnoor sector and was challenged by the alert Army personnel,” said the Army. read more
The Odisha Police Crime Branch on Thursday announced that it would move the High Court challenging the acquittal verdict of the lower court in the 2011-2012 rape and murder of a teenager.This came three days after a trial court in Bhubaneswar absolved the two accused in the case.“We will write to the Director of Public Prosecutor so as to prefer an appeal before the High Court to challenge the verdict delivered by the Bhubaneswar-based court of first additional session judge,” said Crime Branch IG Santosh K. Upadhaya.The senior police officer said the investigations into the rape and murder case were done properly and the Assistant Public Prosecutor (APP) had established the involvement of the accused in the case. After going through the court documents, including the written arguments and depositions of the APP, the public prosecutor has given his opinion suggesting that there are valid grounds to prefer an appeal challenging the acquittal verdict, Mr. Upadhaya said.Prashant Pradhan of Pipili and his brother were arrested in connection with the case. The teenager was allegedly raped and an attempt was made to kill her on November 28, 2011. When the incident triggered public outcry following allegations that the local BJD MLA and then Minister Pradeep Maharathy was sheltering the accused, the State government handed over the case to Crime Branch police. Also, Mr. Maharathy was asked to put in his papers. read more
The Opposition parties attacked the Congress government in Punjab on the second day of the Assembly session on Wednesday on the issue of alleged deterioration in the law and order situation in the backdrop of the recent gang rape incident in Ludhiana.Suggesting fast-track courts to try rape cases, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said he would approach the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to seek his personal intervention to ensure speedy justice in such cases.Responding to the issue raised by Simarjeet Singh Bains of the Lok Insaaf Party and Kultar Singh Sandhwan of the Aam Aadmi Party, the Chief Minister assured the House that he would also request the Chief Justice to try all such cases in a fast-track court on a day-to-day basis.He stressed the need for prompt dispensation of justice to the victims, besides exemplary punishment to the convicts in such dastardly acts.The Chief Minister informed the House that of the six persons involved in the heinous crime, three had already been arrested and the remaining would be nabbed soon. Earlier during Zero Hour, AAP MLA Sarabjit Kaur Manuke raised the issue, saying that crimes against women were rapidly rising in the State. “Had the police acted upon the input provided by the survivor’s friend, the incident could have been averted. The government must sack all the police personnel involved for dereliction of duty to send out a message to others,” he said. read more
A BJP panchayat president in Assam has been shot dead and another party worker critically injured by unidentified gunmen in Cachar district ahead of the three-phase Lok Sabha polls in the State next month, police said on Wednesday.Unidentifed gunmen opened fire at Sukhendu Das, the president of Borkhola Hatichora panchayat, in front of his residence in the village on Tuesday night in which he and another person was grievously injured.The two were rushed to Silchar Medical College Hospital, where Mr. Das succumbed to his injuries. The injured person, who was identified as Rinku Senapati, was admitted to the intensive care unit where his condition was stated to be critical.The police rushed to the spot and launched a search to nab the culprits. Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has condemned the incident and directed the authorities to take measures and arrest those responsible for the killing at the earliest. read more
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND—Foxes and feral cats are wildly unpopular among Australian conservationists. The two animals are infamous for killing off the continent’s native species, and they’ve been the targets of numerous government-backed eradication campaigns. But new research suggests that on Australian islands, these predators help control an even more destructive one: the black rat. As a result, eliminating cats and foxes could actually leave native mammals more vulnerable to predation, competition, and ultimately extinction.Australia is ground zero for the modern biodiversity crisis. The continent has suffered more than a quarter of all recent mammal extinctions, and many other native species survive only as small populations on one or more of the country’s thousands of islands. While habitat destruction has caused some extinctions, cats, foxes, and rats introduced around 1800 by British sailors have also played a major role, decimating native animals like bilbies and bandicoots—both small, ratlike marsupials found only in Australia. All of this has given large, nonnative predators like cats and foxes a bad name. “We hate them,” biologist Emily Hanna of the Australian National University in Canberra declared here last month at the International Congress for Conservation Biology.But to plan successful eradication campaigns, scientists must first understand how introduced predators interact with native fauna and with each other. For instance, cats and foxes are infamous for hunting birds and other wildlife, but they can also control rats, which are themselves ferocious killers of and competitors with native animals like the bandicoot. To date, few studies have looked at which type of predator is actually most likely to drive native animals extinct.Sign up for our daily newsletterGet more great content like this delivered right to you!Country *AfghanistanAland IslandsAlbaniaAlgeriaAndorraAngolaAnguillaAntarcticaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaArubaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahamasBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBermudaBhutanBolivia, Plurinational State ofBonaire, Sint Eustatius and SabaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBouvet IslandBrazilBritish Indian Ocean TerritoryBrunei DarussalamBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCayman IslandsCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaChristmas IslandCocos (Keeling) IslandsColombiaComorosCongoCongo, The Democratic Republic of theCook IslandsCosta RicaCote D’IvoireCroatiaCubaCuraçaoCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkDjiboutiDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEthiopiaFalkland Islands (Malvinas)Faroe IslandsFijiFinlandFranceFrench GuianaFrench PolynesiaFrench Southern TerritoriesGabonGambiaGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGibraltarGreeceGreenlandGrenadaGuadeloupeGuatemalaGuernseyGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaHaitiHeard Island and Mcdonald IslandsHoly See (Vatican City State)HondurasHong KongHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIran, Islamic Republic ofIraqIrelandIsle of ManIsraelItalyJamaicaJapanJerseyJordanKazakhstanKenyaKiribatiKorea, Democratic People’s Republic ofKorea, Republic ofKuwaitKyrgyzstanLao People’s Democratic RepublicLatviaLebanonLesothoLiberiaLibyan Arab JamahiriyaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMacaoMacedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic ofMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaldivesMaliMaltaMartiniqueMauritaniaMauritiusMayotteMexicoMoldova, Republic ofMonacoMongoliaMontenegroMontserratMoroccoMozambiqueMyanmarNamibiaNauruNepalNetherlandsNew CaledoniaNew ZealandNicaraguaNigerNigeriaNiueNorfolk IslandNorwayOmanPakistanPalestinianPanamaPapua New GuineaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPitcairnPolandPortugalQatarReunionRomaniaRussian FederationRWANDASaint Barthélemy Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da CunhaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint Martin (French part)Saint Pierre and MiquelonSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesSamoaSan MarinoSao Tome and PrincipeSaudi ArabiaSenegalSerbiaSeychellesSierra LeoneSingaporeSint Maarten (Dutch part)SlovakiaSloveniaSolomon IslandsSomaliaSouth AfricaSouth Georgia and the South Sandwich IslandsSouth SudanSpainSri LankaSudanSurinameSvalbard and Jan MayenSwazilandSwedenSwitzerlandSyrian Arab RepublicTaiwanTajikistanTanzania, United Republic ofThailandTimor-LesteTogoTokelauTongaTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanTurks and Caicos IslandsTuvaluUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomUnited StatesUruguayUzbekistanVanuatuVenezuela, Bolivarian Republic ofVietnamVirgin Islands, BritishWallis and FutunaWestern SaharaYemenZambiaZimbabweI also wish to receive emails from AAAS/Science and Science advertisers, including information on products, services and special offers which may include but are not limited to news, careers information & upcoming events.Required fields are included by an asterisk(*)To determine which island invaders were doing the most damage, Hanna and her research adviser Marcel Cardillo created and analyzed what she calls a “ridiculously large” database comprising 934 living and extinct populations of 107 mammal species on 323 Australian islands between the early 1800s and today. For each island, the researchers recorded the presence or absence of various native mammals, and of rats, cats, foxes, and wild dogs known as dingoes, which some scientists believe help control invasive predators. The researchers also included other factors that might affect extinction risk, such as the size of the island and distance from the mainland. (Ecologists have found that island populations close to continents are more easily replenished, while more distant populations more easily go extinct.) Hanna then analyzed these data to find which factors most often correlated with native mammal extinctions.The study yielded some surprising results: Native mammals were most likely to die off on islands that had rats, but not cats, foxes, or dingoes. Extinction rates on such islands ranged from 15% to 30%, but when cats, foxes, or dingoes were present, the rates plummeted to just over 10%—not much higher than on islands without any introduced predators, the scientists reported at the meeting and online this month in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography.The scientists also found that native mammals fared only slightly worse on islands with cats than on islands without them. Moreover, the presence of foxes and dingoes on islands seemed to give native species a slight overall boost. “I was really surprised,” Hanna says. “I thought I’d made a big mistake.” Hanna and Cardillo also found that rats’ impact was most pronounced on small mammals—those weighing less than 2.7 kilograms—although the scientists are unsure how much of this influence was due to direct predation as opposed to competition for food and other resources or disease spread. Rats also had the greatest effect on islands within 2.1 kilometers of mainland Australia.The study includes “a very nice, large data set, and a very well-constructed and complete analysis of the problem,” says Phillip Cassey, an ecologist at the University of Adelaide Environment Institute. The results suggest that managers may need to simultaneously eliminate more than one predator to save rare animals from extinction, he adds; eradication efforts frequently focus on only one species. When it comes to planning such eradication campaigns on limited budgets, Cassey says, “analyses like [Hanna’s], which can assist in prioritization, are going to be really important.”Despite the apparent benefit of cats and foxes, Hanna does not advocate introducing the animals to islands that don’t already have them. But she says her results do raise questions about the strategy of trying to kill top predators off while ignoring rats. She now hopes to study whether her results also apply to birds and other groups of native species and to other predators. read more
Earlier this month, many cetacean researchers and conservationists rejoiced when Japan canceled its controversial scientific whale hunt in Antarctica in response to an order from the International Court of Justice in the Netherlands. Now, however, Japan’s Institute of Cetacean Research (ICR) says it plans to resume research whaling in the region next year, with a program that is “in accord” with the court’s ruling. But ICR’s move could be just a legal maneuver, some observers say.ICR’s plans became public last week, after the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS), an antiwhaling group known for harassing Japanese whaling ships, publicized legal briefs the research agency filed in a federal court in Seattle, Washington. (ICR is seeking a court order preventing SSCS from interfering with its fleet when killing whales in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.) Although the documents provide few details, ICR says it plans to resume its Antarctic hunts beginning in the 2015 to 2016 season. (Japan has a second scientific whale hunt in the North Pacific that is not affected by the international court’s ruling.)The news came as little surprise to those following the controversy. “It’s entirely consistent with what I would expect from ICR,” says Phillip Clapham, a marine biologist with the Alaska Fisheries Science Center in Seattle, Washington. Clapham has served as a member of the International Whaling Commission’s Scientific Committee, which for decades has been critical of Japan’s research whaling program.Sign up for our daily newsletterGet more great content like this delivered right to you!Country *AfghanistanAland IslandsAlbaniaAlgeriaAndorraAngolaAnguillaAntarcticaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaArubaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahamasBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBermudaBhutanBolivia, Plurinational State ofBonaire, Sint Eustatius and SabaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBouvet IslandBrazilBritish Indian Ocean TerritoryBrunei DarussalamBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCayman IslandsCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaChristmas IslandCocos (Keeling) IslandsColombiaComorosCongoCongo, The Democratic Republic of theCook IslandsCosta RicaCote D’IvoireCroatiaCubaCuraçaoCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkDjiboutiDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEthiopiaFalkland Islands (Malvinas)Faroe IslandsFijiFinlandFranceFrench GuianaFrench PolynesiaFrench Southern TerritoriesGabonGambiaGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGibraltarGreeceGreenlandGrenadaGuadeloupeGuatemalaGuernseyGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaHaitiHeard Island and Mcdonald IslandsHoly See (Vatican City State)HondurasHong KongHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIran, Islamic Republic ofIraqIrelandIsle of ManIsraelItalyJamaicaJapanJerseyJordanKazakhstanKenyaKiribatiKorea, Democratic People’s Republic ofKorea, Republic ofKuwaitKyrgyzstanLao People’s Democratic RepublicLatviaLebanonLesothoLiberiaLibyan Arab JamahiriyaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMacaoMacedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic ofMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaldivesMaliMaltaMartiniqueMauritaniaMauritiusMayotteMexicoMoldova, Republic ofMonacoMongoliaMontenegroMontserratMoroccoMozambiqueMyanmarNamibiaNauruNepalNetherlandsNew CaledoniaNew ZealandNicaraguaNigerNigeriaNiueNorfolk IslandNorwayOmanPakistanPalestinianPanamaPapua New GuineaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPitcairnPolandPortugalQatarReunionRomaniaRussian FederationRWANDASaint Barthélemy Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da CunhaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint Martin (French part)Saint Pierre and MiquelonSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesSamoaSan MarinoSao Tome and PrincipeSaudi ArabiaSenegalSerbiaSeychellesSierra LeoneSingaporeSint Maarten (Dutch part)SlovakiaSloveniaSolomon IslandsSomaliaSouth AfricaSouth Georgia and the South Sandwich IslandsSouth SudanSpainSri LankaSudanSurinameSvalbard and Jan MayenSwazilandSwedenSwitzerlandSyrian Arab RepublicTaiwanTajikistanTanzania, United Republic ofThailandTimor-LesteTogoTokelauTongaTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanTurks and Caicos IslandsTuvaluUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomUnited StatesUruguayUzbekistanVanuatuVenezuela, Bolivarian Republic ofVietnamVirgin Islands, BritishWallis and FutunaWestern SaharaYemenZambiaZimbabweI also wish to receive emails from AAAS/Science and Science advertisers, including information on products, services and special offers which may include but are not limited to news, careers information & upcoming events.Required fields are included by an asterisk(*)Resuming whaling in the Antarctic could be easier said than done, specialists say. To comply with the international court’s ruling, Japan will have to offer valid scientific reasons for the number of whales it wants to kill and include nonlethal research methods to meet research objectives. Indeed, Clapham quips that the process is so daunting that “I wouldn’t want to be a scientist who’s been told to come up with a new research program that makes any sense.” (Any new program will also be reviewed by the whaling commission’s scientific council, but Japan does not need its approval to proceed.) It’s possible that ICR does not intend to resume Antarctic whaling, but is instead pursuing a legal strategy in its case against SSCS. “In order to continue the court case … they [the ICR] have to say they’ll be working in the Antarctic in 2015, even if that decision hasn’t been made,” Clapham writes in an e-mail. ICR may be trying to demonstrate that its need for an injunction against SSCS “is not moot,” adds Alison Rieser, a specialist in international law at the University of Hawaii, Manoa.Japan’s whaling fleet returned from the Southern Ocean last month after killing 251 minke whales instead of the planned 935, partly because of harassment by protesters from Sea Shepherd Australia. read more
Eighteen adults with severe eye disease who were among the first people to receive transplants created from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) continue to have no apparent complications with the introduced cells after an average of nearly 2 years, according to the latest status report on their health. Vision tests also suggest the eyesight of more than half of the subjects has improved, but other researchers expressed caution about those results. Nevertheless, the outcome may pave the way for transplants of stem cell–derived eye cells called photoreceptors, which could dramatically improve vision in people with eye disease if all goes according to plan.Eye diseases—such as age-related macular degeneration, as well as a genetic condition called Stargardt’s macular dystrophy that afflicts young people—are considered excellent candidates for stem cell therapy because the eye is an immune-privileged site, meaning transplanted cells are not as likely to be rejected as foreign compared with transplants elsewhere. (Volunteers in these trials nonetheless received immunosuppressants for 12 weeks as a precaution.) Such treatment could, in theory, repopulate the eye with cells that have been destroyed, helping restore lost sight. But there are many hurdles: Among them, growing enough of the cells in a petri dish and ensuring that they connect to “the existing machinery” in the eye, says Hendrik Scholl, who co-directs the Center for Stem Cells and Ophthalmic Regenerative Medicine at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. There have also been safety concerns confronting all hESC studies, including worries that the embryonic stem cells could proliferate out of control.Today’s report, which appears in The Lancet, follows on another from the same group in early 2012. Then, a team led by Robert Lanza, the chief scientific officer of Advanced Cell Technology Inc. in Marlborough, Massachusetts, and his colleagues published the first results ever of a clinical trial using human embryonic stem cells. That study reported that the first two patients treated, both of them legally blind, had suffered no ill effects from the cells.Sign up for our daily newsletterGet more great content like this delivered right to you!Country *AfghanistanAland IslandsAlbaniaAlgeriaAndorraAngolaAnguillaAntarcticaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaArubaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahamasBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBermudaBhutanBolivia, Plurinational State ofBonaire, Sint Eustatius and SabaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBouvet IslandBrazilBritish Indian Ocean TerritoryBrunei DarussalamBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCayman IslandsCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaChristmas IslandCocos (Keeling) IslandsColombiaComorosCongoCongo, The Democratic Republic of theCook IslandsCosta RicaCote D’IvoireCroatiaCubaCuraçaoCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkDjiboutiDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEthiopiaFalkland Islands (Malvinas)Faroe IslandsFijiFinlandFranceFrench GuianaFrench PolynesiaFrench Southern TerritoriesGabonGambiaGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGibraltarGreeceGreenlandGrenadaGuadeloupeGuatemalaGuernseyGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaHaitiHeard Island and Mcdonald IslandsHoly See (Vatican City State)HondurasHong KongHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIran, Islamic Republic ofIraqIrelandIsle of ManIsraelItalyJamaicaJapanJerseyJordanKazakhstanKenyaKiribatiKorea, Democratic People’s Republic ofKorea, Republic ofKuwaitKyrgyzstanLao People’s Democratic RepublicLatviaLebanonLesothoLiberiaLibyan Arab JamahiriyaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMacaoMacedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic ofMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaldivesMaliMaltaMartiniqueMauritaniaMauritiusMayotteMexicoMoldova, Republic ofMonacoMongoliaMontenegroMontserratMoroccoMozambiqueMyanmarNamibiaNauruNepalNetherlandsNew CaledoniaNew ZealandNicaraguaNigerNigeriaNiueNorfolk IslandNorwayOmanPakistanPalestinianPanamaPapua New GuineaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPitcairnPolandPortugalQatarReunionRomaniaRussian FederationRWANDASaint Barthélemy Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da CunhaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint Martin (French part)Saint Pierre and MiquelonSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesSamoaSan MarinoSao Tome and PrincipeSaudi ArabiaSenegalSerbiaSeychellesSierra LeoneSingaporeSint Maarten (Dutch part)SlovakiaSloveniaSolomon IslandsSomaliaSouth AfricaSouth Georgia and the South Sandwich IslandsSouth SudanSpainSri LankaSudanSurinameSvalbard and Jan MayenSwazilandSwedenSwitzerlandSyrian Arab RepublicTaiwanTajikistanTanzania, United Republic ofThailandTimor-LesteTogoTokelauTongaTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanTurks and Caicos IslandsTuvaluUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomUnited StatesUruguayUzbekistanVanuatuVenezuela, Bolivarian Republic ofVietnamVirgin Islands, BritishWallis and FutunaWestern SaharaYemenZambiaZimbabweI also wish to receive emails from AAAS/Science and Science advertisers, including information on products, services and special offers which may include but are not limited to news, careers information & upcoming events.Required fields are included by an asterisk(*)Now, Lanza and Steven Schwartz, who heads the retina division at the Jules Stein Eye Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, along with their colleagues, share more details from early studies in two different eye diseases. They describe outcomes on nine people with age-related macular degeneration and nine with Stargardt’s. The volunteers, ranging in age from 20 to 88, received injections under their retina of a particular type of eye cell, retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells, which were derived from hESCs in the lab. RPE cells have some big advantages for initial hESC safety studies: Because they are pigmented, they can be tracked. They are also relatively easy to grow, manipulate, and control in the lab. The downside is that people with these eye diseases are losing sight in large part because they’re losing a different type of eye cell: the photoreceptors that sense light in the retina.Still, the trial results offer hope so far. After the surgery, 13 of 18 patients had an increase in pigmentation, suggesting that the transplanted cells were doing their job. The authors also reported that 10 patients described some improvement in their vision, which Lanza says was an unanticipated result. “In the best-case scenario, we thought we could hopefully prevent the loss of vision in these patients,” he says, because RPE cells are known to help maintain existing photoreceptors, in part by digesting the cellular debris that they shed. “We never really expected such dramatic improvement,” Lanza says. He suspects that transplanted cells are actually restoring the function of “dormant” photoreceptors.However, the improvements didn’t correlate with how much additional pigment researchers detected, and Lanza is careful to point out that for ethical reasons, the study had no control group that received the surgery without the transplanted cells.Scholl is upbeat that the transplanted cells still appear safe and says that analysis of the cells in the recipients’ eyes are “indeed an indication that something is happening.” The “small signal” that vision improved in this cohort could be because the remaining photoreceptors “are exposed to a healthier environment,” he believes. Or it could be due to the cataract surgery several patients in the study received, or the challenges of measuring vision to begin with. Still, Scholl adds, transplantation of RPE cells “can’t be it” for such patients, because ultimately they need new photoreceptors to restore vision.Some groups, including Lanza’s, are looking to do just that: transplant photoreceptor cells. Initial evidence shows that these cells, derived from hESCs, have “an amazing capacity” to migrate into the retina and restore vision, Lanza says. But they’re more difficult to grow in the lab, and testing is right now limited to animals. In the long term, it’s hoped that injecting these cells could make a dramatic difference for people whose sight is disappearing or has already vanished. read more
With the United States imposing import duties of 25% and 10% steel and aluminium under the Trump administration, Indian companies will not be directly hit, but could get hurt due to higher supply pressure in the countries where India is a major exporter, said a report by India Ratings and Research.India’s steel and aluminium companies’ exports to the US are as low as 2% and 6% respectively. “However, the impact could percolate through lower international prices due to excess supply from exporting countries while also leading to lower exports,” Ind-Ra said.Read it at Financial Express Related Items read more
An unexpected turn of events for an Indian couple planning to have their baby girl in Winnipeg has led to the family being torn apart.Joby Varkey and Robin Roy are both Indian citizens and permanent residents in Canada, with full time jobs in Winnipeg.Read it at Global News Related Items
Being mediocre and thrown out of academia 25 years ago, pushed into selling insurance, investments and real estate, I enjoyed reading Lavina Melwani’s article “Academic Stars” (Jan. 2007). Teaching of English by Indians to students in the West has been highlighted in the article, which made me reflect on my days learning English in India. English as the world’s lingua franca dominates Indian languages and literature in India, especially with the growing emphasis on science and technology. Indian literatures have suffered at the hands of English – Hindi the most.To get recognition and make money in India and abroad, one has to write in English and be published in the West. Several schools have been established in the US and elsewhere outside India to impart education and conduct research on Indian culture and history, as well as in Sanskrit literature, often with generous donations from affluent Indians. But nowhere in these 50 or so schools, have I found an Hindu Indian as professor of the subject or for that matter in Buddhism or Jainism. White, Christians always teach Sanskrit and Indian culture. What an anomaly. Can we find a Hindu Indian teaching Christianity and Western culture in American or British Universities or even in India?I have not read much of Amartya Sen, the Nobel laureate, featured in your article, except The Argumentative Indian, which is very enjoyable and makes excellent reading, save for its India bashing and venomous comments against BJP. Has Sen written on the ills of western society, its political system, especially in the US and UK, where he has spent most of his academic life?Recognition in the West comes from reciting Shakespeare and speaking out against Hinduism and Indian culture, not by admiring the Vedas and Sanatan Dharma, which were founded on the principles of self-upliftment and betterment of humanity rather than prizes and materialistic glories, which is why they are neglected by Indians in India and abroad. But Indian culture and Sanskrit had its own adherents in Ramkrishna, Vivekanand, Aurobindo, CV Raman, Raman Maharshi, JC Bose, Tagore, Gandhi, Prabhupad, to name a few, who influenced the West so much. A report on them would bring a very noble, but different and proud reflection on Indian educators.Arun MisraAlpharetta GA I enjoy your articles and find it refreshing that you publish candid viewpoints on several issues. This encourages me to share my thoughts on the recent discussion in the media of the “manglik” issue surrounding Aishwarya Rai (Feb 2007).It is interesting that people are upset with movies like Water, yet little is done to counter the notion that the female is always at fault even for her horoscope.It is amusing to hear and read that if a girl was born under certain planets, she can be termed “manglik” and has to marry a tree to be worthy of marriage to a man.Would a man be asked to marry a tree or something else if he had a mangal? Is there a guarantee marrying a tree first would work?Lajuvia eMailI enjoyed the article “Yours Conveniently,” showing the success of South Asians in the industry. As a regular reader of Little India I see many articles on the accomplishments of Indians but none on those facing problems, e.g. with green cards. Thousands of Indians are facing difficulties with immigration. Your article notes that a million dollars were collected for the construction of a temple, but people are indifferent to the real problems of immigrants who are tied up in immigration delays. We need help so that lawmakers on Capitol Hill will listen to us. Arunesh Mohan, Via eMailIf Shilpa Shetty were an ordinary individual on the reality show Big Brother she would not have garnered as much sympathy (“O, Sister,” Feb 2007). As she is a Bollywood queen and attractive there was this outpouring of support for her. I find it appalling that the same Indians do not stand up to condemn the treatment meted out to the “Dalits,” and the scheduled castes/tribes in India. Many of them still are treated very unfairly. Guess that is the difference between being rich and famous and poor and downtrodden, right? I wish the author had brought up that point too instead of focusing on Shilpa and her reality show for which she was already compensated rather handsomely and is out to make more. True she deserves some sympathy, but not enough to merit headlines nor a big writeup in Little India. ManishVia eMail I am writing in response to the letter by Sophia (Feb 2007) commenting on white skinned people in Hindi movies. She is looking at the trees and missing the forest. Just because a few whites show up in the background (was this a movie set in the US?), doesn’t mean that if you are white you get a part in Hindi movies.Let’s take a look at the top heroes and heroines. Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan, are as brown as they come. Amitabh had to battle better looking and lighter skinned heroes like Rajesh Khanna and Dharmendra and we all know how that ended up.Who is the top heroine today? Rani Mukherjee? The previous top actress was Madhuri Dixit. It’s not as if white skinned actors are making a late entry to Hindi cinema. Yester-year actresses like Babita, Vimi and Shakila were no more than B-grade heroines. Back in the 1970s a battle raged between Parveen Babi (white) and Zeenat Aman (dark skinned) for the title of the “Western” girl, it was no contest – Zeenat won by a mile.It is pretty clear that at least in Hindi Cinema, unlike Hollywood, good looks or skin color will not take you far. The Indian cinema-goer has always preferred good acting to looks. Top actors like Bachchan, Jaya Bhaduri, Shabani Azmi, Nutan, Nargis, etc. rose to the top because of their acting skills, decidedly not their looks. The only white actress to rise to the top in the last 50 years was Madhubala, and if you think it was because of her skin color, you need to have your eyes checked. Jayant PatelVia emailI think it is inappropriate to discuss the engagement of Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai (“To Be Mrs B,” Feb 2007), as this is a personal family matter and the media has no right or reason to form opinions. Even writing on such personal family matters for public consumption is wrong.Prajesh Lakshmanvia emailApart from Dr. Tulasi Polavarapu, (“The Midway Generation,” Dec 2006), I did not read about any of this generation using their American affluence to help the less fortunate in India. The stereotype of the Indian in America is frugal (euphemism for being monetarily cheap). This was commented on by one of your readers a few issues ago. I hope it is the first or immigrant generation that has created this stereotype and the Midway generation will share their good fortune with their less fortunate brethren in India.Blair Williamsvia eMail Related Items read more
Christmas is here! And that means everything is out of place for a while. There are big trees inside little houses, we all eat more than usual, and, of course, we cannot forget the pandemonium of shopping in crowded malls. This time of year is always both bewildering and exhilarating to me as I think back on what started off this retail madness.When baby Jesus was born, the three wise men or the Magi are said to have brought Him gifts, setting off (unwittingly, I’m sure) the trend of giving gifts for Christmas. They purportedly brought gold, frankincense and myrrh. We all know that the gift of gold or money is always welcome, especially with a new baby to diaper and a top-of-the-line and all-options-loaded donkey to pay off and feed. However, I can’t help but wonder: did Mary really need the frankincense and myrrh, and if she did not, what did she ever do with them?Growing up in India, as a Hindu, I was always jealous of my Christian friends. They had a jolly old man with a bottomless purse, aka Santa Claus, who bankrolled an entire holiday for them. Thanks to this guy, they not only got new dresses for Christmas, but also gifts to be enjoyed and showed off. Not that we were hurting, but there is just something about a box all wrapped up and tied up with colored ribbons. Of course, an integral part of the magic of receiving gifts as a child is believing in the existence of Santa Claus. Now, if the concept of Santa had originated in India, there would be temples to him, regular prayers held throughout the year, and probably even a cult of Santa-ites. But here, he is a strange figure who you believe in totally for the first few years of your life, and then go through the rest of it knowing that it is a lie. This double standard can even affect how you view a gift. If this kind-hearted stranger brings it to you, the gift is wonderful; but if you know that your parents got it, then you think that the least they could have done is go to shop around for a nicer color.The magical age when children believe in Santa disappears soon enough in elementary school when they encounter either an agnostic’s child or an obnoxious know-it-all who bursts their bubble. Some parents actually get mad when their child finds out the truth. In my opinion, that is carrying things a little too far. It is all very well to want to relive your own childhood through your child’s innocence, but believe me, there will be nothing cute about it when your 21-year-old is seen posting a letter to Mr. Santa Claus, North Pole. Now, if somebody were to actually publish an article about how Santa Claus is just a mythical concept made up by mall-owners and people in search of seasonal employment, all heck will break lose.In our own family, we have circumvented this problem by telling our daughters that while Santa does exist (after all, they have a picture with him at the mall), he is a very busy man, so he asks Mom and Dad to pick out their gifts. We have also told them that they can never divulge this secret to their friends otherwise Santa won’t recommend them for gifts next year (so as to avoid hate mail from angry parents).In the minds of children, gifts at Christmas are always associated with Santa, who disappears as they reach adulthood. However, the tradition of gift giving lingers, because no amount of reasoning can stop us from craving nice things, can it? Let us face it: no matter how much we decry the materialism that pervades the holiday, we still like to look in the shops at this time of the year. When else can we find an ironclad reason for plunking down 20 bucks for a plush dog wearing a snow hat and scarf that takes 4 AA batteries and barks to the tune of ‘Jingle bells’? We all need to feel good about our lives once in a while, and nothing says “I feel good” like a gift that we don’t need and can’t afford. That is why I feel bereft: I never got cool gifts for Christmas. When I came to the U.S. at the ripe old age of 22, I didn’t have a rich friend who might get me something fantastic. I was a struggling student myself who certainly couldn’t afford anything extravagant for myself. Then I fell in love and got married … to a man who doesn’t believe in surprise gifts and gift-wrapping. Mind you, I’m not complaining (imagine if I would at this time of the year,), but getting a winter jacket that I myself picked out and that I absolutely need, in its Macy’s bag, just doesn’t cut it. What is worse, after years of penny pinching, there is so much guilt associated with extravagant spending that the purchase of any item priced at over $10 might just put me in therapy.So I drive by the malls seething with envy over being excluded from the materialistic orgy inside. I lament that I was not born to American parents, who might even have divorced and remarried once or twice, which would have culminated in my receiving many expensive presents from multiple stepfamilies. And why, oh why, did I choose to have a few good friends instead of a large group of contacts who air-kiss cheeks and hand out expensive stuff at the end of every year?Wait … maybe that is what it was all about! No, not the stuff about divorce or insincere friends, but the part about what a feel-good gift is all about.I researched frankincense and myrrh and here is what I found. They are both plant resins that are constituents of perfumes and incenses, and used to be worth more than their weight in gold in historic times. So here is my theory: Mary didn’t actually need any frankincense or myrrh, she certainly couldn’t afford any on her monthly budget, but she might have really liked the stuff. So the Magi gifted those things to gladden her heart on the occasion of the birth of her child, something akin to buying a new mother a bottle of expensive perfume. If that was the case, they were indeed wise men … Related Items read more
In one of its biggest new product launches in years, PepsiCo recently unveiled Pepsi NEXT — a mid-calorie beverage that contains 60% less sugar than regular Pepsi-Cola. The soda, which comes in Pepsi’s trademark peppy blue can, is accompanied by an aggressive ad campaign targeting calorie-conscious customers who in recent years have replaced carbonated soft drinks with teas, flavored waters and sports drinks. The company calls Pepsi NEXT a “game-changer in the cola category” and has bestowed a hopeful tagline: “Drink It to Believe It.”The question is: Will Wall Street?It’s been a rough few years for PepsiCo. Indra Nooyi, chairman and chief executive officer, has diligently tried to transform the company from a purveyor of sugar-laden bubbly beverages and salty snacks, into one that has healthier and more wholesome offerings. But performance has — pardon the pun — fizzled. Shares of PepsiCo have barely budged during her six-year tenure, while the stock price of rival Coca-Cola has nearly doubled in that time. Perhaps most embarrassing for the once stalwart competitor in the cola wars, its flagship brand, Pepsi, no longer claims second place in market share of the carbonated soft drink market. In 2010, Diet Coke took over the number two spot and has remained there.Investors are impatient. Some accuse Nooyi of focusing too intensely on her nutrition strategy while overlooking PepsiCo’s North American soft drink business. Earlier this month, the company announced management changes intended to restore their confidence in the company: John Compton, who most recently ran PepsiCo’s highly successful Frito-Lay business in the Americas, was named president, while Brian Cornell, a PepsiCo veteran, has been wooed back from running the Sam’s Club chain for Wal-Mart Stores. He will fill Compton’s previous position. The restructuring not only gives PepsiCo’s board some options for potential successors to Nooyi, but is also a clear statement that the company is attempting to return to its profitable past.“Based on the management changes, it appears that the company will be back to emphasizing its sugary beverages and snack foods,” says Jason Schloetzer, a professor of accounting at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. “This is kind of like Pepsi saying to its investors, ‘We understand we were very profitable in these areas, and now this is where we are going to refocus our energy.’… It’s hard to shake the past — particularly when the past was more profitable.”The renewed focus on high-margin drinks and snacks may assuage investor concerns for now, but experts caution against trading a solid, long-term strategic repositioning for a bit of short-term success: Nooyi’s goal of reinventing PepsiCo’s product line is sensible, but real and lasting change takes time. To increase market share and revive earnings, experts suggest, she needs to spend more money on marketing top beverage brands — a move that is already in the works — and to put the right people in charge of those divisions. Nooyi also must do a better job of managing Wall Street expectations and courting institutional investors who care about sustainability and will give her more time and leeway to achieve her goals.‘Performance with Purpose’A native of Madras, India, Nooyi joined PepsiCo in 1994 as the company’s chief strategist. Seeing a bleak future for fast food, she pushed the company to make some bold moves: In 1997, PepsiCo created a spin-off firm (now called Yum! Brands) to unload KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. The following year, Nooyi was promoted to chief financial officer and helped engineer a $3 billion acquisition of Tropicana. In 2001, Nooyi — who has an MBA from Yale — co-orchestrated a $14 billion takeover of Quaker Oats, which makes Gatorade. PepsiCo’s earnings skyrocketed, and Nooyi became a force in the corporate world. In 2005, Forbes magazine ranked her the 11th most powerful woman in business. She became PepsiCo’s first female CEO in 2006.Her strategy — to more than double PepsiCo’s revenue from nutritional drinks and snacks to $30 billion by 2020 — is no doubt ambitious. Through senior level appointments and internal initiatives, she has pursued her cause. She enlisted Derek Yach, a former World Health Organization official, as senior vice president of global health and agricultural policy. Under Nooyi’s watch, the company also started working with farmers and scientists in developing countries, like Ethiopia, on sustainable growing techniques. In 2009, PepsiCo rolled out compostable bags made from biodegradable plant material for one of its chip brands. (The bags were eventually scrapped because customers thought they were too noisy.)Nooyi has also worked to reformulate PepsiCo’s existing products, and has made creative acquisitions to boost the nutritional quality of its offerings. The company has reduced the fat, and taken out some of the sugar in many of its mainstream products, and it has added whole grains, fruits and vegetables to some of its snacks. The company has also come up with entirely new products that are, at least arguably, healthier — Pepsi NEXT, which contains high-fructose corn syrup and artificial sweeteners, has 60 calories to regular Pepsi’s 100. In 2010, PepsiCo acquired a majority stake in Russian dairy Wimm-Bill-Dann to give it more of a presence in yogurts and grain-enriched dairy products.In many ways, Nooyi’s strategy is aligned with the times. With 34% of adults in the U.S. classified as obese, and nearly one in three children considered overweight, the media — and indeed many Americans — are paying closer attention to the importance of healthy eating. It is a trend that has gotten the better of some businesses. For example, Hostess, the privately held company known for indulgent pleasures including Twinkies and Drake’s snack cakes, filed for bankruptcy in January.What’s more, corporate social responsibility — once just a catchy phrase — has become an increasingly relevant issue for companies and consumers alike. According to a recent survey by public relations firm Burson-Marsteller, more than 75% of consumers say that social responsibility is an important factor in their purchase decisions, and 70% say they are willing to pay a premium for products from a socially responsible company.“More companies and consumers are paying attention to greenness and sustainability,” notes Georgetown McDonough’s Schloetzer, who is an expert on corporate governance. “Companies are thinking about how their operations affect the end-to-end supply chain and are considering the recyclability of their packaging materials. It’s an inventive way to run a business. As an impartial observer, it’s perhaps noble for Nooyi to try to transform a large company in this manner.”Michael Useem, a Wharton management professor and director of the Center for Leadership and Change Management, says Nooyi represents a new breed of corporate leadership. In a cover story for U.S. News and World Report on “America’s Best Leaders” in 2008, he wrote that Nooyi “is attempting to move beyond the historic trade-off between profits and people. Captured in her artful mantra — ‘performance with purpose’ — she wants to give Wall Street what it wants but also, the planet what it needs.”Shortchanging Core Brands?Unfortunately for Nooyi, Wall Street is not getting what it wants. Last month, PepsiCo warned that its profit would drop 5% this year. Revenue at its Americas beverage unit — which includes Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana and Lipton and accounts for about a third of PepsiCo’s annual revenue — was flat. Shares of PepsiCo are down about 2% for the past two years, while the S&P is up about 20% over that time period. In spite of this, Nooyi received her first salary bump in five years as CEO last year. Her total compensation was $17.1 million, up 6% from 2010, according to a regulatory filing.David Reibstein, professor of marketing at Wharton, says that much of Nooyi’s problem is that she was trying to do too much too soon. “To a large degree, Nooyi is very progressive in her thinking,” he states. “She has a far-reaching vision of what she is trying to do. The obligation to be responsive to your shareholders and to also be thinking about societal and environmental impacts are [good goals], but you need to be able to get there from the here and now. It’s going to take a considerable amount of effort over a sustained amount of time.”Critics charge that Nooyi has allowed the firm’s core brands — namely beverages in North America — to languish. “Taking the central focus off your core brands can be problematic,” says Charles Taylor, professor of marketing at the Villanova University School of Business. “When you’re building a new line of business, or doing brand extensions, the risk is high, especially compared to keeping your focus on brands with very high equity that have been effective for you for many years. I wouldn’t say [core brands] have been neglected, but they haven’t been as aggressively marketed.”In 2010, for instance, PepsiCo elected not to advertise during the Super Bowl telecast, which is always one of the most-watched television events of the year. As an alternative, the company in January of that year debuted The Pepsi Refresh Project, a social media campaign where customers proposed community service ideas to invigorate and revive their neighborhoods. The company spent in excess of $20 million on the effort. In November of that year, Advertising Age ran a story proclaiming that The Refresh Project “doesn’t seem to have had a major influence on the brand’s bottom line.” It’s impossible to draw a direct correlation, but 2010 was also the year that Diet Coke overtook Pepsi in market share.Coca-Cola, of course, is a formidable competitor. The company has been lauded for making smart, calculated marketing choices. Its heavy investment in advertising in China during the Beijing Olympics is one example. A full year before the Games, Coca-Cola advertised on thousands of Chinese billboards and bus shelters with a media campaign highlighting the country’s homegrown athletes. Today, Coca-Cola holds about 17% of the Chinese beverage market, while PepsiCo has a 6% share, according to Euromonitor.Back in 2002, Coca-Cola made another good bet by sponsoring reality-TV talent contest “American Idol” for less than $10 million. The 12-week television program captured 23 million viewers for its finale, prompting USA Today to run the headline: “Real winner of ‘American Idol’: Coke.” The show has since become a ratings juggernaut. PepsiCo, which passed on the opportunity to sponsor “Idol,” now sponsors “The X Factor,” another singing competition, spending up to $60 million for the sponsorship of the show, according to Adweek.Cultivating a New Pepsi GenerationIn spite of these problems, PepsiCo remains a strong brand. “Your average loyal Pepsi drinker isn’t aware of the efforts to move toward nutritious foods, and Pepsi has not done anything that [has caused] long-term damage to the brand,” says Taylor. “Pepsi is still considered by Interbrand as one of the top brands in the world.” (For the record, PepsiCo stands at number 22 on Interbrand’s ranking, while Coca-Cola has been named the world’s most valuable brand for the past 12 years.)PepsiCo has its work cut out for it., however. Already plans are taking shape to boost brand awareness: In February, the company ran its first Super Bowl TV commercial for Pepsi in three years. Nooyi also recently announced plans to increase PepsiCo’s marketing budget by as much as $600 million this year, which represents about a 15% increase over last year. Most of the new spending will be dedicated to the U.S. beverage business. The firm also plans to launch its first-ever global marketing campaign for Pepsi.Nooyi has also made some strategic management changes that demonstrate her commitment to PepsiCo’s beverages division. In September, Albert Carey, a PepsiCo veteran and head of the company’s smaller, but more profitable, Frito-Lay North America snacks unit, took over its Americas beverages unit. Carey succeeded Eric Foss and Massimo d’Amore, who co-ran the business. Foss left PepsiCo in December, while d’Amore was essentially demoted; he still runs the Latin American beverage business, but reports to Carey.Nooyi’s strategy to reinvent PepsiCo’s product line has proven tough to execute because changing customer appetites is not easy. “You may have a vision for what the market will be wanting, but it doesn’t mean it wants it now,” says Wharton’s Reibstein. “You can’t leave your customers behind.” An effort by McDonald’s to introduce “good for you” menu items serves as a cautionary tale. Take the McLean Deluxe, which it marketed in 1991 as a heart-healthy alternative to other hamburgers. The burger had 310 calories and only nine grams of fat. “A healthy breakthrough for the American public,” lauded a New York Times editorial. But customers complained it lacked taste. In 1996, the company removed it from the menu.“McDonald’s has introduced some healthier foods over the years, and it has had some success here and there. But the majority of people are still buying Big Macs,” notes Taylor. “For the most part, consumers are set in their ways. Getting consumers to eat healthier food is going to take at least a generation — even in spite of best efforts by companies.”This does not mean Nooyi should abandon her plans, observers say. Rather, she needs to develop a strategy that better balances the short term with the long term, according to Yoram (Jerry) Wind, Wharton marketing professor and director of the SEI Center for Advanced Studies in Management. “Companies can be socially responsible, provide more nutritional and healthier products and still be profitable, but it requires careful management of board and Wall Street expectations,” he says.A deft touch as a manager — and perhaps different investors altogether — are also needed, he adds, noting that Nooyi should put more effort into courting institutional investors who value sustainability and who will give her more latitude to achieve the company’s overarching goals. “There are opportunities for creative approaches here. She should show them that she has a plan to achieve financial objectives … and still be socially responsible,” he says. “It is doable.”Whether Pepsi NEXT is the next big thing in cola, or whether it goes the way of the McLean Deluxe, Wind suggests that Nooyi’s pursuit of aligning agriculture and nutrition is sound. “Maximizing long-term shareholder value and addressing some of society’s biggest problems, such as obesity, nutrition and health, is the right kind of strategy.” Related Items read more
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Two days after the BJP’s landslide victory in the national poll, Prime Minister Narendra Modi while visiting his home State Gujarat on May 26 said “people voted for development” and added that his return to power was a huge responsibility that the people had bestowed on him. Addressing party workers at a rally in Ahmedabad, his first since the massive victory in the Lok Sabha election, Mr. Modi said, “We have to utilise these five years to solve issues of the common citizens.” According to him, the coming years will be about ‘Jan Bhagidari’ (participation of people in governance) and ‘Jan Chetna’ (Raising awareness) about governance and welfare programmes of the NDA government, which is beginning a second termHe compared the next five years with 1942 to 1947, a a crucial period of the freedom movement from Quit India in 1942 to final independence in 1947. He added that besides working for the people of the country, the next five years will be used to enhance the image of India globally. Expressing his gratitude to the people of his home State, he said “he shares a special bond with the people of Gujarat.” “Last night, the President of India invited me to be the next Prime Minister and today I have come here to take your blessings. The blessings of the State’s citizens have always been very special for me,’ said the Prime Minister, who landed in Ahmedabad on Sunday evening to a grand welcome from the BJP workers.“In 2014, the country got an opportunity to know Gujarat and the development model of the State came in front of everyone. I am coming back to the land that has nurtured me. I am back to a place with which I have a very old bond,” he added, saying Gujarat was a stepping stone for him. Talking about the party’s massive consecutive victory in the Lok Sabha polls, the PM told the party workers that he had repeatedly claimed that the election, instead of an anti-incumbency, had a pro-incumbency wave and immediately after the 6th phase, he claimed to have told the party president that the BJP would cross 300 seats this time. “After the sixth phase of polling, I had said that it’s 300 plus for us. When I said it, people mocked me. But, the results are for everyone to see.”The PM also expressed his grief over the gruesome fire tragedy in Surat in which 22 school students died in a coaching centre that was gutted. “Since yesterday, I was in dilemma whether to attend the programme in Ahmedabad or not. One side it was ‘kartavya’and on the other side it was ‘karuna.’ Families who lost their children, lost their future. I pray that God gives power to the families of those children,” he said, adding he had directed the state government to take all necessary measures. The PM came to Gujarat to meet his mother before he takes oath of office on May 30. read more
The government’s policy of encouraging a cashless economy seems to have been adopted by criminal elements also. The Latur unit of Maharashtra Anti Corruption Bureau has arrested a medical officer who allegedly accepted bribe in the form of liquor instead of cash. According to ACB officers, the accused, Bhalchandra Chakurkar, was posted as a Medical Officer with the Primary Health Care centre in Nivli taluka in Latur. Officers said the complainant is his subordinate, who had recently submitted his Self Assessment Report. “Mr Chakurkar gave a B+ remark to the report, and when the complainant asked him to justify it, he demanded a bribe for upgrading it to A+,” Police Inspector K.B. Darade, Latur ACB said. Mr. Darade added that Mr. Chakurkar demanded a 750 ml bottle of Imperial Blue whisky and three cans of Tuborg beer, after which the complainant approached the ACB. After verifying the claims, the ACB registered an offence against Mr. Chakurkar and set a trap. Acting on the ACB’s instructions, the complainant contacted Mr. Chakurkar and said he was willing to pay the bribe, after which a meeting was fixed at Hotel Kashmir on the Latur-Ausa road on Friday. Mr. Chakurkar was arrested on Friday afternoon, after he was caught red handed while accepting the liquor bottle, and charged under the Prevention of Corruption Act. “Mr. Chakurkar was produced in the Latur Special Districts Court on Saturday and granted bail. We will soon file a charge sheet in the case,” Mr. Darade said. read more
Rajkumar Meghen, the chairman of the Manipur-based extremist group United National Liberation Front (UNLF), was freed from the Guwahati Central Jail on November 9, a day ahead of his scheduled release.Belonging to Manipur’s royal family, he formed the UNLF in 1954. Also known as Sanayaima, he was caught in Bangladesh in September 2010 but was shown arrested from Bihar’s Motihari in December that year.A special trial court of the National Investigation Agency in June 2016 convicted him to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment under relevant Sections of the IPC and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for various offences, including terrorist acts and waging war against the nation.The court had also convicted 17 other UNLF leaders to seven to 10 years in jail in the same case.“The UNLF chairman got remission (reduction of prison term) of some months for his contribution in setting up a library, a music school for the inmates and construction of a rock garden inside the Guwahati Central Jail premises,” a jail official said on condition of anonymity.The UNLF chief, expected to reach Manipur capital Imphal on Monday, declined to comment. Defiant during his trial, he had said: “I am not fighting to secede from India, but to regain Manipur’s freedom that the British and then India snatched away.” read more