Google's amazing journey

Google's amazing journey

The $19 billion search giant Google is just ten years old , but it has outclassed its competitors - namely Microsoft and Yahoo! - in the online world.
The company today has a host of enviable offerings - Google search, Gmail, Page Rank, Adsense, Google Mobile, Google Earth, Google Maps, Google Docs, Orkut, Blogger, YouTube, Android (a platform for mobiles), Cloud Computing initiatives, and now Chrome.

Text: Business Standard

Image: This is where it all started 10 years ago. This is the house where Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin rented the garage to set up Google Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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It even has a patent for a "floating data centre". Moreover, it is learning how to monetise these; the figures do the talking. Google has a market value of over $130 billion and cash reserves of around $13 billion.
It employs 20,000 people worldwide, including in India. Its co-founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin - both 35 now - are worth nearly $19 billion apiece.

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Google's start, though, was not smooth. Mr Page and Mr Brin did not hit it off immediately.
In fact it is said that they often had arguments while they were students at Stanford University, which they set aside to grow the company.

For more Visit:Google's amazing journey

Source:ET

Sensex extends losing streak, ends 338 pts down

Sensex extends losing streak, ends 338 pts down

The bears went on a rampage on the major Indian bourses for the third successive session as global markets dampened investor sentiment today. But then, with Asian markets tumbling on concerns over mounting credit losses, the trend back home was not expected to be any different.

Trading in the red right through the session, the Sensex ended with a huge loss of 338.32 points or 2.31% at 14,324.29. The barometer, which opened with a negative gap of over 100 points at 14,557.33, plunged to a low of 14,265.38 in afternoon trade today. The Nifty, which breached a few crucial support levels, touched a low of 4272.75 and settled at 4290.30 with a loss of 109.95 points or 2.5% at 4290.30.

Stocks cutting across sectors were seen struggling for support today. However, losses posted by oil, realty, power and capital goods stocks were more pronounced. PSU, bank, metal and pharma stocks closed with sharp losses. IT and auto stocks managed to buck the trend for a while before they too drifted down due to lack of support at higher levels.

Among Sensex stocks, only Tata Motors (1.35%) and Ranbaxy Laboratories (0.25%) closed in the positive territory. Nifty stock Punjab National Bank (0.55%) ended with a modest gain.


Bharti Airtel ended with a loss of 4.4%. Reliance Infrastructure eased by 4.15%. Reliance Industries on unconfirmed reports that the government may recommend a levy of export tax or ban petroleum exports from its Jamnagar facility.

ONGC, Tata Power, DLF, Jaiprakash Associates, Mahindra & Mahindra, BHEL, NTPC, Maruti Suzuki, HDFC and ICICI Bank lost 2% - 4%. Hindalco, HDFC Bank, Larsen & Toubro, Tata Consultancy Services, ITC, State Bank of India, Tata Steel, ACC, Grasim Industries, Hindustan Unilever, Reliance Communications, Wipro and Sterlite Industries also ended with sharp losses. Infosys Technologies and Satyam Computer Services ended with modest losses.

Suzlon Energy, HCL Technologies, Zee Entertainment, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Ambuja Cements, Power Grid Corporation, SAIL, Cipla, Reliance Petroleum, ABB, Cairn India, Idea Cellular, Tata Communications, Siemens and Nalco closed on a weak note.

Bajaj Finance, KSK Energy, India Bulls Financial Services, Yes Bank, REI Agro, Reliance Capital, India Bulls Real Estate, Voltas, Jai Corp, Mangalore Refineries & Petrochemicals, IVRCL Infrastructure and Sesa Goa were some of the prominent losers from BSE 'A' Group.
A number of midcap and smallcap stocks also posted sharp losses. The market breadth was weak once again. On BSE, declines outscored advances by 2 to 1.

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Stocks end sharply lower as global credit worries haunt
Nifty September premium falls; spot ends below 4300
Rupee dips by another 34 paise to hit 23-month low
SAIL to set up 4 processing units
Gold slides on weak global cues

Oil falls as Ike strengthens to Texas
Entrepreneurs lose Rs 1,200 cr per day due to power cuts
Insurers beat FIIs on bourses
The Web billionaires
GMR Energy to acquire coal mines in Indonesia, Africa

Infosys renews insurance policy worth Rs 24K crore
NTPC in JV for 1,980 MW power plant
Orchid will sell 15-20% stake in research unit
Gujarat NRE plans rights issue at Rs 1,000/shr
India in talks with US companies on nuclear trade

Indian crude at $99, oil firms relieved
Govt re-starts attempts to sell IFCI stake
Banks sitting on Rs 1,200 cr in idle a/c
HCL follows Future Group, plans $1 bn venture fund
GMR to invest Rs 10K cr to set up nuclear power plant

Essar Oil to raise $5 bn loan from 4 banks
Indian Hotels up room rent by 8-10 pc from Sept 1
Raj TV plans print foray, to raise funds - paper
Aviva to have 49% foreign stake when govt raises FDI ceiling
Velankani group to set up Rs 13 bn SEZ in Sriperumbudur

Trade likely weak ahead of IIP, SGX Nifty at 88 pts discount
Aviva Life Insurance raises capital base by Rs 344 cr
India PC market records 2.085 mn shipments in 2Q 2008, overall 8.1% growth
Poverty in India declines by 27 %: UN


Source:ET, Sify, BS, BL etc

Inflation drops to 12.10%

Inflation drops to 12.10%
Inflation dips further to 12.1 per cent

Inflation : 12.10 % Vs 12.34%

Inflation fell for the third week in succession to close at 12.10 per cent as on August 30 from 12.34 per cent recorded a week earlier as prices of most food articles moderated. As per a poll on Wednesday, India's annual inflation rate was expected to have eased for the third consecutive week, with respite provided by softening of global crude prices. The wholesale price index was forecast to have risen 11.96 per cent in the 12 months to August 30, lower than the previous week’s rise of 12.34 per cent, according to the median estimate of 13 economists. Shubhada Rao, chief economist at Yes Bank, for instance, who forecast 11.96 per cent, said a relatively higher reading a year earlier would also limit the number. “Recent weeks have seen inflation stabilise. We expect it to peak in the third quarter and given the current trend it may peak around 13 per cent,” she said.

Talking about the softening inflation, commerce minister Kamal Nath last week had said the government’s supply-side measures had begun to take effect and inflation should soften from the current levels. The finance ministry also believes inflation will come down to single digit by the end of this fiscal if oil prices keep softening in the international markets. "If oil prices go below $100 per barrel, the wholesale price index inflation will even come down to 5-6 per cent by the end of the current fiscal,” Arvind Virmani, chief economic adviser in the finance ministry, told a news agency recently. "I am reasonably confident that within a year, inflation will be back to normal. In the short-term, it depends on oil prices to a large extent and we have seen oil prices coming down,” he said. He also said food price inflation has not been that severe in India when compared with the global situation, as prices of primary food articles such as fruits, vegetables, tea and lentils had gone up by 6.04 per cent during the 52-week period ended Aug 23. "It is partly because of the nature of our economy, which is still isolated from the global situation except in one or two commodities like edible oils as we import some 60 per cent-plus of our overall edible oil requirements,” he said.

Source:ET

What is the Big Bang?

What is the Big Bang?

The European Organisation for Nuclear Research, known as CERN, will on Wednesday begin an experiment to recreate conditions just after the Big Bang, which scientists believe gave birth to the universe. ( Watch ) Its Large Hadron Collider (LHC) will seek to collide two beams of particles at close to the speed of light. Scientists plan to circulate a beam in one direction around the accelerator on Sept. 10, and later send beams both ways to cause collisions. Following are some facts about the Big Bang and CERN's particle-smashing experiment:

RECREATING THE BIG BANG: The final tests involved pumping a single bunch of energy particles from the project's accelerator into the 27-km (17-mile) beam pipe of the collider and steering them counter- clockwise around it for about 3 km (2 miles). The collider aims to simulate conditions milliseconds after the "Big Bang" which created the universe around 13.7 billion years ago. The collisions, in which both particle clusters will be travelling at the speed of light, will be monitored on computers at CERN and laboratories around the world by scientists looking for, among other things, a particle that made life possible. The elusive particle, which has been dubbed the "Higgs Boson" after Scottish physicist Peter Higgs who first postulated nearly 50 years ago that it must exist, is thought to be the mysterious factor that holds matter together.

WHAT IS THE BIG BANG? Recreating a "Big Bang," which most scientists believe is the only explanation of an expanding universe, ought to show how stars and planets came together out of the primeval chaos that followed, the CERN team believes. Its essential feature is the emergence of the universe from a tiny speck about the size of a coin but in a state of extremely high temperature and density. The name "Big Bang" was coined in 1949 by British scientist Fred Hoyle to disparage a then emerging theory about origins that countered his own "steady state" view: that the universe had always existed and was evolving but not expanding. According to the Big-Bang model, the universe expanded rapidly from a highly compressed primordial state, which resulted in a significant decrease in density and temperature. Soon afterward, the dominance of matter over antimatter (as observed today) may have been established by processes that also predict proton decay. During this stage many types of elementary particles may have been present. After a few seconds, the universe cooled enough to allow the formation of certain nuclei. The theory predicts that definite amounts of hydrogen, helium, and lithium were produced. Their abundances agree with what is observed today. About 1,000,000 years later the universe was sufficiently cool for atoms to form.

WHAT IS CERN: CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, is one of the world's largest and most respected centres for scientific research. Its business is fundamental physics, finding out what the Universe is made of and how it works. Founded in 1954, the CERN Laboratory sits astride the Franco-Swiss border near Geneva. It was one of Europe's first joint ventures and now has 20 Member States, plus 6 actively participant observers including the United States and Russia.

Kalam allays fears of 'Dooms Day'
Geneva experiment not disastrous: Scientists
To mimic the Big Bang one has to collide heavy elements like lead on lead or gold on gold, which will be done next year.

First major test successful What is the Big Bang?
Girl kills self over Big Bang fear Indian behind Big Bang

Atom-smasher starts with a big bang
Big Bang - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Big Bang Theory
Big Bang Philosophy
Cern experiment: Machine switched on. No Big Bang. It works

Big Bang Boom
Celebrations Over £5bn Big Bang
Scientists launch "Big Bang" experiment
Trying To Make A Big Bang
Black holes provide a big bang of publicity for CERN

Successful test for Europe's Big Bang collider
Big Bang experiment begins, all well on Day 1
Scientists hope for surprises in Big Bang experiment U.S. Reuters
BBC NEWS Science/Nature 'Big Bang' experiment starts well
'Big Bang' experiment/ Big Bang experiment gets underway - Sify.com

India's role in 'Big Bang' experiment
WRS CERN fires up ‘Big Bang’ experiment
Big Bang experiment goes on, proves rumours wrong - Express India
Big Bang experiment starts and the world doesn't end...yet ...
Digg - Big Bang Experiment Starts
Inside the big-bang machine - Cosmic Log - msnbc.com

Success for Big Bang experiment
Kalam says'Big Bang 'experiment' spells no trouble. - Yahoo! India ...
YouTube - Big Bang experiment - Large Hadron Collider
Zee News - Big Bang Experiment, End of World, LHC Experiment
Big Bang experiment creates excitement, fear - NewsCloud.com

How important is the Big Bang experiment? - The Student Room
Q&A: The Big Bang Machine
Local Perspective on the Big Bang Theory Experiment
Local Scientist Talks about 'Big Bang Project'
Researchers Hope To Artificially Create Effects Of "Big Bang ...
Big Bang scientists rubbish doomsday reports - National News ...
Big Bang on earth but no Doomsday

Big-bang machine raises doomsday fears
Big Bang machine could destroy Earth
'Doomsday' rumour sets off panic -India-The Times of India


Source: All webs from the world.

Sensex loses 238 pts on rupee jolt, Lehman loss

Sensex loses 238 pts on rupee jolt, Lehman loss

Sensex loses 238 pts on global weakness

SENSEX 14662.61 -238.15
NIFTY 4400.25 -68.45

Indian equities continued their slide on Wednesday at a faster rate, as bad news poured in from world markets. European stocks weakened after the European Commission expressed doubts over the region’s economic growth and a possibility of further doom in the banking sector. Leading US investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings reported a third quarter net loss of $3.9 billion — the biggest in its 158-year history.

It now plans to sell a majority stake in its asset-management unit, spin off commercial real-estate holdings and cut dividend in an effort to shore up capital. Back home, the rupee hit a 2-year low, breaching the psychological 45-mark to the dollar in the process, spelling further bad news for the economy as a whole. Metal and oil & gas stocks were the worst performers, as the 30-share Sensex fell 238.15 points on Wednesday to close at 14,662.61.

All the BSE sectoral indices ended in the negative with the metal index plunging over 5%. Analysts opine that the commodity cycle is in a downturn phase and consequently the companies are likely to face a pressure on earnings. The S&P CNX Nifty slipped 68.45 points to close at 4400.25. The BSE mid and small-cap lost over 60 points each to close at 5,708.93 and 6,903.42, respectively. The slide in the rupee, however, failed to energise IT shares, with the BSE IT index closing marginally below its previous close.

Dealers say worsening financial conditions in the US would impact the revenue of IT companies, hurting their growth. “The balance of payments dynamics and US dollar strength will cause the rupee to weaken. We expect the rupee to weaken against the dollar to 46-47 by December 2008, but it will likely pull back to 45 by March 2009,” said Macquarie Research in a note to its clients. “Be prepared for more aggressive intervention by RBI in the forex market. Also, the government is likely to ease restrictions on capital inflows in order to check the pace of the rupee’s depreciation,” the noted added. On the global front, OPEC in Vienna decided to reduce supplies by 500,000 barrels a day. Consequently, crude oil for October rose as much as $1.56 to $104.82 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). The last trading price at the exchange was $101.67 a barrel on Wednesday. “Domestic market has factored in the receding oil prices. If they fall below $90 a barrel, there could be a rally in the indices, but it won’t be a sustained one. In the near term, the range would continue to be between 4,400 and 4,700,” said India Infoline head-research Amar Ambani. Market breadth continued to be weak with retreating stocks outnumbering gainers nearly two for one. Total turnover in markets was close to Rs 70,000 crore, a rise of Rs 10,000 crore over the previous close. However, the improvement in volumes is of little cheer as foreign funds continue to dump stocks. As per provisional data, they net sold Rs 1,037 crore shares on Wednesday. Domestic institutions cushioned the sales to some extent, with net purchases of Rs 492 crore. Markets across the Asia-Pacific ended on a mixed note. China’s Shanghai Composite index advanced 0.2% and South Korea’s KOSPI Composite index gained 0.7%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 index ended down 0.4% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index lost 2.4%.


Sensex loses nearly 225 pts; Nifty slips by 63 pts @ 14:22 hrs
Rupee breaches crucial 45-level
L&T gets $160 m order from Petrobras
Era Infra bags Rs 130 cr order from AAI
Usher Agro signs pact with Japanese company

OPEC resorts to output cut; Oil jumps $1
Core infrastructure sector growth slips to 3.7%
SEL Manufacturing to invest Rs 500 cr in textile park
Educomp buys 50% in EuroKids for Rs 39 cr
Vedanta in $9.8 b plan; trifurcates biz
Wary market weighed down by Lehman, inflation, IIP

Short build up in Nifty; call writing at 4400-4500
Tata Power to add 10,000 MW in next five years
L&T bags Rs 723-cr order from Petrobras
Omaxe launches Rs 800-cr township
Equities end lower ahead of inflation; IIP data

Source:Sift, ET

Dow Jones falls 280 pts on Lehman, Energy stks

US STOCKS-Wall Street skids on Lehman worries, energy

Index Value: 11,230.73
Trade Time:4:06PM ET
Change: -280.01 (-2.43%)
Prev Close: 11,510.74
Open: 11,514.73
Day's Range: 11230.73 - 11577.50

NEW YORK, Sept 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks finished sharply lower on Tuesday, with the benchmark S&P 500 suffering its worst percentage decline since late February 2007, as financial shares sold off on worries about Lehman Brothers' (LEH.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) ability to raise much-needed cash.
A tumble in crude oil prices hit shares of energy companies, including Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) , compounding the market's losses as the euphoria tied to the bailout of Fannie Mae (FNM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Freddie Mac (FNM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) evaporated.
Based on the latest available data, the Dow Jones industrial average .DJI fell 280.01 points, or 2.43 percent, to close unofficially at 11,230.73.
The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX dropped 43.28 points, or 3.41 percent, to end unofficially at 1,224.51. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC slid 59.95 points, or 2.64 percent, to end unofficially at 2,209.81. (Reporting by Ellis Mnyandu; Editing by Leslie Adler) .

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Top Stories
http://finance.yahoo.com/

Stocks Thrashed as Lehman Shares Plunge 45 Percent- AP
Wall Street ends the day with a deep loss on fresh concerns about the stability of Lehman Brothers, with the Dow losing nearly 300 points.
Lehman Sinks Over 40 Percent on Capital Concerns- Reuters
Oil Down as Ike Shifts Course, OPEC Mulls Output- AP
July Pending Home Sales Fall More Than Expected- AP
Budget Deficit Nears Record Under Latest Estimates- AP
AIG Falls on Fresh Mortgage Market Concerns- Reuters
Dollar Slides as Lehman Worries Stir Up Markets- AP
Billions to be Shared by Enron Shareholders- AP
Apple's Jobs Shows New iPods, Jokes About Death- Reuters
Washington Wants Oil Down, Stocks Up Before Election, Harrison Says


Oil below $100 as OPEC signals steady prod
Brent's sharp decline came after OPEC's chief signaled the cartel would keep its production ceiling unchanged, despite sinking prices.
OPEC to keep oil flowing as prices fall


Source:ET,Reuters, Yahoo Finance etc

Corporate News

SENSEX 14900.76 -44.21
NIFTY 4468.70 -13.60


Sensex ends 44 points down
Stocks fall on global jitters but oil slide saves day
Stocks end lower amid lacklustre trade
Rupee drops to near 2-yr lows, RBI seen
KEC sees revenue doubling on likely nuclear sector orders

Tech Mahindra bags contract from U.S. telecom major
Vodafone-Essar dispute worsens
BHEL gets $490 m power plant order
Punj Lloyd gets $37 m Singapore order
Oil at five-month low, falls below $104 a barrel

Nuclear deal: Hard work lies ahead
India's nuke energy trade to touch Rs 4 lakh cr in 10 years: US
Fed budget deficit nearing $407 bn
We backed India on N-deal: China
Capt Nair in world's top 50 senior business chief list

Rel to tap global mkts for petroleum products
Punj Lloyd gets $37 mn Singapore order
Steel ministry suggests iron ore export tax hike
Next: Getting India in NSG
Prospects good for India nuclear pact: US
N-powered market puts Sensex back in bull orbit

Madras Aluminium shares up 20 pc on investment plans
N-deal was a bad idea from the start: NYT
New RBI chief on inflation and India's growth story
Bhel wins turnkey contract for 726 Mw power plant
Oil firms to boost naphtha export after KG gas flows

Stk/Mkt Reports/analysis:
Value Stocks /Media Sector
Logistic Sector Update
Post Session Commentary - Sep 9 2008
Marginally down
Sensex ends a tad above 14,900; Sterlite Industries tanks

Bharat Forge
Reliance Infrastructure
Mahindra and Mahindra /Sintex Industries
Mahindra Lifespace Developers, Capital Goods, Power
NTPC - Annual Report - 2007-2008


Source:ET, BS, BL, Sify, Deadpresident blog etc.

Vedanta Group announces restructuring plan, Interview with Anil Agarwal

Vedanta Group announces restructuring plan

Aiming to increase its efficiency, NRI Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Resources on Tuesday announced a plan for re-aligning its corporate structure into three commodity focussed verticals.
The group structure would be simplified into three verticals -- copper and zinc-lead, aluminium and energy, and iron ore, Sterlite Industries informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Under the restructuring scheme, Sterlite would demerge its aluminium and energy businesses to Madras Aluminium Company Ltd (MALCO) with effect from April 1, 2009.

Pursuant to the scheme, for every four share held in Sterlite, the shareholders would get seven equity shares in Malco, Sterlite Industries (SIIL).

Further, for the demerger of Malco's investment into Sterlite, SIIL would issue one share for every 51 equity shares held in Malco.

Besides, the other aluminium business undertakings of the Vedanta Group would also be demerged into Malco, which include the aluminium foils plant at Sanaswadi, 51 per cent stake in Balco and 29.5 per cent stake in Vedanta Aluminium.

Meanwhile, a 100 per cent stake in Sterlite Energy Ltd (SEL) would also be demerged into Malco, the filing added. After the demerger, Malco would be renamed as Sterlite Aluminium Ltd. Under the scheme, Vedanta would transfer 79.4 per cent equity interest in Konkola Copper Mines Plc (KCM) to Sterlite.

Other related articles:
Sterlite to demerge aluminium, energy operations
Vedanta Resources restructures into 3 units
Vedanta to up iron ore capacity, eyes mining buys
Sesa Goa to up iron ore capacity, eyes mining buys
Vedanta restructures group into 3 commodity focused verticals

Madras Aluminium may be merged with Sterlite
Market weak; Sterlite falls on restructuring plans
Sterlite down 5% on swap ratio, sluggish zinc demand
Vedanta to boost Sesa Goa iron ore capacity, restructure group
Vedanta restructures holding companies
Sensex ends down 44pts; Sterlite drops 8%

Vedanta rolls out restructuring plans
Vedanta to up iron ore capacity, eyes mining buys
Vedanta Resources to restructure, to invest in aluminum
Sterlite: Dull metal
Vedanta to up iron ore capacity, eyes mining buys - Sify.com
Sterlite revamp: 7 Malco shares for 4 shares - Sify.com
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Interview with Anil Agarwal, Tarun Jain, Vedanta
Vedanta to demerge Sterlite's alumina, energy biz

Vedanta Resources will create three commodity focus groups. The company will demerge alumina, energy business of Sterlite Industries. The company has announced USD 9.8 billion aluminium capex programme and aims to raise aluminium smelting capacity by 2.6 million tonnes per annum by 2012.
Vedanta will also transfer 79.4% stake in Konkola Copper Mines to Sterlite, he added. Sterlite shareholders will get seven shares of Malco for four shares held in Sterlite. On the other hand, Malco shareholders will get one Sterlite share for every 51 held. The scheme will be effective from April 1 2009, he said.
Anil Agarwal, Chairman said that Asarco buy will be closed by year-end. He said, "We are looking to invest Rs 115,000 crore for which we have already invested Rs 40,000 crore. We have Rs 30,000 crore in cash and we are going to invest Rs 75,000 crore further in three years’ time. We will have 1 million tonne of copper, 1 million tonne of zinc and 26 lakh tonne of aluminium. We have also kept a provision to acquire Asarco for USD 2.6 billion.”
Tarun Jain, CFO, Vedanta Resources has said that some part of Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (BALCO) option has been considered by valuers and there are no plans for raising equity in Sterlite Aluminium

More @http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/restructuring-to-unlock-value-for-all-shareholders-vedanta/22/50/355431


Source:ET, BS, BL, Sify, MC and etc

Nuclear family to take India on high-tech trip and other Corporate Stories

Nuclear family to take India on high-tech trip
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/3456483.cms

The Nuclear Suppliers’ Group (NSG) has lifted obstacles to India buying products and technologies associated with civilian uses of nuclear technology from (and selling these to) most significant nuclear powers save the US. To enable civil nuclear commerce with the US, that country’s legislature must ratify the 123 Agreement finalised between the Bush administration and New Delhi. The implications are not just for nuclear energy, significant as these are — our existing reactors running short of fuel would be able to run at full capacity and we would be able to set up new nuclear plants. While National Security Advisor MK Narayanan announced on TV that a grateful India would let the US have a large share of India's domestic market for nuclear energy, right now, the competitive advantage in terms of standardised reactor design, scale and, therefore, costs, is with France and Russia. There is also the perception in some circles that the US conditions on supply of nuclear materials might turn out to be unacceptably stringent and intrusive, going by the State department's answers to the House Foreign Relations Committee.

Vital sectors of the economy stand to benefit from access to a range of high-technology products and technologies that had, till now, been outside India’s reach because of its status as a nuclear outsider. Many advances in materials, communications, computing, signalling, chemical processing and avionics are deemed sensitive technologies not accessible to nuclear have-nots. Access to these technologies opens up now. This will improve efficiencies across the board in India, from weather forecasting to oil refining. But the biggest gain is strategic. Non-proliferation activists objected to what they called India's sweetheart deal on the ground that it gives India an exceptional status: It is the only country that possesses nuclear bombs but is not part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to be accepted into the community of nations allowed to legitimately engage in nuclear commerce. The major powers of the world have recognised India’s status as a growing power whose potential to contribute to a stable global order is huge. It is that recognition that persuaded them to work out the current exception to nuclear convention in the form of the waiver from NSG. As India strengthens its strategic capabilities with the help of technologies made accessible as a result of the deal, it would put an end to the current situation of an ever-widening strategic gap between China and the rest of Asia. As India steps into its now acknowledged role as a balancer of power, it will benefit India and the world. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the ruling UPA will gain credit for having made this global breakthrough, against much opposition and at the risk of losing power.
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Tatas shocked by Singur deal; say project unviable
Tata Motors declines to give any reaction
Industries see Rs 1.2 trillion investment in nuclear power
Videocon, Jindal, 38 others in race to set up N-power plants
KEC International bags two orders worth Rs 217 crore
Nuclear deal to power India Incbs growth engine
OPEC considers cutting oil production
Industry sees Rs 120k-cr business opportunity

Source:ET