Maharashtra News Archive: December 2006

Century Textiles and Industries shutting down
Friday, December 15, 2006 | AY

Birla-owned Century Textiles and Industries announced its intent to wind down operations in Mumbai after more than a century of existence. About 6,300 of the 6,700 workers have opted for the voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) offered by the company management. 95% of the workforce has accepted the offer, which amounts to about Rs 900,000- 1 million a person. The company had earlier said that running a mill was unviable in Mumbai because of high labour costs, taxes and water charges. 700-800 workers have rejected the VRS offer of Rs 300,000 - 500,000 an employee as their demand is for a compensation equal to what the workers could have possibly earned if they had worked till 60. The shares of the company were trading at Rs 669.05, up by Rs 39.15 or, 6.22%, from its previous close at the BSE.

Marathi to be made compulsory
Friday, December 15, 2006 | AY

The state language Marathi is to be made compulsory in all CBSE and ICSE schools across Maharashtra now. Currently, the language is taught as an optional subject between Class 1 and X in some schools. CBSE, ICSE schools operating in Maharashtra have to get a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the government, which is the basis on which it is enforcing its demand.

LG flat TVs at Pune unit
Tuesday, December 12, 2006 | AY

LG Electronics India (LGEIL) will start assembling flat panel display televisions from next year and will invest $100 million in its Pune facility over the next five years. The company now imports the entire range of LCD and plasma televisions from its Korean facility. Anticipating a huge growth in the FPD segment, LGEIL expects to clock Rs 1,140 crore of the Rs 9,000-crore turnover targeted in 2007. The company expects to corner Rs 150 crore this year with a sales turnover of Rs 7,500 crore. The current market size of FPDs is estimated to be around 1.3 lakh units. Of this, LG claims to have a 40 per cent market share in plasma TVs and 25 per cent in LCDs. Meanwhile, the company today launched a flat panel television with a built-in-recorder, called the Time Machine TV. It is priced between Rs 1.15 lakh for a 37-inch LCD TV and Rs 2.4 lakh for a 50-inch plasma.

Mumbai given 2011 World Cup final
Tuesday, December 12, 2006 | AY

India's Board of Control has confirmed that the final of the 2011 World Cup will take place in Mumbai. It was originally thought the game would be played in Delhi, but the BCCI has opted for the Wankhede Stadium, which currently has a 45,000 capacity. Pakistan and Sri Lanka will stage the semi-finals in 2011 and the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore and the Premadasas Stadium in Colombo. In total, India will stage 22 matches during the tournament, with 15 in Pakistan 15, nine in Sri Lanka and six in Bangladesh.

Here comes, a Marathi Superman
Saturday, December 9, 2006 | AY

Famous film director — Mahesh Kothare is all set to make a Marathi film, using high-tech special effects and with a ‘superman’ concept. The film will be shot at various locations in Kolhapur from 13th December and will be out by April 2007. According to Kotare, the story revolves around a teenage boy, who is a superman and his college mates who are impressed by his supernatural powers. The superman’s character is played by Pushkar Jog with Manasi Naik as the lead actress. The title music and background score will be composed by musical wizard A.R Rahmaan. The special-effects in this film will be a combination of computer-generated technology, 35 m.m shots and high-tech animation.

Mumbai-born Zubin Mehta honoured in US
Tuesday, December 5, 2006 | AY

Mumbai-born music conductor Zubin Mehta was the first Indian among those honoured in US for lifetime achievement in their respective fields in performing arts. Besides Mehta, other who were honoured at the 29th annual Kennedy Center Honors in a glittering ceremony at the John F Kennedy Center for the performing arts were Oscar-winning film Director Steven Spielberg composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, crooners Dolly Parton and Smokey Robinson. US President George W Bush and first lady Laura Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Actor Tom Hanks, Sidney Poitier, Actresses Reese Witherspoon and Joan Collins, were among the invitees to the gala event.

Judge convicts 6 more people in 1993 Bombings
Monday, December 4, 2006 | AY

Judge Pramod Kode on Monday finished delivering the verdicts on 123 defendants charged in the 1993 Mumbai bombings, India's worst terror attack. Monday's convictions took the number of people convicted to 100, with 23 others acquitted. Those convicted are to be sentenced early next year. Among the best known of the defendants is Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt, who was found guilty last week of possessing illegal arms but acquitted of a more serious conspiracy charge. A total of 12 bombs exploded over a two-hour period on March 12, 1993, after the bombers had parked scooters, cars and jeeps packed with explosives at Mumbai's stock exchange, cinemas, an Air India office, gasoline stations, the passport office, crowded jewelry and clothing markets, and two hotels.

Increasingly extreme monsoons in Central India
Sunday, December 3, 2006 | AY

According to a recent study, extreme summer monsoons have become more common in central India in the past 50 years, possibly as a result of global warming. According to a study in the Science, central India is witnessing more frequent and intense cloudbursts at the expense of the more drawn-out, moderate rains considered vital for the country's drought-prone areas, and the risk of severe droughts and floods may further increase if the warming trend continues. For his study, Bhupendra Goswami, an atmospheric researcher at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology Pune, and his team, analysed data from more than 1,800 weather stations all over central India for the period 1951-2000. They found no significant change in seasonal mean rainfall for the area as a whole, comprising well over a million square kilometres, but the number of extreme events - rainfall exceeding 150 millimetres per day - has apparently doubled since the early 1950s.

Marathi director comments on Bollywood
Saturday, December 2, 2006 | AY

The Hindi film industry came under attack again today at the International Film Festival of India here, when noted Marathi director Gajendra Ahire contended that the biggest hurdle faced by regional cinema was the sharing of space with Bollywood. Ahire said, Marathi films needed good marketing and publicity and prime slots in theatres. Marathi cinema is slowly becoming global. The language may be Marathi but films like 'Shwaas', 'Dombivili Fast' and 'Uttarayan' were appreciated globally at presitigious festivals like Rome, Venice and London.

Mumbai violence
Saturday, December 2, 2006 | AY

Fourteen people have been arrested here for allegedly burning bogies of the Deccan Queen and a local train during protests against the alleged vandalisation of B R Ambedkar's statue in Kanpur. Curfew was lifted in Pimpri- Chinchwad in Pune district this morning while normalcy returned to Nasik, Jalgaon, Dhule and Nandurbar districts of north Maharashtra that have witnessed violence since Wednesday over the alleged vandalisation of a B R Ambedkar statue in Kanpur. Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) has resumed its services to all city routes except jail road, Devlali and Bhagur.

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