The Economic Times Weekend Platter

The ET Weekend Platter offers the round up of the news that you missed during the week. We bring to you the most-read news, investment corner, stock wrap-up, issue that hogged headlines, editor's picks and the most happening trend stories from across sectors, for you to savour at your conveniance. Happy reading.
Who is buying Satyam shares?
Headhunters on prowl for Satyam top teams
Now, Satyam's bank statements go missing

Stock Round up
Market puts on brave face; Satyam bites dust Markets recovered from lows as traders covered shorts in realty stocks. However, losses in metals and real estate saw the benchmarks end lower.
Corporate Trends
Satyam fallout: Roles of chairman & CEO in most firms are still not split The revelations of the disgraced Satyam chairman have once again brought to the fore the sorry state of corporate governance in some of India�s most valuable cos.
Staff training moves indoors as cos cut costs As the slump continues to trump boom time extravagance, employee training gets innovative indoors.

Brief History Of Insurance

The story of insurance is probably as old as the story of mankind. The same instinct that prompts modern businessmen today to secure themselves against loss and disaster existed in primitive men also. They too sought to avert the evil consequences of fire and flood and loss of life and were willing to make some sort of sacrifice in order to achieve security. Though the concept of insurance is largely a development of the recent past, particularly after the industrial era – past few centuries – yet its beginnings date back almost 6000 years.

Life Insurance in its modern form came to India from England in the year 1818. Oriental Life Insurance Company started by Europeans in Calcutta was the first life insurance company on Indian Soil. All the insurance companies established during that period were brought up with the purpose of looking after the needs of European community and Indian natives were not being insured by these companies. However, later with the efforts of eminent people like Babu Muttylal Seal, the foreign life insurance companies started insuring Indian lives. But Indian lives were being treated as sub-standard lives and heavy extra premiums were being charged on them. Bombay Mutual Life Assurance Society heralded the birth of first Indian life insurance company in the year 1870, and covered Indian lives at normal rates. Starting as Indian enterprise with highly patriotic motives, insurance companies came into existence to carry the message of insurance and social security through insurance to various sectors of society. Bharat Insurance Company (1896) was also one of such companies inspired by nationalism. The Swadeshi movement of 1905-1907 gave rise to more insurance companies. The United India in Madras, National Indian and National Insurance in Calcutta and the Co-operative Assurance at Lahore were established in 1906. In 1907, Hindustan Co-operative Insurance Company took its birth in one of the rooms of the Jorasanko, house of the great poet Rabindranath Tagore, in Calcutta. The Indian Mercantile, General Assurance and Swadeshi Life (later Bombay Life) were some of the companies established during the same period. Prior to 1912 India had no legislation to regulate insurance business. In the year 1912, the Life Insurance Companies Act, and the Provident Fund Act were passed. The Life Insurance Companies Act, 1912 made it necessary that the premium rate tables and periodical valuations of companies should be certified by an actuary. But the Act discriminated between foreign and Indian companies on many accounts, putting the Indian companies at a disadvantage.

The first two decades of the twentieth century saw lot of growth in insurance business. From 44 companies with total business-in-force as Rs.22.44 crore, it rose to 176 companies with total business-in-force as Rs.298 crore in 1938. During the mushrooming of insurance companies many financially unsound concerns were also floated which failed miserably. The Insurance Act 1938 was the first legislation governing not only life insurance but also non-life insurance to provide strict state control over insurance business. The demand for nationalization of life insurance industry was made repeatedly in the past but it gathered momentum in 1944 when a bill to amend the Life Insurance Act 1938 was introduced in the Legislative Assembly. However, it was much later on the 19th of January, 1956, that life insurance in India was nationalized. About 154 Indian insurance companies, 16 non-Indian companies and 75 provident were operating in India at the time of nationalization. Nationalization was accomplished in two stages; initially the management of the companies was taken over by means of an Ordinance, and later, the ownership too by means of a comprehensive bill. The Parliament of India passed the Life Insurance Corporation Act on the 19th of June 1956, and the Life Insurance Corporation of India was created on 1st September, 1956, with the objective of spreading life insurance much more widely and in particular to the rural areas with a view to reach all insurable persons in the country, providing them adequate financial cover at a reasonable cost.

LIC had 5 zonal offices, 33 divisional offices and 212 branch offices, apart from its corporate office in the year 1956. Since life insurance contracts are long term contracts and during the currency of the policy it requires a variety of services need was felt in the later years to expand the operations and place a branch office at each district headquarter. re-organization of LIC took place and large numbers of new branch offices were opened. As a result of re-organisation servicing functions were transferred to the branches, and branches were made accounting units. It worked wonders with the performance of the corporation. It may be seen that from about 200.00 crores of New Business in 1957 the corporation crossed 1000.00 crores only in the year 1969-70, and it took another 10 years for LIC to cross 2000.00 crore mark of new business. But with re-organisation happening in the early eighties, by 1985-86 LIC had already crossed 7000.00 crore Sum Assured on new policies.

Today LIC functions with 2048 fully computerized branch offices, 100 divisional offices, 7 zonal offices and the Corporate office. LIC’s Wide Area Network covers 100 divisional offices and connects all the branches through a Metro Area Network. LIC has tied up with some Banks and Service providers to offer on-line premium collection facility in selected cities. LIC’s ECS and ATM premium payment facility is an addition to customer convenience. Apart from on-line Kiosks and IVRS, Info Centres have been commissioned at Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, New Delhi, Pune and many other cities. With a vision of providing easy access to its policyholders, LIC has launched its SATELLITE SAMPARK offices. The satellite offices are smaller, leaner and closer to the customer. The digitalized records of the satellite offices will facilitate anywhere servicing and many other conveniences in the future.
LIC continues to be the dominant life insurer even in the liberalized scenario of Indian insurance and is moving fast on a new growth trajectory surpassing its own past records. LIC has issued over one crore policies during the current year. It has crossed the milestone of issuing 1,01,32,955 new policies by 15th Oct, 2005, posting a healthy growth rate of 16.67% over the corresponding period of the previous year.

From then to now, LIC has crossed many milestones and has set unprecedented performance records in various aspects of life insurance business. The same motives which inspired our forefathers to bring insurance into existence in this country inspire us at LIC to take this message of protection to light the lamps of security in as many homes as possible and to help the people in providing security to their families.

Some of the important milestones in the life insurance business in India are:

1818: Oriental Life Insurance Company, the first life insurance company on Indian soil started functioning.

1870: Bombay Mutual Life Assurance Society, the first Indian life insurance company started its business.

1912: The Indian Life Assurance Companies Act enacted as the first statute to regulate the life insurance business.

1928: The Indian Insurance Companies Act enacted to enable the government to collect statistical information about both life and non-life insurance businesses.

1938: Earlier legislation consolidated and amended to by the Insurance Act with the objective of protecting the interests of the insuring public.

1956: 245 Indian and foreign insurers and provident societies are taken over by the central government and nationalised. LIC formed by an Act of Parliament, viz. LIC Act, 1956, with a capital contribution of Rs. 5 crore from the Government of India.

The General insurance business in India, on the other hand, can trace its roots to the Triton Insurance Company Ltd., the first general insurance company established in the year 1850 in Calcutta by the British.

Some of the important milestones in the general insurance business in India are:

1907: The Indian Mercantile Insurance Ltd. set up, the first company to transact all classes of general insurance business.

1957: General Insurance Council, a wing of the Insurance Association of India, frames a code of conduct for ensuring fair conduct and sound business practices.

1968: The Insurance Act amended to regulate investments and set minimum solvency margins and the Tariff Advisory Committee set up.

1972: The General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Act, 1972 nationalised thegeneral insurance business in India with effect from 1st January 1973.

107 insurers amalgamated and grouped into four companies viz. the NationalInsurance Company Ltd., the New India Assurance Company Ltd., theOriental Insurance Company Ltd. and the United India Insurance CompanyLtd. GIC incorporated as a company.

Source:- LIC of india

Narayana Murthy on Satyam Computers fraud

Source : CNBC-TV18

Commenting on Ramalinga Raju’s revelation of multi-crore Satyam Computer Services fraud, Narayana Murthy, Non-Executive Chairman, Infosys, said it is important for the Indian regulatory agencies to get to the bottom of this (Satyam scam), to make a thorough investigation and take a swift, decisive action to bring the guilty to book. However, he said, “We have no interest in buying Satyam and we will not touch such tainted company.”

Here is a transcript of the exclusive interview with Narayan Murthy’s on CNBC-TV18.

Q: It’s not been an issue that is been manipulated over a quarter or a couple of quarters. This is something that has been manipulated over several years, that is his candid admission - what does this really do now to the Indian IT space, because we understand that The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) is being galvanized into action to put out or project an image that India Inc is not Satyam and this is clearly and aberrations? What are you doing on your part?

A: I speak as a representative of the industry and not as a representative of Infosys in this. What we have to do is to communicate to all our investors, potential investors and customers that Satyam is indeed an isolated case of mis-governance. Secondly, we must all be prepared to provide additional data, to answer further questions, so that our investors, potential investors and customers get an enhanced level of comfort, that is what we all need to do and I am glad NASSCOM has taken that decision do it.

Q: There is buzz in the market at this point in time - that there is a possibility that Infosys could actually look at some sort of a leadership position at Satyam, not really a bailout, but to bailout the employees and the clients- is that a possibility at all that you would be looking at?

A: I am the Non-Executive Chairman of Infosys, so it’s not right for me to answer that. But, however, we have no such interest in looking at buying Satyam or anything like that. Absolutely no, we will not touch such tainted company.

Q: We hear Vallabh Bhansali earlier saying that Commission should be set up under your leadership and you should come out with a swift response and a solution to the problem that we are currently faced with to reinsure global investors as well as domestic investors – what to your mind is the swifter solution at this point in time?

A: The most important first step is for the regulatory agencies of India to get to the bottom of this, to make a thorough investigation and take a swift and decisive action to bring the guilty to whatever punishment they deserve.

If we did that before Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) starts looking at Satyam, I have a feeling that we would have raised the confidence of FIIs and most importantly our domestic investors in our government, our regulatory agencies being very tough with anybody, who violates the laws of corporate governance. So, the need of the day is for the regulatory agencies to act quickly and decisively.

Q: Nandan Nilekani was of the opinion that this is not really going to impact the fortunes of the Indian outsourcing industry or Indian tech industrty, but in the short-term, do you actually see a backlash on account of this?

A: Not at all. We must remember one thing that every large company has very close relationships with customers. The CEOs, the senior management of the Indian companies have very close relationship with the senior management of customer companies. We have had lots of transaction, where we have demonstrated trust, quality, and integrity.

So, I don’t think that all of that will be destroyed because there is one bad apple, just because there is one Satyam and I am quite confident that the Indian companies will be able to tide over. However, if you look at a macro level at the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into India, at the FIIs and at the portfolio investment, then the need of the day is swift and tough action by the regulatory agencies whoever it is, I don’t know who that is, but once that happens I can assure you that people will understand that this is an isolated case.

Aamir Khan launched Amitabh Bachchan's biography

Sorce- Zew News

Living legend Amitabh Bachchan’s biography, which has been penned by eminent film journalist Bhawana Somaya, was launched this Saturday by none other than superstar Aamir Khan. His family members including Abhishek and Aishwarya, got together for releasing 'Bachchanalia' and Aamir was invited as the guest of honour to launch the book.

At the event, Aamir was all praises for Big B. He said, "Often I find in this line that success is not directly proportionate to talent and hard work. But here is one case where it is certainly proportionate to the talent and hardwork Mr Bachchan has.

” While Aamir was truly appreciating Amitabh’s commendable work in cinema, Abhishek was flaunting his look for Mani Ratnam's film 'Ravana'. Nevertheless, both Abhishek and Aishwarya mentioned that they are more than glad to be a part of the event. They said, "As a family we are very proud and humbled by the gesture for the release of this book." Enlightening the audience with his words at the function, Amitabh said, "It has been a wonderful experience. I am very happy that somebody has documented this. I feel obliged and honoured." Earlier, Amitabh was not too keen to have someone penning his biography, but the actor later gave a ‘yes’ to Neville Tuli, founder of pioneering arts institution Osian’s, which already boasts of an auction house, archive and film house. Amitabh says, “Bachchanalia is very pictorial and boasts of vintage priceless poster designs. It’s very interestingly done with snippets of my films, and interesting trivia.” Well, with 'Bachchanalia',

Amitabh seems to have achieved yet another milestone.

The making of the Nano - Ratan Tata Interview

Ratan Tata rolls the window down and talks about the vision and conviction, the innovation and improvisation, and the leap of faith that went into creating the People's Car.

The launch of the People's Car by Tata Motors is a defining moment in the history of India's automotive industry. For Tata Motors, the car - christened the Nano, because it is a small car with high technology - is the next big step in a journey that began with the Indica. For the Tata Group, it is the realisation of a pioneering vision to create a breakthrough product globally that rewrites the rules of the small-car business.

What does this path-breaking endeavour really mean for the Chairman of the Tata Group, in many ways the inspiration behind the car? That's what Christabelle Noronha set out to discover when she met Mr Tata at Pune, as 2007, a momentous year for the Group, was drawing to a close.

The Tatas and you, in particular, are on the brink of realising a long-cherished ambition. Do you feel vindicated? Are you apprehensive?
There has always been some sort of unconscious urge to do something for the people of India and transport has been an area of interest. As urbanisation gathers pace, personal transport has become a big issue, especially since mass transport is often not available or is of poor quality. Two-wheelers - with the father driving, the elder child standing in front and the wife behind holding a baby - is very much the norm in this country. In that form two-wheelers are a relatively unsafe mode of transporting a family. The two-wheeler image is what got me thinking that we needed to create a safer form of transport. My first doodle was to rebuild cars around the scooter, so that those using them could be safer if it fell. Could there be a four-wheel vehicle made of scooter parts? I got in touch with an industry association and suggested that we join forces and produce what, at that point, I called an Asian car: large volumes, many nations involved, maybe with different countries producing different sets of parts… Nobody took the idea seriously, nobody responded.

This was similar to what happened when we wanted to get going on the Indica. I had proposed a partnership with an industry body to create an Indian car, designed, developed and produced in India, something that could be conceptualised and executed as an Indian enterprise. Everybody scoffed at the concept. I remember people saying, "Why doesn't Mr Tata produce a car that works before he talks about an Indian car." My confidence got a boost when we finally succeeded with the Indica. Willy-nilly, we decided to look at [the low-cost car] project within Tata Motors.

It was never meant to be a Rs1-lakh car; that happened by circumstance. I was interviewed by the [British newspaper] Financial Times at the Geneva Motor Show and I talked about this future product as a low-cost car. I was asked how much it would cost and I said about Rs1 lakh. The next day the Financial Times had a headline to the effect that the Tatas are to produce a Rs100,000 car. My immediate reaction was to issue a rebuttal, to clarify that that was not exactly what I had said. Then I thought, I did say it would be around that figure, so why don't we just take that as a target. When I came back our people were aghast, but we had our goal.

Today, on the eve of the unveiling of the car, we are close to the target in terms of costs. We are not there as yet, but by the time we go into production we will be. This project has proven to everyone that if you really set yourself to doing something, you actually can do it.

Two-three important events have influenced the development of the car; inflation, for one. The cost statement was made three-four years back but we are holding on to that price barrier. This will definitely diminish our margins. The price of steel, in particular, has gone up during the intervening period.

A second point is that we initially conceived this as a low-end 'rural car,' probably without doors or windows and with plastic curtains that rolled down, a four-wheel version of the auto-rickshaw, in a manner of speaking. But as the development cycle progressed we realised that we could - and needed to - do a whole lot better. And so we slowly gravitated towards a car like everyone expects a car to be. The challenge increased exponentially; there was the low-price barrier, inflation, adding more features and parts to the vehicle, substantial changes in basic raw materials… What the team has been able to achieve, in the face of all these constraints, is truly outstanding.

What does it mean to me? It means that we have in us the capability to undertake a challenge that many car companies have chosen not to address or have been unable to address.

What are the innovations that have made the Tata Nano possible, from design to product finalisation?
Initially I had conceived a car made by engineering plastics and new materials, and using new technology like aerospace adhesives instead of welding. However, plastics didn't lend themselves to the volumes we wanted because of the curing time required. Volumes mean the world in this context: if we produce this car and if it is for the wider base of the pyramid, we can't settle for small numbers because then the purpose is defeated.

When we were planning facilities for the car and working out a business plan, the business plan shown to me was looking at a figure of 200,000. I said 200,000 cars is crazy. If we can do this we should be looking at a million cars a year, and if we can't do a million then we shouldn't be doing this kind of car at all.

But such a figure (a million cars) has never been achieved in the country before. If it had to be done the conventional way, it would have meant investing many billions of dollars. So we looked at a new kind of distributed manufacturing, creating a low-cost, low break-even point manufacturing unit that we design and give to entrepreneurs who might like to establish a manufacturing facility. We looked at different ways of servicing the product, at the customer's location, and through a concept adopted from the insurance industry, wherein self-employed people are trained and certified by us. And we went back to innovation in design and scrupulously took, as much as we could, cost out of the product.

We did things like make similar handles and mechanisms for the left- and right-side doors; we developed our own small engine which could sit under the rear seat, enabling us to craft a smaller overall package; we looked at a new type of seats; and we worked at cutting costs everywhere. We have put our instrument cluster in the middle, not in front of the driver. This means the same dashboard will work for a left-hand-drive vehicle. There are a lot of such innovations that are low-cost and future-oriented.

Equally important to the cost structure was the incentive we could get from having our manufacturing facility at a particular place. The benefits on this count will be passed on to the customer.

Our move to West Bengal was a leap of faith and a sign of our confidence in the leadership in the state. We were breaking new ground, not only on the product front but also in helping industrialise a previously ignored part of India. But we did not start out getting the incentives that other states were offering. I remember telling the chief minister [Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee], "Sir, much as we have tried, it makes no sense for us to come to West Bengal. We cannot meet the cost requirements we have without incentives." It was then that we negotiated a set of incentives that, long-term, work out to be the same as we may have had if we set up in some other place.

Other than emission norms and safety standards, what are some of the other challenges, physical and psychological, that Tata Motors had to overcome to make this car happen?
There was the usual dilemma of what is basic and what is nice to have. A basic car may not have all the niceties its fancier cousins sport, and when you're looking at saving money on every single bit of the car — even parts that cost as little as Rs20 — you keep facing these dilemmas. Hundreds of such dilemmas have risen.

However, we were always conscious that there should be no quality stigma attached to the buying of this product. One thing we were clear about: this was never going to be a half-car. Nobody wants a car that is less than everybody else's car. Our car may have a small engine and certain limitations in terms of being basic, but that does not make it inferior. Also, we have a higher version of the car - with air conditioning, leather seats, etc - that we will be displaying at the auto show in Delhi. We hope people will look at that, too. Down the line, as we widen our range, we will have dressed-up versions with higher-powered engines, diesel engines, automatics and the like. We have a whole bunch of innovations coming along on this platform.

What we now have is a car that is truly low-cost which has, approximately, the same performance as a Maruti 800 in terms of acceleration, top speed, etc.

When future versions of this car hit the market, will they not be in direct competition to the Indica?
No. The way I see it, this vehicle will cannibalise some of the lower-end car market and some of the higher-end motorcycle and scooter market. It will eat into both of those markets but it will also create a market of its own. It will expand the market by creating a niche that did not previously exist. It may well cannibalise some of the higher-end car market, but to a small extent, and probably only when people look to buy a second or third car.

About the criticism that the car will add to India's pollution problems, why are the Tatas being singled out?
This is something I'm going to talk about at the launch. For now, let me just say our car will cause less pollution than a two-wheeler.

I'm trying to think of a parallel where someone has introduced a product at a disruptively low price and changed the market. A good example would be the Swatch watch, low-cost, trendy and with a wide range. Did Swatch finish off the Swiss watch industry? No (in fact, it was a Swiss company that created Swatch, the same company that produced Omega). Did it finish off Citizen and Seiko and other Japanese competitors? No. Did Swatch cause the Japanese and others to produce something like the Swatch? Yes, it did, but Swatch continued to dominate its niche.

What did this do to the global watch industry? It enabled somebody to look at a wrist watch almost like cufflinks: you could buy 10 Swatch watches, you could wear different ones for different occasions. Swatch sold multiple watches for a single wrist. I think something similar could also happen with the Nano.

Why are people attacking only the Tata Group?
I think it comes from vested interests. Let's ask ourselves why the car is attracting so much attention and why it is being attacked so much. My view is that if the car were not attracting all this attention, it wouldn't be attacked. This car has provoked serious apprehensions in some manufacturers. There are people in our company even who fear what it will do to the Indica.

Do you think there's a concern among three-wheel manufacturers that it might replace their vehicles? Yes, there is because some three-wheelers cost more than what the Nano will cost. All in all, I think people are attacking us because they are apprehensive.

Has the Indica experience helped in the creation of the Nano?
Oh yes, enormously. The Indica experience and the Ace experience have helped; Ace especially because it was another tight, cost-based exercise.

From the Rs1-lakh car to products costing many millions, if the Jaguar deal comes through: What next for the Tatas on the automotive front?
I won't comment on the Jaguar deal, but to answer your question, we are not in an acquisitive mode. That's not our strategy for growth.

The Tatas have been on the front pages constantly of late— what is it like being in the middle of it all?
Embarrassing and unpleasant. Whenever you are on the front page, you are also — each time, and more so in India than elsewhere in the world — creating detractors and critics. For every action there is some kind of reaction, somebody who is hunting for something to criticise. And most often it is the reaction that people remember. This is all the more embarrassing because we are not a Group that seeks publicity.

If you look at the coverage that has happened, you cannot fail to notice how the low-cost car has been turned into an issue of congestion, of pollution, of safety. Initially it was all about why a car at this cost was simply not possible; that talk is long gone, only to be replaced by these 'new' concerns. We are not really talking about how it will change the way people live or transport themselves, what their aspirations may be.

Ideally, I would really wish we didn't have the visibility and the media publicity because we haven't sought it.

Source Link :- Tata motors Click here

The Economic Times Week

Surce:- The Economic Times Newsletter

The ET Weekend Platter offers the round up of the news that you missed during the week. We bring to you the most-read news, investment corner, stock wrap-up, issue that hogged headlines, editor's picks and the most happening trend stories from across sectors, for you to savour at your conveniance. Happy reading. Stimulus-II: India Inc gets more room to grow Complementing monetary easing by the RBI, the Centre enhanced the spending power of states with specific measures to boost credit availability. RBI cuts key rates to stimulate economy RBI cut the repo rate to 5.5% from 6.5%. The reverse repo rate was cut to to 4% from 5%. Home & corporate loans to get cheaper The RBI has cut its key policy rate by one percentage point, signalling a reduction in banks� lending rate. Story of the Week Telecom sector to create 1.5 lakh jobs Salaries may shoot up 30% as new players enter fray and existing companies expand operations. Stock Round up Sensex crosses 10k mark; realty, banks rally Market remained firm backed by gains in consumer durables, realty and banking. ET Features India always does well in adversity: Nandan Nilekani Widespread expectations of a 'global slump' are becoming reality govts tamp down on growth forecasts & everyone cutting costs. PSU banks likely to emerge stronger amid turmoil From being top performer of 2007, to being one of worst performing indices of 2008, the BSE Bankex shows banking sector's topsy-turvy ride this year. Personal Finance IRDA eases solvency margins for ULIPS The insurance regulator has eased solvency margins for unit-linked insurance plans. SBI MF announces 20 pc dividend under Magnum commma fund SBI Mutual Fund said it has declared a dividend of 20% under the Dividend option of Magnum COMMA Fund, an open-ended growth scheme. Corporate Trends Ambanis come together for sister's anniversary Amid speculation they may bury differences sooner than later, Anil and Mukesh met for the second time in under a week. Satyam saga exposes serious shortfalls in India Inc Satyam says it adhered to corporate governance rules, appointing requisite number of independent directors with excellent credentials.		Ambani brothers Mukesh and Anil came together to celebrate sister Dipti Salgaocar's silver marriage anniversary on New Year's eve in Goa, amid speculation they may bury differences sooner than later. Editor's Pick Jury is out on ONGC�s latest buy Portable health insurance India and Pakistan differ, naturally

News by Industry
	Telecom Finmin wants 3G, Wimax base bid doubled BSNL seeks ISD termination rates review Your Money Time to make resolutions for personal finances too! Investing in 2009: A note from experts Auto Hyundai, Honda sales ride on new rollouts in Dec Skoda India's sales jump by 28 per cent in 2008 Taxes & You GCC mulls income tax levy by 2012 Now, send a SMS to pay your property tax

British Army takes up Kabaddi

The British Army has taken up the ancient Indian sport of kabaddi in an attempt to find a game at which they can beat the Indians.
Initially adopted as means of attracting recruits from Asian communities in Britain, Kabaddi has been such a hit, that the British Army's new team recently gave their Indian counterpart a run for its money.

Read full article on below link

http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20090102/1252/tsp-british-army-takes-up-kabaddi-to-bea.html

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Yahoo! India News
http://in.news.yahoo.com/

HAPPP NEW YEAR-2009!!!!

Wishing you a New Year filled with good health, new hope and new beginnings!

* May year 2009 open up for you more opportunities, lead you onto the path of continued success, happiness and prosperity!
* I wish ... that the coming year showers on you all that you ever wished for!