Is Google taking on Wikipedia?

Google unveils its new online tool, Google Knol, defining it as "Unit of Knowledge". This tool helps people to share their knowledge. Currently, the tool is under development and only selected few are allowed to use it.

Are Diesel Vehicles facing a Ban in the Capital?

....If one goes goes by the statement made by Delhi Environment secretary J K Dadoo at roundtable of the automotive industry and civil society,

"We will come down with a strong hand and ban registration of diesel
vehicles in Delhi if everything else fails,"

My View:

• The sale of Diesel vehicles are surging at the rate of 40-50% in Indian market. With many auto makers lined up for India launch, this move could well be a bomb-shell for their future plans.
• Ofcourse the level of pollution is increasing at an alarming rate, which has to be met with stringent emission norms, but banning the diesel vehicles, even private vehicles is altogether a different proposition.
• It is a known fact that public transport buses and some heavy vehicles run on polluted or rather suspect quality of diesel and coupled with poor maintenance is one of the main reason for increase in air pollution. Whereas, the private cars are maintained properly and thus using the same yard stick for all the categories of diesel vehicles is a mypoic view of policy making.
• Nobody can stop a Delhi resident from buying and registering the car outside Delhi and bring it to Delhi

Stringent norms and tougher implementation are the requirement of the day and not a ban.

Counter View:

• Diesel is one of the most highly subsidised fuel next to LPG, and all those subsidies can be put into better use than using it to polluting the city.
• Let diesel be only as fuel for tractors and other agriculture machineries/equipments, rather as fuel for high-end private cars

BJPs Timing

On the eve of 1st Phase of Gujarat Polls, BJP announced Mr. L.K.Advani as its Prime Ministerial candidate for the forthcoming National Elections.

One cannot but help wonder about the timing of the announcement.

- It could be a signal that BJP wanted to give to the people of Gujarat, considering that it might create any last minute vote-swing in its favor.

Or,

- Is it a message to Narendra Modi & Co, that whatever happens in Gujarat Election, his claim in National Politics is still far away!

Otherwise, why was a person with dwindling support from RSS after his remarks on Jinnah was given a chance to claim the throne???

Salute Dada

I was one of them who had also thought that the days of Bengal Tiger in Internation Cricket is over. But after his performance in the last 6 months, he deserves an apology....

I take a bow and Salute Dada, wishing him a great days ahead.

Chinese Premier Breaks all Walls...

"Only an open and inclusive nation can become strong and prosperous, while a nation that shuts its door to the world is bound to fall behind."

"China's opening up policy is a long-term one. Opening up has brought great benefits to more than one billion Chinese. It is the right policy for China and has the support of the people, and it will therefore not change. To deviate from this policy will only impede China's development and we will lose popular support. This is the fundamental reason why China will stay on the track of opening up."

These were part of the speech that Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao expounded on china's open door policy in a speech during a gala dinner held in honor of him by Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry in Singapore.

What was more interesting about this speech was, the Premier admitting the days of bamboo curtain and subsequent regressive years, before a foreign audience!!

Focus Energy

Not less than a week ago, after i had commented on $100 plus Oil Prices and the change in market dynamics, on Dec 7th, US government has amended Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) regulations, which was first enacted in 1975 to improve the average fuel economy of cars and light trucks.

As i had mentioned, the bill seeks to improve the operational efficiency of the current fuel usage and also has lots of provisions to increase renewable fuels. Other countries should also take a cue and enact similar Energy policies with distinctive national requirements.

Some of the highlights of the Energy Bill are:

- Provisions to accelerate the electrification of transportation

- 40% increase in fuel economy requirement by 2020

- Increase the renewable fuel standard to 36 billion gallons per year by 2022

- elimination of about $13 billion in tax subsidies for big energy companies

Resource: H.R.6: Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (Engrossed Amendment as Agreed to by House)

Will have to wait and watch as to how the automobile manufacturer's and green house lobby react to the bill.

Ticket Booking Experience in Hyderabad

Getting bored over the weekends, with nothing do to, decided to watch some movie just to while away...Watched the trailer of Khoya Khoya Chand and felt it would be a decent watch.

Watched Khoya Khoya Chand at Sensations - Insomnia, Hyderabad. The movie was tasteless but what was interesting was the ticket booking experience at Sensations.

While standing at the counter to book tickets, i was asked to bend a little. I was wondering why? Then he flashed a camera and took my photo and the electronically generated tickets had my photograph and a barcode imprinted on it. It took me a few seconds to realise what was happening.

My surprise did not end here...

At the Screen entrance, there was a person sitting with a Computer and a Barcode reader. On flashing our tickets, the tickets were read using barcoding machine, photograph was verified with the person carrying the tickets and then marked Confirmed in the system. Automatically, those seats were marked red in the seating chart on the screen. Phew!!! It was too much...

Even Prasads and PVRs, some of the most popular Cineplexes in Hyderabad do not have such process in place for ticket booking. This was truly amazing.

With such a ticket booking system in place, the Thetre ensures the following:

1) Prevent Black Market tickets

2) Security and Safety for movie goers

3) No need to safegaurd the ticket counterfoils, for you dont know who will come and claim our seats!

4) Thus ensuring the correctness in ticket booking, thus making the movie watching hassle free

Next attraction in these theatres were the cost of tickets. For Rs. 60, we got balcony seats which was quite unusual for a person like me coming from Chennai where we are forced to shell out a minimum of 100 bucks to get a decent seat in the hall. Also the facilities were decent.

Overall, it is a good concept worth emulating across all Cinema Halls in the Country.

Khoya Khoya Chand

Set in the '60s film industry, Khoya Khoya Chand is a story of a leading actress Nikhat (Soha Ali Khan), superstar Prem (Rajat Kappor) and a struggling director Zaffer (Shiney Ahuja). Do i need to elaborate on the story anymore? A perfect traingle plot, that stresses more on castings, costumes, sets and their like than storytelling.

Plot, where friends become foes and foes become friends without a problem. The film potrays the not-so-perfect relationships, not-so-popular bollywood theme. Though at some point, it was become more tough to digest the kind of romance potrayed. I wonder whats so special about selecting the '60s as background for the movie.....when the theme had all the relevance to the current crop of bollywood movies.

If Sudhir Mishra has attempted to engross the audience with an emotional romantic movie set in a Bollywood backgroud, then i must say he has failed miserably.

After leaving the movie hall, you dont want to remember anything about the movie...except the hummable titile song.

After all this, if i had to tell the truth, the movie was unwatchable!!!

Life of Pi

I always carry with me at least couple of books whereever i go, whether or not I read them. One such book that has been with me for more than 6 weeks was 'Life of Pi' by Yann Martel and i could mange only 20 pages during that time. My relocation to Bangalore brought salvation for the book.

On reading the following outline...

"The story of Pi, an unusual boy brought up on a zoo in India. Pi's father decides to move the family to Canada, but when the ship taking them across the Pacific sinks Pi finds himself on a lifeboat with a hyena, an orang-utan, a zebra with a broken leg and a Bengal tiger called Richard Parker. Somehow he must survive."

was drawn into it and immediately bought the book without any hesitation.

This was one of the book that shall give you an indication of how strong is human survival instinct during the most adverse times.

The narration is too simple and realistic from the mind of a 16 year old boy. The narration was wrapped with very fine sense of humor, which made it a good reading. Though at somepoint the narration was dragging (not boring!), which made me flip through few pages, still made a good read.

This book had won Booker Prize and defintely not the one to be missed.

Where is Dollar heading...

spine-chilling views from Standard Chartered for Indian Exporters!

Some Positives from Rising Oil Prices...

There is lot of concern on the rise in oil prices, and its impact on global economy. There are plethora of views on Oil Price contribution to slowing down of US juggernaut.

However, i see a change in market dynamics of operation of conventional enery producers coupled with the prominence of green-power sources.

- Higher oil prices can be a good motivator for enterprises to improve their Operational Efficiency

- For years, alternative source source of energy (wind, solar, etc) championed by the people worried about global-warming, has been side-lined until recently because they were too costly to compete. But the soaring oil prices can change the market dynamics.

- These renewable energy can't offer overnight relief to the skyrocketing oil prices, because viable green alternatives are not easy to find. Hydrogen powered cars are not expected to hit the market soon. This will draw the world's attention to the need to diversify energy portfolio and raises people's awareness of the cost of energy and where energy comes from.

Lets understand and operate in an inflationary economy of $100 -plus barrels of oil than worry about its crippling effects on Economy.

After a Long hiatus..

...attempting a new innings....

I keep telling myself that i should start blogging..it has been a real long hiatus. inspite of goading myself to start blogging, i had failed miserably.I hope to post somethin regularly.......keeping fingers crossed