Category: Other
‘ll have to learn to drive first
MUMBAI, June 28, 2009 (AFP) – When Ratan Tata, the head of India’s Tata Motors, said the company was planning to build the world’s cheapest car, he could have had in mind Maruti Jaywant Bhandare as his ideal client.The first stop after picking up the car from the dealership will be the nearest temple to […]
Maldives planning US150mn bunker, crude terminal
June 26, 2009 (LBO) – The Indian Ocean archipelago of Maldive Islands is planning a 150 million US dollar crude and bunker facility that can store six million cubic feet of oil, which will be leased to global fuel oil traders, a media report said. The Maldives National Oil Company (MNOC) is considering five possible […]
Indian forces get chilli bombs for crowd control
NEW DELHI, June 26, 2009 (AFP) – Indian soldiers will hurl hand grenades containing red chilli powder to dispel rioters instead of the potentially lethal explosives currently used, an official said Friday.Paramilitary forces have been known to break up protests and conduct counter-insurgency operations using explosives that can cause serious injury and even death. “The […]
Global Tie
June 25, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s financial intelligence unit (FIU), said it had joined the Egmont group, a global association of agencies that combat money laundering and terrorist financing. The 116 member group was established in 1995, Sri Lanka’s FIU which functions under the central bank said. The Egmont Group membership will allow Sri […]
‘s south gets new tea factory
June 23, 2009 (LBO) – A new tea factory has been set up in Sri Lanka’s southern Hambantota district where high-priced low grown teas are cultivated by small farmers, the government information department and the Tea Board said.But Hemaratna said the new one in Hambantota had been approved before the decision and was also outside […]
Sri Lanka Tata tea unit warns of tough wage talks
June 23, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Watawala Plantations, whose profits fell sharply last year, has warned talks on a new wage deal with labour could be tough as most firms in the tea industry face cash flow problems. Sathasivam said that it is only to be expected that wages and input prices will increase […]
Tobacco control reduces Canada heart disease deaths
OTTAWA, June 22, 2009 (AFP) – Heart disease deaths dropped 30 percent in Canada between 1994 and 2004, likely as a result of fierce campaigns against smoking and bad cholesterol, a study said Monday. Researchers noted a rapid decline over 10 years in the number of related deaths from 360.6 to 252.5 per 100,000 people, […]
Dispute Resolution
June 22, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is hosting an international conference on arbitration with the Singapore International Arbitration centre on June 27, the island’s Association of Corporate Lawyers (ACL) said. Held under the theme of ‘Transnational Perspectives on Arbitration’, the conference is targeted at arbitrators, in-house counsel, litigators, legal officers, government officials, banks and […]
UN says two staff members arrested in Sri Lanka
June 20, 2009 (AFP) – The United Nations said on Sunday that two of its employees working among tens of thousands of war-displaced civilians had been arrested by Sri Lankan authorities.The two men, both ethnic Sri Lankan Tamils, were reported missing eight days ago and were subsequently discovered to have been taken into custody by […]
Sri Lankan tea production falters in May
June 19, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s tea production in May dropped 22.7 percent to 25.54 million kilos from a year ago owing to the effects of drought, a Tea Board official said. Tea production in the year to May was down 26.9 percent to 105.5 million kilos but a recovery is expected in the […]
India asks US, China to restart stalled Doha round
WASHINGTON, June 19, 2009 (AFP) – India on Thursday called on the United States, China and other powers to return to talks immediately to frame a world trade accord instead of waiting for recovery from the global economic crisis.“We live in times when the people are anxious.This economic challenge cannot be resolved by waiting and […]
Michelin to invest 1.0 billion euros in India: report
NEW DELHI, June 18, 2009 (AFP) – French tyre giant Michelin, which has announced plans to shed nearly 1,100 jobs in France, may invest more than one billion euros (1.39 billion dollars) over 10 years in a factory in India, an Indian newspaper reported Thursday.The group declined to confirm the amount but recalled that it […]