Category: South Asia

SAKHRI NATE, April 24, 2011 (AFP) – In the busy Indian fishing village of Sakhri Nate, it’s obvious what the locals think of the plan to build the world’s biggest nuclear power plant just across the creek. “If the government does nothing, at least 5,000 fishermen and farmers will go to Delhi and protest,” he […]

MUMBAI, April 18, 2011 (AFP) – Indian housewife Sujata Budarapu was shocked when she was told that her two sons were on the verge of developing Type 2 diabetes. “It had never even occurred to me that this could happen. I had heard that outside India this happens to other people’s kids but I never […]

NEW DELHI, April 14, 2011 (AFP) – The attrition rate in India’s business process outsourcing sector jumped to 55 percent from a year earlier, dealing a potentially fatal blow to the flagship industry, a study said on Thursday. India recently lost its crown to the Philippines as the call centre capital of the world. But […]

LONDON, April 14, 2011 (AFP) – Reckitt Benckiser, the Anglo-Dutch household products and drugs group, on Thursday chose senior employee and Indian national Rakesh Kapoor to replace chief executive Bart Becht, who surprisingly retired. Reckitt’s share price slumped more than 7.0 percent in London on the unexpected announcements by the company whose major brands include […]

KATHMANDU, April 10, 2011 (AFP) – By the light of a single candle Shankar Prasad Bhandari strains his eyes as he tries to count out the correct change for a customer in his blacked out shop on the outskirts of Kathmandu. Rolling 14-hour power cuts, triggered by a growing energy crisis, mean that much of […]

NEW DELHI, April 8, 2011 (AFP) – Emerging market giant China has pipped neighbouring rival India in English language proficiency skills, despite the South Asian nation’s strong anglophone tradition, according to a new study. Both countries were given a “low-proficiency” score, with China standing 29th, one place ahead of India in a list of 44 […]

Apr 09, 2011 (LBO) – A dollar peg in the Maldives which is coming under pressure from excess domestic money has hit the airline business and also cut the real wages of expatriate workers, a media report said. Minivan News an online publication said Galaxy Enterprises which is the general sales agent for SriLankan Airlines […]

LONDON, April 7, 2011 (AFP) – Debt-laden Britain said Monday that 2,600 troops would lose their jobs in a first wave of redundancies forced by defence cuts, with 150 Nepalese Gurkha troops among the first to go. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said that 1,000 soldiers and 1,600 Royal Navy personnel would be laid off. […]

HYDERABAD, April 5, 2011 (AFP) – One of India’s best-known spiritual leaders, known for his apparent miracles and long list of influential followers, is on life support in hospital, doctors said Tuesday. Satya Sai Baba, 85, who has devotees in more than 100 countries, was admitted to a hospital funded by his organisation in the […]

NEW DELHI, April 2, 2011 (AFP) – Indian police on Saturday charged a former telecom minister with abuse of power and conspiracy in an alleged mobile spectrum fraud that cost the country billions of dollars in lost revenue. The south Indian politician, A. Raja, was also accused of cheating, forgery and criminal misconduct on a […]

NEW DELHI, April 1, 2011 (AFP) – India has eased regulations governing foreign companies and their Indian joint venture partners as it seeks to halt a decline in direct foreign investment. Foreign companies with an existing joint venture in India will no longer need the local partner’s permission if they want to set up a […]

NEW DELHI, March 27, 2011 (AFP) – Investors have turned bearish on India despite government forecasts of nine percent economic growth, as concerns over widespread corruption and high inflation knock confidence, analysts say. Only a few months ago investors were pouring into Indian equities, seeing the country as a promising high-growth market and talking about […]