BRAND KERALA OCTOBER 2011

sOUTHiNDIANbANK gRAND kERALA sHOPPINGFESTIVAL cOIR-THEFIBREOFLIFE

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Global Malayalee - Rich list

BrandKerala

July 2011

Brand Professional Dr. Ashley Thomas Jacob

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BrandKerala

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BrandKerala

October 2011

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BrandKerala

October 2011

Vol 1

No.9

October 2011

Pages 60+2

Editor’s Note

“A good start is half done’

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vision with bountiful ideas, progress with good start, home work with consistent followup, good team work with honest effort… making Kerala a Mega Brand . So far most of the things are in order while first 150 days were over for the new Government of Kerala. At First, the Captain along with his teams members announced 107 problems, issues and concerns about Kerala, to solve within first 100 days in power…After evaluation of 100 days work, the progress report says 101 problems were solved or half done. At least the journey started with good note. At the same time controversies, allegations, strikes, harthals are more than enough to solve.

Keralaites are always on the same path. We never allow our fellow human beings or friends to do well.

We prefer criticism rather than encouragement and appreciation. We never consider the importance of project planning and management. If all our efforts to defeat the competitors in vein; then we will try to imitate the winner’s strategy. At last the credits and merits of the projects and our efforts of the projects, goes to a stranger who walks along the side. Here we find the importance of Project Management.

The delays in project management are common phenomena in our daily life these days. It varies from personal to professional. We have so many projects lagged to implement in both private and public sectors .Yesterday the strength and power was defined by natural resources, instead of that today it is defined by the knowledge and communication. Can we disseminate the knowledge which we required in this era of Communication and information revolution for the development of society and our personal goals?

Project management plays a big role in success of every person, which causes nation building. The main reason for the delay of projects is our oral culture. We are not ready to document our success and failure.

If we want to succeed we should have to change these type of attitudes in our personal and professional life.

Since we are not ready to comment the people if they have not done the job well, they don’t have a culture to accept criticism in a constructive level. We are not disciplined and normally use our power and strength to break the rules .Without acquiring project management qualities, one person, one family, one enterprise or one nation can’t succeed. Hope we can adopt such qualities to make our life better. More transparency in the governance, Commitment and attitude beyond religious and political affiliations should be the need of the hour.

Ravisankar K.V. Editor

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Content Cover Story

Heart 2 Heart; Faizal Khan& NIMS

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32 Dr. Ashley

“Service quality, time& cost; important constraints for Medical Tourism”, Destination Santhigiri, a green brand

Jacob Oommen

Traditional Sector

on the Drive

A boon for Kerala’s Coir Industry

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Women Power Organically INDOCERT 6

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Technology

Overseas News The NRI Whales of Kerala

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‘net4sys’ Boogie Boards

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The Feminine Smart Phone

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The Feminine Smart Phone

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Western Union Plans Increasing Outlets

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Managing Editor: Ravisankar K.V. Executive Editor: Rajani A. Associate Editor: Gopalakrishnan Pallath Assistant Editor: Shilo K.Dev

News

Photo Editor: Hari P.S.

Development Intends Social Security

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Coir – the fibre of life

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Kovalam Literary Festival

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Marketing Coordinator: Rasika Varma

Nasscom Office In Trivandrum Inaugurated

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Production Executive: Vishnu C.P.

Kerala Strikers All Set To Strike

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Grand Kerala Shopping Festival

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South Indian Bank title sponsors for GKSF Season 5

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Kolkata: Jayasree Singh Mob: +91-9433060333

Domestic Rubber Production on the rise

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Chennai: Ravikumar.K. Mob: +91- 9847560531

A profitable Onam for Kerala handlooms

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Kerala’s new housing policy “Shelter to all”

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The Bamboo Festival

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M-Disc for “forever”

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“Most expensive” Petrol in India

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Leaving Greener Impressions…

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Narayanan Unni “Brands” Navara

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Automobile New Fluidic Verna to the Indian Cricket team

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Nissan Launches a Mid-Size Sedan

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Hyundai’s “Paint and Win”

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Hyundai Eon to bowl over the small car sector

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Back to Nature Domestic Rubber Production on the rise

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Chief Layout Artist: Viajayagopalan G. Visualiser: Jessy George

Business & Editorial Contacts: New Delhi: Anilkumar.D Mob: +91-9868123311 Mumbai: Satyanath.K.V Mob: +91- 9833677962 Bangaluru: Damodaran.K. Nayar Mob: +91 – 9035616040 Hyderabad: Premraj.A Mob: +91- 9446514732 Pondicherry: Ramasubramanian Mob: +91- 98949 77161 Coimbathore: Biju Thomas : Mob: +91- 9944194037 Trivandrum: Sreejesh.S Mob: +91- 99471 60531 Cochin: Ravi Varma.R Mob: +91-99472 60531 Karthika Raj Mob: +91- 9947260539

Editorial Contact: editor@brandkerala.biz Advertisment Enquiries: advt@brandkerala.biz Circulation & Subscription Details: info@brandkerala.biz

Editorial & Corporate Office: Brand Kerala Anandam, P-99, Pattanikkunnu Lane, Sasthamangalam (P.O.), Trivandrum - 695 010. Kerala, India Tel: +91 471 2315256 Fax: +91 471 2315197 E-mail: info@brandkerala.biz editor@brandkerala.biz

Internet edition: www.brandkerala.biz

Leisure Travel Duke’s Forest Lodge A soothing locale of lush foliage 50

Column Inflation Poverty and Food Security

Sub Editors: Ambili K., Geethu Rajagopal

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RNI Reg. No. KERENG 2010/36920 ISSN 2249244-5

No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the written permission of The Publisher of Brand Kerala All rights reserved. Copyright © 2011 Owned, Edited, Printed and Published by K.V. Ravisankar at Sujilee Colour Printers, Chathannur, Kollam for Arsha Offset Graphix, Thiruvananthapuram - 695 010.

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erala is now set for a major makeover exercise to position itself as an attractive investment destination. The Government has decided to brand it as ‘Emerging Kerala’ to make Kerala the ‘Investors’ Own Destination’. The main objective of this campaign is to position Kerala as an investor friendly destination and to transform the State into a major business hub. As part of this, the Government has announced to conduct a biennial Mega Investor Meet in the State,” named as Emerging Kerala”. The first such event, ‘Emerging Kerala 2012’ will be held from April 19 - 20, 2012 at Kochi. The logo for the event was launched by Mr.Oommen Chandy, Chief Minister of Kerala in Thiruvananthapuram.

Mr. P. K. Kunhalikutty , Minister for Industries, IT & Urban Affairs, said “Emerging Kerala 2012 would not be restricted to signing MoUs. Projects that will bring investments to the State are in the pipeline.

The government plans for a business development framework which enables Kerala to emerge as an attractive investment destination”. A High Power Committee headed by the Chief Minister, with the Industries Minister as Vice-Chairman, the council of Ministers and Secretaries reviewed the progress of the campaign. Project Committees headed by Ministers are also being formed for finalizing policies and projects, identifying priority areas, preparing project profiles, initiating discussions with prospective entrepreneurs with respect to each Department. Follow ups and implementation of the projects will be responsibility of these Project Committees as part of ‘Emerging Kerala’. Twenty six sectors including IT / ITeS & BT have been identified for showcasing in the Investor Meet. New projects in these sectors will be presented before prospective investors in the meetings scheduled to be held from November to January, in India and abroad.

The UDF Government is all set for a social security based development in the State. The Government has 8

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brought the draft Industrial-IT policy aims the economic development taking full confidence of the youth and their strength and value towards employment and investment. The Govt. has moved in a fast track in the limited time and given importance to the New Generation enterprises. The money gained will be utilized for the socially marginalized as well as backward people and thus fulfills the dream, “Welfare State”, inspired by the actual ‘Chinese Model Development’.

Kerala, lacks proper planning especially in the urban and rural areas. The efforts will be made to find out appropriate investors according to the geographical features of the cities and outskirts. Master plans of cities will be developed and invites the investors in accordance with industrial, marketing as well as the identified business zones. Prominence will be given to the Environmental conservation than the investment or development. The govt. will decide the types of investments possible in an area and take the people in confidence prior to the finalization.

Interested investors can implement the scheme and it will make easier and faster through the single window facility and the projects will deliver maximum benefit towards the development of the State especially for the youth and the unemployed.

The Master plans of all the districts will be prepared and that would facilitate the opportunities for decentralized development. Completely independent zones for the educational, industrial, health and housing sectors will be identified in the Municipalities and Corporations. The landscapes of the rural areas will not be disturbed for development purpose and all efforts will be made to continue the status-quo to ensure the sustainability of these areas.

While invite industrial developments in the urban areas, due consideration will be given to set apart land for primary purposes. The protection and conservation of urban water sources will be ensured while drawing any plan for industrial development in the cities. Maximum benefit through op-

portunities and profit with less space is the buzzword of the New Generation Business. Such drive would support the social security programmes of the State, which otherwise found scarcity of fund. The “Emerging Kerala 2012” Meet for the investors scheduled for next April, and will provide necessary clarifications on type of investment opportunities and availability of infrastructures.

Through the 100 days special drive programme, the Government prepared a draft Industrial-IT policy and the same is under consultations and discussions with different stakeholders to finalize. Such consultations would help in evolving an appropriate Industrial-IT policy for the State keeping all its peculiarities and features. The IT sector will be one of the major stakes for the development of the State and concrete efforts are on to bring investors in the three major IT projects such as Technopark, Infopark and Cyberpark. Prospective investors have already shown their interest in IT sector investment.

The infrastructure development for Smart City Project will be initiated soon and decided to strengthen the Kerala State IT Infrastructure Ltd, that would facilitate and speed up the development of existing IT parks and establishment of new ones in different parts of the State.

All efforts will be made to bring e-governance in the forefront and make the State as one of the front runner.

Maximum thrust will be given for utilizing Open Software for e-governance and allied development. In order to strengthen the performance of public sector undertakings, evaluations on the basis of daily, weekly and monthly will be conducted. Joint ventures will be made possible between Infrastructure Kerala Private Limited (INKEL) and Public Sector Industries of Central Government. The Government seeks the support and cooperation of the society to ensure social security based development in the State through modernization and transformation in all the sectors.

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he construction work of The project and sales office of the SmartCity project had already started.The company’s application seeking SEZ status The Smart City Project finally gains the Special Economic Zone Approval from the board of approval (BoA) of the Union Commerce Ministry for a 114 acre site. Of the 246 acres of the project site, 132 acres were notified as SEZ in March this year.

A committee headed by Mr.Oommenchandy ,Chief Minister will supervise the implementation of the project.

The agreement signed by the previous government would not be altered. The mega project, coming up on 250 acres of land in Kochi, is expected to provide close to 100,000 jobs.

Mr. Oommen Chandy, Chief Minister of Kerala, Mr. Fareed Abdul Rahman, CEO, Smart City and Mr. P.K. Kuhalikutty, Minister for Industries, Kerala inaugurating the ground breaking ceremony of Smart City project at Cochin in the presence of Mr. K. Babu, Minister for Excise and Ports, Kerala, Mr. Benny Behnan MLA and Mr. M.A Yusuf Ali, Chairman, Emkey Group 9

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like coir hrough Making enviable pith, achievements in marPVC ket promotion, export, tufted domestic market developmats, etc, ment, research and develhave shown remarkable growth”. opment, capacity building, etc DURING With a view to protect the interests of THE PAST 2 ½ YEARS (2008-2011) the handloom sector of the coir industry, Mr. V.S.VIJAYARAGHAVAN AS the Board has taken adequate measures CHAIRMAN, COIR BOARD was a real to restore the export incentives being success. provided to the handloom sector. It was The Coir Board has been endeavorMr. V. S. Vijayaraghavan possible to reinstate the export incening to enhance the export of coir and tives like VKGUY, Special Focus Product coir products, to reach greater heights Scheme, Duty Drawback, etc. with increased provision and to achieve targets set by the Government of India. and retrospective effect. “I hope, the export of hand Mr.Vijayaraghavan made every opportunity to generate loom products will pick up in the future and I am very awareness on the coir and coir products so as to enable happy to say that we were able to get duty drawback the board to tap the potential domestic market. In the benefits extended to PVC tufted mats also recently”, Said financial year 2010-11, the Coir Board achieved an Mr. Vijayaraghavan. export turnover of `806.93 crores as against the target During the past two years the industry has been facing of `800 crores. The increase in exports during the past a lot of difficulties such as scarcity of coir fiber/coir yarn three years works out to 36%. The achievement has been and also non availability of adequate labour in the manumade possible even in the period of economic recession experienced in the U.S.A and Europe which are the major facturing sector of the industry. Due to this the exporters were unable to meet their export commitments fully. The markets for coir. Mr.Vijayaraghavan said “I feel unhappy to observe that the traditional sector has been recording a Coir Board found a solution for the perennial problem with the help of the State Governments of Tamil Nadu, decline in the exports while the non-traditional products

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Karnataka, and Kerala. Through the initiatives like, explored the possibility of bringing fibre from the untapped sources to mitigate the fibre scarcity, developed a mobile fibre extraction machine to enhance the availability of fibre locally, made earnest attempt to modernize spinning sector with development of multi spindle versatile spinning machine the board addressed many problems.

Mr.V.S Vijayaraghavan thankfully noted that the crisis management measures undertaken by him with the support of the staff members and industry leaders have been helpful for redressing the problems to a great extent.

In the domestic market sector, the Board was able to make remarkable achievements in the sales of coir and coir products through the Coir Board Showrooms & Sales Depots. While the Board achieved an all-time high record of `14.06 crores sales through the Coir Board Showrooms & Sales Depots during the year 2009-10, the achievement during the year 2010-11 amounted to `13.4 crores.

It is pertinent to point out that the Jammu Showroom of the Coir Board achieved a sales of `3 crores during the year 2010-11 which is an all-time high record as far as a single sales outlet of the Board is concerned.

The rate contract system signed between the D.G.S & D and Coir Board is another feather on the cap. Under this agreement, the Coir Board is entitled to supply coir products to the Central Government departments and Public Sector Undertakings including defence establishments, without any tendering process. Even though the sales under this arrangement during the first year was only to the tune of about `40 lakhs, it is expected to pick up in the coming years The board have ambitious plans which includes generating publicity by engaging a Brand Ambassador for coir.

“Short-listing of celebrities is in progress so that we may be able to finalize the celebrity during the tenure of the present Board itself. We have also kick started the process for introducing e-marketing of coir products within the country so that the customers can order coir products

by visiting the website of Coir Board without taking any travel to the Board’s showrooms. The goods ordered will be delivered to the households of the customers. Branding of coir for the domestic market either as a geographical indication brand or product specific brand is also in progress. Aggressive publicity through newspapers, radio, and TV has been pursued by adopting the following tag lines Coir – the fibre of life. Use Coir, Go Green” As a part of awareness programme the board celebrated the World Environment Day by organizing environment run for coir during 2010 and by massive publicity through the print and electronic media and organizing a seminar on coir geotextiles, coir pith and forest conservation during 2011. A mobile phone film competition on the theme “coir nature’s best friend” has also been launched during the current year. In this context, a survey on the domestic market potential of coir and coir products conducted by one of the agencies recently by focusing all the metros in India revealed that the awareness level on coir and coir products among the younger generation of the country is far low this warrants immediate action.

Therefore, the Board was trying hard to popularize these products by tufting up attractive displays in the locations of interests for the younger generation. Display and sales of coir products were organized in five selected malls in Delhi on the eve of the Commonwealth Games during the month of October 2010 in Delhi.

The Government of India had launched an ambitious project named ‘Rejuvenation, Modernization and Technological Upgradation in Coir Industry’, fondly called REMOT scheme. Under this, 40% subsidy is provided for establishment of tiny units and spinning units. While tiny units will get a maximum subsidy of `2 lakhs for a project with overall outlay of ` 5 lakhs, the spinning units will get a maximum subsidy of `80,000/- for a project worth ` 2 lakhs. 55% of the outlay will be provided through bank finance and the beneficiaries need to raise only 5% from their side. As a result of the earnest efforts 11

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by the chairman to implement the project vigorously in the coir sector the board established about 3000 units in the major coir producing centers with an outlay of above `50 crores.

As part of re-generation of traditional industries, the Government of India is implementing a scheme named ‘Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries’ (SFURTI) and 26 clusters have been assisted under this scheme in the coir sector. With consistent monitoring and follow-up, it was possible to make 11 clusters functional so far and the remaining clusters are nearing completion.

The achievements made by the Coir Board particularly by its research institutes at Kalavoor and Bangalore were remarkable during the past 3 years. The development of mobile fibre extraction machine within a short span of 6 months is a technological breakthrough in the coir sector.

It was a right medicine for the ailing industry at the most appropriate time. The industry was facing acute shortage of coir fibre and there has been increased demand for coir fibre from China. The industry was clamouring for the mobile defibering machine which was expected to enhance the utilization of coconut husk within the State. Now the Govt. of Kerala has taken up the popularization of the machine in the industry by introducing necessary subsidy scheme.

The present Board can be proud of on the recent development of multi spindle versatile spinning machined by the Central Coir Research Institute, which is put to intensive spinning trials. This was also a long cherished dream of the traditional industry.

Coir geo-textiles is one of the futuristic products and the CCRI has been endeavouring to extend the use of coir geo-textiles to areas other than soil erosion control.

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As a result, the CCRI has been successful in getting the approval of the Indian Road Congress for use of coir geo-textiles in rural road construction. Now the National Rural Development Agency has taken up the project for using coir geo-textiles in construction of 50 kms. of roads each in 9 States. Mr.Vijayaraghavan is sure that it will open up a new market for coir geo-textiles and pave way for enhanced utilization of coconut husk.

In order to avoid accidents due to overrun of aircrafts particularly in table top airports, a project is to be commenced shortly at Calicut Airport by Coir Board in association with National Institute of Technology and the National Airports Authority of India. Under the project, studies will be undertaken on application of coir pith blocks adjacent to runways to pre-empt accidents such as the one occurred recently at Mangalore.

As the Chairman, Coir Board his top priority was to put the house in order and as part of this he introduced the biometric punching system in the Coir Board establishments to ensure punctuality in attendance of staff members. This has improved the efficiency of the office in general and the punctuality in attendance in particular. All the vacant posts were filled up in a time bound manner which has installed a sense of happiness and commitment among the staff members.

Mr. Vijayaraghavan maintains a good relation with the State Governments concerned especially the Kerala Government. “I feel that I have been able to drive the organization in the right direction after taking the industry leaders into confidence. People from all fields cutting across the political lines have been supporting me in my endeavours.”he added.

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he fourth annual Kovalam literary fest got off to a very distinguished start at the Kanakakunnu Palace, Thiruvananthapuram and eventually inaugurated by Ms.Fatima Bhutto, the author of Songs of Blood and Sword. She also delivered the 6th annual K C John memorial lecture.

Ms.Bhutto, in her inaugural speech, said that both India and Pakistan have a common heritage and nothing can separate that rich legacy. India and Pakistan shared a rich cultural background and the unified strength of the two countries could win the world, she added. Mr. Paul Zachariah, noted writer and Mr.Binoo K John, director of the Kovalam Literary festival, were also presented.

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he ambitious ‘Jaivasree Festival 2011’ under the aegis of Janasree Sustainable Development Mission, in association with various government organizations and NGO’s, was held at Thiruvananthapuram, to supplement the attempts of the state for total organic cultivation within a short period. With the theme of `Safe and Toxin-Free Food and Consumer Rights in Kerala’, the five-day event was kicked off with a national seminar and an exhibition on `Safe Food Save Life’.

The Inaugural ceremony followed by a detailed discussion on Mr.Binoo K John’s book Last Song of Savio De Souza with Mr. Suresh Menon, journalist and writer.Mr. Aswhin Sangi spoke about his work Chanakya’s Chant and shared his experiences with the audience. Mr.Shehan Karunathilake, Sri Lankan writer spoke about his book Chinaman which is based on cricket.

The emerging writer of the year award was bagged by Mr. Rakesh Nath for his book “poojyam + poojyam = big bang” (0 + 0 = big bang).

Mr. M. M. Hassan, Chairman of the mission said that over one lakh visitors were estimated to have visited the festival venue over the five days. “The farmers should be encouraged to return to traditional farming methods. Food should be produced by organic methods, and the usage of chemical fertilizers in farming should be eliminated completely. The fest aimed at bringing the availability of organic food products to every corner of the state,” he added.

With a focus on spreading the importance of organic food products, the fest typified a seminar by reputed experts from the agricultural sector on a national level. There was an exhibition in which more than 250 organizations and societies, working for spreading the merits of organic farming, made their presence felt by putting on display a wide array of food products and other materials made out through the organic method. The highlight was a food festival in which traditional food items prepared using organic food products would be served to the public.

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NASSCOM setting up office in Kerala is an indication that the State is emerging as an important IT Destination in India – says CEOs of Technopark and Infopark

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rivandrum, September 30, 2011 – CEOs of Technopark and Infopark welcoming The National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom), to Kerala said that the arrival of Software Industry’s apex body is an indication that Kerala has become an important IT destination that the country is looking at. Nasscom, the premier association of the IT-BPO industries in India, has opened its office in Trivandrum, Technopark. The branch office at the Park Centre in Technopark was formally inaugurated by Mr. Rajendra Singh Pawar, Chairman of NIIT Technologies and Chairman, NASSCOM in the presence of Executive Council Members.

The National Association of Software and Services

Companies (Nasscom) currently have offices in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune.

Mr. Rajendra Pawar mentioned that the facilities provided in Technopark are excellent and the TECHNOPARK will definitely continue to be a breeding ground for IT/ITeS Companies. He also said that the new branch office of NASSCOM will provide the necessary impetuous for the growth of IT/ITeS industry in the State. Mr. Som Mittal, President NASSCOM speaking during inauguration said that Kerala is one of the most ideally suited States for IT/BPO Industry and setting up a branch office in Technopark, Trivandrum signifies the importance NASSCOM has attached to Kerala.

Mr. Mervin Alexander, CEO, Technopark said. “De-

NASSCOM Team at Technopark 14

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Technopark CEO, Mr. Mervin Alexander and NASSCOM President Mr. Som Mittal exchanging agreements on NASSCOM taking up office space in Technopark. Also seen in the pic, NASSCOM Chairman Mr. Rajendran S Pawar (Sitting) and Technopark Sr. Business Manager Mr. M. Vasudevan

cision of NASSCOM to set up office in Kerala is recognition of Kerala and particularly the IT sector as an emerging destination. With its office here, NASSCOM will be able to cater to the needs of the IT/ITeS companies in Kerala which will be a great boost for the companies operating from Kerala. We look forward to some strategic initiatives to be worked out in association with NASSCOM that will help Kerala in its endeavor to become a leading IT destination in the country.”

He also said that the high literacy rate, excellent connectivity, lack of urban rural differentiation was also supporting the state as a favorable IT destination.

Welcoming NASSCOM to Kerala, Infopark CEO, Mr. Gigo Joseph said, “Local presence of NASSCOM in Kerala is an indication of how serious they are about Kerala. It is time that we should use this opportunity to the best to promote our State, its facilities and the innovative companies of Kerala to a global audience.”

Highlighting on Kerala’s advantages, Mr. Gigo Joseph said that Kerala is the only state in India having three international airports and one more is coming up in Kannur that will be closer to the IT parks coming in Kasargode and Kannur. Educational institutions like IIM Kozhikode, CUSAT and the proposed IIT and other management

institutions are also a big advantage for talent pool.

The other NASSCOM Executive Council members present are: Mr. Krishnakumar Natarajan - CEO & MD, Mindtree, Mr. Avinash Vashistha – CMD, Accenture India, Mr. Ashank Desai - Founder & Non-Executive Director, Mastek, Mr. Ganesh Natarajan - VC & CEO, Zensar Technologies, Mr. Rajan Anandan - VP, Google India. Ms. Roopa Kudva - MD & CEO, CRISIL. Mr. BVR Mohan Reddy - CMD, Infotek Enterprises. Mr. C.P Gurnani - CEO, Satyam Computers. Mr. Ganesh Lakshminarayanan - President, Dell India, Prof. Pankaj Chandra – Director, IIM Bangalore. Mr. Aparup Sengupta - MD & CEO, Aegis, Mr. Harish Mehta - CMD, Onward Technologies, Mr. Saurabh Srivastava – Chairman, CA India, Mr. Rajesh Nambiar – GM, IBM India, Mr. Sharad Sharma - Chairman, Movico Technologies, Mr. Bhaskar Pramanik - Chairman, Microsoft India, Mr. V.K Mathews - Chairman, IBS Group, Mr. Som Mittal - President, NASSCOM, Mr. Anupam Khanna - Chief Economist & DG, NASSCOM, and other officials from NASSCOM - Ms. Sangeeta Gupta, Senior Vice President, Mr K.S. Vishwanathan NASSCOM, Mr Purushothaman, Regional Director, NASSCOM, Chennai.

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Mr. Mammootty, Cine Artist releasing the Team Jersy by handing over to Mr. Indrajith, Vice Captain of Kerala Team 16

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erala Strikers and the Celebrity Cricket League are making a lot of news these days. Though the Kochi Tuskers IPL franchise have been terminated the Kerala cricket buffs can now await the entry of the T20 team Kerala Strikers in the Celebrity Cricket League. CCL is a collection of icons of Indian film industry joining their hands together at regional levels forming separate franchisees. And the ‘Kerala Strikers’ seems to have pulled up their socks and all ready to strike at the second edition of Celebrity Cricket League, that is to be held from January 21 to February 12, 2012.

Captained by South Indian Superstar Mohanlal, who is also a co-owner of the team along with Mrs. Lissy Priyadarshan and Mr. Shaji, the other team members are Indrajith Sukumaran who is the vice-captain, Kunchako Boban, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Asif Ali, Bala, Munna, Vinu Mohan, Saiju Pilla, Bineesh Kodiyeri, Manikuttan, Unni Mukundan, Rajiv Pillai, Vivek Gopan, Riaz

Ahmed, Prejoth Kalabhavan, Renjith Menon and Nivin Pauly.

Mega Star Mammootty launched the Jersey of Kerala Striker’s at a star studded mega gala in Kochi. Being the mentor of Kerala Strikers, he will be a non playing member too. Chennai based MLS Striker’s are the owners of the team and Mr. Pankaj Chandrasenan all set to groom all the players and teach them new tricks in the game as their coach. Ms. Bhavana and Ms. Lakshmi Rai, the two leading actresses in the South Indian film industry are the brand ambassadors of the Kerala Strikers.

The first match of the second edition of CCL will take place on January 21 when they will take on Telugu Warriors in Hyderabad. The tournament will then shift base to Sharjah where they will take on Mumbai Heroes on January 26 and followed by Karnataka Bulldozers the next day. On January 29, Kerala will take on Bengal Tigers at Kochi and on February 4, they will play Chennai Rhinos and the final will take place in Kolkata.

Team Members with Mr. D. Chandrasenan Nair, Coach 17

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he\ Grand Kerala Shopping Festival (GKSF) - the signature shopping festival of Kerala would soon unveil for the fifth time in Kerala. A Government of Kerala initiative, GKSF, conducted by the Department of Tourism in association with the departments of Industries & Commerce, Finance and Local Self Government, the festival has transforms Kerala into a hub for international shopping experience.

While preciding over the high power committee meeting of the GKSF Kerala, Mr. Oommen Chandy, Chief Minister of Kerala said”The Grand Kerala Shopping Festival will give thrust to the industries and tourism sectors.

The convergence of industries and tourism departments make possible GKSF, a grand success.” Mr. Oommen Chandy inaugurated official website of GKSF fifth season and GKSF’s mobile tourism portal was inaugurated by Mr. A. P. Anilkumar,the State Tourism Minister.

Mr. P. K. Kunhalikutty The Minister for Industries said “Industries department will lead the festival including registration process and try to make the festival, an extraordinary and a special experience.”

According to Mr.Anilkumar the tourism department will set up for the GKSF and will try to make the event more colourful inorder to attract the domestic as well as foreign participants.

GKSF High power committee planned more innovative programmes and new schemes such as vat refund, online shopping and co-opt-advertisement to make the event more colourful. In addition to Chief Minister, Industries and Tourism Ministers, Mr. T. Balakrishnan, Addl. Chief secretary, Department for Industiries and Mr. Rathan Kelkar, Director, GKSF fifth Season also participated in the meeting. Mr. Rathan Kelkar presented the approach plan for the GKSF-fifth season.

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outh Indian Bank would be the title sponsors for the Fifth edition of the Grand Kerala Shopping Festival (GKSF). Mr. Rattan Khelkar,IAS Director of Grand Kerala Shopping Festival said that discussions are on the final stage to find out cosponsors for the annual trade and commerce jamboree, from Dec 01, 2011 to January 15, 2012. “The South Indian Bank was strengthening its status as ‘Malayalis own’ under the title of sponsor”, he added.

Dr .V. A. Joseph, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of South Indian Bank, Kerala’s premier Bank said, “The title sponsorship of a mega event organized by Government of Kerala in association with all the stake holders from business, industry and commerce of our state and the event is attracting global attention for setting a new direction to trade and commerce in the State is a matter of pride for South Indian Bank”.

While speaking to the media Mr. Abraham Tharian, Executive Director ,SIB said “The bank viewed its selection as an opportunity to support the development and progress of the State.”

The shopping extravaganza - Grand Kerala Shopping Festival, is a Government of Kerala initiative and is all poised to turn Kerala into a big shopping mall. The event has been conceived and organized to give a big leap for the trade and commerce in Kerala. The participation in the festival is open to all retail / wholesale / manufacturing / hospitality establishments etc. in Kerala. Each participant will be listed as Member Establishment (ME). Each participant has to register with GKSF and registration can be made through all the branches of South Indian Bank in Kerala. Registration is done in 3 categories – Gold: Rs 25,000/-, Silver: Rs 5,000/- and General: Rs 1000/-. Payment can be made by Demand drafts / cheques or by direct credit to the GKSF A/c (Director, Grand Kerala Shopping Festival - A/c No. 0119073000002034) through the branches of South Indian Banks in Kerala.

Dr . V. A. Joseph CEO & MD, South Indian Bank

Mr. Abraham Tharian Executive Director, South Indian Bank 19

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Cover Story

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r. M.S. Faizal Khan, MD, NI Institute of Medical Sciences, Neyyattinkara, Thiruvananthapuram shares his mission ‘NIMS’ spreads fragrance with its strong presence in the health as well as the education field. NIMS Medicity is an unavoidable presence in the health service activities focusing on social welfare. Mr. M. S. Faizal Khan, the Managing Director of NIMS Hospital and Pro-chancellor of Noorul Islam University, is behind the present Medicity approaches and activities. But in his own way of simplicity, he smiles and adds” doing everything in accordance with my father’s vision, I am doing only the administration of NIMS Medicity.” Dr. A.P. Majeed Khan, the founder of Noorul Islam Educational Trust,

Mr. M. S. Faizal Khan Managing Director NIMS Hospital 20

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now concentrates on Educational institutions and University leaving Medicity’s administration on Mr. Faizal’s shoulder. He shares his experiences and contributions of the Charity Mission towards the Society.

Being the son of Dr. A. P. Majeed Khan and Mrs. Saif Niza, Mr. Faizal Khan completed his Post graduation in Computer Science in 2005 and entered into the activities of NI Trust. “Noorul Islam Institute of Medical Science& Research Foundation (NIMS) started its services during 2006 under the Noorul Islam Educational Trust. It is the first venture of the Trust in the health service sector. I started my services as the Managing Director”,Mr. Faizal recollected. He added, “Medicity is always with the motto of ‘health care to all, irrespective of wealth’ from the very beginning. And we are introducing various projects

Mr. M. S. Faizal Khan, Managing Director, NIMS Hospital with Mr. Mammootty, Cine Artist during the launch of NIMS Heart to Heart Project

uncompromised. Mr. Faizal unfolds his and schemes to those who suffer in the happiness, “heart treatments made more society”. While saying that he is only fulaccessible even to the financially backfilling his father’s vision, he is busy with ward class; the expenses for the cardiac various activities beneficial to the society checkups and surgeries have been reduced especially financially backward class. than government rates.” Heart foundaNIMS is situated at Aralummoodu, tion has done angiograms, angioplasty Neyyattinkara, Thiruvananthapuram, in and open heart surgeries in the short span 24 acres of land, nests 28 specialty departof time so as the second highest rate in ments handled by 140 eminent, efficient Kerala compared to Ernakulam district. and trained doctors. Cardiology, NephMr. Faizal said”the credit of this achieverology, Neurology, Gynecology, pediatric, ment goes to Dr. Madhu Sreedharan ENT, Ophthalmology, Urology, Pain and Mr. A.P. Majeed Khan, Chairman and Dr. Rameswara along with their well Palliative, General Medicine, Orthopetrained team. While 25 to 30 open heart surgeries condic, General Surgery, Keyhole Surgery, Pediatric surgery, ducted monthly, 2 to 3 have been done at free of cost.”

Radiology, Gastroenterology, Diabetology, Neuro surNIMS Services includes NIMS Heart to Heart, gery, Anesthesia, Dermatology, Cardio vascular surgery, NIMS Harithakom, NIMS @ Home, Go Green... No Holistic Medicine, Plastic & Aesthetic Surgery, PsyEndosulfan, Hospital services, Educational services, chiatry, Urology, Peripheral and Endovascular Surgery, Research programs and so on. A special project named Thoracic Surgery, etc includes main departments. Dental College and Nursing College are situated in the Medicity Heart to Heart with the slogan “heart to live and heart to love” is another highlight of NIMS’ social service. premises with good academic results.

Padmasree Mammootty is the brand ambassador of the The Medicity have a separate well equipped cardiproject. With the association with Mammootty Fans ology wing, Heart Foundation headed by Dr. Madhu Association NIMS provides free heart surgeries to those Sreedharan. The heart foundation is rich in ultra modern who are under the poverty line. The first step targeted lifesaving equipments and is intended to save life at any 100 free heart surgeries and the second phase for 250 pahumanly possible condition and quality of treatment is 21

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tients. Under this project various cardiac camps were conducted. NIMS plans 12 new De-Addiction Centers all over Kerala in 12 hospitals with All Kerala Mammootty Fans Association. These centers will be given free counseling and make arrangements for the alcoholic patients.

Mr. Faizal disclosed “we are providing free study materials to 60 schools in the Capital City and adopted two villages in the rural area, Thirupuram and Ooruttambalam. The health and living standards of the people in these villages are monitored. In addition to this, we provide educational accessories and allied facilities to the students from this area and also sponsored higher secondary students. Apart from this, various other projects are conducted in association with Kudumbasree unit, various Govt. agencies, Municipalities, Grama panchayats etc., through which, a lot of people assisted by free checkups and treatments.”

Mr. Faizal revealed “In many cardiac cases it seems that we can save the life if primary angioplasty can be given which costs around 1 lakh rupees. As patients or their relatives cannot afford this, many of them are reluctant to go for a primary angioplasty and the result is always sad.

So we came up with Hridaya Surekhsha Paddhathy to help and support financially backward people. Under this program we are planning to do primary angioplasties to 20 people below poverty line on a 50% discounted rate, supported by Dr.Madhu Sridharan, and for 5 persons selected by Dr. Madhu Sridharan, angioplasty will be

Cath Lab of NIMS Hospital 22

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conducted absolutely free.”

Hridaya Sahaya Paddhathy is meant to help people in cardiac related emergency situations. NIMS and HDFC bank joins hands together to arrange financial support to patients for their heart checkups, heart treatment and heart surgeries, the six months’ interest of which will be paid by NIMS. This is the first initiative of this type in the State. Tie ups are being made with heart care centers in two Municipalities – Varkkala and Kottayam – for providing better facilities and speedy care for the needy.

Mr. Faizal said “we concentrate on HKL- Heart, Kidney and Liver.” A free liver diseases detection camp was organized as part of the hospital acquiring the latest Fibro scan machine, which helps in assessing early liver damage using ultrasound technology, without the need for a painful needle biopsy. Dr. Jayakumar led the camp and about 850 persons attended the medical camp, out of which 67 persons were newly detected to be suffering from liver cirrhosis. These patients were allowed various subsidized treatment benefits by NIMS Liver Institute.

About 350 persons were tested for Hepatitis B and C free of cost at the camp. Those who attended the camp through the registration process were offered liver scan at the subsidized rate of Rs.3, 000. They were also allowed a discount of 20 per cent in the blood tests done for assessing liver damage and ultrasound scans.

‘NIMS’ has conducted 180 camps named as “NIMS Arogyamela” where drugs were distributed freely and

conducted awareness seminars.

Medicity has joined hands with Varkala municipality to conduct a survey to Mr. Faizal Khan receving Times of India Award for Excellence collect data regarding the chronic diseases like cardiac problems, nephro problems, diabetic etc. which now is spreading like epidemic. This is the first initiative of NIMS in adopting municipalities. NIMS joins hands with socio-economic unit foundation to provide water irrigation units in schools, primary health centers, Anganwadis, colonies etc. situated in rural areas. NIMS also take cares a ward in Thiruvananthapuram General Hospital.

NIMS @ Home is the first of its kind in Kerala, designed to give regular periodical checkup for the ailing residents at a nominal cost. This medical help consists of a core team of health professionals and provides 24 hour individualized nursing aids at the door step. NIMS have all international quality equipments and a specialized pay ward – Andreas Gruentzig memorial Block – (AG Block) for treating international patients tie up with various resorts in Kerala so that after treatment they can enjoy the natural beauty of the state which promotes the health tourism.

“Harithakom is a mission to plant and protect 1 lakh fruit trees, in and around Trivandrum in association with Kerala Forest Department.

20, 000 plants have beenalready planted. Natural Farm, with “Zero Budget Natural Farming” in association with Neyyattinkara Municipality in 5 acre land is a footstep in organic farming. The method is adopted from Subash Palekar from Maharashtra, an agricultural reformer”, he added.

“P. Gopinathan Nair Civil Service Programme under Noorul Islam Civil Service Academy with Neyyattinkara Gandhimitra Mandalam is the latest project, aimed at young talented students from 8th to 12th standard to mold them as socially committed bureaucrats. Students from Below Poverty Line with high academic skill will be given training freely. We also sponsored other social and cultural activities like Sathyan Smaraka Award.”

Surviving with wife, Mrs. Fathima Mizaj and daughter Suhra Faizal, Mr. Faizal aspires more in the Social welfare and Charity Services. He adds” My sister, Shabnam and brother in law Dr. Shafeek who settled in U.K. give me full support”. NIMS has been ranked top in cardiac hospital of India and awarded as the best cardiac unit and Times of India’s most growing cardiac centre. Being different from all other charity organizations, NIMS group’s charity has its own trademark and footprint with its vertical presence and the social commitments shown to the public.

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Overseas News

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he Arabian Business.com, the leading business portel in Gulf countries, published the most comprehensive listing of Indian wealth in the GCC. In the Indian Rich List most of them are Malayalees.

Nine Malayalees were included in this Rich List. With five billionaires making into the list, led by Landmark Group’s Micky Jagtiani on $3.2bn. He is followed in second place by Emke Group’s Yussuf Ali in second place on $1.75bn, with a half Malayalee, the NMC boss BR Shetty in third with $1.72bn. At the other end of the scale, propping up the Top 30, is ATA’s Maghanmal Pancholia with $170m. The researchers began assessing the wealth of the Gulf ’s Indian community three months ago, and have looked across the GCC at businesses run

by Indians.As most are private companies, have estimated the value of their assets, taken the shareholdings into account and a projected company value were it to be floated on the stock market.

In Indian Rich List 2011, Kerala-born Mr. Yussuf Ali, Managing Director Emke Group comes the second place on $1.75bn. The group, which is headquartered in Abu Dhabi and has offices in 29 countries, employs around 27,000 people – including 22,000 Indians – and has an annual turnover of $3.75bn. Besides this he was the first expatriate to be elected as a board member of the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce & Industries (ADCCI) in 2005. He became the recipient of the prestigious Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award, the highest Indian government award given to NRIs, in 2005, and was the first NRI in the Gulf to win the Padma Shri award, in 2008. He also works with a number of social and chari24

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table organisations both in India and the Gulf. In 2010, he was appointed as an independent director of Air India.

Mr. PNC Menon, as Chairman of Sobha Group, falls into the 5th place on $1.2bn. PNC Menon migrated to Oman in 1976, and started an interior decorating business with a partner. After spotting an opportunity in real estate in India, he established Sobha Developers in 1995. Today, the firm is one of the largest and only backward integrated real estate players in India. In 2006, Menon listed the company’s shares on the Bombay Stock Exchange, which saw him propelled into the international spotlight and listed on the Forbes Rich List for the first time.The Sobha Academy, which offers training in building and construction, has received a number of awards and its future township projects are set to be designed in association with the Indian Green Building Council. In 2009, Mr. Menon was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Puraskar by the president ofIndia and he has also been named on the Prime Minister’s Advisory Council of Overseas Indians.

The brains behind GEMS Education, Mr. Sunny Varkey, bagged the 6th place on $950m.

GEMS Education is one of the largest private school operators in the world for students from kindergarten to grade 12. Under Mr. Varkey’s leadership the group morphed from a single school, Our Own English High School – which he estab-

lished in Dubai in 1980 – to an operator that oversees the teaching of 100,000 students in 100 schools across eleven countries. In March, the operator announced the opening of its first school in Africa offering 2,000 students a British/IB curriculum. In 1998, the group branched out into providing healthcare management solutions. He is also well known for his philanthropic activities.

This year, Mr. Varkey was also invited to join a UNESCO panel that advocates the rights of women receive an education.

Dr. Mohammed Ali, Galfar Engineering and Contracting Co in Oman, in the 10th place on $725m. He established Galfar Engineering and Contracting Co in Oman, alongside the Gulf state’s Sheikh Dr Salem Said Al Fannah Al Araimi in 1972.

Since its establishment, Mr. Ali has turned the small construction company into a regional market leader, listed on the Muscat Securities Market. Today, the company is the single largest private sector employer in Oman and has activities spanning a wide range of sectors including construction and oil and gas. Besides this, he is the founder of the Oman Petroleum Alliance and the former vice chairman of the state-backed Omanisation Joint Committee. Overseas, he helps run companies in Qatar, India and Dubai.Dr. Ali was handed the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman award by the prime minister of India, in January 2004, in recognition of his contribution to Indians living overseas. He is vice chairman of the Omanisation Joint Committee, a local government body.

A veteran investor with an in-depth knowledge of the region’s real estate sector, Mr. Santosh Joseph, Dubai Pearl project, falls into the 17th place on $360m. Mr. Joseph has over 20 years of management expertise. He took over the management of the AED 7.4bn Dubai Pearl project

and has planned and successfully executed a revival plan, including redesigning and rebuilding of the project.

Mr. Faisal Kottikollon, CEO, KEF Holdings (KEF), manufacturer of steel castings and valves, is in the 18th place $300m.

The Indian US-educated engineer Faisal Kottikollon to set up a scrap metals business in 1995, and he decided to shun his home country and moved to the UAE. He set up a new state-of-the-art facility at Sharjah Hamriyah Free Zone in 2008, the first integrated manufacturer of industrial valves in the Middle East. In just a few years, Kottikollon’s facility was competing equally against European foundries that had been active for a century. The 50,000-square metre facility produces a comprehensive and specialised range of industrial valves allowing the company to serve the Middle East’s thriving oil, gas, petrochemical and energy sectors. Dubai International Capital (DIC) acquired a 45 percent stake in KEF Holdings in September 2008, allowing for further expansion of the facility.

Mr. C.K. Menon, Chairman and Managing Director of the Behzad Corporation, falls into the 20th place on $250m. He is mainly focused on fuel transportation by land and sea, and has also extended his company’s involvement into steel manufacturing.

Mr. Menon oversees a business empire that has operations all over the Gulf, as well as in Europe, South America and the US. Elsewhere, the group has also ventured into the IT arena via the Behzad Information Technology Centre in Dubai.

A well-known philanthropist, Mr. Menon has helped build homes for slum dwellers in his native Kerala, and is the director of that state’s government infrastructure department.In 2009, he was given the prestigious Padma Shri award by President of India for his outstanding contribution to social services.

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Owner of well-known and award winning jewellery firm Joyalukkas Group, Mr. Joy Alukkas bagged the 22nd place on $230m, who set up the $1bn global conglomerate almost a quarter of a century ago, has grown the business to become a key player in the Middle East jewellery market, with as many as 80 stores across the region, and 3,000 staff. In 2007, Alukkas opened the world’s largest gold and diamond jewellery store in Chennai. Since the group’s inception, it has branched out to include other sectors such as real estate, textiles, money exchanges and internet radio.His latest award was from the World Malayalee Council (WMC) as part of the Federal Bank Kerala Business Awards 2011, which honours individuals and organisations from the Kerala business community who have excelled themselves during the year.

Dr Azad Moopen, Founder and Chairman of D M Healthcare, falls into the 25th place on $215m. He is a renowned physician-urned entrepreneur based in the UAE. Five years after passing his MD exams in 1987, Mr. Moopen came to Dubai and set up his own doctor’s clinic. Over the next 20 years, he established a chain of healthcare facilities across Asia and the Gulf, under DM Healthcare (Dr Moopen Healthcare), which today employes about 2,000 people in the Gulf, and serves more than three million patients a year.Among his many awards are the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman, and last year,

he was awarded the Padma Shri award by the president of India the fourth highest civilian award in India.

Courtesy - ArabianBussines.com

Indian Rich List 2011 Rank

Name

Micky Jagtiani Yusuffali MA BR Shetty Chhabria family PNC Menon Sunny Varkey Rajen Kilachand Tony Jashanmal LT Pagarani Dr. Mohammed Ali Paras Shahdadpuri Hitesh Bodani Yogesh Mehta Jayant Ganwani Nilesh Ved Khimji family Santosh Joseph Faisal Kottikollon Mohan Valrani CK Menon Ram Buxani Joy Alukkas Rizwan Sajan Vasu Shroff Azad Moopen Ajay Bhatia Ramesh Ramakrishnan GB Choithram Jethwani S Kumar Wadhawan Maghanmal Pancholia

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Wealth (US$)

www.tourismindia.travel www.brandkerala.biz www.keralatourismmagazine.com 26

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3.2bn 1.75bn 1.72bn 1.3bn 1.2bn 950m 900m 900m 820m 725m 650m 630m 623m 530m 480m 390m 360m 300m 285m 250m 235m 230m 230m 220m 215m 205m 205m 190m 180m 170m

News

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he domestic production of natural rubber from April to August 2011 was estimated provisionally as 3,11,200 tonnes with a growth of 4.5 per cent over the same period in the

previous year.

Ms. Sheela Thomas IAS, Rubber Board Chair Person has said that the increase in NR production depends on tapped area, favourable weather conditions and comfortable prices. The automotive tyre sector recorded a growth of 6.8 per cent in NR consumption whereas the non-tyre sector reported a decline to the extent of 2.6 per cent.

The estimated stock of NR at the end of August 2011 was 268,212 tonnes. Quantity of sheet rubber available for trade was estimated as 110,000 tonnes.

Production and consumption of NR for the year 2011-12 are projected at 902,000 tonnes and 977,000 tonnes respectively. Import and export of NR for 2011-12 are projected at 120,000 tonnes and 50,000 tonnes respectively. Based on the above projections, the carryover stock at the end of March 2012 is projected at 272,600 tonnes.

Import and export of NR during April to August 2011 were 79,661 tonnes and 12,413 tonnes respectively.

Around 70 per cent of the import of NR was through duty free channels. During the recent months the developments in global economy, trends in rubber and other related sectors, currency fluctuations etc had been exerting some downward pressure on NR prices.

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Obituary

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r. Steven Paul Jobs, the iconic co-founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Apple, was a true visionary of the digital age. He was not an inventor in the classic sense but used the existing technologies in his products. He made his products user friendly and hence responsible for popularizing these technologies.

Mr. Jobs was neither a hardware engineer nor a software programmer, nor did he think of himself as a manager. He considered himself a technology leader, choosing the best people possible, encouraging and prodding them, and making the final call on product design. He focused on music, images, videos and highly portable gadgets that connect to computers as part of a “digital hub” strategy was a big success with consumers, starting with the iTunes music management software, and evolving into widely popular devices such as the iPod, iPhone and more recently, the iPad tablet computer.

Mr. Jobs was born in San Francisco on February 24, 1955, was adopted by the family of Mr. Paul Jobs and Ms. Clara Jobs of Mountain view, California, and put up for adoption by his biological parents, Ms. Joanne Carole Schieble and Mr. Abdulfattah Jandali.

Mr. Jobs’ wife, Ms. Laurene Powell, survives him with his three children, Eve jobs, Erin Sienna Jobs and Reed; another daughter, Lisa Brinnan-Jobs, from a relationship with Ms. Christian Brennan; and his sisters, novelist Ms. Mona Simpson, and Ms. Patti Jobs.

In 1972 Mr. Jobs enrolled in Reed College in Portland, Oregon, but dodged after a semester. After that Mr. Jobs led a 28

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counter cultural lifestyle himself. In 1974, Jobs returned to California and began attending meetings of the Homebrew Computer Club with Mr. Steve Wozniak a high school friend. He took a job as a technician at Atari, a manufacturer of popular video games, with the primary intent of saving money for a spiritual retreat to India.

Mr. Jobs then traveled to India to visit Neem Karoli Baba at his Kainchi Ashram with a Reed College friend, Mr. Daniel Kottke, in search of spiritual enlightenment. He has gone back as a Buddhist with his head shaved and wearing traditional Indian clothing. During this time, Jobs experimented with psychedelics, calling his LSD experiences “one of the two or three most important things done in life”.

He later said that people around him who did not share his counter cultural roots could not fully relate to his thinking. Jobs returned to his previous job at Atari.

In 1975, he and Mr. Worzniak, met at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Centre in Menlo Park, California. Personal computing had been pioneered at research laboratories adjacent to Stanford, and it was spreading to the

outside world.Mr. Wozniak designed the original AppleI computer simply to show it off to his friend at the Homebrew. It was Mr. Jobs who had the inspiration that it could be a commercial product. In early 1976, he and Mr. Wozniak, using their own money, began Apple with an initial investment of $1300; they later gained the backing of a former Intel executive, A.C. Markkula, who lent them $250,000. Mr. Wozniak was the technical half and Mr. Jobs the marketing half of the original Apple I Computer. Starting out in the Jobs’ family garage in Los Altos, they moved the company to a small office in Cupertino shortly thereafter.

In April 1977, Mr. Jobs and Mr. Wozniak introduced Apple II at the West Cost Computer Faire in Sanfrancisco. It created a sensation. Faced with a gaggle of small and large competitors in the emerging computer market, Apple, with its Apple II, had figured out a way to straddle the business and consumer markets by building a computer that could be customized for specific applications.

Sales skyrocketed, from $2 million in 1977 to $600 million in 1981, the year the company went public. By 1983 Apple was in the Fortune 500. No company had ever joined the list so quickly. In 1983 Mr. Job’s lured Mr. Sculley to Apple to be its chief executive. A Former PepsiCola chief executive, Mr. Sculley was impressed by Mr. Jobs pitch: “Do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water, or do you want a chance to change the world?” The following year, Apple aired a Super Bowl television commercial titled “1984”. At Apple’s annual shareholders meeting on January 24, 1984, emotional Jobs introduced the Macintosh to a wildly enthusiastic audience; Mr. Andy Herzfeld described the scene as “pandemonium”. The Macintosh became the first commercially successful small computer with a graphical user interface. The development of the Mac was started by Mr. Jef Raskin, and eventually taken over by Jobs. In the wake up of some disappointing sales, two men became estranged and a power struggle ensured, and Mr. Jobs lost control of the Lisa project. He left Apple in 1985. After leaving Apple, Mr. Jobs founded Next Computer in 1985 with $7 million. In 1996, after unsuccessful efforts to develop next-generating operating systems, Apple, with Mr. Gilbert Amelio now in command, acquired NeXT for $430 million. The next year, Mr. Jobs returned to Apple as an adviser. He became chief executive again in 2000.

In the interim years, he bought a tiny computer graphics Spinoff from director Mr. George Lucas and built a team of computer scientists, artists and animators

that became Pixer Animation studios. Starting with Toy Story in 1995, Pixer produced a string of hit movies, won several Academy Awards for artistic and Technological excellence, and enjoyed by children and adults world wide. Once in control Apple again, Mr. Jobs set out to reshape in the computer electronics industry. He pushed the company into the digital music business, introducing first iTunes and then the iPode MP3 player. The music arm grew rapidly, reaching almost 50 percent of the company’s revenue by June 2008. In 2005, Mr. Jobs announced that he would end Apple’s business relationship with IBM and Motorola and build Macintosh computers based on Intel microprocessors.

Apple began selling the iPhone in June 2007. Mr. Jobs was to sell 10 million of the handsets in 2008, equivalent to one percent of the global cell phone market. Although smart phones were already common place, the iPhone dispensed with a stylus and pioneered a touch-screen interface that quickly set the standard for the mobile computing market. Rolled out with much anticipation and fanfare, iPhone rocked to popularity; by end of 2010 the company had sold almost 90 million units. In 2010, Apple Launched iPad and sold 15 million iPads in nine months and has an 84% share of the tablet market by years end. In 2011 Apple launched the iPad 2.

In 2004 Apple had announced, Mr. Jobs had a rare but curable form of pancreatic cancer and that he had undergone successful surgery. Four years later he appeared at a company event looking gaunt. In August 2011, Mr. Jobs steps down as CEO of Apple, but remained at the company as chairman till the death on October 5, 2011, at the age of 56 Mr. Jobs was the ultimate arbiter of Apple Products.

He has changed the way of life of many. Apple’s products, under his leader ship, have had a profound impact on mankind, unequalled by any other company in the information and technology space. In his famous commencement address at Stanford University in 2005, he reflected on the inevitability of mortality: “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living somebody else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma- which is living with the results of other people’s thinking- And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.” This summed up the life and work of a collage dropout who,by connecting the dots and having the courage to follow his heart and intuition, changed the world. Mr. Job’s innovation and creativity will inspire dreamers and thinkers for generations.

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T News

his Onam festive season proved to be profitable for the handloom industry in Kerala. Apart from the traditional wears contemporary apparels and their signature attires such as sarees, dhotis, etc. were also in the market. And this year the handlooms were out with the best of their creations which included designer salwars, party wears etc led to the success. Their target customers were the teens and youngsters and it was just the perfect plan.Most of the cities in the State were selected as the venue for the handloom fete.

The crowd consisted of both local people as well as foreigners. With the uniqueness of Blaramapuram handloomes; Kasavukada, Karalkada, Kerala Handlooms and Kannan

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Handlooms were a few business institutions out of many other 30 handlooms were full fledged in this onam “special� business.

The handlooms produces sarees which starts from Rs.400 toRs.70, 000/- The rates of Dhotis vary from Rs. 200 to Rs. 6000. In the case of Kerala Sarees, which are always on demand on Onam season, costs from Rs. 1500 to Rs. 50,000/The handloom industry is gaining its significance nation-wide. Last year saw a sale of around thousand crore and this year the estimates say there have been a 20% increase in the sales when compared to the last year. A lot of people are now foot forward for the handloom production and marketing which is a positive sign.

ost of the big Multi National Companies around the globe are planning to enter in the tender coconut business , as it is sure it will be became a hot business. The companies which produce artificial drinks such as Pepsi, Coco Cola, and Vita Coco are some of them.. They import tender coconut from countries such as Brazil, Philippines and Thailand and now they have started imports from India also. These three companies aims to collect ten crore litres of tender coconut each month.

All these MNCs had planned in marketing tender coconut on a large scale, in a tinned form. Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa have such industries.

Though Kerala have chances in this field, the State is not well established in manufacturing tender coconut in canned form, and therefore would not get its benefit.

Tender coconut is marketed as a sports drink in many countries. And these will be marketed in its purest form without any artificial ingredients mixed in the drink.

It is also believed that with the push in tender coconut business, 15 states in the country including Kerala would be benefited through it. Kerala being one of the States, popular for its coconut groves, is supposed to make a lot of profit through this business. The properties such as medicinal and nutritious value, of tender coconut gives nutshell business a big boost.

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News

he Kerala State Cabinet approved a draft housing policy and it would be finalized soon, which envisages construction of 12 lakh houses during the 12th Five Year Plan. Mr. K.M. Mani Minister for Finance and Housing ,Govt of Kerala hold a discussion on the draft housing policy with builders and other stakeholders. He said the new policy focus on providing shelter to all.

The Minister said that 5.5 lakh houses in the State would require reconstruction and 6.5 lakh new houses would be needed.

Among this 12 lakh, about 7.2 lakh houses would be for the financially weaker sections. The total cost for this estimated an amount of Rs.15, 000 crore. He said that Public Private Participation (PPP) as well as Public Private Panchayat Participation (PPPP) requires for this.

The policy upholds cost effective housing. It proposes formation of State Housing Finance Corporation, establishment of a housing sector regulatory authority and revival of Housing Board. Institutional, financial and regulatory reforms and shelter fund for EWS are other attractions.

M

r. Baby Mathew, Managing Director, Somatheeram Ayurvedic Beach Resorts, Thiruvananthapuram, receiving the ‘Safari India National Tourism Award’, instituted by the Pacific area Travel Writers Association, from Mr. Muralidhar Chandrakant Bhandara, Governer, Orissa at a function held in New Delhi.

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Global Kerala

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onsidering the opportunities of tourism sector in Kerala, Mr. Jacob Oommen, the NRI Business magnet is all prepared to introduce to Kerala, The Royale Gardens under the J & J enterprises.

The Royale Gardens, the very first venture of the group will start functioning by November at Nangiarkulangara in Alappey, popularly known as Venice of the East. An Interior designer and businessman by profession, Mr. Oommen had been thinking of something in his native for the past three years. And that led to the birth of the Royale Gardens which he thought would provide ample

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job opportunities and financial profit as well. These two factors helped him to zero in on hotel business and finally he is on the road for the drive!

Royale Gardens born with an investment of 60 crore, stands a bit different from the other luxurious hotels built on traditional themes. Imported furniture and kitchenware plus the security measures make Royale Gardens different and give it a star value. The hotel with 160 cameras placed around considering the safety, paid an amount of 70 lakhs just for the customs duty for importing all the furniture and the rest.

Anybody who visits Royale Gardens will notice the Indo-Western touch given to the hotel. Mr. Oommen, who is also a Civil Engineer made sure the spaces are used effectively by cutting down the heights between each floor. The Royal Builders, another company in the group, are assigned with the construction of the big budget hotel. On the other hand, Nainan Philip and Associates from Cochin deals with the architecture and design.

The major highlight of the Royale Gardens is their interior design. At the Royale Gardens they provide with 24 single rooms, 5 VIP suites, 1 presidential suite and an additional of 9 Villas. The food is a main query for everyone when it comes to a hotel. In Royale Gardens you have choices to choose from. Indian, Chinese, Continental and Kerala cuisines in four specialty restaurants, is a thing which needs mentioning. Apart from the restaurants they also have a 24-hour coffee shop and an executive bar. The list still continues with Swimming, laundry, indoor games like snookers and billiards in the Officers club, Gym, Jacuzzi, Sauna, Health Club, Ladies beauty parlor all these adds to the specialties of Royale Gardens.

The 9 two bedroom Villas will be made available toNRI Malayalis and other tourists on

a daily rental or monthly rental basis, as per their requirement. The villas are built such that the resident has all the privacy needed, says Mr. Jacob Oommen, CEO, J & J enterprises. Each villa consists of a remote controlled gate, fountain and car parking. The package will also include an innova car for transportation and breakfast if the guest insists.

The second project on the line from the group is a 4 star hotel built on an 8 acre land in Thottapally, which is expected to be commissioned by 2012. If Interior design marked the Royale Gardens, their new venture has a glass floor which is being built with the water body underneath.

The hotel will have a number of 16 bed rooms and a restaurant and bar which imitates the model of a ship. With an investment of Rs. 20 Crore, both the projects will set up arrangements for the employees stay which includes villas, rooms and canteen with all ultra modern facilities.

The third project which is planned to be structured in Munnar, is a 5 star rated hotel cum resort with an

investment of 80 crore. Where in Munnar is this mega project coming up would be the next question. Three acres of land in Munnar-Anachaal road has been flagged for the project and once the hotel sees completion, this is believed to become the most exquisite hotels in Munnar. Apart from the hotel Mr. Jacob Oommen also plans on setting up staff training college and farm house in Munnar. His future project is expected to be in Thekkady where 9 acres of land has already been bought. Apart from all this, he also plans on investing on Ooty and Wayanad tourism.

Mr. Oommen is a man with a lot of dreams. Yes, this definitely means that he still has got more things on his mind. A plant for the production and export of tools required for the interior decoration business in Chenkottai, Tamil Nadu is another project on his mind. A corporate office under the J&J enterprises will be set up soon in Haripad in order to unite all the functions in India.

The Royale Gardens, Harippad

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Face to Face

says Founder Director, Dr. Ashley, Mulamoottil Eye Hospital

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ulamoottil Eye Hospital (MEH), Super Speciality Hospital for cataract treatment, a dream venture of Dr. Ashley is bliss to people in &outside India with the best technology and cost-advantage. Born as the grandson of an Ayurvedic Eye Physician, Dr. Ashley kindled his life’s goal at a very younger age, which came to light close to river Pampa two decades ago. MEH became a pioneer in medical tourism, especially in the field of eye care in Kerala, offering the best for cataract treatment with Micro Cataract Surgery.

MEH offers the patients a treatment with no

Dr. Ashley Thomas Jacob Medical Director & Chief Surgeon 34

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October 2011

blood loss, no pain and ensure full recovery within 24 hrs along with a free accommodation having five star facilities.

Dr. Ashley reveals the secret of his success journey to Brand Kerala Magazine It seems that you have set up an eye hospital with world class facilities in your hometown, which is something more than a sleepy village covered in greenery. Could you explain what made you to take such a decision?

My great grandfather was a famous Ayurveda eye physician and his son continued it for some years and gave it up in favor of other businesses.

In my childhood days, our family (Mulamoottil) was known more for the business activities like banking and real estate. My grandmother used to tell me stories about how my great grandfather used to treat eye diseases using leeches and other traditional techniques. The stories struck a chord within me and the desire to resume that family tradition was kindled at a very young age.

I spent about 20 years outside my hometown for educational reasons and four years outside India learning the various specialties in ophthalmology.

During the period that I spent abroad, I got opportunities to get acquainted with world class facilities.

Even though the temptation to settle abroad was quite strong, I thought of giving back something to my hometown and continue the good work that my forefathers began. In 2003, we started the hospital as a super specialty center for eye care in Kozhencherry, very close to River Pamba; which is an integral part of the region’s culture and captivating natural beauty.

Could you tell us about the facilities as part of the hospital?

We have the latest technology for Cataract treatment – the Infiniti Vision System with Ozil IP Intrepid technology that guarantees high safety and efficiency. Ours is the only hospital in Kerala equipped with three such

machines. The hospital also has Opko OCT for advanced retinal scanning, research type visual field analyzers, Lasers, Total Eye Imaging systems, Fully stainless steel surgical OTs, highly trained staff, professional counselors, high-tech laboratory and optical retail services.

The hospital has a built-up area of 500 sq m and most of it is air-conditioned.

I must stress that our highlight is our staff. They are very focused on ensuring superb care to our patients.

You seem to be one of the pioneers in medical tourism, especially in the field of eye care in Kerala. How you got convinced that eye care and medical travel will click in Kerala?

I never started this hospital with medical tourism in mind. My idea was to start a hospital with best possible facilities, so that I can put my training to good use. Because of location advantages and the fact that the capital to start the hospital was an interest-free loan from my father, we could offer these treatments at very lower rates. For instance, we offer Micro Cataract Surgery for less than Rs.30,000 (USD 800). The same surgery costs Rs.70,000 in Mumbai or USD 4000 and above in the US. The large Non-resident Indian (NRI) population, settled in different parts of the world noticed the quality of care and also the obvious difference in other eye care centers around our region. In fact they are the people who brought it to our notice.... and the news spread and people started flowing in.

Some of the tour operators and travel agencies also approached us asking whether their patients can be given world class treatments; probably inspired by the favorable reports given by our NRI patients. This persuaded us to set up a guest house with all facilities for patients, who chose to come to us from around the globe. Our air-conditioned international guest-houses have TV, Internet, refrigerator, microwave and almost all modern amenities.

And the best part is‌..it is free.

So you mean that the advantages in cost helped you to get patients from outside Kerala?

That will be an understatement. Cost is one factor. Most of the patients who come to us can afford the higher costs prevalent in other parts of the

world.

I think the major attraction here is the technology that we offer. Cataract treatment is no more a surgery for removal of cataract alone. It has evolved into a refractive procedure, where we can offer corrections for refractive problems like Astigmatism and Presbyopia (difficulty to read) along with the treatment for cataract.

Furthermore, there are huge advantages for the patient as some of the surgical procedures followed here have no blood loss, no pain and ensure full recovery within 24 hrs. Our overseas clients can fly back the next day itself, if they choose to. And the latest surgical procedure that we recommend for cataract is extremely safe for cardiac and diabetic patients.

We always make sure that our patients receive personal attention. Even our operation theatre is patient-friendly with old melodies played in the background...it is quite a peaceful place to be.

Why do you think that people with eyesight problems will opt for a sightseeing package?

I think you ask this question because of the very old image of cataract surgery in your mind....it has changed a lot.

An elderly couple in Mumbai or Delhi can fix an appointment over phone or via the Internet. They can fly to Kochi or Trivandrum one day morning; both places are just two hours drive away and stay at our guest house. Then they can do the preliminary tests, get the surgery done next day and will be free birds the very next day. They can go to Guruvayoor, Kumarakom or to Munnar. All these places are nearby. They can get all these done through a tour operator. Or else, they can have a house boat holiday; stay in a luxury hotel at Kumarakom or Alappuzha and come for the surgery assured of full recovery the next day and continue their vacation.

The location, isn’t it a constraint in getting patients?

Why should they travel all the way?

The location has several advantages. We can offer this rate just because of the location advantage.

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October 2011

Fully Stainless-Steel Theaters

Kerala is well connected by flights and trains and it is not as crowded as Mumbai or Delhi.

So you think that the best technology and cost-advantage will help you to get patients?

Not thinking, we are experiencing it. The NRIs find it very easy to bring their parents here and getting the treatment done within 24 hours than taking people abroad, where there are so many barriers in the form of cost, culture, language, time etc.

Can you suggest the factors that will boost medical travel to Kerala?

There is no short cut. Offer the best solutions and charge reasonably. Quality of service, time and cost are the most important factors for everyone.

You cannot compromise on those.

Secondly, let the doctors confine to medical service and leave the travel part to travel operators. It is a very special area and it needs different sets of skills. A doctor trying to organize tour packages will be as bad as a tour operator doing surgery. Leave it to those experts and concentrate in your profession.

One specialty of MEH is that it takes up corporate social responsibility projects very seriously. What persuades you to focus on this?

This could be an after-effect of my training at various international hospitals. Giving back to society was an important concept in all those places. One of our latest projects is a campaign to promote eye donation in India.

Besides that, we also offer free second opinion and online consultancy to anybody who approaches us. They can log in to our website and post a query with supporting medical records, if any. And we respond by giving them appropriate medical advice within a few hours.

It seems that the image of MEH in the minds of pub36

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October 2011

lic is somewhat like a Super Speciality Hospital for cataract treatment. Are you not focusing on other treatments?

(Laughs) Well, let me answer it in two parts.

We introduced the latest facilities in cataract treatment and still we look for new developments in that area to be introduced here without delay.

We started this hospital almost a decade back and before that I worked in prestigious eye hospitals in Chennai, U.K. etc. The first thing I noticed in Kerala was the need of advanced cataract treatments. It was both a medical need and a social need.

The better healthcare facilities of Kerala improved the longevity of life from an average life of 50 years plus to 80 years plus in the last few decades. This naturally increased the number of cataract cases for treatment. And there are around 1.5 crore Keralites living outside Kerala, most of them in the metros of India, Middle East, Southeast Asia, North America etc. In many cases the aged relatives here have the financial resources to avail of the best treatment.

But their children are not in a position to spend too much of their time here to get the treatment done for their parents. One of the important factors that made Micro Cataract Surgery at MEH, which offers both treatment and recovery in 24 hours an instant hit is this particular social atmosphere. And the situation warranted us to become the last word in cataract surgery. Now we spend most of our energy to remain there.

At the same time we have to offer latest solutions for all eye related problems. We do that and we also give more emphasis to cataract because of the prevailing situation.

Phone: +91-468- 2213644, 2279744, 2279844 Mobile: +91- 99475 99999 Fax: +91-468-2214044 E-mail: info@mulamoottileyehospital.com

Consulting Room

Santhigiri,

Destination

a green brand

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anthigiri Ashram, located in Pothencode, Thiruvananthapuram, is the reflection of Navajyothisree Karunakara Guru’s vision of a revitalized life involving spiritual, social economic and cultural elements. The ashram is recognized as a Social and Scientific Research Organization by Govt of India.

The Ashram has set up a number of units under its Agricultural Division. Organic cultivation of traditional rice varieties, horticulture, herbal and other plantations, dairy farming, bee keeping etc. are some of the major activities taken up by this division. Herbal Garden has a good number of medicinal plants and trees.The Research Division functioning under the banner of Santhigiri Research Foundation (SRF) specializes in social, industrial and scientific research. The main institutions are the Santhigiri Scientific and Industrial Research Institute (SSIRI), Santhigiri Social Research Institute (SSRI) and the Navajyothisree Karunakara Guru Research Centre for Ayurveda and Siddha.

The Industrial and Production Divisions of the Ashram have small scale Production units for Herbal Soaps, Curry Powder, Handloom and Power loom fabric, Polymers, Coconut Oil and Cakes and Bakery items. A chain of Tailoring and Trading units, ‘Vahankanthi’ vehicle workshop, Santhi Wood Unit and a Steel Fabrication Unit are also being run under the aegis of the Industrial Division.

For Economic development, as part of the vision of a revitalized life, the ashram emphasis on trade skills, support for women and cottage industry programs. These units also serve a social purpose by providing quality services at reasonable prices. Shopping Mall, located just opposite side to Ashram has Santhigiri’s own products.

Contact Tel: +91-471-2419313 E-mail: ashram@santhigiriashram.org, communication@santhigiriashram.org 37

BrandKerala

October 2011

News

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he eighth edition of the Kerala Bamboo Festival will be held in Kochi from 8-11 December 2011.The annual event is being organized by the Kerala State Bamboo Mission of the Kerala Bureau of Industrial Promotion (K-BIP) under the Department of Commerce and Industry.

The event is envisaged to help artisans as well as entrepreneurs in the bamboo sector acquire knowledge about the latest products and design developments as also provide a platform to them for sharing information. A wide variety of innovative products made from bamboo are expected to be showcased at the festival.

The festival is also intended to launch entrepreneurship drive among the artisans. The participants will include artisans, entrepreneurs, sector-related institutions, support firms and service providers from all over the country.

This year’s event is expected to attract a large number of participants and hence a bigger venue has been chosen to hold the show.

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October 2011

evi’s® – the original, definitive jeans brand – announced a new line of custom fit jeans made to fit the curve of a woman’s body.

Unlike other denim brands, Levi’s® Curve ID utilizes a unique, customized fit system focusing on a woman’s shape and proportions, not her size. The designers developed three custom fits based on the difference between the measurement of a woman’s hip and seat – the greater the difference, the more curvy the body.

The three custom fits include: Slight Curve – designed to celebrate straight figures. Slight Curve is designed to define a woman’s waist, while accentuating her curves. If jeans usually fit in the hips

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ith the new laser treatment getting rid of nerds has become even easier than before. The new Z Kamra is an eye surgery where a special form plastic is implanted in the eye, which is smaller than the lenses available in the market.

During the surgery, a small hole is made in the cornea, where a very slender inlay (microscopic ring) is inserted manually which in turn allows only focused light to reach the retina and subsequently improves vision for all distances. The plastic gets settled around the iris and pupil and functions like any pinhole camera.

The plastic implanted, tends to pass on a reduced quantity of light, which

News

and thighs but are too tight in the waist, a woman should try the Slight Curve.

Demi Curve – designed to fit even proportions. Demi Curve is designed to flatter a woman’s waist, while smoothing her shape. If jeans usually fit in the waist, but don’t flatter the figure, a woman should try the Demi Curve. Bold Curve – designed to honor genuine curves.

Bold Curve is designed to hug the waist, without gaping or pulling. If jeans usually fit in the hips and thighs, but gap at the back, a woman should try the Bold Curve.A global digital fitting room will launch on http://levi.in/women, where women will be able to find their Levi’s® Curve ID, explore product demos and learn more about our fit science.

formulates the picture in the eye. The central shaft of light, which produces the exact form of the image in the eye, helps in viewing things easily during the dark, but is unable to create a clear image.

The treatment will help many middle-aged people attain the perfect vision. Around 23 million people were victims of age-related vision problem called presbyopia.

The treatment will be offered for the very first time in Britain, the experts believe that within 10 years, more than 4 million people will access to the treatment.

Y

ou might feel like you’re making a “permanent” backup of your files when you copy them onto a DVD or backup to a computer hard-drive, but the truth is these devices suffer from natural decay and degradation. Millenitta, the optical disc company, Saltlake City, introduced a new storage device called M-Disc, Millenial Disc, for ultra long-term data storage of somewhere between ‘1,000 years’ and ‘forever’.

Current DVD technology uses organic dyes and low laser power to make marks on the data layer of a standard recordable DVD. Over time, these marks become unreadable because organic dyes degrade when exposed to minimal levels of light, heat, and humidity. This means all the data you thought was safely stored could be lost because the discs you used have an average lifespan of only about 3 to 5 years! Millenniata utilizes chemically stable and heat-resistant materials that are not used in any other DVD or optical disc! These materials cannot be overwritten, erased, or corrupted by natural processes.

The normal laser energy employed to write DVDs or CDs cannot successfully write to the patented inorganic and synthetic materials used in the M-DISC Data is stored on the M-DISC by physically altering the recording layer and creating permanent voids or holes. Millenniata’s recording process utilizes higher temperatures and as much as 5 times more energy than any ordinary optical disc. This allows forpermanent engraving on the M-DISC, what to as pits. These pits are not affected by temperature, humidity and sunlight the same way dyes are, because the pits are permanent. This means when you burn data onto the M-DISC, it will last as long as you need it to. The M-DISC can be read or played on any quality DVD drive that supports the common DVD+R/RW format. Most DVD drives that were manufactured after 2005 and almost all Blu-ray or BD drives support this format.

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BrandKerala

October 2011

I

News

ndia thus bags the “credit” for paying the highest amount for petrol when compared to the rest of the countries in the world. When looked into the money exchange, only a few small and not-very-famous countries out run India in paying high sum for Petrol. And when compared the countries across the world it was found that Venezuela pays Rs. 1.14 per litre, Iran pays Rs. 4.8 per litre and USA a sum of 42.82 per litre.

Petrol in India is more expensive than 98 other countries. Countries like the European Union, Singapore, New Zealand and Thailand equals to India in terms of Taxation.

But then in terms of Purchasing Power Parity also known as the PPP, petrol is costlier in India than most countries. Though subsidies are given on a higher rate, the diesel price in India tops the list of 136 other countries. The controversies on this issue have been filling the atmosphere since the rates went high. But still why the rates have hiked to such an extent still remains a question.

Bill Gates

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the Worlds’ richest

icrosoft founder Mr. Bill Gates stays atop the annual Forbes list of the world’s richest people with wealth valued at 59 billion dollars. Billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who also continued giving his wealth to good causes, dropped

MBlaze

High-Speed Broadband Services

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TS, the telecom brand of Sistema Shyam Teleservices (SSTL), has launched MBlaze, the high-speed mobile broadband Internet service, in Thiruvananthapuram. The high-speed broadband data services are now available in 74 major cities across the country, according to Mr K. Sunil, Chief Operating Officer, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

MBlaze provides mobile broadband Internet services at a speed of 3.1 mbps in ideal conditions in both the prepaid and post-paid platforms. Available in ‘Premium’ and ‘Standard’ packs, the service is available through a plug-and-play modem and is priced at Rs 2,299 and Rs 1,999 respectively. MBlaze service is already available in Kollam, Kochi, Thrissur and Kozhikode.

11 billion dollars to 39 billion dollars as the value of his Berkshire Hathaway firm slid, and was placed second in the list. Fellow investor Mr. George Soros also entered the top 10, with 22 billion dollars. Forbes list of includes.

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October 2011

Automobile

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yundai Motor India Limited (HMIL), the largest exporter and second largest car manufacturer in India, presented the All New Fluidic Verna to Mr. Ashish Nehra, Mr. Zaheer Khan and Mr. S.Sreesanth, members of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 winning team who brought the World Cup back to the country after 28 long years. To encourage Indian Team to win the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, HMIL had announced, if the World Cup comes home then the winning Indian team will be felicitated with the All New Hyundai Verna cars.

After the key handing over ceremony in Bangalore, HMIL plans to organize similar felicitation ceremonies

across India to give all New Verna to other players of Team India in their respective home states. Hyundai recently organized similar key handing over ceremony in Delhi where New Verna keys were handed over to Mr. Virender Sehwag and Mr. Piyush Chawla. Hyundai is the official car partner for the International Cricket Council (ICC) from 2011- 2015, with exclusive category rights. Hyundai has organized several initiatives during the World Cup like the Hyundai Fan Parks, Hyundai ICC First and Last Ball Tour amongst others to create excitement during the entire duration of the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

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issan Motor India has launched a mid-size sedan Sunny, the Nissan’s second locally-made mass-market product after the Micra, at an aggressive starting price of Rs 5.78 lakhs up to Rs 7.68 lakhs. Mr. Gilles Normand, Corporate Vice President, Africa, Middle East & India, Nissan Motor Company said that with unprecedented levels of sophistication and comfort, the Nissan Sunny would redefine the dynamics of the Sedan segment in India. They have been able to aggressively position it.

Initially the Sedan will be available only as a petrol model. The 1.5 litre petrol engine is putting out 99 PS of power and a fuel economy of 16.95 kmpl. It targets families and young professionals with a USP of more space in the cabin and boot versus its rivals. This 10th generation of the Nissan sunny, which is over 45 yearsold brand and has sold more than 16 million units in 140 countries. Nissan India expects the new Sedan to sell a total of 40,000 units by the end of the fiscal.

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October 2011

Automobile

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Appointment

hirteen lucky winners of the just concluded Hyundai Motor “Paint and Win” contest had the privilege of viewing the complete process of car making. These budding artistes aged between 5 -14, accompanied by their parents, were taken on a guided tour of the state of the art facilities of Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) in Chennai. Hailing from different parts of the country, the children had participated in a painting competition conducted by the company, where the central theme was a car.

The “Paint and Win” contest was organized as a part of the consumer connect initiative of Hyundai Motor India Limited. Held in the month of June at all Hyundai dealerships around the country, it was open to both Hyundai and non-Hyundai customers. The event received tremendous response where more than 10,000 children participated. Each participant received a Verna

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branded T shirt. The prizes were awarded at three levelsweekly, monthly and a Grand National prize. Each week 969 winners walked away with certificate of merit from the 323 dealerships. At the end of the month, 960 best entries were selected from 3876 winning entries. The winners were given a Titan Zoop wrist watch. Thirteen best entries out of these were selected for the grand prize of an expense paid trip to Chennai.

Mr. B. S SEO, Executive Director Production said, “The pictures have a professional quality and had the artists behind these, not been revealed, I would have never guessed that they came from such talented youngsters.

Some of them look even better than our cars!” Mr. T. Sarangrajan, Vice President Production urged the winners to open their minds and dream unfettered. The awardees were honored with a “National Certificate of Merit”. A magic show and other entertainment programmes completed the outing.

Dr. K. Ampady Dr. K. Ampady IIS has joined the State Government of Kerala on deputation as the Managing Director of Kerala State Coastal Area Development Corporation. He was a 2002 batch Civil Service Officer, belonging to Indian Information Service (Group A)

BrandKerala

October 2011

Automobile

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hen you think Hyundai, the word ‘style’ pops unbidden to mind. Whether it’s an i10, Verna, Sonata or Santa Fe, the company never compromises on style and seamless finish. Underscoring this fact is Eon, the latest offering from the Hyundai stable that is expected on Indian roads in October, priced around 2.5 lakh.

The Eon has a very intricate design accentuated with the fluidic lines we saw on the 2011 Verna. According to Autocar, the wheel arches and shoulder line are so complex that you’d have to go all the way up to a Mercedes-Benz CLS to see anything similar — and that’s no overstatement.

Generally, A-segment cars disappoint on the interior. But Eon, unlike any other in the segment, gets a neatly finished and spacious interior. Also

on offer is USBsupported music system, remote locking and even tiltable steering.

The Eon will be powered by an 814cc IRDE petrol engine developing 56bhp, which is definitely zippy on a car that weighs at 715-795kg. To add joy, Hyundai is claiming 21.1 kmpl, too.

Overall, the Eon is going to be more powerful, sleek, futuristic and hopefully equally priced as the super seller Maruti Alto.

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October 2011

Traditional Sector

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he participation in the House and Gift fair at Savopaulo in Brazil has opened an opportunity to export Kerala coir products to this South American country. Brazil falls into the 13th position among the 100 other countries in the world where coir is being imported. “The business information obtained during the fair will be looked into by the board and the coir export will be in pace”, said Mr. V.S. Vijayaraghavan, Coir Board Chairman.

Brazil, one of the richest countries in the world is equally strong and high in terms of domestic production as well. Brazil is one of the members of ‘BRIC’, apart from other developing countries such as India, China and Russia. In ‘IBSA’ also India shares a platform with Brazil and South Africa.

1300 exhibitors from 20 different countries and 49000 buyers from 59 countries were participated in the fair. The coir products from Kerala, including State coir Boards’s as well as exporters’, were exhibited in two stalls. Tuffed mats, Handloom mats and coir are the major products which are being exported to Brazil. During 2010-11, 1551.06 tonne of products worth Rs. 10.43 crore and In 2008-09, 1332.44 tonne of products worth Rs. 6.95 crore were exported. Mr. V.S. Vijayaraghavan along with Mr.M. Kumaraswamy Pillai, marketing director, had meetings with many business people from the Latin American countries. The Indian consulate in Brazil has also offered all the support from their side.

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October 2011

Women Power

I

NDOCERT is a non-profit, membership organization, with a mission to render reliable and affordable product and food safety management system certification services in the field of production, processing and trade for the realization of safe and sustainable agriculture and food products.

Accredited nationally by National Accreditation Body, INDOCERT is purely an Indian certification body. INDOCERT is also accredited by National Accreditation Board for Education and Training for providing Accredited Training programmes. Established in 2001 by a group of NGO’s and farmers’ organizations, INDOCERT holds a record of international reputation for its various certification and training services.

INDOCERT offers Organic certification as per USDA-NOP standards for products destined for export to the United States. Their mission is to render reliable and affordable inspection and certification services in safe and sustainable food and agricultural production sectors by establishing a fully accredited 100% Indian certification programme, thus enabling the marketing of certified products in India and abroad.

INDOCERT has strong technical collaborations with two well reputed Swiss Organic Agriculture Institutions FiBL and bio.inspecta. By offering inspection and certification services for Organic Aquaculture Production, Processing and trade, they also provide certification for Organic textiles, Eco-Bio Cosmetics, Eco-Bio Tourism in Collaboration with ICEA, Italy and Organic Hotel Certification as per INDOCERT standards.

Tel: / Fax: 0484-2630908, 2620943 E mail: info@indocert.org www.indocert.org 45

BrandKerala

October 2011

Back to Nature

U

ravu a nongovernment organization located at Thrikkaipetta village in Wayanad district, implements programs for employment in rural areas and promotes social entrepreneurship based on value addition of local and natural resources. Uravu makes use of the indigenous sciences and technology for the upliftment of the tribes in the area and it runs a successful bamboo crafts design and production centre. Started in 1996, as a bamboo processing training and design centre as a joint venture by a group of friends and individuals, it has so far contributed much to the economic and cultural enhancement of the tribal community.

Bamboo is found abundantly in Wayanad and Uravu encourages the traditional technology and craftsmanship of the tribes and local people in creating a whole range of products like bags, handicrafts, furniture, bamboo curtains, lamp shades, photo frames, wall hangings, flower vases, bags, pens, furniture, CD covers, household utensils and other materials using bamboo.

They include both functional

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and decorative products. The institute also helps in marketing these products through their sales outlets and many value added products have been brought forth. The downtrodden section of the local community is the main benefactors of Uravu’s initiatives and they include traditional artisans, tribes and women.

Uravu conducts training programs among rural women for developing bamboo processing skills, introduction of appropriate tools, technologies and processes. And conducts design development and product diversification programs for artisans and runs a Common Facilities Centre for bamboo processing. They provide various escort services for stabilizing producers’ self-help groups and micro enterprises. Uravu Eco Links Ltd., the public limited company promoted by Uravu trust members, assists producer groups in marketing their products in various markets.

To augment the local resource base of bamboos and to enrich the environment, Uravu runs a bamboo nursery, supplies planting materials of varied bamboo species to

local farmers and conducts bamboo planting programs. Uravu conducts diverse programs in the Thrikkaipetta village including the Bamboo Village Program for demonstration of applications of bamboo, community-led eco-tourism, annual Jackfruit Festival, Travelers’ Forest Program etc.

Uravu also promotes farmers’ selfhelp-groups, floriculture groups etc.

Uravu is a partner of State Bamboo Mission formed under the Department of Industries and assists in its training initiatives. As part of a project under the Rashtriya Sam Vikas Yojana (RSVJ) programme of Government of India, Uravu has started imparting craft training to rural people. The organisation also joined hands with Ambedkar Hast Shilp Vikas Yojana (AHVY) and NABARD, and actively worked towards the establishment of mother and satellite units for development of bamboo craft and products in Wayanad.

Uravu helped about 200 families in Wayanad find a liveli-

hood through its initiatives and activities related to bamboo. The scientific upgradation of the productive skills of rural people through appropriate technologies was necessary for sustainability. Re-establishing the control of rural communities over natural resources, production technologies and market processes and bringing back these marginalized social groups to the mainstream of the society is a critical development challenge.

Coupled with tourism, the bamboo product making industry could bring in sustainable development in the Bamboo Village of Thrikkaipetta without creating disturbances in its ecosystem. ‘Uravu’ in Malayalam means the source of stream which became the source of creativity, employment and financial support of the rural.

Contact: Email: uravu.india@gmail.com bamboocluster@gmail.com

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ocal supply of quality milk by small dairy units could provide the answer to the problem of shortage of milk in the State. The conventional method of distribution, combined with modern technique, enhances the dairy farmers’ income by saving on the expenses on long-distance transport, packaging, storing and the pasteurization of milk, while ensuring that consumers get good quality milk. The Nature Fresh milk project, a simple and organised system of milk distribution launched locally by the Idukki district unit of Kudumbasree, has now spread too many areas and helped many small units gain better profits.

The small units highlight a convergence method that increases milk production, while making better quality milk available locally. Nature Fresh milk has now positioned itself as a brand, even while enhancing availability of cow dung for agriculture and biogas for household needs, further reducing the family expenses of the unit members. The conventional method of distribution was found to be more effective due to the proximity of the producer and the consumer. It also eliminates middlemen, ensuring transparency from production to distribution. The units also supply better quality milk without preservative materials or adulteration.

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October 2011

By K.S. Sasthry

Aries

This month is not so good but after the first half health of family members may deteriorate trouble or unhappy atmosphere can dominate in service sector. Caution in all transaction, contract and contacts is needed. Lose of happiness can cause less of appetite and consequence weakness. There may be disputes over property .There is a chance for shift of home. Find hard to meet the day demands. Speculation will not do well. Towards the end of the month all the trouble will be eradicated and endowed with comfort. New achievement gets in education. Spouse looks after the native sincerely and gives all pleasure and support. Gain through figure travel.

Auspicious days : Oct 19,20,24,25,26,27 Nov 4,5,9,10.

Taurus

Success in all undertakings, promotion in service and get respect from subordinates. Earn through real estate. Improvement in financial status and not satisfied with sexual desires. Have extra marital relationship with opposite sex. So business proposal can go slow. Partner will be greedy in business. Health of mother can be affected.

Matrimonial affair can culminate into happy situation, be careful with strangers and a picnic or pilgrimage can boost your energy. Speculation can be fruitful.

Auspicious days: Oct 21, 22,27,28,29, Nov 7, 8.

Gemini

Health problems can arise and loss of mental and physical strength.

The children do not obey or they may remain ill. Birth of a new baby brings happiness in the family. Bring success in competitive exam. Frequently visit of entertainment places like cinema club etc. The native lift up with the help of persons of upper class. Change of profession or dispute in the industries is possible. Avoid long term projects. Speculation can bring loss only. Successful trip to 48

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foreign countries or distant place can bring gain towards the second half of the month. There is progress in business.

Enjoy delicious food and luxurious love affairs. Flourish of alignment and domestic bless can bring cheer.

Auspicious days: Oct 24,25,29,30 Nov 6, 7,8,9,15,16.

Cancer

Unusual ego problem exists among the members of family. Occasional clash occur among them.

Health problems such as stomachache, eye diseases can occur. Cause sufferings from higher official in working place. Purchase of new vehicle. Get marital satisfaction with spouse.

Business trip can earn. Get money from different source.

Enjoy luxury. Get relief from debit. Speculation can be fruitful. Beware of misappropriation at the place of work .Love affair may go smooth. Success in litigation, health of the partner needs care, matrimonial affairs succeed.

Auspicious Days: Oct 21,22,24,25 Nov: 2, 3, 9, 10, 11, 12.

Leo

Get wealth from various sources.

Participate in charitable deeds. Favor for purchase of vehicles or property. A family dispute can create unpleasant situation. Your authority can rule supreme. Get advantage with new friendship. Take over important responsibility. A person of opposite sex can bring some disturbance. Business trip can earn well, prestige and prosperity increase and become happy .Can face health problems like eye trouble, stomachache, and low pressure etc, .Promotion in the field of service and get a transfer to his choice can be accepted.

Auspicious Date: Oct 24,25,27,28 Nov 5, 6,13,14,15.

Virgo

Enjoy all kind of comfort and get ornaments, some kind of gain from relatives. Get pleasure form the spouse. Spend time to enjoy music, dance and cinema etc. Get the company of a new friend. Ability in the working field

will be appreciated and get honors. Material gain can be expected. Take care of valuable things during travel.

Speculations do well. Pending case can succeed. Control your tongue and keep away from the company of sinful and bad people. Beware of fracture of feet by slipping.

Forbidden activities are likely to attract you. Shows interest for getting loans for joint finance.

Auspicious Days: Oct 19,20,21,22,25,26,29,30.Nov 7,8.

Libra

Can able to enjoy all kind of luxuries. Business flourishes, earning through trade of liquid goods, cosmetics, fancy items. Business tour brings success. Planning must be meticulous to avoid losses. A much awaited marriage can happen. Matters connected with profession need vigilant approach. Aged and ailing may have to be careful.

Beware of emotional involvement. Lack of concentration makes you quarrelsome. Health of mother can be affected. Stay away from speculation. Problems in working place reduce.

Auspicious Days: Oct 21, 22,23,24,31 Nov 1, 6, 7,9,10.

Scorpio

Those in Government services face problems. Transfer of loss of position may happen. Expenditure increases. Be conscious that bad time for father and brothers. Care should be taken on riding. Speak unsocial languages and suffer loss of health. Face hindrance in education. Expect displeasure from superiors. Good time for businessman.

Trade flourishes and enjoys modern luxuries and company of friends. Speculation can help. Wealth through opposite sex is possible. An intimate relationship can blur or fail. Trip to foreign land or distance place can bring gain.

Auspicious Days: Oct 23, 24, 25,26,29,30. Nov 2, 3, 13,14 Sagittarius

This month will be good for new ventures. Careful financial planning and speculation will do well. Get relief from debits and feeling fulfillment of commitment. Engage in Foreign trip for education. Get comfort and happiness with recognition at work. Unmarried can

get married. Intellectual project can bring you success, change of vehicle is possible, Auspicious events are ahead.

Promotion in the working field, various source of income and beneficial for businessman, one of the sons can get a job. An important responsibility or assignment come to you, enjoy the company of opposite sex.

Auspicious Days: Oct 19,20,25,26,27,29,31Nov 1,5,6.

Capricorn

Health and wealth increases, get influence of high officials, new job, promotion or honor is expected, speculation do good, involve in social welfare activities, have good relation with family member can involve in pretty quarrels , enjoy the company of wife and children, spouse need care, wasteful expenditure should be reduced. Much awaited marriage can happen. Business expansion proposal can go fast.

Auspicious Days: Oct22, 23, 27,28,29,30 Nov 2,3,7,8.

Aquarius

This month is not auspicious, wrath of father and sickness to him, can face false allegation, loss of wealth and honor, feels disgusted due to unsuccessful endeavors, loss of honor and prestige, promoted to more responsible position, toward the second half of the month things will change and health improve. Receive the grace of the govt. official, get new vehicle non payment or delayed payment of bills can cause worries. Brothers may be put in trouble.

Auspicious Days: Oct 23,24,29,30 Nov 1,2,5,6,9,10.

Pisces

Health problems such as body pain, pills, and indigestion can arise, quarrel with the spouse, health of father is not good, toward the second half of the month health, wealth and prosperity improves, happiness from children, gain from real estate, get benefits through speculation, pleasurable relation with relatives, get some permanent source of income, participation in religious ceremonies, gain of valuables or properties.

Auspicious Days: Oct 24, 25, 31 Nov 1, 2, 3,7,8,13,14.

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October 2011

Leisure Travel

T

he Riverside Estate Resort perched on the edge of 130 acres rubber plantation fringing the Pepara Wildlife Sanctuary- which is a habitat to a wide variety of endangered flora and fauna in South-

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ern Kerala. Duke’s Forest Lodge is a perfect hide away to delight in Mother Nature’s bounty to “God’s Own Country”.

The lodging consists of ethnically designed well spaced out independent Pool-Villas with large sit-outs

that offer spectacular views of the virgin rainforests.

The Villas built on pillars, are accessed by well-lit landscaped and cobbled walkways dotted with banana plants in-between. The bedrooms are spacious with elegantly furnished interiors and en-suit roomy bathrooms that are tastefully ordained. The resort offers accommodation in its well-appointed Pool Villas and Standard Rooms. All the rooms are outfitted with modern facilities. Duke’s Forest Lodge has a fine multi-cuisine restaurant that offers food and drinks.

One can enjoy the clear vistas of virgin rainforests from the resort’s premises. The resort offers a spectrum of amenities along with traditional South Indian hospitality.

It provides superb ayurvedic treatment and yoga facilities to rejuvenate the mind, body and soul. Moreover, beautiful swimming pool, excellent dining & conference facilities, these are few other features of the hotel. This stunningly breathtaking locale offers endless opportunities for trekking, bird watching, photography, mountaineering and visits to the forest settlements of the Kaani tribe.

Duke’s forest lodge is located 50 km. from Kovalam and in between the capital city and the hill station, Ponmudi. The nearest Thiruvananthapuram international airport is 48 km. away from the resort.

Sandwiched between the lush foliage of the Forest and the Rubber plantation, the setting is picture-perfect and offers the idyllic prospect to rediscover the splendors of Mother Nature at her tranquil best!

Contact: Anapara, Vithura, Nedumangadu, Thiruvananthapuram-695541 Tel: +914722859273/2858272, Fax: +914712267182 Email: nest@sancharnet.in www. dukeforest.com 51

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October 2011

C ol u m n

Niyathi

I

ndia is a democratic socialist country. Also India is a Federal State. We follow five year Plans as an economic growth policy. Our twin objectives are equity and social justice. We recognise food, clothing and shelter as the fundamental rights.

India achieved self sufficiency in food grain production.

But we could not solve hunger and poverty. Millions go to bed with starving stomach. Also children and aged people live unhealthy and die due to lack of nutrition.

Where do India stand after 60 years of 11 Five Year Plans.

We made tremendous growth in agriculture, industry, education, health, technology, science, transport and telecommunications. India is at present the second largest growing economy in the world. Also India is the fourth largest economy in terms of GDP. India is poised to overtake Japan as the worlds third largest economy.

But dispute all these positive growth factors, India is facing problems like poverty, unemployment, inflation and income inequality. In other words, India is fast emerging as the richest poor country in the world.

India target to eradicate, poverty and starvation. National Food Security bill and public distribution of food crops are oriented to achieve this target. India’s annual food production which was 50 million tones during 1950 increased to 197 million tonnes during 2001. Food production is estimated at 241 million tones during 2011.

Total buffer stock is estimated at 65 million tones. But when buffer stocks jumped to 65 millions in 2002, the stocks were liquidated at throw away prices as internal consumption did not rise. Targeted public distribution introduced in 1997 introduced dual pricing for BPL and APL families. Globalisation and liberalisation have accel-

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Kerala and Ecconomy

erated the GDP growth rate from 6 to 7 present during 1990s to 9 percent during the 10th plan. However the world recession during 2008-09 slowed down the GDP growth rate. Inflation, reduces the purchasing lower, particularly of BPL families and hence more people are pushed below to BPL line. Inflation rate increased from an average annual rate of 5 percent during 2005 - 08 to 8

percent during 2008 - 2011. According Crisil, a global research company, Indian houeholds incurred additional expenses of Rs.5.80 lakh crore during 2008-2011 due to erosion of purchasing power of money and inflated consumption expenses. Growth in private consumption expenditure was around 17 percent during 2008-2011 as against 14 percent during 2005-08. Food inflation has been around 11.6 percent during 2008-11 as against 5.7 percent for non food items. RBI liked its key rates 12 times since March, 2010 to curb demand and contain money supply. However inflationary pressure still continue and it is likely to continue on account of global commodity prices, particularly crude oil.

Inclusive growth strategy of the UPA Goverenment at the centre since 2004-2005 changed the situation.

Employment guarantee programme, Sarvasiksha Abhiyan, National Rural Health Mission and Bharat Nirman pump more money in to the economy in the form of wage and employment creating additional consumption demand. The proposed National Food Security Bill

target to distribute 35 kg food grains to each BPL family at reduced price (3 kg. rice at Rs.3 kg, 2 kg wheat at Rs.2/kg and 1 kg other crops at Rs.1/kg). For the APL people, it is proposed to distribute 20 kg food grains at 50 percent of the minimum support price. The draft bill propose to bring 68 percent people in the country under the national food security. It will benefit 75 percent rural people and 50 percent urban people. Union Government will have to spend nearly Rs.95,000 crores as subsidy for the food security. Similarly Governments will have to procure 30 percent of food grains produced annually for its implementation. It shows that nearly 65 to 70 million tons of foodgrains will have to be procured for the food security. Here there are two vital issues, (i) Food grains production has to be increased and procurement and distribution has to be made more effective and efficient. (ii) Capital investment in farm sector and public distribution need substantial increase investment for this purpose is estimated at Rs.2 lakh crores. Therefore the vital issue before the Union Government is how to mobilise the required fund for the food security.

How to select beneficiaries under ‘Food Security’ is an energing issue. Poverty fixing criteria, as suggested by Central Planning Commission, has raised criticism across the civil society. Planning Commission suggest a percapita expenditure of Rs.26 per day in rural area and Rs.32 in urban area for fixing the poverty line. People below the line are BPL families and above the line are APL families. The Food security bill provide for grains entitlement to 75 percent of the rural population with minimum 46 percent households. The civil society oppose the ceiling on the eligible number. The poverty line when converted into monthly family income, it is Rs.3,905 for rural areas and Rs.4,824 for urban areas for a family of five members.

The norms of percapita income has been fixed with reference to the price Index of May, 2011. The line derived is not full proof. Hence planning commission has stated that Government favoured delinking of food entitlement and other social programmes from the poverty line. But the question here is with regard to universalisation of public distribution system. The beneficiaries under National Food Security Bill are proposed to be determined through the parametres set under the socio-economic caste census of January - February 2012. Therefore the issue of BPL line and National Food Security beneficiary selection are at present unnecessary.

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October 2011

Te c h n o l o g y

Y

ou’ve probably never heard of a Boogie Board LCD Writing Tablet. That’s because it’s brand new - the first ever LCD writing tablet. The Boogie Board Tablet is an innovative green initiative. ‘net4sys’ introduced India’s first Bogie Board LCD writing tablet. The Boogie Board tablet is the tree-friendly electronic alternative to paper, pencils, and pens. As a Green initiative, the Boogie Board tablet is highly-effective to reduce everyday paper consumption. It also replaces chalk, magnetic and dry erase boards and it’s just as easy to use.

Boogie Board tablet is more than just a memo pad and is ultra portable; only 3mm thick and 120g. About as much writing space as a half sheet of letter sized paper. Students will find it’s the perfect tool for practicing handwriting/arithmetic, drawing pictures and playing games. Say goodbye to dry erase boards with smelly, dried up markers.

A single Boogie Board can handle up to 50,000 reuses. The battery lasts 6 years if screen is erased 20 times a day.

The Boogie Board tablet consumes no electrical energy to produce an image. It’s affordable too.

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Simply press on the surface with the included stylus or other suitable writing instrument (even your finger) to create an image and then erase with the push of a button.

Written and graphic images are created with desired pressure.

Use any non-scratchy tool to write. The Boogie Board’s Reflex LCD is highly responsive to variable amounts of pressure, meaning that it’s comparable to the experience of using a pencil on a sheet of paper. The Boogie Board tablet’s pressure-sensitive LCD writing surface creates lines of different thickness based on how hard you push - just like paper and pen.

The case and LCD are made from durable plastic materials; safe for school use and all around the house, office and car.

Durable materials will withstand years of use and abuse. Boogie Board is like a digital notepad. Erase your image with the touch of a button - and a friendly flash from the liquid crystal display. With the Boogie Board LCD writing tablet, you’ll never be without a memo pad, pen or pencil. You’ll never be caught again looking for a piece of paper and pen to write important to-dos.

Te c h n o l o g y

H

TC Rhyme, officially called HTC Bliss, one of the top smart phones being launched by Taiwanese technology, will be targeted to be a feminine smart phone. The new HTC feminine smart phone have Antroid 2.3 Gingerbred operating system, HTC

I

Small is beautiful

t may look barely big enough to cover a picture-taking fingertip and it’s so small you could lose it in a snap. But Hammacher Schlemmer, the makers of this microscopic device clearly believe good things come in tiny packages, after inventing the world’s smallest commercially-available camera. The 28-gram device works perfectly well, despite being the size of a marble and no bigger than a fingertip. The World’s Smallest Camera is only

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sense 3.5 user interface, 3.7 inch WVGA display, Callcom MSM 8255 snapdragon processor, Adrano 205 GPU, 768 MB Ram, 4 GB internal storage, 8 GB micro SD card, 5 mega pixel camera, 720 pixel video recording, VGA front facing camera, message alerting blinking light, and Bluetooth headset. The purple and yellow colour makes the smart phone more attractive.

eader in the global payment services, Western Union, is looking at increasing its presence in Kerala considering the growth in the remittance market especially from the gulf countries to the state.

Mr. Kiran Shetty, Regional VicePresident, Western Union Said, Kerala is an important remittance receiving market in India and western union’s presence is entering its 17th year.

Kerala is one of the top five markets for the company and the large chunk

slightly larger than a marble; it takes still images and records video just like much larger cameras.

The miniature one inch-squared camera can amazingly take two megapixel images and can even shoot video. The World’s Smallest Camera, as boasted by its makers, can take JPEG images with a resolution of 1600 x 1200 and comes complete with autofocus.

The camera also connects to a computer via a USB cable, just like regular pieces of photography equipment. of the business is from the Middle East. He added that the objective behind opening more outlets in the state is to come closer to the customers. The average spending of customer transaction is in the range of $400500 a transaction in the State. As a company, they are continually looking at ways to improve the service to consumers. Western Union expansion network strategy is being where their consumers want them to be and delivering international money transfer service with reliability, convenience and speed.

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G

News

REEN TOUCH, farm media and support service, is an Agri-Clinic & Agri-Business Centre (ACABC) under the Department of Agriculture, Government of India. It is a Farm Media Support System registered with MANAGE, the National Institute of Agri Extension Management, Hyderabad. Financially backed by NABARD, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development and SMGB, the South Malabar Gramin Bank, the nodal agency for implementation of the project is Kerala Agricultural University GREEN TOUCH provides extension support through electronic and new media to Govt. Agencies, Research Institutions, Scientific Organisations, Training Agencies, Local bodies, NGOs, Banks, Extension personnel, Scientists, Farmers etc across the country. Their vision is to support all agencies connected with farm sector by providing access to modern media production facilities at affordable cost and reliability to meaningfully integrate the technical know-how in agriculture with latest developments in Media and ICT to positively influence the mindset of all those who love farming for increased productivity, profitability and sustainability in crop and animal management sectors.

Central and State Government Departments and Agencies, Public sector undertakings, Research institutes, local bodies, Technical Organizations, Individuals like Scientists, Professionals and Farmers are mainly benefited by GREENTOUCH. In short, Cost-Effective, Quality assured, Time-bound deliver of products and services is the simplest way to define GREENTOUCH.

Riaz Ahamed President KTM Society

M

r. Riaz Ahamed Managing Director Abad Group of Hotels &Resorts, Cochin will Lead Kerala Travel Mart Society for one more term, 2011-2013.

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October 2011

Vallathol Award for C. Radhakrishnan

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riter Mr. C. Radhakrishnan bagged this year’s Vallathol Award of the Vallathol Sahitya Samithi.

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News

ocated on the banks of Chittur River in Palakkad, is a unique farming venture that has undertaken the mission to bring back the fast losing significance of Navara, Kerala’s own grain with medicinal value. The man behind the idea, Mr. P. Narayanan Unny, is indeed the proud owner of Unny’s Navara Eco Farm.

Mr. Narayanan Unny, a B.Com Graduate from Government College, Chittur, started his career as a pharmaceutical distributor and later to his family tradition, farming. During the early days of his farming, Unny brought extensive changes to the farming methods and figured out vegetables. The eco farm is organic certithat many of the traditional rice varieties fied by Indocert, which is an accredited were getting extinct. The story begins here. agency of Agricultural and Processed Food The knowledge about the fact that the Products Export Development Authortraditional rice varieties were getting extinct ity (APEDA). The entire farm is certified pushed him to conserve the Navara rice. organic for NPOP (National Project on After years of continuous effort, Unny was Organic Production), EU (European successful of collecting enough Navara Union) USDA (United State Department seeds and gradually moved into cultivating of Agriculture) from year 2006. solely Navara rice in his farm.

Narayanan Unny was conferred the Navara, endemic to Kerala and famous “Plant Genome Savior Community Recfor its medicinal significance is widely ognition Award” by Protection of Plant used in the Ayurvedic system of medicine, Varieties and Farmer’s Right Authority especially in Panchakarma treatment.

(PPV&FRA), Ministry of Agriculture, Navara comes with the helping hands Government of India. As you move deeper for Navarakizhi and Navaratheppu, two Mr. Narayanan Unny into Unnys Navara Eco Farm, you will discover health, major treatments in Ayurveda for arthritis, paralysis and wealth and wonders of nature that this farm is endowed neurological disorders. Also used for curing psoriasis, with! peptic ulcer, osteoporosis, cirrhosis, piles, snake bites, polio, rheumatism, diabetes, anemia, urinary tract infection and Contact: also as a diuretic, tshe studies found anti cancerous gene in Navara Eco Farm, Karukamani Kalam, Chittur College Navara especially preventive for breast cancer.

P.O. , Palakkad Dist.,Kerala, India, Pin: 678 104 As Navara is medicinal Mr. Unny adopted only organic Phone: +91 4923 221177, 222277, farming methods. Spread over an area of 18 acres, the Mobile: +91 9447277749, Navara Eco Farm also has other types of crops like cocoEmail: unnysfarm@gmail.com nut, mango, pomegranate, medicinal herbs, bamboo and www.navara.in

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O w n e d , E d i t e d , P r i n t e d a n d P u b l i s h e d b y R a v i s a n k a r K . V . P r i n t e d a t A r s h a O f f s e t G r a p h i x , Shreehari, T.C.9/2519-1, Janvilla Lane, Vellayambalam, Sasthamangalam, Thiruvananthapuram - 695 010 and Published from TC 9/1785, P-99, Anandam, Pullekonam Lane, Sasthamangalam P.O., Thiruvananthapuram-695010, Kerala, India Editor: Ravisankar K.V.

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July 2011

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RNI Reg. No. KERENG 2010/36920

Vol. 01

No. 09

October 2011

Licence of Post KL/TV(S)/374/2011-2013