Somewhere in Melbourne....

Indian students protest against the racist attacks on Indians in Australia.

UPA govt lays stress on speedy disposal of cases

The next five years of the UPA government will be an era of judicial reforms including emphasis on speedy disposal of cases, Union Minister for Law and Justice M Veerappa Moily said. “Steps would be taken for appointment of judges to ensure speedy disposal of cases in consultation with judiciary and herald reforms in the judicial system," Moily said. Providing scientific tools to manage investigations, improving governance in judiciary and eradication of corruption topped the priority of the government, he said, adding the government would engage judiciary into dialogues in implementing the initiatives. He said priorities of the government had already been earmarked. "The idea is to perform. This is the message given to us as people who elected us for the second term have high expectations," Moily said. "People want stability.The Congress believes in inclusive growth and equal protection to everybody.We don't believe in fragmented society" Moily said.

Honda Jazz set for India debut

Honda Siel, which is all set to launch its premium hatchback ‘the Jazz’ on June 10, is likely to price it around Rs 6.5-6.8 lakh, making it the most expensive ‘super-mini’ on Indian roads. The Jazz, based on the same platform as Honda’s City, will be cheaper than the best-selling sedan, though foreign exchange fluctuations have forced the carmaker to price it much above competing models such as Skoda Fabia and Hyundai i20. The Jazz, know as the Fit in Japan, was the best selling car in that country last year. Honda Siel has also finalised its second small car for the Indian market. Honda Siel CEO Masahiro Takedagawa is flying to Japan in two weeks to get the formal approval from the Japanese parent. The new small car, a global car based on a new platform, will be developed for India, and will be exported to other markets. Honda claims it will offer better fuel efficiency compared with other hatchback compacts available in India. Honda has already started production of the Jazz on May 28 at its Greater Noida plant. The Jazz will be fitted with a 1.2 litre petrol engine that will crank out 90PS power.

Celebrating change

Children rejoice as Monsoon and pre-monsoon showers hit many places across India bringing a scorching Summer to an end....

Bangalore's Skyscraper

A world-class 200-250 storey building and a garden around it. That is what may come up on the Bangalore Turf Club land. Yeddyurappa envisaged this structure during the Vikasa Sanaklp Utsav. “We have ordered Bangalore Turf Club to shift base. There is no need to hold races a stone’s throw away from Vidhana Soudha. We are thinking of having a 200-250 storey building, which will be world famous. The remaining space can be developed as a garden,” he explained. The government has identified land on the outskirts and the Turf Club will have to move by December-end this year. Yeddyurappa said the government plans to develop ‘mini Lalbaghs’ at four or five places in the city.

LED bulbs

To change the bulbs in the 60-foot-high ceiling lights of Buckingham Palace’s grand stairwell, workers had to erect scaffolding and cover portraits of royal forebears. So when a lighting designer two years ago proposed installing light emitting diodes or LEDs, an emerging lighting technology, the royal family readily assented. The new lights, the designer said, would last more than 22 years and enormously reduce energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. In shifting to LED lighting, the palace is part of a small but fast-growing trend that is redefining the conception of lighting, replacing energy-wasting disposable bulbs with efficient fixtures that are semi-permanent. Studies suggest that a complete conversion to the lights could decrease carbon dioxide emissions from electric power use for lighting by up to 50% in just over 20 years. A recent report by McKinsey & Co cited conversion to LED lighting as the most cost effective of a number of simple approaches to tackling global warming using existing technology. LED lighting was once relegated to basketball scoreboards, cell phone consoles and traffic lights. But as a result of rapid developments in the technology, it is poised to become a staple on streets and in buildings, as well as in homes and offices. LEDs are more than twice as efficient as compact fluorescent bulbs, currently the standard for greener lighting. Unlike compact fluorescents, LEDs turn on quickly and are compatible with dimmer switches. And while fluorescent bulbs contain mercury, which requires special disposal, LED bulbs have no toxic elements. The switch to LEDs is proceeding far more rapidly than experts had predicted two years ago. However, there remain significant barriers. Homeowners may balk at the high initial cost. An outdoor LED spotlight today costs $100, as opposed to $7 for a regular bulb. And in the rush to make cheaper LEDs, poorly manufactured products could erase the technology’s natural advantage, reducing their lifespan from decades to months.

Getting tech savvy

Taking a cue from cities like Singapore and New York, Mumbai's BEST undertaking is likely to soon install bluetoothenabled services in its 4,027 buses. “The bluetooth-enabled services would be of much help to our nearly 50 lakh commuters. The proposal is likely to come within a month and once it is passed, the services will be introduced,’’ BEST chairman Dilip Patel said. The system would provide a route and other information on services to the commuters having cellphones. It will first be introduced for long-route buses like the air-conditioned BRTS and then on the smaller routes, Patel said. With these services, commuters will know which routes the bus will cover, the next stop and when will it reach the final destination, he said.