DEVELOPMENT DIGEST

VOL.4 1-31 May 2001 NO.2

The country’s merchandise exports reported a near 20 per cent growth in 2000-01 at $44.1 billion, exceeding the target of 18 per cent set for the year. Imports, in contrast, grew 0.27 per cent to $49.84 billion despite a whopping 62.29 per cent surge in oil imports. Exports in March were valued at $4.27 billion, up 10.82 per cent over the corresponding month last year. In rupee terms, exports were valued at Rs 19, 941.07 crore, up by 18.53 per cent. Main sectors that performed well are marine products, leather and leather products, basic chemicals, engineering goods, electronic goods, manmade yarn fabric and made-ups as also readymade garments. The country’s exports during 2000-01 at $44.1 billion was up by 19.83 per cent from last year’s level of $36.8 billion. In rupee terms, exports increased to Rs 201,674.01 crore during the same period, up by 26.36 per cent. Imports moved up from $49.71 billion to $49.84 billion during the year, with oil imports bill rising to $15.65 billion from last year’s $9.65 billion.

RAILWAYS OFFER ON-LINE TICKETING

In an innovative plan to provide off the counter ticketing and freight booking, Railways has tied up with Punjab National Bank (PNB). The project will be run on a pilot basis in Delhi. After its success in the National Capital Region, plans are on to enable internet bookings in 20 major cities which account for over

75 per cent of long-distance passenger reservations. The project envisages ticketing through branches of PNB, Internet ticketing and also through the Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) is expected to be involved in getting this project online. It will also help Railways to lift the load away from the counters. Railways presently has 554 commputerised ticket reservation counters and there is a need for immense expansion of the network. As per the ATMs of the bank – both for passenger and freight. The Indian Railway IRCTC proposal, internet ticketing would result in cutting costs of setting up more counters in major cities.

LOW COST BEEHIVE BOX DEVELOPED

A low cost lantana hive box designed by the Rudraprayag-based NGO Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organisation (HESCO) to replace the expensive wooden boxes used for rearing the honey bee has been developed. The lantana hive box cost Rs 85 as against the wooden box that cost between Rs 1200 to Rs 1500. Though at an initial stage of promotion, the lantana hive box is bound to increase honey production as the poor villagers will be in a position to afford it to start as apiary. The Union Minster of State ordered the Khadi Village and Industries Commission (KVIC) to act as a promoter of lantana boxes of HESCO as they were not only cost effective but an economic utilization of the weed lantana found in most plain areas of the country. It may be mentioned that lantana is also being used for making furniture which again is a low cost product when compared with wooden, cane or bamboo furniture’s and gaining much popularity in Haryana and Punjab.

(Ministry of Information and Broadcasting)

Now doctors in Uttar Pradesh need not despair if they need expert medical advice. At the click of the mouse, they will be connected to specialists at the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Science at Lucknow, the state capital. The facility has already been used for the benefit of about 170 patients. The experts in different medical disciplines could be made available for online discussion with doctor in district hospitals to offer prompt advise on the line. The patients can also be examined from distance with help of close circuit cameras. SGPGI made this offer to government-run hospitals and private establishments in different districts of UP. District hospitals seeking the facility would only require a computer with a close-circuit camera and Internet connection.

INDUSTRY POST HIGHER GROWTH

(The Pioneer – 7-05-2001)
The Industry finally appears to be coming out of its recessionary phase with 34 sectors including oil and natural gas, agriculture, food and electrical machinery registering a higher production growth during the last fiscal, according to the latest Ascon data released by the Confederation of Indian Industry. As per the data released by the association councils, 101 out of 132 sectors surveyed, which accounted for more than 65 per cent of the total production, showed positive growth during 2000-01. while 11 sectors had achieved excellent growth of more than 20 per cent, 29 sectors had recorded 10-20 per cent growth and 61 sectors had moderate growth between zero to 10 per cent, the data reveals. The sectors recording higher during last fiscal over the previous year included three-wheelers, LPG , diesel, petrol, nuclear power, textile machinery and air

conditioners. At least eight sectors recorded a positive growth rate during the fiscal 2000-01 against a negative growth rate in 1999-2000. Malted food, glass products, textile machinery and nylon filament yarn are among the other items which have clocked higher growth rates in exports, it added.

NGO OFFERS WIDER CONTRACEPTIVES’ CHOICE

Saadhan, new birth control campaign was launched by the NGO, Population Service International (PSI), with the promise of offering a wider choice in the matter of birth control. The programme which is an extension of Union Health Ministry’s Reproductive Child Health Programme will, however, differ. People would have to pay for the service. This means that, while the governments’ programme would give condoms, pills and IUDs free of cost, the NGO would price and rename the products bought from the Government. Another difference will be that the NGO will offer injectible contraceptives in addition to the other three choices. The similarity would be that like the Government’s programme, Saddhan would offer its products through the primary health care centers and government hospitals apart from offering them through private clinics. While the injectible Depo Provera would cost Rs 30 per dose, a pack of 10 condoms called Masti would cost Rs. 10 and pill called Pearl would cost Rs 10 for a month. While the injectibles are being imported from Indonesia, the other contraceptives are supplied by the government. The campaign, according to Managing Director of PSI India, aims at providing and expanded basket of choice of contraceptives, including pills, condoms, IUDs and the injectilbe Depo Provera.

A 300-acre Biotech Park at Turkapally in Andhra Pradesh is coming up with offering world class infrastructure and Rs. 50 crore Biotechnology Development Fund. The Biotech Park at Turkapally is a novel

concept and first of its kind in the country. It will provide the necessary infrastructure and suitable environment for development of biotechnology sector. It would focus on bio-pharma, health care and agri companies in the first phase. The infrastructure includes Genome Valley encompassing Shamirpet,Medichal, Keesra and Uppal spread over 600 sq. km. The Biotech Park project would be supported in the form of grants, subsidies, Sales Tax concession and soft loans and will have state-of-the-art communication facilities. The ‘ready’ benefits include ready-to-occupy flatted factories, National Resources Centre to be set up by the Central Department of Biotechnology, single-window clearance and instant customs clearance.

CBSE TO TAKE INDIAN CULTURE TO NRI KIDS

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has drawn up ambitious plans to promote Indian culture and heritage abroad for the benefit of non resident Indians (NRIs) . In order to enable the children of NRIs to have a deep understanding of the language and culture of their motherland, the CBSE has decided to launch international accreditation courses in several Indian languages and Indian Culture. The Indian languages to be taught include Hindi, Malayalam, Gujarati, Bengali, Tamil and Gurmukhi. The various aspects of Indian culture to be covered are Indian folk and classical dances, Indian art and architecture, Indian vocal and instrumental music, Indian history and civilization , Indian literature, Indian family and social structure and Indian health systems (Yoga and Ayurveda). To achieve this purpose, the CBSE has already established an international cell. The courses will be offered at three levels. The first level Parichaya , is a foundation course, while the second level named Prabodh is a functional course. The third level, Praveen , is a proficiency course.

WORLD’S LONGEST LPG PIPELINE

The 1270-km long pipeline has been built by the public sector Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) at an estimated cost of Rs 1229.45 crore, which includes a foreign exchange component of Rs 386.73 crore. The commissioning of the pipeline is expected to ease the shortage of petroleum products in northern India, apart from giving a boost to economic activities in the area and reducing industrial pollution. It will transport LPG equivalent to 5 lakh domestic cylinders per day and the initial capacity of the system is 1.7 million metric tones per annum (mmtpa) which will subsequently be raised to 2.5 mmtpa by the year 2011-20-12. The pipeline, which runs across several states ,crosses a total of 23 railway tracks, nine national highways and 44 state highways in its long journey. It crosses the river Yamuna by the horizontal directional drilling (HDD) method. At present, there are 13 refineries and 10 gas fractionators which produce LPG. Large amount of LPG is transported by road and by Rail with the former mode handling around 80 per cent of the total supply.

NEW TEST FOR AIDS DETECTION

A rapid test for detecting HIV has been developed by Cadila Pharmaceuticals, an Ahmedabad-based pharmaceutical company, in collaboration with the University of Delhi, South Campus, and the Department of Biotechnology. The test is the fastest available and gives results in just three minutes. The Naked Eye Visual Agglution Assay (NEVA) utilizes unique recombinant bifunctional fusion proteins and detects antibodies to both HIV 1 and 2. The sensitivity of the tests have been established at 100 per cent and its specificity at 99.3 per cent by various hospitals across the country. Indian has an estimated HIV-infected population of 3to 5 million. The blood obtained from the donor becomes unfit for transfusion if it is found to be reactive. It is expected that the present agglutination test would go along way in satisfying the evaluator about the status of a

blood or sera sample in the shortest possible time as the test is highly sensitive and specific in its evaluation results. The test is affordably priced.

DIGITAL SWITCH TO STREETLIGHTS

Streetlights of the capital are all set to go digital. After its successful six-month trail run, the Delhi Vidyut Board is now on large-scale introducing of electronic lighting systems which will automatically switch on/off at dawn and dusk. Signaling a shift from manual operations, the new system would spare DVB linesmen the trouble of manually switching the streetlights on/off twice a day. The DVB maintains about 3.5 lakhs streetlights in the Capital on behalf of Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Public Works Department and Delhi Development Authority. Under the "Dusk-Dawn" system, the officials fix the time on the digital meter – enough for about 50 poles – and the system then automatically switches on/off as per the preset timings till further changes are carried out. In the first phase, 500 such instruments will be procured which is expected to cater to the needs of major roads of the city.

MINISTRIES TO SAVE MEDICINAL PLANTS

The Medicinal Plants Board under the ministry of health and family welfare has identified 29 medicinal plants as endangered, help is coming from various quarters, for the conservation of medicinal flora and steps for their a conservation, cultivation, marketing and export is taking off. The ministry of environment & forests is implementing 17 projects solely for medicinal plant plantations. Funds have been sanctioned separately under the non timber forest produce (NTFP) scheme of the Centre for the first time. The projects are being implemented by National Afforestations & Eco Development Board. Confined mainly to degraded forest areas, the scheme provides 100 per cent financial assistance to the states for conservation, development and increasing production of such plants species. Meanwhile, the department of agriculture has rolled out a

scheme for the development of medicinal plants. For the Ninth Plan, an outlay of Rs 14.50 crore has been allocated for this programme which includes production and distribution of planting material, establishment of nurseries and herbal gardens, regional analytical labs, demonstration plots, area expansion and training of farmers. The department of biotechnology has also launched research and development programmes to make drugs from theses plants. Steps are being taken to encourage propagation and cultivation of such plant species by including them under various schemes such as in-situ/ex-situ conservation, biosphere reserves, establishment of gene banks and agro-techniques.

UNESCO RECOGNITION FOR KOODIYATTAM

AYURVEDIC HOSPITAL IN DELHI

The Health Ministry will set up a state-of-art National Ayurvedic Hospital in the capital. According to Union Health minister, hospital will be set up natural surroundings with medicinal plants

supported by a mini-pharmacy. It would have facilities for specialized treatment of Ayurveda. Further it would offer Panchakarma therapy (for nuero-muscular disorders, rasayana therapy (for health aging), kayakalpa (complete overhauling and rejuvenation therapy , vajikaran (fertility clinics),kshar-sutra therapy, non-hormonal ayurvedic therapy for women and several other clinics. The Department of Indian System of Medicine and Homeopathy has allocated funds for the project. In the first phase, there would also have post graduate teaching and research facilities.

HIMACHAL FOCUS ON ANIMAL HUSBANDRY

HERITAGE PROTECTION SCHEME

Young "swayamsevaks" would get ready in Rajasthan schools from the next academic year to protect the rich cultural heritage of the State. A new scheme to be introduced in 36 schools in various district headquarters will not only motivate the youth for socially useful productive work (SUPW) but also equip them with the knowledge to conserve the heritage. The scheme, tiltled "Sanskritik Dharohar Sevavahini" or the Cultural Heritage Sevavahini, is a novel experiment to catch them young and motivate them for productive work and conservation. Conceived jointly by the Ministries of Education, Tourism and the Board of Secondary Education in Rajasthan, the scheme will have Cultural Hertiage Sevavahini wings in each of the selected schools-which include 10 girls’ school as well –with enrollment of 50-100 students from Class IX or Class XI in each school. Sanskritik Dharohar Vahini’s plan of action includes nature conservation as well as the historical lakes, ponds and step wells or Bawris also form part of the rich heritage of Rajasthan. The children will be imparted information on folk gods and goddesses and folk arts and music traditions. The scheme may provide a job orientation to at least a few youth who would interested in taking up a career in tourism and hospitality sector as tour operators, guides and caterers. The scheme will be monitored through committees at the State, district and school levels with the involvement of the Department of Tourism, Secondary Education Board and Secondary Education Department while the finances would be provided by the Department of Tourism, Art and Culture.

INDIA’S STALL AT CANNES

HERBAL ASTHAM DRUG

A SOFTWARE THAT CAN SPEAK INDIAN LANGUAGES

Summit Infotech, a Delhi-based publishing software company, has developed a multi-lingual data processing technology in association with Oracle and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur. The company has developed a middleware software engine which will facilitate translation of the data in any of the Indian language while entered and retrieved by the user in an application software interface. The data can be entered in computer in any language by a user and the same data can be retrieved by another user in any other Indian language. The technology called by the company as ‘multi-bi-Lingual’ technology offers data translation in almost all Indian languages, including Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Bangla, Assamese, Oriya, Kannada,

NATIONAL JUDICIAL ACADEMY

SCIENCE CITY IN GUJARAT

A three-D IMAX theatre; basic science pavilions, another for communication and information technology; an amphitheatre; theme parks on subjects ranging from universe and evolution to health; complete with interactive exhibits and virtual reality theatres, is the stuff that the first science city project is mad of . The Rs 350-crore project in Gujarat has begun its journey into reality in a one hundred hectare area specially earmarked for the purpose. The first phase, which would cost around Rs. 50 crore, would comprise of India’s first 3-D IMAX theatre and a basic science pavilion of communication and Information Technology with a 10 MBPs International Internet Access Gateway, theme park and an amphitheatre. The required landscaping and site infrastructure would be ready by January 2002. a sum of Rs 30 crore has already been released by the Gujarat Government and another Rs 27 crore has been provided in the current year’s budget.