Modi takes on Rahul, Sonia at Raipur Rally

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 Modi made scathing attack on the Congress leaders for opposing opinion polls, saying the fear of losing elections was the reason behind its “nonsensical” demand and “desperate” tactics. Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate launched a grilling attack against Congress President  Sonia Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi on their claim  of the Centre was giving funds to the state but it was not able to use them properly. Modi asked sarcastically if these funds to Chhattisgarh are coming from Rahul’s “maternal uncle”- a dig at Sonia’s Italian origin.

“There are going to lose power in 2014. BJP and NDA are going to form the government in Delhi.  Congress on fear are trying to ban all opinion polls. These scared, frightened people are in fear of losing power. They are talking nonsense and resorting to desperate tactics,” Modi said.

Modi targeting Sonia Gandhi, who said that the state is still poor and suffering from  governance under BJP rule, and she should do “some homework and then come here”.

“All Congress leaders including the prime minister and the finance minister have praised the Chhattisgarh government. Your government has given several awards and felicitated Chhattisgarh so many times. The state has progressed under Raman Singh,” Modi said.

The BJP leader said the Congress should first implement the election promises it is making — like free rice and 24-hour electricity — in states where it is in power.

He also sought to know why the Congress is scared of disclosing the name of its chief ministerial candidate.

“If a sting is conducted of Congress leaders, they take the name of Ajit Jogi as their CM candidate. Do you fear losing the polls if his name is declared? What are the sins that are preventing you from declaring his name?” he said.

Alleging that Congress’s claims of giving massive funds to Chhattisgarh under various schemes are an insult to its people, Modi said, “Sonia Madam and Shehzade (Rahul) had come here. Said so much foodgrain and funds have been given. Are you people standing here with a begging bowl? What kind of language is the Congress speaking?”

Asserting that the people have a right to central funds, he said, “I want to ask Shehzada, did he get the money from his maternal uncle’s house? This is the people’s money.”Modi sought to know, “Why is the Congress trying to come to power through the backdoor”?

Expressing his condolences over the death of security personnel and polling staff in Maoist attack in the first phase of polls in Chhattisgarh, Modi said the Election Commission should put up the names of such martyrs on its website.

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DataWind announces winners for global Apps-to-Empower Contest

New Delhi, India, 14 November 2013: DataWind, makers of the ‘Aakash’ tablet and a leading developer of wireless web access productstoday announced the culmination of Apps-to-Empower contest that was made open to participants across the globe. Kicked off earlier this year, the competition invited developers to create apps that empower women, in leadership and mentorship, jobs and entrepreneurship, education and conflict resolution.

Sponsored by DataWind Ltd., the winners of the contest will be awarded a cash price of USD 2,500 each and UbiSlate Tablet PCs.  Additionally, DataWind will also recognize the winners by pre-loading the winning Apps on all DataWind Tablets.

Suneet Singh Tuli, CEO & President, DataWind said,“ We are delighted to receive such an amazing response for the contest and to see bright, passionate minds sharing our vision to empower women and their families in developing countries. We will continue to offer our digital platform for innovative ideas ideas and mobile applications that address empowerment and strive for social good”.

Distinguished members who formed the jury panel to adjudge the winners included Hon. Sheila Copps, former Deputy Prime Minister of Canada, Geena Davis, Academy award winner, Hollywood Actorand Founder, Geena Davis Institute on Gender and Media, Michaela Wash, Founder of Women’s World Banking and Founder of Global Student Leadership,Vivek Wadhwa, Vice President of Academics and Innovation, Singularity University,Jeff Semones,President of m80, Deborah Laufer, Former Ombudsman, World Bank,Rev Dr Lynn McClintock, Development Director, Union Presbyterian Seminary,Rachel Payne, Formerly Principal, Global Strategic Alliances at Google and currently Founder/CEO of Fem Inc,James Hursthouse, CEO, Roadhouse Interactive, Buff McKenzie, Former head of USAid Education, CEO, BluConnect,Tarrnie Williams,President, Roadhouse Interactive,Dahna Goldstein, Founder and General Manager, PhilanTec, Willa Shalit, Founder, Rwanda Path to Peace and CEO Fairwinds Trading and Brian Trelstad, Former Senior Executive at Acumen Fund.

On the basis of individual scores given by the jury panel for the entries in various categories, the top 3 winners for Apps to Empower contest are as follows:

a)      My Rights –One click platform for citizens to search and find information about various government solutions (schemes, benefits, scholarship etc.) designed for them. Designed by Anshul Goyal, Software Engineering student at Sheridan College, ON, Canada. 

b)      Pictoson – Facilitates communication, problem solving and exchange among different cultures and languages by translating pictograms into 22 languages through flashcard techniques. Designed by Long Yu & Eva Elorrieta.

c)      Talking English– An interactive platform to learn English pronunciation and vocabulary. This app listens and gives feedback for everyone, including children as young as six years old. Designed by Philip Kinlen, Learning2Talk- HongKong. 

Agnite Education, American Digital University, Applications for Good, BluWorld, Cat in Woods, Equal Access International and the United Nations Office for Partnershipspartnered to help bring this event together. Please seewww.appstoempower.org for more information.

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Oct WPI inflation grows at 7%

Driven by increase in the prices of wheat, fruits, egg, meat & fish, fibres, the WPI inflation increased to 7% (Y-O-Y) for the month of October 2013 as compared to 6.5% (Y-O-Y) for the month of September 2013. The Index for Wholesale Prices for the month of October 2013 rose by 0.3% to 180.3 from 179.7 for the previous month.

  Trend in WPI inflation since April 2011                                                                             (Y-O-Y %)

                                                     

Source: PHD Research Bureau, compiled from the office of the economic advisor to the Govt. of India

 WPI inflation in select commodities

Commodity		WPI Inflation Y-o-Y % growth
		Aug’13	Sept’13	Oct’13
1	All Commodities	6.99	6.46	7.00
2	Primary Articles	13.57	13.54	14.68
3	Food Articles	19.17	18.40	18.19
4	Cereals	15.57	13.05	12.00
5	Vegetables	80.96	89.37	78.38
6	Non-food Articles	1.21	5.17	6.79
7	Fuel & Power	12.66	10.08	10.33
8	Petrol	3.29	9.64	5.27
9	Manufactured Products	2.31	2.03	2.50
10	Sugar	(-)4.75	(-)7.49	(-)8.50
11	Edible oils	(-)2.86	(-)2.58	(-)0.74
12	Cement & Lime	(-)1.98	(-)3.16	(-)3.23

 Source: PHD Research Bureau, compiled from the office of the Economic Advisor to the Govt. of India

The build up in inflation in the financial year so far (October 2013) stands at 6% as compared to a build up of 4.66% in the corresponding period of the previous year. Buildup in WPI inflation has increased due to rise in the prices of vegetables, onion, fruits, milk, egg, meat & fish, fibers, cotton textiles, leather & leather products and rubber & plastic products etc.

   Build up in inflation from March in select food commodities                          (%)

 Source: PHD Research Bureau, compiled from the office of the Economic Advisor, Govt. of India

Manufacturing inflation rises to 2.5% (weight 64.97%)

The WPI inflation for manufactured products rises to 2.50% vis-à-vis 2.03% in the month of September 2013. The index for this major group rose by 0.4% to 151.6 from 151.0 for the previous month. 

 Trend in WPI inflation in manufactured products                                                                          (%)                                                               

Source: PHD Research Bureau, compiled from the office of the Economic Advisor

Food inflation declines to 18.19% (Weight 14.34%)

Food inflation for the month of October 2013 has decreased to 18.19% as against 18.40% for the month of September 2013, on account of decrease in the prices of cereals, rice, onion, vegetables and milk.

  Pattern of food inflation                                                                  (Y-o-Y %)                Food articles Index since Apr 2011  

     

Source: PHD Research Bureau, compiled from the office of the Economic Advisor, Govt. of India

The index for food articles group declined by 0.4% to 251.4 from 252.3 for the previous month due to lower price of ragi and maize (5% each), tea (4%) and poultry chicken, fruits & vegetables and fish-marine (3% each). However, the price of fish-inland (8%), moong (5%), coffee (3%), condiments & spices, egg, wheat, urad and pork (2% each) and rice, mutton, beef & buffalo meat, barley and arhar (1% each) moved up.

Non-food articles inflation rises to 6.79% (weight 4.26%)

The rate of inflation for non-food articles for the month of October 2013 stands at 6.79% as compared to 5.17% for the previous month. The index for non-food articles group declined by 0.7% to 212.3 from 213.7 for the previous month due to lower price of guar seed (16%), logs & timber (13%), raw rubber (11%), sunflower (4%), raw cotton (3%), castor seed (2%) and soyabean, gingelly seed and linseed (1% each). However, the price of copra (coconut) (12%), raw jute (6%), groundnut seed (5%), niger seed (2%) and coir fibre (1%) moved up.

Fuel & power inflation rises to 10.33% (weight 14.91%)

The rate of inflation for fuel and power for the month of October 2013 stands at 10.33% as compared to 10.08% for the previous month. The index for this major group rose by 0.9% to 209.4 from 207.5 for the previous month due to higher price of electricity (agricultural) (13%), electricity (industry) (10%), electricity (domestic) (5%), electricity (commercial) and electricity (railway traction) (4% each), aviation turbine fuel (3%) and bitumen, lubricants and kerosene (1% each). However, the price of petrol (4%) and furnace oil (3%) declined.

Warm regards,

Dr. S P Sharma

Chief Economist

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Day 3: Coca-Cola Cricket Cup U-16 Inter-School Tournament, Delhi-leg

Ankit Smashes Ton as Bal Bhaval International School Score 400;
DPS Rohini Advance to Next Round

New Delhi, 14^th November 2013: Ankit Pratap Singh’s splendid century helped Bal Bhavan International School, Dwarka thrash Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Vasant Vihar by a huge margin of 278 runs in a Group G league match of the Coca-Cola Cricket Cup U-16 inter-school tournament, played at Bal Bhavan International School ground today.

Bal Bhavan won the toss and opted to bat first. Ankit led the batting line-up with his 106-run knock, smashing boundaries all over the ground. From the other end, Dushyant Dagar (73), Mayank Rawat (69) and Nikhil Tanwar (63) hit half-centuries and took the score to mammoth 400 in 39.3 overs.

While chasing the unachievable target, Chinmaya Vidyalaya team managed to score only 122 runs. Bal Bhavan bowler Rinku Chikara spearheaded the bowling attack with his five-wicket haul and rattled the opponents’ batting line-up. From the other end, Lavish Jangid claimed four wickets and helped his team to bundle-out the opponents in just 20.5 overs.

Only Abhishek Diwan showed some resistance with his consolation knock of 55 runs.

Ankit was adjudged Man-of-the-Match for his brilliant century.

The Delhi-leg of the Coca-Cola Cricket Cup 2013-14 involve participation from 64 leading under-16 teams with matches being played at various grounds across the Capital. The tournament has commenced from the second week of November and will run for around 3 to 4 weeks. Matches until the quarter-finals will be played on a knock-out format, the 8 quarter-finalists will then play a league.

The teams and players performing will stand a chance to win prizes at each stage post the quarter-final round. The winners and runners up of the Delhi-leg will be awarded prizes worth Rs. 50,000 and Rs. 35,000 respectively.

Brief Scores

BBIS: 400 all out in 39.3 overs (Ankit Pratap Singh 106, Dushyant Dagar 73, Mayank Rawat 69, Nikhil Tanwar 63; Prateek Dondiyal 2/58, Abhishek Tokas 2/72).

CV: 122 all out in 20.5 overs (Abhishek Diwan 55; Rinku Chikara 5/52, Lavish Jangid 4/17).

—

Match 2: In a Group D league match, Kunal Dabas’ all-round performance helped Delhi Public School, Rohini defeat Gurusharan Convent School, Paschim Vihar by 9 wickets at Bharat Nagar ground today.

Gurusharan Convent School won the toss and chose to bat first. However, they failed to materialise the opportunity and the whole team were bowled-out at a meagre score of 90. Delhi Public School’s Rohan Sharma bowled fiercely and his four-wicket haul destabilised the oppositions’ batting line-up. From the other end, Rakshit Mehta (2/9) and Kunal Dabas (2/17) took two wickets each to restrict the oppositions in 35.5 overs

Batting second, Delhi Public School chased down the target in just 15 overs by losing one wicket. Opener Aadish Goyal hit boundaries all over the ground and gave a perfect start with his 44-run knock before getting run-out. Kunal played responsibly and scored unbeaten 34 to take his team to next round of the Coca-Cola Cricket Cup 2013-14.

Kunal was adjudged Man-of-the-Match for his all-round show.

Brief Scores

GCS: 90 all out in 35.5 overs (Vimal Pandit 19; Rohan Sharma 4/12, Rakshit Mehta 2/9, Kunal Dabas 2/17).

DPS-R: 91 for 1 wkt in 15 overs (Aadish Goyal 44, Kunal Dabas 34 not out).

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Dear All,

PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry with the support of Ministry of External Affairs, Govt. of India, is organising a one-dayConference on “Africa: A Land of Opportunities”, to highlight the business opportunities that hold great potential for trade and investment for Indian businesses. The Conference will be held as per the following schedule: Day & Date  :         Wednesday,    20th November 2013 Time             :         10: 00 am-06:00 pm Venue          :          PHD House, New Delhi Mr. Salman Khurshid, Hon’ble Union Minister for External Affairs, Government of India has agreed to be the Chief Guest at the Conference. As you are aware, many of the economies within Africa are outpacing economies anywhere else in the world. According to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) World Economic Outlook released in October 2012, 11 of the world’s 20 fastest growing economies are in Africa . The Africa region offers innumerable opportunities for trade and investment for Indian businesses. This region offers competitive advantages such as rich natural resources, presence of large labour force, strategic location between South America and Europe, etc. which can be utilized by the Indian business community. However, there is a lack of awareness about the potential of doing business with these Countries in Africa . The Conference will provide an excellent opportunity for members to discuss about the practical aspects of doing business in Africa as well as to know about the innumerable opportunities for bilateral economic cooperation between India and Africa . Select African Countries (Botswana, Burkina Faso, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Tunisia and Uganda) would be displaying their country information in the exhibition. The Conference will conclude over cultural programme showcasing African dance performance (courtesy Embassy of Ethiopia , New Delhi ), Indian Folk Dance (Bhangra) and Cocktail Reception. Members are requested to join the Conference and confirm their participation by returning the Response Slip given below on fax number: 26855450 or by e-mail:  abhishekbanwara@phdcci.in Regards, Dr. S P Sharma Chief Economist PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry CHIEF GUEST Shri. Salman Khurshid Hon’ble Union Minister for  External Affairs, Government of India Speakers Mr. S. R. Rao, Commerce Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India * Mr. D. S. Dhesi, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India H.E. Ms. Lesego Ethel Motsumi, High Commissioner, High    Commission of the Republic of Botswana H.E. Ms. Gennet Zewide,Ambassador, Embassy of the   Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia H.E. Mr. Khaled Ali El Bakly,Ambassador, Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt H.E. Mr. Désiré Koumba,Ambassador, Embassy of Gabon Mr. Alieu Bah, Counselor, GambiaHigh Commission                                                                  H.E. Mr. Alexandre Cécé Loua,Ambassador, Embassy of the Republic of Guinea H.E. Mrs. Florence Imisa Weche,High Commissioner , Kenya High Commission* H.E. Mr. Ernest Rwamucyo, High Commissioner High Commission of the Republic of Rwanda H.E. Mr. Amadou Moustapha Diouf,Ambassador, Embassy of the Republic of Senegal Mr. T. C. A. Ranganathan, Chairman and Managing Director (CMD), EXIM Bank Mr. K.P. Lall, Acting Director, UNIDO Centre for South-South Industrial Cooperation (UCSSIC) Dr. J. S. Juneja, Global Projects & Services Pvt. Ltd.                                                      Dr. Arvind Lal, Chairman & MD, Dr. Lal Path Labs Pvt. Ltd. Mr. Mahesh Gupta,CMD, Kent RO Mr. Havish Ludhor, Team Leader, Administration and Business Development, AAA Global Services Ltd., Mauritius *invited Response Slip Mr. Abhishek Banwara, Senior Assistant Secretary PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry PHD House, 4/2 Siri Institutional Area, August Kranti Marg, New Delhi – 110 016 Phone : 91-11-26863801 to 0, 49545454 (Extn. 210)   Fax : 91-11-26855450 Mob: +91-9873214804 E-mail : abhishekbanwara@phdcci.in I/We shall join the Conference on “Africa: A Land of Opportunities ”on Wednesday, 20th November 2013 at 10 am at PHD House, New Delhi . Name(s):________________________________________________________________ Company:_______________________________________________________________ Address:________________________________________________________________ Phone:__________________________________________________________________ Fax:____________________________________________________________________ Email:__________________________________________________________________

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Foundation for Media Professionals ( FMP) invites you to

A discussion on 

Should Opinion Polls be Banned ?

 21 November 2013, Thursday

Press Club of India,

1 Raisina Road, New Delhi

10.30 am to 1 pm

Speakers

S.Y. Quraishi

Ajit Shukla

Srinivasa Raghavan

Join us for Tea afterwards

Dr.S.Y Quraishi is former Chief Election Commissioner of India. He is an IAS officer of the 1971 batch and a Ph.D in Communication and Social Marketing. During his 35 long years of career in administration and management of elections in a number of states Dr. Quraishi has brought a special focus on people’s participation, voters’ education and youth involvement in the electoral process through scientific research and interventions. He has been an ardent proponent for lending strength to the grassroots level election functionaries.

Ajit Shukla is with the Center for Voting Opinion & Trends in Election research (CVOTER) a research agency conducting extensive Stakeholder research, Public perception polls, political analysis and socio‐economic research. In last sixteen years CVoter News Services covered news analysis across spectrum including 15 Union Budgets more than 100 State Elections and more than 30 international events.

T C A Srinivasa Raghavan is a senior journalist and currently Consulting Editor with  Business Standard. He was earlier with the Hindu Business Line, Financial Express, Indian Express, Economic Times.  Raghavan has also been a consultant to the Reserve Bank of India’s history project, advisor to the Director of ICRIER, editor of Margin at NCAER and a senior fellow of the Asian Institute of Transport. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies.

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totalrail

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Dear N.K, Africa has allocated billions of dollars to various railway projects over the next decade, which will result in railway tracks throughout the region.   The following market report has been compiled using data collected and a series of interviews with regional rail executives. The report is designed to give detailed country and project specific information for upcoming and ongoing rail projects in the region.   Download the E-Book here >  This E-Book discusses: Current projects shaping the future of the African rail industry Proposed investments Tender plans Project targets Download the E-Book here >   I hope you find this useful! Enjoy.  Lorna Moffatt Content Executive Total Rail

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Gauri Monga Wins the USHA Eastern India Ladies & Junior Girls Amateur Golf Championship 2013

Kolkata, November 14: Gauri Monga, returned her worst card over three days, but still managed to come up trumps to win the USHA Eastern India Ladies & Junior Girls Amateur Golf Championship 2013, which concluded at the Tollygunge Golf Club course. A former Indian Golf Union (IGU) Ladies tour winner, Gauri, who was lying third behind Gursimar Badwal and IGU Ladies Tour Order of Merit leader Gurbani Singh at the end of day two, carded a two over 72 on the final day, which eventually turned out to be enough to give her a one shot victory. This was Gauri’s second title on the IGU Ladies tour in the past one month. She had also won the USHA DGC Ladies open in Delhi last month. Currently lying fifth of the IGU ladies tour merit list, these victories are sure to move her up the rankings.

Gauri’s efforts by greatly aided by her two closest rivals on the course today. Both overnight leader Gursimar and second placed Gurbani had a horrendous day with six bogeys each. In Gurbani’s case, lack of tournament play clearly showed, as someone who at worst plays percentage golf and is known to finish strong, just could not get her putter going. She was playing after a gap of more than a month and had not participated in the two previous tournaments. Gursimar, after registering two sub-par rounds over two days quite inexplicably lost her lead, nerve and eventually the title to finish joint second alongside Gurbani. For the record, Gurbani carded a five over 75 while Gursimar returned a score of six over 76 on the final day. Seher Atwal recorded the best card of the final day, carding an even par 70 to finish seventh in the overall standings.

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Clay Craft joins hands with Tapri Tea House

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Exclusive traditional Mugs designed by Clay Craft India for Tapri customers

Jaipur, 14^thNovember, 2013:India’s fastest growing manufacturer and retailer of bone china and ceramic tableware, Clay Craft India has joined Jaipur based themed tea store Tapri – The tea house. Eying the season of hot tea, winter, the tapri is going to give new experience of traditional ‘kullad’ transformed in a new look in a variour colours. Clay Craft India has specially designed these Mugs for Tapri tea lovers and this innovation will be continued by Clay Craft at Tapri. Going forward, it also plans to introduce Mughal, European, 22 Carat Gold plated and Royal themed tea sets at Tapri.

Mr. Rajesh Agarwal, Managing Director of Clay Craft India, says, “Tie-up with Tapri has added a feather in our clientele base. Through this platform, our designers will be able to showcase their best ideas and abilities. This will also be a right medium for us to get feedback on our products by Tapri tea lovers. We are thankful to Tapri management to give us this opportunity.”

Mr. Ankit Bohra, Director, Tapri Tea House says, “This innovative tie-up will help us to entertain our customers and it will give different experience to them. We are delighted that Clay Craft has shown interest to take an initiative to make tea sipping more joyful and creative at our tea house. Going forward, we will have different themed tea sets at our tea house and I am sure this will help us to add more tea lovers at our Tapri. ”

Clay Craft India’s esteemed corporate clients also include – Maruti Suzuki, Westside, Lifestyle, Nestle, Airtel, Vodafone, Taj Group, Hyatt Hotels, Pepsi Wipro and many more.

About Clay Craft (I) Pvt. Ltd.:

An ISO (9001:2008) certified company, Clay Craft (I) Pvt. Ltd. is India’s fastest growing manufacturer and retailer of bone china and ceramic tableware in its segment. Established in 1994, the company has emerged as Rajasthan’s leading player with over Rs. 150 croreturnover in household and hospitality segments. Company’s core competency lies in its extensive network across India. With nearly 10,000 retail counters and over 150 channel partners, the company also enjoys partnership with major retailers like Big Bazaar, Home Center, Lifestyle, Spencer, HomeShop 18 etc.

Clay Craft’s state-of-art production facility situated at Jaipur, Rajasthan, has a production capacity of 110,000 pieces per day. The main production line is tuned to handle large volumes of Bone China crockery in a variety of shapes and combinations. Starting from a range of 100 ml to 500 ml Mugs, set of Cup & Saucers, various combinations of Tea/Coffee sets, Dinnerware for six persons serving and serving for eight persons in combination of 18 piecesto 124 pieces.

In the year 2009, looking towards the growing market of plastic merchandise, company ventured into the manufacturing and retailing of plastic tableware, kitchenware and bath-ware. A new company, Crown Craft was formed, which has a production capacity of 80,000 pieces per day.

Company is headed by the co-founders Mr. Padam Agarwal and Mr. Rajesh Agarwal. Mr. Padam Agarwal handles Marketing & Finances, while Mr. Rajesh Agarwal heads the Administration & Technical aspects of the company. 

Clay Craft has been awarded by FEPA Expo awards 2007, in both the Gold and Silver categories. In the same year, it was also awarded the 12^th Madan Gopal Bhagat award. It also won the Screen Printing India award in 2004. Company is renowned for its superior quality products and the technological advancement of its production facility.

The company’s esteemed corporate clients include – Maruti Suzuki, Westside, Lifestyle, Nestle, Airtel, Vodafone, Taj Group, Hyatt Hotels, Pepsi Wipro and many more. Company also exports its high-end products to the UK, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

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Mahalaxmi races to kick-start under strict surveillance

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·         RWITC initiates Whistle Blower policy

·         Latest surveillance system in enclosures, stables areas etc.,

·         Flap barriers door frame & hand held metal detectors at entrances

·         New techniques to enhance vigilance on misuse of mobile phones during races

·         Tainted jockeys will not be allowed to ride

·         To raise governance and ethical practices to a new height 

MUMBAI, November 14, 2013: Seeking to raise the standard of racing, the Royal Western India Turf Club Ltd (RWITC) today announced the introduction of a series of initiatives, including a Whistle Blower policy, aimed at promoting a strong culture of governance and ethics in the business of the historic club.  

 

The Whistleblower Policy is a critical step towards bridging the gap among all stakeholders and to provide an ‘Early Warning System’ to promote a strong culture of governance and ethics in the club, said Mr. Khushroo N Dhunjibhoy, Chairman, Royal Western India Turf Club.  

 

“For RWITC, one of our most vital assets is our reputation for ethical behaviour and fair business. Since its inception, the Club has been known to work with integrity and conscientiousness. As we start the racing season from this Sunday, the initiatives are aimed at building a framework for reporting instances of unethical conduct and auctioning suitable steps to investigate and correct fraud and misconduct. We will take all possible measures to protect the reputation of the Club and promote a culture of honesty and fair play,” Mr Dhunjibhoy explained.  

 

He said RWITC has also decided not to entertain any tainted jockeys. “We will not allow them to ride here and in Pune,” he declared.  

 

RWITC will also install complaint boxes at the Mahalaxmi Race Course where race goers can drop their grievances, if any, during the races.  

 

Taking cognisance of an ongoing inquiry into an incident related to the alleged fixing of a race in February 2010, the CLUB STANDS BY its commitment to conducting business with integrity and professionalism. To fortify the whistle blowing initiative, RWITC has entered into an association with Ethics Centre, an independent entity focused on ethics and governance, the purpose of which is to provide members with an alternative communication channel outside the company structure for reporting concerns.

 

Ethics Centre is an avenue to bring genuine and serious issues with respect to unethical and/or improper practices to the fore in most transparent, confidential and anonymous manner. The Club will also take all necessary measures to protect every whistleblower making disclosures in good faith against an adverse personal action, victimization, retaliation or discrimination. Incidents can be reportedonwww.ethicscentre.co.in, on the toll free hotline 1800 220 256 or through Emailoncontact@ethicscentre.co.in.  

 

In its endeavour to further tighten security and vigilance at the stable areas at the Mumbai and Pune Race Courses, RWITC is in the process of installing surveillance cameras in the stable areas. The feed from the cameras will be relayed to a control room, which will be monitored on a 24×7 basis by supervisors and operators.  

 

A Field Response Team (FST) comprising of Nodal Security Officer and security personnel will be patrolling the stable area to keep a strict vigil and they will be in constant touch with the control room and designated officials of the Club. RFID based tags for visitors, CCTV cameras are also being installed at the entrances and enclosures at strategic locations. Flap barriers are being installed at entrances and the ticketing system is being converted into a token based one linked to flag barriers. Apart from this, door and hand held metal detectors are being installed at entrances. Wrist bands are being issued to authorized mobile phone users during races. A vigilance team, aided by advance technology, will be deployed to check unauthorized use of mobile phones these measures are being taken in the interest of owners, trainers, racing patrons and security of horses, Mr Dhunjibhoy explained.  

 

The committee has also decided to introduce electronic voting for committee and board of appeal at the forthcoming Annual General Body Meeting to be held next month. The Club is also in the process of revamping racing rules, and amendments will be placed before the General Body of members next month.  

 

Since its inception, the Club has been very popular amongst all stratum of the society and thus it has grown inorganically to cater to various needs of the stakeholders.