FACTBOX - India's 2009/10 budget and the economy

India's finance minister on Monday outlined plans to speed infrastructure development and unveiled increased spending for farmers and the poor in the first budget since the Congress-led government was re-elected convincingly in May.

The government said the additional spending would push the 2009/10 fiscal deficit to 6.8 percent of GDP, much higher than markets had expected, sending local shares sharply lower and pushing up bond yields.

Following are some facts about the budget and key numbers from the 2009/10 federal budget.

SIZE OF ECONOMY (GDP): $1 trillion

POPULATION: 1.15 billion

GROWTH: The government said on Monday economic growth slowed to 6.7 percent in 2008/09 from year-earlier 9.0 percent. It would be the slowest growth in six years.

The budget assumes growth of 8 percent in 2010/11 and of 9 percent in 2010/11.

INDUSTRIAL GROWTH: India's industrial output , which accounts for a quarter of its GDP, grew 2.4 percent in the year to March 2009, compared with 8.5 percent growth the year before.

Output was up 1.4 percent in April.

EXPORTS: India's exports, which form 16 percent of the economy, grew 3.4 percent in the year to March 2009, compared with growth of 23.02 percent in 2007/08.

They fell 29.2 percent in May and fell 33.2 percent in April.

BUDGET ESTIMATES FOR 2009/10:

* Total receipts seen at 10.21 trillion rupees

* Revenue receipts seen at 6.14 trillion rupees

* Capital receipts seen at 4.06 trillion rupees

* Borrowings and other liabilities seen at 4.01 trillion rupees

* Total expenditure seen at 10.21 trillion rupees

* Plan expenditure seen at 3.25 trillion rupees

* Non-plan expenditure seen at 6.96 trillion rupees

* Fiscal deficit seen at 4.01 trillion rupees, or 6.8 percent of GDP

* Revenue deficit seen at 2.83 trillion rupees, or 4.8 percent of GDP

India hikes gasoline, diesel prices, leaves cooking fuels untouched

Just five days before the union budget is to be presented, India Wednesday allowed state-run oil firms to increase prices of transport fuels, resulting in gasoline becoming dearer by Rs.4 per litre and diesel by Rs.2 per litre, following successive increase in global crude prices.

Petroleum Minister Murli Deora told reporters at a hurriedly convened press conference here that the new prices take effect from the midnight of Wednesday. He made the announcement soon after a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

'The prices of kerosene and cooking gas are not being changed,' Deora said, adding the government will continue to incur a subsidy of Rs.15.26 per litre and Rs.92.96 per cylinder on these two fuels, respectively.

He said even in the case of petrol and diesel, oil-marketing companies will continue to incur a loss of Rs.2 per litre and Rs.1.62 on petrol and diesel, respectively, on account of selling these fuels below cost.

According to Petroleum Secretary R.S. Pandey, the state-run oil companies will face an overall subsidy burden of Rs.30,000 crore ($6 billion) during this fiscal if global crude prices remain firm at the current level.

'The under-recoveries (losses) have reached a level where it has become inevitable to revisit the prices,' he said, adding the government will continue to monitor the global prices and take appropriate decisions.

Pandey said the Indian basket of crude oil was ruling at $70.29 per barrel as of Tuesday, against $58.80 on May 20 and around $40 in December last year. But the burden on oil companies will not be more than what it was in the past.

He said that 'to the extent possible, we will resource the under-recoveries from upstream companies (Oil and Natural Gas Corp and Oil India)'.

'But, the upstream companies's burden will also not be more than what has been in the past,' Pandey added.

The government had last decreased the petrol prices in January 2009 and December 2008.

The previous hike in price had taken place in June 2008, when the retail prices were raised by Rs.5 for petrol and Rs.3 for diesel.

The price of cooking gas and kerosene had not been touched during any of these price revisions.

Interestingly, unlike previous instances, there was no cabinet decision made before the price increase was announced this time.

'This is an inter-ministerial issue. It is only on basis on inter-ministerial discussion that this has been decided,' said Pandey.

The move, which just comes just a day ahead of parliament resuming legislative business Thursday, is bound to invoke strong protests by the opposition. The Left parties had already threatened an agitation.

No regret on Babri Masjid, ready to be hanged: Uma Bharati

As the Liberhan Commission probe report on the 1992 demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya was submitted to the government Tuesday, former Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) leader Uma Bharati said she does not regret the destruction and would be ready to be hanged if found guilty.

'I wanted the old structure to be destroyed though not in that way,' Uma Bharati, now heading the Bharatiya Janshakti Party after quitting the BJP, told reporters here.

Uma Bharati, former central minister and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister, is an accused in the demolition of the 16th century mosque. Hindu rightwing groups have maintained that the mosque was built on the site where Lord Ram was born and where a temple to him stood.

Uma Bharati said she had no regrets for what happened on Dec 6, 1992, but added that 'none of us had planned to demolish the structure'.

Questioning the timing of the submission of the probe report, she accused the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government of 'playing politics', and termed the move as an attempt to appease its 'Muslim vote bank'.

Air India employees to get salary July 3 without cuts

Yielding to pressure from its employees, cash-strapped national carrier Air India Monday decided to give them their June salary July 3, instead of July 15 it decided earlier.

'The management has told us that we would get our salaries on July 3. They have also assured us that there will be no wage cut,' J.B. Kadian, general secretary of the Air Corp Employees' Union (ACEU), told IANS.

ACEU is the largest union among the Air India employees.

The airline employees get their salary on the last day of the month. Earlier Air India had announced that it would delay the June salary by 15 days and also asked the top executives of the airline to forgo their one month pay.

The employees' union protested this move, saying they would go on an indefinite strike from July 1 if the decision was not revoked.

Kadian said the top executives would also get their salary.

ACEU and other unions have been holding hectic discussions with the management for over a week.

But they failed to reach a consensus on the airline's proposal to cut costs.

Air India, which incurred a loss of Rs.4,000 crore last fiscal, plans to ask for a Rs.10,000-crore (about $2 billion) bailout package from the central government.

Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last Wednesday and discussed the bailout plan with him.

The prime minister suggested him to adopt various cost-cutting measures to improve the financial condition of the National Aviation Co India Ltd (NACIL), which owns Air India.

Recession-hit British showbiz makes actors turn to India for roles

With recession hitting showbiz in the UK, British actresses and models are looking at India for livelihood.

In the past three years, an estimated 1000 British actors and dancers have moved to Mumbai, The Age reports.

Hazel from Kent, who has been in the glamour industry of India for five years now, says: "You can lead such a great lifestyle in India. There is the constant begging, pollution and sleazy casting directors that you have to be careful of, but it's all worthwhile ... I'm almost famous!

"I first did adverts for Ponds, Nokia and Samsung and then got my first proper role in a film in MP3."

British actresses normally earn 1000 pounds a day in Mumbai while they never find themselves running out of new projects in Bollywood.

Apart from recession, the other reason British talent is lured to India is the success of Slumdog Millionaire.

Also to add is the India's fascination with white skin.

Debjoy Ray, of Globosport Modelling agency, said: "Ten years ago there were hardly any white girls working in Bollywood. Now they are everywhere. Indians have a liking for white skin and equate it with beauty."

The India, Pakistan ministers discuss anti-terrorism fight

The foreign ministers of India and Pakistan met in Italy to discuss terrorism and strained ties on Friday, in the second high-level bilateral talks since November's Mumbai attacks.

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi described the talks between the two nuclear rivals as a friendly and "fair exchange," and told reporters that discussions included the fight against terrorism.

"I think both sides realise that they have a common interest, a common enemy and they have to move on in a cooperative environment," Qureshi said, in the northern city of Trieste.

"We have to engage to defeat the designs of terrorists."

Pakistan has been pushing for the resumption of five-year-long peace talks broken off by India after the attacks on Mumbai. New Delhi blames the attacks on Pakistan-based militants and wants Islamabad to act against them.

The United States is keen for both countries to resume talks to ease tensions on Pakistan's eastern border with India, so it can focus on fighting Taliban militants on its western border with Afghanistan.

In an interview with Reuters before the talks, Qureshi said Pakistan aimed to prosecute those behind the Mumbai attacks.

"We will do our utmost to take them to court, and if we can put together a legally tenable case, we would want them prosecuted and we would want them convicted," he said.

Indian Foreign Minister S. M. Krishna acknowledged that bilateral ties have remained "under considerable stress".

He said an upcoming meeting of Pakistani and Indian foreign secretaries would look at cooperation on terrorism.

"It will enable us to take stock of where we stand on the issue of terrorism and the fulfilment by Pakistan of its assurance that its territory would not be used for terrorist attacks on India," Krishna said.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held talks with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari on the sidelines of a regional summit in Russia this month.

They agreed that their foreign secretaries would meet again and that the leaders of the two countries would hold further talks on the sidelines of a summit in Egypt in July.

Michael Jackson: The entertainer and enigma is no More

Los Angeles: Michael Jackson, defined in equal parts as the world's greatest entertainer and perhaps its most enigmatic figure, was about to attempt one of the greatest comebacks of all time. Then his life was cut shockingly--and so far, mysteriously--short.

The 50-year-old musical superstar died on Thursday, just as he was preparing for what would be a series of 50 concerts starting July 13 at London's famed 02 arena. Jackson had been spending hours and hours toiling with a team of dancers for a performance he and his fans hoped would restore his tarnished legacy to its proper place in pop.

An autopsy was planned for Friday, though results were not likely to be final until toxicology tests could be completed, a process that takes several days and sometimes weeks. Police said they were investigating--standard procedure in high-profile cases.

Jackson died at UCLA Medical Center after being stricken at his rented home in the posh Los Angeles neighborhood of Holmby Hills. Paramedics tried to resuscitate him at his home for nearly three-quarters of an hour, then rushed him to the hospital, where doctors continued to work on him.

"It is believed he suffered cardiac arrest in his home. However, the cause of his death is unknown until results of the autopsy are known," his brother Jermaine said.

Cardiac arrest is an abnormal heart rhythm that stops the heart from pumping blood to the body. It can occur after a heart attack or be caused by other heart problems.

Eventful career

Jackson's death brought a tragic end to a long, bizarre, sometimes farcical decline from his peak in the 1980s, when he was popular music's premier all-around performer, a uniter of black and white music who shattered the race barrier on MTV, dominated the charts and dazzled even more on stage.

His 1982 album Thriller--which included the blockbuster hits Beat It, Billie Jean and Thriller--is the best-selling album of all time, with an estimated 50 million copies sold worldwide.

As word of his death spread, MTV switched its programming to play videos from Jackson's heyday. Radio stations began playing marathons of his hits. Hundreds of people gathered outside the hospital. In New York's Times Square, a low groan went up in the crowd when a screen flashed that Jackson had died, and people began relaying the news to friends by cell phone.

"No joke. King of Pop is no more. Wow," Michael Harris, 36, of New York City, read from a text message a friend had sent him. "It's like when Kennedy was assassinated. I will always remember being in Times Square when Michael Jackson died."

The public first knew him as a boy in the late 1960s, when he was the precocious, spinning lead singer of the Jackson 5, the singing group he formed with his four older brothers out of Gary, Indiana. Among their No. 1 hits were I Want You Back, ABC and I'll Be There.

He was perhaps the most exciting performer of his generation, known for his backward-gliding moonwalk, his feverish, crotch-grabbing dance moves and his high-pitched singing, punctuated with squeals and titters. His single sequined glove, tight, military-style jacket and aviator sunglasses were trademarks, as was his ever-changing, surgically altered appearance.

"For Michael to be taken away from us so suddenly at such a young age, I just don't have the words," said Quincy Jones, who produced Thriller. ''He was the consummate entertainer and his contributions and legacy will be felt upon the world forever. I've lost my little brother today, and part of my soul has gone with him."

Jackson ranked alongside Elvis Presley and the Beatles as the biggest pop sensations of all time. He united two of music's biggest names when he was briefly married to Presley's daughter, Lisa Marie. Jackson's sudden death immediately evoked comparisons to that of Presley himself, who died at age 42 in 1977.

"I am so very sad and confused with every emotion possible," Lisa Marie Presley said in a statement. "I am heartbroken for his children who I know were everything to him and for his family. This is such a massive loss on so many levels, words fail me."

As years went by, Jackson became an increasingly freakish figure--a middle-aged man-child weirdly out of touch with grown-up life. His skin became lighter, his nose narrower, and he spoke in a breathy, girlish voice. He often wore a germ mask while traveling, kept a pet chimpanzee named Bubbles as one of his closest companions and surrounded himself with children at his Neverland ranch, a storybook playland filled with toys, rides and animals. The tabloids dubbed him "Wacko Jacko."

"It seemed to me that his internal essence was at war with the norms of the world. It's as if he was trying to defy gravity," said Michael Levine, a Hollywood publicist who represented Jackson in the early 1990s. He called Jackson a "disciple of P.T. Barnum" and said the star appeared fragile at the time but was "much more cunning and shrewd about the industry than anyone knew."

Jackson caused a furore in 2002 when he playfully dangled his infant son, Prince Michael II, over a hotel balcony in Berlin while a throng of fans watched from below.

In 2005, he was cleared of charges that he molested a 13-year-old cancer survivor at Neverland in 2003. He had been accused of plying the boy with alcohol and groping him, and of engaging in strange and inappropriate behavior with other children.

The case followed years of rumors about Jackson and young boys. In a TV documentary, he acknowledged sharing his bed with children, a practice he described as sweet and not at all sexual.

Despite the acquittal, the lurid allegations that came out in court took a fearsome toll on his career and image, and he fell into serious financial trouble.

Early life

Michael Joseph Jackson was born August 29, 1958, in Gary. He was 4 years old when he began singing with his brothers--Marlon, Jermaine, Jackie and Tito--in the Jackson 5. After his early success with bubblegum soul, he struck out on his own, generating innovative, explosive, unstoppable music.

The album Thriller alone mixed the dark, serpentine bass and drums and synthesizer approach of Billie Jean, the grinding Eddie Van Halen guitar solo on Beat It, and the hiccups and falsettos on Wanna Be Startin' Somethin.

The peak may have come in 1983, when Motown celebrated its 25th anniversary with an all-star televised concert and Jackson moonwalked off with the show, joining his brothers for a medley of old hits and then leaving them behind with a pointing, crouching, high-kicking, splay-footed, crotch-grabbing run through Billie Jean.

The audience stood and roared. Jackson raised his fist.

During production of a 1984 Pepsi commercial, Jackson's scalp sustained burns when an explosion sets his hair on fire.

He had strong follow-up albums with 1987's Bad and 1991's Dangerous, but his career began to collapse in 1993 after he was accused of molesting a boy who often stayed at his home. The singer denied any wrongdoing, reached a settlement with the boy's family, reported to be $20 million, and criminal charges were never filed.

Jackson's expressed anger over the allegations on the 1995 album HIStory, which sold more than 2.4 million copies, but by then, the popularity of Jackson's music was clearly waning even as public fascination with his increasingly erratic behavior was growing.

Jackson married Lisa Marie Presley in 1994, and they divorced in 1996. Later that year, Jackson married Deborah Rowe, a former nurse for his dermatologist. They had two children together: Michael Joseph Jackson Jr., known as Prince Michael, now 12; and Paris Michael Katherine Jackson, 11. Rowe filed for divorce in 1999.

Jackson also had a third child, Prince Michael II. Now 7, Jackson said the boy nicknamed Blanket as a baby was his biological child born from a surrogate mother.

Billboard magazine editorial director Bill Werde said Jackson's star power was unmatched. "The world just lost the biggest pop star in history, no matter how you cut it," Werde said. "He's literally the king of pop."

Jackson's 13 No. 1 one hits on the Billboard charts put him behind only Presley, the Beatles and Mariah Carey, Werde said.

"He was on the eve of potentially redeeming his career a little bit," he said. "People might have started to think of him again in a different light."

State Bank of India cuts rate by 50 bps; home & car loans to become cheaper

State Bank of India, the country's largest lender, today slashed its benchmark lending rate by half a percentage point to 11.75 per cent that would benefit home, car and corporate loan customers.

The Benchmark Prime Lending Rate (BPLR) was revised down by 50 basis points effective June 29, SBI informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The BPLR of the bank currently stands at 12.25 per cent. The bank last reduced the BPLR by 75 basis points with effect from January 1, 2009.

The decision of the market leader would prompt other lenders to follow suit and may lead to greater demand for loans and spur consumption.

In order to bring down the cost of funds, SBI had reduced deposit rates by 25 basis points across all maturities earlier this month.

For a tenure of 181 days to less than one year, the rate was reduced from 6.50 per cent to 6.25 per cent while for one year to less than 2-years, it was cut from 7.25 per cent to 7 per cent.

For two-years to less than 1,000 days, the new rate is 7.25 per cent against 7.50 per cent, while for a 1,000-day tenure, the rate has been reduced from 7.75 per cent to 7.50 per cent.

SBI's rate cut comes within a fortnight of finance minister Pranab Mukherjee asking state-owned banks to soften rates.

India Inc created 3,00,000 jobs in US: Study

When the Indian outsourcing industry is being blamed for taking away American jobs, a study has found that corporate India has created employment for 3,00,000 people in the US between 2004 and 2007.

An India Brand Equity Foundation study released in Washington on Wednesday by Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma mentioned USD 105 billion contribution by the Indian industry to the US economy during 2004-07.

"This revealed a story of commitment to optimise and to invest in the future of the relationship," Sharma said.

The USD 50-billion Indian outsourcing industry has come in for a major attack in the US, bolstered by President Barack Obama's calls to the US companies to move from Bangalore to Buffalo.

Concerned over the backlash in the US, the Indian industry has been trying to lobby with influential Americans and opinion leaders about the benefits that the American can derive from developing economies.

US welcomes Manmohan Singh-Zardari meeting

The United States has welcomed as 'encouraging' a meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari in the aftermath of the November Mumbai attacks saying the two countries need to continue their dialogue.

'A resumption of such high-level engagement in the aftermath of the November Mumbai attacks is encouraging,' State Department Spokesman, Ian Kelly told reporters Tuesday when asked to comment on the two leaders' meeting on the sidelines of the Yekaterinburg summit.

'We have said before that India and Pakistan need to continue their dialogue to find joint solutions against terrorism and to promote regional stability,' he said.

Taking note of media reports of the Manmohan Singh-Zardari meeting on the margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, Kelly said: 'The United States has always welcomed dialogue and better relations between India and Pakistan.'

'But it's also obvious that the pace, the scope, and the character of that dialogue is something for Indian and Pakistani leaders to decide, he said. 'How and when to approach that dialogue is something for them to decide.'

Asked what the US was doing to make sure that Pakistan, its ally in the war on terror, will deliver on the promises to combat terror as demanded by India as a pre-condition for resumption of a dialogue, Kelly parried, saying 'I'll refer you to their own spokesman to comment on that.'

30 swine flu cases in India, government says suspend visits abroad

Swine flu cases in India mounted to 30 Monday after seven more teenaged students who returned from an educational tour of the US tested positive for the virus. On its part, the government urged the people, especially students, to suspend their visits abroad.

According to health officials here, seven of a group of 31 students from the Guru Amar Das Public School in Jalandhar, who had gone to New York and Florida to visit National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) facilities, tested positive for swine flu.

While one of the students was detected with swine flu Sunday and was hospitilised in Delhi, the rest left for Punjab and were Sunday found to be suffering from flu-like symptoms.

'Ten had developed symptoms of mild influenza-like illness and were kept in isolation at the Civil Hospital in Jalandhar,' said an official statement here.

'Of the 10, seven tested positive for the influenza A(H1N1) virus Monday. All these children are stable and responding to treatment,' the statement added.

The rest of the students, their families and social contacts and those sitting in their proximity on the flight back have been identified, the statement said.

Four doctors from the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) here have gone to Jalandhar to oversee the treatment of the students.

So far, samples of 318 people have been tested, of which 30 have tested positive for influenza A (H1N1), a health official said.

Of these, only two are human-to-human transfer cases.

'Among the 318 tested, 92 were identified through health screening at international airports, 10 were identified through contact tracing and the rest were samples from people who have self-reported,' the official said.

In Hyderabad, two sisters aged eight and four and a 45-year-old woman were late Sunday confirmed to be infected, taking the total number of cases in Andhra Pradesh to 12, the highest in India. The confirmed cases include five children.

The two sisters and their mother arrived in Hyderabad from New York June 10. The mother is among five passengers kept under observation for suspected symptoms of swine flu.

Doctors at the Andhra Pradesh Chest Hospital said the samples of the suspected cases, including two children had been sent to the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) in New Delhi.

With the surge in swine flu cases, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who chaired a review meeting Monday morning, said: 'Till this disease is not controlled globally, I would like to request young people from educational institutions going abroad to suspend their visits for the time being.

'They can go after 2-3 months,' he told reporters.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) Thursday raised its alert against the swine flu to the highest level - Phase 6. The swine flu pandemic is the first since the Hong Kong flu pandemic of 1968 that killed one million people.

Azad said situation was under control as of the total infected people, 11 had been discharged after being treated.

'Medicine is available in plenty and the most important thing is that this disease is 100 percent curable. Of the total 23 cases (repeated at the time he spoke), 11 have already been treated and discharged. So you are only left with 12 cases,' he said.

He said that keeping in mind India's size and population, the cases here were minimal as compared to the huge numbers most developed countries have reported.

Azad said the director general of health services should immediately send a Rapid Response Team to Punjab and make available adequate quantities of Tamiflu tablets to help contain spread of the disease.

The health minister also spoke to chief ministers of all the states urging them to gear up their health machinery to prevent the spread of the virus.

England knock champions India out of World Cup

England knocked defending champions India out of the Twenty20 World Cup with a three-run victory in their second-round match at Lord's on Sunday.

India needed 19 off the last over to stay in the tournament but, despite a one-handed six by Yusuf Pathan over long-off, the task was too much and they finished on 150 for five.

The England victory silenced the large contingent of noisy Indian fans packed into Lord's and India failed to make the semi-finals after also losing their first Super Eight match against West Indies on Friday.

Off-spinner Graeme Swann captured the crucial wicket of Yuvraj Singh for 17, including two sixes, stumped neatly by James Foster.

Left-arm swing bowler Ryan Sidebottom, returning to the side in place of leg-spinner Adil Rashid, bowled the final over and was given the man-of-the-match award after capturing two for 31 from his four overs.

England lost Luke Wright for one in the second over after losing the toss and being asked to bat.

Ravi Bopara and Kevin Pietersen added 71 for the second wicket with Bopara hooking the first six of the match off Ishant Sharma.

Pietersen whipped Sharma through mid-wicket for four and moved down the pitch to left-arm paceman RP Singh as if he were playing a spinner to off-drive a four.

The introduction of Ravindra Jadeja's left-arm spin seemed to turn the match India's way. Jadeja bowled Bopara for 37 and dismissed Pietersen lbw for 46, trying to sweep a full delivery.

But five wides from Harbhajan Singh in the final over allowed to England to creep to 153 for seven, a defendable total on a pitch offering variable bounce.

Web 2.0 crowned one millionth English word

A U.S.-based language monitoring group crowned Web 2.0 as the one millionth word or phrase in the English language on Wednesday, although other linguists slammed it as nonsense and a stunt.

The Global Language Monitor, which uses a math formula to track the frequency of words and phrases in print and electronic media, said Web 2.0 appeared over 25,000 times in searches and was widely accepted, making it the legitimate, one millionth word.

It said Web 2.0 started out as a technical term meaning the next generation of World Wide Web products and services but had crossed into far wider circulation in the last six months.

This list included "Jai Ho!" an Indian exclamation signifying victory or accomplishment, and "slumdog," a derisive term for children living in the slums of India that became popular with the Oscar-winning movie "Slumdog Millionaire."

Other linguists, however, denounced the list as pure publicity and unscientific, saying it was impossible to count English words in use or to agree on how many times a word must be used before it is officially accepted.

There are no set rules for such a count as there is no certified arbiter of what constitutes a legitimate English word and classifying the language is complicated by the number of compound words, verbs and obsolete terms.

"I think it's pure fraud ... It's not bad science. It's nonsense," Geoffrey Nunberg, a linguistics professor at the University of California at Berkeley, told reporters.

Paul JJ Payack, president of the Global Language Monitor, brushed off the criticism, saying his method was technically sound.

"If you want to count the stars in the sky, you have to define what a star is first and then count. Our criteria is quite plain and if you follow those criteria you can count words. Most academics say what we are doing is very valuable," said Payack.

He has calculated that about 14.7 new English words or phrases are generated daily and said the five words leading up to the millionth highlighted how English was changing along with current social trends.

The list also included "cloud computing", meaning services delivered via the cloud or Internet, "carbon neutral", a widely used term in the climate change debate, and "N00b," a derogatory term from the gaming community for a newcomer.

"Some 400 years after the death of the Bard, the words and phrases were coined far from Stratford-Upon-Avon, emerging instead from Silicon Valley, India, China, and Poland, as well as Australia, Canada, the U.S. and the UK," said Texas-based Payack.

As TV moves on, millions may face blank screens in US

San Francisco, June 11 (DPA) In a land where television has long been a basic necessity of life, millions of people may find themselves without access to television Friday when the US switches from analog to digital broadcasting.

The change is part of a long-delayed update in the allocation of the wireless spectrum, which is used to broadcast everything from TV signals to mobile phone services and emergency radio traffic.

It is designed to free up valuable frequencies previously used by television stations to broadcast their signals and which will now become part of the information superhighway on which users of iPhones, Blackberries and other smartphones and mobile laptops will increasingly get the information they need to stay connected 24/7.

Those broadcast spectrums have already been sold by the US government to mobile phone companies for billions of dollars. But at least for now the scheme is far from a win-win situation on the road to communications nirvana.

Critics complain that it is the poor and disadvantaged who once again are paying the price for progress as the analog signals of local and network stations are terminated - forcing people to either subscribe to costly cable or satellite service or to buy and install digital converters for their TV sets.

Industry trade group DTV Across America estimates that between 20 and 30 million household faced the need to transition to the new system.

Aware of these issues, the US government has spent more than $2 billion on a voucher programme, in which every household can get two vouchers worth $40 each to buy two converter boxes.

However, despite a massive advertising campaign and a three-month postponement of the switch date, millions of households are estimated not to have availed themselves of the new service and are set to lose their signal entirely when analog broadcasting becomes a relic of history June 12.

The latest survey by the Nielsen Company indicates that as of the end of May, more than 10 percent of the 114 million households that have television sets are either completely or partly unprepared.

Many of those are likely to turn to a 4,000-people strong call centre set up by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to help people make the switch.

In an interview with the New York Times, acting FCC chairman Michael J. Copps conceded that the impact was likely to be hardest on poor families, the handicapped, the elderly and in homes where little English is spoken.

'We are much better prepared than we were in February, when the original transition was to have occurred, but there will nonetheless be significant disruptions,' Copps said. 'In the past five months we've tried to accomplish what should have been done over the last four years.'

There are advantages and disadvantages to watching TV through these converter boxes. Firstly, the boxes can be a hassle to install - especially for those not fond or adept at moving their televisions and dealing with the mass of cables in the back. Numerous companies do offer installation services for the new converter boxes but these services bump the cost of conversion far above the $40 value of the coupons.

In some areas the digital signal can be better than analog - though in others it can be worse or even nonexistent. Many digital boxes do offer a useful viewing guide - though some elderly people complain that learning how to navigate the system with a new remote control is fiendishly complicated.

'It has all been a nightmare, and it's very, very upsetting,' said Frances Lim, a 72-year-old woman in San Jose California. 'We don't have money for cable or satellite and were very happy with the few stations we have been getting for years. Now we have to change. I didn't know how to do it. Luckily my grandson helped me. But I'm still learning the new remote control.'

US President Barack Obama is helping the effort to prepare for the switch.

'The number of households unprepared for digital television has been cut in half. Still, some people are not ready,' said Obama in a statement last week. 'I encourage all Americans who are prepared to talk to their friends, family, and neighbours to make sure they get ready before it's too late. I urge everyone who is not yet prepared to act today.' Obama said.

Google takes on the language barrier

Search engine giant commences a regional push by launching its news aggregator in four regional languages

MUMBAI: Jayalekshmy Nair, an avid reader of regional-language blogs, visited a Malayalam news website for the first time recently. How did she get there? Google News, which now aggregates news in Malayalam as well.

Like her, Indians who till now couldn't find an interface for news in their mother-tongue, are discovering a way to read that news online.

The recent launch of Google News in four regional languages -- Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi -- has helped make that possible. And the search engine giant is also launching features that will empower non-English speaking internet users to use web beyond reading just news.

Prasad Ram, head -- research and development (R&D), Google India, is the man pushing this initiative.

Ram is from Karnataka and his parents, he says, are extremely proficient in Kannada literature. "Even they are interested in engaging sources beyond the routine ones. Till now, they've been consuming newspapers, books, art. Soon, they will be able to gain from the collective wisdom of the internet, in their own language."

He points out: "Only 7% of Indians are proficient in English. So, if Google's power has to be experienced by the rest, we have to add languages."

India has over 40 million internet users and this base is growing rapidly, banking not just on broadband infrastructure, but also online lollies such as gaming, social networking, matrimony and job portals.

For Google, news, information and local listings are the next El-Dorado of the web, for which it has begun innovating. It is targeting Indian users who are comfortable with PCs, but not yet proficient in English. Hence, the regional push. "It's not India's burgeoning expat population that's making Google do this. When there are 1.2 billion people within India to tap into, a few million people across the world don't matter. It becomes critical to innovate for the larger base," Ram told DNA Money.

Which is why, the popularity of a few applications from Google, in the near future could supplement and even change the way Indian users interact with regional and English websites.

For example, users can search in 18 different languages by choosing letters from Indic On Screen keyboard using a mouse. The transliteration features allow them to type in English and automatically convert text into Hindi, Tamil, Kannada or Malayalam, by simply hitting the space bar.

And then of course, there's the biggie -- Google Translate -- that helps translate entire websites by simply typing the URL (or the web link) and clicking on the translate button. So a website, say, on diabetes, can be translated just at the click of a button. To exploit community features, Google Map-maker, the Wiki-based application, can help users create local listings -- such as restaurants, local events, landmarks -- and even authenticate the information.

"Essentially, we're allowing the whole country to paint one single canvas by stitching different ones together. So the challenge and the innovation, for us, lies in getting a billion to people to paint together, irrespective of the fact that it's already been done in so many countries," says Ram.

The idea, he says, is to make a "locally inspired global product".

His parting shot: "The lack of innovative and relevant content is stopping people not very proficient in English from accessing info and we're trying to bridge the digital divide. In the future, it'll all happen on cellphones. There's so much that can be done... crop prices, weather, agriculture."

Lankan forces close in on LTTE chief Prabhakaran's hideout

Setting the stage for the final assault on the LTTE, Sri Lankan forces today encircled a small strip of land in the north, where Tiger supremo V Prabhakaran is believed to be holed up, and deployed warships to foil any escape bid by rebels amid global calls for a truce.

Backed by tanks, the security forces surrounded the 8 sq km jungle patch, where an estimated 800-900 Tamil Tigers were still offering resistance, the military said.

A naval blockade was put around northern Mullaittivu close to the areas where LTTE cadres still had access to the sea as Sri Lankan Army chief Sarath Fonseka said the troops knew the "general area" where Prabhakaran could be hiding.

"We are set to destroy him," Fonseka said, admitting that troops were facing stiff resistance from remnant LTTE cadres.

But the Army chief said the security forces' primary task at the moment was to get trapped Tamil civilians out of the war zone to safety. Authorities had earlier said that more than one lakh civilians had fled the war zone.

Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama termed the flow of civilians from the northern region in the past few days as an "emergency humanitarian situation."

"Our friends in the international community are most welcome to provide emergency relief assistance by way of semi-permanent shelter, water purification plants, sanitation facilities and medical assistance," he told reporters.

Tech Mahindra wins bid to acquire Satyam

Tech Mahindra will pay more than $550 million for a controlling stake in Satyam Computer Services, throwing a lifeline to the fraud-hit firm and propelling itself into the top tier of Indian outsourcing firms.

Tech Mahindra, 31 percent owned by Britain's BT Group Plc, beat engineering conglomerate Larsen & Toubro, which many analysts had seen as front runner, as well as private equity firm WL Ross & Co to be the highest bidder for a stake of up to 51 percent in the company at the centre of India's biggest corporate scandal.

Satyam's sale could help restore confidence in India's IT services sector at a time when the global economic downturn has slowed growth. But Tech Mahindra will still have to move quickly to restore stability at its target.

"Tech Mahindra will really have to act fast now and if they don't ... client erosion will continue at Satyam," said Tarun Sisodia, head of research at Anand Rathi Financial Services.

Three months ago, Satyam's founder and chairman shocked investors by saying profits had been overstated for years, putting in doubt the survival of a company once ranked as India's fourth-largest software services exporter.

The government quickly stepped in and sacked the board to limit damage to India's once-shining IT sector.

CALCULATED RISK

Mumbai-headquartered Tech Mahindra said it would meet Satyam clients such as Citigroup Inc and Cisco Systems Inc to help restore confidence.

"We have taken on a challenge but we are going to make it work," Chairman Anand Mahindra told reporters. "We have taken a very calculated risk ... We think they are reasonable risks, but there are going to be risks."

With the buy, Tech Mahindra will be better equipped to wrest market share from rivals Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys Technologies and Wipro, and diversify away from telecoms, analysts said.

Satyam's annual revenue fell to about $1.5 billion at the end of the March and could fall to $1.3 billion in the year to end-June, Tech Mahindra CEO Vineet Nayyar said.

The bid has to be approved by the Company Law Board, which expects Satyam to seek approval within two to three days.

Tech Mahindra will pay $351 million for a 31 percent preferential allotment of new shares and will then make an open offer for a further 20 percent of the company at a cost of up to around $225 million.

The holders of Satyam's American Depository Shares would be able to participate in the public offer.

Tech Mahindra plans to raise 6 billion rupees through the sale of bonds, sources told Reuters.

The combined entity will have about 73,000 staff and Tech Mahindra will become India's fourth-largest outsourcing firm from a current ranking of sixth.

Tech Mahindra, a unit of tractor and utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra, offered 58 rupees a share, a premium of 23 percent to Satyam's previous close.

Tech Mahindra shares surged by as much as 25 percent after Larsen & Toubro, which owns 12 percent of Satyam, was reported to be out of the race, but trimmed gains to end up 12.3 percent at 359.45 rupees, their highest close in nearly six months.

Satyam shares rose 3.6 percent to 48.85 rupees, after earlier jumping more than 16 percent to a nine-week high.

UNCERTAINTY OVER VALUATION

Analysts have said Satyam, which means "truth" in Sanskrit, looks attractive due to its long list of blue chip clients. However, they were unsure how to value the company due to uncertainty about its accounts and legal liabilities arising from lawsuits filed in the United States by its shareholders.

The vast majority of Satyam's customers have stayed on through the stake sale, Karnik said. Staffing has dropped by about 5,000 from 53,000 reported at end-September.

Tech Mahindra's Nayyar said the bid was made after an assessment of legal liabilities, but said Satyam's financial viability and retention of clients would be key challenges.

Satyam has not reported results since releasing July-September figures in October. Its accounts are in the process of being restated.

Satyam's board had appointed Goldman Sachs and Avendus Capital to find a strategic investor. Tech Mahindra was advised by Kotak Investment Banking and UBS.

(Additional reporting by Prashant Mehra, Narayanan Somasundaram and Devidutta Tripathy)

Newsmaker: Lalu declares loyalty to Cong, UPA

Union Railways Minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Yadav joined hands with Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) supremo Ram Vilas Paswan and cornered majority of the Lok Sabha seats in Bihar. The duo divided 37 seats among themselves and left just three seats out of the 40 for the Congress in Bihar. Stung by the seat-sharing deal, the Congress announced that it will go alone in the Lok Sabha elections in Bihar and contest 37 seats.

Meanwhile, in another major development key National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partner and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has taken on the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) over the Varun Gandhi hate speech issue. It seems the power equation id changing in Bihar with Lau moving away from the Congress and Nitish adopting a hardline towards the BJP.

CNN-IBN’s India @ 9 grilled Lalu Prasad on his relationship with the Congress and the power equation in Bihar.

CNN-IBN: Nitish Kumar has come to Delhi and criticised Varun Gandhi. Are you seeing a new alliance? Is Nitish Kumar getting closer to the Congress and you are getting away from the Congress?

Lalu Prasad: Why don’t you ask him to declare? He is criticising Varun Gandhi to save his face among the minority community. He is a very, very greedy man for power. He will never leave the BJP.

CNN-IBN: You don’t see Nitish Kumar moving closer to the Congress? Somewhere down the line in speech after speech there is an indication that Nitish is edging closer to the UPA?

Lalu Prasad: The main point is that in the entire country is talking about the language used by Varun Gandhi. The speech was approved by the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh). Nitish Kumar is sitting in the BJP's lap, the Sangh Pariwar's lap and that is why he saying these things to save his face.

CNN-IBN: But is it possible that after the election that Nitish Kumar is with the ruling party at the Centre and Lalu sits in the Opposition. How realistic is the possibility?

Lalu Prasad: He is very greedy for power. I know him very well as he was with me earlier.

CNN-IBN: After the break-up that you had in Bihar, will you remain with the Congress, with the UPA even after the elections?

Lalu Prasad: I have said this many times that we are part and parcel of the UPA. UPA does not mean the Congress alone

CNN-IBN: But you are fighting the Congress?

Lalu Prasad: Yes, yes. They are fighting. I am not fighting.

CNN-IBN: Rahul Gandhi said we did not leave Lalu Prasad but he left the Congress?

Lalu Prasad: That's ok. That's his view. We are part and parcel of UPA. Sonia Gandhiji and Manmohan Singhji have said that the UPA will form the government.

CNN-IBN: But what about the seat sharing problems? Have you spoken to Sonia Gandhi about it?

Lalu Prasad: I don’t want to involve Sonia Gandhiji in any controversy. I respect her.

CNN-IBN: But has not your alliance with Ram Vilas Paswan created problems in you relations with Sonia Gandhi?

Lalu Prasad: No, no. Nobody can break my relations with Sonia Gandhi, whether I am in power or out of power.

CNN-IBN: But some people say you broke away from the UPA because you were greedy for power?

Lalu Prasad: Look, people are shocked to see Ram Vilas Paswan joining hands with me. The same people who had dismissed the Congress from the cow belt have suddenly started sympathising with the Congress. It is a fact that the Congress party has no presence in the cow belt. They have to work very hard to create an organisation if they want to make their presence felt in the cow belt.

CNN-IBN: But this is a bizarre situation. You are still the Railway Minister but are fighting the Congress. Are the doors still open for an alliance with the Congress?

Lalu Prasad: No. Now it’s not possible. I have entered the field.

CNN-IBN: But why are you not resigning from the Cabinet? Is there any possibility now of an understanding with Congress?

Lalu Prasad: No, no. Now nothing is possible. The question of reopening the negotiations does not arise.

CNN-IBN: Is the move to make Sadhu Yadav one of Congress’ candidates a deliberate move to anger you?

Lalu Prasad: I don’t even take notice of these things. So called Sadhu Yadav is a child in politics. The Congress has no idea. I know him and Bihar people know Sadhu Yadav. I have already suggested the media people why are you taking my name with Sadhu Yadav as my brother-in-law.

CNN-IBN: You were one of the most important ministers of the UPA. After the elections will you continue to be so or do you fear that you will lose some weight in terms of importance?

Lalu Prasad: I am not fearing anything. I am here because of my own strength. If I am strong, people will like me. If I am not in power, nobody will even congratulate me.

CNN-IBN: Some people are saying how come Lalu Prasad is both a minister at the Centre as well as an enemy of the Congress?

Lalu Prasad: Nobody is a minister because of the Congress party. Whoever was a minister at the centre was because of the share they got being part of the UPA.

CNN-IBN:So you are saying, today you will continue to be a minister as well fight against the Congress in Bihar?

Lalu Prasad: We will first defeat the fascist forces and then join hands with the Congress.

CNN-IBN: Sonia Gandhi has made it clear that Manmohan Singh is UPA’s prime ministerial candidate. Do you accept it? Will Manmohan Singh be the PM?

Lalu Prasad: Yes without fail. No doubt. Sonia Gandhi will be always respected. Nobody can create any confusion.

CNN-IBN: Will you join the Third Front if the numbers favour them? You may become the prime minister then rather than support the UPA?

Lalu Prasad: The Third Front has good parties. It has the Left and other parties. But I am not in touch with them. If the UPA is short of numbers then we will take their help.

CNN-IBN: But will you join them?

Lalu Prasad: No, no.

CNN-IBN: So no 1996-like situation? You will not be the Deve Gowda of 2009?

Lalu Prasad: If the need be we will take help for the UPA. Yes for the UPA. And Nitish Kumar cannot leave the BJP. He will be finished. It was a coincidence that Varun Gandhi gave this statement and it was approved by the RSS.

India to stage IPL abroad over security issues

The Indian cricket board will stage the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 tournament abroad this year due to security issues, the country's cricket chief said on Sunday.

"Because the government... are not in a position to provide security, we were forced to take the decision to move the event outside of India," Indian cricket board (BCCI) president Shashank Manohar told a news conference.

"We're having discussions with other boards who have shown their willingness," he added.

Cricket authorities in South Africa and England confirmed on Sunday they had been asked to look into hosting the event.

The BCCI had failed to get government clearance for security cover despite revising the match dates three times because the tournament clashes with the country's general election, to be held between April 16 and May 13.

The IPL will be played on its original dates, between April 10 and May 24, and is scheduled to return to India next season, league commissioner Lalit Modi said.

Modi also told Sky Sports News that four possible venues were being considered to host the tournament.

"Hopefully I will have everything wrapped up in the next 24 hours," he added.

The South African cricket board said it had received a request from the BCCI to be a possible host.

"We received an official approach this morning to be one of several options they are considering to host the tournament outside India," Cricket South Africa chief executive Gerald Majola said in a statement.

South Africa will also stage the Champions Trophy one-day competition beginning in September.

The England and Wales Cricket Board later released a similar statement, saying that at the request of the BCCI and the IPL it was "examining the feasibility of hosting the 2009 IPL in England and Wales".

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

Indian officials said the huge financial implications and a tight international calendar had forced their hand. The World Twenty20 begins in England in early June.

"Under the given circumstances, there is no other period for the conduct of IPL matches," the BCCI said in a statement and apologised to the cricket-crazy Indian fans for not being in a position to host the event at home this year.

"There are many stakeholders apart from the BCCI, the players, the franchise owners, media partners, team sponsors, venues sponsors, apart from the cricket loving public at large.

"The experience of the first IPL season has shown that apart from providing employment to a large number of people at the various venues, IPL has also contributed close to one billion rupees ($20 million) to the exchequer."

Security concerns have dominated the build-up to the lucrative eight-team event, involving many big-name international players, after an attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in the Pakistani city of Lahore earlier this month.

The BCCI failed to secure approval from the government, who said it would be difficult to spare security forces as they would be deployed for the polls.

The country remains tense after bomb blasts killed 166 people in the financial hub of Mumbai last November.

(Additional reporting by Mike Collett)

Bengalooru City rentals down 30%

If you live life in 11-month instalments, worrying how much more you may have to fork out when your lease comes up for renewal, the tide has turned. Rents across the city are sliding.

In South Bengalooru, which is the worst hit, about 50% of lease market flats are vacant. In the western suburbs, this number is 30%. One reason is that many corporations have curtailed recruitments and sacked or transferred senior executives. Hence, there are fewer takers for high-end apartments. A large number of flats remain locked after many companies moved out as the owners were demanding high rents. And nearly 130 flats in Hiranandani Complex, Powai, are gathering dust after Lehman Brothers went bust last year.

The story across the city is much the same. In the past few months, residential lease rates have fallen 25-30% between Bandra and Malad and up to 25% between Colaba and Sion/Mahim. Brokers expect a further downturn of 10-15% as property owners realign expectations with market dynamics. Rents have corrected by about 5-10% in the low-budget segment between Malad and Borivli and in the central suburbs from Sion to Thane and Navi Bengalooru.

"The number of apartments available for lease is more than double the number available last year," said Mahesh Ahuja of Aruba Homes Pvt Ltd. "Vacancy levels have ballooned due to cost-cutting. Most companies now prefer to relocate to affordable locations.
Flatowners who have understood this seismic shift have scaled down their expectations so that they can continue to pay their EMIs."
In Bandra, owners of 4BHK apartments are accepting Rs3-3.5 lakh as rent against their earlier expectation of Rs4-4.5 lakh. Powai, which has a large number of investor-owned flats, is badly hit with rents plunging to Rs1.5-2 lakh from Rs2.5-3 lakh.

Rajiv Jain of Jaisons Property Management, a real-estate broking company dealing only in high-end residential apartments, said,
"Rates are now comparable to 2005-06 levels. Expats are relocating further away for cheaper rates in suburbs. I recently leased out a 3BHK in Juhu for Rs2 lakh while a flat in the same building was earlier leased at Rs2.5 lakh." A fallout: Jain's income has dropped 40%.

Ram Prasad Padhi of Pinnacle Realty, who recently leased a flat in Oberoi Woods, Goregaon, to an expat for Rs30,000, said, "In better times, her budget would have been Rs60,000 and she would have been looking at options in Bandra. But this time, she made it clear she could not afford to stretch her wallet beyond Rs35,000."