Newspaper/publication: The Hindu
Topic: World Economy
Date: 25 Feb 2008
A recent decision of the British government to take over the ailing Northern Rock Bank, has predictably
raised a storm. Until September 2007, when its main sources of funding dried up owing to the turmoil in
the global financial markets, Northern Rock was the country’s largest, high profile mortgage lender,
although in hindsight it seems to have indulged in some reckless lending, very much like the global
banks across the Atlantic. The loss of depositors’ confidence caused a run on the bank, the first for a
British bank since the 19th century. To prevent the run from spreading to other banks, the government
intervened aggressively by pumping in a colossal amount of tax-payers’ ….
URL: http://www.hindu.com/2008/02/25/stories/2008022553701000.htm
If we are too easily offended as a people, then we capitulate even more easily to those who take
offence. The suspension of the screening of Ashutosh Gowariker’s Jodhaa Akbar in Madhya Pradesh
and two Haryana districts expresses the distressing tendency of governments and local administrations
to appease the intolerant by banning films or books. The Hindi film — an extravaganza in which a
marriage of political convenience between the great Mughal emperor Akbar (Hrithik Roshan) and a
proud Rajput princess, ‘Jodhaa Bai’ (Aishwarya Rai), develops, through many a fiery trial, into true love
— has evoked nasty protests in some States. Cinema halls in Rajasthan …..
URL: http://www.hindu.com/2008/02/25/stories/2008022553691000.htm
�� Lonely Planet Publications (usually known as Lonely
Planet or LP) is one of the largest travel guidebook
publishers in the world. It was the first popular series of
travel books aimed at backpackers and other low-cost
travelers.
�� The Melbourne, Australia headquartered Lonely Planet
is now controlled by BBC Worldwide, who own a 75%
share, while founders Maureen and Tony Wheeler still
own 25% of the company.
�� Lonely Planet has a television production company (Lonely Planet Television), which has produced and
developed four series: Lonely Planet Six Degrees, The Sport Traveller, Going Bush, Vintage New
Zealand and Bluelist Australia.
�� Lonely Planet’s first book, Across Asia on the Cheap, was written and published by Englishman Tony
Wheeler, a former engineer at Chrysler Corp. and the University of Warwick and London Business School
graduate, and his wife Maureen Wheeler in Sydney in 1973, following a lengthy jaunt across the continent
from Turkey, through Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan before ending up in India or Nepal.
�� Written with panache and full of strong opinions, Across Asia on the Cheap sold well enough in Australia
that it allowed the couple to expand it into South-East Asia on a shoestring (nicknamed the ‘Yellow Bible’),
quickly became the classic guidebook for budget travelers in this part of the world, and remains one of the
company's biggest sellers.
�� The Lonely Planet name comes from a misheard line in ‘Space Captain,’ a song by Joe Cocker and Leon
Russell. The actual words are ‘lovely planet’ but Tony Wheeler heard ‘lonely planet’ and liked it.
�� Lonely Planet’s free Thorn Tree web forum is used to trade tips and advice.
�� The founders, Tony and Maureen Wheeler, have written a book titled Once While Travelling: The Lonely
Planet Story (known as Unlikely destinations: The Lonely Planet story in North America) telling how they
met and married, how they travelled from London to Australia overland and how Lonely Planet was formed.
Drishti
(5) of (10)
�� Lonely Planet has been blamed for the rise of what is sometimes referred to as ‘the Banana Pancake
Trail’ in South East Asia. Critics argue that this has lead to the destruction of local culture and disturbance of
once quiet sites.
�� In 2006, Tony Wheeler launched a joint awareness campaign with Mark Ellingham (Rough Guide
founder) on the impact of aviation on climate change. The two travel publishers urged their readers to ‘Fly
less, stay longer’ wherever possible.
�� In April, 2008, American writer Thomas Kohnstamm published the memoir Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?,
which touched on his experience writing a guidebook for Lonely Planet in Brazil.
Tata Motors has plans to invest about Rs 1,500 crore at Singur with the vendors bringing in another Rs 500
crore. The plant was to have a capacity of 2.5 lakh units a year on a two-shift basis, going up to 3.5 lakh units on
three shifts. In addition, it would have vendors and act as a mother plant for many aggregates to the tune of five
lakh cars a year.
A comprehensive package of incentives — subsidy on land, concessional power, a soft loan and tax
paychecks— to match the benefits that Tata Motors would have got in Uttarakhand or Himachal Pradesh, was
what got it to choose Singur in West Bengal for making its low-cost car Nano.
The agreement between Tata Motors, West Bengal Government and the State industrial promotion agency —
West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation — available on the corporation’s Web site, provides details of
the incentives offered.
Soft loan: According to the agreement, the West Bengal Government will provide Tata Motors a loan of Rs 200
crore at 1 per cent interest, repayable in five equal annual instalments starting from the 21st year from the date of
disbursement of the loan
Concessional power: The Government will provide electricity for the project at Rs 3 a kWh. In case the tariff is
increased by more than 25 paise a unit in every block of five years, the Government will provide relief through
additional compensation to neutralise the increase.
Subsidy on land: The West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) will provide 645.67 acres of
land to Tata Motors on a 90-year lease, on an annual lease rental of Rs 1 crore a year for the first five years, with
a 25 per cent increase after every five years till 30 years.
Tax paychecks: The agreement says that WBIDC will provide an industrial promotion assistance in the form of a
loan at 0.1 per cent per annum for amounts equal to gross value-added tax and Central Sales Tax received by
the State Government in each of the previous years ended March 31, on the sale of the small car from the date
the sales begin.
building their small car factory on their farmlands has unnerved India’s premier
corporate group. The state government and the Tatas have found the Trinamool
Congress backed violent agitation too hot to handle. A cloud of uncertainty hangs over
the fate of the project in West Bengal. The Tatas may move out of the state and shift to
a more hospitable location elsewhere.
Singur is now a name known all over the world. A section of farmers who are unwilling to part with their land have
carried on a violent agitation that has made the
Tatas do a serious rethink about continuing at
Singur. However, not all the farmers in Singur
want to persist with farming. A large number of
them willingly sold it off for a handsome
compensation.
There are large numbers of farmers who have
happily sold off their land to be used for setting up
the Tata's car factory or for its ancillary units. But
enough of them have opposed the land sale to
give Tatas the jitters and even make them
threaten to leave West Bengal for more welcoming
climes.
Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress
supported agitation could not have been so successful if the farmers of Singur were not really on the warpath.
Enough of them are disgruntled to have led to this agitation. Many of them are pointing out that a one time
compensation for the land sale will not feed them all their lives.
Their reasoning is valid. There are reports of numerous farmers having sold off their land in areas around Delhi
owing to the growing urbanisation of the national capital region and then having literally blown up the money
within a short period and then having to face the consequences. So the concerns of the Singur farmers are
genuine as they point out that the land will always give them a livelihood but mere cash will not last for ever.
At the same time, with fragmentation of holdings, revenue from agriculture is gradually declining. This situation
has been acknowledged by the Left Front government in West Bengal led by Buddhadeb Bhattacharya which
has recognized that there is need for farmers to move into other sectors of the economy. In such a scenario,
innovative ways to provide farmers both compensation as well a long term livelihood need to be incorporated into
future land acquisition agreements.
The compromise formula that is sought to be hammered out currently by the West Bengal Governor
Gopalkrishna Gandhi with the state government and Mamata Bannerjee apparently envisages providing jobs to
each family that is being uprooted. Reports have also appeared in the media about large industry trying to take a
new approach to dealing with farmers whose land is being acquired for special economic zones. The aim should
obviously be to ensure that the farmer's family does not lose out in the long run after selling their land.
