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Reddy inaugurates film bazaar at IFFI venue PANAJI, Nov 30: Amid high hopes of pushing Indian film trading at the global level in a big way in the ongoing 35th .....more ULFA
says CRPF GUWAHATI, Nov 30: The United Liberation Front of ASOM (ULFA) today claimed that CRPF jawan Samarendra Deka, who killed seven of his . .....more Bharat Shah’s secretary Tarun Shah surrenders MUMBAI, Nov 30: Tarun Shah, secretary of film financier Bharat Shah and absconding accused in a case of .....more Pollution
affecting CUDDALORE, (TN), Nov 30: Even as environmentalists brace up to commemorate the Bhopal gas tragedy’s......more |
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Manali receives snow SHIMLA, Nov 30: The popular hill resort of Manali received snow while rain hit the capital hill resort of Shimla today.......more Air force
gets flak NEW DELHI, Nov 30: Ridiculing the Air Force for opposing the shifting of the Abattoir from Idgah to Ghazipur without.......more India, US
finalising NEW DELHI, Nov 30: India and United States are finalising an agreement for rescue of Indian submarines in distress by.....more No big
stars, that is PANAJI, Nov 30: "The biggest usp of ‘Kisna-the warrior poet’ is that it has no big stars and the story is being narrated......more |
Reddy inaugurates film bazaar at IFFI venue PANAJI, Nov 30: Amid high hopes of pushing Indian film trading at the global level in a big way in the ongoing 35th International Film Festival of India, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister S Jaipal reddy today inaugurated the first ever film bazaar here at the Kala academy, the main venue of the IFFI. Organised at the initiative of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the 8-day film bazaar would provide a platform to attract foreign buyers so that Indian films could find better markets abroad. The bazaar is intended to be the catalyst in the process of globalisation of Indian cinema. Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar besides top film makers Shyam Benegal and producer Shantaram and cream of the film industry were present on the occasion. The CII had taken the initiative for the bazaar in association with the ministry of information and broadcasting, the National Film Development Corporation and the Goa Government. Goa region has been identified as a filmmaker’s haven in recent times. It boasts of relatively lower shooting costs, affordable, state-of-the-art post-production facilities and picturesque locales. Film bazaar offers a meeting ground to allow producers access to these benefits, and is aptly located amid the panoramic beauty of Goa. The bazaar, according to the CII, promotes negotiations between the filmmaker and the financiers with domestic players, members of the international film fraternity, co-productions, joint-creative endeavours and sharing of technology. The expansion of multiplex and the mushrooming of fiercely active film societies and proliferation of filmmaking courses in the country have created a new generation of producers, directors, editors, actors and distributors. The language of film and filmmaking has entered the mainstream, particularly with the recognition accorded to bollywood as an industry. In addition, this industry has found an audience that ranges beyond geographical boundaries, beyond the Indian diaspora to finally become global in nature. The Indian side includes film-brokers and representatives of production houses who seek to invest in joint ventures. Around 20 international buyers from UK, US, Romania, Brazil, Mauritius, Paris and Sri Lanka would be attending the bazaar. The CII had also launched another initiative ‘India- the big picture’ which would be representing the Indian film industry internationally by organizing a one-day seminar on ‘Indian entertainment - strategy for the upward spiral’ on December 2 at the marriott in Miramar near the venue. Apart from discussing the status and prospects of the Indian Film Industry, it presents a series of speakers, both Indian and foreign on the film industry. The seminar is being organised along with the Common Wealth Business Council and will have special delegations from the UK and Brazil to explore business opportunities in the Indian entertainment sector. On earlier occasions as well, CII has taken several other initiatives to promote the Indian film industry. These include a quarterly publication called film India worldwide which promotes Indian cinema at key international film festivals around the world. It is a news journal giving information on Indian cinema across all genres. CII had organised telemart, the country’s first international content marketplace, on February 17-18 this year. It brought together players from television, cell phone, broadband, gaming, animation and multimedia. This will be an annual feature. India is one of the least tapped entertainment markets in the world as it spends less that one-tenth of the amount spent on entertainment in the US. The total revenue of the Indian film industry last year has been estimated at Rs 4,500 crore. It is expected to grow at 18 per cent annually. The overseas market had its best year in 2003 with 5 films grossing more than two million dollars in the US and UK. The overseas market has become increasingly lucrative with some films realising 15 to 20 per cent of the total proceeds from abroad. Some of the domestic and international exhibitors at the film bazaar include Sahara India Pariwar, Prasar Bharti Corporation, Satellite Media Group, Ramoji Rao Film City, UTV, Adlabs and Indian Film Exporters Association. (UNI) |
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ULFA says CRPF jawan was ‘their man’ GUWAHATI, Nov 30: The United Liberation Front of ASOM (ULFA) today claimed that CRPF jawan Samarendra Deka, who killed seven of his colleagues in a shooting spree in Baramullah on Sunday, was their man and said "it was a coordinated suicide mission". ULFA commander-in-chief Paresh Barua said here last night that Samarendra Deka had successfully infiltrated into the CRPF camp and managed to kill seven of his colleagues. "It was a coordinated suicide mission. We have about 150 such people in the Army, CRPF, BSF and other security agencies, who have successfully infiltrated into the force, and are waiting to strike at our command," he said. Deka apparently went Berserk after he was punished for missing a roll call and turned the gun on his colleagues. This statement has come at a time when the State Government had sent a proposal to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to recruit 3000 surrendered rebels to the security agencies. Declaring the slain CRPF jawan as a "martyr for the cause", Barua claimed that he was a member of the suicide squad of the ULFA. He has been a member of the military intelligence wing since 1996, he claimed. "As the security forces are trying to sneak into our ranks, we have also adopted a similar policy," he claimed. The Assam Police Special Branch are trying to ascertain the claim of the ULFA commander-in-chief as the slain jawan’s relative received his body late in the evening before it was taken to his native place at Goreswar, near the Indo-Bhutan boundary where the ULFA once had fortified camps before it was busted by the Royal Bhutan Army. According to police, deka joined the CRPF only a year back. His family sources said he joined the CRPF at a young age because of poverty. (UNI) |
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Bharat Shah’s secretary Tarun Shah surrenders MUMBAI, Nov 30: Tarun Shah, secretary of film financier Bharat Shah and absconding accused in a case of alleged nexus of Bollywood with the underworld, today surrendered before a special court here. Tarun had been absconding for last two years and the court had attached his properties while declaring him as a proclaimed offender. The properties attached included his flat in posh Tardeo area of south Mumbai. As soon as Tarun surrendered, the court ordered the police to take him into custody. The prosecution sought time to file remand papers and seek his custody. Designated Judge A P Bhangale kept the matter for the post-lunch session. Tarun was facing the charge of conniving with Shah to target film personalities for personal gains. He was booked under Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Shah was convicted and sentenced to one years’ RI on the charge of concealing information about the Bollywood-underworld links. However, he was let off the hook as he had already spent the period in jail. Co-accused, Nasim Rizvi, producer of "Chori Chori Chupke Chupke" and his secretary Abdul Rahim Allah Baksh were also convicted and sentenced to five years’ RI on the charge of conniving with the underworld to target film personalities for personal gains. (PTI) Pollution affecting villages around Sipcot CUDDALORE, (TN), Nov 30: Even as environmentalists brace up to commemorate the Bhopal gas tragedy’s 20th anniversary, villagers living in and around the Sipcot chemical industrial estate here fear that their area can be "another Bhopal waiting to happen." Wwith chemical odour assailing the villagers throughout the day, Sipcot area remains as one of the smelliest places in the state. "Bhopal happened in one night, killing thousands of people. For us in Sipcot, everyday is a Bhopal. Entire villages are covered with toxic smoke throughout the day and our children are dying a slow death," says J Parasuraman, Sipcot Area Community Environmental Monitoring (SACEM), from Semmankuppam village. SACEM is a recently-formed community group, comprising village volunteers trained in monitoring, documenting and taking evidence-based action on pollution. Villagers have for years complained about the intense chemical odours that pervade their homes all times. "At night, the stench engulfs us and we just can’t breathe. There’s nothing we can do except go indoors and shut all the doors," says Lalitha of Eachangadu village. Most villagers, even children, are able to identify the companies just from the chemical odours emanating from them that smell like "rotten egg, public toilets or a decomposed corpse." According to scientists, chemical odours are indicators of serious chemical pollution. If one can smell it, the chemical may already be above the safe level. Air pollutants are particularly dangerous because unlike water or food-borne toxins, many air pollutants enter the brain directly after inhalation, they say. "Regulators like the pollution control board and the factories inspectorate are under-resourced, under-staffed and lack scientific understanding to be able to effectively regulate polluting companies," says Nityanand Jayaraman of the international campaign for justice in bhopal. Such conditions are conducive for the recurrence of an industrial disaster, he adds. In August 2004, SACEM published its first report on chemical odour incidents in Sipcot. The report summarised data gathered over a 14-week period between April and July, 2004. In total, monitors recorded 283 chemical odour incidents, of which 223 were intense. They confirmed that although chemical odour was prevalent thoughout the day, their intensity and frequency were higher in the late evenings and early mornings. Through their odour-monitoring study, the villagers have quantifiably established that they are being gassed on a daily basis. In September 2004, SACEM released the results of five air samples taken between April and July. The report titled ‘gas trouble: Air quality in Sipcot, Cuddalore’ found 22 toxic gases, of which at least 13 were used as raw materials in one or more Sipcot industries. At least 14 of the 22 chemicals, including tricholorethene, carbon tetrachloride, acrolein, methylene chloride and hydrogen sulphide violate the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (USEPA) safety levels. According to SACEM, the report justifies the Sipcot villagers’ demands for continuous air monitoring, including toxic gases, an aggressive air pollution elimination programme, long-term health monitoring, specialised healthcare facilities for Sipcot residents and a ban on the setting up or expansion of any polluting facility in Sipcot. "I have worked for nine years with the bucket (a device to take air samples) and seen at least 500 results from different places around the world. Sipcot, Cuddalore, has to be the worst place to breathe and certainly the worst that I have seen in terms of the kinds and levels of toxic gases in the air," says Denny Larson of the California-based NGO global community monitor. The report triggered instant reactions from a number of agencies, with Madras High Court directing the state legal aid cell to file a pil on the matter. The State Human Rights Commission took suo motu notice of the report’s findings and asked the pollution control board to respond. The Supreme Court Monitoring Committee ordered the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to set ambient air quality standards for toxic gases and directed the state PCB to bring down levels of air pollution below USEPA-prescribed safe levels within three months or order the companies to shut down. However, the CPCB, which embarked on the monitoring exercise on October 11, 2004, as ordered by the Supreme Court, did not contact the village monitors and instead was taken around the Sipcot estate by industry representatives, alleges S Ramanathan, a villager from Semmankuppam and a member of SACEM. Despite raising their concerns on different fora, an industrial proposal to set up a 38-tonne-per-month ammonium perchlorate unit in the area was given authorisation recently. The chemical is a deadly explosive used as rocket fuel to propel spacecraft and missiles. Perchlorates are a common and persistent goundwater toxin that can inhibit the functioning of the thyroid gland in people who are exposed to it, scientists say. (UNI) |
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No big stars, that is ‘Kisna’s’ USP: Ghai PANAJI, Nov 30: "The biggest usp of ‘Kisna-the warrior poet’ is that it has no big stars and the story is being narrated through the British perspective," said noted filmmaker Subhash Ghai, who promoted his latest movie during the 35th International Film Festival of India today. Addressing a press conference here, Mr Ghai said mainstream Indian cinema is fast changing due to the different choice of moviegowers. Refusing to evaluate the different genres of Indian cinema, Mr Ghai said a film has to be interesting. He said "Kisna" was a Britisher’s trip through India and his experiencing everything that is Indian. He described the music of the film, the lyrics of which have been penned by Javed Akhtar and composed by Ismail Durbar and A R Rehman, as difficult because he had to match it with his visuals and the script. The music releases on December six and the film on January 21. Javed Akhtar who was present at the press conference said the songs were part of the narrative and the situation and the screenplay was an inspiration for him. Farooq Dhondy who has written the screenplay felt that ‘Kisna’ had a quality reminiscent of ‘Mother India’ and ‘Mughal-e-Azam’. "I know Indian sensibilities. A western script explores life and characters while ours reasserts values of everything Indian , he said. Farooq said he always wanted to be associated with mainstream commercial cinema and ‘Kisna’ came as a good offer. ‘’subhash ghai is a more traditional story teller,’’ he said. Dhondy’s other project is Ketan Mehta’s "The Rising". Two of his films being screened at the festival are "American Daylight" and "Take 3 Girls". (UNI) |
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Pollution affecting villages around Sipcot CUDDALORE, (TN), Nov 30: Even as environmentalists brace up to commemorate the Bhopal gas tragedy’s 20th anniversary, villagers living in and around the Sipcot chemical industrial estate here fear that their area can be "another Bhopal waiting to happen." Wwith chemical odour assailing the villagers throughout the day, Sipcot area remains as one of the smelliest places in the state. "Bhopal happened in one night, killing thousands of people. For us in Sipcot, everyday is a Bhopal. Entire villages are covered with toxic smoke throughout the day and our children are dying a slow death," says J Parasuraman, Sipcot Area Community Environmental Monitoring (SACEM), from Semmankuppam village. SACEM is a recently-formed community group, comprising village volunteers trained in monitoring, documenting and taking evidence-based action on pollution. Villagers have for years complained about the intense chemical odours that pervade their homes all times. "At night, the stench engulfs us and we just can’t breathe. There’s nothing we can do except go indoors and shut all the doors," says Lalitha of Eachangadu village. Most villagers, even children, are able to identify the companies just from the chemical odours emanating from them that smell like "rotten egg, public toilets or a decomposed corpse." According to scientists, chemical odours are indicators of serious chemical pollution. If one can smell it, the chemical may already be above the safe level. Air pollutants are particularly dangerous because unlike water or food-borne toxins, many air pollutants enter the brain directly after inhalation, they say. "Regulators like the pollution control board and the factories inspectorate are under-resourced, under-staffed and lack scientific understanding to be able to effectively regulate polluting companies," says Nityanand Jayaraman of the international campaign for justice in bhopal. Such conditions are conducive for the recurrence of an industrial disaster, he adds. In August 2004, SACEM published its first report on chemical odour incidents in Sipcot. The report summarised data gathered over a 14-week period between April and July, 2004. In total, monitors recorded 283 chemical odour incidents, of which 223 were intense. They confirmed that although chemical odour was prevalent thoughout the day, their intensity and frequency were higher in the late evenings and early mornings. Through their odour-monitoring study, the villagers have quantifiably established that they are being gassed on a daily basis. In September 2004, SACEM released the results of five air samples taken between April and July. The report titled ‘gas trouble: Air quality in Sipcot, Cuddalore’ found 22 toxic gases, of which at least 13 were used as raw materials in one or more Sipcot industries. At least 14 of the 22 chemicals, including tricholorethene, carbon tetrachloride, acrolein, methylene chloride and hydrogen sulphide violate the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (USEPA) safety levels. According to SACEM, the report justifies the Sipcot villagers’ demands for continuous air monitoring, including toxic gases, an aggressive air pollution elimination programme, long-term health monitoring, specialised healthcare facilities for Sipcot residents and a ban on the setting up or expansion of any polluting facility in Sipcot. "I have worked for nine years with the bucket (a device to take air samples) and seen at least 500 results from different places around the world. Sipcot, Cuddalore, has to be the worst place to breathe and certainly the worst that I have seen in terms of the kinds and levels of toxic gases in the air," says Denny Larson of the California-based NGO global community monitor. The report triggered instant reactions from a number of agencies, with Madras High Court directing the state legal aid cell to file a pil on the matter. The State Human Rights Commission took suo motu notice of the report’s findings and asked the pollution control board to respond. The Supreme Court Monitoring Committee ordered the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to set ambient air quality standards for toxic gases and directed the state PCB to bring down levels of air pollution below USEPA-prescribed safe levels within three months or order the companies to shut down. However, the CPCB, which embarked on the monitoring exercise on October 11, 2004, as ordered by the Supreme Court, did not contact the village monitors and instead was taken around the Sipcot estate by industry representatives, alleges S Ramanathan, a villager from Semmankuppam and a member of SACEM. Despite raising their concerns on different fora, an industrial proposal to set up a 38-tonne-per-month ammonium perchlorate unit in the area was given authorisation recently. The chemical is a deadly explosive used as rocket fuel to propel spacecraft and missiles. Perchlorates are a common and persistent goundwater toxin that can inhibit the functioning of the thyroid gland in people who are exposed to it, scientists say. (UNI) |
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