Greetings for Childrens Day

Children's day is celebrated to let kids enjoy a day of pomp and fun. These Happy Children's Day Cards are for you to use.

Appreciate him/her through our free children's day e cards and Children's Day Greeting Cards from http://www.latestgreetingcards.com/childrensdaycards/index.html and you can also visit our Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/latestgreetingcards for our latest updates on greeting cards

'Decision On PM Attending CHOGM Soon'

The external affairs ministry Wednesday said a decision was expected soon on whether Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would be attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Colombo this month.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said the decision process is at a "fairly advanced stage" and "we hope to have a decision soon", which would be communicated.

His answer comes amid speculation that the prime minister could go to Colombo to attend the Nov 15-17 summit, notwithstanding the strong opposition from Tamil Nadu political parties over Sri Lanka's alleged human rights violations.

There is also speculation the prime minister may also visit Jaffna, the capital of the Tamil-dominated Northern Province and the stronghold of the erstwhile Tamil Tigers, following an invite by its new Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran.

Tamil Nadu parties, including the DMK and the AIADMK, have been opposed to the prime minister attending the summit.

Some ministers also have voiced reservations about Manmohan Singh's Sri Lanka visit.

Shipping Minister G.K. Vasan has urged the prime minister to boycott the summit. Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office V. Narayanasamy and Union Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan have both expressed hope that the prime minister would take a decision keeping in mind the sentiments of Tamils.

Foreign Policy, An Extension Of National One: Mukherjee

President Pranab Mukherjee Wednesday said India's foreign policy should be an extension of its national policy.

"Our foreign policy must be an extension of our national policy. There are certain basic fundamentals in our foreign policy that we have inherited from our core civilisation values and our freedom movement. They must continue to guide us in our relations with our neighbours," he told delegates of the fifth annual heads of mission conference, who called on him at Rashtrapati Bhavan here.

Mukherjee said India has always been committed to global peace but is conscious of the fact that efforts for the same should begin from its neighbourhood.

"We can change friends but not neighbours. Change is the only constant and India's foreign policy must adapt to changing scenarios in the world," he said.

The president said terrorism remains a major challenge. India was the first country to recognise at a high personal cost the threat that terrorism posed and to warn the world about it.

This challenge of terrorism needs to be addressed through greater collective efforts. No country can insulate itself from this menace, he said.

Telecom Commission For Upping Spectrum Base Price

The Telecom Commission Wednesday recommended raising the reserve price for mobile phone spectrum auctions by 15 percent more than the price suggested by the Telecom Regulator Authority of India (TRAI) in the 1,800 megahertz (MHz) and by 25 percent in the 900 MHz.

The panel has approved the merger and acquisition policy and a senior government official said the merger entity may hold up to 50 percent of market share in each circle. The policy now needs cabinet approval.

The Telecom Commission is the highest decision making agency of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).

The next mobile phone spectrum auction is expected in January next year and it is estimated to mop up Rs.11,000 crore ($1.8 billion) revenue from the sale.

Rajan Mathews, director general of Cellular Operators Association of India, told IANS that the decision was "disappointing for the industry".

"The differentiation of prices will lead to robust bidding for the spectrum less priced. It is a bit of mixed bag. However, still I expect operators to bid for 1,800 MHz," he said.

The panel also decided to auction 800 MHz band.

"Sistema Shyam TeleServices Ltd. (SSTL) welcomes the decision of the Telecom Commission to auction the 800 Mhz spectrum band," a company spokesperson said.

Earlier, the company said TRAI's regulation on 800 MHz band is blocking the company's growth in the country.

Countdown For India's Mars Orbiter Mission Begins

The countdown for the India's ambitious Rs.430-crore Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) began Sunday 6.08 a.m. at Sriharikota rocket port in Andhra Pradesh, a space agency official said.

The countdown to the flight of Indian rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C25) will be for 56.30 hours which is expected to blast off at 2.38 p.m. Tuesday, said an Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) official who did not wish to be named.

On Saturday, all the pre-countdown activities were carried out after ISRO's Launch Authorisation Board (LAB) gave it the green signal for the rocket's flight Nov 1 from Sriharikota, around 80 km from here.

According to ISRO, the MOM objectives are two fold -- technological and scientific.

The technological objectives include design and realisation of Mars orbiter with a capability to survive and perform Earth bound manoeuvres, cruise phase of 300 days, Mars orbit insertion/capture, and on-orbit phase around Mars.

It will also enable deep space communication, navigation, mission planning and management and incorporate autonomous features to handle contingency situations.

The scientific mission will be to explore the Mars surface features, morphology, mineralogy and Martian atmosphere by indigenous scientific instruments.

Current Account Deficit To Be Around $60 Bn: Chidambaram

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram Friday said India's current account deficit (CAD) would come down and be around $60 billion owing to rising exports and import controls initiated by the government.
"The current account deficit is well under control. I'm confident we will be able to adhere to the red line for fiscal deficit," Chidambaram said at a press conference here.
"In recent weeks, we see signs that steps and measures we have taken are beginning to yield results."
CAD which is the difference between dollar inflow and outflow has been a matter of concern for the government.
The CAD stood at a record high of 4.8 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) at $88.2 billion in the last fiscal.
The government is trying to rein in CAD by imposing higher duties on gold and cutting down on non-essential import items.
The finance minister has set a target of below $70 billion or 3.8 percent of the GDP of CAD this fiscal.
According to the minister, trade deficit in the period between April and September stood at $80 billion -- down from $92 billion in the corresponding period of last year.
On the other hand, the finance minister said challenges like high inflation levels and reviving the investment sentiment in a sluggish economy still remain.
"Inflation is still a challenge and reviving investment," Chidambaram said, adding that he sees green shoots emerging in the investment scenario.
"We are confident that the steps taken by RBI will bring about a moderation in inflation."
Chidambaram also asked the industry to invest back in the economy and that the government will expedite the clearance process.
"Indian industry must now not any longer sit on idle cash but start investing," Chidambaram said.
"In six months, 99 projects have been cleared worth Rs.3.68 lakh crore by the Cabinet Committee on Investments (CCI)."
Chidambaram added that he looked forward to attracting more foreign investments in pharmaceutical, telecom, and single- and multi-brand retail sectors.

Happy Tamil New Year wishes

Tamil new year is celebrating today, this is the starting day of first tamil month which is called 'Siththirai'. Wish you all happy tamil new year.

Send your wishes on this tamil new year through

http://www.thisismyindia.com/free-e-cards/tamil-card.html