Shipyard to be built in Orissa

The Orissa government has cleared some investment proposals including the set up of a shipyard. The proposed shipyard would come up near Dhamra, 150 km from Bhubaneswar. It will be built by APJ-Bharati Shipping Company. The entire cost of the project would be Rs 2,200 crore.

Private IT Park in Orissa to come up soon

The Bhubaneswar-based JSS Group has decided to come up with a private software technology part in Orissa. It would be the first private IT park in Orissa. The JSS Group operates as a BPO/KPO company in the banking and financial back-end services. The proposed IT park will be known as JSS Software Technology Park. It would be set up at Infocity in Chandaka, Bhubaneswar.

Nobel Laurate addresses KIIT Convocation

Prof. Rolf M Zinkernagel, Nobel laureate in Medicine, addressed the 3rd annual convocation ceremony of KIIT deemed university in Bhubaneswar. It could be recalled that Zinkernagel’s discovery on the specificity of cell mediated immune defence led to a foundation for the understanding of the general mechanisms of the cellular immune systems. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1996.

Prof. Rolf M Zinkernagel is currently associated with the Medicine University of Zurich. He said, "while long term research adds to the knowledge, short term translation of such knowledge into practical use is equally important". At least 1206 students from B Tech, MCA, MBA and M Tech, received degrees at the convocation.

NALCO to set up Aluminium Park in Angul District

The National Aluminium Company (NALCO) is planning to set up an Aluminium Park close to its smelter plant in the Angul district of Orissa. It was revealed by Industries Minister B B Harichandan on Wednesday. The project is in cosideration phase. The exact location of the proposed park has not been decided yet.

Orissa Tribals hail Norway for banning Vedanta

The Norway government found support from unexpected quarters for its move to ban Vedanta Resources Plc from investing further in the country. A delegation of Orissa tribals met Norwegian embassy officials in New Delhi to express their gratitude for not allowing Vedanta to operate in Norway.

According to a supporter of the tribals, a delegation of Dongaria Kondh tribals met two representatives of Norwegian finance ministry in the embassy and gifted them two photographs of Niyamgiri Hills. Vedanta Alumina Ltd, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources Plc, has signed a MoU with the Orissa government to set up a bauxite refinery in tribal-majority Kalahandi region.

The tribals are opposing the project fearing displacement and damage to their local heritage. According to them, the proposed project would destabilise wildlife in the area including elephants and rare lizards. They got inspired to step up their protest by Norway's recent move. Recently, Norway's state pension fund has sold around $13 million worth of shares in Vedanta Resources after it was found that Vedanta has caused severe environmental damage and violated human rights.

Arcelor-Mittal to harvest rain water in Orissa

Global Steel giant Arcelor-Mittal has decided to harvest rain water using technology that consumes less quantity of 'H2O' to reduce pressure on the natural resource. The Arcelor-Mittal's group management is consulting global experts in the field to reduce pressure on the natural resource.

Arcelor-Mittal's group officials met Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy to discuss the progress of the Orissa project. It could be recalled that the company has signed an MoU with the state government for setting up a 12 mtpa steel unit with an investment of Rs 40,000 crore in Keonjhar district. Since the farmers of Orissa are strongly opposing the government's decision to supply water from Hirakud reservoir to industries, Arcelor-Mittal's group has taken this step to ensure they do not take farmer's share of water.

Bhubaneswar goes Global

Bhubaneswar was not the same 10 years ago. Although the city was built on the planning of Chandigarh, its life-style never resembled Delhi or Chandigarh. However, things in 2007, have become completely different. Shopping Malls, Food Chains, Discos, Pubs and several other recreation homes are coming up in the city in large numbers.

Currently, there are two Biz Bazars, two Vishal Mega Marts and a grand Pantaloon store besides several food hangouts such as Coffee Cafe Day and Pizza Hut. The youngsters are now waiting for McDonald, Nirula's and KFC to arrive in the city sooner or later. The youngsters have completely fashionable, thanks to the impact of high education and exposure to city life.

Non-oriyas who are residing in Bhubaneswar in large numbers - have added spice to the life in Bahubaneswar. Punjabis, Marwaris, Bengalis and Biharis come to the city either for business, study or jobs in MNCs. MNC employees and young students have already taken the city by storm. They live their life to the fullest and make others to enjoy with them.

The clothes, mobile phones, jewelleries, accessories and other equipments the youngsters are using today in Bhubaneswar were never thought of a decade ago. That's the impact of globalization and the fever has gripped both guys and girls. The day is not too far when we will see young boys and girls from the city scoring a few points over their metro counterparts in every aspect.

Computer Vendors in Bhubaneswar sell Fake Goods

It's a big concern that some small time computer vendors in Bhubaneswar are selling fake goods to their customers. These computer peripherals are being mostly imported from Thailand and China. Major items including RAMs, Motherboards, Keyboards, Printers and Hard Discs are being sold by these vendors in large numbers.

Recently, Suraj (name changed) bought an EPSON Stylus C58 Inkjet Printer. The vendor opened the cartridge seal before him and installed it. Later, to his utter surprise, Suraj found the black cartridge empty. He could take only three print-outs. When he contacted the vendor, he initially refused to oblige.

When Suraj persisted and threatened to take legal action, the vendor made a call some unknown guy and assured Suraj that his cartridge would be replaced. Suraj is still waiting for his cartridge to be replaced. It clearly indicates that some rackets are indeed going on in computer hardware industry that need to be unearthed immediately.

KIIT enters 'Limca Book of Records' (TOI Report)

According to Times of India newspaper, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) University has entered the Limca Book of Records-2007 in four categories. The University is the first to get the varsity status in the shortest possible time. It figures in the Limca Book of Records as the only institute in the country that offers technical education from ITI to Ph D level.

The Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), a sister concern of KIIT, has entered the Record Book as the only residential school for tribal children from kindergarten to Class XII in the country. KIIT achived another milestone when its chancellor Dr Achyut Samanta has entered the record book as the youngest person in the country to hold the top post. He was appointed Chancellor of the KIIT at the age of 39 in 2004.