Think India Foundation

The world's biggest cities: How do you measure them?

Which is the biggest city in the world? And why is such a simple question so difficult to answer?

If you search on the internet for the world's biggest city, you'll find various different candidates: Tokyo, Seoul, Chongqing, Shanghai...

Which one you regard as the holder of the title, all depends on what you mean by "city". Read more

Source : bbc.co.uk

Good response for Thane transport bids

THANE: Public transport systems are set to undergo a complete change in the next three years here with international transportation leaders expressing interest to develop and operate a mass transit system in Thane using a mix of buses, monorails, tramways and even bicycles.

Top multinational firms, including Veolia, Bombardier and Scomi, have teamed up with Indian infrastructure giants such as Patel Engineering and the Tata group to bid for the Thane corporation's contract to create a hassle-free intra-city transport system, probably the one of its kind in the nation. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

 

Panchkula set for second sewage treatment plant

Panchkula : Despite a second sewage treatment plant on the verge of becoming operational in Panchkula, residents will have to wait for more time before treated water is pumped into parks and lawns.

The new plant, constructed by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) is housed in Sector-22 and will have the capacity to treat 39 million litres per day (mld). It will become operational in a week’s time. At present, Panchkula has one sewage treatment plant in Sector-20 which treats 18 mld. Read more

Source : indianexpress.com

Huda begins drain work ahead of rainy days

Gurgaon : In order to prevent the damage of road and waterlogging, Haryana Urban Development Authority (Huda) has initiated the work on 2-metre slopes on both sides of  Sohna Road  at Subhash Chowk. The drain will be connected to the storm water drain.

Without wasting time in estimate preparations or tender floating exercises, Huda administrator Praveen Kumar, after meeting superintending engineer RK Kakkar and executive engineer Hari Datt Sharma, asked the officials to get the work started. Read more

Source : hindustantimes.com

264 drivers have spotless record in Pune,no reward

Pune : Not all drivers are like MSRTC’s Santosh Mane, who in a bizarre state of mind, mowed down eight persons and injured serveral others last week. At least city transport undertaking PMPML has reasons to feel proud of its list of faultless drivers: 264 to the last count, from a total of 3,000 drivers on its roll. These 264 hold a unique record of not a single accident, let alone fatalities, in their two-three decades of service, reveals the reply from PMPML administration to an RTI application by The Indian Express.

Of the 264, Suresh Laxman Shitole is on top with 29 years of accident-free driving, the reply says. The likes of Devidas Govindrao Jadhav, Rajkumar Gajanan Paradkar, Suresh Rajaram Dhume and Narayan Mahadevo Landge have 28 years of service without any mishaps. Read more

Source : expressindia.com

J&K govt wakes up, starts collecting milk samples

Srinagar : Following the revelation that 83 percent of milk produced in Jammu and Kashmir contains adulterants, the state government has initiated the process of collecting samples.

With the disclosures triggering panic, the state government has woken up with Health Ministry seeking report about the findings of Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Read more

Source : greaterkashmir.com

Moving targets

How important is location to a business school? Does it matter if you are rooted in one particular city or country? It is a topic that is creeping on to the business school agenda because, as we know, demographics are changing dramatically.

There are now a mind-boggling 7bn people on the planet. What is more, that figure could double again by the end of the century, with the largest growth occurring in developing countries. Where will people live? What kind of lives will they have? How many will pursue higher education? Read more

Source : ft.com

MP cabinet to discuss IMC's new set-up plan

INDORE: The Madhya Pradesh cabinet will consider the proposal of the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) for a new set-up and establishment plan for the corporation at its meeting on Tuesday.

The new set-up plan focusses on decentralization of power, wherein each zonal office will be equivalent to a class I municipality and all the works related to the corporation can be done through the zonal office. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Next generation will not see animals, plants: Builder

Mysore : ‘Hassle-free system will reduce cost of building houses’

“We have destroyed what is priceless. It would be no surprise if the next generation inherits a earth sans birds, animals or plants. It is the legacy what we leave to our children. Children should become ambassadors for any movement and adopt what is right, only then can Earth be preserved,” said founder of Spectral Service Consultants Prem C Jain after releasing a technical volume of Buildtech at NIE indoor stadium here on Saturday. Read more

Source : deccanherald.com

Metrowater to get 5cr to cut CO2 emissions

CHENNAI: The Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) will soon receive 5 crore from the United Nations for reducing carbon dioxide emissions in four of its sewage treatment plants. Metrowater officials said SGS India, a consultant, had registered with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change to obtain emission reduction certificate for the plants.

Metrowater managing director K Gopal said the UN had expressed satisfaction with Metrowater's efforts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. "We submitted a proposal to the UN and expect to receive 5 crore in three months. Instead of letting out gases into the atmosphere, we are using them to meet our needs. So we are going to receive carbon credits for it," he said. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

A winning shot for Moradabad

On January 13, as India recorded a year without any new case of the indigenous wild polio virus, in Moradabad, an army of polio workers and doctors silently cheered a milestone of their own. It was in September 2009, over two years ago, that the district recorded its last polio case, a stunning turnaround for the place that had been branded the world’s ‘polio capital’.

The last case recorded in the country was on January 13, 2011, when 18-month-old Rukhsar Khatoon in Howrah, West Bengal, was detected with polio. Now, if the pending lab tests of stool and sewage samples do not show traces of the poliomyelitis virus, India will drop out of the acronym ‘PAIN’, which stands for Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Nigeria, among the last few holdouts of the polio virus in the world. Read more

Source : indianexpress.com

Ten trendiest city hubs across India

On the outside, it's nothing more than another one of Delhi's haphazard urban village colonies. The crazily intertwined electricity wires scream 'fire hazard'. The matchbox style stacked houses give neighbourhood watch a new meaning. The narrow arterial road leads to a cul-de- sac. From this vantage point, it's difficult to imagine Hauz Khas Village as a cool urban creative community.

But walk into one of the many designer stores, exchange travel tales at Kunzum Travel Cafe, buy into counter culture thought at Yodakin, order a 'home-cooked-restaurant-priced' menu at Yeti or shop for Indian kitsch in the galis, and you will realise it's more than that. HKV, as it's now acronymised, is growing into a place where alternative creative instinct can be expressed freely. Read more

Source : articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com

Why drinking benefits Europeans, not Indians

Are the health benefits of alcohol overrated? In the latest advisory on spirits, the UK House of Commons has requested the British to keep away from alcohol for at least two days a week. The lawmakers reason the body needs a break twice a week to repair the liver. This is a climbdown from earlier guidelines to drink moderately every day. 

A World Health Organization survey a few years back showed that spirits made up for 88% of what Indians regularly drink, while beer only had a 10% share and wine was barely 2%.

In the country's various watering holes, it's difficult to miss the flurry of advice: have beer to flush out kidney stones, wine to cut down risk of heart attack. Some even claim that diabetes can be kept at bay with a regular drink. But doctors say such claims cannot be given a simple thumbs-up or thumbs-down. Read more 

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Second industrial rubber park built in Tripura

India's second industrial rubber park has come up in Bodhungnagar in western Tripura to boost the country's elastic polymer industry.

The park, a joint venture between the Tripura Industrial Development Corporation (TIDC) and the Rubber Board, is the second of its kind in the country after the rubber park in Irapuram, Kerala. Read more

Source : smetimes.in

Taj Mahal tilting but no need to fear, says ASI

Agra: The Taj Mahal has taken a tilt though there is nothing to worry. The 17th century 'Monument of Love' has reportedly developed tilts but is still within the 'permissible limits'. 

According to reports, officials of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) informed the Supreme Court on Friday that although the minarets were tilting there was 'no cause of concern' as it was within what is called 'permissible'. Read more

Source : pardaphash.com

Anand Vihar rly station all set for expansion

New Delhi : Two years after it was thrown open to public, the Anand Vihar mega railway terminal in east Delhi is all set for its next phase of expansion. The 42-acre station, which took five years to complete, will have four more platforms. Currently, there are three platforms. Besides, subways connecting all platforms will be built. 

And it's not only platforms and subways that are on the cards, the station will also have a mall with a dedicated food court. A new ticket reservation system will also come up. Read more

Source : hindustantimes.com