12 August, 2013

VVIP chopper deal: Rules changed to favour AgustaWestland, CAG report finds

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) said on Tuesday that the government had failed to follow defence procurement policy rules in awarding a 560 million euros luxury helicopter deal to AgustaWestland, a division of Italy's Finmeccanica.

"Several instances have been observed where the ministry had deviated from the provisions of the DPP (defence procurement policy) 2006 and RFP (request for proposals) issued in September 2006," the Comptroller and Auditor General said in the report presented to Parliament.

Both Italy and India are investigating the deal.

Canada follows US, makes work visa difficult

The past decade has seen a phenomenal increase in the number of Indians working in Canada, the highest amongst any single nationality. But that now looks set to slow down.

Just as the US, Canada too is tightening its temporary foreign worker program (TFWP) that allows foreign nationals to work in Canada for short periods. The effort, as Rakesh Prabhu, partner-immigration practice in ALMT Legal, says, is to improve employment opportunities for its locals.

Effective July, employers in Canada will have to pay $275 as processing fee for each application that they file to bring in a foreign worker. Till now there was no fee. The new fee is non-refundable in case the application is rejected.

Judicial probe in Kerala solar scam, Left ends siege

Kerala's Congress-led UDF government on Tuesday announced a judicial probe into the solar scam case after which the Left opposition withdrew their siege of the secretariat here.

After hectic parleys at a meeting of the United Democratic Front (UDF) led by chief minister Oommen Chandy, it was announced that a sitting judge of the Kerala high court would conduct an inquiry into the solar scam.

California billionaire unveils futuristic 'hyperloop' transport

California billionaire Elon Musk took the wraps off his vision of a futuristic 'hyperloop' transport system on Monday, proposing to build a solar-powered network of crash-proof capsules that would whisk people from San Francisco to Los Angeles in half an hour.

In a blog post, Musk, the chief executive of electric car maker Tesla Motors Inc described in detail a system that, if successful, would do nothing short of revolutionizing intercity transportation. But first the plan would have to overcome questions about its safety and financing.

Ace shooter Ronjan Sodhi picked for Khel Ratna, Virat Kohli for Arjuna

Trap shooter Ronjan Sodhi, the first Indian to win two back-to-back World Cup gold medals, was on Tuesday recommended for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, while star cricketer Virat Kohli was among the 14 sportspersons picked for the Arjuna award by the selection committee.

Rising badminton player PV Sindhu, who became the first Indian woman shuttler to clinch a bronze medal at the recent World Championships, was also in the list of 14 sportspersons picked for the Arjuna award,