ISRO launches twin satellites
Chennai: With the launch of the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) CARTOSAT-I, a remote sensing satellite with superior imaging capabilities, planners in the country will now have access to high quality data to help them manage natural resources and plan urban and rural development

Piggy backing on the CARTOSAT-I, ISRO has also placed in space the HAMSAT, a micro satellite, which will improve communications between amateur radio operators, popularly called HAMS.

The satellites were carried into space and placed in orbit 630 km above the earth by ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C6, which blasted off at 10.15 a.m. on Thursday from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, SHAR, Sriharikota, about 80 km north of Chennai. Twenty minutes later the PSLV had put both the satellites in space, in a flawless operation.

The President of India, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, who witnessed the launch, congratulated the ISRO scientists for the excellent performance. Addressing presspersons after the launch, G. Madhavan Nair, Chairman, ISRO, said that it was the 20th launch of a satellite from the Sriharikota island.

The flawless launch may result in the satellites operating well beyond their planned lifecycles - five years for the CARTOSAT-I and two years for HAMSAT. CARTOSAT is unique because of its stereo imaging capabilities because of its two cameras, which will help generate three-dimensional images of the earth's surface. The images will help generate elevation maps for urban and rural development, land and water resources management and environmental impact assessment.

The launch was the first from a new launch complex, which the President dedicated to the nation on Wednesday. This complex includes a vehicle assembly building where the launch vehicle is put together and then is wheeled out on rails to a launch pad one kilometre away. The assembly building is built to accommodate various types of launch vehicles and is expected to meet ISRO's requirements for the next two decades, scientists said.

The ISRO chjef said that the new facility enables ISRO to increase the number of launches. Earlier, it could launch three rockets a year but now the turnaround time would come down and enable it to double the number of launches. So apart from the three needed to meet India's own requirements, the additional capacity could be exploited commercially for use by other countries.
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SC rules that corporate bodies can be prosecuted
New Delhi: A five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court headed by Justice N Santosh Hegde has ruled that corporate bodies can be prosecuted in financial irregularity cases and courts can impose fines on them.

The move takes away the immunity of the companies to be prosecuted for economic offences.

It set aside an earlier ruling of the Court that companies cannot be prosecuted in economic offences as they were not a natural person and could not be imprisoned if found guilty.

Justice K G Balakrishnan, writing the judgement, said the courts trying corporate bodies can always impose fine on them, if found guilty. However, a sentence of imprisonment cannot be passed against them, the ruling said.
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US announces 20,000 additional H1B visas
Hyderabad: The US has announced that an additional 20,000 H1B visas will be given to foreigners with at least a Masters degree from America.

The rider that the additional openings are only for those with a minimum Masters level degree in the US has its own implications. "The American economy wants professionals who have had experience of American education system and have had an exposure to the American culture,'' said A B Bhushan, Regional President, Indo-American Chamber of Commerce.

The announcement has been received with great scepticism by professionals here for very few people have done their Masters in the US. The move is more likely to help the Chinese, who largely tend to do their MS in the US and then go back to their country to work.
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