CERC fines UP Power Corpn for grid violation
New Delhi: The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has imposed a fine of Rs1 lakh on the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation (UPPCL)for continuous violation of grid code norms. The CERC acted on a petition by the Northern Region Load Dispatch Centre (NRLDC), and also appointed an adjudicating officer to look into other complaints received from northern region constituents against the UPPCL.
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DD barred from airing West Indies series
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has restrained Prasar Bharati from airing the West Indies cricket matches. The SC passed the order on an application by Ten Sports, seeking to restrain Prasar Bharati from downlinking the live feed of the matches.

Hence Doordarshan viewers will not be able to watch the upcoming India-West Indies Test and One-day International series also.

The court has also prohibited DD from taking any coercive measures to interfere in the live feed of the series by Ten Sports, which has the exclusive right to telecast the matches.

The Dubai-based channel argued that if the matches were simultaneously telecast on Doordarshan, it would suffer a huge loss. Ten Sports pointed out that it had already sold distribution rights to Set Discovery, which would have the right to licence throughout the country.

With this order the current spat over the telecast of the events, starting on May 18, is over.
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Center lowers grain output base of 2004-05
New Delhi: In a major jugglery of figures the agriculture ministry has drastically scaled down the foodgrain production estimate for 2004-05 by 6 million tonnes to show a 5.8 per cent output growth in the succeeding year that is 2005-06.

This is likely to result in an upward revision of the 8.1 per cent GDP growth estimated for 2005-06.

The latest crop production estimates for 2005-06 (including last kharif and the current rabi), issued today by the agriculture ministry, put the total foodgrain production at 210 million tones marking an increase of 11.6 million tonnes, or 5.8 per cent, over the downwardly revised figure of 198.36 million tonnes for 2004-05.

The previous estimates (fourth advance estimates for 2004-05 released on February 22) had put the 2004-05 grain output at 204.6 million tonnes. The ministry has not explained why the estimate has been lowered by as much as over 6 million tonnes.

The ministry has similarly slashed the wheat output estimate for 2004-05 by over 3.4 million tonnes, from 72 million tonnes to 68.6 million tonnes, to claim nearly 3 million higher wheat production in the current rabi. It has now projected the current rabi's wheat output at 71.5 million tonnes, against the earlier estimate of 73 million tonnes.

Analysts say, while this year's wheat output figures could tally with the latest reports from the wheat growing areas, the drastic reduction in the 2004-05 output estimate is logical. If the harvest that year was merely 68 million tonnes, a procurement of above 14 million tonnes would not have been possible, the analysts pointed out.

Going by today's estimates, the total foodgrain output in the current rabi (now being marketed) has been 100.2 million tonnes, against 101 million tonnes projected in February. But, to show an output push of over 5 million tonnes over the previous season, the last rabi's production estimate has been lowered from 101 million tonnes claimed earlier to merely 95 million tonnes now.

But the estimates for kharif foodgrain production last year have been kept almost unchanged at 103 million tonnes though for the current year, these have been revised upwards from 108.1 million tonnes projected in February to 109.8 million tonnes now.
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Biotech park stone laid near Hyderabad
Hyderabad: The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, has laid the foundation stone for Phase III of Biotech Park at Karakapatla in Medak district to come up in a 414-acre site. The first two phases of the Shapoorji Pallonji Biotech Park spread over 400 acres have been completed and 23 biotech companies have commenced operations.

Fourteen international biotech companies have established operations in the cluster over the last one year and several others such as Nektar Therapeutics and United States Pharmacopoeia have decided to move in to the Genome Valley. Albany Molecular Research Inc, Mithros Chemicals, Chanelle Pharmaceuticals and NND Biomedical Data Systems, are others to commence operations. The Andhra Pradesh Industrial Development Corporation (APIDC) Venture Capital has launched Biotech focused Venture Capital Fund with a seed capital of Rs10 crore.
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