India to begin exporting mangoes to the US
New Delhi: After 18 years India will begin exporting mangoes to the US with the first consignment likely to leave today. The New York-bound fruits will be the second success story in a row for the King of Fruits. Last year, Indian mangoes were exported to Japan for the first time after a gap of 20 years.

This shipment has two varieties, Alphonso and Kesar.

Indian authorities are upbeat over the fact that India has scored over Pakistan in supplying mangoes to the US.

The US banned mangoes from India 18 years ago over concerns that Indian farmers used too much of pesticides, including the banned ones.
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More reforms needed to sustain growth: WTO
Geneva: More reforms are needed if India has to achieve its goal of 8 to 10 per cent annual economic growth over the longer term, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) said on Wednesday. In a report WTO said structural reforms, including trade liberalisation, played a key role in helping the Indian economy grow at an average 8.5 per cent since 2003.

It said reform should focus on infrastructure bottlenecks, particularly in transport and electricity supply, and on loss-making public sector companies which remain a drain on India's public finances.

Since a previous WTO report in June 2002, average import tariffs in India had dropped to 15.8 per cent from 32.3 per cent overall, although the average duty on industrial goods was well below that of agricultural imports.

For agricultural goods, the average was 40.8 per cent, while that of industrial goods was 12.1 per cent. Both figures are well below ceilings set in 1995 in the last round of WTO trade liberalisation, the so-called Uruguay Round.
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20 new IITs to be set up
New Delhi: The government plans to set up 20 new Indian Institutes of Technology across the country and the Union HRD ministry has submitted a proposal to this effect to the Planning Commission, according to its annual report for 2006-07.

The Planning Commission has suggested that the setting up of the new IITs could be considered under public-private participation, the report stated.

There are seven Indian Institutes of Technology and six Indian Institutes of Management in the country. The government recently decided to set up three new IITs in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan and the seventh IIM at Shillong, the report said.

Two new schools of Planning and Architecture are also proposed to be started at Vijayawada and Bhopal.

In addition to the existing Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) at Gwalior, Allahabad and Jabalpur, a new IIIT (Design and Manufacturing) has been approved to be set up at Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu, the report said.

The government has set up two Indian Institutes of Scientific Education and Research at Kolkata and Pune. One more such institute will be set up at Mohali, while two more are proposed -- one each in Bhopal and Thiruvananthapuram.
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Tobacco regulatory body to be set up
New Delhi: The government is planning to set up a regulatory authority for effective implementation of anti-tobacco laws. This is because despite an exiting ban on smoking in public places, smokers are being seen all public places including restaurants, hotels and theatres.

The Health Ministry is setting up a National Tobacco Regulatory Body under the 11th five year plan to enforce the anti-tobacco Act strictly. The regulatory body will be an independent one and will coordinate between states and the industry said Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss.

He said a stringent enforcement of the Act was necessary because 40 per cent of the country's health problem occur due to tobacco.

Ramadoss said a survey showed that in the Bollywood movies of the 1950s, fifty per cent of heroes smoked, which grew to 71 per cent in the 1990s and 86 per cent currently.

Ramadoss also said he was concerned about passive smoking at workplaces.

The minister said he has written to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to take action against companies who are showing surrogate advertisements of tobacco and liquor.
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