Indian store-owners got together this week to offer three days of discounted shopping - but only for those buying via the internet.
Shilpa Kannan met some of the 200 retailers involved in the annual online shopping festival in Delhi and asked them about the potential for e-commerce in India.
She found that while internet shopping is growing, it faces unique challenges in India.
Watch India Business Report
The Hindu A file picture of Savitri Jindal, India's richest woman. Photo: Akhilesh Kumar The country’s richest woman, Savitri Jindal, was Tuesday inducted as a minister in the Haryana cabinet by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. This is the second time that she has become a minister in the Hooda government. She was earlier a minister of state in the 2005-09 Hooda government. Ms. Jindal is a legislator from the ruling Congress from Hisar assembly constituency and is the mother of industrial tycoon and high-profile parliament member Naveen Jindal (Lok Sabha member from Kurukshetra). She was listed by a leading business publication as the country’s richest woman as she lords over a multi-billion rupee steel and power sector empire and is the chairperson of the Jindal Group. Her name also figures in the Top-100 richest people in the world. Savitri Jindal’s industrialist-cum-politician husband O.P.Jindal, who too was a minister in the Hooda government, was killed when his private helicopter crashed near the Haryana-Uttar Pradesh border March 2005. Ms. Jindal was sworn-in on Tuesday along with the other new minister, Aftab Ahmed, who is a legislator from Nuh assembly constituency in Mewat district and the only Muslim face in the Hooda ministry. Two ministerial slots in the Hooda government were vacant ever since ministers O.P.Jain and Gopal Kanda resigned in June 2011 and August 2012 respectively, after their names figured in separate criminal cases. The 90-member Haryana assembly goes to polls in October next year. Earlier this year, Ms. Jindal was directed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court to vacate her government accommodation, which she had been occupying unauthorised. She has been occupying a ministerial bungalow in Chandigarh’s upscale Sector 7, even though she ceased to be a minister in 2009. The court said that eviction proceedings be started if she did not vacate the house. A penalty of Rs.89 lakh was also slapped on her for occupying the house. 
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Sensex at 3-year high; up 359 points The 30-share index closed in on the 21,000 mark on the back of massive buying in rate-sensitive banking, realty, auto and consumer durable shares » Home News Opinion Business Sport S & T Features Books In-depth Jobs Classifieds Shopping Bus tickets Industry Economy Markets Stock Quotes Business» IndustryNew Delhi,October 29, 2013 Updated: October 29, 2013 16:19 IST Keywords: RBI rate hike, industry reaction
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One of the first studies to investigate the prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in low and middle income countries finds that MCI does not depend on socio-demographic factors, and is associated with disability and neuropsychiatric symptoms.
The research was led by the 10/66 Dementia Research Group based at the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College London and published today in PLoS Medicine.
MCI is an intermediate state between normal signs of cognitive aging, such as becoming increasingly forgetful, and dementia, and may be linked to an increased risk of dementia,
The research group interviewed roughly 15,000 people aged over 65 years who did not have dementia in eight low and middle incomes countries—Cuba, Dominican Republic, Peru, Mexico, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, China, and India.
Their mental and physical health, cognitive function were also assessed and their relatives and carers interviewed for further details about any memory loss, any other decline in cognitive function or the presence of any neuropsychiatric symptoms.
The prevalence of MCI ranged quite widely, from 0.8% in China to 4.3% in India. They found that age or level of former education did not seem to be linked to MCI and that men had a slightly higher prevalence of MCI than women. The authors found that MCI was associated with disability, anxiety, apathy and irritability but not with depression.
Dr Robert Stewart, senior author of the paper at the IoP at King’s says: ‘By 2050, it’s estimated that more than 115 million people will have dementia, and much of the expected increase will occur in low and middle income countries where the population is rapidly ageing.
‘I hope that the information on MCI in low and middle income countries we report in this study could help inform health care and social service planning in these rapidly ageing and highly populated regions of the world.’
The authors added that more long-term studies are needed to investigate whether MCI can be used as a reliable marker for further cognitive decline and dementia, and into the associations with disability and neuropsychiatric symptoms.
Dr Stewart adds: ‘It is also worth considering whether cultural influences may impact upon the identification of MCI – it may be that people in certain countries may be more or less likely to admit to memory difficulties. Whilst this may help in part explain the variation between countries, the association between MCI and disability remained constant throughout.’
The 10/66 Dementia Research Group is supported by the Wellcome Trust (UK), the World Health Organization, the US Alzheimer’s Association and the Fondo Nacional de Ciencia Y Tecnologia, Consejo de Desarrollo Cientifico Y Humanistico, Universidad Central de Venezuela (Venezuela). The lead author is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Specialist Biomedical Research Centre for Mental Health at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London.
For full paper: Sosa, A.L. et al. ‘Prevalence, Distribution, and Impact of Mild Cognitive Impairment in Latin America, China, and India: A 10/66 Population-Based Study’ (7th February 2012) PLoS Medicine doi: 9(2): e1001170. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001170
For more information, please contact Seil Collins (Press Officer) email: seil.collins@kcl.ac.uk or tel: 0207 848 5377
Rt Hon David Willetts MP and Tayyeb Shah during the panel discussionKing's celebrates end of 2012 UKIERI Study India Programme
The Rt Hon David Willetts MP, Minister of State for Universities and Science, hosted a celebration event in London last week to formally close this year’s UK-India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI) Study India Programme. The programme, managed by King’s College London since it began in 2009, has played a vital role in strengthening mutual understanding between India and the UK by giving British students the opportunity to study and work in India. So far over 700 students from King’s and other UK universities have travelled on the unique scholarship programme to Delhi and Mumbai, with over 70 percent of this year’s group keen to go back to India to pursue career opportunities.
David Willetts welcomed a panel of delegates from UKIERI, King’s and other key stakeholders – Tata Consultancy Services, the Indian High Commission, the universities of Mumbai and Delhi – to the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) to celebrate the success of the programme. The panel was joined by students from this year’s programme who had the opportunity to engage in a discussion about future opportunities in the field of Indo-British education.
The Minister congratulated students and organizers on the highly successful project and underlined the importance of such innovative ways of improving student mobility to India. This year 102 internship opportunities were provided by Tata Consultancy Services and other Tata companies as part of the initiative, an engagement for which BIS paid particular acknowledgment.
In a series of inspiring talks, alumni students spoke about of their experiences of India and their life-changing impact.
Charlotte Buchanan introduced the audience to the India-Britain Youth Organisation, an initiative she co-founded as a consequence of Study India to strengthen mutual understanding between young people in India and Britain. King’s students Chloe Mclauchlan and Alexander Mayhew spoke on behalf of Project Chirag – a charity working to bring solar power to Indian villages. Elliot Bromley and Mofozzul Choudhury summarized in moving words the positive impact their visits to schools in India and the UK had upon the pupils and themselves. The programme now includes a school outreach project which has already reached over 2,500 school pupils, through workshops delivered by Study India students.
The event this week comes after a lively celebration at the British Council in Delhi earlier this term which marked the end of the students’ time in India.
Professor Rick Trainor, Principal of King’s College London, who attended the event as part of the King’s delegation visit to India said: ‘The Study India Programme is imbued with the notion of global citizenship – students get to understand India and more broadly the world in which India is becoming ever more important. I hope many of you will build on your experiences in India and relationships you have made here as part of your future careers.’
King’s staff and students from the Study India Programme celebrate in Delhi
Rob Lynes, Director of the British Council in India, addressed the students in Delhi saying: ‘All of you here, from both India and the UK, are the future workforce. Your experience, shared expertise, networks and resources will build stronger ties between India and the UK and help make both our countries more prosperous and secure.’
He added: ‘Around a quarter of a million students from India have studied in the UK over the last 10 years, yet there are probably less than 10,000 from the UK who have studied here in the same period. If we are really serious in the UK about understanding India in the 21st century, then the challenge is to get thousands of students, like you, from the UK to India, encourage more private sector support, and engage more universities both in India and the UK in this programme and others. If we can do that, then we will really make a difference.’
Tayyeb Shah, Director of Executive Education at King’s, said: ‘King’s is proud to be managing the Study India Programme for UKIERI and playing our part in introducing UK students to living and working in another culture. Education in the 21st century must not be limited by national boundaries – as the world is now globalised, our students benefit much more from learning with their peers in India. India is such a vibrant country and this outstanding programme is a life-changing experience for anyone who takes part.’
For further information, please contact Katherine Barnes, International PR Manager, King's College London on +44 (0) 207 848 3076 or email katherine.barnes@kcl.ac.uk
Find out more about the UKIERI Study India Programme.
