Fourteen people commit suicide every hour in India due to various reasons, ranging from failure in relationships, bankruptcy, illness and social disrepute. One among every three suicide victims is a youth and one among five is a house wife.
These are some of the findings of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) which came out with the latest figures on accidents and suicides in the country.
According to the 'Accidental Deaths and Suicide in India – 2007' report, the country witnessed an increase of 3.8 per cent in the incidents of suicide with 1,22,637 people ending their lives last year. The number of women was 43,342.
Maharashtra has reported the highest number of suicides with 15,184 cases accounting for 12.4 per cent of such incidents followed by Andhra Pradesh with 14,882 (12.1 per cent). The report said 264 deaths came under common pact of mass or family suicides consisting 118 men and 146 women.
The highest number of such cases were reported from Kerala (39), followed by Andhra Pradesh (34) and Madhya Pradesh (12).
Family problems and illness were other causes for suicide, accounting for 23.8 per cent and 22.3 per cent respectively. Failure in relationships (2.8 per cent), bankruptcy (2.7) and dowry dispute (2.6) were other major factors.
Ending life due to ideological affiliations and hero worship, a disturbing trend witnessed in the late 1970s and early '80s, claimed 261 lives.
Out of a total of 27,332 people who committed suicide due to illness, 952 had AIDS or other sexually transmitted diseases while 794 had cancer and 496 were paralysed. Among AIDS or STD patients who committed suicide, 334 were women. The maximum number of people who took their life in this category were in the age group of 30 to 44 years.
Seven boys and three girls below 14 years also "committed suicide" as they had AIDS or STD, the report said.
Consuming poison and hanging were the means mostly adopted by those who committed suicide. While 34.8 per cent of the total victims chose to consume poison, 31.7 per cent preferred hanging.
The report said housewives accounted for 55.7 per cent (24,162) of the total female victims which are nearly 19.7 per cent of total who committed suicide.
While government servants were merely 1.5 per cent, private and public sector personnel have accounted for 8.2 per cent and 2.2 per cent respectively.
Source: Expressindia.com
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Is the computer mouse on the verge of extinction at 40?
The computer mouse, which was invented back in 1968 by Doug Engelbart and his team at the Stanford Research Institute in California, is facing extinction since the new technology might replace it. The computer mouse, which is now 40 years old, was developed after the team realized that there was a need for a simpler way of controlling computers than the standard light pen which had been used since the Second World War.
The mouse got its name since it quite resembled the animal and it was termed such by one unnamed researcher.
However, sadly it comes to light that on the eve of its 40th birthday, which is being celebrated next week when Engelbart returns to Stanford, the mouse could be facing death at the hands of new technology. The future is quite certain with the control methods of both the Wii and iPhone creeping in.
It is a well known fact that many laptop users already choose to use the built-in touchpad rather than a mouse. Moreover, touchscreens are now a reality rather than a science fiction. So sadly we may say that the mouse would be no more around us, since it would be replaced with a much more natural and user-friendly way of controlling the technology we use every day.
The mouse got its name since it quite resembled the animal and it was termed such by one unnamed researcher.
However, sadly it comes to light that on the eve of its 40th birthday, which is being celebrated next week when Engelbart returns to Stanford, the mouse could be facing death at the hands of new technology. The future is quite certain with the control methods of both the Wii and iPhone creeping in.
It is a well known fact that many laptop users already choose to use the built-in touchpad rather than a mouse. Moreover, touchscreens are now a reality rather than a science fiction. So sadly we may say that the mouse would be no more around us, since it would be replaced with a much more natural and user-friendly way of controlling the technology we use every day.
Severe shortage; Canada woos skilled Indian workers!
Here's good news for engineers, technicians and other skilled workers wanting to work abroad. Canada is trying to attract young talent from countries like India by relaxing norms for visas in this category, says a Canadian immigration expert.
'There is an acute shortage of skilled workers in Canada and the situation will worsen in the next 5-10 years unless the government makes an effort to attract talent from a young country like India,' said Curtis Panke, director of global operations for the Ontario-based Global Placement Services.
Pointing out that the retirement age for most occupations in Canada is 55 years, he said in the next five years, more than 20 percent of the country's engineers, doctors, professors and geologists would retire.
'This huge void cannot be filled with domestic talent alone. If we do not attract the talent from outside, there will be a talent vacuum of up to 70 percent in the next 10 to 15 years,' Panke told the media.
Keeping all this in mind, he said, the Canadian government has made vital changes in its immigration policy and relaxed certain norms for a Canadian visa in the skilled worker category.
The latest fast track processing of visa applications in the federal skilled worker category ensures a Canadian visa in a shorter period of just 6-12 months, pointed out Panke.
The Canadian government has issued a list of 38 high-demand occupational categories, including health, finance, engineers, heavy-duty mechanics, industrial technicians, food service managers and other skilled trades.
Panke is in Punjab to gauge the talent pool available and to conduct seminars all over the state in collaboration with the city-based World Wide Immigration Consultancy Services (WWICS), which has sent over 60,000 families and around 250,000 individuals to Canada till date.
'There are thousands of Punjabis in Canada, who are doing extremely well in their professions and contributing to the country's economy. Comparatively, we have more applicants from this region if we compare it with other states in India,' stated Panke.
Asked about the impact of global recession on the Canadian economy, Panke said a majority of the organisations and companies there would be unaffected in the long run. 'There is some impact but all this is a temporary phase and will pass very soon. Moreover, there is no impact on the openings available under skilled category there and Canada is looking forward to employ skilled workers in a big way.'
Talking about Canada's federal investor category for permanent residency in the country, Lt Col (retd) B.S. Sandhu, chief managing director of WWICS, said: 'An investor is only needed to invest Rs.5 million in some flourishing trade in Canada and can relocate there under the Canadian Investor Program.'
The applicant, under this category, only needs to have a work experience of two years and no language proficiency test like IELTS is required, he added.
Source: Agencies
'There is an acute shortage of skilled workers in Canada and the situation will worsen in the next 5-10 years unless the government makes an effort to attract talent from a young country like India,' said Curtis Panke, director of global operations for the Ontario-based Global Placement Services.
Pointing out that the retirement age for most occupations in Canada is 55 years, he said in the next five years, more than 20 percent of the country's engineers, doctors, professors and geologists would retire.
'This huge void cannot be filled with domestic talent alone. If we do not attract the talent from outside, there will be a talent vacuum of up to 70 percent in the next 10 to 15 years,' Panke told the media.
Keeping all this in mind, he said, the Canadian government has made vital changes in its immigration policy and relaxed certain norms for a Canadian visa in the skilled worker category.
The latest fast track processing of visa applications in the federal skilled worker category ensures a Canadian visa in a shorter period of just 6-12 months, pointed out Panke.
The Canadian government has issued a list of 38 high-demand occupational categories, including health, finance, engineers, heavy-duty mechanics, industrial technicians, food service managers and other skilled trades.
Panke is in Punjab to gauge the talent pool available and to conduct seminars all over the state in collaboration with the city-based World Wide Immigration Consultancy Services (WWICS), which has sent over 60,000 families and around 250,000 individuals to Canada till date.
'There are thousands of Punjabis in Canada, who are doing extremely well in their professions and contributing to the country's economy. Comparatively, we have more applicants from this region if we compare it with other states in India,' stated Panke.
Asked about the impact of global recession on the Canadian economy, Panke said a majority of the organisations and companies there would be unaffected in the long run. 'There is some impact but all this is a temporary phase and will pass very soon. Moreover, there is no impact on the openings available under skilled category there and Canada is looking forward to employ skilled workers in a big way.'
Talking about Canada's federal investor category for permanent residency in the country, Lt Col (retd) B.S. Sandhu, chief managing director of WWICS, said: 'An investor is only needed to invest Rs.5 million in some flourishing trade in Canada and can relocate there under the Canadian Investor Program.'
The applicant, under this category, only needs to have a work experience of two years and no language proficiency test like IELTS is required, he added.
Source: Agencies
AIG to sell its Swiss unit
Troubled insurance giant American International Group will be selling its Swiss arm AIG Private Bank to an Abu Dhabi-based global investment firm.
In this regard, AIG has entered into an agreement with Aabar Investments PJSC (Aabar) to sell its subsidiary, the insurance firm said in a statement.
According to UK daily ‘The Telegraph’, the Swiss subsidiary would be sold for about $254 million.
The move is one of the major sale of asset by the battered AIG, after receiving a lifeline worth $153 billion from the Federal government.
The statement noted that under the new ownership, AIG Private Bank would become an independent financial institution, headquartered in Switzerland along with branches and representative offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore and Dubai.
Source: Agencies
In this regard, AIG has entered into an agreement with Aabar Investments PJSC (Aabar) to sell its subsidiary, the insurance firm said in a statement.
According to UK daily ‘The Telegraph’, the Swiss subsidiary would be sold for about $254 million.
The move is one of the major sale of asset by the battered AIG, after receiving a lifeline worth $153 billion from the Federal government.
The statement noted that under the new ownership, AIG Private Bank would become an independent financial institution, headquartered in Switzerland along with branches and representative offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore and Dubai.
Source: Agencies
A lot more job cuts coming?
We are witnessing the worst of financial services job cuts in history? Well, here's one way to look at it: If banks were bent on maintaining their compensation ratio--that is, their compensation costs as a percentage of revenues--they would have to lay off many, many more employees, says a financial analyst.
It says the results of its analysis "range from the farcical (Merrill Lynch) to the disturbing (Credit Suisse), and the reassuring (Goldman and Morgan Stanley)." More specifically, Merrill Lynch would have to lay off more than 58,000. Credit Suisse would have to lay of 16,000. JPMorgan would have to layoff more than 5,000. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley would not require any additional layoffs, adds the analyst.
Source: Agencies
It says the results of its analysis "range from the farcical (Merrill Lynch) to the disturbing (Credit Suisse), and the reassuring (Goldman and Morgan Stanley)." More specifically, Merrill Lynch would have to lay off more than 58,000. Credit Suisse would have to lay of 16,000. JPMorgan would have to layoff more than 5,000. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley would not require any additional layoffs, adds the analyst.
Source: Agencies
Credit Suisse, HSBC to axe 1,150 jobs
Switzerland’s Credit Suisse AG Britain’s HSBC Holdings are axing hundreds of banking jobs as the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression continues to bite.
The cuts are the latest in a wave of job losses in which around 90,000 jobs have been axed at major global banks since September. Of these, more than 50,000 were at US bank Citigroup.
Credit Suisse said on Tuesday the bank was cutting 650 jobs, equivalent to roughly 3% of its investment banking workforce of about 21,300. “The cuts will be made mainly in investment banking,” a spokesman for the Swiss bank said.
The bank, which employed around 50,000 people globally at the end of September, has already slashed 1,800 jobs this year.
HSBC, Europe’s biggest bank, said it was cutting 500 jobs at its UK banking business following a review of the business. The bank employs 58,000 people in Britain.
“We deeply regret taking this step, but we consider it essential to ensure our business is operating as efficiently as possible and that we are best placed to deal with the economic downturn and maintain our levels of customer service,” HSBC UK Managing Director Paul Thurston said.
JP Morgan Chase & Co has said it will cut a total of 9,200 jobs at Washington Mutual, which it acquired September 25 after Washington Mutual became the largest US bank to fail amid the ongoing credit crisis.
Of the 9,200 jobs being eliminated as JP Morgan integrates Washington Mutual, 4,000 will be cut by the end of January. The remaining 5,200 employees will remain with JP Morgan through a transition period, but will lose their positions by the end of 2009. ArcelorMittal, the world’s biggest steelmaker, also plans to cut 1,400 support jobs at its French operations. The job cuts will take the form of voluntary redundancies, Daniel Soury-Lavergne, head of the steelmaker’s French business, said in an e-mailed statement.
European steel maker Corus, which was acquired by the Tatas, has said it will cut 146 jobs at one of its units. Corus in a statement said as part of the reorganisation process, the decision has been taken to reduce employment levels at Corus Tubes, a business division of the company, 146 jobs would be at risk.
Citi cuts package
American behemoth Citigroup, which is axing over 75,000 jobs this year to help cut costs and fight financial crisis, is now slashing the severance package, that too for staff having put 10 or more years with the bank.
Source: Agencies
The cuts are the latest in a wave of job losses in which around 90,000 jobs have been axed at major global banks since September. Of these, more than 50,000 were at US bank Citigroup.
Credit Suisse said on Tuesday the bank was cutting 650 jobs, equivalent to roughly 3% of its investment banking workforce of about 21,300. “The cuts will be made mainly in investment banking,” a spokesman for the Swiss bank said.
The bank, which employed around 50,000 people globally at the end of September, has already slashed 1,800 jobs this year.
HSBC, Europe’s biggest bank, said it was cutting 500 jobs at its UK banking business following a review of the business. The bank employs 58,000 people in Britain.
“We deeply regret taking this step, but we consider it essential to ensure our business is operating as efficiently as possible and that we are best placed to deal with the economic downturn and maintain our levels of customer service,” HSBC UK Managing Director Paul Thurston said.
JP Morgan Chase & Co has said it will cut a total of 9,200 jobs at Washington Mutual, which it acquired September 25 after Washington Mutual became the largest US bank to fail amid the ongoing credit crisis.
Of the 9,200 jobs being eliminated as JP Morgan integrates Washington Mutual, 4,000 will be cut by the end of January. The remaining 5,200 employees will remain with JP Morgan through a transition period, but will lose their positions by the end of 2009. ArcelorMittal, the world’s biggest steelmaker, also plans to cut 1,400 support jobs at its French operations. The job cuts will take the form of voluntary redundancies, Daniel Soury-Lavergne, head of the steelmaker’s French business, said in an e-mailed statement.
European steel maker Corus, which was acquired by the Tatas, has said it will cut 146 jobs at one of its units. Corus in a statement said as part of the reorganisation process, the decision has been taken to reduce employment levels at Corus Tubes, a business division of the company, 146 jobs would be at risk.
Citi cuts package
American behemoth Citigroup, which is axing over 75,000 jobs this year to help cut costs and fight financial crisis, is now slashing the severance package, that too for staff having put 10 or more years with the bank.
Source: Agencies
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Wipro BPO recruitments; Techies protest
Hundreds of students in West Bengal, protesting IT company Wipro's decision to recruit engineers as business process outsourcing (BPO) employees, met state IT Minister Debesh Das to air their problems.
The students, who were earlier selected for engineering jobs by the IT major, say the company is now recruiting them as BPO employees.
“We met the IT minister and he told us that he will look into the matter,” Sayantan Mukherjee, a student of Bengal Institute of Technology said.
"We were promised jobs in the company after we complete our engineering courses in 2009. But last week we were asked to join as BPO employees," he said.
Mukherjee got Wipro's offer in March 2007 for the post of project engineer, but was later asked by the company to join its BPO division.
"Moreover, the company is asking for a bond money of Rs 75,000 for the BPO job, which is unheard of in the industry. Usually project engineers are asked to deposit money, not BPO employees," he added.
However, when contacted, a Wipro official told the media that the decision was taken to give opportunity to graduates to start their work without any delay.
"Every year campus joining is spread out over the four quarters. This is done for logistical reasons of training and seating. Due to current business scenario we estimate delays in joining dates of some batches of recruits," Pradeep Bahirwani, VP (talent acquisition), Wipro, told from Bangalore through an email.
"We are providing them an option of a technical support role in our BPO division. The objective is to let engineering graduates commence work without delay," he said.
Bahirwani added that the employees would have an opportunity to move into the technologies business in 12-18 months based on business demand. "The annual compensation will remain unchanged as per the original offer letter and those not wishing to exercise this option would have to await their joining dates for the technologies division."
Mukherjee said similar things were happening in other states like Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. The students over there were also protesting against the decision, he said.
Source: Agencies
The students, who were earlier selected for engineering jobs by the IT major, say the company is now recruiting them as BPO employees.
“We met the IT minister and he told us that he will look into the matter,” Sayantan Mukherjee, a student of Bengal Institute of Technology said.
"We were promised jobs in the company after we complete our engineering courses in 2009. But last week we were asked to join as BPO employees," he said.
Mukherjee got Wipro's offer in March 2007 for the post of project engineer, but was later asked by the company to join its BPO division.
"Moreover, the company is asking for a bond money of Rs 75,000 for the BPO job, which is unheard of in the industry. Usually project engineers are asked to deposit money, not BPO employees," he added.
However, when contacted, a Wipro official told the media that the decision was taken to give opportunity to graduates to start their work without any delay.
"Every year campus joining is spread out over the four quarters. This is done for logistical reasons of training and seating. Due to current business scenario we estimate delays in joining dates of some batches of recruits," Pradeep Bahirwani, VP (talent acquisition), Wipro, told from Bangalore through an email.
"We are providing them an option of a technical support role in our BPO division. The objective is to let engineering graduates commence work without delay," he said.
Bahirwani added that the employees would have an opportunity to move into the technologies business in 12-18 months based on business demand. "The annual compensation will remain unchanged as per the original offer letter and those not wishing to exercise this option would have to await their joining dates for the technologies division."
Mukherjee said similar things were happening in other states like Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. The students over there were also protesting against the decision, he said.
Source: Agencies
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