Youth must invest-
When we are a college fresher or in first job, saving and investment are the last things in our mind.

Our priority is the latest gadget, movies or a dream car. This is natural among the youth.

With so much media exposure, you get tempted to buy these items. It is advisable for the youth to follow five personal finance steps:

Budgeting-
It’s easy to find ourselves wondering where our money went. Putting a budget in writing can show how we are actually spending our money and what we can do to help control where it goes.

We should remember to add entertainment and shopping expenses into monthly budget and not forget to include savings.

We should treat it with the same importance we would treat utility bills.

In fact, the earlier we start saving, the earlier that money can start working for us.


Plastic woes-
Easy availability of credit cards has provided a major boost to spending. We should use credit cards in a proper way like for emergency payments or life insurance premium payments.

If we are not careful and use “minimum payment option”, it could mean getting entangled in a debt trap. Interest rates are as high as 42% in most of the credit cards now.

We should stick to the rule: “If we can’t pay cash, then we can’t buy it.” We should not use credit card unless absolutely needed.


Start early-
As investor when we are young, we have time and money on our side. Most of the people are unaware about power of compounding.

According to Albert Einstein: “Compounding is mankind’s greatest invention because it allows for the reliable, systematic accumulation of wealth.”

The sooner we start, makes the difference. We should start SIP (systematic investment plans) at an early age to benefit from the power of compounding.

The term ‘systematic investing’, applies to the process of investing regularly ie. at fixed intervals, say, monthly or quarterly.

Even we may start at as little as Rs 500 per month.


Set objective-
This should be starting point of any investment plan. We should split the objective in short term, medium term and long term.

Some examples are like buying an electronic gadget (short-term), planning for higher studies (medium term) and planning for house (long-term). An investment objective is a simply a wish which we want to fulfil.

After setting the investment objective, calculate the amount needed to achieve the financial goals.

We should be able to earn decent return on the investment after assessing risk profile. The more we earn, makes a difference.


Pay off debt-
We should always retire the high cost debt first. We should never accumulate the debt on credit cards.

Nowadays we have access to educational loans which are cheaper then credit cards. We should consolidate the debt when possible to take advantage of lower rates.

It is better to take loans from parents and friends then to accumulate high cost debt.



Economic Times...................

Nuke deal: A win for PM, but will UPA also score?????????????
Getting the nod of the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) for the Indo-US nuclear deal—this is expected to be passed by the US Congress later this month—will be recorded as the most important achievement of the Manmohan Singh-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at theCentre.

What does consummating this deal mean to Prime Minister Singh and the Congress-led UPA towards the end of their five-year term? And, how will this affect the principal political players as India heads for a poll season with a string of assembly elections barely two months from now and the a general election slated for April-May?
For Singh, the culmination of the nuclear deal is a vindication of sorts. He has always maintained that the deal is in the nation’s interest. He held his nerve at crucial moments when his government appeared shaky and secured the full backing of his party and coalition’s leadership.
Until a few months ago, the widespread impression among people was that Singh was a “puppet” prime minister who was not just weak but could take no decisions on his own.
Recent political developments and the imminent success of the nuclear deal have brought about a phenomenal transformation in this image and Singh is now seen as a strong-willed leader and as a man with firm convictions who will stay in office only on his terms. In today’s politics, when political leaders cringe and stoop to stick to office, Singh’s firm stand has won him support. As the UPA government’s term is drawing to a close, Singh has gained in stature and has emerged out of the shadows of Congress leader Sonia Gandhi who is the “real” leader of the coalition. He has also proved his newly acquired political management and negotiation skills in securing the support of an arch rival, the Samajwadi Party (SP), to stave off a threat to his government after a key ally, the Left Front, withdrew support to the UPA government over the issue of the nuclear deal.
The image of Singh’s government has been sullied by the murky developments leading to the UPA government’s trust vote in the Lok Sabha on 22 July, which it won by a wide margin. Fortunately for the Prime Minister, allegations that representatives of opposition parties were bribed to support the government have not dented the public perception of Singh as an “apolitical” leader with unquestioned personal integrity.
Can the nuke deal be a poll issue?
The Congress party is in raptures over the success of the nuclear deal and has begun talking about it as a panacea to all energy ills that ail India. Someone in the Congress party has already come up with a weird slogan: “Give your vote to the Congress; we will give you electricity ”. After 20 years?
Will the nuke deal—billed as the UPA government’s major success—translate into electoral support? This is unlikely as the deal is a complete non-issue as far as voters are concerned. Imminent elections to the state assemblies of Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh will vindicate this assessment. At one level, people are completely unaware of what the deal is all about and at another, they seem hardly bothered about it due to its esoteric nature and long-range benefits. Therefore, any attempt to highlight it as a major achievement of the government to gain political mileage would come a cropper.
However, UPA can take solace from the fact that pursuing the nuclear deal has not cost it the Muslim vote as was feared earlier. The Muslim vote is intact with the Rashtriya Janata Dal in Bihar, the SP in Uttar Pradesh and the Congress in all its strongholds. The campaign by the opposition parties that the deal draws India closer to the Bush administration in the US and, by implication, makes the country anti-Muslim has come unstuck.
In my assessment, it would be a monumental blunder for the UPA to pitch its political campaign on the nuclear deal. And it will be no less a blunder than the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) “India Shining” campaign before the last general election.
Equally, the NDA and the Left Front will be making a huge mistake if they carry their opposition to the nuclear deal to the electoral battlefield as they will be sidestepping the key issue of inflation which has made the life of the “common man” unbearable.
The UPA government that is basking in the glow of nuclear success should realize that its failure to contain inflation will likely become the key poll issue in next year’s general election. If UPA hopes to win elections on the issue of nuclear power, darkness is sure to shroud it in the next polls



(Source-The Bottom Line
G.V.L.Narasimha Rao)...

'Wear helmets, or no insurance claim'



Kochi, Sep 6 (PTI) The Kerala High court observed that it will be desirable to include in the insurance policy that two wheeler drivers shall wear helmets. The observation was made by a division bench comprising justices C N Ramachandran and V K Mohanan.

The court said police while reporting motor accidents shall record in the mahazar whether the victim was wearing a helmet or not and the injury was on account of not wearing a helmet.

The bench directed DGP to issue circular in this regard.

The court was considering an appeal by Siby Paul of Sreemoolanagaram, who met with an accident, for enhancing of compensation awarded by the Motor Accidents Tribunal.


OutLook..................
...

HYDERABAD: Infrastructure majors are now busy working out plans to tap the business opportunity India’s nuclear deal is set to throw open.

GMR and Lanco Group, the Hyderabad-based entities with significant interest in the power sector, are ready to hit the drafting board.

“We are interested in a nuclear power foray. But we’ll have to wait and see for things to develop,” a GMR group spokesman told DNA Money on Sunday.

GMR has three power plants currently with an installed capacity of 808 mw though two of them are facing uncertainties due to fuel and power purchase agreement issues.
Projects with a capacity of another 3,000 mw are at various stages of development. The new capacities include 1,100 mw hydro projects and 1,050 mw coal-fired projects.

A Lanco spokesperson said the company is also in evaluation mode. Chairman L Madhusudan Rao could not be reached for a comment.

GMR has been working on a plan to make it big in the power sector even without the nuclear option.

Analysts tracking the sector said both GMR and Lanco are well-positioned to enter the sector.

“Technology need not be an issue for these groups. However, the funding part is crucial,” he said.

But another analyst said there are many units of groups such as GMR and Lanco, which have often been running into problems due to issues related to fuel linkage. “Nuclear would be a better option even for them since they are in a position to satisfy its capital intensive nature,” the analyst said.

Lanco’s current power portfolio stands at about 8,433 mw. This includes about 518 mw operational capacity and another 3,808 mw under construction.

In addition, another 3,960 mw is at various stages of developments. The group intends to have a 15,000 mw capacity operational by 2015.

According to sources tracking the sector, both GMR and Lanco are well positioned to enter into technology tie ups to make forays into nuclear power.

DNA...............

MUMBAI: Dalal Street may turn bullish next week on the weekend-development of India getting a crucial waiver in the nuclear deal with the US, but cues from global stock markets would remain a key driver, analysts believe.

With the much-touted Indo-US nuclear deal getting the green signal from the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) for the waiver, domestic markets are expected to start next week on a strong note, they said.

"The nuclear waiver is a positive thing for the market. The Indian markets were holding back because the investors were apprehensive about the NSG decision," domestic brokerage firm SMC Global's Vice President Rajesh Jain said.

The waiver would enable India to carry out civil nuclear commerce, ending 34 years of isolation enforced in the wake of the 1974 Pokharan nuclear tests.

"Markets are likely to open strong on Monday and can look forward for a better week," Jain said.

After a strong opening driven by positive sentiments created by nuclear deal waiver, the Indian markets could take cues from the global market, but a positive sentiment should prevail, he added.

However, the continuing stalemate over Tata's Nano plant at Singur in West Bengal could turn out to be detrimental for the domestic bourses, some other brokers said.

Domestic markets would also be keenly watching the meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries next week. OPEC is scheduled to meet on September 9 in Vienna, where a decision is expected on whether to cut down oil production or leave it unchanged.

The 13 OPEC countries account for 40 per cent of world's oil production and crude oil prices have always been a key factor for the stock market movements.

"The FIIs are not investing in any of the Asian markets as the positive sentiments are not there. Till the time the global markets do not come out of bearishness, any rally would be short lived," Jain said.

Having sold shares worth a total of close to Rs 28,000 crore so far this year, FIIs bought shares worth over Rs 500 crore in first week of September.

"Political uncertainty in Singur could also act as a dampener for the foreign investors. Further, the OPEC meet will be decisive factor for the market movement with investors closely watching the decision," Jain noted.

On the positive side, inflation has declined for the second week in a row. As on August 23 inflation stood at 12.34 per cent with prices of many food items including fruits and vegetables falling during the period.

However, Reserve Bank of India's new Governor D Subbarao, who took charge on Friday, has indicated the apex bank would continue to pursue policies to contain inflation to seven per cent by the end of current fiscal.

"The immediate priority for me as the Governor of RBI will be to manage inflation and anchor inflationary expectations," Subbarao has said. The new RBI governor's moves are also likely to be closely watched by the markets.

Meanwhile, recessionary fears in the US economy is persisting with the country witnessing job losses for the eight straight month till August.

According to the US Labor Department, payrolls shrank by 84,000 last month, higher than the 51,000 jobs lost in July.

The benchmark 30-share BSE Sensex lost 80.70 points or 0.55 per cent to 14,483.83 while wide-based Nifty lost 7.70 points or 0.17 per cent to 4352.30 in the week ended Sept 5. The market declined in three out of four trading sessions in the truncated week.

DNA....................................

Recovery men disregard RBI norms, continue to harass customers

MUMBAI: Priya Kulkarni is a teacher at a school for mentally challenged children in the island city of Mumbai. Few years ago she took a personal loan of Rs1 lakh from a leading foreign bank to pay for the treatment of her ailing mother. Due to various reasons, she couldn’t keep up with the repayments. And then the bank set recovery agents lose on her.

She is the only earner for the family but has stopped teaching as the agents were creating nuisance at the school as well. “‘Agar paisa nahin hai to dhanda karke do (if you do not have money, then resort to prostitution to pay us),’ they told me in front of my principal and other colleagues,” she says.

“I am not in a mindset to take care of my students because of this harassment,” she says. But the agents keep calling up even at home.

The Reserve Bank of India’s guidelines on Managing Risks and Code of Conduct in Outsourcing of Financial Services by banks, issued in November 2006, say: “The bank and their agents should not resort to intimidation or harassment of any kind, either verbal or physical, against any person in their debt collection efforts, including acts intended to humiliate publicly or intrude the privacy of the debtors’ family members, referees and friends, making threatening and anonymous calls or making false and misleading representations.”

The Banking Codes and Standards Board of India’s ‘Code of Bank’s Commitment to Customers’ (CBCC) also clearly states, “During visits to your place for dues collection, decency and decorum would be maintained.”

Recovery agents clearly don’t follow this. In spite of the stringent RBI guidelines, the recovery agent menace is far from controlled.

Kulkarni has already paid the bank Rs1.94 lakh on a loan of Rs 1 lakh. The interest rate being charged is so high that her repayment is still not over. She approached the bank for rescheduling the loan but her request has not been approved so far.

“One day, the agents came in the evening and stayed put for 2.5 hours and said, ‘We will stay here. You can cook and make arrangements for us.’ When I told them that I have spoken to the nodal officer of the RBI, they retorted, ‘Did RBI give you the money?’” Kulkarni told DNA.

Dombivli resident Surekha Sathe lost her husband last Diwali. Since his death she has been troubled by recovery agents even late in the night. “They come and sit in my house for more than two hours after 8pm. I live alone after my husband’s death,” says Sathe.
The CBCC clearly states that the bank’s representatives will contact the customer between 7 am and 7 pm “unless special circumstances of your business require otherwise”.

The recovery agents represent a leading new generation private sector bank and want her to repay outstanding debt on her husband’s credit card. The bank clearly has no right to recover the amount from Sathe, who has submitted her husband’s death certificate to the bank. “I have even written to the banking ombudsman stating that it is not my liability,” she adds.

But the recovery agents still trouble Sathe and threaten to even disturb her neighbours. “After my husband passed away, I have taken up teaching pre-school students and the agents keep calling during the school hours. It is quite disturbing,” she says. She has registered a complaint with the police and since then the phone calls have stopped.

New generation private sector banks and foreign banks have a clear disregard for RBI guidelines. Parag Shah, chief executive officer of recovery agent firm Adikrut Japti Avam Vasuli, says, “As a matter of policy we work for public sector banks only and we have no pressures. We do not work for private sector banks as our mindset does not go in tandem with theirs,” he says.

Bankers, however, say they have been following the CBCC. “We already have a code of conduct. Like public sector banks, we also have to follow it strictly. If we come across any instance of harassment by recovery agents, we talk to them and, if needed, terminate their services,” says AP Bundellu, deputy managing director, retail, at IDBI Bank.
(Names have been changed on request)

DNA Money..............

NEW DELHI: ADAG company Reliance Big Entertainment has acquired a majority stake in the US-based cricket webcasting portal, Willow TV, for an undisclosed amount. The Anil Ambani company will invest Rs 300 crore in the portal over the next two years and the amount includes the acquisition price.

Willow TV is a paid site with a subscriber base of over a million registered users, primarily in the US, Canada, Australia and Europe. Last year, the company streamed all major cricket events live, including the iconic Indian Premier League, as well as all Australian, South African and English international matches. After registering, one can purchase packages and view live video at any time. Willow TV is promoted by Vijay Srinivasan and Sameer Mehta.

Talking about the strategy behind the acquisition of the portal, Reliance Big Entertainment president Rajesh Sawhney told ET: “The acquisition of Willow TV is in line with our strategy to strengthen our presence in the global markets and reinforce our group’s presence in new media. There is considerable scope to expand the size, scale and scope of Willow TV portal. We are also looking at launching a video-box service which will seamlessly integrate cricket, movie and television content on the television screen, which would give our audience great choice and better viewing experience. There is a considerable synergy between cricket from Willow TV, movies from Bigflix.com and telecom services from Reliance Communications which we will now implement.”

He declined to divulge the exact acquisition price.

Reliance Big has been aggressively strengthening its position in the entertainment and media space and has been building value across the value chain.

The company has committed an estimated Rs 1,600 crore investment in the next two years for production and co-production of movies in the country.

It is also expanding its presence in the multiplex business under Big Cinemas. ADAG had earlier acquired Adlabs Cinemas from Manmohan Shetty. On international projects, the entertainment major has already announced a slew of investments in Hollywood projects.

It has signed deals with eight Hollywood production houses, including George Clooney’s Smokehouse Productions, Tom Hanks’ Playtone Productions, Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment and Nicolas Cage’s Saturn Productions.

ET..............

latikav,your collection of poetry is fantastic n fabulous means fantabulous but i am sorry to bring to your notice dear some one or even moderator is deleting all my serious collection of poetry,cant help but if u could give me ur E-mail(plz dont take otherwise)i could also share some of my memories coz i have lost all my collection coz of several transfer n here in mumbai,its difficult to continue my taste any way your treasure is beyond any admiration keep it up JAGDISH...

latikav,a nice potry dard jab hud se gujar jata hai dawa bun jata hai will be back bye n take care...

dear latikav -please also see my post - reproduced here. VINAYAKA CHATHURTHI FESTIVAL - September 3, 2008 TODAY IS VINAYAKA CHATHURTHI - MAY THE SUPREME ENTITY WHO MANIFESTS AS GANESHA FOR OUR SAKE BLESS ALL BOARDERS, THEIR FAMILIIES, FRIENDS, ENVIRONMENT - SARVE JANAAH – ALL – ASESHA – LEAVING OUT NONE – WITH GOOD HEALTH, PROSPERITY, FREE FROM VIGNA ON LEGITIMATE PURSUITS. – AND ULTIMATE FULFILMENT OF LIFE. Vinayaka Chathurthi is a great festivalin southern and western India and only tolesser extent in eastern India and northern India. Only after invoking Ganesh Ji, all auspicious functions start in Bharat. In North & East India, Ganesh ji is traditionally with devis, His sakthi known as Buddhi (intellect) and Sidhi (achievement). Bengal’s greatest festival – Durga Puja starts with Ganeshs devi fetching sacred water from Ganga with accompaniment of drums and music. In the South, in most temples and pictures, Maha Ganapathi is shown alone. In some places he appears as Sakti Ganapathi – vallabhaya saha - with Vallabha. The elephant head is figurative – clever poetic descrip of the qualities of the supreme omnipotent God. The eyes, ears, trunk – the eyes small but powerful can see even the minutest thing in the universe, ears always active and hearing the most feeble prayers of devotees,sharp intellect which can give instantaneous directions, broad forehead showing wisdom, superb memory, trunk denoting immense strength for heavy duty, ever active, flexible to reach distant objects as well as very minute near objects. God, Controller of the Universe is ever active 24 x 7, alert, ready always to meet devotees prayers. He is the SUPREME itself appearing in that most easily approachable God-form. – rich or poor, or poorest of the poor seek Him No wonder Students line up before him to seek blessings before going to the examination hall. He is easily pleased with a devotionl offer of even one blade of durva grass, - easily available everywhere even in the footpath in those days. Cocoanut and modaka are the offerings. He is shown with modaka in his hand. Modaka from mudha – all that which pleases you. – everything, ultimately bliss. The sweet filling inside the modaka is known as - poorna - meaning full, the whole. – like 100% guaranteed success. Sometimes he is shown as having in his palm the fruit Bijapura (pomegranate). He rewards devotee with fruit of actions. The name of the fruit itself gives out the secret. Can one count the number of dhana (seeds) in one fruit - imagine if each seed denotes one universe, how many universes – aneka koti brahmandanam – many crores of Universes – all in his safe custody. He presides over them - visvotpathi, vipathi, samsthithakara – their creation, final withdrawal and sustenance in the meantime. NO WONDER GANAPATHI IS THE MOST POPULAR GOD FORM WORSHIPPED. In Maharashtra Ganesh Chathurthi is something like a national festival – full 10 days – It was always observed as a festival, from time immemorial – but it was Lokmanya Bala Gangadhar Tilak who gave the nation the present form – people assemble in a common platform for worship – forgetting all enmity and developing friendship. In Karnataka it is noted as GOWRI GANESHA FESTIVAL. – Goddess Gouri is worshipped on previous day, following which Ganesha worshipped on Chathurthi.It is like a family reunion, looked forward with great enthusiasm in all families. In T.N Ganesh chathurthi is observed throughout. In city like Chennai, every street has its own Ganesh temple, and one could spot small Ganesh temples in front of big buildings, wherever roads cross, or wherever there is T formation when a street (road) takes off from another road. The festival is celebrated in all temples and houses. Andhra follows Maharashtra pattern. With immersion of the idol after the 10 days Puja. Request other boarder friends to help complete the ALL INDIA picture. Regards ARG ...

Saved onto PC for reference at times of introspection....

latikav,if you find ur messages are being deleted,then can send on my mailing address available on my profile bye n take care...

now my 3 posts have been deleted :((...

latikav,a joke A haryana girl n a boy ran from their house n took whatever small amountthey could with them After a few days the money was over n they hsd only 5/-rs with them They purchased some groungnut n roasted gram n ate and drank water from a municipal tap The girl told"MAZA AAGAYA"The boy replies YARON KE SAATH RAHOGI TAU AISEY HEE MAZE KAROGI lol lol...