HCL Tech bags Rs 1,500-cr deal from European co — To provide total outsourcing services to DSG

A small step for HCL but a giant leap for Indian Outsourcing Industry.Indian firms gain a foothold into the "total outsourcing services" .

BusinessLine reports, "IN what is being billed as the biggest contract won by an Indian IT company, HCL Technologies has bagged a Rs 1,500-crore ($333 million) five-year co-sourcing deal to provide total outsourcing services to Europe's leading electrical retailer, DSG International.

"This is the biggest deal signed by an Indian IT company, and is also the first total IT outsourcing deal involving the taking over of a department of a large multi-billion dollar corporation. This is also the largest infrastructure management deal ever signed," said Mr Vineet Nayar, President, HCL Technologies.

The outsourcing deal would entail system development, application delivery and infrastructure support, industry sources said.

Child rights - the first steps

The young nation finally wakes up to protect its young. If all goes well, The Child rights bill would become law with the pending presidential nod. 430 million Indians (Children) would be covered by this bill. Its incredible that it has taken us this long to formulate something like this. But at least now the intent is right. But can it be implemented ? That is another huge challenge. But If India wants to become a "superpower" it cannot ignore the young - the leaders of tomorrow.

Outlook writes, " India's future—its 430 million children—can finally look forward to being treated as individuals and granted their due rights.

This will be ensured by the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Bill 2005, passed in Parliament in December last year. The commission is slated to become functional from March this year, post a formal presidential nod. It will examine and review the safeguards for the protection of child rights and look into matters relating to children in need of special care and protection. This will include those in distress, in conflict with law, juvenile delinquents, children without family and children of prisoners. It will recommend appropriate remedial measures, all of which have been spelt out for the first time in the bill. The commission also has the mandate to examine all factors that curtail the rights of children affected by terrorism, communal violence, riots, natural disaster, domestic violence, HIV/AIDS and human trafficking.

And rumour has it that it has acted now fearing censure from the UN. Being a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on December 11, 1992, India was bound to come out with an action plan. But everyone working with children is agreed that the bill is a positive first step.Child rights activists have all along confronted the government with startling statistics on the status of Indian children. Nearly 17 million children have to work for a living, many of them in hazardous environments. Close to 30 per cent of the two million sex workers are under-age. Yet only 3 per cent of the GDP goes towards welfare schemes targeted at children. Less than half of India's 430 million children go to schools. Faced with the appalling statistics, the child development department under the Union ministry of human resources and development has finally done something."

India launches IT workers register

Will it succeed ? With demand outpacing supply, companies might tend to overlook this. But its a start.

FT reports, " Nasscom, India's software employers’ organisation, launched a nationwide register of IT employees on Wednesday, aimed at preventing security breaches.

The register, believed to be the first of its kind, will include workers’ photographs, fingerprints, signatures, passport numbers, educational backgrounds and employment histories. The database will be voluntary for workers but employers may choose to hire only those on the register.Mr Mehta said he expected 1.3m workers covering 1,000 companies to be registered within 12 to 18 months. Employee data are to be refreshed every five years.

IT companies Satyam Computer Services, Tata Consultancy Services and Mphasis have already mobilised employees to sign up. The database will be monitored by independent background checkers, such as KPMG and Quest Research."

Making a Difference

To make a difference, you do not need money but definitely strong will. Outlook profiles Mr.Amit Hazra who has been striving for more than 25 years to make Kolkata a green city.

" His trees have changed the face of Calcutta's streets. Yet, he prefers to remain in the shade.He’s had to fight court cases and tolerate apathy and indifference to provide a green cover to his decrepit North Calcutta locality. And yet, twenty-six years of toil hasn’t fatigued this ‘green warrior’ who has single-handedly planted and nurtured thousands of trees that now form a green canopy over large parts of Calcutta’s concrete jungle. Especially the arterial Vivekananda Road that now sports large shade trees.

Amit Nath Hazra, 43, embarked on his mission in 1979. A grade IV employee in a private firm, he invests a large portion of his Rs 3,000 salary on Calcutta’s future. "I buy year-old saplings, plant and nurture them," says Hazra. He’s never received any monetary help and has declined awards, preferring to remain anonymous. "I have my share of well-wishers, but my detractors outnumber them," he says nonchalantly.

From the very beginning, he had to face opposition."Many people never understood what I was doing—I was purchasing saplings, digging pits along roads and planting them. For some For some unfathomable reason, people didn’t like me doing it. Under the cover of darkness, they used to destroy the fencings and uproot the saplings. People have even cut down trees that I once planted. Such incidents are painful. These trees are like my children."As Hazra saunters down Vivekananda Road, he points to every tree he has planted. Many are fully grown while others are fledglings. He has constructed concrete benches at the bases of the trees for people to take a short breather.The road is one of the very few in Calcutta that remains cool during the sweltering summer, thanks to the lush green cover courtesy Hazra.

Chidambaram voted Asia's best FM of 2005

Indian Express reports, "Finance Minister P Chidambaram has been named the Finance Minister of the year 2005 for Asia by Banker magazine for pushing reforms and reining in fiscal deficit.The Financial Times group magazine applauded Chidambaram for his determined pursuit of reforms, but said it is not just that which earned him the award.

According to the magazine, he is unapologetic for the fact that democracy--coalition partners, the Opposition and a free press that all have to be listened to and carried along--is the main reason why reform has not been swifter.In India, successfully making the case for reform is far more of a skill than knowing what reform to seek, the magazine said."

Lal Bahadur Shastri -- A forgotten man

Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan. Jan 10th was the 40th death anniversary of Lal Bahadur Shastri. 40 years ago he died of a sudden heart attack (under mysterious circumstances) in Tashkent, USSR. A man of utmost simplicity and sincereity, he belonged to those rare tribe of honest,simple politicians.

A man of great integrity, he resigned as the Railway Minister when 144 people died in a train accident in Ariyalur,TN. He led India to its first victory over Pakistan in the 1965 war. The man has almost been forgotten today by the echelons of Congress.

Why, because he lacks the surname Gandhi or is it because he did not have a fair skin ?

Rahul Dravid on "Walk the Talk"

There are enough reasons to admire Rahul Dravid. Technically perfect,cool headed and one of the best batsmen of modern era. I also like the way he conducts himself on and off the field. If there should be a role model for young cricketers , look no beyond Dravid.

Here is his Interview on Walk the talk with Shekar Gupta (IE , Editor) . He couldn't have answered the questions better.

The Week - 20 people to watch out for

The Week makes a brave prediction about 20 people who will leave an indelible mark in 2006. While the list figures some well known names like " P. Chidambaram,Shashi Tharoor, Mahendra Singh Dhoni,Priyanka Chopra,D. Sivanandhan, Vishal Gondal, Deepika Padukone" , there are some bold predictions like Shashank Subramaniam ( He was hailed as a prodigy then slipped down from public memory years ago), Manasi Scott,Shiv Kapur, Kiran Desai,Raghav Bahl.

Let us wait and watch .

Should there be job quotas in the private sector?

Rediff has a messageboard stating , " The government seems to be getting serious about reserving jobs for backward castes in private sector companies.In the latest development, Union Social Justice Minister Meira Kumar is said to have met Indian industry leaders and hinted that since the government could impose job reservation on the private sector by changing the law, it would be best for corporates to embrace job quotas voluntarily.

But this has always been a very controversial issue. Some say job quotas are needed in the private sector to help the backward castes prosper. Others say quotas will badly hit the private sector's efficiency."

I am surprised that for every step we take forward, we tend to do (or at least think) something like this. Quotas of any kind are generally dangerous and particularly one based on caste and that too in private enterprises (which are governed by free market forces) is ludicrous .I beg the politicians to restrict their antics to SOE's and not with the private sector.

Asia brimming with Confidence -- Singapore PM

Hindu reports, " Asia "brims with confidence and dynamism," as it is "powered by the twin engines of China and India," according to Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

In a New Year message, Mr. Lee said the overall economic environment in Asia stayed favourable in the year gone by. In this milieu, the City-State's external trade grew strongly by 14 per cent in 2005, "helped by our expanding network of free trade agreements," he said, citing in particular the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), which Singapore signed with India last June.