Category: Quotes

Short answer:You will be late

A shocking revelation from the WSJ:

When the Institute for Supply Management releases its index of manufacturing activity next week, the headlines from the report will flash to traders at what their eyes tell them is 10:00 am. But unless they are subscribers to a new low-latency feed provided by Thomson Reuters, they’ll actually be getting it late—and depending on how they’re positioned, it could be too late.

In July, the ISM signed a contract with Thomson Reuters to offer a streamlined version, called “low-latency,” of its closely watched business-activity report. It will release the full report to Business Wire, a press release service, at exactly the same time.

Investors with the superfast computers and algorithmic-trading software needed to read and act upon the low-latency line’s digitalized information will inevitably be the first to trade on the news. The advantage these high-tech traders enjoy is measured in just millionths of a second, but it will be more than enough time to beat competitors who instead must rely on news services that generate headlines from the Business Wire release

The scams never seem to stop.

Nalini Chidambaram and Karti P Chidambaram, wife and son of Chidambaram have grabbed the Government poramboke and grazing lands abutting the Muttukadu

backwaters. They have built a high compound wall making it difficult for the fishermen to go to sea for their livelihood,” Jayapalayan, president, South Indian Federation of Fishermen Societies (SIFFS), told The Pioneer.

“We submitted a complaint to the Chief Minister, City Police Commissioner and other Government officials on Monday. The livelihood of more than 500 families have been threatened by the action of the Chidambaram family,” said Jayapalayan.

He said more than 12 acres of prime property have been grabbed by the family members of the Union Finance Minister. “The compound wall has been built violating the Coastal Regulation Zone Act. Though we had complained to the authorities long back about the land grab, the then Government ignored the same,”said Jayapalayan.

Sources said that the Chidambarams were planning to construct a super deluxe hotel at Muttukadu, which lies along the Bay of Bengal. “It is prime property abutting the beach. Though theprevious State administration had given the go-ahead  for construction, it got delayed for some reason or the other,” they said.Palani, a fisherman, said though they had demolished a part of the

compound wall twice, the Union Minister’s family rebuilt the same. “In the past, some of the police officials had warned us against antagonising the Chidambarams,” he said.- from the Daily Pioneer

If you’re a fund manager, you can sit there and bemoan how difficult life is, or you can say, ‘this is still the best way to make money’, and have fun doing so. What else are you going to go and do?”-from the FT

If you look at the history of India’s credit cycles, most of the time companies have gone bad, but not their promoters,” Mr Uday Kotak said, referring to the owners of India’s largest industrial houses. “This time the banks must ensure that the pain is shared fairly between the banks and equity owners.”

For the time being, the heat is on the granite barons of the state and Durai Dayanidhi, the son of Karunanidhi scion, DMK strongman and union minister MK Alagiri, who is reportedly on the run.

 

The police has issued a lookout notice for him. The granite company, with which he is allegedly associated, is among the two top violators. The key men of both the companies have surrendered and are in custody. However, people close to Dayanidhi have denied the allegations.

 

In a nutshell, the scam is about illegal quarrying of granite by a handful of companies in Madurai, in southern Tamil Nadu for several years. They not only stole the granite, but also caused extensive environmental damage besides grabbing land from people including policemen.

 

The illegal operations have also reportedly deprived farmers of their livelihood. Officials of the Tamil Nadu Minerals Corporation (TAMIN), departments of revenue, and geology and mining and the police have allegedly connived with the quarry mafia. Apparently, one company alone owned about 3000 acres of land in Madurai and surrounding places.
The story of the granite mafia wouldn’t have been out, but for the leak of a letter by former Madurai collector and a Braveheart civil servant U Sagayam, who had earlier waged a war against the sand quarry mafia. In his letter to the government, Sagayam had highlighted the extent of illegal quarrying in the district and had even estimated a ballpark figure of more than Rs 16,000 crore. However, nothing big happened till the letter was leaked to the media in August first week.

 

Immediately, several teams headed by the present Madurai collector inspected about 175 quarries and recommended a DVAC (Department of Vigilance and Anti Corruption) probe. By the end of August, the DVAC began its investigation and raided quarry operators and government offices. About 30 persons have been arrested and several documents and vehicles seized. Besides the revenue losses, the DVAC is also looking into the collusion of the government officials.

 

 The Hindu reported how the granite operators forced people to part with their land.

“They used to block the water channels and stop irrigation. Or else dump the granite waste on their land. In some cases, they had threatened the landlords by blasting explosives in the nearby areas,” the report said quoting V Balakrishnan, a superintendent of police, who is now receiving complaints from people who lost their houses and land to the quarry mafia.

The report also quoted a woman who lost her agricultural land to the devious ways of the mafia.: “with no irrigation, I tried to plant coconut saplings. The saplings were damaged in the nights and boulders placed on the land,”

Yet again, as in the case of the CAG Vinod Rai, it is an individual effort that brought the scam to light and prompted the government to act. That the officer Sagayam, who wrote the letter, had been transferred 18 times in his career spanning two decades does indicate the fundamental flaw in our system that encourages illegalities and mega scams.-from FirstPost