While Afghan President Hamid Karzai spent the weekend thundering away at Pakistan and its deepening terrorist roots, India has taken a more measured response. On Sunday night, as Karzai touched down in New Delhi on a state visit, the tone of the visit has been set — terrorism is on top of everybody's agenda.
The difference between Manmohan and Karzai is that while the latter is talking about the Pakistan problem publicly, India has chosen to give the message privately to Pakistani PM Yousaf Raza Gilani. This is because Singh doesn't want to toss the peace process with Pakistan or the ceasefire out of the window.
Nevertheless, the fact remains that the bombing of India's Kabul mission wasn't any ordinary terror attack.
Apart from the identity of the suicide bomber — 22-year-old Hamza Shakoor from Gujranwala district in Pakistan — the intelligence about the imminent attack was remarkably precise, giving a sure indication about the centres of planning and execution.
As information about the attack filters out, it's becoming clear that the damage could have been much greater. The original vehicle that was planned to be used to ram into the Indian embassy was not an SUV but an oil tanker.
In fact, after Afghan and Indian intelligence revealed the Pakistani connection, national security advisor M K Narayanan spoke to his counterparts in Washington to be told the same thing by top US intelligence officials.
When CIA official Stephen Kappes visited Islamabad on a secret trip to tell the Pakistan government that the US knew ISI was behind the Kabul attack, few were aware that he was flying in from Kabul. Both India and the US had shared notes by then on the source and nature of the attack and it was this information that was presented to the Pakistanis.
In the past weeks, what has been unusual is that it has been the US and Afghanistan that have spoken the loudest on Pakistan's involvement in the embassy attack. This has been good for India — because it spreads the credibility net much further.
The US will be pressuring Pakistan a lot more on taming the ISI, and acting on terrorism in the coming weeks and months. The Indian government is unlikely to scale up its rhetoric against Pakistan too much, because it is reluctant to lose the benefits of the peace process so soon.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Oil Rises as Storm Threatens U.S. Output, Iran Misses Deadline
Crude oil rose for a second day as a storm threatened U.S. output in the Gulf of Mexico, and Israeli and U.S. officials sought additional sanctions against Iran.
Tropical Storm Edouard lies about 90 miles (145 kilometers) southeast of the Mississippi River mouth and may strengthen to a hurricane as it heads west toward Texas, the National Hurricane Center said. Oil rose from an 11-week low last week as Iran, accused of developing nuclear weapons, ignored a deadline in its dispute with the United Nations over its uranium research.
``It's that time of the year, and U.S. Gulf production could be in the path of the storm,'' said Victor Shum, senior principal at Purvin & Gertz Inc. in Singapore. ``Concern about Iran is coming to the fore and supply risks would provide a high floor for prices.''
Crude oil for September delivery rose as much as $1.21, or 1 percent, to $126.31 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and traded at $126.22 at 10:25 a.m. in Singapore.
The contract gained 0.8 percent on Aug. 1 on speculation the odds of a military strike against nuclear research facilities in Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, were increasing.
Iran didn't respond by an Aug. 2 deadline to an offer from the U.S., Russia, China, France, the U.K. and Germany of economic and diplomatic incentives in exchange for the suspension of its uranium-enrichment program.
Extra sanctions are needed, Tzipi Livni, Israel's foreign minister, said yesterday on CNN's ``Late Edition'' program.
`Wildcat Factors'
``Those wildcat factors'' are holding up prices today, Gavin Wendt, senior resources analyst at Fat Prophets Funds Management in Sydney, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. ``Prices should be a lot stronger than they were a week ago,'' given the risks from the storm and Iran, he said.
Brent crude oil for September settlement climbed as much as $1.12, or 0.9 percent, to $125.30 a barrel on London's ICE Futures Europe exchange, and traded at $125.19 at 10:12 a.m. in Singapore.
Tropical storm Edouard, with maximum wind speeds of 50 miles an hour, is likely to strengthen as it moves west parallel to the Louisiana coast before making land on the upper Texas coast Aug. 5, the Miami-based hurricane center said at 7 p.m. local time. There is a 24 percent chance it will strengthen to a hurricane, with winds of more than 74 miles an hour, before striking land.
``Keep a close eye on the storm,'' Rebecca Waddington, a meteorologist with the center, said in an interview. ``The industry knows better than we do how to safeguard their installations. I'd advise them to act early.''
Firmer Dollar
New York oil futures have slipped more than $21 a barrel, or 14 percent, from the record $147.27 on July 11 as U.S. gasoline demand slowed, and a firming of the dollar reduced the attraction of commodities as an investment.
Hedge fund managers and other large speculators last week reduced their bets on falling prices, according to Commodity Futures Trading Commission data.
Net-short positions, the difference between orders to buy and sell the commodity, fell to 660 contracts at July 29, 82 percent less than a week earlier.
While the U.S. economy may be heading toward recession, demand in India and China remains strong and global production is straining to keep up, Fat Prophets' Wendt said. He expects oil to reach $175 a barrel before the end of the year.
An Institute for Supply Management report tomorrow will probably show U.S. service industries shrank for a second month in July, based on a Bloomberg survey of economists. Futures trading on the Chicago Board of Trade suggests less than a 7 percent chance the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates after it meets the same day.
``It's likely that we're going to see further weakness in the dollar,'' Fat Prophets' Wendt said. ``We can't see it bouncing back and sustaining any gains so we're looking toward further increases in the price of crude oil
Tropical Storm Edouard lies about 90 miles (145 kilometers) southeast of the Mississippi River mouth and may strengthen to a hurricane as it heads west toward Texas, the National Hurricane Center said. Oil rose from an 11-week low last week as Iran, accused of developing nuclear weapons, ignored a deadline in its dispute with the United Nations over its uranium research.
``It's that time of the year, and U.S. Gulf production could be in the path of the storm,'' said Victor Shum, senior principal at Purvin & Gertz Inc. in Singapore. ``Concern about Iran is coming to the fore and supply risks would provide a high floor for prices.''
Crude oil for September delivery rose as much as $1.21, or 1 percent, to $126.31 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and traded at $126.22 at 10:25 a.m. in Singapore.
The contract gained 0.8 percent on Aug. 1 on speculation the odds of a military strike against nuclear research facilities in Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, were increasing.
Iran didn't respond by an Aug. 2 deadline to an offer from the U.S., Russia, China, France, the U.K. and Germany of economic and diplomatic incentives in exchange for the suspension of its uranium-enrichment program.
Extra sanctions are needed, Tzipi Livni, Israel's foreign minister, said yesterday on CNN's ``Late Edition'' program.
`Wildcat Factors'
``Those wildcat factors'' are holding up prices today, Gavin Wendt, senior resources analyst at Fat Prophets Funds Management in Sydney, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. ``Prices should be a lot stronger than they were a week ago,'' given the risks from the storm and Iran, he said.
Brent crude oil for September settlement climbed as much as $1.12, or 0.9 percent, to $125.30 a barrel on London's ICE Futures Europe exchange, and traded at $125.19 at 10:12 a.m. in Singapore.
Tropical storm Edouard, with maximum wind speeds of 50 miles an hour, is likely to strengthen as it moves west parallel to the Louisiana coast before making land on the upper Texas coast Aug. 5, the Miami-based hurricane center said at 7 p.m. local time. There is a 24 percent chance it will strengthen to a hurricane, with winds of more than 74 miles an hour, before striking land.
``Keep a close eye on the storm,'' Rebecca Waddington, a meteorologist with the center, said in an interview. ``The industry knows better than we do how to safeguard their installations. I'd advise them to act early.''
Firmer Dollar
New York oil futures have slipped more than $21 a barrel, or 14 percent, from the record $147.27 on July 11 as U.S. gasoline demand slowed, and a firming of the dollar reduced the attraction of commodities as an investment.
Hedge fund managers and other large speculators last week reduced their bets on falling prices, according to Commodity Futures Trading Commission data.
Net-short positions, the difference between orders to buy and sell the commodity, fell to 660 contracts at July 29, 82 percent less than a week earlier.
While the U.S. economy may be heading toward recession, demand in India and China remains strong and global production is straining to keep up, Fat Prophets' Wendt said. He expects oil to reach $175 a barrel before the end of the year.
An Institute for Supply Management report tomorrow will probably show U.S. service industries shrank for a second month in July, based on a Bloomberg survey of economists. Futures trading on the Chicago Board of Trade suggests less than a 7 percent chance the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates after it meets the same day.
``It's likely that we're going to see further weakness in the dollar,'' Fat Prophets' Wendt said. ``We can't see it bouncing back and sustaining any gains so we're looking toward further increases in the price of crude oil
Friday, August 1, 2008
Oh brother, spare me the time
Demonstrating that avarice often is thicker than blood, two fabulously wealthy Indian brothers are driven by rivalry and mutual hatred, writes Matt Wade.
If the world's 10 richest people stood shoulder to shoulder in order of wealth, two brothers living in the same house in Mumbai would be beside each other, in more ways than one.
Mukesh and Anil Ambani are ranked the fifth- and sixth-richest men in the world with fortunes totalling an estimated $85 billion - about 15 times James Packer's - and they cannot stand each other.
Forbes magazine's global rich list registers them separately because their wealth is not pooled. Rather, the world's richest brothers are feuding rivals who run separate business empires. Their long corporate battle has been "fierce, violent, cruel, bloodthirsty and savage", according to Alam Srinivas, an Indian journalist who for 25 years has covered the Ambani family company, Reliance Industries.
Sibling hostility has not halted the separate enterprises they run, thanks in big part to the booming Indian economy - four of the Forbes top 10 are Indian. But sources close to the brothers fear their acrimonious tussle could soon stunt their businesses and even harm the Indian economy by undermining investor confidence.
"So far the fight has not hurt shareholders [in Reliance companies] at all but it has reached a threshold where it could affect the growth of both groups," says one. "The message being sent the international investment community is to stay clear of these guys."
The brothers' father, Dhirubhai, started as a street trader in Mumbai in the late 1950s and built a company that eventually rivalled the clique of big businesses which had dominated India since the British Raj. His company, Reliance Industries, became a dominant force in India's textile and petrochemical industries and branched into an array of other businesses.
When Dhirubhai Ambani died intestate six years ago, Reliance Industries was one of India's biggest industrial conglomerates but without a clear succession plan. There was an immediate stand-off between the sons for the company chairmanship, and Mukesh prevailed. But late in 2004, Anil let it be known he could not work in his older sibling's shadow, and a bitter seven-month struggle ensued until Dhirubhai's widow, Kokilaben, brokered a deal to divide the empire between her sons.
Mukesh was given control of Reliance's core businesses including petrochemicals, oil and gas, refining, manufacturing and retail. Anil got most of Reliance's newer service businesses, including telecommunications, financial services and power.
Mukesh kept the name Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) while Anil's share - about a third of the family stake - was named Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (RADAG). Despite their differences, Mukesh and Anil live with their families on separate floors of the same 18-storey house, Sea Wind, in southern Mumbai.
Insiders say they never talk and rarely cross paths, only partly because of the different hours they keep. Anil tends to get to work by 9.30am and puts in a 12-hour day. About three mornings a week he takes a helicopter to his offices at Reliance Communications in Navimumbai, a satellite city of Mumbai. Mukesh normally starts work at his downtown headquarters after 11am and finishes by midnight.
The family's living arrangements will soon change because Mukesh is building a vast house overlooking the Arabian Sea on Mumbai's exclusive Altamount Road. The Australian builder, Leighton Holdings, won the original contract and began construction but is no longer associated with the project. It is understood Mukesh's 27-storey house, to be named Antilla, will have a helipad, six-floor car park, a health club with a yoga studio, and an entertainment centre with a 50-seat theatre.
Mukesh's wife, Nita, reportedly arranged for an ice room where residents and guests can escape the Mumbai heat in a cool chamber "dusted by man-made snow flurries". Some estimates put the house's probable cost at up to $2 billion.
The extravagance of the house is in keeping with Mukesh Ambani's birthday gift last year to his wife - a luxuriously appointed Airbus 319 jetliner. This year he paid $112 million for the Mumbai Indians cricket team, which competed in the hugely popular Twenty20 Indian Premier League.
Anil's wife, Tina, a former Bollywood star, has also been shopping. She reportedly ordered a yacht for $49 million.
The Ambani brothers are vegetarian teetotallers who share a love of movies - but they have contrasting styles.
Mukesh studied chemical engineering and was a diligent technocrat. His father directed him to management of big projects. Mukesh has remained mostly behind the scenes but has taken a more public role recently.
The flashier Anil studied management at the renowned Wharton Business School in the US and was later given responsibility for Reliance's marketing and fund-raising. He developed a reputation for financial innovation, one of the hallmark's of Reliance's success.
Anil is well connected with Mumbai's glitterati and close to the family of Amitabh Bachchan, the Bollywood superstar. Anil has been linked with several Bollywood starlets over the years and married Tina Munim, a controversial actress with whom he has two children. His parents are understood to have opposed the union strongly.
Well before Dhirubhai's death, there were signs his two very different sons could not manage the Reliance empire together. But no one seems to have expected the rancour that now exists between them.
Alam Srinivas believes the animosity is so deeply rooted there is little chance of reconciliation. "These days the Ambani versus Ambani battle is more intense, more aggressive, more below-the-belt and more virulent than ever," he says. "This fight is unlikely to end."
Under the deal that split Reliance, each brother was prohibited from competing directly with the established businesses of the other for 10 years. But war was almost immediate. An early dispute raged over the price of gas that one of Mukesh's projects was meant to supply to Anil's Reliance Natural Resources at a fixed rate. The matter is in court.
This year the brotherly conflict has become especially bitter. In January, sharemarket traders suspected Mukesh associates of engineering an embarrassing 17 per cent fall in the share price of Anil's Reliance Power immediately after its initial public offering. It was the biggest fall so far in Indian corporate history. The charge is hotly denied.
In June, Mukesh in effect torpedoed a bid by Anil to pull off a complex merger with the South African telephone company MTN. "Ambani brothers at war again," said the Times of India headline.
Last month, the Ambani feud impinged directly on Indian national politics. The Government was seeking the support of several minor political parties after its parliamentary majority was tested when left-wing support evaporated over the decision to press ahead with a nuclear co-operation agreement with the US.
Amar Singh, a politician close to Anil Ambani, emerged with considerable government influence after his Samajwadi Party threw its weight behind the government. Mukesh Ambani and the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, met just days before the parliamentary confidence vote, triggering speculation that Mukesh had sought assurances that his own interests would not be damaged and that his brother would get no special treatment.
"Now politicians have a real problem because they know both the brothers are equally strong," says Srinavas.
The family's single-generation rise from relative poverty to immense wealth is credited with inspiring a new generation of entrepreneurs, some now leading India's renowned information technology industry. "They have taught every other business house in India to think big and think globally," says Srinivas.
It is alleged also that the Ambanis pioneered brash and aggressive political lobbying to win commercial and regulatory favours. "Unlike other business families who would use their clout in a covert way, the Ambanis used it openly and brazenly," says Srinivas.
Suppression of The Polyester Prince, a book on Dhirubhai Ambani by the Herald journalist, Hamish McDonald, illustrates the family's clout. Published in 1998, McDonald's book is a rare study of one of emerging Asia's new tycoons. It also details the many allegations of corruption levelled against Dhirubhai Ambani during his rapid corporate ascent.
The Indian publisher, HarperCollins India, had the book printed and ready for binding but it pulled out when Reliance threatened to apply in each of India's 22 high courts for injunctions stopping publication on the grounds of anticipated defamation. The printed pages were soon pulped. The Australian publisher Allen & Unwin was not sued, and an updated edition is being written.
"They were scared off, essentially," says McDonald of the Indian publisher.
Mukesh Ambani does not deny Reliance exerts influence, but he plays down its importance as a business strategy. "I still think that's not a critical success factor," he told the New York Times in a recent interview.
One critical success factor for the brothers has been the stellar performance of the Indian economy. India's growth last financial year accelerated to 9.1 per cent after several years at about 8 per cent. Meanwhile, the giant Ambani businesses have lifted their share of that booming economy, accounting now for about 5 per cent of India's economic output, compared with 2 per cent three years ago. Before the conglomerate was split, its market value was $US22.5 billion; collectively, the companies are now worth $US170 billion ($181.4 billion).
The Forbes rich list, published in March, estimates Anil's personal fortune grew by $US23.8 billion - more than anyone else on the planet. He jumped from 18th to sixth during the year, while Mukesh's net worth jumped by $US22.9 billion.
Some believe the sibling fights are driven, at least in part, by rivalry over who gets higher on the Forbes list. "It is essentially a competition to see who can be richer," says a source close to the family.
Matt Wade is the Herald's New Delhi correspondent.
If the world's 10 richest people stood shoulder to shoulder in order of wealth, two brothers living in the same house in Mumbai would be beside each other, in more ways than one.
Mukesh and Anil Ambani are ranked the fifth- and sixth-richest men in the world with fortunes totalling an estimated $85 billion - about 15 times James Packer's - and they cannot stand each other.
Forbes magazine's global rich list registers them separately because their wealth is not pooled. Rather, the world's richest brothers are feuding rivals who run separate business empires. Their long corporate battle has been "fierce, violent, cruel, bloodthirsty and savage", according to Alam Srinivas, an Indian journalist who for 25 years has covered the Ambani family company, Reliance Industries.
Sibling hostility has not halted the separate enterprises they run, thanks in big part to the booming Indian economy - four of the Forbes top 10 are Indian. But sources close to the brothers fear their acrimonious tussle could soon stunt their businesses and even harm the Indian economy by undermining investor confidence.
"So far the fight has not hurt shareholders [in Reliance companies] at all but it has reached a threshold where it could affect the growth of both groups," says one. "The message being sent the international investment community is to stay clear of these guys."
The brothers' father, Dhirubhai, started as a street trader in Mumbai in the late 1950s and built a company that eventually rivalled the clique of big businesses which had dominated India since the British Raj. His company, Reliance Industries, became a dominant force in India's textile and petrochemical industries and branched into an array of other businesses.
When Dhirubhai Ambani died intestate six years ago, Reliance Industries was one of India's biggest industrial conglomerates but without a clear succession plan. There was an immediate stand-off between the sons for the company chairmanship, and Mukesh prevailed. But late in 2004, Anil let it be known he could not work in his older sibling's shadow, and a bitter seven-month struggle ensued until Dhirubhai's widow, Kokilaben, brokered a deal to divide the empire between her sons.
Mukesh was given control of Reliance's core businesses including petrochemicals, oil and gas, refining, manufacturing and retail. Anil got most of Reliance's newer service businesses, including telecommunications, financial services and power.
Mukesh kept the name Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) while Anil's share - about a third of the family stake - was named Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (RADAG). Despite their differences, Mukesh and Anil live with their families on separate floors of the same 18-storey house, Sea Wind, in southern Mumbai.
Insiders say they never talk and rarely cross paths, only partly because of the different hours they keep. Anil tends to get to work by 9.30am and puts in a 12-hour day. About three mornings a week he takes a helicopter to his offices at Reliance Communications in Navimumbai, a satellite city of Mumbai. Mukesh normally starts work at his downtown headquarters after 11am and finishes by midnight.
The family's living arrangements will soon change because Mukesh is building a vast house overlooking the Arabian Sea on Mumbai's exclusive Altamount Road. The Australian builder, Leighton Holdings, won the original contract and began construction but is no longer associated with the project. It is understood Mukesh's 27-storey house, to be named Antilla, will have a helipad, six-floor car park, a health club with a yoga studio, and an entertainment centre with a 50-seat theatre.
Mukesh's wife, Nita, reportedly arranged for an ice room where residents and guests can escape the Mumbai heat in a cool chamber "dusted by man-made snow flurries". Some estimates put the house's probable cost at up to $2 billion.
The extravagance of the house is in keeping with Mukesh Ambani's birthday gift last year to his wife - a luxuriously appointed Airbus 319 jetliner. This year he paid $112 million for the Mumbai Indians cricket team, which competed in the hugely popular Twenty20 Indian Premier League.
Anil's wife, Tina, a former Bollywood star, has also been shopping. She reportedly ordered a yacht for $49 million.
The Ambani brothers are vegetarian teetotallers who share a love of movies - but they have contrasting styles.
Mukesh studied chemical engineering and was a diligent technocrat. His father directed him to management of big projects. Mukesh has remained mostly behind the scenes but has taken a more public role recently.
The flashier Anil studied management at the renowned Wharton Business School in the US and was later given responsibility for Reliance's marketing and fund-raising. He developed a reputation for financial innovation, one of the hallmark's of Reliance's success.
Anil is well connected with Mumbai's glitterati and close to the family of Amitabh Bachchan, the Bollywood superstar. Anil has been linked with several Bollywood starlets over the years and married Tina Munim, a controversial actress with whom he has two children. His parents are understood to have opposed the union strongly.
Well before Dhirubhai's death, there were signs his two very different sons could not manage the Reliance empire together. But no one seems to have expected the rancour that now exists between them.
Alam Srinivas believes the animosity is so deeply rooted there is little chance of reconciliation. "These days the Ambani versus Ambani battle is more intense, more aggressive, more below-the-belt and more virulent than ever," he says. "This fight is unlikely to end."
Under the deal that split Reliance, each brother was prohibited from competing directly with the established businesses of the other for 10 years. But war was almost immediate. An early dispute raged over the price of gas that one of Mukesh's projects was meant to supply to Anil's Reliance Natural Resources at a fixed rate. The matter is in court.
This year the brotherly conflict has become especially bitter. In January, sharemarket traders suspected Mukesh associates of engineering an embarrassing 17 per cent fall in the share price of Anil's Reliance Power immediately after its initial public offering. It was the biggest fall so far in Indian corporate history. The charge is hotly denied.
In June, Mukesh in effect torpedoed a bid by Anil to pull off a complex merger with the South African telephone company MTN. "Ambani brothers at war again," said the Times of India headline.
Last month, the Ambani feud impinged directly on Indian national politics. The Government was seeking the support of several minor political parties after its parliamentary majority was tested when left-wing support evaporated over the decision to press ahead with a nuclear co-operation agreement with the US.
Amar Singh, a politician close to Anil Ambani, emerged with considerable government influence after his Samajwadi Party threw its weight behind the government. Mukesh Ambani and the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, met just days before the parliamentary confidence vote, triggering speculation that Mukesh had sought assurances that his own interests would not be damaged and that his brother would get no special treatment.
"Now politicians have a real problem because they know both the brothers are equally strong," says Srinavas.
The family's single-generation rise from relative poverty to immense wealth is credited with inspiring a new generation of entrepreneurs, some now leading India's renowned information technology industry. "They have taught every other business house in India to think big and think globally," says Srinivas.
It is alleged also that the Ambanis pioneered brash and aggressive political lobbying to win commercial and regulatory favours. "Unlike other business families who would use their clout in a covert way, the Ambanis used it openly and brazenly," says Srinivas.
Suppression of The Polyester Prince, a book on Dhirubhai Ambani by the Herald journalist, Hamish McDonald, illustrates the family's clout. Published in 1998, McDonald's book is a rare study of one of emerging Asia's new tycoons. It also details the many allegations of corruption levelled against Dhirubhai Ambani during his rapid corporate ascent.
The Indian publisher, HarperCollins India, had the book printed and ready for binding but it pulled out when Reliance threatened to apply in each of India's 22 high courts for injunctions stopping publication on the grounds of anticipated defamation. The printed pages were soon pulped. The Australian publisher Allen & Unwin was not sued, and an updated edition is being written.
"They were scared off, essentially," says McDonald of the Indian publisher.
Mukesh Ambani does not deny Reliance exerts influence, but he plays down its importance as a business strategy. "I still think that's not a critical success factor," he told the New York Times in a recent interview.
One critical success factor for the brothers has been the stellar performance of the Indian economy. India's growth last financial year accelerated to 9.1 per cent after several years at about 8 per cent. Meanwhile, the giant Ambani businesses have lifted their share of that booming economy, accounting now for about 5 per cent of India's economic output, compared with 2 per cent three years ago. Before the conglomerate was split, its market value was $US22.5 billion; collectively, the companies are now worth $US170 billion ($181.4 billion).
The Forbes rich list, published in March, estimates Anil's personal fortune grew by $US23.8 billion - more than anyone else on the planet. He jumped from 18th to sixth during the year, while Mukesh's net worth jumped by $US22.9 billion.
Some believe the sibling fights are driven, at least in part, by rivalry over who gets higher on the Forbes list. "It is essentially a competition to see who can be richer," says a source close to the family.
Matt Wade is the Herald's New Delhi correspondent.
Update: Pills To Replace Exercising Could Soon Become Reality
What can be greater than taking a pill that would make your fat disappear and your muscle work as if you were doing aerobic but actually, you weren’t? What can be greater than that? Two pills that can do that for you discovered by scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in La Jolla, California led by Prof. Ronald Evans.
It’s true that the pills were tried only on lab mice, but there is a great chance that one day the pills would work on humans too, the scientists believe. Moreover, Prof. Evans believes the pills should help people who are too frail to exercise and those with health problems like, obesity, diabetes that are improved with exercise. Keeping the body in great shape and fat-free, it reduces the risk of various types of cancers and heart disease as well. The pills could also help reverse the muscle frailty associated with aging, or disease such as muscular dystrophy.
The two “breakthrough” pills, as they were called, are labeled AICAR and GW1516. AICAR licensed by Schering-Plough Corp. is currently studied in humans to help control bleeding during open-heart surgery. GW1516 used to be developed by GlaxoSmithKline as a drug against dyslipidemia, a disorder affecting cholesterol. However, side effects of the drug, made the company give up producing it.
Four years ago, Prof. Evans and colleagues reported that they boosted endurance in mice by tweaking a mouse gene to boost the activity of a protein called PPAR-delta. Then the researchers tried to get the same result but this time without genetic engineering. More exactly, they squirted GW1516 into mice’s mouths every day for a month. GW1516 boosts PPAR-delta and the mice who were given the pill were exercising. At the end of the month, the researchers were surprised to find out that the mice ran 68 percent longer and 70 percent farther compared to when the experiment began. On the other hand, mice that were given GW1516, but were not exercising saw no improvements, the researchers found.
Then the researchers focused on another protein called AMPK and did the same experiment for a month this time giving the mice a daily injection of AICAR, which boosts AMPK. The mice involved in the experiment were not working. At the end of the follow-up period, mice given AICAR ran 23 percent longer and 44 percent farther than those who weren’t given anything.
“If you like exercise, you like the idea of getting more bang for your buck. If you don’t like exercise, you love the idea of getting the benefits from a pill,” Prof. Evans said in a statement.
How exactly the pills worked to lead to such good results is not a mystery. The researchers noted that the drug seemed to change the physical composition of muscle by burning the excessive fat, the same thing that happens in distance runners or those with intensive training in different sports.
And if the pills had such good results in mice, why shouldn’t they work the same in humans? The researchers have strong believes that they will reach that day when the pill will be beneficial for humans as well. Of course, there is a “but” in every discovery. However wonderful the benefits of the two pills are, the researchers fear that they could be misused in sports. And with the Beijing Olympics approaching, the researcher fear about the potential for abuse by athletes present in the competition, especially that the pills can be easily synthesized in any laboratory.
Especially for this reason, Prof. Evans has devised a test to detect whether an athlete has taken the drugs and has made it available to the World Anti-Doping Agency, which prepares a list of forbidden substances for the International Olympic Committee. Anti-doping officials confirmed the collaboration with Prof. Evans on a test that screens athletes’ blood and urine for even the tiniest traces of the two substances, but could not say when they would start using it.
“Thanks to the much appreciated cooperation of Ron Evans and his team at the Salk Institute, WADA received key information in advance in order to develop and implement ways to detect these molecules,” a statement of the agency read.
Prof. Evans’ findings come at a short time after another experiment on mice showed that those fed with a diet supplemented with resveratrol did not live longer than other mice but were far healthier in several important measures. The compounds, usually found in red wine, but also in the crust of peanuts and walnuts, in grapes, blueberries, peanut butter, pistachios and other foods appeared to ward off the effects of aging on heart, bones, eyes and muscle of mice, improving conditions that make the elderly very frail like cataracts, osteoporosis and poor motor coordination.
It’s true that the pills were tried only on lab mice, but there is a great chance that one day the pills would work on humans too, the scientists believe. Moreover, Prof. Evans believes the pills should help people who are too frail to exercise and those with health problems like, obesity, diabetes that are improved with exercise. Keeping the body in great shape and fat-free, it reduces the risk of various types of cancers and heart disease as well. The pills could also help reverse the muscle frailty associated with aging, or disease such as muscular dystrophy.
The two “breakthrough” pills, as they were called, are labeled AICAR and GW1516. AICAR licensed by Schering-Plough Corp. is currently studied in humans to help control bleeding during open-heart surgery. GW1516 used to be developed by GlaxoSmithKline as a drug against dyslipidemia, a disorder affecting cholesterol. However, side effects of the drug, made the company give up producing it.
Four years ago, Prof. Evans and colleagues reported that they boosted endurance in mice by tweaking a mouse gene to boost the activity of a protein called PPAR-delta. Then the researchers tried to get the same result but this time without genetic engineering. More exactly, they squirted GW1516 into mice’s mouths every day for a month. GW1516 boosts PPAR-delta and the mice who were given the pill were exercising. At the end of the month, the researchers were surprised to find out that the mice ran 68 percent longer and 70 percent farther compared to when the experiment began. On the other hand, mice that were given GW1516, but were not exercising saw no improvements, the researchers found.
Then the researchers focused on another protein called AMPK and did the same experiment for a month this time giving the mice a daily injection of AICAR, which boosts AMPK. The mice involved in the experiment were not working. At the end of the follow-up period, mice given AICAR ran 23 percent longer and 44 percent farther than those who weren’t given anything.
“If you like exercise, you like the idea of getting more bang for your buck. If you don’t like exercise, you love the idea of getting the benefits from a pill,” Prof. Evans said in a statement.
How exactly the pills worked to lead to such good results is not a mystery. The researchers noted that the drug seemed to change the physical composition of muscle by burning the excessive fat, the same thing that happens in distance runners or those with intensive training in different sports.
And if the pills had such good results in mice, why shouldn’t they work the same in humans? The researchers have strong believes that they will reach that day when the pill will be beneficial for humans as well. Of course, there is a “but” in every discovery. However wonderful the benefits of the two pills are, the researchers fear that they could be misused in sports. And with the Beijing Olympics approaching, the researcher fear about the potential for abuse by athletes present in the competition, especially that the pills can be easily synthesized in any laboratory.
Especially for this reason, Prof. Evans has devised a test to detect whether an athlete has taken the drugs and has made it available to the World Anti-Doping Agency, which prepares a list of forbidden substances for the International Olympic Committee. Anti-doping officials confirmed the collaboration with Prof. Evans on a test that screens athletes’ blood and urine for even the tiniest traces of the two substances, but could not say when they would start using it.
“Thanks to the much appreciated cooperation of Ron Evans and his team at the Salk Institute, WADA received key information in advance in order to develop and implement ways to detect these molecules,” a statement of the agency read.
Prof. Evans’ findings come at a short time after another experiment on mice showed that those fed with a diet supplemented with resveratrol did not live longer than other mice but were far healthier in several important measures. The compounds, usually found in red wine, but also in the crust of peanuts and walnuts, in grapes, blueberries, peanut butter, pistachios and other foods appeared to ward off the effects of aging on heart, bones, eyes and muscle of mice, improving conditions that make the elderly very frail like cataracts, osteoporosis and poor motor coordination.
Mars Water Discovered, "Tasted" by Lander -- A First
NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander quenched a longtime scientific thirst yesterday when it detected water in a soil sample—the first time liquid water has been touched or "tasted" on another planet.
The craft obtained water by heating an icy soil sample in its "bake and sniff" oven, called the Thermal and Evolved Gas Analyzer. "TEGA" identifies substances by heating them and analyzing the resulting vapors.
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"We have water," said William Boynton of the University of Arizona, lead scientist for TEGA.
"We've now finally touched it and tasted it—and from my standpoint it tastes very fine."
Search for Life-Friendly Conditions
The successful sampling completes one of the Phoenix mission's core objectives—confirming that water ice does indeed exist near the Martian north pole.
Now the mission has been extended through September 30 to allow the lander to analyze that water ice and soil for signs of organic materials and for conditions suitable for life, NASA announced.
The additional five weeks of operation will cost some two million U.S. dollars.
Principal investigator Peter Smith, of the University of Arizona, reported that all of Phoenix's instruments are healthy. A troublesome short circuit problem appears to have been resolved.
"We're going to complete the science that we set out to complete," he said of the mission's extended time. "But we have lots more to explore within reach of our robotic arm."
Surprise
Phoenix's landing site was chosen because orbital observations suggested the locale was rich in ice. The craft landed on May 25 on a solid layer of ice covered by only a few inches of sticky Martian soil.
The craft obtained water by heating an icy soil sample in its "bake and sniff" oven, called the Thermal and Evolved Gas Analyzer. "TEGA" identifies substances by heating them and analyzing the resulting vapors.
Enlarge Photo
Printer Friendly
Email to a Friend
What's This? SHARE
Digg
StumbleUpon
"We have water," said William Boynton of the University of Arizona, lead scientist for TEGA.
"We've now finally touched it and tasted it—and from my standpoint it tastes very fine."
Search for Life-Friendly Conditions
The successful sampling completes one of the Phoenix mission's core objectives—confirming that water ice does indeed exist near the Martian north pole.
Now the mission has been extended through September 30 to allow the lander to analyze that water ice and soil for signs of organic materials and for conditions suitable for life, NASA announced.
The additional five weeks of operation will cost some two million U.S. dollars.
Principal investigator Peter Smith, of the University of Arizona, reported that all of Phoenix's instruments are healthy. A troublesome short circuit problem appears to have been resolved.
"We're going to complete the science that we set out to complete," he said of the mission's extended time. "But we have lots more to explore within reach of our robotic arm."
Surprise
Phoenix's landing site was chosen because orbital observations suggested the locale was rich in ice. The craft landed on May 25 on a solid layer of ice covered by only a few inches of sticky Martian soil.
India Seeks Region's Help to Curb Terror After Blasts (Update2)
Reeling from a spate of deadly bombings, India is poised to win support from its neighbors for an accord to share intelligence about terrorism. Its main regional rival, Pakistan, likely will sign up to the agreement, though it may struggle to comply.
Foreign ministers from India, Pakistan and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation's six other member nations yesterday approved the draft document, which calls for helping each other fight crime. The ministers endorsed a proposal, backed by India and rebel-plagued Sri Lanka, to classify terrorism as a crime.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Pakistan's Yousuf Raza Gilani and Saarc's other leaders probably will sign the deal at the group's annual two-day summit, which starts tomorrow in Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital. The agreement calls on members to give each other ``the widest possible measure'' of legal assistance in fighting crime. There are no penalties for not abiding by it.
``Pakistan might go along with a general agreement on terrorism,'' said Seema Desai, an analyst at Eurasia Group, a London-based political-risk advisory firm. ``The idea that Pakistan will hand over substantive information is unlikely.''
Cross-Border Help
Cross-border help in investigations and prosecutions will be a focus of the summit. The other Saarc members are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives and Nepal. Officials from Japan, China, South Korea, the U.S. and the European Union will attend as observers.
``For the first time a consensus emerged on including the word terrorism'' in the definition of crime, Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said after meeting his counterparts yesterday. ``This is a landmark event that will help Saarc combat terrorism.''
Bombings take a toll in South Asia with al-Qaeda active in Pakistan and Afghanistan and in Sri Lanka where the Tamil Tigers have been fighting for an independent homeland for 25 years.
Last week in India, at least 52 people died in 23 blasts in two cities. On July 7, a suicide bomber targeted India's embassy in the Afghan capital, killing at least 40 people. The Afghan and Indian governments said the attack was carried out with the assistance of Pakistan's intelligence service. Pakistan denied the claims.
Regional Security
``Saarc governments have a collective responsibility to ensure that growth and development within the region takes place in a crime-free atmosphere, where people feel secure,'' India's Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said July 24. ``The recent bomb blasts in Kabul that targeted our embassy emphasize how vulnerable South Asia continues to be on terrorism.''
Members of Pakistan's spy agency assisted militant groups in planning the bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul, the New York Times reported today, citing unidentified U.S. officials. The findings were based on intercepted communications between militants and Pakistani officers, the paper said.
While Pakistan's intelligence services are under the prime minister's office, the director is always a military officer. The current military supremo, Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, served as director until he replaced President Pervez Musharraf as army chief of staff in October.
More Accountable
An attempt to make the Inter-Services Intelligence more accountable to the elected government failed this month when a decision to place the agency under the Interior Ministry was reversed in less than 24 hours.
Pakistan is also under pressure from the U.S., which blames the new civilian government's less aggressive approach for increased Taliban and al-Qaeda attacks on American forces in neighboring Afghanistan. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization and U.S. intelligence agencies say Islamic militants use bases in Pakistan's northwestern tribal areas to train, re-arm and plan attacks against troops across the border and beyond.
``Pakistan has taken a number of measures, backed by appropriate legislation, to counter the menaces of drugs and human trafficking and terrorism,'' Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told Saarc ministers, according to a statement on the ministry's Web site. ``We welcome the finalization of the Saarc Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters.''
Three Wars
India and Pakistan, both nuclear-armed, have fought three wars since they gained independence from the U.K. in 1947, two over the Himalayan region of Kashmir, which both claim as their territory. India accuses Pakistan of backing separatists fighting its rule in Jammu and Kashmir, the country's only Muslim-majority state. Pakistan denies the accusation, saying it provides only moral support for a freedom struggle. The hostility has prevented India and Pakistan from cutting military spending, reducing the money available for health and education.
India, where levels of under-nourished children are double that in Sub-Saharan Africa, increased its defense expenditures by 10 percent this year to 1.06 trillion rupees ($23 billion). Pakistan, where the World Bank says only 57 percent of children complete primary school, has raised its defense budget by 8 percent to 296 billion rupees ($4.1 billion).
``Most militants are drawn to arms because they are deprived of basic necessities of life,'' said Rajiv Kumar, director at the New Delhi-based Indian Council For Research on International Economic Relations. ``Economic development is equally important to quell terrorism.''
Hampering Ties
The nations in Saarc account for 22 percent of the world's population and 2 percent of its economic output. Regional hostility has hampered economic ties. When Saarc was established in 1985, intra-regional trade was 3.4 percent of the countries' total. After 23 years, it remains less than 5 percent, according to the Saarc Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
By comparison, trade among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, known as Asean, accounts for 30 percent of their total. Intra-European Union commerce contributes about 55 percent. While Saarc members adopted free trade for goods in 2004, the policy hasn't spurred commerce because of the rivalry between India and Pakistan. The two nations account for more than four-fifths of the $1.2 trillion South Asian economy.
Pakistan bans imports from India of 4,000 items, mainly manufactured goods such as automobiles and drugs, even though India has granted most-favored nation status to Pakistan, said Ameeta Sarkar, head of the South Asia division at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry in New Delhi.
WTO Collapse
The collapse of global trade talks this week at the World Trade Organization in Geneva may help increase the relevance of regional groupings like Saarc.
``With no new WTO deal, moving trade regionally becomes more important,'' said Saman Kelegama, executive director of the Institute of Policy Studies in Colombo. ``The neighbors in South Asia should see India as an opportunity, and not as a threat.''
Sri Lanka has already forged a free-trade agreement with India to take advantage of the world's second-fastest growing economy after China. India also has open borders with Bhutan and Nepal. Pakistan has a free trade accord with Sri Lanka.
Foreign ministers from India, Pakistan and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation's six other member nations yesterday approved the draft document, which calls for helping each other fight crime. The ministers endorsed a proposal, backed by India and rebel-plagued Sri Lanka, to classify terrorism as a crime.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Pakistan's Yousuf Raza Gilani and Saarc's other leaders probably will sign the deal at the group's annual two-day summit, which starts tomorrow in Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital. The agreement calls on members to give each other ``the widest possible measure'' of legal assistance in fighting crime. There are no penalties for not abiding by it.
``Pakistan might go along with a general agreement on terrorism,'' said Seema Desai, an analyst at Eurasia Group, a London-based political-risk advisory firm. ``The idea that Pakistan will hand over substantive information is unlikely.''
Cross-Border Help
Cross-border help in investigations and prosecutions will be a focus of the summit. The other Saarc members are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives and Nepal. Officials from Japan, China, South Korea, the U.S. and the European Union will attend as observers.
``For the first time a consensus emerged on including the word terrorism'' in the definition of crime, Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said after meeting his counterparts yesterday. ``This is a landmark event that will help Saarc combat terrorism.''
Bombings take a toll in South Asia with al-Qaeda active in Pakistan and Afghanistan and in Sri Lanka where the Tamil Tigers have been fighting for an independent homeland for 25 years.
Last week in India, at least 52 people died in 23 blasts in two cities. On July 7, a suicide bomber targeted India's embassy in the Afghan capital, killing at least 40 people. The Afghan and Indian governments said the attack was carried out with the assistance of Pakistan's intelligence service. Pakistan denied the claims.
Regional Security
``Saarc governments have a collective responsibility to ensure that growth and development within the region takes place in a crime-free atmosphere, where people feel secure,'' India's Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said July 24. ``The recent bomb blasts in Kabul that targeted our embassy emphasize how vulnerable South Asia continues to be on terrorism.''
Members of Pakistan's spy agency assisted militant groups in planning the bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul, the New York Times reported today, citing unidentified U.S. officials. The findings were based on intercepted communications between militants and Pakistani officers, the paper said.
While Pakistan's intelligence services are under the prime minister's office, the director is always a military officer. The current military supremo, Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, served as director until he replaced President Pervez Musharraf as army chief of staff in October.
More Accountable
An attempt to make the Inter-Services Intelligence more accountable to the elected government failed this month when a decision to place the agency under the Interior Ministry was reversed in less than 24 hours.
Pakistan is also under pressure from the U.S., which blames the new civilian government's less aggressive approach for increased Taliban and al-Qaeda attacks on American forces in neighboring Afghanistan. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization and U.S. intelligence agencies say Islamic militants use bases in Pakistan's northwestern tribal areas to train, re-arm and plan attacks against troops across the border and beyond.
``Pakistan has taken a number of measures, backed by appropriate legislation, to counter the menaces of drugs and human trafficking and terrorism,'' Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told Saarc ministers, according to a statement on the ministry's Web site. ``We welcome the finalization of the Saarc Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters.''
Three Wars
India and Pakistan, both nuclear-armed, have fought three wars since they gained independence from the U.K. in 1947, two over the Himalayan region of Kashmir, which both claim as their territory. India accuses Pakistan of backing separatists fighting its rule in Jammu and Kashmir, the country's only Muslim-majority state. Pakistan denies the accusation, saying it provides only moral support for a freedom struggle. The hostility has prevented India and Pakistan from cutting military spending, reducing the money available for health and education.
India, where levels of under-nourished children are double that in Sub-Saharan Africa, increased its defense expenditures by 10 percent this year to 1.06 trillion rupees ($23 billion). Pakistan, where the World Bank says only 57 percent of children complete primary school, has raised its defense budget by 8 percent to 296 billion rupees ($4.1 billion).
``Most militants are drawn to arms because they are deprived of basic necessities of life,'' said Rajiv Kumar, director at the New Delhi-based Indian Council For Research on International Economic Relations. ``Economic development is equally important to quell terrorism.''
Hampering Ties
The nations in Saarc account for 22 percent of the world's population and 2 percent of its economic output. Regional hostility has hampered economic ties. When Saarc was established in 1985, intra-regional trade was 3.4 percent of the countries' total. After 23 years, it remains less than 5 percent, according to the Saarc Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
By comparison, trade among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, known as Asean, accounts for 30 percent of their total. Intra-European Union commerce contributes about 55 percent. While Saarc members adopted free trade for goods in 2004, the policy hasn't spurred commerce because of the rivalry between India and Pakistan. The two nations account for more than four-fifths of the $1.2 trillion South Asian economy.
Pakistan bans imports from India of 4,000 items, mainly manufactured goods such as automobiles and drugs, even though India has granted most-favored nation status to Pakistan, said Ameeta Sarkar, head of the South Asia division at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry in New Delhi.
WTO Collapse
The collapse of global trade talks this week at the World Trade Organization in Geneva may help increase the relevance of regional groupings like Saarc.
``With no new WTO deal, moving trade regionally becomes more important,'' said Saman Kelegama, executive director of the Institute of Policy Studies in Colombo. ``The neighbors in South Asia should see India as an opportunity, and not as a threat.''
Sri Lanka has already forged a free-trade agreement with India to take advantage of the world's second-fastest growing economy after China. India also has open borders with Bhutan and Nepal. Pakistan has a free trade accord with Sri Lanka.
IAEA clears inspections plan
Washington must now persuade a 45-nation nuclear supply group (NSG) to grant India a waiver allowing trade with a non-NPT nation, then get US Congress ratification
India came one step closer to sealing the controversial civil nuclear agreement with the US. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) board of governors on Friday cleared the country-specific safeguards agreement by consensus. The agreement was cleared the 35-nation IAEA board unanimously. IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei told concerned agency governors that the inspections scheme met non-proliferation safeguards standards and talks had begun on a system of more intrusive, short-notice checks - which would boost confidence in India's intentions.
ElBaradei touched on diplomatic concern that parts of the draft blur divisions between civil and military atomic reactors, with a possible loophole that could allow India to transfer weapons-grade fuel separated from civilian stocks to its military programme. "These are not comprehensive or full-scope safeguards (unlike with NPT member states)...," he said. "But it satisfies India's needs while maintaining all the agency's legal requirements," he told the closed Vienna meeting. Some diplomats were concerned such language might allow India to halt inspections unilaterally if nuclear fuel imports were cut off.
Washington must now persuade a 45-nation nuclear supply group (NSG) to grant India a waiver allowing trade with a non-NPT nation, then get US Congress ratification, to sew up the deal. The initial NSG meeting on India is expected to be held on Aug. 21-22. A total of 14 Indian nuclear reactors will come under the UN nuclear watchdog safeguards by 2014. Six Indian reactors are already under IAEA supervision. IAEA expects to start implementing the agreement at new facilities in 2009.
India came one step closer to sealing the controversial civil nuclear agreement with the US. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) board of governors on Friday cleared the country-specific safeguards agreement by consensus. The agreement was cleared the 35-nation IAEA board unanimously. IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei told concerned agency governors that the inspections scheme met non-proliferation safeguards standards and talks had begun on a system of more intrusive, short-notice checks - which would boost confidence in India's intentions.
ElBaradei touched on diplomatic concern that parts of the draft blur divisions between civil and military atomic reactors, with a possible loophole that could allow India to transfer weapons-grade fuel separated from civilian stocks to its military programme. "These are not comprehensive or full-scope safeguards (unlike with NPT member states)...," he said. "But it satisfies India's needs while maintaining all the agency's legal requirements," he told the closed Vienna meeting. Some diplomats were concerned such language might allow India to halt inspections unilaterally if nuclear fuel imports were cut off.
Washington must now persuade a 45-nation nuclear supply group (NSG) to grant India a waiver allowing trade with a non-NPT nation, then get US Congress ratification, to sew up the deal. The initial NSG meeting on India is expected to be held on Aug. 21-22. A total of 14 Indian nuclear reactors will come under the UN nuclear watchdog safeguards by 2014. Six Indian reactors are already under IAEA supervision. IAEA expects to start implementing the agreement at new facilities in 2009.
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