Court orders Apollo Hospitals to pay Rs 3.5 Lakh fine to consumer

A private hospital in Hyderabad has been ordered by the apex consumer forum to pay over Rs 3.5 lakh as damages to the parents of a 22-year-old youth, who died during treatment.

"Medical Council's regulation mandates maintenance of the medical records for at least three years. It is very difficult to believe that a highly professional, sophisticated and computerised system of admission and treatment adopted by the Apollo Hospitals has misplaced the treatment records of the patient," the forum said and asked the hospital to pay compensation to the youth's parents.

Endorsing the Andhra Pradesh State Consumer Commission's order for compensation, the National Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission ordered the hospital to pay the compensation.

M Ramakrishna, whose left arm was crushed in a paddy harvesting machine in 2003, was rushed to Hyderguda Apollo Hospital, where doctors had operated upon the youth and assured his parents that their son's medical condition was alright.

Two days later they were suddenly informed that Ramakrishna's condition had deteriorated and he was shifted to the main Apollo Hospital at Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad.

The youth died at the main hospital, four days later.

Shocked by their son's sudden death, his parents sought medical details from the hospitals which they refused saying it was "misplaced".

Both the parents moved the district consumer forum which dismissed the plea. They then moved the Andhra Pradesh State Consumer Forum which directed the Apollo Hospital to pay Rs 3.54 lakh as compensation to them for pecuniary loss, mental agony, etc.

Apollo Hospital challenged the order and approached the national consumer forum, but failed to produce the medical records to prove that there was no negligence on its part.

"On the face of the petitioners' own admission that they have misplaced the original records, the onus to prove that there was absolutely no negligence squarely shifted to the petitioners (Apollo Hospitals). And they have failed to do so," the Commission said.

TATA Motors reports 13% sales up in Apr-11, Nano crosses 5 digit sales figures

Auto major Tata Motors on Sunday reported a 13 per cent jump in total sales in April to 64,383 units from 57,199 units in the same month last year, riding on good numbers from small car Nano which crossed the 10,000 mark for the first time.

In April, the home grown firm registered a 1.24 per cent increase in passenger vehicle sales in the domestic market to 23,387 units from 23,099 units in the same period last year, the company said in a statement. During the month, small car Nano's sales soared by 184 per cent to 10,012 units during April, it said.

The 'Indica' range reported sales of 4,250 units, down 53 per cent. The 'Indigo' family, with sales of 5,282 units, witnessed a dip of 27 per cent vis-a-vis the same month last year. The 'Sumo', 'Safari' and 'Aria' models accounted for sales of 3,843 units, up 15 per cent compared to April last year.

In the commercial vehicles segment, Tata Motors recorded a 19 per cent jump in domestic sales in April to 36,738 units.

Light commercial vehicles sales during the month stood at 22,802 units, up 28 per cent, while medium and heavy commercial vehicle sales stood at 13,936 units, a jump of 6 per cent compared to April, 2010.

Tata Motors' total exports in April jumped by 36 per cent to 4,258 units from 3,137 units in the same month last year.

Airports under severe lose due to Air India pilots' strike

Airports are losing a couple of crores a day because of the Air India pilots' agitation. If the agitation continues for a week, Delhi airport alone could incur a loss of several crores of rupees. Air India pays it Rs 26-28 crore every month, on a fortnightly basis.

An airline has to pay an airport about Rs 1,50,000 for every take-off and landing of an Airbus A-320 aircraft. Air India operates about 80 flights a day just from Delhi. Which means, Delhi Airport earns about Rs 1 crore a day.

The agitation has severely affected Airbus A-320 operations, the mainstay of the domestic operations. These aircraft are also used to operate flights to some short-haul foreign destinations such as Singapore and Kathmandu. Air India has now been trying to maintain operations by pressing the larger white-bodied aircraft for domestic flights. Such aircraft are generally used to operate flights to the US, Europe, West Asia and the Far-East.

The situation at Mumbai airport is no better. Air India has about 80-90 take-offs and landings a day, of which about 70-80 per cent have been impacted. Result: The airport is not getting landing and parking charges for these flights. "No figure can be put on the loss as the strike has been on for only three days," a spokesman said.

This is true of the Airports Authority of India too. Air India owes AAI over Rs 650 crore. Sources indicated that in the case of Air India, the Authority adjusts whatever is paid against the Rs 650-crore outstanding, rather than reconcile bills that the airline has run up in the last two weeks.

Yamaha Motor India reports 38% sales rise in Apr-11

Two-wheeler maker India Yamaha Motor today reported a 38.1% increase in its total sales at 34,476 units in April, compared to the corresponding period an year ago.

The company had sold 24,968 units in the same month last year, India Yamaha Motor said in a statement.

In the domestic market, the company's April sales stood at 25,817 units as against 16,869 units in the same month last year, up 53%. Commenting on the sales performance, India Yamaha Motor Pvt Ltd CEO and Managing Director Hiroyuki Suzuki said: "We are delighted with the encouraging sales figures that we have been witnessing consistently this year. Our marketing and promotion activities are on track and we hope to sustain this growth for the rest of the year".

The firm is also strengthening its sales and service network in the Tier-II and Tier-III cities to further increase reach to the customer base in the inner parts of the country, he added.

Exports of India Yamaha rose by 6.91% to 8,659 units from 8,099 units in the year-ago period, the company said.

TVS Motor states increase in sales by 14% in Apr-11

Automotive maker TVS Motors on Sunday reported a 14 per cent growth in overall sales for April, 2011, propelled by the company's scooter sales and international business besides substantial growth in the three-wheeler segment.
"The company registered sales of 167,744 units as against 147,172 units in the corresponding month of the previous year," a TVS release here said.

Scooter sales "led the growth," increasing by 31 per cent with sales of 35,074 units compared to 26,860 units in April 2010, it said. The South India based auto maker sold 69,573 motorcycles in April 2011, an increase of 5 per cent.

Domestic two-wheeler sales accounted for 141,619 units in April 2011 against 125,471 in the corresponding month of 2010, recording a growth of 13 per cent.

Exports recorded cumulative sales of 25,275 units in April, 2011 as against 19,657 units in the previous year.

During the month, the company exported 22,564 units of two wheelers against 19,218 units in April 2010, the release said, adding, it had sold 3,561 three wheelers as against 2,483 units in the comparable month of the previous year.

Warren Buffett's investment hero status dents by Scandal

There is nothing in the world quite like Berkshire Hathaway's annual shareholder meeting. Part investment seminar, part stand-up comedy, it is above all a festival dedicated to capitalism and the firm's CEO, Warren Buffett .

On Saturday, as many as 40,000 Buffett groupies, many of whom became rich through the firm, packed into a cavernous stadium in the rural state of Nebraska, listening with rapt attention to the pronouncements of the " Oracle of Omaha."

If a nation sometimes sees itself reflected in one individual - India in Gandhi or Britain in Winston Churchill - then at least for these tens-of-thousands of Americans, that embodiment is Warren Buffett.

The ethos is "get up in the morning, work hard and hope for the best," according to Chuck Doane, who has lived in Omaha since the 1950s and went to school with some of Buffett's relatives before buying stock. "He's a down to earth individual, upfront, forward with a lot of integrity," he said of Buffett, while tucking into a sandwich.

At a time when profit-gouging Wall Street executives are still reviled for plunging the global economy into crisis, Buffett's supporters see him as carrying the torch for responsible capitalism.

Despite being a multi-billionaire he takes home a salary of just $100,000 a year, has had the same house since the 1950's and prefers Cherry Coke over a chateau-made claret. "He's got an evocation of the spirit of America," said Lawrence Cunningham, a shareholder and 14-year meeting veteran who traveled with his pregnant wife to Omaha, to hear Buffett's responses to questions from the crowd, which lasted nearly seven hours.

Cunningham, who has also compiled a book of Buffett's writings, likens him to a modern day Will Rogers, the cowboy and entertainer of the 1920s, who became as famous for is self-depreciating modesty and witty aphorisms. "Countries all have their heroes, and the model of the hero in this country is very much home-spun wit, self-deprecation and modesty," said Cunningham.

"And melting complex ideas into very memorable lessons for living, that's very, sort-of, American."

For decades Buffett has been doling out pithy business advice at Berkshire's general meetings, and this year was no different. Amid questions from shareholders who had named their kids after him, Buffett offered advice on everything from buying gold (maybe not the greatest idea) to how to raise kids if you are rich (it's your fault not theirs).

But at this year's Buffett-fest, it was something the Oracle had not foreseen that drew the focus of the faithful. The meeting came just weeks after one of Buffett's top lieutenants David Sokol resigned amid a share-trading scandal, a rare chink in the firm's ethical armor.

Sokol bought $10 million worth of shares in chemicals firm Lubrizol before recommending Buffett snap up the company. Just what Buffett knew about the deal, and when he knew it, has drawn the interest of market watchdogs and the press. But most shareholders appeared much more concerned about what it meant for the Berkshire project and Buffett's judgment.

2G Scam: CBI quotes RS 200 Cr paid as bribe by Swan Telecom for granting 2G licence

To cover up Rs 200 crore "illegal" gratification made to Kalaignar TV, agreements were executed after lodging of FIR in the 2G scam and money was channelled back to its source on A Raja's resignation as Telecom Minister, the CBI has claimed.

The agency has supported this contention on the basis of the statements of an accountant of DB Realty and Director of the Cineyug Films Pvt Ltd to establish that the money travelled between December 23, 2008 and August 7, 2009 from Shahid Balwa's firm to Kalaignar TV in which DMK MP Kanimozhi has stake.

The FIR in the scam was lodged on October 21, 2009 by the CBI against unknown persons of the Department of Telecom , and agreements for transfer of funds were entered on January 27, 2010.

In its second charge sheet, the CBI has said that Swan Telecom and Dynamix Realty Promoters- Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka, channelled Rs 200 crore through circuitous route, to DMK family-run Kalaignar TV and when Raja resigned and was questioned by the agency, the money was channelled back to DB Realty through the same route.

CBI has quoted the statements of Satish Agarwal, accountant of DB Realty and Mohomed Morani, director of Cineyug Film Pvt Ltd , who have been named as witnesses to buttress that money was paid as bribe by Swan Telecom to get favour for the grant of 2G licence.

Agarwal told CBI that "Dynamix Realty had given unsecured loans of Rs 209 crore to (Asif Balwa's) Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd from December 23, 2008 to August 11, 2009. No agreement was executed for this purpose."

"Sum of Rs 206 crore was transferred (further) from account of Kusegaon Fruits to account of (Karim Morani's) Cineyug Films Pvt Ltd during the period from December 23, 2008 to July, 2009," he said.

Morani in his statement to the CBI confirmed of receiving this Rs 206 crore and carried the money trail forward stating, "There was no written agreements for this (received Rs 206 crore)."

"I further state that Cineyug Films extended a loan of Rs 200 crore to Kalaignar TV Pvt Ltd during the period from December 23, 2008 to August 07, 2009," Morani said in his statement.

The two witnesses revealed that no agreements were executed for these transactions between Dynamix-Kusegaon and Kusegaon-Cineyug and it was after the CBI registered the FIR in the 2G spectrum scam, on October 21, 2009, that the agreements were executed between them showing the transaction as "unsecured loan".

Kanimozhi, DMK patriarch Karunanidhi's youngest daughter, entered politics at a harrowing time for her party. In 2007, a violent rift had taken place between Karunanidhi's family and that of his grand nephews, the Marans. Dayanidhi Maran was recalled from his ministerial job in Delhi and Kanimozhi was sent to the Rajya Sabha by the DMK. Around the same time, she published a book called Karukkum Maruthaani, a collection of essays about gender issues-and clean politics.

She hasn't written much since then, apart from a book of verse published in 2009. In Parliament, she was a soft-spoken presence, asking 186 questions over four years about things as diverse as NREG wages, farm incomes and modernising the Chennai airport. Her conversations with corporate lobbyist Niira Radia don't clearly establish whether she played a significant role in getting Andimuthu Raja the telecom minister's job after 2009's election victory. An MP, who requested anonymity, says, "It was clear that they were close, but in Parliament it's common for new MPs to take guidance from party seniors."

Now, Kanimozhi has been accused by investigating agency CBI of being part of the telecom controversy at whose centre, it alleges, was Raja. Raja is already in preventive custody and the DMK is now closing ranks to defend the first member of its first family in court. But can Kani, as she's called by people familiar to her, count on the party's total support?


Kanimozhi fight within her family

"It's going to take her a long time to beat the rivalry of members within her family. And then emerge successfully in the political arena to take on rivals outside," says a politician close to the DMK in Chennai, requesting anonymity. There are deep divisions within DMK's first family. Union minister Azhagiri and deputy chief minister Stalin , step-brothers of Kanimozhi, may not be unhappy with a weakened Kani. The Maran side of the family will be positively gleeful. After all, it was Kanimozhi, backed by party veterans like Arcot Veerasamy and MRK Paneerselvam who led the anti-Maran backlash in 2007 and helped set up the TV channel Kalaignar to rival the Maran's Sun network.

Kalaignar TV, investigators say, was a conduit through which around `200 crore was passed on to the DMK by a clutch of companies led by DB Realty which received a telecom licence during Raja's time. Kanimozhi has denied the charge, saying this was an investment that the company refused to accept and returned with interest.

Kanimozhi's main cultural platform, the NGO Tamil Maiyam, which organises the popular Sangamam festival every year since 2006 during Pongal, is also being probed to see if any funds had been routed through it. Father Jegath Gaspar Raj, who founded the NGO in 2002 and roped in Kanimozhi later, says, "There was a point where I realised Maiyam couldn't remain a family-run organisation. I spoke to Kanimozhi about joining us and she was more than happy to do so."

As pressure builds up on Kanimozhi and the people and institutions that she's been associated with-Sharad Kumar, an executive and shareholder of Kalaignar TV is a co-accused-some former allies are backing off. The Chennai-based politician says, "There are so many rivals within her family that even Kalaignar TV did not play footage of Kanimozhi's campaign before these Assembly elections. When she was addressing rallies in north Chennai, no Kalaignar crew was present, and the channel repeatedly aired the campaign of actors Khushboo and Vadivelu."

Kanimozhi has vowed to fight all the charges in court, but it could be a lonely fight. Luckily, the one person who's solidly behind her is her father. But it's going to be a long grind. No wonder Fr Raj gets nostalgic about the heydays of Sangamam, "Kanimozhi was so involved that she used to have long discussions with the tailors making costumes for folk artists. Those days were good."