Insurance company told to pay Rs 5 lakh

Fatehgarh Sahib, October 16
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has directed the Life Insurance Corporation zonal office to pay Rs 5 lakh to the complainant along with Rs 5,000 as costs of litigation.
The forum comprising Sashi Prabha Aggarwal, president, Sher Singh Sidhu and Veena Chahal, members, stated that complainant Pawan Kumar, a resident of Manela village, had got his minor son Udesh insured with the LIC on August 4, 2010, vide policy number 153840846 for a sum of Rs 5 lakh and deposited Rs 15,494/ vide receipt number 2107482 dated August 4, 2010, as per terms and conditions, the amount was to be realised either on the date of maturity of the policy or on the death of the person insured, which ever occurred earlier. Unfortunately, the son of the complainant died on August 7, 2010, and the complainant requested the LIC to release the amount, but they kept putting off the matter.
The LIC in its reply stated that the policy was issued under table 75 to 20. The date of issuance was August 4, 2010, and date of maturity was August 4, 2030. The policy holder was minor. The LIC said on August 6,2010, his father gave an application that the terms and conditions were not acceptable, so the policy was cancelled and premium was refunded through cheque number 119118 dated August 30, 2010, as such the policy had been cancelled.
The court said the documents placed on record showed that the opposite party had written the letter to cancel the policy instead of giving the claim to the complainant. “The affidavit of the complainant shows that he has not written the letter and he has not received the premium from the opposite party. It shows deficiency in service on the part of opposite party as the complainant has purchased the policy on August 4, 2010, and his son expired on August 7, 2010, therefore the LIC is liable to pay the policy amount of Rs 5 lakh to the complainant,” the forum observed.

Jindal’s gift to his US alma mater: Rs 12.25cr

New Delhi, October 16
Industrialist and parliamentarian Naveen Jindal and his flagship company JSPL have gifted $2.5 million (about Rs 12.25 crore) to his alma mater, the University of Texas at Dallas, following which the US university has renamed its school of management after him. Jindal, a 1992 batch MBA alumnus of the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD), gifted $200,000 from his personal wealth, while his flagship firm Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) contributed $2.3 million to the US university, JSPL said in a statement responding to PTI queries.
According to the statement issued by the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) last week, Jindal, along with two others, “contributed an unprecedented combined gift of $30 million”. “It is the largest alumni gift in the University’s history,” the UTD statement said.
The JSPL statement said both Jindal and JSPL “will contribute in future too” as this would “support Indian students through the creation of scholarships and graduate fellowships”.
“The company’s contribution has been approved by the board of directors, given JSPL’s commitment to education,” the statement further said. Employees of JSPL and its associate firms will be eligible for executive programmes offered at the UTD, the statement said.
The move comes at a time when many foreign universities are looking to set up campuses in India. A Bill, the enactment of which would pave the way for their entry, is before Parliament for consideration.
According to official figures, out of 220 million school-going children in India, only 28 million go for higher education and the government aims to increase the number by 30 per cent (66 million) by 2020.
The JSPL statement said Naveen Jindal and his firms are engaged in various educational initiatives within the country as well and have made investments of over Rs 300 crore till now. The company has earmarked Rs 150 crore for investments in the education sector over the next one year, the statement said.

Apple's iPhone 4S goes on sale, fans say tribute to Jobs

SYDNEY/TOKYO (Reuters) - Apple Inc's iPhone 4S finally went on sale in stores around the globe on Friday, with fans snapping up the final gadget unveiled during Steve Jobs' lifetime, many buying the phone as a tribute to the former Apple boss.
"I think a lot of people are going to buy the iPhone 4S because it was the last iPhone Steve worked on," said Wil Batterham, 15, who with his school friend Tom Mosca were the first to buy the new phone in Sydney's Apple store.
"People are saying it was named after him, like iPhone 4S, for Steve," said Batterham, clutching his new phone.
Asked what will be the first function they use on the iPhone 4S, Mosca said he would ask the new iPhone's voice-activated "personal assistant" software: "Where's Steve?."
CEO Tim Cook and his executive team hope the first device launched without Apple's former visionary leader at the helm will safeguard their global market share lead.
Samsung, Apple's arch-rival with smartphones powered by Google's Android software, expects to overtake Apple as the world's biggest smartphone vendor in terms of units sold in the third quarter.
The iPhone 4S -- introduced to the world just a day before Jobs died -- was dubbed a disappointment because it fell short of being a revolution in design, but glowing reviews centered around its "Siri" voice-activated software have since helped it set a record pace in initial, online sales orders.
Apple fans showed no disappointment in Sydney on Friday as they purchased the phone, ahead of sales in Japan, Germany, France, Britain and North America.
Hundreds queued around the block of the Sydney Apple store, many rugged up against the chilly morning, as Apple staff chatted and clapped a countdown to the store opening. Apple's 13 Australian stores were the first to open their doors at 8.00 a.m. local time (2100 GMT, Thursday) to sell the iPhone 4S.
The vast majority of iPhone 4S buyers at the Sydney store appeared to be existing Apple customers, many having bought the original iPhone and upgrades each time.
Only one out of 10 people surveyed by Reuters was a new Apple customer. That buyer was replacing his HTC smartphone with the new iPhone 4S.
"I have been waiting for the iPhone 5 for a long time. But since Jobs died, I wanted to make sure I had a new iPhone with some advantages over the old," said Mark Du, referring to his concern over future Apple gadgets without Jobs at the helm.
Apple said it did not release sales figures on launch day, so gauging the initial sales may be difficult. Apple said it had taken more than 1 million online orders in the first 24 hours after its release, exceeding the 600,000 for the iPhone 4, though that model was sold in fewer countries.
Some analysts expect fourth-quarter iPhone shipments of as much as 30 million or more, almost double from a year ago.
Apple's fifth-generation iPhone uses chips from Qualcomm Inc, Toshiba and a host of smaller semiconductor companies, according to repair firm iFixit, which cracked the device open on Thursday.
SPEECH RECOGNITION A WINNER
Analysts say Apple CEO Cook needs to move out from under his former mentor's enormous shadow soon, and avoid clinging to the Jobs' mystique to preserve its brand.
Apple fans in Sydney made sure to remember Jobs as part of the iPhone 4S launch, with a small flower, candle and photo shrine erected outside the glass-fronted store.
The iPhone -- seen as the market's gold standard -- is Apple's highest-margin product and accounts for 40 percent of its annual revenue. It is the world's biggest selling smartphone, for now maintaining a slim market-share lead over Samsung's Galaxy, at 18.4 versus 17.8 percent worldwide.
In a sign of how tough the competition is, two doors along from the Sydney Apple store, Samsung has been selling its new Galaxy SII for only A$2 to its first 10 customers each day, prompting Samsung fans to also camp out on the footpath.
But analysts point to several factors in Apple's favor: a $199 price that matches up well with rival devices such as Amazon.com Inc's "Fire" tablet; availability promised on more than 100 carriers by the end of 2011, far more than its predecessors; and glowing reviews.
Apple's iconic smartphone comes with a faster processor and a better and more light-sensitive camera, but little else to separate it from its predecessor. But tech experts say the real gems lie beneath the phone's familiar sleek casing.
Influential reviewers Walt Mossberg and David Pogue raved about "Siri" -- a voice-command activated assistant that responds to spoken commands and questions in context, such as queries about the weather or a friend's phone number.
"I'm buying it mainly for the voice activated Siri, its like your own personal secretary," said Shane Gray, 42, one of the Sydney buyers.
(Reporting by Michael Perry in SYDNEY, Edwin Chan in LOS ANGELES, Isabel Reynolds in TOKYO, Editing by Mark Bendeich)

16 Tips to Simplify Your Life (and Increase Your Productivity)

Someone once said “it takes a genius to live a simple life” and I totally agree with that.
In this world of “dramatic distraction” and information overload it is too easy to become overwhelmed, lose focus and be swept away from the things that matter most.
Here are 16 tips that I have learnt form other leaders, blogs and books, and have been trying to apply in my life to de-clutter, un-complicate and become more intentional about how I spend my time…
1. Turn off all technology for 60 minutes a day and focus on doing your most important work.
2. Don’t check your email first thing in the morning. (This one in particular has been life-changing for me!)
3. Start your day with exercise. (or even better, learn how to surf – no better way to start the day!)
4. Be obedient to the sabbath! (That means learning how to really rest and refuel – taking one full day a week as a complete recovery day.)
5. Learn to say no.
6. Plan your week ahead. (I spend 10 minutes every Sunday evening looking at my diary for the upcoming week and planning spaces for work, rest, exercise, relational meetings etc. It helps me to stay focused on that which is important and gives me permission to say no to that which isn’t.)
7. Don’t answer your phone every time it rings.
8. Get up early.
9. Go to bed early.
10. Eat a big healthy breakfast.
11. Clean out your closets. Get rid of things you never wear or don’t use anymore.
12. Stop watching TV. Or at least cutback to no more than 1hr per day. (Jess and I haven’t had a TV for the nearly 6 years we’ve been married. When you don’t have it, you simply don’t miss it.)
13. Make sure you plan a decent holiday break once a year. (I find it should be at least 10 days for it to become truly regenerative.)
14. Learn to protect your time. The data says workers are interrupted every 11 minutes. Distractions destroy productivity and complicate your life.
15. Do your banking online.
16. Use Evernote. Seriously, it’s an amazing piece of software.

In the end, it’s about priority. About deciding what really matters and, as Stephen Covey says, “putting first things first”! And so, as you simplify you life, may it increase your productivity and grant you a greater sense of purpose, and may it bring you great freedom and peace.

Skilled Indians may have to wait for 70 years for Green Card

WASHINGTON: Professionally qualified Indians may have to wait as long as 70 years to get their Green Card in the US, a new study has said, amid growing concerns that the current country-specific quota policy poses a major hurdle in attracting talent from countries like India and China.

"Our system for allowing employers to sponsor skilled foreign nationals for permanent residence (a green card) is plagued by inadequate quotas that result in years of waiting and frustration," the Washington-based National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) said in a report.

An October 2011 NFAP study analysed the employment- based green card backlog and produced findings that should give pause to policymakers.

The study concluded: "A highly skilled Indian national sponsored today for an employment-based immigrant visa in the 3rd preference could wait potentially 70 years to receive a green card."

Many skilled foreign nationals from China have been waiting 6 to 7 years and can expect to wait additional years, it said.

In the EB-2 category, second employment-based preference, skilled foreign nationals from India and China may wait six years or more, the study said.

"The two factors that have caused the long waits for employment-based green cards are: the 140,000 annual quota, which is too low, and the per country limit on employment- based preference categories, which restricts the annual number of green cards for immigrants from one country to 7 per cent of the total. This, the NFAP analysis noted, means that skilled foreign nationals from India and China, who make up most of the applications, wait years longer than nationals of other countries.

A number of lawmakers, policy makers and politicians here have been demanding removing this country-specific cap on the Green Card as well as on H-1B category of visas.

"We must stop telling American companies that they cannot hire the high-skilled workers they need.

By making it difficult for them to obtain temporary and permanent visas for high-skilled workers, the federal government is slowing growth and worse, promoting the outsourcing of American jobs," New York Mayor, Michele Bloomberg, said early this year.

"Caps on green cards are set by countries, so Iceland actually gets the same number of visas as India. That may be fair to those two countries, but it's certainly not fair to American business and to Americans," Bloomberg said.

"We should end these arbitrary limits and end the cap on the high-skilled H1-B visas. Let the marketplace decide. It's basic free-market economics, and both parties ought to be able to get behind it," he had said.