Fresh eclipse on Sun cable outfit

The DMK government is ready with plans to eclipse Sumangali Cable Vision, owned by the Maran family’s Sun Network.

It has put a new kid on the block, Arasu Cable TV Corporation. The company, fully owned by the state, will be a multi-systems operator, the big players who feed TV signals to the neighbourhood cable operators. While it will not be giving connections to homes and offices, the cable operators will have a much wider choice. Sumangali has enjoyed near-monopoly status for years.

To ward off accusations that it was hurting a venture of Maran — who fell out with DMK chief M. Karunanidhi early this year — the government is ensuring that nothing more than business rivalry is read into the move.

It has picked Brijeshwar Singh, an IAS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre and a former director-general of All India Radio, as Arasu chairman. Singh, also a one-time vice-president of Commonwealth Broadcasting Corp, is expected to bring to his wealth of experience to Arasu, which is expected to earn the state Rs 500 crore annually

Rakhi' No, just a cell tag

Visitors at a cultural show in the capital in August, in the honour of visiting Japanese Premier Shinzo Abe, had a pleasant surprise when they were handed out what looked every bit like the Japanese version of a Rakhi.

The festival of Rakshabandhan was just around the corner and the beautifully decorated piece of string, with Japanese characters inscribed on it, seemed a perfect take-away.

Indo-Japani bhai-behen' Not quite. As it turned out, the contraption wasn’t a rakhi at all, just a tag to strap on to the mobile phone. The Japanese, it appears now, may just have missed an opportunity to warm Indian hearts.

The disappointment was greater given that the Japanese haven’t been exactly tight-fisted in other areas. Several key projects in India bank on funds from Tokyo.

Late-night postman

In India’s 60th year of Independence, the postal department has promised freedom from delays in delivery.

Now, you can expect to get your Speed Post delivered as late as 10pm at your doorstep. Strangely, the department expects you to apply for the service in writing. That formality, which many feel was unnecessary, could have been skipped. The service means the parcel and letters could reach 24 hours earlier.

Postmaster-general (western region) K. Shrivastav said the initiative also marks the 21st anniversary of Speed Post. “We will run a pilot project in Dadar, Vile Parle and Parel soon. It can be extended to other areas later, depending on the response from customers.” Postmen will be paid overtime but the sum hasn’t been specified.

The new service is part of the many benefits offered to Speed Post customers. Earlier, the tariffs were slashed 40 per cent, from Rs 20 to Rs 12 for parcels below 50 grams. Speed Post has a share of 27 per cent in the courier market.

Water levy

Sparks are flying over water among the lawmakers of Delhi.

The bone of contention is the Water Board (Amendment) Bill, 2007, that the state government plans to move in the Assembly. The objective behind rewriting the law is to “regulate and control the development and management of groundwater” in the city.

There are fears that the revised law will mean an increase in water levies that civic bodies impose on residents. This has prompted legislators cutting across party lines to oppose the bill saying it would anger their voters.

Delhi: Hungarian-Swedish artist Péter Solymosi holds his third exhibition at the Hungarian information and cultural centre, at Janpath, this Monday. The event features his masterpieces painted in Himachal Pradesh and Varanasi. Time: 10am to 6pm.