India Inc offers 40,000 jobs

Even as thousands are losing their jobs worldwide on deteriorating economic condition, India has a reason to cheer in just one week, firms have unveiled plans of hiring 40,000 people in the country, while nearly 30,000 jobs fell on the firing line elsewhere.

Doors open
Private insurer MetLife India is looking to recruit about 2,000 managers and a whopping 30,000 advisors in the coming months.

Further, global management consultancy firm Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu is also looking to hire around 3,500 employees in India.

According to MetLife India's Managing Director Rajesh Relan, MetLife India plans to hire about 2,000 sales managers and 30,000 financial advisors by March, which would nearly double the two workforces.

Companies operating in India are "upbeat" about the economic growth here and the country's job market is totally insulated from the effects of the global financial crisis, industrialists said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum-India Economic Summit in New Delhi.

'No job cuts in India'

"India is a productive market and we are going steady," said British Telecom (BT) Innovate and Group chief technology officer Matt Bross.

It has currently employed over 22,000 people in its business process outsourcing operations in the country. BT announced 10,000 job cuts last week.

More investment

Meanwhile, global IT software provider CA will invest $30 million for an additional facility in Hyderabad, which will house 1,000 people.

As regards the job cuts, CA senior vice-president and general manager (India) Lokesh Jindal said, "We are upbeat about the company's progress and there will not be any job cuts." This investment will be raised from internal accruals, he added.

Soruce: www.mid-day.com

Obama appoints fourth Indian into his team

WASHINGTON: Indian-American management expert Anjan Mukherjee has been roped in by US President-elect Barack Obama into his transition team, the fourth person from the community to be part of the 15-member high-profile group.

Mukherjee, a Managing Director of Corporate Private Equity group at Blackstone, has been appointed as one of the team leads in Economics and International Trade. His appointment has been the latest one as three other Indian-Americans Sonal Shah, Preeta Bansal and Nicholas Rathod have already been inducted into Obama's team.

Mukherjee has been involved in the execution of a number of investments in a wide range of industries. He has received a BA from Harvard University where he graduated magna cum laude as a Harry S Truman Scholar and an MBA from Harvard Business school. Before joining Blackstone, he worked with Thomas H. Lee Company and Morgan Stanley & Co. He has also worked at the Department of Education (in the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education) as well as the Brookings Institution.

Obama is the first African-American to win the US presidential elections. He will take over as the 44th president of the US on January 20, 2009. The Indian-American community overwhelmingly supported Obama in the November 4 elections, they're said to have voted for him by more than a two to one margin.

Source: www.mid-day.com

39% turnout in first phase of J-K polls

SRINAGAR: Ignoring separatists' boycott call and braving sub-zero temperature in many areas, nearly 39 per cent of over six lakh voters today exercised their franchise in the first phase of Assembly elections in ten constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir

"An estimated 38.62 per cent voters cast their ballots in the 10 constituencies spread over four districts of Poonch, Bandipora, Leh and Kargil by 2 pm," officials monitoring the polling said.

Mendhar, Poonch and Surankote constituencies in the border district of Poonch registered the highest turnout of 60 per cent, 52 per cent and 40 per cent respectively.

The turnout in two constituencies of Kargil district — Kargil and Zanskar — recorded 35 per cent polling each while in Nobra and Leh segments in Leh district registered 36.21 and 32.6 per cent voting, respectively.

The polling in Bandipora, Sonawari and Gurez constituencies in the Valley which has been hit by a cold wave after heavy snowfall started on a dull note but picked up as the day advanced.

The three constituencies recorded 25 per cent, 28 per cent and 43 per cent polling respectively. The voters ignored the separatists call for boycott and as the day advanced, came out in large numbers to line up at polling booths.

The voters in Zanskar and Kargil segments which recorded low temperature of minus 11 and minus four degrees Celsius, respectively, recorded 35 per cent voting till 2 pm.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/