Buying online: India The world’s largest online retailer Amazon has finally opened up its shop in the fast expanding Indian e-commerce market. The US-based online retailer quietly announced yesterday the launch of its flagship selling platform for Indian buyers — www.amazon.in, alongside a service for domestic retailers wanting to generate online sales and a delivery service for third-party vendors with no back-end infrastructure. The Amazon India marketplace however begins by selling books, films, TV shows and will soon be adding mobile phones and cameras to its portfolio. While... 

    Needed: good places to stay! Patna: Given the increasing foreign tourist inflow in Bihar, the state government has now decided to put major emphasis on the construction of star hotels. It has also decided to upgrade six of its own hotels into star category. “The influx of tourists in the state in on rise,” Mihir Kumar Singh, Tourism Secretary of the state government, told Business Standard, “we received more than 1.1 million foreign and 22 million domestic tourists last year. This year, the number will be more. However, we still lack star category hotels in the... 

  Skyfisher: the new player! Patna : For the first time, daily flights by a private operator will connect Varanasi to three cities in Bihar. The service, that will be run by SkyFisher Airways, will start either by the end of this month or the first week of June, officials said yesterday. The 12-seater aircraft would make to and fro flights connecting Patna, Gaya, Bhagalpur and Varanasi in its first phase, they said. The plane will be able to accommodate only nine passengers and the rest three seats will be reserved, Vishal Kashyap, General Manager, SkyFisher Airways said. In the... 

  As in Mumbai, so in Patna! Patna: Another male bastion is set to be stormed. The streets of Patna, considered till recently to be most vulnerable and quite unsafe for women, will soon have autorickshaws being run by girls/women. A select group of girls, for the first time in Patna’s chequered history, has volunteered to learn driving skills. After a one-month rigorous training, these girls would ferry passengers in autorickshaws. Neha Sharma is studying law, but is keen to learn autorickshaw driving. Clad in a track suit, she reaches the Bihar Veterinary College ground eve­ry Sunday to... 

  By Sachidanand Singh Final act: pouring! I was still at the university, biding my time. Purely for form I had myself enrolled for some easy course. With little work pressure I had time to put my chemistry knowledge to practical use. Fine powder of charcoal, called “activated charcoal”, is known to absorb colour and odour from liquids. I decided to use activated charcoal to refine the country liquor which was then available for ten rupees a bottle. It came with a hideous colour and a powerful odour.  A quick trip to the labs, some skillful negotiation with the assistant there and I came... 

  New born Tiger babies Patna, May 1: Valmikinagar Tiger Reserve in Bihar has reasons to cheer. According to latest reports, a tigress gave birth to three cubs in Bihar’s only tiger reserve — the second such development in the area in one-and-half years, an official said Wednesday. “It is a positive development for us as a tigress has given birth to three cubs in Muradpur forest range in the (Valmiki) tiger reserve,” said Santosh Tiwari, director-cum-conservator of the Valmiki Tiger Reserve in West Champaran district. He said reserve officials would maintain a strict... 

Roads are calling ???   By Prashant Kumar “The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status, or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we all believe that we are above-average drivers.” Dave Barry. Dave Barry aptly sums ups the psyche of a driver. For some it’s a job. Some drive as they do not have alternative. For me, driving is a passion, a way to de-stress, of course I am not talking about driving in the choked city traffic here, but on Highways. Having participated in many national and state level rallies apart from my... 

Road repair: by private firms! Patna: For the better upkeep of the roads, the state government has approved its new road maintenance policy. Under this policy, the upkeep of the road would rest on the contractors for the period of five to nine years. The state government gave its nod to the ambitious policy earlier this week. The principal secretary of the Cabinet Department, Brajesh Mehrotra told the press, “Under this new policy, the state government has changed its entire mechanism of road maintenance. Under this new policy, the state government proposes a performance based maintenance. The... 

    Patna: Tallest Gandhi Patna: altogether at 72 feet, the world’s tallest figure of Gandhi was unveiled in Patna in Bihar yesterday. Bapu’s figure is seen standing affectionately with two children on either side in the bronze statue constructed at the Gandhi Maidan, the very heart of Patna. Funded by the state government, the Rs. 10 crore statue, inclusive of a 30-feet-high pedestal, has been built by Delhi-based sculptor Ramsutar and Sons. With this, the Parliament statue in New Delhi where the ‘Father of the Nation’ is in a meditating pose, becomes the second tallest... 

    Very Hungry God by Subodh Gupta New Delhi: The shine of a large mirror and the collective gleam of bright steel utensils arranged with an artistic purpose catch visitors eye at the ongoing India Art Fair here. And, by now, the artist behind the work is a familiar enough name. Subodh Gupta, internationally renowned artist known for fashioning signature installation art out of mundane steel and kitchen utensils is presenting another iconic art bearing his trademark. There are three other works by him showcased at the four-day fair which opened to public viewing today after a special...