LEADER GETS US$107 MLN POWER TRANSMISSION JOB IN CAMBODIA

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20 (NNN-Bernama): Leader Universal Holdings Bhd’s unit, Cambodian Transmission Ltd, has entered into a 25-year build-operate-transfer power transmission agreement with Electricite Du Cambodge (EDC) to develop a 230 kilovolt power transmission system from Phnom Penh to Kampong Cham for US$107 million.

EDC is Cambodia’s state-owned limited liability firm.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia, Leader said the project would be funded by internally generated funds and bank borrowings.

The project would be commissioned in three stages with the first being the construction of the Kampong Cham substation which was expected to be completed by July 2011.

The second would be the new North Phnom Penh substation and this was expected to be completed by March 2012.

“The completion of the entire project with the commissioning of the approximately 110km transmission line from North Phnom Penh substation to Kampong Cham substation, from whence the commercial operation date of the project commences.

“This is expected by Dec 31, 2013,” Leader said.

The project fulfils part of the planned development of the Cambodian grid system and provides for future 230 kV extension to other parts of the country around Tonle Sap, the largest freshwater lake in South East Asia, in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Currently, Leader through its 60 per cent-owned subsidiary in Cambodia, Cambodia Utilities Pte Ltd, owns and operates a 35-megawatt power generation plant in Phnom Penh and supplies electricity to EDC under a 18-year power purchase agreement. This power plant has been in operation since 1997.

Leader is also developing a 100-megawatt coal-fired power plant project in Sihanoukville through its 80 per cent-owned subsidiary, Cambodian Energy Limited. Electricity generated will be supplied to EDC under a 30-year power purchase agreement.

-NNN-BERNAMA

MALAYSIAN PM NAJIB CALLS ON INDIA TO CONCLUDE CECA BY END OF 2010

By P. Vijian

NEW DELHI, India Jan 20 (NNN-Bernama) ? Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Abdul Razak Wednesday gave a political thrust to quicken the conclusion of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) with India, by urging Indian policy makers to hasten the process.

“The agreement is vital for us (India and Malaysia) and I would like to see the agreement concluded by end of this year and I invite Manmohan (Singh, India’s Prime Minister) to come to Kuala Lumpur to sign the agreement,” Najib told an august gathering of Indian business community in Delhi Wednesday.

The two trading partners began to negotiate the CECA from 2008 and two rounds of talks have been concluded, largely to open up market access.

The idea to create the trade pact was initiated after an India-Malaysia joint study showed there were ample untapped trade opportunities in core areas like investments, goods and services.

“Such an agreement will spur additional bilateral trade and investment as well as creating job, investment and economic opportunities for both countries,” Najib said at the Malaysia-India Business Forum themed “Building A Strategic Partnership”.

“On our part we will do all that is necessary to fast-track the negotiations,” he said.

Malaysia-India’s two-way trade currently stands at US$10 billion (RM35 billion) and since 2007 India has emerged as the seventh largest investor in Malaysia with a total investment of US$1.6 billion (RM5.6 billion).

And the cumulative Malaysian investments till 2008 in India were to the tune of US$1.8 billion (RM6.3 billion).

Najib is leading a large Malaysian delegation, comprising senior politicians and corporate leaders, to Delhi and Chennai from Jan 19 to 23.

– NNN-BERNAMA

NEPAL LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO HELP CHILDREN OF HAITI

KATHMANDU, Jan. 20 (NNN-Xinhua) — While the whole world is overcome by grief for Haiti earthquake tragedy, Nepali private organizations Wednesday launched a campaign to support and help the kids of Haiti who are suffering due to the catastrophic earthquake.

Kidzeea, a kindergarten based in the capital Kathmandu, together with Lovers’ Association announced to carry on this noble movement at a press meet in Kathmandu on Wednesday.

Following the experts’ concern over Nepal being listed as one of the most vulnerable zone of earthquake due to unmanaged, unplanned and unsystematic city settlement, the duo private organizations persuaded people to share selfless love and care world-wide on this effect.

“By campaigning to collect fund for Haiti children, literally we are campaigning to protect our Nepalese children,” said Rakesh Upadhya, Managing Director of Kidzeea

Keeping in mind that Nepal could also face the same fate of Haiti, the organizers said, “Though we are campaigning at the moment for Haiti children, we want to protect the kids of Nepal from earthquake in the future by creating public awareness.”

According to Upadhya, the campaign will continue for ten days, collecting funds in public streets whatever they can support.

The organizers will send the collected funds to Haiti children adhering to United Nations representative and media persons, Upadhya stressed.

However, he said that they have not written any official letter to United Nations, but are planning to coordinate with UNICEF. “We have also consult with Amod Mani Dixit, Executive Director of National Society for Earthquake Technology (NSET) to support us for creating awareness in public regarding earthquake safety techniques,” Upadhya added.

“We have already deposited 10,000 rupees from our side in ” lovers’ coffer” for this noble reason and we appeal to all Nepalese citizens to give whatever they can,” said Abhit Pyakurel, president of Lovers’ Association.

According to the latest report, the Haitian government raised the death toll in last week’s devastating earthquake to 75,000 on Tuesday.

Some 250,000 people were wounded and a million more left homeless, the Haitian Civil Defense Department said in a statement.

The small Caribbean nation is in desperate need of tents, water, food, medical supplies and workers, the statement said.

There have been no exact figures about casualties after a 7.3- magnitude earthquake hit Haiti last Tuesday. Haitian officials estimated that the final death toll could reach between 100,000 and 200,000. ? NNN-XINHUA

S. KOREA TO COMPILE DATABASE OF ETHNIC KOREANS LIVING ABROAD

SEOUL, Jan. 20 (NNN-Xinhua) — The South Korean government will compile a list of ethnic (South) Koreans living abroad, as part of its effort to seek overseas talent who can contribute to national growth, the prime minister’s office said Tuesday.

The government will put together a database of ethnic (South) Koreans living abroad this year and establish a system for managing multiple networks of those people by 2012, the office said.

“The government will actively seek from a network of 7 million ethnic (South) Koreans to utilize their vast potential and ability as an engine for growth in the knowledge-based era,” the office said in a statement.

In addition, government support for educating (South) Korean culture and language to overseas children with (South) Korean ethnicity will be bolstered, as 37 million U.S. dollars has been set aside for building (South) Korean schools abroad and 5.6 million U.S. dollars will be provided for Hanguel, or (South) Korean alphabet, schools in foreign countries, the office said.

– NNN-XINHUA

INDIA WON’T HAVE UNLIMITED PATIENCE IF 26/11 IS REPEATED: GATES

NEW DELHI, Jan 20 (NNN-PTI) — The US today made it clear that India’s patience would be “limited” if it faces a Mumbai-type attack again as it warned that Lashkar-e-Taiba was working in league with al-Qaeda to destabilise the region and provoke an Indo-Pak military confrontation.

Defence Secretary Robert Gates, who discussed the serious threat posed by terrorism to the region with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Defence Minister A K Antony, emphasised the need for “high level of cooperation” from all countries to defeat the “syndicate” of terror, including the LeT, the Taliban and the Tehreek-e-Taliban under the command of al-Qaeda.

He said the syndicate had “home and safe haven” in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border areas and that there was need to recognise the magnitude of threat to the entire region.

“While al-Qaeda is operating in Afghanistan along with the Taliban, the Tehreek-e-Taliban is focusing on Pakistan.–NNN-PTI

CHINA REPORTS PROGRESS IN IMPORTING OVERSEAS TALENTS

BEIJING, Jan 20 (NNN-Bernama) — China recruited about 480,000 talents from foreign countries, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan last year, China’s Xinhua news agency reported quoting a leading Chinese official in charge of the affairs as saying.

While addressing a national conference on importing foreign talents held in Beijing Tuesday, Ji Yunshi, general director of the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs (SAFEA), said 50,000 Chinese officials and professionals went overseas for diverse training programmes last year.

Chinese programmes to bring in top talents to tackle the global financial crisis progressed smoothly in 2009, said Ji, who failed to give an exact figure regarding how many foreign talents were imported in this regard last year.

According to Ji, 1,754 overseas talents were imported by China’s agricultural sector last year to help popularise advanced technology for planting and cultivation in the country’s rural areas.

Some 3,164 overseas talents served on 900 programs designed to boost the development of the country’s western provinces and autonomous regions in the past year, said Ji.

An extra 3,376 overseas professionals also worked for programmes to rejuvenate northeastern China which consists of Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces, commonly known as China’s “rust belt”. This region now lags behind the eastern Chinese provinces after the reform and opening-up policy was introduced in 1978.

According to Ji, China plans to invite more scientists who specialise in the fields of new energy, new material, information networking, life sciences and large aircraft building, among others, this year.

He added that efforts would also be made to advance promulgation of regulations conducive to encouraging inflow of more foreign talents to China.

– NNN-BERNAMA

INDIA: WIDOW LOSES JOB AFTER REMARRIAGE; MOVES HIGH COURT

MUMBAI, India Jan 20 (NNN-PTI) — Does a woman who got job on “compassionate grounds” after husband’s death become ineligible after remarriage?

The Bombay High Court will decide this question in a writ petition that was filed last week.

Sangita, the petitioner, got the job with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) after the death of her husband who was an employee there.

But after she remarried, the MCGM sacked her saying that according to the rules a former employee’s spouse who got job on compassionate grounds cannot be retained after remarriage, the petitioner claimed.

However, Sangita’s lawyer argued before the division bench of Justices F I Rebello and C L Pangarkar yesterday that such a rule violates fundamental rights.

The court has given the civic body two weeks to file a written reply.–NNN-PTI

‘ATTACKS ON INDIANS IN AUSTRALIA NOT GOOD FOR TIES’

NEW DELHI, Jan 20 (NNN-PTI) — Continued attacks on Indians in Australia do not “augur well” for bilateral ties, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said here today.

The minister was reacting to the latest attack on an Indian in Melbourne which was the fifth such assault on Indian cabbies within a week.

Krishna said he was expecting a report from the Indian High Commissioner to Australia on the incident.

“I have just heard the news. I am expecting a report from our High Commissioner and after getting the report perhaps I must have something to say.

“But it is very unfortunate that they keep repeating, which does not augur well for our bilateral relationship,” the minister said.

Krishna has already indicated a possibility of Government advising Indian students not to go to Australia if the attacks on them, which has claimed one life so far, continued.–NNN-PTI

RECRUITMENT OF AMERICANS BY AL-QAEDA SPARKS ALARM

WASHINGTON, Jan 20 (NNN-PTI) — Three dozen Americans have converted to Islam in prison and have travelled to Yemen for possible terrorist training with al-Qaeda radicals, raising alarm among US officials.

American administration is on “heightened alert because of the potential threat from extremist carrying US passports and the challenge is in detecting and stopping home-grown operatives,” according to a new report by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

These new moves of al-Qaeda profiled by the committee come as US has designated Yemen-based Al Qaeda in Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) as a terrorist organisation and slapped sanctions on its leaders.

Two top leaders of the AQAP – Nasir al-Wahishi and Said al-Shihri -? too have been designated as terrorists by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the State Department said.

The US is also approaching the UN Security Council to slap sanctions on AQAP and its leaders. — NNN-PTI

MALAYSIA:HEFTY FINES AWAIT EXOTIC FOOD LOVERS

KUCHING, Jan 20 (NNN-Bernama): Exotic-food lovers beware. The Sarawak Forestry is stepping up checks and patrols of market areas and food outlets to ensure that protected and totally protected wildlife are not destined for the cooking pot.

Sarawak Director of Forests and Controller of Wild Life Len Talif Salleh said Wednesday that stern action would be taken on those caught keeping protected and totally protected animals as pets or hunting, capturing, killing, selling, importing or exporting them.

“When there is no demand, the trading of wildlife meat will be eventually put to a stop and those who possess any recognisable part of these animals too are actually violating the Wildlife Protection Ordinance,” he said in a statement here Wednesday.

Len Talif said public awareness was critically important in overcoming the demand for exotic wildlife meat as infringement of the law was actually hampering the government’s efforts in ensuring their sustainability.

He was commenting on a recent local news report that protected and totally protected wildlife had become increasingly popular among exotic-food lovers in Sarawak.

The report claimed that wildlife meat could improve one’s sexual prowess and heal various illness and diseases.

In Sarawak, those found guilty of violating the Wildlife Protection Ordinance face a fine of between RM10,000 and RM50,000 and up to five years imprisonment.

-NNN-BERNAMA