The diversified Adani Group presents a classic case of a group that continues to flout environment laws but gets by through political patronage. The Mundra port, for instance, has considerably scarred the surrounding areas. The government explanation for not imposing a Rs 200-crore fine for violations, as suggested by a panel, does not cut ice. Rules have been tweaked and not made more stringent, as claimed by the ministry. As it has not put the “stringent” rules and the penalties for specific violations in writing, the government has clearly left loopholes for culprits to go scot free.
After a stony silence for the last few months, the promoters of the Freedom 251 mobile phone have raised their heads again to say that they will start the delivery of India’s cheapest phone this month. Although they initially said the phones would be manufactured overseas, they now say they will be made in India. They claim that to start with, they would send about 200,000 phones by a draw of lots to people who have booked them. The company has already failed in meeting the last two deadlines. Let us see if it can keep this latest one.
Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali is under a fresh cloud. The Advertising Standards Council of India has said that the company “unfairly denigrates” rivals in advertisements. Patanjali’s claims—that other mustard oils are laced with toxins and rival fruit juices contain less pulp and are “expensive”—have been found objectionable, along with claims against rival cattle feed brands. ASCI found that Dant Kanti toothpaste, a bestseller, also engaged in false and misleading claims in its advertising. In March, Patanjali’s hair oil and washing powder advertisements were found in the wrong. This time, ASCI has upheld complaints against 67 advertisements by various companies, including Apollo, Tata Motors, L’Oreal and Colgate-Palmolive.
A mouse that comforts
Computer mice are known to cause discomfort when used for long hours, but this new mouse has an upright, neutral gripping position with signals which tells a user to take regular breaks.
