Raman Vijayan takes T.N. into last eight

Raman Vijayans extra-time goal nailed Delhi in its track as Tamil Nadu qualified for the quarterfinal league of the 61st National football championship for the Santosh Trophy here on Friday.

Vijayan struck an opportunistic goal in the 20th minute of extra-time after the two teams were locked goalless. A 1-0 win for Tamil Nadu at the Sector 12 Sports Complex here hardly tells the full time plays real story.

T.N had several chances of which four should have found the netting, but Delhi goalkeeper Vikrant Sharma stood firm.

He (Vikrant Sharma) was excellent under the bar, but our boys should have ended the match in the regulation time itself, said the Tamil Nadu coach V. Soundarajan, clearly not happy with the days proceedings.

Receiving end
If Sharma was Delhis hero, Tamil Nadu skipper A. Jestus Antony was at the receiving end. Besides missing two chances on the field, Sharma brilliantly saved Antonys penalty in the 66th minute.

This was a big respite, but pathetic coordination between the midfield and the forwards cost Delhi dear. Worst, play along the flanks was non-existent as the players withdrew into defence to stop the ever-attacking Tamil Nadu frontline.

P. Muthu created several chances along the right flank, but his fellow strikers failed in finishing. In the 66th minute, Pushpender Kundu trapped K. Kulothungan from behind and the referee promptly pointed towards the spot before pulling out a yellow card for the Delhi defender.

Skipper Antony took the kick, but a lunging Sharma punched it away.

Carrefour to enter India as cash-carry

The 75 billion multinational retailer Carrefour is planning to enter India via the cash-and-carry route. It will initially be investing $100 million and will start from the national capital region. This will be the second instance of a global retail giants cash-and-carry operations here after Germanys Metro AG. The bulk of Metros business comes from hotels, caterers, retailers and traders. Cash-and-carry implies wholesale selling (business to business) and not direct sales to retail consumers, which is prohibited at the moment.

According to the existing guidelines on foreign investment, 51 per cent is permitted and that, too, only in single-brand retail. However, 100 per cent foreign investment is allowed in the cash-and-carry format. When contacted, a company spokesperson in France said Carrefour had no comments to offer at this stage.

Globally, Carrefour has 120 cash-and-carry outlets. It already has a sourcing office in Gurgaon. Sources close to the Carrefour plan told Business Standard the retailer was keen to initially establish an extensive supply chain across the country using this route. Once the norms are eased, it will look at addressing the end consumer directly. Appointing a franchisee may be an easier option. However, the more tedious cash-and-carry route is a full-fledged investment, involving a far greater degree of control. It also provides an insight into pricing mechanisms and a better understanding of the market, the source said. Carrefour has already begun scouting for land and has appointed Jones Lang LaSalle as its real estate consultant. Organised retail in India is estimated at $6 billion and is projected to grow at 20-25 per cent per annum. Other multi-branded global retailers like Wal-Mart and Tesco are eager to enter the country. Carrefour has a strong presence in China, among other countries. Just under 8 per cent of its annual sales come from Asia.

Tamil Nadu scored its third straight win in Cluster VIII to qualify for the pre-quarterfinal play-off against Delhi in the 61st National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy here on Wednesday.

Riding on the strikes by K. Kulothungan and skipper A. Jestus Antony, Tamil Nadu defeated Jharkhand 2-1 at the Sector 12 Sports Complex here after dominating the proceedings for most of the time. Jharkhand reduced the margin in the dying minutes of the match as Lal Mohan Hansda converted a penalty.

The pre-quarterfinal line-up was completed when Karnataka joined Chhattisgarh in the play-off at Gurgaon.

Karnataka defeated Nagaland 4-0 at the Gurgaon Sports Complex in a Cluster VI league match after the other two matches in this cluster ended without a goal being scored.

For TN, Raman Vijayan and Kulothungan attacked steadily, but did nothing flashy to arouse the referees interest.

We have improved consistently and are confident of giving a good fight to Delhi and make the quarterfinal league, said Tamil Nadu coach Soundararajan.

Gurgaon-based DLF group and overseas giant Hilton is planning to set up a chain of hotels across the country at an estimated investment of Rs 100-120 billion, reports Economic Times.

DLF will hold 74% in the JV, with Hilton holding the rest. The foreign chain will have the option of increasing its stake to 49% after some years.

DLF, which will hold 74% in the JV, will be able to use its vast land bank effectively, riding on Hilton`s brand name and expertise.

The deliberations, which were on for the past few months, have finally ended in a workable plan and the deal is expected to be announced in the next few days. The talks are at a very advanced stage.

The JV with one of the most popular hotel chains in the world will help DLF utilise its vast land bank better, while Hilton will gain from the ready availability of prime land across the country in DLFs possession.

In April `04, Hilton International signed a strategic alliance with EIH Limited, giving the company a presence in eight locations across India, seven of which was under the Trident Hilton brand and the eighth being Hilton Towers in Mumbai.

If a recent investment proposal by a delegation of Japanese Industrialists is any indication, Noida and Greater Noida may have just overtaken Gurgaon as the most preferred destination (at least in the NCR) for corporate honchos the world over.

Last week, a Japanese delegation led by its ambassador in India visited both Noida and Greater Noida while scouting for land. Noida Additional CEO Ravindra Naik says the multi-million dollar offer to invest in about a thousand acre is one of the most lucrative the Authority has received till date.

But in all likelihood, money will be invested in Greater Noida because Noida Authority expressed its inability to provide the much land at one place.

Meanwhile, Greater Noida cant ask for more. Additional CEO Anil Garg says while the state government has in principle agreed to provide land to the Japanese, the Greater Noida Authority is working out the location and other logistics.Garg says the proposal was mooted a couple of months ago but it has gathered momentum since last weeks meeting.

Around 200 workers at the two-wheeler factory of Japanese auto giant Honda called off their six-day strike in India on Sunday after reaching an agreement with their contractor, a news report said.

The strike is over as an agreement has been reached between the workers and their contractor, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) executive HS Shekhawat told the PTI news agency.

Shekhawat added that workers had withdrawn their demands and would be resuming duties at the factory located in Gurgaon, a Delhi suburb, from Monday.

The contract workers had gone on strike on September 19, demanding to be given regular salaried positions. But the strike did not disrupt production at the plant.

Police were deployed at the factory to prevent outbreak of any violence.

Last year, agitating contract workers at the Honda plant staged a strike that became violent. Nearly 300 people were injured when workers clashed with the police during the protest.

A fatal moment of complacency in the final minute enabled Bengal stun Services 1-0 and storm into the quarterfinals of the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy here on Thursday.

At the Sector 12 Sports Complex, Vimal Pariyars opportunistic strike in extra time sealed the contest. It was a chaotic end to a mediocre match that exposed the shortcomings of the two top teams in the competition.

Services contested the decision, claiming that Pariyar had scored from an offside position. It was blatant, protested Services coach Stanley Rozario.

The linesman (S. K. Singh) was positioned poorly. He almost lifted the flag and then changed his mind. We had no time to recover. It was a horrible decision, the disappointed coach added.

However, Bengal had no complaints and coach Prasanta Banerjee was delighted with the result. His assistant, Tanumoy Bose extended his sympathy to the rival camp. Unfortunate, but well played, he said.

This result means a lot. We arrived here with little hope of qualifying. The boys showed amazing resilience. It was a tough match. We had our little problems but I was always confident, said Banerjee.

Contract workers at Honda Motor Co.s wholly-owned motorcycles unit in India struck work for a fourth day on Friday, but a spokesman said production had not been affected, reports Reuters.

More than 150 workers at Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India Ltd. declared a flash strike late on Tuesday at the factory in Manesar in the northern state of Haryana.News reports said the workers had been sacked and were demanding their jobs back.

This is a matter between the contractors and these workers, the spokesman said, adding production has not been affected.The plant has an output of about 2,600 units daily, and some news reports said production had fallen by nearly half.

The company has posted police at the factory and some reports said the situation was tense.A strike in July 2005 at the factory turned violent when police clashed with striking workers, injuring several of them.

Some 2,000 workers at top motorbike maker Hero Honda Motors Ltd. - in which Honda Motor has 26% - struck work for five days in April at a plant in neighbouring Gurgaon.

In what appears to be a case of personal rivalry, Aman Souvey, a 24-year-old resident of Sector 22, Gurgaon was shot at by an unidentified person in the Sahara mall parking lot today.

According to DLF police, the incident occurred around 2.30 in the morning. Aman was sitting in his car with a friend in the Sahara mall parking. An unidentified person stopped his car near Amans car and fired at him. Aman received serious injuries in the firing and is admitted to the Kalyani Hospital.

The police have recorded Amans statement and is looking out for the accused. Further, a security guard of the mall said, Aman had come with a girl to the disco and after coming out, was sitting in the parking lot. Suddenly, a car came and a person in the car fired at Aman. The DLF police have registered a case.

Protests by traders in the capital turned violent on Wednesday. Two people including a 16-year-old boy and a 7-year-old child have been killed in North East Delhi.

The DCP, Northeast has also been injured in stone pelting in Seelampur.

Protesting traders supported by residents began smashing cars and pelting the police with stones. The police was forced to teargas the mob that was soon out of control.

Traders took to the streets to protest MCDs sealing drive, causing huge traffic snarls on several roads in the capital.

On Tuesday the Supreme Court refused to stay the sealing drive and criticized the union government and the MCD for creating confusion about sealing.