Faced with complaints of large-scale copying during Board exams every year, the Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) has this time warned that schools showing leniency towards copying would be barred as exam centres in future. A battery of vigilance squads will conduct surprise checks on students when they appear for the exam starting on Monday. At the same time, teachers, too, will have to pay a hefty fine if “they commit mistakes while assessing answersheets.” With a new syllabi introduced last academic year, about 5.34 lakh jittery students from across the State will take the SSC board exams.

This year also marks the introduction of Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) questions on a trial basis for subjects like Music, Computer, Physical Education and Drawing. OMR question papers nullify the chances of copying as candidates just mark dots alongside answers given.

Addressing mediapersons, GSHSEB chairman R K Pathak said that exam centres where copying is done in an “instituionalised manner’’ will be taken to task if large-scale copying cases are reported. These centres will also be barred from being part of Board examinations in the future.

Pathak said, “The objective of the Board is to create a conducive atmosphere for students appearing for the exams. We will be allotting an additional 15 minutes before exam bell for students to fill in their seat numbers properly. Students can also use this time to look at the question papers but they can answer only within the time allotted to them.”

Talking about assessment of answer papers, Pathak said, “We have a system wherein teachers are fined Rs 50 for each mistake they commit. This amount will be increased this year when the assessment starts.”

The GSHSEB will also be increasing the mobility of exam squads visiting exam centres to prevent copying cases. The exam squads include 400 vigilance and emergency squads. The Board has specially set up a cell called District Exam Samiti to man sensitive exam centres under the supervision of Collectors in respective districts.

With several instances being reported in the past of parents indulging in stone-pelting to make way into exam centres to help their children, the GSHSEB has sought additional security at sensitive exam centres.

Ahmedabad Police Commissioner J Mohapatra said tight security has been arranged at centres requested by the exam officials. ``Depnding on the situation we will enhance it,’’ he said.

Courtesy : Asianage.com

The week ended witnessed high volatility with the Sensex and the Nifty swinging by 910 pts and 250 points, respectively. However, both the benchmark indices remained unchanged with minor bruises at 12885 and 3718. The government's move to control cement prices, high inflation numbers and weak global cues kept the sentiment negative. Hardening interest rates have begun impacting businesses that depend on discretionary spending such as housing and others. Drop in risk appetite is evident, say old timers. Fears of growth slowing are gaining ground on reports of slowdown in exports and ICICI warning on slowdown in retail lending.

Advance tax numbers in the week ahead may give clue to Q4 results and help markets recover in the short term. For the week ahead, chartists expect the choppiness to continue and predict trading band of 12400-13240 for the Sensex. Trading range for the Nifty is likely to be 3550-3940. Strong supports exist for the Sensex at 12600 and 12300 and for the Nifty at 3640 and 3520. Contemplate fresh positions above 13260 and 3840 on the indices. Stocks are not overvalued and the economy looks relatively solid but globalisation has left market far more exposed to what happens overseas. Take precautions to combat volatility.

F&O SEGMENT

Despite high volatility, volumes continued to be robust in the derivatives segment. Nifty futures continued to trade at a discount to spot reflecting underlying weakness. 3650 and 3580 are key supports for Nifty futures. Short-covering may spark rally in Nifty futures to 3840, warn punters. Sentiment indicators like put/call ratio, open interest and implied volatility suggest consolidation at current levels.

Cement counters developed cracks on pricing controversy. Contrarian buying is suggested in ACC, GA Cement, Grasim and India Cement closer to support levels of Rs740, Rs92, Rs 2020 and Rs140, respectively. Stay invested in realty and construction counters with last week lows as stop-loss for relief rally gains. Punters strongly suggest buying in side counters like Praj Industries and Gateway Distriparks for target prices of Rs 400 and Rs190. Select banking and pharma counters are poised for comeback gains. Canara Bank, UTI Bank, Sun Pharma and Nicholas look good for more gains. True to predictions in these columns, RIL-IPCL merger has come about. The next step is likely to be the demerger of oil exploration and refinery businesses. Use sharp dips to buy RIL for long term. Savvy players tip Ashok Leyland, Neyveli Lignite, Bajaj Hindustan and Colgate for surprise gains. After a long bitter season, sugar counters are witnessing good accumulation and are poised for sharp rally in coming months. Buy at current levels for sweet returns in medium term. The only predictable thing about stocks is their unpredictability. Rules of thumb developed in a market can quickly become outmoded as market conditions change or in a different market.

SATTA GUPCHUP

Technology and telecom stocks which are not impacted by rising interest rates are viewed as good bets. Savvy analysts recommend buying in Tech Mahindra and MindTree. Strong order book and fundamentals make Tech Mahindra a good buy after recent correction. Sources indicate bonus or stock split in the next few months. The recently-listed MindTree promoted by ex-Wipro executive Ashok Soota is one of the very good mid-cap technology companies. Despite weak market conditions the stock had a decent listing. Buy on declines for steady returns in medium term.

Welspun Gujarat and Zicom Electronics are witnessing sustained buying interest from fund managers. Rumours of Reliance group picking stake in Welspun Gujarat are doing the rounds. Sources say that the company will be good fit for RIL's plans of setting up a gas pipeline grid. Security devices manufacturer Zicom has reportedly bagged large orders recently. Interestingly Kapil Dev is one of the large shareholders in the company. Buy the stocks at current levels for decent gains in medium term.

Renewed buying interest was seen in Oil Country Tubular, Andhra Petro, Cubex Tubings and Heritage Foods. Buy the stocks at current levels for good returns. After falling sharply from its recent highs, Heritage Foods is attracting buying interest again on the back of company's successful retailing foray. Cubex Tubings has reportedly tied up with Suzlon for wind farm benefits. The fourth quarter results of the company are reportedly very good. Riding high on buoyant market conditions, Andhra Petro is expanding its present capacity. Strong order book may see OCTL report good results. Heightened interest in pipe companies has triggered buying in the stock.

C. Kutumba Rao is a Hyderabad-based stock market analyst. The views expressed and the recommendations made are those of the author. Readers are strongly recommended to consult their financial advisors before making any financial investments. This newspaper is not liable for investment decisions made on the basis of recommendations in these columns.

Courtesy : Asianage.com

Bharti Airtel on Sunday announced strategic managerial changes in the company in line with the company’s attempt to propel its high performers across businesses to take up larger responsibilities.

Bharti Airtel president Mr Manoj Kohli said that Bharti Airtel journey towards becoming the most admired brand and institutionalising ‘One Airtel’ necessiates that company leverages its learning across the organisation not only in India but also in company’s new overseas ventures.

Mr Sanjay Nandrajog has been made the new executive director, international operations and managed services. In this new role Mr Sanjay will be responsible for translating Bharti’s success in India across borders — for locations like Sri Lanka, a wholly owned operation and in Seychelles, Jersey and Guernsey as managed services.

Mr P Swaminathan, will take over as executive director, Bharti Infratel. He has successfully led the integrated Tamil Nadu, as a director and CEO.
Bharti Infratel is the

new foray of Bharti group into telecom infrastructure management. Mr K Srinivas, is

being promoted as executive director - mobility east. Mr Jayant Khosla, is the new

executive director - mobility west. Mr Deepak Mehrotra, is being promoted as director -

mobility south.

Courtesy : Asianage.com