It is a coming of age for the small car. Just as India and the world focus on ultra-cheap cars, the original small car seems to be acquiring a big status globally as more and more people choose to drive small. Importantly, the trend is catching up in Europe and the US. Uwe Achterholt, global head of automotive practice for consultancy major KPMG, speaks with Pankaj Doval: Is the small car phenomenon restricted only to emerging markets like India or is it spreading to the developed markets?

Times of India, Jaipur When it rains, it pours. This came true for Rajasthan, which received heavy rain in several districts on Tuesday. Alwar, Bharatpur, Dholpur, Jaipur, Sikar and Jhunjhunu received heavy rain on Tuesday. Four children, aged between 10 and 13 years, drowned in a pond at Amrapura village in Alwar district. The children had gone swimming and were unprepared for the increased water level following heavy rain since Monday night.

It's good news that the government is worried about India losing its position as the world's leading back office. But its response to the potential threat seems inadequate. The proposal, which has been cleared by the Planning Commission, envisages building 43 new IT townships to provide a steady supply of workers besides being specifically geared towards the needs of the IT and BPO sector. The plan is to set up each IT city as a self-contained township in an area of more than 500 hectares.

A businessman of Indian origin was sentenced to 35 months in a US federal prison on Monday for allegedly exporting ballistic missile technology to India in a case that calls into question talk of a strategic relationship between the two countries and the salience of American nonproliferation laws.

At least 27 people are feared killed and more than 3 lakh people displaced in the northeast, particularly Assam, with the onset of monsoons. Not just the northeast, but large parts of northern Orissa are also under water, with the army and administration on overdrive to evacuate villagers in the flood-hit parts of the states.

Russia has come out in support of the Indo-US nuclear deal. But it has said that a draft agreement with Moscow could not be signed in view of international laws that Russia recognized. Senior government sources said that the Russians were always aware that fresh projects not covered under past agreements could not be initiated without an exception from the Nuclear Suppliers Group, but some expression of intent that would have indicated the two sides were engaged could have been possible.

As the UPA government loses its nerve on the nuclear deal, it is becoming clear that Pakistan may be quietly powering ahead

A day after HDFC chief Deepak Parekh pointed out that environmental clearances were leading to time delays and hence cost overruns in housing projects, industry body Confederation of Real Estate Development Association of India (CREDAI) has put a number to it. CREDAI Secretary Rohit Raj Modi told TOI on Tuesday that these add at least 10% to 15% to costs, which ultimately has to be passed on to consumers.

The government has decided to implement a set of international guidelines to reduce the risk of using mobile phones. Catching up with several developed and developing countries, India will adopt the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines. The guidelines lay down the maximum level of radiation that telecom equipment

Two small-time city businessmen, who allegedly forged documents in connivance with a sub inspector to get a tanker containing spurious diesel released from a police station, were denied bail by a city court on Tuesday. The duo, suspected to be suppliers of adulterated fuel to truckers were denied relief by the court which said their being behind bars was important for the cops to trace the SI who is absconding.

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