My Scribles

The first unit of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KNPP) that tripped on October 22 is expected to be reconnected to the grid on Friday night/Saturday, said informed sources. Sources said, on Friday evening that the unit started operating at 25 percent level and is likely to be reconnected to the grid. The unit is expected to generate around 300 MW. According to Power System Operation Corporation Ltd, the KNPP's first unit with a total capacity of 1,000 MW tripped on October 22 early morning due to reverse power. On October 22, the first unit at KNPP was synchronized with the power grid at 2.45 a.m generating 75 MW of power. The power generation was increased to 160 MW. Nearly two hours later, the unit tripped though KNPP officials maintain that the plant was stopped. Speaking to IANS on Tuesday, KNPP site director R.S.Sundar said the unit would generate 300 MW in two/three days time. Queried about the tripping, a senior official of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (A...

After years of delay due to technical glitches and protests, the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in southern Tamil Nadu went on-stream on Tuesday. At 2.45am, unit-1 began transmitting 160MW of electricity to the southern grid. The Tirunelveli plant became functional more than a decade after construction began in 2001 and in the face of resistance from residents spooked by Japan's Fukushima crisis. The cost on the two units has so far exceeded Rs 14,000 crore. The synchronization process of feeding power to the grid took place even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wound up his visit to Moscow where talks were held for the supply of two more 1,000MW Russian reactors for Kudankulam. When fully commissioned, Kudankulam will be India's largest nuclear power plant. "Last night, 160MW was connected to the southern grid. This will be increased after checking the generators and conducting other tests," site director R S Sundar told TOI. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (...

This year Indian GP will take place at Delhi Buddh International Circuit on October 26 to 27 2013 . All Eyes on Red Bull Driver Sebastian Vettel who is on verge of claiming the 4 the straight Championship in this weekend at Delhi . A Win or Completing the race anything above 5th place will ensure the victory . The Next in championship is the ferrari driver Alonso with a Huge gap of 100 point with only 3 more race remaining . The Indian GP was under the cloud of legal tangle on the issue on non payment of entertainment tax with Supreme court deciding to take up the issue after the race is over . However the organizing are facing the problem of lack of ticket being sold with only 27000 ticket sold till tuesday .

The Tata-Singapore Airlines (SIA) joint venture full service airline will soon take to the skies. The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) on Thursday cleared this proposal in which Tatas will have 51% stake, investing $51 million initially, and SIA will have 49% share and invest $49 million to begin with. Economic affairs secretary Arvind Mayaram told reporters that the deal was cleared without any riders for the proposed Delhi-based airline. Tata-SIA will now require security clearance from the home ministry along with nods from first the aviation ministry and then a licence from the directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA). A Tata Group spokesman said: "We are yet to formally hear from the FIPB. We are delighted with the reports of approval. As and when the formal approval comes, we will progress with the subsequent stages of the process." However desperate to shrug off charges of inertia, UPA-II is keen that the airline starts within its remaining term. ...

The Cyclone Phailin is now behind us. The deadly cyclone, which created a national panic, seems to have failed to leave behind a trail of massive death and destruction. The people are heaving a sigh of relief and the life is slowly returning to normal across the coastal districts of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. The government's response to the cyclone has been really good. Even though the hundreds of villages and towns have been damaged by the cyclone, there has been no major loss of life, except a dozen people who died. First, the Met department got it right. It predicted the cyclone Phailin well in advance allowing the government to start a massive evacuation of people from the villages and towns close to the sea. The Indian Meteorology Department (IMD) constantly monitored the approaching cyclone and came out with 100 per cent correct predictions. It has also helped to create an awareness among the people. Lord Paul praises handling of cyclone Phailin, to contribute Rs 25 lakh T...

Smoke detectors frequently produce more headaches than useful warnings. The devices have an irritating habit of shrieking when there's no cause for alarm, and always seem to wait until the middle of the night to chirp when their batteries run low. Tony Fadell, a gadget guru who helped design the iPod and original iPhone while working at Apple, is counting on his latest innovation to prove that a smoke detector can be sleek, smart and appreciated. The device, called "Nest Protect," is the second product hatched from Nest Labs, a startup founded by Fadell in 2010 in an attempt to infuse homes with more of the high-tech wizardry that people take for granted in smartphones. The Palo Alto, California, company has 270 employees and has raised tens of millions of dollars from investors that include Google's venture-capital arm and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, a venture capital firm with a long record of backing innovative ideas. The Nest Protect smoke detector can...