Parliamentary group on maritime
An Indian Parliamentary Maritime Group (IMPG) has been formed to draw the attention of MPs to various issuesrelated to the ocean development. The group, however, will take a formal shape in the first week of December after the winter session of Parliament begins on November 29. Former Union minister and Rajya Sabha member Eduardo Faleiro has been elected chairman of IMPG. ``Members of both Houses who opt for membership of IPMG will meet during the next session for a briefing by experts on the burning issues relating to ship building, coastal shipping, ship-borne commerce, fisheries and environment,'' said Mukund B Kunte of Indian Maritime Foundation which promoted the initiative for formation of IPMG at a meeting in New Delhi last week.

Bhel meet with vendors
To enhance its competitive edge and ensure speedier execution of coal and gas-based thermal power projects in India and abroad, Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (Bhel) will organise an all-India meet in New Delhi on Monday with its vendors, suppliers of critical systems for power projects. The first meet of its kind, `A strategy for the millennium'will deliberate on crucial issues related to setting up of power plants such as compression of cycle time and reduction in production costs, without compromising on overall quality and productivity, a Bhel release said on Sunday. Over 200 representatives of Bhel's vendors from all over India, both from public and private sectors, are expected to take part in the day-long meet.

The ever-increasing demand for faster implementation of power projects in the post-liberalisation period has necessitated minimising production or delivery cycle time and costs, improving the aesthetic appearance of products and ensuring maximum efficiency. Aspects of the project, from the pre-award stage to actual execution and beyond, including approval of drawings, inspection, despatch and receipt of equipment, bill processing, interface between Bhel's project engineering management (PEM) division and the site and contract closing will be brought up for discussion.

Haryana Infrastructure Board
The Haryana governmentproposes to set up an infrastructure development board to facilitate release of loans from various financial institutions for providing water supply and sewerage facilities in towns. Stating this in Chandigarh on Sunday, Haryana minister of state for public health Jaswant Singh Bawal said the government would spend Rs 14 crore for water supply and substantial augmentation works being undertaken in 25 towns of the state. These towns are Sirsa, Ambala Sadar, Yamunanagar, Panipat, Jind, Kaithal, Karnal, Assandh, Thaneswar, Gannaur, Palwal, Dadri, Narnaul, Tohana, Hisar, Hansi, Kalanwali, Dabwali, Rewari, Shahbad, Rania, Ellenabad, Fatehabad, Barwala and Bhiwani. The minister said the government would also improve the sewerage system and provide sewage treatment plants in the towns other than those covered under Yamuna Action Plan.

Arunanchal power department crisis
Arunachal power minister lijum Ronya has blamed the state government for "failing to generate enough power" despite the state havinggreat potential for power generation. "Since its inception, the department had been running without any regular chief engineer while not a single minister of the department could complete the full term, Ronya said in a statement in Itanagar recently. As a result, the department could not make any significant progress in tapping the major rivers to produce hydel power, he said.

--(Compiled from Agencies )