A Supreme Court judge on Monday quoted ‘Lakshman rekha’ between the judiciary and executive to snub a plea seeking nullification of appointment of P C Pande as DGP of Gujarat for his supposed role in the 2002 riots.

“All of us know what was done to minorities in Gujarat. The perpetrators of riots are still in power. But we cannot do anything as there has to be a ‘Lakshman rekha’ between the functioning of the executive and judiciary,” said Justice Markandy Katju hearing a plea against the appointment of P C Pande as DGP of the state.

At the Vibrant Global Investers Summit 2009, Ahmedabad, Gujarat NRE Coke Ltd, country’s largest independent coke producer, announced that it is all set to invest around Rs 300 crores in Gujarat over the next 4 to 5 years.

The metallurgical coke producer said that it will invest Rs 12 billion in a 200 megawatt (MW) wind power project and Rs 10 billion in a 200 MW thermal power plant.

Gujarat NRE would also invest Rs 5 billion on adding additional capacity at its coke and coal preparatory plants and Rs 3 billion on a 60 MW heat-based power plant.

Binani Cement Ltd has decided to make an investment of more than Rs 900 crore for establishing greenfield plants both in India as well as abroad to raise its overall production capacity to 15 million tonnes by the next three years (2011-12).

The company plans to invest around Rs 800 crore on the construction of a new plant in Gujarat, which would have an installed production capacity of about 2.5 million tonnes.

Moreover, the company is also eyeing a unit in Mauritius with a proposed capacity of two million tonnes.

Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Jan. 10 : Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and the party''s prime ministerial candidate in the forthcoming general elections this year, L. K. Advani, on Saturday said ethics and values are inseparable elements of every business.

Advani was speaking at the global summit of the Jain International Trade Organization (JITO).

Commenting on the financial fraud of IT major Satyam Computer Services, he said business without ethics is a sin.

Ahmedabad, Jan. 8 : Uttarayan or Makar Sankranti is one of the biggest Hindu festivals celebrated in Gujarat. A large number of people here mark it as a kite festival, in which people from all communities participate.

These kites are chiefly made by members of the Muslim community. Ahead of the festival, there is usually high demand for kites that are made available in the in attractive hues and sizes in the markets.

Many Gujaratis believe that Uttarayan festival is not just about an occasion when people fly kites but it is a time which also promotes and strengthens harmony among Hindus and Muslims in communally sensitive State.

Gujarat government has announced a new solar power policy for state to promote solar power generation as an alternative source of energy. The government would extend financial help to set up solar power units in the state and offer solar power generators (SPGs) at subsidized prices.

Narabet (Gujarat), Jan. 3 :Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has said that his state, which shares its border with Pakistan, needs a strategic airbase for security reasons.

After meeting Border Security personnel at the Narabet check post along the India-Pakistan border and reviewing security arrangements, Modi said he would urge the UPA Government at the Center to focus on developing more strategic airbases in the state.

Rajkot (Gujrat), Jan. 3 : Unexpected rains have affected Rajkot''s onion crop severely causing a sharp rise in the prices of the product.

Just a month ago, onions were priced at seven rupees per kg. Now it is soared to 22 rupees per kilogram.

Untimely rains have also affected the production of the crop in other parts of Gujrat and Nashik and Maharashtra.

Rajesh Parekh, an onion trader blamed on the excess shortage of onions in various cities for the recent price rise.

Earlier the onion crop demand in the state used to be 5000 kg a day, but it has dropped to 1500 kg.

Elecon Engineering Company Ltd, India's largest Material Handling Equipments, Industrial Gears and Transmission Products manufacturer has been awarded prestigious orders worth Rs 22 crore from Adani Power Ltd of Adani Group.

The scope of the order includes design, supply, erection, testing and commissioning of material handling systems at Mundra.

It may be noted that, In Decemeber 2008, Elecon Engineering bagged a similar order Rs 120 crore from Mundra port and Special Economic Zone of Adani Group.

Young CPM MP, A P Abdullakutty praised the Gujarat Chief Minister's industry friendliness, although the Marxists hate Narendra Modi.  

Abdullakutty, who represents the Marxist stronghold of Kannur in Kerala, spoke so while speaking at an interaction organized by the Indian Media Forum in Dubai.

A well made 67 from Tanmay Srivastava facilitated Uttar Pradesh to reach 289 for eight in their second innings and virtually shut Gujarat out of the game on the penultimate day of the quarterfinal match.

At the end of the third day’s play, UP were 477 runs ahead with two second innings wickets in hand at Motibagh ground here.

Resuming at the overnight score of 76 for the loss of one wicket, young lad Suresh Raina fell victim to Parmar. Tanmay Srivastava (67runs, 149balls, 4 boundaries) played a patient knock but a doosra from Parmar saw the end of his courageous innings.

The Director General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) has declared certification for a gas discovery by the Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) in the Krishna-Godavari basin. The decision would help to make Gujarat, the gas hub of the country. Experts believe that the commercial value of approved Krishna-Godavari basin offshore block KG-OSN-2001/3 would be around $6 billion as per the prevailing market prices.

Following a year after a slump in prices of metals used in construction, State-owned Gujarat State Petroleum Corp. (GSPC) has raised the capacity of its planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal by 30% to 6.5 million tonnes (mt).

The GSPC is aiming to get the plant ready by 2013 at a cost of Rs3,000-3,500 crore. This has become possible as there had been sharp falls in prices of metals such as steel and nickel.

Rajkot, Dec 13 (ANI): The gold industry in Rajkot is passing through a lean phase as most of the orders placed by Mumbai''s traders were cancelled or put on hold after Mumbai militant strikes.

Nearly 50,000 workers are employed in various gold-manufacturing units across the city.

A jewellery trader from Rajkot, Krishnakant Patadia, said that prior to Mumbai terror strike, the market was functioning well and artisans were working from morning till evening, but now they are working only for four to five hours.

The Adnani Group has announced the launch of the Adani Institute of Infrastructure Management (AIIM) at Navrangpura in Ahmedabad. The institute takes off its academic activities with a one-year (fulltime) residential Post Graduate Programme in Infrastructure Development (PGPIM) for executives.

Tata Motors is in for yet another debacle. The Gujarat High Court has directed the state government to produce documents of acquisition of land in Sanand, alloted to Tatas for the Nano car project. The farmers in Sanand, the site of the Nano project in Gujarat, have filed a case against the Gujarat government and Tata motors, seeking greater compensation for their land.

Porbandar, Dec 2: Fishermen in Gujarat have said that they had repeatedly written and warned the Indian Government of a probable misuse of captured Indian boats by terrorist elements in Pakistan.

With the investigations revealing the use of sea route by militants to infiltrate into India and carry out the terror attack in Mumbai, the fishermen said they had written several times to Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi warning them of the possibility of misuse of seized Indian boats.

Former Gujarat chief minister Chhabildas Mehta passed away on Saturday at SAL hospital in Ahmedabad. He was 84.

Mehta was the Chief Minister of Gujarat for 13 months from February 17, 1994 to March 14, 1995 after Chimanbhai Patel's death.

Born on November 4, 1925, Mehta left high school in 1942 to participate in the freedom movement and was actively involved in labour and farmer movements during his career.

He was elected member of the Bombay Legislative Council and later became an MLA in Gujarat which he remained till 1980.

Governor Naval Kishore Sharma, Chief Minister Narendra Modi and Speaker Ashok Bhatt expressed condolences at Mehta's demise.

Ahmedabad, Nov 26 : The Cotton ginners in Gujarat are facing a hard time as the Government has raised the Minimum Support Price (MSP) by almost forty percent.

Gujarat is considered to be the hub of the cotton producers who say the rise in the prices may bring the industry to a standstill as the ginners find the purchasing prices of cotton higher than the selling price of processed cotton.

The Special Investigation team (SIT) in Gujarat has arrested three persons in connection with three different cases of the post-Godhra riots.

Subhashchandra Darji was arrested in connection with the Naroda Patiya case where 89 people where killed by a mob during the 2002 riots.

Darji was part of the mob that had attacked the minority community.

Bharat Shitla Prasad was arrested in connection with the Gulburg society case where 38 people were killed, including ex-MP Ehsan Jaffrey, during the 2002 riots.