Ajoy Misra is Tata Global Beverages New MD

The Board of Directors of Tata Global Beverages Limited announced at its meeting today Mr. Ajoy Misra, presently the Deputy CEO and Executive Director of Tata Global Beverages Limited (TGBL) be elevated and appointed as the CEO and Managing Director of TGBL effective 1st April 2014, in place of Mr. Harish Bhat, who will step down at close of business on 31st March 2014 and move into a senior advisory position in the Tata Group.

The appointment of Mr. Misra  is Tata Global as the Managing Director will be subject to all required statutory approvals and the approval of the members of the Company.
                                                           

                 
The GEC, which also includes Mistry, took on the responsibility for all the roles earlier performed by both the group corporate centre (GCC) and the group executive office (GEO). It works closely with and partners the boards, CEOs and senior managements of various Tata companies.

Mistry had created GEC last year handpicking a team of young executives, both internally within the group and from outside. Other members of the GIC include NS Rajan, who leads the strategic function of human resources; Mukund G Rajan, who oversees brand, communication, ethics and corporate sustainability; Madhu Kannan, heading business development and public affairs and Nirmalya Kumar, who is responsible for strategy at the group level and bringing customer centricity to the fore across group companies.

Ajoy Misra will function as Managing Director-Designate with immediate effect till he formally takes over as Managing Director. The board has also decided that Harish Bhat would be appointed as a non-executive director on the board of Tata Global Beverages with effect from April 1. 

Ukraine's PM Azarov And Government Resign

Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovych has accepted the resignation of the prime minister and his cabinet amid continuing anti-government protests.

Mykola Azarov had offered to step down as prime minister to create "social and political compromise".

"We have to change not only the government, but the rules of the game as well," declared boxer-turned-politician Vitaly Klitschko. "We are sure the struggle will continue," he said.
                                                           

   
The 66-year-old Ukraine's PM Azarov tendered his resignation as parliament met for an emergency session to work out a deal that would satisfy the opposition and end protests in the capital Kiev and in other cities in which six people have been killed.

Yanukovych's announcement comes only hours after Azarov submitted his resignation and as the national parliament met in an emergency session aimed at ending the crisis

In a first step, lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to repeal sweeping anti-protest laws whose passage this month angered anti-government demonstrators.

MPs applauded in Ukraine's parliament as the result of the annulment vote was announced.

Swiss Watchmaker Raymond Weil Dies at 87

ZURICH (AFP) - Mr Raymond Weil, founder of the watch brand of the same name and one of the great innovators of the Swiss watch industry, has died at 87, the company said on Monday.

It is with great sorrow and regret that we announce the passing of Raymond Weil, the founder and honorary president of RAYMOND WEIL Geneve, maker of Swiss luxury timepieces. He passed away peacefully at age 87, on January 26, 2014.        

   

Raymond Weil was a pioneer and entrepreneur in the watchmaking industry. In 1976, in the middle of the most severe watch industry crisis, Weil was courageous enough to found his own company and turned his idea of what Swiss watchmaking should be into actual timepieces that would bring a new dimension to the industry.  He was the first person to look at watches as a luxurious accessory. His vision was to create high quality watches with superior design at affordable prices.

Weil’s creations were immediately praised by watch enthusiasts, amateurs and connoisseurs alike and he gradually put together an international network based on very strong and personal human connections and friendly relationships.  Weil was an extraordinary man who was kind, affable and above all sincerely generous. He was a precursor in the international development of the Swiss watchmaking industry during a key period when this industry needed to be renewed.

He traveled the world and became an exceptional ambassador for the city of Geneva and for Switzerland. He knew how to create a personal, professional and most importantly a friendly connection that even today following generations continue to immortalize and to pursue his approach of the business.

RAYMOND WEIL Genève is known to be one of the few watch brands to bear the name of the founder and still operate as a family business. His son-in-law Olivier Bernheim is at the helm and two grandsons Elie and Pierre Bernheim are the chief officers of the company today.

Australia Won ODI Series Against England By 4-1

Australia won the series 4-1 and became No. 1 ODI side again this week

In a week of exchanges at the top of the table, Australia have taken back the No. 1 position in ICC ODI team rankings from India after defeating England in the 5th and final ODI at Adelaide, winning the series 4-1.

England, needing 218 to win, folded out for 212 after a dramatic collapse at the end of their innings.

With 15 overs left in the game, England were on course for a win, needing only 70 runs and with 7 wickets still in hand. However, a brace from James Faulkner, accounting for well set Joe Root and Eoin Morgan, started a slide for England.                  

         

James Faulkner and Clint McKay kept it tight in the end, giving little room to any of the late hitters. Ravi Bopara, who remained defiant despite watching the batting collapse at the other end, was victim of a very fortuitous stumping from Matthew Wade, and was out by a mere frame with England just 9 runs away from the target.

Some mindless running and loose shots cost England the match and made Australia Won ODI Series  the No. 1 ODI team in the world after their reign earlier this week following India’s 2nd consecutive loss in New Zealand, had lasted just over two days, with the Perth loss putting them back at No.2.

Earlier, Australia too struggled on a sluggish wicket, and were guilty of throwing away their wickets against a disciplined England attack. Only a balanced innings from George Bailey pushed them to 217, which turned out to be enough in the end.

18 More Fishermen Arrested By Sri Lankan Navy

New Delhi: Sri Lanka navy on Monday arrested 18 more Indian fishermen after it had arrested 22 fishermen on Sunday from the Palk Strait. The development comes even as Tamil parties are mounting pressure on the Indian government to secure the release of over 220 fishermen detained in Sri Lanka.

The fishermen from Jagadapattinam in Pudukottai District were arrested by Sri Lankan Naval personnel on Sunday morning for allegedly fishing in their country's territorial waters and taken to Kangesanthurai Port along with their six boats, officials said quoting information received by them.
                                               

“As per our count, 272 fishermen are in the custody of the government,” said U. Arulanandam, a fishermen’s cooperative representative, who has often travelled to Sri Lanka to help the fishermen with legal formalities.

The fishermen left on Sunday afternoon from Sangumal, near here, and were fishing near Katchatheevu, when they were arrested, said S.P. Royappan, president of the district country-boat fishermen’s association, Pamban.

The navy had on Sunday arrested 22 fishermen from Jagadapattinam and remanded to judicial custody. The arrests caused tension in Pamban area as most of the fishermen go for fishing in country boats, which can not go very far.

The fishermen alleged that the Sri Lankan navy personnel were not allowing them to fish peacefully. Meanwhile, fishermen who went for fishing in mechanised boats returned without fishing on Monday. They alleged that the Sri Lankan navy, brandishing guns, asked them to return. 

Shane Warne to Mentor Australian Spinners in World T20

Sydney: Former Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne has been appointed as a consultant to work with Australia's spin bowlers ahead of the World Twenty20 tournament in Bangladesh in March.

The 44-year-old legendary leg-spinner will join Australia's squad in March during their tour of South Africa .

The leg-spin great is to work with the Australian team in the lead-up to the World Twenty20 tournament in March, coaching the side's spinners.
                                                   

He will join the Australian staff in a consultancy role when the Twenty20 squad assembles in South Africa after the Test series for three internationals against the Proteas.

"I'm excited to be working with Australia's spinners in South Africa," Warne to Mentor said in a statement.

He will be present for three Twenty20 matches, their final preparation before flying to Bangladesh for the start of the World Twenty20 on March 16.

"I'm excited to be working with Australia's spinners in South Africa," said Warne.

"I'm looking forward to helping them with some intense bowling preparation ahead of the World Twenty20, where we'll specifically work on tactics and mindset."

AAP Leader Apologises For Remarks Against Kerala Nurses

Kochi: Aam Admi Party (AAP) Executive Member Kumar Viswas, whose alleged derogatory remarks against Kerala nurses sparked a controversy, today tendered an apology, saying it was never his intention to hurt the feelings of any one.

In a statement sent to the AAP's Kerala unit, he said he had never tried to 'intentionally hurt the sentiments of anyone'.                                  

"It has come to my knowledge that an old video-clip of one of my Kavi-Sammelan has hurt the feelings of many of my friends residing in Kerala. I must say that I don't appreciate any discrimination based on religion, region, gender, caste or creed. I never tried to intentionally hurt the sentiments of anyone", he stated.

Viswas said jokes delivered in a kavi-sammelan are scripted and presented in a jocular and lighthearted manner without an intention to harm anybody's feelings. "But if some words of mine have hurt the sentiments of my friends, I apologise to them from depth of my heart", he said.

Yesterday, Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy had demanded an apology from the APP leader Apologises for his remarks.

In a letter to AAP leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Chandy had wanted him to prevail upon Vishwas to withdraw the remarks and tender an apology.

"It is most unfortunate that the Aam Aadmi Party is tightlipped regarding the derogatory remarks on Malayalee nurses," he had said.

Wal-Mart Sets up New Company in India

New Delhi: Global retail giant Wal-Mart has registered a new company in India as it prepares to enter the country’s lucrative multi-brand retail market with a new partner.

The retailer has registered a new company called Wal-Mart India Pvt. Ltd. in the country, according to the data available with the ministry of corporate affairs.

According to the information, the new entity was registered on 15 January 2014.
                                                   

         
After parting ways with Bharti group in October last year, Wal-Mart Sets had said it was studying the feasibility of India’s foreign direct investment (FDI) policy in multi-brand retail before finalising plans to enter the segment.

The retailer and Bharti Enterprises had last year decided to independently own and operate separate business formats in the country. Wal-Mart is looking for a partner in India.

In December 2013, Wal-Mart received the green signal from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to purchase Bharti group’s almost 50% stake in their Indian joint venture for wholesale stores business.

The joint venture—Bharti Wal-Mart Pvt. Ltd.—was set up to operate wholesale stores under the Best Price Modern Wholesale brand. It was not catering directly to retail consumers in the country.

Korea Eximbank Signs MoU With IIFCL

The Export-Import Bank of Korea (K-EXIM) and India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd (IIFCL) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to strengthen co-operation in infrastructure financing.

This MoU provides for exchange of information about the possible infrastructure projects in India and would help invite Korean investments in identified projects in the infrastructure space, S.B. Nayar, Chairman & Managing Director of IIFCL, told Business Line after the MoU signing ceremony.  
                                                     

Kim Yong-hwan, Chairman & President, K-EXIM, and Nayar exchanged this MoU in the capital today during the occasion of Korean President Park Guen-Hye’s state visit to India.

The MoU covers cooperation in project finance in infrastructure projects, investment finance in infrastructure projects and other finance areas of mutual interest.

Speaking on the occasion, Nayar said that there is good demand for quality infrastructure in the country.

“People are now willing to pay for infrastructure,’’ Nayar said.

As the demand for infrastructure development increases due to the ongoing economic growth of India, the need for bilateral cooperation in the infrastructure sector is growing rapidly.  

K-EXIM, which is South Korea's official export credit agency, provides export financing, guarantees and other forms of credit services to facilitate trade and overseas investment of Korean companies.

RoB open to Public After Decade Long Wait

Kollam: More than a decade after the foundation stone was laid, the Railway Overbridge at the Commissioner Office junction here will finally be open to the public on January 20. However, proper traffic maneuvering systems including a junction and signaling systems that ensure safety are yet to be put in place.

The spot at which the overbridge meets with the National Highway requires a traffic circle, directing vehicles from the SN College junction towards Chinnakkada and a U-turn facility for the vehicles that come out from the overbridge and go towards Chinnakkada.
                                           

“In order to set up a permanent traffic controlling system, the average flow of traffic through the area should be calculated. The Traffic Police is in charge of the signaling system and they are still to conduct a study on this.

Meanwhile, a temporary arrangement for a median will be implemented before the dividers are planned based on the flow of traffic,” said D N Rajeev, Executive Engineer, PWD.click here for more information about RoB open to Public A traffic signaling system is planned near the C Ashokan Town Hall, taking into account the traffic coming from SN College and Thiruvananthapuram side.

But for the time being, the Traffic Police have planned to control the vehicles manually, in view of the huge rush of pedestrians during office times.

The PWD has acquired around 42 cents from the Corporation to construct a junction and the approach road and around 71 cents of land for the construction of a road connecting the overbridge and the four land road to the Kollam Port, at Kochuplamoodu junction.

Jimmy Walker Wins PGA Tour Event in Hawaii

HONOLULU – Jimmy Walker, an astronomy fanatic and now a two-time winner on the PGA Tour, gazed through a glass window across the room to a television that showed his most recent photo of Orion’s Sword.

Walker toiled on the PGA Tour for seven years and 187 tournaments without winning. But it appears the stars have aligned for him.That certainly was the case Sunday in the Sony Open.
                                                     

Walker trailed Kirk by two shots after three rounds, and overtook him on the front nine of the final round.  Both players finished strong with Kirk birdieing three of his last four holes, and Walker Wins PGA  birdieing four of his last six.

After a round of 63 at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu he finished one shot ahead of the field to take the Sony Open title and secure an early birthday present ahead of turning 35 on Thursday.

Jerry Kelly was also in the mix on Sunday shooting a five-under 65.  Kelly finished solo third at 15-under par.

Harris English continues to play well shooting a three-under 67 in the final round to finish solo fourth.  English remains third on the FedEx Cup points list.

Marc Leishman rounded out the top-five with a final round 65, and a 13-under total.

12 players finished tied for eighth including Adam Scott, Matt Kuchar, Zach Johnson, and Retief Goosen.

Anju Bobby Geroge's Nine-Year Wait Ends With Gold

Long jumper Anju Bobby George on Tuesday expressed happiness after her second place finish at the 2005 Monaco World Athletics Final was upgraded to a gold medal, saying the frustrating time she endured for last nine years was worth the wait.

Anju became the first Indian track and field athlete to win a gold medal in a major world event after international governing body IAAF upgraded her second place finish at the 2005 Monaco World Athletics Final to the top spot, following a dope violation by a Russian competitor Tatyana Kotova.
                                                     

"I have been told by the AFI that I will get the gold in the Monaco World Athletics Finals.click here for more information about Anju Bobby Geroge's I am really happy and the wait was worth it," she said."I had always some doubt about some of the top Russian women long jumpers of my time and I knew that they could have been in dope," she said.

Russian Tatyana Kotova was found last year to have been caught for doping after her samples collected during the 2005 World Athletics Championships in Helsinki was found to contain traces of banned substance.

The IAAF had re-analysed samples of the 2005 World Athletics Championships apparently in line with Internationally Olympic Committee's decision to retest eight-year old samples, dating back to 2004 Athens Olympics in order to deter dope cheats.

The 2005 Monaco World Athletics Finals (September 9-10), competed by top eight athletes of that time, was held a few weeks after the 2005 World Athletics Championships (August 6-14) in Helsinki, and hence Kotova's result in the latter event has now been deleted from the record books.

The Athletics Federation of India is yet to receive the official communication from the IAAF though the world body's website has updated the results of the 2005 World Athletics Final in Monaco with Anju is now being listed as the gold medal winner with an effort of 6.75m.

4 Projects Set to Change Sabarimala Next Season

Kochi: This Sabarimala pilgrimage season, which is at its fag end, saw an unprecedented rush of devotees that forced the cops to resort to extreme crowd control measures like lathicharge. Each season records a 20 to 30 per cent increase in pilgrim arrivals but the infrastructure build up is taken up at a slow pace.

However, Devaswom Minister V.S.Sivakumar and other high officials said that four major projects would be ready next year which would ensure that all basic amenities were provided to devotees.
“The main issue we’re facing is the lack of sufficient space for development.
                                                 

Hence, we’ve decided to start development projects worth Rs 136 cr immediately after this season ends. As a first step we’ll build queue complexes along the entire stretch from Marakootam to Sannidhanam. Also on Makaravilakku Day on January 14, the stone for a Rs 23 cr sewage treatment plant at Sannidanam will be laid and it will be operational by the next season,” said Minister V.S.Sivakumar.

The high-power committee constituted for implementing the development projects has given priority to four big projects that would be executed on a war footing click here for more information about Sabarimala Next Season .

“Apart from the sewage treatment plant, priority will be for constructing another floor for the Valiyanadapandal on the lines of Tirupati temple so as to enable 12,000 pilgrims lay ‘viri’. A new appam and aravana plant would be set up next season for which we’ve found a sponsor.

The ropeway project and the Kunnar water project are also among the top priorities. For the latter, which is to bring water to Sannidhanam from the Kunnar dam, we’ll try to get environmental clearance this year”, said K.Jayakumar, chief coordinator.

Union Cabinet Clears Youth Policy 2014

New Delhi: Government on Thursday adopted a new policy to empower youth to participate in priority areas of education, skill development and entrepreneurship, besides participation in politic

The Union Cabinet, at its meeting here, gave its nod to a new National Youth Policy (NYP-2014) which would replace NYP- 2003 that is currently in force, Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari told reporters.
                                         

     
The policy takes into account the fact that the youth in India, aged between 15-29 years, constitutes 27.5 per cent of the population or about 33 crore persons, making the country one of the youngest in the world.

NYP-2014 identifies five well-defined objectives and 11 priority areas and suggests policy interventions in each of these areas, which include education, skill development and employment, entrepreneurship, health and healthy lifestyle, sports, promotion of social values, community engagement, participation in politics and governance, youth engagement, inclusion and social justice.

Aiming at empowering the youth to achieve their full potential, the NYP-2014 proposes broad policy interventions consistent with the 12th Plan priorities.

It, however, does not propose any specific programme or scheme having financial implications but all ministries and departments would be asked to bring to focus on youth issues within the framework of their plans, programmes and schemes.

Dr. Ambedkar National Merit Awards Conferred By Kumari Selja

The Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, Kumari Selja on 7 January 2014 gave away the Dr. Ambedkar National Merit Awards to meritorious students belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The awards were given to students, who have appeared in Secondary and Senior Secondary School Examination - 2013 conducted by State/Central Education Boards/Councils.
                                                         

                                         
517 meritorious students from 13 boards of 10th class and 17 boards of 12th class of the year 2013 were found eligible for the Awards.

Dr. Ambedkar National Merit Awards

Dr. Ambedkar National Merit Awards is given by the Dr. Ambedkar Foundation, which is an autonomous organization under the aegis of Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. The award is distributed to the meritorious students every year to recognize and encourage the students belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. They are given the awards for their commendable performance in Class 10th and Class 12th examinations. The award carries a citation and cash award.

UP Govt Grants Rs 1 Crore Each to 'Dedh Ishqiya' And ‘Bullet Raja’

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government has given Rs one crore aid to Madhuri Dixit starrer ‘Dedh Ishqiya’ and Saif Ali Khan's ‘Bullet Raja’ in a bid to attract producers to shoot their films in the state.

The announcement in this regard was made by Film Bandhu at a meeting here and the same was announced by the Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav at Saifai Mahotsav yesterday.
                                               

As per the decision of Film Bandhu, the state government would give a grant of 25 per cent of the total cost of the film or Rs one crore, whichever is less, to those Hindi films whose 75 per cent shooting was done in UP Govt Grants Rs 1 Crore Each , an official of Film Bandhu said here.

As both the films were shot in UP, Rs one crore aid would be given to them.

While 'Dedh Ishqiya', releasing tomorrow, is shot at Mehmoodabad in Sitapur district, shooting of 'Bullett Raja' was done in Lucknow.

The Film Bandhu will also give financial assistance to Bhojpuri and Awadhi films in future too, its officials said.

CII Plans to Launch Focused Network For Career Women

CHENNAI, JAN. 16: Often, working women get stuck in senior roles in an organisation and find it difficult to move beyond or are forced to take a break from work due to family reasons. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) plans to launch a focused network for career women, addressing these issues.

The CII Indian Women Network aims to provide a platform for working women to discuss issues and opportunities and share best practices that will help create an inclusive work environment.
                                                 

 
“The network wants to prepare career women for middle and senior-middle roles. Also, we want to provide guidelines for corporates to create a flexible work environment so that talented young women don’t have to take a break from work,” says Bhairavi Jani, Chairperson, Steering Committee, CII Indian Women Network, and Director, SCA Group.

According to a senior official of CII in Kochi, any working woman or final year degree student can take an annual membership: individual (Rs 3,500 plus tax), corporate (Rs 3,000 plus tax) and student membership (Rs 500 plus tax).

Ms Suchitra Ella, Chairwoman IWN Southern region and joint managing director of Bharath Biotech International Ltd, V. K. Mathews of IBS Software Services Pvt Ltd and Ms Aruna Sundararajan, KSIDC managing director, will attend the inaugural session.

A panel discussion on “21st Century – A New Paradigm for Career Women” will follow the session.

Portugal Football Legend Dies Aged 71

Portugal football legend Eusebio, who was top scorer at the 1966 World Cup, has died aged 71 from a heart attack.

Born in Mozambique in 1942 when it was still a Portuguese colony, Eusebio da Silva Ferreira went on to play 64 times for Portugal, scoring 41 goals.
                                           

Eusebio da Silva Ferreira was born in Mozambique before moving to Lisbon in his late teens to join Benfica from his local club.

Mourners lined the streets of Lisbon and applauded as the black hearse carrying Eusebio's coffin, draped in the red and white colours of his club side Benfica, passed by in a funeral cortege broadcast live on TV.

On the international stage, Eusebio made his name as a fearsome striker for Portugal at the 1966 World Cup, where he was the top-scorer with nine goals, helping his adopted country finish third.

He earned 64 caps and scored 41 goals for Portugal Football Legend , records that stood for almost two decades.

Nicknamed the 'Black Panther', Eusebio was a European Cup winner with Benfica in 1962 and played in three other finals, including the loss to Manchester United at Wembley in 1968.

Eusebio helped Benfica to 11 Portugues championships and later served as an 'ambassador' for the club. He scored more than 300 league goals for the Lisbon outfit.

Among the first reactions to his death came from former Benfica and Portugal team mate Toni.

SK Sharma Takes Charge As C&MD of BEL

Mr S K Sharma has taken charge as the Chairman & Managing Director of Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) on Wednesday. He joined BEL in 1978 and had worked in multiple disciplines covering Electronic Warfare, Avionics, Network Centric Systems, Radars and Components, having served in various capacities at BEL's Bangalore, Ghaziabad and Hyderabad Units.
                                               

Sharma, who joined BEL in 1978, has served in various capacities at BEL's Bangalore, Ghaziabad and Hyderabad Units, the company said in a release.

He was responsible for the development of Airborne Radar Warning Receivers and Avionic products in collaboration with DRDO. He was involved in the indigenous development of components for various strategic projects and was instrumental in setting up an automated production facility for Microwave Super-Components, a company press release said.

He was responsible for the successful execution of large land-mobile Electronic Warfare projects and induction of advanced Naval ESM systems for the armed forces. Mr Sharma Charge was General Manager (Network Centric Systems) and head of BEL's Ghaziabad Unit before taking charge as Director (Bangalore Complex) in September 2011. At Bangalore Complex, he initiated various R&D and modernisation projects and achieved significant business growth.

Disarray in Institutions of Governance

INTRODUCTION

⇒ Post independence, the Institutions of Governance (IOG) are the one who are credited with the stability of India as a nation & for the creation and maintenance of the structure of a democratic state.

⇒ So, study of the institutions from the time of its formation in post independence environment is very important.                          

       

⇒ Though, IOG have disintegrated in terms of its quality it would be wrong to say that India is a state in crisis. In spite of problems, IOG have been able to thrive & sustain & are still holding India.

⇒ IOG would consist of:

•  Parliament

•  The Cabinet 
•  The Judiciary 
•  Public Administration & Bureaucracy 
•  The Police 
•  The Armed Forces 
•  Centre-State relations 
•  Political parties

CURRENT PROBLEMS WITH THE IOG

⇒ IOG are not able to respond adequately to the challenges arising from economic development & social change.

⇒ They are losing their moral authority.

⇒ It’s in a crisis of governability which takes on different forms like: unstable governments, frequent elections and changes of electoral moods & inability to accommodate.

⇒ Major culprit for the weakening of the IOG is the poor quality of the political leadership. Through the years, political leadership has functioned without any strategic design or perspective, ideology or well-thought-out tactics for managing the political system.

Losar A New Year Festival of Ladakh is Celebrated

The festival of Losar is being celebrated across Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir with traditional and religious fervor. The 15 daylong celebration of Losar festival, mark the beginning of the New Year.

Losar festival is celebrated to commemorate the advent of new year. It is the Ladakhi or Tibetan new year. The festival is celebrated for 2 weeks during the month of December and january as per the lunar calendar. The festival is marked with ancient rituals,the stage fights between good & evil, chanting and passing through the crowds with fire torches. Losar festival The dance of the Ibex deer and the dramatic battles between the King & his ministers add to the joyous atmosphere. This festival is full of music, dancing and merry-making.    

Hemis Festival:

Hemis festival is one of the most famous monastic festivals in June to commemorate birth of Guru Padmasambhava, the founder of Tantric Buddhism in Tibet. The sacred dance drama of the life and mission is performed wearing facial masks and colorful brocades robes. The three-day festival takes place from 9th to 11th. Especially the monkey year festival, which comes in a cycle of 12 years. During it the four-storey thanka of Guru Padma Sambhava is hung in the courtyard and other precious thankas are also exhibited.

Thiksey, Karsha and Spituk Gustor: 

Gustors take place at Thiksey, Spituk and Karsha in different months of the year. The festival takes place for two days. The celebration is to mark the victory over evils. The mask worn by the dancers represent the Guardians, Protectors and the Gods and Goddesses. The festival ends with the symbolic assassination of evils and burning of the effigy of evils.

Yuru Kabgyat: 

The 2-day festival takes place in July in Lamayuru monastery around 125 kms. from Leh. Monks like other monastic festival perform mask dances. During the festival monks perform prayer and rituals to get rid of disaster and peace in the world.

Phyang Tsedup: 

Phyang Tsedup takes place in July / August. Like other monasteries, monks wearing colorful brocade robes and Mask in the form of different god and goddesses perform mask dances. The huge thanka of Skyoba Giksten Gonbo is hung in the courtyard during the festival.

Matho Nagrang: 

Matho Nagrang is celebrated on the 15th day of the 1st month of Tibetan calander, at Matho monastery, the only monastery of the Sakya School of Tibetan Buddhism. During these two days of festival mask dances are performed by monks of the monastery wearing colorful silk brocaded robes and mask in different forms of God and Goddesses. The festival is famous because of appearance of the two oracles during the festival after full month meditation in complete isolation. The two oracles appear in the courtyard accompanying mask dancers and predict future events and people from far and away come to seek advice to perform ritual to tackle with disasters.