CA December 01

OLD RS 500 NOTES VALID AT PETROL PUMPS, FOR AIRLINE TICKETS TILL TOMORROW

The deadline for using old 500 rupee notes at petrol pumps and buying airline tickets at airports has been cut short to tomorrow from the 15th of this month announced earlier. A government notification said, old notes will continue to be accepted for the other utility bill payments as well as at railway ticketing counters and counters of government or public sector undertaking buses for purchase of bus tickets till the 15th.While junking old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes on the 8th of last month, the government had allowed their use for utility bill payments for 72 hours.

ARUN JAITLEY TO ADDRESS MAKE IN ODISHA CONCLAVE TODAY

On the second day today of the largest ever investors’ meet, the Make in Odisha conclave, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will address a seminar on the topic of Indian Economy: The New Normal. The conclave which was inaugurated by the state chief minister Naveen Patnaik in Bhubaneswar aims to showcase the State as a favoured investment destination for industries. As the state capital Bhubaneswar tops among the list of smart city programme, the State government also looks for international partners to execute smart city projects.

GOVT LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO EDUCATE PEOPLE ABOUT DIGITAL PAYMENTS

Government has launched a massive campaign to educate people about digital payments. The campaign comes in the wake of government’s demonetisation move and resulted cash crunch.Sources said, organizations like Nehru Yuva Kendra are being roped in to spread the awareness on digital payments and it’s advantages over cash payments. Human Resources Development Minister Prakash Javdekar will talk to student community about it today.

CENTRE ASKS SCHOOLS TO EARMARK 45 MINUTES FOR PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES

The Centre has advised every school to earmark 45 minutes for physical activities or games for students from class one to ten every day. Schools having higher classes of ten and twelve have been asked to ensure that every student participates in physical activity or games.They have also been asked to have at least two periods on Yoga every week for 90 to 120 minutes. Sports Minister Vijay Goel stated this in the Lok Sabha today.

INDIA INKS RS 5000 CR DEAL WITH US FOR 145 M777 HOWITZERS

Breaking the Bofors jinx, India and the US inked a nearly 5,000 crore rupees deal for 145 M777 ultra-light howitzers, which will be mostly deployed near the borders with China.This is the first deal for artillery guns since the Bofors scandal in 1980s.India signed the Letter of Acceptance which formalises the contract between India and US for these guns, sources said.The deal for 145 American ultra-light howitzers, costing about 5,000 crore rupees was recently cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS).

UK SCIENTISTS APPROVED MITOCONDRIAL GENE THERAPY

An independent panel of British scientists and experts have given nod to introduce three-parent baby fertility treatments or mitochondrial gene therapy (MGT) procedures

The panel tasked with reviewing the safety of MGT to prevent certain genetic diseases from being passed on to future generations

First country in the world to legalise creation of In-Vitro Fertilisation babies with DNA from three people

The world’s first three-parent baby boy was born in Mexico in April 2016 to a Jordanian couple

MGT or Mitochondrial donation is a medical technique in which defective mitochondria carried by a woman is replaced with the healthy mitochondria of a donor

The two most common techniques in mitochondrial donation are pronuclear transfer and maternal spindle transfer

AUSTRALIA’S GEAT BARRIER REEF RECORDED MASS CORAL BLEACHING: SCIENTISTS

Scientists recorded worst mass coral bleaching event on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef

It is estimated nearly two-thirds of 2,300-kilometre long reef or 700 km stretch of coral in the Great Barrier Reef’s northern part have died in the past nine months

Coral reefs result from little polyps is budded on top of one another

They are primarily located between 30 degree north and 25 degree south latitudes where water temperature favours the growth of coral organisms

Coral bleaching causes corals to expel tiny photosynthetic algae, draining them of their colour

When a coral bleaches, it is not dead

In recent times unusual warm ocean water is mainly heated by man-made climate change and the natural El Niño climate pattern

Great Barrier Reef It is the biggest coral reef system in the world composed of over 2,900 individual reefs

GLOBAL ENABLING TRADE REPORT 2016

India has improved its ranking by four places to 102nd position among 136 economies in terms of enabling cross border trade,according to the ‘Global Enabling Trade Report 2016’ of World Economic Forum (WEF)

South Africa has improved three places to 55 while that of China stood at 61 compared with the previous ranking of 63

Singapore, Netherlands, Hongkong, Luxembourg, Sweden are in the top five list

SINGAPORE – WORLD’S BEST IN MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE

An international benchmarking study, Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) released a report that Singapore students are the world’s best in Mathematics and Science

The test was administered by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, a non-profit research cooperative based in Amsterdam

A CHARTERED PLANE CARRYING PASSENGERS CRASHED IN COLOMBIA

A chartered plane carrying 77 people including a top Brazilian football team crashed on its approach to the city of Medellin in Colombia

The British Aerospace 146 short-haul plane, departed Santa Cruz, Bolivia, carrying members of the Chapecoense team from southern Brazil to play in the final of the Copa Sudamericana, against Medellin team Atletico Nacional

The plane was given priority to land but did not reach the airport, according to Alfredo Bocanegra, the head of Colombia’s civil aviation authority

Aircraft was suffering electrical problems although investigators were also looking into an account from one of the survivors that the plane had run out of fuel about five minutes from its expected landing at Jose Maria Cordova airport outside Medellin

NEPAL PROPOSES NEW CONSTITUTION AMENDMENT BILL

Nepal’s government registered the new Constitution amendment bill in Parliament aimed at carving out a new state in southern Nepal to meet the demands of agitating Madhesis and other ethnic groups

Constitution that was adopted last year was not satisfied by Madhesis with the territory assigned to them in the new federal states in the constitution

They have always been discriminated against, and do not get equal opportunities in government, employment, education and other rights

The proposal will be debated in parliament next week

The government needs the support of two-third of parliament to approve the change

THAILAND PARLIAMENT INVITES CROWN PRINCE TO BECOME KING

The Parliament of Thailand on 29 November 2016 invited Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn to be the new king of the country

He will be the 10th king of the 234-year-old Chakri Dynasty

The invitation completes a formal step for the heir apparent to take the throne following the death of his father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej

As per the established procedure, the prince will have to accept parliament’s invitation in order for him to be proclaimed king

KUWAIT’S ELECTION: OPPOSITION PARTIES WINS NEAR MAJORITY

The opposition parties have won near-majority in Kuwait’s early elections by claiming 24 seats out of the total 50

Most candidates who have won from the opposition’s side belong to Islamist groups

The snap polls were called by Emir Sabah al Ahmed al Sabah following a gridlock over economic policies.

This is the fourth election since 2012

The previous ones were boycotted by the opposition parties in protest against the voting system put in place by the Emir

The Shia minority have been reduced to six seats from nine in the previous assembly

FRANCOIS FILLON WON FRANCE’S CONSERVATIVE PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY RACE

Former Prime Minister, Francois Fillon has won France’s conservative presidential primary, defeating opponent Alain Juppe

He will be up against National Front leader Marine Le Pen in the final presidential race, scheduled to be held in 2017

His vote count amounted to about 69.5% in comparison to Juppe’s 30.5%

While Fillon’s political campaign mainly revolved around the promise of radical economic reforms, Juppe was more on the moderate side and warned of encroaching populism

AFGHANISTAN AND TURKMENISTAN INAUGURATED A RAILWAY LINE

Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani and his Turkmenistan counterpart Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow officially inaugurated the Imamnazar (Turkmenistan) and Aqina (Afghanistan) Railway Line between the two countries

President Ghani has launched gas and fuel will be transported to Afghanistan through this new railway line adding that the price of fuel and gas will drop

Afghanistan has an important role to play in connecting Central Asia to South Asia

PAKISTAN APPROVED RUSSIA’S REQUEST TO USE GWADAR PORT

Pakistan has approved Russia’s request to use the strategic Gwadar Port for its exports, signaling a new alignment in bilateral relations

Russia wants to join the USD 46 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor to reap the maximum dividends

Pakistan decided to broaden its foreign policy options

China and Pakistan are building the nearly 3,000-km-long economic corridor linking Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea with Muslim-majority Xinjiang province to improve connectivity between the two countries

The move would open up a new and cheaper cargo route for transporting oil to China as well as export of Chinese goods to the Middle East and Africa

INDIA SIGNS ₹5,000-CR DEAL TO BUY M777 HOWITZER GUNS FROM US

India signed a ₹5,000-crore deal with the US to buy 145 M777 lightweight Howitzer guns for the Army

The deal was approved by Defence Ministry to strengthen the Army

While 25 guns will come in ready-to-use condition, the remaining 120 will be assembled in India

JAPAN HOSTS ICE SKATING’S GRAND PRIX

The Japanese city of Sapporo hosted the 2016 NHK Trophy, which is the last of the six events in the 2016-17 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events

The disciplines at the event included men’s singles, ladies’ singles, pair skating, and ice dancing

Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu and Russia’s Anna Pogorilaya won the men’s and women’s event respectively

BAPU’S CHARKHA AMONG 100 ‘MOST INFLUENTIAL PHOTOS OF ALL TIME’

According to a compilation by Time magazine of “images that changed the world”,a 1946 picture of Mahatma Gandhi with his Charkha (spinning wheel) in the foreground is among the 100 most influential images of all time

The Time collection includes 100 of the most iconic and history-altering images, dating from the 1820s to 2015 that have remained engrained in the human psyche from the time they were taken

Among the pictures is the tragic photo of the lifeless body of three-year-old Syrian Alan Kurdi lying face down on the shore near the coastal town of Bodrum

NPAS, LOW LOAN DEMAND BLOCK FOR LENDING DESPITE HUGE DEPOSIT: STUDY

Banks will find it difficult to sell loans despite huge deposits due to ban-cum-exchange policy on Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes amid high bad loans, says a study.

“A very high level of non-performing assets and reducing appetite for more loans from the over-leveraged industry would come in the way of increased bank lending despite bond yields falling even below the policy interest rates,” said a joint study by Assocham and CARE Ratings.

As per the study – Indian Bond Market – banks are reluctant to lend to infrastructure projects, the very sector that needs to be revived first for a positive ripple elsewhere. The inability of banks to lend to infrastructure and over-leveraged metals, textiles and engineering sectors has led to growth stagnation, the study said.

It suggested popularising corporate bond market as cheaper source of funding infrastructure and other critical projects. However, falling demand for credit and high non-performing assets are vital issues that banks are facing, it added.

Public sector banks have 14.5 per cent stressed loans of their total loan book while the private and foreign banks have this figure at 4.5 per cent. It has been observed that most of the stressed assets were concentrated in sectors like metals, mining, infrastructure, textiles and aviation that constrained the overall economic growth. Infrastructure contributed to 32.8 per cent of the total stressed loans in 2015-16, it added

SUN PHARMA IN RACE FOR UK BUYOUT IN HOSPITAL-INITIATED & EMERGENCY CARE SEGMENT

Days after sealing a deal to acquire a majority stake in Russian pharmaceutical company JSC Biosintez, Sun PharmaBSE 1.62 % is now looking to expand its footprint in the UK market and is a evaluating a fresh buyout in the niche hospital-initiated & emergency care segment, multiple sources familar with ongoing negotiations told ET NOW on the condition of anonymity.
“Sun Pharma is eyeing a controlling stake in UK based Bolt Equity Limited which is backed by AAC Capital. AAC Capital is looking for an exit through this proposed deal. There are multiple suitors for the target, including global private equity players and a few Indian suitors may be interested as well,” said one of the sources cited above. ET NOW was the first to report the development.
Bolt Equity Limited trades as Martindale Pharma and is an established player focused on the cardiovascular system, analgesia, anaesthesia, antidotes and metabolic imbalances with a porfolio of more than 120 products supplied to every UK NHS/private hospital. According to the annual report for the year ended 30th June 2016, the group had an annual turnover of 73.9 million pounds and serves 50 countries globally including a presence in the Middle East for 20 years, with international business representing almost 20% of revenues.

MOODY’S UPGRADES INDIA’S POWER SECTOR OUTLOOK TO STABLE

Moody’s has upgraded the outlook for India’s power sector to stable from negative in view of surge in domestic coal production and likely improvement in discoms’ financial health due to UDAY scheme.

“We have changed the outlook for the Indian power sector to stable from negative, because the increased domestic production of coal will ease constraints on fuel supply,” the ratings agency said in its investors’ service report ‘Power Sector – Asia Pacific: 2017 Outlook – Rising Industry Challenges Are Manageable, Outlook Stable’.

In addition, the government’s debt restructuring of the financially weak distribution utilities through UDAY scheme will likely improve their financial capacity to make timely payments to power generators, it said. “In India, renewable generation could act as a complementary source of power rather than a competitor to thermal, owing to power shortages,” it added.

Moody’s Investors Service said the stable outlook for the power sector in Asia Pacific over the next 12-18 months is mainly underpinned by consistent regulatory returns and its expectation of manageable increases in fuel costs over the same period, as well as the absence of significant changes to regulatory environments.

GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS PROPOSE BREAK UP OF COAL INDIA: SOURCES

Senior government officials tasked by the prime minister with reviewing energy security are recommending the break up of the country’s coal monopoly, Coal India BSE -0.57 % Ltd, within a year. The move is likely to be resisted by powerful worker unions.

In a presentation seen by Reuters, the government officials say Coal India – the world’s largest coal miner – would be more competitive and efficient if it was divided into seven companies.

The proposal, dated Nov 30, is expected to be presented to Prime Minister Narendra Modi soon, three government officials with direct knowledge of the situation said. They declined to be identified because the information has not been publicly released.

It is unclear whether the proposal will lead to the breakup of Coal India, which has a stock market capitalisation of $28 billion. Calls to a Coal India spokesman went unanswered.

A source close to power and coal minister, Piyush Goyal, said the ministry would review its stand on Coal India depending on what the prime minister says.

AIRPORTS AUTHORITY OF INDIA TO FILL NEARLY 2,100 POSTS

Airports Authority of India (AAI) plans to fill nearly 2,100 posts across segments by 2016-17 as it looks to increase manpower for various projects.

In a written reply to Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said the recruitment drive by AAI is to augment its manpower for timely completion of various development projects at several airports.

AAI has commenced the recruitment drive to fill approximately 2,100 posts by 2016-17 in different cadres such as ATC (Air Traffic Control), CNS (Communication, navigation and surveillance, engineering, HR (human resources), finance, operations and planning, he said.

To a query on whether retired employees of AAI have been re-employed on contract basis, the minister replied in the affirmative.”AAI has re-employed 35 consultants on contract basis,” he added.

The state-owned AAI manages 125 airports, including 11 international aerodromes, and also provides air traffic management services. In a separate written reply, Sinha said AAI has undertaken work for expansion and modernisation of Chennai airport.

FERTILISER PRICES MAY FALL DUE TO DEMONETISATION: ANANTH KUMAR

The rush of cash deposits after demonitisation should help banks give low interest loans to industry including fertiliser makers, fertiliser minister Ananth Kumar has said.

The government would look into raw material costs and rationalise the tax structure to make sure that fertilisers become cheaper, which would help double the income of farmers, he said on the sidelines of a conference of the Fertilizers Association of India.

“We are looking at a great opportunity after the demonetisation of the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. Definitely the coffers of the banks are full, which should be utilised. It should be invested for bulk loans at reasonable rate of interest for the benefit of the industry, including fertiliser,” Kumar said.

He said he has taken up the issue of fertilizer subsidy arrears with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. Outstanding unpaid subsidy bills had been about Rs 40,000 crore for the past few years. Companies say the interest cost on account of delay in payments beyond the time period envisaged in the policies works out to more than Rs 4,000 crore per year.

The fertiliser minister also said the government was looking into the issue of fixed cost of urea, which has not changed since 2002-03. The industry has been demanding urea prices to be increased by Rs 350 per tonne, with minimum fixed cost of Rs 2,300 per tonne of urea.

MEDIA INDUSTRY GAPES AT A LOSS OF RS 1500 CRORE IN ADVERTISING MONEY

Hit hard by the cash crunch post demonetisation and consumers cutting back their spends, advertisers across various categories have been forced to cut back on their advertising expenditure (AdEx).

The trend of scaled back advertising spends is now visible across media platforms–be it TV, print, radio or outdoor.

Multiple executives of leading media buying and planning agencies ET spoke with have started to acknowledge that many of their clients have scaled down, cancelled or defered planned campaigns.

“First we looked at it as a knee-jerk reaction and thought things will get sorted by end of November. Now many (advertisers) have clamped down on their ad spends for December too. Conservatively speaking, the industry is staring at a loss of upwards of Rs 1,500 crore,” a top executive of country’s leading media buying agency said on condition of anonymity. Just today, two of his major clients had cut their ad spends.

“First we looked at it as a knee-jerk reaction and thought things will get sorted by end of November. Now many (advertisers) have clamped down on their ad spends for December too. Conservatively speaking, the industry is staring at a loss of upwards of Rs 1,500 crore,” a top executive of country’s leading media buying agency said on condition of anonymity. Just today, two of his major clients had cut their ad spends.

LUPIN, LILLY EXPAND ALLIANCE FOR INSULINS

LupinBSE 0.67 % and US drug maker Eli Lilly expanded their partnership in India with the launch of Eglucent, a new brand of rapid-acting insulin analog Lispro. Lupin has a partnership with Boehringer Ingelheim for marketing its latest generation oral anti-diabetes brands

Lupin said it will market Eglucent through its own specialty field force while Lilly will be responsible for manufacturing and import. Lilly will continue to sell Lispro under the brand name Humalog through its existing channels. Lupin’s partnership with with Eli Lilly started in July, 2011 with Lilly’s Huminsulin range of products for marketing in India and Nepal.

Eglucent is an injectable for diabetes patients designed to improve blood sugar control in both type 1 and 2 diabetes. Eglucent will be available in the Indian market in both, the cartridge and disposable pen form.

Lupin is the fifth largest company in the anti-Diabetes segment with a market share of 6.34% growing at 18% (IMS MAT September 2016).

Lupin has built strong in the anti-Diabetes market with a portfolio of oral anti-diabetes drugs and injectables that include both conventional and analog insulins. The Indian diabetes market is valued at Rs 9,272 crore and growing at 19% (IMS MAT September 2016) of which the total insulin market is valued at Rs 2,207 crore.

ISRO TO LAUNCH 83 SATELLITES IN ONE GO IN JAN. 2017

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch 83 satellites, 80 of them being foreign, in one go in January next year.

80 satellites weighing 500 kg belong to five foreign countries — Israel, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Switzerland and the U.S.

“These international customer satellites are being launched as part of the commercial arrangement between them and Antrix Corporation Ltd., the commercial arm and PSU under the ISRO,” Jitendra Singh, Minister of State in the PMO said in a written reply. The Department of Space comes under the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

SCIENCE EXPO AT CITY SCHOOL DRAWS HUGE CROWD

The sprawling campus of Mahatma School (Baba building) was filled with “young scientists” who had given shape to their little ideas and turned them into colourful models that attracted a large number of visitors from far and near on Wednesday.

In association with the ISRO, Bengaluru, a two-day science expo ‘Masrosat’s propulsion 2016-17’ was inaugurated by Collector K. Veera Raghava Rao. In his address, Mr. Rao appealed to the students to set goals and choose role models which would help them to come up as iconic personalities.

“Think of our late President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam…He is still remembered and would remain evergreen in our minds for his good deeds,” he said and added that students should think big and achieve in their lives.

“The nation relied on the youth. Thus, you (students) all have the responsibility to take forward the nation’s pride,” he summed up.

INDIA SIGNS A MUCH AWAITED $737M ULTRALIGHT HOWITZER CONTRACT

The deal was inked Monday with the original equipment manufacturer, the US subsidiary of BAE Systems.

A formal Foreign Military Sales (FMS) agreement will be signed with the US government on Thursday, according a top Ministry of Defence (MoD) official.

BAE Systems executives here were unavailable for comment.

India wants the guns delivered as quickly as possible, however no details have been officially announced by the MoD.

BAE Systems partnered with Indian private sector defense company Mahindra Defence Systems to assemble 120 ultralight howitzers, and a remaining 25 of the guns will be supplied within the next three years.

EARTH OBSERVATION SATELLITE ‘RESOURCESAT-2A’ TO BE LAUNCHED ON DEC 7, ISRO

India’s latest Earth observation satellite, RESOURCESAT 2A, will be launched on board ISRO’s workhorse Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle on December 7 from the spaceport of Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.
“RESOURCESAT-2A is scheduled to be launched on December 07, 2016 at 10:24 hours (IST) from SDSC (Satish Dhawan Space Centre), SHAR, Sriharikota,” said the Indian Space Research Organisation, which had earlier planned to launch it on November 28.
PSLV-C36, the 38th flight of PSLV, will place the 1,235-kg RESOURCESAT-2A into an 817 km polar Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO), ISRO said, adding that, in this flight, the ‘XL’ version of PSLV with six solid strap-on motors .
Remote sensing satellite RESOURCESAT-2A, used for resource monitoring, is a follow-on mission to RESOURCESAT-1 and RESOURCESAT-2, launched in 2003 and 2012, respectively. It is intended to continue the remote sensing data services to global users provided by RESOURCESAT-1 and RESOURCESAT-2, ISRO .

NXP SEMICONDUCTORS WINS THOMSON REUTERS FOUNDATION ANTI-SLAVERY AWARDS

Two multi-national tech companies previously questioned over labour and workforce conditions have won a new global award for turning the spotlight onto their own supply chains to eradicate modern day slavery from their operations.

The inaugural Thomson Reuters Foundation Stop Slavery Award was conferred on US technology company Hewlett Packard Enterprise and NXP Semiconductors, the world’s largest chip supplier to the automotive industry

ANGELO MATHEWS BAGS TOP HONOR AT SRI LANKA CRICKET AWARDS 2016

In an star studded ceremony held in Colombo, Sri Lanka‘s Test and One-Day International (ODI) captain Angelo Mathews was honored by the Sri Lanka Cricket Board with the Cricketer of the Year 2015 award.

Mathews has been missing in action from international cricket due to multiple injuries on the leg.

Mathews last played for Sri Lanka when the Emerald nation visited England few months back.

Along with this Mathews was also the recipient of  Test all-rounder of the year award at the Sri Lanka Cricket Award 2016.

Mathews deputy Dinesh Chandimal was awarded by the jury as Test batsmen of Year. Chandimal was the main stay of their batting in England Test series.

MACAU OPEN HIGHLIGHTS: SAINA NEHWAL IN QUARTER-FINALS, DEFEATS DINAR DYAH AYUSTINE

Saina Nehwal, after a hard-fought win in the first round, was again stretched to third game in the pre-quarterfinals by Indonesian Dinar Dyah Ayustine at the Macau Open Grand Prix Gold. The 2012 London Olympics bronze medallist, however, prevailed. Get highlights of Saina Nehwal vs Dinar Dyah Ayustine badminton match here. Saina wins the third game 21-12 and takes the match!!

MAGNUS CARLSEN WINS THIRD WORLD CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP

In a dreary, rainy Manhattan night, a huge, happy roar arose in a crowd of chess fans from around the world. Two-time world chess champion, Magnus Carlsen, had just reached for a final, victorious move on Wednesday that crowned him a champ for the third time.He marked his 26th birthday by beating Russian 26-year-old grandmaster Sergey Karjakin with bold, aggressive moves in a series of tie-breakers capping three weeks of the World Chess Championship that was tied after 12 games; 10 draws and one win each. Carlsen used a queen sacrifice to checkmate his opponent.The setting was a refurbished New York City building overlooking the Brooklyn Bridge that was once the city’s fish market.On this night, it became a glittering gathering of hundreds of fans – adults and children from Norway, Russia, the United States and elsewhere. They were riveted as the twograndmasters leaned into the tense game, barely moving, in total silence and deep in thought.

VIJAY KANNAN IN QUARTERFINALS

At his prime, Vijay Kannan had defused the big-serving Rohan Bopanna with his smart game to win the national title.Even at 36, Vijay showed off a thing or two about staying sharp on his toes and taking an opponent out of his comfort zone with his fine sense of court geometry, as he stopped the young Yugal Bansal with a 4-6, 6-0, 6-4 victory in the pre-quarterfinals of the National grass court tennis championship at the Chandigarh Club on Wednesday.In another lively marathon that lasted over three hours and 40 minutes, Suraj Prabodh tamed the gutsy Saurav Sukul for a 6-4, 6-7(5), 7-5 win. Sukul was cramping towards the closing stages of the third set, but managed to play his best till the very end.