Reliance Industries Seeks $1 Billion Loan to Expand

Reliance Industries Ltd., India’s biggest company, is seeking to borrow $1 billion to fund its expansion projects, three people with knowledge of the deal said. The company may hire banks to arrange the five-year loan in the next couple of weeks, said the people, who declined to be identified because the information isn’t public. Paresh Chaudhry, Reliance’s Mumbai-based spokesman, didn’t return phone calls from Bloomberg News seeking comment.

Reliance is building an oil refinery in the western Indian state of Gujarat that will create the world’s biggest such complex. The company, whose share price has fallen this year, will complete the refinery this year to process oil into gasoline, diesel and naphtha for exports to the U.S., Europe and the Middle East.

``The expansion would help Reliance improve its refining margins,’’ said Mumbai-based Vinay Nair, an analyst at Khandwala Securities Ltd. ``The stock may rise by 15 percent by the end of the year even after taking into account the debt it has to incur to fund the expansion.’’

Reliance shares fell 20 percent this year, compared with the 24 percent decline in the benchmark Sensitive Index. The stock gained 127 percent in 2007.

Chairman Mukesh Ambani earns more from each barrel of oil than overseas refiners by processing cheaper, lower grades of crude at a plant two days away by ship from Middle East oil fields. Reliance earned $15.5 from processing a barrel of oil into fuel in the quarter ended March 31, compared with $7 for a plant in Singapore, the company said on April 21.

Investment Plans

Ambani, the second-richest Indian and the world’s fifth wealthiest according to Forbes magazine, needs higher profits to fund $24 billion of planned investments in chemical projects in the gas-rich Middle East and increase oil and gas exploration to benefit from record energy prices. The expansion will help Reliance triple earnings in the next five years.

Reliance’s profit rose 24 percent to 39.1 billion rupees ($911 million) in the three months to March 31. Reliance operates a 660,000-barrel-a-day refinery at Jamnagar in Gujarat. It is also setting up a 580,000-barrel-a-day plant under unit Reliance Petroleum Ltd. The combined facility will be the world’s biggest refinery, according to Reliance.

The company raised $500 million from a five-year loan in September, paying interest that’s 0.39 percentage point above the London interbank offered rate, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Credit-default swaps on Reliance Industries declined about 8 basis points at 11:00 a.m. in Hong Kong to 212.5, according to BNP Paribas SA’s prices. That means it costs $212,500 a year to protect $10 million of Reliance’s debt from default for five years.

Reliance Comms falls amid family feud

Shares in Reliance Communications Ltd, India’s No.2 mobile operator, fell more than 2 percent on Monday amid fears that a family feud could delay a multi-billion dollar tie-up with South Africa’s MTN.Energy group Reliance Industries, run by Mukesh Ambani, said last week it had the right of first refusal to a controlling stake in Reliance Communications, owned by younger brother Anil Ambani. Forbes magazine ranks the brothers among the world’s six richest men.

Reliance Communications has been in exclusive talks with MTN since late-May about a deal that could create a top-10 global telecoms firm. As part of a tie-up, Anil Ambani would likely swap his control of Reliance Communications to become the largest shareholder in MTN.

The telecoms firm on Friday called Reliance Industries’ claim to first refusal "legally and factually untenable, baseless and misconceived".

"The market hates uncertainty, and any such news would not help the stock," said Jayesh Shroff, fund manager at SBI Mutual Fund.

"I see the stock subdued in the short-term at least," said Harit Shah, telecoms analyst at Angel Broking. "Sentimentally, it is negative unless a clear settlement is arrived at."

By 0926 GMT, Reliance Communications shares were down 2.2 percent at 531.65 rupees in a Mumbai market up more than 1 percent. Shares in Reliance Industries, India’s most valuable company, were up 0.2 percent.

Reliance Communications said Reliance Industries claimed the right based on an agreement made when Reliance Communications was under Reliance Industries control.

A spokesman for Reliance Industries said on Friday the company had told both the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), of which Reliance Communications forms part, and MTN of the agreement in "good faith", adding ADAG had never previously questioned the validity of the agreement.

Indian media, engrossed in a long-running feud between the Ambani brothers, reported that Reliance Communications was ready to defend any legal action taken by Reliance Industries and would claim full costs and damages.

Newspapers said Reliance Industries sources said a January 2006 non-competition agreement was different to a family deal struck six months earlier that divided the Reliance empire between the brothers.

"When litigation becomes a part of the story, the stock traditionally loses favour and flavour," said Arun Kejriwal, strategist at KRIS, an investment advisory firm.

In 2050, your lover may be a robot

Romantic human-robot relationships are no longer the stuff of science fiction — researchers expect them to become reality within four decades. And they do not mean simply, mechanical sex.

"I am talking about loving relationships about 40 years from now," David Levy, author of the book ’Love + sex with robots’, said at an international conference held last week at the University of Maastricht in the south-east of the country.

"... When there are robots that have also emotions, personality and consciousness. They can talk to you, they can make you laugh. They can ... say they love you just like a human would say ’I love you’, and say it as though they mean it ..."

Robots as sex toys should already be on the market within five years, predicted Levy, "a sort of an upgrade of the sex dolls on sale now". These would have electronic speech and sensors that make them utter "nice sounds" when a human caresses their "erogenous zones". But to build robots as real partners would take a bit longer, with conversation skills being the main obstacle for developers. Scientists were working on artificial personality, emotion and consciousness, said Levy, and some robots already appear lifelike.

"But for loving relationships — that is something completely different. In loving relationships there are many more things that are important. And the most difficult of all is conversation. "You want your robot to be able to talk to you about what is interesting to you. You want a partner who has some similar interest to you, who talks to you in a manner that pleases you, who has a similar sense of humour to you."

The field of human-computer conversation is crucial to building robots with which humans could fall in love, but is lagging behind other areas of development, said the author. "I am sure it will (happen.) In 40 years ... perhaps sooner. You will find robots, conversation partners, that will talk to you and you will get as much pleasure from it as talking to another human. I am sure of it."

Levy’s bombshell thesis, whose publication has had a ripple-effect way beyond the scientific community, gives rise to a number of complicated ethical and relationship questions.

British scholar Dylan Evans pointed out the paradox inherent to any relationship with a robot. "What is absolutely crucial to the sentiment of love is the belief that the love is neither unconditional nor eternal.” Robots cannot choose you, they cannot reject you. That could become very boring, and one can imagine the human becoming cruel against his defenseless partner", said Evans.

A robot could conceivably be programmed with a will of its own and the ability to reject his human partner, he said, "but that would be a very difficult robot to sell

Goodbye to high BP and obesity

Can a single pill treat problems of high blood pressure, reduce cholesterol level and act as a blood thinner? Seems like this may be possible soon. In one of the largest clinical trials being conducted for the first time, the impact of the ’wonder drug’ is being assessed across 20 cities in India.

The trials of the drug ’polypack’ manufactured by Cadila Pharmaceuticals are being conducted on 2,000 subjects, between the age of 45 and 80 years, who have any one of the risk factors - age, obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or high blood sugar.

The ’polypack’ contains a combination of five drugs in eight different formulations (three blood pressure lowering agents, an antiplatelet drug, a beta blocker, an ACE inhibitor, a diuretic and a statin) for treating cardio-vascular conditions such as reducing blood pressure and lowering cholesterol levels.

Simply put, the polypack includes blood pressure lowering combinations, aspirin (blood thinner) and a statin, which is a cholesterol lowering agent.

The trials are being conducted by St John Research Institute, Bangalore and Canada-based Population Health Research Institute.

"We need to assess the impact (efficacy) of the different combinations on an individual who has cardio-vascular risk factors, and also the safety of these drugs taken together. The side-effects of the five medicines will also be studied," says Dr Rajeev Gupta of Fortis Hospital, Jaipur who is involved in the study.

The subjects will be given the combination drug for three months and a follow up will be done in the fourth month. The trials will be completed by July and findings put together by end of the year.

The second phase of trials will assess whether heart attacks and strokes can be prevented with the combination drug, Gupta added.

Cardiovascular diseases are major causes of mortality in the Indian subcontinent, causing over 30% of deaths. It has been predicted that these diseases will increase rapidly and India will contribute to over half the cases of heart diseases in the world within the next 15 years.

Coronary heart disease and stroke have increased in both urban and rural areas. The sharp rise in cardiovascular problems including heart disease and stokes is attributed to increasing number of smokers, obesity with high waist to hip ratio, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, stress and sedentary lifestyle.

Polite way for social networking

Should you reject a friend on social networking website? How do you ward off an old lover? Have no fear. Britain’s etiquette bible has come to the rescue for social networkers who are at a loss about how to behave with online decorum.

Debrett’s have helped to compile a new set of "golden rules" for devotees of social networking sites. The rules were put together after research by the telecoms company Orange showed that almost two thirds of social networkers are frustrated and confused by online etiquette.

More than a quarter were uncertain about how to respond to unwelcome "pokes" or messages. Eighteen per cent confessed to being confused on "how to respond to my ex when in a relationship with someone else".

Debrett’s etiquette adviser Jo Bryant tried to guide the confused through what can be a social minefield.

Acknowledging that social networking has made new demands on traditional etiquette, she said "My advice is to play it safe and always employ your usual good manners when online, treating others with kindness and respect."

And you should never throw caution to the wind. Mark Watt-Jones, head of development and innovation at Orange, said "Whether you are checking your profile or posting photos of friends, these guidelines will ensure you never lose old friends or make unwanted new ones."

Indian banks not green, says UK research

Are Indian banks green and acting ethically about the environment? Not quite, according to research conducted by a British university. The University of Leicester’s Department of Geography is investigating the reasons why Indian banks have yet to commit to the Equator Principles a set of environmental and social guidelines to which 62 banks and financial institutions worldwide have become signatories.

As part of the research, doctoral student Sophie Hadfield-Hill conducted 40 interviews with CEOs and senior management of Indian banks and leading Companies.

“There is certainly a lack of awareness of the Equator Principles in India. Leading banks are vaguely conscious of the guidelines, however, the public sector is waiting to be led by the Reserve Bank of India and the private sector banks seem to only want to commit if there is regulation or financial incentive,” said Hadfield-Hill.

She also blamed the lack of interest on the issue among Indian consumers for the failure of banks to declare their commitment to environmentally and socially responsible business.

“Work needs to be done to make the guidelines more relevant to emerging economies. Firstly, however, Indian banks need to be made fully aware of the environmental and social guidelines to which banks worldwide are agreeing to,” she said.

It will be a huge financial burden for banks committing to environmental and social guidelines. However, Hadfield-Hill added: “If Indian banks are to penetrate western Markets and participate more in the global Economy, it is important that they recognise their responsibilities as global corporate citizens.

“Banks in India have significant influence over the safeguarding of fragile social groups and environments in Asia. At this time they must seriously consider their attitudes towards responsible lending both nationally and globally,” she said.

Reliance Comm shares open 0.5 pct up

Shares in India’s No. 2 mobile operator, Reliance Communications Ltd, opened 0.5 percent up after it said late on Friday Reliance Industries had claimed a right of first refusal to buy a controlling stake in it.

By 9:55 a.m, Reliance Communications shares were trading 0.52 percent higher at 546.15 rupees.

Top listed firm Reliance Industries rose 1.62 percent to 2,305 rupees

Oil falls, Saudi pushing output to highest since '81

Oil fell more than half a percent to near $134 a barrel on Monday as Saudi Arabia prepared to push production to its highest rate in decades, moving to soothe the market ahead of this weekend’s crisis meeting over record prices.U.S. light, sweet crude for July delivery fell 77 cents or 0.6 percent to $134.09 a barrel by 0209 GMT after dropping nearly $2 on Friday, when an industry newsletter reported that Saudi was poised for a big output boost next month.

London Brent crude fell $1.06 to $134.05 a barrel.

At the weekend, United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon said the world’s biggest exporter was set to increase output to 9.7 million barrels per day in July, the first official indication of its second supply boost in as many months.

"9.7, that is what he (Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi) said" on July output, the Abu Dhabi-based The National newspaper quoted the UN Secretary General as saying after he met with Naimi.

That would be a rise of 550,000 bpd or over 6 percent since May and would take Saudi crude output to its highest monthly rate since August 1981, according to U.S. government data.

Oil traders said the news could spur heavier selling during more liquid European trading hours, but losses may be checked by fears that many refiners -- particularly in Asia -- will balk at buying more of the kingdom’s heavier, hard-to-process crude.

"It’s early days yet, we may see some more reaction over the course of today," said David Moore, an analyst with Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

"I think if there is to be an increase it will be helpful to the market, the question is whether it will be absorbed with increased appetite from Asia," he said.

Saudi King Abdullah "sees that oil prices are currently abnormally high and he is willing to do all that is possible to bring prices to their appropriate levels," state news agency SPA quoted Ban as saying after meeting the Saudi monarch.

The Saudi plan comes to light a week before the kingdom hosts an unprecedented meeting of producers and consumers to tackle market instability, its latest effort to turn back a rally that has boosted prices 40 percent this year alone, spurring protests around the world and endangering global economic growth. But some questioned whether Saudi oil would temper prices, which have also been buoyed by fears over whether the world can meet long-term demand for crude and the influx of investment funds seeking a hedge against the dollar and inflation.

"If they want to put pressure on prices they need substantial price discounts that would encourage greater stock building," said David Kirsch of Washington-based consultancy PFC Energy.

Saudi Arabia had pledged a month ago to increase supply by 300,000 bpd this month versus May to meet demand from buyers, primarily in the United States.

Oil had fallen nearly $2 a barrel on Friday after industry newsletter the Middle East Economic Survey reported Riyadh was considering a sizeable output increase to near 10 million bpd.

But prices are still double what they were a year ago and have surged six-fold since 2002, and financial leaders fear the rally could worsen the U.S. economic downturn.

Saudi Arabia is the only member of OPEC with the spare capacity to boost supplies quickly and significantly. It could pump around 2 million bpd more than it does.

Cost of living in smaller cities shoots up

Metros are not the only expensive places to live in as consumers have seen the retail prices of most essential food items having soared by up to 80 per cent in the last four years. The price rise in five non-metro cities in different regions of the country like Lucknow, Bhubaneswar and Shimla -- are either more or at least in line with that of metropolis.

The trend seen in the retail prices, based on an analysis of data available with the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, come amid the wholesale price-based inflation figure having surged to its highest level in seven years at 8.75 per cent.

Besides, the economists expect the inflation figure to soon touch double-digit mark at 10 per cent, because of recent hike in fuel prices, which could further push up the retail prices.

Between May 24, 2004 and June 12, 2008, rice prices have gone up by over 73 per cent in Ahmedabad at Rs 15.25 per kg, while those in Shimla rose by about 63 per cent, Lucknow by 53 per cent, Bangalore by 50 per cent, Bhubaneswar by 44 per cent and Hyderabad by 30 per cent.

In the four metros, rice prices rose by 25-52 per cent. Wheat prices have spiralled by over 57 per cent to Rs 11 a kg in Lucknow, by 25 per cent in Bangalore, 30 per cent in Hyderabad and 21 per cent in Ahmedabad.

In four metros, wheat prices have gone up in the range of 42-48 per cent. Mumbai witnessed the highest rise of Rs 5 a kg to Rs 15.5. Wheat flour (atta) prices have become expensive by over 63 per cent in Lucknow at Rs 13 a kg. In Bangalore, it went up by 33 per cent, Hyderabad by 38 per cent, Bhubaneswar 22 per cent, Shimla 43 per cent and Ahmedabad by 50 per cent.

In comparison, the wheat flour became costlier by 42-62 per cent in the metros.

Like rice and wheat, pulses prices have also gone up sharply during last four years in all these cities.

Gram prices shot up by 80 per cent in Lucknow at Rs 36 a kg, 73 per cent in Shimla, 57 per cent in Ahmedabad, 48 per cent in Bhubaneswar, 35 per cent in Bangalore and 60 per cent in Hyderabad. In metros, the prices rose by 50-57 per cent.

Tur (arhar) prices increased by 48 per cent in Lucknow at Rs 43 a kg, 42-43 per cent in Shimla and Bhubaneswar, 37 per cent in Ahmedabad, 29 per cent in Hyderabad and 6 per cent in Bangalore. In metros, the rates went up by 33-50 per cent.

In vegetable oils section, the prices of groundnut oil prices advanced by 43 per cent in Ahmedabad at Rs 73.5 a litre, 26 per cent in Shimla, 19 per cent in Lucknow, 29 per cent in Hyderabad and 31 per cent in Bangalore. In metros, the prices rose in the range of 24-73 per cent.

In metros, mustard oil became expensive by up to 50 per cent in three metros. But prices have declined in Mumbai.

Mustard oil prices rose by 49 per cent in Ahmedabad at Rs 65.5 a litre, 48 per cent in Lucknow, 46 per cent each in Shimla and Bhubaneswar, and 22 per cent in Hyderabad.

Vanaspati prices soared 42 per cent in Ahmedabad to Rs 65 a kg, 31 per cent in Shimla, 22 per cent in Lucknow, 30 per cent in Hyderabad, 21 per cent in Bhubaneswar and 17 per cent in Bangalore. In metros also, it rose by 19-35 per cent.

Milk prices increased by 43 per cent in Bhubaneswar, 23 per cent in Bangalore, 29 per cent in Hyderabad, 20 per cent each in Lucknow and Shimla. In metros, Kolkata witnessed 65 per cent rise in milk prices at Rs 28 a litre. Other three metros saw rise of 29-43 per cent.

Vitamin D keeps heart in shape

The list of benefits conferred by Vitamin D has just got longer. It also keeps the heart fit as a fiddle, besides developing strong bones, healthy immune system and protection against cancer, according to new research. In studies on rats, Robert U Simpson and his team at the University of Michigan have reported the first concrete evidence that treatment with activated vitamin D can protect against heart failure.

Treatment with activated vitamin D prevented heart muscle cells from growing bigger - called hypertrophy - in which the heart becomes enlarged and overworked, sometimes leading to heart failure.

They also prevented heart muscle cells from the over-stimulation and increased contractions associated with the progression of heart failure.

Heart failure is a progressive, disabling condition in which the heart becomes enlarged as it is forced to work harder and harder, even for routine daily activities.

Many heart patients or those with poorly controlled high blood pressure go on to experience a form of heart failure called congestive heart failure, in which the heart’s inability to pump blood around the body causes weakness and fluid build-up in lungs and limbs.

Many people with heart failure, who tend to be older, have been found to be deficient in vitamin D.

“Heart failure will progress despite the best medications,” said Simpson. “We think vitamin D retards that progression and protects the heart."

Simpson and colleagues have explored vitamin D’s effects on heart muscle and the cardiovascular system for more than 20 years.

Way back in 1987, when Simpson showed the link between vitamin D and heart health, the idea seemed far-fetched and research funding was scarce. Now, a number of studies worldwide attest to the vitamin D-heart health link.

The findings of the study are being published in the forthcoming issue of the Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology.

Smoking harmful for both sexes

Women who smoke are no more likely than men to get lung cancer but, among non-smokers, women appear to have a higher risk than men, US researchers reported on Friday. Women who had never smoked were 1.3 times more likely to develop lung cancer than men who had never smoked, Neal Freedman of the National Cancer Institute and colleagues found.

"We noted slightly higher age-standardized incidence rates of lung cancer in women who had never smoked than in men who had never smoked," Freedman and colleagues wrote in the Journal Lancet Oncology . His team looked at a survey of 279,214 men and 184,623 women aged 50 to 71 first questioned in 1995 or 1996.

"The questionnaire asked participants about their past and current smoking status, demographics, alcohol intake, tobacco smoking, physical activity, and included a food-frequency questionnaire of 124 items," the researchers wrote.

They were watched until 2003. "During follow-up, lung cancers occurred in 4,097 men and 2,237 women," the researchers wrote.

Among men who had never smoked, 99 got lung cancer, compared with 152 women who never smoked.

The researchers did not ask about how much anyone had smoked or whether they were exposed to second-hand smoke. Experts agree that second-hand smoke also causes lung cancer.

"But when we compared smokers with similar smoking histories we noted that men tended to have slightly higher incidence rates than women.

"Our findings suggest that women are not more susceptible than men to the carcinogenic effects of cigarette smoking in the lung," Freedman’s team wrote.

They said more study needs to be done to see if female non-smokers actually do have more of a risk of lung cancer. Lung cancer is the leading cancer killer worldwide, with almost 1.2 million deaths per year — 162,000 deaths a year in the United States alone.

Even young men popping viagra

It’s no longer the oldies who are taking anti-impotency pills. Now-a-days, even younger men are turning to enhancers to meet the increasing bedroom demands of their modern female partners, claim experts.

According to them, today’s modern women, inspired by strong female characters in films like ’Sex and the City’, have become more vocal about their sexual desires and demand a higher level of stamina and imagination in the bedroom.

As a result, men aged between 18 and 40 years feel increasingly emasculated — in fact, the pressure is causing many of them to experience "performance anxiety" and is also leading to the diagnoses of erectile dysfunction, the experts in Britain have claimed. Dr John Tomlinson of Sexual Dysfunction Association said that he was hearing from an "enormous" number of 18 to 40-year-olds worried about sexual problems.

"Men may feel emasculated by modern women and feminism has taken its toll. But most of problems are psychological.

I am sure many of these men are fuelling the counterfeit drugs industry by buying their Viagra online," British newspaper the Daily Mail quoted him as saying.

According to him, advertisements glamorising the well toned male body, make an impact on men who presume it is what women expect. John Dean, a specialist in sexual medicine, said when Viagra was introduced ten years ago, it would have been unusual to treat men in their 30s. Now, however, it is common, he said.

Added sex therapist Denise Knowles of counselling service Relate: "Pornography affects how men see themselves and how they think women will see them. Further pressure comes from the myth that men should know what to do in the bedroom and that women are difficult to satisfy."

Why punish those who attempt suicide?

Should a person who attempts suicide, apparently due to some mental sickness, be punished if he or she survives after the incident? This issue has come under the focus of Law Commission Chairman Justice A R Lakshmanan, who is believed to be looking at proposals which suggest that those who make suicide attempts should not be treated as criminals.

Justice Lakshmanan’s study, which may include a fresh look at Section 309 of IPC that prescribes a maximum punishment of one-year jail for such offenders, is also likely to reflect on the need to show compassion and sympathy towards those who survive attempts to end their life.

The Commission’s recommendations on the issue are likely to have a major bearing on the way the law treats millions of suicide attempt makers in a country where 13 suicides are committed every hour and, according to rough estimates, over 10 attempts are made for each suicide.

Section 309 of IPC says that whoever attempts to commit suicide and does any act towards the commission of such offence, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year or with fine, or with both.

The tricky question of whether to treat suicide survivors as criminals or patients has even caught the attention of the Supreme Court on several occasions.

The Supreme Court in 1994 struck down section 309 as unconstitutional on the ground that it amounted to punishing the victim-accused twice. This verdict was, however, reversed in 1996.

A Law Ministry official said "The proposals under the Commission’s consideration revolve around giving the victim-accused, who already is under mental stress, a second chance to lead a normal life."

Indian career couples too tired to have sex!

A lady Bollywood director married to a mountaineer for the past seven years has not found time to consummate their marriage so far. Worse, they did not find anything unusual in this till their friends pushed them to a psychiatrist for consultation!

This may be an exceptional case but experts at ’Psychiatrists as sexologists’, a two-day consultation on sexual medicine by the Indian Psychiatrists Society (IPS) on Saturday sent the alarm bells ringing with the statistic that more and more couples are voluntarily shunning action in the bedrooms because they are too tired after long hours at work.

"A survey has revealed that couples of this generation devote 70 per cent time to their work and just 18 per cent time to their marriage. This is worrisome as this lack of intimacy is breaking up a lot of marriages," says senior psychiatrist Dr Mahendra Watsa of Mumbai.

Dr Watsa said that as the number of such too-fatigued-to-have-sex couples increases in his clinic as they come with emotional and marital problems, he has started advising them to avoid newspapers in the morning and get busy in the bedrooms!

Psychologist Raj Brahmabhatt said that young men and women in most metro and mega-cities have got busy in the rat race. "Couples these days are chasing luxury flats, cars and farm-houses which they want within three years of their careers. Where is the time to get physically intimate?" says Dr Brahmabhatt who admitted to having seen a lot of couples who confess to having no desire for sex at the end of the day.

The most affected are couples involved in the BPO and IT industry. "The working hours are gruelling. There is a boom of marital discords in south India as most techies work 14-18 hours a day.

Unfortunately, emotional and physical intimacy does not respond akin to pressing a computer button," said psychiatrist Dr TSS Rao.

"The world feels that India is multiplying but there is a growing number of couples not wanting to becoming parents out of choice. They do not have time to conceive and devote time to parenthood," says psychiatrist Dr PC Shastri, who feels that working couples should set themselves we-alone dates and once-a-week bedroom date to regain romance!

Sorry, no blogging for me: Hrithik

Bollywood’s heartthrob Hrithik Roshan has distanced himself from the war of blogs, which have Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan as their main warriors, saying that he has no plans to start his own blog. "I am not interested in blogging and don’t want to comment or join the war of blogs. Sorry, no blogging for me," says Hrithik.

"I am enjoying my fatherhood these days and very soon will be busy with my next project ’Kites’ to be shot outdoor extensively. I am not giving any serious thought to blogging given my busy schedule. As for the future, I can’t say," he says.

Hrithik, who reportedly for the very first time in his career plays a "raunchy" role in his dad’s next "Kites" says, it’s too early to talk about the movie as shooting is yet to start.

"Shooting will start from the next month and it’s too early to talk about it at this stage," says the actor, who made his film debut with the blockbuster ’Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai’ (2000).

"This movie will take a year or so to get completed and I will have more to talk about it after its completion," he says.

The movie, starring US-based Spanish model Barbara Mori and Kangana Ranaut in the lead is about the romantic engagements between an Indian boy and a Latino girl who do not speak each other’s language, in which Hrithik plays a man who keeps oscillating between love and lust.

The movie to be shot mostly in New Mexico, Las Vegas and Los Angeles will be directed by Anurag Basu with music by Rajesh Roshan