Porbandar Jamnagar Junagadh District Monsoon News Gujarat India

Fresh rains give state new hope.

Neighboring state Rajasthan may have declared drought in 26 out of 33 districts, but the fresh spell of rains for the past couple of days has given a new hope to Gujarat.

What is more encouraging is that the present level of water in Sardar Sarovar Narmada dam, which is the lifeline of the state, is 120.87 m.

The crest level of the dam was 121.92 m. Officials said with Narmada brimming, the drinking water problems in the state have been solved.

Officials said the situation of Gujarat was better than any other part of the country. Though south, north and central Gujarat have received deficit rainfall, Saurashtra and Kutch were the only area in the entire country which had excess rainfall.

According to India Meteorological Department, till August 26, Saurashtra and Kutch on an average received 39.11 cm rainfall.

However, the rest of the state has received 44.26 cm of deficit rainfall.

The state average rainfall was around 96.09 cm. Officials said that just before the fresh spell of rains, there were 11 districts which had received rainfall less than 40 per cent of its average annual rainfall, but this decreased to just five per cent on Friday.

Officials said three districts have already received over 100 per cent of their annual rainfall. Porbandar has received 183.84 per cent of its annual rainfall, followed by Junagadh (124.99 per cent) and Jamnagar (120.01 per cent).

The parched region of Kutch has also received over 96.88 per cent of its average annual rainfall. On Friday too, rains continued to lash several parts of the state. Of the nearly 225 talukas, 107 talukas received heavy to moderate rainfall.

The highest rainfall reported was 10.4 cm in Songadh in Tapi region.

Salaya Jamnagar District News Samachar Gujarat India

Monsoon weddings for sailors.

The rains have brought smiles to the faces of sailors of Salaya in Jamnagar district. Monsoon being the off season for them, many have taken the opportunity to plunge into matrimony.

Around 300 marriages have taken place in the past two months in this tiny coastal town of 35,000 people!

Amin Hassan, 19, came home from sea to be married at his hometown. He is here for only two months and will leave his new bride with his family and go back to sea, only to return after 10 months.

His family is happy and busy with wedding preparations like so many others. Seher Qazi or the main priest at Jamma Masjid is on his toes registering at least 12 nikahs a day.

Aziz Sumbhaniya, owner of country made vessel Sahere Madina' with whom Amin works, said, "As most men are working on country made vessels, or businesses related to them, monsoon is the only period they get a vacation of two months."

Sumbhaniya lives in Dubai, while his family lives in Khambhalia in Jamnagar district, 13 km from Salaya. He starts his sea journey in mid-August when vessels sail to Dubai and returns home 10 months later after trips to Mogadishu, Muscat and ports of Saudi Arabia.

Omar Abbas Says, "During monsoon, the sea is rough and it's not advisable to sail. Most of us work as seamen as this is our traditional business. There is no other industry or employment opportunity at or around Salaya. Most boys become good swimmers even before they pass high school and start working with their fathers." He points to the sea and adds: "This is our high school."

Imran Anwar, who got married last year, came back in June to see his wife and family after a terrifying ordeal. His vessel had been hijacked by Somali pirates. "It was very scary. When they tortured us, I thought I would never get to see my wife again."

Most sailors and their families face this fear. Rashida Imran Says, a newly-wed, "We know about the danger but have no option but to send them to sea as this is our only source of income."

The season also brings cheer to people involved in businesses related to weddings. Such as, canopy or mandap lenders, flowers sellers and music band owners. Ishak Bandwala comes to Salaya every season all the way from Dhoraji. He and his banjo band stay for two months and earn good money.

Reliance Refinery Industries Ltd (RIL) Jamnagar News Gujarat India

RIL appoints two talented professionals as Executive Directors.

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), major player in the Indian petrochemicals sector, on Friday announced that it has appointed two new Executive Directors.

The Company appointed its senior executive Mr. PMS Prasad, who directs its upstream and refining business, and Mr. R Ravimohan, former Chairman and MD of Crisil, the premier credit ratings organization, as executive directors on its board with immediate effect.

These appointments bring the RIL board's strength to 14 members with 7 members being independent directors.

Mr. Prasad, a leading energy industry professional, has been working with RIL for more than 28 years. The project of Jamnagar refinery and petrochemical complex was headed by him.

Mr. R Ravimohan has been intimately involved with the development of Indian financial system and has pioneered the era of electronic stock markets in India.

Mr. Mukesh Ambani, RIL Chairman and MD, stated that Mr. Ravimohan is one of the best financial and risk management minds of the world, whereas Mr. Prasad has played an integral role for the growth of RIL and for its achievements. He looks ahead to the contributions of these 2 talented professionals to bring the company forward on a sped up growing track.

Shares of Reliance Industries (RIL), on Friday, closed at Rs 1,928.65, up 1.61% or Rs 30.65. The total quantity of shares traded was 772,522 on the BSE.