Local Mauritius

Mauritius chairs UN trade law commission

In a statement the Prime Minister informed the parliament on Tuesday that Mauritius has been elected to the chairmanship of UNCITRAL, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law at the 44th session of the Commission held in Vienna on Monday. UNCITRAL is the core legal body of the United Nations system in the field [...]

29 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Police statements in Kreol, CCTVs at Grand Baie

A number of issues were on the agenda for Tuesday’s Parliamentary session. MP Jim Seetaram asked the Prime Minister whether Kreol language courses will be organised for police officers in order to avoid confusion while conducting investigation. Dr Navin Ramgoolam said that any statement should be recorded in the words of the person giving the [...]

29 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Gaming license tax costs 10 pc of takings

Answering a question by MMM MP Kee Choeng Li Kwong Wing, the minister of Finance and Economic Development Pravind Jugnauth said that the licence fee to operate an amusement machine is Rs 500. As far as tax was concerned, any company licenced to operate those machines had to either pay 10 per cent of their [...]

29 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Air route to be liberalised: PM

From 2005 to now, Mauritius has signed bilateral air service agreements with five countries namely Spain, Sri Lanka,Thailand, Mozambique and Botswana. During the same period,requests from six foreign airlines for landing rights in Mauritius were approved. This was stated by Prime Minister Dr Navin Ramgoolam in reply to a question from Opposition MP Reza Uteem [...]

29 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Monitoring unit to be set up at PM’s office

A High Level Project Monitoring Unit will soon be set up under the aegis of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The unit will have the responsibility of monitoring the timely implementation of important policies and specific major projects of the government. This was stated by Prime Minister Dr Navin Ramgoolam on Tuesday. The PM was [...]

29 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

4,063 frozen food inspections conducted in three months

Since January, health inspectorate officers have carried out 4,063 inspections of frozen food products at various outlets across the island. A total of 22 contraventions have been found. This was stated by the minister of Health and Quality of Life, Maya Hanoomanjee, in reply to a question from MP Lysie Ribot about measures being taken [...]

29 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Island bats for cricket

Cricket lovers will have the opportunity to play at a state-of-the-art stadium in about four months’ time. The National Cricket Ground at Belle Vue Harel is gradually taking shape and around 60 per cent of the work on the pitches is complete. The final landscaping is also being done to set up the net practice [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Defence finds flaws in police report

The Michaela Harte murder case has taken a new twist with the presentation four witnesses in the District Court of Mapou on Monday for the preliminary enquiry. These are assistant superintendent of police (ASP) Ahmad Reshad Dilawally, ASP Mardemootoo, police photographer Satish Sharma Jeewuth and police draftsman Rajen Hurgobin. Defence lawyers Sanjeev Teeluckdharry, Ravi Rutnah [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Inquiry reaches crucial stage

After questioning the chief executive at the Ministry of Health Pramhans Jhugroo on Monday, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has reached a crucial stage. ICAC started its investigation some six months ago by questioning officers of the Ministry of Finance, members of the Public Procurement Board and the last to be summoned were Ministry [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

MSPCA captures 700 stray dogs

Nearly two weeks after the launch of the national sensitisation campaign for the control of stray dogs, 700 dogs have been captured by the Mauritius Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA). This campaign is being organised by MSPCA in collaboration with the Division of Veterinary Services of the Ministry of Agro-Industry. “The [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Savanne least expensive district

Savanne is the cheapest to shop in while Black River is the most expensive. These are according to the findings published by the price observatory set up under the Ministry of Business, Enterprise, Commerce and Consumer Protection. A survey conducted on June 23 revealed that the average price of 60 products in Savanne stood at [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Mauritian to attend int’l peace fest

Krishna Athal, a young 23-year-old Mauritian, has been selected by Yuvsatta from India to represent Mauritius at the International Youth Peace Festival 2011. This will be held in Chandigarh, from September 27 to October 2. “I feel assured and relieved since this selection affirms that Mauritius has its respectful place at the international level, in [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Polytechnic director’s selection questioned

The Mauritius Institute of Training and Development Employees Union (MITDEU) is asking for the resignation of Thiroomany Vencatasawmy, director of Lycée Polytechnique Sir Guy Forget, Flacq. The president of the union, Hemandan Kumar Madhoo is also calling for an inquiry at the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) regarding his nomination. At a press conference held [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Export prices up by 0.5 pc

With the beginning of the harvest of sugarcane, fires in the fields are inevitable. According to information from the fire brigade, 600-700 fires are expected monthly until December. In December 2010, 1,020 sugarcane field fires were recorded. These included accidents and criminal acts. According to a fireman, “It is difficult to determine if these fires [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Sugar per ton to fetch more to producers

According to the Mauritius Sugar Syndicate (MSS), the sugar producers will be paid Rs 15,000 per tonne of sugar this year as Mauritius shifts to exporting refined sugar. The new price is significantly higher than the price from the previous harvest. When the European Union cut its guaranteed price for African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Mauritius to house regional ILO centre

A Regional International Labour Organisation (ILO) Documentation and Research Centre will soon be set up in Mauritius. The centre will provide education, training and documentation facilities as well as online information access to all employers, employees and students in the Sub-Saharan region. This was announced by minister of Labour, Industrial Relations and Employment Shakeel Mohamed [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Government sets up body to research societal issues

The National Research Chairs (NRC) was officially launched in the presence of minister of Tertiary Education, Science, Research and Technology Dr Rajesh Jeetah, heads of tertiary institutions and academia. The event was held on Monday at The Links hotel, Ebène. Professors Dhanjay Jhurry, Theeshan Bahorun and Romeela Mohee from the University of Mauritius (UoM) have [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Mktg board forecasts bumper potato yield

According to the Agricultural Marketing Board (AMB), the potato harvest will be excellent this year and is expected to reach 19,000 tonnes. Some 2,500 tonnes of seeds were sowed this season and should yield an additional 100 tonnes of potatoes compared to last year. Jean Pierre Rouillard, general manager of Copesud at Britannia, said that [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

NGO to promote reading culture through writing competition

The Association Mauricienne pour la Lecture (AML) announced the launch of a writing contest at a press meeting held at Marie Reine de la Paix social centre. The competition is being organised in association with the Mascarene islands, targeting Mauritius, Rodrigues and Reunion Island. The aim is to put books at the disposal of children [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily

Credit union reaches out to women through new website

The Mauritius Women Co-operative Credit Union launched its website, www.wcgf.com, on June 25. The website provides information to women seeking financial support. “The union firmly believes that to fight poverty women should be empowered. The organisation offers two-fold services,” explained Indranee Seebun, founder of MAWCCU. “It offers short term loans not exceeding Rs 20,000 to [...]

28 Jun 2011, The Independent Daily