Washing Dishes Process Essay

Mrs. Morris English Comp 106 27 March 2013 Washing Dishes A nice meal was just enjoyed by the family. Everyone is sitting around the table with full stomachs not wanting to get up, but it has to be done. All the essential items are already out. Gloves, dish soap, dish strainer, a sponge and table full of dirty dishes. It's time to wash the dishes. Depending on what situation you're faced with determines weather or not you should wear rubber gloves to wash the dishes. If you are wearing a hoody or shirt with long sleeves now is the time to roll them up and put on an apron to minimize the chance of your clothes getting wet.As you take the dishes off of the table scrape all food items into the garbage can. Any napkins and straws should be thrown away also. This reduces the chance of your sink getting clogged. Set the dishes, cups, and silverware on the counter essay writer promo code. Fill the sink up with warm not scalding hot water. Add the dish soap of your choosing to get a mixture of suds within the water. Place the dishes into the sink gently, so there aren't any splashes. If there is enough time the dishes can soak to make washing them even easier.Pots and pans may also soak for easier washing. Take the sponge and get it wet. Grab the plates from the sink and begin to scrub off any food particles that may be stuck on. Rinse off the plates with warm water and make sure all the food and suds are off. Place in the dish strainer to dry. The cups need to have a little extra attention paid to them. Liquid can dry on the bottom and become stuck making it difficult to remove. If you can't reach your hand all the way inside of the cup use the handle of a fork to push the sponge in.Thoroughly rinse the cup inside and out with warm water. Place upside down in the dish strainer so the water will run out. Silverware is probably the most important to make sure it's clean. It goes in our mouths and serves our food. Wash one piece at a time to ensure maximum cleanliness. G rab the handle and scrub opposite end very well. Rinse with hot water. Dish strainers usually have a designated spot for the silverware to stand vertically; place them there. Pots and pans are the dirtiest and hardest to clean.Food gets baked on from cooking and depending how long they have been sitting; it can get really hard. Keep some warm soapy water inside of the pots and pans. Some force may be required to chisel some of the food particles off. Rinse with warm water and place upside down in the dish strainer. The dishes are done! Rinse out the sponge and squeeze out any excess water. Let all of the water out of the sink and wash down any remaining suds down the drain. The dishes can stay in the dish strainer and air dry or be dried with a towel and put away.

AP Language Adversity Essay Essay

Adversity causes people to act differently. Some may choose to concede and run away from their problems. Others may try to fight and overcome the obstacle in front of them. According to the poet Horace, adversity will cause a person to reveal their true colours. However, there are also cases where adversity will impede one’s actions. I believe that adversity can cause one to rise to the occasion, but also can lead to one’s downfall. We can look at famous handicapped individuals and the struggle they got through to reach success. Terry Fox is an example of a person who faced adversity and achieved something amazing. Terry Fox was diagnosed with bone cancer and eventually had his leg amputated and replaced by a prosthetic leg. By refusing to give in to his cancer, Terry Fox was able to raise millions of dollars to support cancer research and prevent cancer cases like his own. Another prime example is Helen Keller. Helen Keller was blind and deaf, so it would seem like her life was a mess. However, Helen Keller didn’t want to give up, and she overcame many obstacles, and became the first blind and deaf person to obtain a bachelors of arts degree. Without the illnesses that Terry Fox and Helen Keller contracted, they wouldn’t have had an incentive to do what they did, thus they wouldn’t be able to reach such heights. While adversity can indeed help people discover themselves, there are times when adversity won’t. During the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989, the protestors had to face a huge obstacle: the Chinese government. The protests were led by students and were increasingly popular for a while before 1989. To stop the protests, the Chinese government decided to use force. They had hundreds of thousands of troops and a number of tanks across areas of Beijing, arresting protestors and in some cases, protestors were killed in the process, however the Chinese government claims there were no deaths. The â€Å"failed† protests and â€Å"massacre† of Tiananmen Square, depict that in some cases, adversity can be a slippery slope to failure. After looking at both sides of the argument, the conclusion is that Horace’s statement sometimes holds true. While it is true that adversity influence people to do great things, we can also see how adversity can inhibit one’s  ability to create change. Thus, I believe that adversity can indeed reveal one’s true abilities, but copious and extreme amounts of adversity can have the opposite effect and prevent the discovery of dormant abilities.

Informational Memo Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Informational Memo - Assignment Example There are thousands of small islands surrounding the four main islands. There are a lot of mountainous regions in Japan. The weather in Japan experiences all four seasons with hot humid summers and cold winters. Japan has a high risk to natural disasters including volcanoes, earthquakes, and tsunamis.The official language of Japan is Japanese, but in the business scenes the use of English is common as Japanese include English as part of the secondary education of young students. The two primary religions practiced by Japanese people are Buddhism and Shinto. Shinto stresses a person’s relationship to nature and its many gods (CultureGrams, 2011). The capital city of Japan is Tokyo. The city of Tokyo is considered the most popular metropolis in the world (Japan-guide, 2011). The US Embassy in Japan is located in Tokyo. The embassy’s phone number is 03-3224-5000 and its address is 1-100-5 Akasaka Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8720 Japan (Usembassy, 2011). The official currency of J apan is the yen. The current exchange rate between the US dollar and the Japanese yen is 1 to 78.6 (Xe, 2011). Japan’s has a sound economy that generates for its people a gross domestic product per capita of $32,600. The country is highly dependent on its manufacturing activities. Some of the industries that are thriving Japan’s economy include machinery, textiles, chemicals, and engineering.

Pursuit of happiness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Pursuit of happiness - Essay Example According Jon Krakauer, McCandless was a member of well-off family, belonging to the upper middle class who could not have possibly lacked in material provision (Krakauer, 12). However, he chose to leave this life of comfort, ventured into the wilderness and severed ties with his family immediately after his graduation, only to be discovered dead in 1992 (Krakauer, 7). Henry David Thoreau also sought to separate from the world of abundance and provision, and learnt to live a simple life and a life of self-sufficiency for a period of two years to search for essence of life (Thoreau, 2). Therefore, the actions of these two individuals serves to show that the pursuit for happiness is characterized by separation from material provision, so that an individual can learn the essence of life outside of the comfort that is created by materiality. The materiality concept causes people to lose touch with the essence of life, rather becoming more engrossed in the accumulation of the material wea lth, while failing to celebrate life itself. The tranquility of mind is a basic necessity for achieving true happiness (Pursuit-of-happiness.org, n.p.). The tranquility of mind on the other hand is achievable in a state of solitude. Solitude as a core element of self-awareness and realization is an important component in the pursuit for happiness. The actions of the three outsiders serves to show that solitude is the fundamental step towards deep reflection of life, capable of developing the meaning of life, in a manner that social life cannot be able to do. This is because; social relationships come with responsibilities which hinders free existence and the exploration of leisure (Thoreau, 77). Therefore, it is only by managing to stay away from social relationships that an individual can manage to dream fully, experience unlimited leisure and freedom. The same case is identifiable in the lives of both

Internal Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Internal Marketing - Essay Example The firm developed Interact suite of resources, which is a range of digital content, and tools used by teachers so as to conveniently utilize existing course material designed for students aged 11 to adult. The Interact Resources and Tools include the following: ("XSIQ" 2005) These are digital sources that can be loaded onto school servers, intranets or loaded onto instructors' notebooks. To create a conducive learning environment for learners, the digital courses offered features 3-D models, animations, videos, revision activities and quizzes. These were designed in line with a variety of national and international standards for students. The Interact Subjects cover varied key learning areas such as Sciences, Mathematics, English and Literature, Core Humanities, Information Technology, Health and Physical Education and Business Studies. The Course Creator is a tool used for editing to help teachers build digital lessons, lesson series or work units. With this program, educators are enabled to create, manipulate and publish multimedia enhanced learning materials. Moreover, teachers can revise or design new lessons based on their own materials or third party materials in a manner they deem appropriate. The company released the Interact digital education product suite in Australia in 2000. ... The company released the Interact digital education product suite in Australia in 2000. Not long after, the contents were subsequently released in the United States and United Kingdom and currently utilized in both American and British educational institutions. XSIQ has signed agreements with the Software Express, one of the largest education resellers in the US, for the exclusive CD ROM distribution in North America; and Ramesys, one of the UK's largest education solution providers for exclusive representation in the UK. XSIQ Web-Content Developer Company For : MR.____ Senior Manager From : PLACE NAME HERE Business Analyst Date : September 8, 2005 Re : Export Opportunity in the Middle East Proposal Summary XSIQ is operating in the industry of e-learning, a term referring to the use of networked multimedia technology to support learning and covers myriad scenarios and tools for enhancing and supporting teaching and learning process ("Business Ready Branch for Education" 2004). With the technological advancements, education is no longer bound by time and place and homes can become the after-hours classroom ("From Technology Adoption to Educational Innovation" 2001). Although the concept of schooling is generally bound by the cultural beliefs about conventional teaching methods where student-teacher relationship dominates popular view of proper schooling (Cuban 1993), the adoption of new technologies in educational institutions has become a common practice particularly in nations who believes in the importance of education as a tool for progress. Given the perceived saturation in the domestic market of the company's product and service offerings, it is imperative

Behaviours and Responsibilities for Males and Females Essay

Behaviours and Responsibilities for Males and Females - Essay Example Personally, many of the things taught at home from the moment I was still young like how a man and a woman should act themselves in the society. Parents from the past are strongly adhering to the rules about gender, especially the religious ones for they tend to educate their children based on how their culture dictates the necessary things to do. For example, the culture in the past taught men and women that marriage should be for a man and a woman. There must be no such thing as marriage for same sex. However, this perspective has changed over time. Teaching about the things telling us that there should be no sexual relationship between people of the same sex was explicit to me. Nowadays, many of the people who claimed to be homosexuals may think that the rule in the past about marriage sounds unfair on their part. This is the reason why many of them nowadays are trying to establish another rule that would be able to give them freedom for their desire and so on. At some point, the rules in the past taught me how I should establish my life today. There are some consequences in being part of this rule, because after all, I found that I am being part of the society as a whole, where it matters a lot how the society defines what is good and what is bad. As an adult, it is easy now to understand what is good and bad, and to be explicit about it, there are some things that the society is trying to establish in each of us, but defying them would make someone deviant at some point. This is the reality of life. That is why, at some point, for as long as there is no harm that it can contribute to the society, being deviant, defying what is norm, makes me sometimes free to express myself at some point. That is my individuality, making me unique and someone different from the rest.

Entreprenenuship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Entreprenenuship - Essay Example However, the success rate associated with such business models depends on the business scope and strategic effectiveness of an entrepreneur. Specifically mentioning, the UK’s domestic market has currently emerged out of an economic recession. In this regard, it can be predicted about the difficulties faced for the success of the small and medium scale entrepreneurial businesses. Justification to this statement can be provided depending on the fact that within a stabilized economy, the existence of government restrains will be comparatively less and the scope of carrying out the business processes in an appropriate manner will be high (Trading Economics, 2014). Taking consideration of the aforementioned aspects, the discussion focuses towards understanding the significance of growing entrepreneurial business within an economically stabilizing nation such as the UK. In this context, different theories are considered with the aim of having a better understanding about entrepreneurial activity in the UK. Based on the above graph, it can be analysed that the UK economy has drastically entered into a state of instability between the periods of 2012 and 2013. However, the nation appears to have shown appreciable amount of economic growth between the 3rd quarter of 2013 and the final quarter of 2014. Thus, the nation has made consistent efforts towards attracting the attention of the young entrepreneurs who intended to establish their own business and contribute to the economic wellbeing of the UK. With stability within the economic growth pace, the chances of opportunity for entrepreneurship will be much higher in comparison to that of the necessity of entrepreneurship. Moreover, after the economic recession state, the UK government structure has also projected appreciable amount of flexibility within new business licensing and registration procedures in order to create the overall business establishment for new entrepreneurs as

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS AND GLOBALIZATION (MARKET EVALUATION AND Research Paper

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS AND GLOBALIZATION (MARKET EVALUATION AND STRATEGIC PLANNING PROJECT) - Research Paper Example By providing an overview of the geographical markets, overall sales/market share, expectation for future sales growth, profitability potential, and seeking to analyze and understand the firm’s geographic growth strategy, the reader/researcher is able to determine a great deal with regards to what may take place within the future without ever having to suffer the risk and danger of blindly testing a highly costly product line in a market or with a given demographic of the consumer base that would ultimately reject it. Background Begun in 1959, Dubai Refreshments originally was located on Maktoum Street in central Dubai. In such a way, it comes as no surprise that the full power of the most potent geographic market for the firm’s offerings exists within the continents of Africa and Asia. Although the firm has experienced a great deal of growth domestically, it has yet to fully leverage a degree of potential international growth. In such a fashion, for the nation of the Un ited Arab Emirates, Dubai Refreshments exhibits nearly a 70% market share with regards to energy drinks. Similarly, due to the fact that population of Dubai and the surrounding region has grown exponentially within the past several decades, the firm is able to integrate its products with a broader and broader market segment than it would have before thought possible. As a direct result of this, profitability has increased alongside this population growth. Although Dubai Refreshments is considered a bonafide distributor of PepsiCo drinks, the firm in and of itself exhibits complete autonomy and is not a subsidiary of the global beverage giant. Such a level of autonomy means that Dubai Refreshments is able to integrate within the global market and seek to leverage a degree of success for itself without being under the constraints of any contractual obligations or limitations placed upon it by a third party or ultimate conglomerate of ownership. Market Analysis/Evaluation Although it i s ultimately the intention of Dubai Refreshments to engage in a broad marketing plan that will see each and every one of its sectors grow in overall sales, the purpose of this specific strategy is with regards to seeking to leverage a degree of growth within the market of Vietnam; seeking to promote the drink company in an emerging market as a means of breaking out from the formerly â€Å"domestic only† lable that the firm has crafted for itself. As will be discussed below in the analysis, the reasons for choosing Vietnam are multiple; however, the nation itself has not been chosen merely on one or two determinants. Rather, it has been chosen due to the fact that it is the belief of these authors that this particular nation represents the greatest overall possibility with regards to future growth and international development of the brand. Social Issues Although long overlooked as something of a backwater communist relic, the nation of Vietnam has experienced a rapid amount o f economic growth within the past several years. Due to the rapid level of economic growth, the human development Index and the gross domestic product of the nation of Vietnam has risen precipitously alongside this form of development. A further reason why the nation of Vietnam is been chosen with regards to the international expansion of Dubai

The Question of Reality (Metaphysics) Assignment

The Question of Reality (Metaphysics) - Assignment Example Indeed, many religions resort to the concept of faith in arguing that their particular version of reality is the accurate and true version. Through an examination of cosmogony and determinism, this essay explores my personal understanding of the nature of reality; namely, I believe that the origin of the universe cannot be explained through merely physical phenomenon and that we are ultimately living in a universe subject to determinism. This personal conception of the nature of reality suffers from many of the same problems that religion does, namely that it cannot unarguably be proven through the scientific method and rational discourse; nevertheless, through reason and understanding, I believe that this is the most accurate interpretation into the question of reality. With Edwin Hubble’s 1929 discovery of a red shift in the universe the theory that the universe was expanding emerged and slowly took hold in the scientific community. (Coles 2001) By the time of discovery of cosmic background radiation occurred in 1965 by Arno Penzias and Robert Woodrow Wilson at the Crawford Hill location of Bell Telephone Laboratories, the majority of scientific thought recognized that what humanity understands as the universe originally emanated from a big bang type explosion that has seen expanded, and continues to expand, into what we know as the universe today. For many individuals, this constitutes the ultimate nature of reality, but I believe that this doesn’t go far enough in explaining existence. While most scientific research acknowledges there was a big bang type explosion (Dodelson 2003), I believe that there must have been an impulse that originally started the universe. I lack the scientific background required to speak on a complex and s ophisticated level on the subject, yet I believe knowledge of the ultimate reality is not a question that can be articulated through contemporary linguistic or scientific devices.  

Information System Essay Example for Free

Information System Essay Information System In Hotel Seri Malaysia Kangar Hotel Seri Malaysia Kangar is currently using the Guest Centrix system. Being the first Hotel Seri Malaysia branch and the earlier hotel amongst hotels in Malaysia that using and implement the Guest Centrix system in their management. Guest Centrix system has built integration with Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, e-mail and many other. It offers a stable and friendly user-interface, improved by the wary use of colour and graphics. Hotel employees can learnt the system quickly, saving the time and money especially in the staff training. The flow of the guest cycle throughout the Hotel Seri Malaysia Reservation The customers or guests who decide to stay at Hotel Seri Malaysia can make their reservation or room booking through hotel’s website, travel agents such as Agoda or booking.com, or call the hotel itself. If the reservation is accepted, the reservation agent or hotel staffs will create a reservation record that linked with Guest Centrix system. This reservation status may include the guests detail and specific request which will help the hotel to provide modified service to the guests during his or her stay. All the details on guests may help the hotel staffs to complete the pre-registration activities such as assigning room according to the request from guest, room rate to be charged to the guest folio during the stay. The hotel staffs need to make sure that the room is available when the guests arrive at the hotel. Arrival After the guests arrive at the hotel, the front office will responsible for the registration and room assignment process. The front office need to clarify the query of the guests especially the details of the room rate or packages that had been booked on. Before that, front office need to make sure the guest’s reservation status before beginning the registration process and checking them in. The guests will filled in the registration form that contain the full name, identification card numbers, home address, billing instruction, reservation details and others. Once the method of payment confirmed and been signed by the guests, the registration process is complete. The guest may be given the key card and breakfast coupons during the stays. During The Accommodation Period During the occupancy, the front office is responsible for managing guest requests and providing the information and supplies to the guests. Also, front office should respond to the guest requests on time in accurate manner and meet the guest expectation of the hotel service. During this period, the security will be main consideration by the hotel. The front office should observe the hotel standard operating procedures in handling the guest key, guest personal property, emergencies that also important. The front office will observe the additional charges that need to be added into guest account that include the restaurant charges, or telephone bills. Departure The last element in guest cycle in hotel is checking out and creating the guests history record. During this stage, the guests will settle down all the outstanding bills or payment to the front office. After completing all the payment, the guest will return the room key card and leave the hotel. The role of Guest Centrix System in Hotel Operation Front Office Guest Centrix system has simplified the front officer in term of reservation, registration, check in and check out of the guests that staying at Hotel Seri Malaysia Kangar. The guests who make room reservation through website or travel agents, Guest Centrix system will create the booking status and store the reservation status in the hotel database. The hotel’s website has been designed to interact directly with Guest Centrix database that allows the guests or customers to see the hotel available rooms at certain date and packages offered. After the guests or customers finished their booking, the system also offers the payment option such as credit card or online banking and the confirmation will be sent by email. During the registration, the front office will indicate the guests booking status before checking in. all the details includes the room or packages that already booked should be available for the guests. The guest can check in to the hotel once the registration process complete. The key card that been given to the guests has linked with the hotel information system. The key card system will provide different information on the room occupancy status which is reserved, occupied, or available. For the checking out process, the front office will notified the guests with outstanding payment during the accommodation period. The outstanding payment is automatically been added in the guests account which is called guest folio. The guest can decide on payment method such as credit card, debit card or cash as long as the hotel accepted it. In addition, the guest information data will automatically store in the hotel information system. The record is called guest history and all the data such as guest personal information, special requirement or even past reservation is stored in Guest Centrix system. This enables the hotel staffs to identify the repeat or new guest that choose the hotel Seri Malaysia Kangar. Housekeeping The front office and housekeeping staffs were linked with each other. All the interactions between both departments especially about the room that need to be clean, inspect or repaired will automatically show in Guest Centrix system. For each room that is occupied or available, the room status will be clean or dirty. The housekeeping staffs are responsible to clean the room so that the room status changes through the Private Branch Exchange (PBX) Interface and record it as clean in Guest Centrix System. PBX interface is used to make connections amongst the internal telephone in all rooms with the Guest Centrix system. The front office will informed the housekeeping staffs by using the walkie-talkie to inspect the room and the housekeeping staffs will monitor the room. After the job done, the housekeeper will press certain code by using telephone at the inspected room and link with the Guest Centrix system and notified the system that the room is already inspected. Food and Beverages For the guests who dine in in the hotel restaurant, all the bills from the restaurant will be insert by the food and beverages staffs in the guest account that will automatically linked to the Guest Centrix system. During the checking out process, the front office may refer into the guests account to distinguish the total payment should be paid by the guests. Hotel Manual System Human Resource Human resource department in Hotel Seri Malaysia is using punch card system to organize the staffs working hour and daily attendance. The hotel will tracked the payroll total through the punch card system. Also, the human resource department using the filing system to manage the hotel staffs record. All the data of permanent, contract and leaving staffs are stored in hotel filing system. Security and maintenance For security and maintenance department, there are surveillance system which is CCTV system that monitors the hotel facilities, and surrounding areas. In Hotel Seri Malaysia Kangar, CCTV system is used to observe different areas from a central control room. In the central control room, there will be one or two security officer that will monitors through the CCTV screen display.

History and Development of Banks in India

History and Development of Banks in India INTRODUCTION: The banking industry in India seems to be unaffected from the global financial crises which started from U.S in the last quarter of 2008. Despite the fallout and nationalization of banks across developed economies, banks in India seems to be on the strong fundamental base and seems to be well insulated from the financial turbulence emerging from the western economies. The Indian banking industry is well placed as compare to their banking industries western counterparts which are depending upon government bailout and stimulus packages. The strong economic growth in the past, low defaulter ratio, absence of complex financial products, regular intervention by central bank, proactive adjustment of monetary policy and so called close banking culture has favored the banking industry in India in recent global financial turmoil. Although there will no impact on the Indian banking system similar to that in west but the banks in India will adopt for more of defensive approach in credit disburs al in coming period. In order to safe guard their interest, banks will follow stringent norms for credit disbursal. There will be more focus on analyzing borrower financial health . A nation with 1 billion plus, India is the fastest growing country in terms of population and soon to overtake China as worlds largest populated country. The discerning impact on the over-stretched limited resources explains why India always tends to be deficient in infrastructure and opportunity. The largest economy of the world often frustrated researchers, as there was no single predictable pattern of the market; the multiplicity of government regulations and widespread government ownership had always kept investors away from exploring the vast Indian market. However, with India being liberalised today, banking intermediation has been playing a crucial role in economic development through its credit channel. Foreign banks have entered the soil but that has not yet posed a threat to the vast network of public sector banks that still conduct 92% of banking business in India. Banking in India has undergone a major revamp. It has come a long way since its creation which dates back to the British era. The present banking systems has come into place after many transformations from the Older systems. Against this background the present chapter deals with the evolution of the Indian Banking systems, the various reforms that has been made to make banks more effective, the role of private and foreign sector banks and last the challenges the Indian banks faces in the New Millennium . The banking system is central to a nations economy. Banks are special as they not only accept and deploy large amounts of uncollateralised public funds in a fiduciary capacity, but also leverage such funds through credit creation. In India, prior to nationalisation, banking was restricted mainly to the urban areas and neglected in the rural and semi-urban areas. Large industries and big business houses enjoyed major portion of the credit facilities. Agriculture, small-scale industries and exports did not receive the deserved attention. Therefore, inspired by a larger social purpose, 14 major banks were nationalised in 1969 and six more in 1980. Since then the banking system in India has played a pivotal role in the Indian economy, acting as an instrument of social and economic change. The rationale behind bank nationalisation has been succinctly put forth by eminent bankers: Many bank failures and crises over two centuries, and the damage they did under laissez faire conditions; the needs of planned growth and equitable distribution of credit, which in privately owned banks was concentrated mainly on the controlling industrial houses and influential borrowers; the needs of growing small scale industry and farming regarding finance, equipment and inputs; from all these there emerged an inexorable demand for banking legislation, some government control and a central banking authority, adding up, in the final analysis, to social control and nationalisation (Tandon, 1989). Post nationalisation, the Indian banking system registered tremendous growth in volume. Despite the undeniable and multifold gains of bank nationalization, it may be noted that the important financial institutions were all state owned and were subject to central direction and control. Banks enjoyed little autonomy as both lending and deposit rates were controlled until the end of the 1980s. Although nationalisation of banks helped in the spread of banking to the rural and hitherto uncovered areas, the monopoly granted to the public sector and lack of competition led to overall inefficiency and low productivity. By 1991, the countrys financial system was saddled with an inefficient and financially unsound banking sector. Some of the reasons for this were (i) high reserve requirements, (ii) administered interest rates, (iii) directed credit and (iv) lack of competition (v) political interference and corruption. As recommended by the Narasimham Committee Report (1991) several reform mea sures were introduced which included reduction of reserve requirements, de-regulation of interest rates, introduction of prudential norms, strengthening of bank supervision and improving the competitiveness of the system, particularly by allowing entry of private sector banks. With a view to adopting the Basel Committee (1988) framework on capital adequacy norms, the Reserve Bank introduced a risk-weighted asset ratio system for banks in India as a capital adequacy measure in 1992. Banks were asked to maintain risk-weighted capital adequacy ratio initially at the lower level of 4 per cent, which was gradually increased to 9 per cent. Banks were also directed to identify problem loans on their balance sheets and make provisions for bad loans and bring down the burgeoning problem of non-performing assets. The period 1992-97 laid the foundations for reform in the banking system (Rangarajan, 1998). The second Narasimham Committee Report (1998) focussed on issues like strengthening of th e banking system, upgrading of technology and human resource development. The report laid emphasis on two aspects of banking regulation, viz., capital adequacy and asset classification and resolution of NPA-related problems. Commercial banks in India are expected to start implementing Basel II norms with effect from March 31, 2007. They are expected to adopt the standardised approach for credit risk and the basic indicator approach for operational risk initially. After adequate skills are developed, both at the banks and at the supervisory levels, some banks may be allowed to migrate to the internal rating based (IRB) approach (Reddy 2005). At present, banks in India are venturing into non-traditional areas and generating income through diversified activities other than the core banking activities. Strategic mergers and acquisitions are being explored and implemented. With this, the banking sector is currently on the threshold of an exciting phase. Against this backdrop, this paper endeavours to study the important banking indicators for the last 25-year period from 1981 to 2005. These indicators have been broadly grouped into different categories, viz., (i) number of banks and offices (ii) deposits and credit (iii) investments (iv) capital to risk-weighted assets ratio (CRAR) (v) non performing assets (NPAs) (vi) Income composition (vii) Expenditure composition (viii) return on assets (ROAs) and (ix) some select ratios. Accordingly, the paper discusses these banking indicators in nine sections in the same order as listed above. The paper concludes in section X by drawing important inferences from the trends of these di fferent banking parameters. The number of offices of all scheduled commercial banks almost doubledfrom 29,677 in 1980 to 55,537 in 2005. This rapid increase in the number of bank offices is observed in the case of all the bank groups. However, the number of banks in the case of foreign bank group and domestic private sector bank group decreased from 42 in 2000 to 31 in 2005 and from 33 in 2000 to 29 in 2005, respectively. This fall in the number of banks is reflective of the consolidation process and, in particular, the mergers and acquisitions that are the order of the banking system at present (Table 1). BANKING IN THE OLDER DAYS Banking is believed to be a part of Indian society from as early as Vedic age; transition from mere money lending to banking must have happened before Manu, the great Hindu jurist, who had devoted a large section of his work to deposits and advances and also formulated rules for calculating interest on both 1. During the Mogul period indigenous bankers (rich individuals or families) helped foreign trades and commerce by lending money to the business. It was during the East Indian period when agency houses started managing the banking business. The first Joint Stock bank India saw came in 1786 named the General Bank of India followed by the Bank of Hindustan and the Bengal Bank. Only the Bank of Hindustan continued to be in the show until 1906 while the other two disappeared in the meantime. East India Company established three banks in first half of 19th century: the Bank of Bengal in 1809, the Bank of Bombay in 1840, and the Bank of Madras in 1843. Eventually these three banks (which used to be referred to as Presidency Banks) were made independent units and they really did well for almost a century. In 1920, these three were amalgamated and a new Imperial Bank of India was established in 1921. Reserve Bank of India Act was passed in 1934 and finally in 1935, the Central Bank was created and christened as Reserve Bank of India. Imperial Bank was undertaken as State Bank of India after passing the State Bank of India Act in 1955. During the last phase of freedom fighting (Swadeshi Movement) few banks with purely Indian man agement were established like Punjab National bank (PNB), Bank of India (BoI) Ltd, Canara Bank Ltd, Indian Bank Ltd, the Bank of Baroda Ltd, the Central Bank of India Ltd, etc.July 19, 1969 was an important day in the history of Indian banking industry. Fourteen major banks of the country were nationalised and on April 15, 1980 six more commercial private banks were taken over by the Indian government. In the wake of liberalisation that started in the last decade a few foreign banks entered the foray of commercial banks. To date there are around 40 banks of foreign origin that are  operating in the market, like ABN AMRO Bank, ANZ Grindlays Bank, American Express Bank, HSBC Bank, Barclays Bank and Citibank groups to name a few major of them. HISTORY OF INDIAN BANKS: We can identify three distinct phases in the history of Indian Banking. Early phase from 1786 to 1969 Nationalisation of Banks and up to 1991 prior to banking sector Reforms New phase of Indian Banking with the advent of Financial Banking Sector Reforms after 1991. The first phase is from 1786 to 1969, the early phase up to the nationalisation of the fourteen largest of Indian scheduled banks. It was also the traditional or conservative phase of Indian Banking. The advent of banking system of India started with the establishment of the first joint stock bank, The General Bank of India in the year 1786. After this first bank, Bank of Hindustan and Bengal Bank came to existence. In the mid of 19th century, East India Company established three banks The Bank of Bengal in 1809, The Bank of Bombay in 1840, and bank of Madras in 1843. These banks were independent units and called Presidency banks. These three banks were amalgamated in 1920 and a new bank, Imperial Bank of India was established. All these institutions started as private shareholders banks and the shareholders were mostly Europeans. The Allahabad Bank was established in 1865. The next bank to be set up was the Punjab National Bank Ltd., which was established with its headquarters at La hore in 1894 for the first time exclusively by Indians. Most of the Indian commercial banks, however, owe their origin to the 20th century. Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, the Canara Bank, the Indian Bank, and the Bank of Mysore were established between 1906 and 1913. The last major commercial bank to be set up in this phase was the United Commercial Bank in 1943. Earlier the establishment of Reserve Bank of India in 1935 as the central bank of the country was an important step in the development of commercial banking in India. The history of joint stock banking in this first phase was characterised by slow growth and periodic failures. There were as many as one thousand one hundred banks, mostly small banks, failed during the period from 1913 to 1948. The Government of India concerned by the frequent bank failures in the country causing miseries to innumerable small depositors and others enacted The Banking Companies Act, 1949. The title of the Act was changed as Banking Regulation Act 1949, as per amending Act of 1965 (Act No.23 of 1965). The Act is the first regulatory step undertaken by the Government to streamline the functioning and activities of commercial banks in India. Reserve Bank of India as the Central Banking Authority of the country was vested with extensive powers for banking supervision. Salient features of the Act are discussed in a separate page/article At the time of Independence of the country in 1947, the banking sector in India was relatively small and extremely weak. The banks were largely confined to urban areas, extending loans primarily to trading sector dealing with agricultural produce. There were a large number of commercial banks, but banking services were not available at rural and semi-urban areas. Such services were not extended to different sectors of the economy like agriculture, small industries, professionals and self-employed entrepreneurs, artisans, retail traders etc. DRAW BACK OF INDIAN BANKING SYSTEM BEFORE NATIONALISATION Commercial banks, as they were privately owned, on regional or sectarian basis resulted in development of banking on ethnic and provincial basis with parochial outlook. These Institutions did not play their due role in the planned development of the country. Deposit mobilisation was slow. Public had less confidence in the banks on account of frequent bank failures. The savings bank facility provided by the Postal department was viewed a comparatively safer field of investment of savings by the public. Even the deficient savings thus mobilised by commercial banks were not channeled for the development of the economy of the country. Funds were largely given to traders, who hoarded agricultural produce after harvest, creating an artificial scarcity, to make a good fortune in selling them at a later period, when prices were soaring. The Reserve Bank of India had to step in at these occasions to introduce selective credit controls on several commodities to remedy this situation. Such cont rols were imposed on advances against Rice, Paddy, Wheat, Other foodgrains (like jowar, millets, ragi etc.) pulses, oilseeds etc. When the country attained independence Indian Banking was exclusively in the private sector. In addition to the Imperial Bank, there were five big banks each holding public deposits aggregating Rs.100 Crores and more, viz. the Central Bank of India Ltd., the Punjab National Bank Ltd., the Bank of India Ltd., the Bank of Baroda Ltd. and the United Commercial Bank Ltd. Rest of the banks were exclusively regional in character holding deposits of less than fifty Crores. Government first implemented the exercise of nationalisation of a significant part of the Indian Banking system in the year 1955, when Imperial Bank of India was Nationalised in that year for the stated objective of extension of banking facilities on a large scale, more particularly in the rural and semi-urban areas, and for diverse other public purposes to form State Bank of India. SBI was to act as the principal agent of the RBI and handle banking transactions of the Union State Governments throughout India. The step w as in fact in furtherance of the objectives of supporting a powerful rural credit cooperative movement in India and as recommended by the The All-India Rural Credit Survey Committee Report, 1954. State Bank of India was obliged to open an accepted number of branches within five years in unbanked centres. Government subsidised the bank for opening unremunerative branches in non-urban centres. The seven banks now forming subsidiaries of SBI were nationalised in the year 1960. This brought one-third of the banking segment under the direct control of the Government of India. But the major process of nationalisation was carried out on 19th July 1969, when the then Prime Minister of India, Mrs.Indira Gandhi announced the nationalisation of fourteen major commercial banks in the country. One more phase of nationalisation was carried out in the year 1980, when seven more banks were nationalised. This brought 80% of the banking segment in India under Government ownership. The country entered the second phase, i.e. the phase of Nationalised Banking with emphasis on Social Banking in 1969/70. Chronology of Salient steps by the Government after Independence to Regulate Banking Institutions in the Country 1949: Enactment of Banking Regulation Act. 1955 (Phase I): Nationalisation of State Bank of India 1959 (Phase II): Nationalisation of SBI subsidiaries 1961: Insurance cover extended to deposits 1969 (Phase III): Nationalisation of 14 major banks 1971: Creation of credit guarantee corporation 1975: Creation of regional rural banks 1980 (Phase IV): Nationalisation of seven banks with deposits over 200 crores. Shortcomings in the Functioning of Nationalised Banking Institutions However Nationalised banks in their enthusiasm for development banking, looking exclusively to branch opening, deposit accretion and social banking, neglected prudential norms, profitability criteria, risk-management and building adequate capital as a buffer to counter-balance the ever expanding risk-inherent assets held by them. They failed to recognise the emerging non-performing assets and to build adequate provisions to neutralise the adverse effects of such assets. Basking in the sunshine of Government ownership that gave to the public implicit faith and confidence about the sustainability of Government-owned institutions, they failed to collect before hand whatever is needed for the rainy day. And surfeit blindly indulged is sure to bring the sick hour. In the early Nineties after two decades of lop-sided policies, these banks paid heavily for their misdirected performance in place of pragmatic and balanced policies. The RBI/Government of India has to step in at the crisis-hour to implement remedial steps. Reforms in the financial and banking sectors and liberal re capitalisation of the ailing and weakened public sector banks followed. However it is relevant to mention here that the advent of banking sector reforms brought the era of modern banking of global standards in the history of Indian banking. The emphasis shifted to efficient, and prudential banking linked to better customer care and customer service. The old ideology of social banking was not abandoned, but the responsibility for development banking is blended with the paramount need for complying with norms of prudency and efficiency. Composition of Indian Banking System The Indian banking can be broadly categorized into nationalized (government owned), private banks and specialized banking institutions 2. The Reserve Bank of India acts a centralized body monitoring any discrepancies and shortcoming in the system. Since the nationalization of banks in 1969, the public sector banks or the nationalized banks have acquired a place of prominence and has since then seen tremendous progress. The need to become highly customer focused has forced the slow-moving public sector banks to adopt a fast track approach. The unleashing of products and services through the net has galvanized players at all levels of the banking and financial institutions market grid to look into their existing portfolio offering. Conservative banking practices allowed Indian banks to be insulated partially from the Asian currency crisis. Indian banks are now quoting al higher valuation when compared to banks in other Asian countries (viz. Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines etc.) that have major problems linked to huge Non Performing Assets (NPAs) and payment defaults. Co-operative banks are nimble footed in approach and armed with efficient branch networks focus primarily on the high revenue niche retail segments. The Indian banking has come from a long way from being a sleepy business institution to a highly proactive and dynamic entity. This transformation has been largely brought about by the large dose of liberalization and economic reforms that allowed banks to explore new business opportunities rather than generating revenues from conventional streams (i.e. borrowing and lending). The banking in India is highly fragmented with 30 banking units contributing to almost 50% of deposits and 60% of advances. Indian nationalized banks (banks owned by the government) continue to be the major lenders in the economy due to their sheer size and penetrative networks which assures them high deposit mobilization. The banking system has three tiers. These are the scheduled commercial banks; the Regional rural banks which operate in rural areas not covered by the scheduled banks; And the cooperative and special purpose rural banks. Under the ambit of the nationalized banks come the specialized banking institutions. These co-operatives, rural banks focus on areas of agriculture, rural development etc., unlike commercial banks these co-operative banks do not lend on the basis of a prime lending rate. They also have various tax sops because of their holding pattern and lending structure and hence have lower overheads. This enables them to give a marginally higher percentage on savings deposits. Many of these cooperative banks diversified into specialized areas (catering to the vast retail audience) like car finance, housing loans, truck finance etc. In order to keep pace with their public sector and private counterparts, the co-operative banks too have invested heavily in information technology to offer high-end computerized banking services to its clients. Given below is the total list of banks operating in India. SCHEDULED AND NON SCHEDULED BANKS There are approximately Eighty scheduled commercial banks, Indian and foreign; almost Two Hundred regional rural banks; more than Three Hundred Fifty central cooperative banks, Twenty land development banks; and a number of primary agricultural credit societies. In terms of business, the public sector banks, namely the State Bank of India and the nationalized banks, dominate the banking sector.India had a fairly well developed commercial banking system in existence at the time of independence in 1947. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was established in 1935. While the RBI became a state owned institution from January 1, 1949, the Banking Regulation Act was enacted in 1949 providing a framework for regulation and supervision of commercial banking activity. The first step towards the nationalisation of commercial banks was the result of a report (under the aegis of RBI) by the Committee of Direction of All India Rural Credit Survey (1951) which till today is the locus classicus on the subject. The Committee recommended one strong integrated state partnered commercial banking institution to stimulate banking development in general and rural credit in particular. Thus, the Imperial Bank was taken over by the Government and renamed as the State Bank of India (SBI) on July 1, 1955 with the RBI acquiring overriding substantial holding of shares. A number of erstwhile banks owned by princely states were made subsidiaries of SBI in 1959. Thus, the beginning of the Plan era also saw the emergence of public ownership of one of the most prominent of the commercial banks. The All-India Rural Credit Survey Committee Report, 1954 recommended an integrated approach to cooperative credit and emphasised the need for viable credit cooperative societies by expanding their area of operation, encouraging rural savings and diversifying business. The Committee also recommended for Government participation in the share capital of the cooperatives. The report subsequently paved the way for the present structure and composition of the Cooperative Banks in the country There was a feeling that though the Indian banking system had made considerable progress in the 50s and 60s, it established close links between commercial and industry houses, resulting in cornering of bank credit by these segments to the exclusion of agriculture and small industries. To meet these concerns, in 1967, the Government introduced the concept of social control in the banking industry. The scheme of social control was aimed at bringing some changes in the management and distribution of credit by the commercial banks. The close link between big business houses and big banks was intended to be snapped or at least made ineffective by the reconstitution of the Board of Directors to the effect that 51 per cent of the directors were to have special knowledge or practical experience. Appointment of whole-time Chairman with special knowledge and practical experience of working of commercial banks or financial or economic or business administration was intended to professionalise t he top management. Imposition of restrictions on loans to be granted to the directors concerns was another step towards avoiding undesirable flow of credit to the units in which the directors were interested. The scheme also provided for the take-over of banks under certain circumstances. Political compulsion then partially attributed to inadequacies of the social control, led to the Government of India nationalising, in 1969,fourteen major scheduled commercial banks which had deposits above a cut-off size. The objective was to serve better the needs of development of the economy in conformity with national priorities and objectives. In a somewhat repeat of the same experience, eleven years after nationalisation, the Government announced the nationalisation of seven more scheduled commercial banks above the cut-off size. The second round of nationalisation gave an impression that if a private sector bank grew to the cut-off size it would be under the threat of nationalisation. From the fifties a number of exclusively state-owned development financial institutions (DFIs) were also set up both at the national and state level, with a lone exception of Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation (ICICI) which had a minority private share holding. The mutual fund activity was also a virtual monopoly of Government owned institution, viz., the Unit Trust of India. Refinance institutions in agriculture and industry sectors were also developed, similar in nature to the DFIs. Insurance, both Life and General, also became state monopolies. REFORM MEASURES The major challenge of the reform has been to introduce elements of market incentive as a dominant factor gradually replacing the administratively coordinated planned actions for development. Such a paradigm shift has several dimensions, the corporate governance being one of the important elements. The evolution of corporate governance in banks, particularly, in PSBs, thus reflects changes in monetary policy, regulatory environment, and structural transformations and to some extent, on the character of the self-regulatory organizations functioning in the financial sector. Policy Environment During the reform period, the policy environment enhanced competition and provided greater opportunity for exercise of what may be called genuine corporate element in each bank to replace the elements of coordinated actions of all entities as a joint family to fulfill predetermined Plan priorities. Greater competition has been infused in the banking system by permitting entry of private sector banks (Nine licences since 1993), and liberal licensing of more branches by foreign banks and the entry of new foreign banks. With the development of a multi-institutional structure in the financial sector, emphasis is on efficiency through competition irrespective of ownership. Since non-bank intermediation has increased, banks have had to improve efficiency to ensure survival. REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT Prudential regulation and supervision have formed a critical component of the financial sector reform programme since its inception, and India has endeavored to international prudential norms and practices. These norms have been progressively tightened over the years, particularly against the backdrop of the Asian crisis. Bank exposures to sensitive sectors such as equity and real estate have been curtailed. The Banking Regulation Act 1949 prevents connected lending (i.e. lending by banks to directors or companies in which Directors are interested). Periodical inspection of banks has been the main instrument of supervision, though recently there has been a move toward supplementary on-site inspections with off-site surveillance. The system of Annual Financial Inspection was introduced in 1992, in place of the earlier system of Annual Financial Review/Financial Inspections. The inspection objectives and procedures, have been redefined to evaluate the banks safety and soundness; to appraise the quality of the Board and management; to ensure compliance with banking laws regulation; to provide an appraisal of soundness of the banks assets; to analyse the financial factors which determine banks solvency and to identify areas where corrective action is needed to strengthen the institution and improve its performance. Inspection based upon the new guidelines have started since 1997. SELF REGULATORY ORGANIZATIONS India has had the distinction of experimenting with Self Regulatory Organisations (SROs) in the financial system since the pre-independence days. At present, there are four SROs in the financial system Indian Banks Association (IBA), Foreign Exchange Dealers Association of India (FEDAI), Primary Dealers Association of India (PDAI) and Fixed Income Money Market Dealers Association of India (FIMMDAI). INDIAN BANKS ASSOCIATION The IBA established in 1946 as a voluntary association of banks, strove towards strengthening the banking industry through consensus and co-ordination. Since nationalisation of banks, PSBs tended to dominate IBA and developed close links with Government and RBI. Often, the reactive and consensus and coordinated approach bordered on cartelisation. To illustrate, IBA had worked out a schedule of benchmark service charges for the services rendered by member banks, which were not mandatory in nature, but were being adopted by all banks. The practice of fixing rates for services of banks was consistent with a regime of administered interest rates but not consistent with the principle of competition. Hence, the IBA was directed by the RBI to desist from working out a schedule of benchmark service charges for the services rendered by member banks. Responding to the imperatives caused by the changing scenario in the reform era, the IBA has, over the years, refocused its vision, redefined its role, and modified its operational modalities. FOREIGN EXCHANGE DEALERS ASSOCIATION OF INDIA (FEDAI) In the area of foreign exchange, FEDAI was established in 1958, and banks were required to abide by terms and conditions prescribed by FEDAI for transacting foreign exchange business. In the light of reforms, FEDAI has refocused its role by giving up fixing of rates, but plays a multifarious role covering training of banks personnel, accounting standards, evolving risk measurement models like the VaR History and Development of Banks in India History and Development of Banks in India INTRODUCTION: The banking industry in India seems to be unaffected from the global financial crises which started from U.S in the last quarter of 2008. Despite the fallout and nationalization of banks across developed economies, banks in India seems to be on the strong fundamental base and seems to be well insulated from the financial turbulence emerging from the western economies. The Indian banking industry is well placed as compare to their banking industries western counterparts which are depending upon government bailout and stimulus packages. The strong economic growth in the past, low defaulter ratio, absence of complex financial products, regular intervention by central bank, proactive adjustment of monetary policy and so called close banking culture has favored the banking industry in India in recent global financial turmoil. Although there will no impact on the Indian banking system similar to that in west but the banks in India will adopt for more of defensive approach in credit disburs al in coming period. In order to safe guard their interest, banks will follow stringent norms for credit disbursal. There will be more focus on analyzing borrower financial health . A nation with 1 billion plus, India is the fastest growing country in terms of population and soon to overtake China as worlds largest populated country. The discerning impact on the over-stretched limited resources explains why India always tends to be deficient in infrastructure and opportunity. The largest economy of the world often frustrated researchers, as there was no single predictable pattern of the market; the multiplicity of government regulations and widespread government ownership had always kept investors away from exploring the vast Indian market. However, with India being liberalised today, banking intermediation has been playing a crucial role in economic development through its credit channel. Foreign banks have entered the soil but that has not yet posed a threat to the vast network of public sector banks that still conduct 92% of banking business in India. Banking in India has undergone a major revamp. It has come a long way since its creation which dates back to the British era. The present banking systems has come into place after many transformations from the Older systems. Against this background the present chapter deals with the evolution of the Indian Banking systems, the various reforms that has been made to make banks more effective, the role of private and foreign sector banks and last the challenges the Indian banks faces in the New Millennium . The banking system is central to a nations economy. Banks are special as they not only accept and deploy large amounts of uncollateralised public funds in a fiduciary capacity, but also leverage such funds through credit creation. In India, prior to nationalisation, banking was restricted mainly to the urban areas and neglected in the rural and semi-urban areas. Large industries and big business houses enjoyed major portion of the credit facilities. Agriculture, small-scale industries and exports did not receive the deserved attention. Therefore, inspired by a larger social purpose, 14 major banks were nationalised in 1969 and six more in 1980. Since then the banking system in India has played a pivotal role in the Indian economy, acting as an instrument of social and economic change. The rationale behind bank nationalisation has been succinctly put forth by eminent bankers: Many bank failures and crises over two centuries, and the damage they did under laissez faire conditions; the needs of planned growth and equitable distribution of credit, which in privately owned banks was concentrated mainly on the controlling industrial houses and influential borrowers; the needs of growing small scale industry and farming regarding finance, equipment and inputs; from all these there emerged an inexorable demand for banking legislation, some government control and a central banking authority, adding up, in the final analysis, to social control and nationalisation (Tandon, 1989). Post nationalisation, the Indian banking system registered tremendous growth in volume. Despite the undeniable and multifold gains of bank nationalization, it may be noted that the important financial institutions were all state owned and were subject to central direction and control. Banks enjoyed little autonomy as both lending and deposit rates were controlled until the end of the 1980s. Although nationalisation of banks helped in the spread of banking to the rural and hitherto uncovered areas, the monopoly granted to the public sector and lack of competition led to overall inefficiency and low productivity. By 1991, the countrys financial system was saddled with an inefficient and financially unsound banking sector. Some of the reasons for this were (i) high reserve requirements, (ii) administered interest rates, (iii) directed credit and (iv) lack of competition (v) political interference and corruption. As recommended by the Narasimham Committee Report (1991) several reform mea sures were introduced which included reduction of reserve requirements, de-regulation of interest rates, introduction of prudential norms, strengthening of bank supervision and improving the competitiveness of the system, particularly by allowing entry of private sector banks. With a view to adopting the Basel Committee (1988) framework on capital adequacy norms, the Reserve Bank introduced a risk-weighted asset ratio system for banks in India as a capital adequacy measure in 1992. Banks were asked to maintain risk-weighted capital adequacy ratio initially at the lower level of 4 per cent, which was gradually increased to 9 per cent. Banks were also directed to identify problem loans on their balance sheets and make provisions for bad loans and bring down the burgeoning problem of non-performing assets. The period 1992-97 laid the foundations for reform in the banking system (Rangarajan, 1998). The second Narasimham Committee Report (1998) focussed on issues like strengthening of th e banking system, upgrading of technology and human resource development. The report laid emphasis on two aspects of banking regulation, viz., capital adequacy and asset classification and resolution of NPA-related problems. Commercial banks in India are expected to start implementing Basel II norms with effect from March 31, 2007. They are expected to adopt the standardised approach for credit risk and the basic indicator approach for operational risk initially. After adequate skills are developed, both at the banks and at the supervisory levels, some banks may be allowed to migrate to the internal rating based (IRB) approach (Reddy 2005). At present, banks in India are venturing into non-traditional areas and generating income through diversified activities other than the core banking activities. Strategic mergers and acquisitions are being explored and implemented. With this, the banking sector is currently on the threshold of an exciting phase. Against this backdrop, this paper endeavours to study the important banking indicators for the last 25-year period from 1981 to 2005. These indicators have been broadly grouped into different categories, viz., (i) number of banks and offices (ii) deposits and credit (iii) investments (iv) capital to risk-weighted assets ratio (CRAR) (v) non performing assets (NPAs) (vi) Income composition (vii) Expenditure composition (viii) return on assets (ROAs) and (ix) some select ratios. Accordingly, the paper discusses these banking indicators in nine sections in the same order as listed above. The paper concludes in section X by drawing important inferences from the trends of these di fferent banking parameters. The number of offices of all scheduled commercial banks almost doubledfrom 29,677 in 1980 to 55,537 in 2005. This rapid increase in the number of bank offices is observed in the case of all the bank groups. However, the number of banks in the case of foreign bank group and domestic private sector bank group decreased from 42 in 2000 to 31 in 2005 and from 33 in 2000 to 29 in 2005, respectively. This fall in the number of banks is reflective of the consolidation process and, in particular, the mergers and acquisitions that are the order of the banking system at present (Table 1). BANKING IN THE OLDER DAYS Banking is believed to be a part of Indian society from as early as Vedic age; transition from mere money lending to banking must have happened before Manu, the great Hindu jurist, who had devoted a large section of his work to deposits and advances and also formulated rules for calculating interest on both 1. During the Mogul period indigenous bankers (rich individuals or families) helped foreign trades and commerce by lending money to the business. It was during the East Indian period when agency houses started managing the banking business. The first Joint Stock bank India saw came in 1786 named the General Bank of India followed by the Bank of Hindustan and the Bengal Bank. Only the Bank of Hindustan continued to be in the show until 1906 while the other two disappeared in the meantime. East India Company established three banks in first half of 19th century: the Bank of Bengal in 1809, the Bank of Bombay in 1840, and the Bank of Madras in 1843. Eventually these three banks (which used to be referred to as Presidency Banks) were made independent units and they really did well for almost a century. In 1920, these three were amalgamated and a new Imperial Bank of India was established in 1921. Reserve Bank of India Act was passed in 1934 and finally in 1935, the Central Bank was created and christened as Reserve Bank of India. Imperial Bank was undertaken as State Bank of India after passing the State Bank of India Act in 1955. During the last phase of freedom fighting (Swadeshi Movement) few banks with purely Indian man agement were established like Punjab National bank (PNB), Bank of India (BoI) Ltd, Canara Bank Ltd, Indian Bank Ltd, the Bank of Baroda Ltd, the Central Bank of India Ltd, etc.July 19, 1969 was an important day in the history of Indian banking industry. Fourteen major banks of the country were nationalised and on April 15, 1980 six more commercial private banks were taken over by the Indian government. In the wake of liberalisation that started in the last decade a few foreign banks entered the foray of commercial banks. To date there are around 40 banks of foreign origin that are  operating in the market, like ABN AMRO Bank, ANZ Grindlays Bank, American Express Bank, HSBC Bank, Barclays Bank and Citibank groups to name a few major of them. HISTORY OF INDIAN BANKS: We can identify three distinct phases in the history of Indian Banking. Early phase from 1786 to 1969 Nationalisation of Banks and up to 1991 prior to banking sector Reforms New phase of Indian Banking with the advent of Financial Banking Sector Reforms after 1991. The first phase is from 1786 to 1969, the early phase up to the nationalisation of the fourteen largest of Indian scheduled banks. It was also the traditional or conservative phase of Indian Banking. The advent of banking system of India started with the establishment of the first joint stock bank, The General Bank of India in the year 1786. After this first bank, Bank of Hindustan and Bengal Bank came to existence. In the mid of 19th century, East India Company established three banks The Bank of Bengal in 1809, The Bank of Bombay in 1840, and bank of Madras in 1843. These banks were independent units and called Presidency banks. These three banks were amalgamated in 1920 and a new bank, Imperial Bank of India was established. All these institutions started as private shareholders banks and the shareholders were mostly Europeans. The Allahabad Bank was established in 1865. The next bank to be set up was the Punjab National Bank Ltd., which was established with its headquarters at La hore in 1894 for the first time exclusively by Indians. Most of the Indian commercial banks, however, owe their origin to the 20th century. Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, the Canara Bank, the Indian Bank, and the Bank of Mysore were established between 1906 and 1913. The last major commercial bank to be set up in this phase was the United Commercial Bank in 1943. Earlier the establishment of Reserve Bank of India in 1935 as the central bank of the country was an important step in the development of commercial banking in India. The history of joint stock banking in this first phase was characterised by slow growth and periodic failures. There were as many as one thousand one hundred banks, mostly small banks, failed during the period from 1913 to 1948. The Government of India concerned by the frequent bank failures in the country causing miseries to innumerable small depositors and others enacted The Banking Companies Act, 1949. The title of the Act was changed as Banking Regulation Act 1949, as per amending Act of 1965 (Act No.23 of 1965). The Act is the first regulatory step undertaken by the Government to streamline the functioning and activities of commercial banks in India. Reserve Bank of India as the Central Banking Authority of the country was vested with extensive powers for banking supervision. Salient features of the Act are discussed in a separate page/article At the time of Independence of the country in 1947, the banking sector in India was relatively small and extremely weak. The banks were largely confined to urban areas, extending loans primarily to trading sector dealing with agricultural produce. There were a large number of commercial banks, but banking services were not available at rural and semi-urban areas. Such services were not extended to different sectors of the economy like agriculture, small industries, professionals and self-employed entrepreneurs, artisans, retail traders etc. DRAW BACK OF INDIAN BANKING SYSTEM BEFORE NATIONALISATION Commercial banks, as they were privately owned, on regional or sectarian basis resulted in development of banking on ethnic and provincial basis with parochial outlook. These Institutions did not play their due role in the planned development of the country. Deposit mobilisation was slow. Public had less confidence in the banks on account of frequent bank failures. The savings bank facility provided by the Postal department was viewed a comparatively safer field of investment of savings by the public. Even the deficient savings thus mobilised by commercial banks were not channeled for the development of the economy of the country. Funds were largely given to traders, who hoarded agricultural produce after harvest, creating an artificial scarcity, to make a good fortune in selling them at a later period, when prices were soaring. The Reserve Bank of India had to step in at these occasions to introduce selective credit controls on several commodities to remedy this situation. Such cont rols were imposed on advances against Rice, Paddy, Wheat, Other foodgrains (like jowar, millets, ragi etc.) pulses, oilseeds etc. When the country attained independence Indian Banking was exclusively in the private sector. In addition to the Imperial Bank, there were five big banks each holding public deposits aggregating Rs.100 Crores and more, viz. the Central Bank of India Ltd., the Punjab National Bank Ltd., the Bank of India Ltd., the Bank of Baroda Ltd. and the United Commercial Bank Ltd. Rest of the banks were exclusively regional in character holding deposits of less than fifty Crores. Government first implemented the exercise of nationalisation of a significant part of the Indian Banking system in the year 1955, when Imperial Bank of India was Nationalised in that year for the stated objective of extension of banking facilities on a large scale, more particularly in the rural and semi-urban areas, and for diverse other public purposes to form State Bank of India. SBI was to act as the principal agent of the RBI and handle banking transactions of the Union State Governments throughout India. The step w as in fact in furtherance of the objectives of supporting a powerful rural credit cooperative movement in India and as recommended by the The All-India Rural Credit Survey Committee Report, 1954. State Bank of India was obliged to open an accepted number of branches within five years in unbanked centres. Government subsidised the bank for opening unremunerative branches in non-urban centres. The seven banks now forming subsidiaries of SBI were nationalised in the year 1960. This brought one-third of the banking segment under the direct control of the Government of India. But the major process of nationalisation was carried out on 19th July 1969, when the then Prime Minister of India, Mrs.Indira Gandhi announced the nationalisation of fourteen major commercial banks in the country. One more phase of nationalisation was carried out in the year 1980, when seven more banks were nationalised. This brought 80% of the banking segment in India under Government ownership. The country entered the second phase, i.e. the phase of Nationalised Banking with emphasis on Social Banking in 1969/70. Chronology of Salient steps by the Government after Independence to Regulate Banking Institutions in the Country 1949: Enactment of Banking Regulation Act. 1955 (Phase I): Nationalisation of State Bank of India 1959 (Phase II): Nationalisation of SBI subsidiaries 1961: Insurance cover extended to deposits 1969 (Phase III): Nationalisation of 14 major banks 1971: Creation of credit guarantee corporation 1975: Creation of regional rural banks 1980 (Phase IV): Nationalisation of seven banks with deposits over 200 crores. Shortcomings in the Functioning of Nationalised Banking Institutions However Nationalised banks in their enthusiasm for development banking, looking exclusively to branch opening, deposit accretion and social banking, neglected prudential norms, profitability criteria, risk-management and building adequate capital as a buffer to counter-balance the ever expanding risk-inherent assets held by them. They failed to recognise the emerging non-performing assets and to build adequate provisions to neutralise the adverse effects of such assets. Basking in the sunshine of Government ownership that gave to the public implicit faith and confidence about the sustainability of Government-owned institutions, they failed to collect before hand whatever is needed for the rainy day. And surfeit blindly indulged is sure to bring the sick hour. In the early Nineties after two decades of lop-sided policies, these banks paid heavily for their misdirected performance in place of pragmatic and balanced policies. The RBI/Government of India has to step in at the crisis-hour to implement remedial steps. Reforms in the financial and banking sectors and liberal re capitalisation of the ailing and weakened public sector banks followed. However it is relevant to mention here that the advent of banking sector reforms brought the era of modern banking of global standards in the history of Indian banking. The emphasis shifted to efficient, and prudential banking linked to better customer care and customer service. The old ideology of social banking was not abandoned, but the responsibility for development banking is blended with the paramount need for complying with norms of prudency and efficiency. Composition of Indian Banking System The Indian banking can be broadly categorized into nationalized (government owned), private banks and specialized banking institutions 2. The Reserve Bank of India acts a centralized body monitoring any discrepancies and shortcoming in the system. Since the nationalization of banks in 1969, the public sector banks or the nationalized banks have acquired a place of prominence and has since then seen tremendous progress. The need to become highly customer focused has forced the slow-moving public sector banks to adopt a fast track approach. The unleashing of products and services through the net has galvanized players at all levels of the banking and financial institutions market grid to look into their existing portfolio offering. Conservative banking practices allowed Indian banks to be insulated partially from the Asian currency crisis. Indian banks are now quoting al higher valuation when compared to banks in other Asian countries (viz. Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines etc.) that have major problems linked to huge Non Performing Assets (NPAs) and payment defaults. Co-operative banks are nimble footed in approach and armed with efficient branch networks focus primarily on the high revenue niche retail segments. The Indian banking has come from a long way from being a sleepy business institution to a highly proactive and dynamic entity. This transformation has been largely brought about by the large dose of liberalization and economic reforms that allowed banks to explore new business opportunities rather than generating revenues from conventional streams (i.e. borrowing and lending). The banking in India is highly fragmented with 30 banking units contributing to almost 50% of deposits and 60% of advances. Indian nationalized banks (banks owned by the government) continue to be the major lenders in the economy due to their sheer size and penetrative networks which assures them high deposit mobilization. The banking system has three tiers. These are the scheduled commercial banks; the Regional rural banks which operate in rural areas not covered by the scheduled banks; And the cooperative and special purpose rural banks. Under the ambit of the nationalized banks come the specialized banking institutions. These co-operatives, rural banks focus on areas of agriculture, rural development etc., unlike commercial banks these co-operative banks do not lend on the basis of a prime lending rate. They also have various tax sops because of their holding pattern and lending structure and hence have lower overheads. This enables them to give a marginally higher percentage on savings deposits. Many of these cooperative banks diversified into specialized areas (catering to the vast retail audience) like car finance, housing loans, truck finance etc. In order to keep pace with their public sector and private counterparts, the co-operative banks too have invested heavily in information technology to offer high-end computerized banking services to its clients. Given below is the total list of banks operating in India. SCHEDULED AND NON SCHEDULED BANKS There are approximately Eighty scheduled commercial banks, Indian and foreign; almost Two Hundred regional rural banks; more than Three Hundred Fifty central cooperative banks, Twenty land development banks; and a number of primary agricultural credit societies. In terms of business, the public sector banks, namely the State Bank of India and the nationalized banks, dominate the banking sector.India had a fairly well developed commercial banking system in existence at the time of independence in 1947. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was established in 1935. While the RBI became a state owned institution from January 1, 1949, the Banking Regulation Act was enacted in 1949 providing a framework for regulation and supervision of commercial banking activity. The first step towards the nationalisation of commercial banks was the result of a report (under the aegis of RBI) by the Committee of Direction of All India Rural Credit Survey (1951) which till today is the locus classicus on the subject. The Committee recommended one strong integrated state partnered commercial banking institution to stimulate banking development in general and rural credit in particular. Thus, the Imperial Bank was taken over by the Government and renamed as the State Bank of India (SBI) on July 1, 1955 with the RBI acquiring overriding substantial holding of shares. A number of erstwhile banks owned by princely states were made subsidiaries of SBI in 1959. Thus, the beginning of the Plan era also saw the emergence of public ownership of one of the most prominent of the commercial banks. The All-India Rural Credit Survey Committee Report, 1954 recommended an integrated approach to cooperative credit and emphasised the need for viable credit cooperative societies by expanding their area of operation, encouraging rural savings and diversifying business. The Committee also recommended for Government participation in the share capital of the cooperatives. The report subsequently paved the way for the present structure and composition of the Cooperative Banks in the country There was a feeling that though the Indian banking system had made considerable progress in the 50s and 60s, it established close links between commercial and industry houses, resulting in cornering of bank credit by these segments to the exclusion of agriculture and small industries. To meet these concerns, in 1967, the Government introduced the concept of social control in the banking industry. The scheme of social control was aimed at bringing some changes in the management and distribution of credit by the commercial banks. The close link between big business houses and big banks was intended to be snapped or at least made ineffective by the reconstitution of the Board of Directors to the effect that 51 per cent of the directors were to have special knowledge or practical experience. Appointment of whole-time Chairman with special knowledge and practical experience of working of commercial banks or financial or economic or business administration was intended to professionalise t he top management. Imposition of restrictions on loans to be granted to the directors concerns was another step towards avoiding undesirable flow of credit to the units in which the directors were interested. The scheme also provided for the take-over of banks under certain circumstances. Political compulsion then partially attributed to inadequacies of the social control, led to the Government of India nationalising, in 1969,fourteen major scheduled commercial banks which had deposits above a cut-off size. The objective was to serve better the needs of development of the economy in conformity with national priorities and objectives. In a somewhat repeat of the same experience, eleven years after nationalisation, the Government announced the nationalisation of seven more scheduled commercial banks above the cut-off size. The second round of nationalisation gave an impression that if a private sector bank grew to the cut-off size it would be under the threat of nationalisation. From the fifties a number of exclusively state-owned development financial institutions (DFIs) were also set up both at the national and state level, with a lone exception of Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation (ICICI) which had a minority private share holding. The mutual fund activity was also a virtual monopoly of Government owned institution, viz., the Unit Trust of India. Refinance institutions in agriculture and industry sectors were also developed, similar in nature to the DFIs. Insurance, both Life and General, also became state monopolies. REFORM MEASURES The major challenge of the reform has been to introduce elements of market incentive as a dominant factor gradually replacing the administratively coordinated planned actions for development. Such a paradigm shift has several dimensions, the corporate governance being one of the important elements. The evolution of corporate governance in banks, particularly, in PSBs, thus reflects changes in monetary policy, regulatory environment, and structural transformations and to some extent, on the character of the self-regulatory organizations functioning in the financial sector. Policy Environment During the reform period, the policy environment enhanced competition and provided greater opportunity for exercise of what may be called genuine corporate element in each bank to replace the elements of coordinated actions of all entities as a joint family to fulfill predetermined Plan priorities. Greater competition has been infused in the banking system by permitting entry of private sector banks (Nine licences since 1993), and liberal licensing of more branches by foreign banks and the entry of new foreign banks. With the development of a multi-institutional structure in the financial sector, emphasis is on efficiency through competition irrespective of ownership. Since non-bank intermediation has increased, banks have had to improve efficiency to ensure survival. REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT Prudential regulation and supervision have formed a critical component of the financial sector reform programme since its inception, and India has endeavored to international prudential norms and practices. These norms have been progressively tightened over the years, particularly against the backdrop of the Asian crisis. Bank exposures to sensitive sectors such as equity and real estate have been curtailed. The Banking Regulation Act 1949 prevents connected lending (i.e. lending by banks to directors or companies in which Directors are interested). Periodical inspection of banks has been the main instrument of supervision, though recently there has been a move toward supplementary on-site inspections with off-site surveillance. The system of Annual Financial Inspection was introduced in 1992, in place of the earlier system of Annual Financial Review/Financial Inspections. The inspection objectives and procedures, have been redefined to evaluate the banks safety and soundness; to appraise the quality of the Board and management; to ensure compliance with banking laws regulation; to provide an appraisal of soundness of the banks assets; to analyse the financial factors which determine banks solvency and to identify areas where corrective action is needed to strengthen the institution and improve its performance. Inspection based upon the new guidelines have started since 1997. SELF REGULATORY ORGANIZATIONS India has had the distinction of experimenting with Self Regulatory Organisations (SROs) in the financial system since the pre-independence days. At present, there are four SROs in the financial system Indian Banks Association (IBA), Foreign Exchange Dealers Association of India (FEDAI), Primary Dealers Association of India (PDAI) and Fixed Income Money Market Dealers Association of India (FIMMDAI). INDIAN BANKS ASSOCIATION The IBA established in 1946 as a voluntary association of banks, strove towards strengthening the banking industry through consensus and co-ordination. Since nationalisation of banks, PSBs tended to dominate IBA and developed close links with Government and RBI. Often, the reactive and consensus and coordinated approach bordered on cartelisation. To illustrate, IBA had worked out a schedule of benchmark service charges for the services rendered by member banks, which were not mandatory in nature, but were being adopted by all banks. The practice of fixing rates for services of banks was consistent with a regime of administered interest rates but not consistent with the principle of competition. Hence, the IBA was directed by the RBI to desist from working out a schedule of benchmark service charges for the services rendered by member banks. Responding to the imperatives caused by the changing scenario in the reform era, the IBA has, over the years, refocused its vision, redefined its role, and modified its operational modalities. FOREIGN EXCHANGE DEALERS ASSOCIATION OF INDIA (FEDAI) In the area of foreign exchange, FEDAI was established in 1958, and banks were required to abide by terms and conditions prescribed by FEDAI for transacting foreign exchange business. In the light of reforms, FEDAI has refocused its role by giving up fixing of rates, but plays a multifarious role covering training of banks personnel, accounting standards, evolving risk measurement models like the VaR

Discoveries of the (Dinosaur) Incisivosaurus Gauthier, and (Hominid) Sahelanthropus Tchadensis :: Anthropology Essays Paleontology Papers

Discoveries of the (Dinosaur) Incisivosaurus Gauthier, and (Hominid) Sahelanthropus Tchadensis In the year 2002 a bizarre looking theropod dinosaur fossil was found in China (Xu). It challenges the way researchers have been thinking of theropods and other dinosaurs for a long time. In the Sahara desert, the oldest hominid skull in the world was found that same year. These are just two of many discoveries that have challenged the way we perceive the ancient world. Incisivosaurus Gauthier was what is believed to be a primitive Oviraptorosaurian that was recently discovered in China. The Theropod and its highly specialized skull is described as a bizarre creature that lived 128 million years ago (Gee). The characteristic that â€Å"sticks out† the most are it’s rodent-like teeth. Harry Gee has described the dinosaur as â€Å"a [cross between] Roadrunner [and] Bugs Bunny† (Ibid.) and Hillary Mayell calls it a â€Å"’Weird’ Bucktoothed Dino.† (Mayell) Oviraptorosaurians are known for their specialized skulls and for being egg thieves, which is where they get their name. It was later discovered that they were more than likely near the nests not to eat the eggs but hatch them. In Mongolia there was a discovery of a fossil of a female Oviraptor shielding her nest from a sandstorm (Mayell). They are thought to have evolved in the early Cretaceous (Xu). The Cretaceous period, is the interval of time that came just after the most well known of periods in the earth’s history, the Jurassic. Xing Xu, the man who with his team found Incisivosaurus, works for Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing, China. Xu and his team believe that this find proves that not all theropods ate meat (Ibid). In an article for the National Geographic, Phillip Currie of the Royal Tyrell Museum of Paleontology in Canada says, "These teeth are totally inappropriate for eating meat. Even with the beak, we had always assumed that oviraptorosuars were still carnivorous—hawks and eagles do it quite well. But these teeth are teeth you expect to see in an herbivore† (Mayell). Researchers believe that Incisivosaurus shows a link between typical theropods and the more rare or at least bizarre Oviraptorosaurians which are more birdlike (Gee). Xu also believes that this may show a link between the Oviraptorosaurians and an herbivorous group of dinosaurs, the Therizinosaurs. Which shows that not all of them were carnivores (Mayell).

Assessment of Blood Brothers, by Willy Russell :: Blood Brothers Essays

Assessment of Blood Brothers. Paper 1 unit 2 'Blood Brouthers' when we first was told about the play I did not know what it was about, I had heard of it before but I had never seen or read any of the play. Then we were told the basic story of the play and the playwright's history:  · The play was set in the early 1970  · It was written by the playwright Billy Russell  · There have been two different versions of the play scripts that have been written by Billy Russell, one being the original and the other being a modern musical version.  · The story is based on two different types of people in different types of classes and how children cannot see the differences.  · The play is based in Liverpool and at this time (1970's) there was a mixture of the wealthy and working class people.  · Billy Russell has based the play on his upbringing as he was brought up in a working class family in Liverpool  · The story is basically about a working class woman who works for a wealthy woman, the working class woman has 7 children and she finds out she is pregnant again with twins and her husband has just left her so the wealthy woman persuades the working class woman to give her one of the twins. The two twins meet at various points in there life's, they meet as young children and become friends when young adults, when they find out that they are twins they both die because the wealthy women kills them both. To get us to understand the play we read more into it by taking scrip's from the musical and the original, and developing them by using: Brainstorming We brainstormed a lot about the play, what we all knew about it. We also brainstorm about the different themes of the play, money, dreams, friendship and superstition we then linked them to the play. This helped me a lot because I did not know the full play and this helped me understand the themes and how they connected to the play. Still-image In my group we created a few still-images to help use decide each theme and to make use understand it more and were the themes come into the different parts of the play. We also created a caption to go with each still-image so that it helps other groups to understand what each still image is about. Narration We used narration at many different times but that was also because

Factors Influencing Moral Development Essay

The following are the most important factors that influence moral development; Family, which takes four influence forms; the family’s behaviour acts as a model for the behaviour of the child, who imitates what he observes in others. By the use of approval or disapproval, reward or punishment, the family teaches the child to behave in a socially desirable manner. By planning the punishment to fit the misrecognize severity of his wrongdoing. And the family can do much to motivate the child to do right. Playmates, as the child grows older the influence of group is very strong. Schools, when the relationship between teacher and pupils is good, the general morale of the class improves. Sunday school and Church, wholesome religious experiences have marked influence on the values of children help them to learn to behave in a moral way (Woodruff, 1945). Read more: Explain how children and young peoples development is influenced by a range of personal factors essay Recreational Activities, it is assumed that the child’s moral standards are influenced by his reading, parents and teachers encourage children to rea books which will contribute to the establishment of desirable concepts. Intelligence, it is needed also to be able to distinguish between right and wrong and to be able to foresee the consequences of his acts. Sex, boys and girls do not differ in morality as a result of native factors. On the other hand, culture does not expect the same behaviour pattern of girls that it expects from boys. Girls tell more lies of a social type. Boys misbehave more in school and at home (Siruno, 2005).

Whole Food Nutrition vs. Vitamin Supplements

Whole Food Nutrition vs. Vitamin Supplements Whole Food Nutrition vs. Synthetic Vitamins which is healthier? Ever since I can remember my mom has been a health nut. We have always taken nutritional supplements and eaten organic food as much as possible. Over the years of taking vitamins supplements, I didn’t notice a change in my health. I did notice when I ate whole foods I felt better than when I ate chemically manufactured fast food. The fast food made my stomach burn. I can also remember not eating meat until I went to school. I think that vitamins are a waste of money. All they do is make my pee turn yellow. Whole food nutrition, which consists of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, seeds and nuts, is the only way to live. Fruits and vegetables contain essential vitamins, minerals and fiber that protect us from chronic diseases. Compared with people who consume small amounts of fruits and vegetables, those who eat more generous amounts as a part of a healthful diet are likely to have reduced risk of chronic disease (â€Å"Fruit†). Americans want to believe in vitamin and mineral pills. We spend an estimated $10 Billion on them in 2008, according to the Nutrition Business Journal (â€Å"One a Day†). Major health organizations for cancer, diabetes, and heart disease all advise against supplements in favor of healthful diet rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains and legumes. Unlike pills, those foods contain fiber plus thousands of health protective substances that seem to work together more powerfully than any single ingredient can work alone (â€Å"One a Day†). Eating whole food is the safest way of getting nutritional support for our bodies and immune system. Since food is not a pill, over dosing is never a problem. Over eating can be a problem, causing weight gain and other health issues. On the other hand over dosing on vitamins can be toxic if taken in high doses for a long time. For instance, beta-carotene can increase the risk of lung cancer in smokers. In addition, a government surveys found that more than 11 percent of adults take at least 400 units of vitamin E a day, a dose that has been linked to heart failure, strokes, and increased risk of death (â€Å"One a Day†). There are foods that provide nutrients that our bodies need instead of having to swallow so many expensive pills. There are foods that provide natural energy for our bodies, foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and beans. People who want to spice up weight loss add cayenne and other spicy peppers and salsas to their diet. Studies show that very spicy food temporarily increase that rate which fat is burned (â€Å"Total†). So instead of taking a fat burning pill, eat fat burning foods. Here is so information on how to spot whole food. Look for foods as close to their natural state as possible. For an example think of the continuum from whole apples to applesauce to cider to apple juice. Be sure you can identify the real food in a product. If you can’t tell what the original source is, then a product has probably strayed too far from its natural state. Experts believe that nutrients likely act differently when they exist in the unique combinations that occur naturally in foods. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds contain a virtual symphony of vitamins, minerals and fiber that likely work together to shore up health and help protect against chronic disease. When you ingest whole food instead of a single nutrient, it’s like walking through an entire forest rather than looking at a single leaf (Palmer). Vitamins have lost their sheen, and there are more doubts than ever about taking them in pill form. Large doses of single vitamins aren’t a good idea, the benefit is doubtful, and some can cause harm (â€Å"Vitamins†). It’s so funny when I walk into a vitamin store and the sales associates run up and offer all the latest vitamin supplements that help this part of the body and that keep you from contracting this disease. I wasn’t looking for vitamins in the first place. I go to vitamin shops for protein powder. Here are some other reasons why I’m not interested in beefing up on vitamin intake. The Physician’s Health Study II, which followed more than 14,000 male physicians for 10 years, found that supplementing with vitamins C and E did not reduce the risk of prostate cancer, cancers in total or major cardiovascular events. And the Women’s Health Study, which evaluated nearly 40,000 female health professionals for 10 years, showed that vitamin E supplements did not prevent cardiovascular disease or cancer (Palmer). Scientist believe that folic acid protects the body from developing cancerous tumors by repairing errors in DNA. Yet too much may actually nurture the growth of tumors once they form. What’s important to note is that this delicate balancing act is mostly a problem with supplemental folic acid, the form of the vitamin added to supplements and fortified foods. Not with foliate, the natural form of the vitamin found in foods. Whole foods first! Manufacturer’s of vitamin supplements make us think that food doesn’t have all the nutrients we need. So they push vitamins for all kinds of things to make us healthy, so they like us to think. After researching, I have found out that B vitamins don’t prevent heart attacks. Vitamin E doesn’t benefit people with Alzheimer’s disease. Vitamins A, C, and E do not offer any cancer protection. But nutrition experts say that getting crucial nutrients from food, when possible, is better than popping pills. The American Dietetic Association, in fact, has updated its guidelines on nutrient supplementation and now stresses that eating a wide variety of nutrient-rich foods is the best way to get needed nutrients and reduce the risk of chronic disease. The update comes at a time when nutrient supplementation continues to be a growing trend in the United States. Americans spent more than $23 billion on dietary supplements in 2007, according to the association's report, and one-third of adults use a multivitamin and mineral supplement regularly. Others use a variety of supplements, which prompts worry among health experts about the potential negative effects of mega doses (Healthday) . So what makes it better to get nutrients from foods rather than pills? â€Å"Foods are special,† said Andrea P. Boyar, an associate professor of dietetic foods and nutrition at Lehman College of the City University of New York. Foods are complex, and the nutrients within them interact in different and more beneficial ways than they would in supplements. Also, many foods contain healthy dietary fiber, which isn't part of a multivitamin supplement, she said. â€Å"Food is still the ideal,† Boyar said, stressing that she means â€Å"whole foods† — those that are not processed or are as minimally processed as possible. Yet Boyar and other nutrition experts concede that supplements can often fill dietary gaps. That's particularly true, she said, for vitamin D and calcium, especially as people age. She also cited iron, which is often needed by premenopausal women, who lose it with their monthly periods. And, for women of childbearing age, folate supplements have been shown to help prevent birth defects. Overuse of supplements, though — and particularly megadoses — worries health experts. Mega doses of vitamin E, for instance, are particularly hazardous, Boyar said. As for the ideal food-supplement balance, Penny M. Kris-Etherton, a nutrition professor at Penn State University, said that â€Å"ideal† depends on the individual but, in general, think healthy whole foods first. â€Å"Food does not just provide one nutrient but a lot of nutrients and collectively helps individuals meet their nutrient needs,† Kris-Etherton (Healthday). Whole Food Nutrition vs. Vitamin Supplements. That’s what medical scientist and research professionals are trying to determine. More and more, medical doctors are seeing individuals who practice whole food nutrition maintain a lifestyle of health, healing and vitality. Medical doctors, medical scientist and research professionals want to know why and how whole food nutrition accomplishes this. They also want to know what effect whole food nutrition has on improving the health of individuals with certain diseases, such as cancer. Medical/Scientific research is presently being conducted at various hospitals throughout the United States to see what, if any, health benefits whole food nutrition, (i. e. fruits, vegetables, berries) has on individuals with certain types of cancer. This is being done through the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute. This medical research is â€Å"gold standard†, that is, peer reviewed and will be published in medical journals. This research is exciting and the results are highly anticipated. As shown, we as a nation, spend a great deal of money trying to improve our health with vitamin supplements, when, what we might just find from this research is what Hippocrates, (300 BC), the Father of modern medicine, said: â€Å"Let medicine be your food, and food be your medicine. Words: 1,598