| Trawler explosions…Following a number of fatal incidents involving fishing trawlers, the authorities are moving to introduce several measures, including increased monitoring to ensure workers of the fishing industry are better protected.On Friday, representatives of the Guyana Private Trawler Owners and Seafood Processors Association met with the Fisheries Department of the Ministry of Agriculture where it was disclosed that the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) will be engaged.According to the Ministry, the idea is to ensure that workers within the fishing industry are protected by ensuring contributions are paid and their benefits are safeguarded.The Captain Lloyd 97 which exploded over a month ago, leaving its captain missing and four persons burnt.The issues of safety and compliance of vessels were discussed in the meeting on Friday along with the need for all requirements to be met.Additionally, the issue of up-to-date regulations and measures to further reduce incidents and accidents and workers’ safety on vessels were also raised.Authorities had started to revisit the issues of safety last month after two major incidents left three people, including a captain of a fishing trawler, dead.“The Ministry is currently collaborating with MARAD who is leading the investigation regarding the incident that occurred on Captain Lloyd 97, a trawler type vessel owned by Prittipaul Singh Investment, and is anticipating a report as soon as possible. The Ministry has completed its internal investigations.”Two persons were killed last Sunday when a trawler, the ‘Captain Tan’, exploded and subsequently sank in Suriname waters.The owner of the vessel, Mr. Sasesankar, told Kaieteur News that he had recently purchased the vessel in the United States. He said that the trawler had undergone some repairs, and the crew was heading to Suriname when the generator on the ‘Captain Tan’ exploded.Government has said that boat was not registered as a fishing vessel in Guyana.The mishap occurred just over a month after a trawler captain was killed and three others were badly burnt in a raging fire aboard a trawler.The ‘Captain Lloyd 97’ was in Region One, Essequibo, when the tragedy occurred. The captain has not been found.Last month, Minister of Works, Hydraulics and Transport, Robeson Benn, appointed a Board of Inquiry to investigate the circumstances that led to that incident.That Board of Inquiry is headed by Captain Ranchie Adams and comprises Lt. Commander Ron Charles, Captain of the Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard; Captain Michael Tennant of the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD); Major Gary Baird, Head of the Fisheries Division of MARAD; and Amanza Walton-Desir, Legal Counsel of MARAD.The Board of Inquiry will also examine the systems of operations at Prittipaul Singh Investments.The Board of Inquiry was expected to have completed its work last week.************************Tech company eyes $49,000 laptop by 2011By Leonard GildarieA major tech store says it is working to bring down the price of personal computers to as low as $49,000 by next year amidst a competitive craze to capitalize on recently introduced high-speed internet.Yesterday,Basketball Shoes Clearance Sale, Starr Computers said that in this initial phase of its roll-out plan, it is offering a bargain with a $69,000 PC that boasts a storage capacity of 320 gibabytes.President of Starr Computers, Mike Mohan, said the “Student Edition” new Xfinity Series system is a fully loaded system that comes with high-process speed of 2.7 GHZ, DVD writer and has the ability to playback and reproduce music, movies, data and much more.The tech company yesterday launched the “affordable” computer.In partnership with the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company Limited (GT&T), Starr Computers is also signing on buyers of the “cheap” PC, for internet connections.Already, Starr Computers is partnering with Republic Bank for financing of the computers. Customers can pay as little as $2,800 monthly to own one of the PCs, says Mohan.“Starr Computer’s goal is to bring the price of computers down to under $40,000 before the end of 2011. And, we welcome the government initiative to extend help to the under-privileged Guyanese with a computer in every home.”As an immediate starter, Mohan urged the government to could consider passing legislation for a credit deductable subsidy to the workers for $20,000 per household.President of Starr Computer, Mike Mohan, with the $69,000 ‘Student Edition’ computer. “…this will bring the cost of this Starr Xfinity system (Student Edition) to $49,000 for 2010.” The company said that it is ready to influence its network of resellers, contractor technicians, strategic partners and friendly competitors across Guyana to form an independent alliance with government agencies to brainstorm ideas to bring computers to every home in Guyana.According to Mohan, currently Starr’s A+ Certified Technicians are fully equipped and ready to produce an average of 50 PCs per day.“And, with our extended team of sub-contractors, we can triple our production within short notice, and, obviously, if demand increases we can embark into expansion and new job creation in Guyana.”Mohan said his company is working with Lenovo Computers (formally IBM) to launch low-priced Netbooks and Notebooks that can cost as low as $49,000 each.The executive noted that his company has been producing PCs for over 20 years in Guyana when one unit was sold for as much as $800,000.“To be in a position to now offer a new $69,000 computer is a clear commitment of our company to the Guyanese people,” Mohan said during an interview at the Starr Computers main office at Brickdam.In addition to easy navigation of top sites like Google, FaceBook, Twitter, and YouTube, the PC has four high-speed USB ports and can connect to multiple devices and appliances. “And, within another week we expect to close a special deal with another strategic partner to allow you to start your home school training in Mathematics and English directly on-line from your computer.“More strategic partners are expected to come on stream with Starr Computer to deliver more services to all Guyanese.”In just another week, the company said it will be launching its Starr Xfinity Business and Gaming models in Guyana.It was only Thursday that GT&T launched its highly anticipated Suriname/Guyana Submarine Cable System which is capable of bringing high-speed internet to Guyana.Already several partnerships are being established with GT&T. President Bharrat Jagdeo has since announced plans to spend $6B over the next three years to give 90,000 poor families laptop computers. |
