CDS : Syllabus, Scheme and Standard of Exam

A. Scheme of Examination

1. The Competitive examination comprises:

(a) Written examination.

(b) Interview for intelligence and personality test (vide Part 'B' of this Appendix) of such candidates as may be called for interview at one of the Services Selection Centres.

2. The subjects of the written examination, the time allowed and the maximum marks allotted to each subject will be as follows:

(a) For Admission to Indian Military Academy, Naval Academy and Air Force Academy.

Subject	Duration	Maximum Marks
1. English	2 Hours	100
2. General Knowledge	2 Hours	100
3. Elementary Mathematics	2 Hours	100

(b) For Admission to Officers' Training Academy

Subject	Duration	Maximum Marks
1. English	2 Hrs	100
2. General Knowledge	2 Hrs.	100

The maximum marks allotted to the written examination and to the interviews will be equal for each course i.e. the maximum marks allotted to the written examination and to the interviews will be 300,300,300 and 200 each for admission to the Indian Military Academy, Naval Academy, Air Force Academy and Officers' Training Academy respectively.

3. The papers in all the subjects will consist of objective type questions only. The question papers (test booklets) of general knowledge and elementary mathematics will be set in bilingually in Hindi as well as English .

4. In the question papers, wherever necessary, questions involving the metric system of Weights and Measures only will be set.

5. Candidates must write the papers in their own hand. In no circumstances will they be allowed the help of a scribe to write answers for them.

6. The Commission have discretion to fix qualifying marks in any or all the subjects of the examination.

7. The candidates are not permitted to use calculator for answering objective type papers (Test Booklets). They should not therefore, bring the same inside the Examination Hall.

B. Standard and Syllabus of the Examination

Standard

The standard of the papers in Elementary Mathematics will be of Matriculation level.

The standard of papers in other subjects will approximately be such as may be expected of a graduate of an Indian University.

Syllabus

English (Code No. 01)

The question paper will be designed to test the candidates' understanding of English and workmanlike use of words.

General Knowledge (Code No. 02)

General Knowledge including knowledge of current events and of such matters of everyday observation and experience in their scientific aspects as may be expected of an educated person who has not made a special study of any scientific subject. The paper will also include questions on History of India and Geography of a nature which candidate should be able to answer without special study.

Elementary Mathematics (Code No. 03)

Arithmetic

Number System-Natural numbers, Integers, Rational and Real numbers. Fundamental operations addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, Square roots, Decimal fractions.

Unitary method-time and distance, time and work, percentages, applications to simple and compound interest, profit and loss, ratio and proportion, variation.

Elementary Number Theory- Division algorithm. Prime and composite numbers. Tests of divisibility by 2,3,4,5,9 and 11. Multiples and factors. Factorisation Theorem. H.C.F. and L.C.M. Euclidean algorithm, Logarithms to base 10, laws of logarithms, use of logarithmic tables.

Algebra

Basic Operations, simple factors, Remainder Theorem, H.C.F., L.C.M. Theory of polynomials, solutions of quadratic equations, relation between its roots and coefficients (Only real roots to be considered). Simultaneous linear equations in two unknowns-analytical and graphical solutions. Simultaneous linear equations in two variables and their solutions. Practical problems leading to two simultaneous linear equations or inequations in two variables or quadratic equations in one variable & their solutions. Set language and set notation, Rational expressions and conditional identities, Laws of indices.

Trigonometry

Sine x, cosine x, Tangent x when 0⁰ < x < 90⁰

Values of sin x, cos x and tan x, for x = 0⁰, 30⁰, 45⁰, 60⁰ and 90⁰

Simple trigonometric identities.

Use of trigonometric tables.

simple cases of heights and distances.

Geometry

Lines and angles, Plane and plane figures, Theorems on (i) Properties of angles at a point (ii) Parallel lines, (iii) Sides and angles of a triangle, (iv) Congruency of triangles, (v) Similar triangles, (vi) Concurrence of medians and altitudes, (vii) Properties of angles, sides and diagonals of a parallelogram, rectangle and square (viii) Circles and its properties including tangents and normals, (ix) Loci.

Mensuration

Areas of squares, rectangles, parallelograms, triangle and circle. Areas of figures which can be split up into these figures (Field Book), Surface area and volume of cuboids, lateral surface and volume of right circular cones and cylinders, surface area and volume of spheres.

Statistics

Collection and tabulation of statistical data, Graphical representation frequency polygons, histograms, bar charts, pie charts etc. Measures of central tendency.

Intelligence and personality test

In addition to the interview the candidates will be put to Intelligence Tests both verbal and non-verbal, designed to assess their basic intelligence. They will also be put to Group Tests such as group discussions, group planning, outdoor group tasks, and asked to give brief lectures on specified subjects. All these tests are intended to judge the mental calibre of a candidate. In broad terms, this is really an assessment of not only his intellectual qualities but also his social traits and interests in current affairs.

For more details visit :

Appendix I- Scheme, standard and syllabus

Appendix II- General Instructions

Appendix III- List of Post Offices where Application forms are available

Appendix IV-Special Instructions for conventional Type of papers

Appendix V- Guidelines with regard to Physical Standards for Candidates for Combined Defence Services Examination.

Appendix VI - Brief Particulars of service etc.

For NDA Syllabus and Scheme of Exam Visit :

1. NDA

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NDA : Syllabus and Scheme of Examination

A. Scheme of Examination

1. The subjects of the written examination, the time allowed and the maximum marks allotted to each subject will be as follows :–

Subject	Code	Duration	Maximum Marks
Mathematics	01	2-½ Hours	300
General Ability Test	02	2-½ Hours	600
			Total 900

2. The papers in all the subjects will consist of objective type questions only. The question papers (Test Booklets) OF MATHEMATICS AND PART "b" OF GENERAL ABILITY TESTS WILL BE SET BILINGUALLY IN HINDI AS WELL AS ENGLISH.

3. In the question papers, wherever necessary, questions involving the metric system of Weights and Measures only will be set.

4. Candidates must write the papers in their own hand. In no circumstances will they be allowed the help of a scribe to write answers for them.

5. The Commission have discretion to fix qualifying marks in any or all the subjects at the examination.

6. The candidates are not permitted to use calculator or Mathematical or logarithmic table for answering objective type papers (Test Booklets). They should not therefore, bring the same inside the Examination Hall.

B. Syllabus of the Examination

Paper-I
Mathematics
(Code No. 01)
(Maximum Marks - 300)

1Algebra :
Concept of a set, operations on sets, Venn diagrams. De Morgan laws. Cartesian product, relation, equivalence relation.

Representation of real numbers on a line. Complex numbers - basic properties, modulus, argument, cube roots of unity. Binary system of numbers. Conversion of a number in decimal system to binary system and vice-versa. Arithmetic, Geometric and Harmonic progressions. Quadratic equations with real coefficients. Solution of linear inequations of two variables by graphs. Permutation and Combination. Binomial theorem and its application. Logarithms and their applications.

2.Matrices and Determinants:

Types of matrices, operations on matrices Determinant of a matrix, basic properties of determinant. Adjoint and inverse of a square matrix, Applications - Solution of a system of linear equations in two or three unknowns by Cramer's rule and by Matrix Method.

3.Trigonometry:

Angles and their measures in degrees and in radians. Trigonometrical ratios. Trigonometric identities Sum and difference formulae. Multiple and Sub-multiple angles. Inverse trigonometric functions. Applications - Height and distance, properties of triangles.

4.Analytical Geometry of two and three dimensions:

Rectangular Cartesian Coordinate system. Distance formula. Equation of a line in various forms. Angle between two lines. Distance of a point from a line. Equation of a circle in standard and in general form. Standard forms of parabola, ellipse and hyperbola. Eccentricity and axis of a conic.

Point in a three dimensional space, distance between two points. Direction Cosines and direction ratios. Equation of a plane and a line in various forms. Angle between two lines and angle between two planes. Equation of a sphere.

5.Differential Calculus:

Concept of a real valued function - domain, range and graph of a function. Composite functions, one to one, onto and inverse functions. Notion of limit, Standard limits - examples. Continuity of functions - examples, algebraic operations on continuous functions. Derivative of a function at a point, geometrical and physical interpreatation of a derivative - applications. Derivatives of sum, product and quotient of functions, derivative of a function with respect of another function, derivative of a composite function. Second order derivatives. Increasing and decreasing functions. Application of derivatives in problems of maxima and minima.

6.Integral Calculus and Differential equations:

Integration as inverse of differentiation, integration by substitution and by parts, standard integrals involving algebraic expressions, trigonometric, exponential and hyperbolic functions. Evaluation of definite integrals - determination of areas of plane regions bounded by curves - applications.
Definition of order and degree of a differential equation, formation of a differential equation by examples. General and particular solution of a differential equation, solution of first order and first degree differential equations of various types - examples. Application in problems of growth and decay.

7. Vector Algebra :_

Vectors in two and three dimensions, magnitude and direction of a vector. Unit and null vectors, addition of vectors, scalar multiplication of vector, scalar product or dot product of two-vectors. Vector product and cross product of two vectors. Applications-work done by a force and moment of a force, and in geometrical problems.

8.Statistics and Probability :-

Statistics: Classification of data, Frequency distribution, cumulative frequency distribution - examples Graphical representation - Histogram, Pie Chart, Frequency Polygon - examples. Measures of Central tendency - mean, median and mode. Variance and standard deviation - determination and comparison. Correlation and regression.

Probability : Random experiment, outcomes and associated sample space, events, mutually exclusive and exhaustive events, impossible and certain events. Union and Intersection of events. Complementary, elementary and composite events. Definition of probability - classical and statistical - examples. Elementary theorems on probability - simple problems. Conditional probability, Bayes' theorem - simple problems. Random variable as function on a sample space. Binomial distribution, examples of random experiments giving rise to Binominal distribution.

Paper-II
General Ability Test
(Code No. 02)

(Maximum Marks-600)

Part 'A' - ENGLISH (Maximum Marks 200). The question paper in English will be designed to test the candidate's understanding of English and workman like use of words. The syllabus covers various aspects like : Grammar and usage, vocabulary, comprehension and cohesion in extended text to test the candidate's proficiency in English.

Part 'B' - GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

(Maximum Marks-400)

The question paper on General Knowledge will broadly cover the subjects : Physics, Chemistry, General Science, Social Studies, Geography and Current Events.

The syllabus given below is designed to indicate the scope of these subjects included in this paper. The topics mentioned are not to be regarded as exhaustive and questions on topics of similar nature not specifically mentioned in the syllabus may also be asked. Candidate's answers are expected to show their knowledge and intelligent understanding of the subject.

Section 'A' (Physics)

Physical Properties and States of Matter, Mass, Weight, Volume, Density and Specific Gravity, Principle of Archimedes, Pressure Barometer.

Motion of objects, Velocity and Acceleration, Newton's Laws of Motion, Force and Momentum, Parallelogram of Forces, Stability and Equilibrium of bodies, Gravitation, elementary ideas of work, Power and Energy.

Effects of Heat, Measurement of temperature and heat, change of State and Latent Heat, Modes of transference of Heat.

Sound waves and their properties, Simple musical instruments.

Rectilinear propagation of Light, Reflection and refraction. Spherical mirrors and Lenses. Human Eye.

Natural and Artificial Magnets, Properties of a Magnet, Earth as a Magnet.

Static and Current Electricity, conductors and Non-conductors, Ohm's Law, Simple Electrical Circuits, Heating, Lighting and Magnetic effects of Current, Measurement of Electrical Power, Primary and Secondary Cells, Use of X-Rays.

General Principles in the working of the following :

Simple Pendulum, Simple Pulleys, Siphon, Levers, Balloon, Pumps, Hydrometer, Pressure Cooker, Thermos Flask, Gramophone, Telegraphs, Telephone, Periscope, Telescope, Microscope, Mariner's Compass; Lightening Conductors, Safety Fuses.

Section 'B' (Chemistry)

Physical and Chemical changes. Elements, Mixtures and Compounds, Symbols, Formulae and simple Chemical Equations, Law of Chemical Combination (excluding problems). Properties of Air and Water.

Preparation and Properties of Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen and Carbondioxide, Oxidation and Reduction.

Acids, bases and salts.

Carbon - different forms.

Fertilizers - Natural and Artificial

Material used in the preparation of substances like soap, Glass, Ink, Paper, Cement, Paints, Safety Matches, and Gun-Powder.

Elementary ideas about the Structure of Atom, Atomic, Equivalent and Molecular Weights, Valency.

Section 'C' (General Science)

Difference between the living and non- living.

Basis of Life - Cells, Protoplasms and Tissues.

Growth and Reproduction in Plants and Animals.

Elementary knowledge of human Body and its important organs.

Common Epidemics, their causes and prevention.

Food - Source of Energy for man. Constituents of food, Balanced Diet.

The Solar System - Meteors and Comets, Eclipses.

Achievements of Eminent Scientists.

Section 'D' (History, Freedom Movement etc.)

A broad survey of Indian History, with emphasis on Culture and Civilisation.

Freedom Movement in India.

Elementary study of Indian Constitution and Administration.

Elementary knowledge of Five Year Plans of India.

Panchayati Raj, Co-operatives and Community Development.

Bhoodan, Sarvodaya, National Integration and Welfare State, Basic Teachings of Mahatma Gandhi.

Forces shaping the modern world; Renaissance, Exploration and Discovery; War of American Independence. French Revolution, Industrial Revolution and Russian Revolution. Impact of Science and Technology on Society. Concept of one World, United Nations, Panchsheel, Democracy. Socialism and Communism. Role of India in the present world.

Section 'E' (Geography)

The Earth, its shape and size. Lattitudes and Longitudes, Concept of time. International Date Line. Movements of Earth and their effects.

Origin of Earth. Rocks and their classification; Weathering - Mechanical and Chemical, Earthquakes and volcanoes.

Ocean Currents and Tides

Atmosphere and its composition; Temperature and Atmospheric Pressure, Planetary Winds, cyclones and Anti-cyclones; Humidity; Condensation and Precipitation; Types of Climate. Major Natural regions of the World.

Regional Geography of India - Climate, Natural vegetation. Mineral and Power resources; location and distribution of agricultural and industrial activities.

Important Sea ports and main sea, land and air routes of India. Main items of Imports and Exports of India.

Section 'F' (Current Events)

Knowledge of Important events that have happened in India in the recent years.

Current important world events.

Prominent personalities - both Indian and International including those connected with cultural activities and sports.

NOTE :

Out of maximum marks assigned to part 'B' of this paper, questions on Sections 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D', 'E' and 'F' will carry approximately 25%, 15%, 10%, 20%, 20% and 10% weightages respectively.

Intelligence and personality test

In addition to the interview the candidates will be put to Intelligence Tests both verbal and non-verbal, designed to assess their basic intelligence. They will also be put to Group Tests such as group discussions, group planning, outdoor group tasks, and asked to give brief lectures on specified subjects. All these tests are intended to judge the mental caliber of a candidate. In broad terms, this is really an assessment of not only his intellectual qualities but also his social traits and interests in current affairs.

For more details visit :

Examination Notice No.

Appendix I- Scheme, standard and syllabus

Appendix II- General Instructions

Appendix III- List of Post Offices where Application forms are available

Appendix IV-Special Instructions to candidates for objective type tests

Appendix V- Physical Standards for Candidates

Appendix VI- Brief Particulars of service

for CDS related news click here

for CDS Syllabus and Scheme of Exam click here

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Rajasthan GK : RAS Mains

PAPER II. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE OF RAJASTHAN,RAJASTHANI SOCIETY, ART & CULTURE

1. Geography and Natural Resources -
(a) Broad Physical Features : Topography, Climate, Vegetation and Soil Regions, Rivers, Mountains, Lakes, Natural divisions, Geographical regions.
(b) Natural Resources : Mines and Minerals, Forest, Land and Water, Wild life and Conservation, Environmental Ecology.
(c) Livestock and Fisheries, Breed, Population, Regional Distribution, Cattle Fairs.
(d) Human Resources, Population problem, Unemployment, Poverty, Drought and Famines.
(e) Energy Problems and Conventional and Non-conventional sources of energy.

2. Agriculture & Industry - Food and Commercial Crops, Agriculture based Industries. Major and Minor Irrigation & River Valley Projects. Projects for the development of the desert and waste land, Indira Gandhi Canal Project. Growth and location of Industries, Industrial raw materials. Mineral Based Industries, Large, Small and Cottage Industries, Rajasthani Handicrafts.

3. Economic Development and Planning - Various Economic Plans. Programmes and Institutions for development, Co-operative movement, Small Enterprises and Financial Institutions, Various indicators of Economic development.

4. History, Polity, Art & Culture - History & Culture of Rajasthan with special reference to :

1. The mediaeval background.
2. Socio-economic life and organizations.
3. Freedom Movement and Political awakening.
4. Political Integration.
5. Music, dance & theatre.
6. Religious beliefs, cults, saints, poets and warrior saints 'Lok Devta', 'Lok Deviyan'.
7. Handicrafts.
8. Fairs and Festivals, Customs, Dresses & Ornaments. With special reference to fold and tribal aspects thereof.

5. Literature - Rajasthani Language, Dialects and their regions, History of language and literature, famous writers, poets and their works with special reference to folk-lore.

Books :

1. Rochak Rajasthan by Dr Chaudhary
   
2. Geography of Rajasthan by Bhalla
   
3. Economy of Rajasthan by Laxminarayan Nathuramka (latest edition)
   
4. History of Rajasthan by JS Gahlot
   
5. Rajasthan ki Sanskrtik Paramparayen by Jaysingh Niraj
   
6. books by Partiyogita Darpan
   
7. books by Upkar
   
8. books by Lakshya : Lakshya series
   
9. books by Navrang Rai's Shekhawati Publication
   
10. Rajasthan Aaj Tak by Pushpa Sharma
    

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RPSC Exam for Junior Marketing Officer

RPSC will be conducting exam for 84 posts of JMO ( Junior Marketing Officer ) in the payscale of 5500-175-9000 ,
Qualification : Graduation with Economics or BSc (Agri. )
Last Date of Filling Exam Form : 11 April 2008


for advt visit : http://rpsc.gov.in/tenders/JMO_ADVT.pdf

www.CompetitionExam.com

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BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS

BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS

* New tax slabs will be: 10 per cent for 150,000 to 300,000, 20 per cent for 300,000 to 500,000 and 30 per cent above 500,000.
* For women, the income tax limit goes up from Rs 1.45 lakh to Rs 1.80 lakh. In case of senior women citizens, it increases from Rs 1.95 lakh to Rs 2.25 lakh.
* Fresh facilities, encouragement to sports and guest houses exempted from Fringe Benefit Tax.
* Five year tax holiday for setting up hospitals in tier II and tier III regions for providing healthcare in rural areas from April 1, 2008.
* Changes in IT slab. Threshold of exemption for all Income Tax assesses raised from from 1,10,000 to 1,50,000.
* Every income tax assesses to get relief of minimum of Rs 4,000.
* No change in rate of surcharge.
* Five year tax holiday for promoting cultural tourism.
* Short-term capital gains increases to 15 per cent.
* Commodities Transaction Tax to be introduced on the lines of Securities Transaction Tax.
* Agricultural loans given by scheduled commercial banks, regional rural banks and cooperative credit institutions up to March 31, 2007 and due for December 31 that year will be covered under the waiver scheme to address the problem of indebtedness.
* No change in corporate income tax.
* Banking cash transaction tax withdrawn from April one, 2009.
* Direct tax proposals to be revenue neutral. Indirect tax proposals to result in loss of Rs 5,000 crore.
* Rs 500 crore for corpus fund to subsidies all women Self Help Groups for LIC cover for permanent disability.
* To protect tigers, Rs 50 crore for National Tiger Conservation Programme. Bulk of it to be used to raise Tiger Protection Force.
* Plan expenditure fixed at Rs 2,43,000 crore and non plan expenditure at 5,74,000 crore.
* Fiscal deficit pegged at 3.1 per cent and revenue deficit at 1.4 per cent.
* Tax to GDP ratio increased from 9.2 per cent in 2004-05 to 12.5 per cent 2007-08.
* No change in peak rate of customs duty
* Customs duty on specified life saving drugs reduced from ten per cent to five per cent.
* Special Countervailing Duty on power imports.
* General Centvat on all goods to be reduced from 16 per cent to 14 per cent. Excise duty reduced from 16 per cent to eight per cent on all pharmaceutical goods manufacture.
* Excise duty on small cars reduced to 12 per cent from 16 per cent and hybrid cars to 14 per cent.
* Excise duty reduced from 16 to 8 per cent on water purification items.
* Duty on non filter cigarettes to be raised.
* Asset management service under mutual funds, services by stock exchanges to be brought under Services Tax net.
* Customs duty on specified sports goods machinery down from 7.5 per cent to five per cent.
* Duty withdrawn on naptha for production of polymers.
* Duty on crude and unrefined sulphur reduced from five to 2 per cent to help raise domestic fertiliser production.
* Threshold for small service providers raised from Rs eight lakh to Rs 10 lakh.
* Allocation for defense to be increased by 10 per cent from Rs 96,000 crore to Rs 1,05,600 crore.
* 75 lakh people to be covered by health insurance scheme.
* Allocation for Textile Upgradation Fund to be more than doubled.
* Micro, small and medium enterprises to continue to get special attention.
* Risk Capital Fund to be set up in SIDBI.
* PAN requirement to be extended to all transactions in capital market subject to a threshold.
* Rs 750 crore for upgradation of 300 ITIs in 25 districts.
* Rs 32,676 crore as subsidy to Public Distribution System.
* PDS through smart cards in Haryana and Chandigarh on pilot basis.
* Three schemes to be introduced for providing social security to unorganised sector workers.
* Sixth central pay commission to submit report by March 31, 2008.
* Rs 624 crore allocated for Commonwealth Games
* Farmers' debt to be waived
* Complete waiver of loans for marginal farmers owning land up to one hectare and small farmers owning land up to 1 and 2 hectares.
* Agricultural loans given by scheduled commericial banks, regional rural banks and cooperative credit institutions up to March 31, 2007 and due for December 31 that year will be covered under the waiver scheme to address the problem of indebtedness.
* By loan waiver scheme, the country is discharging a deep debt and sense of gratitude to farmers, says Chidambaram.
* The corpus of rural infrastructure development fund to be raised to Rs 14,000 crore.
* More reforms needed in coal and electricity sectors to ensure double digit growth in manufacturing sector.
* One time settlement of loans for other farmers.
* Agriculture loans restructured and rescheduled by banks from 2004-06 and other loans normally rescheduled under RBI guidelines will also be eligible under the waiver scheme.
* Implementation of debt waiver and debt relief will be completed by June 30 this year.
* Loan waiver scheme to involve loans liability of Rs 60,000 crore and to benefit four crore farmers.
* Rs 800 crore for accelerated power reforms programme.
* National Fund for Transmission and Distribution Reforms to be launched.
* The loan waiver scheme will benefit three crore small and medium farmers and cover loans totaling Rs 50,000 crore.
* One crore other farmers will benefit to the tune of Rs 10,000 crore in the waiver.
* Foreign investment of 3.5 to 8 billion dollars expected for exploration and development of new oil blocks.
* Rs 7,200 crore to be allocated to the Ministry of Women and Child Development, marking an increase of 24 per cent.
* Rs 500 crore for corpus fund to subsidies all women Self Help Groups for LIC cover for permanent disability.
* A target of Rs 2.80 lakh crore for agriculture credit set for the coming year.
* Rs 644 crore for National Agriculture Insurance Scheme, which will be continued pending evolving an alternative crop insurance scheme.
* National Plant Protection Training Institute at Hyderabad to be made autonomous body and Rs.29 crore will be allocated to it.
* A scheme of debt waiver and relief for small and marginal farmers announced.
* NREGA scheme to be rolled out in all the 596 rural districts in the country in 2008-09.
* Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission to get Rs 6,865 crore this year against Rs 5,482 crore past year.
* Allocation for Rajiv Gandhi Drinking Water Mission to be increased to Rs 7,300 crore. Rs 200 crore for potable water in schools.
* Rs 300 crore to be set aside for desalination plant in Chennai for drinking water.
* Rs 500 crore for identifying urgent needs of development programmes of border areas like Arunachal Pradesh.
* Rs 20,000 crore for irrigation projects under AIPB, showing an increase of Rs 9,000 crore over last year.
* National Horticulture Mission to be given Rs 1,100 crore in 2008-09 with special focus on coconut cultivation.
* Rs 75 crore to be given to Agriculture Ministry for providing mobile soil testing laboratories in 250 districts.
* SC, ST and minority students to continue to get special attention.
* Allocation for several schemes in North East raised from Rs 14,365 crore to Rs 16,400 crore.
* Rs 75 crore sanctioned for Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship Programme for SC/ST students pursuing M.Phil.
* Rs 230 crore will be extended as additional equity to developmental organisations looking after the welfare of SC,ST, socially and economically backward classes and minorities.
* Allocation for Minority Affairs Ministry to be doubled from Rs 500 crore to Rs 1,000 crore.
* Rs 540 crore for multi-sectoral development plan for minority concentration districts.
* 288 public sector bank branches to be opened in districts having minority community concentration.
* Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan will be provided Rs 13,100 crore, Mid Day Meal scheme Rs 8,000 crore, Secondary education Scheme Rs 4,554 crore.
* 410 additional Kasturba Gandhi Vidyalaya to be set up in backward blocks.
* Navodaya Vidyalayas to be opened in 20 districts with special focus on regions having SC/ST concentration.
* Allocation of Rs 130 crore for this purpose. Rs.750 crore more to be given for merit scholarship to students up to 10th and 12th class.
* Mid day Meal scheme extended to upper primary level in 3479 schools. 16 central universities to be opened in 2008-09.
* Three IITs to be set up in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan.
* Schools of architecture and planning in Bhopal and Vijaywada. More institutes of higher education to be opened.
* Rs 100 crore to be given to Information Technology Ministry to set up national knowledge centres.
* Allocation for NRHM increased to Rs 12,050 crore
* Rs 992 crore for national AIDS programme.
* A national programme for the elderly to be started at a cost of Rs. 400 crore.
* Rashtra Swasthya Beema Yojana to start from April one in Delhi and Haryana. Rs 30,000 for each family belonging to unorganised sector.
* Allocation for ICDS increased to Rs 6300 crore.
* Rs 85 crore sanctioned for scholarships to students pursuing science education.
* Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research to be set up at Bhopal and Thiruvananthapuram.
* Agriculture credit doubled in the first two years of the government to reach Rs.2.40 lakh crore by March 2008.
* Eleventh Plan started on a robust growth.
* Gross budgetary support to be raised to Rs 2,43,386 crore, an increase of more than Rs 38,000 crore from the current level.
* Services and manufacturing sectors expected to grow by 10.7 per cent and 9.4 per cent, says Chidambaram.
* Keeping inflation under check is one of the cornerstones of the Government's policy.
* Rice production estimated at 94.08 million tones, maize 16.78 mt, soyabean 9.45 mt and cotton 23.38 million bales.
* Allocation for Bharat Nirman to be raised to Rs 31,280 crore.
* Twenty per cent hike in education budget this year from Rs 28,674 crore to Rs 34,400 crore.
* GDP growth slows down to 8.4 per cent during quarter ended December 31, 2007 as compared to 9.1 per cent a year ago.
* Economy grew over eight per cent over 12 successive quarters since 2005, says Finance Minister P Chidambaram.
* Growth rate of agriculture estimated at 2.6 per cent during the current year.

Budget Trivia :
The first budget of Independent India was presented on November 26, 1947 by India's first Finance Minister Sir R.K. Shanmugham Chetty. Since then, 28 Union Finance Ministers have been presenting the budget every year. Initially, much attention was given to the agricultural sector but as later on, the focus shifted to the other sectors including the industrial, financial and other sectors.

In the fifties, budget highlights were related to the public sector and public finance which include taxation, inflation, public savings etc. This trend continued till 1985.

The change in approach began with Mr. Manmohan Singh who was the Finance Minister under Mr. P.V. Narsimha Rao. He started the new phase of economic liberalization. The control of the Government over public sector units was reduced through disinvestment. The liberalization process which he had started still continues.

Facts Bite

• First Finance Minister: Shanmugham Chetty
• Number of Finance Minister Since Independence: 28
• Maximum Number of Budgets Presented by: Morarji Desai
• Economic Liberalization Started by: Mr. Manmohan Singh ( Finance Minister 1991)
• Current Finance Minister: Mr. P.C Chidambaram

source : indiabudget.nic.in, indiademocracy.org etc.

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Railway Budget highlights

Railway Budget highlights :

• Railway profit in 2007-08 at Rs 25,000 crore.
• Doubling of lines to be given priority.
• Railways planning smart card-based ticketing system.
• CCTvs at all important stations
• Modular toilets to be introduced in trains.
• 'Go Mumbai' card to be sold at bus depots.
• Freight loading estimated to increase from 650 mt to 1100 mt by 2011
• New policy for wagon leasing.
• New line for Ennore Power Station.
• By 2010, all coaches will be made of steel.
• Professional agencies being involved on a pilot basis to ensure cleanliness in running trains.
• Work on automatic signalling to start in new sections.
• Railways to bring in led displays in stations on train arrivals/ departures.
• Stainless steel coaches for mail and express trains.
• Cleanliness drive on rajdhani and shatabdi trains.
• Railways show a surplus of Rs 68,778 cr in last four years.
• Railways to provide escalators at 50 per cent of the stations in the country.
• Railway Minister Lalu Yadav announced that Indian Railways will introduce 15,000 ticketing counters in the next 2 years. The Railways plans to offer tickets through mobile phones.
• By 2009 call centre based inquiry services to be unveiled.
• Issuance of wait-listed e-tickets will also allowed
• Operating ratio of the Railways was at 76%.
• Rs 49,250 crore invested into new railway projects.
• Railway plan size increased from Rs 11,000 crore to Rs 30,000 crore in the last four years.
• Productivity of Railway assets has been constantly increasing.
• Railways attained 790 tonne payload target in the year 2007-08.
• E-ticket booking is likely to rise to 300,000 from 100,000 in a year.
• Freight traffic target of 785 million tonnes crossed to touch 790 million tones
• Railway plan size increased from Rs 11,000 crore to Rs 30,000 crore in the last four years.
• 560 railway station platforms to be lengthened to take long trains.
• Middle-level and low-level platforms to be upgraded to high-level platforms in several stations to help commuters.
• More facilities for women and old passengers.

source : www.IndiaDemocracy.org

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Government of Rajasthan : Budget Highlights 2008-09

- Revenue Surplus for the second consecutive year. Fiscal deficit reduced

- Equal emphasis on physical and social infrastructure of the state

- Focus on education, health and women's development

- All inter-state border check posts to be abolished from May 1, 2008

- 50 % reservation for women in all Panchayati Raj institutions

- Minimum wages for unskilled, semi skilled and skilled workers raised by one third.

The Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Smt Vasundhara Raje, who also holds the finance portfolio, presented an upbeat budget for Rajasthan for the year 2008-2009.It is noteworthy that Smt Raje presented the state budget ahead of the Union Budget, underlining the strong fiscal performance of the state. Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister, said, "In four years, our Government has significantly enhanced the physical and social infrastructure of Rajasthan. This year we intend to not just consolidate the progress we have made in the last four years but also set the pace for all-round development. We are proud to present an inclusive budget which provides a fillip to industry while taking due care of the economically weaker sections of the society."

The highlights of the budget include approved plan expenditure for 2008-09 of Rs 15,248 crore, an estimated revenue surplus of Rs 1,183.14 crore (3.59% of revenue receipts) and fiscal deficit of Rs 5,266.91 crore (3% of GSDP).

Complimenting the state for its excellent performance, the CAG report for the year 2006-07 had recently noted that the state had achieved fiscal targets as laid down in the FRBM Act well before the timeline. The current year has ended in a revenue surplus of Rs 638 crore and fiscal deficit of Rs 3,970 crore which is 2.8% of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP).

The key highlights of the budget for various sectors are as follows:-

Roads

• The target of rural connectivity under Bharat Nirman Yojana has been achieved one year in advance, making Rajasthan first such state in the country. Rural connectivity increased to 73%, higher than the national average of 65 %

• 9,096 panchayat headquarters out of total 9,188 gram panchayat headquarters connected with pucca roads.

Power

• Outlay for power section sector in 2008-09 at Rs 6,212 crore which is 40.74% of total plan.

• Installed power capacity raised to 6,395 MW and to further increase by 2,019 MW by the end of the current financial year.

• 4,916 feeders completed under the 'feeder renovation programme' leading to reduction of Transmission & Distribution losses by 9.37%.

• Focus on domestic electrification projects in rural areas.

Water resources

• Rs 50 crore provided for upkeep of old irrigation projects in 2008-09.

• Irrigation capacity exceeding one lakh hectares per year created in the last four years. A master plan will be prepared for an optimum utilization of available water which will provide irrigation for one lakh additional hectares.

Industry

• In an attempt to give a boost to the free movement of goods across the country, all inter-state border check posts to be abolished from May 1, 2008

• Budget of Rajasthan Mission on Livelihood raised from Rs 20.80 crore in 2004 to Rs 60 crore. Over one lakh youths equipped with employable skills.

• Four more animation academies to be established along with the academies of automotive design, draftsmanship and graphic design in 2008-09.

• Investment proposal exceeding Rs 500 crore in districts having no big projects will get customized package.

Medical & Health

• Medical facilities to be strengthened- Capacity expansion, new hospitals, new facilities in existing hospitals to be established

• Health Insurance schemes to be launched in all 33 districts of Rajasthan

Agriculture

• Additional state subsidy of 10-20% for drip irrigation schemes.

• Rajasthan Mission on Animal Husbandry has been established.

Women

• The reservation for women in all Panchayati Raj institutions will be increased from 33% earlier to 50 %.

• The budget has led to strengthening of various social schemes for women, BPL families, rural and urban development.

• All girls completing necessary agricultural education will be appointed as Agricultural Supervisors.

• Women's hockey academy to be established in Ajmer next year.

Economically backward classes

• Launched the largest financial inclusion scheme connected to health insurance for all BPL families in the state – a novel scheme in which Rs 1,500 will be given to all the families covered under the health insurance scheme upon opening a bank account enabled with a smart card in the name of the female member of the family. This scheme will draw women across the state into the formal financial system and ensure they have access to credit, bank loans, etc. The scheme will be extended to groups like SCs, ST's and farmers.

• The minimum wages for unskilled workers raised from Rs 73 to Rs 100.

• Honorarium of aanganwadi workers raised from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,600, Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 for saathins and Rs 500 to Rs 800 for sahayikas.

Human Resources Development

• All government schools whose students get selected in the National Talent Scholarship Scheme will be awarded a prize of Rs 50,000 per student.

Taxes

• Simplification of tax procedures - computerization of commercial taxes department is underway. E-filing has been introduced since January 2008. E-refund to be available from August 2008.

• Harmonized system of nomenclature (HSN), followed worldwide as a standard, will be introduced for the betterment of the VAT system.

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FINANCE COMMISSIONS OF INDIA

FIRST FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : ~ Shri K.C. Neogy

Members :
~ Shri V.P. Menon (Resigned 18th Feb., 1952)
~ Shri Justice R. Kaushalendra Rao
~ ~ Dr. B.K. Madan
~ Shri M.V. Rangachari, Member Secretary
~ Shri V.L. Mehta (in place of ~ Shri V.P. Menon)

SECOND FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : ~ Shri K. Santhanam

Members

~ Shri Ujjal Singh
~ Shri L.S. Misra (Retired Chief Justice, Hyderabad)
~ Shri M.V. Rangachari
~ Dr. B.N. Ganguli

THIRD FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman :Shri Ashok Kumar Chanda

Members :

~ Shri P. Govinda Menon
~ Shri Dwijendra Nath Roy (Retired High Court Judge)
Prof. M.V. Mathur
~ Shri G.R. Kamat, Member Secretary

FOURTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman :Dr. P.V. Rajamannar

Members :
~ Shri Mohan Lal Gautam
~ Shri D.G. Karve
Prof. Bhabatosh Datta
~ Shri P.C. Mathew, Member Secretary

FIFTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : Shri Mahavir Tyagi

Members :
~ Shri P.C. Bhattacharyya (Died)
~ Shri M. Seshachalapathy (Retired Judge)
~ Dr. D. T. Lakdawala
~ Shri V.L. Gidwani, Member Secretary
~ Shri G. Swaminathan (21st February, 1969) (In place of Shri P.C. Bhattacharyya)

SIXTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : Shri K. Brahmananda Reddi

Members :

~ Shri Justice Syed Sadat Abal Masud
~ Dr. B.S. Minhas
~ Dr. I.S. Gulati
~ Shri G. Ramachandran, Member Secretary

SEVENTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : Shri J.M. Shelat

Members :
~ Dr. Raj Krishna
~ Dr. C.H. Hanumantha Rao
~ Shri H.N. Ray
~ Shri V.B. Eswaran, Member Secretary

EIGHTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : ~ Shri Y.B. Chavan

Members :

~ Shri Justice Sabya Sachi Mukherjee (Resigned)
~ Dr. C.H. Hanumantha Rao
~ Shri G.C. Baveja
~ Shri A.R. Shirali
~ Shri Justice T.P.S. Chawla (In place of Shri Justice Sabha Sachi Mukherjee)
~ Shri N.V. Krishnan, Secretary

NINTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : Shri N.K.P. Salve

Members :
~ Shri Justice Abdus Sattar Qureshi
~ Dr. Raja J. Chelliah
~ Shri Lal Thanhawla (Resigned on 24th January, 1989)
~ Shri Mahesh Prasad, Member Secretary (Resigned)
~ Shri S. Venkitaramanan (In place of Shri Lal Thanhawla on 3rd May, 1989)
~ Shri Venkitaramanan resigned as Member of the Finance Commission on his appointment as Adviser to the Government of Karnataka,
~ Shri R. Keishing assumed charge as part time Member of the Commission w.e.f. 25th November 1989.
~ Shri K.V.R. Nair was appointed as Member Secretary (In place of ~ Shri Mahesh Prasad from 13th July, 1989)

TENTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : K.C. Pant

Members :
~ Dr. Debi Prosad Pal, MP
~ Shri B.P.R. Vithal
~ Dr. C. Rangarajan (Resigned 21st December, 1992)
~ Shri M.C. Gupta relinquished charge on 31st January, 1994.
~ Shri Manu R. Shroff (In place of Dr. C. Rangarajan on 14th October, 1993)
~ Shri Arun Sinha, Member Secretary (In place of Shri M.C. Gupta) on 1st March, 1994

ELEVENTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : Prof. A.M. Khusro

Members :

~ Shri N.C. Jain
~ Shri J.C. Jetly, IAS (Retd.)
~ Dr. Amaresh Bagchi
~ Shri T.N. Srivastava, IAS, Member Secretary

TWELFTH FINANCE COMMISSION

Chairman : Dr. C. Rangarajan

Members of the Twelfth Finance Commission

Shri T.R Prasad, IAS (Retd.)

Prof. D.K Srivastava ,

Dr.Shankar Acharya , Part time Member

Shri. Som Pal , Part time Member

Note: Shri Som Pal has resigned with effect from the 14th day of May, 2004. In his place

Dr. Shankar N. Acharya has been appointed as Part-time Member since July 2nd, 2004.

Member Secretary

Dr. G.C. Srivastava, IAS

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80th Academy Awards: OSCARS

80th Academy Awards – Nominations and Winners

(Winners are highlighted in RED)

Performance by an actor in a leading role
George Clooney in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)
Daniel Day-Lewis in "There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax)
Johnny Depp in "Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
Tommy Lee Jones in "In the Valley of Elah" (Warner Independent)
Viggo Mortensen in "Eastern Promises" (Focus Features)

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
Casey Affleck in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (Warner Bros.)
Javier Bardem in "No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage)
Philip Seymour Hoffman in "Charlie Wilson's War" (Universal)
Hal Holbrook in "Into the Wild" (Paramount Vantage and River Road Entertainment)
Tom Wilkinson in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)

Performance by an actress in a leading role
Cate Blanchett in "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (Universal)
Julie Christie in "Away from Her" (Lionsgate)
Marion Cotillard in "La Vie en Rose" (Picturehouse)
Laura Linney in "The Savages" (Fox Searchlight)
Ellen Page in "Juno" (A Mandate Pictures/Mr. Mudd Production)

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Cate Blanchett in "I'm Not There" (The Weinstein Company)
Ruby Dee in "American Gangster" (Universal)
Saoirse Ronan in "Atonement" (Focus Features)
Amy Ryan in "Gone Baby Gone" (Miramax)
Tilda Swinton in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)

Best animated feature film of the year
"Persepolis" (Sony Pictures Classics): Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney): Brad Bird
"Surf's Up" (Sony Pictures Releasing): Ash Brannon and Chris Buck

Achievement in art direction
"American Gangster" (Universal): Art Direction: Arthur Max; Set Decoration: Beth A. Rubino
"Atonement" (Focus Features): Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
"The Golden Compass" (New Line in association with Ingenious Film Partners): Art Direction: Dennis Gassner; Set Decoration: Anna Pinnock
"Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount): Art Direction: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax): Art Direction: Jack Fisk; Set Decoration: Jim Erickson

Achievement in cinematography
"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (Warner Bros.): Roger Deakins
"Atonement" (Focus Features): Seamus McGarvey
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn): Janusz Kaminski
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage): Roger Deakins
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax): Robert Elswit

Achievement in costume design
"Across the Universe" (Sony Pictures Releasing) Albert Wolsky
"Atonement" (Focus Features) Jacqueline Durran
"Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (Universal) Alexandra Byrne
"La Vie en Rose" (Picturehouse) Marit Allen
"Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount) Colleen Atwood

Achievement in directing
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn), Julian Schnabel
"Juno" (A Mandate Pictures/Mr. Mudd Production), Jason Reitman
"Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.), Tony Gilroy
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage), Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax), Paul Thomas Anderson

Best documentary feature
"No End in Sight" (Magnolia Pictures) A Representational Pictures Production: Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs
"Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience" (The Documentary Group) A Documentary Group Production: Richard E. Robbins
"Sicko" (Lionsgate and The Weinstein Company) A Dog Eat Dog Films Production: Michael Moore and Meghan O'Hara
"Taxi to the Dark Side" (THINK Film) An X-Ray Production: Alex Gibney and Eva Orner
"War/Dance" (THINKFilm) A Shine Global and Fine Films Production: Andrea Nix Fine and Sean Fine

Best documentary short subject
"Freeheld" A Lieutenant Films Production: Cynthia Wade and Vanessa Roth
"La Corona (The Crown)" A Runaway Films and Vega Films Production: Amanda Micheli and Isabel Vega
"Salim Baba" A Ropa Vieja Films and Paradox Smoke Production: Tim Sternberg and Francisco Bello
"Sari's Mother" (Cinema Guild) A Daylight Factory Production: James Longley

Achievement in film editing
"The Bourne Ultimatum" (Universal): Christopher Rouse
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn): Juliette Welfling
"Into the Wild" (Paramount Vantage and River Road Entertainment): Jay Cassidy
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage) Roderick Jaynes
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax): Dylan Tichenor

Best foreign language film of the year
"Beaufort" Israel
"The Counterfeiters" Austria
"Katyn" Poland
"Mongol" Kazakhstan
"12" Russia

Achievement in makeup
"La Vie en Rose" (Picturehouse) Didier Lavergne and Jan Archibald
"Norbit" (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount): Rick Baker and Kazuhiro Tsuji
"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (Walt Disney): Ve Neill and Martin Samuel

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
"Atonement" (Focus Features) Dario Marianelli
"The Kite Runner" (DreamWorks, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Participant Productions, Distributed by Paramount Classics): Alberto Iglesias
"Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.) James Newton Howard
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney) Michael Giacchino
"3:10 to Yuma" (Lionsgate) Marco Beltrami

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
"Falling Slowly" from "Once" (Fox Searchlight) Music and Lyric by Glen Hansard and: Marketa Irglova
"Happy Working Song" from "Enchanted" (Walt Disney): Music by Alan Menken; Lyric by Stephen Schwartz
"Raise It Up" from "August Rush" (Warner Bros.): Music and Lyric by Jamal Joseph, Charles Mack and Tevin Thomas
"So Close" from "Enchanted" (Walt Disney): Music by Alan Menken; Lyric by Stephen Schwartz
"That's How You Know" from "Enchanted" (Walt Disney): Music by Alan Menken; Lyric by Stephen Schwartz

Best motion picture of the year
"Atonement" (Focus Features) A Working Title Production: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner and Paul Webster, Producers
"Juno" (A Mandate Pictures/Mr. Mudd Production) A Mandate Pictures/Mr. Mudd Production: Lianne Halfon, Mason Novick and Russell Smith, Producers
"Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.) A Clayton Productions, LLC Production: Sydney Pollack, Jennifer Fox and Kerry Orent, Producers
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage) A Scott Rudin/Mike Zoss Production: Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax) A JoAnne Sellar/Ghoulardi Film Company Production: JoAnne Sellar, Paul Thomas Anderson and Daniel Lupi, Producers

Best animated short film
"I Met the Walrus" A Kids & Explosions Production: Josh Raskin
"Madame Tutli-Putli" (National Film Board of Canada) A National Film Board of Canada Production Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski
"Même les Pigeons Vont au Paradis (Even Pigeons Go to Heaven)" (Premium Films) A BUF Compagnie Production Samuel Tourneux and Simon Vanesse
"My Love (Moya Lyubov)" (Channel One Russia) A Dago-Film Studio, Channel One Russia and Dentsu Tec Production Alexander Petrov
"Peter & the Wolf" (BreakThru Films) A BreakThru Films/Se-ma-for Studios Production Suzie Templeton and Hugh Welchman

Best live action short film
"At Night" A Zentropa Entertainments 10 Production: Christian E. Christiansen and Louise Vesth
"Il Supplente (The Substitute)" (Sky Cinema Italia) A Frame by Frame Italia Production: Andrea Jublin
"Le Mozart des Pickpockets (The Mozart of Pickpockets)" (Premium Films) A Karé Production: Philippe Pollet-Villard
"Tanghi Argentini" (Premium Films) An Another Dimension of an Idea Production: Guido Thys and Anja Daelemans
"The Tonto Woman" A Knucklehead, Little Mo and Rose Hackney Barber Production: Daniel Barber and Matthew Brown

Achievement in sound editing
"The Bourne Ultimatum" (Universal): Karen Baker Landers and Per Hallberg
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage): Skip Lievsay
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney): Randy Thom and Michael Silvers
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax): Christopher Scarabosio and Matthew Wood
"Transformers" (DreamWorks and Paramount in association with Hasbro): Ethan Van der Ryn and Mike Hopkins

Achievement in sound mixing
"The Bourne Ultimatum" (Universal) Scott Millan, David Parker and Kirk Francis
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage): Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey, Greg Orloff and Peter Kurland
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney): Randy Thom, Michael Semanick and Doc Kane
"3:10 to Yuma" (Lionsgate): Paul Massey, David Giammarco and Jim Stuebe
"Transformers" (DreamWorks and Paramount in association with Hasbro): Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell and Peter J. Devlin

Achievement in visual effects
"The Golden Compass" (New Line in association with Ingenious Film Partners): Michael Fink, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris and Trevor Wood
"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (Walt Disney): John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and John Frazier
"Transformers" (DreamWorks and Paramount in association with Hasbro): Scott Farrar, Scott Benza, Russell Earl and John Frazier

Adapted screenplay
"Atonement" (Focus Features), Screenplay by Christopher Hampton
"Away from Her" (Lionsgate), Written by Sarah Polley
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn), Screenplay by Ronald Harwood
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage), Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax), Written for the screen by Paul Thomas Anderson

Original screenplay
"Juno" (A Mandate Pictures/Mr. Mudd Production), Written by Diablo Cody
"Lars and the Real Girl" (MGM), Written by Nancy Oliver
"Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.), Written by Tony Gilroy
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Brad Bird; Story by Jan Pinkava, Jim Capobianco, Brad Bird
"The Savages" (Fox Searchlight), Written by Tamara Jenkins

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