Gold glitters again: Is it time hold

Gold has hit another peak, both internationally and back home in India. Domestic prices crossed Rs 26,000 per 10 grams. So, is gold the best asset to hold now? CNBC-TV18’s Sonal Joshi reveals.
A housewife Vasundhara in Thiruvananthapuram went to sell off the gold jewelry she had bought a few years ago. But peaking gold prices sent her back. "When my daughter got married 13-years ago, the price of gold was around Rs 3,000. Now it has shot up manifold. Since I don't invest in mutual funds, it makes sense for me to invest in gold," she said.
If you bought silver worth Rs 1 lakh January 2010, it is valued today at Rs 2,25,000, which is a 125% increase.  The same amount invested in gold would now be worth Rs 1,45,000, which is a 44% increase.
Rs 1 lakh invested in an equity mutual fund a year ago, will bring you a gain of just 27% or Rs 1,26,000. While a fixed deposit in a bank, assuming an average rate of 6.5%, would have yielded just Rs 1,11,692.
Also, more importantly, Rs 1 lakh invested in equity will give you a profit of under a percent to about Rs 1,00,763.
However, the question remains with gold is selling at over Rs 26,000 per 10 grams; so, is it still a good time to buy?
"When there is uncertainty, people buy gold that drives the price up. Hence, as long as this uncertainty continues people should continue to buy gold," adviced Jayant Mangli, president (commodities) of Religare.
Experts suggest investing in Gold Exchange traded funds or E-gold, rather than jewellery.  'I consider investing in E-gold as the best way to invest in gold. In the spot market you can buy gold as low as 1 gm and it works exactly the same way as equity markets, so you get your gold delivery in demat form within two days into your account," said Mangli.
While global markets are showing little signs of recovery, the euro-zone debt crisis adding to the US unease and equity stares at uncertainty, and amid all these it seems to be the right time to invest into the yellow metal. 

International Kite Festival (Uttarayan)

The festival of Uttarayan is a uniquely Gujarati phenomenon, when the skies over most cities of the state fill with kites from before dawn until well after dark. The festival marks the days in the Hindu calendar when winter begins turning to summer, known as Makar Sankranti or Uttarayan. On what is usually a bright warm sunny day with brisk breezes to lift the kites aloft, across the state almost all normal activity is shut down and everyone takes to the rooftops and roadways to fly kites and compete with their neighbors.
Kites of all shapes and sizes are flown, and the main competition is to battle nearby kite-flyers to cut their strings and bring down their kites. For this, people find their favored kite-makers who prepare strong resilient kite bodies with springy bamboo frames and kite-paper stretched to exactly the right tension. Lastly, the kites are attached to a spool (or firkin) of manja, special kite-string coated with a mixture of glue and glass to be as sharp as possible for cutting strings of rival kites. Production of kites and kite supplies can be seen on the streets of Ahmedabad beginning in November, to get ready for Uttarayan, and nowhere more so than in Patang Bazaar, the special kite market that appears in the old city.
Since 1989, the city of Ahmedabad has hosted the International Kite Festival as part of the official celebration of Uttarayan, bringing master kite makers and flyers from all over the world to demonstrate their unique creations and wow the crowds with highly unusual kites. In past years, master kite makers from Malaysia have brought their wau-balang kites, llayang-llayanghave come from Indonesia, kite innovators from the USA have arrived with giant banner kites, and Japanese rokkaku fighting kites have shared the skies with Italian sculptural kites, Chinese flying dragons, and the latest high-tech modern wonders. A master kite maker and famous kite flyer Rasulbhai Rahimbhai of Ahmedabad trains of up to 500 kites on a single string have come to be a classic attraction. Almost every known variety of kite can be seen in the skies over Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad, from box kites to high-speed sport kites, from windsocs and spinsocs to hand-painted artistic kites.