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CVC
writes to Jogi NEW DELHI, Mar 13: The BALCO disinvestment controversy took a new turn with Central Vigilance Commissioner N Vittal...more China
asks India to BEIJING, Mar 13: Vehemently denying dumping of Chinese goods in India, Beijing today asked New Delhi to avoid "trade friction" ...more Check
private sector NEW DELHI, Mar 13: Dr Norman Borlaug, father of the "green revolution", today.....more TOKYO, Mar 13: The bloodbath on global equity markets spread to Asia today with billions of dollars.....more |
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SPOTLIGHT From B L Kak NEW DELHI, Mar 13: The average Pakistani has some kind of reservations vis-à-vis the average Indian. But nothing of this sort in relation to Indian tea. Indian tea, latest statistics from Pakistan reveal, is in great demand, even as it is the highest priced in Pakistan........more PEDA
to set up 500 BATHINDA, Mar 13: Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) will set up 500 tubewells operated by solar energy in the state by the end of this month. .....more Qatar offers to provide ammonia, urea to India NEW DELHI, Mar 13: Qatar has offered to provide ammonia and urea to India at cheaper rates to help the Indian Government reduce its burden of......more Pakistan water shortage threatens crops, power KARACHI, Mar 13: Falling water levels at major Pakistani dams could seriously affect agricultural output and power generation this year, straining. .....more |
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CVC
writes to Jogi on charges of kickbacks NEW DELHI, Mar 13: The BALCO disinvestment controversy took a new turn with Central Vigilance Commissioner N Vittal writing to the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh and CBI on the allegations of kickbacks in the Rs 551.5 crore deal for the sale of 51 per cent Government equity in the aluminium giant. "Yesterday a complaint had been received from Ranchi that money had been paid to officials in the Disinvestment Ministry and I have written to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi and CBI Director R K Raghavan for their comments on it," Vittal told PTI here. The CVC said Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie had earlier said that if there was any complaint of irregularities in the disinvestment process, then the CVC was duty-bound to inquire into it. Jogi had earlier alleged a Rs 100 crore payoff in the deal, a charge denied by Shourie. (PTI) |
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China asks India to avoid trade friction BEIJING, Mar 13: Vehemently denying dumping of Chinese goods in India, Beijing today asked New Delhi to avoid "trade friction" by adhering to World Trade Organisation rules. China and India are fully capable of resolving any trade disputes through consultations and on an equal footing," Foreign Trade Minister Shi Guangsheng said today. "I hope India will strictly abide by WTO rules in its conduct of anti-dumping investigation and anti-dumping process," Shi told reporters on the sidelines of the ongoing full session of the National People’s Congress, China’s Parliament. According to China’s Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, India had slapped anti-dumping duties on 41 items by the end of February this year. Yesterday, India’s Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD), under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, recommended provisional anti-dumping duty on all imports of an anti-inflammatory drug - analgin - from China and Taiwan. (PTI) |
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monopoly in NEW DELHI, Mar 13: Dr Norman Borlaug, father of the "green revolution", today asked all national Governments to raise public funding for farm research and thereby check the emerging monopoly of a few private sector companies in agriculture related biotechnology. In a lecture on "biotechnology in agriculture", organised here by the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), Dr Borlaug said conceding monopolistic control of biotechnology to few multi-national corporations would harm the global food production and food security interests. It would also come in the way of equitable affordability of food by all sections of the world population, he added. Dr Borlaug who devised the short-statured High Yielding Varieties (HYV) of wheat that helped solve the global food shortages in the 1960s was awarded the nobel peace prize in 1971 for his outstanding contribution to humanity and world peace. The eminent farm scientist also cautioned against the current trend of opposing biotechnology and genetic engineering in agriculture. He said biotechnology was one of the (new) tools available to agricultural scientists for improving crop plants and building in resistance against pests and diseases. No one could afford to ignore it, he added. Dr Borlaug said correct manipulation of biotechnology’s potential could facilitate production of adequate food for the projected 8.3 billion population in the world by the year 2025. He said his own discovery of HYV varieties was good enough to support the current six billion level of world population not more than that. In effect, biotechnology was important in meeting the increasing food demands, he added. The nobel laureate advised the mass media and NGOs not to "misinform and mislead" the general public and political leadership against the use of biotechnology. Neglect of biotechnology today could prove to be disadvantageous to farming interests later. The mass media, scientists and public opinion makers should correctly inform the political leadership for taking right decisions on scientific issues, he added. Dr Borlaug pointed out that failure to exploit biotechnology for increasing food production could mean destruction of remaining forest ares for crop cultivation as the demand for more food was constantly going up. Biotechnology would facilitate increased crop production from existing crop lands. The noted scientist reminded that all the quantum jumps achieved in food production were the result of systematic use of science and technology for raising and stabilising crop productivity. The human race could not afford to deviate from the path of science and technology for production enhancements. He said the current opposition to biotechnology in agriculture could be better understood from similar opposition to its use in health. For instance, the production of insulin to fight diabetese through the pig pancreas route was vehemently opposed 10-15 years back. But insertion of insulin producing genes even in plant types is now accepted without protests, he added. Dr Borlaug also opposed the campaign against chemical fertilisers. He said he favoured a mixed use of both organic and chemical fertilisers as only that combination would support the needed food production growth. Even if the entire organic fertiliser resources of the world is put to productive use, it could only be good enough to meet the food requirement of a maximum of four billion people. But the current size of the world population has already gone beyond that level. He said China was the largest user of organic fertilisers. It is also the world’s biggest consumer of chemical fertilisers. The prudent use of the two enabled china to produce more food and avoid largescale food imports it was forced to make in the 1950s and 60s, he added. Dr Borlaug was presented with the special commemorative plaque of the Indian Science Congress Society for his contribution to Indian science and food production by Minister of State for Agriculture Sripad Naik who presided over the function. (UNI) |
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TOKYO, Mar 13: The bloodbath on global equity markets spread to Asia today with billions of dollars wiped off share prices after carnage on wall street. Tokyo’s Nikkei-225 closed the morning down 256.81 points, or 2.1 per cent, at 11,914.56, plumbing depths not seen since before Japan’s asset-inflated "bubble economy" of late 1980s. "The meltdown is just starting," warned an equity strategist at Vickers Ballas in Singapore, after New York’s Tech-Laden Nasdaq composite tumbled below 2,000 for the first time since December 1998. The Nasdaq slumped to 1,923.37 following a profit warning from Swedish telecommunications equipment maker Ericsson, hurting a tech sector already reeling from similar alarms last week from Intel and Yahoo. With European bourses suffering on the Ericsson News, Asia woke up to a flood of red ink on regional trading boards. The Nikkei was off an intra-day low of 11,710.33 — its worst trading level since it reached 11,704.80 during the session of January 9, 1985. Japanese companies have been dumping their cross-share holdings in an attempt to improve their accounts before the fiscal year ends on March 31, redoubling pressure on the bourse from economic drift and political uncertainty. "Given the current Japanese political climate, there are no incentives for the stock market to go up," said Tsubasa Securities head of equities Masakazu Kimura amid confusion over the fate of Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori. "That’s why the Tokyo market has no choice but to follow the performance of US shares," he said. "The Bank of Japan’s interest rate cuts, the Government’s proposals to prop up the stock market and other measures aimed at supporting the stock market have done little to help the market so far." Investors were looking to a strong stand from meetings next week of the US Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan to reassure global markets, commentators said. Singapore shares dived through the 1,800 support barrier on opening, with The Straits Times index losing 55.36 points, or three per cent, to 1,794.48 in the first 40 minutes of trading. A two-per cent plunge in early trading on the Australia stock exchange wiped almost 10 billion Australian dollars (5.1 billion US) off the paper value of locally listed companies. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index had slumped 489.25 points, or 3.6 per cent, to 13,287.47 shortly after opening in the wake of the wall street debacle. "Hong Kong is the hardest hit among the regional markets because it is more of a liquid market," said Howard Gorges, Vice President of South China Brokerage. "The fall was purely on the back of overnight declines on wall street, particularly Nasdaq," he said. LG investment securities analyst Park Joon-Beom reported "panic-driven selling" in Seoul, with the South Korean composite index down 18.40 points, or 3.38 per cent, at 526.65 in early trade. (AFP) |
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SPOTLIGHT From B L Kak NEW DELHI, Mar 13: The average Pakistani has some kind of reservations vis-à-vis the average Indian. But nothing of this sort in relation to Indian tea. Indian tea, latest statistics from Pakistan reveal, is in great demand, even as it is the highest priced in Pakistan. Pakistan is known to be importing tea from about 20 countries. Indian tea, however, has been categorised as the highest priced. Recently, Indian tea was quoted at 2.34 dollars a kilogram, while Kenyan tea was quoted lower by 10 cents. Rwanda sells its tea to Pakistan for 2.18 dollars a kilogram, Sri Lanka for 2.11 dollars, Uganda 2.02 dollars and Burundi for 2 dollars. On the brighter side, of the 140 million kg market size, 80 per cent is accounted for CTC tea which is abundant in India. India’s political class and officialdom may have reasons to be displeased with the far-from-encouraging role by Pakistan’s ruling military leadership. But the tea industry is upbeat on the recent understanding between the Indian Tea Association (ITA) and the Pakistan Tea Association (PTA) to export 7 to 10 million kg this calendar year. The euphoria is more on the ground that this would pave the path for a long-term trade relationship with Pakistan, at least for the next 5 years to begin with, as that country holds good potential for tea export. The fact, however, remains that tea exports to Pakistan carry a high element of uncertainty on two major grounds-political and economic. Politically, neither the ruling NDA (National Democratic Alliance) in New Delhi nor the Opposition can safely accept a regular and free trade with Pakistan. Right now, the Government is happy that the tea industry took its own initiative to capture Pakistan. But the tea industry would like the Government’s open blessings. This, according to some experts, will depend only on the Pakistan-supported militants honouring the cease-fire extended in Jammu and Kashmir till the end of May next. Again, Pakistan’s blessings will depend on India’s granting of the much sought-after visa to the Hurriyat Conference delegation to visit Pakistan for considering issues relating to peace. In other words, the tea export prospects very much depend on the political equations between India and Pakistan. The non-involvement of the Government officials in signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) raises a doubt on the possibility of implementing the provisions. Recently, the Indian Tea Association delegation had a meeting with Pakistan’s Commerce Minister, Mr Abdul Razak Dawood. But the MoU itself was signed only between the private industries of the two countries. Taking the situation as it is, there is nothing to say that the tea trade has the blessings of the Governments of India and Pakistan. A reference to the 1998 pact which the Tea Board entered into with some Russian private agencies, is relevant here. Because of the non-involvement of the Russian Government, the pact could not be implemented to the advantage of the tea industry, although the Russian Government has a definite understanding to purchase tea under a barter system towards liquidating India’s outstanding on defence purchases. Experts have advanced a suggestion: Whatever the attitude adopted by New Delhi and Islamabad towards each other, there is no doubt that the South Indian CTC tea need to be tuned to the Kenyan strength-as the Assam tea are-before they could be sold in Pakistan. A strong preference for quality Indian tea has to be cultivated in Pakistan to beat the high price disadvantage. |
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PEDA to set up 500 solar tubewells BATHINDA, Mar 13: Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) will set up 500 tubewells operated by solar energy in the state by the end of this month. Punjab Science and Technology Minister, Chiranji Lal Garg, yesterday said in the first phase of the scheme 30 blocks of 14 districts in the state were chosen for the installation of these tubewells. "By the end of next year whole of the state would be covered," he said. (UNI) |
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Qatar offers to provide ammonia, urea to India NEW DELHI, Mar 13: Qatar has offered to provide ammonia and urea to India at cheaper rates to help the Indian Government reduce its burden of subsidies provided to the farmers on fertiliser products. A top official of the Qatar fertiliser company Yousef Al Kuwari told UNI that Qatar is willing to cooperate with Indian companies for increasing the capacity of its plant in Doha so that its products could be made available to farmers at very reasonable rate. Mr Kuwari already held talks with senior officials of IFFCO, MMTC, SPIC and other companies to discuss further cooperation in the fertiliser field. He said that Qatar is a major suppliers of ammonia to India, exporting around 250,000 metric tonnes. He said that in the expansion of the fertiliser plant Indian companies are welcome to participate. Infact his visit to India was in search of new buyers of ammonia and urea. "There is a tremendous scope for increasing export to India as the domestic cost of fertiliser products is much higher, forcing the Government to spend huge amount in subisidsing the products." Qatar has entered into a long term contract with India on supply of ammonia and urea. He was hopeful to further increase the exports of fertiliser products. Mr Kuwari also visited Khandla Fertiliser Plant, which has been damaged in the recent earthquake in Gujarat. He gave Rs 500,000 donation to the Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited as a contribution to Kisan Sewa Fund to help affected families in the earthquake affected areas. (UNI) |
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Pakistan water shortage threatens crops, power KARACHI, Mar 13: Falling water levels at major Pakistani dams could seriously affect agricultural output and power generation this year, straining an already slowing economy, officials have said. The reservoirs, some of which have been major sources of water for the nation’s farmlands for almost a century, are low due to prolonged dryness and reduced snowfalls in the mountains. With water levels at dangerously low levels and major snow-melts not expected until May, officials said they were concerned as the next few months were vital for the wheat harvest in April and for preparing the ground for sowing the next cotton crop. "The situation is pretty bad," said a cotton researcher who recently toured key crop belts in the southern province of Sindh. "Crops are dry even on the bed of the Indus River, just imagine what that means," the researcher, who declined to be identified, told Reuters. Pakistan has cut its economic growth target for the current fiscal year ending in June to 3.8 percent from an earlier 4.5 percent due to the water crisis. The economy grew at 4.8 percent in the previous fiscal year, propelled by a record 22 million-tonne wheat yield. This year’s wheat target was lowered in January to 18.75 million tonnes from 20 million tonnes, leaving a two million tonne surplus from the last crop to make up any shortfall. Officials said people in the dry areas of Sindh province were supplied with drinking water by wells, but their crops were suffering. "Except for Thar, which has suffered drought for many years, the rest of Sindh has water to drink," said one official in Karachi. Farmers and agriculture experts said crop production figures could end up lower than official estimates. "Farmers have managed to supply water to the crops by getting sweet sub-soil water from...Wells, but in areas where the water is sour the situation is pretty grim," said Musavir Ali, a farmer from Sadiqabad, the heart of Pakistan’s southern farming belt in the northern province of the Punjab. Ali, who was speaking by telephone, said he feared 50 percent of the crop in his area will be lost because of the near-drought conditions. The cotton researcher said there were ominous signs for the cotton sowing season in Sindh, which is expected to start later this month. Pakistan produced over 10 million bales of cotton last year —supplies that will be exhausted in March. An official at the State Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) told Reuters that water levels at the two main northern reservoirs at Tarbela and Mangla had hit rock-bottom. "Water at Tarbela is at 1,369 feet and Mangla at 1,040 feet, both at dead levels which has forced us to stop fresh discharge," he said, explaining that without rains the situation would remain alarming. He said the slow water flow had reduced hydro-electric power supply by more than 70 percent, forcing the state utility to increase reliance on fuel-fired power plants. "Our potential hydro power capacity is 4,826 megawatts, but right now we are producing 1,660 megawatts," he said. Pakistan depends on hydro power for about 30 percent of its energy needs. Analysts said if the situation persists Pakistan’s fuel oil imports may rise to run its power plants. Some 30 percent of fuel-powered plants are controlled by the private sector. Pakistan currently imports almost 5.6 million tonnes fuel oil a year to help meet a domestic demand of 8.5 million tonnes. (REUTERS) |
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