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Auto lovers invited to SINGAPORE, Mar 14: Car-loving Singaporeans are being urged to leave their autos at home on April 19 and take buses, trains, bicycles or...more IBM
to invest US BANGALORE, Mar 14: IBM will invest US dollar 100 million over the next two years towards the development of its software laboratories here and.....more New
BALCO management KORBA, Mar 14: The new management of the controversy- ridden Bharat Aluminium Company Ltd (BALCO) today said it could not transfer any...more |
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European investors LONDON, Mar 14: European investors stampeded for the exits yesterday over fears for the US and Japanese economies....more NTPC
employees’ NEW DELHI, Mar 14: The employees of the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) will observe a nation wide strike tomorrow to protest.....more ‘Tabacco related
diseases PATNA, Mar 14: Union Health Minister C P Thakur has exuded confidence that tobacco-related .....more |
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Auto lovers invited to Singapore’s car-free day SINGAPORE, Mar 14: Car-loving Singaporeans are being urged to leave their autos at home on April 19 and take buses, trains, bicycles or shoe-leather during the city-state’s first car-free day, organizers said today. The aim is to promote an "eco-friendly lifestyle," said the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) Executive Director Penelope Phoon, and encourage people to switch to alternative modes of transport. Car-free day started in the US and Europe in the 1960s. Since then it has become so popular certain roads in Europe are closed for the day. The Environment Minister pledged its carparks will be empty. Companies are encouraged to motivate their employees into leaving their cars at home. The SEC acknowledged the battle will be an uphill one. "We are looking at a 10 per cent reduction in vehicle use on that day," Phoon said. Motorists queried by the Straits Times had mixed reactions. Salesman David Chua said he will still drive because public transportation is not convenient enough. The event is part of earth day 2001 celebrations. (DPA) |
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IBM to invest US dollar one bln in India BANGALORE, Mar 14: IBM will invest US dollar 100 million over the next two years towards the development of its software laboratories here and Pune, its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Abraham Thomas said today. A new centre will be opened in Gurgaon, near Delhi, this year, he told newsmen here. IBM which has introduced the market place education software for e-marketplaces was undertaking proof-of-concept, architecture and delivery for organisations in India and abroad, he said. IBM India’s software group would focus on developing and enabling business partners to address the market. It would work closely with independent software vendors and help them to leverage the company’s expertise across hardware, software and services, he added. Mr Thomas said in domestic services, the focus for the year and beyond would be strategic outsourcing, network integration services, it consulting and learning services. He said IBM would introduce a unique post graduate course in information technology at the Indian Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad in May. It would also expand its global financing operation in India with options to help customers in bringing down the total cost of ownership/acquisition of their it assets, he added. The company would soon launch "Kidsmart", a unique community initiative programme in India to introduce the basics of information technology to children in the age group of three to seven years. Replying to a question, Mr Thomas said there was no slowdown in IBM business due to recession in US economy. (UNI) |
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New BALCO management says it cannot transfer shares KORBA, Mar 14: The new management of the controversy-ridden Bharat Aluminium Company Ltd (BALCO) today said it could not transfer any percentage of its holding stake in the company to any other party for three years because of a clause in the agreement. The agreement signed between Sterlite Industries and Central Government made it clear that the company, which was acquiring the management control of BALCO, cannot transfer any percentage of its holding stake to anyone within a period of three years of signing the agreement, new Managing Director (MD) of the company S C Krishnan told PTI here. Krishnan said the company could not do anything on its own even if the offer come from anyone including the Chhatisgarh Government. Asked to comment on the Ajit Jogi Government’s offer to acquire 51 per cent share in the company, the MD said it was for the centre to decide what it should do in the matter. Expressing concern over the continuing production loss in the one lakh tonne capacity aluminium complex, he said the management was trying its best towin the confidence of the striking workers. "So far about 100 workers have decided to join and work under the new management but it was not possible to restart production with such a small workforce," he said. The indefinite strike by the workers entered the 12th day today. (PTI) |
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European investors flee at Nasdaq nosedive LONDON, Mar 14: European investors stampeded for the exits yesterday over fears for the US and Japanese economies, but the worldwide rout took a pause as wall street pulled out of its nosedive. The selling only eased when US markets stopped the rot in trading on wall street yesterday. But European investors were still wary. London’s FTSE 100 index fell to a 27-month low. The index dropped 105.8 points, or 1.8 per cent, to close at 5,720.7, its lowest close since December one, 1998. Paris’ CAC-40 index shed 55.53 points, 1.1 per cent, to finish at 5,186.87. In late Frankfurt trade, the DAX 30 index crashed through the 6,000-point barrier for the first time since December 1999, closing at 5,9 2.93 points, down 1.38 per cent. The Euro stock 50 barometer of shares in the 12-nation Euro zone fell 45.81 points, or 0.9 per cent, to 4,182.3 points. It was the same story in Asia, where the Tokyo market hed another 2.9 per cent, while Hong Kong share prices lost 2.1 per cent. The global market jitters have rippled outwards from a US epicentre, where investors are anxious that a downturn in the world’s largest economy is starting to hammer corporate bottom lines, leaving share price looking overvalued. "It is very difficult to escape the chill winds that a every much global now," said SG Securities Global Strategist Dhaval Joshi. "On a day to day basis, you can’t hide anywhere." Analysts here said that although the British and European economies were still holding up relatively well in the teeth of the US and Japanese downturns, their stock markets were not withstanding the storm because of the global nature of equity markets. "The major European stocks tend to be global blue chip companies which are exposed to these economic concerns, so the stock markets are not the same as the economies," SG Securities’ Joshi told AFP. The prime catalysts for selling have been corporate profit warnings and sluggish economic data. A warning from Swedish mobile telephone manufacturer Ericsson sparked the latest rout of telecoms stocks. In late Stockholm trade, Ericsson B shares were down another 2.50 Kronor, or 3.9 percent, at 61 Kronor. In London, technology stocks took the brunt of the pain, with cable and wireless slumping more than 20 per cent. Telecom heavyweight Vodafone managed to edge up two pence to 199 pence after sharp earlier falls. In Paris, the fear spread. "Traditional stocks like (industrial materials group) Saint-Gobain and (cement giant) Lafarge are suddenly exposed because of big falls in the Dow Jones," said a Paris dealer. At Frankfurt’s close, industrial giant siemens was down 2.45 Euros at 117.75 Euros after warning that it would only meet its profit targets for this year when its semi-conductor unit Infineon was excluded. (AFP) |
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NTPC employees’ nation wide strike today NEW DELHI, Mar 14: The employees of the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) will observe a nation wide strike tomorrow to protest against the anti-public sector politices of the Government. The strike, called by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), is expected to affect the power stations located in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. Earlier, on January 25 this year, a long term wage settlement was signed between the management of NTPC and some central trade unions. The CITU along with the democratically elected independent trade unions had refused to sign the settlement saying it was anti-worker. It may be recalled that the citu union have been demanding parity between the officers and workers in terms of parameters and not in term of money. (UNI) |
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‘Tabacco related diseases can be prevented after passage of Tabacco Products Bill’ PATNA, Mar 14: Union Health Minister C P Thakur has exuded confidence that tobacco-related diseases in the country can be prevented after the passage of the Tobacco Products (prohibition of advertisement and regulation) Bill, 2000 in Parliament. Dr Thakur, also an eminent medical practitioner, told UNI that sale and rampant use of tobacco and its products were draining the country s exchequer. He informed that Rs 27,000 crore was being spent annually in curing tobacco-related maladies, while the country was earning revenue of only Rs 6000 crore through its sale and advertisements. However, the actual savings would be to the tune of Rs 19,000 crore annually once the bill, which was widely welcomed by the MPs, was passed by Parliament. Dr Thakur said the bill was tabled in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday last and added that the debate and discussion on the bill would be taken up after the parliamentarians supported it. He admitted that tobacco lobbies were on their toes ever since the proposal was approved by the union cabinet and said the passage of the tobacco products bill solely depended on the wisdom of the members of the House. He admitted that a complete ban of tobacco sale and its use was not easy and maintained that he would try to mobilise the members for the passage of the bill in the interest of mankind and society as a whole. The tobacco lobby was quite strong in the country, he admitted and said 133 nations were under the influence of tobacco lobbies, which were active even in developed countries like America. He appealed to all State Governments to ban the sale and consumption of tobacco products like pan masala and said the Centre would initaite steps to ban the sale of such products. The minister lauded the efforts of Uttar Pradesh, Goa and Delhi in this regard, saying that the Delhi Government had made use of tobacco in public place a cognizable offence and was imposing fines on the consumers. Dr Thakur urged the State Governments to ban the use of tobacco and its related products within the campuses of educational institutions. The minister said the Centre was planning to replace tobacco cultivation with medicinal plants having an export market of Rs 63 billion globally. India was at present exporting medicinal plants valued at Rs 300 to 400 crore. He said the Government was consulting the agriculture department and medicinal plant board for replacing the tobacco cultivation. The future marketing strategy for the medicinal plants were also being chalked out. Besides the Government was planning to convert the nicotine-related product manufacturing units into fertilizers and other factories. The Tobacco Products (prohibition of advertisement and regulation) Bill, 2000 was aimed at banning smoking in public places, imposing restrictions on the sale of tobacco products to persons below the age of 18 years, protecting non-smokers from the hazards of passive smoking and discouraging adolescents from consuming tobacco products. Dwelling on the highlights of the comprehensive legislation, which would replace the Cigarettes (regulation and production, supply and distribution) Act, 1975, Dr Thakur said it would provide for imprisonment or fine or both for defaulters. The bill would also arm the Government with powers to launch anti-tobacco programmes seeking to prohibit advertisement of tobacco products and regulate trade and commerce in their production, supply and distribution. The minister stressed the need for a comprehensive legislation. Dr Thakur said with the passage of the bill, no person engaged in tobacco products related activity would advertise and no person having control over media would advertise tobacco products. He said in all 55 countries had enacted legislation to discourage tobacco consumption and another 21 had imposed a ban in one form or other on advertisement of tobacco products. He said tobacco products had also been redefined in the proposed bill and all products, which have a tobacco component had been brought under the purview of the bill. (UNI) |
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