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Sterlite envisages KORBA, CHHATTISGARH, Sep 30: Sterlite company has prepared a Rs 6,000 crore modernisation and extension plan to bring about a four-fold .....more Economy
grows NEW DELHI, Sept 30: Belying projects of a low growth, Indian economy grew at an impressive six per cent in the first quarter of 2002-03 compared .....more Trade-distorting
WASHINGTON, Sept 30: India has demanded elimination of trade-distorting subsidies in rich countries to ensure adequate access to financial resources for developing and other nations. .....more |
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PFC plans IPO to assist power utilities and SEBs HYDERABAD, Sep 30: Public Sector Power Finance Corporation (PFC) plans to tap domestic and international markets to assist power reforms and targets to fund Rs 43,500 crore to the State Electricity Boards (SEBS) and .....more Era
of post-partition NEW DELHI, Sept 30: Sardar Raunaq Singh, the man behind the multi-million dollar Raunaq Group, is a textbook rags-to-riches story who .....more Shyam
Telelink to JAIPUR, Sep 30: Shyam Telelink, a flagship of the Rs 250 crore Shyam Group and basic telecom service provider in the State of Rajasthan, has ........more |
Sterlite envisages four-fold hike in BALCO production KORBA, CHHATTISGARH, Sep 30: Sterlite company has prepared a Rs 6,000 crore modernisation and extension plan to bring about a four-fold increase in the production of Bharat Aluminium Company (BALCO). After the disinvestment of the Public Sector Undertaking (PSU), the new management was vigorously working on a strategy to enhance production. Under the proposed plan, the company envisages annual hike in the capacity of alumna plant from the present two lakh tonnes to more than eight lakh tonnes and aluminium plant from the existing one lakh tonnes to four lakh tonnes, company sources said. A 675-mw captive power plant would also be installed to fulfill the enhanced energy requirement after completion of the extension programme, the sources said. To execute this ambitious plan, the management has sought No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the union environment and forests ministry and the central and chhattisgarh pollution control boards. Meanwhile, the sub-divisional officer yesterday organised a public hearing here to enable people to lodge their objections and suggestions to the proposed BALCO plan. More than half-a-dozen denizens registered their objections and suggestions. (AGENCIES) |
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Economy grows at 6 per cent in Q1 NEW DELHI, Sept 30: Belying projects of a low growth, Indian economy grew at an impressive six per cent in the first quarter of 2002-03 compared to Just 3.5 per cent in the same period last year. Recovery was witnessed in most of the sectors, especially agriculture, manufacturing and mining, quarterly estimates of gross domestic product for the first quarter (April-June) released by Central Statistical Organisation said here. Agriculture grew at 4.4 per cent as against 1.1 per cent during the period under consideration while the manufacturing sector registered a growth rate of 3.8 per cent compared to 2.7 per cent in the first quarter of last year. Seven sectors out of eight witnessed improvement in the first quarter. Mining and quarrying registered a growth rate of 5.3 per cent in April-June period over negative performance of 0.3 per cent. The construction sector, which is considered to be the engine of growth, especially in the infrastructure sector, grew at 6.3 per cent in the Q1 of 2002-03 over negative growth of 0.2 per cent in the same quarter last year. Community, social and personal services was the only segment which witnessed a marginal fall to grow at 5.6 per cent in the first quarter this year over 6.5 per cent in the last financial year. Other sectors which contributed to the impressive economic growth include ‘electricity, gas and water supply’ growing at 5.3 per cent, ‘trade, hotels, transport and communication’ at 7.4 per cent and ‘financing, real estate and business services’ at 9.7 per cent in the first quarter, CSO figures revealed. According to the latest estimates available on the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), mining, manufacturing and electricity registered growth rates of 7 per cent, 3.8 per cent and 3.7 per cent respectively during the first quarter of the current fiscal. Among the services sectors, the key indicators of railways, namely, the net tonne kilometres and passenger kilometres, have shown growth rates of 8.7 cent and negative 0.7 per cent respectively during the period under consideration. According to the information furnished by the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, which has been used in compiling the etsimate of GDP from agriculture in the first quarter of 2002-03, rice, wheat, coarse cereals and pulses during the rabi season (which ends in June) of 2001-02 recorded growth rates of 6.2, 3.9, 26.2 and 3.6 per cent respectively over the corresponding season in the previous year. In rupee terms, the GDP during the April-June period stood at Rs 311,867 crore compared to Rs 294,299 crore in the same period last year, CSO said adding that at current prices, the GDP grew at 8.1 per cent in April-June this year over 7.9 per cent in the same period of last fiscal. (PTI) |
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Trade-distorting subsidies by rich nations should end: Singh WASHINGTON, Sept 30: India has demanded elimination of trade-distorting subsidies in rich countries to ensure adequate access to financial resources for developing and other nations. Addressing the inaugural session of the joint annual discussion of the IMF and World Bank here yesterday, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh said 85 per cent of the world’s population has access to only 15 per cent of the global resources, leading to imbalances that are difficult to sustain. "There is need to eliminate trade-distorting subsidies in indusrialised countries to ensure adequate access to financial resources so that investment needs of the needy are adequately met",he said. On the sustainability of reforms, Singh said enhanced access to markets is important to sustain the process of reforms in developing counries, particularly, in the sectors of agriculture, textiles, clothing and footwear. Singh also expressed concern about the current global downturn that is threatening even the better managed economies. He referred to the buildup of tension in West Asia and said that global energey prices are once against turning volatile that could prove detrimental to global growth and welfare. The minister said while development of financial standards and codes is a welcome step, the application should take into account individual country circumstances. Jaswant Singh said India fully supported the intensified global efforts to prevent money laundering and financing of terrorism. He welcomed the World Bank’s assurance to maintain the level of IDA commitments for the next three years. Meanwhile, IMF Managing Director Horst Koehler told Finance Ministers and central bankers of the 184-member International Monetary Fund and World Bank that the most immediate concern must be to strengthen the global economy. "There are clearly a number of risks and uncertainties. But we should beware of undue pessimism. There are still good reasons to expect that the recovery will continue," he said. The Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, during their addresses, wanted Japan to mop up the bad debts weighing on its banking system and Europe to reform its labour markets. They also wanted US to clean up its accounting system. Earlier, the World Bank called on the international community to deliver on the commitments made during the recent world summits to meet the millennium development goal of halving poverty by 2015. "Together, we have set 2015 as the deadline for our results. We must now, together, move beyond words and set deadlines for our actions. We have said we are mutually accountable. It is time to deliver," World Bank president James Wolfensohn said at a joint meeting of the bank and IMF. Wolfensohn called on rich countries to improve donor coordination, untie aid, and agree to a "fixed timetable" for the elimination of agricultural subsidies. "We know that there is so much that can be done by rich countries without waiting for doha," he said. "I urge you to act sooner". (PTI) |
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PFC plans IPO to assist power utilities and SEBs HYDERABAD, Sep 30: Public Sector Power Finance Corporation (PFC) plans to tap domestic and international markets to assist power reforms and targets to fund Rs 43,500 crore to the State Electricity Boards (SEBS) and power utilities during the tenth plan. The PFC, which in consultation with the Union Power Ministry initiated setting up of India power fund with the resource size of Rs 25,000 crore, is considering investing 20 per cent of the total on power sector during the tenth plan, for which it plans to broaden its equity base initially through public offer and tapping international markets through global depository receipts. The PFC had increased its assistance to power utilities during 2001-2002 with disbursement touching rs 5,150 crore, a growth of 60 per cent, and sanctioned Rs 8,506 crore, a ten per cent increase over the previous year. Adopting a number of cost-saving and efficiency-enhancement measures, it posted a net profit of Rs 778 crore during 2001-2002, a 29 per cent growth over the previous year. With "nil" non-performing assets and an impressive 98 per cent recovery rate, the PFC is contemplating a policy of provisioning norms, asset qualification, income recognition to protect itself from the vagaries of market uncertainities even while laying maximum emphasis on `total client satisfaction’. The policy is likely to be finalised shortly under the advise of a committee of experts, PFC sources said.(UNI) |
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Era of post-partition entrepreneurship ends with Raunaq NEW DELHI, Sept 30: Sardar Raunaq Singh, the man behind the multi-million dollar Raunaq Group, is a textbook rags-to-riches story who made it possible for the common man to dream. Starting out as a salesman of a steel pipes merchant in Lahore earning Rs eight a month, he grabbed the first opportunity and started his own enterprise. He made the most of a shortage of water pipes in villages around Lahore to make his first profit, investing the amount in starting his own steel pipes business. However, the partition of the country saw him back in penury. Making the most of whatever little came his way, Singh soon graduated from being a steel tube merchant to a steel tube maker, challenging established players, Biju Patnaik’s Kalinga Steel and Tata Tubes. From then on, there was no looking back and Singh’s ascent to the corporate ladder continued. Born on August 16, 1922 at Daska in Pakistan, Singh floated the Raunaq Group nearly 30 years ago. The group today has interests in manufacturing, engineering services, international trade and financial services. The Raunaq Group companies are Apollo Tyres Ltd, Bharat Steel Tubes Ltd, Bharat Gear Ltd, Raunaq International Ltd, Menarini International Ltd, and Raunaq Automotive Components Ltd. Just eleven days ago, he had formally handed over the reins of the group’s flagship company, Apollo tyres, to his son Mr Onkar Singh Kanwar. The dynamic industrialist, who was the first chairman of Maruti Ltd, worked for several industry and trade associations. He was the president of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), PHDCCI and Federation of Indian Export Organizations. He also served as the chairman of Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC), Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association, Indo-American Chamber of Commerce and Indo-USA, Indo-USSR, Indo-Canada, Indo-Japan, Indo-France and Indo-Taiwan joint business councils. Singh led business delegations to more than 25 countries. The Government nominated him to several important organisations including the board of trad, export import bank of India, export credit guarantee corporation, national integration council and the Indo-German Consultative Group. He also headed the committee set up to study establishment of a free port in India. Singh was also elected as a member of the executive board of the international chamber of commerce, Paris, for a three-year term. (UNI) |
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Shyam Telelink to invest Rs 984 cr in 5 years JAIPUR, Sep 30: Shyam Telelink, a flagship of the Rs 250 crore Shyam Group and basic telecom service provider in the State of Rajasthan, has planned to invest upto Rs 984 crore over the next five years in the expansion of service sacross the State. "We have planned to complete rollout in 63 cities by 2003 and have identified 3000 village telephone sites in 18 cities which will be connected by the company soon," Rajiv Mehrotra, Group Chairman, told reporters here. Shyam Telelink would cover these villages and other uncovered villages too shortly, Mehrotra said, but pointed out the problems being faced by the telecos in connecting remote villages. The company has fixed telephones in the interiors of the villages to the extent that they were 15 kms away from the nearest approach road. These villages are provided with telephone connections based on either Wireless in Local Loop (WLL) or cordect technology. Shyam Group, which is also a cellular service provider in Rajasthan under the brand name Oasis and basic services branded as Rainbow, is also contemplating to provide village telephones using VSAT technology in the uncovered villages. Mehrotra said "we are committed towards the rural telephony. The Government must take a realistic view of this and if there is a proper compensation package using the Universal Service Obligation (USO) fund the task can become much easier." "USO fund is still not available to cover the shortfall," Mehrotra said adding that even the traiff set by the regulator was not cost based. The issue of Village Public Telephony (VPT) has been talked about on various occasions by the communication Minister Pramod Mahajan, who had said that Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) would be asked to complete the VPT obligations of private players on the basis of compensation from them. Asked whether this would be a viable solution for completing the VPT obligations, Mehrotra said proper compensation from the Government for carrying out unviable operations would help the service providers to take up the task. In Rajasthan Shyam Telelink has become operational in 18 cities and the company was planning to roll out their services in 63 cities by the end of next year, Mehrotra added. An investment of Rs 500 crore has already been made by the company and it has laid 2200 kms of optic fibre in the State and plan to lay another 2000 kms by 2004. The company claimed to have an active customer base of 55,000 in the State. (PTI) |
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Maha Govt for better labour
conditions in NEW DELHI, Sept 28: The Maharashtra Government today expressed concern about the labour in the unorganised sector, estimated to be almost 97 per cent of the total workforce, and suggested formulation of a strategy for better wages, steady employment and social security cover for them with the cooperation of the Centre. Speaking at the two-day 38th session of Indian Labour Conference held here, Maharashtra Labour Minister Satish Chaturvedi said the state was aware of the challenges posed by globalisation, open market policy and international competition and was engaged in evolving a new work culture and upgradation scheme. "Maharashtra has taken a lead in reforming the labour laws so as to generate employment and industrial growth along with a code of conduct for domestic workers. "Moreover, the state cabinet has also cleared the reforms in the Industrial Dispute Act and Contract Labour Act for Special Economic Zones (SEZs)," he said. The state has recommended change in the wages of labourers getting between Rs 1,600 to Rs 6,500 under the Payment of Wages Act, he said, adding they were keen to raise the upper limit to Rs 10,000 so as to benefit more labour force. (UNI) |
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Cadilla healthcare to set up companies in USA, Brazil MUMBAI, Sept 28: Cadilla Healthcare Limited will set up two companies in Brazil and USA for developing overseas business. Informing this to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) here today, the board of Cadilla Healthcare Ltd at its meeting said the formation of a new company in Brazil has been christened Zydus Healthcare Brazil Limited and the company in USA as Zydus Healthcare (USA) LLC for marketing the products of the company. The Board also took a decision to issue 6.90 per cent unsecured redeemable Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) aggregating to Rs 35 crore and another issue of secured redeemable ncds upto Rs 20 crore, for which the company has obtained "P1"" rating from CRISIL. (UNI) |
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