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BT to invest in
more NEW DELHI, Nov 17: Buoyed by the initiatives taken by the Government in the communication sector, UK telecom major BT today said it will look at the option of starting services in India in IT and BPO sector..............more LML allots
8 lakh equity MUMBAI, Nov 17: LML Ltd today said it has alloted over 8 lakh equity shares on preferential basis to its existing lenders. The company has alloted the equity shares .....more Era Constructions bags Rs 24 crore order from HNGIL MUMBAI, Nov 17: Era Constructions (India) Ltd today said it has bagged a Rs 24 crore order from Hindustan National Glass & Industries Ltd (HNGIL) for all civil and structure work for its new Batch House at Bahadurgarh, Haryana..........more Sterlite
Industries net MUMBAI, Nov 17: Sterlite Industries India Ltd today reported a 64.60 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 81.10 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2005 as compared to Rs 49.27 crore in the same quarter in previous fiscal........more |
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Weaving India's magic: The TAPI textile collection NEW DELHI, Nov 17: From Gujarati patolas in Indonesia to kalamkaris from the Coromandel Coast in Persia, Indian textiles have travelled far and wide ever since travel opened up.......more Asian
Paints, Cipla, NEW DELHI, Nov 16: Asian Paints, Cipla, Bharat Forge, Dabur India, Nicholas Piramal and Satyam Computer Services are among the 20 Indian corporate entities that have found place in Forbes........more Singh
dispels fears NEW DELHI, Nov 17: Allaying fears that free trade agreement could hurt smaller countries of SAARC, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said implementation of South Asian Free Trade Agreement is ......more KOCHI, Nov 17: Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy today called for more private investments in the state’s IT sector and asked IT majors in US and other countries to consider Kerala for expanding their operations. ........more |
BT to invest in more Indian IT/BPO space NEW DELHI, Nov 17: Buoyed by the initiatives taken by the Government in the communication sector, UK telecom major BT today said it will look at the option of starting services in India in IT and BPO sector. "BT has invested in India over the last 20 years through our partners and we now have a significant presence in country as a major user of Indian talent for our IT and BPO requirements..The latest announcements encourage us to start services in India," BT Group chief executive Ben Verwaayen said in a statement, adding the bold move would further drive India's competitiveness in the global marketplace. "Coupled with the relaxation in foreign direct investment (FDI) to 74 per cent (in telecom sector), these initiatives will enable global operators such as BT to expand significantly and invest in the Indian telecoms and IT/ITES market," he said. "Furthermore, this is a good step both for India s customers and operators. These initiatives are likely to result in greater competition, and the market will see the introduction and implementation of the latest technology to be deployed as competition grows. Government announced several initiatives targeted at further liberalising the NLD and ILD licenses to facilitate the growth of IT and ITeS services in the country. BT is one of the world's leading providers of telecom solutions in Europe, the Americas and Asia-Pacific. Its activities include networked IT services, local, national and international telecommunications services and higher-value broadband and internet products and services. (PTI) |
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LML allots 8 lakh equity shares to lenders MUMBAI, Nov 17: LML Ltd today said it has alloted over 8 lakh equity shares on preferential basis to its existing lenders. The company has alloted the equity shares at a price of Rs 49.30, which includes the premium of Rs 39.30 per share, the company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. State Bank of India has been allotted 4,61,885 shares and Stressed Assets Stabilisation Fund has been allotted 3,57,838 shares, out of the total 8,19,723 equity shares, it said. The shareholders have approved the issue of these shares on preferential basis as per SEBI guidelines to its existing lenders as a part satisfaction of their existing dues in terms of negotiated settlement. (PTI) |
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Era Constructions bags Rs 24 crore order from HNGIL MUMBAI, Nov 17: Era Constructions (India) Ltd today said it has bagged a Rs 24 crore order from Hindustan National Glass & Industries Ltd (HNGIL) for all civil and structure work for its new Batch House at Bahadurgarh, Haryana. The contract is to be executed over a period of 14 months, the company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. (PTI) |
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Sterlite Industries net up 64 pc at Rs 81.10 cr MUMBAI, Nov 17: Sterlite Industries India Ltd today reported a 64.60 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 81.10 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2005 as compared to Rs 49.27 crore in the same quarter in previous fiscal. Total income has increased 67.05 per cent to Rs 1739.39 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2005 from Rs 1041.20 crore in the year-ago period, the company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. The board of directors have declared prorata preference dividend on the 2,18,75,000 cumulative redeemable preference shares (CRPS) of Rs 10 each, it said. The company has posted a net profit of Rs 120.17 crore for the half year ended September 30, 2005 as compared to Rs 59.66 crore for the same period in 2004-05. Total income (net of excise) has increased to Rs 2879.47 crore for the half year ended September 30, 2005 from Rs 1813.70 crore in H1- 2004-05. The income attributable to consolidated group is Rs 256.87 crore for the September quarter as compared to Rs 154.08 crore in the same last fiscal. (PTI) |
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Weaving India's magic: The TAPI textile collection NEW DELHI, Nov 17: From Gujarati patolas in Indonesia to kalamkaris from the Coromandel Coast in Persia, Indian textiles have travelled far and wide ever since travel opened up. "Masters of the Cloth: Indian textiles traded to distant shores", an exhibition that is presently on at the National Museum here, is a selection of pieces from the TAPI (Textile and Art of the People of India) collection that is housed in Surat. This collection of Indian trade-cloths is a sample of "the world's romance with India over seven centuries". These are essentially cloths that were produced here, but headed for foreign lands rather than local use. Rare weaves and patterns, many of these designs no longer exist in India, the land of their production, but have survived in distant locations, carefully preserved by families over generations. As Prof Jasleen Dhamija, expert in the History of Textiles and Costumes, says, "Ghar Aa Gaye Hain...These are treasures that have been brought home to us." A study of the history of textiles can teach us a lot about the artistic and cultural traditions of societies. "Cloths have travelled since time immemorial. The movement of cloth also indicates the movement of language, of people, and of course, of cultures," she says. "The ivory measures found in the excavations in Lothal (in present-day Gujarat, a trading centre dating back to the Harappan civilization), indicate, for instance, that they were used to measure precious cloth, ivory being a precious commodity," Dhamija adds. Textiles were the largest industrial product in pre-modern times, and it is perhaps appropriate that the TAPI collection is brought together by Praful and Shilpa Shah, closely associated with contemporary textile industry in India. Praful Shah is the CMD of Garden Silk Mills. Named after the Indian river Tapi, whose bed is home to the most prosperous textile and manufacturing centres in the country, Shah claims the historical importance of the collection was of little concern when the husband and wife team started with the project. "It was interesting to travel to South-East Asia and find Indian textiles that had made their way there. The local people, in whose families the cloths had lain for generations, knew very little about India, or indeed about the connection of the cloth with our country," Shah says. For instance, there is the gaja, or elephant, patola, originally from Patan in Gujarat, that found exclusive regal patron age in 18th century Indonesia. Indeed, the royal bridegroom's 'trousseau' was considered incomplete without at least one silk patola piece, Dhamija says, indicating how valued a possession the cloth was. There are no other recorded samples of the gaja patola in India itself, the home of its manufacture. Clothes embroidered with gold remind the scholar of "envoys to the Mauryan palace who spoke of the dark insides of the hall being lit up with the reflections of the gold threadwork on the cloth". Checked, striped and plaid cotton handkerchiefs from Madras found their way to western Africa, where for certain communities, they became symbols of their cultural identity. And then, there is a spectacular representation of the Ramayana, specially designed for the Bali Hindus, which "would be blessed by the temple of the "Victory of Truth", before being taken to the homes of the people". Whitman's words from Passage to India come to mind, with "The oceans to be cross'd, the distant brought near/ The lands to be welded together." By the 17th century, India had 'clothed the world'. (PTI) |
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Asian Paints, Cipla, Bharat Forge in Forbes list NEW DELHI, Nov 16: Asian Paints, Cipla, Bharat Forge, Dabur India, Nicholas Piramal and Satyam Computer Services are among the 20 Indian corporate entities that have found place in Forbes' list of 'Best Small Asian Companies'. The other Indian companies making to the list include Ballarpur Industries, Balrampur Chini Mills, Essel Propack, GE Shipping, HDFC Bank, Hinduja TMT, IPCA Laboratories, Indian Hume Pipe, JB Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals, Kesoram Industries, Nagarjuna Construction, Sun Pharma, Thermax and Zee Telefilms. Indian companies from varied sectors like chemicals, forest products, food processing, drugs, oil refining and construction made it to the Asia-Pacific list, which values both growth and consistency in companies from countries like Australia, Japan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, South Korea and China. Forbes has selected 200 'Best Under a Billion' companies from the region's listed companies. "We required positive earnings growth during the past few years. And we asked for a pretax margin of at least five per cent in the latest fiscal year because tax laws can vary widely from country to country, making bottomline comparisons unfair," Forbes said. Commenting on the robustness of the various companies on he list and their worth for shareholders, Forbes said, "Unlike their US counterparts on the Forbes 200 Best Small Companies list, which frequently do not pay dividends, nearly all of our best Asian companies offer payouts. The average yields: Asia-Pacific 2.5 per cent, U.S. 1.1 per cent," it said. (PTI) |
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Singh dispels fears that SAFTA would hurt smaller nations NEW DELHI, Nov 17: Allaying fears that free trade agreement could hurt smaller countries of SAARC, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said implementation of South Asian Free Trade Agreement is expected to enhance trade in the region to 14 billion dollars from six billion in the next two years. Inaugurating the first SAARC Business Leaders Conclave here, Singh said the high growth of bilateral trade between India and Sri Lanka has dispelled fears on both sides that free trade would hurt business in smaller countries. "This free trade agreement is a win-win agreement for both the countries and could be a model for similar agreements in the region," he said, adding the SAARC leaders must move rapidly to meet the deadline for SAFTA. "The need for implementing SAFTA cannot be over emphasised. It is expected that with the free flow of trade in SAARC region, the current level of intra-regional trade will rise from six billion to 14 billion dollars annually within two years of SAFTA existence," Singh said. The Prime Minister expressed the hope that the free trade agreement will help move forward towards the eventual goal of South Asian Economic Union. "I do believe that just as regional intergration is not antithetical to globalisation, it also does not hurt the broader interests of any member of a regional group," he said. The Prime Minister expressed concern that SAARC has not succeeded in exploiting the immense economic potential of the region. He said even after two decades, intra SAARC exports are a mere five per cent of the total exports of the region. By comparision intra-EU exports are 55.2 per cent; intra-NAFTA exports are 51.7 per cent; and intra-ASEAN exports are 20.4 per cent. On doubts and misgivings among corporate entities in each of the member countries, the Prime Minister said change requires adaption and movement from the status quo. However, such concerns are not rooted in reality, he said, adding the fact that misgivings are generally spread out among businessmen in the entire region suggests that both positive and negative impact will be well distributed. "Just as manufacturers in one country fear the lowering of barriers in one sector, there will be benefits to be derived in other sectors," he said. Singh also emphasised on stepping up investments in the region to build infrastructure. "As a first step, India has on a reciprocal basis announced measures to move towards open skies regime in our region," he said, adding "we are working for greater liberalisation of visa regime to benefit all areas of cooperative interaction". Singh said India has decided to increase the number of visas to leading businessmen of SAARC states and urged the member nations to reciprocally provide to each other transit facilities to third countries. This, he said, will help connecting the region to the ongoing economic miracle in Southeast and East Asia. "We will also link ourselves to the vast energy markets of West Asia and Central Asia," Singh said. The Prime Minister cautioned that member countries can no longer afford the cost of seeing the region in isolation from the broader Asian context. The Prime Minister said all the member states are committed to an early resolution of outstanding issues under SAFTA and expressed the hope that the ongoing negotiations would ensure that it was operationalised from January 1 next year. He said there was a need to expand the ambit of SAFTA to include trade in services in addition to widening the scope of trade in goods. "Only then will SAFTA emerge as effective vehicle for growth and regional integration. We hope FTA would help us to move forward towards the eventual goal of South Asian Economic Union," he said. Singh termed the recent SAARC Summit in Dhaka as a milestone, saying it showed the continuing relevance of the group. He said decision to invite
Afghanistan to join SAARC and other new initiatives
proposed at the summit would inject new dynaism into the
grouping. He said businessmen in the region must give priority to private sector cooperation in areas such as power generation, research and development in science and technology and services like health care, education, IT and insurance. "We must strive collectively in a cooperative spirit to remove the barriers to the free flow of goods, people and ideas within our own region," he said. In this context, the Prime Minister said, India strongly emphasised the need to collectively improve connectivity within the region and the nations beyond. "We need to regenerate and revitalise traditional arteries of transport and communication in our region as well as create new linkages," Singh said. Speaking on the occassion, President of SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry Macky Hashim said the conference would focus on improving competitiveness and growth in South Asia and improving technological skills and development, among other things. He said the SCCI has drawn up a regional framework on arbitration and prepared a draft agreement on the movement of goods and services. "We have brought our nations together on WTO issues through numerous programmes. We have conferred on investment flows and their impact on poverty reduction," he said, adding the chamber was working on possibilities of harmonisation of standards in the region. (PTI) |
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KOCHI, Nov 17: Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy today called for more private investments in the state’s IT sector and asked IT majors in US and other countries to consider Kerala for expanding their operations. Inaugurating the Leela IT park, Kerala’s first it park in the private sector at nearby Kakkanad, he said the state was emerging as one of the most sought after it destinations in the country. A lot more still needed to be done for which he sought active support from the private entrepreneurs. Pointing out that a Nasscom Study had stated that Kochi was likely to emerge as the leading IT destination among Tier-II cities in the country, Chandy invited IT majors from US and other countries to commence their operations from Kerala. This would also help Indian IT professionals abroad to take the opportunities unfolding in their own country. He said the Government alone could not do everything. In the coming years, the Government’s role will be that of a catalyst for providing enabling environment, he said. With the state Government envisaging manifold increase in the investments in the sector, many initiatives like liberalised labour laws and single window clearance have been implemented, he said and many key players like Larsen & Tubro, WIPRO, Infosys and the Leela Group have already come in. Chandy said the final agreement on the smart city project, an IT infrastructure project here, would be signed ‘very soon’ with the Dubai internet city. Kerala’s biggest advantage was availability of qualified human resources with about 20,000 engineering graduates passing out every year, he said. There had been complaints of poor air connectivity to Kerala, but with air Deccan, Kingfisher Airlines and Paramount commencing their operations from the state, Kerala was well connected, he said. Outsources Partners International (OPI), a leading BPO firm, had taken up the entire space of 1.37 lakh square feet space at the Leela Park. Clearance Schmitz, OPI chairman, said Kochi was selected after evaluating the employees skills in at least six other Indian cities. OPI’s aim was to have 2,000 employees within the next 18 to 24 months at the Kochi unit. They already have a service centre at Bangalore. Leela Group executive director Venu Krishnan said the group would be investing about Rs 260 crore in providing IT infrastructure at Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram. It would be commencing work on the construction of a second IT building at the park here with 3.5 lakh square feet space in the second phase. In the third phase, another building with 3.5 lakh square feet space would be constructed. About 4 lakh square feet space was being planned in Thiruvananthapuram.(PTI) Godrej to invest 250 crore in Mizoram AIZAWL, Nov 17: The Godrej Agrovet company would invest Rs 250 crore in Mizoram for commercialising oil bearing plants in the region. Official sources here today said the State Government has already signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on red oil palm and Jetropha with Godrej Agrovet Limited for cultivating and commecialising oil bearing plants in Mizoram. For the scheme to be economically viable, the Jetropha plants would have to be grown in about one lakh hectares while the red oil palm is grown in fifty thousand hectares spread all over the state, they added. Cultivation of plants would be taken up as a scheme under the mizoram intodelh project by which many farmers would reap rich benefits as Godrej Agrovet would also look after the marketing side. "The reason why we opted for Godrej Agrovet is the fact that they have rich experience with oil bearing plants since 1989 and have taken up the cultivation and marketing of these plants in several states," the officials claimed. The company would set up all necessary machineries and plants for oil extraction in Mizoram and purchase the oil itself, they said pointing out that cultivation of oil bearing plants was one of the thrust areas identified by the Government of India in the recent agriculture policy. (UNI) HCL tech enters into agreement with IBM MUMBAI, Nov 17: HCL Technologies Ltd today said it has entered into an agreement with IBM, through which it has acquired license rights to establish itself as the power architecture design center outside an IBM business line. Under the agreement, it has acquired right to use and sublicense IBM’s ‘Powerpc 405’ and ‘Powerpc 440’ embedded microprocessor cores and certain associated peripheral cores, it informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. The objective of the design centre is to expand ‘power architecture’ designs in additional applications including networking, wireless and consumer devices. The company has been providing system design solutions including VLSI and hardware designs in vertical industries such as telecom as well as storage domains. "The HCL team and I are very pleased to be selected as IBM’s first partner to set up a design centre outside of IBM. This initiative shall receive my team’s highest attention to ensure its success," said HCL technologies founder Shiv Nadar. (PTI) Petroleum regulator to be in place by April-May 2006 NEW DELHI, Nov 16: Petroleum ministry is likely to table the much-awaited Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Bill in the Parliament in the winter session, Petroleum Secretary S C Tripathi said today. "The group of ministers has approved the draft bill and we may table it during the winter session. If the bill is not passed in this session, we would certainly try that it be passed in the budget so that the regulatory structure is put in place by April-May 2006," he said at a conference here. Tripathi said the bill was delayed as it had to be revised in line with the trend in the energy sector during the past couple of years wherein gas as emerged as a preferred fuel. The earlier 2002 bill focused on the oil sector, he added. The ministry is also finalising the pipeline policy and would approach the cabinet by next month, he said, adding the policy is non-discriminatory and would create a level-playing field. The policy would also have provisions to ensure that the pipeline operator has some assured market and a tie-up with the source of gas supply, he said. Tripathi said the demand for gas in the country is estimated to be around 400 million standard cubic meters per day by 2025 from about 150 mscmd at present. Gas shortage would be in the range of 200 mscmd by 2025, he said, adding to meet this shortfall the Government was pursuing three pipeline projects along with setting up LNG terminals in coastal areas. The gas sector in India could see investment of a mammoth 50 billion dollars in next 5-10 years for transnational pipelines, LNG terminals and internal gas grid, he said. Besides the Iran-Pakistan pipeline, which is expected to supply gas by March 2011, India was also pursuing pipeline projects from Turkmenistan and Myanmar, he said. (PTI) |
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Sahara computers to invest Rs 400 cr; eyes top slot NEW DELHI, Nov 17: Sahara Computers and Electronics Limited (SCEL) has announced Rs 400 crore investment over the next two years to extend its reach in the Indian market. With the massive investments, the company is eyeing a top position among the computer vendors in India by 2007. SCEL is a joint venture partnership between the South African IT Major, Sahara Computers (PTY) Ltd, and Sahara India Pariwar. "The challenge that we take on is not only to compete within the existing space but to bring innovative products at aggressive pricing and combine this with unique marketing initiatives that will in totality lead to greater penetration of the product in yet untapped markets," SCEL Chief Operating Officer George Van Der Merwe said. "Given the advantage of local manufacturing coupled with the strength of our expertise in research and development function, we are aiming for market leadership in the PC segment by the year 2007 and expect to grow the PC market in India," he added. The unconventional channel route adopted by SCEL includes the creation of various retail experience zone stores for which the company will be investing over Rs 100 crore. The company announced an additional investment of Rs 150 crore in the expansion of the retail segment alone. It plans to tie up with middle and lower middle segment retail stores like Vishal mega mart for this. Within a span of six months the company has reached out to more than 6,000 conventional it channel partners across India and has set up a national distributor as well as local distributirs with hybrid model of distribution. "We will be investing another Rs 150 crore in this channel to further the growth in this area," Van Der Merwe said. To create demand for the Sahara computer brand the company aims to reach out to the B, C and D category towns by educating the masses in these towns by providing the best computing solutions together with offering the loan schemes in tie up with various banks. Known as project goldmine, it is aimed at touching 700 towns across India. A similar programmed helped the company become the fastest growing brand in Africa. Yesterday, the company also launched a media centre personal computer, a tablet PC and a amd turion powered notebook with integrated mobile technology. (PTI) |
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