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Govt to announce NEW DELHI, Dec 7: The Government will announce this month the much-awaited legislation on Special Economic Zones (SEZs), including a .........more And
now, outsourcing NEW YORK, Dec 7: India has attracted many technology jobs in recent years from western nations, particularly the United States. Now it is on its ......more Global Cos to India: Enforce IP Laws to attract investment NEW DELHI, Dec 7: India must aggressively deregulate the economy and enforce intellectual property laws at the earliest to encourage innovation for.....more Bhilai facing iron ore problem KOLKATA, Dec 7: Bhilai steel plant, which has set an ambitious Rs 9,000 crore expansion and modernisation programme ......more |
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Reliance keen to set gas based plant in MP: Gaur BHOPAL, Dec 7: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Babulal Gaur today said the Reliance group has expressed a desire to establish a Rs 1000 crore .......more Coal bed methane production to touch 20 mln cubic m per day by 2006 NEW DELHI, Dec 7: Almost static during the past, natural gas production in the country is expected to register a dramatic increase as the coal-bed .....more Kalam’s book most favoured in Siliguri book fair SILIGURI, Dec 7: ‘Great scientist’ authored by President A P J Abdul Kalam was the biggest attraction for book lovers and sold the largest....more 15
states agree to NEW DELHI, Dec 7: The Government today said about 15 states had agreed to implement the centre’s model........more |
Govt to announce SEZ act this month NEW DELHI, Dec 7: The Government will announce this month the much-awaited legislation on Special Economic Zones (SEZs), including a fiscal incentives package and 20-year income tax holiday, to boost exports from the country, a top official said today. "New incentives will be coming up in the legislation, expected during December. The draft legislation is currently with the Ministry of Law and will soon go to the cabinet for clearance," Commerce Secretary S N Menon told reporters at the India Economic Summit 2004 here. "We are hopeful that the SEZ bill will be taken up during the current session of Parliament," he said at the summit, organised jointly by CII and world economic forum. Mr Menon said the new law will stress on parnership of the private sector with State Governments, with the Centre playing only the role of a facilitator. The Centre is also encouraging State Governments to liberalise state laws, like Labour laws and delegate powers to Development Commissioners, he added. The Government has already announced the SEZ policy, which provides income tax benefits for 20 years to units in SEZs instead of 10 years. It also provides for simplification of procedures for attracting FDI and allows freedom to developers to allocate space and infrastructure. Currently, India has 8 SEZs - specifically delineated duty free enclaves for trade operations. Exports from these SEZs amounted to 3 billion dollars in 2003-04, registering 39 per cent year-on-year growth. Among states, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have already enacted SEZ acts. In Maharashtra and Karnataka, the legislations are pending final clearance from the Centre. Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Orissa, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and West Bengal have framed policies and will be going in for legislations shortly, Mr Menon said. The Government has also given in-principle approval to 33 new SEZs, while five more are under consideration. "These five include an electronic city at salt lake, an automobile components park and and an IT park in Pondicherry and an IT park at Bangalore," he said. The 8 SEZs are functional at Santa Cruz (Maharashtra), Cochin (Kerala), Kandla and Surat (Gujarat), Chennai (Tamil Nadu), Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Falta (West Bengal) and Noida (Uttar Pradesh). (UNI) |
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And now, outsourcing of debt collection NEW YORK, Dec 7: India has attracted many technology jobs in recent years from western nations, particularly the United States. Now it is on its way to becoming a hub in another offshore outsourcing- area-debt collection. According to a news report, units of general electric, Citigroup, HSBC holdings and American Express are using their India-based staff to pursue credit card debt and mortgage payment by calling defaulters. Debt collecting firms in India are opening their offices or buying companies in North America to seek more business. ICICI onesource recently purchased Account Solutions Group (ASG) of Amherst, in Upstate New York. Indians have the advantage of lower salaries and other expenses which will cut drastically costs of collecting debts. Many such Indian firms run 24-hour services. "Our cost of collection is 40 percent less than operators in the US" Jerry Rao, chief executive of Mphasis, which has hundreds of debt-collection agents in Bangalore and Pune, told the Wall Street Journal. "We can collect debts (American) firms didn’t expect before." Outsourcing companies in such nations as the Philippines and Mexico (the latter mainly for US -based Spanish speakers) are also entering debt-collection business, but India seems to have the largest and fastest-growing operations outside the United States. The ASG purchase gave ICICI an American base to pursue later-stage debts, which have already been written off by lenders, the newspaper quoted Ananda Mukerji, ICICI onesource’s chief executive, as saying in its yesterday’s editions. The merged company has 600 Indian and American agents and pursues both early-stage and longstanding debts, for which they work out new payment plans with debtors. Ge, in particular, has experience in India where it has a base for debt collection, having hired agents for its Ge capital outsourcing unit there in the late ‘90s. But last month it sold its subsidiary, Ge capital international services, for 500 million to two US venture capital firms-general Atlantic partners and Oak hill capital partners. Officials at the former Ge unit, now known as Gecis, said they would expand quickly its collection business to cater to American and other western companies. Indian and other non US or foreign debt-collection companies must comply with strict regulations on operations in the American market. Some states prohibit agents from calling debtors at work. Others have outlawed agents from seeking repayment from debtors’ spouses. Some states even have rules about the time of day agents could call. To cope with such challenges, some India-based firms are providing extensive training to their agents. In addition to learning American laws, they are being taught on the finer points of debt collection. "The risks are bigger, but so are the rewards," the New York-based newspaper quoted Rao of Mphasis as saying. (UNI) |
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Global Cos to India: Enforce IP Laws to attract investment NEW DELHI, Dec 7: India must aggressively deregulate the economy and enforce intellectual property laws at the earliest to encourage innovation for leveraging strengths in emerging sectors like pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, health and entertainment. "The Indian economy is still shackled by a host of price and policy controls and a lack of enforcement of intellectual property legislation, which leads to global players spanning across various sectors to shy away from coming into India," Star group CEO Michelle Guthrie said at the ongoing India economic summit 2004, here last evening. Leading the discussion on ‘the new growth centres: Increasing knowledge and creativity based competitiveness’, Ms Guthrie said the Government must create a right policy and regulatory environment and enforce intellectual property legislation if it has to make a successful shift to a knowledge-based economy. Companies cannot base their long-term strategy on price-competition. Any successful company has to eventually become competitive through innovation and creativity, she said. The participants agreed that four main strategy interventions were required — training and education to create an innovative workforce, create an environment conducive to innovation and creativity, strong legislation in place for protection of intellectual property and encouragement of entrpreneurial spirit. Imax corporation co-chairman and co-CEO Richard Gelford, summing up the discussion in the entertainemnt industry, said for India to make the jump from remaining a back office facility to developing content it was necessary to create awareness about piracy. Industry in India was still comparatively underdeveloped but had great potential for job creation. On India emerging as a global player in healthcare, executive director of Escorts Heart Institute Naresh Trehan said the country could provide healthcare at one-tenth the cost in developed countries. Moreover, India also has a cost advantage in drug development. While in developed countries it could cost upto 800 million dollars, in India they could be manufactured at lesser cost, he pointed out. To cash in on its advantages, Dr Trehan suggested that the Government put in place a uniform accreditation system for hospitals. The Government should simplify procedures for setting up medical institutions while not compromising on quality and provide infrastructure for tertiary care, he said. Deputy Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organisation Philippe Petit stressed that research would be the main driver of development in the future and while India had made some progress in R D, it still lagged behind. In software too India accounted only for two per cent of global activity while the number of patents had risen from 4,000 in 1995 to 15,000 in 2003. He said the pre-requisite for promoting R D was improving quality of education, and creating technology clusters, improving infrastructure, and stringent IPR protection. Executive Director of Merck and Co C Nigel Thompson also echoed Mr Petit’s observations saying the lack of patents was holding back India in the health and biotechnology sector. He said a trips compliant patent law was absolutely essential. He suggested that the Government create the right environment and regulatory system for registration of drugs, eliminate counterfeit drugs and put in place an enforceable ip law and aggressively promote the domestic pharmaceutical sector. (UNI) |
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Bhilai facing iron ore problem KOLKATA, Dec 7: Bhilai steel plant, which has set an ambitious Rs 9,000 crore expansion and modernisation programme to increase its capacity to seven million tonnes within 2012, is facing a challenging situation because of the iron ore shortage from its existing Dalli Rajahara mines. Managing Director of the plant Mr R P Singh told newspersons here that BSP would suffer to a great extent if they could not get alternative sources of iron ore mines within near future. The plant has made a record profit of Rs 1284 crore during the first half of the current fiscal. He said steps were on to exploit Deoghat mines in Bastar district of Chhatishgarh and pointed out that they would await the decision of the environment department for their clearance. He was confident that the deal would be materialised and pointed out that there would be no dearth of funds for exploiting the huge reserve, stated to be around 500 million tonnes. He said the project would get about seven years for taking shape as it would require laying of new railway lines also for getting steady supplies. He said ibm was doing a feasibility study for the project, which would be ready within a few weeks time. The managing director said BSP produces best quality rail now and was confident to emerge as one of the best steel plant in the world. He said the plant had huge money within its command and would not hesitate to fund the on going modernisation programmes. He said they were also hoping that they might get iron ore from Cchiriya mines, which is now under the command of IISCO and pointed that the matter would be easier now that IISCO would come under sail. Mr Singh said that this year they would a major step ahead with the commissioning of a Rs 400 crore state-of-the-art ultramodern long rail complex which was its falgship product on June 27 this year. He said they were able to match the requirement level of Indian railways by improving its facilities and had supplied over seven AKH tonnes of rail to the railways during the last fiscal which was considered to be a world record in rail production and consumption. He said they were also able to meet the sudden increased volume in requirements of 26 mts to the larger size and had despatched the first lot of 130 mts long rail to the Indian Railways in September this year. He said the total finished product of the plant till November this fiscal registered a growth of 6.3 per cent compared to 1.93 million tonnes in corresponding period last fiscal. He said the blast furnace productivity had increased substantially and the plant was all set to become one of the leading steel plants in the world. The managing director said Bhilai had recorded the highest ever profit among other steel plants in the country and was one of the 10 lowest cost producers of steel in the world. He also maintained that the plant had the record of three decades of uninterrupted industrial peace and had contributed 40 per cent in hot metal and crude steel production and 37 per cent of salable steel. He said the plant had also the distinction to contribute 77 per cent of the total profit of the major PSU sail. (UNI) |
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Reliance keen to set gas based plant in MP: Gaur BHOPAL, Dec 7: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Babulal Gaur today said the Reliance group has expressed a desire to establish a Rs 1000 crore gas-based plant in the state. Talking to UNI on the occasion of completion of one year of BJP rule in the state Mr Gaur said methane gas had been found in the coal mining area of Umaria district. The Reliance group wants to tap the resource and produce electricity from the gas which could be supplied to the State Government at a rate of Rs 1.20 per unit. Referring to his recent meeting with Reliance group chairman Mukesh Ambani, Mr Gaur said the company had asked for 17 acre land in the coal mining area. The company has been asked to give a written request in this regard, Mr Gaur said adding that the State Government would extend all possible assistance. On the power crisis, Mr Gaur said the State Government’s priority was to supply ample electricity for irrigation in rural areas. He exuded confidence that the state would become self reliant in the sphere of electricity after the completion of on-going projects by 2007. Observing that power shortage was largely because of laxity in power production during the last ten years, Mr Gaur said this year the power crisis had further spiralled because of scarce rains at some places. The Chief Minister said the state would become self reliant in the power sector on the completion of the Indira Sagar, Omkareshwar and Maheshwar pan power projects. Maintaining that an industrial investment of Rs 10000 crore would flow in the state by next December he expressed the hope on an investment of Rs 5000 crore by March 2005. The companies investing more than Rs 500 crore would be permitted to establish their own captive power plants. The new industries would serve as a platform for boosting employment opportunities and were likley to provide employment to nearly 10000 persons, Mr Gaur said. Outlining his Government’s determination towards improving infrastructural amenities Mr Gaur said the single window system had been started in the state for bolstering the industrial climate. A cabinet sub-committee under the chairmanship of Industries Minister Kailash Chawala had been constituted which would take all decisions pertaining to the establishment of industries. A high powered committee had also been established under the chairmanship of Mr Gaur for keeping a watch on the activities of the sub-committee. Listing the steps taken by his Government to improve the condition of the roads he said a target of constructing 2000 km road had been underlined for each fiscal year so that by the end of five years a 10000 km length road would have been constructed. He said the quality of the main roads in the state would be uplifted to the standard of inter-state roads and their maintainence would be entrusted to the contractors for ten years. Asked on the financial resources, Mr Gaur said that besides its own internal resources, his Government would also seek help from the Centre. (UNI) |
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Coal bed methane production to touch 20 mln cubic m per day by 2006 NEW DELHI, Dec 7: Almost static during the past, natural gas production in the country is expected to register a dramatic increase as the coal-bed methane policy of the Government starts bearing fruit, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Ms Aiyar informed the Rajya Sabha today. Coal-bed methane production was expected to touch 20 million standard cubic metres per day once it commenced in 2006, the minister said during question hour. During the past two years, natural gas production from oil and gas systems in the country had been 31.394 billion cubic metres and 31.961 billion cubic metres, respectively. Minister Aiyar said the Government had formulated the coal-bed methane policy in 1997 for exploration and production of CBM from coal/lignite bearing areas. The policy provided a framework, including terms and conditions, for exploration and production of CBM in the country. The Government had so far signed contracts with various public sector undertakings and private companies for 16 CBM blocks situated in Bengal, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Gujarat, the minister said. (UNI) |
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Kalam’s book most favoured in Siliguri book fair SILIGURI, Dec 7: ‘Great scientist’ authored by President A P J Abdul Kalam was the biggest attraction for book lovers and sold the largest number of copies in the Siliguri book fair. Among the vernacular language books self-exiled Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin’s ‘Choto Choto Dukho Katha’ was the best seller among Bengali titles in the 9-day fair that ended here on Sunday. It was organised by the greater Siliguri publishers and booksellers association, spokesman for the fair Narayan Das said yesterday. Dr Kalam’s book was the favourite among both adults and children. The book fair recorded more than 60,000 footfalls and books worth Rs 70 lakh were sold. The number of stalls was also higher this year. (UNI) |
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15 states agree to amend APMC Act NEW DELHI, Dec 7: The Government today said about 15 states had agreed to implement the centre’s model Agricultural Produce Marketing Corporation (APMC) Act by the end of the current fiscal. Ministers of about 12-15 states have assured the centre that they would have an amended legislation in place by the end of this fiscal after the model APMC act was given to them,’’ agriculture secretary Radha Singh told reporters at the India economic summit 2004 here. She said the Centre had also given the states the option of introducing an ordinance to implement the model act if they felt introducing the legislation would take longer. The model APMC Act of 2003 aims at facilitating inter-state wholesale trade in agriculture commodities, permitting farmers to sell their produce outside ‘Mandis’. It also aims at creating land share companies as well as privatising agriculture produce marketing to reform trade in agriculture commodities. It permits the implementation of ‘modern forms of distribution’, but is yet to be implemented by most states. Though states including Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh had amended the APMC Act, permitting companies such as ITC Ltd to set up its e-choupal network to procure goods, others such as Karnataka have refused to amend the act, saying it could affect farmers’ interest. The model act also seeks to eliminate commission agents, who control marketing of farm produce, encourage direct marketing of produce, promote contract farming, facilitate creation of competitive agricultural markets in private and co-operative sectors, expand marketing credit system and facilitate formation of futures markets. (UNI) |
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Hong Kong express to operate four embraer 170s NEW DELHI, Dec 7: Aircraft manufacturer embraer says that startup airline Hong Kong Express (HKE) Airways Ltd will operate four of its 170 series of planes configured with 76 seats. HKE will be the launch customer for embraer 170 not only in China but also in the whole of Asia. Three aircraft are scheduled for delivery to hke in the second half of 2005 and one in the first half of 2006. These aircraft will be leased from General Electric Capital Aviation Services (GECAS). Hke plans to acquire two aircraft per year to cover 12 to 15 cities in mainland China in the next five years. Designed to tap the 70-to-110-seat market and help carriers right-size fleets, the new embraer 170/190 family of e-jets is a new-generation of commercial aircraft featuring advanced engineering design, performance efficiency, operating economics and a spacious cabin. (UNI) |
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HPCL touches highest-ever turnover of Rs 56,332 crore CHENNAI, Dec 7: Public Sector Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) has achieved the highest-ever turnover of Rs 56,332 crore during 2003-04, according to HPCL Director (retail) S P Chaudhry. Talking to newspersons here yesterday, he said during the same period, the company had also achieved the highest-ever net profit of Rs 1,904 crore. There would be a considerable increase in the current year turnover and the net profits, he claimed. Noting that they were the second largest downstream petroleum company in the country by way of turnover, he said their market share constituted 20.21 per cent by March this year. Mr Chaudhry said there were 6,200 retail outlets all over the country at present, of which 685 were established only between April and October this year and 300 more would be opened before March next. The company had sold 11.84 lakh tonnes of petrol from April to October this year as against 11.25 lakh tonnes during the same period last year. It had also sold 40.85 lakh tonnes and 37.15 lakh tonnes of high-speed diesel and 14.33 lakh tonnes and 12.44 lakh tonnes of LPG. To a question, he claimed that there were considerable gains in the market share and efforts were on to modernise the retail outlets. HPCL’s annual spend on promotion activities was between Rs 25 to Rs 30 crore. (UNI) |
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Five-day Hornbill festival concludes KOHIMA, Dec 7: The curtains came down on the Hornbill festival at Kisama, near here, after a five-day extravaganza that showcased the cultural heritage of Nagaland. The rare cultural festival, which began on December one, attracted thousands of tourists from across the country and abroad. Rajya Sabha MP Dr Vijay Mallya was one of the visitors to the festival yesterday. The festival provided a platform to project the diverse tradition and culture and an opportunity for outsiders to view the scenic beauty of the state. (UNI) Rupee breaches 44.00 barrier on bunched up dollar inflows MUMBAI, Dec 7: The rupee rallied past the psychological 44.00-barrier against the us dollar to a 8-month high of 43.83/84 this morning, bolstered by the bunched up weekend dollar inflows, slump in crude oil prices and the greenback’s broad-based slide in global markets. Opening on a strong note at 44.00/01, the domestic currency further rose on huge trade and capital dollar inflows, accumulated during the weekend holidays and little demand for the greenback which languished around record lows against euro and other major currencies, a senior dealer at a private sector bank said. The rupee was trading at 43.83/84 at 44.18/20 at 1130hrs, the strongest level now seen since April 13 this year, and gaining a whooping 31 paise from its weekend close of 44.14/16. The sentiment remained bullish with the pouring foreign fund inflows into the zooming stock markets which hit record highs of over USD 7-billion in 2004. Feeble import demand on account of the sharp fall in prices of crude, India’s largest import items, and the dollar’s broad-based weakness also helped the rupee’s upswings, dealers said. The interbank call rate was at 4.50-4.75 per cent, amid ample liquidity while Government bond prices rose on fresh buying, triggered by the gains in US treasuries and slump in crude oil prices. The yield on the actively traded 7.38 per cent gs2015 was quoted at 6.70 per cent, down by eight basis points from its weekend close of 6.78 per cent. (UNI) |
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