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launched in valley today Excelsior Correspondent JAMMU, May 4: Meridian Mobile Pvt Ltd a UK based MNC is ....more Processed food ind to NEW DELHI, May 4: The Indian processed food industry, which constitutes only a mere 1.3 per cent of total agricultural products, will see investments of over Rs 95,000 crore in the next ....more Koutons retail to enter NEW DELHI, May 4: Koutons retail, which operates a chain of apparel stores under different brand names in the country, will fot......more Delhi reaps benefits of NEW DELHI, May 4: An experiment by Delhi Government to merge schools with double shifts into co-educational institutions has yielded outstanding results, ...more |
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PGCIL to set up transmission lines in Myanmar NEW DELHI, May 4: Buoyed by the recently acquired ‘Navratna’ status from the Government, .....more ‘India need not use NEW DELHI, May 4: Unlike US, India need not use crops like maize to produce biofuel, an alternate fuel that consumes a large portion of corn production, leading to global food scarcity and price ......more Serendipity expects 20 pc NEW DELHI, May 4: South Africa-based travel operator Serendipity Tours is ....more Imperial
mulling MUMBAI, May 4: US-based Imperial Investments Group plans to foray into the Indian hospitality sector with an initial investment of USD 100 million over a period of five ....more |
Fly to be launched in valley today Excelsior Correspondent JAMMU, May 4: Meridian Mobile Pvt Ltd a UK based MNC is going to launch its brand Fly in Kashmir valley on Monday, May 5. The company ventured into Indian market two years back claimed to have gained appreciative growth by holding 3 to 5 per cent market share. According to a press note, the company also maintained that within a span of three months its brand namely; Fly is number two in the region. Underlining the future agenda stated that very some new phone medals like SX220 and V80 shall be launched in the market. Fly is presently operating its business in 24 countries and is one of the fastest growing mobile phone brands in the world. .Processed food ind to attract Rs 95k cr investment in 3 yrs NEW DELHI, May 4: The Indian processed food industry, which constitutes only a mere 1.3 per cent of total agricultural products, will see investments of over Rs 95,000 crore in the next three years, says a report. "Investments to the tune of 23.5 billion dollars in the food processing sector over the next three years is in the pipeline," said the report, `India food report 2008', which is expected to be released at the food forum India in Mumbai. This is just the right time for global firms to invest in the food processing sector, especially when the Government seems eager to boost rural and farm incomes, it added. "The total market for food in India, estimated at over Rs 8,00,000 crore, accounts for about 2/3rd of the total Indian retail market. Less than one per cent of this segment is organised," the report said. Food segment that contributes about 13 per cent of the total organised retail pie offers huge scope for investment. Nearly 80 per cent of agricultural products in developed countries get processed and packaged, the report said. However, it is just about 1.3 per cent in India. In this backdrop, the country’s food industry is gearing up for the first food forum, to be held on May 6-7 in the financial capital of the country and over 300 companies from across the globe are expected to take part in the event. The two-day B2B event, organised by Delhi-based images multimedia group and supported by Central Food Processing Industries Ministry, would deliberate on different aspects and issues of the food industry, besides exploring opportunities in branding and retailing of food spaces across India. (PTI) Koutons retail to enter Middle East by year end NEW DELHI, May 4: Koutons retail, which operates a chain of apparel stores under different brand names in the country, will foray into the Middle East by the end of this year by opening exclusive outlets. "We are exploring all options to enter Middle East. By the end of this year, we expect to start operations by opening around 30 stores including brands - Koutons and Charlie outlaw outlets," Koutons retail india chairman DPS Kohli said. He said there was a lot of scope for the two brands because of the demand coming from Asian population residing there. The company was earlier exporting Kouton and Charlie brand apparrel to the Middle East, which was stopped in 2004 as a part of its strategy to focus on the domestic market. "As a manufacturer, we were exporting to Middle East earlier, but after we opened our first Koutons store in 2002 in India and started expanding in the country, subsequently exports were stopped in the following year. Now we intend to open exclusive outlets for selling Koutons and Charlie outlaw brand apparel and accessories in Middle East," Kohli said. On the investment front he said the company was still working on the modalities, and it would depend on which model was adopted. The company is also looking at expanding the product portfolio by adding categories like accessories and handbags for women along with casual shoes for men within this year. At present, koutons retail operates around 1,200 stores of its brands - Koutons and Charlie outlaw across India. In the last financial year koutons retail has extended its brand with the introduction of Les Femme (women wear) and Koutons Junior (kids wear) which are slated to provide further boost the company’s growth in the current year. "Going ahead, in this year, the plan is to have total 1,800 outlets and eventually have 1,000 Koutons outlets and 2,000 Charlie outlaw outlets in next 3-4 years," Kohli added. The company is also looking at increasing he number of flagship stores housing all the brands from 18 now to 120 in the next 1-2 years. Koutons Retail India had reported net profit of around Rs 36 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2008, while net sales stood at Rs 371.30 crore. However, result of the last quarter of 2007-08 financial year is not comparable with that of the corresponding quarter in the earlier fiscal as the company was not listed at that time. The company’s pat for the year ended March 31, 2008 rose by 100 per cent to Rs 69.08 crore, against Rs 34.49 crore posted in the same period of last fiscal. While the net sales for the year ended March 31, 2008 grew by 97 per cent to Rs 793.50 crore as compared to Rs 402.40 crore in the previous fiscal. (PTI) |
Delhi reaps benefits of experiment with co-educational schools NEW DELHI, May 4: An experiment by Delhi Government to merge schools with double shifts into co-educational institutions has yielded outstanding results, helping Delhi clinch the number one position among CBSE-affiliated Government schools. Merged in 2005, the schools have posted a pass percentage of 77.02 per cent in 2007, up from 50.94 per cent in 2006 and 27.65 per cent the previous year. Looking back, Sandeep Kumar, the Delhi Education Director, said it was a politically-difficult situation. "Many politicians initially disfavoured the idea to have joint classes for boys and girls in one shift. But this has only helped utilise our resources in an efficient way considering we have shortage of buildings to meet the demand," he said. Seventy double-shift schools were merged in 2005 to have 35 single-shift morning co-educational schools with enrollment of 1,000 to 1,500 students. With the highest pass percentage in 2006-07, delhi government schools are already basking in the glory of being the best amongst the CBSE Government Schools in the country. There are over 900 such schools in the national capital. Attributing the better performance to the innovative and scientific initiatives introduced in schools, Kumar said students in as many as 233 schools secured 90 per cent and above in Class X examination in 2006-07, against 49 schools in the previous year. The gap between the pass percentage of private schools and Government schools in Delhi has been substantially reduced. Claiming that e-initiatives have paid off well in the schools, the official said computerisation of the entire process has delivered immense efficiency gains. "The online admission system helped increase enrollment in Class VI by almost 14 per cent in its first year of implementation," he said. Technological aid was also taken to develop a transparent system of transferring teachers and school employees, which ensured their satisfaction, he said. "A transparent and well-defined transfer policy has been initiated keeping in mind the genuine needs of the teachers," Sandeep Kumar added. (PTI) |
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‘India need not use maize for biofuel production’ NEW DELHI, May 4: Unlike US, India need not use crops like maize to produce biofuel, an alternate fuel that consumes a large portion of corn production, leading to global food scarcity and price rise, a top government official said. "I don’t think there is any need for India to use maize for biofuel purpose as it has a plenty of biomass, which can very well be used for making biofuel," Mangala Rai, Secretary of Department of Agricultural Research in the Agriculture Ministry, told PTI. Maize cannot be diverted for fuel production as it is the third important crop after rice and wheat in the country. It plays an important role for both livestock industry and humans, said Rai, who also heads the Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR). Currently in India, 49 per cent of maize is used as poultry feed, 12 per cent as animal feed, 25 per cent as food, 13 per cent in starch and other industries and one per cent as seed. The increased demand for fuel has led the US to divert one-fifth of its corn crop to ethanol. Today, 85 per cent of of ethanol comes from maize. The conversion of foodgrain for biofuel has kicked up a row, especially after the global food prices have spiralled, with some sections arguing that the cheap fuel has led to the present scarcity. "We can use sugarcane as well as sweet sorghum for biofuel purpose," Rai said, adding even if there is an excess production of maize, it will not be used for fuel making. The Government has allowed manufactures to produce ethanol out of primary as well as secondary sugarcane juice. Except sugarcane, no other crop has been allowed for ethanol production in India. Maize output in the country is expected to be 18.54 million tons in 2007-08 compared to 15.10 million tons in the previous year. (PTI) |
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