Leaving behind the heat and dust raised by fiercely pitted contestants during the six-week long Parliamentary elections, the nation is limping back to normalcy and returning to the serious task of development and progress. Right thinking people gifted with vision and foresight did not allow themselves to be carried adrift by the upsurges and public utterances of the contestants. The flow of events in the State of Jammu and Kashmir was particularly under their scanner owing to special political considerations and the turmoil that has engulfed the State for more than two decades in the past.
It is a matter of relief that surcharged emotions have not been allowed to create a wedge and that the urge of taking the State on the path of progress and development is as close to the heart of the Chief Minister of the State as the members of the 14th Finance Commission. Their appreciation of the achievements of Omar Abdullah Government indicates that they are convinced about the speed of development so far achieved and the prospects of further development in future appear to them very bright. The members of Commission are believed to have met various stakeholders like political leaders and other institutional heads to gather from them their viewpoint about the future prospect of the State. The Chief Minister has taken great pains to bring to the notice of the Commission all the achievements of his tenure in office so far. He has spoken at length about various steps taken to streamline the administration and strengthen democratic institutions. He has claimed to have upgraded laws related to eradicate corruption though he has not mentioned how many officers or officials of different ranks in the State administrative structure have been brought to book under various Acts enacted during his tenure. He has taken the credit of introducing panchayat elections after a gap of thirty years. This is apparently a vital instrument of strengthening democratic institutions in the state. No doubt many things remain to be done to really empower the panchayats in juridical and financial aspects, yet the very fact that elections have been held in the teeth of opposition by the separatists and secessionists is what cannot be underestimated. Of course, we know that many panchs and Sarpanchs have been eliminated by the militants either as a result of the agenda of militants or on account of personal rivalry and vendetta is a phenomenon that cannot be overlooked.
It should be reminded that the Union Government has always shown special interest in the development of the State. With the onset of militancy, no reduction in the development quantum was allowed to happen and the system of extending financial support to the State under annual plan or Five Year Plan was never curtailed. But the fact is that the State Government has not been able to implement all those Centrally sponsored schemes and projects in full. Most of the projects have been left incomplete half way for one reason or the other, most of these not convincing the common man. While we fully appreciate the Chief Minister asking the Commission to keep special conditions of the State in view and be frugal and large hearted in making allocations to the State for numerous developmental plans, we at the same time would have appreciated if the Commission had opened for discussion the reasons why the State invariably fails to keep the time schedule for bringing the projects to completion. The matter should have been discussed threadbare and remedy should have been found for overcoming this recurring obstruction. It has to be reminded that the State has lagged behind in many projects of vital importance to the people of the state. What often happens is that once a scheme is offered to the State by the Centre, it is invariably accompanied by a set of guidelines and instructions which have to be observed while implementing the scheme. Our experience is that invariably and in most of such projects, the State Government responds with a set of conditions, additions, alterations, concessions, time extensions, increase in project expenditures etc. etc. which makes the position of both the donor and the recipient very awkward. This culture needs to be changed and the State must look at all these projects from a wider perspective because these are meant not specifically for J&K only but for all the States of the Union.
The Government of J&K also needs to come out of the mindset of a victimized State afflicted by militancy. In the first place it is the Union Government which has been meeting almost entire expenditure on security arrangements. Even the Centre has been providing lavishly for the reorganization and modernization of police services in order to make police force capable of meeting the threat of militancy. What is needed is no excuse in implementing the projects and bringing these to completion in time. If the Government tries to find shelter behind victimization then the entire administrative structure will get a cue from it and follow the suit. This is a wrong direction and should be avoided. For some time in the past, the State Government has been insisting on return of a couple of big power generating plants to it and also the revenue that has accrued to it from the use of power. We do not find much strength in the argument that Rangarajan Committee had made the recommendation and therefore it is to be taken as the gospel truth. Such matters need to be addressed without emotions. The State Government must be convinced that the time is ripe to reverse a decision that had been taken three or four decades back in regard to power generation by the NHPC. A joint expert committee of the State and the Union Ministry of Power and Finance should be constituted to deliberate on this sensitive issue. The claim of producing 9000 MW of power in next seven years is a tall claim and keeping in mind the position of power we have been facing, there will be few takers for his fanciful ideas though everybody would like that we have electric power bonanza after decades of shortage of power.
14th Finance Commission
Cardamom futures up on spot demand
NEW DELHI, June 9: Cardamom prices rose by Rs 12.70 to Rs 935 per kg in futures trade today as speculators created fresh positions, supported by rising demand in spot markets.
Further, restricted arrivals from producing regions also supported the uptrend in cardamom futures.
At the Multi Commodity Exchange, cardamom for the June delivery rose by Rs 12.70, or 1.37 per cent, to Rs 935 per kg in a business volume of 7 lots.
Spice prices for the July contract rose by Rs 11.90, or 1.32 per cent, to Rs 907 per kg in a business volume of 273 lots.
Traders said rising export as well as spot demand and restricted supplies from producing regions mainly led to an upsurge in cardamom futures prices. (PTI)
Bajaj Allianz launches all-inclusive health plan
KOLKATA, June 9: Bajaj Allianz General Insurance today said it has launched Health Care Supreme, an all inclusive health insurance plan that covers all types of treatments.
The non-life insurance company in a statement said the plan offers a comprehensive cover providing coverage for hospitalisation treatment and also includes maternity, OPD and dental treatments.
This is a health insurance plan that also covers all types of treatments including ayurveda and homoeopathy including a host of other benefits, the company said.
The minimum sum insured starts from Rs 5 lakh and goes up to Rs 50 lakh. (PTI)
Crude palm oil futures down 0.64 pc on profit-booking
NEW DELHI, June 9: Crude palm oil futures prices fell by 0.64 per cent to Rs 510 per 10 kg today after speculators booked profits at prevailing levels amid a weak trend overseas.
At the Multi Commodity Exchange, crude palm oil for delivery in June declined by Rs 3.30, or 0.64 per cent, to Rs 510 per 10 kg in business turnover of 185 lots.
Similarly, the oil for delivery in July traded lower by Rs 2.80, or 0.54 per cent, to Rs 506.60 per 10 kg in 122 lots.
Analysts said apart from profit-booking by speculators at existing higher levels, a weak trend in the global market influenced crude palm oil futures prices.
In Malaysia, palm oil fell one per cent to USD 745 a metric tonne on the Malaysia Derivatives Exchange. (PTI)
Potato futures up 1.50 pc on pick-up in demand
NEW DELHI, June 9: Potato futures prices moved up by 1.50 per cent to Rs 1,387.80 per quintal today, on increased demand in spot markets against restricted arrivals from producing regions.
At the Multi Commodity Exchange, potato for delivery in July rose by Rs 20.60, or 1.50 per cent, to Rs 1,387.80 per quintal, with trading volume of 92 lots.
The potato for delivery in June also moved up by Rs 10.30, or 0.77 per cent, to Rs 1,337 per quintal, with a trade volume of 59 lots.
Analysts said increased demand in the spot markets against tight supplies from producing regions mainly pushed up potato prices at futures trade. (PTI)
Guarseed futures decline on mounting stocks, weak export
NEW DELHI, June 9: Guarseed prices fell by Rs 70 to Rs 4,910 per quintal in futures trading on reports of higher production estimates along with huge carryover stocks.
At the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange counter, guarseed prices for delivery in current month June contracts fell by Rs 70, or 1.41 per cent, to Rs 4,910 per quintal, with an open interest of 11,877 lots.
Most-active delivery in July month contracts fell by a similar margin to trade at Rs 5,055 per quintal, in an open interest of 12,765 lots.
Marketmen said in addition to rising stocks on the back of ample supplies from growing regions, weak export demand also weighed on guarseed prices at futures trade.
India is the key grower and exporter of the commodity and produces almost 80 per cent of the world’s total. (PTI)
New govt will come out with a National Energy Policy:
Pranab NEW DELHI, June 9: The new government will soon come out with a National Energy Policy that will focus on balancing power generation through conventional and non-conventional sources, President Pranab Mukherjee said today. Addressing the first Joint Sitting of the Parliament, Mukherjee said: “My government will come out with a comprehensive National Energy Policy and focus on development of energy related infrastructure, human resource and technology.” The aim of the government will be to “substantially augment” electricity generation capacity through a judicious mix of conventional and non-conventional sources, he added. The government will also work towards expanding the National Solar Mission. The mission which was launched on the 11th January, 2010 has a target of deploying 20,000 MW of grid connected solar power by 2022 and reduce the cost of solar power generation in the country through long term policy, large scale deployment goals, aggressive R&D and domestic production of critical raw materials, components and products. Mukherjee further said: “The international civil nuclear agreements will be operationalised and nuclear power projects for civilian purposes will be developed. “By the time the nation completes 75 years of Independence (2022), every family will have a pucca house with water connection, toilet facilities, 24×7 electricity supply.” The new government also intends to address the important issue of pollution through the use of cleaner fuels. “Cleaner fuels will be promoted to bring down pollution levels in our cities. The government will take up mitigation works to meet the challenges posed by climate change and will work with the global community in this regard,” Mukherjee said. The government will formulate clear and transparent policies on allocation of critical natural resources such as coal, minerals and spectrum, he added. (PTI)
Dell Services ropes in former MphasiS EVP Ganesh Murthy as CFO
NEW DELHI, June 9: Technology giant Dell has appointed former MphasiS Executive Vice President Ganesh Murthy as VP and Chief Financial Officer of Dell Services.
Based in Bangalore, Murthy will report to Dell Senior Vice President and CFO Thomas Sweet and Dell Services president Suresh Vaswani, the firm said in a statement today.
Murthy joins Dell from Mphasis, a subsidiary of Hewlett-Packard (HP), where he worked for five years serving as executive vice president and CFO.
Previously, he was finance director for HP GlobalSoft Limited in Bangalore and has also held leading finance positions at Texas Instruments and Thomson Multimedia.
“Ganesh’s deep business and finance acumen, impressive track record of financial leadership and strong services background make him a great fit for his new role with Dell Services,” Vaswani said.
His appointment will help execute Dell Services’ long-term strategy of innovating and driving value for customers and the transformation of business with disciplined cost management, he added.
On his appointment, Murthy said: “Dell has begun a new chapter as a private company. That, along with the tremendous market potential that Dell Services offers, makes this a very exciting opportunity”.
Last week, Dell Services had announced that Prasad Thrikutam, who was in charge of strategic sales, marketing and alliances at Infosys, would join the firm as president and global head of its Application Services division from July 28.
In September last year, Dell stockholders approved the proposal in which Michael Dell, Dell’s Founder, Chairman and CEO, acquired Dell in partnership with global technology investment firm Silver Lake Partners.
The merger transaction closed on October 29, 2013, and the firm’s common shares were subsequently delisted from the NASDAQ stock market.
According to the company’s last filing to the exchanges, Dell Services accounted for USD 2.13 billion (over 14 per cent of the company’s total revenues of USD 14.5 billion) for the quarter ended August 2, 2013. (PTI)
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SMIL inks JV pact with Magneti Marelli for shock absorbers biz
NEW DELHI, June 9: Auto components maker Samvardhana Motherson International Ltd (SMIL) has inked a 50:50 joint venture pact with Italy’s Magneti Marelli Spa to enter the automotive shock absorbers segment in the Indian market.
SMIL will enter the JV through the acquisition of 50 per cent stake in Magneti Marelli Shock Absorbers India Pvt Ltd, the Italian firm’s arm in India, SMIL said in a statement.
The JV will leverage Magneti’s manufacturing facility in Chakan, Pune, with state-of-the-art product and automation technology, it added.
“It further strengthens our relationship with Magneti Marelli, our partner since 2008. In line with our philosophy of increasing content per vehicle, this JV adds a new product line – shock absorbers, to our portfolio,” Samvardhana Motherson Group Chairman V C Sehgal said.
SMIL and Magneti have a JV in India for lighting systems, air intake manifolds and pedal assemblies since 2008.
“This new JV is the most appropriate way of maximising the Magneti Marelli’s investment in the shock absorbers sector in India. The partnership will accelerate the process to become a leader in the shock absorbers Indian market and also a supply source for clients on a global scale,” Magneti Marelli Spa CEO Eugenio Razelli said.
SMIL is the principal holding company of the Samvardhana Motherson Group (SMG) while Magneti Marelli is part of Fiat Spa. (PTI)
Shielding the culprits
It may not be the real intention of the Government to shield the culprits of Khyber Agro Farms Ltd. of Budgam but the manner in which it has failed to appoint Standing Counsel for Food Safety Department of Budgam strengthens the belief that there are covert efforts to let the indicted company go scot free. Last year a random sample of this company’s milk product was found contaminated with detergent and a case was registered against it by the Food Safety Department before a magistrate of Budgam. Even the court remarked that if the Department has become so poor as not to afford a Standing Counsel, let it apply to the court and the court would do the rest of it. This is a clear case of an attempt at shielding the culprits. May be the Khyber Agro Farms Ltd. enjoys a strong political clout and would want that the case is hushed up by dragging it on indefinitely. It will be a sad day if the Government plays with the health of hundreds of thousands of people in such a brazen case. Interestingly in the March last the Srinagar Municipal authorities lifted at random a curd sample from this company which was also found to be contaminated by the testing laboratories in Kolkata. Even then the Standing Counsel has not been appointed. This is not the way how things can improve. Somebody has to be held responsible for delaying the judicial process in this case.