Airlines
Jet Air passenger load factor up in June, July
DESPITE June and July being the traditional off-peak period in the domestic aviation sector, Jet Airways has reported high passenger load factors on its entire network.
Corporate
Listing of `collective investment' units allowed
THE Government has permitted listing of the units or any other instrument of a collective investment scheme (CIS) on a recognised stock exchange.
IBRD stops $507-m coal sector loan
THE World Bank has decided to stop disbursing a soft loan to help Coal India Ltd (CIL) undertake a coal sector rehabilitation project (CSRP), under which 24 existing opencast projects were to be modernised and expanded to produce 112 million tonnes of co
al per year.
Gramophone name change linked to accord with EMI
WHEN a 99-year-old company decides to go for a fresh `namkran' ceremony, a few eyebrows are likely to be raised; but when the company turns out to be the user of one of the most enduring brands of the Indian corporate world, the gasps of surprise are alm
ost audible.
Economy
`Scope for FDI in china clay industry'
TWO mineral economists of the Indian Bureau of Mines, Nagpur, Dr. K.K. Chatterjee and Dr. S.S. Bhake, in a recent study on demand & supply and export prospects of china clay, have indicated enormous scope for foreign direct investment in India in the mi
ning and technology upgradation of processing of china clay. China clay is an industrial mineral containing predominantly kaolinite, whose properties are improved further in subsequent processing.
Fresh talks soon on pacts to avoid double taxation
INDIA is set to re-negotiate a couple of double taxation avoidance agreements (DTAA) which are old. The move follows requests made by some countries to lower withholding tax from the rates which were negotiated at the time the agreements came into force,
senior Government officials said.
Excise and customs law
Cenvat, valuations rules -- CBEC response `positive' to industry's concern
THE Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has constituted a group under the chairmanship of the Member (Excise) to constantly examine issues relating to excise producers, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has said.
Fertilisers
`Urea retention pricing scheme under review'
THE Government is reviewing the urea retention pricing scheme (RPS) mechanism to reduce the increasing subsidy burden on the exchequer, Mr. Suresh Prabhu, Union Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister, has said.
Forex
Sarvesh Chandra to head forex appellate tribunal
THE Government has appointed Mr. Sarvesh Chandra, former Chairman of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) Board, as the Chairperson of the Foreign Exchange Appellate Tribunal, established under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999.
Information Technology
CNA flays Govt for not enacting Broadcasting Bill
THE Cable Networks Association (CNA) has alleged that the Government had ``gone out of its way to favour the foreign satellite broadcasters'' by not enacting the comprehensive Broadcasting Bill.
Dharma ties up with Lanco Global Systems
DHARMA Computers Pvt. Ltd (DCPL), the Bangalore-based subsidiary of the US-based Dharma Systems Inc, and the Hyderabad-based Lanco Global Systems Ltd (LGS) have announced a strategic partnership to offer customers faster integration and deployment of vit
al Web-based applications.
Infrastructure
GAIL to supply LNG in Gujarat by 2003
GAS Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) will commence LNG supply to customers in Gujarat by 2003-04, according to an official release.
Insurance
Delay in issue of Govt notification -- Banks to miss insurance's first bus
THE entire banking industry would be missing the excitement during the initial period of activity at the office of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) when it begins to accept applications for registration of private insurance compa
nies on August 16.
PSU
Sell-off proceeds to offset fiscal imbalances opposed
FINANCIAL institutions led by the Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC) have opposed utilisation of disinvestment proceedings for fiscal correction requirements. This is now pushed as one of the precondition for funding power projects, both i
n the public and private sectors.
States
Ford India conducts roadshow in Pune
LOTS of music, games, fun and frolic and a designer car to ogle at. Puneiites, who were invited to car manufacturer Ford India's Pune dealership, Talera Ford, ended up experiencing a carnival of a different kind this weekend when the compa
ny unveiled its latest offering for the Indian market, desinger cars from designer Dilip Chhabria.
Krishna flays Finance Panel recommendations
THE Chief Minister, Mr. S.M. Krishna, has requested a meeting of the NDC or Interstate Council to discuss the scope for debt relief to the State in a letter to the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Mangalore-Hassan gauge conversion apace
ATTEMPTS are being made to complete gauge conversion work along the Mangalore-Hassan line on a build-operate-own-transfer (BOOT) basis with the Konkan Railway Corporation (KRC) and the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) having been roped i
n to finish the project by March 2001, according to the Union Minister of State for Finance, Mr. V. Dhananjaya Kumar. KRC and HUDCO are expected to submit a final proposal for the gauge conversion project to the Railway Board on August 24.
New Malayalam channel to go on air from Aug 17
KAIRALI, the new Malayalam language channel scheduled to go on air from August 17 (the Malayalam new year), will have beaten its peers with a range of technological sophistry and technical wizardry it claims it has marshalled.
North facing acute power shortage, says PHDCCI
THE northern region of the country is likely to face the problem of power shortage in the days to come as generation capacity has not increased as envisaged during the Ninth Plan, the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) has said.
Taxation
Rise in direct tax mop-up
THERE has been an overall increase of 76 per cent in the net collection of direct taxes during the first four months of the current year compared to the corresponding period last year, according to the Union Minister of State for Finance (Revenue), Mr. V
. Dhananjaya Kumar.
`I-T commissioners driven by fear psychosis'
THE income-tax commissioners, unlike the members of the income-tax appellate tribunals, cannot take independent and objective decisions, as, more often than not, they are driven by a fear psychosis.
Telecommunications
Long distance telephony opened to pvt parties
KEEPING its promise of opening up national long-distance (NLD) telephony (popularly known as STD services) by August 15, the Government today announced unrestricted private participation by companies having a combined promoters' networth of Rs. 2,500 cro
res and proposing to invest minimum Rs. 250 crores as equity into the project.
`STD charges will come down'
THE days when you will not have to keep an eye on the meter while making an STD (national long distance) call are not far.
VSNL's ISD monopoly may be reviewed
THE Government has the right to review the monopoly of Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL) in international long distance communications (ISD) and the question of compensation will be considered when the sector is opened up, Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan, Minister fo
r Communications, said today.
Textiles
71 disputed textile items -- India, EU resolve tariff bindings
INDIA and the European Union (EU) have successfully negotiated tariff bindings on some 71 disputed textile items, paving the way for easier market access to EU textile products to India and consequent grant of more quota of Indian export products to the
EU markets.
