The Hindu Business Line : Wednesday, June 02, 2004

ANTI-DUMPING
Mid-term review on dumping of steel billets, bars initiated
THE Designated Authority in the Commerce Ministry has initiated mid-term review investigation on the anti-dumping duty in force on certain seamless grade alloy and non-alloy steel billets, bars and rounds originating in or exported from Russia, ... More

BUDGET
More capital market-friendly measures awaited in Budget — Tax experts want full exemption on LTCG
EVEN as the Union Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, is gearing up to start pre-Budget discussions with various experts, including the Securities and Exchange Board of India officials, especially on the direct taxes front, tax experts and ... More

CEMENT
Modest rise in cement majors' May despatches
THREE cement majors have reported a moderate increase in dispatches of cement, year-on-year, for the month of May 2004. ACC reported dispatches of 14.07 lakh tonnes for the month, which is 2 per cent higher than dispatches, at 13.79 lakh ... More

COURTS/LEGAL ISSUES
R.C. Lahoti sworn in new Chief Justice
NEW DELHI: Mr Justice Ramesh Chandra Lahoti was sworn in as the 35th Chief Justice of India (CJI) by the President, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, on Tuesday. Mr Justice Lahoti, the senior most judge of the Supreme Court, succeeds Mr Justice S. ... More

ECONOMY
`India to become top region for growth'
A MAJOR transformation is in the offing in the coming decades in terms of growth in developing countries with India paving the way with its enormous skills, according to Mr R.C. Banka, Senior Vice-President (Operations), Tractors and Farm ... More

ENVIRONMENT
Industry seeks fiscal incentives for environmental compliance
FISCAL incentives from the government could be given to companies that comply with environmental regulations. This has been suggested by top CEOs across industries in a survey conducted by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and ... More

Kerala PCB award for Hind Lever
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Hindustan Lever, Ernakulam, has won the State Pollution Control Award, 2004, while Kochi Refineries won the special award for consistent effort and performance in the upkeep of environment. Apollo Tyres, Perambra, ... More

Environment Day celebrations
KOCHI: To create an awareness and to motivate the youth, the Confederation of Indian Industry, Kerala, and Young Indians are organising a water colour painting and public speaking competition for children in the age group of 8 to 12 years ... More

EXCISE AND CUSTOMS
`No coercive action for recovery of excise dues on stay applications'
THE Finance Ministry has provided guidance to the excise field formations on the course of action to be taken for recovery of arrears in cases where the stay application against the original orders of the excise commissioners is pending before ... More

FOREIGN TRADE
Unctad meet to focus on trade vision-development coherence
The Unctad conference in Brazil provides an opportunity for both developed and developing countries to engage themselves constructively before they get into the Geneva process in July. More

India for strong relations with ASEAN, SAARC
THE Special Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, Mr Rajiv Sikri, has said that India is committed to forge stronger relations with the entire Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation ... More

INFRASTRUCTURE
Centre keen on speeding up Sethusamudram project
THE Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, Mr T.R. Baalu, is prepared to look at different methods of financing the Sethusamudram project so that funds constraint does not stand in the way of the project being executed. He is ... More

PETROLEUM
LPG connection finance scheme from United Bank
UNITED Bank of India has introduced a special scheme under Nabard's refinance facility for financing LPG connections in rural areas. The scheme covers the cost of supplying a regulator, a cylinder and accessories and a burner stove. The ... More

POWER
MERC ruling — Tata Power asked to refund Rs 322 cr to Reliance Energy
THE Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission on Tuesday ruled that Reliance Energy Ltd need not bear in equal proportion with Tata Power, standby charges of Rs 33 crore payable to the MSEB every month. The MERC has ruled that for the ... More

Domestic, foreign lenders of DPC to meet today
DOMESTIC and foreign lenders to the Dabhol Power Company are expected to come together for a "conclusive" meeting on Wednesday and Thursday here to decide on the final price at which the foreign debt would be handed over to the domestic financial ... More

Pathrakkadavu power project — Collector's denial disputed

STEEL
HR steel prices may stabilise: Irani
PRICES of hot-rolled steel in the domestic market are expected to stabilise at current levels if international prices do not fall further. However, if global prices continue to fall, then domestic prices too will soften further, according to ... More

SSI
Buyer-seller meet in Madurai begins tomorrow
THE Madurai District Tiny And Small Scale Industries Association (Maditssia) and the Small Industries Service Institute (SISI), Chennai, are jointly organising a `Buyer-Seller Meet' here for two days, starting June 3. Mr K. Ramachandran, ... More

WATER
Godavari water to reach Kanithi reservoir soon
THE project to divert the Godavari water (5 tmc feet) from East Godavari to Visakhapatnam through Yeleru canal is going on as per schedule and the water should reach the Kanithi balancing reservoir by July 15, according to the Municipal ... More

EDUCATION
IIM fee cut issue: FICCI welcomes Govt initiatives
WELCOMING the HRD Minister, Mr Arjun Singh's directive to the IIMs to formulate a road map to resolve the fee-cut issue, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) President, Mr Y.K. Modi said, "This will restore autonomy ... More

Kerala ideal location for School of Advanced Information Systems
EFFECTIVE value proposition in the application of information technology, as demonstrated in a few successful and well-documented endeavours in Kerala, goes to make the State the ideal choice for housing the proposed School of Advanced ... More

AIR-CONDITIONERS & REFRIGERATORS
Durables industry upbeat on AC sales
YET again this summer has seen players such as LG, Samsung, Whirlpool, Electrolux, and Voltas all competing with each other for their share in the air-conditioners (AC) market. The players are hoping to close calendar 2004 with a sale of 1.25 ... More

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS

TN chamber hails CMP

BIO-TECH & GENETICS
Biotech mission to tour US
THE Co-Chairman and Managing Director of Jubilant Organosys, Mr Hari Bhartia, will lead a biotech mission to the US, as part of an eight-day tour from June 2. Dr M.K. Bhan is the patron of the mission organised by the Confederation of Indian ... More

MINING & QUARRYING
Bureau of Mines unearths 3,000 violations of rules
THE Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) under the Department of Mines, has spotted 3,000 violations of Mineral Conservation and Development Rules 1988 (MCDR), involving 1,281 mines during 2003-04. Out of this IBM has rectified fully 1,895 cases of ... More

RURAL DEVELOPMENT
Model poverty alleviation scheme for Mattanchery
THE State Government has launched a model poverty alleviation programme in Mattanchery, the first of its kind in the State. The Government has formed a monitoring committee with the Minister for Local Self Government, Mr Cherkalam Abdullah, as ... More

EVENTS
Oman to host GCC-India conference in 2006
OMAN will host the second GCC-India Industrial Conference in the first quarter of 2006.The first conference, which was held in Mumbai earlier this year, was successful in formulating an agenda for industrial and economic co-operation between ... More

In Thiruvananthapuram today

CONSUMERISM
Fees on consumer cases
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Confederation of Consumer Vigilance Centres has demanded that the State Government withdraw the fees imposed by it for filing complaints in consumer fora. In a resolution adopted by its general body here, the ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
Increasing global demand seen reviving tea exports
NOTWITHSTANDING the squeeze in the tea supply position (owing to the decline in the South Indian tea crop for the fourth year in a row), industry insiders foresee a revival in exports because of rising international demand. The UPASI Tea ... More

India may export more diesel to Bangladesh
The Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas and Panchayati Raj, Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar, informed the visiting Bangladesh Foreign Minister, Mr Morshed Khan that increased exports of diesel from India to Bangladesh could be considered under a ... More

TOURISM
Good response to Taj group's Lanka package
THE `Best of Sri Lanka' package unveiled by the Taj group of hotels has elicited a strong and positive response among Indians living in the mainland. Speaking to a group of visiting journalists to the island nation, Mr Praveen Nair, General ... More

ECONOMIC OFFENCES
Trader held for role in `rice scam'
THE team of Corps of Detectives (CoD), headed by the DIG, Economic Offences, Dr P. Ravindranath, on Monday arrested Mahadevan, managing partner of SS Maritime, in connection with a "rice scam". The team recovered some related documents at his ... More