The Hindu Business Line : Saturday, June 12, 2004

EMPLOYMENT
Assocham opposes reservation of jobs in private sector
STRONGLY opposing the reservation for employment in private sector units, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham) has termed the proposed move a `stumbling block in the progress'. In a representation to the Government on ... More

Maharashtra to hold talks with pvt sector on job quotas
THE Maharashtra Government will hold talks with industry organisations to thrash out problems that the latter would face when the new law requiring them to set aside quotas of 52 per cent comes into force. The intent of the Government was to ... More

CLIMATE & WEATHER
Monsoon clouds
Clouds hovering over the skies of Hyderabad. Good monsoon is likely to bring cheer to the areas reeling under severe drought.

AWARDS & HONOURS
FAPCCI awards announced
THE Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, will present the annual Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FAPCCI) awards to 18 winners on Saturday for making significant contributions in different ... More

BUDGET
Cola majors say lower prices sustainable only if SED is removed
Coke and Pepsi have also reiterated that "discriminatory and excessive" tax burden is jeopardising their viability as an industry in India. More

`Low I-T rate with two slabs will be helpful'
THE threshold limit for the personal income-tax for the individuals should be enhanced to Rs 1 lakh, the Tamil Nadu Foodgrains Merchants Association (TFMA), has said. In a pre-budget memorandum submitted to the Union Finance Minister, Mr ... More

Slash corporate tax to 30 pc, says GMCI
THE Greater Mysore Chamber of Industry (GMCI) has said that the corporate tax rates should be brought down to 30 per cent to encourage investment and incentives entrepreneurship. In a pre-Budget memorandum submitted to the Union Finance ... More

ECONOMY
Bengal panel to probe reports of starvation deaths
THE West Bengal Chief Minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, has ordered an enquiry into recent reports of starvation deaths in the State. A team has been sent to Belpahari and Banspahari in West Midnapore district where five people are reported ... More

Industry posts 9.4 pc growth in April
IT has been standard practice for any new Government to blame the previous regime for all its inherited woes that significantly constricts flexibility in economic decision-making. But the present Government has little room for complaint, at least ... More

Fiscal deficit soars 52 pc in April
A SURGE in expenditure had led to an almost 52 per cent increase in the Centre's fiscal deficit during the opening month of the current financial year. According to the Controller-General of Accounts in the Finance Ministry, the gross fiscal ... More

Finance Ministers to meet on June 18
THE finance ministers of all States will meet in New Delhi on June 18 to discuss a gamut of issues including value-added tax, the West Bengal Finance Minister, Dr Ashim Dasgupta, said. Talking to reporters at the State secretariat, he said that ... More

ELECTRONICS
Electronics hardware body seeks sectoral dispensation
THE Council of Electronic Hardware Associations (CEHA), a body comprising the associations of the electronics and IT hardware industry, has urged the Government to make a special sectoral dispensation to sustain the investments made in this ... More

ENVIRONMENT
World Bank issues LI to buy carbon credits from Fal-G
THE World Bank has issued a Letter of Intent (LI) for the purchase of 8,00,000 tonnes of carbon credits from the FaL-G brick and block industry at $5/tonne of carbon-dioxide equivalent. The LI was signed by Mr Ken Newcombe, PCF Fund Manager & . More

EXCISE AND CUSTOMS
CBEC fiat on calamity duty
THE Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has made it clear to its field formations that the National Calamity Contingent Duty (NCCD) that is payable as customs duty has not been exempted on the imports of specified goods such as crude, ... More

`e-filing of customs returns poor'
THE Chief Commissioner of Customs, Kolkata, Mr Subrata Basu, stressed upon the need for synchronisation of the operations of the customs department, port authorities, shipping lines and allied agencies to facilitate smooth imports and ... More

FOREIGN TRADE
FTA may hit domestic cos, says CETMA
THE resultant impact of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and Thailand and other South East Asian countries on select products which include some of the consumer electronic goods may pose a threat to domestic manufacturers.This is ... More

HEALTH
Venocuff: Antidote to varicose veins
VENOCUFF, a cure for vein-related problems, was introduced recently in India. It has been used to treat varicose veins, and its advocates claim that overseas data showed it was less expensive than alternatives. At a press conferenceon Friday, ... More

HOTELS
`Demand for rooms in premium hotels drops'
WITH the peak tourist season that lasts through the winter months drawing to a close, occupancies and average room rents (ARRs) at the premium segment hotels in the four metros have gradually come down. While the occupancies have dropped to ... More

INFRASTRUCTURE
Banks can raise long-term bonds
THE Reserve Bank of India today allowed banks to raise long-term bonds with a minimum maturity of five years to finance infrastructure projects. As per the guidelines issued, banks will be allowed to raise funds to the extent of their exposure ... More

PETROLEUM
Chidambaram meets PM on petro pricing — `Package likely to be ready by June 15'
THE Government is still in the throes of inter-ministerial consultations on the proposed package to insulate the consumers from global oil price shocks. During the day, the Petroleum Minister, Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar, said that he was awaiting ... More

PSU oil, refinery stocks decline
BPCL, HPCL, Indian Oil, Bongaigaon Refinery, Kochi Refinery declined today on reports that the Government may cut customs duties on crude and petroleum products, thereby reducing the protection enjoyed by domestic companies. Oil PSUs, which ... More

PHARMACEUTICALS
EAN assisting pharma cos to adopt barcode
AFTER the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made the barcoding of human drugs and biological products mandatory, EAN India, a non-profit organisation, which administers these standards, said that it had started working closely with major ... More

POWER
Mega project status likely for Bellary Thermal Power Station
Extension of the mega power status would now allow some of the state-owned projects to bring down fixed costs. More

Rlys uses Nabinagar lever to squeeze out better power rates — UP, Chhattisgarh SEBs ready to cut tariffs
FOR a long time, it was the Railways chasing the state electricity boards (SEBs), seeking better rates for power. Just an announcement of a captive plant has turned the tables and the SEBs seem to have suddenly discovered the importance of ... More

TEXTILES
Plea to form unified textile development body
THE Chairman of the Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation (KHDC) Ltd, Mr L.R. Ananth, has demanded that steps be taken to merge KHDC, Karnataka State Powerloom Development Corporation and Kaveri Handlooms to form "Karnataka Textile ... More

WATER
Energy-water nexus: `Policy issues must'
ELECTRICITY may be the key determinant of economic growth but in some respects it threatens the very livelihood options in the rural areas, according to speakers at a seminar on `Energy - water nexus: Policy issues in governance' organised by ... More

RADIO/TV
Broadcasters remain divided on CAS
DIFFERENCES continued to remain among the pay broadcasters on the implementation of the conditional access system (CAS). While the broadcasting regulator, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (TRAI), is of the view of making this ... More

EDUCATION
ICFAI varsity to raise branch strength to 8
All over India, ICFAI had more than 100 centres. This was likely to be expanded to 250 in the near future. More

Toonz Animation academy launched in West Bengal
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Toonz Animation India Pvt Ltd has announced the formal inauguration of the `Toonz-Webel Academy' for animation in Kolkata. The academy was inaugurated earlier this week by Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Chief Minister ... More

LEATHER
India to get German expertise in making upholstery leather
EXPERTS from Germany are slated to provide training facility to Indian tanners for manufacture of upholstery leather for the automobiles sector. While preliminary level talks have already been held in this regard by the Council for Leather ... More

EVENTS
World Blood Donor day on Monday
SURGICALS major Terumo Penpol has teamed up with the All-Kerala Blood Donors Society (KEBS) and the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) to honour those who have been donating blood on a regular basis for a ... More

Chinese porcelain show
One- and a-half-year-old Isaac Sha is on a visit to India along with his parents who are artisans from Jingdezhen in South China's Jiangxi province taking part in a month-long exhibition-cum-sale showcasing some 2000 varieties of original Chinese ... More

`PR agencies must align with client's vision'
THE Indian public relations industry needs to align itself with clients' vision and business goals, and not just focus on initiative-based PR objectives, according to experts speaking at the PRCAI's (Public Relations Consultant's Association of ... More

Fortune Park food fest
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Fortune Park Hotels, a subsidiary of ITC Hotels Ltd, is organising an East Asian food festival at three of its properties in South India, says a company press release. Called `The mystique of Asia', the food festival ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
Exports from STPI-H cross $1-billion mark
THE Software Technology Parks of India-Hyderabad (STPI-H) has registered a 37 per cent growth in overall exports from the software services and ITES (Information Technology Enabled Services) sectors, achieving total exports of Rs 5,025 crore ... More

Ministry calls meet to fix export targets
THE Commerce Secretary, Mr Dipak Chatterjee, has convened a meeting of the chiefs of various export promotion councils and commodity boards on June 15, to determine the export target for the current fiscal, after obtaining their inputs and ... More