INVESTMENTS
`Reintroduce RBI tax-free bonds'
THE Standing Committee on Finance has urged the Government to consider reintroduction of the 6.5 per cent tax-free RBI bonds. It has held that such bonds must be available in addition to the recently introduced Senior Citizens Savings Scheme. ... More

AWARDS & HONOURS

ECONOMY
Inflation pressure hits States' fiscal reforms
RISING revenue expenditure as a result of accelerating inflation and rising interest rates has jeopardised States' fiscal reforms. Sources said most States were now likely to face large escalations in administrative expenditure, mainly due to ... More

Haryana panel to redress industry woes
THE Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, has announced that a high-powered committee would be constituted under the chairmanship of the Principal Secretary, Mr B.D. Dhalia, for quick redressal of grievances of industry. Addressing a ... More

ENVIRONMENT

FOREIGN TRADE
India set to sign FTA with GCC
INDIA is set to enter into a free trade agreement (FTA) with the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC). The first-ever such accord with the Arab world is to be inked during the three-day official visit of the Foreign Minister of Kuwait, Dr Mohammed ... More

PETROLEUM
Oil prices and the world economy
The recent rise in world oil prices has led to fears of renewed inflation and possibly even recession as governments attempt to reduce inflationary pressures through fiscal and monetary contraction. In this edition of Macroscan, C. P. Chand rasekhar and Jayati Ghosh consider the causes of the oil price rise and assess the implications for the world economy. More

Crude prices could harden further, says IOC chief
INTERNATIONAL crude prices could harden further, the Chairman of Indian Oil Corporation, Mr M.S. Ramachandran, said here on Monday. Speaking at the annual general meeting of shareholders of Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Mr Ramachandran ... More

Oil price hike and inflation — Cushioning the impact of a double-whammy
INFLATION is indubitably the cruellest form of taxation as it hits a large number of people, especially in a country of continental size like India, where the number of workers in the unorganised sector is legion. ... More

PHARMACEUTICALS
Vizag pharma city to be ready next year
THE work on the pharma city at Parawada in Visakhapatnam district is going on briskly and the infrastructural facilities for the units to begin production may be ready by May 2005, according to Dr K. Suryamohana Rao, Managing Director, Ramky ... More

PLASTICS
Seminar on plastics tomorrow
THE Plastics Export Promotion Council is organising a national seminar on `Focus-CIS initiative' of the Union Commerce Ministry, here on August 25. The seminar will also discuss the Council's Market Access Initiative (MAI) project for plastic ... More

POWER
South Asian initiative for energy project proposals
THE Small Grants Programme of the South Asia Regional Initiative for Energy Cooperation and Development (SARI/Energy) will soon launch the third round of request for proposals (RFPs) for projects that encourage regional cooperation in South Asia ... More

STEEL
More steel majors cut prices
A DAY after Tata Steel announced a price cut of Rs 2,000 per tonne on all products, Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) and other leading steel majors on Monday announced a cut in prices.. The reductions range from Rs 500-1,000 a tonne. SAIL ... More

What led to the rollback
WHAT led to the sudden roll back in steel prices in the domestic market that defied the principles of market economy? That was the question that intrigued many throughout Monday. Informed sources here told Business Line that it was a ... More

End-users to gain from Tata Steel price cuts
THE price cuts on steel products announced by Tata Steel, followed similarly, if not matched, by some of the other steel manufacturers is likely to cool down the raging prices of many downstream steel products and reduce costs for end-user ... More

TAXATION
Education cess on customs duty — Ministry rejects industry request for change in calculation method
THE Finance Ministry has rejected the industry's suggestion for a change in the method of calculation of education cess on customs duty. The revenue department has held that the method recommended by industry was not acceptable as it goes against ... More

TEXTILES
`Textile mills plagued by inefficiency, stagnation'
The Indian textile sector still relies heavily on relatively inefficient loom and hosiery sectors to feed the upper end of the value chain, which in turn results in loss of overall efficiency of the sector. More

Govt to strengthen cotton textiles — To promote Made in India brand; mulls apparel park
OVER the next five years, cotton textiles hold a greater export potential than even information technology; the Government is seriously exploring ways of strengthening the entire cotton economy, including setting up of an apparel park and ... More

EDUCATION
Essay contest for students on computer study
THE Tamil Nadu Government will organise a national level essay competition on computer education to create awareness among students and teachers on the need for computer education in schools. The competition will coincide with Connect2004, the ... More

CARS
Truckers' stir: Toyota, Honda to review situation
MAJOR auto companies including Toyota-Kirloskar Motor Company and Honda Siel said on Monday that they will review the situation if the truckers' strike continues for a few more days. A Toyota official said that the company, which follows the ... More

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS
India Inc favours consolidated income-tax assessments
WITH the concept of consolidation of financial statements of companies within the Group gaining favour among regulators, India Inc is keen that even income-tax assessments are made on the basis of consolidated Group accounts. Corporate India ... More

CII to organise Tele Trans expo
`TELE Trans 2004', a conference-cum-exposition on `telematics in transportation' will be held in Chennai on September 6 and 7. The event is being organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry. The conference, the second in the proposed ... More

Assocham calls for early end to truckers' strike
THE industry has called for serious efforts to end the ongoing transporters strike. It said the strike affected the delivery of export orders and the supply of essential commodities. Some of the constituents of the Assocham belonging to the ... More

READYMADE GARMENTS
Garment exports to quota countries up
THE country's export of readymade garments to quota restricted countries during the first four months of the current fiscal registered an 8 per cent growth in volume and 12 per cent growth in value in dollar terms, compared to the corresponding ... More

BIO-TECH & GENETICS
German FIZ for Indian biotech cos
FOR biotechnology companies looking at European tie-ups and markets, the journey could begin with `FIZ' in Germany. Dr Christian Garbe, MD and CEO of FIZ (the Frankfurt Innovation Centre for Biotechnology), said it could be the gateway for ... More

DISINVESTMENT
Bengal Govt `offers' reins of IISCO to Jindals — Parent co SAIL says no plan to disinvest
THE West Bengal Chief Minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, has shocked Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) with his formal declaration of help to the Jindals to acquire Indian Iron & Steel Co. Ltd.(IISCO), a subsidiary of SAIL. IISCO is ... More

SOCIAL WELFARE
Women SHGs play big role in Nilgiris tea quality
THE Tamil Nadu Government has expressed its satisfaction over the involvement of women self-help groups (SHGs) in the harvesting and procurement of quality tea leaves for processing by factories in the Nilgiris. At a seminar on `Women SHG and ... More

EVENTS
FICCI tourism marketing meet from tomorrow
UNLIKE other competing eco and adventure tourism destinations, India's USP would be to synergise the competencies of the crafts, culture and cuisine of villages en route to eco and rural tourism destinations. According to the Federation of Indian ... More

Rs 210 cr spent on Krishna Pushkaram arrangements
THE State Government has so far spent Rs 210 crore on making arrangements for the Krishna Pushkaram festival beginning on August 28. The arrangements are being finetuned at present, according to the Chief Minister, Dr Y. S. Rajasekhara ... More

Surface engg meet
BANGALORE: ISRO and Electrochemical Society of India (ECSI) are jointly organising an International Convention on Surface Engineering (INCOSURF 2004) in Bangalore from August 25-27. Participants at the convention will discuss various ... More

CO-OPERATIVES
Help sought for TN weavers' co-operative societies
THE Tamil Nadu Co-operative Employees Federation has urged the Government to allot funds for the revival of the weavers' co-operative societies reeling under financial crisis. An executive committee meeting of the federation held here ... More

ALTERNATIVE MEDICINES

TOURISM
Singapore Tourism turns its spotlight on Mumbai
AS the peak holiday season approaches, the tourism boards of different countries are once again in town to roll out the red carpet for Indian tourists. It turns out that quite a few, including the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and South African ... More