The Hindu Business Line : Thursday, August 26, 2004

PENSION PLANS
Pension benefits for Kerala Govt staff restored
The latest employee-friendly gesture from the Government means that all long-term benefits put `temporarily' on hold due to a financial crisis three years ago are restored in their entirety. More

AUTOMOBILES
Truckers' strike fallout — Auto cos face supply, production problems
THE ongoing truckers' strike has started to take a toll on the automobile industry. Several automakers said on Wednesday that both production and dispatches of vehicles have been adversely impacted. They pointed out that the production might ... More

COURTS/LEGAL ISSUES
Panel to examine changes to Competition law
THE Union Cabinet has referred the proposed amendments to the Competition Act to a high-level committee - most likely a Group of Ministers. The amendments were proposed in the wake of a petition challenging the appointment of a bureaucrat to ... More

FOREIGN TRADE
India, Gulf council sign pact for economic cooperation
INDIA and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have signed a framework agreement on economic cooperation that would give a fillip to existing commercial and economic ties between the two sides. The Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Kamal Nath, ... More

INFRASTRUCTURE
Public-private infrastructure projects — Viability gap funding capped at 20 per cent of project cost
THE Ministry of Finance has decided to cap the total Governmental assistance to 20 per cent of the total cost of the infrastructure projects constructed through public-private partnership. The Union Budget for 2004-05 has made a provision of ... More

PETROLEUM
Big chunk of fuel costs flows into Govt kitty
YOU must be aware that taxes and duties are rather high on petrol and diesel in India. But did you know that more than half of what you pay for alitre of petrol and 25-40 per cent of what you pay per litre of diesel goes to the Government's ... More

PHARMACEUTICALS
NPPA notifies norms for packing material costs
THE National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has notified the norms for packing material cost for medicines in strips, tubes and bottles. The costs vary depending on the shape, size, number of tablets and the packing material. The NPPA ... More

Company secretaries look for more room in pharma sector
FROM simple headache pills to sophisticated antibiotics and complex cardiac compounds, almost every type of medicine is made in India. Looking for a larger role in this industry are professionals such as company secretaries (CS). According to ... More

POWER
New power policy to be announced soon, says YSR
THE State Government will shortly come out with a comprehensive policy regarding free supply of power to the agricultural sector, the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, announced here on Wednesday. Briefing newspersons after holding a ... More

Kalam urges thermal power plants to cut T&D losses
THE President, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, has asked the thermal power stations to focus on reducing the transmission and distribution (T & D) losses from the existing 31,000 MW to 12,000 MW in phases within the next three years. Addressing power ... More

STEEL
Steel body urges Govt to promote exports to Pak
THE Indian Steel Alliance (ISA), representing the five main primary steel producers in the country, has urged the Government to promote steel exports to Pakistan. The members of ISA are Steel Authority of India Ltd, Tata Steel, Essar Steel, ... More

TAXATION
Truckers demand Minister's confirmation on service tax
The transporters also contested Mr Chidambaram's statement that they had refused to sign the minutes. More

TEXTILES
Truck stir puts TN mills in a spin
THE truckers strike has heightened the fear of further illiquidity for the textile spinning mills in the region. If it continues, the strike may worsen their plight of a piled up yarn inventory, textile industry sources said. With most ... More

SSI
Tiruchi small sector's plea
MADURAI: The Tiruchi District Tiny and Small-Scale Industries Association (TIDITSSIA) has urged the Tamil Nadu Government to provide exemption for the sector from the commercial tax for the sales turn over to the tune of Rs 1 crore on the ... More

Sun targets SMBs with low-cost computing tool
SUN Microsystems announced the launch of its low-cost computing solutions, targeted at the small and medium businesses, in India on Wednesday. The company has tied up with the Singapore-based Net iTech Asia Pacific Pte Ltd and the ... More

FAPCCI-Unido meet from Sept 2
HYDERABAD: The Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FAPCCI), in association with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), is organising a two-day training programme on industrial cluster ... More

WATER
SYL ball in Centre's court now: Chautala
THE Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, was pleased withthe act of the Supreme Court dismissing the review petition filed by Punjab regarding the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal imbroglio. He said that it was now the Union ... More

COAL
Panel tells Coal Department to prepare vision document
THE Parliamentary Standing Committee has asked the Department of Coal to prepare a long-term production plan till 2025 in view of the expected shortage in coal production. The committee, which submitted its report to the Parliament on ... More

BREWERIES
Travel and Tourism Fair in Hyderabad
THE second edition of the Travel and Tourism Fair (TTF-2004) will begin on Friday. About 100 participants from different segments of the tourism industry are expected to take part in the three-day event. The Governments of Nepal, Indonesia ... More

RADIO/TV
TRAI seeks industry views on community radio licensing
THE Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has sought industry's views on whether a separate licensing authority needs to be set up for granting community radio licences. Releasing a consultation paper on Wednesday on community radio ... More

LEATHER
Kolkata to host leather goods fair
THE three-day export-oriented `International Leather Goods Fair-2004' here from October 3 is expected to witness a major Italian and French participation this time around. The ILGF - 2004 is organised by the India Trade Promotion Organisation ... More

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS
MP's statement on synthetic woven bags irks manufacturers
THE All India Flat Tape Manufacturers' Association, a group of synthetic woven sack manufacturers, has taken umbrage at the statement by a West Bengal MP — during a debate in the Lok Sabha on August 18 — in which synthetic bags were ... More

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Defence scientist awarded
HYDERABAD: Dr E. Bhagiratha Rao, a noted defence scientist, has been selected for the VASVIK (Vivadhalaxi Audyogik Samshodhan Vikas Kendra) award for his research and contributions in the field of electrical and electronic sciences and ... More

IPR
IPR seminar in Hyderabad
HYDERABAD: A two-day national seminar on Law and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) has recommended the setting up of separate courts for IPR and also making it a compulsory subject in the educational curriculam. The seminar on IPR-A ... More

INTERVIEW
`Revamp power sector policy to attract private investments'
AS availability of energy to ensure 7 per cent to 8 per cent economic growth per annum on a sustainable basis gets priority, the state of energy sector presents a none-too-rosy picture. Reform of the country's power sector has been long in the ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
Free display booths for exporters at IPC exhibition
THE Jakarta-based International Pepper Community (IPC) has come forward to offer display booths free-of-cost to the exporters of pepper and other spice products at the international fair to be held in tandem with the 32nd session of IPC in ... More

TOURISM
`Involve locals in tourism development'
THE Minister of State for Tourism, Ms Renuka Choudhury, has emphasised the importance of tourism as an employment creator particularly so in rural livelihoods. She stressed the need to involve local communities in tourism development and ... More

KSINC to outsource marketing of cruises
THE Kerala Shipping Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC), prior to the introduction of Sagara Rani for backwater cruising, has invited expressions of interest from private parties for the marketing of various cruise packages. KSINC is ... More

Silk Air eyes more flights to support tourism drive
AS the Singapore Tourism Board tries to woo Indian tourists with a new range of attractive options and a `desi' brand campaign targeting about half a million of them, Silk Air is considering plans to increase the number of flights from ... More