Voices

``OPEC has a very short memory. It will pay a heavy price for not acting in 1999 to control oil prices. Now it is too late. The Stone Age came to an end not for the lack of stones, and the oil age will end, not for lack of oil. The present spiraling prices is the last hurrah for OPEC oil power.'' -- Mr. Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani, former Oil Minister, Saudi Arabia.

``We see e-enabling as the biggest opportunity. It is true that e-commerce would require greater onsite presence but we have to realise that margins in e-commerce are higher.'' -- Mr. N. R. Narayana Murthy, Chairman and CEO, Infosys Technologies.

``The NSE expects to attain a turnover of Rs. 20,000 crores daily by the end of the current fiscal from the present Rs. 6,000 crores, once the funds become bullish on derivatives.'' -- Mr. Ravi Narain, Deputy Managing Director, NSE.

``The company has ventured into basic research and is at the moment in the second stage of screening eight new molecules. It is also looking at alliances for the novel drug delivery systems in the domestic market.'' -- Mr. Amar Lulla, Director, Cipla.

``Infosys is studying various acquisition options. Any opportunity that brings complementary value to Infosys, any opportunity that makes one plus one to at least three if not 11, that is the direction we are looking for.'' -- Mr. N. R. Narayana Murthy, Chairman and CEO, Infosys Technologies.

``The Government is working on a package to compensate VSNL against the loss before the cut-off year (2004) of bandwidth monopoly, which it derives from an exclusive agreement with fibre optic across the globe (FLAG).'' -- Mr. Shyamal Ghosh, Telecom Secretary.

``Tetley would be used as a driver to increase exports of packet teas. The Tetley brand name would be used not only to strengthen presence in the global tea market but also for other products.'' -- Mr. R. K. Krishna Kumar, Vice-Chairman, Tata Tea.

``SAIL is committed to trimming its workforce to one lakh over the next three years.'' -- Mr. Aravind Pande, Chairman, Steel Authority of India (SAIL).