Public Company
The World Bank has approved the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project (NCRMP) for implementation in Orissa. This follows the submission of the report on the project by the appraisal mission of the Bank which visited the state from 3 December to 5 December 2009.
2009 saw a high-voltage legal battle between the Ambani brothers over the gas dispute reaching the Supreme Court with a judge withdrawing from the bench.
A stream of mourners lined up before the CPI-M headquarters and the Indira Bhavan, official residence of Jyoti Basu, here to pay their last respect to the departed leader as West Bengal observes a two-day state mourning beginning today.
Even as some sections of industry found the 75 basis points (bps) increase in the cash reserve ratio (CRR) more than expected, the government commended the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the “right move” and said it would not result in an immediate increase in interest rates. It said the Reserve Bank had aptly acknowledged the need for paying attention to inflation as well as growth.
Maharashtra government employees can no longer browse online trading sites from Mantralaya now, as the state government has blocked two financial websites moneycontrol.com and bseindia.com.
India said today that security considerations were delaying its participation in the tri-nation Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) gas pipeline, but it had not shut its doors on the project.
India said the Chinese government had assured it no dam on the Brahmaputra was proposed
JSW Energy has provided the much-needed lifeline for the group’s Rs 35,000 crore project in Bengal, by taking up the power project .
JSW Energy Ltd, part of the Sajjan Jindal-promoted Jindal South West Group (JSW), has sought alternative land from the Gujarat government to shift its power project from Junagadh in the west to the port town of Dahej in south Gujarat.
With Indian Railways having developed two automobile wagon rakes (trains), with a holding capacity of almost 550 cars each for transport of vehicles from sites closer to their manufacturing bases to their final destination, auto manufacturers say they look forward to increasingly using this form of transport for their products.
Novartis finally ended with a Rs 21 or 3.6% gain at Rs 590. Around 30,063 shares changed hands at the counter today.
Jindal Saw"s board has announced that it would split its equity shares, with a face value of Rs 10 each, into five equity shares of Rs 2 each.
Construction firm GMR Infrastructure today said it has approved sub-division of its existing equity shares of Rs 2 each into 2 equity shares of Re 1 each.
GMR Infrastructure, the Bangalore-based infrastructure major, today announced sub-division of all its equity shares of Rs 2 each into 2 equity shares of Re 1 each per share. A decision to this effect was taken at the board meeting held here today. The stock split is, however, subject to the approval of members of the company at the forthcoming annual general meeting.
Road ministry mulls a fee of Rs 15 for such a cover.
Calling for a national discussion on replicating the Gujarat model of making voting compulsory, the BJP today criticised the Congress and Left parties for opposing it "without applying their minds."
The 700-member Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Brokers Forum may approach the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the ministry of finance, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), investor associations and other trade associations against the move to extend trading hours.
Disinvestment plans likely to get delayed in 21 out of 43 listed companies
Towns and cities, witnessing a growing population and change in both quality and quantity of their urban solid waste, are finding garbage disposal a major environmental issue. Garbage clearance and its disposal is becoming a herculean task with the volume of solid waste rising by the day.
The life insurance industry has paid around Rs 1,717 crore as death benefit to policy holders between April and June 2009 compared with Rs 1,422 crore during the corresponding quarter last year (an increase of 20.74 per cent), according to Life Insurance Council, the body governing life insurance companies in India.
For journalists, pundits and comedians, the end of the year provides an opportunity to look back, fantasise forward and let the creative juices flow.
As corruption cases against members of the judiciary make the headlines, a proposed bill on judicial accountability has suggested that the declaration of assets made by judges will be treated as a "legal document" and can be used to investigate complaints against them.
M J Antony / New Delhi December 23, 2009, 0:47 IST
Australia today said it will cooperate with the family of Nitin Garg, the Indian youth killed here, and expedite the process of returning his body back home, terming the delay in the process as "unfortunate".
India today said it is not in a position to resume the composite dialogue with Pakistan till "vigorous prosecution" is mounted against the accused in the 26/11 case and the infrastructure of terror across the border, responsible for the numerous attacks, is dismantled.
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna today ticked off his junior minister Shashi Tharoor for publicly questioning new visa guidelines, saying if he had any "perceptions", those should be discussed within the "four walls" of the government.
Pakistan has said "political compulsions" and "divisions in Indian polity" were preventing India from holding dialogue with Islamabad, after the foreign ministers of the two countries avoided a meeting despite being under the same roof.
There is little doubt that public private partnerships have contributed to infrastructure-building, but if the lay public perceives them as one-sided, most politicians will be reluctant to promote them.
The zeitgeist builds itself; being right up close to events, we see at first only the separate bricks. At some particular moment, however, a precipitating event suddenly converts the soup of soluble doubts to a crystal of certainty. Bricks become house.
A year or two ago Gore Vidal was expected at the Jaipur Literature Festival, and was scheduled to make one appearance in Delhi. I was all ready to arrive early and stick my hand out to have it shaken by the master. There must have been many others with similar aspirations. But in the event Gore cancelled his trip to India.
India today set the stage for global car giants Toyota, Volkswagen and Honda to unveil to the world their strategy and models for the high-growth small-car market. The platform was the 10th Auto Expo being held in the national capital.
HOW MUCH THE RECOVERY HAS GAINED GROUND is best seen from the fact that the IMF has, once again, raised its forecast for global growth for 2009 as well as 2010. But, as was underlined at the G-20 meet, the recovery is fragile, heavily dependent upon government spending and support — global deficits are up 6 percentage points and governments in advanced economies have provided guarantees of over 30 per cent of their GDP to prevent their banks from collapsing.
Fund flows into emerging equity and riskier bond markets slowed for the week ended December 2 amid Dubai"s multi-billion debt woes, a fund tracking consultancy said.
India will be the third largest economy in the world after China and United States by 2050, a US-based internationally recognised foreign-policy think tank has said.
Global pharma major Pfizer is to source source 40 off-patent (generic) cancer care products from Bangalore-based Strides Arcolab and sell the products in the United States.
VW/Suzuki: Volkswagen’s $2.5bn investment in Japanese rival Suzuki is a small step in its ambition to be the world’s biggest car maker. But it is a smart move for both sides. And the strategic benefits for the German autos group are particularly attractive.
The government today ruled out additional borrowing in the current fiscal.
India faced the curse of drought and floods in 2009 that saw consumers paying towering prices for vegetables, pulses, sugar and foodgrains, and the shortage of supplies punctured the euphoria over the return of the Congress-led government in May.
Reliance Industries Executive Director R Ravimohan is no more. He died Monday night due to a severe cardiac arrest. He was 52. Ravimohan is survived by wife Madhuralakshmi, daughter Hridaya and son Jagad.
Read no history — nothing but biography, for that is life without theory
India faced the curse of drought and floods in 2009 that saw consumers paying towering prices for vegetables, pulses, sugar and foodgrains, and the shortage of supplies punctured the euphoria over the return of the Congress-led government in May.
Mumbai-based Laxmi Diamonds retail brand Cygnus Fine Jewellery is planning to expand its business by setting up 40 standalone exclusive stores across the country and entering 50 lifestyle stores by the end of 2010.
Rajasthan-based Rallison Electrical Private Limited today launched the country"s first Fire Survival Cable and targeted to achieve turnover of Rs 500 crore in the current fiscal.
- BofA likely to pay bonuses close to 2007 level - Future Group pulls the plug on "Bijli Ghar" - PowerMin wants gas at $2.34 for NTPC - Another RIL cash raising on anvil - RIL to drill six new wells in KG-D6 block this year - Reliance Industries: Filling its coffers
The US President’s visit to the region begins a new game with new rules.
The Reserve Bank may start sucking out money from the system to combat inflation, but this depends on how food prices move this month, the Prime Minister"s Economic Advisory Council said today.
Barun Roy / New Delhi December 17, 2009, 0:59 IST
Conservation, metering, end-use languish under deficit-ridden Board.
Communications Minister A Raja today alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led NDA government had distributed free spectrum to operators in what he called “biggest ever scam” that deprived the exchequer of over Rs 1.6 lakh crore revenue.
Tie-ups with international retailers and brands, emphasis on profitable growth and increased focus on private labels are set to be key trends in the Indian retail sector in 2010, say retailers and consultants Business Standard spoke to.
Reliance Footprint, a branded retail chain of footwear stores from Reliance Retail Ltd (RRL), has opened its first store in Nashik.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said recommendations of the 13th Finance Commission, which submitted its report to President Pratibha Patil earlier in the day, will be reflected in the Budget 2010-11.
As is now well known, the Task Force appointed by the Thirteenth Finance Commission, Government of India, has issued a report on December 15, 2009 detailing the recommendations on various issues relating to the design and implementation of the proposed GST in India.
In yet another move to increase the flow of Japanese investment into India, visiting Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama today assured India’s leading industrialists and bankers to look into the option of directly linking the rupee and yen.
Tatas-owned Jaguar Land Rover will hire over 100 graduates and under-graduates in 2010 to fill up vacancies across different verticals as sales return on track after a prolonged bumpy ride.
Hyderabad-based MLR Motors, which failed to achieve financial closure for its Rs 1,250-crore project, got a fresh lease of life with the Andhra Pradesh government agreeing to extend the deadline till March 31, 2010.
The finance ministry is keen on selling stakes in Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and Indian Oil Corporation but follow-on public offers in the two bluechip PSUs are unlikely as unresolved issues are affecting their valuations.
Premvir Das / January 31, 2010, 0:16 IST
Eleven Congress MPs from Telangana today decided to resign from the House in protest against the Centre"s decision that appeared to put the separate state issue on the backburner.
Indian steel tycoon Lakshmi N Mittal will get a 1 billion pound windfall from a European scheme to curb global warming under the "carbon credits" given to it.
Land, and not mines, has emerged as the biggest stumbling block for steel projects, threatening to derail the government’s target to boost the capacity from 55 million tonnes now to 124 million tonnes by next year.
ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steel maker, will benefit from a windfall of £1 billion (Rs 7,000 crore), thanks to the carbon credits issued to it under the European Trading Scheme. The Sunday Times today reported that ArcelorMittal will be the single largest beneficiary under the ETS due to its dominant presence in Europe.
The government and various PSUs may be on an austerity drive, but this didn’t stop ONGC from sending a calendar to a director in the oil ministry by registered post — the stamps on the calendar were worth Rs 122. It would have been cheaper for ONGC’s office in the capital to send it with a driver.
Land, and not mines, has emerged as the biggest stumbling block for steel projects, threatening to derail the government’s target to boost the capacity from 55 million tonnes now to 124 million tonnes by next year.
Major steel makers are facing inordinate delays in acquiring land in the east.
Advisory firm calls for vote against Taro board’s proposals
Construction work on the onshore LNG terminal, coming up at Puthuvype, near here will be completed by December, next year.
Mahindra Satyam today said its financials are not necessarily bad as has been made out, even as investors were roiled by reports that the accounting fraud in the company could be double the initial estimate of Rs 7,800 crore.
The robust bookings are in spite of travel advisories issued by Western and pacific countries.
Mahindra Satyam, the new brand identity of Satyam Computer Services, a leading global consulting and IT services provider, has selected Malaysia to kick off international expansion - enlarged its global solution center operations in 15 acre campus in Cyberjaya, the company said in a BSE filing.
International Management Institute (IMI), a New Delhi-based B-school, will invest Rs 50-crore in setting up its campus on 15.8 acres of land at Gothpatna on the outskirts of the city.
As part of its Phase-II plan, the Tamil Nadu government is planning to construct 17,000 disaster-resistant houses in rural areas. Each house would cost Rs 3 lakh, which is likely to be funded by the World Bank.
The condition of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who is suffering from swine flu, has improved overnight, doctors attending on him said today.
The stock pared most of its gains and ended at Rs 236, up 1% from its previous close. The counter clocked volumes of 1.83 million shares as compared to the two-week daily average traded volumes of 1.20 million shares on the BSE.
The government today said it may take a call on exiting from fiscal stimulus after reviewing the economic growth in the second and third quarters of this financial year.
Plan panel aims at making data accessible in analytical format
Busness Standard / New Delhi May 28, 2009, 0:24 IST
A serological survey on swine flu antibodies is currently underway to determine the prospects of Pune developing "herd immunity" to the dreaded virus.
Home appliances manufacturer, Whirlpool India is looking to strengthen its position in the air-conditioner segment and plans to launch smart and affordable range of cooling solutions by February next year, a senior company official said.
Business Standard / New Delhi January 08, 2010, 0:53 IST
US markets ended flat on Tuesday.
Manipal Acunova, the Bangalore-based Rs 80 crore clinical research firm, has raised Rs 30 crore from US-based OrbiMed, a global healthcare-dedicated investment firm, with approximately $5 billion in assets under management.
French car maker giant Renault today said it will launch two models in India in 2011 that will be rolled out from the company"s upcoming Chennai plant.
2,500 schools in first phase, another 2,500 to be added
Iconic US motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson today said it will bring 12 motorcycles in the Indian market priced between Rs 6.95 lakh and Rs 34.95 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi).
Not impressed by the ambitious plans announced by Road Transport and Highways Minister Kamal Nath, the Planning Commission has advised the ministry to fix a “reasonable target” for construction of roads this year. “...Fix a reasonable target for award of contracts in the rest of the current year and raise it subsequently as soon as possible,” the commission said in a communiqué to the highways ministry. The commission pointed out to the ministry that it would not be able to award road construction contracts for more than 3,794 km in 2009-10, against a target of 12,652 km.
The Indian bourses continued their winning run for the third straight day. The Sensex opened on a firm note at 17,556 tracking strong global cues.
Television channels aimed at children, like Nick India, Disney and Cartoon Network, are launching new online activities, original programming content and merchandise to cash in on Christmas and New Year celebrations this year.
Mahesh Kulkarni / Bangalore November 17, 2009, 0:30 IST
Atul Sobti took over as the chief executive officer and managing director at Ranbaxy Laboratories, six months ago. He wants to make Ranbaxy (now owned by Japan’s Daiichi Sankyo) the largest drugseller in India, a market that is price-controlled, but growing. This focus on the domestic market is not due to the problems that the company has been facing in the US, he tells Vandana Gombar and Joe C Mathew in an interview where he also makes a case for direct subsidy for medicines instead of price controls. Excerpts:
The Planning Commission today said food inflation will come down next month from a more than a decade"s high of around 20 per cent, as apprehensions about adverse effect of drought were easing.
Sreelatha Menon / New Delhi November 29, 2009, 0:22 IST
Pension reform remains among the unfinished agenda of the UPA government in 2009 even as it gave every citizen an option to get an old age safety net for the first time in Indian history.
CORPORATE AFFAIRS MINISTER SALMAN KHURSHID:
Sreelatha Menon / New Delhi October 25, 2009, 0:03 IST
Normal life was disrupted in non-Telangana regions of Andhra Pradesh, as the bandh called by the All party Joint Action Committee (JAC) in support of United Andhra Pradesh began today.
Sreelatha Menon / New Delhi November 1, 2009, 1:04 IST
It couldn’t have been more apt. The most generous tribute to former ONGC chairman Subir Raha comes from somebody with whom he had a hugely uneasy relationship. After Raha lost more-than-a-year-long battle with cancer on Monday, former petroleum minister, Mani Shankar Aiyar, said he found in Raha “a man worthy of my steel, particularly when we disagreed”.
The world"s largest steel maker ArcelorMittal may cut 10,000 jobs globally next year and plans to reduce costs in order to regain its lost market share particularly in Europe, a media report says.
Posco India has sought more time from the Centre for implementing Rs 54,000 crore SEZ project at Jagatsinghpur in Orissa, as the South Korean steel giant could not get land due to protests by tribals.
Company files tariff proposal for 2010-11 with GERC.
In a major respite to its 94 lakh consumers in the state, Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (GUVNL) or the erstwhile Gujarat Electricity Board (GEB), is learnt to have kept its power tariff unchanged for the fiscal 2009-10. It may be mentioned here that private sector power distributor Torrent Power Ltd has already proposed 15 per cent hike in power tariff.
JSW Bengal Steel, the 10-million tonne steel project from the JSW Steel stable, is one of the few mega greenfield projects in the country — which would add 67 million tonnes in two years — to be sitting on 4,800 unencumbered acres.
JSW Steel today said its crude steel production more than doubled to 4.80 lakh tonnes in November.
State-owned mining company NMDC Limited and Steel Authority of India (SAIL) will jointly develop a limestone project at Arki in Himachal Pradesh with a three-million tonne per annum capacity.
The government is likely to raise around Rs 32,000 crore from disinvestment in NMDC and Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL).
The global recession and the resultant demand slump has delayed Steel Authority of India"s (SAIL) ambitious Rs 70,000-crore expansion plan for the second time in as many months, as it would now be completed by 2012-13 only.
The third generation (3G) services will be hugely successful in India as there is a great demand from mobile data services in the country, global communication technology major Qualcomm Chairman and Chief Executive Paul Jacobs said today.
Sensex ends up 35pts
Americans are ready to buy cars from India and China, a survey in the US has revealed.
Facebook lovers, here is another survey showing how employee productivity is robbed at workplaces. So put a limit on its usage before employers and the bosses put a stop on its usage at work.
Iran today reiterated it has no plans to build nuclear weapons, after US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned Tehran that any pursuit of atomic arms was futile.
Former US President Bill Clinton today made a surprise trip to North Korea amid an international standoff over the country"s nuclear programme and concerns about two US reporters imprisoned in Pyongyang since March.
The United States today said it is open to bilateral talks with North Korea if Pyongyang takes some concrete steps to fulfill its commitments.
The government is likely to clear tomorrow a proposal suggesting release of inflation data on monthly basis and not every week for bulk of the items tracked by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI).
Inflation rose to 0.83 per cent for the week ended September 19 from 0.37 per cent in the previous week on account of higher food and fuel prices.
The Planning Commission, as well as farmers in Uttar Pradesh, leading sugarcane-growing state, have opposed a proposal by the food ministry to control gur (jaggery) production.
When the year 2009 dawned, there was widespread apprehension on how the export sector would cope with the recession in the rich countries. Throughout the year, the government took various steps to help exporters and, as a result, the mood at the year-end is far more upbeat, although some sectors like textiles, leather and handicrafts still face uncertain prospects.
Diversified auto component maker RICO Auto is looking to achieve Rs 1,000 crore turnover this fiscal on the back of investment in new models and sales growth in both domestic and overseas market.
As the economy revives, the government today expressed confidence that revised direct tax collection target of Rs 4 lakh crore for this fiscal would be met.
The government today said India is more prepared to deal with a Satyam-like fraud that hit the corporate world with the disclosure of about Rs 10,000 crore fudging of accounts by the founder of the IT firm B Ramalinga Raju a year ago.
The Maharashtra government proposes to amend the Development Control Rules for the introduction of green building regulations initially in Mumbai and later in Tier-two cities of the state.
2009 was mostly bad news for countries, governments and individuals in terms of economic prosperity, but the year was the best in many years for borrowers as interest rates eased.
Punjab National Bank will bring all the rural branches under Core Banking Solution (CBS) platform by the end of this financial year.
Inflation, a number of large issues and high valuations may weigh on indices; Sensex expected to trade at a historical average P/E of 15 on FY11 earnings.
Long delays in environment and forest clearances are turning out to be a major hindrance to implementation of various development projects.
I am investing Rs 2,000 via SIPs in ICICI Infrastructure, Reliance Regular Savings Equity and Reliance Diversified Power Sector fund for the past 18 months. I want to continue investing in them for the next 10 years. Are these schemes good for the long term? I intend to invest another Rs 5,000 through SIPs. Please suggest whether I should increase the amount in the existing schemes or go for HDFC Top 200 and IDFC Premier Equity Plan A. I can take reasonable risk.
The Indian Banking sector needs at least 12 lakh business correspondents to work in rural areas to bring six-lakh villages of the country into banking arena, Krishna Mohan, regional director, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said here today.
Paving way for its disinvestment, the country"s largest coal miner, Coal India, will soon become a "Public Ltd" company from a private one at present.
The Shipping Corporation of India Ltd. (SCI) accepted delivery of a Very Large Crude Carrier, m.t. Desh Vishal, on 25th June, 2009.
Uttam Galva Steels, a manufacturer and exporter of value added steel product, has increased the prices of galvanised and cold rolled steel products by Rs 2,000 per tonne with effect from 15 August. The price hike is due to the mismatch in supply and demand of HR Coil in the domestic market as imports of HRC are restricted, the company said in a statement.
The Government today said it has no plans to sell more stake in aluminum producer National Aluminum Company (Nalco).
Cement prices have witnessed the greatest fall of about 5-10 per cent across the country in the last two months. Moreover, in western and southern India, where a large amount of new stock is still arriving, the non-trade prices have been cut by 20-30 per cent to Rs 160-180 a bag.
Significant new capacities in the coming months could depress cement prices leading to a drop in profitability
Abdul Karim Telgi, the main accused in the multi-crore fake stamp paper scam, and two others were today awarded 10 years" rigorous imprisonment in two separate cases by a CBI Court which also imposed a fine of Rs 50 lakh on each of them.
The fall in steel prices in the wake of global economic meltdown has consigned many balance sheets of groups taking the metal in the red. The drop in demand in the final quarter of 2008 was so steep and steel product prices turned so uneconomic, particularly for high cost mills in western countries, that the industry in many regions was forced to switch off half the capacity.
Auto maker Mahindra & Mahindra today reported a net profit of Rs 843.6 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2009, driven by good sales in both automotive and farm equipment sectors.