BUDGET

ECONOMY
Bengal may get `budgetary support' from UK body
THE Department for International Development (DFID) of the UK may provide "budgetary support" to the West Bengal Government during the current calendar year. Initial discussions in this regard with officials of the State Government were held ... More

`Infrastructure development vital for poverty eradication'
THE poor are poor largely because they have few assets and get very little return on their assets. Social and institutional bottlenecks will further prevent them from getting their fair share. Hence, increasing the assets, widening the ... More

ENVIRONMENT
Kochi SEZ commissions effluent treatment plant
The Cochin Special Economic Zone at Kakkanad has successfully commissioned the common effluent treatment plant. The project comes at a time when many multinational companies were disappearing and a number of joint ventures are appearing in the ... More

EXCISE AND CUSTOMS
N-E tobacco units get duty waiver
TOBACCO product manufacturers located in the seven north-eastern States would now be a happy lot. Units that commenced commercial production of products such as cigarettes or pan masala on or after December 24, 1997 and before February 28, 2001 ... More

FOREIGN TRADE
KCCI delegation to tour SAARC countries
THE Kerala Chamber of Commerce and Industry is taking a business delegation to neighbouring countries to explore business opportunities and promote exports in a big way. As a first step, the delegation would visit some of the SAARC countries to ... More

HEALTH
AP to host oncologists' meet
FOUND something unnatural in and around the eyes of a child? You better take a serious note of it and take the child to a doctor, for the unnatural tumour or spot might just be a sign of some serious ocular cancer. The fact that 1 in 20,000 ... More

PETROLEUM
Petroleum Ministry not for pact with Singapore
THE Petroleum Ministry has opposed the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) with the Singapore Government on the grounds that domestic refiners will suffer once CECA is implemented. The proposed agreement seeks to allow import of ... More

POWER
Call to scale down TNEB security deposit
THE Coimbatore Consumer Cause (CCC) has sought the intervention of the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC) to rectify the anomaly in the current consumption security deposit levy imposed by the Tamil Nadu Electricity ... More

TEXTILES
Textile conference from Jan 31 in Komarapalayam
THE 59th all-India textile conference on the theme `Global Competitiveness - Indian Perspective' will be held on January 31 and February 1, in the powerloom town of Komarapalayam. As part of the two-day conference being organised under the ... More

Kerala plans revival fund for textile industry
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The State Government is planning to set aside funds for a comprehensive scheme to revive the textile industry, said the Industries Minister, Mr P.K. Kunhalikutty. He made this statement while inaugurating a workshop ... More

BREWERIES
Small distillers plot a Scotch coup
A FEW South-based distillers, mostly mid-sized independent players, are planning to board the Scotch whisky bandwagon in a move that could give the Scotland's pedigree industry more consumer exposure in one among the top five whisky consuming ... More

EDUCATION
`Huge regional imbalances in access to engg education'
HUGE regional imbalances in providing access to engineering education and dearth of quality human resources are some of the issues that would be discussed at the third annual convention of the Andhra Pradesh Akademi of Sciences (APAS) here ... More

`Sonet' for engg education
HYDERABAD: In a unique experiment, nearly 250 engineering colleges in the State have joined hands to start Society for Networking and Excellence in Technical Education (SONET) with a view to sharing information and to address the shortfall ... More

ALUMINIUM
Aluminium output seen at 8.3 lakh t
ALUMINIUM production is likely to touch 8.3 lakh tonnes during the current fiscal, much below the major producers' annual capacity of 9.09 lakh tonnes (lt), according to Dr S.K. Tamotia, President and Chief Executive Officer of Indian Aluminium ... More

BIO-TECH & GENETICS
Centre initiates study on bio-informatics potential
THE Government has initiated a feasibility study to look at growth potential in the bio-informatics sector. The work is being carried out by Ernst and Young and would be concluded within six months, Mr Kamalkant Jaiswal, IT Secretary, ... More

GENDER
SEWA to open shops to help workers in SAARC nations
IN order to provide window of opportunity for the women labourers of the SAARC countries, the self-help voluntary body Self Employed Women Association (SEWA) has decided to open up shops dealing with handicrafts and works of the women ... More

DISINVESTMENT
NBCC employees submit EoI for 74 pc stake
THE employees of National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) have submitted an expression of interest (EoI) to bid for acquiring a 74 per cent controlling stake in the premier public sector construction company, which has been put up for ... More

CREDIT RATING
Moody's upgrades India's foreign currency ratings
THE international credit rating agency, Moody's Investors Services, has enhanced the `feel good factor' prevailing in the Indian economy, by upgrading the country's rating to Baa3, in two significant rating categories. India's country ceiling ... More

`Cost of borrowing will come down'
THE Finance Ministry has welcomed the upgrade of India's long-term foreign currency rating by Moody's and Fitch, stating that it would bring down the borrowing costs of companies here. "It is a good thing and consistent with what we have ... More

`Upgrade will boost investors' confidence'
"THE Moody's upgrade is a positive news. The sentiment is bullish all around. Everything looks positive until such time inflows continue to come in. If the dollar inflows dry up, this trend will be reversed. But this is unlikely to happen in the ... More

SOCIAL WELFARE

EVENTS

CONSUMERISM
Chintamani depositors in lurch
MADURAI: The Triuchi Consumers Cooperative Wholesale Stores Ltd, popularly known as Chintamani Super Market, has failed to repay the deposits it had collected from the depositors for well over two years now. According to Mr S. ... More

INCOME TAX
I-T collections in AP set to cross Rs 4,000 crore
THE Income Tax Department in Andhra Pradesh circle has recorded a 42 per cent increase in overall tax collection in the first three quarters ended December 31, 2003., This is the second highest recorded in the country and the region is on course ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
Cashew exports drop on competition from Vietnam
STIFF competition from other producing countries has pushed down export of cashew kernels from the country during April-December 2003, both in terms of value and quantity. Exports during this period stood at 72,042 tonnes, valued at Rs 1,287.95 ... More

TOURISM
Kerala to play host to global conventions
Kerala's tourism industry has received a boost in 2003, with a record 30 per cent growth in international tourist arrivals. More

Kerala Travel Mart from Sept 30
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The third Kerala Travel Mart will be held in Kochi from September 30 to October 2, Mr K.V. Thomas told a press conference here today. This year's travel mart is expected to draw participation from tour operators and ... More