The Hindu Business Line : Tuesday, March 02, 2004

CLIMATE & WEATHER
Dry weather prevails over Kerala
ACCORDING to the Agromet Advisory dated March 1, issued by the Met Office, Thiruvananthapuram, dry weather prevailed in the State on February 26 and 27. Kozhikode (00.4 mm), Alappuzha (00.3 mm), Thiruvananthapuram Airport (08.0 mm) and Varkala ... More

PENSION PLANS
Pension reforms left at nascent stage
THE financial sector could witness major changes once a new formation takes charge at the Centre after the forthcoming general elections. The big one that is waiting to unfold is the pension reform that is expected to give rise to a sector that ... More

ANTI-DUMPING
EU slaps sanctions on US goods
MONDAY is widely rated as "sad and epoch making" day on both sides of the Atlantic. In an historic and unprecedented move and for the first time in trans-Atlantic relations, the European Union has imposed trade sanctions on the US goods, as an ... More

AWARDS & HONOURS
US National Academy honour for 8 Indian Americans
THE US National Academy of Engineering (NAE) has come out with its 2004 honours list of 72, which features eight Indian Americans. Widely considered a dream-come-true for engineers and technologists, the NAE list for 2004 is the highest ever ... More

ECONOMY
Kerala population growth lowest in India: Census
THE Chief Minister, Mr A.K. Antony, released the final population totals and primary census abstract of the Census of Kerala 2001 on Monday. Ms Sheela Thomas, Director of Census Operations, Kerala, said on the occasion that the census puts the ... More

'Govt hopeful of 4.5 pc inflation rate by year-end'
THE Finance Minister, Mr Jaswant Singh, today said the country could achieve its target in containing the inflation rate at 4.5 per cent by the year-end. The current rate of inflation is 5.6 per cent. Dispelling doubts about the Government's ... More

TN to save Rs 360 cr through debt swap
THE Tamil Nadu Government will reduce Rs 360 crore of its total interest burden in 2005-06 thanks to the debt swap programme undertaken by it. Following repeated representations from the State Governments, the Centre permitted the States to ... More

ELECTRONICS
`Electronics hardware industry needs boost to compete with China'
INDIAN electronics hardware industry needs a major boost to compete with China in cost-effectiveness and numbers, according to the Consumer Electronics and TV Manufacturers Association (CETMA). The association is hopeful that this ... More

ENVIRONMENT
Ramky group to build waste management complex in Bangalore
RAMKY Group, a leading infrastructure and waste management company operating out of Hyderabad, is all set to build the country's first integrated municipal solid waste management complex in Bangalore City. The Bangalore Mahanagar Palika (BMP) ... More

Waste treatment facility in Kochi
KOCHI: The Ombudsman for Local Self Government has visited an organic waste treatment facility at Changampuzha Nagar. The visit was on the occasion of the first harvest of the organically processed manure from waste collected in the ... More

EXCISE AND CUSTOMS
No impact of duty cut on steel prices — Volumes down 70 per cent
THERE was a note of overall caution in the retail market for various primary steel products and most of the secondary steel items on Monday after the spate of tax restructuring by the Government during the weekend. And, more importantly, ... More

FOREIGN TRADE
MFN status takes centre-stage at Indo-Pak meet — Lahore chamber insists on removal of farm subsidies
THE recent improvement in the political climate between India and Pakistan notwithstanding, the issue of Pakistan granting the `Most Favoured Nation' (MFN) status to India continues to be a bone of contention between the business communities of ... More

HEALTH
Patient-safety: 'ADR reporting must be made mandatory'
HOW often does a patient ask his doctor on the possible "side-effects" of a medicine he has been prescribed? Hardly ever, say pharmaceutical industry officials and medical practitioners, pointing out the significant role that patients play in the ... More

INFRASTRUCTURE
Kerala Govt thrust on SEZs to woo investors
IN a bid to accelerate its sagging pace of industrialisation, the State Government is focusing on setting up special economic zones (SEZ) as an initiative to attract new investments into the State. The Cochin Special Economic Zone in Kerala is ... More

PSU
HAL bags $5-m deal at Asian aerospace meet
HINDUSTAN Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and Bell Helicopter, an internationally known company, have agreed to finalise a $5-million deal on the sidelines of `Asian Aerospace 2004', a six-day technology exhibition and air-show, which concluded in ... More

PETROLEUM
Oil PSUs put at a disadvantage
WITH the Election Commission's (EC) `Model Code of Conduct' coming into force, private sector oil retailers such as Shell, Reliance and Essar will enjoy an edge over the public sector oil marketing companies such as Bharat Petroleum Corporation ... More

POWER
AP power distribution company in top-500 list
THE Andhra Pradesh Eastern Power Distribution Company Ltd has achieved the distinction of reaching the 165th position among the top 500 companies in the country and is the only company in South India to do so and is rated as one of the top 10 ... More

Kerala not on DAE antenna for N-sites
THE Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) has no proposal for setting up a facility in Kerala that is known for its huge reserves of beach sand minerals containing prescribed substances suitable for use in atomic energy and related R&D activities. .. More

TEXTILES
Textile sector must develop in clusters: CII
THE textile industry would have to focus on cluster development, niche products, service orientation and branding in order to increase its share of the world textile trade after the Multi-Fibre Arrangement comes to an end. The current size of the ... More

WATER
Sivaganga conserves water
MADURAI: Thirteen thousand hectares of wastelands have been brought under cultivation despite the failure of monsoons and drying up of tanks in Sivaganga district during 2003-04 through adoption of water conservation technologies, the ... More

RADIO/TV
SS Music scouts for VJs with an innovative hunt
SOUTHERN Spice Music (SS Music), the Chennai-based 24-hour music channel, which is on course to expand its programme bouquet, is scouting for VJ's across southern cities and has partnered with several chains such as Qwicky's, Coffee Day, Music ... More

Prasar Bharati to charge political broadcasts
PRASAR Bharati intends to charge airtime costs for the mandatory broadcast of the speeches of representatives of various political parties during elections. It has represented to the Election Commission in this regard and the Chief Election ... More

Ten Sports urged to cut fee
KOCHI: The Cable TV operators Association has demanded that the Ten Sports reduce the levy proposed on viewers in connection with the telecast of the India-Pakistan match. The new slab system that it plans to introduce is a covert ... More

EDUCATION
PSG Arts & Science wins South India Quiz
THE nerve-wracking final round of the South India Quiz contest finished with team from PSG CAS (College of Arts and Science), Coimbatore emerging winners followed by the GRG College of Science in the second position. At the end of the fifth and ... More

New Principal for ASCI
DR Siripurapu Kesava Rao on Monday took charge as the Principal of the Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), Hyderabad, from Dr E.A.S. Sarma, who completed a three-year term. Dr Rao served the Commonwealth Secretariat, London, for 18 ... More

`Get feedback from students'
HYDERABAD: The Tamil Nadu Governor, Mr P.S. Ramamohan Rao, has asked the management of JNTU College of Engineering to seek feedback from the students at the end of every semester so as to improve the quality of education. Addressing a ... More

CARS
Maruti, GM car sales zoom in February
MARUTI Udyog Ltd, the country's largest carmaker, on Monday said its car sales have increased by 62 per cent in February 2004 over the same month last year. The company registered sales of 42,263 units (including 3,022 units of exports) in ... More

Tatas to showcase new model on Indica platform at Geneva
The official Web site of the upcoming 74th Geneva International Motor Show, in its listing of world premieres by participating companies, mentions the Tata Indigo Advent Softroader, a "new model built on the same platform as the Indigo station ... More

MEDICAL INSTITUTIONS & HOSPITALS
Osmania alumni seek Rs 100-cr Govt aid
THE alumni of Osmania Medical College has appealed to the State and Central Governments to allocate Rs 100 crore to totally refurbish the Osmania General Hospital, which is celebrating its Platinum Jubilee this year. A group of senior medical ... More

REAL ESTATE & CONSTRUCTION
Dull business prospects
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COKE & METALURGICAL COKE
Coimbatore engg sector hails duty cut on coke
THE Government's decision of withdrawing the Duty Entitlement Pass Book (DEPB) scheme and Duty Draw Back (DDB) concessions and slashing duty on coke and pig iron has brought some cheer to engineering industries in Coimbatore region, which have ... More

DISINVESTMENT
`Shourie factor' lifts Sensex 155
AFTER ending with a Friday ton, the BSE Sensex opened the week with a rally that was high on score but low on conviction. Led by rallies in technology and auto stocks — but buoyed above all by the `Shourie factor' — the 30-share ... More

CMC cut-off price fixed at Rs 485 — Rs460.75 for retail investors
THE Government on Monday finalised an offer price of Rs 485 per share for the public issue of its residual equity in Tatas-controlled CMC Ltd. The retail investors would be allotted shares at Rs 460.75 per share, a five per cent discount to the ... More

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT
Telecom FDI hike plan not wired
WHILE the past five years have seen a radical transformation in the telecom policy, putting the sector on a high growth trajectory, there are quite a few decisions that remain on the unfinished agenda list. Right on top is the issue of the ... More

HUMAN RESOURCES
Call to change work culture
THE State Labour Minister, Mr Babu Divakaran, has said that the brunt of any restructuring or cost control plans should not be borne fully by the workforce. Inaugurating a one-day seminar on `Kerala's high performance workplaces through ... More

EVENTS
Creative minds await corporate sponsorship
THE Aibo robotic dogs that can play soccer seem to have fired the imagination of the engineering students in the city. A festival, Robotsav, has begun showcasing the various facets of artificial intelligence. Some of the robots on display ... More

10 MoUs signed at BioAsia meet
AT the end of the three days of sessions and exhibits, BioAsia 2004, billed as the largest biotechnology summit in the country, came to a close last week with the announcement of 10 memoranda of understanding. The summit drew over 500 ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
Exports maintain tempo, grow 9 pc in January
CONTINUING its high growth momentum, the country's export posted a growth of 9 per cent during January in dollar terms with the overall export growth during the first 10 months of the current fiscal running slightly ahead of the target rate at ... More

Global oilseeds import demand seen galloping
WHILE strengthening world economic growth would continue to push overall global agricultural trade over the next 10 years, strong income and population growth in developing countries would continue to generate increasing demand for vegetable oils ... More

Date for filing trade returns extended
THE Director-General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has extended the date for filing the trade returns by exporters up to March 31. Import export code (IEC) number holders are directed to file trade returns because most of the operations of the DGFT ... More

ALTERNATIVE MEDICINES
GMP norms likely for homoeopathic, ayurvedic medicines
THE Centre is considering to introduce good manufacturing practice (GMP) norms for homoeopathic and ayurvedic medicines. The Drug Controller General, Mr Ashwini Kumar, has said here that a technical committee has been formed to look into the ... More

TOURISM
Indian tourists turn to new destinations
THEY say the Indian tourist is evolving. From the shopping holidays in duty-free Singapore and Dubai, to the package tours of London, Paris and Switzerland, the Indian globetrotter seems to be acquiring a taste for destinations known better for ... More

ECONOMIC OFFENCES
Misuse of stamp papers — States told to come up with suitable reforms
IT is for the States to carry forward further reforms to rectify the loopholes in the stamp paper levy rules so as to stem any misuse of the instrument for personal gains. High stamp paper duty has been one of the main reasons for the ... More