CLIMATE & WEATHER
Welcome relief
Villagers run for cover as strong winds followed by rains lashed Bangalore suburbs on Friday bringing down temperature.

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ACCOUNTING STANDARDS
GASAB issues draft on grants-in-aid, cash flow statements
THE Government Accounting Standards Advisory Board (GASAB) has issued exposure drafts on the subjects of "Accounting and Classification of Grants-in-aid" and "Cash Flow Statements". The main responsibility of GASAB is to formulate and propose ... More

ECONOMY
RBI must exit all corporate shareholding, says Jaswant
THE Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should exit as shareholder from all corporate bodies, according to the Finance Minister, Mr Jaswant Singh. He also stands by the Disinvestment Minister, Mr Arun Shourie's assessment that the Government has the ... More

$1-billion structural adjustment loan — World Bank examining TN request
TAMIL Nadu's request for a structural adjustment loan - a facility to help it clean up its balance sheet - is before the World Bank's board and a decision is expected shortly. The State will get about $1 billion (around Rs 4,400 crore) ... More

FOREIGN TRADE
India-China trade pegged at $20 b in 6 yrs
INDIA'S Ambassador to China, Mr Nalin Surie, on Friday said that the country's trade with China could touch $20 billion by 2010. Addressing a meeting organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here, Mr Surie said that India's ... More

HEALTH
Dr Reddy's launches drug for diarrhoea
DR Reddy's Laboratories has announced the launch of Redotil (racecadotril), claimed to be the first anti-hypersecretory agent for the management of acute diarrhoea in the country. In a press release here on Friday, the company said the product ... More

Malaria expert calls for separate funds
A LEADING biotechnologist has called for setting up a special fund for research and development to tackle malaria. Delivering the Dr A.V. Rama Rao Research Foundation Award Lecture on `Malaria parasite genome and drug targets' here on Friday, ... More

PETROLEUM
ONGC in talks with GSPL for crude evacuation plan
OIL and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is in talks with Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPL) for a pipeline linkage between its fields in North Gujarat and the Dahej port in South Gujarat. The ONGC plan is to evacuate its production of crude from ... More

POWER
TCS, BHEL software for power plants
TATA Consultancy Services (TCS) and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) on Friday announced the release of PowerPac-G, a software product that addresses decision support and integrated asset management needs of power generation plants. TCS and ... More

TEXTILES
India to host Intl Textiles, Clothing Bureau meet
WITH the curtain on the multi-fibre arrangement governing global trade in textiles and clothing coming down by the year-end to usher in a quota-free regime, New Delhi will host the annual session of the International Textiles and Clothing Bureau ... More

EDUCATION
Project to boost language skills in AP school children
AIMED at developing strategies to bring about quality learning in the classrooms and make the school a comprehensive resource centre with stakeholder participation, the CAP-SCOPE Project (Child & Police - School Community Partnership in ... More

IIMA Society meeting strikes conciliatory note
THE Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) Society that met here on Friday has resolved to take a conciliatory approach with the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) on the twin issues of autonomy and fee cut. The IIMA ... More

CARS
`Car sales this fiscal may cross 1m mark'
WITH passenger cars and utility vehicle manufacturers seeing record high sales during 2003-04 in both the domestic and export markets, industry analysts are of the view that this combined figure might just cross the one million mark, even as many ... More

MEDICAL INSTITUTIONS & HOSPITALS
Interactive programme for gynaecologists in Coimbatore
IT was not a documentary, but a demonstration of the latest procedures that obstetricians and gynaecologists could incorporate in surgeries, relayed live from Ahmedabad. About 100 doctors gathered at the Kuppuswamy Naidu Hospital here to take ... More

LEATHER
`New tech in leather tanning must be cost effective'
NEW technologies in leather tanning that help reduce pollution should also be cost effective, said Mr M.M. Hashim, Chairman, MAKH & Sons. Addressing the formal launch of Ezyme A, an enzyme substitute that does away with lime and sodium ... More

CINEMA
Bollywood producers entering pre-sale deals to derisk business
NEW entrants into Bollywood are seemingly profit-savvy as is evident in Balaji Telefilms Ltd's plan to sell its films before the completion of the projects. Television software producer Balaji Telefilms, which has embarked into film-making, is ... More

GENDER
Grey study on home-makers busts stereotypes
IF you are an ad filmmaker who is trying to promote a fairness cream by getting an ideal daughter-in-law like Tulsi (of Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi fame) to endorse it, think again. The campaign may not succeed in being appealing to its ... More

DISINVESTMENT
BIFR approval for ICVL divestment
The Bench directed that the proceeds of the sale of disinvestment of ICVL be kept in a `no-lien' account with the IDBI. More

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT
Slovak accession to EU to boost FDI inflow
SLOVAKIAN accession to the European Union (EU) on May 1 will provide more opportunities for the emerging country in the field of foreign direct investment (FDI) flow. Addressing the third meeting of the Indo-Slovak joint business council (JBC) ... More

RURAL DEVELOPMENT

INTERVIEW
I believe 10 pc growth is sustainable: Jaswant
When I and the Prime Minister had talked about 8 per cent growth, we were scoffed at. Now we have reached 10.4 and we are asked if it is sustainable. I do believe that it is. We will attain an 8-plus percentage growth this year (2003-04), and we will continue on this path in the coming year. More

EVENTS

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
Appreciating rupee continues to hurt exporters: FIEO
THE Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) said on Friday that the appreciating rupee against the US dollar continues to hurt exporters and has become a source of anxiety for them. In a statement, the Vice-President of FIEO, Mr Subash ... More

Ministry invites proposals for replacement of DEPB scheme
THE Director-General of Foreign Trade, Mr L. Mansingh, on Friday invited suggestions from the exporting community to evolve a WTO-compatible scheme for the `Duty Entitlement Pass Book' scheme. The scheme is one of the export incentives, which ... More

Export incentives: DGFT to accept only documents with digital signatures
FROM April 1, if an exporter wants to avail himself of the 50 per cent concession in application fee while applying for export incentives, he shall append his application with a digital signature. However, a more significant benefit of the ... More

New Mangalore Port gets aid for export promotion
THE Chairman-in-charge of New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT), Mr G.J. Rao, has said that the Union Ministry of Commerce has provided financial assistance to the port under the "Assistance to State for Infrastructure Development for Exports" (ASIDE) ... More

Price fall knocks off cashew exports' value
CASHEW exports during 2003-'04 are expected to touch last year's level in terms of quantity, but in terms of value, it is likely to drop on decline in the unit value. Export of cashew kernels in the last fiscal is expected to touch the previous ... More

NATURAL CALAMITIES
Nabard to carry out `drought-proofing' in Kerala
THE National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) is keen to share innovative `drought-proofing' experience, technology and expertise in Kerala, according to Mr B.S. Shekhawat, Chief General Manager, Kerala. Briefing newspersons ... More

TOURISM
Kerala registers record growth in tourist arrivals
THE State registered record growth in tourist arrivals last year. According to figures released by the Department of Tourism, 61.66 lakh tourists visited the State in 2003, registering an increase of 6.29 per cent over the previous year. In ... More