The Hindu Business Line : Thursday, April 08, 2004

ECONOMY
Congress vision document promises higher growth
The party commits itself to the implementation of a comprehensive rural employment guarantee scheme in a phased manner, besides launching a major national programme for urban renewal and infrastructure development to create large-scale employment opp ortunities. More

FOREIGN TRADE
`Indo-Dutch trade more than official estimates'
INDIA'S trade with Netherlands is higher than that shown by official data because outsourcing work that takes place through the Internet is not captured through traditional means, according to Mr Jan Willem van der Mark, Senior Regional ... More

HEALTH
KMC Hospital unveils `concept clinics' in Mangalore
There are plans to start concept clinics for the senior citizens and for those with joint pains. These clinics are likely to be operational by 2005. More

PHARMACEUTICALS
Global bodies endorse Indian cos' AIDS drugs
THE endorsement for generic or chemically equivalent anti-AIDS drugs doesn't get bigger than this. Four major players in the global funding and healthcare space - the Global Fund, World Bank, UNICEF and Clinton Foundation - have said that ... More

POWER
NTPC to expedite work on Ramagundam unit
NATIONAL Thermal Power Corporation Ltd has announced plans to complete the Rs 1,979-crore, seventh unit of 500 MW at the Ramagundam superthermal power plant by this fiscal-end, few months ahead of its schedule. It is also seeking to expedite ... More

TAXATION
Kerala announces cut in sales tax
THE State Government has notified downward revision in and exemption from sales tax in respect of a number of goods/commodities with effect from April 1 as specified as follow: Cashew nut procured from within the State for being processed ... More

SSI
Ministry, steel SSI meeting inconclusive
THE meeting of State small-scale industries corporations convened by the Ministry of Steel to look into the issue of adequate supply of steel to the small sector remained inconclusive on Wednesday with the producers and SSI corporations blaming ... More

EDUCATION
UGC-Infonet facility in Mangalore University
MANGALORE University has launched the UGC-Infonet services for its faculty and students here. UGC-Infonet is a consortium of universities for electronic access to scholarly literature in all areas of learning. Mangalore University is one among ... More

`Industry must pay more to IIMs for recruitment'
THE IIMs should come together and demand a much higher fee from industry for campus recruitment, going strictly by the market principles. Talking to newspersons here on Wednesday on the IIM fee cut imbroglio, and the draft resolution which ... More

`U'XChange get-together
`U'XCHANGE, a voluntary group of teenagers with enthusiasm and a purpose to help the not-so-privileged school kids obtain their basic necessities of education is organising its annual get together on April 10, 2004 in city. The `U'XChange get ... More

HCV/LCV/TRACTORS
Road to polls is filled with utility vehicles
Industry sources said electoral compulsions have led to Governments buying utility vehicles to augment services rendered by the local administration and police forces. More

BEVERAGES
PIL against JPC report on soft drinks admitted
THE Bombay High Court today admitted a public interest litigation filed by the Consumer Guidance Society of India (CGSI) against the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) report on suitable safety standards for soft drinks. A division bench of ... More

REAL ESTATE & CONSTRUCTION
Visible change in `complex'ion of ATMs
`SPACE available for ATM', is a familiar signboard in newly set up residential/commercial complexes. Real estate agents call up banks to set up ATMs because the cash-dispensing machine is known to increase traffic to complexes and malls. This ... More

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS
Guindy industrial estate to get facelift soon
THE Guindy Industrial Estate, one of the oldest industrial estates to be set up in the country, will soon get a facelift. Today it looks its age. A non-profit company - designed as a special purpose vehicle (SPV) - will be floated to ... More

New chief for CII (North)

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
`Geo-scientists must use digital techniques'
MORE than 600 officers have been trained in the use of digital techniques in geosciences at the Hyderabad-based, Geological Survey of India Training Institute (GSITI), in the last few years under Project INDIGEO. An Indo-Dutch collaborative ... More

GENDER
`Corporate boards must have more women'
CORPORATE India should have more women representation in their boards, according to Ms Lalita Gupte, Joint Managing Director, ICICI Bank Ltd. Addressing the annual session of the Confederation of Indian Industry (Northern Region), Ms Gupte ... More

WTO
WTO upholds panel views on EC drug window violations
INDIA has notched up a major gain at the WTO in the dispute with the European Union on tariff preferences extended by the European Commission (EC) under the drug arrangements window of its Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) which accords ... More

`India, Brazil alliance key to secure gains of Doha agenda'
INDIA and Brazil, which formed a pre-Cancun alliance to successfully bring into focus the trade-distorting domestic support and export subsidies being doled out by rich agricultural countries, would hold on as they had learnt from the past on how ... More

HUMAN RESOURCES
It's raining jobs in small towns
THERE is big action in small towns. And no, this is not a hackneyed India Shining statement. It's not even the BPO factor that's bringing new age jobs to Salem, Madurai, Dharwar, Ludhiana or Jamnagar. It's the IT, banking, telecom, finance, ... More

EVENTS
Media event to focus on digital tech
DIGITISATION will be the main focus of BroadcastAsia2004, the annual media event that is held in Singapore. Companies are expected to exhibit digital cinema technologies. "Here, cinema operators, distributors, production and post-production ... More

In Hyderabad today

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
`Rising rupee could cause flight of deals'
THE Electronics and Software Export Promotion Council (ESC) has said that a continuously appreciating rupee against dollar would have an adverse impact on the software and IT-enabled services exports from the country. More than 60 per cent of ... More

NATURAL CALAMITIES
Drought hits tea production in South
AN assessment made by the United Planters Association of Southern India (UPASI) has revealed that the Jan-April 2004 crop will be lower by 10.5 million kg (mkg), a 16.8 per cent drop in comparison with the corresponding period last year. "This ... More

Kerala Cabinet decides to chalk out relief package for farmers
THE State Cabinet has decided to formulate a relief package for drought-hit farmers who are apprehensive of what holds after the six-month moratorium for loan recoveries announced earlier by the Sate Government. Briefing newspersons here on ... More

TOURISM
Dubai Tourism plans roadshows in India
THE Government of Dubai and Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) are conducting roadshows covering all the major metros in India to increase visitor traffic by 20 per cent this year, Mr Carl Vaz, Country Manager, Dubai ... More