The Hindu Business Line : Saturday, June 26, 2004

CLIMATE & WEATHER
MET SIGNS
Monsoon remains inactive in Kerala
MAVELIKKARA (12.2 mm) and Irinjalakkuda (10 mm) recorded isolated rainfall while Vaikom (6.2 mm) and Mancompu (4 mm) experienced moderate rainfall on June 21 even as the rest of the State went without rain during the week ending June 23, said the ... More

NON-CONVENTIONAL ENERGY
TN technocrats produce bio-diesel from non-edible veg oil
FOUR technocrats have successfully produced bio-diesel from non-edible vegetable oil in a pilot project under the New Anna Marumalarchi Thittam (NAMT) at Vembakottai near Sivakasi in Virudhunagar district . The oil extracted from rubber seed ... More

LOTTERY
Joker may rake in 30% of Playwin sales
JOKER seems to be leading the pack for Playwin, the online lottery. Launched in April 2004, the game seems to have caught the fancy of players across the country. This game is expected to garner at least 30 per cent of sales, Mr Sawal Das ... More

BUDGET
A Budget wish list for coffee sector
THE coffee sector is in dire need of relief. The last several years have been bad for the industry as a whole. Background: I believe this Government is about change. The Government must address the dire need of the ... More

ECONOMY
`Stakeholders can help bridge rural-urban divide'
THE disparity between rural and urban development can be narrowed only by active participation of the stakeholders and communities through effective and coordinated planning. Though the State and local authorities are responsible for ensuring ... More

ENVIRONMENT
Remove threats to livelihood, traditional fishermen tell AP Govt
THE associations of fishermen in the State have urged the Government to take immediate steps to prevent release of untreated effluents into the sea by several industrial units and the consequent adverse impact on marine organisms. At the ... More

EXCISE AND CUSTOMS
Customs duty anomaly hits copper tube makers
MANUFACTURERS of copper tubes in the country are now facing a dark future and will have to close down their units due to the reduction of customs duties and the increase in international copper prices. On January 8, the peak rate of customs ... More

FOREIGN TRADE
Exim Bank to fund projects in BIMST-EC countries
THE Exim Bank of India has taken steps to make available credit to companies that want to do trade and project development in the BIMST-EC countries. (BIMST-EC stands for `Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand Economic ... More

Indo-US space meet calls for trade-friendly policies
THE just concluded Indo-US space conference has called for creation of a trade-friendly environment that can spur a variety of partnerships in the space sector between the two countries. The five-day conference has entrusted industry forums ... More

HEALTH
Survey highlights health inequalities
THE state of health of Indian women presents a paradox. While more than one third of rural women suffer from chronic malnourishment, a third of their urban counterparts face overweight problems! "It is double burden of nutritional disorders," ... More

Healthcare expo next month in Hyderabad
HYDERABAD: A three-day healthcare exhibition will begin at the Hitex expo facility on the outskirts of the city on July 16. "The expo will showcase medical services and healthcare products," Mr P. J. Kishore, President of Divine Healing ... More

POWER
DVC project in a limbo over management control
THE Maithon Right Bank (MRB) project of Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) seems to be headed for another spell of uncertainty with the participating Governments developing cold feet over giving management control of the project to any private ... More

DVC's tariff revision plans hit roadblock
DVC's co-owning holding pattern is once again creating problems for the multi-utility corporation over tariff revision. DVC has not had a tariff revision since September 2000. With the formation of the Electricity Regulatory Commissions, it was ... More

Increase coal storage capacity in thermal plants: Ministry
THE Ministry of Coal has advised all thermal power generating stations to provide greater storage capacity in anticipation of shortages in fuel supplies. Speaking at the 228th meeting of Coal Linkages here today, Mr A.P.V. N. Sarma, Joint ... More

STEEL
SAIL, Tata Steel ties strained over Metaljunction portal
TENSION seems to be brewing up between the two largest steel producers in the country, namely, the Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) and Tata Steel , over their Internet joint venture - Metaljunction Private Ltd - a steel-trading ... More

TEXTILES
`Continue Cenvat chain for textiles'
THE city-based Chamber of Textile Trade and Industry (COTTI) has urged the Union Government to continue the existing Cenvat chain from yarn to finished garment manufacturing level. While suggesting that a uniform rate be maintained across the ... More

Textile institute opening at Coimbatore
COIMBATORE: The Union Textile Ministry sponsored national textile management institute, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Textile Management (SVPITM), will commence academic courses from the first week of next month. The new academic ... More

Sisspa urges lower sales tax on yarn
THE South India Small Spinners Association (Sisspa) has called upon the Tamil Nadu Government to provide fiscal relief by restructuring sales tax (ST), as the spinning industry was a key provider of employment in the rural areas. The Sisspa ... More

RADIO/TV
Zee-Turner to target rural AP
EYEING the huge rural market in Andhra Pradesh, Zee-Turner has launched two schemes specifically targeting the viewers in the countryside. Zee-Turner is the distribution arm of Zee Telefilms and Turner International India. These schemes allow ... More

EDUCATION
Classes for GATE 2005 in Thiruvananthapuram
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Institution of Engineers (India), (IEI), Kerala State Centre, proposes to conduct coaching classes for GATE 2005 examination. According to the Honorary Secretary, IEI Kerala State Centre, the classes will be held ... More

GEMS & JEWELLERY
Export sops for gems and jewellery sector on cards
THE Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Kamal Nath, on Friday promised "supportive policy measures" to the gems and jewellery sector in the coming months to give a further fillip to exports from this sector. Initiating his sectoral interaction ... More

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS
PM's `new deal': India Inc responds positively
INDIA Inc has welcomed the vision presented by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, in his broadcast to the nation on Thursday. He had spoken about the growth of India based on social and economic equity. The Federation of Indian Chambers ... More

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
India, US open up space partnership
ISRO has short-listed two US payloads for its lunar mission. It will also join in an upcoming US environmental satellite system as part of a renewed space partnership that is opening up between the two countries after decades. The US and two ... More

CINEMA
Malayalam film industry begins indefinite strike
The strike was total all over the State. Not even one of the 1,200-odd theatres functioned. More

NEWSPAPERS & PUBLISHING
IHT issue: Govt seeking to give teeth to 1955 Cabinet resolution
IN the wake of the controversy surrounding the publication of the International Herald Tribune (IHT) in India, the Government may consider coming up with a legislation to give statutory status to the 1955 Cabinet Resolution and the ... More

SMALL SAVINGS
Prizes for Kerala NSC investors
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Finance Minister, Mr K. Sankaranarayanan, gave away lucky prizes to winners investors of the National Savings Certificates (NSCs) scheme. Ms T. K. Meenakshi of Palakkad district won the bumper prize of a Lancer ... More

WTO
WTO chief hopes for framework agreement by July
THE World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General, Dr Supachai Panitchpakdi, on Friday said differences on contentious issues between member-countries were narrowing down and that the signs of flexibility being shown by developed as well as ... More

SOCIAL WELFARE
`Restore PDS in Kerala'
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Minister for Food and Civil Supplies, Mr G. Karthikeyan, has demanded of the Centre that public distribution system (PDS) be restored in the State. An official quoted the Minister as saying in letter to the Union ... More

HUMAN RESOURCES
Helplines by embassies for Gulf NRIs
ROUND-THE-CLOCK helplines will be set up in all Indian embassies in the Gulf countries to ensure that problems faced by expatriate Indians are taken up for redressal, according to the Union Minister of State for External Affairs, Mr E. Ahmed. ... More

EVENTS

In Hyderabad today

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
US visa drop box facility removed
THE US Embassy and the US Consulate Generals in Chennai, Mumbai, and Kolkata are removing the drop box facility for submitting US visa applications. This change in the visa application process will affect only the limited number of persons ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
EU goes bananas over `grandnaine'
THE Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam (VFPCK), the successor organisation of the European Union-funded Kerala Horticulture Development Programme (KHDP), is in the process of entering the European Union markets with "grandnaine" ... More

TOURISM
`India attractive destination for medical tourism'
INDIA could emerge as an attractive centre for medical tourism, according to a recently conducted analysis by PHDCCI. The analysis stated that the country could pocket a major chunk of the $3-trillion global healthcare industry in the coming ... More