The Hindu Business Line : Friday, September 02, 2005

Experts fear monsoon running into deficit
CLIMATE experts have aired apprehensions that this year's monsoon could be heading for a deficit, assuming no dramatic reversal in prevailing as well as predicted weather during the remainder of the season. Speaking to Business Line on ... More

NON-CONVENTIONAL ENERGY

Bajaj-US agency combine develops hydrogen-run auto
AN Indo-American business alliance forged under the United States-Asia Environmental Partnership (US-AEP) has developed a three-wheeler powered by hydrogen fuel. The vehicle, being exhibited at the annual convention of the Society of Indian ... More

States told to lay stress on renewable energy
ENERGY from renewable sources is indispensable in ensuring energy sufficiency and growth, according to Mr Vilas Muttemwar, Union Minister of State for Non-Conventional Energy Sources. Addressing a training programme on wind farm development and ... More

COURTS/LEGAL ISSUES

Don't politicise Chidambaram issue: SC Bar association
The Supreme Court Bar Association today "denounced the politicisation of the widely publicised event of Ms Nalini Chidambaram, wife of the Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, appearing for the Income-Tax Department," in a statement. "Now that ... More

IRMA board extends Director's term — Resolution has no sanctity: Dr Kurien's office
THE Director of Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA), Professor K. Prathap Reddy, has been granted a three-month extension by the institute Board of Governors. The move is set to start a fresh round of legal battles between the IRMA ... More

ECONOMY

Kalam urges CAs to focus on farm sector
SKETCHING out an expanded role for the chartered accountants (CA) fraternity to look beyond auditing and accounting, the President, Mr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, today urged the 1.3 lakh strong CA community to consider `national economic development' as ... More

Victims of mechanisation
A contingent of casual labourers wait at the Tolichowki Junction on Thursday for masonry work that is hard to come by in Hyderabad these days as concrete ready mixers have taken away their jobs. Most of them wait in vain all day at intersections. ... More

ENVIRONMENT

Green is the word
Let's take a leaf out of energy-efficient building designs that are the norm in Europe. More

EXCISE AND CUSTOMS

Reliance gets Rs 10,500-cr excise notice
RELIANCE Industries Ltd (RIL) has been served a show-cause notice by the Central Excise Department regarding non-payment of additional excise duty to the tune of Rs 10,500 crore on export of petroleum products from its refinery at Jamnagar in ... More

Chidambaram hints at cut in excise duty on small cars
THE Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, on Thursday hinted at a possible paring of taxes levied on small cars, in a bid to attract foreign investment to the automobile industry. "The Government is fully aware that companies intending to ... More

HEALTH

Wyeth set to bring blockbuster paediatric vaccine to India
WYETH is poised to bring its blockbuster — a billion-dollar pediatric vaccine for pneumococcal diseases into India. The vaccine is touted to be the first and only vaccine indicated for children up to two years of age. The estimated Rs ... More

Terumo Penpol reward scheme
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As part of its efforts to promote voluntary blood donation (VBD), Terumo Penpol has planned a reward programme through which it will recognise VBD efforts by non-governmental organisations, industries and colleges in ... More

PETROLEUM

IOC commissions TN pipeline
MAKING its foray into the southern part of the country in construction and operation of petroleum pipelines, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), on Thursday said that it has recently commissioned the 683-km-long Chennai-Tiruchi-Madurai pipeline in ... More

POWER

Nagarjuna Power plant at Udupi to supply 100 MW to Kerala
THE proposed 1,015-megawatt thermal plant of Nagarjuna Power Corporation Ltd at Padubidri in Udupi district will supply 100 MW to Kerala. Addressing newspersons here on Wednesday evening, Mr Praveer Sinha, Chief Executive Officer of ... More

Households account for 73 pc of energy consumption increase in India
ACCORDING to data made available by the International Energy Association, residential energy consumption for purposes other than transport accounted for 50 per cent of the two billion tonnes of oil equivalent that were consumed worldwide in 2001, ... More

STEEL

Steel majors raise prices
INDIAN steel companies have increased the prices of various steel products by around Rs 500 per tonne on the back of firming international prices. Tata Steel said it has raised the prices of hot rolled (HR) steel products by Rs 500 per tonne on ... More

RADIO/TV

Star bid to distinguish One from the other
COMPLETE supremacy in the Hindi entertainment genre — that is what Star India's Chief Operating Officer, Mr Samir Nair, says his company hopes to achieve with the Star Plus and Star One channels. "While Star Plus is positioned as a general ... More

EDUCATION

IDP Education Australia plans to expand
IDP Education Australia Ltd, which promotes Australia as a study destination, plans to expand in India through franchisees. "We will open 30-35 offices in the next 3-5 years," Mr Henry Ledlie, Director of IDP Education Australia, told ... More

MEDICAL & SURGICAL EQUIPMENTS

Chitra Tirunal Institute to set up test centre for medical devices
THE city-based Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) is establishing a national test centre for medical devices. Mr Kapil Sibal, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology, will lay the foundation ... More

PRECIOUS METALS

Gold may test support level
SPOT gold prices rose from a one-month low to end higher on Wednesday, as the dollar fell lower against the major currencies. News of Chicago PMI contracting lower to 49.2 in August against 63.5 in July gave precious metals a boost as the dollar ... More

METALS

Non-ferrous metals prices increased
FOLLOWING a firm trend in the international market, all major non-ferrous metal producers including Nalco, Hindustan Zinc, Sterlite, Birla Copper and Hindustan Copper have increased the prices of their metal products from Thursday, trade sources ... More

PAPER, BOARD & NEWSPRINT

Paper makers set to hike prices
PAPER manufacturers are to increase prices further in October on increasing demand in the printing and writing segment. Apart from exploiting the increase in demand, manufacturers are also taking into account the increase in cost of inputs, ... More

Minister asks pulp research body to set up wing in TN
THE Tamil Nadu Minister for Backward Classes Welfare, Mr S.M. Velusamy, who inaugurated the four-day international conference on pulp and paper industry `India Paper 2005' here today, has suggested that the Central Pulp and Paper Research ... More

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS

Nasscom for stronger enforcement against IT crimes
THE National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) on Thursday said that there was a need to enforce the provisions of the Information Technology (IT) Act and that it was "reasonably happy" with the amendments proposed by a ... More

Madhur Bajaj to head SIAM
THE Bajaj Auto Ltd Vice-Chairman, Mr Madhur Bajaj, was elected President of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), while the Tata Motors Managing Director, Mr Ravi Kant, was appointed as its Vice-President at the society's ... More

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

ISRO still has three centres on US blacklist
THE last three of ISRO centres continue to be on the US Department of Commerce blacklist for US exporters. Only on Wednesday, three other ISRO centres were removed from the "entity" list after years of figuring there under the export licence ... More

DISINVESTMENT

Divestment of Kerala Govt stake in four PSUs deferred
THE State Government has deferred decision on the proposals for divestment of its stake in four public sector units. The Government had invited bids for divestment of its stake in Keltron Counters Ltd, Kerala State Detergents and Chemicals Ltd, ... More

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT

Micro managing projects will hinder FDI: Mulford
The US private sector has a great deal to offer but can do that only if allowed to fully get into India. More

WTO

WTO members must catalyse process of negotiations: Lamy
THE new Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Mr Pascal Lamy, a celebrated trade envoy and former Trade Commissioner of the European Union (EU), today optimistically said that members of the WTO could catalyse the process of ... More

SOCIAL WELFARE

NECC welcomes Maharashtra's move to include eggs in school meals scheme
THE National Egg Co-ordination Committee (NECC) has welcomed the decision of the Maharashtra Government to include eggs in the school mid-day meals scheme from September. It has also stated that the inclusion of eggs in the scheme would help in ... More

NCC to take up anti-AIDS work
HYDERABAD: The National Cadet Corps (NCC) is slated to sign an MoU with the United Nations to take up anti-HIV/AIDS programmes in the country, according to its Director-General, Mr Mohan C. Bhandari. The NCC is expected to get about $2 ... More

EVENTS

Career fair in Hyderabad
HYDERABAD: The Fair & Lovely Foundation, a Hindustan Lever Ltd initiative, will organise a three-day career fair at the Institute of Engineers (Khairatabad) here beginning on Friday. About 200 career options would be presented. The expo ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS

15-member tea team to visit Egypt, Iran, UAE
The visit is aimed at boosting exports and the team will meet buyers in these countries. More

Call for easier norms to allot duty-free fuel to exporters
THE Commerce Ministry has called for easier norms for duty-free fuel allocation to exporters. The Ministry, in close association with the Petroleum Ministry, proposes to review the existing norms to facilitate easier off-take by exporters and ... More

ECONOMIC OFFENCES

Giving wings to dreams
Rising levels of corruption — whether in the Income Tax department or Air India where she is now on deputation — are a cause of concern; "perhaps our moral values have eroded." More

Volkswagen to return money siphoned off by Vashista Wahan
THE German auto major, Volkswagen, is all set to return to the Andhra Pradesh Government a sum of Rs 11.7 crore siphoned off by Vashista Wahan, a special purpose vehicle created for the purpose of establishing the car factory at ... More