Accountancy
Going, going, gone
The onus on directors to confirm that financial statements have been prepared on a `going concern' basis has increased, says P. S. Kumar

Agriculture
Prospects of bumper kharif crop recede
AFTER all the initial optimism buoyed by a reasonably bountiful first half spell of monsoon rains, it appears that the country is not really poised for a bumper kharif crop this year. With the second half of the south-west monsoon season turning out to b e a rather dry affair, acreages of most kharif agricultural crops have fallen even below last year's none-too-impressive levels.

American Periscope
HP-Compaq merger -- Where are the synergies?
I WAS looking for a simple answer and found a simplistic one. When asked to explain the Hewlett-Packard Co. (HP) and Compaq Computer Corp. merger announcement, a young business student thought for a while and replied: ``Well, Compaq makes PCs and HP make s printers, and I guess they go together.'' That's about as much sense anyone can make about the deal.

Automobiles
Fiat's small car, Palio, to be unveiled next week
FIAT India Ltd (FIL) is planning to launch its small car -- the Fiat Palio -- next week. The company is likely to price the base variant of Palio at a competitive Rs 3.65 lakhs, ex-showroom, Delhi, company sources said.

Lancer offers design and order option
HINDUSTAN Motors Ltd is planning to introduce the concept of `My Lancer' programme, the fourth variant of Mitsubishi Lancer, on the Internet to provide customers with the option to design the car according to their needs and specifications at the click o f a mouse.

Banking and Finance
Probe body mooted for bank, financial frauds
AN RBI-appointed expert committee has suggested setting up of a separate investigation bureau and a special court to investigate and try bank and financial frauds.

Book Review
IT's here to stay
``A Web site was the digital equivalent of a visiting card.''

Working with change
Liberalisation and globalisation that have caused changes in attitudes and aspirations of employees, have also created neo-challenges. There are perceptible changes in the areas of job design, evaluation and enrichment of both blue and white-collar emplo yees, motivation and empowerment of the workforce and leadership. These challenges are manifested through advanced manufacturing technologies, increased competition, and the emerging voice of the customer. This requires a clear understanding of individua l and group behaviour, combined with knowledge of the available tools and techniques for developing a motivated workforce. It also calls for new strategies to effectively deal with the rapidly changing business and technological environment.

The M-Bomb
Simple e-commerce experiments are giving way to highly credible and profitable services that use Internet technologies to unlock the potential of hugely successful brands. But many of the best brands in the world are ill-equipped to face this challenge. The M-Bomb represents the multi-channel challenge which is forcing businesses to equip themselves and this book gives them the know-how to survive the bomb and also thrive.

CNBC Creating Wealth
This user-friendly guide helps simplify the often confusing world of finance and investing. The book offers a comprehensive introduction to world markets that shows one how to choose and use information and tools currently available for maximum wealth-bu ilding. Demystifying complex terminology, the book helps one make better investment choices and hone skills that will help one remain secure and be successful in volatile markets.

Breweries
Mallya, Chhabria may opt for talks on Herbertsons
MR Vijay Mallya and Mr Kishore Chhabria have apparently not yet ended their pursuit for an out-of-the-court settlement in the Herbertsons' dispute even though the latter has indicated that he has moved closer to his elder brother and Jumbo Group Chairman , Mr Manu Chhabria.

The story of Scotch
Just before the WTO agreement took effect in India, we had a well-known wine taster tell us the do's and don'ts of drinking the bubbly, heady brew. This time we've had a malt specialist journey us through the Scottish highlands, expounding the virtues of Scotch whisky.

Commodities
Spices Board to seek VC funding for processing units in N-E
THE Spices Board is looking for venture capital (VC) funding for promoting processing units in the north-eastern region of the country as part of its efforts to tap the region's potential.

Corporate
Srei's borrowing limit hike okayed
SREI International Finance Ltd (SREI), specialised in asset and infrastructure project financing, has received the shareholders' approval for increasing the limit of issuing further securities, from the existing Rs 2500 crore to Rs 4000 crore.

Usha Beltron eyes 20% increase in turnover
USHA Beltron Ltd is hopeful of registering a 20 per cent growth in turnover -- on an annualised basis -- during 2001-2002. The wires, wire ropes, cables and speciality steels major earned a total income of Rs 1,132.64 crore during the 15-month accounting period ended March 31,2001.

They also serve
For 30 years, they have done nothing but manage, negotiate, sell, buy, look for better bottomlines, create equity. They have been the generals of the corporate sector. Today, they are doing the same, but minus the plush ambience of their offices, champag ne dinners, hi-tech conference rooms and the jetsetting lifestyle that goes with corporate life.

`Family-run business houses here to stay'
FAMILY businesses will continue to grow as one of the dominating form of business enterprises in spite of the increasing number of start-up companies. This was the consensus among leading captains of business enterprises at the seminar on `Family busines s in India: The way ahead' organised by the CII and SP Jain Institute of Management & Research here.

R.S. Lodha to be next FICCI chief
MR Rajendra S. Lodha has become the President-elect of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). He will be assuming office at the conclusion of the chamber's 74th annual session later this year.

Economy
US markets: Bracing for bear attack?
FEARS of global economic recession intensified as the US prepared itself for an indefinite war on global terrorism, and a week of closure of American stock markets in the wake of the attacks led to a worldwide plunge in stocks and securities. The New Yor k Stock Exchange and Nasdaq are to resume trading today (Monday, September l7).

Ground shifts under global economy
TWO Mondays ago, I finished my column with a promise to explore the prospect for the euro versus the US dollar based on structural economic fundamentals. Little did I envisage that the economic and political landscape of the world would be so profoundly (and perhaps irrevocably) altered within the two-week period, rendering such analysis somewhat irrelevant and meaningless.

Revival of rural credit -- Must to kickstart economy
VARIOUS suggestions to kick-start the Indian economy are being made. All focus on increasing the level of investments in the economy, particularly the rural sector. In this context, a recent paper by Dr N. A. Mujumdar, Former Principal Adviser to the RBI , on ``The New Architecture of the Rural Credit System'' seems timely. This monograph was prepared for the University of Mumbai in memory of the late eminent economist and Professor, M. L. Dantwala. Dr Mujumdar's contribution serves to highlight the impo rtance of revamping the rural credit system to rejuvenate the agricultural and rural sector, in particular -- and the economy, in general.

Farming policy
`Prognosis of a slowdown' (Business Line, September 7) gives a worthwhile suggestion of restructuring the agrarian sector as one of the medicines for the ailing Indian economy.

Editorial
Free fall
STOCK MARKETS UNDER attack. Most Asian and European shares, already in a bear grip, were further squeezed as worries mounted on what the terror-struck US will do in retaliation and where its economy is headed. Added to this, Wall Street remained shuttere d for four straight days, spreading uncertainty all round.

Education
Debunk the myth
Jayanthi Chandrasekar, all-India 14th in the May 2001 CA (Final) exam, on her method of study

Environment
Lessons from Lahti
Conservation at Lahti started with the lake. When the citizens of this city in Finland realised that the Lake Vesijarvi, on whose bank their city is located, was dying, they started a concerted action on environmental protection and regeneration.

Financial Performance
Kribhco pays 12%
KRISHAK Bharati Cooperative Ltd (Kribhco), a premier fertiliser producing co-operative, has posted a net profit of Rs 138 crore during 2000-01 after providing Rs 72 crore for taxation. The society's net worth has gone up by four per cent, touching Rs 1,9 81 crore at the end of the fiscal.

Health
Stem cells research -- Beyond ethics
ONCE the preserve of scientific conferences, stem cells have become the stuff of prime-time presidential addresses, excited headlines and confused cocktail party conversations. The decision by the US President, Mr George Bush, to allow federal funding fo r stem cells research offers an opportunity to scientists and hope to victims of all sorts of illnesses, from Alzheimers disease to diabetes. By limiting this research to some 60 lines derived from embryos that had already been destroyed, he keeps faith with his campaign promises and anti-abortion supporters. However, the struggle has just begun for biologists.

A thought of beauty
Writer Tony De Mello tells the story of Little Fish, keen to explore life, surging into the waves. In search of the Great Ocean, she swims north, south, east, west ... in vain. Finally, she comes upon Big Wise Fish floating serenely, ``Big Wise Fish, may I ask you something?'' asks Little Fish. ``Sure!'' says Big Wise Fish. ``Can you tell me the way to the Great Ocean?'' asks Little Fish. Replies Big Wise Fish, ``You already are in the Great Ocean''. And Little Fish wails disappointedly. ``But, this is only water!''

Hotels
TN hotel industry seeks reduction in luxury tax
THE hotel industry is not fully satisfied with Tamil Nadu's move on luxury tax. It described as `half measure' the recent announcement that the State will levy luxury tax on the actual tariff and not on the published rate, which will benefit groups of a minimum of 10 persons. It hoped that the Government would accede to its demand for a reduction in luxury tax and the tax to be levied on actuals for all.

Meet soon on coastal regulation zone
SUSTAINABLE development and social responsibility were the two issues the hospitality industry needs to focus on, according to Mr M.P. Bezbaruah, Secretary Tourism, Government of India.

Miscellaneous
Giving films a Midas touch
Director David Dhawan is in the middle of a shoot when I reach him. He asks if I can call back in a couple of hours. This time, the set is too noisy. Half-an-hour later, he is out, in a quieter place, where he can hear me. The conversation is brief, beca use he has to be back on the set, to call a wrap.

Mutual Funds
Pessimism clouds sentiment
LAST week, the world's markets looked at the new face of terror and investors' sentiments are not the same any longer. As last week's gyrations on Dalal Street show, the country has not been able to shrug off the chaotic effects of terrorist strikes in t he US. Mutual funds, like all other investors, are in a state of shock, their worries compounded by an all-round fall in prices of securities.

PSU
Govt mulls alternative plan on MUL `rights'
THE Government is considering putting in place an alternative plan of action to offset a possible last-minute back-out by domestic financial institutions (FIs) from the proposed Maruti Udyog Ltd (MUL) disinvestment plan.

Petrochemicals
Agrochemical cos adopt IPM techniques
AGROCHEMICAL companies, in a bid to avoid indiscriminate use of pesticides, are resorting to grass root work on Integrated Pest Management (IPM).

Petroleum
Ram Naik to head high-level team to China
The Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas, Mr Ram Naik, is leading a high-level delegation to participate in the first Regional Meeting of World Petroleum Congress to be held in Shanghai in China from September 17-20.

Policy
SEs: Riding the consolidation wave
THE country's stock exchanges finally appear set to embrace the mergers and consolidation wave, which is sweeping across several other sectors already.

Politics
Dravidian letdown
THE general secretary of the MDMK, Mr Vaiko, is reported as being against any truck with the DMK or AIADMK in the coming local bodies elections as both these parties ``have moved away from Dravidian principles.'' What these principles are and whether the y at any time had any principles are moot questions. No doubt, the Dravidian movement and its brand of politics had been founded on certain legitimate planks such as social justice and equality, self-respect, rationalism and the greatness of Tamil cultur e.

A boon for Mr Vajpayee
CYNICAL though this may seem, the September 11 tragic happenings in the US could not have come at a better time for Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee who, by all accounts, is facing perhaps the most difficult period of his Prime Ministership. Let us consider in so me detail how the Black Tuesday attacks by the terrorists in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania have come to his assistance.

Innocent victims
Last week, world history took another turn. America was bombed. While it is evident that the maximum destruction took place at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, sites that symbolised dominance, money and the power of free trade, the horror of it w as its impact on the innocent civilian population.

Radio/TV
Bonanza for viewers
As the controversy over television rating points rages, and nobody is quite sure who is watching what, there is one segment of viewers that broadcasters can always count upon -- children. According to Christine Leo-Mckerrow, Vice-President, Channel Opera tions & Brand Management, Nickelodeon Asia, one of the major trends this year is ``giving children more choice and with the increase in adult TV viewing, there will be more for children as well.''

Cable TV eats into AIR's pie
ALL-INDIA Radio (AIR), the oldest entertainer, is losing out to the new generation satellite channels. And this is evident in its the declining revenues.

States
Hunger and death amidst plenty
THE world's bourses might be shuddering from impending US retaliation for the acts of terror on its soil. The rupee might be under pressure amidst prophesies of doom for the Indian economy in general, and the stock markets, in particular. But in the vill ages of Kashipur block in Rayagada district of Orissa, the poorest of poor tribals and Harijans have no clue about the latest preoccupation of the rest of the world.

New Bill to replace AP infrastructure ordinance
THE Andhra Pradesh Infrastructure Development Enabling Bill, 2001 (IDEA), which will pave the way for the replacement of the AP Infrastructure Ordinance, 2001 and creation of a Infrastructure Authority was introduced in the State Assembly.

Rs 40-cr Central fund for handloom weavers in Assam
THE Centre will provide Rs 40 crore to handloom weavers in Assam under the Deen Dayal Hathkargha Protsahan Yojana (DDHPY).

Bus reservation through e-Seva
HYDERABAD: The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation has extended the facility of reserving tickets through the Twin Cities Intelligent Network Services (TWINS), also called e-Seva, at no additional cost.

ST waiver for shopping mall
HYDERABAD: The Chief Minister, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, has announced sales tax exemption for one month for the international shopping mall coming up in Hyderabad.

Rs 321-cr drought relief package
HYDERABAD: The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, has announced a Rs 321-crore relief package to tackle the severe widespread drought aimed at creating additional employment as well as taking up rescue operations.

Steel
SAIL set to split into two separate units
THE country's largest steel producer, Steel Authority of India (SAIL), has been under pressure for quite some time now and also in the red. As if the burden of huge modernisation expenditure and the compulsions of a stagnant domestic demand were not enou gh, exports have become difficult with developed countries imposing anti-dumping duties on Indian steel.

Stocks
Is it a stare down the barrel?
THE aftermath of demolitions in the US has been devastating for the Indian financial markets. This week, the stock market will open with an overhang of a war cloud.

`Uncertainty in markets, but no cause for alarm'
THE dampening effect of the uncertainty that looms large on the global markets is expected to continue on the Indian markets, but there is no cause for undue alarm, say analysts and bankers.

SEBI may bring in changes on stock options
THE Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is likely to plug the gap in the derivatives segment by introducing certain changes in the way the stock options are settled. SEBI is likely to ask the National Stock Exchange (NSE) to make available the cash market closing prices before conducting the options exercise session.

Share buys against takeover norms -- SEBI report points to violations by 2 OCBs
TWO overseas corporate bodies (OCBs) connected with the Mumbai-based broker, Mr Ketan Parekh, accused in the Rs 137-crore Bank of India pay-order scandal, have violated the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (SEBI) takeover regulations.

Taxation
Knowing the raters
NAME the various credit-rating agencies in India. What do the various abbreviations employed by the rating agencies signify?

Tea
Good demand for all teas at Kochi sale
A GOOD general demand resulted in the spurting of prices of almost all varieties of tea at the Kochi Tea auction.

Technical Analysis
Commex support at lower levels
Malaysian Palm oil futures closed lower on prospects of rising output and lower exports in coming months. It was a tug of war between the bulls and the bears, those with long positions trying hard to get the market to close above the MYR1,000/tonne leve l, however they did not succeed. The ongoing sell off shows that the overall sentiment remains bearish. There was a smart rally up to 1043 ringgits, which could not sustain due to lack of follow through buying. Higher production prospects, poor export g rowth and an increase in stocks have played a vital role in bringing down the value of crude palm oil in the futures markets significantly after a high of 1315 reached last month.

Follow-through selling in NY cotton
New York Cotton futures started the week on a bearish note, making 15-year contract lows. Cotton futures closed fractionally lower on Monday, setting new contract lows for the third consecutive session. The market continued to digest a record US and glob al cotton crop on the horizon amid worries about global consumption. The fragile global economy is fuelling expectations that no matter how fast the central banks move to cut interest rates, consumer spending is set to fall and further undermine the supp ly-heavy cotton market.

Technology
Connect 2001 concludes
CURTAINS were drawn on Connect 2001 -- an international exhibition and conference on IT, communication technologies and bio-informatics organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry -- here on Sunday.

Telecommunications
Failure to provide village phones -- DoT may scrap licences of private operators
THE Government is threatening to terminate the basic services licences of the six private operators - Bharti Telenet, Hughes Tele.com, Tata Teleservices, Reliance Telecom, Shyam Telecom and HFCL Infotel - if they fail to fulfil their commitments regardin g village public telephones (VPT).

Terrorism
US under attack
As referred to in `Neglect comes home to roost' (Business Line, September 13), it is impossible to find words to match the sense of horror and outrage of the diabolical acts of terrorism carried out in the US.

Combating terrorism
The US, considered a veritable fortress against terrorist attack, has finally been targeted in a horrific manner, most likely by Pan-Islamic elements. Cross-border terrorism, under the cover of human rights activism, has killed thousands of people in Ind ia. In the early 1990s, the Pan-Islamic terrorists attacked Mumbai. The financial capital was bombed heavily, and the stock-market building damaged.

Textiles
Sarees are a lady's best friend
IF you thought that the six-yard saree is giving way to denims and tweeds, consider this: The budget on sarees is not likely to be reduced, despite competition from contemporary forms of apparel. Sarees contribute about 44 per cent, in value terms, of th e total spend on women's wear this year.

Transport
Railways must be open to change: Nitish
THE Railway Minister, Mr Nitish Kumar, today virtually made out a case for reforms in the Railways, even as Railwaymen rejected some of the key recommendations of the Rakesh Mohan Committee on corporatisation, organisational restructuring and hiving off of core activities.

Travel & Places
An annual rendezvous
We left our home in search of a haven.. to build a nest of our own. there is no joy anywhere else. Vedanthangal is our

Steeped in the hills
Shimla, Kulu, Manali, Dharamshala -- these are some of the more popular hill stations of Himachal Pradesh. But there are also the not so popular ones which are nevertheless an excellent choice for a quiet retreat.

Inside bush country
It was a start dominated by contrasts. It isn't often that one sees wild animals literally from the aircraft and along the drive into town. But here we did. And it is not often that one stumbles straight out of bush country, straightaway into an urban ta ngle of stylish boutiques and boisterous pubs. But here we did.

Source:Business Line