The Hindu Business Line : Thursday, January 06, 2005

Award conferred
HYDERABAD: The All-India Conference of Intellectuals (AICOI), New Delhi has conferred "The Great Son of the Soil" award upon Dr Lalji Singh, Director, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, here for his contributions in science and ... More

ECONOMY

Housing demand
ACCORDING to Census 2001 data, 66.8 per cent of urban households owned the houses they dwelt in; a notch above even the largest `other asset' (TV sets, owned by 64.3 per cent of urban households). The difference may seem slight, but it assumes ... More

EXCISE AND CUSTOMS

Solvent extractors in a fix over hexane duty claim — Excise officials demand penalty for non-export of soyabean oil
SOLVENT extractors, especially of soyabean, are facing a tricky situation with the Central Excise authorities demanding penalty, including interest, on the duty to be paid for hexane used by them. Hexane is used by the extractors as solvent to ... More

FOREIGN TRADE

Indo-Nepal trade via Birgunj ICD from Feb 1
THE Birgunj inland container depot (ICD) in Nepal is to be thrown open to India-Nepal bilateral trade from February 1, subject to the clearances by Customs authorities of the respective countries. This was decided at a high-level meeting ... More

`India, China should free their markets'
COUNTRIES such as India and China too have the responsibility to open out their markets, just as much as they expect developed countries to do, according to Sir Digby Jones, Director General, Confederation of British Industry, UK. Addressing a ... More

HEALTH

World Bank to provide $110.83-m loan for TN health system project
THE agreements for the World Bank's assistance to the Tamil Nadu Health System Development Project were signed in the Capital today. The World Bank is providing a loan of $110.83 million for the project. An official release said that the ... More

Medical tips through SMS on Aircel
AIRCEL, the cellular company that operates in the Chennai and Tamil Nadu circles, has launched an SMS-based facility where its subscribers can get acupressure tips for various ailments. Called `MobiHealth,' the service provides tips for various ... More

PHARMACEUTICALS

`New patent norms will not impact drug prices'
ONLY 2,488 out of the total of 8,926 mailbox applications filed by companies for patents are request applications for examination while the remaining does not contain requests for examination. Around 7,000 applications are in the ... More

POWER

Bidadi gas project: Cos fail to submit price bids
THE three technically qualified bidders for the 1400 MW Bidadi gas power project — Reliance Industries Ltd, ONGC Ltd and Indian Oil Corporation have failed to submit their price bids even after seeking an extension till December-end. The ... More

TAXATION

VAT white paper to be released on Jan 17
STATE Finance Ministers on Wednesday endorsed a white paper on the proposed value added tax (VAT) regime that will replace the sales tax system in the country from April 1. The white paper is to be formally released on January 17. "I am very ... More

Cleaning up
The Karnataka bandh called by the traders belonging to the Bangalore Wholesale Foodgrains and Pulses Merchants' Association at Yeshwanthpur Regulated Market Yard in Bangalore on Wednesday in protest against imposition of service tax has given ... More

FIEO for zero tax on export profits
WITH less than two months to go before the Budget proposals for 2005-06 are unveiled, the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has decided to make a case for restoration of full tax exemption on export profits. "We will appeal to ... More

WATER

Krishna project phase II to end by July
THE Andhra Pradesh government has given the clearance for launching the phase II works of the Krishna water project immediately. The project, envisaged for supply of drinking water to the State capital, will be completed by July this year at a ... More

MANAGEMENT

IIM-B joins Infosys to offer PG programme in Chennai
THE Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, has partnered with Infosys Technologies to launch its PG programme in Software Enterprise Management in Chennai. Announcing the launch on Wednesday, Mr Abhay K. Ojha, Chairperson, Post-Graduate ... More

EDUCATION

Yale varsity, GLIM to tie up for management India research centre
YALE University and the Great Lakes Institute of Management (GLIM) plan to set up a management research centre in India, for which they will sign an agreement on Thursday. Dr Richard C. Lewin, President, Yale University, will sign the ... More

BIO-TECH & GENETICS

Kinfra plans biotech park in Kalamassery
Kinfra would procure the required equipment and the labs would be allotted to entrepreneurs on lease basis. More

EVENTS

Jute fair inaugurated at Visakhapatnam
JUTE bags and other diversified products should be preferred to synthetic ones, as they are economical and eco-friendly, Mr Peeyush Kumar, Joint Collector, Visakhapatnam, has said. He was speaking after inaugurating a week-long jute fair, ... More

Bangalore quiz group finds many takers online
QUIZZING has become such a popular activity that a quizmaster has been inspired to form the Bangalore Quiz Group (BQG) that, within three months of existence, has become 500-member strong. Being an online facility, BQG has been successful in ... More

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Nurturing entrepreneurial talent among rural youth
TWENTY-five-year-old Vikas Kumbharkar, a resident of Sasawad in Maharashtra, always dreamt of becoming an entrepreneur but without the seed capital, he simply did not know how to go about it. A chance meeting with the Bharatiya Yuva Shakti ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS

Metal scrap prices rise on import curbs
NON-FERROUS metal scrap prices have increased by 6-8 per cent in the last two months following the drop in import of scrap into the country. Imports have fallen due to changes in the import procedure, traders said. In October 2004, the DGFT ... More

Spices Board extends airfreight sops to cardamom exporters till Jan 31
SPICES Board has extended the airfreight assistance to exporters for exporting cardamom till January 31, 2005. The decision has been taken following demand from exporters, who claim that there are sufficient enquiries from overseas and that ... More

Closure of ECOM password system extended
THE Government has extended the last date for abolition of ECOM password based system to January 31. This system was to come to an end on December 31, 2004. Exporters are now permitted to obtain licences from the Directorate General of Foreign ... More

NATURAL CALAMITIES

The political economy of tsunami
The killer tsunami has raised two important issues of rehabilitation and creating an early warning system. But both require funds. While the governments and its banks will provide crucial help, special low-rate relief and rehabilitation bonds repayab le in three years or special securities issued on perpetuity basis with a guaranteed interest rate can be thought of. Incentives are needed for raising resources even if it means rejecting the view that tax exemptions would generate distortions, says A. Vasudevan. More

Kerala decides to set up Disaster Management Dept
THE State Government will set up a Disaster Management Department with a view to hastening efforts at rehabilitating the tsunami-hit population in the coastal areas of the State. The Chief Minister, Mr Oommen Chandy, announced this here while ... More

Naandi Foundation, Coke reach out
LENDING a helping hand to tsunami victims, Naandi Foundation has decided to set up community kitchens in Nagapattinam, Tamil Nadu. The foundation, which runs a huge kitchen to cater to 1.5 lakh children every day in the twin cities, has ... More

Eastern Naval Command deploys 14 ships, 12 choppers for relief work
THE Eastern Naval Command, with its headquarters here, has so far deployed 14 ships and 12 helicopters for tsunami relief work and "the operation will continue as long as required,'' Vice-Admiral O.P. Bansal, the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, ... More

DHL's helpline for tsunami relief contributions
DHL, the express and logistics company, will use its fleet of vehicles across the country to collect and deliver relief contributions for victims of the tsunami tragedy. This initiative will be undertaken jointly with Assocham and the Red ... More

Syndicate Bank to cut interest rate for tsunami victims
SYNDICATE Bank has announced a reduction in interest rate on priority sector loans taken by tsunami victims. A press release by the regional office of the bank said here on Wednesday that interest rate on housing loan, which is availed of by ... More

Tsunami claims at Rs 50 cr so far
There were few life claims. There were a handful of claims under property insurance, from a couple of hotels and resorts located on the coast. More

Kolkata Inc adds to tsunami aid
LEADING corporate houses and bankers based in the city have started donating generously to the tsunami affected people in India. ITC Ltd has decided to contribute Rs 3 crore to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. Among the bankers, ... More

IEI offers free technical aid
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala State centre of the Institution of Engineers (India) (IEI) has offered free technical services for rebuilding the tsunami-hit areas and rehabilitating the affected population. IEI will make available the ... More

IMA team for Andamans
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala unit of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Tuesday sent a 15-member medical team to the Andaman Islands, where thousands of people are in need of medical attention in the wake of the tsunami tragedy. ... More

Communication links restored in tsunami-hit areas
THE Union Communications and Information Minister, Mr Dayanidhi Maran, on Wednesday informed the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, that the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had restored the vital communication facilities in the ... More

Contribution to CM's relief fund
HYDERABAD: Shri Shakti Group has contributed Rs 5 lakh to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to help the people affected by tsunami. Of this, Rs 1.5 lakh has been contributed by the staff and management of Chirec Public School, a company ... More

Ferro Alloys' MD donates
VISAKHAPATNAM: Mr R.K. Saraf, Managing Director, Ferro Alloys Corporation Ltd, has contributed Rs 10 lakh to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to help tsunami victims. He handed over the cheque to the Chief Minister in Hyderabad, a press ... More

Infotech tsunami donation
HYDERABAD: Infotech Enterprises Ltd has donated Rs 25 lakh to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund for tsunami relief work. Mr B.V.R. Mohan Reddy, Chairman and Managing Director, handed over the cheque to the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, ... More

CII keen to adopt tsunami-hit villages
THE Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Coimbatore Zone, is keen to adopt a few villages in Tamil Nadu ravaged by the tsunami. It is also hopeful that corporates will come forward to adopt villages hit hard by the calamity. Mr Krishna ... More

More corporate aid for tsunami victims
THE corporate sector continues to chip in with money, materials and labour to provide assistance to those affected by the tsunami waves that hit the coast on December 26. Tata Relief Committee, a 100-member team from the Tata group of ... More

Contributions to The Hindu Relief Fund

TOURISM

SBI loan package for travel to Singapore
STATE Bank of India (SBI) has drawn up a specially packaged loan scheme making a holiday in a foreign destination, Singapore to begin with, highly affordable. What one needs to pay for visiting Singapore is just Rs 467 to Rs 550 per month for ... More

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