The Hindu Business Line : Saturday, July 11, 2009

INDUSTRY & ECONOMY

ECONOMY: Industrial growth hits 8-month high
New Delhi, July 10 Indian industry has registered a year-on-year growth of 2.66 per cent in May. Although modest, it is the best since the 6.03 per cent rate notched up ...

SSI: SIDBI to raise $1 billion from global lenders
To provide refinance to banks against lending to small units. Mumbai, July 10 The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) plans to marshal $1 billion from multilateral financial institutions such as KfW (Germany), French Agency for ...

ECONOMY: LPG revenue loss may go up by 50%
Indian crude oil basket down this month at $64.70 a barrel. Even if crude oil prices are falling, the expected revenue loss on LPG may prove to be a dampener for the oil marketing ...

INCOME TAX: Gifts and income tax
The Budget proposal to tax receipts of moveable and immoveable property in the garb of a gift is in step with the constantly expanding notion of what constitutes income. Thus, along with profits accruing from a business and salary earned in a ...

INFRASTRUCTURE: TN to allow cost escalation in contracts
GO aims to avoid delay in project completion. Chennai, July 10 The Tamil Nadu Government has passed an order to provide for cost escalation in contracts to avoid delays in project ...

ENVIRONMENT: Now, norms in place for green factories
Domestic, global cos evince interest in pilot project. The Indian Green Business Council (IGBC) of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) unveiled a comprehensive set of norms that will help classify factories and manufacturing units as ...

BUDGET: Growth scores over fiscal discipline
The Budget ensured growth at the cost of delayed fiscal consolidation. The Government has taken some steps towards fiscal reforms by eliminating some irritant taxes (FBT, CTT) benefiting the industry, a clear roadmap for the roll out of GST, ...

BUDGET: Are the proposals revenue-neutral?
The Finance (No. 2) Bill 2009 is an extensive document carrying out amendments to the Income-Tax Act, the Customs tariff and the service tax provisions. Of the 116 clauses in the Finance Bill, 83 relate to income-tax and wealth tax ...

BUDGET: ‘Aam Aadmi’ Budget bypasses children: CRY
Falls short on new funds for schools, food, ICDS programme. Mumbai, July 10 Children have been bypassed by the ‘aam admi’ Budget 2009, says CRY (Child Rights and You). Despite being plugged citizen-friendly, the Union Budget falls ...

INFRASTRUCTURE: ‘Facilitate investment in infrastructure’
Bidding process has to be transparent, hassle-free: JCB India chief. Chennai, July 10 Improving transparency and removing bottlenecks in the bidding process are the key to increasing the participation of domestic and foreign companies in ...

POWER: Solar Mission soon to power villages
The Government will shortly announce a National Solar Mission to electrify remote rural hamlets. “Many villages are still without power. They can be electrified either through solar or wind energy. Today, solar power is very expensive ...

ECONOMY: Sharp rise in direct transfer of Central funds to districts
Bangalore, July 10 Over the years, direct transfers from the Centre to district level bodies have risen sharply as a percentage of other transfers to the States through taxes, grants and the National Small Savings Fund ...

BUDGET: Emphasis on infrastructure laudable
The abolition of the commodities transaction tax and the fringe benefit tax was a welcome measure which has reduced the burden on industry. The Budget has laid a strong emphasis on infrastructure, much needed in India ...

HUMAN RESOURCES: Civil contractors’ body to train unskilled workforce
Mangalore, July 10 The Civil Contractors’ Association, Mangalore, plans to impart skill development training to the labour force in the construction industry, according to Mr Purushottam ...

ENVIRONMENT: Govt move to put a price on fly ash termed retrograde
The move being contemplated by the Union Government to permit thermal power plants to sell fly ash to brick manufacturing units is highly retrograde, as it will not only hit the units, but also affect the environment badly, according to Dr ...

POWER: ‘Huge opportunities for investments in power sector’
Coimbatore, July 10 Global majors, corporates and financial institutions have an ‘India strategy’, according to Mr.Ahmed AR Buhari, Founder President and CEO, Coal and Oil Group of ...

FOODS & FOOD PROCESSING: Central aid for cold chain storage
New Delhi, July 10 The Minister of Food Processing Industries, Mr Subodh Kant Sahay, told Parliament on Thursday that cold chain storage, value addition and preservation infrastructure would get financial assistance from the Government as part ...

URBAN DEVELOPMENT: Master plan soon for Hyderabad
Hyderabad July 10 The Andhra Pradesh Government is in the process of preparing a master plan to strengthen infrastructure in Hyderabad, including removal of traffic bottlenecks and road widening works, as part of its efforts to make it ...

BUDGET: An opportunity missed to incentivise real estate customers
This Budget has been quite a dampener. Perhaps the Government wants to bring in changes over the next five years and it is not possible to do everything at one go.Real estate continues to not attract the attention of the Finance Minister. ...

FOODS & FOOD PROCESSING: No separate head for food processing sector
New Delhi, July 10 Mr Subodh Kant Sahay, Minister of Food Processing Industries, clarified that the Government has no plans of creating a separate head for the food processing sector to overcome problems of bank funding. He said that ...

RADIO/TV: Entrepreneurship programmes on TV soon
TN field office of MSME ministry in talks with private channels. Chennai, July 10 The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises’ (MSME) Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry field office is in talks with a couple of private television channels ...

NEWSPAPERS & PUBLISHING: Launch of WordSmith Publications
Pune, July 10 Vikram Printers, a Pune-based provider of printing solutions, has forayed into the publishing business. The venture, brand-named WordSmith Publications, will initially focus on books for ...

BUDGET: A good Budget, but not a path-breaking one
Great expectations have been built up in the run up to the Union Budget. Path-breaking and giant steps are needed to meet great expectations. Though the Budget was benign, it has not taken any path-breaking steps.About 144 per cent ...

ENVIRONMENT: Keeping it green
...

ECONOMY: Economists not convinced with Govt’s clarification on OMOs
New Delhi, July 10 Monetary economists and some former RBI officials are unconvinced that Open Market Operations (OMOs), being contemplated by the Government and the RBI, will not amount to monetising ...

EVENTS: Budget Talk ’09 at Gulbarga
Hyderabad, July 10 The Budget Talk-2009, organised by BL Club, will be held at the Sidhartha Law College, Gulbarga on Saturday between 1 p.m. to 3 ...

POWER: Equipment supply delays hit power capacity addition
New Delhi, July 10 The Government’s power capacity addition programme is hampered by delays in equipment supply from companies such as state-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), the Power Minister, Mr Sushil Kumar Shinde, said ...

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT: Govt mulls easing of FDI norms for hotel, tourism projects
New Delhi, July 10 To encourage foreign direct investment in the hospitality sector, the Government is considering a proposal to remove conditions pertaining to minimum area development and minimum capitalisation norms for mixed ...

BUDGET: Interest subsidy for higher education commendable
The Budget has suitably identified education as a ‘merit good’ and put commendable emphasis on it. Full interest subsidy for economically weaker sections to access higher education from recognised institutions and the extension of ...

MEDICAL INSTITUTIONS & HOSPITALS: Narayana Hrudayalaya’s Rs 100-cr facility in Hyderabad
Hyderabad, July 10 Narayana Hrudayalaya, a Bangalore-based cardiac hospital, will open a 600-bed facility here in August ...

AUTOMOBILES: Auto expo in Chennai
Chennai, July 10 The ninth biennial edition of the International Auto Components and Machine Tools Exhibition will be held here in June 17-21, ...

EVENTS: ICAI conference on direct taxes
...

EDUCATION: Babu Abraham Kallivayalil, Vice-Chairman, Southern India Regional Council, ICAI and Director, SBI; Rajagiri School of Management, Kochi
Kochi, July 10 The Finance Minister has presented the Budget in the backdrop of the global economic meltdown, resulting in an urgent need to stimulate the economy, said Mr Babu Abraham Kallivayalil, Vice-Chairman of Southern India ...