Advertising & Marketing
Sawant upbeat aboutprint media growth
THE Press Council Chairman, Mr. Justice P.B. Sawant, today dispelled doubts about the future of the print media in the wake of stiff competition from the electronic media.
Airlines
IA to shuttle Chennai-Bangkok 3 days a week
INDIAN Airlines has increased its frequencies to Bangkok from Chennai to three times a week from the existing twice-a-week service on Thursdays and Sundays.
Automobiles
ACMA voices concern over spurious auto components
LEGISLATIVE measures in the judicial system for protecting the interests of consumers, industry and trade, have failed to fix the manufacture and trade of auto component duplicates - `a cognizable offence', according to Automotive Component Manufacturers
' Association of India (ACMA) sources.
Corporate
HFCL set to take over Arihant Optics
IN a move that is likely to give a major fillip to its core business of optic fibre cable manufacturing, Himachal Futuristic Communications Ltd (HFCL) is all set to takeover management control of the Hyderabad-based fibre manufacturer, Arihant Optics Ltd
, in an all-cash deal.
PwC picks up 12% stake in WorldChemnet.com
PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS (PwC) has picked up a 12 per cent stake in `WorldChemnet.com', an online chemical and pharmaceutical exchange offering services such as online trading in chemicals. The portal has been operational since August 1999.
Gramophone plans to acquire Punjabi music co, to pay 10% final
GRAMOPHONE Co of India Ltd, a RPG group outfit, has planned to acquire a Punjabi music company.
Creative Eye to relaunch IPO at cut price
TELEVISION software company Creative Eye Ltd has said it is relaunching its initial public offering of 25,02,400 equity shares at a discounted price, citing weak market sentiment as the reason.
Max India takes majority stake in HealthScribe
MAX India has acquired a 71.4 per cent stake in HealthScribe India (HSI) for Rs. 8.5 crores. For Max, the move marks its entry into IT-enabled services _ one of the three areas that the company has identified for itself as a focus.
EIH board moots stock option for employees
THE board of EIH Ltd (The Oberoi Group) has recommended introduction of an employee stock option programme (ESOP). There will be a compensation committee consisting of a majority of independent directors for the implementation and administration of the s
cheme.
Ram Savoor to head lubricants business of BP Amoco, Castrol
MR. RAM Savoor, currently Chief Executive and Managing Director, Castrol India Ltd, has been appointed `Business Unit Leader' for operations in India, Middle East & South Asia (IMESA) of the merged BP Amoco-Burmah Castrol lubricants entity, an official s
tatement said.
Amalgamation union `issues strike notice'
A UNION representing the workers of the Chennai-based Amalgamations group, has issued a strike notice demanding, among other things, full work and revision of basic pay, according to official sources.
French co buys Greaves gear unit
SCHNEIDER Electric of France is to acquire the low tension control gear business of Crompton Greaves Ltd. The deal is expected to be completed around September/October 2000, subject to the necessary approval of financial institutions and other statutory
approvals.
Courts
SC ruling on Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions
IN the absence of any provision in the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 (`the Act') itself, authorising the Commission to refer a pending proceeding before it on receipt of a complaint from a consumer, for being settled through a consensual adjudication, th
e conclusion is irresistible that the Commission's under the Consumer Protection Act do not have the jurisdiction to refer the dispute for a consensual adjudication and then make the said decision of the so called consensual arbitrator, an order of the C
ommission itself.
Economy
Expenditure panel submits report on food subsidies
THE Expenditure Reforms Commission (ERC), chaired by former Finance Secretary, Mr. K. P. Geethakrishnan, today submitted its first report to the Government, dealing exclusively with the issue of revamping the existing structure of food subsidies. The rep
ort was submitted to the Finance Minister, Mr. Yashwant Sinha.
Rs 5,000-cr corpus proposed for slum development
THE Ministry of Urban Development has firmed up a proposal to create a corpus of Rs. 5,000 crores for an Integrated National Slum Development Programme (NSDP).
Information Technology
Global Tele plans merger of unlisted group co
THE Rs.630-crore Global Telesystems Ltd (GTL) plans to merge a group company -- Global Electronic Commerce Service Ltd (GECS) -- with itself. The merger is expected to create one of the largest e-commerce entities in the country with a revenue of over Rs
. 900 crores.
Miscellaneous
Norms likely for rural roads fund allocation
FOLLOWING complaints of favouritism in the allocation of funds under the `Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana' to Northern States for construction of rural roads, the Government, on Monday, arrived at a consensus decision to evolve transparent guidelines in
this regard.
PSU
Global advisors appointed for 16 PSU sell-off
THE Department of Disinvestment today formally released a list of global advisors appointed for disinvestment of 16 public sector undertakings, including Air India and Indian Airlines and Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd (IPCL).
Enquiry ordered into SAIL modernisation plan `lapses'
THE `navaratna' Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) has come under fire from the Minister of Steel, Mr. B.K. Tripathy, for the huge time and cost overruns in the modernisation of its plants at Durgapur, Rourkela and Bokaro.
Policy
Pet objective
DOWNSIZING of the Government and reduction in unproductive expenditure through cuts in various subsidies, including food and fertiliser, has been a ``pet objective'' of all regimes at the Centre ever since the process of economic reforms and structur
al adjustments was set in motion by the Government headed by Mr. P.V. Narasimha Rao.
Power
Terms for securitisation of SEB dues imposed
THE Centre has imposed a precondition for securitisation of outstanding of State electricity boards (SEBs) as part of process of reforming the power sector.
TNEB's Rs 100-cr bond issue to open on July 12
THE Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) is coming out with a bond issue of Rs. 100 crores, with an option to retain oversubscription, if any, up to Rs. 400 crores. The issue is scheduled to open on July 12. (TNEB has taken a credit of Rs. 500 crores in i
ts capital receipts budget for 2000-01, against the head 'Debenture Bonds').
States
GAIL signs MoU with Karnataka for pipeline
Gas Authority of India (GAIL) will develop a pipeline infrastructure and associated facilities and sourcing of gas supplies to Karnataka to serve the major potential demand centres in Bangalore, Mysore, Mangalore and Hassan.
Trust to manage Mannar biosphere in offing
THE Tamil Nadu Government is working out the legal processes to set up a trust to manage the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve (GMBR).
Permanent solution to sea erosion sought
FOR the past 20 years, ever since the sea began to eat into the coastline in this region, it has been a procession of politicians every monsoon with statements and counter-statements, solutions and counter-solutions, plans and counter-plans. The sea, of
course, is unrelenting and a `permanent solution' to the problem is nowhere in sight.
Telecommunications
Bharti Telecom to hold back ADR issue
BHARTI Telecom has decided to hold back its proposed $ 150-200 million American Depository Receipts (ADR) issue till existing policy-bottlenecks, such as expiry of lock-in period on equity holding in cellular firms are cleared and a final decision on rev
enue sharing with the Government is through.
MTNL staff defer strike
EMPLOYEES of Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) have deferred their proposed indefinite strike till July 21 at the instance of the Union Communications Minister, Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan, according to a Government release.
Laying of optic fibre cables -- Mamata move irks BPL Telecom
THE Railway Minister, Ms. Mamata Bannerjee's move to stall IRCON and RITES from laying optic fibre cables (OFCs) covering a distance of around 3,500 km on the Delhi-Mumbai and Mumbai-Chennai routes respectively appears to be heading for a controversy.
Transport
LPG truckers call off strike
THE All-India Bulk LPG Transporters' Federation has withdrawn the proposed strike from midnight tonight after three state-owned oil companies conceded some of their demands.
