Friday, October 2, 1998
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B U S I N E S S | Friday, October 2, 1998 |
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Create ‘economic
security’ council: FM Centre
urged not to ban sahtosh shawls Rs
71 crore HUDCO loan for Punjab projects |
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Strike
threat by |
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India should show fiscal
discipline: IMF
HVPN
clarification on bids' last date Fall
predicted in private capital flow |
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Create ‘economic security’ council: FM TORONTO, Oct 1 (PTI) — India has called for creation of a broad based “economic security” council to effectively deal with the global economic crisis and review the role of multilateral funding agencies in the changing environment. “There is an urgent need for an economic security council by the year 2000 with wide ranging representation and participation of World Bank (WB), International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other relevant bodies,” Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha told the plenary session of Commonwealth Finance Minister’s conference in Ottawa yesterday. Seeking a review of the working of international financial institutions (IFIs) including WB and IMF at the highest political level, Sinha pointed out that the circumstances under which the Bretton Woods Arrangement had been laid had changed substantially. While praising the speedy response provided by IMF and other IFIs after the crisis erupted, Sinha pointed out that the results achieved so far through IMF led programmes had been a “mixed bag”. While, there has been a turnaround in Korea and Thailand, Indonesia and Russia were still unstable. There was an on-going debate whether what the fund had prescribed to some of these countries as conditonalities were appropriate or not in the changing scenario when capital flow volatility was a major concern, he said. The programmes of IMF, hitherto based on its mandate, were designed to tackle the current account imbalances, Sinha said adding “there appears to be an urgent need to develop an underpinning as to what should be the new design of the fund programmes in the changed circumstances where capital flow volatility is a major concern.” It could be introduction of temporary capital controls as done by Malaysia recently or agreements on standstill provisions, etc., he said. Stating that crisis in East-Asia was largely due to imprudent borrowing by private sector in these countries and high risk lending largely by private sector in the developed countries, Sinha said “the brunt of the blow, however, appears to be not being borne equitably.” He said the private sector creditors were slow even to take up debt rescheduling workouts. There needs to be an international agreement or guidelines regarding burden sharing in such extreme circumstances. Pointing out that
inadequacy of resources to combat such large crisis had
become apparent, the minister said “the fund and
other institutions need to be provided with adequate
resources for meeting the crisis in short-term.” |
Strong bid to win over foreign investors WASHINGTON, Oct 1 (PTI) — An Indian delegation that included three high profile ministers has made a strong bid to convince foreign investors that India, in the face of its ongoing reforms, offers vast investment opportunities. The delegation including Industry Minister Sikander Bakht, Communications and Information and Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj, Minister for Surface Transport Thambi Durai, several senior Indian government officials and influential members of the Indian business community is here to address the Indian infrastructure summit, part of the development congress. Reiterating that India’s economic reforms were irreversible, Bakht said “we have not only continued the reform process which is already in place but imparted to it, if I may say so, a ‘turbo-charged’ momentum.” Pointing to the vast opportunities available for foreign investors, Thambi Durai said, “India has identified 13,000 km long stretch for developing expressways at an investment of $20 billion over the next 10 to 15 years.” The possibilities are no less attractive to develop new ports and expand existing ones, he added. Highlighting India’s potential in the information technology (IT) and Telecom sector, Swaraj said, the government intended to make India a super power in it by the turn of the century. Referring to the opportunities in the Telecom industry, she said India’s policies were geared to facilitate change. “It is not only to ensure availability of basic telephone services all over the country at affordable prices but also to ensure that our telecommunications industry becomes capable of providing world class service,” she said. Swaraj also said India was considering to allow access to Internet through authorised cable television network. Thambi Durai said India was striving to achieve results commensurate with its size and potential. India’s private sector initiative offered exceptional freedom for investment, entry, financing and choice of technology, he said. Bakht said, “there is a vigorous emphasis now on deregulation, disinvestment, infrastructure building and technology upgradation.” Earlier responding to
critics who pointed that the pace of clearance of
projects in India was very slow compared to China, Swaraj
said, “when a massive effort to introduce
liberalisation to supplant a regime of controls is
launched initial teething problems are bound to be there
and our government is doing its best to overcome
them.” |
Centre urged not to ban sahtosh
shawls SRINAGAR, Oct 1 — The Jammu and Kashmir Government have taken up with the Centre the matter regarding ban on Sahtosh shawls for there was “no need of ban” on the manufacture and sale of the costliest Kashmir handicraft indigenously made from antelope wool. “There is need to create awareness at international level about the Sahtosh shawls as the antelope from whose wool these shawls are made is not killed for the purpose”, Mr Sodh Raj Bali, Jammu and Kashmir Minister for Industries and Commerce said here yesterday. Mr Bali said that there was no need for ban and that matter was taken up with the Centre by the Chief Minister. The Minister said the Government has succeeded in reviving industrial culture in the state that was shattered due to militancy. He said during last two years 2700 small and medium industrial units were registered with the employment potential of 10,575 persons besides imparting training to 15500 persons in various crafts. Mr Bali said that proposals of investments of Rs 1700 crore have been received by the government and Letters of Intent involving investment of Rs 154 crore have been issued. He said many other mega investments are at different stages of finalisation which include Rs 50 crore synthetic blended yarn project of a Maharashtra based company, Rs 25 cr. project for manufacture of cement. Referring to the
development of Handicraft sector the Minister said the
Government have taken a series of measures to promote
sale of handicrafts and eliminate middlemanship. |
Strike threat by SBP employees CHANDIGARH, Oct 1 – On the call of All-India State Bank of Patiala Employees Federation, the employees of the State Bank of Patiala held a demonstration in front of the bank’s zonal office here to express their concern over the deteriorating condition of the bank. Mr N.K Gaur and Mr I.G Gupta leaders of the union said that upto August 31,1998 while the deposits of all the associate banks are above the March 31, 1998 level, the growth of this bank is negative by 5.38 per cent. The leaders urged the
management to hold meaningful negotiations to resolve all
pending issues failing which the Federation will observe
full day strike on October 9. |
SHOP anywhere in India and you are sure to find this unilateral condition imposed on the consumer. “Goods once sold will not be taken back or exchanged”. If this is not displayed in the retail outlet, then you will certainly find it printed clearly on the cash receipt. And sure enough, no retailer takes back the goods once it is sold. Even if the product turns out to be sub-standard or defective, the consumer does not get a refund. When a defective product is returned, the consumer is expected to pick up some other product from the shop in lieu of the returned goods. If the consumer fails to do that, then the shopkeeper will issue an “IOU” for the amount so that the consumer can make use of it at a later date! It’s time consumers challenged such highly unfair stipulations governing the sale of goods. Take the case of a Non-Resident Indian, who bought a coconut scraper from a large store in Chennai. The product turned out to be defective and the retailer did not have a defect-free scraper to replace it. Yet, he was unwilling to take back the product gracefully and refund the amount. The consumer was made to visit the shop four times before she got a replacement! So much so that in the end, she had spent roughly about four times the cost of the scraper, on transportation alone. Says the consumer: “I hate to compare, but the fact is that in the United States, I can return any product that I purchase and get my money back without any questions asked and if the product turns out to be defective. I will even be reimbursed my transportation costs to reach the product to the store.” Unfortunately, consumers here have accepted for too long, unreasonable and unjust practices adopted by the trade and industry. So much so that consumers now have to seek the help of consumer courts even to get a refund on defective goods. And even here, they have not always been successful. Even though cash receipts also state that no exchanges are permitted, retailers do allow exchange of goods bought, but on their terms. Try exchanging goods soon after a shop opens in the morning. You are asked to come again later in the day, after the retailer has transacted some business. Traders apparently believe that exchanging goods first thing in the morning brings them bad luck. Well, behaviour such as this should, if nothing else. Then there are also days when an exchange is taboo, never mind the convenience of the customer. Now why should consumers take this kind of treatment? The festival season also brings with it certain unfair conditions. Some shopkeepers, for example, refuse to exchange goods during the “festival rush” and insist that exchanges will be permitted only after the festival season. Now, if you have bought, say a saree for the festival and it turns out to be defective or for any other reason you would like to exchange it, it does not make sense to keep it till after the festival so that the retailer can change it at his convenience. That’s not all. Some textile shops these days are putting up notices saying that they will not guarantee the quality or the colour fastness of the fabric that they sell. This is totally unacceptable. If they cannot guarantee the quality, then they have no business to sell at all. So, as you get set to shop this festival season, ponder over these issues. Isn’t it time consumers in India demanded a better deal vis-a-vis the sale of goods? Why should consumers be denied the right to return the goods for a refund? In the meanwhile here are a few tips to help you become a discerning buyer this festival season: 1. If you decide to take advantage of a “sale”, always check the genuineness of it before rushing to the shop. Compare prices with neighbouring shops to check whether the shopkeeper has really cut down the price or has advertised price reduction only as a sales gimmick. Also make sure that the discounted goods are not old stock. 2. There have been instances of factory rejects or “seconds” being sold at discounted prices during the festival season, without informing the customer of the true nature of the quality. Check the label to detect such cases. 3. Always watch out for “duplicates” of well-known mills when you buy fabrics. Read the name of the manufacturer carefully to detect any variation in spelling used to circumvent the law and at the same time fool consumers into thinking that it is manufactured by a reputed mill. 4. Check the accuracy of
the measure used by the shopkeeper and whatever you
purchase, never forget to collect the cash receipt. |
India should show fiscal discipline: IMF WASHINGTON, Oct 1 (PTI) — India’s economic growth rate would have been better than the projected 4.8 per cent if only it had shown greater fiscal discipline and faster economic reforms, International Monetary Fund (IMF) said today. “India could and should have done much better and would have been number one in Asia despite the US. Economic sanctions,” the IMF in its semi-annual world economic outlook said here. At 4.8 per cent, the country trails behind its neighbours China by 0.7 per cent and Pakistan by 0.6 per cent. Pakistan’s economic growth ahead of India is a surprise in the light of Islamabad’s worse economic conditions. Pakistan, says IMF, is facing even greater challenges following economic sanctions in view of its vulnerable external and domestic financial situation and unfinished structural reform agenda. “In India, weak exchange rate and depressed equity markets in recent months has reflected not only effects of the Asian crisis, but also concerns about economic sanctions in the wake of nuclear tests in May and limited fiscal adjustment and reforms continued in the Budget in early June,” it said. IMF said to restore investor confidence, curtail macro-economic instability and enhance growth prospects, urgent action is needed to rein in public sector losses and to implement wide ranging economic reforms. India’s economic growth rate has been steadily declining when it touched 7.5 per cent. It fell to 5.6 per cent in 1997 and in 1998 it is projected at a lesser 4.8 per cent, the IMF said adding among the 38 selected developing countries new Delhi ranks eleventh. Stating that the decline in China’s growth rate was more dramatic, the IMF said during the year 1996 the growth rate was 9.6 per cent, 8.8 per cent in 1997 and 5.5 per cent during the current year. The IMF said, India has relied less on net private capital flows than most of the selected developing countries. “For India, the net capital flows accounted for only 1.5 per cent of the GDP in the five year period from 1992-96 as against China’s 3.5 per cent during the same period”. Making a bleak and pessimistic forecast of the world economy the IMF has predicted a lower 2 per cent economic growth and warned that risk of prolonged downtrend had escalated with little chances of any significant improvement in 1999. International economic and financial conditions have deteriorated considerably in recent months as recession has deepened in many Asian emerging market economies, IMF said. At the same time, it
warned against any reversal of reforms in emerging
economies in Asia as it would put the clock back on their
growth and ability to attract foreign investments. |
IndusInd Bank branch opened LUDHIANA, Oct 1 — The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, today inaugurated 24th branch of IndusInd Bank Limited which is fully automated and connected to bank’s central database at Bombay through a V-sat network. The full range of IndusInd’s electronic banking services such as anywhere banking, cash management services, instant transfer of funds, internet banking etc are available in this branch. With the opening of this branch the bank hopes to contribute to the economic development of the state of Punjab. The bank has built up expertise in international banking and provides attractive returns to depositors. Through the Ludhiana branch, the bank would focus on export business from small, medium and large industrial units financing of small superior service, according to Dr Solomon Raj, Managing Director of IndusInd Bank. The bank on March 1998
witnessed an increase of 24 per cent in the net profits,
deposits went up by 38 per cent and advances by 27 per
cent. The bank’s networth has increased from Rs 279
crore in March 1997 to Rs 512.68 crore in March 1998. |
HVPN clarification on bids'
last date CHANDIGARH, Oct 1 — A news item appearing in a section of the press regarding “ Yamunanagar Thermal Power Plant: row over bids’ last date” is far away from the facts. Stating this an official spokesman of the Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam (HVPN) claimed here today that invitation for pre-qualification bids on global basis for private sector participation for 2x250 MW Yamunanagar Thermal Power Project (YTPP) was called through tender notice published in various leading newspapers in the last week of July,1998. The last date for receipt and opening of bids was August 31,1998. The pre-bid conference was held at Delhi on August 22. All the firms who had purchased the bid documents, including M/s AVI Power Ltd., Chandigarh, participated. In this meeting almost all the firms requested for the extension of last date for receipt/opening of bids. The HVPN assured the firms that their request would be considered favourably and they would be informed shortly. The spokesman added that on August 25, all the firms were duly informed, including M/s AVI Power Ltd., by fax messages that the last date for receipt/opening of the bid documents had been extended to September 28, 1998 and a corrigendum to this affect was got published on August 29-30, 1998 in all those newspapers in which original tender notice was published. In addition to this, the minutes of the pre-bid conference indicating the last date for receipt/opening of bids as September 28, 1998 were sent to all the firms through courier service which were duly acknowledged by all these firms including M/s AVI Power Ltd., Chandigarh. The company has challenged the version of the HVPN. The spokesman stated that
on the stipulated last date i.e. September 28, 11 bids
were received which were opened in the presence of all
these firms. M/s AVI Power Ltd. failed to submit their
bids by the due date and instead they came to submit
their tender on September 29 i.e. after the due date. |
Rs 71 crore HUDCO loan for
Punjab projects NEW DELHI, Oct 1— Housing and Urban Development Corporation Ltd. (HUDCO) has extended loan assistance of Rs 71.39 crore to the state of Punjab for police housing projects. The assistance would enable construction of houses for 71 officers and 2,816 staff in more than 60 locations all over the state under four schemes. The schemes, to be implemented by the Punjab State Police Housing Corporation, involves a project cost of Rs 101.97 crore. HUDCO has, in all, extended loan assistance of Rs 89.29 crore for police housing initiatives in Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. With a project cost of Rs 127.55 crore, this assistance would enable construction of 3,343 houses for the state police officials in addition to other infrastructure development. In Madhya Pradesh, HUDCO has sanctioned a loan amount of Rs 6.56 crore for construction of 556 residential units in 23 locations involving a project cost of Rs 9.37 crore. HUDCO also sanctioned a
loan amount of Rs 11.34 crore for the construction of 15
police stations in 15 districts involving a project cost
of Rs 16.20 crore. |
Emerging markets WASHINGTON, Oct 1 — Some 29 major emerging market economies, including India, appear to be in for fresh resource constraints in the wake of a projected decline in private capital flows this year. Net private capital flows to these markets will decline in 1998 to a level that is little more than half the amount of 1996 as a result of the impact of the financial crises in Asia and Russia, forecasts the Institute for International Finance (IIF). The IIF, an association of more than 300 major global banks, mutual funds, securities firms and similar private companies, says private flows are projected to fall to a little below $160 billion in 1998 from $240 billion in 1997 and a peak of over $300 billion in 1996. Its annual “Capital Flows to Emerging Market Economies” report, released here yesterday, says the fall “reflects both the direct impacts of the financial crises’ in Russia and Asia and consequential effects transmitted through financial markets.” IIF Managing Director Charles Dallara also released his organisation’s policy letter to Ministers of Finance and Central Bank Governors arriving here for the annual World Bank-International Monetary Fund meeting beginning later this week which called for “a forceful strategy” to secure stability and open markets. The policy letter, addressed to the leaders of the Interim Committee of the IMF and Development Committee of the World Bank, underscored the willingness of the private sector to work with officials to fortify the architecture of the global financial system. Reform of the system, Dallara said, needed specifically to include changes in IMF approaches. It is important for the IMF to secure a greater understanding of market sentiments and for market participants to obtain greater insight into IMF approaches, he said. The IMF should engage in regular consultations with the private financial community to address systemic global financial issues, as well as specific country situations. These consultations must be regular to avoid unsettling markets, he added. Dallara said the Bretton Woods system of open trade and capital flows is facing its greatest challenge yet. Turmoil in the markets has not only led to very wide spreads for some borrowers, but has effectively curtailed market access. The IMF released its “World Economic Outlook,” which says “in India, the weakness of the exchange rate and equity markets in recent months has reflected not only the Asian crisis, but also concerns about the economic sanctions introduced following the nuclear tests in May and the limited fiscal adjustment and reforms contained in the budget in early June.” “To restore investor confidence, contain the risk of macroeconomic instability and enhance growth prospects, action continues to be needed to rein in the public sector deficit and to implement a wide range of structural reforms,” it adds. It also noted that Pakistan is facing even greater challenges as a result of the economic sanctions and in view of its vulnerable external and domestic financial situation and unfinished structural reform agenda. “Emerging capital markets are at a critical juncture,” the report says, adding, “the outlook for emerging market finance seems more uncertain than at any time since substantial flows resumed in the early 1990s.” The five Asian economies
most affected — South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia,
Thailand and the Philippines. — IANS
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| Strike COIMBATORE, Oct 1 (PTI) — About 85,000 textile workers would go on an indefinite strike from Oct 12, if the mill managements failed to solve the bonus and ex-gratia issue by then. The decision to this effect was taken at a meeting of joint action council, comprising eight major textile trade unions, held here today. Hospital NPPA Keltron Levis |
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