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Wednesday,
March
20, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Govt
economic policies flawed, says Opposition Harshad
Mehta top defaulter Exchange
old notes of Rs 500: Sinha Mobile
handsets cheaper Semi
Conductors signs agreement |
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Change
policies, says Birla VXL Jet
introduces return check-in LETTERS
Santro
price hike not now
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Govt economic policies flawed, says Opposition
New Delhi, March 19 “The Finance Minister wants to prove his hindutva credentials” and, therefore, has brought the country’s growth rate down which is comparable to the low growth of fifties and sixties that has come to be known as Hindu rate of growth,” Mani Shankar Aiyar, said in a sarcastic tone, in the Lok Sabha. Initiating a discussion on the General Budget 2002-03, he said the government has failed on all fronts of the economy with almost all sectors adversely affected by the policies pursued by the government. “The only area where it has shown growth is government expenditure”, he remarked. Ridiculing the government’s claim of achieving drastic reduction in poverty, he accused the former Minister for Statistics Arun Shourie of being a “master manipulator” who has “fudged figures” on statistics of poverty. He demanded that the government come out with an annual state of poverty report as recommended by the Lakadawala Committee. Lashing out at the government’s disinvestment policy, he said while in the earlier regimes the emphasis was on “investment”, the BJP-led coalition was only selling of these public assets. Describing the budget as “directionless”,
CPI(M)’s Rupchand Pal said “a clueless and confused” Finance Minister had carried out “absurd exercises which were unrelated to the realities of the situation”. Stating that “rampant joblessness existed and about 50 lakh people had been rendered unemployed due to closure of industry, Pal said “this is a fertile ground for terrorism” and asked the government to take urgent steps to meet the situation. He said the government had refused to tax the wealthy but was only targeting the middle class and small investors. He castigated the government for “directionless” disinvestment saying profitable companies were being sold for a pie. “Why are public sector units not being allowed to buy shares of other PSUs? because the government feels that state monopoly is bad but private monopoly is good,” Pal said. “We are not against reforms, but reforms should be in the interests of the nation and the suffering people. You have to change the orientation and direction,” the CPI(M) leader added.
PTI
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Harshad Mehta top defaulter
New Delhi, March 19 Mehta, who died last year, owed Rs 812.08 crore to the State Bank of India (SBI), Minister of State for Finance Balasaheb Vikhe Patil said in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today. “Under the current provisions of banking laws, disclosure of names of borrowers of banks and FIs is not permissible. However, there is no prohibition on disclosure of the names of defaulters against whom suits have been filed,” the minister said. Country’s top 20 defaulters include India Charge Chrome Ltd which owes Rs 493.28 crore to the IDBI, Hindustan Photofilms Manufacturing Co Ltd which owes Rs 233.72 crore to SBI, and Premier Venyl Flooring which owes Rs 227.58 crore to Canara Bank. Giving details of other borrowers against whom public sector banks and FIs have filed recovery lawsuits, Patil said Lloyd Steel Industries Ltd owed Rs 220 crore to Central Bank of India, Continental Float Glass Ltd Rs 209.82 crore to Industrial Finance Corporation of India, Mardia Chemicals Ltd Rs 184.81 crore to ICICI, Dynacraft Machine Co Ltd Rs 179.95 crore to Bank of India, Mackinnon Mackenzies & Co Ltd Rs 177.62 crore to Bank of India, and Mideast Integrated Steels Ltd owed Rs 174.81 crore to IDBI. Mardia Chemicals owed Rs 171.73 crore to IFCI, East West Travel & Trade Ltd Rs 168.18 crore to Indian Bank, Ahmedabad Manufacturing Co Rs 165.80 crore to BoI, Apline Industries Rs 163.64 crore to SBI, Shrishma Fine Chemicals Rs 163.60 crore to Canara Bank, Indian Charge Chrome Ltd Rs 161.50 crore to IFCI, Arihant Industries Ltd Rs 158.53 crore to IFCI, Maxwell Exim Food Ltd Rs 147.67 crore to Indian Bank, Mukerian Paper Mills Ltd Rs 139.96 crore to IFCI, and Rajinder Steels Ltd Rs 138.21 crore to IDBI, the minister said.
PTI
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Exchange old notes of Rs 500: Sinha New Delhi, March 19 This was being done because currency notes of that denomination of the 1987-97 period had less security features compared with those of 2000. Also, because Pakistan had been involved in circulation of fake Indian currency of the Rs 500 denomination, Yashwant Sinha informed the Rajya Sabha during Question Hour. He said though the RBI had taken back 80 per cent of these currency notes of the 1987-97 period, 20 per cent were still in circulation. Pointing out Pakistan’s “very active” involvement in circulation of fake Indian currency of Rs 500 and Rs 100 denomination, the Minister said the currency notes issued in 2000 had additional security features such as the security thread which could not be easily tampered with compared to those issued between 1987-1997. “The security thread is almost tamper-proof.”
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Mobile handsets cheaper
New Delhi, March 19 Welcoming the government’s step on abolishing the CVD on handsets, Indian Cellular Association (ICA) President Pankaj Mohindroo said this will change the current market equation between genuine and illegal market, increasing the share of genuine handset market up from an estimated 25 per cent. Speaking at a press conference, he said the abolition of CVD in this budget has narrowed the price differential between legal and illegal market and to a certain extent, enable the industry to fight the illegal market. Currently the grey market has over 90 per cent share in the country, totally Rs 600 crores. The ICA, the apex body of manufacturers, distributors, dealers and retailers of mobile handsets, mobile terminals and mobile IT products said the grey market has restricted the growth of the cellular handset industry, where the consumers are not able to get genuine handsets and are also deprived of the warranty and after sales support. Now a Nokia-3310 costing Rs 8,500 will cost Rs 7,200 and the top end Nokia- 8310 which used to cost Rs 23,900 will be available for Rs 21,699. Similarly a Philips Ozeo will cost Rs 6,500 coming down from earlier price of Rs 7,450. The Samsung R220 costing Rs 10,000 will cost Rs 9,000. Samsung A200 will cost Rs 18,900 from its earlier cost of Rs 21,000. The Samsung A400 available for Rs 19,000 will cost Rs 17,000. The Motorola T-190 has gone down to Rs 6,995 from Rs 8,495 while the top end Motorola V-66 will cost Rs 19,995 coming down from Rs 22,995. Alcatel OT-311 will cost Rs 7,195 from Rs 7,795. The AlcatelOT-511 will cost Rs 1,095 from Rs 11,995. The Alcatel OT-701 will come down to Rs 10,995 from Rs 11,995. Mitsubishi Aria will come down to Rs 7,195 from Rs 7,795. While the Mitsubishi Cosmo will come down from Rs 16,995 to Rs 8,999, while the Mitsubishi Mondo will cost Rs 45,000 from Rs 49,999. The Siemens A-35 will cost Rs 4,495 from Rs 4,995. The C-35 costing Rs 6,695 will be available for Rs 5,895. The M-35 will cost Rs 6,395 from its earlier price of Rs 7,195. The C-45 has down From Rs 8,695 to Rs 7,895. The Sony Ericsson A-3618, which was available for Rs 6,995 will now be for Rs 6,495. The Sony Ericsson T-29 costing Rs 9,495 will now be for RS 8,495 while the higher end model T-68 will be available for Rs 25,495 from its earlier price of Rs 27,995. The association said that the state government should levy uniform sales tax at four per cent to help reduce the share of illegal market. Currently Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka,
Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal are the only states that levy four per cent sales tax on mobile handsets.
UNI
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Semi Conductors signs agreement
Chandigarh, March 19 The MoU envisages working on industrial application-oriented R&D programmes with the wafer fabrication for such programmes to be carried out at SCL’s Wafer Fab either specifically for such programmes or through multi product wafer runs under SCL’s India Chip Programme, said Dr M. J. Zarabi, Chairman-cum-Managing Director, SCL. SCL will also assist TIFAC-CORE at Sastra in conducting courses in the VLSI area and provide access to its VLSI facility for exposing the students to real life IC design and fabrication processes.
TNS
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Change policies, says Birla VXL New Delhi, March 19 |
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Jet introduces return check-in
New Delhi, March 19 Club Premiere (Business class) passengers as well as Jet Privilege Gold and Silver Card members can now tele-check-in for their same day return journey at the originating station. This means that a Club Premiere, Gold or Silver card member flying the Delhi-Mumbai-Delhi sectors, and returning the same day can request tele-check-in for the return journey in Delhi itself. The return tele-check-in facility will be available at all stations on Jet Airways’ network having the computerised Airport Check-in Systems International (ACSI). Passengers availing of this facility will have to report at the airports 30 minutes prior to departure of the flights. The airline has already pioneered concepts in India such as tele-check-in, through check-in, city check-in, automated ticketing at travel agency locations.
TNS
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LETTERS The recent Union Budget has its plus and minus points like previous ones. Its greatest shortcoming is the gross violation of two cardinal economic truths: (1) economic growth and prosperity of masses is the result of saving and productive investment; and (2) money fructifies better in the pockets of the people than in the coffers of the state. Instead of encouraging and rewarding long-term savers, the Budget punishes them by reducing already emaciated interest rates. A large number of senior citizens, pensioners and retired persons who do not have a safety net by way of social security are badly hit. The salaried classes (whom the late R.A. Pai rightly described as “patriots by no choice”) are also hurt in several ways. These two groups are vulnerable, do not hit back and do not constitute a vote bank. Hence they can be treated shabbily with impunity. The major thrust of the Budget is “revenue” collection, most of which goes to pay salaries and benefits to a bloated bureaucracy, which is indifferent to public welfare, enjoys power without accountability and harasses citizens by delays and corruption. The economic liberalisation process of 1991 which increased economic opportunities for the common people has been pushed back because the politicians and bureaucrats are reluctant to part with their power and patronage. This can be described as a Neta-Babu Budget. M.R. Pai Mumbai
Investment in PPF This has reference to letter of S.C. Dhall on ‘Business’ page of The Tribune dated 13.3.02 (titled) PPF is the best). It is mentioned therein that the new Budget proposes to take away the benefit of S.88 (IT Act) from investment of savings in PPF. This is not correct. The PPF would remain at par with other prescribed modes of saving like post office NSCs etc, as regards benefit of S.88 is concerned. What the Budget proposes is to cut the benefit from 20 per cent to 10 per cent where income exceeds Rs 1,50,000 and to nil where income exceeds Rs 5,00,000/-. The slashed benefit would apply to all eligible prescribed savings including PPF. K.R. Chopra I.R.S. (retd.) Chandigarh.
Disgusting It is disgusting to note that the Union Government, in its recent Budget proposals, has increased the price of competition post cards from Rs 5 to Rs 10 each. The government finds it tempting to raise the price of this postal article obviously because participating in contests is not a dire necessity of life and, therefore, such an increase does not evoke any protests from the public. But I don’t think the government has displayed any great economic sense by proposing this increase. People mostly participate in competitions for the sake of fun. With such a whopping increase in the price of competition post cards, a large number of people will stop participating in such contests. So the increase in revenue for the government will be far less than what it must be expecting. In fact, the increase in price is so massive that I won’t be surprised if it fails to generate any additional revenue. So then what purpose will be served by the aforesaid increase? Only that it will take away some fun and thrill from people’s lives. Why does the government want us to live dull and drab lives? Surendra Miglani Kaithal
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