The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Satyam turns around To hire 3,000 in October Suresh Dharur Tribune News Service Hyderabad, September 12 Nearly 20 months after being hit by the worst scam in corporate history, Satyam Computers, now rechristened as Mahindra Satyam, has made a dramatic turnaround. The company will now embark on a hiring spree. "We are going to recruit close to 3,000 entry-level associates and looking at hiring across various technologies and competencies. We will visit campuses and begin the process from the next month," the Head of Recruitment at Mahindra Satyam MV Sridhar said. This is the first time that the IT company is going in for fresh recruitments since the stunning confession by its founder chairman B Ramalinga Raju to a massive accounting fraud in January last year. The mess created by Raju and his associates had to be cleared by Tech Mahindra which took over the scam-hit Satyam Computers in an open bidding in April last year. Since then, it has been a tumultuous yet rewarding journey for the company. The new management has succeeded not only in weathering a devastating storm, triggered by the scam, but also putting India’s fourth largest software company back on track. It has won back the confidence of international clients, restored the financial health and set its eyes on emerging as a key global player in IT services. The company’s decision to remove freeze on recruitments has brought cheers to IT graduates. "With the brand Mahindra Satyam winning back clients and getting repeat business from existing clients, we think this is the right time to visit the campuses and hire talents," Sridhar said. Working with renewed vigour under trying circumstances, Mahindra Satyam has secured nearly 35 new clients over the last 20 months since the scam broke out. It has also secured an extension of contracts with existing clients such as GE and GlaxoSmithKline. It has also worked on projects, including the FIFA World Cup. Mahindra Satyam was the 2010 FIFA World Cup official IT services provider. “The recruitment process will commence simultaneously in Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore. We are looking to hire mostly for domains such as SAP, enterprise solutions, Oracle and business intelligence,” Sridhar said. At present, the company employs 30,000 people. Under the impact of the scam and global recession, the new management had earlier retrenched about 7,000 employees.
	Three new 5-star hotels in Chandigarh by Dec Ruchika M. Khanna Tribune News Service Chandigarh, September 12 Taking the city one notch up the snob-o-meter, as many as three new five-star properties are set to come up here in the next three months. With this, the city with a radius of just 10 km will have four five-star hotels, while the neighbouring Panchkula will get its maiden five- star hotel by the end of this year. JW Marriot in Sector 35 here and Sarovar Park Plaza in Sector 17 are expected to begin operations in November this year, while KC Hotel in Sector 3, Panchkula, is expected to open shop by December. Other than these hotels which are expected to be commissioned by the end of this year, another five-star property, The Lalit, is expected to be commissioned at IT Park here by the end of this year. The city, known for its snob value, has always seen a major contribution in its economy because of the hospitality industry here. Its not just the hotels, but realising the Punjabi craze for food, some of the finest chains of eateries in the country, too, are coming up here. “This, too, will contribute in a big way to the economy of the Union Territory. Around 20 new eateries, all experimenting with different cuisines, are expected to come up in the city,” said Gurvinder Juneja, honorary secretary, Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India. With the city being a gateway to Himachal, and now with the IT sector coming up in a big way here, the hospitality industry here has got a shot in the arm. And in spite of the high value of land here (the land cost is among the highest in the country), five-star hotels and eatery chains are keen on expansion here. Other than this, the city and its periphery is also attracting many four-star and three-star hotels. Even the newly opened Ashok Alliance in the city’s periphery at Zirakpur, which claims to have a four-star accreditation, is now trying to get a five-star label, while the CITCO-run Shivalik View is vying to get a four-star status. “The city is now ready to take on the metros in terms of offering the best facilities in the hospitality sector. With the Punjabi flamboyance and the opening of the city to big industrial houses with interests in neighbouring Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and IT industry in Chandigarh, all new hotels are targeting to break even within two- three years - inspite of the huge investments required,” said Bharat Rattan Grover, proprietor of Ashok Alliance
	‘Mukesh to be richest in world in 2014’ Boston, September 12 With a net worth of $ 62 billion, Indian business tycoon Mukesh Ambani would be the richest man on the Earth in 2014, according to a forecast issued by the prestigious Forbes magazine. “One of the predictions is that Reliance Industries' chief Ambani, who currently has a net worth of $ 29 billion, pips the world's richest man Mexican businessman Carlos Slim to top Forbes' rich list in 2014,” it said. “Ambani's net worth swells to $ 62 billion while Slim is hit hard by Mexican political and financial chaos,” according to the prediction by Forbes. Ambani, 53, currently ranks fourth on Forbes' list of the world's billionaires. Forbes has listed a number of events that could happen over the next 10 years in the field of politics, energy, medicine, finance, society and technology. The publication asked its staff and contributors to forecast some of the noteworthy events till 2020. “A vision of the coming decade sketched from real data, projections and facts whenever possible - though we've injected a dose of rigorous science fiction to fill the gaps,” Forbes said about its special 2020 report called “What Happens Next - Our Look Ahead.” Another forecast in the field of finance and economics is of fraudster Bernard Madoff's death in his prison cell in 2011. “The convicted Ponzi-scheme perpetrator is found hanging in his cell and prison officials will not rule out foul play,” according to the Forbes forecast. “Futurism favours the bold. Look more than 30 years ahead... and critics will forgive your inaccuracies. We've attempted a thought experiment with far tougher standards: predicting the future that's just around the corner,” Forbes said. — PTI
	Mercedes India MD quits New Delhi, September 12 In a surprise move, luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz India's Managing Director and CEO Wilfried Aulbur has put in papers to pursue a new career within the country, the company said today. Industry sources said Aulbur, who will complete five years as the India Head of the German car-maker by the end of 2010, is likely to move out of the automobile sector. "With the construction of the new factory and several additional projects close to approval, Aulbur has decided to accept a new challenge outside of the Daimler group within India," the company said. "Aulbur will remain with Mercedes-Benz India till a successor is identified to ensure a smooth transition," it added. The company started assembling its vehicles within the country at a facility in Chakan, Maharashtra, in January, 2009. — PTI
	Soaring prices hit gold demand Mumbai, September 12 India's demand for gold has halved in the recent past due to soaring prices, according to a bullion association official. "The country's demand for gold has come down to less than one tonne per day, as compared to the normal demand of 2 tonnes due to its high price," the Bombay Bullion Association (BBA) president Suresh Hundia said. The demand in Mumbai bullion market has also reduced to 250 kg per day as compared to the normal demand of 500 kg per day, Hundia said. "We expect a correction in the prices of gold to Rs 18,200 to Rs 18,500 per 10 grams, after which the demand will start picking up," he said. Standard gold (99.5 purity) was quoting at Rs 19,075 and pure gold (99.9 purity) at Rs 19,170 per 10 grams in the Mumbai bullion market as of last week. — PTI
	Tax Advice ESOPs part of salary income by SC Vasudeva Q. 1 We have following two queries: 1. My employer regularly gives us ESOPs. The face value of the shares is Rs 10/. I had recently acquired some shares (Jan'10) & now the employer intends to split them in 5 shares each with face value of Rs 2/-. In case I wish to sell these shares held by me after the split, how would the short-term capital gain be calculated? 2. My wife works with Infosys & her employer has decided to give shares to all employees during 30th anniversary celebrations. She is currently out of India on a office project & so won't be able to open a demat account (doesn't have one). As per company’s policy, she will be paid a lump sum amount by proceeds of sale of those shares. How would this income of hers be treated for income tax purposes? Will it be considered as a gift income in her hands as the company is not charging anything for the shares or will it be treated as salary income or short-term capital gain. — Suresh A. (i) The fair value of stock options allotted directly or indirectly by the employer is taxable as a perquisite in the year of allotment. The split of shares with face value of Rs.2/- each instead of Rs.10/- each would not make any difference as the fair value will be computed on the basis of date of allotment. Such value shall be brought to tax as salary income. In case such shares are sold within one year of the date of allotment, the cost of acquisition of the shares shall be the fair market value which would be taken into account for the purpose of computing the short-term capital gain. (ii) In case of your wife, similar treatment as indicated above would be given to the receipt of sale proceeds of the shares i.e. in the first instance fair value would be added to the salary income in the year of allotment and thereafter the capital gain would be computed after deducting the amount of such fair value from the sale consideration of the shares. Medical claim Q. My queries are as under: 1. Whether the interest earned on small savings made by housewife of a govt servant from her own earnings in the form of Post office RDs; NSCs & KVS etc is required to be taken into account by the govt employee in his annual salary income tax statement for the purpose of tax calculations. 2. Whether the same is to be shown by the govt. servant in his Assets & Liability Return. 3. Whether medical claims of govt. employee/pensioners are subject to income tax deductions. If yes, what is the limit of medical claim, beyond which tax shall have to be deducted & whether DDO can deduct such tax before payment is made to a govt employee. — Mahesh Kumar A. a) The interest earned on RDs, NSCs and KVPs is required to be taken into account for the purposes of payment of tax. It may be added that the interest on NSCs is also included for the purposes of deduction allowable under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act 1961 (the Act). Therefore, such interest is added as an income for the purposes of arriving at the figure of total income but can be claimed as a deduction along with other specified payment covered under Section 80C of the Act. Such interest is also part of the limit of Rs 1 lakh specified in Section 80C of the Act. b) The above deposits in my opinion should be shown by a Govt. servant in his/her Assets & liability Return c) Medical claim of any employee towards reimbursement of expenses actually incurred by employee on his ordinary treatment or treatment of any member of his family is not subject to tax deduction in case the amount of such reimbursement does not exceed Rs 15,000 in the previous year. The claim in excess of Rs.15,000/- is subject to tax at source. In case of pensioners, however, no such exemption is provided by proviso (v) of section 17(2) of the Act as the term ‘employee’ has been used in the said section. Wherever the Act wanted to provide the relief to ex-employees it has been specifically stated in the relevant section and/or the rule. In my opinion, therefore, the reimbursement of medical expenses to pensioners may become exigible to tax.
	Market Update Focus on advance tax, monetary policy review by Lalit Batra Markets around the globe surged last week on better-than-expected US job data for August 2010, which eased concerns about global economy. Indian markets continue to power ahead on sustained buying by foreign funds and good monsoon also boosted the sentiments. Good monsoon in the current season will raise farm output, boost rural incomes and lower food inflation. Good rains in the month of August and in the first week of September have strengthened the optimism about a record Kirby harvest this season. Further, the weather office's prediction that the monsoon will not start withdrawing before mid-September has boosted the outlook for the next rabi crop as well. The Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) have pumped close to Rs 21,500 crore in the Indian markets in the current calendar year. This week, the focus would be on data on advance tax payment for the second instalment of 15th September and the mid-term monetary policy review by the RBI. The market may turn stock specific on the basis of the advance tax numbers. IL&FS Investment Managers IL&FS Investment Managers Ltd (IIML) is the only listed pure play private equity Asset Management Company (AMC). Investors get an exposure to the space in other listed entities like ICICI Bank and IDFC but in these companies large part of valuation is for their lending business. Hence, any investor, looking to invest in the pure PE asset management company, may buy into the IIML around the current market price of Rs 51. The company, besides an excellent track record, has an excellent track of rewarding its minority shareholders. The stock is currently trading at a dividend yield of three per cent which may act as a safety net should the stock market go into correction mode. The AMCs generally trade at a discount to the underlying Assets Under Management (AUM). This discount may vary from 5-10 per cent. The AUM is in turn a function of performance of AMC. IIML has grown its AUM at an average rate of 75 per cent (It currently manages an AUM of about $2.8 billion) in period 2006-2010. Clearly, this growth in AUM is a testimony to the management capability towards raising new funds and delivering returns to the investors. IIML is looking to raise close to a billion dollars in the next 24 months, which, if successful, would start reflecting in the stock price. Investors looking to diversify the portfolio of financial stocks may invest in IIML with a two-year time horizon.