The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Punjab preferred IT destination: Study Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 20 Punjab has emerged as a preferred destination for investment in the field of information technology owing to its strong telecom infrastructure, IT-compatible power policy, a spotless labour history and above all the quality of life in state. Revealing this here today, Manoranjan Kalia, Local Government, Industry and Commerce Minister, Punjab, said the findings are of an extensive ‘Investor Perception Study’ conducted in the state. He added that Punjab Infotech, the nodal agency of Government of Punjab, meant for attracting, servicing and retaining IT/ITeS/ knowledge sector organisations in the state, got this survey conducted. In its bid to align mandate with the needs of investors, Punjab Infotech commissioned Ma Foi Consulting Solutions Limited to conduct this study. Two groups of investors were studied as part of the survey, including existing investor organisations with operations in the state and potential investor organisations that have operations in other parts of the country. As many as 50 existing investor organisations and 150 potential investor organisations were covered in the survey. Seven out of every 10 organisations surveyed have expressed interest in looking at Punjab for expansion of their businesses, Kalia said. “Seventy-one per cent of investor organisations felt that Punjab has good visibility amongst IT/ITeS organisations because of number of similar organisations in Mohali,” he added. “Another major factor contributing towards IT investors keen to invest in Punjab is the state’s clean labour history. A whopping 78 per cent of respondents felt that positive labour history is conducive for business,” Kalia said. Potential investor organisations are appreciative about power policy that exempts IT/ITeS organisations from statutory power cuts and exemption from electricity duty for five years. Also, respondents are appreciative about other policies relating to floor-area-ratio of three for office set-up. With respect to infrastructure, 82 per cent of organisations surveyed felt that telecommunication infrastructure for IT/ITeS sector and other aspects such as transport infrastructure were very conducive to set up a venture. Quality of life in the state scored a high 77 per cent, making it major contributory factor attracting investors. One of the most buoyant factors is that investor organisations are positive about skill-development initiatives undertaken in Punjab.
	Reddy rules out hike in diesel prices OilMin for cut in customs duty on crude oil New Delhi, January 20 New Oil Minister S Jaipal Reddy today ruled out any increase in diesel prices, even though oil companies are losing Rs 7 per litre on sales of the transport fuel. There is no proposal on the anvil for an increase in prices of diesel, Reddy told reporters after taking charge of the new ministry. Asked about deregulation of diesel prices, which Cabinet had said in June, 2010, would take place in due course, Reddy said, "I don't think anybody can take such long-term decisions." He, however, indicated that there will be no rollback of the price hikes in petrol seven times since its deregulation in June, 2010. The newly appointed minister said the three state-owned fuel retailers are expected to lose Rs 72,000 crore in revenue this fiscal on account of subsidised fuel sales and his ministry will press for a reduction in customs on crude oil and excise duty on diesel, as was proposed by his predecessor, Murli Deora. Reddy, who moved from urban development to the oil ministry, got down to tackling the task straightaway with a brainstorming session with senior ministry officials today. "This is not a new government... I am a new minister in the old government. I am morally and politically accountable for all the policies and decisions of my predecessor. They were collective decisions of the Cabinet," he said last evening. With rumours doing the rounds that the Congress party brass was not happy with Deora and his junior Jitin Prasada over last week's hike in petrol prices, Reddy said spiralling international oil prices "was a challenge." Despite last week's price hike -- the seventh since June, oil firms lose Rs 1.22 a litre on petrol. Besides, they lose Rs 7 a litre on diesel, Rs 366.28 on LPG and Rs 19.60 a litre on kerosene. — PTI
	Telecom cos hail portability Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 20 Bracing for increased competition, the telecom operators of the country today hailed the launch of the Mobile Number Portability (MNP) in the country by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here this evening. Mahesh Prasad, president for marketing in the wireless business of Reliance Communications, said: "This service is a boon to the customer. From our point of view we consider the MNP as a positive step". Deepak Gulati, executive president, mobility business division, Tata Teleservices, said, “We have been strong advocates of MNP for years and welcome the new regime that begins today. This is a beginning of an era which will give new direction to the Indian telecom industry - as a Tata Group company, we have always felt that the power of choice should be left to the customers”. Uninor corporate affairs EVP Rajiv Bawa said: "We are ready and eager. In dynamic pricing, we have a product that stands apart from anything else out there in the market." "Post-MNP, mobile tariffs will go down further, especially if we look at the post-paid customer base, whereas in the pre-paid segment, I doubt a significant change in their tariffs or profitability," said Sistema Shyam Teleservices’ president and CEO Vsevolod Rozanov. Assocham president Dilip Modi was of the view, “MNP is a big milestone achieved by the Indian telecom industry today. It will surely result in healthy competition among the telecom players. MNP is a vigorous way of ensuring best quality to prevail in the market. Congestion-free network coupled with attractive tariffs may be the strategy for some”.
	FDI worth $250 bn likely in 5 years: Anand Sharma New Delhi, January 20 The government today said it aims to attract, in the next five years, a whopping $250 billion foreign direct investment into India, which has become an investor-friendly destination for global investors. "In the next five years, we are aiming to have $250 billion FDI coming into India," Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said at a CII function here. The target of $250 billion looks ambitious in the wake of India receiving cumulative FDI of $124 billion into equity in the last 10 years. This fiscal FDI inflows stood at $14 billion during April-November 2010-11, a decline of 27 per cent over the same period last year. The government is taking steps to attract more and more foreign direct investment (FDI). It is considering to allow FDI in sectors like multi-brand retail and defence. Sharma said during the global economic crisis, India remained one of the most attractive destination for foreign investors. "We have an investor-friendly policy regime," he said. Speaking on the occasion, South Korean Trade Minister Kim Jong-Hoon said huge business opportunities are available for Indian and Korean companies in each others region. The visiting minister is here for the first review of the India-South Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), implemented a year ago. After the implementation of the free trade pact, the two-way trade between the countries grew by about 45 per cent during January-November 2010 to $15.6 billion. Both Sharma and Hoon said that the bilateral trade target of $30 billion by 2014 is achievable. Hoon said to further enhance investments in India, there is a need of some more Korean bank branches here to facilitate Korean businesses in India. — PTI
	Brighton Corp to invest Rs 2,880 cr in India To set up power equipment manufacturing facility Suresh Dharur Tribune News Service Hyderabad, January 20 A leading American company has offered to set up a Rs 2,880-crore nuclear power equipment manufacturing facility near port city of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. The US-based Brighton Equipment Corporation (BEC) will invest Rs 2,880 crore in the proposed plant to be set up on 800-acre land at Nakkapalli in Visakhapatnam district, the state Major Industries Minister Dr J Geetha Reddy told reporters today. The announcement was made after the company president and CEO Kit Kung had a meeting with the state Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy here and discussed about the ambitious project. The facility is expected to provide direct employment to 2,500 highly skilled personnel and indirect employment to another 10,000. Founded in 1980s by Kung, Brighton Group is a leading heavy equipment and forged steel producer that manufactures forged steel components used in third generation nuclear power plants, besides conventional power plants, ship-building and petrochemicals. Brighton has sought Special Economic Zone status for their facility which would be ready for commercialisation in two to three years, she said. The state government and Brighton Group would sign a memorandum of understanding for the project in the next two weeks. Kit Kung said they were currently operating a similar plant in China where large nuclear reactor units were manufactured. "The Indian plant will be a replica of the Chinese one. The proposed facility near Visakhapatnam will service not only the Indian nuclear power plants but also the international markets," Kung said. It would manufacture three to four nuclear reactor units per annum at a cost of $200 million each. Stating that 30,000 tonnes of steel would go into manufacturing the nuclear reactor units, Kung said they would mostly use "scrap" brought from ship-breaking units in India and abroad.
	Microfinance industry hails Malegam panel’s advice Tribune News Service Hyderabad, January 20 The beleaguered Microfinance industry has welcomed the recommendations of RBI’s Malegam Committee, saying they would lead to an orderly and healthy growth of the sector. The RBI-appointed committee had, in its report submitted yesterday, suggested that bank loans to MFIs should continue to be treated as priority sector loans and their operations should be under RBI’s jurisdiction and not under the control of state governments. “The Malegam committee’s report has provided a tremendous boost to microfinance sector. We feel its recommendations will enable MFIs to continue to provide access to finance for millions of unbanked households across the country,” said S Dilliraj, CFO, SKS Microfinance, the country’s largest microfinance institution. SKS and other MFIs have been opposing the Microfinance Act, introduced by the Andhra Pradesh Government to regulate micro-credit operations. The Malegam Committee’s recommendation to do away with the Act, the first such state-level legislation in the country, has brought cheers to the MFI industry reeling under the impact of dwindling business. “The Committee’s specific request to withdraw the AP Microfinance Institutions Act on seven merit-based arguments provides much-needed relief to the industry. It clarifies that the RBI regulates MFIs that are non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) and that there is no “regulatory void” for the state government to fill,” Dilliraj said. Currently, SKS has 2,407 branches, spread over 19 states, and 78 lakh active borrowers with a loan outstanding of Rs 5,400 crore. “The committee has recommended that interest rate caps and regulation of operations such as recovery practices should fall under RBI’s jurisdiction and not the state government and MFIs should be exempt from state money-lending acts,” the SKS official said. “The report is good for the sector. It gives us a direction and is balanced,” said Kishore Kumar Puli, Managing Director and CEO of Trident Microfin, a medium-sized MFI in Hyderabad. The Malegam Committee proposed road map, limiting the total loans to an individual to Rs 25,000 and capping the interest rate at 24 per cent.
	Chinese economy grows by 9.8 pc in Dec quarter Beijing, January 20 Chinese economy grew at a rapid pace of 9.8 per cent in the last three months of 2010, fuelled by higher industrial production and retail sales, according to official data. The staggering GDP expansion, which beat expectations, has also sparked concerns of further monetary tightening measures, as China is also grappling with rising inflation and risk of overheating. "In terms of (2010) growth by quarters, it was up 11.9 per cent for the first quarter, 10.3 per cent growth for the second quarter, 9.6 per cent for the third quarter and 9.8 per cent for the last quarter," National Bureau of Statistics of China said today. China was expected to record a growth of little over 9 per cent in the December quarter. One of the world's fastest growing economies, China's GDP was estimated to be worth 39.79 trillion yuan at end of 2010. The high quarterly growth, primarily came on the back of better industrial production - which rose 13.3 per cent in the December quarter - and retail sales. For the full year, the Chinese economy expanded 10.3 per cent at comparable prices. Despite recent moves towards a tighter monetary policy regime, China's inflation climbed to 4.6 per cent in December. Even though inflation dropped from a high of 5.1 per cent in November, experts feel that prices are likely to increase in the coming months. — PTI