Sunday, March 21, 1999
today's calendar
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B U S I N E S S | Sunday, March 21, 1999 |
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spotlight today's calendar |
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HP to ease land transfer
rules New
Ford car in November |
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Punjab to face ‘crisis
of plenty’
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‘Cut
interest rates on shipment export credit’ NABARD
bonds issue at par |
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HP to ease
land transfer rules PARWANOO (Solan), March 20 — Himachal Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, said here today that the Union Government had cleared a state government proposal for setting up international airport in Himachal Pradesh and also to improve it’s air travel circuit during the next year. The Chief Minister, who was the chief guest at the annual session of the CII annual session, organised here today, said that the setting up of the proposed airport along with the introduction of a four-times-a-week Mumbai-Kalka Holiday Special, scheduled to make it’s inaugural run on April 11 would give a boost to the state’s tourism industry. He said that his government would lay emphasis on the development of tourism, especially adventure tourism and exploitation of the state’s vast hydel power generation potential in the coming years. All entrepreneurs whose projects, in addition to generating profits would ensure increased employment, more revenues to the state exchequer, and no damage to the environment, would be welcomed. The proposals to set up herb-based industries would be specially welcome. He said he had taken up the matter of extending the period of tax holiday beyond 2002 with the Union Government and hoped that his request would be accepted, on grounds of the special needs of this land-locked state. The government would do it’s best to improve the industry-related infrastructure, adding that the allocation for construction of roads had been increased from 164 crore this year to 205 crore next year. Land transfer rules were being simplified. By the end of next year all revenue records would be computerised which would facilitate faster transfer of lands to units. Mr Dhumal said the help of the industrialist would be welcome in providing requisite accommodation to state’s primary schools. At present there were only 23800 rooms for existing 10,484 primary schools. As many as 1964 such schools presently functioned either under the open sky or in borrowed rooms. Mr Arun Bharat Ram, Regional Chairman of the CII, said that the days of populist policies like the grant of subsidies were over and the industrialists and the people must think of paying for the services like roads and bridges. He said the popular notion that subsidies attracted capital had become totally invalid today. Mr Bharat Ram also stressed upon the need for setting up a high-powered group, with industry participation, for chalking out norms for simplification of rules governing industrial units. The existing industrial training institutes and polytechnics must be structured to cater to the needs of the upcoming industries. Mr Dhumal also released an industrial directory published by the Parwanoo Industries Association. Mr Dhumal, also agreed to CII’s suggestion of setting up a joint task force between entrepreneurs and the government to facilitate integrated development and economic growth of Himachal. Mr Bharat said the CII would like to motivate local industry to address social issues specially, primary education and welfare of the girl child. Later, Mrs Manju Bharat Ram, Chairperson, CII, Social development and Community Affairs Committee, made a plea to industrialists present at the session to adopt a literacy programme for their employees. She also requested them to contribute towards social causes through reliable NGOs. Earlier, Mr Arun Suri, Chairman, CII, HP State Council complimented the Chief Minister for his approach to developmental issues. Mr Harsh Gupta Additional Chief Secretary and Secretary Industries, Mr R.K. Jain, Director Industries and several other senior officials of the state government were also present. Industry representatives
form Parwanoo, Baddi, Barotiwala, Nalagarh and Paonta
Sahib, also participated. |
Punjab to
face ‘crisis of plenty’ CHANDIGARH: Punjab is heading for a major problem of plenty on the wheat front even as the crisis created by the huge rain-affected stocks of unmilled paddy of the 1998 kharif remains unsolved. With hardly a month left for the rabi harvesting season to start, Punjab has only 30 lakh tonnes of available space for storing 68 lakh tonnes of the new wheat crop that government agencies have planned to procure. Poor evacuation of the wheat and rice stocks of the past crops has burdened the State with 50 lakh tonnes of accumulated wheat and 40 lakh tonnes of rice. While rice stocks are stored in godowns, most of the wheat stocks are lying in the open under ‘CAP’ storage. Though Haryana, the second biggest foodgrains surplus State after Punjab, also faces similar problems of plenty, the situation in the State is not as bad as in the sister State. Haryana has a storage capacity of 44 lakh tonnes comprising 26.73 lakh tonnes of covered space and 17.29 lakh tonnes of CAP storage. The State has at present over 20 lakh tonnes of accumulated foodgrains of the previous crops. The State agencies have planned to procure 33 lakh tonnes of wheat in the ensuing season. The crisis in the two States, particularly in Punjab, has been aggravated by the poor evacuation of the procured stocks mainly because of sharp fall in the demand from other states. Despite the constant pressures of the two States, the actual movement of the stocks has fallen far short of even the allocated movement targets. The problems of plenty which Punjab and Haryana are going to face in the coming rabi season were taken up by Mr P. Ram, Secretary, Food and Supplies, Punjab and Mr Nasseem Ahmed, Commissioner, Food and Supplies, Haryana at the meeting of the Food Secretaries of the wheat producing States held by the Union Food Secretary in Delhi last week. The meeting discussed the wheat procurement policy for the 1999-2000 rabi marketing season. The evacuation of large quantities of the procured foodgrains from the two major surplus States to make space for the new crop arrivals has particularly become more problematic as the other States do not have sufficient storage accommodation to take care of larger stocks. The coming rabi season may
also see the emergence of new problems relating to
procurement. Under the International Labour
Organisation’s decision, hence-forth 50 kg capacity
gunny bags are to be used for storing wheat instead of
the prevailing practice of using 95 kg capacity bags.
However, the stocks of 95 kg capacity gunny bags lying
with the State governments will be exhausted first before
the less capacity gunny bags come into vogue. Since the
use of the small gunny bags will start from the coming
season itself, it will make the procurement operations
more costly in view of the higher incidental charges.
Besides being time-consuming, the operations will lead to
further slowing down of movement of stocks. (IPA) |
Usha to
launch first silicon epitaxy plant FARIDABAD, March 20 - Usha India Limited, a part of the Rs 4,000 crore group Usha conglomerate, will start a “stand-alone production facility for Silicon Epitaxy wafers”, the basic raw material for transistor chips and semiconductor devices. The company announced the launch of the new Silicon Epitaxy plant today. Briefing newspersons here today, Director of Usha India (Electronics) Mr Arun Kanchan said that the company’s epi-wafer production facility, which will start functioning in April, has a production capacity of 30000 wafers per month, while the current India requirement of Silicon Epitaxy wafers is 10000 per month. The plant has the capacity to produce wafers of 8 inch. The plant will produce raw material that is crucial in the manufacturing of high power transistors, `shottky’ diode chips, integrated circuits and metal-oxide semiconductor devices. Usha India also announced the launch of a Polysilicon production facility, with a 100 ton per annum capacity, making it a fully integrated global semiconductor manufacturer. The plant will manufacture basic raw material required to produce silicon devices and solar cells. The company is currently
undergoing audit for ISO 14000, which supports
environmental protection and also prevents pollution. All
the manufacturing units of the company already has ISO
9000 approval. |
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CHENNAI, March 20 (PTI) — Ford India Ltd, a subsidiary of US auto giant Ford Motor Company, is planning to roll out its new car codenamed ‘C 195’ in the second week of November, a top company official said. “We are planning to launch the car around Divali and have tentatively fixed November 10 as the roll out date,” the official, who did not want to be quoted, said. The Rs 1700-crore plant, which was inaugurated here by State Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, has an annual capacity of one lakh units. Initially, the company intends to manufacture and sell around 25,000 units and also plans to develop India as an export base for the new vehicle, based on the Fiesta Platform. The official said Ford was
developing about 20 prototypes of the new car to choose
one from, and it will be introduced in both diesel and
petrol variants in a three box model. |
FIPB clears GE Plastics proposal NEW DELHI, March 20 (PTI) — Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) today cleared foreign direct investment (FDI) proposals worth about Rs 680 crore, including those by GE Plastics and Citicorp. The board at its meeting today cleared the proposal of Citicorp Finance India, the holding company of Citibank, to increase its capital base from $ 40 million to $ 50 million FIPB sources said. It also cleared the proposal of Telecom Investment India Ltd to bring in Rs 165 crore through non-convertible preference shares. Telecom Investment India is held by CGF Investment, Mauritius, a Hutchinson group company, and Max and Telecom Investment, sources said. Among the 55 FDI proposals approved is a proposal of GE Plastics, which manufactures advanced engineering plastics, to increase the stake of the foreign partner to 60 per cent from 50 per cent by bringing in an additional Rs 15 crore through convertible preference shares. The share of IPCL, the Indian partner in GE Plastics, would come down by the same percentage after the shares are converted, sources said. The board also approved the proposal of French multinational, Conpagnie De St. Gobain to increase stake in its joint venture with Grindwell Norton from 90 per cent to 95 per cent. St Gobain would bring in Rs 107.5 crore as FDI to increase its stake in the venture, which manufactures float glass in India, sources said. A proposal by Owens
Brockway to increase capitalisation in its wholly-owned
subsidiary in India by Rs 150 crore was also approved by
FIPB. |
‘Cut
interest rates on shipment export credit’ NEW DELHI, March 20 — In the interest of export promotion, the government should reduce the interest rates both for pre and post-shipment export credit at least by 1 per cent, the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry suggested here yesterday. The chamber is concerned about the negative growth in exports during the last two years which is affecting the trade deficit as also the BOP and India’s share in international market is dwindling. While, pursuant to reduction in the Prime Lending Rates (PLR) and the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR), the rate of interest has been reduced by 1 per cent but unfortunately such a reduction has not taken place in the pre/post-shipment export credit in rupee which is still static at 9 per cent. At the same time, Finance Ministry’s instructions to the banks to keep their export credit rates at Libor plus 1.5 per cent and dollar rate of 7 per cent and thus most of the exporters are only drawing credits in rupee to avoid being exposed to foreign exchange fluctuations, the chamber observed. RBI’s steps to
rationalise the export credit (in dollars) and the advice
to bankers to assist exporters by providing export credit
at international rates is welcome, but its effect is
negligible, as more than 90 per cent of the exporters are
drawing pre/post-shipment credit in rupees where there
has not been any reduction. |
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DUBAI, March 20 (PTI)
— India Fair opened at the Dubai shopping festival
here to the accompaniment of drum beats and colourful
performances by traditional Indian artistes. The India
Fair is spread over 50,000 square feet and has around 125
stalls selling handicrafts including metal wares, clay
products, mirror and ivory work, jewellery, furniture and
garments. |
NABARD bonds
issue at par CHANDIGARH, March 20 — The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) proposes to issue 18th series of bonds for an amount of Rs 116.23 crore. The Bonds will be issued at par with a face value of Rs 1,00,000. The bonds with a tenor of 10 years will carry interest at 12.35 per cent per annum payable on half-yearly basis. Repayment of the principal and payment of interest on the bonds are guaranteed by the Central Government. The Bonds will have the status of Trustee Securities under the Indian Trust Act, 1882. The issue will remain open
for subscription for three days from March 22, 1999. The
issue will, however, be closed earlier if the total
subscriptions reach the amount of Rs 116.23 crore. |
How to hook this brand of teenagers Youth in India is a mass niche for branded goods but the real marketing is possible by tuning the advertisements to their wavelength. Experts feel that companies should tap the present generation. “The new brand of teenagers — the leading edge of a generation that might be the smartest and savviest ever — call them Generation Y or Generation 2000, by any name — they are the confident offspring of the post World War II baby boomers who control the future of countries and it’s time for passing the torch to them,” says Bennett Coleman Executive Director Arun Arora. According to Org-Marg Manager Indrani Vidyarthi, the question what is youth today needs to be explored in the culture specific context of India, where the youth stands characteristically distinct, positioned between history and modernity. Director of Advertising Films Prasoon Pandey says today’s youth need constant change and they get bored easily. Hence the brand managers and ad-campaigners should also go in for constant change and excitement. Mccann-Erickson’s Consumer Insights Director Dave Mccaughan and Pepsi’s Executive Vice-President Vibha Rishi feel that the right mix of traditional and modern feelings are required to tap the youth in view of the fast changing life. Economic Times Brand Manager Bhaskar Das says there has been a complete change in the lifestyle of youth. “Apart from a flexible day schedule, they are also indulging in a combination of activities. They want to study with TV on and eat and talk on the phone simultaneously”. Concept of beauty Has the concept of beauty undergone a transformation bowing to the demands of increasing commercialisation? This question was put to some prominent women in Delhi. “Expressions like ‘woman of substance’ which could actually pack a lot of meaning, gets trivialised in beauty contests”, says author Githa Hariharan. Echoing her sentiments, Prof Uma Chakravarthy of Miranda House College said it helps promote only “certain” kinds of notions of perfection. All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) chairperson Brinda Karat points out that beauty contests merely help to promote a range of fashion products and cosmetics, among other things. “I don’t agree that a woman’s identity can be reduced to statistics of form. Beauty cannot be homogenised, limited. The beauty that they want in women is a cultural concept that can benefit only big business and MNCs,” she says. “What is important is the message that is being sent out, the impact that it has on young minds, the perfection that is sought in women who do not always live up to the measurements. A lot of young girls can develop complexes about themselves”, Karat said. Female bouncers AN Argentine nightclub is trying a cunning psychological ploy to prevent bloody fistfights among its patrons — hiring women bouncers. “It’s based on the premise that says you don’t hit a woman,” said Daniel Monin Juregui, head of the security agency that protects the club on the outskirts of La Plata, capital of Buenos Aires province. Six women with martial arts training will guard the doors at the club. When a woman steps in to break up a scuffle, “a man, in general, doesn’t react aggressively,” Juregui said. “And there is a fear that if a woman beats him up he will never recover from his friends’ ridicule”. Repulse rapists SMELL like a skunk to frighten off sex offenders. That’s the aim of an unusual self-defence device a Swedish victims’ agency plans to launch in the Nordic countries. The Recoil Protector can be worn around the neck or attached to underwear, and broken in case of attack, releasing a powerful liquid that stinks of skunk. “I wish I had had this when I was very near being raped. The reaction on people is that they almost go into a state of shock. The smell is so foul,” Irene Holm of Stockholm’s Victims’ Support Centre said. The victim would also feel ill, but presumably would prefer this to being raped, she said. The device, originally
from Canada and already launched in some countries, is a
small glass ampoule containing 0.1 millilitre of
so-called skunk oil. It is to be sold for 295 crowns ($
35.90) in Sweden, Holm said. |
Summary procedure Q: Where the mortgagee disputes the right of the mortgager to redeem or for any other reason refuses to accept the payment, is the summary procedure U/s 28 of the T.P. Act, applicable? Ans: In Durga Prasad v Tulsya Bai (1998(L) R.C.J. 639) the M.P. High Court was expressing the view thus: A mortgage-deed was registered wherein it was provided that if the mortgagee amount is not returned to the mortgage within stipulated time the mortgagee will be within his right to get the sale-deed executed and the mortgage-deed would be treated as an ‘agreement to sell’. The mortgager filed an application U/s 83 of the T.P. Act. The court below allowed the application and hence the revision application before the H.C. In Bajirao Bhonsale v Jagat Narain (1960 JLJ 104) it was held that the summary procedure U/s 83 of the T.P. Act is not applicable where the mortgagee disputes the right of the mortgager to redeem or for any other reason refuses to accept the payment. The Orissa H.C. in Chandramani Pradhan v Hari Pasavat (A.I.R. 1974 Ori. 47) held that as soon as the mortgagee refused to accept the amount, then the mortgager should institute a suit for redemption with a plea that the entire mortgage dues have been deposited and the mortgage stood redeemed. The position in the present case, observed the H.C., is on a better footing. The mortgagee not only refused to accept the amount but he has also raised a further plea that he is entitled to purchase in view of the condition in the mortgage-deed. As such, held the H.C., the matter could not be tried U/s 83 of the Act. This petition accordingly
was allowed. The proper course for the mortgagee, noted
the H.C., is to initiate regular civil proceedings. |
Q: I am a pensioner and my gross total income is Rs 1,25,612. After deduction of Standard Deduction and rebate u/s 80L, net taxable income comes to Rs 90612 and tax works out to be Rs 8122. In addition to above, I have agriculture income amounting to Rs 27,000. Kindly advise (i) whether this Rs 27,000 is taxable which is an agriculture income. (ii) if taxable, how tax is to be worked out on this agriculture Income i.e. Rs 27,000. — Raghbir Singh, Chandigarh. Ans: There is no income-tax on your agricultural income. However, the agricultural income will be aggregated with non-agricultural income only for rate purposes which would result in small additional payment of income-tax. Q: I and my husband are government servants and I had purchased a land in my name. Both of us have jointly applied for house construction loan from a bank. Please let me know whether my husband can claim tax rebate on it? My gross salary is too less so I do not need to claim tax rebate. — Renu Mahajan, Kangra Ans: On the facts stated by you what is relevant is who has financed the purchase of the land. In case the purchase has been made out of your fund only and the property is registered only in your name, then your husband cannot claim tax rebate on the same. Q: My husband is working in Punjab government job and he is paying tax. My husband also does share business but he does share business on my name and current a/c is open which is run by me. Total turnover of share business is approx. 50 lakhs. We pay 1 per cent commission of share value to the broker and we charge from the investors 1.5 per cent or more and sometimes we invest in share and much profit and such profit also goes in this a/c. Please suggest, I have to pay tax on these commission, is this income is to be clubbed in my husband income. My husband also receives some dividend which he has been holding on his name but this dividend is shown not in his income tax return. Is it essential to show. If not showed, is it to be penalised? — Neeru Bedi Ans: In case you are carrying on business as proprietor in your name, the question of clubbing of the income will not arise at all. However, if the husband is actually carrying on the business and you are only for name sake, then in such a situation the clubbing provision would be applicable. The dividend income will be exempt from income-tax. It is not compulsory but it is better to show the same. The relevant section under which dividend income is exempt is section 10 (33). There is no penalty for non-mentioning of the exempted amount of dividend income. Q: The amount paid against leave encashment for 240 days to Haryana govt employee at the time of retirement is taxable or not. — Narender Nath Sardana, Bhiwani Ans: The leave encashment salary received at the time of retirement is tax-free u/s 10 (10AA). Q: I am Punjab government employee. In current financial year 1998-99, I am expecting to receive below noted salary and arrears:- Salary Rs 1,28,000-00 Arrears Rs 37,000-00 Total Rs 1,65,000-00 Please advise me whether I can claim the rebate u/s 88 to the extent of Rs 70,000 or more. Please also clarify the limit of such rebate during one financial year. Also advise if I am to make more investment in advance for availing more rebate and total amount, I have to pay as tax after rebate u/s 88 during 1998-99. — Raj Kumar, Chandigarh. Ans: The
maximum rebate which you can claim u/s 88 in respect of
the investment made by you is on Rs 70,000. The tax
rebate @ 20 per cent comes to Rs 14,000 even if you make
investment of higher amount. You will not be eligible for
tax rebate over & above the said sum of Rs 14,000
being 20 per cent on Rs 70,000. |
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| Gold rises NEW DELHI, March 20 (PTI) — Both the precious metals, silver and gold, continued their upward march on local buying support influenced by a firm trend in Asian markets and closed with gains. The quotations: Silver .999 (ready) 7620, delivery 7620, coins buyer 10.400 and seller 10,500 Standard gold 4340, ornaments 4190 and sovereign 3750. L&T Mink blankets |
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