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| Monday, January 10, 2000, Chandigarh, India  
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SIDBI plans IT venture fund for
NRIs |
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Ashok
Ley unveils Exuba FIIs turn sellers in first week
SIDBI plans IT venture fund for
NRIs NEW DELHI, Jan 9 — Riding the boom in the information technology industry, the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has decided to launch a $ 50 million (about Rs 225 crore) international venture capital fund for financing new entrepreneurs in the American Silicon Valley, boasting of sizeable Indian population. The corporation is doing the necessary spade work and obtaining clearances for launch of the fund in the next six months, SIDBI sources said, adding that the fund would focus on IT entrepreneurs. The scheme for financing overseas IT venture comes close on the heels of SIDBI’s just-announced Rs 100 crore national venture capital fund. The corporation has also just shaped up 12 state specific venture funds to promote IT industries in the small scale sector. As part of its drive to emerge as a major financer in the IT sector, which is likely to have an export potential of over $ 60 billion both in software and hardware by the year 2008, SIDBI would also launch a fund for Delhi to develop it as a hub for infotech industry. The bank is currently assessing the foreign exchange requirement, RBI permit and demand for finance from the dollar-denominated fund for overseas entrepreneurs for finalising the proposed scheme. As part of the proposed scheme, SIDBI will also set up an international investment committee to evaluate proposals and is likely to rope in bigwigs of infotech industry who have the required expertise to evaluate financial feasibility of startups, sources said. While bulk of the financing for the proposed fund would come from the corporation itself, SIDBI was also open to contributions from others and these details would be finalised soon, they said. The international fund will target software and services companies focusing on upcoming technologies. This would include companies with Internet and e-commerce portfolio which have a sound business plan to back their proposal. SIDBI Venture Capital Ltd (SVCL) is also organising a seminar “India-Silicon Valley Partnership’ 2000” next week in association with US-based Stanford University’s Asia Pacific Research Centre to foster partnership between the Indian IT companies and Silicon Valley. A 12-member IT
delegation from Silicon Valley including leading Indian
names such as Sabeer Bhatia of Arzoo.com, K.B.
Chandrashekhar of Exodus.com and Kanwal Rekhi of TiE are
expected to attend the day-long seminar on January 10.
— PTI |
300 crore LIC loan for Himachal NEW DELHI, Jan 9 (PTI) — LIC has agreed to grant a Rs 300 crore loan to the Himachal Pradesh Government to come up with its share of equity in the Rs 8,000 crore Nathpa Jhakri Power project and offered a conditional loan of similar size to the Power Finance Corporation (PFC). The decision to extend the long-term loan to the state Government was taken last week, LIC sources said while indicating that the formal loan agreement would be signed within three to four days. The loan for the state government was arranged by PFC, the sources said, adding that LIC had also offered another Rs 300 crore loan to PFC subject to condition that the corporation lift at least Rs 100 crore during January itself. PFC’s Director Finance Tantra Narayan Thakur said “PFC has helped the Himachal Government to raise this loan to enable it part finance its share of equity in the Nathpa Jhakri project.” He, however, declined to give details of the terms of the loan to the state but said the corporation had decided earlier in 1999-2000 to venture into financial consultancy and the loan was the first project taken up by it. The Himachal Government
has 25 per cent stake in the 1500 mw hydel power project
on the Sutlej while the Centre has the remaining 75 per
cent holding. |
Naidu ‘IT Indian of millennium’ HYDERABAD, Jan 9 (PTI) — Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has been voted as the “IT Indian of the millennium” in a poll conducted by India Today group and 20:20 media. Of the 11,016 voters who participated in the poll, 6396 gave their first preference votes to Naidu, who is also the only politician to figure in the list, an India Today release said here last night. The other IT
professionals who figured in the list included Shiv
Mandir of HCL (1,233 votes), FC Kohli (830), NS Narayana
Murthy (457), Azim Premji (160), Sam Pitroda (137) and
Ratan Tata (105).Naidu was only the last week declared as
the “South Asian of the year” by the Time
magazine. |
Ludhiana
girl creates designs & waves LUDHIANA: Dedication, hard work and a burning ambition to carve a niche for herself, has finally paid dividends for Preeti Behal, a Ludhiana girl, who had made it big as an Assistant Merchandiser with one of the country’s leading buying houses. Hailing from a conservative business class family of the city, Preeti has come a long way. An alumini of the College of Home Science, Chandigarh, Preeti got selected for the two-year diploma course in knitwear design and technology at National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) immediately after her graduation. Preeti’s designer wear, presented during the final design collection of final year students of the institute in May last year, had won her accolades, including the Best Design Collection Award. This award, coupled with an award for Best Academic Performance, landed her a plum job at East-West Inc. The young designer-cum-Merchandiser is now involved in handling the creamy layer of clientele for her company like Roytex and the Northstorm chain of retail stores in the USA. Her work requires her to get export orders of clients made from the local hosiery units — strictly in accordance with the clients’ specifications. “However,” says Preeti, “I am surprised that even the leading industrial houses in this city, considered as the Manchester of India, are rarely aware of the European fashion trends. This is the basic reason why exporters from the city have been unable to make a dent on the knitwear market in Europe and the USA.” She says in spite of the local hosiery units having the best of infrastructural facilities and the latest technical knowhow, most hosiery people are unwilling to experiment with colours and styles. In the fashion industry, one cannot afford to stick to traditions and considering the growing fashion consciousness in the young and old, men, women and children it is imperative that the designs and styles in knitwears be unique so as to catch the attention and more importantly, to get into the global fashion rat race, she opines. Preeti also laments that
the quality of yarns being produced in the Indian market
is not at par with the ones produced in some of the
European countries. “There is lack of technical
manpower in this field and yarn manufacturers are also
not willing to try out on making better quality yarns. As
against the limited number of yarns available here, the
gamut of yarns and fabrics available abroad is amazing. I
feel that for the local manufacturers to create a place
for themselves in the global knitwear market, all these
things should be considered.” she says. |
New Maruti
models for Auto Expo NEW DELHI, Jan 9 — For the country’s leading automobile manufacturer, Maruti Udyog Limited (MUL) the coming Auto Expo will be a test case where it will seek to establish its dominance in the market. The company is leaving no stone unturned and its display profile includes several contemporary models developed by its partner Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC) of Japan. As many 20 models covering the entire spectrum of low end to luxury segments will be showcased during the weeklong show beginning January 12. MUL, which had lost considerable time in introducing new models due to its Japanese partner’s difference with the erstwhile UF Government has shifted into top gear to make up for the lost time. The auto show has generated considerable excitement in the automobile market, as a part from MUL, Korean giant Daewoo and Hyundai, Japan’s Toyota, and General Motors would make a pitch for a share of the Indian market. The competition is so intense that the erstwhile domestic major Hindustan Motors Limited has opted to stay out from the show as they have nothing new to reveal. MUL is understood to have used the opportunity to test the waters for its various coming models planned for launch during this calendar year, including the station wagon and market diesel version of its latest offering Baleno.The company is also expecting to have a fair mesaure about the market potential for CNG driven Wagon-R and will also display Suzuki C2, a two-seater sports car developed. The other models to be displayed by MUL include the Grand Vitara, the Suzuki Every Electric Vehicle, the Omni XL among others. Hindustan Motors Limited (HML) have opted out of the show citing “cost-benefit reasons”. “We have nothing new to show at the event as the company has already announced all its models . As such we decided to stay away from the show keeping in view the cost-benefit of our participation at the show”, HML Chairman, Mr C. K. Birla told newspersons here yesterday during the launch of three new variants of the Lancer. The seven-day Auto Expo
2000, starting from January 12, is being organised by
CII, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers and
Automobile (SIAM) and the Automobile Component
Manufacturers Association (ACMA). |
|
NEW DELHI, Jan 9 (PTI) — Auto major Ashok Leyland today launched its luxury vehicle “Exuba” to be priced up to Rs 30 lakh to cater to the corporate and the tourism sector. “The Exuba is based on the existing 1512 cargo vehicle platform which is designed to cater to various customer needs,” Executive Director (Marketing) of Ashok Leyland Amol J. Sandil told reporters here. Sandil said the company would manufacture the new vehicle at its Hosur factory in Karnataka and hoped that the company would be able to produce about 500 vehicles annually. “We would also be targeting to sell the vehicle to the film industry, besides catering to requirements of adventure seekers and to firms involved in projects that would require a lot of travelling,” he said. The Exuba will have all the facilities like personal computer, chemical toilet, adequate storage overhead and beneath seats, refrigerator, pantry with microwave and also audio console with CD changer, he said. Interiors and the exteriors of the vehicle had been made by the a leading designer Dilip Chhabria, he said, adding the vehicle had a capacity to carry up to seven passengers. The vehicle will be powered by a four-cyclinder turbo diesel engine which will develop 112.5 horse power, Sandil said. “We are planning to
sell about 100 units in the next fiscal and the company
is confident that the demand for the vehicle would rise
in the coming months,” he said. |
Jaswant’s
swadeshi look at globalisation NEW DELHI, Jan 9- Global captains of industry, economic experts and trade officials were today treated to a “swadeshi” view of globalisation, the mantra of the new millennium, by the External Affairs Minister, Mr Jaswant Singh here today. The annual partnership summit of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), which has its theme “Managing Globalisation in the New Millennium”, was told by the Minister not to approach the concept of globalisation with the “arrogance of certainty” and the stage of managing it would come only after they understood the true definition of globalisation. Mr Singh was modest in a way that he did not directly debunk the theme of the summit but posed questions that are bound to exercise the visiting delegates, who includes many Foreign Ministers and the Director General of the World Trade Organisation, during their deliberations over the next two days. The Minister said the concept of globalisation was nothing new as even in the beginning of the last century there was one superpower in the form of Britain and gold was the standard currency of the world. In the beginning of the 21st century, Britain has been replaced by the United States and it was the preminent economic and political influence over the world. In a way he said the present model of globalisation was sponsored by the United States. Saying that he was no “soothsayer”, Mr Singh however, went on to add that this model would be challenged in the coming years as it was in the human nature to challenge any hegemonistic system. He said the globalisation concept of today was benefiting only a few countries as just like a fly which goes after honey and not vinegar, investments were flowing to the rich countries and not the poor. “When we approach globalisation we must approach it with more clarity and with the benefit of hindsight” he said. Mr Singh said there were many unattended issues of globalisation and added that the first among them was the issue of nationalism. He questioned the very assumption of the existing model that nationalism would no longer be relevant and said the challenge therefore was how to interrelate nationalism with the demands of globalisation? He pointed out that the existing global economic model had resulted in inequitable growth and the gap between the rich and the poor was increasing. He said of the six billion population in the world nearly four billion of them were living in abject poverty. He said like the middle class in a society, which was the most assertive and dominant, the world too had a class of “middle countries” which he believed would challenge the existing system in times to come. “Globalisation as we have experienced has not resulted in economic equality or opportunities and it has not helped in eliminating political discord in countries” Mr Singh said. He said the management of globalisation would have to address the management of political discord. Mr Singh said real globalisation could be said to have taken place only when Governments do not stand in the way of economic growth and resist the creative energies of human beings from being released. In this regard he said the expansion of the knowledge based industry could be cited as a true example of globalisation as it was more equitable and wide spread across the world. He disclosed that during the recent hijacking episode, one of the passengers with the help of his laptop computer had managed to get access to a person in China with the help of the Internet. The message was subsequently relayed to the Minister in New Delhi He said one needs this kind of globalisation which knows no resistance, geographical borders and other hurdles. Mr Singh said his
Government would seek to strike a balance between
globalisation and national needs. In this regard he spoke
about giving priority to basic human needs like drinking
water, health services and education. |
FIIs turn sellers in first week MUMBAI, Jan 9 (PTI)
— Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) proved to
be net sellers to the tune of over Rs 365 crore (over $
84 million) during the first week of the new year ended
January 6, but their cumulative investments since 1992
had remained above the billion dollar mark. Though the
FIIs kicked off the year on a positive note by reporting
net purchases in the first two days, they turned net
sellers in the following two days closing the week with a
net selling of Rs 367.6 crore ($ 84.5 million). |
CMC plans stock option for staff In an effort to attract, retain and motivate its human resources, CMC Limited plans to give employee stock options to all eligible employees. As many as 16 lakh equity shares will be given at a discount of either 40 or 60 per cent to the price fixed for further issue of share capital to the public and institutions. The Government has given nod to CMC to offer fresh equity to the extent that its stake is not reduced below 51 per cent from the current 86 per cent. Godrej Soaps: Godrej Soaps has been barred by the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission (MRTPC) from using the slogans “Ganga Ki Dhar Aapke Dwar” and “Ganga Se Snan Kar Lo” for promotion of its Godrej Ganga Soap. Reliance: The Reliance group has achieved a market capitalisation of Rs 73,000 crore with group Chairman Dhirubhai Ambani voted as the topmost creator of wealth by a Times of India online poll. “The Reliance group has created wealth of Rs 73,000 crore and has become the country’s largest wealth creator among the Indian business houses,” a company release said here today. Out of the total sum, over Rs 49,000 crore was shared by the company’s 50 lakh retail investors. Relish Pharma: Relish Pharmaceuticals Limited, a WHO-GMP company, has drawn up an ambitious modernisation-cum-expansion plan to add a dry power injectable unit, a large volume parentrals unit, an ointments unit, R&D facilities and incur capital expenditure towards launching of OTC products. HDFC Bank: THE merger of Times Bank with HDFC Bank will be completed by March end, HDFC Bank Vice-President B Chandramouli said on Sunday. In the first half of the
current financial year, HDFC Bank registered a 26 per
cent rise in profit to Rs 53.32 crore with a 56 per cent
rise in its total income which touched Rs 309.30 crore. |
Hotel Sree Krishna I am holder of 100 shares of Hotel Sree Krishna Ltd. since 27-08-1992. My F. No. is HSK 006258, Certificate No. 14838. I have lost these shares in June 1999 and since then I have written more than 25 letters for issuance of duplicate shares in lieu of these shares. But so far I have not heard anything from the company. Aman Gupta UTI We, invested Rs 10000 each in Master Equity Plan-92 certificates No. (MEP-92-4-358840 to 358844). We applied for the re-purchase of unit on 9.12.96 to M/s Magat Lal consultancy Services (India) Ltd, UNIT (MEP) 92, New Delhi. Despite many reminders we have not heard anything from the agency. Satish Kumar
Jindal and others IndusInd Bank I was allotted 100 shares of IndusInd Bank Ltd and got the certificate No. 255910. After that I deposited the allotment money on 9.2.98 amounting to Rs 2250 vide cheque No. 2380143 dated 6.2.98. This cheque was cleared on 10.2.98. Almost two years’ have gone but till this day neither fully paid stickers nor dividend is received. Parkash Devi Ceat Fin I sent my FDR No. C120-10003000 amounting to Rs 10,000 duly discharged and signed for payment vide letter No. 141/PF dated 8/9/99. In spite of the various reminders. I have not received the matured amount. Kulwant Kaur Response:
Referring to Komal Sharma’s complaint, the UTI
Ludhiana branch says it has resolved the issue and
intimated the investor. The total balance of units as on
date is Rs 494.782. |
by J.C. Anand The market likely to remain subdued The dawn of the new century was welcomed by the stock markets. The Sensitive Index crossed the 5000-mark and kept up its march throughout the week. With the Y2K bug fears dispelled, the market activity increased manifold. But during this week, the market is likely to remain subdued. A large part of the buoyancy was due to excessive speculative activity in software scrips. The recent directive of SEBI to the stock exchanges to curb excessive price movements in certain scrips has already induced some corrective fall in the stock market indices. National Stock Exchange authorities have already imposed additional security specific margin of 50 per cent on a number of highly speculative scrips. The Bombay Stock Exchange has also imposed special margins on 189 scrips to curb excessive volatility. The list mostly includes infotech and finance companies in B1 and B2 on the exchange. The market is expected to maintain its buoyancy but in somewhat subdued form. There is now ample evidence that industrial revival is taking place. GDP is expected to grow at 6 per cent plus. The exports are up and the demand for cement and steel is growing. The software stock is also expected to maintain their buoyancy. The market is expected to maintain its buoyancy, though in a subdued form, till the third week of February. Even the long-dormant scrips like Tata Investment Corporation, TISCO and TELCO have woken up to the new tidings about the industrial revival. Cyber Tech has announced a bonus issue in the ration of 1 for 1 held. According to another report, the bonus ratio is 5 for every 4 shares. Even in its ex-bonus market rate (though it may be after some months) is not expected to decline sharply. Another share to watch is Larsen & Toubro. Its board has already held a number of meetings to consider restructuring proposals but a clear indication of its shape may be revealed after the board’s meeting on January 14. A report indicated that ‘‘a view was expressed at one of the meetings that the L&T’s stock price should ideally be in the Rs 800 to Rs 900 range and a share buy-back was also discussed’’. It appears almost certain that L&T will be a star performer in the current year. Vikas WSP is expected to reward the shareholders with a liberal bonus issue and its annual results will be much better than for the year ended March 31, 1999. Global Tele is also expected to move up further. Sterlite Industries has gained about 100 points in the last three days’ trading. I expect this scrip to cross Rs 550 during the current year. I may also be permitted to repeat that some of the blue-chip scrips in the speciality chemicals sectors like Colour-Chem, Clariant and BASF are under-priced and may spark up in six months’ time. In the automobile sector, GKN Invel Tranmission and Mico are also underpriced. Mico is also a bonus candidate. In some of the speculative shares in the software sector, partial profit-book may be useful. The profitability of these scrips, no doubt, is expected to continue but the present price range does not bear any rational and reasonable relation to their book value and price earning ratio. It is also on the cards
that the Budget for 2000-2001 is expected to be a harsh
one. This may dampen the market to some extent. But if
the monsoons are lean this year, the market and
industrial activity will slow down. The interest rates
are also expected to be lowered further. |
by K.R. Wadhwaney Make passport must for Nepal Aviation analysts opine that sophisticated gadget should be installed on aircraft doors to reveal its presence of firearms on board the aircraft. The bell should ring on all entry doors and also is the chamber of the pilot. Machine is more reliable than security personnel. This device may succeed in reducing hijacking incidences since frisking and security arrangements at several airports have failed to detect persons carrying firearms and other weapons. This has become essential following the recent hijacking is which one person was stabbed to death and three hardcore militants were released. All this happened because the security arrangements at the Kathmandu airport proved inadequate. Tribhuvan International Airport (Kathmandu) continues to be one of the most vulnerable aviation areas. It is the hub for gamblers and antisocial elements to walk in and out of the airport without any problem. With a view to promoting tourist traffic to India and Nepal, two governments have done away with the mandatory requirement of a passport. Any identification, like, driving licence or a ration card is good enough to secure admittance to either India or Nepal. This facility provides an easy access to people. The time has come for the two countries to make passport mendatory for travelling. It will make immigration officials to be more vigilant. Indian Airlines will shortly resume its flights to Kathmandu. As announced, IA will trust upon its own security personnels than depending upon securitymen in Kathmandu. If Indian authorities stay indifferent even after this hijacking, there will be many more instances of jijackings from Kathmandu. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation and the Airports Authority of India have to tighten their arrangements at the Indira Gandhi International Airports and other airports in the country. The Indian aviation will
have to be alert and active. Otherwise there will be more
ugly incidents, like, hijacking and death of a child by
escalator. |
Inflation slips
to 2.93 pc Korean PM |
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