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| Wednesday, March 15, 2000, Chandigarh, India  
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Harshad tops list of 100 bank
defaulters
Net4 sets 70 crore for
corporate shopping
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Greed is back —
can’t wait to get rich quick Nasdaq
sneezes, IT scrips catch cold
Harshad tops list of 100 bank defaulters NEW DELHI, March 14 (PTI) — Senior CPI member Gurudas Das Gupta today claimed that big bull Harshad Mehta topped the list of 100 major bank loan defaulters which he said ran into Rs 100,000 crore. Raising his last calling attention before the expiry of his present term in the Rajya Sabha, Das Gupta said Mehta had defaulted in the payment of bank loans worth Rs 800 crore followed by Indian Charged Chrome with Rs 493 crore and East West Travelfree Line with Rs 168 crore. Das Gupta read out a list of 11 top corporates which had defaulted in repayment of huge bank loans. It included the Modis with Rs 125 crore and Shaw Wallace with Rs 53 crore. Demanding the setting up of a separate independent audit commission to go into, what he called, the “looting of public money” by corporate houses, Das Gupta accused defaulters of “taking refuge” under the Official Secrets Act to cover up their defaults. “As first step to tear off the mask,” Das Gupta demanded that the names of bank loan defaulters be published to “let the public know about it”. Noting that the government figure of bank loan defaulters of Rs 58,000 crore was an understatement, Das Gupta said it was about Rs 100,000 crore if the interest dues were also taken into account. NPAs decline: Sinha Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha said the gross NPAs of public sector banks, in percentage terms, had declined from 17.84 per cent as on March 31, 1997 to 15.89 per cent as on March 1999, even though the net NPAs in absolute terms had shown a rise. In a statement on the calling attention notice made by Das Gupta, Sinha said a Credit Information Bureau was being set up to facilitate sharing of credit-related information on borrowers and potential borrowers for improving credit decisions. To strengthen the debt recovery mechanism, an Ordinance had been promulgated on January 17, this year, to amend the Recovery of Debts (due to banks) and Financial Institutions Act, 1993. The Ordinance, among
other things, provides for more teeth to the Debt
Recovery Tribunals and appointment of more than one
recovery officer in a tribunal. |
Net4 sets 70 crore for corporate shopping INFOTECT venture Net 4 India has earmarked Rs 70 crore investment for India, of which Rs 15 crore would be used for acquiring companies with related business opportunities. Currently, the company is evaluating 20 companies in various net business areas for the purpose, a senior Net 4 India official said here on Thusday. “We are studying performance and market valuations of about 20 companies at present and it will take upto six weeks to finish this evaluation,” Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Net 4 India Jasjit Sawhney told PTI after launching domain venture Net 4 domains.com’. We’re not going to acquire all of these 20 firms..but a final decision on the firm and its price could take upto six months,” he added. Rice sale on Net: Leading rice exporter Satnam Overseas Ltd (SOL) is planning to tie-up with Satyam Infoway for-e-commerce, in order to sell the rice through Internet. Sol is also talking to two-three fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) multinational companies, which are not yet present in India, for marketing of tea, juices and mineral water in the domestic market. Compaq Computers: Compaq Computer India Private Limited on Tuesday announced an alliance with Rediff.Com India Limited to allow its Presario PC series to connect, browse, search and shop at rediff.com Websites. Compaq Presario will come with a specially designed internet keyboard with seven one-touch button suite designed to offer various Internet utilities. Usha India: Usha India Limited plans to go online. Exporting already to over 20 destinations worldwide, Usha plans to expand its operations through e-commerce. The company will soon be launching an e-commerce site where its products will be made available to global customers. Phone mail: Delta Innovative Enterpises Limited on Tuesday launched in West Bengal its phone to phone messaging service through satellite mail, the first of its kind in the country, offering a fast and economic communication solution to the people. —
TNS, agencies |
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NEW DELHI, March 14 (UNI) — Gone are the days when airborne marriages made news. In keeping with the times Indians are now tying nuptial knots online. The Internet Users Club of India (IUCI) and VSNL have joined hands to provide the world internet audience a chance to witness a traditional Indian wedding complete with ‘pheras’ around the fire amid chanting of shlokas. The online marriage of
Mr Vijay Mukhi with Ms Sonal, to be performed tomorrow
evening, will not be just a video clipping of the
ceremony aired on the web but a live event happening on a
web-site, said a joint release issued by VSNL and IUCI,
which is headed by veteran actor and cyber-buff Shammi
Kapoor. |
Greed is
back — can’t wait to get rich quick LONDON, March 14 — In the go-go 1980s, greed was good. It just got even better. Put it down to millennium madness, but a new era of avarice is upon us and people can’t wait to get rich quick. Never mind that much of today’s wealth is on paper — or that wise old market watchers say it might stay there — virtual profits are dreams waiting to come true for today’s go-getters. Students set up business empires between lessons. Pensioners turn into day traders.City bonuses soar. Million-pound homes become mundane and the stock market dumps old industrial laggards for sexy new start-ups. Investors, entrepreneurs, children, gamblers and ageing wannabes are panting for profits, launching companies, buying into other peoples’ hopes and dreaming of instant retirement. “Help I haven’t launched a Dot-Com company,” said political commentator Anne Mcelvoy in exploring the so-called new economy. “Not having shares in an Internet dream factory is fast becoming a badge of incompetence or hermetic exclusion from the world.’’ In fact, you’re either in or you’re out. The feel-good factor that is driving net stocks higher, valuing flats as palaces and offering the promise of instant wealth without work is leaving lots of people feeling rotten. For every new millionaire — and estate agents say there are more and more out there — countless others missed the boat and are either scrambling to jump aboard or praying for an iceberg that will down the lot of them. Driving the “new economy’’ is the promise of Internet riches, and the people at the wheel are invariably young and fast. “They are brash, ambitious and very rich. They are the entrepreneurs, a new generation of virtual prospectors scrambling for territory in the greatest goldrush since the klondike,’’ said the Guardian Newspaper of the new net pioneers. Prime Minister Tony Blair, a self-confessed Net Neophyte, has pledged to make Britain the e-commerce hub of Europe, with his Labour Government making near daily announcements about Internet access, school computers and telephone charges. Every month, London’s first Tuesday group — a dating agency for the Internet — brings together ideas and money in the hope of sparking a love match. Guests are colour-coded (Green DoTs for ideas, red for cash) so time is not wasted on chatter. Copied from a US Model, it is Europe’s top internetworking event with a huge waiting list and decidedly Un-British feel. Online shopping in britain alone is predicted to top 16 billion this year, according to NOP researchers, as food, books and the stuff of daily life dances across our computer screens. But it is just the tip of the iceberg. This month, 27-year-old Martha Lane Fox and 31-year-old Brent Hoberman announced a $ 500 million flotation plan for lastminute.Com, their online shopping and travel site. From jungle to beenz to boo, all sorts of cutely-named start-ups are being valued for the mega-millions they might yet make, and established business can only look on with awe. Just last week, a rash of high-tech stocks ousted some old giants from Britain’s ftse 100 in the biggest shake-up of the blue-chip share index since its launch in 1982. Among the winners were the Internet service providers, Telecom Titans and Computer makers driving the boom. Losers were olde worlde firms with tangible assets: bricks, water and beer. The only problem is reality ruining the DoT-com hype. Many of the start-ups have no profits, few staff and little in the way of a business plan. They are riding on peoples’ hopes for the future — and their fear of being left out. “It’s the scale of IT, It’s the hype in the price that’s the problem,’’ said economist and writer Will Hutton. “You’re having a crazy situation where the real economy is being valued incredibly lowly by the stock market and the economy in the future, of 10, 20, 30 years out, is being valued fantastically highly. And that has real consequences for us now.’’ There is plenty of evidence that what goes up often comes down. The South sea bubble, the Dutch Tulip Fiasco and a host of stock market crashes have failed to deter the new prospectors. “When a company is valued more on hope than on expectation, then you can expect it to be a volatile stock,’’ Howard davies, head of the financial services authority (FSA), told BBC Radio. Davies says many of today’s wonders will fold. He insists it is not his aim to “burst the Internet bubble’’ but warns small investors teeming into the market: “There will be a lot of creative destruction in a new economy of this sort.’’ He is not the only party-pooper. “We’re probably at that extreme moment in time where we’ve got very heavy valuation on the technical stocks...And very severe under valuation on some of the more traditional stocks,’’ said Nicola Horlick, of SG Asset Management. “This cannot be sustained.’’ —
Reuters. |
Nasdaq sneezes, IT scrips catch cold MUMBAI, March 14 (PTI) — Led by HLL, economy stocks bounced back after initial resistance helping the sensex to stage a smart recovery from its early low on the BSE today on revival of buying support from speculators and others. FIIs and financial institutions led by UTI were seen picking up Indian stocks at their low while continuing offloading in the software and media stocks induced by a sharp setback in the Nasdaq index. Dealers were strongly optimistic of a turnaround with the sensex putting a resistance at the 5000-level as expected. Analysts anticipate a strong rally tomorrow onwards which could take the sensex up once again. NEW DELHI: Stock brokers said market regulator, SEBI’s decision to cut cash margins to 30 per cent from the proposed 50 per cent and roll back 5 per cent volatility margins mainly fuelled today’s buying spree, particularly in cyclical stocks. They said pharmaceutical segment stocks too evoked sizeable buying support mostly from domestic financial institutions and also reports that the government had decided to modify the drug policy to allow foreign investment up to 74 per cent from 51 per cent in bulk drug. “It seems that players are shifting their buying interest towards long neglected economy-linked, pharmaceutical and multinational company stocks”, said a DSE broker. CALCUTTA (UNI): Neither relaxation of some of the margins by SEBI yesterday, nor scattered institutional buying support could help improve the sagging sentiments. The closing undertone
was extremely weak as brokers were confused as to what
was attracting selling pressure. |
cr
Bajaj Auto declares 100% interim MUMBAI, March 14 (PTI) — The Board of Directors of Bajaj Auto Limited has decided to pay an interim dividend of 100 per cent (Rs 10 per share) for the year 1999-2000. The dividend will be paid to members who are on the company’s register as on April 13, 2000, a company statement said after the board meeting held in Pune today. In the second half of the financial year 2000-01, Bajaj is planning for commercial launch of “Pulsar”, a high-end four-stroke “super street” model along with the hi-chrome cruiser — the Eliminator, the top-end Kawasaki model from Bajaj. TCS, Technauts enter into tie-up MUMBAI, March 14 (PTI) — Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) today entered into an arrangement with US-based software provider Technauts for the development and launch of low-cost Internet appliances in India and other parts of Asia. The two partners are setting up an engineering centre for the purpose, and with the latter’s unique eServer software technology, they want to help the government, business and customers in India utilise full potential of the Internet simply and affordably, TCS and Technauts said in a joint statement here. Exide to pay 32 pc dividend CALCUTTA, March 14 (UNI) — Exide Industries Limited today announced an interim dividend of 32 per cent. Taking into account its satisfactory performance,the company is all set to continue its growth in the last quarter of the current financial year. “With the current Budget giving a boost to the infrastructure and automotive sectors, we anticipate steady growth in business in the foreseeable future.” said Chairman and Managing Director S.B. Ganguly. Vesuvius improves performance CALCUTTA, March 14 (UNI) — The Vesuvius group has acquired the Premier Refractories Incorporation of the USA at a cost of $ 140 million. Addressing the AGM here today, Chairman Jwahar Sengupta said Vesuvius India had improved its performance during the period ended on December 31. Its net profit was Rs 90.7 million after making higher provision for depreciation and payment of tax. The annualised EPS recorded at Rs 5.95 compared to Rs 5.48 during the corresponding period of last year. Maruti sets up driving school NEW DELHI, March 14
(UNI) — Maruti Udyog has set up an institute for
imparting training to drive all vehicles, ranging from
bi-wheelers to four-wheelers and heavy vehicles. The
institute, owned by the Delhi Government, has been set up
by Maruti with an investment of Rs 3 crore. The Institute
of Driver Training and Research will be inaugurated by
Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit on Thursday. |
bb
Bullion IFFCO Microsoft Daewoo camps Dividend |
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