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| Sunday, May 28, 2000, Chandigarh, India  
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J&K seeks
abolition of toll tax Microsoft postpones strategy forum, cites case
Confed to sell iodised salt Plan to renovate
Magpie Complex |
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Give incentives to
hydel projects Emergency fund for
Hyundai
From Ashok Kumar in Mumbai Good picks: Infy, Wipro & Zee WHEN I appeared for the first time on Bazaar, the live CNBC TV programme on the Indian
stock markets I remember a viewer coming on air live and seeking stock advice on MTNL. Its price then was Rs 300 plus and my immediate response was sell without waiting a moment. With what I perceive as probably the worst service efficiency level, this state run monopoly is a classic case-study on how not to treat consumers. A recent rain, admittedly a heavy one, has caused numerous connectivity problems across Mumbai for an estimated 50,000 subscribers, and what does MTNL do? Well, the cable beams a jolly message — please bear with us! Wonder if the johnnies at MTNL will bear with non-payment of their bills, which, in my opinion, given their service efficiency level, should be nil. What I find positively hilarious is the fact that these blokes are seriously contemplating getting into the cellular phones segment. Perhaps it may create history as the first cellular service asking subscribers to bear with its efficiency (?) — so what if its at Rs 2 per minute. My personal take on this issue is that if MTNL’s cellular service somehow takes off, the biggest casualty will be its regular telephony service. And to think, it planned an ADR issue. God, save the Yanks! On second thoughts, considering that the FIIs once had a great penchant for this stock, we Indians, might be the ones saved! Contrast MTNL with another relative monopolistic player in the telecom segment and one will realise that VSNL and MTNL are as different as chalk and cheese. VSNL is the public sector telecom giant of the industry. The company has a monopoly on all calls made in and out of the country till 2004. It has introduced several services like leased lines e-mail, Internet, vides
conferencing and frame relay. It was rated among the top 20 provides of leased lines internationally in a user
survey in Data Communications in May 1997. The company has planned a series of expansion plans, including the setting up of international gateways at all four metros, 14 satellite earth stations and there under sea cables. It has also undertaken a 4600 km fibre optic undersea cable system fibre optic link about the globe (Flag) gateway expansions metro switch commissioning etc. VSNL is planning a direct to home service platform for Indian satellite channels, has tied-up with Comsat Telstra TMI and USA Sprint. As long as VSNL continues to be free of a competitor on the domestic front, its future prospects appear secure. The same, however, cannot be said about MTNL. Finally, I have been inundated with calls and e-mails from friends and clients alike seeking an opinion on whether the market has bottomed out. My take here is that the market is a bottomless one, and when things turns sour nothing can reverse a downswing. Having said that, I would start putting my money into topline stocks like Infy, Wipro, Zee and HLL now as I expect a revival of sorts to materialise sooner rather than later.
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J&K seeks
abolition of toll tax JAMMU, May 27 (PTI) — Jammu and Kashmir Government has sought abolition of toll tax being charged by the Himachal Pradesh Government on fruit and other goods originating from Jammu and Kashmir and passing through Himachal Pradesh. This plea was raised by the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary, Ashok Jaitly today while participating in the 12th meeting of the standing committee of the Northern Zonal Council at Shimla. In the meeting, many important issues that have an inter-State bearing were discussed. These include laying of a double circuit 220 KV transmission line between Shahpur Kandi and Thein and re-alignment of Lakhanpur-Basohli stretch of Dhar-Udhampur road.
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Microsoft postpones strategy forum, cites case SEATTLE, May 27 (Reuters) — Microsoft Corp yesterday said that it was postponing a long-awaited unveiling of its new strategic roadmap next week so IT wouldn’t be overshadowed by an expected court decree in the US Government’s anti-trust case against the software giant. The event, to be hosted at Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Wash., was pushed back three weeks, from next Thursday’s planned date to June 22, Microsoft spokesman Rick Miller said. The sudden change of plans provides one of the clearest signs yet of how the anti-trust case has disrupted business as usual at the company. “They’re just trying to contain the bad news and not let it interfere with the good news. When you’re making a big splash ... you kind of want it to be a positive event,” said Scott Mcadams, President of Seattle-based brokerage Mcadams Wright Ragen. The delay was due to indications that the judge in the case, Thomas Penfield Jackson, would issue a final decree next week, Microsoft’s public relations agency, Waggener Edstrom, said in an e-mail to reporters. The decision to delay was made as the Department of Justice on Friday filed the final draft of its plan to split Microsoft in two for breaking anti-trust law. Microsoft will file comments on the remedy on Wednesday, and a spokesman said that it is clear the case is about to move to the appeals process. Shares in Microsoft, which traded as high as 62-15/16 during the day, fell on the legal developments and event delay, ending down 1/16 at 71-7/16. Miller called the upcoming event, dubbed Forum 2000, “the most important strategy event for Microsoft in the last five years. We’re very excited about what we have to tell and want to make sure our message comes through loud and clear.” The new strategy moves were expected to showcase Chairman Bill Gates’s handiwork since he stepped down as Chief Executive and took up his new job as “Chief Software Architect’’ at the start of the year. Gates was to talk about Microsoft’s “next generation windows services” project to move parts of its windows operating system and other software away from the desktop computer to the Internet. Mcadams said while the actual launch of such services was more than a year away, Microsoft might also be wary of revealing its battle plans for the Internet age just before the court rules on the company’s fate. “There is an aspect, which is probably secondary, that this product that they are rolling out is going to reflect their continued competitive posture,” Mcadams said. “I don’t think they particularly want to have these announcements further calcify the Judge’s opinion against them. The Judge is grasping at anything he can to use against these guys,” Mcadams said. The trial suddenly shifted into high gear earlier this week, at what Microsoft lawyers expected to be the first of many routine hearings. Jackson instead laid out a swift schedule to determine a final remedy. Jackson ruled last month that Microsoft Corp. broke the law by abusing its monopoly power in windows operating systems to illegally harm rivals and strong-arm customers. The government proposal would split Microsoft into one company that manufactures operating systems and a second that makes everything else such as its office package of business software and the Internet explorer web browser that was at the heart of the case. Microsoft has insisted it did nothing illegal and has vowed to appeal the Judge’s decision, a process that analysts say could take months to years.
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Rupee is expected to stabilise: Sinha NEW DELHI, May 27 (UNI) — Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha today expressed the hope that the volatile Indian rupee will stabilise in the near future with the Ministry taking certain measures to contain movements in the rupee. Describing the recent fluctuations in the exchange rate market as a “temporary phenomena,’’ he told UNI that it was the effect of the 50 point increase in the interest rate by the United States. Mr Sinha said the rupee had appreciated by 4 per cent against the pound sterling as well as some other currencies such as Euro. The RBI has already announced some measures that had resulted in stabilisation in the exchange rate of rupee. |
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Confed to sell iodised salt CHANDIGARH, May 27 — The Haryana Government today decided to extend the scheme of distribution of iodised salt throughout the state from June next. Earlier, iodised salt was sold on experimental basis in the four districts of Faridabad, Gurgaon, Sonepat and Panipat. A press note issued by the government said Confed had been entrusted the responsibility of lifting and distributing approximately 3000 to 4000 metric tonnes of iodised salt per month in the State. It would purchase refined iodised salt ‘Surpurti Brand’ conforming to PFA specifications from Delhi State Civil Supplies Corporation for distribution through cooperative stores and fair price shops at the rate of Rs 4 per kg. The rate of iodised salt in the open market ranges between Rs 6.50 and Rs 7 per kg. The press note adds the Haryana
Government plans to distribute iodised salt throughout
the State, through public fair price shops so that it
reaches urban slums and remote rural areas as per the
directions of the Central Government. The Food and
Supplies Department has directed the fair price shop
holders to lift one kg iodised salt per ration-card per
month attached to the fair price shops. The idea of
introduction of iodised salt is to provide good quality
salt at reasonable rates to the people. |
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Plan to renovate
Magpie Complex FARIDABAD, May 27 — Haryana Tourism Development Corporation has chalked out an ambitious Rs 4 crore plan to renovate and expand its Magpie Complex located on the Delhi-Agra national highway in Faridabad. Stating this here today Mr S P Jain, Senior Divisional Manager, told TNS that after the completion of the works by November it would be able to attract more guests from Delhi and the industrial metropolis of Haryana. The works envisage a
discothèque-rum family restaurant with a capacity of 250 persons, health club with a gymnasium having the latest equipment and a mini swimming pool for children. One banquet hall with a capacity of 400 persons would be added to the complex. Similarly renovation works are also being undertaken in Badhkal Lake Motel and Rajhans hotel in Surajkund. Mr Rajan Gupta, MD of the Corporation, who held a meeting of the Divisional Managers at Badhkal asked them to be guest oriented and they must be satisfied.
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Give incentives to
hydel projects SHIMLA, May 27 — The PHDCCI has urged the Centre and States to abolish the procedure of obtaining a number of clearances from various departments for construction of hydro-electric projects which are being delayed because of the system. This suggestion was made at a meeting of the PHDCCI with Chief Secretaries and senior officers of various State Governments here today. The State Government should offer projects to the private sector off the shelf after feasibility studies. In case of projects based on competitive bidding and handled by the States, no clearances should be required from the Centre or the Central Electricity Authority (CEA). The government will have to allow certain incentives in case hydel power was to be promoted. A special rate of interest for such projects could be worked out. Those present at the meeting were Mr A.K. Goswami, Chief Secretary, Himachal Pradesh, Mr R.S. Verma, Chief Secretary, Haryana, Mrs Asha Swaroop, Chairperson, HPSEB, Mr G.S. Sohal, Chairman, PSEB, Mrs Meenakshi Chandra, Chairperson, HSEB, Mr C.L. Bains, Financial Commissioner, Punjab and Mr M.K. Roy, Commissioner, Industries, Madhya Pradesh. |
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SEOUL, May 27 (AP) — More South Korean banks began injecting emergency funds into a cash-strapped subsidiary of Hyundai, the country’s largest conglomerate, today as the country moved to dispel fears of a possible financial crisis. Korea Exchange Bank, Hyundai’s main creditor bank, said it extended a $ 45 million emergency loan to Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co., South Korea’s number one construction company. Three other credit banks — Hanvit, Chohung, and Housing and Commercial Bank of Korea — said Saturday they will also each funnel $ 45 million to the Hyundai subsidiary.
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by Praful R. Desai Family pension Q: Children born to
woman living with the deceased since three decades, while
first wife was living, were entitled to share family
pension? Ans: This point was discussed by the S.C. in
Rameshwari Devi v State of Bihar (2000-I-LIJ-1087) and
opined thus: The first wife was before the SC. Her
husband was a Government servant in the services of State
of Bihar. The first wife is challenging the judgement of
a Single Judge of the HC, which was later confirmed by
the Division Bench in an appeal by the present
appellant. Virtually the HC held that children born to
the said Government through a second wife were entitled
to share the family pension and death-cum-retirement
gratuity and the family pension would be admissible to
the minor children only till they attained majority. The
appellant — first wife’s objections were that
the marriage with the second wife had not been proved and
that consequently the children of the second wife would
not be legitimate U/s. 16 of the Hindu Marriage Act. The
SC observed that when there were two claimants to
pensionary benefits, the State Government had to hold an
enquiry as to the rightful claimant. In the present case,
an enquiry was held and the result was that the deceased
Government servant and the alleged second wife were found
to have lived as husband and wife since 1963. A
presumption did therefore arise that the second marriage
was in accordance with Hindu rites. This presumption, the
appellant had been unable to upset. Moreover, in the
opinion of the SC U/s. 16 of the Hindu Succession Act,
1956, the children of a void marriage were legitimate.
Hence, though the second marriage was void U/s. 5(1) of
the Hindu Marriage Act, son born of that marriage were
the legitimate sons of the deceased Government Servant
and would be entitled to his property for equal shares
along with the appellant. On these facts of the case,
the SC concluded that there was no error in the impugned
order and thus dismissed the appeal. |
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by K.R. Wadhwaney BA plans merger with KLM Dutch UNITED Airlines, which
had suspended operations ex-India because of
‘economic considerations’ about two years ago,
would resume round-the world service from April 1, 2001.
Only Pan Am had round-the-world service decades ago. UA
will be the only airline to offer single carrier service
around the globe. The flight will touch Washington DC,
Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Delhi, London and will cover
19705 miles. UA officials now feel that India is ready
to offer substantial business for the airline to resume
operations. “There is the robust growth of the
market to India and growing customer service in Delhi for
access to the US, Europe and Asia”, according to UA
officials. “No other airline in the world can match
the wherewithal of United Airlines”, said Stuart
Oran, senior Vice-President-International, adding:
“We are in the unique position of being the only
carrier that ties India to the US from both east and
west, London and Hong Kong”. According to Oran,
service to Delhi is strategically important to United,
and the airline is seeking to capitalise on strong demand
from a market that is under-served. The Boeing 747-400
will comprise three classes — first 14, business 84
and economy 270. United is the largest airline and
operates 2400 flights each day. A founder-member of Star
Alliance, it is optimistic of making a success of
operations ex-Delhi in 2001. United has also introduced
web site that gives travellers the opportunity to print
an E-Ticket receipt online and download flight schedules
to their own computers so that they use them when
Internet access is not available. Take over
talks:
KLM
officials painted different picture. They observed that
the reports were ‘rumours’ more than factual.
Previous talks over merger between BA and KLM had failed
in 1992. BA made another attempt for merger but again
failed. Maybe, KLM will join Alitalia instead of BA. The
picture at present is hazy but BA is optimistic of taking
over KLM. Next 2-3 months will reveal whether KLM
continues as such or it is a part of BA. Package
holiday:
The airline offers further facility. The
ticket, through Citibank and Charter can be bought on
instalments of Rs 666, according to the outgoing chairman
and managing director Anil Baijal. Abart from
‘Flyaways’ on foreign routes, IA has also
started similar scheme on domestic sectors, like, to
Kerala, Bangalore and Goa. The airline has started
several other schemes to woo passengers. Promotional
schemes will help increase the size of the market in the
lean season. Indian Airlines is planning to buy leased
aircraft to expand its operations. The aircraft — 11
A-300s and 12 B-737s — are expected to be replaced.
The decision will be taken before August and talks with
manufacturers and engine manufacturers are at advance
stage. Multi-Airline Agency:
In all there
will be 11 airline hand-in-hand to offer travellers
excess to updated fare information and also lowest fares
on various routes. Air France and Lufthansa will be part
of this scheme.
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by A.K. Sachdeva Q: We are registered as a dealer under the provisions of the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 and the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. We have procured from a foreign buyer a supply order for the supply of readymade garments. What benefit of tax can be availed of for purchase and export of the material out of the territory of India? We are given to understand that no tax liability arises in respect of these kinds of transactions. Kindly advise in the matter with detailed procedure for effecting purchases from within the State as well as in the course of inter-State trade or commerce. — A.K. Gupta Ans: If you want to buy
ready-made garments from within the State of Haryana for
the purpose of export out of the territory of India, you
will not have to pay tax to the seller provided a form
ST-15A is issued to him declaring that the goods are
intended to be sold in the course of export. On the other
hand, if you intend to make purchases of the ready-made
garments in the course of inter-State trade or commerce,
you will be required to issue to the seller form
‘H’ as provided in the Central Sales Tax Act,
1956 so that tax liability does not fall on the
transaction. In addition to these forms, you will also be
required to furnish proof of the goods having been
eventually exported out of India after obtaining the same
from the exporter. Under these circumstances no tax
liability either under the Haryana General Sales Tax Act,
1973 or the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 arises. Q: Last
month we booked a consignment of goods for being carried
from Delhi to Punjab. While the goods were passing
through the State of Haryana, these were intercepted and
subsequently seized by an Excise and Taxation Officer
(Enforcement) on the ground that the documents produced
at the time of the checking are not proper and genuine.
Kindly advise if the detention of goods is permissible
when no sale or purchase in Haryana is involved? —
Rupinder Singh, Batala Ans: The jurisdiction of the
sales tax authorities functioning in the State of Haryana
is restricted to verify only those transactions where
evasion of sales tax under the Haryana General Sales Tax
Act, 1973 is suspected. It is not that when the goods are
simply passing through the State of Haryana the
authorities are competent to take recourse to checking
and detention of the goods. Under sub-section (5) of
section 37 of the Act ibid detention becomes permissible
only if the checking officer finds either that the goods
are not covered by documents or that the person
transporting the goods is attempting to evade the tax due
under the Act. In the absence of these grounds a checking
officer cannot proceed to detain the goods on the ground
that the goods are not covered by proper and genuine
documents. It may also be clarified that the satisfaction
regarding evasion of tax under the Haryana General Sales
Tax Act, 1973 has to be arrived at objectively on the
basis of some evidence. Moreover reasons are required to
be recorded as to how the evasion of tax is involved
before invoking the provisions of sub-section (5) of
section 37. Q: What is the rate of tax on the sale of
tea and coffee under the Haryana General Sales Tax Act,
1973? — Suresh Sharma Ans: Tea and coffee attract
8 per cent sales tax under the existing provisions of
law. |
co
by Pushpa Girimaji Hospital cotton lands in pillows, mattresses FIRST came reports of not just syringes, but also used intravenous transfusion sets from hospitals being ploughed back into circulation. The news certainly made one shudder at the consequences of such action, but a report that followed could well give one sleepless nights. Apparently, there is more to recycling of hospital wastes than meets the eye. And so what else is being reused? Cotton that is discarded by hospitals after use! And where is this cotton going? Into mattresses, pillows and cushions, of course! This dreadful bit of information also highlights the vulnerability of consumers when it comes to buying mattresses. Whether it’s filled with cotton, latex or coir, since a consumer has no way of determining the quality of a mattress from its cover, mattress makers find it easy to sell substandard stuff. Imitations of popular brands are not rare either. That’s how Mr S.P. Taneja, a resident of Delhi got a bad deal when he bought a pair of coir mattress. He was promised that the mattress was of excellent quality, but within a week of usage, the mattress had lost its shape and was sagging. When the retailer refused to replace it or refund the money, Mr Taneja was forced to go to the consumer court to get back his money and compensation for all the inconvenience and harassment suffered. Experts at the Bureau of Indian Standards say that such sagging or lack of elasticity or spring action of the mattress could be due to the poor quality or inadequate quantity of rubber used or improper bonding of rubber with coir. Similarly, in the case of latex mattresses, if the manufacturer cheats on the quantity or the quality of rubber used, then the mattress tends to get brittle and then in a year or two, there could be cracks and the mattress may also break into pieces. Similarly, lack of quality control in the manufacturing process could reduce the shelf life of the final product. Improper usage and storage are also important factors that effect the life of the mattress. Very humid conditions, water, tea or coffee falling on the mattress, etc, can certainly lead to deterioration of the product. Given these problems associated with quality, a certification from an independent third party, like the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certainly helps the consumer make the right choice. Besides ensuring the quality of the product, an ISI certification also provides for redress of consumer complaint pertaining to quality. At present 29 manufacturers of latex foam rubber products and 19 manufacturers of rubberised coir sheets have the authority from the BIS to use its ISI quality seal. In other words, you can look for the ISI mark when you buy rubber or coir mattresses. The mattresses come in four grades: soft, medium, firm and extra firm ( for coir) and soft, medium, hard and extra hard in case of rubber. The ISI standard for rubberised coir sheets for example, says that they should be manufactured using unretted coir fibre, which is mechanically extracted and curled to effectively utilise the resiliency of the fibre material. And the fibres should be bonded to each other by vulcanised rubber to keep them in position, utilising rubber latex containing compounding ingredients of such nature and quality that the finished product complies with the requirements of the IS specification. The sheets should be resilient in nature and have a porous structure. Similarly, for latex foam rubber mattress, made directly from liquid latex, the Standard says that all the cells in the cellular rubber should be intercommunicating, having a vulcanised cellular structure with a porous surface. The cells should be uniform. The Standards specify not only the quality, but also the various tests required to ensure this. However,
like imitation brand names, mattresses with spurious ISI
mark are also in the market and so one needs to ensure
that the ISI marks is genuine. In fact in the last one
year, the BIS officials have raided three manufacturers
in Delhi for using the ISI quality seal without
authorisation. So check for the ISI mark on the mattress
and not on the packing material or the plastic covering
it. And just above the ISI monogram, you will see the IS
number. The mattress should also carry either just below
the ISI mark or somewhere near it, the licence number
given by the BIS. And watch out for signs that say
“inside ISI mattress” or “conforming to
ISI specification” or “As per ISI” or
“ISI specification” or just “ISI”
without the IS number on top. These are fake quality
seals. You can also get from any of the BIS offices, the
list of manufacturers who have been given the license to
use the ISI quality seal. And whenever you buy a
mattress, get a receipt and ensure that the dealer
specifies that he has sold a product with the ISI quality
seal. |
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Asian Paints Guj Amb Cements MTNL BSES
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SBI trophies Prestige Honda Dev
Samaj web Prize cheques
J.L. Morison RCF gets award R.B. Sardana BoB dividend |
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