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| Thursday, October 19, 2000, Chandigarh, India   
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Foreign equity in print media not ruled out Exports likely to
cross 18 pc target What IT Act means
for average Indian Trygen to hive off
eVectors More US visas for hi-tech Indians Himachal to
give banks more teeth |
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Executives embrace shorter work culture
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Foreign equity in print media not ruled out NEW DELHI, Oct 18 — The government said today that it was considering allowing of foreign equity in print media keeping in view the changing information scenario. It, however, said it would take due caution before taking any decision on the issue. “I have not said we are not allowing or allowing. This is under consideration,” Information and Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj said while addressing the economic Editors’s conference here. Asked whether this meant that the government was re-considering its earlier stand to abide by the Union Cabinet Resolution of 1955 barring entry of foreign print media, Ms Swaraj said several changes had taken place since then. These included the advent of the Internet and other modern communication tools. The Minister prefaced her remark by saying all sectors could not be treated by the same yardstick when it came to opening up and “we are not in a blind race”. She said countries, which had allowed foreign print media, had been extremely cautious while dealing with the issue and emphasised that it has to be seen as to what extent doors can be opened for it in India. The convergence of information, telecom and entertainment (ICE) was unavoidable and it was not viable to have different regulators for the three fields. The Group of Ministers (GoM) studying the two, ICE and Direct-to-Home (DTH) were expected to finalise their views shortly. Regarding DTH television, she said a decision was likely to be taken within 15 days. The GoM studying the issue was expected to meet on October 29. The GoM studying the ICE is likely to meet tomorrow. Ms Swaraj said the entire scenario was changing and convergence was taking place at two levels: infrastructure with computers being used for Internet and entertainment, and within the entertainment industry itself which was now using different media technologies. But this meant new challenges like cable piracy and obscenity and the government had, therefore, taken steps like the recent amendment of the Cable TV Networks (Regulation) Act, and steps to check obscenity on the media in the uplinking and other policies. While there would be convergence of technologies, there was no need to merge the Ministries of I and B, Communications and Information Technology as the government is a single unit. Similarly, none of the existing legislation like the Information Technology Act will not become redundant, and proper changes will have to be made wherever there are clashing provisions. Ms Swaraj announced that a 24-hour North-Eastern channel would be launched on December 23 from Guwahati on the lines of the Kashmir channel in Jammu and Kashmir. Ms Swaraj said in reply to a question that security clearances had been received with regard to 28 of the 29 parties which successfully bid for 101 FM radio channels in 40 cities early this year. Of these, the bank guarantee amounting to about Rs 100 crore had already been submitted for 15 cities. Reiterating that the FM channels would have 100 per cent Indian equity, she agreed to examine the case of possible ‘backdoor’ entry by foreign channels by typing up with the allottees. She said that there was no change in the deadline for setting up the channels within a year of getting the frequency clearance from the Wireless Planning and Coordination Cell (WPC) — latest by the end of 2001. There had only been a relaxation of 15 days till October 30 for submitting the bank guarantees. The uplinking policy had been liberalised in three phases: first permitting only Indian channels, later those with 80 per cent equity, and now to all. News agencies had for the first time been given permission to set up uplinking hubs. The government was still studying the report of the Geethakrishnan Committee which had recommended closure of certain wings of the I and B Ministry to cut expenditures. |
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Exports likely to
cross 18 pc target NEW DELHI, Oct 18 — The Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Mr Murasoli Maran, today said that India’s exports during the current financial year 2000-2001 was likely to exceed the target of 18 per cent. Addressing the Economic Editors’ Conference, Mr Maran said that the current year’s growth as also the export turnaround witnessed in 1999-2000 could be attributed not only to external factors like the South East Asian recovery and the revival of global demand but also to the series of policy initiatives taken to effect procedural simplifications and to sustain a high-level of performance through sector-specific initiatives. On sectoral performance, Mr Maran referred in particular the success of the Indian dairy sector which had shown a phenomenal export growth in the current year so far. Besides, exports of agricultural products had also gone up during April-August as against corresponding period during last year. Mr Maran announced that the balance of Government notifications for setting up Special Economic Zones (SEZs) were being issued today by the Ministry of Finance (CBEC), providing for a customs framework free of controls and said that the zones together with the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy recently announced for SEZs would act as “magnets for investments for export production from home and abroad”. He further announced that the 3 existing export processing zones (EPZs) at Mumbai, Cochin and Kandla and a private EPZ of Surat would be converted into SEZs with effect from November 1, 2000 in order to give a fillip to the units in these zones. Stating that many state governments and the private sector were working hard to establish these zones, the minister said that in principle approvals for setting up of seven SEZs had already been granted. Emphasising that exports should be viewed as a national effort, Mr Maran stated that the government had evolved a scheme for involving the state/UT governments by providing financial assistance proportionate to the export efforts for which an allocation of Rs 250 crore had already been proposed in the current year. On industrial growth, Mr Maran said that the moderate deceleration in the current year (April-August 2000) was a temporary phenomenon and a pick up in industrial growth was expected later this year with increased domestic demand, buoyant exports and rise in investment. He announced that the new Industries Act would soon be put in place replacing the existing Act which would reflect the new realities in the wake of economic liberalisation. The new Act would focus on development and decentralisation, the minister said. Referring to FDI, the Minister said that FDI inflows were likely to reach $ 5 billion in this calendar year. |
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What IT Act means
for average Indian NEW
DELHI: Electronic marriages may take some more time yet, but divorces can certainly be filed on the basis of e-mails as evidence with the implementation of the Information Technology (IT) Act from Wednesday. That’s only one of the benefits of the IT Act, which is expected to usher in a new cyber law regime in India, with its promise of saving time, energy and costs. Experts say it is a giant leap ahead for the Indian legal system. Noted cyber law expert Pavan Duggal says traditional wedding ceremonies can be performed electronically, but the actual “contract” — if a marriage be treated as one — and the electronic filing of marriage applications can be legal only after the system of digital signatures comes into place. Electronic documents will be acceptable modes by which evidence can be tendered in a court of law. Which means copies of an “e-mail,” a “text file,” a “Web page,” an “audio clipping” or a “video clipping” can be produced by lawyers to make a case for their clients. In authenticating any such document, “digital signature certificates” may be produced or an independent person may be asked to apply a “public key” to verify whether the document can be ascribed to him. Parties in a divorce case may produce copies of e-mail as evidence. |
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Trygen to
hive off eVectors NEW DELHI, Oct 18 (PTI) — Trygen Technologies said today that it would soon spin off its “eVector” product into a separate company and is negotiating with various venture capital firms to raise $ 10 million for this venture. We are talking to various VC funds for raising $ 10 million and Trygen will offload a minority stake in the venture. The new company is expected to be launched in November,” President and CEO of Trygen Suresh Rajpal said here. He, however, declined to disclose further details about the new company. Meanwhile, Trygen has entered into an agreement with Egility Ltd of Australia for marketing “eVector” and other electronic business solutions in the Australia and New Zealand regions. “The eVector platform can enhance access to any information on multiple devices like mobile phones, personal digital assistance, the Internet and digital TV. It will help organisations to achieve time-to-market advantage in launching mobile services,” Mr Rajpal said. Autralian Minister for Trade Mark Vaile said: “India’s strength as an IT powerhouse has been recognised internationally. With bilateral trade touching $ 2.5 billion and current investment by Australian companies in India of about $700 million, Australia is committed to further strengthen ties with India”. |
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More US visas for hi-tech Indians WASHINGTON, Oct 18 — President Bill Clinton yesterday signed into law legislation increasing the number of visas available for skilled foreign workers, handing a victory to high-tech companies desperate for computer-savvy employees. Overwhelmingly approved by Congress earlier this month, the new law will increase the number of H-1B temporary visas available for high-tech workers from India and other countries and double the fee charged employers using the programme. Despite strong support, the legislation got caught up in election-year politics and efforts to woo Hispanic voters. But technology companies, facing a severe shortage of applicants with the skills they need, made passage of the H-1B legislation a top priority and put pressure on lawmakers to act. “My administration has made clear that any increase in H-1B visas should be temporary and limited in number, that the fee charged to employers using the programme should be increased significantly and that the majority of the funds generated by the fee must go to the Department of Labour to fund training for US workers seeking the necessary skills for these jobs,’’ Mr Clinton said in a statement. “This legislation does those things.’’ Still, the White House expressed disappointment that the Bill did not include broader immigration amendments to grant amnesty to some long-term illegal aliens and to address the legal status of immigrants from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Haiti and Liberia. The new law will raise the number of visas available for highly skilled workers to 195,000 per year for the next three years. Without the increase, the number of visas available annually under the current law will fall to 65,000 from the 115,000 that were available in 2000, a figure reach in March. The legislation will allow visa requests filed before September 1 to be counted toward 2000 so that 195,000 visas will be available for the fiscal 2001, which began on October 1. It will also provide more money, to be funded by higher visa application fees, to help with job training and education programmes to improve the skills of American workers. Under the new law, the fee charged to employers using the H-1B programme will increase to $ 1,000 per visa from $ 500. In the fiscal 2001 alone, this will generate an estimated $ 170 million in additional funds, the White House said. Democratic efforts to add broader immigration measures to the visa Bill were thwarted in the Senate by Republicans who accused the minority party of playing election-year politics with the issue. Mr Clinton urged the Republicans to rethink their opposition. “We need to meet the needs of the high-tech industry by raising the number of visas for temporary high-tech workers. But we also must ensure fairness for immigrants who have been in this country for years, working hard and paying taxes,’’ he said. |
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Himachal to
give banks more teeth SHIMLA, Oct 18 — In a step towards providing teeth to the commercial banks for recovering loans, the Himachal Pradesh Government has decided to bring in legislation in the next Assembly session. Disclosing this at a State Level Bankers Committee meeting here today, the Additional Chief Secretary, Mr Harsh Gupta, that the legislation will help bankers recover their outstanding loans. Various banks have disbursed loans amounting Rs 156 crore in the first quarter under the annual credit plan against the annual target of Rs 616.36 crore. Mr V.P. Shetty, Chairman and Managing Director of the United Commercial Bank, gave a brief resume of the activities of the bank. |
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Executives embrace shorter work culture LONDON: It is an approach that is growing in popularity among those making decisions of a slightly less life-or-death nature. Peter Ellwood, Chief Executive of the Lloyds TSB finance group, is strict with himself. “I do go to the gym a couple of times a week, so often don’t get in until about 9am. When I don’t have an evening meal I usually finish at about 7pm,’’ he says. “I certainly take all my holiday, and I certainly think weekend activities are sacred. It’s a state of mind, of saying to yourself and your staff: `Look, if we’re not careful we’ll spend all our lives working.’ Working 20 hours a day, seven days a week is not a macho thing to do. You can’t be efficient that way. Long hours does not equal effective hours: quite the reverse.’’ Fellow banker Gerry McGinn, head of the Bank of Ireland’s operations in Northern Ireland and Britain, is rarely to be found working beyond 6pm. “Sports days and school reports and school plays are sacrosanct,’’ he claims. “The personal things go into my diary as well as the business things, and once they’re in the diary I commit to them in the same way as I would to a business commitment.’’ He may start early, but his early evening cut-off time ensures he is home in time to see his three sons before bedtime. A recent report by the National Work-Life Forum in the UK argued that support from the top is one of the most powerful forces for changing attitudes and perceptions to the way people work: leading by example and arguing for a do-as-I-do policy is much more likely to instil limits on a workforce than mere rhetoric. Yet if chief executives manage to get by through delegation and detail-avoidance, surely there will be a trickle-down effect for the minions whose desks are then piled with a bigger workload? That was the fate of Richard Edelman’s colleagues at Edelman Public Relations Worldwide in America. When Edelman himself boasted to the Washington Post of his lack of overtime work, his comments were later checked by his Vice-President Bob Ambrose, who came forward to say he got up at 3am in order to read newspapers and answer e-mails for his boss. “Because I am here, I can take some of the pressure off,’’ he told the paper. Ultimately, the newly-fashionable short day is an option only for the elite, according to clinical psychologist Oliver James. ``For the sort of group that are in the culture of contentment — the top two-thirds — it’s absolutely an option to be much less driven and to be more concerned to make the most of the fantastic affluence that they enjoy,’’ he says. Stress-management consultant, Judi James, is similarly unimpressed by managers who make an early exit. “Obviously our bosses should be role models — but to see a person who has landed you with a bulk of work skulk off early to play golf is going to stick in your throat a bit,’’ she says. “The British worker is prepared to put up with a lot if they think everyone else is suffering, but if they get the impression someone else is having an easier ride it doesn’t go down well at all.’’ Early evenings can quickly become co-opted into the hierarchy of perks. “For much of the 80s, the more elevated position you kept, the less work you seemed to do,’’ says Richard Reeves, Director of Futures at the Industrial Society. “Obviously, that’s not what we want. But equally we don’t want this clocking on, clocking off mentality of strict office hours that was borne out of the days of factory working”. In a recent survey of British employees, 50 per cent said they wanted to choose what hours they worked, compared to 20 per cent that wanted to do a fixed day. At Lloyds TSB, a flexible working package has been introduced with a compressed hours scheme to reduced the length and number of working days: 18 per cent of management are already taking advantage of it. Choice may be the byword for future years, but workers who put in long hours are unlikely to change their patterns. “The simple fact is that people who work the longest hours enjoy their jobs most,’’ says Reeves. |
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Himachal to develop connectivity links CHANDIGARH, Oct 18 (PTI) — The 60-km-long Shimla-Parwanoo corridor will be equipped with high speed data connectivity as part of Himachal Pradesh’s Information Technology (IT) policy. This was announced today by Mr A.K. Goswami, Himachal Chief Secretary at Parwanoo while addressing a PHDCCI gathering. Within three months the IT backbone infrastructure for high speed data transmission will be provided up to a radius of 25 sq km of Shimla and 40,000 sq feet space has been identified for potential entrepreneurs to set up shop, he said. Simultaneously, the Kangra-Dharamsala belt is proposed to be developed as the second IT corridor. He invited private investment in mini and micro hydropower projects for which 100 sites have been identified. All obstacles will be removed to facilitate investment including sanction of land so that the projects take off the ground within a period of one year. He announced the setting up of a three-member State Power Regulatory Commission by the end of December. The commission would regulate tariff, approve power purchase agreement between private power developers and the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board (HPSEB), he said. Rly stations to have information kiosks NEW
DELHI, Oct 18 — Multi-media information kiosks providing all possible information about the Railways will be set up in Chandigarh and other parts of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal by this year end. “The touch screen based kiosks, with multiple language options, would provide information about fares, rules and regulations, facilities and passenger amenities, city information, popular tourist locations, maps and STD codes,” said Mr Amar Shah, Director of Tarini Interactive System. The Railways has asked the company to set up such kiosks across the country. Talking to The Tribune, he said: “The kiosks would be installed in all major stations in the region. Railway stations in Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Shimla and Kalka are among the stations would be covered first.” Mr Dilip Chabria, another Director in the company, said “the kiosks is an attempt to bring technology to the door-step of the common man and authentic railway information would be available free of charge.” Giving an example of refund, he said the Railways has several types of refund options and number of formalities and documents have to be given for claiming the refund. “With these touch screen button, the passengers can avail of the information and can claim refund without much hassle and save time,” he said. The kiosks is expected to be connected to the Railnet within the next six months, he said, adding that “the passengers would then be able to book their tickets from these kiosks, know their reservation, waiting list position and other details.” “Other information like interactive maps, best restaurants, booking hotel rooms from these kiosks, print out of the information present in the screen and other such facilities would be added on the system in the coming months,” he added. “At present, the system supports English, Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati. However, it would soon have information in Punjabi, Bangla, Tamil, Telegu and other languages,” he said. While the kiosks will be provided free of cost to the railways for the benefit of the passengers, the company will derive its revenue from the advertisements on the kiosks. The kiosks made out of mild steel, weighs about 200 kg and have inbuilt intelligent electricity circuit which prevents any surge from harming the system and maintaining proper supply to the system, and the touch screen have been imported from the USA. In the country on a daily average, the Railways carry a passenger load that equals the population of Australia. Over 7,500 passenger trains stop at over 10,000 stations across the country. |
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