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| Monday, December 4, 2000, Chandigarh, India   
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Punjab may still miss Plan target
Online flower auction soon
Pepsi-style contract farming is needed Why should one visit Agro Tech?
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Consumer information centres proposed
Cement share prices likely to fall
Indian executive lands in the French
dock Addicted to
phone chatlines
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Punjab may still miss Plan target CHANDIGARH: Although Punjab’s sales tax revenue, the state’s main source of income, is set to go up by around Rs 800 crore this year, the cash-strapped state may not be able to implement even its scaled-down 2000-01 Plan of Rs 2,426 crore. Latest tax receipt data show that the income from sales tax during the first half of the current financial year was over Rs 1,635 crore, an increase of over Rs 461 crore over last year’s corresponding figure of Rs 1,174 crore. Official sources are optimistic that the trend of 40 per cent increase in the tax income would continue in the second half, and the total revenue from sales tax by the end of the year would be around Rs 2800 crore as against last year’s Rs 1982 crore. Of the expected Rs 800 crore increase, Rs 500 crore is likely to accrue from the introduction of uniform rates of sales tax in the northern region States on 203 of the 206 items planned to be covered by the floor rates of sales tax. Increased rates of tax on petroleum products and commercial vehicles would yield additional Rs 100 crore each. Another Rs 100 crore is expected to come from the checking of evasion in sales tax for which the government has set up Sales Tax Information Centres on the State’s inter-State borders. Besides, the bumper foodgrains production this year would enrich the exchequer by another Rs 100 crore of tax revenue. Punjab mandis witnessed record wheat and paddy arrivals of over 97 lakh tonnes and 110 lakh tonnes. Despite the expected 40 per cent jump in tax receipts, Punjab may find it virtually impossible to implement the
current year Plan for which the State government had originally proposed an outlay of Rs 2700 crore which was, however, later scaled down to Rs 2,426 crore by the Planning Commission in view of the paucity of resources. The fears are not baseless because of last year’s experience. Due to the acute financial crunch the state had faced, there was a big shortfall in last year’s Plan expenditure. As against the outlay of Rs 2,680 crore, the expenditure, it is learnt, was less than Rs 1900 crore even though the worst financial crisis the government had faced in 1998-99 had somewhat eased. The government had to resort to overdraft for 82 days in 1999-2000 as against 226 days in the previous year. Although the government expects a big jump of Rs 800 crore in the tax revenue this year, it had to resort to overdraft for eight days after July last, before which it was able to carry on its functioning without availing this facility. Though official sources claim that funds for development projects were now being released, the financial constraints the government is experiencing are illustrated by the fact that it has not released funds to municipal committees in the State this year. Nor has it paid money to panchayats, as stipulated under the statutory provision for devolution of funds for the panchayat raj bodies. Except for the normal buoyancy in tax receipts, the state government cannot expect any additional assistance from the Centre because it would not be able to mobilise additional resource in 2001-02 in view of the Assembly elections, which are to be held before February 2002. The Centre has already imposed conditions on the States that they would not get any additional assistance if they failed to
fulfill the condition for mobilising the promised additional resource. Punjab has failed to implement its promise of scrapping free power and water for the agriculture sector.
— IPA
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Online flower auction soon CHANDIGARH, Dec 3 — Pitched at the entrance of the
Karnataka Government enclosure at the Agro Tech fair is a counter which interests almost any passerby. This stall, put up by the Floriculture division of the Karnataka Agro Industries Corporation (KAIC), is not just about the beauty of flowers on display. Beyond that, it is about a major industry which has taken strong roots in Bangalore in the past five years. The talk is about India’s first and only flower auction centre at Bangalore which now has with it 70 registered growers and 50 registered buyers. That the industry is flourishing tremendously is made clear by the fact that the turnover of flower auction has increased from Rs 19.63 lakh in 1997-98 to Rs 204.77 lakh in the current year. This year Karnataka floriculture division is crossing its territory for the first time to provide technical knowhow on setting up such auction centres to other interested states. The centre deals in roses, carnations, gerberas, anthurium, orchids and other cut flowers. Talking to The Tribune here today, Prof T.V. Reddy, special officer, KAIC, said, ‘‘The idea of setting up this centre came when the local market was flooded with flowers. There was a lot of focus on export when the government adopted a policy of encouraging production and export of cut flowers during early 1990s. Since not all flowers were of export quality, an organised market for cut flowers needed to be developed. Hence the auction centre.’’ News also has it that an international flower auction centre is due to come up in about six acre area at KAIC, Bangalore, with modern facilities using energy efficient systems and automation for efficient handling of flowers. Of interest to this region is the fact that shortly Internet auction of flowers will also start. Explained Reddy, “We are looking for centres in this part of the region. Chandigarh can be one of the potential centres for Internet auction. We are here to establish links for this purpose. Also, we get tulips from Himachal Pradesh during a particular season.’’ Coming to Bangalore’s auction centre, the most interesting part of the process is that it offers to provide all cut flowers at a single place. ‘‘Apart from this we also provide facilities for supply of inputs to growers. We also offer consultancy services,’’ explained Reddy. Ms Laxmi S, Information Manager, KAIC, added that a number of people had made enquiries about the auction centre and the process on which it is based. ‘‘We feel that the farmers of this region have a rising interest in floriculture which, if properly pursued, can yield good results. We can help them a lot with information on this account,’’ she said.
CHANDIGARH, Dec 3 — There is need for contract farming along the lines of PepsiCo in Punjab and modernising farming methods, said Mr Gokul Patnaik of CII while inaugurating a seminar on “Supply chain management” here today. Mr Abhiram Seth, Director (Exports) PepsiCo, said, PepsiCo used the lever of social contract to keep farmers away from the temptations of higher market prices and delivered instead through increased productivity which it raised from 16 tonnes per hectare to 52 tonnes. This ensured higher returns per acre. He said potential entrants should first build the resource base rather than the factory. Citing PepsiCo’s example, he said their unit ran for just one day in the first year but has now increased the growing season from 22 days to 55 days. Mr T.L. Palani Kumar, MD, New Holland Tractors, outlined the need for better agronomic practices for higher returns. Mr Bigger, Chairman, World Food Logistics Organisation, outlined the basics of cold chain management. Mr Gagan Bayond of Amalgm Foods said cold chains help level seasonal fluctuations in prices and ensure better prices for producers and consumers alike. Mr S.L. Ganpathi, MD, SembCorp Logistics, Mr S.K. Sharma, Executive Director, Cebeco India and Mr K. Radhakrishnan of Spencer Foodworld and Mr Sundar Srinivasan of Mc Donalds India also addressed the seminar. |
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Why should one
visit Agro Tech? CHANDIGARH: “Why should I see Agro Tech? What’s there, apart from tractors and girls?” asked a senior colleague, now over the hill. “Is that not enough reason to see it”, I thought. But seeing his greying hair, I said: “there are new technologies, big and small, imported as well as made in India. There is Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, UP, Jammu and Kashmir, besides Punjab and Haryana, all under one roof. There is also part of France, Spain, Canada, America, Italy, Korea and Russia. Then there is business and businessmen and see how they make you buy something you don’t need.”
Still finding him unmoved, I threw at him another attraction: “By the way, there’s enough to eat. The only problem is you have to pay for it.” How is Agro Tech 2000 different from the one held in 1998? At the last show the Israeli demonstration of its high-yielding cows and latest dairy technology was one of the chief attractions which is missing this time. Floriculture was then a hotly debated subject and experts at seminars smelled in flowers bright prospects for farmers. Exotic flowers displayed by foreign companies, particularly those from the Netherlands, added colour to the show. This time there are fewer flower stalls. Flowers have faded out of attention because of high risks, lack of infrastructure and the plight of those already engaged in floriculture. Why entry fee for farmers? When it was suggested to the CII bosses that Agro Tech may be kept open for a day exclusively for farmers and no entry fee be then charged, Mr Gokul Patnaik, Chairman of the CII Agri Business Sub-Committee, turned down the suggestion saying a small amount of Rs 5 should not deter anyone from visiting the place. Industry is dead against giving anything free to anybody. Another suggestion was that instead of, or in addition to, the fashionable, English-speaking girls, boys with rural background should be deputed so that to seek any information farmers can approach and converse with them without hesitation. To this Mr Patnaik said in that case the boys too would need to be trained - implying perhaps why bear the additional burden? Media coverage and competition With more newspapers around, more journalists are covering the event this time and pressure on the CII media handling staff is evident. Press releases are not only inadequate but also quite often received a day after the event. We at The Tribune are getting CII releases addressed to a banker who dabbles in writing occasionally. Photographs of Mr Rajan Nanda, Chairman of Agro Tech, addressed to a journalist of another newspaper landed at our desk. Competition has also bred flippancy. Girls managing some stalls have got more coverage than new technologies on offer or serious issues discussed at seminars by experts of repute. Everything is fair, well, in love and the market! |
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In the wonderland of investment Q: Imagine I have purchased units of pure income funds like UTI’s MIP and ’Income’ schemes of MFs at the face value of Rs 10 and have then sold them 2 or 3 years also at Rs 10. Can I avail of indexation and show a capital loss? The dividents received from time to time will be treated as income for the year in the normal course and are tax-free. I pose this question as apparently investments made under ELSS schemes have not been allowed for indexation by some authorities. Even some of the well known Funds have not been able to give me a clear reply on the indexibility of Income schemes. Kindly treat this aspect in your ‘In the Wonderland of Investment’ for next edition. A:
While introducing the radical changes in the structure of tax on long-term gains, the authors of FA 92 appear to have forgotten to make a corresponding change in Sec. 45 (6) dealing with units issued u/s 80 CCB. This continues to state —- “The difference between the repurchase price of the units and the capital value of such units shall be deemed to be the capital gains arising to the assessee”. I thought that this is an error of omission. It cannot be the intention of the legislation to deny indexation only to this particular financial asset. However, it appears that the authorities are taking a mean advantage of the lapse and sticking to it as law. The present situation is that the indexation is not allowed only for ELSS launched in FY 90-91 and 91-92. All subsequent ELSSs attract indexation. Incidentally, the example that you have cited assumes the purchase and sale NAVs to be identical. If the sale NAV is less than the purchase NAV, you are still allowed indexation. I have strived to include each and every aspect related with small individuals in my book. However, it does require a careful reading. Thank you very much for your attempt to raise this quality. I welcome all such suggestions from all my kind readers. Q: I retired last year. No pension. I deposited Rs 4,08,000 in MIS post office, getting Rs 4, 420 pm. Nearly Rs 3 lakh has been put in Co-FD for 5 years. I own self-occupied house. How to calculate
— 1. total income? 2. income tax payable? 3. Which IT form is to be filled up? A: I am sorry if I am hurting you but I feel that you are treating your investments casually. Obviously, you have not taken advice from a professional before investing. I cannot calculate your tax liability without knowing your income from Co-FDs. I do not even know whether you are a senior citizen or not. I do not personally approve of your investments both in MIS and Co-FDs. You do not even appear to be reading my column regularly wherein I have been repeatedly demeaning MIS because of the procedural tangles of post office and Co-FDs for the risk. You need a ‘Saral’ form for filing your returns but do not do so on your own. I repeat you require professional assistance. Q:
I have little idea of HUF. I want to open an account in designated bank but want to know which will accept it. Please guide me on where I can search on Internet for more info on this. A: HUF is no more useful entity for saving taxes. You may as well drop the idea. I request you to read a chapter from my book ‘In the Wonderland of Investment’ which covers the subject comprehensively. The other book, ‘How to Convert a Taxpayer into a Taxsaver’ deals with some practical aspect of HUF. Q: Per section 88 (2)(i), (v) and (xii) an individual is entitled to deduction of 20 per cent of sums paid to LIC, PPF, ULIP in the name of any child. Shall I get the deduction if I pay out of my chargeable income towards policy or account of my child who is: 1. Male or female 2. Minor or major 3. Unmarried or married 4. Having separate income chargeable to tax. There are serious differences of opinion amongst source of the
CAS. A: As long as the contribution comes out of your income chargeable to tax, the rebate is available even if the child is male or female, minor or major, unmarried or married and has separate income or not.
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Haryana MoU
with US firm CHANDIGARH, Dec 3 — REI Agro Ltd., an assisted sector project of the Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation (HSIDC) today signed an MoU with Instra-Pro International of the USA for setting up a rice processing project at Bawal in Rewari district.
The MoU was signed at Agro Tech by Mr Sandip Jhunjhunwala, Joint Managing Director of REI Agro, and Mrs Wilomot B. Vijeratne, Director of Research of Insta-Pro International in the presence of Mr Sampat Singh, Finance Minister, Haryana, Dr Harbakhsh Singh MD of HSIDC, and Mr Krishan Kumar, MD of Haryana Agro Industries Corporation
(HAIC). |
co
THE Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs has chalked out an ambitious programme to use information technology to empower consumers in the country. Called “Consumer Information Centres”, these would be located in every district and provide, through a network of computers, a variety of information that would be of interest to consumers. Besides the orders of all the consumer courts in the country, the Centres would give consumers information on all rules, laws, regulations, government orders. With a click of the mouse, a consumer can also find out the location of all the consumer courts in the country, the procedure involved in filing a complaint, the names of various consumer organisations , their addresses and telephone numbers. Consumers could also connect to various government sites, ask questions and get answers to their queries. They could also browse on the internet to access libraries around the world and download information. Consumers can also interact with other consumer groups in different parts of the globe and exchange views. These Information Centres would also help consumers interact with law enforcement agencies. If a local retailer is using wrong or incorrect measures, consumers can complain to the department of weights and measures. They can also check the prices of various essential commodities including fruits and vegetables in different parts of the country. Eventually, even complaints to consumer courts can be sent through the Information Centres. But that’s not all. Besides the virtual library, these centres would also be equipped with real books, magazines and consumer literature and they also serve as resource and guidance centres, where a trained person, most probably from a consumer group, will interact with the consumers. They will also serve as legal aid centres for consumers in need of legal help. The Consumer Affairs Ministry has decided to even provide a testing centre, but that would perhaps be in the second stage of implementation. The testing centre could facilitate testing of certain commonly used food items at a nominal price. If used well, they could well bring down the incidence of adulteration of food in the country. How will these centres be funded? The ministry proposes to provide Rs 2.35 lakh to each of these centres as non-recurring expenditure for the purchase computers and other necessary infrastructure and another Rs 1.65 as recurring expenditure spread over five years. The total fund requirement for the entire scheme, to be implemented in all the districts in the country would work out to about Rs 28.65 crore and would come from the Central Consumer Welfare Fund. Any reputed voluntary consumer organisation or a zilla parishad can open the centre. However, it should be capable to running the centre on its own once the government funding stops after five years. The Consumer Affairs Ministry will regularly monitor the functioning of these centres and also provide the required training to those manning them. It’s certainly a good concept that could convert consumer apathy to assertiveness, consumer ignorance to knowledge, provided it is successfully implemented. And one really hopes that the centres, when set up, would be all that the project envisages.
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LAST week, the stock market moved up and Sensex gained 167 points. This was partly due to hectic buying in ACC and other cement shares and partly due to aggressive trading in some new economy shares. It is difficult to believe that this upward movement can be sustained during the current week. Normally, in December, FIIs keep themselves away from the market. Another adverse development is that the Department of Companies Affairs has ordered an inquiry into the possible cartelisation by major cement companies which had announced another raise in the selling price of cement bags. Reports from the USA also indicate that the new economy shares are losing support on the stock exchanges. Vikas WSP has gained about 100 points in its market price last week, and it is likely to retain it during the coming months. In fact, I had expected this gain in price only in January when its third quarter results would be announced, but the management of the company has come out with another good announcement. Vikas WSP is making preferential allotment of 15 lakh equity shares to promoters, foreign-based strategic clients and some other private investors at a price of Rs 750-1000 per share. The Board of Directors will meet on December 5 to make this allotment. After the allotment has been made, the company will split its Rs 10 face value share into 10 (Rs 1 face value) shares. Fresh capital, raised through preferential allotment will be employed to finance the expansion plan at Baroda where a new plant is being set up for the manufacture of guar gum. This plant will be in operation in the third quarter of 2001. The company claims that this plant is expected to yield an additional turnover of Rs 500 crore in 2004-05. During the past months, the company has launched three new types of guars for three different applications — land-scaping, bio-fertilisers and for making smokeless coke. The company has also received a major order from Kimberly Clark, one of the world’s largest players in the diaper segment, for supply of super absorbant. There are also rumours that the company would be soon coming out with a bonus issue. I think that no bonus issue can be issued by the company before the Baroda plant goes into commercial production. One thing appears very likely that the company’s share would not now come down to lower than Rs 600. Those who hold the share should not book profit for the scrip has the intrinsic strength to gain higher market price in the coming months. The artificial boom created in the cement shares by the cement companies is now over, and the traders should expect a fall in the market price of these shares. Anti-monopoly action may be taken against the cement companies which had cut down production and raised cement prices to cut down their inventory. |
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PARIS: A French court will hear an appeal tomorrow by an Indian
company whose executive was fined and given six-month jail sentence last
year on a complaint by the French car maker, Peugeot. The Appeal Court
of Paris will take up the case of Chand Mehta, Chief Exports Manager of
Jaipur-based Autolite Ltd, who was given a six-month imprisonment and a
three-month suspended prison term by a lower court last December. Mehta
was also imposed a total fine of about Rs 14 lakh, sources said. It is
for the first time in the history of Indo-French commercial ties that an
Indian business executive was subjected to such punishment by a French
court. Lawyers representing Mehta will argue to overturn the lower
courts’ verdict and also deny copyright and trade mark violation
charges by Peugeot, which lodged a police complaint during the Equip
Auto 99 exhibition. Autolite displayed a headlight for Peugeot 205 in
the exhibition for which, Peugeot said, it had not been given any
licence. Meanwhile, an Indian lawyer who was initially arguing for
Autolite at the lower court in Paris now complaints that Autolite has
not paid his entire legal fees. The Indian business executive was
forced to stay in the prison for about 20 days along with pickpockets
and drug peddlers. — PTI
Addicted to
phone chatlines MUMBAI: This
megacity’s youth have got addicted to telephone chatlines. Newspapers
and television carry advertisements about these chatlines, not to speak
of posters containing the chat number. Posters are also seen inside
suburban trains. MTNL officials argue: “Many Internet sites are
pornographic. That does not mean you ban the Internet. There was talk
that mobile phones have increased crime. It is also true that they have
made detection easier.’’ Many callers talk about their fantasies.
A few ask for a “graphic description’’ of the replier. How are
they allowed to work in the night for chatlines? Some of the girls said
they just tell their folks they’re on night shift. — UNI
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