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| Sunday,
July 8, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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DSE steps
in to help US-64 investors Subsidy on
used knitting machines ‘Accord’
launched in city Sugar
issue in Agra Summit likely Accused in
Indian Bank scam held IOC,
SBI, Reliance in Forbes list Steel
re-rolled items exempted from ISI mark |
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Encourage
industry to check unemployment
Forewarn
consumers about unfair acts
Q: Section 10 (23 aab) specifies income of
approved pension fund started by the Life Insurance Corporation of
India on or after 01/08/1996 is exempted from Income-tax for
Assessment year 2000-2001 and 2001-2002. I have invested in the past
in Jeevan Dhara and I am receiving monthly pension. Please enlighten
whether pension amount is fully exempted under the above section.
Q: We are engaged in the business of hardware
goods and other related items being a dealer registered under the
provisions of the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 and the Central
Sales Tax Act, 1956. Last week a consignment of goods was being sent
to us by another registered dealer which was duly covered by the
statutorily prescribed documents.
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DSE steps in to help US-64 investors New Delhi, July 7 Delhi Stock Exchange, which is one of the exchanges where US-64 is traded, is allowing investors to trade upto 500 units in the physical form, the limit specified by SEBI. Under the SEBI rules US-64 is among the around 500 scrips which are to be compulsorily traded in dematerialised form. DSE sources said the rules, however, provide that upto 500 units can be sold or brought through the odd-lot window in physical mode. They said the measure would provide temporary relief to the investors. The DSE initiative comes at a time when the UTI top brass has been struggling to find a way out to solve the present imbroglio resulting from its decision to freeze the fund transactions. It is understood that the UTI would finalise an exit route by Monday and it would be implemented after clearance from the Finance Ministry. The hiccup in resuming transactions of US-64 is the value at which it is to be traded. Till now the mutual fund fixed arbitrary rates, that finally became unsustainable. There is talk of fixing the rates according to its Net Asset Value, which according to analysts would be below the Rs ten mark. After the Ketan Parekh-led stock scam and the general depression in the stock markets, UTI holdings are ruling at new lows. According to sources, the UTI is planning to allow investors holding upto 10,000 units to have access to transactions. This would give relief to nearly 50 per cent of the unitholders. Meanwhile, the Congress President, Mrs Sonia Gandhi has urged the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, to order an investigation into the management of the UTI and its US-64 scheme. Expressing concern and anguish over the fate of US-64, the Congress President, in a letter to the Prime Minister said
millions of senior citizens, pensioners, ex-servicemen and salaried professionals had put their hard earned savings into the scheme. “It was extremely disturbing to see that for the second time in three years US-64 has created a crisis of confidence and betrayed the trust of ordinary investors”, she said. Mrs Gandhi said the government’s response to the crisis had hardly inspired confidence. “It strains credulity to be told that the government was not in the know about what was happening”, she added. “This is not a partisan issue but a national imperative that affects the lives of so many” she said. She described the entire episode as a damaging indictment of the government’s mismanagement of the economy.
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Subsidy on used knitting machines Ludhiana, July 7 The local knitting units have been demanding subsidy on these imported machines under TUFS since the launching of the scheme. The government provides 5 per cent interest subsidy to the textile and knitting units on the investments made in machines for the modernisation of the units. The interest subsidy to the textile units was also available on second-hand machines under specific conditions. However, the knitting units were not provided subsidy on the reconditioned machines. The Knitwear Club, that has been campaigning for the subsidy on second-hand imported machines, has received a communication from the office of the Textile Commissioner, Ministry of Textiles, regarding the acceptance of its demand. According to the communication:‘‘ The subsidy under TUFS will be available on computerised flat-bed knitting machines with minimum speed of 10 revolutions per minute and up to 5 years' vintage, with a residual life of minimum 10 years. The subsidy will be available on new machines with a minimum speed of 11 revolutions per minute and on second-hand reconditioned machines with a minimum speed of 10 revolutions per minute.’’ Mr Vinod Thapar, President of the Knitwear Club, said,‘‘ The decision of the ministry will assist the knitting units to import the second-machines, that are much better than the indigenous machines, on a large scale. A computerised flat-bed knitting machine worth Rs 65 lakh is available at about Rs 20 lakh after 5-7 years period. It will save foreign currency besides providing an opportunity to modernise aggressively at a relatively lesser cost of capital. It would translate into added productivity and competitiveness.’’
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‘Accord’ launched in
city Chandigarh, July 7 “The target is to capture 40 per cent of the market share in this segment and sell 2,500 cars by March 2002”, said Mr R.S. Lally, Chairman, Prestige Honda . The company claims to have 42 per cent share in the upper premium segment (which includes Baleno, Lancer etc) and sold 10,000 cars last year. In Punjab, more than 1,000 cars were sold during this period. “The India car market is at a stage of evolution where the customers have been driving C-segment cars for over half a decade now and are willing to upgrade. The car wills satisfy the need of this segment of customers ”, said Mr Arvind Bhatnagar, Regional Manager, Honda Siel Cars India. Honda Accord will be available in five colours including gold and silver through 26 Honda outlets across the country. The wide driver’s seat comes with a unique 8 way full power adjuster and an adjustable lumbar support. The car is very spacious with increased head, shoulder and leg room especially for rear passengers . Other features include retractable door mirror controls, power windows , ample storage space through overhead sunglasses holder, double level storage under arm rest, door pockets, map pockets, glass holders etc. Apart from the luxury features, Accord embodies a 2.3 litre in line four cylinder VTEC engine, advanced hydraulic engine mount, second order balancer system and the double wishbone front suspension with Watt linkage.
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Sugar issue in Agra Summit likely Shimla, July 7 After the Kargil conflict, Pakistan had stopped import of sugar from India and it was hoped this issue too would be resolved during the Summit, as this was in the interest of both countries, Kumar told reporters. The resolution of the issue “would add sweetness to our relations”, the minister observed. He said against the consumption of 150 lakh tonnes of sugar, the present stockwas 182 lakh tonnes and another 70 lakh tonnes would be procured during the coming season. He said an export target of six lakh tonnes of sugar had been fixed and it could be increased if the exports of sugar to Pakistan was resumed. Kumar said that levy sugar was being supplied at subsidised rates to below poverty line families, but in hilly states like Himachal sugar would be supplied to all, irrespective of income limits.
PTI |
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Accused in Indian Bank scam held
New Delhi, July 7 Terming this as a major success, CBI spokesman S.M. Khan told reporters today that the agency would soon be moving the France Government for his extradition. The 60-year-old Varadarajalu alias “MVR”, a major defaulter with an exposure of around Rs 468 crore, had been evading arrest for last four years and the CBI had secured a “Red Corner” notice against him in 1998 besides cancelling his passport. The accused, belonging to Tiruvarur in Tamil Nadu, had been staying in France under the assumed name of “Louis Jalu” and had also managed a French passport in March 2001, Khan said. He was arrested in the suburbs of Paris and a French magistrate sent him to detention pending a request from Indian authorities for his extradition.
PTI
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IOC, SBI, Reliance in Forbes list New York, July 7 The state-owned petroleum giant, IndianOil Corporation, with an estimated revenue of $22.8 billion and a net income of $595 million, is placed first among the Indian companies and ranks 112th among the global 500 corporations. "U.S. investors haven't helped much lately by buying abroad. Our bear market has spread to most parts of the globe, and the losses have been compounded by the strength of the dollar," Forbes said in its upcoming July 23 issue. "If you can't withstand the risk, though, there are some intriguing opportunities in the overseas markets. The survey of 500 large firms will give you a taste of what's out there," the magazine added. The second-ranked company from India is oil and gas giant Bharat Petroleum, which is placed 302nd in the overall ranking, and has a revenue of $9.12 billion and a net income of $180 million. The State Bank of India ranks next. It is placed 401st in the global list and has revenues worth 8.02 billion and net revenue of $459 million. Reliance Industries of the Ambanis is the sole private Indian company in the list and is placed 469th in the overall ranking. According to Forbes, the petrochemical giant's revenues are estimated at $5.57 billion and net income at $570 million.
IANS |
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Steel re-rolled items exempted from ISI mark Ludhiana, July 7 At a meeting held yesterday at New Delhi, the Ministry has decided to continue the use of secondary steel in the re-rolling mills. The Director
General Foreign Trade had proposed 33 items of steel for mandatory ISI certification mark. At one time it was decided to reduce the number of items to seven, but re-rollers representatives proposed that it should be implemented only if the integrated steel plants agreed to discontinue the supply of off-grade and commercial material from their plants. The meeting was presided over by Mr N.N. Singh, Secretary Steel. Mr Vinod Vashisht, Senior Vice-President and Mr S. Maladi, General Secretary of the All-India Steel Re-rollers Association, respectively, participated at the meeting.
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Encourage
industry to check unemployment The Chief Minister of Punjab has started worrying over the growing unemployment menace in Punjab. He has approached the ILO to find a wayout. The ILO can hardly help in this regard. The state government has to rationalise its thinking and to translate it into action. Question arises that is there unemployment to the extent it is being understood? No, about 10 lakh outsiders are working in the state. Nobody from outside has to tell that after agriculture only growth of the industry can take care of unemployment. Fortunately enough Punjab’s industrial culture is such that it is mostly labour intensive. Unfortunately enough the state government’s apathy towards the industry and some irrational policies of the Centre are weakening Punjab’s SSI sector in the wake of the WTO regime. The state’s apathy is discernible from all types of hinderances being put in the working of the industry. Input costs are going up due to undue burdens of sorts when international competition demands reduction of prices. The PSEB is pushing up the cost of power through indirect means and to make up its revenue loss due to free power through false cases. When government’s own arm is attempting deindustrialisation who else will help ease the unemployment position. Taxes by municipal corporations which were considered only incidental expenses are now becoming major burden on the industry. On the other hand no efforts are being made to decongest routes leading to industrial areas and focal points and this is dampening spirits of entreprenuers. Octroi posts even in small towns are hindering the smooth movement of goods apart from putting heavy financial burden. Only recently the Commerce Ministry took a policy decision for import of 300 items only through designated ports. This raised the prices of many industrial inputs and was withdrawn but hiked prices have remained high. The bicycle industry is the hub of industrial economy of Punjab. Lowering of duty drawback has hit this industry hard. Even on revision of the duty drawback policy has left the bicycle industry untouched. Central Excise Department has made a law that if goods are sold to a relative or any other connected undertaking the price has to be 15 per cent higher than the market price. This provision has again hit Punjab the worst. In cases where seller and buyer are covered under central excise this will make a difference. So this is a sure recipe to kill the industry. List of such lapses and wrong policies is lengthy. Long and short of this unfortunate aspect is that the Chief Minister has hardly bothered to interfere. To take care of unemployment problem the Chief Minister should ensure that running industry runs smoothly with growth path made easier. To encourage entrepreneurs to set up new industry procedures and cost of power connections should be made within the reach of common person of ordinary means. |
co
by Pushpa Girimaji Forewarn consumers about unfair acts The Competition Bill, expected to be introduced in the monsoon session of Parliament, brings the curtain down on the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission. If the Bill gets passed in its present form, the Competition Commission which will replace the MRTP Commission, will have no role to play in so far as unfair trade practices are concerned. This certainly does not augur well for consumer protection in India. The Consumer Protection Act of 1986 may have provided consumers with an exclusive justice system, but in the office of the Director General (Investigation and Registration), created under the MRTP Act, consumers had found a guardian, a watchdog, of consumer interest. In fact if one were to look at the history of consumer protection in India, the year 1984 would be an important milestone because that was the year the MRTP Act was amended to bring unfair trade practices under the purview of the Commission. The following years saw the office of the DG being fully alert to any kind of unfair trade practice that adversely affected public interest, consumer interest. Be it a housing project, a teak plantation scheme, a discount sale, a slimming centre or an educational institution, even a hint of misrepresentation in the advertisements would get the DG to probe into it and if the suspicion turned out to be true, result in a case being filed before the Commission, seeking an interim injunction against such an advertisement. Prior to 1984, many retailers used ‘discount sales’ as a ploy to attract customers, without actually effecting any reduction in prices. But MRTPC’s crackdown on several such outlets sent a clear signal to all of them that here was a body that would not allow such false representations. That was the time the Commission drew up strict guidelines on the conduct of such sales and their advertisements. Similarly, dry cleaners were told in no uncertain terms that they would not get away with one-sided, unfair terms and conditions printed on the back of the receipts. The office of the DG and the Commission also blew the lid off many ‘free gift’ offers made by manufacturers and warned them that the practice of surreptitiously increasing the price of a product to cover either fully or partly the cost of the ‘gift’ being offered to promote their product constituted an unfair trade practice. The DG’s thorough investigations and the Commission’s ‘cease and desist’ orders stopped many an investor from putting his or her hard-earned money into fly-by-night non-banking financial companies and plantation firms. They also prevented any number of students from falling prey to false advertisements offering foreign degrees or courses claiming to be recognised by well known universities. That was the time when the office of the DG and the Commission worked in tandem to protect consumer interest. Since an advertisement is said to generate within three months, an awareness level of 90 per cent about the product being advertised, any move against a false or a misleading advertisement should be quick or else the very purpose of the action would be lost. The office of the DG as well as the Commission understood it at that time and used the Commission’s power to issue interim injunctions to either stop such advertisements or amend them. In fact it would not be an exaggeration to say that for the first time in the country, copywriters and advertisers were forced to think twice before finalising or releasing an advertisement. Besides the investigations that it launched on its own, the office of the DG also looked into complaints coming from consumers and consumer groups. Scooter and car manufacturers who had failed to return the deposit collected from consumers despite cancellation of booking, were asked to return the money within a specified time, along with interest. While LPG dealers were hauled up for various unfair trade practices, including selling of underweight cylinders, petrol pump owners were taken to task for rigging dispensing units. Even companies marking video cassettes of feature films were chastised for inserting and superimposing advertisements in such a way as to shorten or distort the film. Unfortunately in the last few years, the Commission’s effectiveness as a watchdog of consumer interest has come down for various reasons which I will deal with another time. But suffice it to say that consumers need the kind of protection that the office of the DG and the Commission could together provide. Since consumer courts are not equipped to take over that role, the proposed Competition Commission should handle unfair trade practices too. In fact like the Federal Trade Commission(FTC) in the United States, the Competition Commission should not only take action against unfair and deceptive acts or practices, but also put out ‘consumer alerts’ to forewarn and educate consumers about such practices. The FTC, which works towards a competitive marketplace and .enforces a variety of federal antitrust and consumer protection laws, does just that. |
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Grasim meet Tranz Canz Modiguard LT Overseas |
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