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Sunday,
March 3, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Merged
Reliance may join Fortune 500 list Riots to
affect economy: Sinha
Reliance
merger to increase competition for HPCL, BPCL
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SBP
opens house loan cell Ten left
in field for SCI stake
Q: Can business loss (Shares, Mutual Funds, etc) be set-off against other type of incomes like - Interest on Bank Fixed Deposits, Bonds, Salary, Property etc.
Assigning
reasons
Q:
We are registered as a dealer under the Haryana General Sales Tax Act,
1973 and the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. For the assessment year
1998-99 we furnished to the assessing authority our periodical sales
tax returns claiming total exemption from payment of tax as our
application for the grant of eligibility certificate under rule 28-B
of the Haryana General Sales Tax Rules, 1975 was pending consideration
before the lower level screening committee and that we had opted to
claim the benefit of exemption from the date of the commencement of
the production activities.
Tourists
flow below expectations
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Merged Reliance may join Fortune 500 list New Delhi, March 2 The new entity will join the league of Indian Oil Corporation in the prestigious Fortune 500 list and is likely to be ranked around 425 on the basis of its revenues. It may also rank 28th among the world’s oil companies. Analysts have estimated that the merged company will have a combined sales of Rs 60,000 crore and net profit of more than Rs 4,100 crore. Indian Oil’s sales is estimated at around Rs 120,000 crore. The proposed Board meeting was announced by Reliance Industries in a short press statement which said the merger would be considered at the meeting tomorrow. Once the merger is approved, shareholders of Reliance Petroleum will swap their shares with Reliance Industries. Though details of the swap will be known only after the merger, stock analysts feel it can be somewhere in the ratio of one share of RIL for every 10 shares of RPL. The timing of the merger follows the announcement that the administered price mechanism for petroleum products will be dismantled from April 1, 2002. In the decontrolled oil sector, Reliance will have the freedom to enter marketing and distribution. Apart from leveraging Reliance’s large distribution and sales network, the company will also be in an advantageous position when it comes to bidding for oil companies in which the government plans to disinvest. Both BPCL and HPCL will come up for sale in the next few months and with the government ruling out the participation of Indian Oil Corporation, the merged Reliance company will have a natural advantage in terms of its huge size. It will also be in a better position to compete with other bidders, who can be international oil majors. After the merger, the products profile of Reliance Industries will span oil and gas exploration to refining, petrochemicals, yarn and fibre and fabric.
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Riots to affect economy: Sinha
New Delhi, March 2 “I am very upset about the disturbances in Gujarat because it is going to adversely affect the economy,” Mr Sinha told UNI. “Gujarat is a very important state industrially. Any disturbance in Gujarat will have an impact not only on the state but on the whole country also,” he said. The January 26 earthquake in Gujarat last year had badly hit the economy of the entire country besides leaving in shambles the state’s industrial activity, the Finance Minister pointed out. In view of the quake, Mr Sinha had imposed a 2 per cent surcharge on income tax as part of efforts to mobilise resources for Gujarat’s reconstruction. The Gujarat surcharge is no longer there. But proposed, for 2002-2003, is a 5 per cent “National Security” surcharge aiming a Rs 2,750 crore mop-up to meet the additional expenses arising from the positioning of troops on the border. The Finance Minister clarified that the 5 per cent surcharge was only for the coming fiscal. Mr Sinha found it strange that the economy was being affected frequently in the past few years “for some reason or the other”. First it was the super-cyclone in Orissa, followed by the Kargil conflict and then the Gujarat quake. Even as the country was recovering from all these, it was hit by the global slowdown and subsequently border developments in the wake of the terrorist attack on Parliament, the Finance Minister observed. Mr Sinha said there was a huge cost involved in the mobilisation of troops but refused to indicate a figure in this regard. UNI Ludhiana industry
Hundreds of industrialists here are having sleepless nights over the loss of lakhs of rupees due to their products being blocked in the riot-hit Gujarat. Gujarat is the main route for the transportation of goods to Mumbai for export . The industrialists manufacturing hosiery, cycle, and spare parts have revealed to TNS that they have already suffered huge losses as several foreign buyers have cancelled the orders due to the delayed supply. Apart from the cancellation of orders, the industrialists are also forced to pay more money to transporters who were stranded midway due to the riots. The industrialists are also making frantic calls at several places in Gujarat and other places where the goods have been stranded. The industrialists are having anxious moments as a number of trucks have also been damaged by the miscreants. Mr Vipin Dhanda, General Secretary, Readymade Hosiery Manufacturers Association, said several industrialists have been hit badly by the riots in Gujarat. Consignments to Mumbai for export have been stuck in Gujarat due to which several orders have been cancelled. According to Sunil Dutt, an industrialist, if conditions do not improve, they will suffer huge losses as the summer season is approaching.
TNS
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Reliance merger to increase competition for HPCL, BPCL
New Delhi, March 2 Both the parent Reliance Industries (RIL) and Reliance Petroleum (RPL), which owns the world's seventh biggest refinery at Jamnagar on the Gujarat coast, informed the Bombay Stock Exchange on Friday of plans to merge to form India's biggest private company by profit. The move is to be finalised at a Board meeting on Sunday. Coming a day after the announcement of the Budget for fiscal 2002-03 — a step that dispels doubts whether the government will finally allow competition in the petroleum marketing sector — the move did not come as a surprise to market watchers. Reliance Industries is expected to be a top contender for the 26 per cent stake the government is selling in IPCL. The group is also a strong contender for a stake in BPCL and HPCL, in which the government is planning to divest its stake. The sale of the state-run refiners, which control 40 per cent of India's two million barrel-a-day oil market, is expected mid-year, while the government will end its monopoly on fuel distribution April 1. Analysts say merged Reliance will be better placed to bid for HPCL and BPCL when the government sells the refiners to increase competition in the $65 billion oil industry. "The move was long expected. It will create good market competition for public sector units after the decontrol of the distribution sector as Reliance Petroleum has already got the marketing rights," said A.V. Nayak of the CII. “The merged company will be able to pass on the benefits to consumer after it enters the petroleum marketing sector,” Nayak told IANS. Keen to establish a marketing network for sale of petroleum products from its 27-million-tonne integrated refinery at Jamnagar, the group had faced disappointment recently in its attempt to acquire state-run IBP Ltd., which manages a network of 1,500 distribution outlets. The biggest competition the merged Reliance entity will face after the opening of oil marketing to private companies will be from the Indian Oil Corporation, which has further consolidated its position by acquiring IBP. It is in this scenario that the Reliance behemoth will be able to leverage its financial muscle to get a stake in the two state-owned petroleum companies to acquire an established marketing network.
IANS
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Premji tops Indian list of billionaires
New Delhi, March 2 Neighbour, China has only one
billionaire — Liu Yongxing Youghao — but another 12 live in Hong Kong. Germany has 35 billionaires, Japan 25, Canada and France 15 each, Britain, Switzerland and Italy 13 each and Mexico 12. According to Forbes magazine, Mr Premji, Chairman of the Wipro group, is worth $ 6.4 billion and tops the Indian list. He occupies 41st position in the Forbes list. He is followed by Mr Ambani of the Reliance group with a net worth of $ 2.9 billion occupying 138th position. Mr Birla, heading the Aditya Birla group with a worth of $ 2.1 billion is at 200th position, followed by Mr Mittal at 327th position with a worth of $ 1.4 billion. IT giant HCL’s Shiv Nadar occupies 378th position and has a worth of $ 1.2 billion. He owns a 78 per cent stake in HCL Technologies.
UNI
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SBP opens house loan cell Chandigarh, March 1 Mr Devgan said the bank had issued 1,45,000 Kisan Cards to farmers so far, out of this 21113 cards have been distributed in Sangrur district only. He said 227 rice sheller involving an amount of Rs 3,933.18 lakh, have been financed by the bank in this district. Mr Navjot Singh Sidhu distributed house loans cheques to borrowers on this occasion. Mr N.S. Deshpande D.G.M. and Mr V.A. Ghai AGM were also present.
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Ten left in
field for
SCI stake
Mumbai, March 2 “Out of the 12 parties, who submitted their expression of interest (EOIs) for SCI, one has decided to pull out while another has been disqualified”, Union Shipping Minister Vedprakash Goyal told newspersons here today. He, however, refused to name the two parties concerned. The last date for submitting the EOIs was February 18. Shipping industry sources said Japanese Mitsui O.S.K. Lines has withdrawn its interest for SCI majority stake. Great Eastern Shipping Company, Essar Shipping Ltd, Malaysian International Shipping Corporation and Videocon International are among those who have expressed their interest in SCI stake.
PTI
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by Praful R. Desai Assigning reasons Q: Would the order stand, if there are no reasons assigned? Ans: In A.P.S.R.T.C. v K. Mansathai, [2002-I-LLJ-164] the A.P. High Court was considering this question. The present writ petition is directed against the judgement dated 1.7.99 passed by a Single Judge of the HC whereby and whereunder the W.P. filed by the appellant herein was dismissed. The court passed the following order: “Questioning the award passed by the Industrial Tribunal whereunder the Tribunal having held that the deceased employee is entitled for reinstatement with back wages after setting aside the order of removal and as the employee died during the pendency of the award, a direction was given to the petitioner — Corporation herein to consider the case of the legal heirs for appointment as if the workman died in harness. I do not find any illegality or irregularity in the order. Accordingly the W.P. is dismissed. The HC noted, no reason has been assigned in support of the said aforesaid decision. It is now a well settled principle of law that assignment of reasons is a part of principles of natural justice. Unless reasons are assigned by a Court or Tribunal, it will not be possible for the higher court to consider the merit of the said judgement [Sec S.N. Mukherjee v Union of India 1990 (4) SCC 594]. For the reasons aforementioned the impugned order cannot be maintained, ruled the HC. It is set aside accordingly. The matter, in that way, was remitted back to the learned Single Judge for fresh consideration in accordance with law. The HC, however, observed that keeping in view the fact that the appellant herein has questioned the award passed by the Labour Court, the appropriate Bench may consider the desirability of hearing out and disposing of the matter at an early date. The learned counsel for the respondents is at liberty to file an application for interim order. The parties are also at liberty to make mention for the early hearing of the writ petition. In that way, the HC allowed the present writ appeal. |
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by A. K. Sachdeva Q: We are registered as a dealer under the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 and the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. For the assessment year 1998-99 we furnished to the assessing authority our periodical sales tax returns claiming total exemption from payment of tax as our application for the grant of eligibility certificate under rule 28-B of the Haryana General Sales Tax Rules, 1975 was pending consideration before the lower level screening committee and that we had opted to claim the benefit of exemption from the date of the commencement of the production activities. However, subsequently our application was rejected by the lower level screening committee holding that our unit did not fulfill the conditions for the grant of the eligibility certificate. The appeal preferred against the decision of the committee was rejected. On receipt of the copy of the orders disposing of our appeal, we immediately started paying tax that became eventually due on the turnover disclosed in the returns. At the time of assessment, the assessing authority proposes to levy interest as also penalty on the footing that there was default on our part in paying the tax due as per the returns. Kindly advise if the assessing authority is justified in initiating the proceedings involving interest and penalty. — S.K. Das, Sonipat Ans: Having regards to the facts it can hardly be said that there was a default in payment of “tax due as per the returns”. Admittedly, the queriest had been bonafide claiming exemption from payment of tax from the date of the commencement of the production under rule 28-B of the Haryana General Sales Tax Rules, 1975 during the pendency of the application for the grant of the eligibility certificate. Under these circumstances it could not be said that tax became due as per the periodical returns. It was a different matter that the case for of the exemption came to be eventually rejected by the appropriate committee. Therefore, the approach of the assessing authority having regard to the facts of the case is totally contrary to the statutory provisions and the principles of law laid down on similar facts by the Supreme Court of India in the case of Frick India Ltd. versus State of Haryana 95 Sales Tax Cases 188. Neither interest nor penalty becomes leviable in the case as the ingredients of sub-section (5) of section 25 and section 47 of the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 are not satisfied.
Q: During courses of transportation of goods from one place to another in
Haryana, we were carrying prescribed documents such as sale invoice, goods receipt as well as transit in form ST-38 (outward) which were indisputably produced before an Excise Taxation Officer on being demanded. The only point raised while detaining the consignment as described in the notice issued is that serial No. of bill of sale has been specified in the appropriate column of this transit challan. Kindly clarify as to whether any penalty is leviable under the provisions of law considering this omission as an attempted evasion of tax? — P.K. Gupta, Hansi Ans: The mere fact that the person issuing a transit challan omits to fill a particular column does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that evasion of tax is involved more especially when sale invoice carrying printed serial number was found accompanying the consignment during the course of checking. It is open to the queriest to explain away the reason in writing which really led to the appropriate column relating to serial number of transit challan being left blank so as to rebut the presumption sought to be raised by the checking officer. It can also be clarified in this context that all other particulars relating to the consignment of goods being transported were correct and complete and that documents have been prepared and issued in the normal course of business. No penalty under sub-section (6) of section 37 of the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 becomes leviable simply because of non-filling of a particular column of form ST-38. A latest decision of the Sales Tax Tribunal, Haryana, Chandigarh that came to be delivered on similar facts in the case of Hindustan Times Ltd . v. State of Haryana can also be referred to in this regard.
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by K. R. Wadhwaney Tourists flow below expectations Satinder Singh is expected to be new Director-General of civil aviation in place of H.S. Khola, who lays down his office as DG on March 29, 2002. There were many in running for the coveted post. Among them were one Air Marshal and two IAS officers. But Satinder Singh has been cleared and his name has been sent to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for promotion. Indeed Air Marshal Seth Commission suggestions and proposals have not been heeded. But Satinder Singh’s choice has been generally well received in aviation circles since he has been with the DGCA for many, many years. Currently, Joint DG, his promotion will lead to chain of promotions in the department. Soon, there will be new chairman of the Airports Authority of India (AAI). Kishu Teckchandani’s candidature has been approved by the CCS. He is expected to take over from the officiating incumbent S.K. Narula sometime next month. Teckchandani, senior most in the AAI, is currently on deputation as chairman and managing director of the Cement Corporation of India (CCI). There are several senior slots vacant in two national airlines. They are likely to be filled in before the financial year on March 31 is out. The Civil Aviation Ministry’s proposal that no bureaucrat will be allowed to additional charge of Air India and Indian Airlines, is yet to be implemented. No flying There will be no flying from the Safdurjung Airport owing the security reasons. The services of all
incumbents, like instructors, engineers and mechanics have been terminated. Delhi Flying Club’s contribution in producing good set of pilots has been immense. It deserves to be provided some facility so that it can function and provide training to the promising pilots to be. It will be futile to depend upon Rae Bareli’s Indira Gandhi Uran Academy. It has already too many trainees and any further load on it will not be judicious. Not many takers Post September 11 attacks in the United States, there have not been many takers for travel abroad despite airlines efforts to woo passengers. The tourists flow, in-bound and outgoing, is far below expectations. Several airlines have started offering heavy discounts, hotel accommodation and many other facilities but holiday travellers have been shying away for one reason or the other. According to airline officials, there is marginal improvement in travel to west. They, however, feel that it is a temporary phase because majority of travellers have either been on business assignment or are travelling on student visa. There is considerable anxiety among travel agencies and airlines. “Maybe, some more players will die unnatural death if the traffic scenario does not improve soon,” said two experienced travelling agents. A big gimmick The AAI’s productivity week (February 13-18) was a complete failure. The staff at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) was engaged in meaningless exercises instead of endeavouring to improve service to in-coming and outgoing passengers. Touts continue to have field-day while unscrupulous taxiwallahs keep on charging exorbitant fares. Even the pre-paid taxi system has not been functioning as efficiently as it used to. |
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Right connectivity Emperor’s clothes |
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New Delhi, March 2
