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Saturday,
August 31, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Maruti 800 sales jump ‘insignificant’
India plans Rs 800 cr buffer stock of sugar
Iffco-Kribhco gesture
IMF concerned about India’s fiscal deficit GRAPHIC: STATE OF THE INDIAN ECONOMY |
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Dhindsa to oppose NFL disinvestment
HCL Technologies net down 17 pc
Microchips implanted in 17 elephants GRAPHIC: EXTERNAL AID RECEIPTS AND DEPT SERVICE PAYMENTS
GE to combine two divisions
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Maruti 800 sales jump ‘insignificant’
New Delhi, August 30 Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) said the increase in sales of the entry-level car would not make any impact on their company. “Our car, the Hyundai Santro, is positioned in the B-segment while the Maruti 800 is a category below this. “So we don’t think that it can have any impact on our car sales. Even maruti’s rise in sales is just a temporary phenomenon and at the most, it can affect car sales in the second-hand B-segment car market only,’’ the HMIL spokesman said. He said the rise was mainly due to the price cut. The spokesman said with the festive season coming up, HMIL may introduce some new schemes to attract more customers “as the segment is the one which offers immense competition.’’ Officials in Tata Indica also dismissed Maruti’s sales as of no value to them. “It is just to capture their own market share which had dropped from the five-figure mark to four figures,’’ a senior company official told UNI. Asked if the company was planning to offer discounts keeping in mind the festive season, he said they had no such plans. “Indica has been the largest-selling car in the last few months and we have achieved this without giving any freebies to attract customers. “We believe in offering value products and are certain that this will make our product sell,’’ he said. FIAT, which also has Palio in the same B-segment, also said that for the moment it had no immediate plans of offering any major discounts for the festival season. “Let us see that market and then only we will make a definite comment on this,’’ a company official said. Mul had yesterday said it expected around 12,000 units of its entry-level car, where prices were reduced between Rs 15,000 and Rs 18,000, to be sold this month. The company also announced its plan to introduce a special limited edition during the festive season. “The special edition will have new body graphics, body-coloured bumpers, body-coloured front grill and colour-coordinated interiors, among other things,’’ a company official said.
UNI
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India plans Rs 800 cr buffer stock of sugar
New Delhi, August 30 “Food Ministry has proposed setting up a sugar buffer stock with the provision that subsidies provided to the millers will be used to pay the dues of the cane farmers and a final decision on the issue will be taken by the Cabinet,” official sources told PTI. They said the stocks will be maintained by the millers themselves but government will provide the subsidy involving the insurance payment, bank interest and storage charges. The estimated subsidy will come to around Rs 2000 per tonne annually or Rs 800 crore for 20 lakh tonnes in two years which will be disbursed through the Sugar Development Fund(SDF), they added. The fund had been created for the specific purpose of setting up buffer stocks of sugar by levying an ex-gate cess of 14 paise a kg on sugar and has an estimated amount of Rs 1200 crore in its kitty at present. The condition government has attached to setting up the proposed buffer is that the maintenance charges and carrying costs provided will be used for paying the price of sugarcane to the farmers with the arrears having mounted to a significant 17 per cent of the total payments to be made. Sources said the sugar prices have fallen to an abysmally low level of around Rs 12.5 per kg, below the ration shop price of Rs 13.5 per kg. This has made it difficult for the millers to make the cane price payments on time. While the government has increased the statutory minimum price for cane, paradoxically the sugar prices have witnessed a slump. They said with this background, providing additional funds to the millers from a fund which has been created by imposing a cess on them will provide a relief to them. Cane price arrears have risen to a significant Rs 2300 crore, though they are likely to come down in the coming months with the crushing season having come to an end. Buffer stocks have been created three times in the past only to be liquidated later. The basic purpose for the buffer is to prevent any shortage of sugar in case of any emergency. There are ample stocks of nearly 105 lakh tonnes with the millers, yet they have been demanding creation of the buffer stock on account of the high carrying costs which affect the mills economy. The government has also amended the SDF Act to enable providing reimbursement of the mills to port transport charges for export which could work out to Rs 60 crore for an export of 10 lakh tonne sugar. The fund is also being used for cane development and research, providing assistance to the millers for co-generation of power from bagasse and making of ethanol from molasses.
PTI
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Iffco-Kribhco gesture Ludhiana, August 30 This was announced here today by Mr Surinder Kumar Jakhar, Chairperson of Iffco-Kribhco, who was in the city today to attend a Delegate Convention of Cooperative Societies. Twenty-six office bearers of the co-operative employees union were elected for a two-year term here today. A delegate conventiom was also held in which challenges before the societies, particularly the competition of private companies and the effect of the multi-national companies and co-operative Acts were discussed. The delegates unanimously welcomed the Act, passed by the Parliament early this month. Mr Jakhar said that the new scheme of accidental insurance cover provided to the farmers with the fertiliser by the Iffco-Kribhco had a very good response in less than a year. As many as one lakh policies were given to the farmers within this period. Mr Jakhar also said that with the implementation of the new Act on Cooperative Societies on August 19, the societies have become independent bodies that will be deciding the salaries of the employees, management and new schemes etc and would be running their societies on their own. He said the cooperative banks had reduced the rates of the interest by 2 per cent in some cases just to compete with the multinational companies. Earlier addressing the farmers on the occasion Mr Jakhar said that cooperative movement was in danger and only the farmers could save them with their sincere efforts. Stating that many coop banks were being closed down after the orders from the RBI, the need of the hour was to save this movement from the slow death. The new office bearers of the Cooperative Employees Union were- Mr Gurmail Singh Bharowal as President and Mr Jit Singh of Faridkot as Chairman. Other members were, Mr Mohammed Sadiq, Mr Joginder Singh, Mr Udham Singh, Mr Gurmel Singh, Mr Ajaib Singh, Mr Avtar Singh, Mr Prithipal Singh, Mr Shingara Singh, Mr Gurdeep Singh, Mr Gurtej Singh, Mr Jagtar Singh Nathowal, Mr Baljit Singh, Mr Shawinder Singh, Mr Darshan Singh, Mr Jaswinder Singh Kahlon, Mr Bhagwant Singh Lalton, Mr Guran Singh Dhillan Kalan, Mr Labh Singh, Mr Blabir Singh Hambran, Mr Jagdev Singh, Mr Sukhjinder Singh, Mr Balwant Singh, Mr Karan Singh and Mr Iqbal Singh. |
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IMF concerned about India’s fiscal deficit
Washington, August 30 In its annual review of the Indian economy, the Washington-based lender yesterday said India’s fiscal deficit — among the largest in the world — left little room for economic stimulus and could jeopardize economic growth. The Indian economy is expected to grow 5.4 per cent this year, up from 4.0 per cent last year, the fund said. Prices are expected to rise, with inflation growing 4.3 per cent in 2002, up from 3.8 per cent last year. Despite major economic improvements in the 1990s, which led to one of the highest rates of economic growth in the world over the past 10 years, low inflation and reduced poverty, growth in India could suffer if the fiscal situation is not addressed, the fund said. It said major policy challenges lay ahead for the world’s largest democracy. The fund said fiscal consolidation and structural reforms were essential to ensure that India reaches its 8 per cent growth target. The government’s debt, which stands at over 80 per cent of gross domestic product, was also a source of concern for the IMF.
Reuters
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Dhindsa to oppose NFL disinvestment
New Delhi, August 30 “It is my responsibility and duty to ensure that the profit-making NFL is not privatised, at least during the next one year,” Mr Dhindsa said after inaugurating the annual day celebrations of NFL here. Disfavouring the privatisation of NFL at this juncture, the minister said he would make all efforts to prevent the immediate disinvestment of the 29-year old public sector fertiliser company “which has been playing a crucial role in providing nutrients to the farmers timely and at reasonable prices.” At the same time, the employees of the company must contribute their best to substantially enhance performance and register impressive profits which could play a significant role for the organisation to remain a PSU, he said. Now, a major hurdle in NFL’s disinvestment appears to be the delay in formulation of the much-awaited long-term fertiliser policy which is yet to see the light of the day despite the promise given about two years ago by the government to announce it soon. Sources said prospective bidders were expected to examine the impact of the long-term policy while making detailed assessment of the company.
PTI
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HCL Technologies net down 17 pc
New Delhi, August 30 The company’s net income for the three months ended June 30 this year fell to Rs 90.71 crore, applying Indian accounting standards, as compared to Rs 109.16 crore in the previous year, the company said in a statement here. For the year ended June 30, 2002, net profit declined to Rs 401.95 crore as compared to Rs 426.78 crore in the previous year. HCL Board has recommended a dividend of 75 per cent (Rs 1.50 per share on every share of Rs 2) for the year ended June 30, 2002. Total income has decreased from Rs 222.93 crore in April-June 2001 to Rs 208.9 crore in the quarter ended June 30, 2002. Total income increased from Rs 833.13 crore in FY-01 to Rs 856.56 million in the year ended June 30, 2002.
PTI
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Microchips implanted in 17 elephants
Chariduar (Assam), August 30 This was the third and last camp for implanting the silicon chips, after the ones in Delhi and Guwahati under Project Elephant by two experts from Blackpool Zoo and sponsored by the centre, state Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife) Sonadhar Doley said here. Two domesticated pachyderms Rajeswari and her calf Suman were the first to be fixed with the microchips, which would also identify and monitor other implanted elephants’ movement. He said the chips were implanted in 12 elephants from south west forest division and five from Nameri National Park but no animal turned up from Arunachal Pradesh due to long distance,
non-availability of food on the way, difficult terrain and adverse weather conditions. Blackpool Zoo Director Iain Valentine and Scott Riddle, Director of Riddle Elephant and Wildlife Sanctuary UK, said the zoo, under Project Elephant, had implanted 28 elephants in Delhi, 14 in Guwahati, besides 17 here today. A sum of £ 8,000 had been spent for the implantation, including £ 5,500 for equipment in the state, Mr Valentine said.
PTI
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