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Nath feels need to relook at export chain
India to seek oilfields in Iran, Angola
Allotted land lies unused at Parwanoo
Industry demands power at cheaper rates
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Cellular firms oppose
Now, Spice slashes rates
AUTO SCENE
Renuka for regional approach to boost tourism
Allahabad Bank disburses loans
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Nath feels need to relook at export chain
New Delhi, September 1 Speaking a meeting organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), Mr Nath said the issues require legislative action. The minister stated with the country’s foreign exchange reserves touching the $ 120 billion mark, there is a need to change the way we look at exports. While in the earlier years, exports were considered important from the point of view of generating dollars, it is time all facets of the export chain be looked at differently and a consistent policy is evolved to give a strategic push to sectors where India has a considerable advantage. “The efforts of the government and the private sector should be such that these help us in unleashing the country’s natural endowments,” he said. He also said while it would be the endeavour of the government to provide a level playing field to the domestic industry, inefficiency would not be protected. The government does not want the industry to be at a disadvantageous position and ensure this does not happen, it would place adequate emphasis on the single largest challenge posed by inadequate and poor quality infrastructure.
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India to seek oilfields in Iran, Angola
New Delhi, September 1 Mr Aiyar, who will address the meeting on September 17, will also raise the issue of Opec countries charging a $ 1 per barrel premium from developing countries in Asia on crude they sell to them. “Beside the major oil producers, this time a number of non-Opec members have also been called. This is an excellent opportunity for discussing bilateral issues,” he said adding he would also meet oil ministers from Iran, Angola and Norway. New Delhi will seek to strike a deal for ONGC Videsh Ltd, who bid to buy Shell’s 50 per cent stake in an offshore oil Block 18 for $ 623 million but which has been blocked by the Angolan state oil company Sonangol. Besides, India will also persuade Tehran to give the giant Yadavaran oilfield in exchange of New Delhi buying five million tonnes of LNG from Iran. Mr Aiyar, who will be in Vienna from September 14 to 17, will take up the issue of the global oil price in his address to the Opec. “I will speak on the challenges of sustainable development and will raise the issue of Asian premium charged by the Opec countries,” he said. “Many other bilateral meetings are being lined up,” he said. Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) charges $ 1 a barrel premium on supplies to India when compared to the price at which it sells to the US and Europe. — PTI ONGC plan for Andhra The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has announced its plan to develop a special economic zone (SEZ) at Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh, in collaboration with Kakinada Seaports Limited and Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Limited. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) for a cooperative and collaborative working relationship between three parties was signed here yesterday. The MoU was signed by Dr A K Balyan, Director in the corporation, on behalf of ONGC, Dr M Srinivas, President, Kakinada Seaports Limited and Mr D.K. Mittal, CEO, Infrastructure Leasing in the presence of ONGC Chairman, Mr Subir Raha. — TNS
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Allotted land lies unused at Parwanoo
Kumarhatti, September 1 The HP Housing and Urban Development Authority (Him Huda) has failed to get back the land from lessees despite its best efforts. Ironically, around 42,453 square meters (56.45 bighas) of land in Sector 2 of town, comprising four industrial plots, has not seen any sort of industry activities since long. A plot spread over 16,500 square meters (21.94 bighas) of land allotted to Him Process, a public sector undertaking, has failed to witness industrial activities since 1976, the year when the plot was leased out to Him Process. Similarly, 16,150 square meters (21.50 bighas) of plot, allotted to Small Scale Industries Corporation (SSIC) in 1976, is lying unused since past 15 years. The SSIC started two projects but failed. Inquiries reveal that the plot of Him Process has allegedly become a paid parking place for trucks. Moreover, unauthorised hutments have gradually sprouted on unused plots. A plot measuring over 5603 square meters allotted to Banta Engineering in 1979 is a virtual slum now. The plots were leased out to Him Process and SSIC at Rs 15 per square meter in 1976 as against the development charges of Rs 80 per square meter borne by Him Huda on plots at that time. The land scarcity at Parwanoo came to fore after the Centre announced industrial package last year and new units, seeking benefits of the incentives under package, made a beeline for the town. The situation has come to such a pass that failing to get a suitable piece of land in town, a good number of industrialists have allegedly entered into illegal land sale deeds with villagers in and around Parwanoo, thus landing themselves in trouble. Hilly area was unscientifically levelled to set up new units. Interestingly, the Parwanoo Industries Department in order to improve the situation has forwarded a proposal to its higher authorities to resume the surplus land allotted to three big industries of town. But the proposal lies almost shelved.
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Industry demands power at cheaper rates
Chandigarh, September 1 Representatives of the CII, along with those of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mohali and Dera Bassi industrial associations, besides various other industrial bodies who appeared before the Chairman of the commission, Mr R.S Mann, for a hearing today strongly opposed the upward revision of tariff proposed by the board in its petition submitted to the commission. They pleaded that the board as per the recast annual revenue requirement (ARR) for 2003-2004 had shown excess revenue of Rs 308 crore, according to which the power tariff rates should be reduced and not increased. Mr S.P Oswal, past Chairman, CII, Punjab State Council, raised objections with regard to the manipulation of figures by the board for tariff revision even as the figures mentioned in their own annual report do not tally with the same. He said the board had reported a deficit of Rs 219 crore for 2003-2004 and wants to claim it through an increase in tariff. The report also indicates that the norms set by the commission have not been followed by the board, hence the deficit.
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Cellular firms oppose Trai’s proposal
New Delhi, September 1 Trai’s draft recommendations on unified licensing say that irrespective of national long distance (NLD), international long distance (ILD) or the areas served, the licence will be given upon a payment of Rs 107 crore. This lump sum payment will raise the entry barrier, as operators will have to pay Rs 107 crore against the present NLD licence fee of Rs 100 crore and ILD licence fee of Rs 25 crore. “The charges proposed for long distance (Rs 107 crore for both NLD and ILD services on an all-India basis) are contrary to the principles of unified licensing because they are not nominal as promised and the entry barrier continues to be significantly high for a period of five years,” Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) Director General T V Ramachandran said. This does not ensure level playing field, as a single service area operator will have to pay the same fees as payable by a pan India operator with multiple service areas. The charges should be applied on a service area basis, must be unbundled for NLD and ILD and brought down to a nominal level, Mr Ramachandran said in a statement here. Trai in its draft recommendations has extended significant benefits to the NLD operators as they are being allowed a 60 per cent reduction in revenue share license fee from 15 per cent to 6 per cent and complete waiver of all rollout obligations. Meanwhile, Trai is examining the accusations made by private cellular operators that BSNL was resorting to massive tariff cut mainly on the back of whopping Rs 5,000 crore paid by them by way of Access Deficit Charge. — Agencies
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Now, Spice slashes rates
Chandigarh, September 1 Spice to any local GSM mobile call charges will be as low as Re 1 per minute and Spice to landline/WLL at Rs 2 per minute. These rates are available at a monthly charge of only Rs 35 as the Spice Benefit Plus Pack. The STD call rate to any GSM mobile in India has also been reduced to Rs 2 per minute. Earlier, Spice had slashed the rates in the prepaid category.
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AUTO SCENE
New Delhi, September 1 Sales of MUL’s bread-and-butter model ‘Maruti 800’, however, dipped 27.4 per cent at 8,713 units, a company statement said. Maruti’s sales were affected due to the transporters’ strike during the month, the statement said. Sales of Omni van and Versa went up by 34.4 per cent at 5,389 units. The company’s three premium small cars — Alto, WagonR and Zen — posted a rise of 76.8 per cent at 20,950 units. Mid-size sedans Baleno and Esteem witnessed a rise of 104.6 per cent at 2,472 units. However, in the multi-purpose vehicle category, sales of Gypsy and Vitara dived 64.1 per cent at 136 units. Truck and carmaker Tata Motors Ltd and MUL today said the week-long truckers’ strike had hurt their car sales in August. “We had a minor impact,” Tata Motors Vice-President (Passenger car unit) Rajiv Dube told reporters on the sidelines of Siam annual convention here. Maruti Managing Director Jagdish Khattar said: “There has been some effect of the strike on our sales. We hope to make it up this month.” Maruti August sales recorded 32.2 per cent jump to 42,480 vehicles from 32,127 units in the same month a year ago. Bajaj Auto
Bajaj Auto Ltd has recorded a 22 per cent jump in sales of two-wheelers at 1,19,895 units for August 2004 as compared to 98,175 units in the same period last year. The company’s motor cycle sales zoomed 40 per cent at 1,06,745 units in August as against 76,487 units in the same month last fiscal. Sales of three-wheelers was flat at 19,848 units last month as against 19,601 units in August last year, the company said in a release here adding growth was limited due to the truckers’ strike. The company reported a 16 per cent rise in exports at 13,575 units against 11,699 a year ago, the release said.
Hero Honda
Hero Honda Motors, India’s biggest motor cycle maker, today said sales grew 31.5 per cent at 1,91,635 units in August 2004 over 1,45,730 units in the same month last year. Cumulative (April-August 2004) sales soared 35 per cent at 10,06,412 units against 7,47,660 units during the year-ago period, a company statement said. Hero Honda Motors, which is 26 per cent each owned by Japan’s Honda Motor Co and the Munjals, has also announced a uniform national price of Rs 69,900 for its Karizma model on the lines of a similar scheme for CD Dawn earlier.
— TNS, Agencies
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New Delhi, September 1 “Like the knights in shining armour, samurais are renowned for their swordsmanship. The swords made for samurais obviously meant a lot more than just a weapon to them. The Sikhs world over hold equal amount of respect for kirpans, the weapon that holds religious significance to them,” Mr Anish Goel, Managing Director of Sasana Enterprise, Indian representative of Victorinox, told a news conference here. Victorinox’s Khalsa kirpan launch coincided with the quadricentennial of the Guru Granth Sahib. Khalsa kirpans come in two sizes of seven by five (blade and handle) and 3.6 and 3.5 inches. The Swiss-made holy daggers, with the Sikh emblem embossed on them, will be marketed in India through its over 400 retail outlets, besides their supply to gurdwara stores selling Sikh articles, Mr Goel added. Indigenous handmade kirpans of these sizes, however, normally range between Rs 100 to Rs 500. But the Swiss company official said the quality of Khalsa kirpans, priced between Rs 1,360 and Rs 3,400, would attract buyers. — UNI Two-wheeler maker TVS Motor Company today said its motor cycle sales dropped 21.23 per cent at 49,020 units in August 2004, primarily due to the week-long truckers’ strike across the country. Total sales, however, slipped 11.67 per cent at 89,500 units in the review month, a company statement said here. The Chennai-based firm recorded 72 per cent growth in exports with 4,454 units in August 2004. — UNI
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Renuka for regional approach to boost tourism
New Delhi, September 1 Inaugurating a conference on “Integrated Tourism Development in North India,” organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in the Capital today, Ms Choudhary said while each state had its own strengths, local art and culture, it would be most beneficial to the region as a whole if joint efforts were made by leveraging each other’s strength and potentials. She urged the states to approach the Central government to push for air connectivity on the domestic circuit and more modern airports. Interacting with the state tourism ministers of Delhi, J&K, Uttaranchal, Madhya Pradesh and secretaries of state tourism departments, Ms Choudhary said the country was facing stiff competition from South-East Asian countries. Consequently the emphasis would be developing regional tourist destinations.
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Allahabad Bank disburses loans
Kapurthala, September 1 As many as 1409 small and marginal farmers from various parts of the Doaba region received Kisan Shakti cards worth Rs 29 crore. Addressing the gathering, Mr O.N. Singh, Chairman and Managing director of the bank, said that Allahabad Bank had taken the lead in identifying the potential of agricultural credit as a good business proposition and had set a target of disbursing fresh agricultural loans of Rs 3,016 crore. during the current year, which is more than three times the credit worth Rs 848.24 crore disbursed during last year. To achieve the said target, he said that the bank was planning to implement various strategies.
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