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IRDA relaxes anti-money laundering guidelines
Reforms helped Infosys become
a giant: Murthy
HP offers alternative site to Hero Honda
Radico Khaitan eyes acquisitions
Century to spend Rs 1,565 cr
eSys to expand Chandigarh unit
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Truck unit: Punjab offer to Tatas
e-filing of cos’ return to be must
World’s most expensive mobile phone
IT return not required if income below exemption level
Markets recover on strong Q1 results
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IRDA relaxes anti-money laundering guidelines
New Delhi, July 30 To reduce the burden on insurers, the IRDA said compliance of KYC norms on existing customers should be carried out from January 1, 2006, instead of from April 1, 2004. In a circular to all insurers, the regulator said the compliance requirements are also further limited to the policies coming into force on or after January 1, 2006, and those covered under detailed due diligence procedures. The AML requirements may not be applied to the remaining existing customers — those below the threshold premium of Rs 1 lakh per annum, it said. Regarding documentation for identity and proof of residence, the IRDA said if the document of identity also gives the proof of residence, no further documentation would be necessary in cases where proof of residence needs to be obtained. In other cases, the companies may verify their current residential detail as given in the guidelines. The other requirements listed in the circular dated March 31, 2006, remain
unchanged. — PTI |
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Reforms helped Infosys become
a giant: Murthy
Mysore, July 30 Speaking at the silver jubilee celebrations of the company at the Infosys Leadership Institute here, Mr Murthy said the critics of the economic reforms must understand there was no alternative but to creation jobs to solve the problem of poverty. "We have created 55,000 jobs and an annual export revenue of $2 billion". Remembering other landmarks, he said Infosys functioned differently from the very start. "The first telephone was installed at the house of P Bala, who was in charge of our computer centre, rather than at the house of the CEO. Similarly, he said, "We spent one and a half times our revenue to build our first campus in 1992. In 1995, we chose to walk away from the business offered by General Electric when they put forward unreasonable demands even though the company was giving us 25 per cent of our business. We then knew we had built a courageous and principled organisation". The Infosys chief mentor said similarly the company had proved its complete transparency in doing business and stood true to the pledge given to its investors. "I myself stood before 1,500 investors and accepted that we had erred in investing some of our free cash flows in the secondary market and lost it". Mr Murthy also announced that the trustees of the Infosys Employees Welfare Trust had decided to distribute a part of its corpus amounting to Rs 126 crore to all employees to commemorate the silver jubilee celebrations. Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram was also present on the occasion. He said freedom was being throttled by massive institutions telling people what they must do. He said Infosys had led by an example and shown what could be done through free enterprise. Stressing the need for building a knowledge society, he said more organisations like Infosys could be created in the field of steel, mining, agriculture, education and aerospace. "The state's role must only be that of an enabler in all such enterprises", he added. Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy announced that the state was in the process of establishing a Venture Capital Fund to help young entrepreneurs who wanted to set up knowledge-based industries. |
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HP offers alternative site to Hero Honda
Shimla, July 30 “Enough land is available in the Baddi, Barotiwala and Swarghat area for the project,” Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh
said here yesterday. He denied the opposition claims that the land originally offered to Hero Honda in the Baddi area was forest land. “It is government land under the possession of the Forest Department but the Opposition made an issue out of it without ascertaining the facts,” he said. Claiming that cheap power was a major attraction for industrialists in Himachal Pradesh, he said a Rs 100-crore plan was under implementation for regular and adequate power supply in industrial
areas. — PTI |
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Radico Khaitan eyes acquisitions
New Delhi, July 30 The company, he said, was exporting to places like the UAE, Africa and South-East Asia in a big way while also selling in Australia, New Zealand and the USA. Radico Khaitan recently entered into joint ventures in the UK and Africa to own production lines overseas. In the domestic market, the company has launched a vodka brand ‘Magic Moments Vodka’. Radico Khaitan registered a 17 per cent rise in sales turnover for the fiscal 2005-06 at Rs 1,135.39 crore against Rs 973.59 crore in the previous fiscal. Profit after tax stood at Rs 45.16
crore. — PTI |
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Century to spend Rs 1,565 cr
New Delhi, July 30 The company will invest Rs 600 crore in setting up a new textile mill, having a capacity of manufacturing 30 million metres of fabrics per annum, at Jhagadia in Bharuch, Gujarat, along with a 30 MW Captive Thermal Power Plant, a statement said. It will also set up an additional cement manufacturing unit, at an at the existing site of Manikgarh Cement Division at Gadchandur in Maharashtra, including a 35-MW captive thermal power plant at an expenditure of about Rs 790 crore. A new cement grinding unit of 1.50 million tonnes per annum capacity at Sagardighi in West Bengal would also be installed with an investment of Rs 175
crore. — UNI |
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eSys to expand Chandigarh unit
Singapore, July 30 The new manufacturing plant, to be set up at an initial investment of Rs 50 crore, will be eSys’ second in India after the first one in New Delhi. eSys is the largest hard disk drive distribution company with a global market share of 23 per cent. Talking about the Chandigarh facility, Goel said the company was planning to run its global operations from India which offered skills at a comparatively low cost. Currently, eSys uses its nerve centre in India and Singapore to carry this out. “We will invest another Rs 50 crore in Chandigarh and increase our headcount from 500 to 2,000 there,” Mr Goel
said. — PTI |
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Truck unit: Punjab offer to Tatas
Jalandhar, July 30 Mr Singla said the group was considering setting up its truck manufacturing unit and Punjab was also being considered as an ideal destination along with Himachal Pradesh. Earlier, the company was exploring the feasibility of setting up a car manufacturing unit in the state but later the project was shifted to West Bengal.
— UNI |
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e-filing of cos’ return to be must
Kolkata, July 30 Rolling out the MCA-21 for the West Bengal Registry here, Mr Gupta said the companies would have the option to file their returns through the paper mode within September 15. However, e-filing would be made online after that period, he said. MCA-21 is a part of government’s National e-governance plan by which companies would be able to file their documents through the electronic mode.
— PTI |
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World’s most expensive mobile phone
Moscow, July 30 The Diamond Crypto Smartphone, designed by luxury accessories maker Peter Aloisson, is priced at a crisp $1.3 million and features a cover adorned with 50 diamonds, ten of which are of a rare blue variety. It also features a few sections made in rose gold, the Moscow News weekly reported today. Apart from the enticing looks, the phone manufactured by the Moscow-based JSC Ancort Company uses powerful encryption technology to provide special security.
— PTI |
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by S.C. Vasudeva
IT return not required if income below exemption level
Q: I am a senior citizen of 80 years of age. Up to financial year 2004-05 (assessment year 2005-06) all pensioners whose gross income (i.e. pension, DA and income from other sources) minus the standard deduction exceeds Rs.50,000 were required to file income tax return irrespective of the fact whether he was required to pay tax or not?
Now for financial year 2005-06 (assessment year 2006-07) all senior citizens have been exempted from payment of any income tax up to Rs1.85 lakh. Please let me know if now senior citizens with less than Rs 1.85 lakh gross income are required to file the return especially when they have been allotted PAN. — J.S. Bhalla, Delhi A: In accordance with the provisions of Section 139 of the Income Tax Act 1961, every person if his total income or the total income of any other person in respect of which he is assessable under this Act, during the previous year, exceeds the maximum amount which is not chargeable to income tax is required to furnish a return of his income or the income of such other persons in the prescribed form and verified in the prescribed manner setting forth such particulars as may be prescribed. In view of the above provisions as you are a senior citizen and your income is below Rs.1.85 lakh, you are not required to file the income tax return for the assessment year 2006-07. Gift tax
Q: I would like to know if my brother-in-law (wife’s brother) or his wife gives gift of Rs 6 lakh to my three sons (Rs 2 lakh each) or to my grandchildren will I be liable to gift tax or not? — Ram Parkash Sharma, Pathankot A: Section 56(2)(vi) of the Act brings to tax any sum of money exceeding Rs 25,000 received without consideration by an individual or a Hindu Undivided Family after 1st day of September 2004, as income in the hands of such individual or HUF receiving such amount. It may be added that the above amount of Rs 25,000 is being substituted by Rs 50,000 w.e.f. 1st April 2006, in view of the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act 2006. This section also provides that above clause shall not apply to any sum of money received from various entities specified in the proviso to the aforesaid section. One of such exceptions is the receipt of any sum of money from any “relative”. The term “relative” has been defined as under in the said section and means: “(i) spouse of the individual; (ii) brother or sister of the individual; (iii) brother or sister of the spouse of the individual; (iv) brother or sister of either of the parents of the individual; (v) any lineal ascendant or descendant of the individual; (vi) any lineal ascendant or descendant of the spouse of the individual; (vii) spouse of the person referred to in clause (ii) to (vi).”. Your sons can receive gift from the brother of your wife and such gifts would be covered within the exception. However, in case of your grandchildren the exception provided for in the section would not apply as the aforesaid relationship should be vis-a-vis your grandchildren. In my opinion, therefore such gifts to your grandchildren would be taxable as income from other sources. Section 88
Q: During the year 2003-04 (assessment year 2004-05) my gross income was Rs 1,82,983 and Rs 1,52,983 after the standard deduction Rs 30,000. I donated Rs 3,000 to the Prime Minister Relief Fund and got 100 per cent relief under section 80G with the result my net income stood at Rs 1,49,983, and total tax worked out to Rs 18,997 after availing rebate under Section 88 at the rate of 20 per cent. Now, after a gap of two years the Income Tax Department has issued a notice to deposit Rs 4,667 (less deposit) being rebate under Section 88 allowed at the rate of 15 per cent, with the plea that 100 per cent relief allowed under Section 80G will not be considered while allowing rebate under Section 88. Keeping in view of above, kindly convince to me whether above amount after availing the 100 per cent rebate under Section 80G or amount before availing the rebate is to be considered while working out the total tax. — Naresh Kumar Sangoie, Kangra A: The step taken by the department is correct because the rebate should have been allowed to you at the rate of 15 per cent under Section 88(1)(ii) of the Act which reads as under: “Subject to the provisions of this section, an assessee, being an individual, or a Hindu Undivided Family, shall be entitled to a deduction, from the amount of income tax (as computed before allowing the deductions under this Chapter) on his total income with which he is chargeable for any assessment year of an amount equal to - (ii) in case of an individual or a Hindu undivided family, whose gross total income before giving effect to deductions under Chapter VI-A, is more than Rs 1,50,000 but does not exceed five lakh rupees, 15 per cent of the aggregate of the sums referred to in sub-section (2).” It would thus be clear that the rebate should have been allowed only at the rate of 15 per cent and as against 20 per cent allowed to you. MFs and tax
Q: I am working as a bank officer, Kindly advise me: 1. Tax structure for the financial year 2005-06 (assessment year 2006-07). 2. Tax exemption under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, 1961, especially with regard to insurance premiums paid during the year and Section10 (10D) - insurance maturity benefits. 3. Tax benefits available under Sections 48 & 112 of the Act on capital gains from mutual funds. Amount received during the year from MF income is taxable or not. — A.K. Dhiman A: The answers to your queries are as under: (i) The details of tax structure for assessment year 2006-07 are contained in Finance Act 2006 in Part I of the First Schedule. These details as contained in the said Act are of 8 printed pages. The paucity of space does not permit the writer of the column to give such details in these columns. (ii) The provisions of Section 80C allow the deduction of any sum paid to effect or to keep in force an insurance on the life of the following persons: (a) in the case of an individual, the individual, the wife or husband and any child of such individual. (b) in the case of HUF, any member of the HUF. (iii) Section 48 of the Act provides for the mode of computation of capital gains and Section 112 deals with the taxability of the long-term capital gains. These sections do not provide any tax benefit. It may be added that the income received in respect of the units of a mutual fund specified under Section 10(23D) is exempt under Section 10(35). The long-term gain earned on sale of units of an equity-oriented fund is exempt under Section 10(38) in case the transaction of sale of such units is entered into after 1st October 2004, and security transaction tax as levied by the Finance Act 2004, has been charged thereon. |
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by Lalit Batra Markets recover on strong Q1 results
Strong first-quarter number by major companies made the markets stage a comeback and Sensex closed the week with a gain of 594 points.
Sensex gained more than 100 points in four consecutive session. The moot point here to note is that markets gained ground despite the RBI’s 25 basis points hike in short-term interest rates on Tuesday. Since most of the blue chips have already declared their first-quarter results (Grasim and HLL are the only ones left), the movement of the market will depend on FII inflows and on the progress of the monsoon, though the rising crude oil prices remain a concern.
Ranbaxy Generics are the way forward. The governments across various countries are under pressure to reduce healthcare costs, which can be achieved through relatively cheaper generics. Hence, the fundamentals of the global generic industry — despite the intense interim pricing pressure — remain strong. The governments of countries like France, Japan, Italy and Spain where the penetration of generics is low are also expected to focus on cheaper generic medicines so as to cut health costs. Ranbaxy’s product pipeline is the second largest in the US generics market, indicating good potential in the long-term. Out of these, 18 are potential ‘first-to-file’ opportunities(FTFs) representing a market size worth $22.2 billion. In order to capitalise on the generics opportunity, the company intends to launch around 15 drugs each during the current and the next fiscal year. I believe that in an increasing competitive US market, new product launches will be the key to sustain growth and profitability. The company in order to de-risk its business from the US markets has also been expanding its reach through various acquisitions and tie-up in countries like Romania, Italy, Spain and India. The company has already achieved a high level of success in its R&D efforts that are related to new drug discovery and novel drug delivery systems (NDDS). Its R&D thrust has resulted in the company having one of the most enviable products pipeline. On the NCE (new chemical entity) front, its anti-malarial molecule, which the company is developing in collaboration with Medicines for Malaria Venture, Geneva, is undergoing Phase-II clinical trials. Though the company’s performance in the past couple of years has been volatile I continue to believe that companies like Ranbaxy have a meaningful role to play in the global pharmaceutical markets. Investors should take a long-term view of the global generic companies like Ranbaxy. |
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