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Release LPG connections within 60 days: OilMin
Zapak to open 500 gameplexes
Anil eyes big pie
in DTH space
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Nokia unveils N96 to counter iPhone
GSM operators seek early hearing on spectrum issue
Ludhiana Stock Exchange row ‘resolved’
SBI Life to foray into West Asia
Petition against use of mobiles
Bank staff on strike today
Balaji ends pact with Star
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Release LPG connections within 60 days: OilMin
New Delhi, August 19 Petroleum minister Murli Deora today met the oil companies’ heads to review the supply and distribution of essential petroleum products like kerosene and LPG and asked them to ensure adequate supplies in the coming festive season.
According to sources, an additional 5 lakh tonnes of LPG and 3 lakh tonnes of diesel is being imported to meet the additional requirements in the festival season followed by the winter demand. “LPG connections will be available on demand and the oil companies have been instructed to issue new LPG connections and augment auto fuel supplies,” said petroleum secretary R.S. Pandey. Waiting time for LPG connections would not be allowed to exceed two months, the oil secretary said, while announcing opening of a grievance cell in the ministry to address complaints . The oil firms had gone slow on issuing new LPG connections and restricted auto fuel supplies in view of mounting losses. But, now Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum have been asked to liquidate the waiting list for new domestic gas connections within two months. IOC chairman Sarthak Behuria said the oil industry had taken some measures, including supplying only premium fuel at select petrol pumps and stopping new LPG connections to tide over huge revenue losses resulting from government's decision not to raise petrol, diesel, LPG and kerosene prices in line with cost. “We have waiting list of 6-7 lakh for new LPG connections and have placed orders to buy 10 lakh new LPG cylinders to liquidate the outstanding position,” the IOC chairman said, adding that the consumers would get a choice to buy both normal and branded petrol and diesel at all retail outlets in the country. The oil secretary told PSU company CEOs that they should stop blaming the government for their revenue loss and instead do some cost-cutting and improve efficiency. The government plans to introduce a system of incentives and disincentives in the oil industry to reward performers and motivate others for higher efficiency in their operations. Meanwhile, the finance ministry has agreed in-principle to release oil bonds worth Rs 24,000 crore for the first quarter to the oil marketing companies
(OMCs) to partly offset their under-recoveries. The finance ministry has estimated under-recoveries of Rs 48,000 crore for the first quarter, 50 per cent of which will be compensated through oil bonds, said the oil secretary. As regards the recommendations of the B.K. Chaturvedi committee, oil minister Murli Deora said the government would look into the matter in next few months. |
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Zapak to open 500 gameplexes
Chandigarh, August 19 This was disclosed by the business head, Zapak-Gameplex, Rajiv Sawhney, during an interview with The Tribune, here today. He said the company has tied up with a Chinese gaming major, Shanda, to launch the first MMOG called Crazy Kart. “Through this MMOG, lakhs of online players will be able to participate in the MMOG. We are also in the process of signing one more pact from the biggest studios across the world. We are hoping to operate about six MMOGs in the next three years. Our strategy is to get world class global content for the Indian consumer,” he said. He said the company’s strategy was to be a full service online gaming company. “Presently, we are focusing on the casual online gaming business, with a vision to graduate from these flash games to casual MMOGs and later hardcore MMOGs,” he explained. Sawhney said though gaming was at a nascent stage in India, it is a $200 million market and Zapak was the largest player with a 75 per cent market share. “Zapak has successfully created India‘s largest casual gaming portal. Today we have about five million registered users on our site. This, by any means, is the biggest success story in the virtual world in recent times in our country,” he added. Started in November 2006, Zapak started opening its gameplexes across India. “As of now, we have opened 51 gameplexes across 30 cities, and plan to have 500 gameplexes across 103 cities during this year. This will mean that we have 10,000 gaming seats in these gameplexes,” he said. Sawhney said the company’s focus area was small towns and cities, and even now 45 per cent of traction on the portal was from the cities like Ranchi, Siliguri, Pathankot and Jamsdhedpur. The company was thus planning to open gameplexes in Bathinda, Ropar, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Shimla, Panipat, Karnal and Kurukshetra this year. |
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Anil eyes big pie
in DTH space
Mumbai, August 19 Kapoor said the DTH market was set for a big boom with the number of subscribers expected to double to around 12 million in a year's time. "As more players enter, the market will grow," Kapoor said. He added that Big TV sees huge potential in small towns and rural areas which are so far not reachable by cable TV. Company officials said, Big TV has already garnered a large number of subscribers in rural areas in the outskirts of cities like Mumbai with competitive introductory pricing. Initially, rollout has been planned in 6,500 towns and would be extended to 10,000 towns by year-end. Big TV's initial launches would be competitively priced with a set-top box and a three-month subscription costing just Rs 1,490. With the latest MPEG-4 technology, Big TV will offer 200 channels initially and subsequently increase it to 300-350 channels. Kapoor said the company was sourcing its set-top boxes from different vendors like Hyundai and ZTB. Reliance Communications is also mulling setting up its own production line in the near future, he added.
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Nokia unveils N96 to counter iPhone
New Delhi, August 19 The N96 was tipped to be launched globally in October but Nokia has gone ahead to alter its plans with the apparent launch of iPhone and made its first global launch in India. Optimised for web access and entertainment, the dual-slide Nokia N96 is a blend of style and cutting edge technology and represents a whole new chapter in mobile technology. N96 is the first ever mobile device to offer a memory size of 16GB expandable to 24 GB through an external micro SD card, allowing consumers to store hours of media and entertainment. It will be available across the country starting September. Nokia also announced a pre-booking scheme, offering consumers the opportunity to secure the N96 in advance. The offer will be valid through 2,000 Nokia outlets across the country starting August 20. N96 can store up to 18,000 songs, up to 20,000 images at 5 mega pixel, up to 60 hours of video or 20 full length movies. With multifunctional media keys and a 2.8" screen, music, movies, games and more are available at the touch of a button. The N96 boasts of a 5 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, a dual LED flash and video light. It allows DVD-like quality video capture at 30 frames per second.
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GSM operators seek early hearing on spectrum issue
New Delhi, August 19 As the TDSAT took up the case filed by the GSM operators lobby today after coming to full strength following the appointment of new judicial members, the COAI pleaded before the tribunal to start hearing at the earliest on their petition, challenging government's decision to allow dual technology. The government had on Monday filed an affidavit refuting GSM operators' allegation that the policy of dual technology has eaten into their quota of additional spectrum and placed before the TDSAT actual allocation of airwaves made by the government to existing players in the last eight months. After TDSAT directing the COAI to file reply on government's affidavit, senior counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for GSM players, said the process of filing replies and rejoinders would delay the whole process and requested the tribunal to immediately start the hearing. Justice Kumar asked COAI to file its reply by August 22 and also directed DoT to file rejoinder over it by September 1 and fixed September 4 the next date for hearing.
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Ludhiana Stock Exchange row ‘resolved’
Ludhiana, August 19 The board cancelled the general body meeting that was earlier scheduled for August 23 and also the decisions that were taken at a meeting of members on July 25 on the issue pertaining to ousting of the chairman of the course and one of its directors. Sources said the investigations by SEBI pertaining to alleged irregularities at the LSE, however, were being conducted and a report on the matter was awaited. High tension prevailed at the bourse for more than a month after a group moved a notice under Section 284 to oust the chairman and one of the directors. Thereafter, few members decided to hold a meeting on August 23 to pass a resolution on the same notice, which was resented by the chairman who approached the CLB. SEBI officials visited the stock exchange in connection with their investigations on the matter on August 7 and 8. Earlier, in a hearing, the CLB had quashed the notice that was moved by a few members to oust S.P. Sharma, chairman, and T.S. Thapar, a director of the bourse.
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SBI Life to foray into West Asia
Chandigarh, August 19 This was stated by the managing director and CEO, SBI Life, U.S. Roy, here today. He said the decision to foray into the West Asia market was taken because of the large concentration of Indians there. “We have had a good experience in India and have managed to reach the second position in private life insurance. This experience will help us achieve success in West Asia, which is a market similar to India,” he said. He added that they will also start health insurance on a pilot basis later this month. Roy said that even in the domestic market they were planning a massive expansion. “We have 180 branches across India, and we plan to add another 250 branches by the end of this fiscal. We are also going to increase the insurance advisors from the present 43,000 to 85,000,” he said. “This year, we are targeting a premium income of Rs 10,000 crore as against Rs 5,622 crore last year,” he said. Roy added that their micro insurance product, which was started on a pilot basis in
Orissa, will be launched across the country this year. |
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Petition against use of mobiles
New Delhi, August 19 According to reports, the committee headed by senior BJP MP M Venkaiah Naidu is considering the petition seeking imposition of "reasonable restrictions" on the use of mobiles. The petitioner, whose name has not been given, has sought an enactment of a law prohibiting use of such phones or carrying them to places of worship, cremation ground and burial places. Reports said the panel has decided to undertake consultations with a wide cross section of the society inviting written memoranda. The petitioner is also seeking ban on use of mobile phones or carrying them in public offices. |
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Bank staff on strike today
New Delhi, August 19 Besides All-India Bank Employees' Association, a Left- affiliated union which has given the strike call, an officers association in the banking industry and an employee association of RBI would go on strike, AIBEA general secretary C.H. Venkatchalam said. Apart from about five lakh employees and officers belonging to public sector banks, employees of regional rural and cooperative banks would take part in the strike. Clearing operation, cash handling, forex and money market operations are likely to be affected due to the strike. The call for strike follows the merger of State Bank of Saurashtra with its parent SBI. The stir would come barely two days after officers in SBI and its associate banks went on a strike against the SBI-SBS merger. However, SBI unions are not participating in the strike tomorrow.
— PTI
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Mumbai, August 19 However, six existing shows produced by Balaji and currently on air with 'Star Plus', would continue on terms mutually agreed upon by the two parties. As per an agreement reached between concerned parties and approved by Balaji Telefilms' board, the promoters of the Indian company would be allowed to buy back 25.99 per cent stake from Asian Broadcasting FZ-LLC (ABF), an associate of Star Group, within eight months, failing which these shares could be sold to any non-competing entity. Pursuant to the agreement, Balaji promoters are entitled to purchase the entire shareholding held by ABF in the company for an average price of Rs 190 per share, within a period not exceeding 240 days. At the agreed price of Rs 190 per share, which represents a premium of 9.8 per cent over the current market price, ABF's holding would be worth Rs 322.01 crore. Besides, Balaji and Star have also agreed to terminate another regional languages joint venture agreement signed in April 2007, the company said today. — PTI
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Oil India plans IPO ITC Infotech buys Pyxis 'Bajaj Allianz Fortune Plus' Hero Honda hikes prices Saint Gobain in Rajasthan ICICI in pact with Exim Bank
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Big TV, the Direct-to-Home (DTH) service of Anil Ambani's Reliance Communications (RCom), was launched today. According to the company's CEO Arun Kapoor, Big TV aims to capture 40 per cent of the market after the first year.
New Delhi, August 19
