The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Adani gets Australia’s nod for $15.5 bn coal project Venture to provide electricity for up to 100 million people in India Melbourne, July 28 The Australian government on Monday approved Indian firm Adani Mining Pty Ltd's controversial A$16.5 billion ($15.5 billion) Carmichael coal and rail project in Queensland, subject to strict conditions to protect groundwater. The Carmichael mine, which could become Australia's largest coal mine at 60 million tonnes a year, has sparked protests from green groups and marine tour operators worried about carbon pollution and export of the coal from a port near the Great Barrier Reef. Greenpeace said the conditions imposed on the project would do little to protect the environment from the bigger impact of shipping through the World Heritage-listed reef and burning the huge amounts of coal the mine will produce. "A massive coal mine that will damage the Great Barrier Reef and do damage to the local environment and fuel climate change is not protecting the environment," said Ben Pearson, Australia Pacific programme director for Greenpeace. The Carmichael coal lode is in the outback Galilee Basin, where massive reserves of coal remain untapped due to the hefty costs of building ports and rail lines to the east coast nearly 500 km away. Hurdles to Galilee Basin projects have increased as coal prices have sunk to near five-year lows and as global pressure to cut coal to curb carbon emissions has stoked uncertainty over long-term demand, making it tough to raise funds for projects. Despite the challenges, Adani and compatriot GVK, which is working on a rival Galilee Basin coal project with Australia's richest woman, Gina Rinehart, are still planning to build large new mines, rail lines and a port terminal. "We welcome the Minister's approval of the Carmichael Mine and Rail project, which takes us another step closer to delivering our multi-billion dollar mine, rail and port development," Adani chairman Gautam Adani said in a statement. The environmental conditions imposed on Adani's project were largely to address concerns raised by landowners worried that coal projects in the area will affect groundwater supply from the Great Artesian Basin. "The strict conditions will ensure the protection of the environment as a paramount concern," Australia's Environment Minister Greg Hunt said in a statement. Adani, which recently lined up South Korea's POSCO Engineering & Construction Co Ltd to build the rail line for the project, aims to start producing in 2017, which would be three years behind its original target. Adani and GVK's combined port plan had already won government approval, but that is being challenged by green groups and marine tour operators. — Reuters The plan The project is expected to produce 60 million tonnes of thermal coal annually and create 189 km of rail infrastructure It has an estimated 60-year resource value of $300 billion and at full production is projected to add $2.97 billion to Queensland economy each year It is also expected to generate more than 6,000 jobs during the construction and operational phases Conditions for Indian firm The Indian company will be required to ensure that at least 730 megalitres of water are returned to the environment every year for five years The 11 suspects were allegedly plotting to target MPs, MLAs and mediapersons in Karnataka.
	Bharti Airtel crosses 300m customer mark Girja Shankar Kaura Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 28 India's largest telecom operator Airtel Bharti today said it had crossed the 300 million customers mark across its operations globally, keeping it among the top four mobile companies in the world. The milestone includes customers across mobile, fixed line and direct subscriber line, and direct-to-home services. “Today, telecom is at the cusp of transformation, which, going forward, will be driven as much by the force of technology as by the changing demographics in emerging markets across Asia and Africa,” said Gopal Vittal, managing director and chief executive officer (India and South Asia), Bharti Airtel. “Accelerated data consumption by the youth is going to be the underlying story,” Vittal said adding that the milestone underlines the strength of the company's operations, which is one of the largest on a global scale. The company provides telecommunications services in 20 countries across Asia and Africa. In Africa, Bharti Airtel spans 17 countries with over 70 million customers. Bharti Airtel, which began operations in 1995, reached the 100 million customers mark in 2009 and crossed the 200 million mark in 2012. The latest 100 million customers have joined the Airtel family in less than two years, the statement said. Airtel has been the largest telecommunications company in India by customers and revenue. It put India on the data superhighway when it launched the country's first 4G services in 2012.
	Centre calls meet on diesel price for 12 states New Delhi, July 28 With state specific levies adding up to Rs 7 a litre in price of diesel, the Centre has called a meeting with 12 states with the highest incidence of taxes like octroi and entry tax, to impress upon them to cut these duties and bring down prices. Diesel costs Rs 57.84/litre in Delhi while in Mumbai it costs Rs 66.01/l and in rest of Maharashtra Rs 65.99. This difference is primarily because of higher local sales tax or VAT and levy of state specific taxes like octroi and entry tax on the fuel. Carrying PM Narendra Modi's governance model of federal cooperativism where states are equal partners with the Centre, the Petroleum Ministry on instructions from Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, has initiated the consultation process with the states, a official said. Officials from Assam, Bihar, Haryana, Kerala, Karnataka, and Uttarakhand will meet on July 30/31. — PTI
	BoB Q1 profit surges 16% Mumbai, July 28 The Bank of Baroda today posted a 16.6% increase in net profit at Rs 1,361.88 crore for the April-June quarter, helped by a rise in core income. BoB had posted net profit of Rs 1,167.87 crore in the same period of last fiscal, 2013-14. Its core net interest income in Q1, 2014-15 was up 15.2% at Rs 3,328.31 crore on account of better loan pricing, while the other income was down 16.7% to Rs 1,024.54 crore. HUL Q1 net up 3.68% New Delhi: Hindustan Unilever Ltd today reported a 3.68% increase in standalone net profit at Rs 1,056.85 crore for the first quarter ended June 30. HUL chairman Harish Manwani said: “We continue to grow ahead of our markets and have delivered another quarter of strong top and bottom-line performance.” — PTI
	Biz talk Viber bets big on key digital content to broaden user base Anubhav Nayyar, Country head, Viber India, talks to Girja Shankar Kaura Viber, a mobile messaging and voice-over-internet protocol application developed by Viber Media, has become a pioneer in social media. The company was recently acquired by Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten for $900 million. Anubhav Nayyar, country head, Viber India, highlights its applications that allow its users to send free text messages, fun stickers, photos, videos and doodles, share locations anywhere in the world and make free HD-quality calls. Q: How big is the active user segment of Viber globally? How have its operations evolved in India? Viber has over 300 million users globally, of which 19 million are from India. We started our operations in India in December, but Viber has been around since 2010. In today's context, localisation of content is important. Viber operates across 193 countries and we have observed that behaviour of users varies from one country to another. It is therefore important to understand their likes and dislikes. Q: Instant messaging and free voice call offerings via apps have become common. How will Viber keep itself different and at the same time expand its user base? Viber has always kept metrics such as ergonomics and usability at the core of its product. By that we are not only referring to ease of use, but also a rich and enjoyable user experience. Features such as stickers and doodles ensure that the ‘fun’ aspect is always there. We have also worked hard to maintain our availability across multiple technologies and platforms — from a range of mobile platforms to personal computers and tablets. Q: How will Viber increase its user base in the country? Are you looking for business and operator tie-ups? Innovation has been the key to our success and we are looking at introducing consumer-relevant features. The fact that we are present across multiple devices is an advantage. Through relevant digital content, we are confident that our user base will increase. We are open to partnerships as long as there is a clear consumer benefit in it. Q: What will be your strategy to compete with others such as WhatsApp? The key factor that differentiates us from other messaging apps is that our product is simple and easy-to-use. We have been able to identify consumer needs and deliver the product. The feature by which one can start a conversation on phone and continue it on his/her desktop without dropping the call is unique. It works on an auto-sync mechanism. The free-flowing nature of our app across platforms ensures seamless communication. Q: How are Viber stickers contributing to the company’s revenue? We have two sources of revenue. First is Viber stickers. While we have close to 1,200 free stickers, stickers of renowned characters such as Garfield, Shrek or Kungfu Panda are available at a cost. People love to communicate through stickers to express themselves and therefore they are in big demand. Secondly, we have ‘Viber Out’ which allows you to make calls to anyone across the globe on non-Viber numbers at subsidised rates. So one pays if one wants to use this service, else the app can be used for free for life. Q: Would you like to opt for an ad-supported model or introduce games to drive in purchase apps? Consumer focus is the integral part of everything we do. Users are not on our messaging app to see ads. We believe, Viber has and will remain ad-free. App purchases only make sense, if they add to the overall consumer experience. The aim will always be to command a premium for digital content in a relevant product innovation. We will get into integrations in future, only if it is based on a strong consumer need.