Airlines
Cabinet clears IA proposal to lower retirement age
THE Union Cabinet on today approved the proposal of Indian Airlines (IA) to revert the retirement age back to 58 years from 60.
Indo-EU aviation pact gets Cabinet nod
THE Union Cabinet has approved a Rs. 142.40-crore financial agreement which seeks to enhance co-operation between Indian industry and regulatory authorities and its European counterparts in the field of aviation safety, airworthiness, airline management
air traffic management, and pilot/instructor training, among others.
Rollback on IA retirement age may affect top brass
THE decision to roll back the retirement age of Indian Airlines' staff to 58 years is likely to have an impact among the top brass of the airline.
Corporate
Wipro, Infosys mcaps: the powerful `paper money'
THE recent boom in the stock prices of software majors Wipro and Infosys has inflated the value of these companies so much that they appear quite out of proportion when compared to many economic parameters.
Sensex crashes 121 on profit-taking
EQUITY values crashed on Tuesday with special margins taking the tempo out of the market. A round of profit-taking dominated the day's trading and shares witnessed extreme volatility, as domestic operators and punters reduced their exposure in the market
.
IDBI told to prepare for IFCI rights bail-out
WITH barely four days to go for the closure of the Rs. 352-crore rights issue of Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI), the Ministry of Finance is understood to have asked the corporation's largest shareholder, the Industrial Development Bank of
India (IDBI), to be prepared for a last minute bail-out of the issue.
Courts
HC ruling on tenant dispute set aside
IN Ragavendra Kumar vs. Firm Prem Machinery & Co. (Civil Appeal No. 3663 of 1998 decided on January 7, 2000) a Division Bench of the Supreme Court allowed the appeal of the landlord for eviction of the tenant from a business premises on the ground of bo
na fide requirement of the landlord. The apex court set aside the judgment of the High Court and restored the judgments and decrees of the courts below.
Economy
ICAI to revise Guidance Note on excise duty
THE central council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has decided to revise the Guidance Note on Accounting Treatment for excise duty. The revision comes into effect in respect of accounting periods beginning on or after April 1,
1999.
For investment-grade rating - India needs strong fiscal consolidation: Duff & Phelps
DUFF & Phelps Credit Rating Co (DCR) is of the view that India would not achieve an investment-grade rating unless it puts in place a credible and sustainable fiscal consolidation programme. This observation has been made in a DCR press note released her
e on Tuesday.
`Unctad must serve as public forum for globalisation'
THE Draft Bangkok Declaration, currently being fine-tuned, calls for solidarity and a robust sense of moral responsibility as the guiding light of national and international policy, while suggesting that Unctad serve as a public forum for globalisation.
Information Technology
Microchip Tech plans to set up assembling/manufacturing unit
MICROCHIP Technology, which opened its India design centre here on Tuesday, is exploring the possibility of setting up a chip assembly/manufacturing facility in the country in the next few years.
LCC Infotech to launch tax portal on Budget day
EASY ways to calculate taxes based on income, expert replies to frequently-asked questions on income-tax and solutions and all enquiries pertaining to I-T will now be possible on-line by simply clicking on taxsolutionsindia.com.
TVS-E roadshows to showcase range
AS part of its initiative to take IT to the heart of India, TVS Electronics Ltd has planned roadshows named `SanskrITi' in over 100 towns across the country, to showcase its entire range of products.
Nettlinx plans gateway, to slot IPO in May
NETTLINX Ltd, a Hyderabad-based Category-B Internet service provider (ISP), is planning to set up its own international gateway and is looking at addressing the e-commerce sector, including leased lines and host of other-value added services.
Miscellaneous
`Housing to be engine for economic growth'
THE reform process that began in the early 90s has gained momentum now and housing is going to be the main engine of growth, according to Mr. V. Suresh, Chairman and Managing Director, Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO).
`Indian tobacco industry must go global'
`OPPORTUNITIES and challenges in tobacco', a comprehensive study sponsored by the Tobacco Institute of India (TII), was released on Tuesday by Mr. S.M. Acharya, Acting Chairman, Tobacco Board, and Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce. The study has been
compiled by Dr. Anindya Sen, Dr. Subrata Sarkar and Dr. Ajit Ranade, of the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR).
Misra to look after WTO policy
NEW DELHI: Mr. Nripendra Misra, an Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, will now handle all work relating to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) trade policy issues in the Department of Commerce. According to an official release,
the allocation of this additional charge to Mr. Misra is an internal arrangement following the appointment of Mr. N.N. Khanna, Special Secretary (WTO), as Secretary (Youth Affairs and Sports). - Our Bureau
PSU
Cabinet panel clears sale of 51 pc NFL equity
THE Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment on Tuesday approved the strategic sale of 51 per cent Government equity along with transfer of management control in the profit making National Fertilisers Ltd (NFL).
Petroleum
Panel soon on ONGC Videsh investment plan
THE Government today decided to constitute an empowered committee of Secretaries (ECS) to take investment decisions on ONGC Videsh Ltd's (OVL) gas project in Vietnam.
Policy
Population policy approved
THE Government has announced a National Population Policy 2000, aimed at achieving population stability by 2045. In order to enable State Governments to ``fearlessly pursue the agenda for population stabilisation'', the policy, which was cleared by the U
nion Cabinet, proposes to freeze the number of seats for individual States in the Lok Sabha at the existing levels till 2026.
Power
Notification of LNG as CST commodity sought
THE Union Power Ministry has sought notification of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a Central sales tax (CST) commodity for Government purchases.
States
Govt, management toughen stand on Singareni strike
THE Andhra Pradesh Government and the management of Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) have toughened their stand against striking miners and made it clear that the continuation of strike would be detrimental to the interests of the company, which i
s on revival path.
Commodity Referencer released in Kerala
THE Kerala Finance Minister, Mr. T. Sivadasa Menon, on Tuesday released the ``Commodity Referencer'', a compiler on the Kerala General Sales Tax Laws detailing the current tax rates applicable to various commodities and supplemented by exhaustive referen
ce to judgments and notifications applicable to each commodity and each category of dealers up to January 1, 2000.
Plans to double Perungulam project capacity
THE Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) plans to double the capacity of its proposed gas-based power project at Perungulam in Ramanathapuram district. It has requested the Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) for additional allocation of gas.
Steel
Cabinet clears SAIL revamp package
THE Union Cabinet has finally cleared the much-awaited financial and business restructuring package of Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) which envisages, among others, waiving of loans of Rs. 5,073 crores advanced to it from the Steel Development Fund
(SDF) and Rs. 381 crores from the Union Government.
A welcome rehab package for SAIL
AT a time when the world steel market is showing signs of recovery, the approval of the financial and business restructuring package of the public sector Steel Authority of India (SAIL) by the Union Cabinet is a welcome development for the beleaguered st
eel major.
Telecommunications
More time to pay telecom licence dues
THE Union Cabinet has approved a proposal for extending the deadline for payment of licence fee dues of basic and cellular mobile operators from January 31, 2000 to March 15, 2000. Modicom and Fascel are the only cellular operators who have failed to cle
ar outstanding dues.
