![]() |
B U S I N E S S | ![]() Saturday, March 20, 1999 |
weather n
spotlight today's calendar |
![]() |
|
India all dance & music for
French CHANDIGARH, March 19 The CII has presented the good face of Indo-French trade. But the reality is bad. What is $2 billion worth of trade between France and India, asked the French Ambassador to India, Mr Claude Blanchemaison, at a session here today on France-Europe-India: Perspectives. Government
committed to pass IRA Bill: Vajpayee |
|
Privatise
STC: panel Aptech
to raise Rs 117.25 crore ICRA
downgrades Zuari Leasing |
||||||||
![]() ![]() |
India all
dance & music for French CHANDIGARH, March 19 The CII has presented the good face of Indo-French trade. But the reality is bad. What is $2 billion worth of trade between France and India, asked the French Ambassador to India, Mr Claude Blanchemaison, at a session here today on France-Europe-India: Perspectives. While exports from India to France are improving, French companies are lazy towards India more busy with euro and economic changes in Central Europe, he said. The image of India in France is positive, but not that of investment destination. It is a cultural image. The country is known for its refined culture, its classical dances and music. India makes satellites, but the French dont know it. Its scientific and technological achievements need to be propagated, the Ambassador suggested. Stressing the need for an exchange of more delegations between the two countries, he said while there are three French journalists in India, there is no Indian journalist in France. Talking about the European Union, the Ambassador said EU is a continuing process. Beginning with the Treaty of Rome, it took 40 years to build a single market, to eliminate subsidies and to adopt euro. It was a painful process. Now the French economy is competitive. Deficits have turned into surpluses. Inflation is nil. Germany, which once imported agricultural produce from France, has now become self-sufficient. EU is a powerful means of reducing tensions, he remarked. When asked to spell out lessons, if any, for SAARC countries, the French envoy quipped: We dont like to give lessons. The situation in this part is not the same as in Europe. Meanwhile, envoys from select African countries invited Indian entrepreneurs to explore business opportunities in their countries. They were addressing a session on Business opportunities in select African countries organised by the CII here today. Mr Rohit N Guttee, High Commissioner from Mauritius, Mr S.K. Mubukwanu, High Commissioner from Zambia, Mr Aedebola O Ogutuga from Nigeria and Mr Peter Nkurunziza from Uganda made detailed presentations at the session. Mr Alok Dutta, Chairman
International Trade Committee of the CII, said the Indian
industry should capitalise on the unique advantage of
close political and historical ties that India enjoyed
with many African countries. |
Government committed to pass IRA Bill: Vajpayee NEW DELHI, March 19 (PTI) Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee today hinted that new insurance companies would soon enter the country as the government was committed to enact the new modified Insurance Regulatory Authority Bill. There is a big debate about insurance sector reforms. We hope to allow new Indian insurance companies to enter the market soon and compete with the existing players, he said, dedicating the two insurance schemes for the welfare of women and girl child here. Allaying fears of the public sector insurance companies being swamped by the foreign players with its opening, Vajpayee said all future insurance companies must compete with the existing players in providing better coverage of risk for both the well-off and poorer segments. Lauding the contribution of existing public sector insurance companies, the Prime Minister said they had expanded the insurance sector and provided risk cover to all kinds of business and people. What is important is that they are also providing this risk cover to the poor and the powerless by these two and other schemes, he said maintaining that these schemes have not been thrusted by the government and are viable on their own. He asked the State Governments to participate in a big way for the success of the two schemes Bhagyashree Child Welfare Policy and Rajarajeshwari Mahila Kalyan Bima Yojna. The first would provide funds for girls to complete their education if they lost either of their parents and second would provide income to women who lost their husbands or became disabled. For the first time these insurance policies provide cover against rape and post-maternity death. The schemes launched on Divali last year by the General Insurance Corporation and its four subsidiaries have so far attracted 1.35 lakh women and girl insurers. Appealing to States to take steps to promote these schemes, the Prime Minister suggested that every gram panchayat and municipality could insure all its girls and women. This will earn them a discount, he said adding that insuring one crore girls will cost only Rs 8 to Rs 14 crore a year and insuring one crore women will cost Rs 5 to Rs 6 crore. Every State can afford this, he said. States must also
collaborate with the General Insurance Corporation and
its affiliates in ensuring better delivery of these
schemes, he said adding that no widow or
disabled woman or orphan girl should have to trudge to
some distant office and furnish papers to show that she
is eligible to receive the E-time or recurring benefits
under these schemes. |
Simplify
rules: CII CHANDIGARH, March 19 Not just the industry, the State Governments too have to compete with one another to attract investment, said Mr Arun Bharat Ram, the outgoing Chairman of the CII (Northern Region), here today. Addressing a press conference, he advised the northern States to ensure transparency, simplify rules and ensure that decisions are taken within a practical time-frame. Mr Arun Bharat Ram, who hands over the CII Chairmanship to Mr Sunil Munjal on April 9, said States should follow the example of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who has computerised land records and ensured quick transfer of land. Mr Sunil Munjal said
States in the North have changed, but not changed enough.
The finances of States have suffered. So it is important
to cut wasteful expenditure and downsize the government. |
Sugar stocks
enough NEW DELHI, March 19 The production of sugar in the current season is estimated to be 150 lakh tonnes, which is about 22 lakh tonnes more than last year. The Union Secretary for Sugar and Edible Oils, Mr R.P. Sinha, told newspersons here that with domestic consumption of sugar estimated at around 144 lakh tonnes, the country would have surplus stocks of about six lakh tonnes. Mr Sinha said the price of sugar has remained quite stable over a period of almost one year and despite the increase in customs duty on the commodity, there has not been much fluctuation in the domestic prices. He said this was because of the sufficient availability of sugar in the market. He said the Indian sugar industry had represented to the government for further increase in customs duty on import of sugar to 50 per cent as the impact of the increase in customs duty has been neutralised due to international factors including the devaluation of Brazilian currency and a fall in the international prices of sugar. Mr Sinha said the customs duty had already increased thrice during the financial year. He said between April 1998 and February 1999, private operators imported 7.40 lakh tonnes of sugar as against 3.30 lakh tonnes in the previous year and the majority of the imports were from Pakistan. Pakistan accounted for 70 per cent of the imports while Brazil supplied around 20 per cent of Indias requirements. He said great emphasis was being placed on the process of modernisation of sugar industries to bring the technology and production practices at par with the best in the world. An amount of Rs 219.36 crore has been sanctioned since June 1998, for modernisation, cane development and specific research projects through scientific institutions. Mr Sinha said there has
been significant improvement in the availability of
vegetable oils in the country which has gone up to 79
lakh tonnes in the current year from 72 lakh tonnes in
1997-98 showing an increase of 9.8 per cent. |
TRAI is not a super regulator:Jagmohan NEW DELHI, March 19 (PTI) Union Communications Minister Jagmohan today said Telecom Regulatory Authority (TRAI) was not above the government and it should not act as a super-regulator. Trai should not regulate government and it should not try to act as a super regulator, Jagmohan told reporters after inaugurating a seminar on Access to information organised by the Pacific Telecommunications Council India Foundation here. The government stood for a strong regulatory body in the telecom sector, but at the same time would not like the regulator ruling over the government, Jagmohan said when asked whether the governments recent directive was infringing on the regulators role. The government had stayed the tariff order passed by TRAI early this month by issuing a police directive under Section 25 of the TRAI Act, 1997, following widespread criticism that the new tariffs were anti-poor and pro-rich. Jagmohan said there was an imperative need to change the attitude of private telecom companies, especially in the backdrop of not many operators offering telephones in the rural areas, despite contractual obligations. He said the companies
should be made to meet their contractual obligations as
per the licence agreement. |
Aptech to raise Rs 117.25 crore MUMBAI, March 19 (PTI) Aptech Limited has announced successful private placement of equity shares with foreign institutional investors (FIIs), financial institutions (FIs) and mutual funds. Aptech would raise Rs
117.25 crore by way of fresh issue of 13.4 lakh equity
shares at Rs 875 per share (as against the minimum SEBI
stipulated price of Rs 710). The issue was on a
book-built basis with orders received from over 40 FIIs
in the USA, UK, the Far East, Indian Mutual Funds and
FIs. The shares are expected to be allotted before March
31, a release said here today. |
H |
![]() |
![]() |
| Nation
| Punjab | Haryana | Himachal Pradesh | Jammu & Kashmir | | Chandigarh | Editorial | Sport | | Mailbag | Spotlight | World | 50 years of Independence | Weather | | Search | Subscribe | Archive | Suggestion | Home | E-mail | |