Friday, May 14, 1999
today's calendar
|
B U S I N E S S | Friday, May 14, 1999 |
| weather n
spotlight today's calendar |
|
|
Rs 25 hike in paddy
prices proposed
|
 |
 The last of the 10 bridges connecting main islands of Honshu and Shikoku in western Japan, was inaugurated recently, completing the entire project to link the two major Japanese islands. The project started 24 years ago with a total cost of about Yen 3 trillion. — AP/PTI
|
|
Government allows export
of onion
|
|||||
Rs 25 hike
in paddy prices proposed CHANDIGARH: The commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) is understood to have recommended Rs 465 and Rs 495 per quintal as the minimum support prices (MSP) for the common and grade-A varieties of paddy respectively, for the 1999-2000 kharif crop season. These prices represent an increase of Rs 25 per quintal over last year’s prices of Rs 440 and Rs 470. In a significant departure from the past, the Commission in its report to the Government of India has also suggested that in case the government wishes to fix higher MSPs than those recommended by it for various kharif crops, it should give an additional Rs 25 per quintal for paddy and cotton and Rs 5 per quintal for other kharif crops only to States which implement a minimum electricity tariff of 50 paise per unit for agricultural purposes. The recommendation has far-reaching implications for Punjab and Haryana, the two biggest surplus States in that order. Punjab will not be eligible for additional increase in MSP as the Akali-BJP Government had, soon after assuming office in 1997, decided to provide free power and irrigation water to the agriculture sector. On the other hand, Haryana farmers will gain as the Haryana Vikas Party-BJP coalition had refused to follow Punjab. Chief Minister Bansi Lal had repeatedly declared that providing free power and water to the agriculture sector did not make economic sense as farmers would be the ultimate sufferers from such a step. The Commission has also recommended increases in MSPs of other kharif crops as follows (the last year’s prices are mentioned in brackets) : Maize, Jowar, Bajra and Ragi Rs 410 per quintal (Rs 390), Tur (Arhar), Moong and Urd Rs 1100 (Rs 960), Groundnut-in shell Rs 1150 (Rs 1040), Soyabean Yellow Rs 840 (Rs 795), Soyabean Black Rs 750 (Rs 705), Sunflowerseed Rs 1150 (Rs 1060), Sesame Rs 1200 (Rs 1060). Significantly, while the increase in paddy prices is the same as last year, that in the prices of coarse grains is Rs 20 per quintal against the previous year’s Rs 30 per quintal. The MSP of pulses, however, is much higher at Rs 140 a quintal as against Rs 60 a quintal last year over the previous year. Similarly, the increase in groundnut MSP is Rs 110 a quintal as against Rs 60 a year earlier. The Commission has also urged the Centre that levy prices of rice should be fixed before the marketing season begins. This year’s CACP recommendations are marked for several proposals and schemes which according to the Commission will provide back-up to the government’s actions. The government should build up seed banks as part of contingency crop planning and strengthen the systems for monitoring pests and diseases and for regulating pesticide quality and their proper usage. While making appropriate arrangements for supply of quality seeds and pesticides, arrangement should also be made for the prevention of supply of sub-standard seeds and spurious pesticides by the private sector traders. The government should
augment the National Crop Forecasting Centre by giving it
the requisite statistical capacity and administrative
authority to make regular official updates, preferably
every month, of agricultural production statistics and
that the NCFE make public, through an Internet Website
updated at least weekly, the latest information on
weather patterns, availability position of seeds and
fertiliser, crop progress, and the incidence of pests and
diseases and their resistance patterns. |
Maruti suggests October Euro deadline NEW DELHI, May 13 (UNI) — Maruti Udyog Limited (MUL) is working towards making its vehicles Euro emission norm compliant by October, 1999. Though several options are being explored for the purpose, the company is likely to meet the norms by importing certain critical components and fitting them on to the vehicles, company sources told UNI here today. Maruti had, in the Supreme Court, stated today that the Euro I norm introduction date should be extended to October 1, 1999, else its production would be severely affected. Stung by the court order, Maruti is despatching more vehicles to markets outside the NCR to ensure that sales do not suffer a setback. TNS adds: The Supreme Court’s rejection of the deadline for stricter emission norms in registration of private non-commercial vehicles in the national capital region (NCR) has put the Maruti Udyog Limited in a fix. While Korean giants Hyundai and Daewoo appear well-equipped to meet the deadline, MUL is likely to face difficulties in ensuring Euro II norms before the deadline fixed by the apex court. The NCR region
constitutes the largest market segment in the country and
industry observers feel the the apex court’s
directive can have a significant effect on the market
share of MUL as close to 30 per cent of its sales are in
this region. |
Computer
software exports rise 84 pc NEW DELHI, May 13 — India’s exports of computer software and services has registered a growth of 84 per cent in rupee terms during 1998-99.The exports of software and services have been estimated at Rs 12,500 crore ($ 3.01 billion) compared to Rs 6800 crore ($ 1.81 billion) in 1997-98, the Executive Director of Electronics and Computer Software Export Promotion Council (ESC), Mr R.H. Naqvi said here today. Announcing the provisional annual estimates, Mr Naqvi said the overall exports in the computer software/services and electronics sector is estimated to have contributed Rs 17,775 crore ($ 4.28 billion) towards the national export earnings — registering an estimated growth of 43 per cent over the previous year.Exports of computer hardware, however, displayed a poor performance recording a decline of about 18 per cent as compared to the previous year. Mr Naqvi said this is
largely due to a major revamping exercise by a large
hardware exporter and restructuring and recessionary
conditions prevailing in some of the overseas markets. |
Government
allows export of onion CHANDIGARH, May 13 — The Union Government has permitted the export of onion, the vegetable that proved politically very explosive during the Assembly poll in November last year. This decision was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Prices recently but was not publicised. While the decision to allow export is to check the falling prices of onions in the domestic market, the BJP Government had known well the political fallout if the prices start shooting up. "If the government had not permitted the export in view of a bumper crop in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Haryana and some other states, it would have caused harm to the growers. It had to view the long-term impact on sowing of onions. Farmers tend to stop sowing if the prices go down much. The prices in some areas were just Rs 2 to Rs 3 per kg", a senior agriculture ministry officer from Delhi said. Indeed, if consumers are important voters, so are the farmers. The government has to keep watch, and help both sections. The Cabinet committee on prices would be meeting regularly every week to oversee the price front and regulate the market to check any increase in prices. The BJP leadership, like once bitter twice shy, is keen that the prices are kept under check by constant monitoring. When the new crop of onions started arriving from April, the public sector undertakings have procured more than 1.5 lakh tonnes of onions. The National Agriculture Marketing Federation (NAFED) and Maharashtra's apex cooperative federation (MSAMB) are both active and are now exporting these onions to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal. Some of the best quality onions from Maharashtra and Karnataka are being procured for export by these agencies. Some private traders too are said to be active. Last year, the
government acted very lazily. First, it did not bother to
notice the rising prices of onions and when it finally
woke up, it took very long time to activate its
corporations like NABARD to import onions. Also, there
had been persistent rumours that some 1500 truck loads of
onions were used for moisture control measure during the
Poakhran II blast in Rajasthan on May 11. This time the
government claims that it was acutely aware of the price
situation and its political consequences. But in certain
markets the prices of onions are said to have already
increased by 15 per cent to 20 per cent. There is also
fear of hoarding once the whole export policy gets
publicised. |
ABOUT a year ago, a young executive of a private company drowned in a swimming pool maintained by a club in Chennai. He had gone for a swim on a Sunday morning with his wife and while she got out of the pool, he said he would join her in a minute. She got dressed and returned to the pool to find him missing. An alarm was raised and he was found at the bottom of the pool. The family feels very strongly that if only the club had proper emergency first aid and medical facilities, the young man would be alive today. Similar sentiments were expressed by the parents of young Kedar Dole, following his death in a swimming pool. The consumer court, before which Kedar’s parents filed a case, held the Shikshan Prasarak Mandali, which offered coaching classes in swimming, as well as the swimming instructor, guilty of negligence on several counts: (a) no life saving mechanism was available at the pool site to deal with accidents (b) there was no net or partition in the pool to prevent learners from entering the deep side of the pool (c) the coach left Kedar unattended at the pool and the life guards were also not attentive (d) even after it was discovered that Kedar was missing, precious time was lost in searching for him in the bathroom and elsewhere instead of in the pool (e) after Kedar was picked up from the bottom of the pool, the instructor wasted time taking him to a room nearby for first aid. He should have tried to revive him on the side of the pool itself. Kedar’s death was avoidable and was the result of the negligence of the pool authorities, the life guards and the swimming instructor, the consumer court held. It awarded Kedar’s parents Rs 1.5 lakh as compensation for the death of their only child, born after many years of marriage. Today, as swimming gains popularity and more and more people take to swimming pools are coming up in almost every residential locality, even in small towns and cities. Schools and colleges too are offering swimming courses during the holidays. And in summer, the cool waters of the pool are particularly inviting. However, if one reads about swimming pool-related accidents, what comes loud and clear is the absence of fool-proof safety measures. About two years ago, the Delhi High Court awarded a compensation of Rs 50 lakh plus 6 per cent interest calculated from September 1985 to the family of a German pilot who died following a head injury received from diving into a pool at the Oberoi hotel in 1972. The swimming pool, the court had held, was not designed and constructed to satisfy the minimum, much less the preferred standards of safety. The pilot, who was paralysed following the accident, had told the court that the depth of the water in the pool was inadequate and the hotel authorities had not prevented him from taking a dive into the pool from the board. As a result, he hit the bottom of the pool and received severe injuries. Subsequently he died from those injuries in 1985. All this brings us to the need for civic authorities to formulate more detailed and stringent standards of safety for swimming pools and enforce them strictly. Those who use the pools also have a role to play in demanding better safety norms. Besides the design and construction of the pool and the maintenance of standards of hygiene, all swimming pools should provide for certain basic safety provisions to deal with accidents. Depending on the size of the pool and the number of people who swim, there should be adequate number of fully trained life guards. Where swimming classes are held, the instructors should be adequately qualified not only to teach, but also to handle emergencies. There should be adequate provisions for emergency medical aid at the pool site to take care of accidents. It is also essential to have a telephone in proper working order at the pool site. Telephone numbers of doctors, near-by hospitals and ambulance services that can be called in an emergency should be displayed near it. Swimming pool authorities should know exactly how many minutes it takes for an ambulance to reach the pool spot in an emergency. All these facilities do
not require huge funds but only a little effort and
planning. And it could help save a life in an emergency. |
| H |
|
||
| Forex rates MUMBAI, May 13 (PTI) — The following were interbank forex and RBI rates (in rupees per unit): U.S. $ Rs 42.75/76 The RBI reference rate was Rs 42.75. Gold falls Microsoft centre World Cup Coop bank |
 |
 |
| 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 | |
