RIL-BP $7.2 bn deal among largest FDIs in India

PTI

New Delhi: Reliance Industries' $7.2 billion mega deal with British major BP Plc is seen as the biggest the foreign direct investment into India so far.

Japanese pharma major Daiichi Sankyo's buyout of Ranbaxy Laboratories for $4.5 billion is the second biggest FDI.

Other proposal like South Korean Posco's USD 12 billion investment for a steel plant in Orissa though higher than RIL-BP deal in terms of value, is yet to take off. So is the case with ArcelorMittal's around USD 30 billion investment plans across India.

Another mega transaction worth USD 11 billion was between Vodafone and Hutchison-Essar. However, there was no direct participation of any domestic firm, as deal was between two foreign firms.

Unveiling one of the biggest transactions in the Indian energy space, Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate today announced the sale of 30 per cent stake in its 23 blocks including the giant KG-D6 gas fields to UK's BP Plc for $7.2 billion.

"This is the single largest FDI in the history of India," RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani said while announcing the deal in London.

Interestingly, Reliance Industries' failed attempt in 2010 to take control of petrochemicals major LyondellBasell, was valued at over USD 14 billion. If the transaction had materialised, it would have been the largest ever by an Indian entity.

Going by estimates, last year alone saw the announcement of more than 290 inbound transactions worth over USD 22 billion.

Among them were Vedanta Resources' planned USD 9.6 billion acquisition of a majority stake in Cairn India .

Abbott Laboratories' takeover of healthcare solutions business of Piramal Healthcare in a USD 3.7 billion deal and Japanese entity JFE Steel Corp's USD 1 billion investment in JSW Steel were among other big transactions.

The NTT DOCOMO-Tata Teleservices worth USD$2.70 billion also saw significant FDI inflows into India.

Among the top deals involving Indian entities are $10.7-billion Bharti-Zain transaction and Tata's USD 12 billion-buyout of Corus.

Other major transactions involving Indian entities are Hindalco's buyout of Novelis for $6 billion, ONGC -Imperial's USD 2.80 billion deal.

SBI plans to merge 5 subsidiaries in 12-18 months

NEW DELHI: State Bank of India proposes to merge its five remaining subsidiaries with itself over the next 12-18 months.

In its deposition before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, the country's largest lender said the consolidation exercise has been systemically planned as part of a logical step to bring in economies of scale, reduce administrative overheads, redeploy and channelise trained manpower to business development and, in the process, also reduce avoidable competition from different arms of the same group.

While the bank has already merged State Bank of Saurashtra and State Bank of Indore with itself, it would require a government go-ahead to merge the remaining five - State Bank of Hyderabad, State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Travancore and State Bank of Mysore.

SBI chairman O P Bhatt told the committee headed by former finance minister Yashwant Sinha that the merger of State Bank of Saurashtra with SBI "went as smooth as silk". As for State Bank of Indore's merger, an online poll of employees showed that over 90% were in favour of the merger, he said.

"A number of corporates are pushing growth opportunities abroad. All these require that SBI and a few other Indian banks grow in size and financial muscle to cater to the growing needs of such corporates, failing which such clientele and their business would be taken over by foreign banks," the government told the standing committee.

A merger of all associate banks has been in the works for several years but SBI is taking it one by one as it wants to build a consensus around it first. A major attraction for SBI subsidiary employees is the offer of getting a pension, in addition to provident fund benefits. SBI is the only public sector player in the country where employees get both the benefits. In addition, employees of the subsidiary banks are being given the same treatment that is available to SBI employees.

To make sure that the merger is not legally challenged, SBI has got the process legally vetted. SBI management is now contemplating getting a blanket approval from the government to merge all the banks and then decide the sequence. The merger will help SBI steal a march over its nearest rival ICICI Bank.

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Aarushi''s parents move High Court challenging CBI court order

Allahabad, Feb 21 (PTI) The parents of Aarushi Talwar today moved the Allahabad High Court challenging a CBI court order making them accused in the murder of their teenaged daughter and domestic help, Hemraj, three years ago.

The petition, filed by Rajesh and Nupur Talwar, has challenged the Ghaziabad court order of February 9 in which the couple has been made the accused on the basis of CBI''s closure report and also charged with engaging in criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence.

According to the Talwars'' counsel Gopal Chaturvedi, the petitioners have submitted that the CBI court had passed its order "without taking into consideration the objections submitted by us".

The case is likely to come up for hearing on Wednesday, February 23.

Aarushi was found dead inside her Noida residence in May 2008 with her throat slit and the body of Hemraj was recovered later from the terrace.

The CBI, which was entrusted with the investigation in the case following an uproar over the alleged shoddy probe by Uttar Pradesh police, had recently submitted its closure report pointing fingers at the parents though it maintained there was no conclusive evidence.

However, the court decided to proceed with the trial against the couple observing that there was "enough evidence" against them.

On March 1, poll dates to be out for Bengal, TN & 3 others

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission is likely to announce on March 1 the schedule for elections in five states, setting the stage for a contest which is crucial for both Congress and Left.

Government sources said that Commission is considering to stagger polls in West Bengal over five phases. For Assam, a two-phase poll seems likely, while elections in Tamil Nadu may be a one-day affair. Details for Kerala and Puducherry have also been worked out, making a March 1 notification a distinct possibility.

The ensuing polls are the first time since 1977 when CPM runs a real risk of losing power in West Bengal. With the party on the backfoot also in Kerala, another Left-controlled state where elections are due, the Marxists face the bleak prospect of losing power simultaneously in two of their strongholds. Having already been dislodged from power at the Centre, the polls could really aggravate the power drought for the Marxists.

If Marxists have to contend with fear of losses, for Congress the cruciality of the forthcoming encounter lies in the expectations the party has from it. The party is looking at a 4:1 scoreline: something it hopes will help reverse the perception of decline and can enable it to assert vis-a-vis not just the rivals and partners, but also in relation to the grandees within the government who have refused to heed the "perform-or-perish" signals from the leadership.

In West Bengal, the Congress is confident of sweeping the polls with its alliance partner, Trinamool.

The leadership balked at a major surgery last month because it was wary of repercussions for the budget session.

Both the PM and Congress have since indicated that the central ministry and the party organisation will be recast after the budget session, and a favourable outcome may give them the space as well as the confidence to attempt something bolder this time.

The party is confident of prevailing in Kerala. The state shuffles between the Congress-led UDF and CPM-led LDF every five years. The results of the Lok Sabha polls as well as local bodies suggest that the pattern may hold this year as well. In Assam, the party is confident of Tarun Gogoi retaining chief minister's post. It is encouraged by the strong possibility that AGP and BJP will not be able to have an alliance. Jama'at-ul-Ulema's attack on Badruddin Ajmal whose AUDF poached Muslim votes in the last elections is another comforting development. As a matter of fact, it expects to improve its seats this time.

While the party is confident of its prospects in Puducherry, it realises that it has a tough task on its hand in Tamil Nadu because of the deadly blend of inflation and spectrum stench hurting its partner DMK. Congress feels that the DMK will put up a tough fight. The Dravidian party is laying great store by the goodwill that it thinks populist schemes have generaated. It is also credited with perfecting the art of converting poll-time favours to voters into votes for the party.

Congress managers, however, feel that the advantages can be offset because of the stink over spectrum scam and unease over inflation. It also has to contend with Jayalalithaa's succeess in swinging an alliance with actor Vijaykanth's DMDK. 'Captain' has emerged as a factor in TN politics and an alliance will prevent the split in the anti-DMK votes.

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PM may announce JPC on 2G today

NEW DELHI: The government is likely to announce a 21-member Joint Parliamentary Committee on the 2G spectrum scam with the Prime Minister all set to make a statement in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

The Congress reluctantly agreed to set up the committee but would like it to wind up its proceedings by the next parliament session so that it does not cast a shadow over the government's functioning beyond a reasonable time frame. PC Chacko, party MP from Kerala, is likely to head the committee.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will make a statement on the government's readiness to constitute the JPC before the start of discussion on the motion of thanks to the President's address on Tuesday.

The PM's announcement will pave the way for smooth functioning of Parliament and restore order after the opposition blanked out the winter session.

On Thursday, telecom minister Kapil Sibal will move the motion on JPC, drawing curtains on the deadlock between government and opposition over the contentious issue of parliamentary probe.

The motion on JPC will be accompanied by a six-hour debate on the 2G scam. Congress hopes the debate will give the Centre an opportunity to put forth its version of events leading to the spectrum scam to neutralise the charges levelled by the opposition.

Congress wants that despite aberrations, the Centre should be able to project the strong action it has taken against the culprits to score political points over the opposition. It is also keen to rebuff the charge that PMO nodded to the spectrum allocation process. Else, Congress feels, the UPA brass will continue to be under the shadow of the opposition's allegations.

PC Chacko is among the frontrunners to chair JPC. If he gets the nod ahead of other names, Congress would be handing over the chairmanship of the crucial panel to a leader whom it has often entrusted with taking on the opposition.

The government push for a 21-member JPC is aimed to give it a focussed look which will help it wind up its work early. The opposition is insisting on a larger panel since it will bring more parties into play and make it tougher for the ruling dispensation. A senior minister, however, said the government would go for a 21-member panel which would have 14 from Lok Sabha and seven from the Upper House.

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Tackling corruption, inflation priority: President Patil

NEW DELHI, Feb 21 (IANS) Combating inflation and tackling corruption would be among the top priorities of the government, President Pratibha Patil said inaugurating the Budget session of Parliament Monday.

"My government's foremost priority will be to address frontally the concern regarding the lack of probity and integrity in public life," Patil said in her 45-minute address to the joint sitting of both houses in the packed Central Hall of Parliament.

The government's another priority will be to "combat inflation and, in particular, to protect the common man from the impact of rising food prices," she added.

She said the government will "sustain the momentum of economic growth, while ensuring that the poor, weak and the disadvantaged get a fair share in the fruits of growth. The government, as a priority, will "pursue a foreign policy which will ensure that our voice is heard and our interests are protected in the global fora," she added.

Asserting that the government stands committed to "improving the quality of governance and enhancing transparency, probity and integrity in public life," she said the group of ministers (GOM) looking into the issue is expected to submit its report soon.

The GoM will consider all measures, including "legislative and administrative, to tackle corruption and improve transparency", she said.

The President gave an indication that the discretionary powers of ministers may be scrapped.

The GoM will review the "abolition of discretionary powers enjoyed by ministers, introduction of an open and competitive system of exploiting natural resources and fast tracking cases against public servants charged with corruption," she said.

Formulation of a public procurement policy and enunciation of public procurement standards will also be considered by the GoM, the President said.

"We have gone through a difficult year for our country," Patil said.

"Certain parts of the country have suffered from unacceptably high levels of violence, especially areas affected by Left-wing extremism and the Kashmir Valley," she said.

The President was referring to the summer of unrest and protests in Kashmir which claimed over 100 lives last year, as well as the continuing problem of Maoist violence in various parts of the country.

"There has been a grievance in some quarters that the benefits intended for the poor through anti-poverty programmes have not reached them in full measure," she said.

The President said the "Commonwealth Games in October were a great success".

Patil offered her sympathies to the people of Ladakh where a cloudburst had killed nearly 200 people last August.

"Our heart goes out to the people of Ladakh, who suffered the consequences of a severe cloudburst, leading to an unprecedented loss of life and property," she said.

The Budget session will continue till April 21, with an 18-day recess from March 17 to April 3. The first part of the session will have 17 sittings while the second part will have 12 sittings.

Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, Rajya Sabha Chirman Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi, and opposition Bharatiya Janata Party leader LK Advani were among those present during the address, which passed off without interruptions.

Sensex up sharply by 227 points; IT led the rally

MUMBAI: Fag-end buying on Monday pushed up the BSE benchmark Sensex sharply by 227 points to close at 18,438.31, as investors bought strong stocks at cheaper levels led by IT sector, amid funds buying to cover their pending positions ahead of settlement in the derivatives sector.

The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex, which touched the day's low of 18,082.66, bounced back sharply in last 30 minutes of trading to close higher by 226.79 points at 18,438.31.

The broad-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty, after falling to 5,413.10 points, closed at 5,518.60 with a handsome gain of 59.65 points.

Brokers said trading sentiment was bolstered after Credit Suisse Group upgraded Wipro and State Bank of India reportedly saying that net interest margins may rise.

Wipro, India's third-largest software services provider, surged the most since November 22 by rising 4.12 per cent to Rs 450.25 after Credit Suisse raised it rating to "outperform" from "neutral".

Overall, IT stocks move up on a rebound in the European region, a major centre for technology business.

Major market players were buying stocks to wind up their pending long positions ahead of the expiry of current month settlement in the derivatives segment on Thursday.

The most-heaviest Reliance Industries rose by 2.04 per cent to Rs 956.50 and second heavy Infosys Technologies by 2.09 per cent to Rs 3,161.20. The two carry nearly 23 per cent weightage on the index.

In the 30-BSE index components, 20 stocks closed with gains and barring auto, all the sectoral indices remained higher.

The upsurge was partly checked by auto stocks as, led by Tata Motors, they fell on fears that hike in interest rates might hamper the sales. The auto sector index fell by 1.18 per cent to 8,614.90.

Tata Motors, owner of Jaguar Land Rover, slid 3.33 per cent to Rs 1,161.95. Hero Honda Motors, the biggest motorcycle maker, dropped 1.66 per cent to Rs 1,439.35. Maruti Suzuki fell by 1.31 per cent to Rs 1,212.65.

As the bargain buying prevailed on the market, investors pulled out funds from low value stocks to front runners. As a result, smallcap index fell by 0.09 per cent to 8,121.26 and midcap index by 0.04 per cent to 6,659.18.

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Indian economy to grow by 8.6% in 2010-11

NEW DELHI: The Prime Minister's economic advisory council on Monday projected the economic growth in the country at 8.6 per cent for the current fiscal on the back of rebound in farm output and inflation to come down to 7 per cent by March-end due to declining food prices.

The PMEAC, in its 'Review of the Economy 2010-11' report released on Monday, also said the country's GDP is likely to grow by 9 per cent in 2011-12, back to the high rate it had witnessed before onset of the global economic recession.

PMEAC's projection of 8.6 per cent growth is in line with government estimates released earlier this month.

According to PMEAC, the agriculture sector is expected to grow at 5.4 per cent this fiscal.

This is higher than the 0.4 per cent rate of growth registered by the farm sector in 2009-10.

"Agriculture will do very well this year. We might have record harvest of wheat," PMEAC chairman C Rangarajan said here.

The council also said the services and industry sectors would maintain the high growth rate of last few years.

While services is expected to register a growth rate of 9.6 per cent, industry is projected to grow by 8.1 per cent.

During the last fiscal, services sector had witnessed a growth of 9.1 per cent, while manufacturing had grown by 8.8 per cent.

The PMEAC further said the overall inflation is expected to be at 7 per cent by March-end and that the rate of price rise in the case of manufactured goods has been low.

"The declining trend in food prices, particularly that of the vegetables, will result in lower food inflation... considerable care from the policy side has to be taken to ensure that the manufactured goods inflation remains below 5 per cent in 2011-12," it said.

The overall inflation for January has been at 8.23 per cent, while food inflation was at 11.05 per cent in the first week of February.

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BP and Reliance in $7.2bn oil and gas alliance

LONDON: BP has entered into a "transformational" oil and gas partnership with Reliance Industries, which involves the British oil major paying $7.2 billion to the Indian company.

Under the terms of the deal, BP will take a 30 percent stake in 23 oil and gas blocks and form a 50:50 joint venture between the two companies for the sourcing and marketing of gas, the companies said in a statement on Monday.

BP will pay Reliance Industries an aggregate consideration of $7.2 billion and future performance payments of up to $1.8 billion could be paid.

The companies said these payments and the combined investment could amount to $20 billion in total.

BP's shares were up 0.3 percent at 494.4 pence at 1108 GMT. Reliance Industries shares were up 2 percent.

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Bombay High Court upholds death sentence for Kasab

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The Bombay High Court on Monday upheld the death sentence for the only surviving gunman in the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people and strained ties between New Delhi and Islamabad.

Mohammad Ajmal Kasab, a Pakistani national, was one of ten gunmen who carried out the coordinated attacks on key landmarks in India's financial capital, including two luxury hotels, the main train station and a Jewish centre.

In May, Kasab was found guilty of more than 80 charges, including murder and waging war on India, and was sentenced to death by hanging by an Indian court but that sentence needed approval from the High Court.

"The High Court confirmed the lower court's decision to sentence Kasab to death by hanging," public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said on live television on Monday.

Earlier this month, India and Pakistan agreed to resume formal peace talks after New Delhi broke off negotiations between the two nuclear-armed nations following the Mumbai attacks.

India had paused the talks, saying Islamabad must first act against groups operating from its soil, including Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba, or LeT, said to be behind the attacks and of which Kasab was convicted of being a member.

Pakistan has acknowledged the attacks were plotted and partly launched from its soil, and has put on trial seven suspects linked to LeT, which has been fighting Indian forces in disputed Kashmir since the early 1990s.

Kasab was filmed walking through Mumbai's main train station carrying an AK-47 rifle and a knapsack on his back. Nearly 60 people were gunned down in the crowded station.

Twenty Pakistani co-conspirators, including LeT founder Hafiz Mohammad Saeed and commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, were also found guilty. A spokesman for LeT has denied the leader or the organisation was involved.

Islamist groups like LeT see India and the United States as foes against whom they must wage holy war. They also support independence for Kashmir, the Himalayan region claimed in full but controlled in part by both India and Pakistan.

The two countries have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947, two over Kashmir.

India''s forex reserves dip USD 752 mn to USD 298.66 bn

Mumbai, Feb 18 (PTI) India''s foreign exchange reserves declined by USD 752-million to USD 298.663-billion for the week ending February 11, the Reserve Bank said today.

India''s total foreign exchange reserves had stood at USD 299.415-billion the previous week.

Foreign currency assets, the biggest component of the foreign reserves were down USD 707 million, RBI said in its weekly data released this evening.

Foreign currency assets expressed in US dollar terms include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of the non-US currencies, such as the euro, pound and yen, held in the reserves, the apex bank said.

The value of the country''s gold reserves remained unchanged at USD 21.92-billion.

Both the special drawing rights (SDRs) and reserve position in the IMF also declined during the reporting week.

The SDRs were down USD 31 million to USD 5.124 billion while India''s reserve position in the IMF declined USD 14 million to USD 2.247 billion.

Kasab verdict enhances Indian legal system''s prestige: HM

New Delhi, Feb 21 (PTI) Welcoming the confirmation of death penalty of 26/11 convict Ajmal Kasab by the Bombay High Court, Home Minister P Chidambaram today said it has enhanced the prestige of India''s legal system but rued the lack of progress in the case in Pakistan.

"I compliment the prosecution. This is a tribute to our legal system," he told reporters while commenting on the Bombay High Court''s decision.

He said the manner in which the case was conducted in India has "raised the prestige" of the country''s judicial system.

"I think, we should allow our legal system to deal with case in the manner every other cases dealt with," the Home Minister said.

At the same time, he observed that the trial in the case was making no headway in Pakistan.

"Between the High Court and the trial court in Pakistan, in a way there has been no movement at all (on 26/11 case)," he said when asked whether, in the light of the judgement, India would call for a speedy hearing of the case in Pakistan.

He noted that when the case came up a couple of days ago in Pakistan, the prosecution had asked for an adjournment on the ground that the matter was pending in the High Court.

"But in the High Court, the judge, who was dealing with the case had retired," he noted.

Law Minister Veerappa Moily also welcomed the judgement and said the Indian judicial system is fair and equal to everybody and the same is demonstrated by the Bombay High Court in upholding the death sentence of Kasab.

"The entire world knows how our judicial system works... very methodical, very systematic....it reflects well of our judiciary," he said.

Terming the judgement as "well carved out", he said the justice delivery system has dealt with the subject in a fair and equal manner.

"It is fair to everybody..equal to everybody and that is what is demonstrated by this judgement on Kasab," the Law Minister said outside Parliament House.

Banks tap 2-month funds at 10%

NEW DELHI: In what may set the stage for further increase in lending and deposit rates, banks are accessing two-month funds though certificates of deposit by paying almost 10%. Some banks like ING Vysya Bank have paid over 10% to raise a slightly higher amount for a little more than three months.

While bankers are unwilling to admit publicly, following the increase in deposit rates since mid-December, the flow of funds is not as high as they had anticipated. This has prompted them to raise more resources from the market by issuing instruments such as certificates of deposit (CDs), which are short-term papers subscribed to by other banks and mutual funds.

"What we have seen is that depositors are renewing their deposits and opting for maturity baskets that earn them the maximum interest rate," said an SBI executive. As a result, many depositors have moved from a one-or-two-year fixed deposit to, say, SBI's 555-day deposit that is earning 9.25% (and 9.75% if you are a senior citizen). So unlike the post-credit crisis days in 2008 when the 1,000-day blockbuster helped the bank rake in Rs 1,000 crore a day by way of deposits, the special tenures this time are fetching Rs 200-300 crore a day.

Union Bank of India CMD M V Nair said of the Rs 10,000 crore mobilized by the bank over the last two-and-a-half months, around 25% has been reinvested in special buckets such as those that mature in 500 or 700 days. RBI data showed that for the year up to January 14, 2011, bank deposits grew 16% though during the last fortnight banks mopped up over Rs 37,000 crore, the highest fortnightly mobilization since November. With banks unable to step up deposit mobilization at the same pace as credit flow several are in a situation where they are lending more than Rs 100 for every Rs 100 raised by way of deposits. As a result, bankers are raising every paisa they can even if it means paying a higher cost.

"This year-end phenomenon (of spike in rates) has been accentuated by 3G-related borrowings, tight policy conditions and slower pace of government spending," said a bank chairman who does not wish to be named. The SBI executive said credit demand apart, the high commitments some of the public sector bank chiefs have made under the annual statement of intent is adding to the pressure. Nair and Punjab National Bank CMD K R Kamath said the tight conditions were expected to continue at least till March-end. "If liquidity does not improve, banks will then have no option but to hike rates," said UCO Bank chairman Arun Kaul. Since July, when base rate was introduced as the new benchmark, banks have raised it by around 150 basis points and the consensus is that more is in store.

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Rupee up 12 paise against dollar

MUMBAI: The rupee was up by 12 paise at 45.08 per US dollar in early trade today on sustained dollar-selling by exporters and corporates amid weakness of the American currency overseas.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange, the domestic unit opened slightly higher at 45.19/20 per dollar as against last Friday's close of 45.20/21 per dollar. It moved up further to 45.08 per dollar before quoting at 45.10/11 per dollar at 1030 hours.

The rupee moved in a range between 45.08 and 45.21 per dollar in morning deals.

Sustained selling of dollars by exporters and some banks and a better opening in the stock market kept the rupee sentiment firm, a forex dealer said.

The Indian benchmark Sensex was trading higher by 25.64 points, or 0.14 per cent, in early trade today.

Meanwhile, oil prices were up in Asia today, with New York contract light sweet crude for March delivery gaining $1.13 to $87.33 a barrel.

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Sensex gains 95 points

MUMBAI: The BSE benchmark Sensex rose by over 95 points in opening trade today after witnessing a sharp fall in the previous session on the back of selective buying by funds and retail investors, ignoring a weak trend on other Asian bourses.

The Sensex, which had lost 295.30 points in the previous session on Friday, rose by 95.23 points, or 0.52 per cent, to 18,306.75 today, with capital goods, IT and oil and gas stocks leading the recovery.

Similarly, the broad-based National Stock Exchange Nifty index moved up by 24.60 points, or 0.45 per cent, to 5,483.55 points.

Marketmen said the emergence of buying at select counters and covering-up of pending short positions by speculators ahead of monthly expiry in the derivatives segment on Thursday mainly influenced the trading sentiment.

They said, however, the ongoing probe into the 2G spectrum scam and a weak trend on other Asian bourses capped the gains.

In the Asian region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down by 0.56 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei shed 0.20 per cent in early trade today.


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MCI puts curbs on visits by foreign doctors

CHENNAI: No foreign national or NRI medical professional will henceforth be permitted to demonstrate procedures/ surgeries in India without prior permission from the Medical Council of India. A warning to this effect has been circulated by MCI to all medical colleges/institutions, state medical councils, all medical associations and hospitals.

Clarifying that prior MCI permission/registration was mandatory, the February 11, 2011 circular, signed by MCI's additional secretary P Prasanna Raj, said suo motu action would be initiated by the MCI against erring medical colleges/institutions.

Aimed at verifying the credentials of foreign/NRI medical professionals participating in continuing medical education (CME) programmes or workshops or post-graduate courses in India, the circular said: ''This is to inform you that all foreign nationals/NRI faculty will have to take prior permission from the MCI in the prescribed form no. MCI-07 available on the website, if he/she demonstrates/conducts any procedure, intervention, surgery, drug therapy, application of any new device or any treatment, on a patient in any CME programmes/workshop/PG course or any other programme, conducted by medical college/ hospitals/ medical association or any other organisation in India.''

The announcement has evoked mixed reactions from the medical fraternity across the country. While some leading doctors agreed on the need to screen the bonafides of visiting medics, many felt that the proposal would needlessly hamper flow of knowhow and research findings into India.

Dr T D Naidu, president of the All India Medical Association and chairman, Chennai-based DD Medical Hospital and DD Hospital, welcomed the proposal and said verification of the bonafide of the foreign medical professionals by MCI would enhance credibility of the profession. ''Some medical institutions flaunt foreign faculty without conducting due diligence on the professional's standing and record in his home country," Naidu said.

He also called upon MCI to step in and play an active role in whetting the memorandum of understanding being signed by Indian medical institutions with foreign entities. "A representative of the MCI shall be part of the expert team finalizing the fine print of such MoU," he said.

While agreeing that prior permission was a must for performing surgeries or live demos on Indian patients, doctors and institute heads said the MCI circular was too restrictive. "What is wrong with foreign nationals or NRIs coming to give lectures or share valuable knowledge about the latest developments in medical field?" said founder-chairman of Frontier Lifeline hospitals, Dr K M Cherian.

"Nothing original in the field of medicine has come out of India. We depend solely on studies by our peers in other countries," he added.

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President inaugurates Budget session of Parliament

NEW DELHI: Inaugurating the budget session of parliament, President Pratibha Patil Monday admitted India has gone through a "difficult year", plagued by inflation and violence in certain areas.

"We have gone through a difficult year for our country," Patil said in her joint address to both houses of parliament.

"Certain parts of the country have suffered from unacceptably high levels of violence, especially areas affected by leftwing extremism and the Kashmir valley," she said.

The president was referring to the summer of protests in Kashmir, as well as the continuing problem of Maoist violence in various parts of the country.

"There has been a grievance in some quarters that the benefits intended for the poor through anti-poverty programmes have not reached them in full measure," she said.

Patil offered her sympathies to the people of Ladakh where a cloudburst had killed nearly 200 people last August.

"Our heart goes out to the people of Ladakh, who suffered the consequences of a severe cloudburst, leading to an unprecedented loss of life and property," she said.

She also condoled the death of classical music legend Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.

The budget session will continue till April 21, with an 18-day recess from March 17 to April 3. The first part of the session will have 17 sittings while the second part will have 12 sittings.

TOI

26/11: HC upholds death sentence for Kasab

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court today upheld the death sentence to Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Amir Kasab for his involvement in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks that left 166 people dead. ( Read Bombay HC's judgment )

A division bench of the court comprising justices Ranjana Desai and R V More also dismissed the Maharashtra government's petition against acquittal of two Indians, Faheem Ansari and Sabauddin Ahmed, accused of aiding the commission of the crime.

Kasab, 24, the only one of the 10 perpetrators of the attack to be captured alive, was sentenced to death by a special anti-terror court on May 6 last year.

Ansari and Ahmed had been, however, let off for want of adequate evidence by the trial court.

Kasab appeared briefly in the court through a video link wearing a white kurta with his head down.

Kasab and his accomplices had landed at Budhwar Park in south Mumbai on November 26, 2008 night from Karachi by sea and went on a shooting spree at various city landmarks including CST railway terminus, iconic Taj Mahal and Oberoi Hotels, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital and Nariman House, a Jewish outreach centre, leaving 166 dead and many more wounded.

TOI

India faces a crisis of growth

In 1991, when Manmohan Singh rose to present his first Budget as the country's new finance minister, India was reeling under an imminent foreign exchange crisis - which could have led to defaults. We did not have enough money to pay for even two months of imports. The choices staring Singh were stark; either continue with the disastrous economic policies and see India reduced to an economic basket case or seize the moment to usher in far-reaching reforms. He chose the latter option and the rest is history. It was the time for making bold decisions.

Today - for many different reasons - Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is at faced with a new set of challenges. Thankfully, the situation is not as desperate as in 1991. Then it was a crisis of survival - now it is a crisis of growth - especially double-digit growth. India's true potential is not in 10+% GDP growth - but a set of recent events have made this seems difficult to achieve. The threat to this aspirational goal of double-digit growth for the next 10 years could be the opportunity for making some bold decisions.

This current threat to the India story is a result of many external as well as internal factors.

The government seems to be caught between a rock and hard place when it comes to the fiscal consolidation. The FM will find it politically impossible to curtail subsidies and funding for schemes like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS). Many of these programmes are worthwhile and necessary for inclusive growth, but the key challenge now is get more of limited resources for this as the government's ability to increase outlays will be curtailed in this Budget.

Options to raise additional revenues like using 3G spectrum auction proceeds to bridge the fiscal deficit are no longer available at the same level. Disinvestment is likely to rope in 40,000 crore. So, taxes will have to provide a boost - though the tax revenues are healthy; it is unlikely that in view of rising inflation, individual tax rates will be raised. So, the only option will be to raise some more from corporate and indirect taxes.

Tax revenues for the next year could also be under pressure if the GDP growth rate buckles under the pressure of political pressures and inflationary factors.

The case of inflation control is the biggest issue in front of the FM - it is also probably the most politically sensitive. The classical response till now has been to raise interest rates, which the RBI has already done seven times during the year.

But this has failed to rein in a price rise which is caused by supply-side bottlenecks and inadequate investments in infrastructure. Also inflationary expectations are on the rise, which is dangerous. The FM has to supplement the RBI's actions with tighter fiscal policy measures - to control inflation, for sure; but, more importantly, to rein in inflationary expectations. This is easier said than done as the fallout of this could be GDP growth slowing down.

ET

Europe's biggest Hindu temple to come up in Netherlands

BRUSSELS: The biggest Hindu temple complex in Europe - consisting of three temples, residential areas and tourist spots - is going to be built in the Dutch city of The Hague.

Three Hindu groups would be building three temples on a site behind the Hollands Spoor railway station, EuAsiaNews reported citing the Netherlands' Trouw newspaper.

The complex will include 45 apartments and is set to open in 2014. There would be rooms for yoga and meditation and tourist spots for foreign guests.

The residential towers are also open to non-Hindus.

The Hague council member Rajesh Ramnewash has designed the plan.

Some one percent of people living in the Netherlands are Hindus. The Hindu community also accounts for the largest immigrant group in the Hague, according to Trouw.

et

Government may set up panel to review AI wages

NEW DELHI: Problems relating to disparity in wage structure and seniority among employees of Air India after its merger with erstwhile Indian Airlines are likely to be resolved by a panel chaired by a retired judge. A suggestion that these issues be tackled indepth by a committee headed by a retired judge has been made by civil aviation minister Valayar Ravi during his meetings with leaders of 14 unions of the state-run carrier.

"After a two-day meeting with all the employees' unions of Air India, I have suggested the formation of a committee headed by a retired judge to resolve their issues relating to service matter," Ravi said after inaugurating the Centenary Celebration of Civil Aviation in India here.

The function marked the launch of the first commercial flight in India—between Allahabad and Naini on February 18, 1911. The minister said the unions have agreed to cooperate with the government to bring the national carrier out of red. To questions on lack of manpower integration between the two erstwhile public sector airlines even after almost four years of their merger, Ravi acknowledged that there were "some problems" but said "these can be resolved through talks" .

Asked about charges that Air India had given away many profitable routes, both domestic and international, to private competitors, he said it was "not the time to blame but to run the institution and get out of the situation" . The minister said more funds were needed to bring Air India out of red but refused to disclose the amount, saying he would discuss the issue with FM Pranab Mukherjee before taking a decision.

toi

India's ambition backed by sound logic

Recollection of the past and reconstructing moments as they may have exactly happened can be a difficult task. An India-Bangladesh World Cup opener evokes nightmarish memories for an Indian fan, of a similar encounter four years ago, on the same grand stage, which produced a result that shattered the Indian dream even before it had acquired concrete shape.

In the faraway land of Trinidad, whose capital Port-of-Spain, known for the Indian Test team's stirring saga of scoring more than 400 runs to achieve a famous Test victory once, is today remembered for India getting knocked out of the 2007 World Cup even before it had begun.

On the eve of this year's tournament in which India, unlike then, have a far more secure, settled and formidable look to it, the Indian team may still be carrying the wounds inflicted on them by a team which we all believed were there to fill in the numbers. Despite the Bangladeshi journalists reminding us that their team could be dangerous foes, we had paid no heed to them, till they pushed us from the perch we thought was ours.

The shock of that premature exit stunned the cricketing world, from a commercial aspect, so much that four years on, we have a format in which all top teams are guaranteed at least a month's participation, regardless of the results.

Not that India needed that charity this time, given the fact that we are the number two team in the world and, by unanimous consent, the strongest contender for the throne.

Home conditions, crowd support, a billion good wishes and multi-million dollar sponsor backing would be enough incentive for a team to jump from the moon and still hope to survive. And even if on their way, they were to encounter rough passages, this team is strong enough to navigate its way towards its final destination.

From a shifting perspective, Bangladesh must be in greater stress and tension as this time around they are not exactly the "underdogs" they were four years ago.

And the reassuring thought for both the teams is that no matter what the result, it is not going to be the end of the road, just the beginning of a long journey.

India, in any case, are not a team to be trifled with and their ambition to become champions has the sound backing of cricketing logic.

Yet the beauty of sport, the reason why we all follow it, is that the outcome is always shrouded in many ifs and buts till the final moment arrives.

At a time when cricket is itself facing many difficult challenges, let us all hope to witness many nerve-tingling, coruscating, edge-of-the-seat thrillers and not the dreary, boring one-sided games, which could sound the death knell of the World Cup itself.

HT

I-T wants Ali to pay Rs70,000cr in taxes

MUMBAI: The Income Tax (I-T) department will start criminal proceedings for concealment of income against Hasan Ali Khan, the Pune-based owner of race horses who is wanted for money-laundering deals worth billions of dollars and tax evasion.

I-T officials will lodge a complaint for concealment of income in a court in Mumbai and then forward the documents to the Swiss government in yet another bid to ask for information about Khan's banking transactions in
that country.

This will be the third attempt by the I-T department to convince the Swiss about the need for Indian officials to be privy to information about Khan's bank accounts. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has also made a separate attempt. Data earlier gathered from Khan's computer showed that he allegedly had a balance of $8.04 billion in UBS Zurich at one point.

Amidst fears that Khan might leave the country, which could jeopardise cases against him, I-T officials issued a summons for him and he appeared before them at Aaykar Bhavan in Mumbai on Friday. The Supreme Court recently told
the Centre to ensure that Khan remains in India.

''In a case of concealment of income, we impose a penalty on the amount concealed. There is a provision to lodge a criminal complaint in the court,'' said a senior I-T official. The I-T department wants Khan to pay more than Rs 70,000 crore in taxes.

Director-general of I-T (Investigation) B P Gaur confirmed that the department intends to initiate criminal proceedings against Khan.

At the same time, another I-T official said that if it is proved that the documents recovered from Khan are forged, the I-T case may not stand. These are the same documents that were earlier provided to Swiss officials to prove his Swiss bank transactions, another official said. UBS Bank had said on Thursday that the documents are forged. The banks officials said they do not have any business relationship with Khan and he does not have any accounts or assets with them. Khan is suspected of transferring $8 billion from a Swiss bank using his wife Rheema's name.

Swiss authorities suspected forgery when the ED approached them with documents in 2008. The ED said Khan had committed an offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Sources said the parameters set for invoking PMLA were not fulfilled by the ED and hence Swiss authorities refused to provide any details. To book a case under PMLA, an Indian Penal Code offence has to be registered.

Soon after, the I-T department filed a criminal complaint against Khan for not filing returns, but the Swiss refused to assist, saying not filing returns in India is not an offence in Switzerland. The I-T department then sought information about Khan's bank account under the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement. Under the agreement, being a resident of India, Khan's global income would be taxable here. However, Swiss authorities again refused, saying it was a banking issue, an official said. I-T officials said they have raised a tax demand in the belief that the documents on Khan are genuine. ''We have that provision in the Income Tax Act,'' an official said.

Officials said his known properties are worth only a few crores. ''If we attach them and auction them off the amount realized would be far less than his dues,'' said an official.

The SC's remarks had come during the recent hearing of a case filed by Ram Jethmalani, who has alleged that little has been done to recover Rs 70 lakh crore in black money stashed abroad. The government has said that Jethmalani's estimate is unreliable.

TOI

India signs trade pact with Malaysia

NEW DELHI: India on Wednesday signed a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement (CECA) with Malaysia which gives its doctors, accountants , two-wheelers , cotton garments and basmati rice greater access to the Malaysian market. This is in return for faster duty cuts for refined palm oil and binding tariffs on three other palm products. Besides, India has committed to freer entry norms for Malaysian engineers, accountants and IT specialists coming to the country on temporary contractual assignments.

There is an agreement on both sides to foster investment with India allowing Malaysian companies to hold 49-100 % equity in 84 service sectors while Malaysia provided a similar dispensation for Indian companies in 91 sectors including construction (51%), computer & related services and management & consultancy (100% each).

The India-Malaysia CECA goes beyond the commitment offered by the two countries under the Asean agreement. In all, India will keep 1,225 items outside the ambit of tariff reduction, compared to 1,298 for Asean members. Similarly, Malaysia will keep 838 products in the exclusion list compared to 898 under the Asean pact.

As a result, India has agreed to lower the import duty on refined palm oil to 45% by the end of December 2018, which is a year ahead of what it has committed under the Asean treaty. Similarly , the decision to bind tarriffs on three palm products by December 31, 2018 was not part of the Asean agreement.

In terms of tariff reduction, there will be three tracks -- Normal I, Normal II and Sensitive. For Normal Track I, import duty on all products will be eliminated by the end of September 2013, as against December 31, 2013 under the Asean agreement. For Normal Track II, there will be a six-month advancement resulting in an elimination of tariffs by 30 June, 2016. For sensitive list items, the two countries have committed cap tariffs at 5% by 30 June 2016, six months ahead of the schedule provided under Asean. There is a fourth track too — Special Track — where tariffs are to be capped at 5-20 % over a period of fourseven years. Apart from these, there are special provisions for India and Malaysia. For Malaysia , there is another list which includes highly sensitive items. Here, for goods attracting over 50% duty, Malaysia will cap these tariffs at 50% by the end of 2018. For highly sensitive items where the customs duty is 50% or below, there are two options. One is to cut duties by 50% by the end of 2018 or two, to lower it by 25% by then.

TOI

SC seeks status of graft charge against ex-CJI

NEW DELHI: Former Chief Justice of India KJ Balakrishnan suffered a setback on Friday when the Supreme Court asked the government to detail the status of inquiry into a nine-month-old complaint accusing him and his kin of corruption.

The CBI's anti-corruption branch in Kochi, which was tasked to inquire into the complaint, will now reveal the outcome of its probe to the court through attorney general GE Vahanvati within two weeks.

Justice Balakrishnan has been under a cloud following allegations of a spike in the assets of his family members during his stint in the country's top court. He has so far shrugged aside demands, including from retired SC judge VR Krishna Iyer, that he disclose his assets. The former CJI also opposed a Right to Information plea on his tax returns.

While the intervention by his former peers should test his resistance, the apex court's bold curiosity about the status of investigation into assets can cause anxiety also to the powerful accused in the spectrum case. The court is monitoring investigation into the 2G spectrum case, and has stressed that CBI disregard the status of the accused.

Justice Balakrishnan refused to comment on the SC asking for the probe status report on Friday.

The inquiry into the former CJI's assets also addresses the criticism that judiciary is reluctant to act on complaints against its members.

Justice Balakrishnan was the first CJI from the dalit community who, after his retirement, was appointed chief of National Human Rights Commission — a position he still holds.

Delhi-based Mohammad Furqan had levelled corruption charges against him in a complaint to the President and Vice-President on May 4 last year. While requesting the President not to appoint him as head of the human rights body, Furqan had sought a thorough probe into the allegations against him and his relatives.

The court on Friday asked for the status of this complaint, which was forwarded to the CBI's anti-corruption branch in Kochi. A Bench comprising Chief Justice S H Kapadia and Justices K S Radhakrishnan and Swatanter Kumar sought the AG's assistance in the matter.

The Bench's query came prior to it hearing a public interest litigation filed by advocate M L Sharma, who sought a judicial inquiry into recent allegations against Justice Balakrishnan, his son, son-in-law and brother.

The court told Vahanvati, "This is a petition seeking judicial inquiry into alleged misbehaviour of the NHRC chairperson. We will deal with the PIL later. But, there was a complaint sent to the Vice-President, who referred it to the home ministry. We want to know what is the status of the complaint."

Vahanvati said he would inquire into it and get back to the court within two weeks.

The V-P's secretariat had on June 21, 2010, written to the home secretary that the complaint "regarding investigation of assets of former CJI" was being forwarded to him for "appropriate action". The ministry sent the complaint to CBI, New Delhi.

The CBI, on August 10, 2010, forwarded the complaint to its anti-corruption branch in Kochi, Kerala, the home state of Justice Balakrishnan.

The communication to superintendent of police, CBI ACB, Kochi, had said, "The complaint is being forwarded to your office for taking further necessary action as deemed fit. CBI, ACB, New Delhi, has not undertaken any inquiry or verification with reference to the matter."

Furqan`s allegations against Justice Balakrishnan ranged from out-of-turn hearing of an appeal of CPM leader Pinarayi Vijayan in SNC Lavlin case to his son`s alleged visits to Dubai for an ulterior purpose relating to another pending case.

Justice Balakrishnan had rejected the allegations and said that his relatives facing charges of disproportionate assets were answerable to the statutory machinery dealing with the cases.

Furqan had also alleged that value of the assets declared by Justice Balakrishnan were "far below the actual assets owned by him and his family members". The judges, while declaring their assets, give the price at which assets were acquired and not their present market value.

PIL petitioner Sharma had requested the court "to advise the President of India to refer/initiate a judicial inquiry under Article 317 to the Supreme Court to prove misbehaviour of former CJI K G Balakrishnan."

Sharma said even former Supreme Court judge, Justice V Krishna Iyer, had on December 28 last year demanded a probe into the charges against Justice Balakrishnan`s son-in-law and relatives but law minister M Veerappa Moily had declined the request.

TOI

Team India seeks revenge for 2007 World Cup debacle

MIRPUR: It's not about having the best team. It is not about revenge either. When India and Bangladesh square off on Saturday at the Shere-e-Bangla National Stadium here, it will all be about handling pressure.

There is so much hype surrounding the inaugural match of the 2011 World Cup that even a seasoned campaigner like Mahendra Singh Dhoni is feeling the heat, while his Bangladesh counterpart Shakib Al Hasan is reeling under it. While Dhoni tried to deflect pressure by playing to the gallery at Friday's match-eve press conference, Shakib literally sweated it out even as he fielded uncomfortable questions, including a few on the injured Mashrafe Mortaza's absence.

Shakib, in all seriousness, maintained that his side would miss the experienced allrounder, who was Man of the Match on the last two occasions when Bangladesh beat India, but expected others to do the job. Dhoni, on the other hand, simply pointed out - amid peals of laughter - that "being out of the squad means Mortaza wouldn't be able to pick up the award this time."

It was clearly Dhoni's way of dealing with the pressures of World Cup that his team is hotly tipped to win. The match-up against Bangladesh represents the first hurdle in what promises to be a fascinating campaign.

History counts for little in instant cricket, and the loss to Bangladesh in the 2007 World Cup has been reduced to a footnote by tall achievements by the current crop of players whom Dhoni has galvanized into world-beaters. It's redemption, rather than revenge, that India would be seeking through a winning start on Saturday. Even lightning never strikes twice at the same place. To expect Bangladesh to do so against India will be expecting too much from Shakib's youthful side which clearly lacks depth.

Purely from a cricketing point of view, Bangladesh are over-reliant on their left-handed opener Tamim Iqbal to post a match-winning total, while their bowling attack lacks both variety as well as depth. Their two pacers - Shaiful Islam and Rubel Hossain - are both right-arm operators, while their three frontline spinners Shakib, Razzak and Sohrawordi Suvho are all of left-arm variety.

Unless they make early inroads and keep picking wickets at regular intervals, it is hard to see them containing a powerful Indian line-up that boasts some of the biggest hitters in the game.

It is good for any captain to have a problem of plenty, but spare a thought for Dhoni, who must now make up his mind about Yuvraj Singh. Picked on his reputation as a match-winning batsman, Yuvi continues to struggle with the bat but has emerged as a frontline spinner, who regularly bowls his full quota of overs.

The first XI picks itself with Sachin, Sehwag, Gambhir and Kohli taking up the top four slots and Yuvraj, Dhoni and Pathan coming in next, followed by Harbhajan, Zaheer, Chawla and Munaf.

Nehra could pip Munaf to the second pacer's berth. But Dhoni must be relieved to see Zaheer back in the bowling nets here after missing the warm-up games.

Yuvi's new-found confidence in bowling gives Dhoni a chance to include a frontline batsman instead of allrounder Pathan, whose hard-hitting skills may not be needed against Bangladesh. Dhoni has also not used Pathan's off-spin much in the two warm-up matches against Australia and New Zealand. Raina could be a direct beneficiary as he is a good player of spin and would relish batting against the left-arm tweakers of Bangladesh.

The bald, brown pitch will have nothing to offer to the pacers. It is expected to play low and slow which means taking the pace off the ball would pay for the bowlers, while batsmen need to play the waiting game.

It may not be a walk in park for India, but a battle of attrition, where Dhoni's bravehearts must overcome the pressure of expectations before slaying the Bangla Tigers in their den.

Toi

Advani apologises to Sonia on Swiss bank account issue

New Delhi, Feb 18 (PTI) Senior BJP leader L K Advani has apologised to Congress President Sonia Gandhi for a party-appointed task force report, which had alleged that she and her late husband Rajiv had accounts in Swiss banks.

BJP had appointed the task force on unravelling the amount of black money stashed by Indians in foreign banks and ways to bring it back.

The report had alleged that Sonia Gandhi and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi were among Indians who held Swiss bank accounts.

This had led Sonia Gandhi to write a letter to Advani denying the allegation.

Sources said in the letter, Gandhi had said that neither she nor her husband held Swiss bank accounts.

In his reply to the Congress President''s letter, Advani expressed regret of her name and that of her late husband being mentioned in the task force report.

However, Advani also stated in his reply that the Gandhis should have denied this publicly when there were murmurs that names of her family members could figure in the report.

Advani said had she done so, the name of her family members would not have figured in the task force.

The four-member task force comprising S Gurumurthy, former IB director Ajit Doval, Professor R Vadiyanathan and advocate Mahesh Jethmalani has put the figure of money stashed in safe havens to be 25 lakh crore.

On February 1, NDA leaders had released a booklet ''Indian Black Money Abroad in Secret Banks and Tax Havens'', the second report of the task force appointed by the BJP. PTI

Rupee gains 13 paise to 1-month high against dollar

MUMBAI: The rupee rose by 13 paise to a one-month high of 45.21 per US dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange today, supported by a rally in the domestic stock market and dollar weakness against other currencies.

Forex dealers said a higher opening in the stock market and dollar losses against a basket of major currency rivals overseas kept the rupee sentiment firm.

The rupee had gained 18 paise to close at Rs 45.34/35 per dollar in the previous session on the back of bullish domestic equities and sustained dollar-selling by exporters and banks.

Meanwhile, the Bombay Stock Exchange index Sensex was up by 119.85 points, or 0.65 per cent, to 18,626.67 in opening trade today.

TOI

Sensex down 295 pts on profit booking after 5 days of gain

MUMBAI: The BSE benchmark Sensex on Friday tanked over 295 points to close at 18,211.52, breaking five days of winning run, with realty and auto stocks leading the fall as investors booked profits amid mixed global markets.

Marketmen said the sentiment was also affected by the widening probe in the 2G spectrum allocation scam, pulling down ADAG firm RCom by nearly 7 per cent.

The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex, which rallied nearly 1,045 points during the five-session bull-run, fell sharply by 295.30 points, or 1.60 per cent to close at 18,211.52 after touching a low of 18,159.82 largely on fag-end sell-off.

The gauge gained nearly 186 points at one stage to hit a high of 18,690.97 points on the back of sustained surge in realty, banking and oil and gas sector stocks supported by easing inflation.

The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty also lost 87.50 points, 1.58 per cent to 5,458.95, after touching the day's low of 5,441.95.

Marketmen said emergence of profit-taking by funds as well as retail investors after witnessing significant gains in mainly dampened the trading sentiment.

Retail investors, who had been extending support to the market in the past few sessions, turned cautious and reduced their portfolio ahead of the monthly expiry next week and the general Budget for the financial year 2011-12.

In 30-BSE index components, 25 stocks ended with losses while 5 closed higher.

Stocks of RCom tumbled 6.80 per cent to Rs 93.15 on massive selling, triggered by ongoing CBI probe into the 2G spectrum allocation scam.

The realty sector index suffered the most by falling 4.04 per cent to 2,052.11 followed by auto sector index by 2.39 per cent to 8,717.71.

The oil and gas index plunged 2.09 per cent to 9,329.99 and capital goods sector index by 1.97 per cent to 13,132.51.

The banking index fell by 1.73 per cent to 12,419.72 as largest lenders State Bank of India and ICICI Bank suffered fresh losses.

With the selling spread over a broad front, the small-cap index closed 2.35 per cent lower at 8,128.91 points, while mid-cap index shed 1.98 per cent to 6,661.65.

TOI

Rupee up 11 paise against US dollar in early trade

MUMBAI: The Indian rupee gained 11 paise to Rs 45.41 against the US dollar in early trade on the Interbank Foreign Exchange on Thursday, supported by weakness of the greenback against other Asian currencies.

The rupee had depreciated by 3 paise to close at Rs 45.52/53 against the US dollar in the previous session on Tuesday on dollar demand from importers. The forex market remained was closed yesterday on account of Milad-un-Nabi.

Dealers said dollar weakness against other Asian currencies overseas supported the rupee sentiment, but a lower opening in the stock market capped the gains.

The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex fell by 31.16 points to 18,269.74 in opening trade on Thursday.

TOI

Sensex opens 31 points lower on profit-booking

MUMBAI: The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex fell by over 31 points in opening trade today as investors locked in gains registered during the previous four sessions.

The 30-share barometer, which rallied by nearly 840 points the previous four sessions, slid by 31.16 points to 18,269.74 points in the first few minutes of trade as realty, oil and gas and capital goods stocks succumbed to profit-booking.

In a similar fashion, the wide-based National Stock Exchange Nifty index declined by 7.90 points to 5,473.80 points.

Brokers said profit-booking by market participants, following a near 4.6 per cent rise in the Sensex during the past four sessions, influenced the trading sentiment.

They also said investors were adopting a cautious approach ahead of the Union Budget for the 2011-12 financial year.

Stocks of Reliance Communications fell by 1.25 per cent to Rs 98.45 after its chief, Anil Ambani, appeared at CBI headquarters in connection with the probe into the 2G scam.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up by 0.17 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei gained 0.69 per cent in early trade today. The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.50 per cent higher in yesterday's trade.

TOI

India's longest rail bridge in Kerala

NEW DELHI: The scenic Kerala backwaters can now boast of an engineering marvel — the longest rail bridge in the country at 4.62km. The bridge is part of a 8.6-km railway link connecting Idapalli to Vallarpadam in Kochi, where the shipping ministry has constructed the International Container Transhipment Terminal (ICTT).

Built by the Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd at Rs 200 crore, the bridge came up in a record 28 months.

The rail link between Idapalli railway station and ICTT can also boast green technology to address environmental concerns. The alignment cuts through densely populated habitations and backwaters. "We used minimum cement to reduce greenhouse effect," said a rail official. Land acquisition being a sensitive issue in Kerala, RVNL took an elevated route — a 40m-long girder erected at a curve of 2.5 degrees — to cut down on land use in densely populated areas and also go across the backwaters.

"This led to the conceptualization of a 4.62km-long elevated structure," RVNL managing director Satish Agnihotri told TOI.

The land was acquired in densely populated areas, thanks to an "out-of-box" solution. The compensation package did not pinch the displaced. Current market price of houses -- without any depreciation of the properties -- was offered. Also, a plot of similar size was allotted to the displaced in an equally or better developed area. Each family was paid rent for six months till the new house came up.

The project, which will serve as the first SEZ port in the country, will eliminate transhipment of goods from Colombo port to Indian ports. Mega mother ships and Panamax vessels can directly reach Vallarpadam. It will also save the cost of transportation by $300 per container, making export and import cheaper.

"The work had to be completed fast as the rail connectivity to the container terminal was a time-bound exercise being monitored by the Prime Minister`s Office," an official said.

The new bridge eclipses Dehri-on-Sone's record as the longest rail bridge in the country. The three-km-long bridge on the Sone River was constructed by the East India Railway in 1900.

TOI

Sensex gains 72 points in opening trade

MUMBAI: The BSE benchmark Sensex rose by over 72 points in opening trade on Wednesday on sustained buying by funds, with Tata Steel attracting the most interest after it posted strong earnings results for the third quarter.

The 30-share index of the Bombay Stock Exchange rose by 72.30 points, or 0.40%, to 18,346.10 points in opening trade today. The Sensex gained nearly 812 points in the previous three sessions.

Similarly, the wide-based National Stock Exchange Nifty index gained 10.70 points, or 0.19%, to 5,491.70 in opening trade today.

Traders said in addition to the strong corporate earnings posted by Tata Steel, continued short-covering by speculators also buoyed the sentiment, helping the Sensex maintain its upward journey.

Stocks of Tata Steel rose by 2.19% to Rs 630.05 after the company posted an over two-fold jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,003.02 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2010.

Meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei Index was up by 0.11% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index down 0.12% in early trade today.

In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Index ended 0.34% lower on Tuesday.

TOI

How Refrigerator Buying

Refrigerator is truly an integral part of every home.

The choice of refrigerator brand and model you want to buy will depend on the number of people in the house as well as your food habits. Roughly a two member family would require a fridge anywhere between 50 to 200 litres. However, if you like your steak and chilled beer you might want a higher capacity refrigerator. Also if you do only a weekend shopping, a higher capacity fridge is what you should look at.

TYPE OF REFRIGERATOR
Refrigerator types are simple - direct cool and frost-free refrigerator. Direct cooling ones are mostly single door refrigerators and frost-free refrigerators are mostly double and multiple doors. The abundant variety comes in the form of capacity. You can choose from mini, small, medium and large refrigerators.

* Mini (50 to 100 litres) : perfect for your studio apartment or bachelor pad; just enough for one person to store the occasional can of beer and juices along with bare food items. These are really small, single door refrigerators.

* Small (170 to 200 litres) : just right for a couple or even a small kitchen. This one is small and wont take too much space while giving you just enough to store your weekly groceries. You would go for this if you were on a tight budget. These are single door refrigerators.

* Medium (200 to 450 litres) : This is for the nuclear household. Not too small yet not too big. Reasonably priced these provide ample storage with enough features that are value for money. These could be single as well as double door refrigerators.

* Large (450 to 800 litres) : For the big home and big budget. These refrigerators are right out of the lifestyles of the rich and famous catalogue. You would go for this if you have a large household and are really fond of throwing elaborate dos. The large sized could be double door, three door, bottom mounted, side-by-side.

REFRIGERATOR BRANDS

BPL

Electrolux

Akai

GE

Kelvinator

Siemens

Videocon

Whirlpool

Godrej

LG

Samsung

Sharp

Voltas

Indesit

Gem

Hitachi

Haier

Kenstar

LG

Panasonic

Toshiba

White Westinghouse

Miele

Z line

NIFTY

NIFTY is an Index computed from performance of top stocks from different sectors listed on NSE (National stock exchange). NIFTY consists of 50 companies from 24 different sectors. NIFTY stands for National Stock Exchange’s Fifty. The companies which form index of NIFTY may vary from time to time based on many factors considered by NSE. NIFTY is for NSE similarly SENSEX is for BSE

Some mutual funds use NIFTY index as a benchmark meaning the mutual funds’ performance is compared against the performance of NIFTY. On NSE there are futures and options available for trading with NIFTY as underlying index.

India Index Services and Products Ltd. (IISL) owns NIFTY. IISL is a joint venture of NSE and CRISIL. CRISIL is a subsidiary of Standard and Poor (S&P). And so NIFTY is also called as S&P CNX NIFTY.

Sensex

SENSEX is the short term for the words "Sensitive Index" and is associated with the Bombay (Mumbai) Stock Exchage (BSE).

The SENSEX was first formed on 1-1-1986 and used the market capitalization of the 30 most traded stocks of BSE. The base was 1979 and taken as 100. The 30 scrips of 1986 and no more the same - some have been removed while some have been added. At irregular intervals, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) authorities review and modify its composition to make sure it reflects current market conditions.

Today the Sensex constitutes of the following companies:

Company Name (Industry)

1. ACC (Cement - Major)
2. Bharti Airtel (Telecommunications - Service)
3. BHEL (Engineering - Heavy)
4. DLF (Construction & Contracting - Real Estate)
5. Grasim (Diversified)
6. HDFC Bank (Banks - Private Sector)
7. HDFC (Finance - Housing)
8. Hindalco (Aluminium)
9. HUL (Personal Care)
10. ICICI Bank (Banks - Private Sector)
11. Infosys (Computers - Software)
12. ITC (Cigarettes)
13. Jaiprakash Associates (Construction & Contracting - Civil)
14. Larsen & Toubro (Diversified)
15. Mahindra and Mahindra (Auto - Cars & Jeeps)
16. Maruti Suzuki (Auto - Cars & Jeeps)
17. NTPC (Power - Generation/Distribution)
18. ONGC (Oil Drilling And Exploration)
19. Ranbaxy Labs (Pharmaceuticals)
20. Reliance Communications (Telecommunications - Service)
21. Reliance Industries Limited (Diversified)
22. Reliance Infrastructure (Power - Generation/Distribution)
23. State Bank of India (Banks - Public Sector)
24. Sterlite Industries (Metals - Non Ferrous)
25. Sun Pharma (Pharmaceuticals)
26. Tata Motors (Auto - LCVs/HCVs)
27. Tata Power (Power - Generation/Distribution)
28. Tata Steel (Steel - Large)
29. TCS (Computers - Software)
30. Wipro (Computers - Software)


Click here for a history of Sensex companies.

How is the Sensex calculated?
Sensex is calculated using the "Free-float Market Capitalization" methodology. As per this methodology, the level of index at any point of time reflects the Free-float market value of 30 component stocks relative to a base period.

The market capitalization of a company is determined by multiplying the price of its stock by the number of shares issued by the company. This market capitalization is further multiplied by the free-float factor to determine the free-float market capitalization.

The base period of Sensex is 1978-79 and the base value is 100 index points. This is often indicated by the notation 1978-79=100. The calculation of Sensex involves dividing the Free-float market capitalization of 30 companies in the Index by a number called the Index Divisor.

The Divisor is the only link to the original base period value of the Sensex. It keeps the Index comparable over time and is the adjustment point for all Index adjustments arising out of corporate actions, replacement of scrips etc.

IIP growth encouraging; will boost GDP: FM

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday described the industrial output in December as encouraging and said it would have a positive bearing on the economic growth figures for the current fiscal.

"It (IIP growth rate in December) is quite encouraging and I do hope that third quarter GDP figures will also be encouraging... it will get reflected in the overall GDP," he said.

The Index of Industrial Production (IIP), an indicator of industrial activity in the country, zoomed 16.8 per cent in December against the contraction of 0.2 per cent during the corresponding month a year ago.

Higher than anticipated industrial growth rate in December may also have a reflection on the over all Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which was pegged at 7.2 per cent for the current fiscal by the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) earlier in the week.

The advance growth estimate by the CSO, was lower than 7.75 per cent projected by the Finance Ministry and 7.5 per cent predicted by the Reserve Bank of India [ Get Quote ].

Mukherjee, who is gearing up to present the Budget 2010-11 on February 26, suggested that the higher industrial output during the month might push up the GDP for the third quarter and subsequently for the fiscal.

PTI

What is IIP Growth (Index of Industrial Production)

The Index of Industrial Production (IIP), an indicator of industrial activity in the country,

What is Inflation?

What is Inflation?


Inflation is defined as an increase in the price of bunch of Goods and services that projects the Indian economy. An increase in inflation figures occurs when there is an increase in the average level of prices in Goods and services. Inflation happens when there are less Goods and more buyers, this will result in increase in the price of Goods, since there is more demand and less supply of the goods.

CRR Rate in India

What is CRR Rate:


Cash reserve Ratio (CRR) is the amount of funds that the banks have to keep with RBI. If RBI decides to increase the percent of this, the available amount with the banks comes down. RBI is using this method (increase of CRR rate), to drain out the excessive money from the banks.

The cash reserve ratio and statutory liquidity ratio determines the amounts banks have to retain in liquid assets, gold and government bonds against deposits, and form a part of traditional instruments that help in checking liquidity in the system.

What is Repo Rate and Reverse Repo Rate

What is a Repo Rate?

Repo Rate
Whenever the banks have any shortage of funds they can borrow it from RBI. Repo rate is the rate at which our banks borrow rupees from RBI. A reduction in the repo rate will help banks to get money at a cheaper rate. When the repo rate increases borrowing from RBI becomes more expensive.

The repo rate, often referred to as the short term lending rate, is the interest charged by the central bank on borrowings by commercial banks.
Repo rate is the interest rate at which the reserve bank of India lends mney to other banks.

What is a Reverse repo Rate?

Reverse repo Rate:

Reverse repo rate is return banks earn on excess funds parked with the central bank against Government securities. The reverse repo rate, referred to as the short term borrowing rate, is the rate at which the central bank borrows money from commercial banks.

GDP

GDP
The India GDP is a combination of all the differential factors, contributing to the welfare of the India economy. India GDP gives us a combined report of the performance of the Indian economy. 'Cost factor' or 'Actual price' method - these are the two methods to calculate Indian Gross Domestic Product. The main factor that contributed to the growth of India GDP post 1990s was the opening-up of the Indian economy.


Definition of GDP

GDP (the measure of an economy adopted by the United States in 1991; the total market values of goods and services produced by workers and capital within a nation's borders during a given period (usually 1 year))

What is GDP?

GDP – or Gross Domestic Product – is a measure of the overall economic output within a country’s borders over a particular time, typically a year.

GDP is calculated by adding together the total value of annual output of all that country’s goods and services.

GDP can also be measured by income by considering the factors producing the output – the capital and labour – or by expenditure by government, individuals, and business on that output.

* Real GDP is the gross domestic product adjusted for inflation
* Nominal GDP is the gross domestic product without taking into account inflation.


What is the GDP growth rate?

The change in GDP from one year to the next (or from quarter to quarter) can be given as a percentage. This is called the GDP growth rate.

The real GDP growth rate is a much more useful measure of economic growth than the nominal rate.

If a country’s GDP is growing at a nominal rate of 5% but inflation is running at 4%, only 1% of the growth is down to improved economic output. The rest is just because prices of

Rupee weakens by 9 paise against US dollar in morning trade

MUMBAI: The Indian rupee fell by 9 paise to Rs 45.40 against the US dollar in early trade at the Interbank Foreign Exchange on Tuesday, weighed down by dollar gains against other currencies.

Forex dealers said dollar gains against the euro and other currencies mainly put pressure on the Indian rupee, but a higher opening in the stock market restricted the losses.

The Indian rupee ended 19 paise higher at 45.49/50 against the US currency yesterday on the back of a sharp surge in local equities amid sustained dollar-selling by exporters.

Meanwhile, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex rose by 72.06 points, or 0.40% to 18,274.26 in opening trade today.

TOI

Fertilizers up 15%, farm worry for govt

NEW DELHI: Just when UPA is under the hammer over food inflation, Union minister M K Alagiri has sounded alarm over shooting fertiliser prices under the Nutrient-Based Subsidy (NBS), saying the policy introduced last budget was hurting the poor farmer.

He said the experience of NBS in the fertiliser sector should halt the proposed price decontrol in the urea sector.

The DMK minister argued that urea was the most used fertiliser and decontrol of urea prices and a resultant spike would hurt 75% farmers who were small and marginal.

Alagiri had opposed the switch to NBS, but was disregarded. However, his red flag against urea decontrol may get more attention because of the rising food prices. A jump in urea prices will hurt farmers who helped Congress in the last Lok Sabha elections, and can add to the rising food prices.

In his letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last week on urea decontrol, Alagiri had reminded him of his failed opposition to introduction of nutrient-linked subsidy for fertilisers.

An expert committee under Planning Commission member Saumitra Chaudhuri is examining the urea issue, but the final decision will be shaped more by the coalition leadership's political assessment.

The NBS regime which frees the fertiliser price and fixes the subsidy based on constituents of phospatic and potassic fertilisers kicked in after finance minister Pranab Mukherjee plumped in its favour. Five of the seven ministers including Alagiri in the Mukherjee-chaired Group of Ministers had opposed it. Even the cabinet meeting just before the budget 2010 which cleared the policy saw an extended debate with widespread concerns.

The government had dismissed fears of price rise by citing a commitment from the fertiliser industry that it would freeze the MRP for one year.

Ten months later, as Centre mulls extension of NBS to the urea sector, Alagiri has pressed the alarm button by writing to the PM and finance minister Mukherjee.

He told the PM that farmgate prices of P&K fertilisers have shot up by 15% or Rs 75 per bag of DAP fertiliser. His concern is while farmers have not benefitted, government too is losing with increasing subsidy bill. Holding up a warning sign, he said the departmental feedback indicated that fertilisers prices would increase further in the coming Kharif season.

For the son of Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi with leadership stakes in April polls, the concern revolves around DMK's rivals blaming him for the policy under his charge in the Union fertilisers ministry.

While NBS for fertilisers seems unshakeable now, Alagiri has trained his guns on the regime's extension to urea. The Department of Fertilisers has demanded that New Pricing Scheme which expired in March should be extended for three years to give time for transition. Sources said Alagiri told the PM that the vacuum on pricing policy following expiry of the current one has triggered financial crunch in urea units, specially in southern states, and new investments over Rs 50,000 crore were on hold.

The alarm from the fertiliser minister over shooting prices may not be comfortable for Congress which is under attack for sustained food inflation. If the opposition makes it an issue, it can turn the tables on the party in rural areas, pockets that DMK is looking to gain in riding on the welfare schemes of the Karunanidhi regime.

TOI

Sensex rises 72 points in opening trade

MUMBAI: The BSE benchmark Sensex extended its gains by adding 72 points in opening trade today on continued buying by foreign funds and retail investors.

The 30-share index of the Bombay Stock Exchange, which rallied by nearly 740 points in the previous two sessions, rose by another 72.06 points, or 0.40% to 18,274.26 points in the first few minutes of trade today.

Likewise, the wide-based National Stock Exchange Nifty index moved up by 18.45 points, or 0.33%, to 5,474.45.

Brokers said sustained buying by funds and retail investors in stocks with strong fundamentals and covering-up of pending short positions by speculators mainly influenced the trading sentiment.

Capital goods, consumer durables and power stocks were in keen demand and accounted for most of the gains on the Sensex.

Stocks of ADA Group company, Rcom, however, were under some pressure and fell by 1.80% to Rs 95.65 in early trade. The firm had posted a 54.84% decline in net profit for the quarter ended December 31.

Meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei index was up 0.05%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index shed 0.48% in morning trade today.

TOI

Over 1 lakh phones are tapped every year

NEW DELHI: Some startling figures tumbled out on rampant phone tapping in the country when telecom service provider Reliance Communications told the Supreme Court on Monday that the authorities had asked it to tap 1.51 lakh phone numbers in a five-year span between 2006 and 2010.

This works out to an average of over 30,000 telephone interceptions every year by a single service provider on the orders of various law enforcing agencies. Or, over 82 telephones were intercepted every day by a single service provider.

Reliance is the second-largest service provider with a subscriber base of 12.57 crore as in 2010. The biggest service provider, Bharti Airtel, had 15.25 crore subscribers in 2010, while Vodafone's subscriber base was just a shade lower than Reliance's at 12.43 crore. State-owned BSNL came fourth with 8.67 crore subscribers.

If Reliance's ratio of phones tapped to the number of its subscribers were to be taken as representative and applied to other service providers, it is a fair assumption that government agencies were tapping more than one lakh phones every year.

In Delhi alone, Reliance tapped a total of 3,588 phones in 2005 when the teledensity was low compared to today. It also included Amar Singh's number which was put under surveillance — allegedly on a forged letter from Delhi Police.

Four days back, a bench of Justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly had expressed concern over the large number of interceptions being ordered by the agencies and the "grave danger" this posed to the citizen's right to privacy.

In an affidavit tendered by senior advocate Ram Jethmalani before the bench, Reliance Communications said: "The total number of interceptions in 2005 in respect of Delhi Service Area were 3,588. There were about 1.51 lakh number of cases for monitoring/interception during the period 2006-10 in all India."

Responding to the court's observation that no service provider worth its salt would intercept a phone based on a purported communication full of grammatical and spelling mistakes, Reliance said most of the genuine interception orders were identical to the now known forged letter as far as spelling and grammatical mistakes were concerned. It cited a genuine interception order of February 1, 2011, received from the Delhi Police to make its point.

After detailing the precautions it had taken, including writing to the authorities to authenticate the letter asking for interception of Amar Singh's phone, Reliance said it received no response, yet it was duty bound under a bona fide perception of the letter to continue interception for 15 days.

"A bare perusal of various letters sent by Ranjit Narayan (then Joint Commissioner of Delhi Police) and R Narayanswami (then Delhi home secretary) show that the letters dated October 22, 2005 and November 9, 2005 (both purportedly forged ones) were similar to other letters received from them," Reliance said while claiming its innocence in the interception controversy.

It said request for surveillance of a telephone from the law enforcement agencies could not be postponed based on spelling mistakes in the communication from agencies as it called for immediate action "for safety of general public at large and in the interest of the nation." It added: "Postponing compliance on the ground of inconsequential mistakes like spelling errors may conceivably lead to a serious terrorist attack and the blame may fall on us."

"The service providers are also required to provide assistance to law enforcement agencies as per the licence condition. Any violation of it can lead to a penalty of Rs 50 crore," Reliance said.

It said service providers do not keep a record of conversations taped from a phone under surveillance. Reliance Communication said it did not have the technology to record the conversations and that there was no law mandating the service provider to record the conversations and submit it to the law enforcement agencies.

TOI