The Hindu Business Line : Saturday, February 04, 2006

`Growth in manufacturing sector key to generating employment'
INDIA cannot afford to by-pass the manufacturing sector and move directly to a service-oriented economy from an agrarian economy, according to the Union Minister for Communication and Information Technology, Mr Dayanidhi Maran. Addressing the ... More

CLIMATE & WEATHER

Warm weather anomaly may recede in a few days
THE dry and anomalously warm weather prevailing in large parts of the country persisted on Friday with extreme south peninsular India, where isolated rains are indicated, proving the sole exception. Most parts continue to witness appreciably ... More

TAMIL NADU

FOCUS COIMBATORE

Set for takeoff
With metros like Chennai and Bangalore witnessing saturation, the attention of investors is turning towards Tier-II cities like Coimbatore. More

Bracing up for IT competition
Traditional industries in the city are waking up to the reality of competition in the manpower space. And companies are going all out to retain employees. More

An emerging IT hub
Coimbatore is an emerging IT hub; however, the city has a long way to go before it can catch up with a Hyderabad or Pune. This has been any entrepreneur's dream. The relentless campaign by the Coimbatore zone of the Confederation of Indian ... More

It's now a buzzing airport!
Thanks to expansion efforts by the Airport Authority of India, the Coimbatore airport has attracted new operators, especially the low-cost airlines. More

Plans for a bigger terminal
With the Coimbatore airport experiencing a boom in passenger traffic and flight services, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) is keen to expand the existing terminal building at the airport, besides the proposed construction of a new terminal ... More

Aiming for the sky
The Tirupur-based Park group of institutions has aligned with the Malaysia-based Link Aerospace Ltd to promote an aviation academy in Coimbatore. The joint venture intends to train human resources needed for the aviation industry like ... More

Remembering Kovai
Observing the pace of change — technological and otherwise — in the Coimbatore of the 1960s, one stood dazed like good old Rip Van Winkle. More

Good as gold
With the spiralling gold prices, buyers are becoming quality-conscious... the city is seeing a trend towards hallmarked and branded jewellery. More

Enterprise reborn
The tough times brought to fore the mettle in the new generation. More

A drop saved...
The Siruthuli project mobilised residents to help save precious water resources. More

NON-CONVENTIONAL ENERGY

TERI, BP undertake $9.4-m bio-fuel production project
BP (British Petroleum) and The Energy and Resources Institute on Thursday announced that they will jointly undertake a $9.4-million project for bio-fuel production. In a statement issued here, TERI said that BP would fund the project, which ... More

SOCIAL SECURITY

Pensioners urged to apply for social security number
THE Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has appealed to pensioners to apply for the National Social Security Number. According to a press note from the office of the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner, Chennai Region and ... More

ANTI-DUMPING

Provisional dumping duty mooted on fax paper imports from China
THE Designated Authority in the Commerce Ministry today recommended imposition of provisional anti-dumping duty on imported cellophane transparent paper (TP) or TP film imported from China, which is widely used in fax machines. TP is a ... More

ECONOMY

`NMCC not to promote subsidies'
THE National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC) would not be an instrument for promoting subsidies or protectionism, said the Council's Chairman, Dr V. Krishnamurthy. "Shorn of all protectionism and subsidies, our objective is to make ... More

Kerala: Rs 13,495-cr action plan for `Vision 2010'
The share of the State Government in the outlay will be 16 per cent, while the Centre will contribute six per cent. Investments from private sector and financial institutions will account for the balance amount. More

ENVIRONMENT

Trade unions to protest against Clemenceau during Chirac's visit
SEVERAL trade unions have vowed protests over the India-bound French warship Clemenceau, believed to be riddled with potentially toxic asbestos, during the French President, Mr Jacques Chirac's visit in the third week of February. The aircraft ... More

PSU

Tamil Nadu Telecom to sell metal cable unit
CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Telecommunications Ltd will seek the approval of its shareholders to sell its metal cables making plant at Arakkonam. The unit suspended operations in December 2003 as the market for copper telecom cables collapsed ... More

PETROLEUM

Crude futures witness limited corporate response
IN view of the de facto administered pricing system in petrol and diesel, both Commodity Exchange (MCX) and National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) crude futures markets are seeing a limited response from the corporate sector. The ... More

Dinsha Patel assumes charge in Oil Ministry
MR Dinsha J. Patel took over as the new Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas here on Friday. After assuming office, he met Mr Murli Deora, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, an official release said. Latter, Mr Patel was ... More

POWER

AP to regularise 1 lakh farm power connections
THE Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, today directed officials to ensure regularisation of agricultural power connections and ordered seven-hour supply to the sector during the ensuing rabi season. Over a lakh farmers, who fall under ... More

RADIO/TV

Govt set to garner Rs 1,100 cr from FM radio privatisation
THE Government is set to garner about Rs 1,134 crore as one-time entry fee and migration fee in the second phase of FM radio privatisation. Of the total 338 frequencies put on block, about 279 were allotted to various players after bidding was ... More

EDUCATION

IIM-B Singapore programme not before November
THE Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, which has got the HRD Ministry's nod for its Singapore foray, is expected to launch its management programmes there only after November. Prof Prakash G. Apte, Director, IIMB, told Business ... More

LEATHER

`India should develop own leather brands'
INDIA should look at more than just providing manufacturing capacities for international leather brands — it should develop its own brands in the international market, according to Mr Valter Broda, Executive Director, Brazilian Equipment ... More

PAPER, BOARD & NEWSPRINT

IPMA seeks uniform excise duty of 8 pc
THE Indian Paper Manufacturers Association (IPMA) has urged the Union Finance Ministry to rationalise the excise duty structure and introduce a uniform excise duty of eight per cent in the ensuing Budget. In a pre-Budget memorandum, the IPMA, ... More

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Antrix-EADS Astrium team to build satellite for Eutelsat
The contract to build the satellite is the first fruit of the marketing alliance formed between ISRO and EADS Astrium in June 2005. More

NEWSPAPERS & PUBLISHING

`India important market in direct to consumer TV'
REUTERS' proposed equity stake in Times Global Broadcasting Company Ltd, would be its first such investment in a broadcast outfit worldwide. "Investing in a television channel is important from a strategic perspective," Mr Charles G. Stocks, ... More

SOCIAL WELFARE

A glimmer of hope in Bandlapalli village
NO other scheme has, perhaps, generated so much interest among the people of this part of the drought-hit district than the employment guarantee scheme launched here on Thursday. For scores of agricultural labourers, who witnessed more ... More

RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Banking on `gift emotions'
IT is too early to say that the trickle will swell into a flood, but it is beginning to happen. What is the point in giving a China-made torchlight or an umbrella as a corporate gift? Concerted efforts have begun in right earnest to din this ... More

LABOUR REFORMS

Central advisory board to study contract labour issues
THE Central Advisory Contract Labour Board (CACLB) plans to conduct a sector and region-wise study on contract labour-related issues in the country, Dr S. Balakrishnam Raju, Chairman of CACLB, has said. Contract labour was being employed across ... More

EVENTS

Call to develop more cities in Maharashtra
WITH at least 20 per cent of foreign direct investment (FDI) share coming into Maharashtra and Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur having its presence in the top 10, it is time to develop other districts to ward off competition. Mr Jayant Patil, State ... More

More captive coal blocks promised for steel units
COAL India has identified 136 coal blocks for allocation to power, steel and cement sectors for captive consumption and the Union Government is according priority to the steel sector, Mr Dasari Narayana Rao, the Union Minister of State for Coal, ... More

Global M&A meet explores cross-border activity in India
HELPING India Inc Go Global — that was the theme of a recent meeting organised by IMAP (International Network of M&A Partners) in New Delhi. The two-day meeting, which explored opportunities for cross-border M&A activity between India a More

KSIDC to host workshop
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) in association with the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment (KSCSTE) is organising a one-day workshop on technology development in ... More

In Hyderabad today

EXPORTS & IMPORTS

Soyameal exports may top 22 lakh t by March-end
SOYAMEAL exports from the country could touch 22 lakh tonnes (lt) by March-end, even as enquiries are coming in for delivery in April. Between October and December, at least 10 lt soyameal have been shipped. Last month, nearly 4.75 lt was ... More

Q3 marine products export growth suffers
EXPORTS of marine food products have touched $1 billion in April-December 2005, posting a marginal rise of three per cent. Mr Mohan Kumar, Chairman of Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) told newspersons at the Bengal ... More

Software exports seen at $22 b
EXPORTS of computer software and services are likely to post a 29-per cent growth and seen close to $22.27 billion in the current fiscal, owing to the inroads made by Indian companies in financial services outsourcing. Mr Kamal Vachani, ... More

ECONOMIC OFFENCES

`Right to Information Act may help fight corruption'
THE Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court, Mr Justice Vikas Shridhar Sirpurkar, feels that the Right to Information Act (RTI), enacted by the Union Government with effect from October, 2005, if implemented in right spirit, may help eradicate the ... More

As good as original
A sheaf of fake 500-rupee notes recovered by the Cyberabad Police on Friday . The high-precision technology used by the counterfeiters has surprised the investigating officials as the notes were accepted by banks (as a test case), during ... More

Fake D-Link goods makers arrested in Bangalore
PIRATES might have taken a wrong turn when they shifted from T-shirts and jeans to CDs and networking goods. They are now the targets of irate international electronic goods makers, who are rising to protect their IPR (intellectual property ... More