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FMCG major Dabur has alleged that US-based company Aveda, which manufactures and sells Ayurvedic cosmetic products, is infringing on the trademark of its skincare range.
The world"s largest chip maker Intel Corporation today withdrew its suit before the Delhi High Court against the government, trademark registry and the two small firms which have got registered its trademark till 2017.
Bhupesh Bhandari / New Delhi November 19, 2009, 0:17 IST
Tenders for the proposed Navi Mumbai airport are likely to be floated in the next six month and the project is "very much on track", Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said today.
ElectraCard Services today launched an electra loyalty management system for Barclays Bank.
The government today sought to increase the representation of women in urban local bodies by providing 50 per cent reservation to them instead of the existing 33 per cent.
Concerned over high density of population in the cities, Urban Development Minister S Jaipal Reddy today said there was a need to go in for high rise buildings.
Public sector Bank of Baroda (BoB) today said its consolidated net profit jumped 54 per cent to Rs 2,384.08 crore in the financial year ended March 31.
May lose high-revenue-yielding subscribers; but users to benefit.
Making a u-turn, Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi today announced his decision to resign as MLA and support a united Andhra Pradesh, changing the party"s earlier line of support to separate Telangana state.
Food inflation touched more than a decade"s high of 19.95 per cent as of December five, driven by costlier vegetables, pulses, milk, wheat and rice, even as economists said they expected Reserve Bank to hike rates to tame price rise.
Nagarjuna Agrichem (NACL), one of India"s leading crop protection companies, plans to expand its production capacity by 9000 tonnes by 2011 at a total cost of Rs 250 crore.
Two-wheeler manufacturer Bajaj Auto has set sight on securing the top spot in the world and a blueprint was being drawn, a top company official said today.
The DMK Government today launched Tamil Nadu Transmission Corporation Limited, setting into motion the trifurcation of the state electricity board in line with the Centre"s directive, even as it said that the three corporations would not be privatised "at any cost."
Amid a spate of attacks on Indians here, the Victorian government today said it will provide all relevant details to New Delhi on these incidents.
Support at 5,150, resistance at 5,300.
Gammon Infrastructure Projects today said it has entered into an agreement with the Spain-based Dragados for acquiring the firm"s stake in Indira Container Terminal Pvt Ltd (ICTPL) in phases.
From a low of 8,047 in March 2009, the Sensex has more than doubled over the last three quarters. With such a sharp upmove and valuations in the expensive territory, experts say that investors will have to temper their returns expectations for the current year. To find out the direction of the markets and promising sectors as well as the key concerns, Vishal Chhabria spoke to Krishnamurthy Vijayan, executive chairman, J P Morgan AMC. Excerpts:
Regulator may extend deadline after industry says it lacks Indian commanders
MBL Infrastructure, which raised about Rs 102.6 crore through its initial public offer (IPO), will list its shares on the bourses tomorrow.
Auto major Mahindra & Mahindra today said it will launch its mini truck Maxximo-- the first product from its new facility in Chakan -- at the Auto Expo here during January 5-11.
The Nano is a small car from a big idea. The people’s car attained immortality the moment it was unveiled at the Auto Expo in New Delhi, causing a seismic shift in the automotive world. The rest of the world’s automakers drew in their collective breaths when it was announced that Tata was going ahead with producing the car. Then they all scrambled to go into that unknown territory that Tata Motors has already bravely ventured into.
The initial public offers (IPOs) of companies like Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), NTPC and Jet Airways were rigged and scamsters gained close to Rs 100 crore between 2003-05, market regulator Sebi-appointed panel has said.
Will launch the one-tonne LCV at Delhi auto show on Jan 5.
The Uttarakhand High Court on Monday asked the newly-constituted Ganga River Basin Authority to set up an expert committee to decide the fate of the three key hydel projects on river Bhagirathi.
Joint venture to split manufacturing and marketing functions.
The government today said market regulator Sebi does not monitor usage of proceeds of any initial public offers (IPOs) and it is not contemplating any change in the current regulatory framework.
US car maker General Motors today said it will display six production and concept vehicles during the Auto Expo here next month, besides putting on display its soon-to-be-launched mini car "Beat".
Nearly two crore mobile phones without unique identification numbers will go out of service from midnight today, with government deadline to operators to block calls to such devices on security concerns expiring tonight.
The commerce ministry has prohibited import of mobile phone handsets (classified under ITC (HS) Code ‘8517’) without International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number or with all zeroes’ IMEI, with immediate effect from October 14, 2009. Import of ‘CDMA mobile phones’ (classified under ITC (HS) Code ‘8517’) without Electronic Serial Number (ESN)/Mobile Equipment Identifier (MEID) or with all zeroes as ESN/MEID is also prohibited with immediate effect from the same date.
The government has asked mobile operators to comply with national security norms by not carrying calls from handsets embedded with fake International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers by November 30.
Industry sees second-highest monthly growth after November.
Carnation Auto, the multi-brand car service provider promoted by former Maruti Suzuki head Jagdish Khattar, today joined hands with Fiat Group firm Magneti Marelli for servicing premium cars in the country.
Domestic passenger car sales jumped 36.7 per cent to 1,13,687 units in November, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) said today.
Auto component maker Rane Brake Lining today reported an over three-fold increase in its net profit at Rs 2.66 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2009.
Jeffrey Owens is the director of tax planning and administration at the OECD’s Centre for Tax Policy, which is responsible for framing tax principles and ensuring that tax havens fall in line on disclosure norms and share information. He spoke to Sidhartha on recent developments and the strategy India should adopt on double taxation avoidance treaties. Excerpts:
Media company UTV Software Communications today reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 23.33 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2009, against a net profit of Rs 19.88 crore in the same period last year.
Diversified company Siemens today said its consolidated net profit rose by 17.53 per cent to Rs 704.60 crore for the year ended September 30, 2009.
Kolkata-based Balrampur Chini Mills profit after tax for fourth quarter ending September 30, 2009 improved 193 per cent at Rs 42.7 crore from Rs 14.58 crore in the fourth-quarter last year. Net sales dropped to Rs 379.96 versus Rs 416.73 crore in the corresponding quarter in the preceding year. Earnings per share gained 192.7 per cent at Rs 1.67 as against 57 paise in the year ago quarter.
Conceding that WPI-based inflation was not reflecting the rising prices adequately, the government today said the new mechanism has been devised to provide a better picture of the price situation.
Shedding earlier reservations over some aspects of the controversial new FDI guidelines, the Finance Ministry now says it does not have any objection to new rules that changed the criteria for calculation of foreign ownership in a company and its downstream investment.
The government will consider disinvesting its stakes in profitable listed public sector units when these come out with follow-on offers.
The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) is mulling raising funds to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore as India"s richest civic body struggles to overcome a financial crunch created by a projected shortfall in revenue collection and massive expenditure on projects.
Business Standard / New Delhi October 13, 2009, 0:04 IST
The interim pension regulator, Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), today said it has sought funds from the Finance Ministry for spreading awareness about retirement savings and a provision for the same is expected in the upcoming Budget.
State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) has sought levy of windfall tax on crude oil price of over $60 per barrel to pay for fuel subsidies.
Global commodities experienced a steep fall today, as investors and hedge funds across regions unwound their long positions after the news of Dubai’s debt crisis. Most commodities were down today between three and five per cent as the dollar strengthened. In late afternoon trade, however, prices recovered.
A consortium of Bharat PetroResources, Videocon Industries and the US-based Anadarko Petroleum Corp have discovered additional oil in their block in the Campos basin, off the Brazilian coast.
But, sugar firms want Rs 28 a litre.
Drug maker Wockhardt today said it has been chosen as the pharmaceutical company for the maximum number of patent filings and grants from India.
Participants from 22 African countries are likely to attend the second India-Africa Hydrocarbons Conference, scheduled to be held here tomorrow and the day after. The objective is to bring together ministers in-charge of oil and gas, top government officers and captains of the industry for exploring partnership opportunities.
Reliance Industries (RIL) today said its exploration arm has entered into an agreement with Columbian state-controlled oil company Ecopetrol SA for two deep water blocks.
Sports Minister M S Gill today disfavoured the suggestion that India should bid for Olympics even if the Commonwealth Games next year are organized successfully.
The activities of foreign institutional investors (FIIs) with long build-up in the Nifty futures and short-covering in stock futures during the week ended September 13 augur well for the market. The Nifty is expected to hit a new high in the coming week if it crosses a crucial resistance at 5,060. On the downside, 4,940 is a healthy support level and, below that, 4,860 is the crucial support level. The Nifty rose over four per cent during the week largely due to short-covering from foreign investors in the Nifty and stock futures.
Fashion and lifestyle retail chain Shoppers Stop today said its board of directors has approved raising funds by allotting 40 lakh shares to qualified institutional buyers.
The markets were propelled this week by good economic data, the central government"s reforms agenda and strong global markets. The Sensex ended higher by 690.55 points or 4.27% at 16,848.83 and the Nifty closed at 4,998.95, up 202.80 points or 4.23%.
Want more cash, forex, higher bond coupons and increase in market prices for petrol, diesel, LPG.
Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group firm Reliance Life Insurance today launched two new products -- Jan Samriddhi Plan and Super InvestAssure Plan here and aims to garner Rs 600 crore premium from them within this fiscal.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh may deliberate on freeing auto fuel prices when he reviews the financial health of state-run oil firms with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Oil Minister Murli Deora on January 13.
- Many poverties - How many mouths to feed? - High inflation numbers derail Dalal Street - Sunil Jain: And now, quotas for Muslims">Sunil Jain: And now, quotas for Muslims - New rule raises number of poor by 100 million - "Over 27% were living below poverty line in 04-05"
A new battlefront has opened between multiplexes and big banner production and distribution houses. Ignoring the revenue concerns of the multiplexes, Reliance Big Pictures, Percept Pictures, UTV Movies and Dharma Productions want to release their new films on direct-to-home (DTH) television shortly after their release on theatre screens.
Business Standard / New Delhi December 30, 2009, 0:57 IST
The stock recovered some of its losses to finally end at Rs 258, down over 2% from the previous close. Around 691,753 shares were traded on the BSE as compared to the two-week daily average traded volumes of 698,158 shares on the BSE.
Kishore Biyani to revamp existing print media business, introduce tailor-made packages for TV advertisers
The Supreme Court has issued notice to 11 parties, including Trai, Reliance Communications, Tata Teleservices, Vodafone Essar, on a petition by state-run BSNL challenging removal of Access Deficit Charge (ADC), a levy paid by private telecom operators for funding the PSU"s operations in rural and remote areas.
Anil Ambani-led RNRL has accused Mukesh Ambani’s RIL of trying to inflate its profits by pushing for $4.20 as per-unit sale price of gas from the KG Basin.
The Asian markets have ended in the green.
Autism awareness is growing, as the increasing number of cases shows
Public sector lender UCO Bank today said it will convene a meeting of its shareholders to decide whether it should come out with a follow-on public offer (FPO) or placement of shares to qualified institutional buyers to raise funds.
To safeguard the interest of policyholders and ensure transparency, the sectoral regulator the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) today came out with public disclosures norms for insurers and has asked them to follow it from the next fiscal.
Air India (AI) is in the process of having a seven-member international advisory board, with former top officials of global carriers, to turn the organisation around.
“Reverse swing at Kotla”, Dec 29, was a wonderfully argued piece. At a time when everyone is criticising the Delhi and Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) for producing an unplayable pitch, you have put things in perspective.
Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) chairman Sushil Roongta was in Beijing in October for induction in the hallowed committee of the World Steel Association now chaired by Lakshmi Mittal. Being an astute business diplomat, he made use of the visit to find out what China was going to do with its rapid steel capacity build up and production.
For the December 2009 quarter, SAIL saw net sales at Rs 9,880 crore up 11 per cent year-on-year, in line with market expectations, even as seasonal impact saw sales dip 2 per cent sequentially. The company’s steel sales was at 2.9 million tonnes (mt) in the recently concluded quarter against 3 mt in the September 2009 quarter and 2.4 mt in December 2008 quarter.
Corporate India today warned the government that any regulation of CEOs" pay may lead to flight of talent and capital from the country and said salaries are best decided by the industry.
India Inc is likely to face a huge "talent deficit" in the coming years, as the country is not producing enough people equipped with the right skills required for the globalised environment, global consultancy Deloitte says.
Government of India has stayed suspension of Natco Pharma"s Albupax manufacturing (product) licence. Albupax is a nanotechnology based drug and is the first generic version of the international brand Abraxane of Abraxis Bioscience Inc, USA. Albupax consists of Paclitaxel in an albumin-bound nanoparticle form and is used to treat breast cancer.
The court of the special judge, Ranchi, has allowed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to visit Thailand, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Indonesia, Sweden and Liberia to conduct further investigations into money laundering and hawala case involving over Rs 2,000 crore against the former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda and his aides.
Railways are contemplating to provide a doctor in long distance trains, having practically no stoppages en route to handle emergency situations, the Lok Sabha was informed today.
Mobile services provider, Bharti Airtel, reduced its roaming rates by nearly 60 per cent. Customers who enroll into the Airtel Turbo plan will now be charged at 60 paise per minute for all incoming calls while on roaming. The new plan is available for both existing and new customers effective Friday.
Communications Minister A Raja has learnt it’s better to be safe than sorry. After the EGoM meeting on the 3G spectrum auction, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee was surrounded by journalists. He refused to make any comment and then turned towards Raja and said, “Nobody should talk to the press about this meeting.” Even before Mukherjee could finish, Raja waved his hands and said, “Sir, I am not saying anything. I am not saying anything.” A few days ago, Mukherjee had summoned Raja and told him not to talk to the press about the 3G issue and to ensure that no inter-ministerial communication related to the 3G auction was leaked from his office — letters from Mukherjee to Raja and vice versa have all been leaked to the press in recent weeks.
Anil Ambani-promoted BigFlix and Hulu have teamed up to offer this free service and make money through online advertisements
Google Inc’s YouTube, the most- visited video website, is in discussions with Hollywood studios to start an online movie rental service, according to two people with knowledge of the talks.
A week ago, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) group bought majority stakes in component firm Aerostaff Australia and aircraft maker Gippsland Aeronautics for Rs 175 crore. Aerostaff supplies components to Boeing and Airbus. The purchase was made along with Kotak Private Equity.
Business Standard / New Delhi December 23, 2009, 0:11 IST
Daiichi Sankyo, which has a majority stake in Ranbaxy Laboratories, today said it is going to launch some of Ranbaxy"s generic medicine in the Japanese market soon.
Bharati Shipyard (BSL) today said it would abide by the guidelines issued by the market watchdog Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on the Great Offshore open offer.
Nalco closed at Rs 392, higher by Rs 16 or 4.5%, on the BSE.
State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation"s deep-sea project in Brazil has begun crude oil production and output is projected to touch 1,00,000 barrels a day soon.
State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has agreed to pay over Rs 3,914.39 crore for hiring an ultra deep-sea drill rig from Reliance Industries for four years, a top company official said.
Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, whose supporters have been campaigning for making him the Chief Minister, today met Congress President Sonia Gandhi, who told him to leave the issue of leadership change in Andhra Pradesh to her.
A three-member team of United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), America"s federal agency to regulate the securities industry in that country, exchanged information with the CBI probing into the multi-crore accounting scam at Satyam Computer here.
The popular perception that consumers cannot withstand the pressure of rich and mighty service providers proved wrong in the year gone by with consumer fora reflecting a humane face by a plethora of decisions exuding trust and confidence among commoners.
The Imperial, Delhi, tries its best to turn you into a master chef.
The new businesses of the life insurance companies grew 22 per cent to Rs 55,355 crore in the first eight months of the current fiscal, compared to the corresponding period last year.
Saturation in other businesses triggers the move.
The country"s second largest public sector lender, Punjab National Bank, today said its Bhutan joint venture and Dubai branch would start operating from next month.
In what may become a revolution in entertainment, accessing television via cable, IPTV or interactive DTH services is soon going to be via wireless, on the lines of a wi-fi internet connectivity.
Reiterating her opposition to the ongoing joint operation against the Naxalites (CPI Maoist) at Lalgarh, in Paschim Medinipur, Mamata Banerjee said today that her party would continue to oppose it. She has pointed out that the joint operation had not yielded the desired results, as killing of poor people in the junglemahal was continuing.
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will spend Rs 26,000 crore on capital expenditure in the next financial year, its Chairman and Managing Director R S Sharma said today.
The government today ruled out appointing an ombudsman to redress the complaints of poor mobile telephony services, like call drops, saying state-run BSNL and MTNL were taking effective steps to upgrade technology.
Power and telecom solutions vendor Sterlite Technologies Limited has won networking contracts worth Rs 54 crore from Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) to be executed in the current fiscal.
Tata Group company Tata Elxsi that is into product designing and animation today said it will increase its headcount by about 400 this year as the company looks to increase its services and businesses, specially in the US.
Centre today said that it would allocate funds to the institutes such as IITs to carry out research projects in the sphere of renewable energy in a bid to boost country"s research and development capability for harnessing renewable energy potential.
Government today said it was carrying out research and development for using hydrogen as an alternative fuel for running transport and other power generation applications.
German firm REpower, in which Suzlon Energy holds 91 per cent stake, has signed an agreement with US-based enXco to supply 70 turbines for a wind farm project by 2011.
Mahindra Satyam has topped the combined value chart with a turnover of Rs 1,076 crore. It is followed by Suzlon( Rs 954 crore), Reliance (Rs 886 crore), ICICI Bank (Rs 757 crore) and DLF (Rs 676 crore).
India"s largest cement maker ACC today reported a marginal dip in sales in December at 1.88 million tonnes.
Domestic mutual funds are again scouting investment opportunities abroad, mostly in emerging markets, as they plan to launch international funds, after more than a year. At least three fund houses-- SBI Mutual Fund, UTI Mutual Fund and Mirae Asset Mutual Fund— are planning to launch international funds soon.
During the last few weeks of the year, accounts departments of companies start asking employees to give documents to back up their section 80C declaration made at the beginning of the financial year.
Accelerating mobile PC shipments will drive the worldwide PC market to grow again, according to Gartner Inc, an information technology research and advisory company ‘s preliminary fourth-quarter forecast. In 2010, PC shipments are projected to reach 336.6 million units, a 12.6 per cent increase over 2009.
Worldwide industry vertical market IT spending is projected to total $2.28 trillion in 2009, a 6.8 percent decline from 2008, according to Gartner, an information technology research and advisory company . Analysts predict the market will return to growth in 2010, when it will grow at 2.3 percent to reach $2.34 trillion.
Putting an end to speculation, BCCI President Shashank Manohar today announced that Lalit Modi will remain the Chairman of the Indian Premier League (IPL) till 2012.
Calling for a national discussion on replicating the Gujarat model of making voting compulsory, the BJP today criticised the Congress and Left parties for opposing it "without applying their minds."
The Bombay High Court has asked Delhi-based businessman Sanjay Dalmia to appear before the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in connection with a cheating case.
The Bombay High Court has asked Delhi-based businessman Sanjay Dalmia to appear before the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) here in connection with a complaint of cheating filed by Indiabulls Financial Services.
The Sensex has ended (provisional) at 17,340 - down 61 points.
The next date for arbitration hearings on the terms of sale of the government’s residual 49 per cent stake in Bharat Aluminium Company (Balco) to Sterlite Industries is January 31. A three-day hearing by a panel of three retired judges of the Supreme Court concluded today.
Entertainment firm Pyramid Saimira Theatre today posted a loss of Rs 3.66 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2009.
Accusing North Korea of "directly" and "recklessly" challenging the global community by conducting a second nuclear test, US President Barack Obama today said this defiance "warrants action" internationally.
Among professional Indian economists, C Rangarajan comes next only to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in terms of the number of years spent in economic policy-making. His professional life, like that of the PM, began in academia. Both chose to be teachers and ended up in government. Both served as governors of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Both worked closely together during the crisis months of 1991-92. One went on to become prime minister, the other almost became union finance minister!
Business Standard / New Delhi October 27, 2009, 0:41 IST
Pantaloon Retail has returned to a double-digit growth rate in same-store sales (SSS) in the lifestyle segment. The country’s largest retailer, which saw either a decline or a single-digit growth rate at best in SSS since November 2008, posted an increase of 11 per cent for the December quarter, aided by higher consumer spending in the category.
Ramping up the frantic search for missing helicopter of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S R Reddy, the IAF today deployed a Sukhoi fighter jet with on-board radar for high resolution ground mapping to locate it.
Major auto companies, including Maruti Suzuki, Mahindra & Mahindra and General Motors, today reported record sales for January, signalling that the worst is behind for the industry that was battered by the global economic meltdown.
Gaganjeet Bhullar wants to be the number one golfer in India, and is taking giant strides towards achieving his aim.
In a move aimed at stemming declining losses and generating funds for Indian operations, Chennai-based entertainment company Pyramid Saimira Theatre Ltd (PSTL) has put its businesses and assets in the US and Malaysia up for sale.
Trades between FIIs generated a volume of Rs 43 crore on the BSE Thursday-an decrease of 34.61% from Rs 66 crore clocked on Wednesday. As many as four stocks witnessed trades of 8.12 lakh shares on Thursday.
With the growing swine flu scare across the city, a number of IT-BPO service providers here are seeing up to 20 per cent drop in attendance.
Fiat India Automobiles (FIAL), a 50-50 JV between Fiat Group Automobiles (Fiat) and Fiat India Automobiles , has sold 10,000 units of its sedan, Linea, since its launch in January this year.
T N Ninan / New Delhi October 17, 2009, 1:55 IST
Marking the International Day of Non-Violence, the United Nations has released a stamp of Mahathma Gandhi on the occasion of his 140th birth anniversary.
Steel magnate L N Mittal is today believed to have proposed setting up a Rs 30,000 crore integrated steel plant in Karnataka when he called on the southern state"s Chief Minister B S Yeddyyurappa.
The government said today the role and responsibilities of independent directors on the boards of companies would be fixed as also the number of firms they could represent once the Companies Bill, 2009, became a law.
In a surprise move, the government has postponed to the next fiscal auction of spectrum for 3G telephony which was expected to bring in Rs 35,000 crore to the exchequer.
Acquisition of Rs 5,440-cr German major will make Ahmedabad firm a global textile-chemical giant
Two electronic media personnel had their accreditations snatched away by the Mumbai Cricket Association authorities for violating coverage norms prior to the third day"s pre-lunch session in the India-Sri Lanka third cricket Test at the Brabourne Stadium here today.
Extending its association with cricket, Emirates Airline, the official partner of International Cricket Council (ICC) and the title sponsor of Indian Premier League (IPL) team Kings XI Punjab, will now sponsor the Arabian Cricket Challenge, a Twenty20 format cricket tournament held in Dubai.
With no takers for the sponsorship of the Indian cricket team, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is now looking at alternatives — either to go for re-tendering with a lower base price or renegotiate a contract with the Sahara group, which currently holds sponsorship till December.
All Sachin Tendulkar fans, who are already on a high celebrating the master blaster"s 20 years in international cricket, have another reason to rejoice as they now have a chance to own a bat autographed by him.
India signed the multi-million dollar deal of decommissioned Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov merely on “visual examination in as-is condition” and Navy “thought” the ship could be repaired.
India and Russia have finalised a new price for the aircraft carrier "Admiral Gorshkov" after months of protracted negotiations and the refitted warship would be delivered to the Indian Navy by 2012, top Russian officials said today.
Windows 7, Adobe, Symantec software stuck at customs over excise duty
Jai Arjun Singh / New Delhi November 07, 2009, 0:35 IST
The late Swedish journalist/author Stieg Larsson was the man behind Lisbeth Salander — the undeniably twisted and talented female protagonist of his “Millennium” trilogy. The second part in the series, The Girl Who Played With Fire, translated from Swedish by Reg Keeland, continues from where the first book left off — asocial heroine Salander once again back to her punch-throwing, expert computer hacking ways that she honed as a former security analyst in Stockholm, spinning yet another edge-of-the-seat crime thriller. Interestingly, Larsson’s father Erland Larsson, while receiving an award for his late son last year, revealed in an interview that the character of Salander seems to have been inspired by his son’s niece Terese, to whom the author had been very close.
The Indian School of Business (ISB) has launched ‘ISB Idiya’, an initiative to promote social ventures from working professionals. The competition is not open to students who are pursuing any full time programme. It would offer mentorship and entrepreneurial training to select candidates.
Discussion paper sets out broad plan, no clarity on deadline.
Sun TV ended at Rs 333, higher by 0.2%, on the BSE. The stock opened at Rs 336, which was also the day"s high and a low of Rs 333.
Bharati Shipyard has received 10.2 million shares in the open offer made for acquiring an additional stake of 20 per cent in Great Offshore at Rs 590 a piece. The shares are equivalent to a stake of 27.5 per cent. Bharati had made the offer against ABG Shipyard’s counter offer to buy a stake of 33.8 per cent at Rs 520 a share.
The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) has commenced a programme to promote the transformation of novel entrepreneurship ideas into business ventures by funding the projects.
The fate of candidates aspiring to grab a seat on the board of Kheda District Co-operative Milk Producers Union Ltd (KDCMPUL), popularly known as Amul Dairy, was today sealed. The polls saw more than 99 per cent of voting while the results would be declared on Friday.
India’s largest manufacturer of biscuits and confectionery, Parle Products is eyeing 15 per cent growth in turnover from Uttar Pradesh in the current fiscal.
The government is considering extending incentives to the services sector, battling demand recession in Western economies, in the Foreign Trade Policy to be unveiled next month.
If I Could Tell You is a rather modest title for a book that makes no pretence of doing anything else. You could have your own point of view on whether something so essentially personal, with no real context or history, should stretch to 200 pages between two hard covers, but there’s no doubting the sincerity of intent. “Me at my most truthful and unadorned,” the unnamed narrator says, as he weaves a lyrical tale of his life in a series of letters to his daughter.
A few days back, if you were at Mumbai’s Dadar Railway Station or at Delhi’s Rajiv Gandhi Chowk Metro Station, you could not have missed a man sprawled on a sofa with a cushion that read: “Reserved for Abhishek Bachchan classes”. Is Bachchan Jr preparing for an alternate career? Not really. This is on-ground activation aimed to create a buzz for the newest reality show on Colors, National Bingo Night. It will of course be anchored by Bachchan Jr.
The second largest DTH player is way behind the market leader in subscriptions. But it is pushing value-added services to maintain its leadership in average revenue per user
MTNL will be one of the few big telecom companies in the world to allow competitors to offer their brand on its network.
The government today said it is considering part sale of its shareholding in the telecom PSU BSNL, a move that would help the company in getting Navratna status besides access to capital market for raising fresh funds.
Government today said it was mulling to give preferential shares for employees of BSNL as and when the consensus is reached on the Initial Public Offer from the state-run telecom operator.
Madhucon Projects, a city-based infrastructure development company, reported a net profit of Rs 11.96 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2009, as against Rs 12.81 crore in the corresponding quarter last year, registering a decline of 6.63 per cent. Turnover, however, grew 63 per cent to Rs 254.72 crore during the quarter, as compared with Rs 156.25 crore in the same period a year ago.
Hinduja Group flagship company Ashok Leyland today reported a jump of 56.99 per cent in its commercial vehicle sales at 5,333 units in October as compared to the same month in 2008.
Commercial vehicle maker Eicher Motors reported 4.12 per cent fall in net profit to Rs 15.83 crore for the third quarter ended March 31, 2009, compared with Rs 16.51 crore in the year-ago period.
Foreign fund house Deutsche Securities Mauritius has hiked its stake in commercial-vehicle maker Eicher Motors to 5.17%, after purchasing fresh shares through an open-market transaction.
The Indian healthcare industry, growing at an exponential rate, now presents an attractive investment opportunity for private equity and venture capital firms, says private equity experts.
The country"s largest steel maker, Steel Authority of India (SAIL), today said it has cut prices of its long products — used primarily in construction — by Rs 1,500-2,000 per tonne and may further lower the rates if the situation so warrants.
In a landmark discovery, India’s maiden moon mission Chandrayaan-I has found evidence of water on the lunar surface, a finding that could trigger a serious hunt for life in outer space.
Keeping in mind the panic created by swine flu and its adverse impact on academic activities across the country, the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A), is preparing recommendations to be issued to various schools and colleges in the country. Once ready, the management institute, which has witnessed four cases of swine flu on its campus, will submit the recommendations to the state and central governments for further dissemination to academic institutes.
The Sensex started the day on a very strong note mirroring international cues and on expectation of a good earning season. The Sensex is now at 17,660, up 120 points. The NSE Nifty is 33 points higher at 5,278.
Piramal Healthcare today said its shareholders have approved the appointment of Nandini Piramal, daughter of Chairman Ajay Piramal, as the Executive Director on the board of the pharma company.
A report identifying a broad range of potential benefits of incremental pharmaceutical innovation for India would be released later this week by the US India Business Council (USIBC).
Zenotech today asked Japanese drug firm Daiichi Sankyo, whose open offer to buy 20 per cent more in the bio-technology firm hit legal hurdles, to go in for independent valuation to determine open offer price.
Japanese drug maker Daiichi Sankyo, which has a controlling stake in Indian pharma major Ranbaxy Laboratories, has narrowed its full-year losses at 215.59 billion yen (about $2.2 billion) on account of changes related to accounting guidelines in Japan.
Gold prices fell by Rs 280 to Rs 18,270 per ten gram in the bullion market today on emergence of widespread selling by stockists in the face of a weakening global trend.
Swiss pharmaceuticals company Novartis AG said today it has successfully produced a first batch of swine flu vaccine weeks ahead of expectations.
Oscar-winner A R Rahman’s victorious run at awards ceremonies continues with the music maestro now fetching two nominations at the 2010 Grammy awards for his soundtracks from ‘Slumdog Millionaire’.
Government is mulling on raising its equity in the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) in an attempt to revive the premier film making institution, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said today.
Viacom Inc today said that its second-quarter profit tumbled 32 percent as revenue fell amid a weak advertising market, slower video game sales and lower box-office results.
Indian drug firm Sun Pharma may have to shell out up to Rs 1,000 crore for acquiring the Israel-based Taro Pharma-ceuticals. “If we are able to get all the shares of Taro pharma-ceuticals, including promo-ters’, then the total cost would be up to Rs 1,000 crore,” the firm said.
Orissa overnment today asked Posco-India to focus on welfare of people who would be displaced by the company"s Rs 52,000 crore steel project, which is facing resistance from locals.
The stock price of Uttam Galva Steels today hit the upper circuit on the stock exchange after ArcelorMittal, the largest steel maker in the world, said it would make an open offer to buy an additional 29.4 per cent stake in the company from the public at Rs 120 a share.
French pharma major Sanofi-aventis today said its vaccine division Sanofi Pasteur has acquired majority stake in Hyderabad-based Shantha Biotechnics, which has been valued at euro 550 million (over Rs 3,770 crore).
India was the most promising market but obstacles could impede the speed at which India reached the full extent of the promise, said Sudhir Maheshwari, member of group management board responsible for corporate finance, M&A and business development (including India) and risk management of ArcelorMittal. Addressing the 47th National Metallurgists’ Day Celebration of the Indian Institute of Metals, Maheswari clarified, “We remain fully committed to our announced greenfield projects in Jharkhand and Orissa. We are looking for other alternatives of land acquisition to accelerate realisation of our plans.” ArcelorMittal’s two 12 million tonne steel plants in Jharkhand and Orissa were running behind schedule on account of problems with land acquisition.
Ludhiana-based Abhishek Industries Limited, Trident Group, India and Mundotextil Industrias Texteis, SA are in the process of formation of an alliance in the form of a joint venture, subject to the necessary approvals/consents, to best serve the needs of their wide range of clients in sync with their global vision of customer satisfaction.
Passing by the florist’s yesterday, I had to restrain myself from buying tuberoses — not for decoration, but for consumption. Tucked away among the many treasures in the Virago Book of Food is this gem, marrying the domestic art of flower arrangement with an opulent exoticism: “Put an ounce of tuberoses in a vase, having removed the leaves of the plant. Pour six quarts of (lukewarm) water on top, in which you have already dissolved 12 ounces of sugar…” and so on, until you have made tuberose ices.
JSW Steel ended the day at Rs 1134, stronger by Rs 110 or 10.8%, on the BSE.
German auto components maker Bosch today said it will invest Rs 2,000 crore in its Indian operations by 2012.
Anil Ambani’s direct-to-home company, Reliance BIG TV, has formed a marketing alliance with Fox STAR Studios for its forthcoming movie, Avatar. The deal, according to source, has been struck for Rs 20 crore.
30 companies in queue for Cabinet nod in Jan
The Allahabad High Court today quashed UP government"s notification for use of emergency powers to buy land for Anil Ambani group firm"s Dadri power project, side-stepping a provision for inviting objections from land owners.
India’s largest soap maker has implemented technology that resulted in significant carbon dioxide reduction in its manufacturing process.