The weavers, who converged on the main market in the morning, also demanded that the State Bank of India branch down its shutters, the sources said. The weavers alleged that artificial silk brought from other parts of the country for making the traditional Assamese attire was affecting them and the silk industry in the state. They also alleged that the silk clothes the shops were selling were not pure Assamese golden Muga Silk and white Paat Silk as the clothes burnt turned to ash unlike pure silk. The trouble began yesterday when the weavers set ablaze silk clothes, clashed with shopkeepers and threw stones at the police when they intervened injuring five of them. The local people, who reared silk worms and were employed in the weaving industry, have been on the warpath for some time against the use of artificial silk from outside by traders for preparing traditional attires as it was cheap and had a better finish than the local silk varieties. They claimed that local weavers, who used looms for weaving, were unemployed because of the machine-made products while silkworm rearing had become extinct due to the lack of market for the expensive silk. They also accused that the state government had assured to give Rs 100 crore for the survival of the Assam Paat and Muga silk industry facing stiff competition from artificial silk, but the funds were yet to be released.
Indefinite curfew in Assam silk town Sualkuchi
Written By Unknown on Minggu, 31 Maret 2013 | 18.00
Amazon to acquire book recommendations site Goodreads
Mar 30, 2013, 05.55 PM IST
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Amazon to acquire book recommendations site Goodreads
Know Goodreads? Well, Amazon today announced that it is in the process of acquiring it. Goodreads, ...
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Amazon to acquire book recommendations site Goodreads
Know Goodreads? Well, Amazon today announced that it is in the process of acquiring it. Goodreads, ...
Know Goodreads? Well, Amazon today announced that it is in the process of acquiring it. Goodreads, the site for book recommendations, is where book lovers can find and share the books they love. While the terms of the acquisition were not made known, Russ Grandinetti, Amazon Vice President, Kindle Content, said, "Amazon and Goodreads share a passion for reinventing reading. Goodreads has helped change how we discover and discuss books and, with Kindle, Amazon has helped expand reading around the world. In addition, both Amazon and Goodreads have helped thousands of authors reach a wider audience and make a better living at their craft. Together we intend to build many new ways to delight readers and authors alike."
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Euro zone savings deposits are safe, says German minister
In an interview with Bild newspaper published on Saturday, Schaeuble distanced himself from comments on Monday by Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who said the rescue programme agreed for Cyprus - the first to impose a levy on bank deposits - would serve as a model for future crises.
"Cyprus is and will remain a special one-off case," Schaeuble said.
"The savings accounts in Europe are safe."
Schaeuble said the problem in Cyprus was that two large banks in Cyprus were in effect no longer solvent and the Cyprus government did not have enough money to guarantee savings.
"That's why the other euro zone countries had to help," he said. "Together in the Eurogroup we decided to have the owners and creditors take part in the costs of the rescue - in other words those who helped cause the crisis."
Schaeuble said he was confident Cyprus would be able to completely pay back the help. "Cyprus's economy will now go through a long and painful period of adjustment. But then it will pay back the loan when it is on a solid economic foundation."
Schaeuble said the euro was stronger today than at any time since 2010.
"Yes, you could see that during the Cyprus crisis," he said. "The entire turbulence did not have any impact on the other countries in Southern Europe."
He said it was different in early 2012, when elections in Greece caused interest rates across Southern Europe to rise.
"The financial markets have seen: we are better prepared now. We've accomplished quite a bit," Schaeuble said.
He said he was against thinking about individual countries leaving the euro zone. "What is more important is that we are strong enough to keep everyone in the boat," he said.
"I believe that we will one day read in the history books about this period that the crisis brought Europe even closer together," he said, adding the continent was currently enjoying "a very fortunate era".
How impact investing could affect biz in India
When Pierre Omidyar saw his networth cross a billion dollars in 1998 as Ebay listed on the capital markets, he knew he had to do more with his wealth that had come to him in just three years. So, he set up the Omidyar Network, an organisation that invests in promising social enterprises.
Today, the Omidyar Network, sponsored by Pam and Pierre Omidyar has put in over USD 550 million in impact investments. The network operates with two cheque books, investing roughly half its corpus as grants to non-profit organisations, while the other half goes to early-stage social entrepreneurs whose businesses are perceived too risky by commercial investors. Omidyar set up shop in India in 2010 and has a portfolio of 27 organisations in which it has invested about USD 100 million. 70 percent of these are for-profit ventures.
Venture philanthropy, impact investing and flexible capitalism. These are some of the terms that have been used to describe the approach that Jayant Sinha, partner, Omidyar Network India Advisors and his team have taken to capital investments in the social sector. But Jayant likes to keep it simple. He believes social impact and financial returns are a means to an end. Jayant uses examples of two of his investee companies to explain how they operate - D Light, a solar lantern manufacturer and Tree House, India's largest self operated pre-school chain.
Sinha says, "The social impact cannot be an add-on it has got to be built into the value proposition. So, Tree House tracks the number of children that are in their preschools. That is an impact metric because we know if the child is in one of the Tree House preschools, he or she is going to get tremendous education and in doing so achieve social impact.
Similarly for D Light. D Light makes solar lanterns. So, for every solar lantern they ship, they are actually substituting kerosene lanterns. They are reducing the cost of using kerosene, providing a much healthier alternative, and reducing the risk of fire. So, built into that solar lantern is already that social impact. You track solar lanterns, you are tracking social impact.
For someone who didn't know what LP (not sure) stood for in 2001 to managing four funds worth over Rs 800 crore Vineet Rai, founder and CEO, Aavishkaar has come a long way on a very challenging road. One really must put this in context at a time when regular venture capitalists (VCs) were reluctant to make investments in purely commercial ventures in urban India, Vineet's mission is to create a fund to service enterprise in India's most rural areas.
Vineet survived the rough and tumble of impact investing because of his ability to take disproportionate risks and the capacity to be extremely patient, the virtue of which he learnt when he first began working for a Gujarat government-backed rural enterprise incubator in 1998.
Rai says, "My job was to go to the villages and help the innovators into converting their innovations into products and then into businesses. One of the key learnings I gained in that process is converting an innovation into a product, and a business requires an entrepreneur not an innovator as the lead. The entrepreneur is taking the risk and he requires risk capital in trying to build that business. The biggest challenge was not in finding the entrepreneur or helping the innovation to become a product, but providing that risk capital. That was my key learning out of the three, three and a half years I spent as incubator.
Aavishkaar is not very different. We are a venture capital fund. The only difference is that we are focused on rural India. We have made 38-39 investments till date. We are the first investor in almost 38 of them. So, 98 percent of the time we are the first investor. Almost 50 percent of the companies that we have invested in actually didn't exist, that means they started with our capital. More than 50 percent of our capital is deployed in the low-income stage. So, that could tell you that our capacity or appetite to go and take risks where returns are actually unexpected is very high.
Did govt let telecom sector down? Chandrashekhar argues
Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 30 Maret 2013 | 18.00
In an interview he highlighted that prior to the Supreme Court judgment of 2012, there was uncertainty with regards to overall policy framework, pricing of spectrum and licensing regime. There are many uncertainties, so fresh investments are getting impacted. However, the scenario changed and resulted in great deal of crystallization into the entire policy environment.
He also added that the cancellation of licenses has impacted investments and investor's confidence for sometime. But, I think uncertainty was the main contributor, so the main challenge was to address that uncertainty and remove all uncertainty with regard to policy, licensing regime and spectrum pricing.
On nation-free roaming issue he said, the policy provision is to remove the burden of paying roaming charges. The whole philosophy of telecom is death of distance. All actions are being worked out to make free roaming a reality.
Below is the edited transcript of his interview to CNBC-TV18.
Q: Many people feel that from the time you have taken charge policy uncertainty in the sector continues, the customer service has deteriorated and most telecom companies are embroiled in one or the other legal battle. Are you disappointed with where this sector has come today?
A: I am not disappointed with where the sector has come today. Number of challenges related to uncertainty on several aspects and uncertainty about the continuance of a large number of operators were required to be addressed.
Prior to the Supreme Court judgment of 2012, there was uncertainty with regards to overall policy framework, pricing of spectrum and licensing regime. There are many uncertainties, so fresh investments are getting impacted. However, the Supreme Court judgment came in 2012 and then the events subsequent to that in my assessment have resulted in a great deal of crystallisation of the entire policy environment. Around 70-80 percent of the uncertainty has been addressed.
Q: Do you think that licenses shouldn't have been cancelled?
A: I would not like to comment on court's decision. However, it is important to note that decision of the government taken on policy is largely motivated by people good and decision in a court of law are taken on the basis of law and rights of various concerned parties. Therefore, entirely it is not correct to expect that both these perspective would result in an identical outcome.
Q: Do you think that it has been the biggest setback for investor confidence for the government's plans to encourage foreign direct investment. The Supreme Court decided to cancel 122 telecom licenses despite many believe that they had been allocated as per government policy, maybe the Supreme Court found that the implementation was faulty?
A: I would not like to comment directly or indirectly on the Supreme Court order. The orders of the Supreme Court are binding under the law of the land. Yes, the cancellation of licenses has impacted investments and investor's confidence for sometime.
But, I think uncertainty was the main contributor, so the main challenge was to address that uncertainty and remove all uncertainty with regard to policy, licensing regime and spectrum pricing. That is something which has been pursued and has happened, in fact as far as investors are concerned, now all the conditions are in place for them to make a very cold and quantitative analysis of all investment options that are available. There are no unquantifiable risks or any regulatory uncertainties which they need to worry about.
Q: When you say that the government is working towards policy certainty as far as policy making is concerned, after the licenses were cancelled, many experts believe that the government did not fight hard enough for these companies for the telecom sector in the court and it allowed the Supreme Court to enter the policy making domain and say that spectrum henceforth should always be auctioned. How the older telecom companies are also now being asked to pay the market-determined price but at this stage do you feel that the government let the telecom sector down by not fighting hard enough for them?
A: I am not sure if everybody would agree with you that it is the government's job to fight court cases on behalf of companies or keeping the interest of companies in mind.
The Ford-JWT mess: Ad world's latest controversy
It's been an action packed week as tracked the Ford-JWT mess . A mess with all the ingredients of high drama, scam ads and all which went wrong. Ford embarrassed globally & damage control culminating in the ouster of Bobby Pawar, JWT's Chief Creative Officer. Animesh Das gets us bang into the heart of the ad world's latest controversy.
This story now goes beyond the Ford Fiasco into the grey area of scam ads, which blur the line between creativity and plane old well scamming.
Storyboard editor, Anant Rangaswami got two of India's most respected creative directors BBDO India's Josy Paul and Lowe Lintas's Arun Iyer to discuss the issue.
Next up: TRAI puts a break on the ads, as broadcasters break into a sweat
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has notified that broadcasters can have only 12 minutes of advertising per one hour. This in effect means that inventory on channels is as good as halved. Broadcaster's claim will be a huge strain on their overly dependent on advertising revenue model. Pavni Mittal reports that broadcasters will have no choice but to appeal against the TRAI notification.
Finally! At 25 - what lies ahead for Madison: India's largest independent media agency, Madison, celebrated its 25th anniversary last week. Animesh Das caught up with the ever young at heart Sam Balsara to talk about its future and the increasing speculation on its independent existence.
SP 500 closes at new record, ends strong quarter
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 52.38 points, or 0.36 percent, to end unofficially at 14,578.54. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 6.33 points, or 0.41 percent, to finish unofficially at 1,569.18 - a record closing high. The Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 11.00 points, or 0.34 percent, to close unofficially at 3,267.52.
The S&P 500 surpassed its previous record set in October 2007.
For the week, the Dow rose 0.4 percent, the S&P 500 advanced 0.8 percent and the Nasdaq gained 0.6 percent.
Thursday marked the end of the trading week. The U.S. stock market will be closed on Friday in observance of the Good Friday holiday.
For the month of March, the Dow climbed 3.7 percent, the S&P 500 rose 3.6 percent and the Nasdaq added 3.4 percent.
For the first quarter, the Dow shot up 11.2 percent, the S&P 500 jumped 10 percent and the Nasdaq climbed 8.2 percent.
Novartis cancer drug patent case verdict on April 1
It is one of the landmark patent cases in India. Novartis has been fighting to get a patent on Glivec since 2006. The Indian Patent Office had rejected its patent application based on the Amended Patent Acts of 2005.
At the heart of this case is Section 3(d), which was included in the Indian Patents Act in 2005. It denies patent to any new form of an already known substance or an already known compound unless it shows substantially enhanced efficacy.
Now, lawyers argue that Glivec, which is a beta crystalline form of an already known compound imatinib, is not patented under Section 3(D) of the Indian Patents Act. Section 3(D) was included in 2005 to avoid evergreening and to prevent an evergreening of patents by innovator firms by minor tweaks to the compound and to delay entry of generic products.
However, Novartis on its part argues that Glivec has shown 30 percent enhanced efficacy as against the original compound, which is imatinib. It is patented in 40 other countries. It is only India, which is not granted a patent to Glivec. The company says it is an invention and hence it should be given a patent under the Indian Patents Act too.
The other bone of contention is price. Glivec is costing over a lakh rupees for a month dosage while its other generic versions are available at one-tenth the cost.
SP 500 ends at record closing high
Written By Unknown on Jumat, 29 Maret 2013 | 18.00
The S&P had hovered near its record for more than two weeks, and market action next week will help determine if this is just another stepping stone for the rally, or if a long-expected pullback is in the offing.
The benchmark S&P 500 closed its strongest quarter in a year, up 10 percent. The Dow climbed 11.3 percent and the Nasdaq gained 8.2 percent for the first three months of the year.
The new closing high "is a very appropriate punctuation for a great quarter that saw a lot of last year's anxieties recede," said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist at Key Private Bank in Cleveland.
"However, this could be the start to a more realistic look at the problems that still haven't gone away. Some degree of caution is probably still merited, with the problems in Cyprus probably only the beginning to what we could see in coming months."
The rally hit a wall in the last two weeks as the latest chapter in the euro-zone crisis developed, with Cyprus nearing a default and a possible exit from the euro bloc.
The S&P 500 had been in a fairly tight range, having traded within 10 points of the October 9, 2007, record closing high of 1,565.15 over the previous 13 sessions.
After the closing bell on Thursday, the S&P 500 gained 6.34 points, or 0.41 percent, to end at a new record of 1,569.19.
The Dow industrials, which have been setting a series of record highs since March 5, ended Thursday's session at yet another nominal closing high - ending above 14,578. The Dow also hit a lifetime intraday high on Thursday at 14,585.10
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 52.38 points, 0.36 percent, to finish at 14,578.54, and the Nasdaq Composite added 11 points, or 0.34 percent, to 3,267.52.
The gains in the three first months of the year have a very bullish history. An analysis by Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati, showed the S&P 500 has risen in the three first months of the year nine times in the past 30 years, and in each case, it has posted gains for the year.
The average yearly gain after such a start, the data showed, was 17.56 percent. An advance like that would leave the S&P 500 at about 1,676 at the end of this year.
"The key is the follow-through," said Quincy Krosby, market strategist at Prudential Financial in Newark, New Jersey.
"It will be very important how the market handles next week's data."
Key manufacturing numbers are expected on Monday and factory orders Tuesday, building up to Friday's widely followed payrolls report.
During March, the Dow gained 3.7 percent, the S&P 500 rose 3.6 percent and the Nasdaq added 3.4 percent.
Thursday marked the end of the trading week. US stock markets will be closed on Friday because of the Good Friday holiday.
Data showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week, but probably not enough to suggest a faltering in the labor market's recovery. Other data showed the economy expanded more in the fourth quarter than was previously estimated by the government.
Volume was lighter than average with some market participants absent for the observance of Passover or to get an early start on the long Easter weekend.
About 5.7 billion shares changed hands on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and NYSE MKT, below the daily average so far this year of about 6.4 billion shares.
On the NYSE, advancers outnumbered decliners by a ratio of roughly 8 to 5. On the Nasdaq, 14 stocks rose for every 11 that fell.
Asia trading mixed; Shanghai Composite up, Nikkei flat
Japan's Nikkei was flat at 12,331.44.
South Korea's Seoul Composite gained 0.67% or 13.45 points at 2,006.97.
Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted rose 0.29% or 22.55 points at 7,889.43.
Straits Times and Hang Seng shut today.
Indian ADRs: Tata Comm up 5.2%, ICICI Bank up 4.2%
Indian ADRs ended higher on Thursday. In the IT space, Wipro was up 2.96% at USD 10.1 and Infosys was up 2.24% at USD 53.91.
In the Banking space, ICICI Bank was up 4.23% at USD 42.9 and HDFC Bank was up 1.68% at USD 37.42. In the Telecom space, Tata Communication was up 5.25% at USD 8.22.
In the other space, Dr Reddys was up 0.4% at USD 32.35, Sterlite was up 2.2% at USD 6.98, while Tata Motors was down 3.13% at USD 24.41.
download4u's March Madness sale brings Dark Souls, Need for Speed: Most Wanted at discounts
Mar 29, 2013, 10.55 AM IST
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download4u's March Madness sale brings Dark Souls, Need for Speed: Most Wanted at discounts
The headlining game for today is the unforgiven open-world RPG Dark Souls at a 30 percent discount, bringing its price down from Rs 1,499 to Rs 1,259.
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download4u's March Madness sale brings Dark Souls, Need for Speed: Most Wanted at discounts
The headlining game for today is the unforgiven open-world RPG Dark Souls at a 30 percent discount, bringing its price down from Rs 1,499 to Rs 1,259.
Day eight of download4u's March Madness sale is upon us, and this means new games on discount. The headlining game for today is the unforgiven open-world RPG Dark Souls at a 30 percent discount, bringing its price down from Rs 1,499 to Rs 1,259. Alongside Dark Souls, there are two Star Wars games up for grabs—strategy game Star Wars: Empire at War at a 40 percent discount, bringing its price down from Rs 699 to Rs 419, and third person action game Star Wars: The Force Unleashed at a 50 percent discount, which brings its price down from Rs 499 to Rs 249.There is also Obsidian's hack-and-slash RPG Dungeon Siege III at a 40 percent discount, bringing its price down from Rs 499 to Rs 299, and Need for Speed: Most Wanted is making a comeback in the sale at a discount of 40 percent, bringing its price down from Rs 1,799 to Rs 1,259. Other games up for grabs include Dead Block and Public Enemies: Bonnie & Clyde at discounts of 40 percent, which brings their prices down from Rs 99 to Rs 89 each, and Iron Storm at a 20 percent discount, bringing its price down from Rs 99 to Rs 79.
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Will sell stake in subsidiaries for right offer: GVK's CFO
Written By Unknown on Kamis, 28 Maret 2013 | 18.00
moneycontrol.com
Shares of GVK Power and Infra have tumbled over 40 percent in the last one year, with tough business conditions hampering its airport and power divisions, although the road-project arm seems to be performing well.
The company's debt of around Rs 16,000 crore with over Rs 500 crore as annual interest outgo, is a key concern for shareholders of the Hyderabad-based infrastructure conglomerate.
Considering the fact that the company has undertaken big-ticket and long gestation projects in all its business verticals, such levels of debt are not abnormal,
"As a standard policy, we will offload stake in our subsidiaries to raise equity and reduce debt as and when the opportunity comes up," says Issac George, chief financial officer, GVK Power in an exclusive interview with moneycontrol.com.
The firm recently offloaded stake in its rail and port projects in Australia to Queensland-based Aurizon Holdings for an undisclosed sum. The company is also in talks with investors to sell stake in its mining business in Australia.
Read This: Awaiting final nod for MIAL monetisation: GVK Power
On the domestic from, the company is looking to rope in investors for its airport, road and power divisions. The company is particularly bullish on its airport business after the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) allowed the company to continue levying airport development fee (ADF) at Mumbai airport for another eight years.
"Due to a clear tariff structure, many investors have evinced interest in our airport business," says Issac George. Along with Mumbai airport, GVK runs Hyderabad airport and has undertaken two international airport projects in Indonesia.
In a significant development, the Andhra Pradesh government has allowed the company to operate two gas-based power plants on imported gas due to insufficient supply from Reliance's KG-D6 basin. "Our coal-"fired plants will continue to be under stress for some more time due to shortageof fuel," says George
Though the company has backed out of Shivpuri-Dewas road project due to regulatory hurdles, its Jaipur, Deoli and Badodara highways projects are on track, he adds.
Below is an edited excerpt of the interview
Q. Tell us about your recent stake sale in your rail and port projects in Australia to Aurizon?
A. We have offloaded 51 percent stake in our rail and port projects in Austria to Queensland-based Aurizon Holdings Ltd to unlock value in the Galilee Basin coal reserves. Aurizon will buy a majority stake in Hancock Coal Pty. Ltd that owns GVK Hancock's rail and port projects. Aurizon will pay a portion of the total sum on completion of the transaction and deferred payments at the financial close of each phase of the projects.
Q. Are more stake sale developments in your various businesses in the offing?
A. As a company policy we will divest stake at an appropriate time. For instance, investors have evinced interest in our mining assets in Australia, we will take a call on it after due diligence. Also, after the airport regulator allowing us to collect airport development fee, our aviation business has become an attractive preposition for buyers.
Spot gold trades mixed in major cities in India
Mar 28, 2013, 04.15 PM IST
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Spot gold trades mixed in major cities in India
Spot gold prices were trading mixed in major cities in India. In Delhi market, Standard gold (995 purity) was down by Rs 125 at Rs 29925 and pure gold (999 purity) was down by Rs 125 at Rs 30125.
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Spot gold trades mixed in major cities in India
Spot gold prices were trading mixed in major cities in India. In Delhi market, Standard gold (995 purity) was down by Rs 125 at Rs 29925 and pure gold (999 purity) was down by Rs 125 at Rs 30125.
In Ahmedabad market standard gold (995 purity) was up by Rs 125 at Rs 30010 and pure gold (999 purity) was up by Rs 125 at Rs 30135.
Hindustan Construction re-appoints Ajit Gulabchand as Chairman MD
Hindustan Construction re-appoints Ajit Gulabchand as Chairman & MD
Hindustan Construction Company at its meeting held on March 28, 2013 has re-appointed Shri Ajit Gulabchand as Managing Director designated as Chairman & Managing Director of the Company for a further period of 5 years with effect from April 01, 2013, subject to approval of the shareholders.
Will luxury project 'Delhi One' find enough takers?
'Delhi One' is built by local developer 3C, the starting price of a flat here is at a whopping Rs 20 crore. The apartment size is 7,500 square feet of super area, not carpet area.
3C is charging top dollar for getting these luxury residences branded by the Four Seasons Hotel. A 250-key Four Seasons Hotel is also being built at this site. 3C tells me there will be no per square feet rate for these apartments.
There will also be six big apartments having a super area of 15,000 square feet. 3C may actually auction these six apartments and it believes each of them should actually cost Rs 40-50 crore rupees.
Also read: India among world's top 20 realty investment mkts: Report
Larsen and Toubro (L&T) has the contract for the construction and the plan includes a hotel and three towers. We don't have pictures but the hotel and the residential tower will be connected with what 3C calls a Sky Lounge.
However, the Prime Property team found a slum and a sewage drain around 200 meters away from this high value project.
HDIL in deep trouble:
HDIL is feeling the earth shift under its feet. The bleeding which started in January in the form of a cash-flow crisis continue and investors, who started selling after the promoters sold a 1.2 percent stake in the company to raise Rs 57 crore on the 21st of January, are not easing up on the pressure. The stock continued its downwards spiral, collapsing to an all time low.
The beating for HDIL got worse after rating agency CARE, downgraded the company citing failure to make interest payments on Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) to the tune of Rs 2,059 crore. According to Company sources roughly Rs 2 crore of interest payment due in February was delayed till March, as HDIL's accounts has been temporarily frozen by the service tax department.
HDIL is working on getting its finances in shape as soon as possible. CNBC-TV18 learns one of these steps include repaying Punjab National Bank a sum of Rs 150-180 crore by March 31. The funds for this will come from the sale of two acres of land in Andheri in the third quarter. The land was sold to Adani Group for Rs 900 crore and it reflected in HDIL's third quarter numbers.
HDIL is looking at more ways to finance its mammoth Rs 4,000 crore debt going forward, with an aim to bring it down by Rs 1,000 crore over the next 12 months. However, it is a long bumpy road ahead for the company and it has to act swiftly to regain if investor confidence.
Power to consumers in Gurgaon
Unitech is also facing a similar nightmare. Besides the trouble its promoter Sanjay Chandra is facing on account of the 2G mess, Unitech has been getting flak from buyers in Gurgaon for its Nirvana South Close project. This project, pegged at around Rs 300 crore has flats selling at over Rs 2 crore.
Apartment buyers had moved a District Court in Gurgaon alleging that Unitech had changed the original layout plan and relocated the area earmarked for building apartments for the economically weaker section. The Gurgaon Court passed an order in favour of the apartment association, and stayed Unitech from further construction at the site.
Unitech is not the only one under consumer fire. Even DLF 's buyers in Gurgaon had won a case at the competition commission of India (CCI) against the company for increasing the number of floors in its luxury projects like the Belaire, Park Place and Magnolia without the consent of buyers. DLF was fined Rs 630 crore by the competition watchdog, and its appeal is now before the Competition Appellate Tribunal (COMPAT).
The government in Haryana seems to have taken note and the Gurgaon town and country planning department has come out with a new directive to empower consumers.
Developers will now have to get approvals from flat buyers and investors to make any changes in layout plans, especially those related to the green belt and open spaces. Till now it was not mandatory for developers to share details of a project's layout plan or any proposed changes. Buyers will have upto 30 days to object.
NLC invites bids to buy coal mines overseas
Written By Unknown on Rabu, 27 Maret 2013 | 18.00
"NLC intends to secure its thermal coal-requirement by acquiring coal blocks abroad, by entering into-long term coal supply agreement, by forming joint venture with coal mining companies, by acquiring equity stakes in coal mining companies," says the tender document of the company.
The state-owned firm has proposals for growth in power generation capacity and is expanding its activities not only at Neyveli, but also in other parts of the country.
It has entered into a JV with Uttar Pradesh to set up a 1,980 MW power station at Ghatampur, and the project is moving fast into the execution phase. NLC also has a proposal to establish a power plant with a capacity of 4,000 MW at Sirkali in Tamil Nadu. It is also planning to bid for ultra mega power projects (UMPP) of 4,000 MW under tariff based competitive bidding and other power Projects.
The company's coal requirement is likely to shoot up to 10 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) once all the projects are commissioned. The 'Navratna' firm operates four mines with a tota capacity 30.6 MTPA, and four thermal power stations of total capacity of 2,740 MW.
It is executing lignite-based projects such as the New Neyveli Thermal Power Station. Besides, NLC is implementing a 1,000 MW coal-based Thermal Power Project, NLC Tamil Nadu Power Ltd at Tuticorin.
Italy minister resigns over marines' return to India
"I can no longer be part of this government and I announce my resignation," Terzi said during testimony to the lower house of parliament. "My reservations about sending the marines back to India were not listened to."
Mario Monti's caretaker government on Friday reversed a March 11 decision not to send the marines back to face trial for the murder of two Indian fisherman during anti-piracy duty on a commercial tanker in February 2012.
Asian shares, euro steady after US data
Data on Tuesday showed demand for US-made durable goods surged in February, suggesting factory activity continued to expand.
US single-family home prices started the year with the biggest annual increase since June 2006, according to a separate report.
The Conference Board industry group, however, said consumer confidence tumbled in March as Americans turned more pessimistic about short-term economic prospects, but stock markets focused on the good news, taking the Dow Jones industrial average to a record closing high and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index to just below a record closing peak.
"An increase in durable goods shipments raised our tracking estimate for Q1 GDP by one-tenth to 2.6 percent, while strength in underlying orders points to further gains in shipments in coming months," Barclays Capital said in a research.
The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was steady, underpinned by a 0.2 percent rise in Australian shares on the back of gains in blue chip miners and financials on strong resource prices.
South Korean shares opened up 0.4 percent.
"The local index is expected to extend gains from the last two sessions as positive US data fuels optimism," said Lee Seon-yeop, an analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp, of Seoul shares.
Japan's Nikkei stock average opened nearly flat.
The Cyprus rescue scheme averted an imminent banking collapse but the measure requiring bank bondholders and large depositors to take heavy losses raised concerns, notably the risk of this model being used in the future and spurring a run on banks in other euro zone countries with much larger banking systems than Cyprus's.
The island state is expected to complete capital control measures on Wednesday to prevent a run on the banks by depositors anxious about their savings after the country agreed a painful rescue package with international lenders.
The euro steadied at USD 1.2858, hovering near a four-month low of USD 1.2828 touched on Tuesday, and capped by its 200-day moving average of around USD 1.2880. The euro closed below the key technical level on Monday for the first time since November.
Revived pressure on the euro kept the dollar index, measured against a basket of major currencies, not far from a 7-1/2-month peak of 83.166 set earlier this month.
Against the yen, the dollar was up 0.2 percent to 94.60.
US crude futures eased 0.2 percent to USD 96.16 a barrel.
Spot gold was up 0.1 percent around USD 1,600 an ounce, barely holding above its 14-day moving average.
Data lifts Dow to a record, SP near record close
The Dow Jones industrial average initially surpassed its 2007 record closing high on March 5. Since then, the Dow has reached a series of subsequent nominal record highs.
In Tuesday's session, the S&P 500 made yet another attempt at a record, but failed to break above the all-time closing high for the second day this week.
At Tuesday's close, the S&P 500 was only 1.38 points below its lifetime closing high. On Monday, the benchmark index traded just a quarter point below its record closing high, which stands at 1,565.15 set on October 9, 2007, and then retreated as investors sold some equities to cash in on gains in the wake of the news out of Europe.
Data showed US single-family home prices rose in January at the fastest pace in more than six years, while long-lasting US manufactured goods, also known as durable goods orders, shot up in February.
"I think the batch of data was enough to convince investors that the US economy is on the right track," said Andrew Wilkinson, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak & Co, in New York.
"At this point, it's hard to argue that anything will derail the US economy, and that is boosting investors' confidence as they continue to load up on equities."
Still, investors may look for reasons to take profits, with the S&P 500 up nearly 10 percent so far this year. The rally has lifted the benchmark index near its all-time closing high, which it nearly reached on Monday.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 111.90 points, or 0.77 percent, to end at 14,559.65, a record closing high. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 12.08 points, or 0.78 percent, to finish at 1,563.77. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 17.18 points, or 0.53 percent, to close at 3,252.48.
The semiconductor index climbed 0.9 percent, buoyed by Intel Corp shares, up 2.9 percent at USD 21.77.
The CBOE Volatility Index or VIX, Wall Street's favorite barometer of investor anxiety, fell 7.1 percent to close at 12.77.
In a sign that growth continues to be slow, sales of new US single-family homes fell more than expected in February, and the latest reading on consumer confidence was weaker than expected.
Shares of homebuilding stocks were mixed. Lennar Corp stock rose 0.4 percent to USD 41.72, but Hovnanian Enterprises shares slid 3.1 percent to USD 5.87.
But investors remained concerned about the negative implications of a financial rescue plan for Cyprus. They worried that it would serve as a template for other euro-zone economies requiring bailouts.
Banks in Cyprus will remain closed until Thursday and will then be subject to capital controls to prevent a run on deposits. President Nicos Anastasiades said late on Monday that a 10-billion-euro (USD 13 billion) rescue plan approved over the weekend was "painful" but essential to avoid economic meltdown.
"If there's a run on deposits, there may be a selloff (in US stocks), but that could pose an excellent entry point to get into the market and take advantage of this rally," said Todd Schoenberger, managing partner at LandColt Capital, in New York.
In US corporate news, Monsanto Co and DuPont Co settled a legal battle over rights to technology for genetically modified seeds. The companies agreed to drop antitrust and patent lawsuits against each other in US federal court. Monsanto shares rose 4.4 percent to USD 103.79. DuPont, a Dow component, shed 0.3 percent to USD 48.97.
Netflix Inc was the S&P 500's top percentage gainer, jumping 5.4 percent to USD 190.61 after Pacific Crest raised its price target on the stock to USD 225 from USD 160, citing prospects for international subscriber growth.
Michael Dell's USD 24.4 billion buyout bid for Dell Inc could be derailed after billionaire Carl Icahn opened the door to an alliance with Blackstone Group LP to take control of the computer maker from its founder. Dell dipped 0.1 percent to USD 14.50.
In Tuesday's session, volume was lighter than usual with some market participants absent for the observance of the Jewish holiday of Passover.
Volume was roughly 5.2 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and the NYSE MKT, compared with the 2012 average daily closing volume of about 6.45 billion.
Advancers outnumbered decliners on the New York Stock Exchange by a ratio of about 7 to 3. On the Nasdaq, seven stocks rose for every five that fell.
Buy IDFC; target of Rs 162: Firstcall Research
Written By Unknown on Selasa, 26 Maret 2013 | 18.00
"IDFC Limited is India's leading integrated infrastructure finance player providing end to end infrastructure financing and project implementation services. The company built on our vision to be the 'one firm' that looks after the diverse needs of infrastructure development in the financial intermediation for infrastructure projects and services, adding value through innovative products to the infrastructure value chain or asset maintenance of existing infrastructure projects, we focus on supporting companies to get the best return on investments. The growth has driven by the substantial investment requirements of the infrastructure sector in India combined with the growth in the Indian economy."
"IDFC Ltd ability to tap global as well as Indian financial resources makes us the acknowledged experts in infrastructure finance. A strong synergy between the company management and key shareholders, and a dedicated team of over 550 people makes us an organization that is committed to improving the face of India's infrastructure sector. At IDFC, our commitment to building India's infrastructure goes beyond business. We work closely with government entities and regulators to advise and assist them in formulating policy and regulatory frameworks that support private investment and public-private partnerships in infrastructure development."
"IDFC Ltd is India's leading integrated infrastructure finance player providing end to end infrastructure financing and project implementation services, reported its financial results for the quarter ended 31st Dec, 2012. The third quarter witnesses a healthy increase in overall sales as well as profitability. The company net profit jumps to Rs.4686.70 million against Rs.3870.84 million in the corresponding quarter ending of previous year, an increase of 21.08 percent. Revenue for the quarter rose 24.46 percent to Rs.19691.80 million from Rs.15822.31 million, when compared with the prior year period. Reported earnings per share of the company stood at Rs.3.09 a share during the quarter, registering 17.01 percent increase over previous year period. Profit before interest, depreciation and tax is Rs.18726.40 millions as against Rs.14220.79 millions in the corresponding period of the previous year."
"At the current market price of Rs 143, the stock P/E ratio is at 12.34 x FY13E and 11.63 x FY14E respectively. Earning per share (EPS) of the company for the earnings for FY13E and FY14E is seen at Rs.11.59 and Rs.12.29 respectively. Net Sales and PAT of the company are expected to grow at a CAGR of 26 percent and 13 percent over 2011 to 2014E respectively. On the basis of EV/EBITDA, the stock trades at 8.22 x for FY13E and 7.34 x for FY14E. Price to Book Value of the stock is expected to be at 1.56 x and 1.37 x respectively for FY13E and FY14E. We expect that the company surplus scenario is likely to continue for the next years, will keep its growth story in the coming quarters also. We recommend 'BUY' in this particular scrip with a target price of Rs 162 for medium to long term investment," says Firstcall Research report.
Public holding more than 90% in Indian cos
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Gold marginally down in major Indian cities
Mar 26, 2013, 04.19 PM IST
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Gold marginally down in major Indian cities
Gold rates were trading marginally lower in major cities in India. In Mumbai market, Standard gold (995 purity) was down by Rs 40 at Rs 29830 and pure gold (999 purity) was down by Rs 45 at Rs 29965.
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Gold marginally down in major Indian cities
Gold rates were trading marginally lower in major cities in India. In Mumbai market, Standard gold (995 purity) was down by Rs 40 at Rs 29830 and pure gold (999 purity) was down by Rs 45 at Rs 29965.
In Jaipur market standard gold (995 purity) was down by Rs 50 at Rs 29950 and pure gold (999 purity) was down by Rs 50 at Rs 29975.
Silver prices decline in major metro cities
Mar 26, 2013, 04.20 PM IST
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Silver prices decline in major metro cities
Spot silver prices declined in major metro cities in India. In Jaipur market, Pure silver (999 purity) was down by Rs 150 to Rs 54200 and in Chennai market, it was down by Rs 100 to Rs 54100.
Like this story, share it with millions of investors on M3
Silver prices decline in major metro cities
Spot silver prices declined in major metro cities in India. In Jaipur market, Pure silver (999 purity) was down by Rs 150 to Rs 54200 and in Chennai market, it was down by Rs 100 to Rs 54100.
Spot Silver Rates for 1 KG in major metros in India:
Will commission Rampur wind energy project in FY14: SJVN
"This unit is likely to generate about 1,700-1,800 million units of energy. However, the unit will not be producing any power before FY15," Singh said in an interview to CNBC-TV18.
Meanwhile, the company aims to close the current financial year with energy generation of 6,800 milllion units.
Below is the edited transcript of Singh's interview to CNBC-TV18.
Q: We understand you have signed an agreement with the Ministry of Power to generate 6930 million units of energy in 2013-14. How much more would that be as compared to what you have done in FY13?
A: As of today, in FY13 we have already generated around 6722 million units. We will close around 6800 million units.
Q: So, your generation next year will be only 3 percent more than what you have done this year?
A: Yes.
Q: Are there no new plants coming up? We thought that you would have your wind power project in Maharashtra coming up and therefore you will perhaps be able to generate more?
A: Yes, the wind power project is coming up. That is inclusive of wind power and some power generation from our Rampur Hydroelectric Project.
Q: So you believe you will be able to generate more from the Rampur project in FY14?
A: No, not in FY14. It will be after FY14 because even if it is commissioned in 2013-14, the water availability in the river will be very less, so hardly any machine will be running.
Q: So you expect to generate electricity from the Rampur project only in FY15?
A: Yes.
Q: How much do you think you will generate in FY15?
A: Generation depends on what will be the river inflow. The desired energy of Rampur is around 1700-1800 million units.
Q: You are unsure as to how much you will actually be able to generate?
A: That's not the case. Our machine ability today is 105 percent more, so we are maintaining our machine to the best of its ability. Secondly, in FY12, we generated 7600 million units and this year FY13, it will be something around 6800. So, the power generation all depends on the water available in the river.
Q: In FY14 what is the limit of your generation?
A: We are going to commission our Rampur Hydroelectric Project of 412 megawatt and in FY14 we are going to commission our wind energy project.
Q: If indeed we were to get a good monsoon, you don't see the chances of 7600 million units energy being repeated in FY14?
A: Our first choice is to achieve the desired energy which we are repeatedly achieving for the last five years. We have been achieving the desired energy since the last five years. Anything generated more than the desired energy is called secondary energy. If water is available, we can generate more. We are not wasting even a single drop of water.
New OTC drug to garner Rs 25cr revenues: Venus Remedies
Written By Unknown on Senin, 25 Maret 2013 | 18.00
Venus is eyeing Rs 25 crore from the sale of this new product from a market that pegged at Rs 100 crore. "We believe that we would be able to acquire around five percent of its share within three years of its launch," he said.
Aggarwal expects margins for Venus to improve ahead.
Also read: Lupin launches generic Diovan HCT tablets
Below is the verbatim transcript if his interview on CNBC-TV18.
Q: What do you think will be the addition that this stress reliving candy can bring to Venus Remedies sales?
A: We are proud of this launch as our first OTC product. The stress reliving market in India is a USD 100 million market. We believe that we would be able to acquire around five percent of its share within three years of its launch. This means around Rs 25 crore of revenue can be tapped from this product.
Q: Isn't the sales outlets and procedure for an OTC drug different from that of non-OTC drugs, where your targets would be doctors? Are your prepared for an OTC drug or will there be an additional marketing expense?
A: We are prepared for this; we already have a strong network of pharmacies associated with us for past so many years. We are planning to tap around 50,000 pharmacies for this purpose and efforts would also be helped by aggressive online marketing. We will have our own portal to sell this online.
Q: Would you have advertisements? Would you have that kind of marketing expenses?
A: Marketing expenses would be in line of expectation of top-line. There will definitely be advertisements and marketing on FM radio and other communications.
Q: Would your margins be trimmed down a bit if you have to spend on advertising as well?
A: Generally as well when a pharma company reaches to doctors, even then marketing expenses are there.
Q: You don't see your margins falling from the 26 percent that you posted?
A: Margins would certainly improve because this is a research and development (R&D) product. This is a unique product, which is a strong detoxifier. There is no competition for this product. This is the first time a company has done R&D of this kind.
Autorickshaw branding earns extra revenue for drivers
Grabbing eyeballs in an already crowded marketplace is a difficult proposition. So Mulchand Dedhia asked himself the following question - what does almost every Mumbaikar keep their eyes peeled for on the city's busy streets? The answer was obvious - turn the ubiquitous and much-sought-after autorickshaw into an innovative advertising tool or mobile hoarding.
"An average autorickshaw driver makes 90 trips a day. Every passenger spends a lot of time in an autorickshaw considering the heavy traffic in this city. And since 60 per cent of commuters are collegians, young working professionals, housewives and middle-age people, I decided to introduce brands to these eyeballs," says the 27-year-old advertising professional, who introduces himself as the "Chief Autorickshaw Driver (CAD) of my company, Meter Down".
The Auto Ad Pie
True to the company's tag line, 'creating value through innovation', Meter Down breaks down the ad space on an autorickshaw into three segments - back-lit panels, back sticker on hood and inside autorickshaw. So, for instance, when the Hindi film Bodyguard was to release, autorickshaw commuters were pleasantly surprised to find a poster of Salman Khan popping up behind the seat!
First, A Magazine
But things didn't start out this way. When Dedhia and co-founder Ishan Mehta set up their company in 2010, they had analysed 18 different business plans. These included advertising on balloons and even on ships but zeroed in on a magazine called Meter Down. The magazine, launched with a seed capital of just Rs 75,000, was positioned neatly behind the autorickshaw driver's back rest for high visibility and easy access for commuters.
Featuring content relating to entrepreneurship, fashion, social networking, travel and lifestyle, the magazine served about 50 leading brands including Red FM, Vodafone, Uninor, Bank of Baroda, State Bank of India, Titan and Future Group. Dedhia and Mehta initially worked from home and later from a spare flat they converted into an office.
Taking A U-Turn
They company started by stocking the magazine in 50 autorickshaws and scaled up to 500. "When we scaled to 1,000, we began to realise that a significant number of advertisers did not want to spend on print but were keen on displaying advertisements inside or outside autorickshaws. "Thus, in 2012 we took a 360-degree turn and decided to position ads anywhere and everywhere in and on autorickshaws. We also began to customise the vehicle, if the brand lent itself to it," reveals Dedhia.
Revving It Up
The idea paid off. Says Sandeep Patil, Senior Marketing Manager, Red FM, "We started our business relationship with Meter Down for a campaign called Malishka Ka Jasoos. The branding on the rearview mirror stated, 'Mein Ho Malishka Asst Manager Ka Jasoos'. It was a simple yet eye-catching branding proposition and a high-visibility touch-point for us. Since then, autorickshaws have remained one of Red FM's branding mediums."
Hemang Jangla, MD & CEO, insurancebazar.in, who tied up with Meter Down for branding in 300 autorickshaws between Bandra and Andheri, agrees. "After I began to use auto branding, many people began to recognise me. I have received excellent visibility through this exercise."
Revenue Model
Meter Down has thus far served 50 clients. The cost of advertising per inch per auto for a month is Rs 550 and the start-up has inventories that go upto Rs 7,500 per autorickshaw. The cost of advertising varies with the number of autorickshaws used for a campaign, the size of the advertisement and where it is positioned. Also, every deal must be worth a minimum Rs 1.5 lakh. "We share 40 per cent of the advertisement revenue with the autorickshaw driver," says Dedhia.
Bumpy Road
Dedhia and Mehta started as a two-member team, which has since grown to 11 employees who look after sales, logistics and operations. And they've learnt some tough but fruitful lessons along the way. "We had not anticipated a long sales cycle and had assumed that clients would respond within three days and we would get rolling on day four. We found it could take up to 20 days for a client to close a deal," admits Dedhia.
Meter Down has learnt that patience pays, and after consolidating its base in Mumbai, the company expanded to Pune, Ahmedabad, Baroda and Surat.
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Insecticides India to raise prices by average 5% soon
"Internationally, there is an acute tightness of raw materials and the currency situation is not improving a lot. So, there is pressure over the prices of some of our intermediates," he added.
According to him, the price hike is unlikely to impact demand. Meanwhile, the company aims to grow at 30% in FY14.
Also read: Amended food bill will overshoot subsidy estimates: Thomas
Below is the edited transcript of Aggarwal's interview to CNBC-TV18.
Q: You said you may be able to increase product prices soon. Can you take us through how you see the demand panning out?
A: Internationally, there is an acute tightness of raw materials and the currency situation is not improving a lot. So, there is pressure over the prices of some of our intermediates, hence we will be forced to increase the prices of our products.
So, I see an increase of roughly about 5 percent in the beginning of the season. If it goes well and the monsoon is good, then I believe there is a further chance of the prices going up during the season.
Q: Do you think you will not be met with demand resistance?
A: I see a good increase in the demand because since the last 18 months, the season is very tricky because rainfall was not quite good. And this year, the expectation is good, so we are bullish about this year.
Q: You don't see a fall in volume because of price rises?
A: No, not at all because I believe the cost of the agrochemicals to the farmer has not gone up because the domestic industry has worked very well. We are successful in keeping the cost of insecticides almost at the same level as it was 10 years back.
Sell BPCL at Rs 386 advises SP Tulsian
Tulsian told CNBC-TV18, "I will not advice the investor to remain invested in BPCL because if one sees the stock it is moving in a range of Rs 370 to Rs 395. Whenever you have the price hike kind of things happening, probably the stock is moving up now. But, since the investor is making good profit and it does not have those invested features and all that. At this point of time, the investor should not remain just invested into the stock, the investor must keep booking profits and move into the other better stocks available for investment. So, Rs 386 is the level where I will suggest an exit."
Salman to appear in court on Monday in hit-and-run case
Written By Unknown on Minggu, 24 Maret 2013 | 18.00
The case would come up for the first time before the Sessions Court after a Magistrate transferred the matter to that Court by charging the actor with a more serious charge of 'culpable homicide not amounting to murder'. Along with the prosecution's case against Salman, the court would also hear his appeal against the Magistrate's order, invoking the charge of 'culpable homicide not amounting to murder' against him which attracts a punishment upto ten years in prison.
Also read: Guv will use discretionary powers if Dutt appeals: Minister
Sessions Judge U B Hejib has scheduled the hearing for March 25, and the 47-year-old had been asked to be present on that day, the sources said. It would be Salman's first appearance before the Sessions court after Bandra Magistrate's court referred the case to the Sessions Court (because the offence he is now charged with is serious).
Earlier, the Magistrate had asked Salman to appear before the Sessions court on March 11, but he did not go to the court that day as the case was yet to be assigned to any judge. Sources said as there would be a fresh trial, evidence produced before the Magistrate's court would not be considered and prosecution may have to adduce evidence afresh. One person was killed and four injured when a Land Cruiser, allegedly driven by Salman, ran over people sleeping on pavement outside a bakery in suburban Bandra in the wee hours of September 28, 2002.
Kejriwal to begin indefinite hunger strike in Delhi today
Also read: Suzuki Motorcycle workers warns to go on strike after Holi
Unlike his previous fasts, this one will not be held at Jantar Mantar or Ramlila Maidan, but at a party volunteer's home. On the eve of his indefinite fast, Kejriwal promised that any legal action against those who follow his lead and not pay bills would be revoked once his Aam Aadmi Party comes to power in the city.
He also attacked the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party saying its agitation against the hike in power and water tariff was just an election gimmick and it was hand-in-glove with the Congress. "People are forced to pay their bills through their nose due to fear of legal action against them. To instill confidence in them, I would be on indefinite fast from tomorrow," Kejriwal told reporters.
"The aim of my fast, which will begin from a house in Sunder Nagari, is to rally more and more people against the illegal bills," he added. Kejriwal appealed to people not to pay the bills and said if more and more won't pay and join the "civil disobedience movement", government and the discoms won't take against against them.
"Even if some people face legal action, then they must not panic as all the legal cases would be withdrawn after his party comes to power in Assembly election in November," he said. When asked if he was provoking people to break the law, he said Mahatma Gandhi had himself said that one should not obey the law if it's against people and be prepared to face its consequences.
Targeting the BJP, the activist-turned- politician said, "BJP had the copy of the order of former Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) chairman to reduce the tariff since 2010, but they were sitting on it and when the election is nearing they are protecting against the hike. They had not raised the issue in the Delhi Assembly.... Now Dikshit government wants to give a bailout package of Rs 20,000 crore to the discoms," he added.
He claimed that poor people had to take loan to pay their electricity and water bills. Elaborating about the course of action, Kejriwal said apart from him, party volunteers would be observing fast in 264 Wards of the city. Apart from it, the volunteers would collect signed letter in favour of Arvind Kejriwal.
Cheap, high power smartphone is next tech Big Bang: Google
Schmidt spoke to CNBC-TV18 at an event in New Delhi where Indian and international experts came together to brainstorm about what the Internet has meant for India and the significant opportunities it offers.
Also Read: BlackBerry CEO says Android and Windows Phone are not mobile computing platforms
Below is an edited transcript of the show on CNBC-TV18
Q: Over the last decade, you built Google from a start-up to one of the most admired companies of all time. What is your verdict on your last 10 years at Google?
A: I could not be happier with what Google has achieved. It is a source of pride for me personally and for people at Google in general. The power of information is so dramatic and you really do touch people's lives when you give them the answers to the things they care about. I cannot think of a better way to spend a decade.
Q: What would you say your biggest failures have been?
A: We made money but we also had to make some trade-offs. Probably the biggest mistake that I made was not in seeing the social media revolution early on. I think we have realised it now but I would take responsibility for that mistake.
Q: Will that in the future affect search as well which is your biggest source of revenue? Will companies like Facebook and Amazon be able to map users better to offer enhanced services while you remain a passive search engine?
A: I would disagree that we are going to remain a passive search engine. We have a product called Google Plus which is doing extraordinarily well.
Q: But as compared to Facebook?
A: Facebook has been around longer than Google Plus. The Google Plus link graph which tracks the sort of people that you interact with is an important future signal on our search ranking. So I think we will be fine. I am not worried about it. I think it is just important that Google be a participant in all of the important Internet technologies.
Q: What and from where is the threat to the Gang of Four- Google, Facebook, Amazon and Apple- going to come from?
A: The Gang of Four is in reference to the presence of four network-scalable platforms in the industry that are driving huge shareholder value and impact on partners and the competition. The threats to each of them are many. In Apple's case, the threat is from the Android.
Amazon faces the threat of increased forays into the e-commerce space. Facebook has a a competitor in Google Plus and Google faces competition from Microsoft. So it is key for each of these companies to maintain or increase the rate at which they can continue to innovate to solve problems that really matter to the end-user.
The industry that was largely driven by the Microsoft monopoly structure and PC hardware manufacturers has been completely broken down now by the emergence of tablets and smartphones offering many different choices.
Q: Who do you see as the Google of today? Where Google was when search started? Which companies do you give the best chance of coming in and knocking you off?
A: I certainly hope it is Google. A new competitor to Google is unlikely to be a direct rival to our core business, but rather likely to compete from the side such as solving a problem in a new way, a way that we missed. We worry about that because that's typically how incumbents compete and all leading companies face that competition.
Also Read: YouTube targets Indian marketers, revamps site
Apple makes renewable energy push with solar, fuel cells
The data centre in Maiden, North Carolina, which supports Internet storage and Apple's service-hosting iCloud product, produces 167 million kilowatt-hours - the power equivalent of 17,600 homes for one year - from a 100-acre solar farm and fuel cell installations provided by Silicon Valley startup Bloom Energy.
They are the largest, non-utility power-generating facilities of their kind in the United States, Oppenheimer told Reuters.
"We switched over to these new energy sources in December," he said. "And we are committed to generating 60 percent of the electricity that the data center will use by making power on site. We are now achieving that goal."
Apple purchases the rest of the green power needed at the facility.
Apple and other technology companies - such as Amazon and Microsoft - that build and run computer server farms have come under criticism for their high consumption of electricity and other resources. These data centers cater to an explosion in Internet traffic, streaming content through mobile devices and hosting of services to corporations.
Apple has switched many of its corporate facilities to fully operate on green power, including those in Austin, Texas; Cork, Ireland; and Sacramento, California, Oppenheimer said.
The company is building another 20-megawatt solar farm at its Maiden facility with solar panels supplied by SunPower Corp .
Overall, Apple said it has increased the proportion of renewable energy used throughout the company to 75 percent. Eventually, the company aims to use only renewable energy at all its facilities around the world.
Gas pipeline to be laid between Kakinada and Vizag: Reddy
Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 23 Maret 2013 | 18.00
Union minister for petroleum and natural gas Veerappa Moily and CMD of Gas Authority of India Ltd ( GAIL ) BC Tripathi had agreed to lay a pipeline between Kakinada and Visakhapatnam to provide piped gas to households and commercial establishments like hotels and hospitals, he said.
"Work on the laying of pipeline will commence in the next two months and cooking gas will be made available to consumers in 18 months, which will help eight to ten lakh consumers in Visakhapatnam. GAIL had also agreed to supply imported gas to bulk consumers in the industry," Reddy added.
Guj plans multi-member Lokayukta, to bring new bill
"We have decided to introduce a new Lokayukta Aayog Bill 2013 in the state Assembly on March 26," finance minister and state spokesperson Nitin Patel told PTI on Saturday. The new Bill, on its enactment, would replace the existing Gujarat Lokayukta Act 1989.
"As per the new provisions, for the first time, a Chief Minister of the state has been brought within the purview of the Lokayukta at par with other ministers," Patel said. He also said that, "in the draft bill, as per the recommendations of the central government and the 13th Finance Commission, proposed Lokayukta Aayog would be made into a multi-member institution with one Lokayukta and upto four Up-lokayuktas."
A judicial battle had started on the issue of Lokayukta after governor Kamla Beniwal, going against the advice of the Chief Minister as a head of the council of ministers, had on August 25, 2011 appointed Justice (retired) RA Mehta as new Lokayukta to the post that was lying vacant for eight years.
"The procedure of selection and appointment of the Lokayukta and Up-lokayukta has been made explicit and unambiguous through a selection committee headed by the Chief Minister," Patel said. A six-member selection panel will be headed by the Chief Minister while the Speaker of the Assembly, state law minister, Leader of the Opposition and two experts will be included as members.
As per the draft of the Bill, the governor is to appoint Lokayukta on the recommendation of the selection committee. A notice was circulated on Saturday with the copy of the draft Bill, informing that the Gujarat Lokayukta Aayog Bill 2013 will be introduced in the House on March 26, 2013. The government's move to set up a new Lokayukta institution, however, was criticised by the Opposition.
US Senate narrowly passes first budget in 4 years
The Senate budget plan passed on a 50-49 vote in the Democratic-controlled chamber. Four Democratic Senators facing re-election in 2014 joined all Senate Republicans in opposing the measure, which seeks to raise nearly USD 1 trillion in new tax revenues by closing some tax breaks for the wealthy.
Italy assured marines will not face death penalty: Govt
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who was bitter after Italy reneged on its commitments earlier, welcomed the decision to send back the marines, saying the "integrity and dignity of Indian judicial process has been upheld".
Hours after the announcement was made in Rome that the marines will return to face trial, external affairs minister Salman Khurshid told Parliament that Italy had sought "clarifications" on death penalty and other issues which were a matter of "concern" to that country.
The government was informed through "a diplomatic approach" that Italy would be willing to send the two marines back to India as per its commitment to face trial in the case of killing two fishermen in February 2012, he said in identical statements in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
"It (Italy) sought from India clarifications regarding the conditions applicable to the marines on their return and the provisions regarding the death penalty that could be applicable in this case which was an Italian concern."
"Notwithstanding the pending proceedings, the government has informed the Italian government that the two marines will not be liable for arrest if they return within the time frame laid down by the Supreme Court of India," he said.
India also allayed Italy's fears by saying that "according to well-settled Indian jurisprudence, this case would not fall in the category of matters which attract the death penalty, that is to say the rarest of rare cases. Therefore, there need not be any apprehension in this regard," Khurshid said.
He expressed happiness that the matter was being "brought to a satisfactory conclusion" and the trial will now proceed as per the directions of the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court had allowed the marines to go to their home country for four weeks to cast votes in general elections. The deadline for the four-week period expires on Saturday.
Gomti Finlease: Updates on scheme of amalgamation
Written By Unknown on Jumat, 22 Maret 2013 | 18.00
Mar 22, 2013, 04.13 PM IST
Gomti Finlease (India) has informed that the certified copies of order of Hon�ble High Court of Judicature at Bombay dated Feb 08, 2013, for the Scheme of Amalgamation of KDJ Holidayscapes and Two-Up Financial Services have been received and made effective by filing with the Registrar of Companies, Maharashtra, Mumbai.
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Gomti Finlease: Updates on scheme of amalgamation
Gomti Finlease (India) has informed that the certified copies of order of Hon�ble High Court of Judicature at Bombay dated Feb 08, 2013, for the Scheme of Amalgamation of KDJ Holidayscapes and Two-Up Financial Services have been received and made effective by filing with the Registrar of Companies, Maharashtra, Mumbai.
Like this story, share it with millions of investors on M3
Gomti Finlease: Updates on scheme of amalgamation
Gomti Finlease (India) has informed that the certified copies of order of Hon�ble High Court of Judicature at Bombay dated Feb 08, 2013, for the Scheme of Amalgamation of KDJ Holidayscapes and Two-Up Financial Services have been received and made effective by filing with the Registrar of Companies, Maharashtra, Mumbai.
Read all announcements in Gomti Finlease
From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
The latest earning numbers FIRST on CNBC-TV18
Grauer and Weil's company secretary compliance officer resigns
Mar 22, 2013, 04.13 PM IST
Mr. Noel Jacob - Sr. V. P. (Corp.) & Company Secretary of Grauer & Weil India has resigned from the position of Company Secretary & Compliance officer of the Company.
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Grauer and Weil's company secretary & compliance officer resigns
Mr. Noel Jacob - Sr. V. P. (Corp.) & Company Secretary of Grauer & Weil India has resigned from the position of Company Secretary & Compliance officer of the Company.
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Grauer and Weil's company secretary & compliance officer resigns
Mr. Noel Jacob - Sr. V. P. (Corp.) & Company Secretary of Grauer & Weil India has resigned from the position of Company Secretary & Compliance officer of the Company.
Read all announcements in Grauer and Weil
From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
The latest earning numbers FIRST on CNBC-TV18
Virtual Global board approves sub-division of equity shares
Mar 22, 2013, 04.17 PM IST
Virtual Global Education at its meeting held on March 22, 2013, has approved the sub-division of existing shares from Rs 10 each to Re 1 each, in accordance with the provisions of Companies Act, 1956 and other applicable provisions, if any.
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Virtual Global board approves sub-division of equity shares
Virtual Global Education at its meeting held on March 22, 2013, has approved the sub-division of existing shares from Rs 10 each to Re 1 each, in accordance with the provisions of Companies Act, 1956 and other applicable provisions, if any.
Like this story, share it with millions of investors on M3
Virtual Global board approves sub-division of equity shares
Virtual Global Education at its meeting held on March 22, 2013, has approved the sub-division of existing shares from Rs 10 each to Re 1 each, in accordance with the provisions of Companies Act, 1956 and other applicable provisions, if any.
Read all announcements in Virtual Global
From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
The latest earning numbers FIRST on CNBC-TV18
The Galaxy S4 - is it really going to be worth the wait?
Mar 22, 2013, 09.45 AM IST
The much awaited Samsung Galaxy S4 was unveiled very recently and just like previous Galaxy iterations, the super hyped smartphone ...
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The Galaxy S4 - is it really going to be worth the wait?
The much awaited Samsung Galaxy S4 was unveiled very recently and just like previous Galaxy iterations, the super hyped smartphone ...
Like this story, share it with millions of investors on M3
The Galaxy S4 - is it really going to be worth the wait?
The much awaited Samsung Galaxy S4 was unveiled very recently and just like previous Galaxy iterations, the super hyped smartphone ...
The much awaited Samsung Galaxy S4 was unveiled very recently and just like previous Galaxy iterations, the super-hyped smartphone comes loaded to the hilt with UI goodies. The big question I'm sure you're asking yourself is, should I patiently set aside my need to own the latest smartphone for the next month or so till it hits India, or simply go with the next best thing that's already here? Whatever that might be. At the moment, you've got plenty of options to choose from as all the big players have announced or launched their contributions to the high end smartphone segment. This conundrum, not one that we don't deal with a few times a year at least, is what pushes the players to the limits of the game.
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See 6-7% correction in Sun TV: SP Tulsian
Written By Unknown on Kamis, 21 Maret 2013 | 18.00
Tulsian told CNBC-TV18, "Whenever Sun TV Network has started correcting maybe because of this political vendetta or whatever fear, we generally see that happening in the large investors. The stock generally gets corrected swiftly, maybe by about 20-25 percent. So maybe probably Rs 360 or so should be seen as a near term support for the stock. If it settles around those levels then one can think of buying. But as of now, I think the further weakness can be seen in the stock by about six-seven percent or so."
The share closed at Rs 386.35, down Rs 30.75, or 7.37%. It has touched an intraday high of Rs 421.30 and an intraday low of Rs 382.60.
The share touched its 52-week high Rs 493.90 and 52-week low Rs 176.75 on 04 February, 2013 and 27 July, 2012, respectively. Currently, it is trading 21.78% below its 52-week high and 118.59% above its 52-week low. Market capitalisation stands at Rs 15,225.46 crore.
The company's trailing 12-month (TTM) EPS was at Rs 19.60 per share. (Dec, 2012). The stock's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio was 19.71. The latest book value of the company is Rs 67.12 per share. At current value, the price-to-book value of the company was 5.76. The dividend yield of the company was 2.46%.
Bharti Airtel has strong support at Rs 280: Sukhani
Sukhani told CNBC-TV18, "Yes there is reason to take a long position in Bharti Airtel and it is not the 200 day moving average. Bharti's decline stemmed at Rs 280 which was a very strong support level. The bounce that we are seeing today is probably not short covering; it is something that could be a genuine uptrend. So today after a 7 percent rally Bharti is not a buying opportunity, but tomorrow or on Monday it should be."
ITC declines on concerns of cigarette volumes fall
Till now four states have already increased value added tax (VAT) on cigarettes after the central government proposed an increase in excise duty on cigarettes in Budget 2013.
Sanjay Singh of Standard Chartered Securities warned that VAT being increased by 450 basis points annually, ITC will have to undertake 20 percent price hike to offset tax burden.
He sees a 3-4 percent decline in cigarettes volume for ITC in FY14. Singh adds that absorption of this price hike will be a challenge for the consumers .
Shares slipped 0.80 percent to close at Rs 304.95 on Bombay Stock Exchange. However, it was the major defensive stock when the market was losing in previous four sessions.
