Pushing Hard for Nuclear Brahamin Nation with Second Generation of Reforms!Nuclear energy will continue to be an inevitable option for India as other alternative renewable energy sources, including solar, will take few more years to establish as a commercially viable technology, according to scientists. Govt to offload 5% equity in BHEL to raise Rs 4,500 cr. Only yesterday, Washington Slave Prime Minister of LPG Mafia Government Dr. Manmohan Singh underlined TOPMOST Priorty as INFRASTRUCTURE and Energy! Go ahead for Nuclear Energy with NUCLER Plants Cluster like JAITAPUR!Kapil SIBAL Pushes for KNOWLEDGE Economy killing the RIGHT to EDUCATION! PRANAB clears decks for ETNIC Cleansing and Mass Destruction with Reforms ensuring the DISINVESTMENT of Indian ECONOMY!Karachi attack: India concerned about safety of Pakistan's nukes!Govt to soon finalise rs 40,000 crore disinvestment roadmap, says DoD official!
Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and Time - SIX HUNDRED FORTY Five
Palash Biswas
http://indianholocaustmyfatherslifeandtime.blogspot.com/
http://basantipurtimes.blogspot.com/
23 MAY, 2011, 05.18AM IST, AVINASH CELESTINE,ET BUREAU
15,000 hectares acquired in Greater Noida using urgency clause since 1991
NEW DELHI: Over 15,000 hectares of land has been acquired in the Greater Noida region, near Delhi, in the last twenty years, using a controversial clause in the land acquisition act which allow governments to acquire land without giving landowners or others the right to a hearing.
Since mid-April, courts have struck down the UP government's acquisition of 433 hectares of land acquired through such means in Greater Noida. More such legal challenges to acquisitions made by the Greater Noida authority are currently pending in the courts.
The routine use of the urgency clause to acquire land is not unique to Mayawati. Successive governments, not just in UP, but across the country have used it regularly to speed up an otherwise slow process.
Under the Land Acquisition Act, governments that want to acquire land must give any person affected by the acquisition a right to make objections. In certain cases, however, where land is needed urgently, the government can skip the potentially time consuming process of hearings, and acquire the land immediately after issuing a notification. This was the key provision that many governments have used to acquire land, and was an important component of Mayawati's land acquisition strategy as well.
The 'urgency' provision was used to acquire land for the Yamuna expressway, and for industrial projects in Greater Noida. Interestingly, in the case of the Yamuna expressway, the Supreme Court in September last year upheld the Mayawati government's right to invoke the 'urgency' provision - but her luck ran out in April this year.
On 15th April this year, the Supreme Court struck down the acquisition of 205 hectares in Makora village, which falls under the purview of the Greater Noida authority. On 12th May, the Allahabad High Court using the April SC ruling as a precedent, struck down the acquisition of 156 hectares in Shahberi village. A day later, another ruling by the same two-judge bench struck down the acquisition of 72 hectares of land in the Surajpur village.
"In the last twenty years, almost all the land acquired by the government in Greater Noida has been done through the use of section 17 (the urgency clause)," said Akhilesh Singh, Deputy Chief executive officer of the Greater Noida Authority. Greater Noida authority officials told ET that the total land acquired in the area was 15,526 hectares since 1991.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/infrastructure/15000-hectares-acquired-in-greater-noida-using-urgency-clause-since-1991/articleshow/8522368.cms
Govt to offload 5% equity in BHEL to raise Rs 4,500 cr.Govt to soon finalise rs 40,000 crore disinvestment roadmap, says DoD official!The Reserve Bank today allowed foreign institutional investors (FIIs) to hedge foreign currency risks arising out of investment in IPOs made through ASBA route.
Pushing Hard for Nuclear Brahamin Nation with Second Generation of Reforms!
India Monday voiced apprehensions about the safety of nuclear installations in the neighbouring country and pointed to the deepening divide there over the Afghan war.
Nuclear energy will continue to be an inevitable option for India as other alternative renewable energy sources, including solar, will take few more years to establish as a commercially viable technology, according to scientists. Only yesterday, Washington Slave Prime Minister of LPG Mafia Government Dr. Manmohan Singh underlined TOPMOST Priorty as INFRASTRUCTURE and Energy! Go ahead for Nuclear Energy with NUCLER Plants Cluster like JAITAPUR!Kapil SIBAL Pushes for KNOWLEDGE Economy killing the RIGHT to EDUCATION! PRANAB clears decks for ETNIC Cleansing and Mass Destruction with Reforms ensuring the DISINVESTMENT of Indian ECONOMY!Caste census denied and BPL Census Introduced to divert OBC as Constitutional safeguards as well as the CONSTITUTION itself KILED!
Green Revolution had been the First gate for Neo Liberalism in India. Second Green Revolution means the Strategic Marketing of FREE market genocide Culture in Rural India and aborigin Humanscape! Now, the NERO of India Power Politics,Sharad Pawar asks corporates to tap the vast opportunities in the agriculture sector!
Proactive Brahaminical CIVIL Society, Intelligentsia, India Incs and MNCs, MEDIA and Policy makers do everything to push for US Sponsered Pro democratic Movement to sustain Manusmriti Rule in FREE MARKET Society killing Excluded Communities. LOKPAL jan Bidheyak Movement cries against CORRUPTION but defends the interest of LPG Mafia as NOTHING is said against Foreign Capital Inflow or Economic Reforms or REPRESSION or UID or AFPSA or Arms Race or Nuclear Energy or DISPLACEMENT or Naked Violation of Human and Civil rights.Meanwhile,negotiations on a draft Lokpal Bill on Monday gained momentum with Government and civil society members agreeing on a number of basic principles of the proposed law.
Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh today slammed the faculty of the prestigious IITs and IIMs, saying these educational institutions are "not world class" but are "excellent" because of the quality of students.
The government will soon finalise the roadmap to raise a whopping Rs 40,000 crore through disinvestment during the current fiscal.
It will include sale of equity in blue chip companies like SAIL and ONGC.
"Cabinet has so far given approval for the disinvestment of four state-run firms - PFC , SAIL, ONGC and HCL . We are in talks with various ministries and working on a roadmap that should be finalised by June-end," Department of Disinvestment additional secretary Siddharth Pradhan told PTI.
Exuding confidence that DoD would be able to achieve the Rs 40,000 crore target for the current fiscal, he said by way of share sales of the identified four PSUs through follow -on offers, a little over Rs 15,000 crore was expected to be garnered.
The government has already raised Rs 1,162 crore by divesting five per cent stake in Power Finance Corporation in May. The follow-on public offer of SAIL is likely to hit the market next month and ONGC in July. Share sale programme of Hindustan Copper (HCL) is yet to take a concrete shape.
When asked about the potential PSUs that could hit the market this fiscal, Pradhan while refusing to divulge details, maintained that his department was in touch with Steel, Mines, Heavy Industries and Petroleum & Natural Gas Ministries for identifying the companies.
The government, according to sources, have already identified RINL, MMTC and NBCC for stake sale and would be required to add more companies to the list to achieve Rs 40,000 crore target during 2011-12.
The government had proposed a disinvestment target of Rs 95,000 crore from sale of shares in public sector companies over the next three fiscals, including Rs 40,000 crore in the current fiscal.
Against the same Rs 40,000 crore target set for the last fiscal, the government is estimated to have raised only Rs 22,400 crore by way of disinvestment in PSU companies. The gap could have been bridged a little more had the movement of the market not been topsy-turvy towards the end of the last fiscal.
Currently, the total receipts stands at Rs 99,738.92 crore from the government's various disinvestment programmes, ever since they begun in the financial year 1991-92, as per the data available with the Department of Disinvestment.
The government's disinvestment policy states that the government has to retain majority shareholding of at least 51 per cent and management control of the PSUs.
The policy also calls for listing of unlisted CPSEs with no accumulated losses and having earned net profit in three preceding consecutive years.
"Initial Public Offers (IPO) related transient capital flows under the Application Supported by Blocked Amount(ASBA) mechanism, foreign currency-rupee swaps may be permitted to the FIIs," the RBI said.
Foreign currency rupee swaps for hedging flows under ASBA, RBI said, will be available for 30 days only.
The initiative is likely to facilitate FII investments under the ASBA route into equity market.
Under the Application Supported By Blocked Amount (ASBA) facility, the application money of investors remains blocked in his bank account until the process of allotment of shares is completed.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had introduced ASBA facility for public offers first in September 2008 when retail investors were allowed to use it.
The facility eliminates any delays related to refunds for the unallocated shares. Initially, it was offered to retail investors only and was given to other investors in 2009.
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar today asked corporates to tap the vast opportunities available in the agriculture sector, especially in research.
He was addressing the industry representatives and scientists after inaugurating the ICAR--Industry Meet, 2011.
The minister asked industrialists to have closer interaction with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and develop demand-driven technologies for benefit of small farmers and other marginalised social groups.
"Though ICAR's efforts towards technology commercialisation and use of technology for benefit of the poor have given encouraging results, ICAR and industry need to identify priorities and evolve mutually agreed R&D strategies," Pawar said.
The Meet was organised by ICAR in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industries ( CII )).
More than 160 industry representatives and entrepreneurs participated in the day-long meet.
Talking of the potential of agri-business in creating employment, Pawar said that a new cadre of agri-entrepreneurs needs to be created.
"In addition, agri-businesses have the potential to create employment by means of value addition to primary agriculture", the minister said.
Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Processing Industries , Harish Rawat, emphasised on the need for public- private partnership models to strengthen rural infrastructure to support faster agricultural development.
West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation to prepare file on Singur!
The West Bengal government today asked authorities to prepare a file on Singur, just days after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the 400 acre land acquired from the farmers there for the abandoned Tata Motors' project would be returned.
Commerce and Industry minister Partha Chatterjee asked the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) to prepare the file on Singur.
"The minister visited the office of WBIDC today. He has asked for preparation of a file on Singur and the chief secretary has called a meeting in the evening," Industry Secretary Dipankar Mukherjee told PTI.
Soon after assuming office on Friday Banerjee had said the government would return 400 acre from the abandoned Tata Motors' project at Singur to farmers who unwillingly parted with their land.
She had said the Tatas were welcome to set up a project on the remaining 600 acre of 1000 acre taken by the company for the Nano project, now shifted to Sanand in Gujarat.
The chief minister also said the government would make public the agreement reached between the erstwhile Left Front government and the Tatas.
Following a long-drawn political controversy which culminated in an agriculture-industry stand-off, the Tatas withdrew from the project in October 2008.
The Tatas were paying the annual rental till date for the land given on lease.
Emerging from a three-hour meetingof Lokpal Panel, Union Minister Kapil Sibal said, there was consensus on almost half of the 40 points brought to the table by the Anna Hazare's five-member team. He said, the discussion on the same would continue when the Joint Drafting Committee meets again on next Monday and the draft Lokpal Bill would be ready by June 30.
Mr Sibal said there was complete agreement on the issue of the authority of Lokpal being independent without any interference from the government. The minister said that there was also an agreement in the meeting that the Lokpal will have power to look into any matter of corruption against public servants.
Talking to media, prominent lawyer Prashant Bhushan said there was agreement on many issues raised by the civil society members and on some other issues the government had conveyed its in-principle acceptance but wanted more discussions on finer aspects. He said, with agreement on nearly 50 per cent of the basic principles, the Committee decided to direct the Legislative Department to begin drafting the Lokpal Bill.
AIR correspondent reports that Hazare's team presented a set of suggestions from some other civil society groups on the Lokpal Bill which also included recommendations of the public hearings on the issue held at various places across the country.
The government is likely to divest 5 per cent equity in state-owned engineering giant BHEL as part of the exercise to raise Rs 40,000 crore from disinvestment during the current financial year.
The stake sale in BHEL is likely to yield the government about Rs 4,500 crore at existing market prices.
"The board of directors of the company has recommended the disinvestment of 5 per cent of the paid-up equity of BHEL out of the government of India's shareholding," Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) said in a filing to the BSE.
The government currently holds 67.72 per cent equity in BHEL, which will come down to 62.72 per cent following the disinvestment.
The company further said that 10 per cent of the equity to be offloaded under the disinvestment programme would be reserved for employees.
BHEL, meanwhile, has also decided to split its equity shares of Rs 10 face value into five equity shares of Rs 2 each.
Shares of BHEL fell by over 7 per cent to Rs 1,923.8 on the Bombay Stock Exchange today.
During the current fiscal, the government has already raised Rs 1,162 crore through the divestment of a 5 per cent stake in Power Finance Corporation in May. A follow-on public offer by SAIL is likely to hit the market next month and another issue by ONGC in July.
Experts from radiation safety, nuclear technology and nuclear medicine said here at a seminar that nuclear power technology in India and the world was "matured and safe".
Speaking on 'Nuclear Energy: Perceptions and Reality' at a day-long seminar 'Nuclear Energy in India', hosted by the Vijnan Bharati here yesterday, former chairman of Atomic Energy Commission Anil Kakodkar stressed on scientific realities while demystifying certain perceptions about nuclear energy.
"India needs nuclear as well as solar energy to meet its huge energy requirement but at the same time commercial technology viability has to be taken into consideration," he said.
"It is unfortunate that those who are blindly anti-nuclear are ready only to listen to all unscientifically exaggerated facts and it seems the country is at crossroads.
"Although the nuclear technologies are mature and safe, still due to such argumentative mood created in the country recently, the projected power generation through the imported reactors has been further delayed. We have lost three years already," Kakodkar said.
Jairam Ramesh says IITs, IIMs good only because of students
Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh has slammed IITs and IIMs, saying the institutions are good only because of the students.
He said that there is no worthwhile research happening at the IITs and IIMs and the faculty is not world class.
While speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a public-private partnership tie-up with Reliance Industries for a bio-diversity centre in Delhi, Ramesh said, "IITs are surviving only because of their students. The faculty is not world class."
The minister said that only private institutions can be relied upon for meaningful research.
Ramesh, who was fielding questions on why he was unhappy with government institutions when he himself was a student of IIT, said, "There is no worthwhile research happening there...The only reason the IITs and IIMs are good is because they have good students."
"There is hardly any worthwhile research from our IITs. The faculty in the IIT is not world class. It is the students in IITs who are world class. So the IITs and IIMs are excellent because of the quality of students not because of quality of research or faculty," Ramesh, who is himself an alumni of IIT Mumbai, told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.
On his Ministry's decision to have a joint venture with Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) to set up a National Centre for Marine Biodiversity in Jamnagar, he said the decision was taken as a world class research centre cannot be built in a "Governmental set up" and can never attract young people.
Asked whether there was any conflict of interest in collaborating with Reliance, the Minister said, "Life is one large conflict of interest."
"We cannot build a world class research centre in a Governmental set up. The governmental set up can never attract young people. Never. Let us understand our experience in the last 60 years. Government research institutions can never attract young talent.
"So we want to think differently. We have to think differently, how we are going to organise our research institutions. And this is one way of building PPP," Ramesh said.
"So I have been to Jamnagar and we are in a PPP mode. We are having a joint venture with Reliance to set up a world class national centre for marine biodiversity," he said.
Jamnagar is also the site of India's first marine national park, the Minister said.
This would be a new centre that would be focussed exclusively on the conservation of our marine biodiversity, Ramesh said.
Karachi attack: India concerned about safety of Pakistan's nukes
ADDIS ABABA: In the wake of the audacious terror attack on a naval base in Karachi, one of Pakistan's most secure military facilities, India Monday voiced apprehensions about the safety of nuclear installations in the neighbouring country and pointed to the deepening divide there over the Afghan war.
"We are concerned with the safety of Pakistan's nuclear installations," senior officials, travelling with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Ethiopia , said here.
"The real risk is internal - who guards the guardians," the Indian officials asked while alluding to the Pakistani military establishment which controls Pakistan's nuclear arsenal.
"They seem to have embarked on a huge nuclear programme. They are building research reactors at Khusab," the officials said when asked about recent reports about Pakistan's ambitious plans to upgrade its nuclear weapons. According to western estimates, Pakistan is believed to have about 100 nuclear warheads.
"If anybody attacks us, there will be assured and massive retaliation. This is the meaning of credible deterrence," the officials added, while assuring on India's quantum of credible deterrence and New Delhi's nuclear doctrine that abjures the first use of nuclear weapons.
Manmohan Singh is here to attend the Africa-India summit Tuesday-Wednesday. Officials believe that the attack on the PNS Mehran naval base was the handiwork of those opposing the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan and underscored the internal divide in Pakistan over the Afghan war, a situation fraught with danger for New Delhi's security.
"It was a very organised assault on Pakistan's security forces. It's part of the Taliban war against those who are associated in Pakistan with the battle against the Afghan Taliban," the officials said.
"They are attacking that part of the security machine in Pakistan which has been associated with the war in Afghanistan," they said.
The Karachi attack, sources feel, is a reminder to India about the ever-present threat to its security from forces inimical to India's interests in the neighbouring country. The attack, coming as it did three weeks after the May 2 killing of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden by the US forces in Abbotabad, has led to Indian officials reviewing the security situation.
Sources stressed that India has ramped up coastal security and scaled up maritime policing following the 26/11 attack. The Karachi assault has further reinforced the need to beef up coastal security, the sources said.
Alluding to the precarious security situation in Afghanistan, Indian officials said New Delhi was alert to the possibility of terror attacks targeting its facilities in Afghanistan. "We have always been under threat. The primary threat comes from those who attacked us in Kabul," the sources said.
Manmohan Singh visited Afghanistan May 12 where he announced another $500 million assistance for the violence-ravaged country and underlined New Delhi's unflinching resolve to continue with its activities.
In New Delhi, Home Minister P. Chidambaram underlined that the attack on the Karachi base that began late Sunday and lasted for 15 hours killing 16 people, has highlighted the fact that India lives in a troubled neighbourhood.
"I have described our neighbourhood as a troubled neighbourhood. This incident once against points to that conclusion that our neighbourhood is a troubled neighbourhood," he said at a press conference when asked to comment on the attack in Pakistan. "We have to remain constantly on vigil and we remain vigilant round the clock," he said.
Chidambaram added that India was "not happy" about the Karachi incident. "In fact, we are sad that lives are lost. But that is today a troubled state."
Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and Time - SIX HUNDRED FORTY Five
Palash Biswas
http://indianholocaustmyfatherslifeandtime.blogspot.com/
http://basantipurtimes.blogspot.com/
23 MAY, 2011, 05.18AM IST, AVINASH CELESTINE,ET BUREAU
15,000 hectares acquired in Greater Noida using urgency clause since 1991
NEW DELHI: Over 15,000 hectares of land has been acquired in the Greater Noida region, near Delhi, in the last twenty years, using a controversial clause in the land acquisition act which allow governments to acquire land without giving landowners or others the right to a hearing.
Since mid-April, courts have struck down the UP government's acquisition of 433 hectares of land acquired through such means in Greater Noida. More such legal challenges to acquisitions made by the Greater Noida authority are currently pending in the courts.
The routine use of the urgency clause to acquire land is not unique to Mayawati. Successive governments, not just in UP, but across the country have used it regularly to speed up an otherwise slow process.
Under the Land Acquisition Act, governments that want to acquire land must give any person affected by the acquisition a right to make objections. In certain cases, however, where land is needed urgently, the government can skip the potentially time consuming process of hearings, and acquire the land immediately after issuing a notification. This was the key provision that many governments have used to acquire land, and was an important component of Mayawati's land acquisition strategy as well.
The 'urgency' provision was used to acquire land for the Yamuna expressway, and for industrial projects in Greater Noida. Interestingly, in the case of the Yamuna expressway, the Supreme Court in September last year upheld the Mayawati government's right to invoke the 'urgency' provision - but her luck ran out in April this year.
On 15th April this year, the Supreme Court struck down the acquisition of 205 hectares in Makora village, which falls under the purview of the Greater Noida authority. On 12th May, the Allahabad High Court using the April SC ruling as a precedent, struck down the acquisition of 156 hectares in Shahberi village. A day later, another ruling by the same two-judge bench struck down the acquisition of 72 hectares of land in the Surajpur village.
"In the last twenty years, almost all the land acquired by the government in Greater Noida has been done through the use of section 17 (the urgency clause)," said Akhilesh Singh, Deputy Chief executive officer of the Greater Noida Authority. Greater Noida authority officials told ET that the total land acquired in the area was 15,526 hectares since 1991.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/infrastructure/15000-hectares-acquired-in-greater-noida-using-urgency-clause-since-1991/articleshow/8522368.cms
Govt to offload 5% equity in BHEL to raise Rs 4,500 cr.Govt to soon finalise rs 40,000 crore disinvestment roadmap, says DoD official!The Reserve Bank today allowed foreign institutional investors (FIIs) to hedge foreign currency risks arising out of investment in IPOs made through ASBA route.
Pushing Hard for Nuclear Brahamin Nation with Second Generation of Reforms!
India Monday voiced apprehensions about the safety of nuclear installations in the neighbouring country and pointed to the deepening divide there over the Afghan war.
Nuclear energy will continue to be an inevitable option for India as other alternative renewable energy sources, including solar, will take few more years to establish as a commercially viable technology, according to scientists. Only yesterday, Washington Slave Prime Minister of LPG Mafia Government Dr. Manmohan Singh underlined TOPMOST Priorty as INFRASTRUCTURE and Energy! Go ahead for Nuclear Energy with NUCLER Plants Cluster like JAITAPUR!Kapil SIBAL Pushes for KNOWLEDGE Economy killing the RIGHT to EDUCATION! PRANAB clears decks for ETNIC Cleansing and Mass Destruction with Reforms ensuring the DISINVESTMENT of Indian ECONOMY!Caste census denied and BPL Census Introduced to divert OBC as Constitutional safeguards as well as the CONSTITUTION itself KILED!
Green Revolution had been the First gate for Neo Liberalism in India. Second Green Revolution means the Strategic Marketing of FREE market genocide Culture in Rural India and aborigin Humanscape! Now, the NERO of India Power Politics,Sharad Pawar asks corporates to tap the vast opportunities in the agriculture sector!
Proactive Brahaminical CIVIL Society, Intelligentsia, India Incs and MNCs, MEDIA and Policy makers do everything to push for US Sponsered Pro democratic Movement to sustain Manusmriti Rule in FREE MARKET Society killing Excluded Communities. LOKPAL jan Bidheyak Movement cries against CORRUPTION but defends the interest of LPG Mafia as NOTHING is said against Foreign Capital Inflow or Economic Reforms or REPRESSION or UID or AFPSA or Arms Race or Nuclear Energy or DISPLACEMENT or Naked Violation of Human and Civil rights.Meanwhile,negotiations on a draft Lokpal Bill on Monday gained momentum with Government and civil society members agreeing on a number of basic principles of the proposed law.
Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh today slammed the faculty of the prestigious IITs and IIMs, saying these educational institutions are "not world class" but are "excellent" because of the quality of students.
The government will soon finalise the roadmap to raise a whopping Rs 40,000 crore through disinvestment during the current fiscal.
It will include sale of equity in blue chip companies like SAIL and ONGC.
"Cabinet has so far given approval for the disinvestment of four state-run firms - PFC , SAIL, ONGC and HCL . We are in talks with various ministries and working on a roadmap that should be finalised by June-end," Department of Disinvestment additional secretary Siddharth Pradhan told PTI.
Exuding confidence that DoD would be able to achieve the Rs 40,000 crore target for the current fiscal, he said by way of share sales of the identified four PSUs through follow -on offers, a little over Rs 15,000 crore was expected to be garnered.
The government has already raised Rs 1,162 crore by divesting five per cent stake in Power Finance Corporation in May. The follow-on public offer of SAIL is likely to hit the market next month and ONGC in July. Share sale programme of Hindustan Copper (HCL) is yet to take a concrete shape.
When asked about the potential PSUs that could hit the market this fiscal, Pradhan while refusing to divulge details, maintained that his department was in touch with Steel, Mines, Heavy Industries and Petroleum & Natural Gas Ministries for identifying the companies.
The government, according to sources, have already identified RINL, MMTC and NBCC for stake sale and would be required to add more companies to the list to achieve Rs 40,000 crore target during 2011-12.
The government had proposed a disinvestment target of Rs 95,000 crore from sale of shares in public sector companies over the next three fiscals, including Rs 40,000 crore in the current fiscal.
Against the same Rs 40,000 crore target set for the last fiscal, the government is estimated to have raised only Rs 22,400 crore by way of disinvestment in PSU companies. The gap could have been bridged a little more had the movement of the market not been topsy-turvy towards the end of the last fiscal.
Currently, the total receipts stands at Rs 99,738.92 crore from the government's various disinvestment programmes, ever since they begun in the financial year 1991-92, as per the data available with the Department of Disinvestment.
The government's disinvestment policy states that the government has to retain majority shareholding of at least 51 per cent and management control of the PSUs.
The policy also calls for listing of unlisted CPSEs with no accumulated losses and having earned net profit in three preceding consecutive years.
"Initial Public Offers (IPO) related transient capital flows under the Application Supported by Blocked Amount(ASBA) mechanism, foreign currency-rupee swaps may be permitted to the FIIs," the RBI said.
Foreign currency rupee swaps for hedging flows under ASBA, RBI said, will be available for 30 days only.
The initiative is likely to facilitate FII investments under the ASBA route into equity market.
Under the Application Supported By Blocked Amount (ASBA) facility, the application money of investors remains blocked in his bank account until the process of allotment of shares is completed.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had introduced ASBA facility for public offers first in September 2008 when retail investors were allowed to use it.
The facility eliminates any delays related to refunds for the unallocated shares. Initially, it was offered to retail investors only and was given to other investors in 2009.
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar today asked corporates to tap the vast opportunities available in the agriculture sector, especially in research.
He was addressing the industry representatives and scientists after inaugurating the ICAR--Industry Meet, 2011.
The minister asked industrialists to have closer interaction with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and develop demand-driven technologies for benefit of small farmers and other marginalised social groups.
"Though ICAR's efforts towards technology commercialisation and use of technology for benefit of the poor have given encouraging results, ICAR and industry need to identify priorities and evolve mutually agreed R&D strategies," Pawar said.
The Meet was organised by ICAR in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industries ( CII )).
More than 160 industry representatives and entrepreneurs participated in the day-long meet.
Talking of the potential of agri-business in creating employment, Pawar said that a new cadre of agri-entrepreneurs needs to be created.
"In addition, agri-businesses have the potential to create employment by means of value addition to primary agriculture", the minister said.
Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Processing Industries , Harish Rawat, emphasised on the need for public- private partnership models to strengthen rural infrastructure to support faster agricultural development.
West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation to prepare file on Singur!
The West Bengal government today asked authorities to prepare a file on Singur, just days after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the 400 acre land acquired from the farmers there for the abandoned Tata Motors' project would be returned.
Commerce and Industry minister Partha Chatterjee asked the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) to prepare the file on Singur.
"The minister visited the office of WBIDC today. He has asked for preparation of a file on Singur and the chief secretary has called a meeting in the evening," Industry Secretary Dipankar Mukherjee told PTI.
Soon after assuming office on Friday Banerjee had said the government would return 400 acre from the abandoned Tata Motors' project at Singur to farmers who unwillingly parted with their land.
She had said the Tatas were welcome to set up a project on the remaining 600 acre of 1000 acre taken by the company for the Nano project, now shifted to Sanand in Gujarat.
The chief minister also said the government would make public the agreement reached between the erstwhile Left Front government and the Tatas.
Following a long-drawn political controversy which culminated in an agriculture-industry stand-off, the Tatas withdrew from the project in October 2008.
The Tatas were paying the annual rental till date for the land given on lease.
Emerging from a three-hour meetingof Lokpal Panel, Union Minister Kapil Sibal said, there was consensus on almost half of the 40 points brought to the table by the Anna Hazare's five-member team. He said, the discussion on the same would continue when the Joint Drafting Committee meets again on next Monday and the draft Lokpal Bill would be ready by June 30.
Mr Sibal said there was complete agreement on the issue of the authority of Lokpal being independent without any interference from the government. The minister said that there was also an agreement in the meeting that the Lokpal will have power to look into any matter of corruption against public servants.
Talking to media, prominent lawyer Prashant Bhushan said there was agreement on many issues raised by the civil society members and on some other issues the government had conveyed its in-principle acceptance but wanted more discussions on finer aspects. He said, with agreement on nearly 50 per cent of the basic principles, the Committee decided to direct the Legislative Department to begin drafting the Lokpal Bill.
AIR correspondent reports that Hazare's team presented a set of suggestions from some other civil society groups on the Lokpal Bill which also included recommendations of the public hearings on the issue held at various places across the country.
The government is likely to divest 5 per cent equity in state-owned engineering giant BHEL as part of the exercise to raise Rs 40,000 crore from disinvestment during the current financial year.
The stake sale in BHEL is likely to yield the government about Rs 4,500 crore at existing market prices.
"The board of directors of the company has recommended the disinvestment of 5 per cent of the paid-up equity of BHEL out of the government of India's shareholding," Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) said in a filing to the BSE.
The government currently holds 67.72 per cent equity in BHEL, which will come down to 62.72 per cent following the disinvestment.
The company further said that 10 per cent of the equity to be offloaded under the disinvestment programme would be reserved for employees.
BHEL, meanwhile, has also decided to split its equity shares of Rs 10 face value into five equity shares of Rs 2 each.
Shares of BHEL fell by over 7 per cent to Rs 1,923.8 on the Bombay Stock Exchange today.
During the current fiscal, the government has already raised Rs 1,162 crore through the divestment of a 5 per cent stake in Power Finance Corporation in May. A follow-on public offer by SAIL is likely to hit the market next month and another issue by ONGC in July.
Experts from radiation safety, nuclear technology and nuclear medicine said here at a seminar that nuclear power technology in India and the world was "matured and safe".
Speaking on 'Nuclear Energy: Perceptions and Reality' at a day-long seminar 'Nuclear Energy in India', hosted by the Vijnan Bharati here yesterday, former chairman of Atomic Energy Commission Anil Kakodkar stressed on scientific realities while demystifying certain perceptions about nuclear energy.
"India needs nuclear as well as solar energy to meet its huge energy requirement but at the same time commercial technology viability has to be taken into consideration," he said.
"It is unfortunate that those who are blindly anti-nuclear are ready only to listen to all unscientifically exaggerated facts and it seems the country is at crossroads.
"Although the nuclear technologies are mature and safe, still due to such argumentative mood created in the country recently, the projected power generation through the imported reactors has been further delayed. We have lost three years already," Kakodkar said.
Jairam Ramesh says IITs, IIMs good only because of students
Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh has slammed IITs and IIMs, saying the institutions are good only because of the students.
He said that there is no worthwhile research happening at the IITs and IIMs and the faculty is not world class.
While speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a public-private partnership tie-up with Reliance Industries for a bio-diversity centre in Delhi, Ramesh said, "IITs are surviving only because of their students. The faculty is not world class."
The minister said that only private institutions can be relied upon for meaningful research.
Ramesh, who was fielding questions on why he was unhappy with government institutions when he himself was a student of IIT, said, "There is no worthwhile research happening there...The only reason the IITs and IIMs are good is because they have good students."
"There is hardly any worthwhile research from our IITs. The faculty in the IIT is not world class. It is the students in IITs who are world class. So the IITs and IIMs are excellent because of the quality of students not because of quality of research or faculty," Ramesh, who is himself an alumni of IIT Mumbai, told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.
On his Ministry's decision to have a joint venture with Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) to set up a National Centre for Marine Biodiversity in Jamnagar, he said the decision was taken as a world class research centre cannot be built in a "Governmental set up" and can never attract young people.
Asked whether there was any conflict of interest in collaborating with Reliance, the Minister said, "Life is one large conflict of interest."
"We cannot build a world class research centre in a Governmental set up. The governmental set up can never attract young people. Never. Let us understand our experience in the last 60 years. Government research institutions can never attract young talent.
"So we want to think differently. We have to think differently, how we are going to organise our research institutions. And this is one way of building PPP," Ramesh said.
"So I have been to Jamnagar and we are in a PPP mode. We are having a joint venture with Reliance to set up a world class national centre for marine biodiversity," he said.
Jamnagar is also the site of India's first marine national park, the Minister said.
This would be a new centre that would be focussed exclusively on the conservation of our marine biodiversity, Ramesh said.
Karachi attack: India concerned about safety of Pakistan's nukes
ADDIS ABABA: In the wake of the audacious terror attack on a naval base in Karachi, one of Pakistan's most secure military facilities, India Monday voiced apprehensions about the safety of nuclear installations in the neighbouring country and pointed to the deepening divide there over the Afghan war.
"We are concerned with the safety of Pakistan's nuclear installations," senior officials, travelling with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Ethiopia , said here.
"The real risk is internal - who guards the guardians," the Indian officials asked while alluding to the Pakistani military establishment which controls Pakistan's nuclear arsenal.
"They seem to have embarked on a huge nuclear programme. They are building research reactors at Khusab," the officials said when asked about recent reports about Pakistan's ambitious plans to upgrade its nuclear weapons. According to western estimates, Pakistan is believed to have about 100 nuclear warheads.
"If anybody attacks us, there will be assured and massive retaliation. This is the meaning of credible deterrence," the officials added, while assuring on India's quantum of credible deterrence and New Delhi's nuclear doctrine that abjures the first use of nuclear weapons.
Manmohan Singh is here to attend the Africa-India summit Tuesday-Wednesday. Officials believe that the attack on the PNS Mehran naval base was the handiwork of those opposing the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan and underscored the internal divide in Pakistan over the Afghan war, a situation fraught with danger for New Delhi's security.
"It was a very organised assault on Pakistan's security forces. It's part of the Taliban war against those who are associated in Pakistan with the battle against the Afghan Taliban," the officials said.
"They are attacking that part of the security machine in Pakistan which has been associated with the war in Afghanistan," they said.
The Karachi attack, sources feel, is a reminder to India about the ever-present threat to its security from forces inimical to India's interests in the neighbouring country. The attack, coming as it did three weeks after the May 2 killing of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden by the US forces in Abbotabad, has led to Indian officials reviewing the security situation.
Sources stressed that India has ramped up coastal security and scaled up maritime policing following the 26/11 attack. The Karachi assault has further reinforced the need to beef up coastal security, the sources said.
Alluding to the precarious security situation in Afghanistan, Indian officials said New Delhi was alert to the possibility of terror attacks targeting its facilities in Afghanistan. "We have always been under threat. The primary threat comes from those who attacked us in Kabul," the sources said.
Manmohan Singh visited Afghanistan May 12 where he announced another $500 million assistance for the violence-ravaged country and underlined New Delhi's unflinching resolve to continue with its activities.
In New Delhi, Home Minister P. Chidambaram underlined that the attack on the Karachi base that began late Sunday and lasted for 15 hours killing 16 people, has highlighted the fact that India lives in a troubled neighbourhood.
"I have described our neighbourhood as a troubled neighbourhood. This incident once against points to that conclusion that our neighbourhood is a troubled neighbourhood," he said at a press conference when asked to comment on the attack in Pakistan. "We have to remain constantly on vigil and we remain vigilant round the clock," he said.
Chidambaram added that India was "not happy" about the Karachi incident. "In fact, we are sad that lives are lost. But that is today a troubled state."
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Parsvnath SEZ, Unitech Realty Projects, Uttam Galva Steelsa and others seeks more time to implement projects
Reflecting lack of enthusiasm for the special economic zones, as many as 53 developers including Parsvnath SEZ , Unitech Realty Projects and Uttam Galva Steels have sought more time from the government for implementing their projects.
Reliance Haryana SEZ , NIIT Technologies , Navi Mumbai SEZ , Indiabulls Industrial Infrastructure and Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd have also requested for additional time from the Board of Approval (BoA), headed by Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar, an official said.
BoA, a 19-member inter-ministerial body that deals with special economic zones (SEZs) related matters, is scheduled to meet on May 31.
Another 6 promoters have approached the Commerce Ministry for surrendering their projects.
The developers, who have requested for denotification, have cited reasons like global economic slowdown, problems related to land acquisition and imposition of minimum alternative tax (MAT) on the developers and units.
The developers who have approached for denotification of their tax free enclaves include Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation for its sector specific SEZ and Satyam Computer Services for its IT/ITeS zone.
According to an industry expert, uncertainty over tax exemptions to new SEZs has also led to declining interest in the tax free enclaves. Investors are apprehensive about the new draft Direct Taxes Code (DTC).
18/05/2011
Postcards from Indian Premier League: Images
Preity Zinta getting addicted to cricket, Shane Warne and Liz Hurley so much in love, the Dalai Lama and Dale Steyn special moment and a lot lot more in our continued coverage of IPL-4 postcards. Sit back and enjoy
Ready for a big one
Preity Zinta just seems too obsessed with the game of cricket at this stage and you did see her swinging arms from the stands in every game featuring the Kings XI but now, she has gone that extra mile. The bollywood hottie tried her hand at the willow shortly after the game at Dharamshala.
"There is no violence in the state. Some of you are creating such things. Some political papers are instigating,"Banerjee told media persons here. more by Mamata Banerjee - 1 hour ago - Times of India(1 occurrences)
"Price rise, corruption and incompetence are the USPs of UPA government. The report card deserves only one remark 'failed'," Swaraj said on Twitter. more by Sushma Swaraj - 1 hour ago - Hindustan Times(8 occurrences)
Timeline of articles
Number of sources covering this story 'Political papers' instigating people to violence: Mamata Banerjee 1 hour ago - Times of India Mamata allots portfolios, keeps key ministries May 21, 2011 - IBNLive.com Singur land return kicks off Mamata power stint May 20, 2011 - Times of India Didi's Writers' tryst 18 yrs after being thrown out May 20, 2011 - Deccan Herald Images
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France wants greater investment in Indian infrastructure
India- France cooperation in infrastructure and energy development is bound to increase, as the two sides forge greater partnerships and pledge more investments, says French Ambassador Jerome Bonnafont.
"There is tremendous interest in France in the Indian infrastructure sector and its development. Many companies do come to India and recently, many more came along with President Nicolas Sarkozy when he visited India last year," Bonnafont told IANS.
According to the ambassador, investment in key sectors like infrastructure development and nuclear energy is bound to increase.
"Currently French investment in the infrastructure sector in India is around 10 million euros, which is continuing from 2008 to 2012. This figure is expected to go up exponentially in the coming time."
He said this at a commemorative ceremony Thursday night where he conferred the highest French civilian honour "Chevalier de l 'Ordre de la Legion d' Honneur" on leading Indian industrialists Rahul Bajaj of Bajaj Auto Ltd and Bharat Forge's Baba Kalyani.
"It was President Sarkozy's wish that we honour eminent personalities who have contributed to sustainable growth of industry and society in India," Bonnafont said.
Bajaj, chairman of Bajaj Auto Ltd, said: "It is indeed a great honour to receive this recognition. It is a great honour for the members of the Bajaj Group and a tribute to the spirit of entrepreneurship."
Currently, both Bharat Forge and Bajaj Auto are in partnership with some French majors like engineering and energy giant Alstom and automobile major Renault for introducing new product lineups like nuclear power plants and entry level passenger vehicles.
The French Republic confers the 'Order of the Legion' on French and foreign nationals in recognition of their achievements in various fields of society, industry and social development. The award was instituted in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte .
20 MAY, 2011, 10.27AM IST,ET BUREAU
Real estate headed for a significant correction
At long last, India's overpriced real estate market could come back to earth with a thud. Developers trying to sell costly property cannot find buyers, who in turn find themselves squeezed out of the market by rising mortgage costs and inflated property prices.
Inventory, jargon for built-up homes that haven't been sold, is piling up. Fittingly, a full 25% of total units remain unsold in Mumbai , where real estate rates are the least realistic; Chennai and Pune follow with 19% units unsold, 16% of units can't be sold in Delhi and its surroundings, followed by Bangalore and Kolkata.
Developers who find themselves unable to sell built units cannot pay back loans and find it hard to raise capital for new projects. Sensible economics suggests that if they can't sell at high prices, they should cut rates and find buyers. But most builders would rather hold on, hoping for gullible buyers to buy dream homes at prices dreamt up by the sellers.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that many builders are selling land holdings to finance loans, rather than cut prices. This too is good, because it will bring more land back into the market, creating further pressure for property prices to fall. For many years, India has not seen a property crash, so many people still believe in the phrase 'safe as houses.' But globally, property has been prone to long cycles of price appreciation and decline.
To some extent, the Indian real estate market has been immune from price cycles because of the prevalence of cash transactions in this sector. But with almost all regulators, including the RBI, tightening screws on the property market and trying to trace money trails for high value transactions, it's just become harder to do cash trades.
For salaried professionals , cash was never an option, so the easy money, low interest rate regime earlier was a good time to get cheap mortgages and buy homes. But with interest rates hardening , these people have become cautious about what prices they're willing to pay for real estate. This too is welcome: it'll force builders to build homes that buyers can afford, rather than try and peddle overpriced merchandise . All markets have gone through corrections, it's time real estate also got its reality check.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/real-estate/news-/real-estate-headed-for-a-significant-correction/articleshow/8459488.cms
23 MAY, 2011, 08.29PM IST, NAGESHWAR PATNAIK,ET BUREAU
Orissa government resumes land acquisition for Posco steel plant, UAC decides to cooperate with administration
BHUBANESWAR: Orissa government on Monday resumed the land acquisition process for the Rs 52,000 crore Posco mega steel plant near Paradip in Jagatsinghpur district after a two day break amid tight security with 700 policemen deployed in the area.
The authorities acquired over a dozen betel vine plantations at Polanga and Noliasahi since morning and paid the compensation. "Land acquisition, which was suspended for the last two day, resumed peacefully today [Monday]," Paradip additional district magistrate Sarojkant Choudhury said.
Members of the United Action Committee (UAC), who had gone dharna at Gada Kujanga last week demanding fulfillment of their 29-point demands, decided to cooperate with the administration following an understanding with authorities.
"We decided to extend full cooperation to the government in land acquisition following talks with senior officials including Jagatsinghpur district collector this morning," UAC President Anadi Rout said adding that most of their major demands like hike in compensation and jobs to affected families would be considered favourably at the meeting convened by the revenue divisional commissioner on May 30.
Even as UAC gave up its oppositionto land acquisition, traditional opponents of the Posco project - Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) and the Bhitamati Suraksha Manch (BMSM) - have stuck to their stand. But their strength is limited to Dhinkia village, which the state government has decided not to acquire.
PPSS members staged protests at Dhinkia and Gobindpur and that of the BMSM put up a blockade near Nuagaon. Protesters, however, now pin their hopes on the Orissa High Court's verdict on public interest litigation [PIL] to direct the state government to stop land acquisition for the South Korean steel major.
The High Court on Friday sent notices to the state government and its agencies on the ongoing land acquisition based on a PIL filed by villagers from Dhinkia, Nuagaon and Gada Kujang in Jagatsinghpur district. All these areas will be affected by the Rs 52,000 crore mega project. The villagers have accused the Naveen Patnaik government and Jagatsinghpur district administration of violating the forest act while acquiring their land forcibly.
The parties have been directed to submit their replies by May 24. The next hearing of the case has been scheduled for May 25.
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