India’s Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, congratulated all the scientists of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), for the successful launch of PSLV-C19 which carried the Radar Imaging Satellite RISAT-1. The following is the text of the Prime Minister’s message: “I would like to warmly congratulate all scientists of...
NEW DELHI: The Tatra trucks being supplied to the Indian Army are obsolete, running on fuel-guzzling old engines with mechanical transmissions that are years behind the rest of the world, Army sources said. The details are believed to be part of Army chief General V K Singh’s inputs to...
CHANDIGARH: Hundreds of Army personnel posted at the Military Engineer Services (MES), who were put in a situation where they had to work under their juniors on repatriation to the Corps of Engineers, have been granted relief by the Armed Forces Tribunal. “When persons working in the MES go...
MUMBAI: Britain’s largest asset management company Schroders has acquired a 25% stake in Axis Bank-promoted Axis Mutual Fund for an undisclosed amount. The deal will help the Indian fund house access Schroders’ global distribution network and advise overseas funds invested in Indian securities. The Economic Times had written on...
MUMBAI: The Cabinet-approved Banking Amendments Bill proposing a rise in public sector bank shareholders’ voting rights may see investors vie for larger stakes and a greater say. The cap on voting rights is proposed to be raised from one to 10 per cent in public sector banks (PSBs) and...
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday told Lok Sabha the retrospective amendments to the tax laws proposed in the Budget will not have any impact on foreign investment, just after the new US ambassador to India raised the issue at a business function. The proposed amendments will...
NEW DELHI: An expert panel of the Planning Commission has pulled up the finance ministry for underestimating the food subsidy in the Budget, saying the unrealistic assessment would lead to avoidable payment of arrears and interest payouts. A working group for the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17) said in...
KOLKATA: Coal India plans to take an aggressive stand against power producers and set a deadline after which it will not sign fuel supply agreements (FSAs) with the companies, as the state monopoly fights back after being arm-twisted to commit long-term fuel supply. Coal India’s board has already decided...
MUMBAI: Foreign portfolio investors seem to have taken a fancy for equity mutual funds these days, even as their domestic counterparts are reducing exposure to such funds. Better onshore fund management capabilities of Indian fund managers coupled with high levels of transparency and exposure to quality second-line stocks are...
NEW DELHI: India’s five mobile phone companies including Bharti Airtel on Friday accused the telecom regulator of issuing a ‘highly retrograde set of recommendations on spectrum auctions’ and demanded that communications minister Kapil Sibal reject all key proposals suggested by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). Using unusually...
By Harihar Swarup One does not known whose victory it was; of the RTI or of President Pratibha Patil? Presuming there was no RTI, she would have jolly well gone and constructed her post-retirement mansion in Pune. Three cheers to the activists, who raised the issue, had their way...
From P. Sreekumaran THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The uncharacteristic unity displayed by the constituents of the ruling United Democratic Front (UDF) to win the crucial Piravom by-election has vanished into the thin air. And the partners of the UDF are back at what they are best at doing: squabbling for the spoils...
NEW DELHI: Billionaire Lakshmi N. Mittal and an Indian oil (IOCL) company are formally opening a $4 billion refinery on the northern border with Pakistan as the countries that have fought three wars seek to stimulate trade. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is slated to inaugurate the plant tomorrow,...
NEW DELHI: The oil ministry has asked for a tax cut of Rs 6 per litre on petrol to help avoid a sharp rise in retail price of the fuel, but the finance ministry, which has already surrendered Rs 49,000 crore by reducing various levies of fuels last year,...
NEW DELHI: With India, Pakistan and Afghanistan reaching a broad understanding on the issue of transit fee for import of natural gas through the proposed $7.6 billion Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India (TAPI) pipeline project, the nations concerned are likely to meet next month to sort out the issue...
MUMBAI: Energy companies operating in Mozambique, which reported one of the world’s biggest natural gas discoveries in recent years, are eyeing the vast Indian market and have started discussions with state energy firms, hoping that the African nation will follow Qatar’s footsteps in shipping vast quantities of gas to...
CHENNAI: The country, particularly south India, is facing an acute shortage of liquefied petroleum gas, something that the state-owned oil marketing companies attribute to a combination of factors, including financial constraints in the backdrop of their mounting under-recoveries. “It is a crisis and prevails, ironically, during the beginning of...
COLOMBO: The Lanka Indian Oil Corporation has stepped in to offer support to Sri Lanka at a critical juncture. Its only refinery, Sapugaskanda, can only process Iranian crude efficiently. With U.S. sanctions looming, the refinery needs to be urgently revamped to function with better efficiency. The Lanka IOC, a...