Videocon Mobile to provide pan-India services in 2-3 years

Videocon Mobile Services, which operates in seven of the 22 telecom circles, today said it intends to cover the entire country within 2-3 years. "The company is a national player in telecom sector and has ambition to start services across the country in two to three years," Arvind Bali, Director and CEO, Videocon Mobile Services told reporters.

Also read: Videocon Mobile to provide pan-India services in 2-3 years

In order to provide unmatched network experience in Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh (MP-CG) circle, the company plans to add 1,550 cell sites to its existing 2,800-plus sites within the next two months, he said. As part of its commitment to roll-out 4G services, the company has prepared a roadmap and commenced network planning to provide the next level of mobile communications, Bali said. The company plans commercial roll-out of 4G services by March 2014, he said.

The telecom major at present has footprints in MP-CG, Punjab, Haryana, UP-East, UP-West, Gujarat and Bihar circles. Videocon's current subscriber base stands at seven lakh in MP-CG circle and it is adding 1-1.5 lakh customers every month to its fold, Bali added.

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How impact investing could affect biz in India

The Rockefeller Foundation reports that impact investing is set to grow at an annual pace of 30 percent. India is the second-largest market for impact investing after the US, with USD 500 million worth of investments made in 2012 alone. But what does this mean?

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.

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Nokia's performance not related to my decision: Shivakumar

Nokia's operations head for India, West Asia and Africa D Shivakumar quit the Finnish handset major after an eight-year stint with the company.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, he said the decision to quit was not related to Nokia's performance. Shivakumar was based in Dubai for more than 1.5 years and is now keen on returning to India because he feels India is still a growth market and offers lot of opportunities.

Also read: Income tax officials fine Nokia, court issues stay

Shivakumar will continue to serve Nokia till June 30, 2013.

Below is the edited transcript of D Shivakumar's interview with CNBC-TV18

Q: Why exactly are you leaving Nokia?

A: Nokia has been very dear to my heart. I have been in Dubai for the last 18 months. I have done what has been needed of me here. I really looked at the future and I felt that the future was in the market like India, which is in my mind still a growth market.

It is full of opportunities for professionals and that's the reason I thought I should come back to India and that's the main reason. I want to come back because India is the place where there is future opportunity.

Q: Nokia is going through particularly difficult time. It is struggling in the smartphone segment; the market share has been under pressure. Moreover, the I-T department has slapped a Rs 2,000 crore demand notice on the company. The timing of your departure raises questions. How will Nokia cope?

A: The tax issue is a separate case. We have completely cooperated with the government and had given them all the help which is necessary because we always believe in being good citizens in every country we operate.

The challenges of the market will continue like we have seen challenges in smartphones and dual-SIM. We have seen challenges in touch phones in the past, but every time Nokia has come back and done a good job.

Business challenges will always continue. As far as the tax issue is concerned, we are working very closely with the government and it has absolutely no correlation with my decision.

Q: What are your plans posts Nokia? Have you made up your mind and you intend doing?

A: I have to do a proper handover for the next three months in Nokia. I have to ensure that my successor settles down well and after that I will decide, till then I have not really thought about it.

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DDA extends lease for Taj Palace Hotel to IHCL for 25 years

Tata group hospitality major Indian Hotels Company ( IHCL ) today said lease of its Taj Palace Hotel in the city has been renewed for 25 years from April 1 this year.

"The Indian Hotels Company Limited (Taj Group) is pleased to confirm that it has received the consent from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) confirming renewal of the license for the Taj Palace Hotel, Sardar Patel Marg, New Delhi for a further period of 25 years effective from April 1, 2013," the company said in a statement.

Also read: Low demand hits room rates, profit: Hotel Leela's Nair

The Taj had originally entered into an agreement for the construction and license of the hotel with DDA for 30 years effective from April 1, 1983. The Taj will thus continue to operate the hotel till March 31, 2038, it added.

Commenting on development IHCL Managing Director Raymond Bickson said: "IHCL has enjoyed a very cordial and beneficial business association with Delhi Development Authority over the past three decades and this recent development will further strengthen our partnership with DDA in the years to come."

IHCL and its subsidiaries are collectively known as Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces.

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Nokia's performance not related to my decision: Shivakumar

Nokia's operations head for India, West Asia and Africa D Shivakumar quit the Finnish handset major after an eight-year stint with the company.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, he said the decision to quit was not related to Nokia's performance. Shivakumar was based in Dubai for more than 1.5 years and is now keen on returning to India because he feels India is still a growth market and offers lot of opportunities.

Also read: Income tax officials fine Nokia, court issues stay

Shivakumar will continue to serve Nokia till June 30, 2013.

Below is the edited transcript of D Shivakumar's interview with CNBC-TV18

Q: Why exactly are you leaving Nokia?

A: Nokia has been very dear to my heart. I have been in Dubai for the last 18 months. I have done what has been needed of me here. I really looked at the future and I felt that the future was in the market like India, which is in my mind still a growth market.

It is full of opportunities for professionals and that's the reason I thought I should come back to India and that's the main reason. I want to come back because India is the place where there is future opportunity.

Q: Nokia is going through particularly difficult time. It is struggling in the smartphone segment; the market share has been under pressure. Moreover, the I-T department has slapped a Rs 2,000 crore demand notice on the company. The timing of your departure raises questions. How will Nokia cope?

A: The tax issue is a separate case. We have completely cooperated with the government and had given them all the help which is necessary because we always believe in being good citizens in every country we operate.

The challenges of the market will continue like we have seen challenges in smartphones and dual-SIM. We have seen challenges in touch phones in the past, but every time Nokia has come back and done a good job.

Business challenges will always continue. As far as the tax issue is concerned, we are working very closely with the government and it has absolutely no correlation with my decision.

Q: What are your plans posts Nokia? Have you made up your mind and you intend doing?

A: I have to do a proper handover for the next three months in Nokia. I have to ensure that my successor settles down well and after that I will decide, till then I have not really thought about it.

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DDA extends lease for Taj Palace Hotel to IHCL for 25 years

Tata group hospitality major Indian Hotels Company ( IHCL ) today said lease of its Taj Palace Hotel in the city has been renewed for 25 years from April 1 this year.

"The Indian Hotels Company Limited (Taj Group) is pleased to confirm that it has received the consent from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) confirming renewal of the license for the Taj Palace Hotel, Sardar Patel Marg, New Delhi for a further period of 25 years effective from April 1, 2013," the company said in a statement.

Also read: Low demand hits room rates, profit: Hotel Leela's Nair

The Taj had originally entered into an agreement for the construction and license of the hotel with DDA for 30 years effective from April 1, 1983. The Taj will thus continue to operate the hotel till March 31, 2038, it added.

Commenting on development IHCL Managing Director Raymond Bickson said: "IHCL has enjoyed a very cordial and beneficial business association with Delhi Development Authority over the past three decades and this recent development will further strengthen our partnership with DDA in the years to come."

IHCL and its subsidiaries are collectively known as Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces.

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Low taxes, infra key to aviation biz take-off not FDI: IATA

In an interview CNBC-TV18 director general & CEO, IATA Tony Tyler pointed out that lower taxes, tighter control on costs and creation of adequate infrastructure are key to a business environment that will lure increased investment into the aviation sector.

"I don't think I have ever been bearish about the Indian market. I have been only concerned about some of the policies that make it very difficult to exploit the market profitably for airlines," he added.

Below is an edited transcript of the interview on CNBC-TV18

Q: A few months ago you seemed very bearish on India. Since then, the government announced a slew of reforms including the liberalisation of the aviation sector by allowing foreign direct investment (FDI). Do you still continue to be as pessimistic and bearish?

A: I don't think I have ever been bearish about the Indian market. I have been only concerned about some of the policies that make it very difficult to exploit the market profitably for airlines such as in the high taxation, high costs and inadequate infrastructure. Those three big problems still exist though foreign airlines have abeen allowed to invest directly in Indian carriers and the doing away of the process of going through a committee to bring aircraft into the fleet.

Q: Despite Etihad's interest in Jet Airways , the deal hasn't been closed. Air Asia's has application to commence operations in India has been cleared by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB ). Do you believe there are going to be more foreign companies planning to pick up stake in Indian airlines or entities like Air Asia who want to start a greenfield operation?

A: It is very positive to see both investing in the Indian aviation market. But allowing foreign direct investment into Indian carriers is not in itself a panacea. There is still a need for joint policy making to create the right business environment. If you want to lure investments, there has to be an attractive framework consisting of lower taxes, tighter cost control and creating adequate infrastructure.

Q: With the Indian economy affected by a considerable slowdown, how do you see the Indian aviation market shaping up?

A: Generally, aviation traffic growth usually runs at about twice the number of the figure of gross domestic product (GDP) growth. So, if GDP growth comes down, growth in aviation and air traffic often comes down as well. We will have to see what happens here in India because other factors of course come into play as well such as the stimulus from new carriers or entry of increase capacity. Though Kingfisher's exit dampened the market last year, I wouldn't be surprised if there isn't some recovery this year.

Q: What is your assessment about the current fracas between Kingfisher 's lessors, the government and the airline in question and how it is likely to impact investment in India?

A: It's a story like any business that goes out of business. If you let your costs run away from your revenues then you are on a slippery slope. And I guess that's what happened to Kingfisher.

Certainly some leasing companies and banks would have got their fingers burnt. It is very important that the Indian government facilitates the cleaning up of any leases and allowing lessors to repossess their aircraft from Kingfisher if Kingfisher is unable to pay, without constraint because if they don't do that they are going to make the environment very difficult for other carriers in India who want to lease aircraft.

So, it is important that the lease contracts are followed and the lessors are able to get their hands on the aircraft again if they are in default.

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NLC invites bids to buy coal mines overseas

State-owned Nevyeli Lignite Corporation (NLC) has invited bids from global firms to acquire coal assets overseas for providing fuel security to its thermal power plants.

"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.

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Low taxes, infra key to aviation biz take-off not FDI: IATA

In an interview CNBC-TV18 director general & CEO, IATA Tony Tyler pointed out that lower taxes, tighter control on costs and creation of adequate infrastructure are key to a business environment that will lure increased investment into the aviation sector.

"I don't think I have ever been bearish about the Indian market. I have been only concerned about some of the policies that make it very difficult to exploit the market profitably for airlines," he added.

Below is an edited transcript of the interview on CNBC-TV18

Q: A few months ago you seemed very bearish on India. Since then, the government announced a slew of reforms including the liberalisation of the aviation sector by allowing foreign direct investment (FDI). Do you still continue to be as pessimistic and bearish?

A: I don't think I have ever been bearish about the Indian market. I have been only concerned about some of the policies that make it very difficult to exploit the market profitably for airlines such as in the high taxation, high costs and inadequate infrastructure. Those three big problems still exist though foreign airlines have abeen allowed to invest directly in Indian carriers and the doing away of the process of going through a committee to bring aircraft into the fleet.

Q: Despite Etihad's interest in Jet Airways , the deal hasn't been closed. Air Asia's has application to commence operations in India has been cleared by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB ). Do you believe there are going to be more foreign companies planning to pick up stake in Indian airlines or entities like Air Asia who want to start a greenfield operation?

A: It is very positive to see both investing in the Indian aviation market. But allowing foreign direct investment into Indian carriers is not in itself a panacea. There is still a need for joint policy making to create the right business environment. If you want to lure investments, there has to be an attractive framework consisting of lower taxes, tighter cost control and creating adequate infrastructure.

Q: With the Indian economy affected by a considerable slowdown, how do you see the Indian aviation market shaping up?

A: Generally, aviation traffic growth usually runs at about twice the number of the figure of gross domestic product (GDP) growth. So, if GDP growth comes down, growth in aviation and air traffic often comes down as well. We will have to see what happens here in India because other factors of course come into play as well such as the stimulus from new carriers or entry of increase capacity. Though Kingfisher's exit dampened the market last year, I wouldn't be surprised if there isn't some recovery this year.

Q: What is your assessment about the current fracas between Kingfisher 's lessors, the government and the airline in question and how it is likely to impact investment in India?

A: It's a story like any business that goes out of business. If you let your costs run away from your revenues then you are on a slippery slope. And I guess that's what happened to Kingfisher.

Certainly some leasing companies and banks would have got their fingers burnt. It is very important that the Indian government facilitates the cleaning up of any leases and allowing lessors to repossess their aircraft from Kingfisher if Kingfisher is unable to pay, without constraint because if they don't do that they are going to make the environment very difficult for other carriers in India who want to lease aircraft.

So, it is important that the lease contracts are followed and the lessors are able to get their hands on the aircraft again if they are in default.

08.11 | 0 komentar | Read More

NLC invites bids to buy coal mines overseas

State-owned Nevyeli Lignite Corporation (NLC) has invited bids from global firms to acquire coal assets overseas for providing fuel security to its thermal power plants.

"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.

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GAIL targets sale of 84.05 mmscmd gas in FY14

State-owned gas utility GAIL India Ltd is targeting sale of 84.05 million standard cubic meters per day (mmscd) of natural gas in 2013-14.

Also Read: TN govt asks GAIL to stop laying pipeline on agri land

In the performance MoU the company signed with the government, GAIL committed to transmit 110 mmscmd of natural gas through its pipeline network, the company said in a press statement in New Delhi.

The MoU was signed between oil secretary Vivek Rae and GAIL chairman and managing director BC Tripathi in New Delhi on Monday. It provides for production target of 430,000 tonne of polymers and 1.3 million tonne of liquid hydrocarbons.

For 2013-14, "financial targets are pegged at Rs 49,155 crore of gross sales and a gross margin of Rs 6,160 crore," it said.

In addition to key physical and financial parameters, the company's performance will be assessed on the basis of various parameters related to core business streams.

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ILFC removes one of six aircraft from KFA on unpaid dues

Aircraft lessor International Lease Finance Corp (ILFC)  Kingfisher Airlines .

The decision comes after the Delhi High Court order dated March 15, 2013. ILFC says that it is not late for India to recover positive perception in the international forum.

ILFC had leased 6 aircraft to KFA and though the move is a pragmatic approach is comes in an environment seen as to increasingly hostile to business by foreign investors.

The change in current policy in India towards lessors is a much needed reform and will help Indian airlines get continued, affordable aircraft finance.

Financiers have warned that failure to resolve the dispute could starve India of funds needed to develop its aviation industry.

In a response to CNBC-TV18, ILFC stated that it will not hesitate to take legal action if KFA goes to court. "If KFA is not in a position to pay penalties, then we will appoach its parent company and  will pursue every legal avenue to ensure KFA pays penalties. The penalties were levied as KFA stopped making payments to ILFC. We expect to recover the rest of the aircraft within the next few weeks."

(With inputs from Reuters)

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Reliance Life Insurance launches new healthcare plan

Reliance Life Insurance Company (RLIC) said it has launched a new healthcare product, which offers full coverage for the entire family under a single policy.

The new scheme 'Reliance Life Care for You Advantage Plan' is a comprehensive coverage for hospitalisation, surgeries and critical illnesses for the entire family in a single policy, the company said in a statement.

"The key feature of the policy is that it allows an insured to pay a fixed premium for a three-year policy. This premium remains fixed for the three-year period, irrespective of the number of claims taken by the insured during the validity of the policy," it added.

The coverage offered by this plan ranges from Rs 2-10 lakh with a no claim bonus of 5 per cent of the sum assured for every claim-free year up to a maximum of 30 per cent.

Commenting on the new scheme, Reliance Life Insurance Chief Executive Officer Anup Rau said: "With our new health insurance solution, we are offering the much needed financial security to the customers to meet their health related contingencies and would continue to service them with innovative products."

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CAG to restart RIL audit by next month: Oil Secretary

The CAG is likely to re-start audit of Reliance Industries ' spending on the KG-D6 gas block early next month after issues over scope of the scrutiny are resolved to everyone's satisfaction, Oil Secretary said.

"I have myself had two meeting with Comptroller and Auditor General (Vinod Rai) to resolve issues over the audit.

CAG has to audit (KG-D6 spendings) and we will ensure that they get all support for that," Oil Secretary Vivek Rae said.

The Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG) last month suspended audit of spending on the flagging KG-D6 block following differences with RIL over scope and extent of the scrutiny.

"We are making all efforts to see that CAG is able to do its duty... there have been some differences but they are being resolved and I am hopeful CAG will be able to resume audit by either month or early next month," Rae said.

RIL had previously stated that CAG cannot contractually perform a performance audit on it and Production Sharing Contract (PSC) only provides for a government appointed auditor to verify reasonableness of all charges and credits.

Rae said CAG too has stated that it is not planning to a do a performance audit of the company but only wants to examine "propriety" of expenses made.

For doing that CAG wants the discretion for records to be requisitioned to be vested with the government or its auditor (CAG).

"Whatever records are sought will have to be made available," he said, adding once the issue of scope of audit is resolved there should be no issues about records being made available.

CAG had on March 12 written to the Oil Ministry that its audit of KG-D6 "would be financial and propriety audit" and the purpose of such scrutiny was to ensure that "the government's financial interests have been safeguarded".

This followed Oil Ministry writing to CAG saying the official auditor was being requested to undertake the audit of KG-D6 for 2008-09 to 2011-12 under Section 20 of the C&AG (DPC) Act, 1971.

Stating that such audit should be a financial scrutiny, the Ministry told CAG that the provisions of PSC provide for a government appointed auditor inspecting and auditing all records and documents supporting costs, expenditures, expenses, receipts and income.

CAG said it was in agreement with this scope of audit provided the ministry agreed with it on the issue of requisition of records and access.

The auditor said that its six-member audit team was at premises of RIL in Navi Mumbai from January 9 to January 31 during which they issued 40 requisitions calling for information and records. But RIL provided only a few records.

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Imports of rough diamonds seen jumping 25 percent in FY14

India's imports of rough diamonds are likely to jump by a quarter in the next fiscal year from USD 14.5 billion now, as exports of the processed gems to top consumers increase and Indian exporters enter newer markets.

India, the world's largest processor of rough diamonds, gets most of its supply from firms such as top producer De Beers Gold eyes biggest weekly gain in months on Cyprus woes

"We will go to newer markets to beat the slowdown, for example, the countries of the former Soviet Union are buying in huge quantities from India," said Pankaj Kumar Parekh, vice chairman of the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council, which represents more than 5,500 of the country's exporters.

The trade body expects India's exports of cut and polished diamonds in the fiscal year to March 2014 to be 25 percent higher than current estimates of USD 16 billion, equivalent to 66 percent of total gems and jewellery exports.

It expects exports of gems and jewellery to rise 6.6 percent to USD 50 billion. Exports of gems and jewellery - which include diamonds - constitute 14 percent of India's total trade, and employ 3.4 million workers, with the Middle East taking most of India's gems and jewellery shipments.

Demand from the euro zone could be depressed because of the region's debt crisis, though he bet on a revival in demand from the United States.

"Things are in the doldrums in the European Union, and the buoyancy is visible in India and China," said Parekh.

India processes about 92 percent of the world's diamonds, followed by Belgium, Israel and China. Most of the diamonds are sourced from world miners through Dubai.

World diamond production has been steady at 120 million to 130 million carats or roughly about USD 15 billion in value terms, putting an upward pressure on prices, the Council said. Miners are unlikely to ramp up production without a massive improvement in the world economy, it added.

Robust Silver

Exports of silver jewellery are likely to grow at a robust pace next year, as growing numbers of buyers opt for the cheaper metal in the facing of rising gold prices.

"Middle class consumers are finding gold expensive, and the metal is being replaced by silver," said council official Sabyasachi Ray.

A 10-gram quantity of silver is valued at 547.8 rupees, against 29,766 rupees for a similar quantity of gold.

Exports of silver jewellery rose to USD 715 million in the 11 months to February, an annual increase of 10 percent, compared with flat exports of USD 18.12 billion of gold jewellery, data from the trade body showed.

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Cheap, high power smartphone is next tech Big Bang: Google

Eric Schmidt, executive chairman, Google believes that the next revolution will be caused by cheap and high-power smartphones and laptops.

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

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RBI warns banks of violating priority sector lending norms

Moneycontrol Bureau

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) warned banks of breaching priority sector lending norms. It asked lenders to stop the practice of including off-balance items in meeting priority sector credit targets. Off-balance sheet items include instruments like letter of credit (LC), bank guarantee (BG), derivative instruments (currency hedging) and others.

"It has come to notice that some banks have included contingent liabilities/off-balance sheet items as part of priority sector target achievement," RBI said in a release issued on Friday. 

"In this connection, we clarify that this is not in conformity with priority sector lending guidelines. Therefore, banks are advised to declassify such accounts with retrospective effect, where a contingent liability / off-balance sheet item is treated as a part of priority sector target achievement."

Those credit tools (off-balance sheet items or contingent liabilities) are mostly considered indirect form of credit. For example, an issuer bank of BG will be held liable to pay the debt only when the original borrower on whose name BC is issued, fails to repay. Till that time, it is not exactly a direct credit.

PSL target

Banks are mandated to achieve 40% priority sector lending (PSL) that includes agricultural credit, housing loan up to Rs 20 lakh, SME (small and medium enterprises) credit and others. Most of the banks especially private sector ones are likely to miss the target.

What if PSL target is missed?

Banks which fail to attain PSL target are mandated to invest in Nabard or Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) bonds for the shortfall. The rate of interest in those bonds are very low in the range of 3  to 6%.

"We also clarify that all types of loans, investments or any other item which are treated as eligible for classifications under priority sector target/ sub-target achievement should also form part of adjusted net bank credit," RBI said.

saikat.das@network18online.com

 

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DoT tells Vodafone, Loop their licences cannot be extended

Department of Telecommunications is learnt to have told Vodafone and Loop Telecom that their licences cannot be extended and they will need to bid for airwaves to continue their services.

"DoT has said that clause related to extension of licences, companies should not read 'may' as 'shall' extend licence. Hence their request to extend licences have not been accepted by DoT," sources said. Sources added that similar letter will be sent to Bharti Airtel as well. Companies when contacted did not offer any comments immediately.     

Vodafone, Loop and Airtel have approached court against government's plan to auction spectrum that they currently hold and has sought extension of licence using the same spectrum. The telecom firms contended that they have in their possession the 900 MHz spectrum since November 1994 and without considering their plea for renewal of licence.

Sources said that DoT has asked these companies to participate in spectrum auction to retain the spectrum and continue their services. The spectrum identified for auction in 900 Mhz includes 8 Mhz held by Bharti Airtel and Vodafone each in Delhi circle;

8 Mhz each of Loop Mobile and Vodafone in Mumbai; and in Kolkata 6.2 Mhz spectrum of Bharti Airtel and 7.8 Mhz of Vodafone that is due for renewal in 2014. The auction of these spectrum was scheduled to start from March 11 but none of the companies applied to bid for these airwaves and hence it failed.

Government has announced that it will conduct third round of auction but details of this auction have not been announced yet.

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Karnataka High Court approves Wipro's demerger plan

IT major Wipro today said the Karnataka High Court has approved its demerger scheme through which the firm plans to hive off non-IT business. In a filing to the BSE, Wipro said the "High Court of Karnataka has approved the Scheme of Arrangement for demerger of 'Diversified Business' of Wipro Limited as provided in the Scheme".

Last year in December, Wipro had said its shareholders have approved the scheme of arrangement between Wipro Ltd (demerged company), Azim Premji Custodial Services Pvt Ltd (resulting company) and Wipro Trademarks Holding Ltd (trademark company).

Wipro, which is the country's third largest software firm, had announced that it will demerge its non-IT businesses like Consumer Care & Lighting into a new company to focus exclusively on information technology.

Wipro Ltd will continue to remain a publicly listed company focusing exclusively on IT. It is part of the USD 100-billion Indian IT industry and competes with the likes of Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys besides global players like IBM and Accenture.

Shares of the company today rose by almost 1 percent to settle at Rs 434.15 apiece from its previous close at the BSE.

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Govt rejects report of Lanka taking over parts of IOC depot

Govt on Thursday denied reports that Sri Lanka had decided to reposses a part of a strategic oil depot Indian Oil as was announced by Information Minister Keheliya Rambukwella.

An official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs said that India has been assured that such reports were not correct.

Also Read: Oil Min to move EGoM on changing priority of gas supply

There had been reports in the local media in Sri Lanka that the government was eying the 99-tank storage facility in the north-eastern port district of Trincomalee.

In line with the privatisation, Sri Lanka gave the World War II tank farm of 99 storage tanks in the north-eastern port of Trincomalee to Lanka OIC which is using 15 of them and refurbishing two more.

Lanka IOC head Subodh Dakwale said they were unaware of the government decision. He said they were refurbishing two more storage tanks at a cost of 17 million dollars.

"Sri Lankan government has been negotiating with us for some time. I would say its been a few months. We have'nt heard anything from the government," Dakwale told PTI.

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Seeing rise in labour woes in last 2 years: HMSI

Harbhajan Singh vice-president, industrial relations of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India, says that the frequency of labour trouble has increased in last 2-3 years and is posing as a threat to the business environment. 

Below is the edited transcript of his interview to CNBC-TV18.

Q: Another massive protest rally was organised today? Will this affect the industrial environment, which has already been vitiated on account of what we have seen happen at Maruti and previously even at companies like Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI)?

A: This was ongoing in the past also but the frequency has increased in last two-three years. A large number of employees stay in Gurgaon where thousand of workers of different factories also stay in close proximity. What is happening is that, whenever there is any issue where some pressure can be applied on management then even the central trade unions take the lead, try to show solidarity and organise rallies.

Q: The incident of these rallies is clearly gone up and as a leading automaker in that region are you not worried at the increasingly volatile situation? How are you gearing up to deal with this?

A: What is happening today is that, a small company which employs 200-300 workers and if the management takes any action against indiscipline worker then it becomes a big issue and spreads like fire in the region.

There are instance where we saw that companies having 200-300 workers are seeing gate meetings of 1000 workers in front of company gate which poses a threat to the management staff and senior team members. This type of support boost the morale of the handful few troublemakers and then things at times moves out of hand.  

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KFA workers threaten to disrupt IPL, demand Mallya's trial

Frustrated over not getting salary for last 10 months, Kingfisher Airlines employees today asked the government to prosecute promoter Vijay Mallya and threatened to disrupt IPL matches.

"If Gopal Kanda, promoter of MDLR airlines, can be prosecuted for suicide of an employee why can't the government prosecute Vijay Mallya for suicide of the family member of his employees," said Santosh Gautam, President of Kingfisher Airlines Maintenance Association.

They also threatened to disrupt IPL matches of the Royal Challenger Bangalore (RCB), the team owned by Mallya.

Also Read: SC dismisses KFA's plea on depositing Rs 185cr to I-T dept

"Last time, when Formula 1 race was being organised here, afraid of our protests, KFA management paid our salary of one month and assured to pay the dues in instalments but they have failed to keep their promises. This time, we will protest outside the venue wherever RCB team plays their matches," said S C Mishra, another employee.

The protesting employees have urged RCB players to boycott Mallya's team. They have also asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) not to allow RCB to participate in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL).

The employees asked the government to amend labour laws making non-payment of salaries a criminal offence and said "the Supreme Court should take suo motu cognizance of our matter in specific and in general for overall reforms required for the benefit of working class."

Seeking an early intervention on the issue, the employees have written letters to the President, the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of India, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation Arun Mishra.

Questioning Mallya's intention to run the airlines, the employees said, "Enough is enough. We want a clear reply from him whether he wants to run the airlines or wants to close it down. If you want to close it, then please pay our dues."

"Our patience now has run out and we would go to any extent to get justice," said a Kingfisher employee, who did not want to be named.

The Vijay Mallya-owned cash-strapped airline is grounded since October last year following unrest by employees over non-payment of salaries and subsequent disruption in its flight schedules.

The Air Operator's Permit, or the flying licence, of the airline expired on December 31, 2012 and the civil aviation regulator DGCA had refused to renew it, saying they would have to first clear the dues of their employees and other stakeholders.

Kingfisher Airlines owes a loan of over Rs 7,000 crore to the consortium of 17 banks, led by the State Bank of India , which had on Monday said that it was taking all steps to recover the loan provided to the grounded carrier.

"We are blazing all guns and taking all steps to recover (of Kingfisher loans)," SBI Chairman Pratip Chaudhuri had said.

Also, Finance Minister P Chidambaram had asked the banks to take firm steps to recover loans saying that the country cannot afford to have "affluent promoters and sick companies".

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Authorisation mandatory for porting of corporate mobile nos

Telecom regulator Trai today said a corporate number can be ported out only if it is signed by the authorised person of the subscriber to whom that number has been alloted.

"No corporate mobile number shall be ported unless the porting request in respect of such number is accompanied by an authorisation issued by the authorised signatory of the subscriber to whom such number has been alloted," Trai said while releasing Telecommunications Mobile Number Portability (Fifth Amendment)Regulations, 2013.

A corporate mobile number is allotted by operators in the name of a firm or organisation. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) said a corporate number user may make porting request for more than one number provided that a separate unique porting code be generated and the user should pay separate charge for each number.

"Every access provider shall prefix the character 'C' to the unique porting code generated for porting of corporate mobile number," Trai said. The regulatory said every operator on receipt of porting request, forward within 24 hours, the corporate number and its unique code and scanned copy of the authorisation letter to the mobile number portability service provider.

"Every donor operator shall reject a request for porting of a corporate mobile number if the same is not accompanied by an authorisation letter from the authorised signatory of the subscriber," Trai said. 

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Unilever sees Africa as major FMCG mkt, after BRIC nations

FMCG major Unilever Ltd today said that after BRIC countries, the African region has a good market potential for the company. "Africa is the next frontier of growth. It will become next to Asia. The question is whether it is going to happen in 10 years or 15. We don't know", Unilever chief operating officer Harish Manwani told reporters here.

He added: "But, without doubt, there are 800 million people living in sub Saharan Africa. And their GDP growth has been steady at 5 to 6 per cent per annum." Speaking on the sidelines of an event at Indian School of Business, Manwani said the business growth is also expected from countries which have a population of more than 100 million.

"These markets are showing signs of resurgence. So we feel very good about it. BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) plus next thirteen markets, having population of 100 million or more have huge business potential," he added.

Replying to a query, he said their deodorant manufacturing facility in Maharashtra will be ready soon. He, however, did not specify when the plant would be ready for operations.

"We are awaiting some approvals from government. Once operational, the plant will cater to some of the south Asian countries also," a senior HUL official said. When asked about the impact of the Government decision to allow Foreign Direct Investment in multi-brand retail, he said it will not change the company's strategy.

According to him, rural India is the biggest consumer market in the world and the company is fully focused to tap this opportunity. "Rural India is one of the biggest opportunities in the world because it is the place where 700 million people live," he said without divulging the company's revenue figures from rural India.

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Ramchandi coal mine license critical for CTL plant: JSPL

Jindal Steel and Power today said that getting mining license for the Ramchandi coal mine located at Angul, Odisha is critical for the company's upcoming Coal-To-Liquid (CTL) plant.

"We have signed an MoU with the government and under the terms of which we should be getting access to the Ramchandi mine," Ravi Uppal MD & CEO, JSPL told CNBC-TV18 today.

JSPL is setting up a Rs 55,000 crore- CTL plant at Angul. The Delhi-based company has already short listed three companies and the tie-up is most likely to be with a European or an American firm.

JSPL to soon tie-up technology partner for Angul CTL plant

Coal is the key requirement of the project and unless the linkage for this raw material is ensured the company can not go ahead with the project. 

"We are now waiting for the prospective licence to be given and once the prospective licence is given to us, we'll take the next steps... but this will take off only when we are fairly sure of the fuel supply which is basically coal," Uppal said.

CTL plant will help the company to produce methanol, petrol and diesel from coal. The plant, which is likely to come up by 2019 is being set up near a Ramchandi coal blocks, which were allotted to JSPL few years back. The CTL plant will have a capacity of 80,000 bbl per day.

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GVK denies airport business listing reports

GVK Power and Infrastructure , which operates Mumbai and Bengaluru airports, today denied the reports suggesting that the company was looking for overseas listing of its airport business.  

"I am not aware of it, this is the first time I am hearing about it. We are not exploring such options," Sanjay Reddy, Vice Chairman, GVK Group told CNBC-TV18 today.

Reddy further said that at this moment the company was not looking for developing any new airport project in the country and would focus first on reducing its debt. GVK's airport business have debt of around Rs 2000 crore.

Queensland projects to begin by FY14: GVK's Sanjay Reddy

"We have certain amount of debt in our old company which we had taken to buy additional stake. So we are looking for investment from various parties to be able to repay that debt and there is a very good interest in the last 3-4 months," Reddy said.

GVK is also likely to increase stake in the Bangalore  airport once its lock-in period gets over. Reddy is also hopeful that airports tariffs will come down going forward.

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India attractive destination for MA activities: EY

Favourable demographics and growth opportunities keep India an "attractive" destination for merger and acquisition activities across diverse sectors including consumer goods and pharmaceuticals, according to global consultancy Ernst & Young.

 "Catering to a growing, expanding and spending population is what every organisation wants to do. So there is a lot of interest from outside India to come inbound," E&Y Global Vice Chair (Transaction Advisory Services) Phillipa McCrostie told PTI in an interview.

 "I don't think India's growth is based on one factor or bubble that has evaporated and gone away. It is exciting time in India for M&A growth," she said.

 According to her, India's fantastic population and demographics are attracting a great deal of interest around industries such as consumer goods, pharmaceuticals and life sciences, among others.

 "I expect that India will continue to be an attractive M&A destination in a sustainable way going forward. I think there is widespread interest from the US, Europe and others," she said.

She noted that the country is becoming all the more attractive destination with reforms coming through.

 McCrostie said risk and confidence probably were the determining factors for M&A activities in the last four years since the 2008 financial crisis.

 "India has to be one of the most attractive destinations (for investment). Look historically, what India has achieved... If you compare other countries, many don't have the population, stability that India has been trying to produce in the last ten years," she added.

 In the wake of uncertainties and risks due to the 2008 financial meltdown, companies worldwide began to strengthen their balance sheets and over the subsequent years have also made cash piles.

 McCrostie said that investor pressure is also steadily growing over the time on companies' growth strategies. "It is translating into what we see as green shoots for some more M&A activities. So to be clear, no boom activity, no bubble activity... But a slow, steady increase in M&A activities is one of the means of achieving growth," she said.

 The "green shoots" for M&A also depends on sectors as well as geographies, she added. Going by E&Y, India is projected to be among the top five M&A destinations this year.

 In 2012, BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) nations together accounted for about 15 per cent of global M&A market by value.

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DoT issues order to CDMA players for one-time spectrum fee

The government has asked CDMA telecom operators to pay one-time fee, amounting to about Rs 3,033 crore, for the spectrum they hold beyond the initial frequencies that were allocated to them.

In its order on levy of one time spectrum charges for CDMA spectrum held by the incumbent telecom service providers, Department of Telecom has said: "For CDMA spectrum holding above 2.5 Mhz in 800 Mhz band, the rate for one-time spectrum charges shall be applicable from 01-01-2013."

As per the order, the charges will be levied on additional spectrum for the rest of the licence period and operators not willing to pay these charges will be allowed to surrender their spectrum held over 2.5 Mhz.

DoT has issued rates to be charged annually for each megahertz of frequencies, based on the reserve price that was fixed for spectrum auction held on March 11. Official sources said that one time spectrum fee on all CDMA players cumulatively amounts to around Rs 3,033 crore.

Telecom operators will have an option to pay these charges in equal annual instalments in a manner that the last one ends one year before their licences expire.

Reliance Communications, Tata Teleservices , Sistema Shyam (SSTL), BSNL and MTNL hold spectrum beyond 2.5 Megahertz (Mhz) in a few telecom service areas.

SSTL which recently won 3.75 Mhz spectrum in 8 circle will not have to pay one-time spectrum fee for these area but the spectrum held by the company in Rajasthan falls under the ambit of the order.

As per the initial estimates, the sources said that one time spectrum fee on RCom and Tata Tele amounted to about Rs 1,752 and Rs 1,155 crore respectively, after the Cabinet had reduced CDMA spectrum base price for auction by 50 per cent.

No immediate comments were received by the companies. Actual amount to be paid by other companies could not be ascertained. The sources said BSNL and MTNL can surrender their spectrum, but a decision on it is pending.

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Management guru Kotler on marketing, social media and more

Management guru, Philip Kotler, in a class to management students at Chennai, said old marketing that involved "mass production, mass distribution, mass marketing and lots of 30 second commercials which would put everyone to sleep," is now dead. He said we are currrently living in the era of new marketing. Kotler's remarks on management came while he was delivering a master class at Great Lakes Institute of Management in Chennai.

Philip Kotler is a man synonymous with modern marketing. His book, 'Marketing Management', now in its 14th edition, has been translated into 25 languages and is a must-have for students being initiated into the world of business.

Having co-authored more than 40 other books, Kotler has deconstructed the concepts of TV marketing, social marketing, turbo marketing, mega marketing and nation marketing. Some of the best companies in the world like Apple, IBM, Bank of America, AT&T, Ford and General Electric turned to Kotler for advice and strategy.

According to Kotler, new marketing is all about social media. "The new marketing is clearly more about the social media and the transformation of our ability to reach individuals. You know the new term called 'Big Data' and its happening everywhere where we get to know more about you, hopefully not invading your privacy, so much as trying to not bother you unless you are a prospect for something that we think would improve your life," he added.

Impressing upon management students the purpose of marketing, Kotler put the wide and complex world of marketing in a simple line- Marketing is there to help us sell more goods and services. According to him modern marketing is about selling a dream- a dream of good life. "We have to figure out how to sell to the poor. Five billion people of the seven billion today on the earth are poor and marketing has offered them nothing," said the management guru. 

Watch videos for more.

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Marketer's new trend, advertising with entertainment

The role of the marketer is now changing in India. The predictable money is still going towards the marketing tasks, but there are challenges. According to the Storyboard's editor, Anant Rangaswami, this is just a beginning of a very exciting journey, but the consensus says that it is a little bit in the future.

To know the answers of those inevitable questions Rangaswami met two of India's biggest marketers, Chandramouli Venkatesan from Cadbury, and Visa's Shubhranshu Singh.

In Singh's view, one of the fundamental shifts that happened is that we have moved away from a broadcast era to something that demands engagement. "Finally, the consumer is at the centre and this half-way mix between entertainment and advertising is here to stay", he adds.

Earlier it was between the brand owner and an entity, now there are many people involved, says Venkatesan. Hence, he believes that often a role of the marketer is not in just putting the partnerships together, but in engendering the behaviors in those partnerships.

Below is the verbatim transcript of his interview to CNBC-TV18

Q: At Cadbury are you looking at stuff like this right now? I don't really know what to call it, is it an ad or activation?

Venkatesan: I think all of us are now in this journey of what you can call is holistic consumer engagement. For different brands we are doing different stuff. However, at the core of it what it calls for is a degree of experimentation, a degree of trying to do different things. While at the same time trying to have an idea, which integrate so many things that you do.

Q: You are also experimenting now. You did your last debit card commercial, which sort of broke some rules within your own company. How do you react to this?

Singh: The bigger challenge is how do you engage and reach consumers everywhere across the country and in the world indeed. One of the fundamental shifts that's happened is we have moved away from a broadcast era into something that demands engagement. Engagement will happen only when you are interesting to people. So, this half-way mix between entertainment and advertising is here to stay.

Q: There are extraordinary new demands on the marketing professionals now. Today, it looks like you the marketer is going to be at the centre of all such communication as oppose to an agency because there are so many vendor partners you will have?

Singh: Yes and I think that's true. But I would quality that by saying that it is not really the marketer who is at the centre of it all. I think finally, the consumer is at the centre. I call it the shift from what used to be the rate card era into what's now the wild card era.

We have now moved to an era where there are people who are putting out content. If they like what you put out they will spoof it, twist it, steal it and you in turn will applaud that saying look that's evidence of success.

So, I think from the era where there was no filtering for quality and if you are willing to cut a fat cheque everything good or bad was being put out into the broadcast machine that's now fundamentally changed.

Q: What about you? How has your role changed?

Venkatesan: I think the integrated communications model, if I can use that word does call for change in what I would call as an ecosystem that creates it. I think earlier, the ecosystem was linear. It was between the brand owner and an entity, which was often the agency and then you manage.

I think you have a little more of a non-linear model right now. There are many people involved. Hence, I think it is not just the nature of relationships, but the behaviors of people that is starting to become crucial. The attitude of being collaborate is genuinely big ideas click, when multiple entities come and make it work.

Hence often a role of the marketer is not in just putting the partnerships together, but in engendering the behaviors in those partnerships.

Q: Now both of you have commercials that continuously hit high numbers, in the high millions. So when you see so much of free media coming to you, you would rethink your media plan itself? Your media spends?

Venkatesan: No, to start with for example numbers. We have had commercials, which have hit 10 million and we have also stuff that has done 50,000. So, clearly, there is viewership out there. At this moment, I think there are two kinds of content we are putting out. TVC, is really treating digital as an alternate channel.

Now, when one does a TVC it is not just about the creative and the message there are also business imperatives behind it, in terms of the time in which it must have impact. One has got lined up business initiatives, sales initiatives, trade initiatives. Hence, I think basic television advertising becomes important where there is a little more certainty to how we ramp up.

The fact that one can deliver X value within a certain time period is still very important. However, there is alternate stuff, which I am doing. For example, if one goes back to one of the big efforts we had done was to get Cadbury Dairy Milk to be used post-dinner as a 'meetha'.

Now the alternate kind of us while mainline TV advertising there was huge amount of engagement. The nature of engagement was we were actually sponsoring parties at consumer homes. These were dinner parties, which was followed by a chocolate dessert. This used to be entirely edited into a nice film and we used to put them on YouTube. Now that kind of stuff is only on YouTube.

So, I think one has three kinds of stuff. One is where you do mainline TV, where YouTube is an add-on. The second is really of the nature where it is truly multimedia and third where one is really leading from YouTube and saying this is how it builds.

Q: How are you seeing your paid media versus…?

Singh: I don't think we should be looking at this stage because of evidence of early success to suggest that we can substitute a traditional way in which we built a plan. However, I do want to say is pretty much the end of what would be called lazy marketing. One cannot buy attention off, of a rate card anymore. I think it is something to be celebrated because the medium is not being decoded fully.

So, why it has to be a Kolavari Di, Gamgam Style, Skyfall or a Harlem Shake and why not three others. Till that happens conclusively we have to depend on conventional advertising.

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SEBI leaking malicious information to media, alleges Sahara

Sahara group on Friday hit back at SEBI after the latter moved the Supreme Court seeking arrest of its promoter Subrata Roy and barring him from leaving the country after two companies of the group failed to comply with court's order to refund Rs 24,000 crore to its investors.

In a statement, Sahara blamed SEBI for "leaking malicious information to the media" and challenged the organisation to prove that there was "even one fictitious investor in Sahara".

Also Read: SEBI asks SC to allow arrest of Sahara chief Subrata Roy

Below is the full text of Sahara's statement.

SEBI's malicious act

Everyday, SEBI is maliciously leaking to media (reason best known to them!!!), one or the other news, without any substance, against Sahara Group, to wreck personal vengeance, by some officers involved in handling with the matter.

Now, in order to make further media publicity, SEBI has filed another status report and Interlocutory Application (IA) in the Supreme Court and even before mentioning the matter in the Hon'ble Court, SEBI has supplied copy of the petitions and such reports to media, propagating the news about civil detention of the promoter and directors of the Company. Ironically, the matter was mentioned before the Hon'ble Supreme Court and Hon'ble Court did not find any urgency and advised for listing of the matter in due course, after Holi vacations. SEBI in its status report has asked for Civil Detention, knowing fully well that uch provisions of Code of Civil Procedure (CPC), prescribing the same as a mode of execution of decree do not apply to SEBI, as under the SEBI Act, application of C.P.C is clearly barred and ruled out and also the fact that no question of any such non-compliance, on the part of Sahara officials do arise in view of the entire unpaid amount having been deposited with SEBI and the records of redemption made submitted to them for verification.

SEBI is not only providing false information to the Media, it has also hidden truth from the citizens of this Country. Sahara has deposited TDS on the interest paid to the investors on behalf of the two Sahara Companies with the Income Tax Authorities. The TDS deposited is more than Rs. 700 crores. These true facts are never reported to the Media by SEBI.

About SEBI's one recent allegation: "Out of thousands of Sahara Investors, SEBI finds only 68 genuine investors."

SEBI's recent allegation is that there are few thousand investors who have not responded. SEBI should be wise enough to understand that all small investors who have already received payment shall definitely not correspond with SEBI or anybody for that matter. Allegation is absolutely baseless, concocted, unverified, malicious and in clear disregard of the Directions No.7 of the judgment dated 31.08.2012 passed by Hon'ble Supreme Court, which reads -

"SEBI (WTM), in the event of finding that the genuiness of the subscribers is doubtful, an opportunity shall be afforded to Saharas to satisfactorily establish the same as being legitimate and valid. It shall be open to the Saharas, in such an eventuality to associate the concerned subscribers to establish their claims. The decision of SEBI (WTM) in this behalf will be final and binding on Saharas as well as the subscribers."

SEBI is well aware that we have written so many times that millions of very small investors run their tea stalls, small venders etc. who live on highways. Their addresses may be, for instance, Mr X, NH-21, Gorakhpur. Millions of Rural people do not have House No., Mohalla etc. There are large numbers of small investors who do not own their houses and accordingly have shifted their address from time to time.

Our agent - introducers / office staff knows them very well and can arrange meeting any time with any authority, wherever and whenever required. You may point out any of the investors and our workers can produce them or reach to them without any difficulty as they provide service to these investors on a regular basis.

We challenge SEBI to find or prove even one fictitious investor.

However, SEBI without giving us any such opportunity, though required to do so, has instead, straightaway accused theses baseless and one sided allegations.

Should SEBI - Under any need, under any law, under any logic, under any Hon'ble Court's Direction attach group Chairman's and 3 Directors properties, bank accounts, etc. etc.

and

THE FACT REMAINS THAT WE HAVE REPAID ALL OUTSTANDING LIABILITIES EXCEPTING (LESS THAN) Rs.5120 CRORES WHICH WE HAVE PAID TO SEBI.

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Staying optimistic key to surviving tough times: LT CFO

CNBC-TV18 honours India Inc's top chief financial officers (CFOs) in a gala event in Mumbai. The CFO of Larsen & Tubro , Shankar Raman won the best CFO of the year award. Kevin DSA of Bajaj won the best CFO award for the auto sector. In the banking space NS Kannan of ICICI Bank bagged the top honours. Sridhar Ramamurthy of Hindustan Unilever won the award for best CFO in for the FMCG sector.

Also Read: Invest in L&T for long term: Doctor

In an exclusive interview to CNBC-TV18, Shankar Raman says, staying optimistic was the only key to survive in this difficult business environment. "We had to keep our options open for any strategies that we were to pursue as a company and always have a plan B because you are not very sure about plan A. The uncertainty taught us couple of things, it taught us how to manage volatility, how to remain certain in an uncertain environment," he adds.

Below is the verbatim transcript of Shankar Raman's interview on CNBC-TV18

Q: It has been a very difficult year, what has stood by you for the last one year that has helped you overcome all the economic and financial challenges that you had to deal with?

A: We had to remain optimistic. The biggest challenge was always to look at the cup as half full because we went through situations where it was difficult to be very decisive about our moves. We had to keep our options open for any strategies that we were to pursue as a company and always have a plan B because you are not very sure about plan A.

The uncertainty taught us couple of things, it taught us how to manage volatility, how to remain certain in an uncertain environment. This means we had to pull levers which are within our control and try to reduce the risk element there and hope and pray that something catastrophic does not occur.

Q: What is your outlook for this new fiscal that we are about to enter? Do you see the prospects for the Indian economy improve and respond to this question while keeping the Budget in mind given what the Finance Minister do as an attempt to bring fiscal deficit under some control?

A: There were a lot of announcements about what needs to be done. The biggest challenge for all of us in the system is going to convert the sentence into actionable points. The solution lies beyond the Budget document and the entire bureaucracy and the policy framework has to get facilitative.

Q: After the cumulative effort of the government (which they keep touting), like Sachin Pilot, Corporate Affairs Minister talk about the Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI), Finance Minister talk about the fiscal deficit, are you seeing a difference on ground in terms of reviving several big projects that were stuck?

A: There is a movement forward but whether it is adequate, I am not yet sure. However, I do see some anxiety in the minds of people to push ahead and convert the intent into action. There have been some clearances that have been announced. We have also seen National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) making some conciliatory moves in terms of resolution to stuck projects.

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Cobra Expose: Is money laundering a common case for banks?

Saikat Das
moneycontrol.com

The venomous bite of Cobrapost.com has no doubt dented the reputation of three top private sector lenders: ICICI Bank , HDFC Bank and Axis Bank . They were prompt enough to issue statements promising internal investigations. Shares of the three banks fell initially, but recouped losses to end the day in the green.

Money laundering is way of converting black money into white through any unscrupulous bank transaction.

Money laundering - a common case among banks?

Bankers agree to disagree that the practice of money laundering is quite rampant in the system. The Reserve Bank of India will carry out a formal investigation following this development, they believe.

"It is a matter of reputation for a branded entity," a senior official from a new generation private section bank told moneycontrol.com on condition of anonymity. 

"Any privately held institution of repute will not indulge such practices in a perfectly competitive market. Once you lose trust of people, you are out of business. It is only a stray incident. If the alleged offence is proved, all banks should take stern disciplinary action against those involved and come clean," he said.

Share prices rose! What was brewing?

Surprisingly, market did not react much on Thursday. ICICI Bank shares rose more than 2% to close the day at Rs 1,110 while Axis Bank shares closed at Rs 1,353, up nearly 1%. The HDFC Bank scrip ended the day at Rs 649, up about 3%.

Speculations were rife that some market participants were aware of the expose well in advance. In the last four trading session, Bank Nifty dropped 1.19% as against 0.56% fall in 50-share Nifty. Those three banks put together enjoy more than 64% weightage in the Bank Nifty.

"In the last three days open interest in the Bank Nifty spurted 33%, which is not normal. Some traders who short-sold till yesterday bought back those shares as general investors resorted to panic-selling on Thursday. Accordingly, share prices rose due to buying interest," said a trader who did not wish to be named. 

Option for banks

Some of the middle level bank officials are of opinion that bankers really cannot manipulate much. If a depositor walks in a bank branch with huge sum but pretends of not having any PAN card, the branch manager (BM), according to them, will not bother much to cross examine his source of money digging into details. PAN is an important requirement for KYC (Know Your Customer) norms.

For a BM, it is potential business opportunity to achieve targets. At the most, he can accept his investments in cash while reporting it to Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) as "suspicious" transaction. FIU is the government agency which reports the same to Income Tax Department. This is a very common phenomenon.

At ICICI Bank, there is a system of Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD). A branch official has to put in some basic information about a customer who is looking to open an account. Unless EDD gives green signal, account cannot be opened. Top private banks are claimed to be high vigilant about compliance, said a BM based in Western zone. 

"People may launder money using banking networks without the knowledge of the bankers," said Laxman Nasarpuri, Partner - Financial Pundits, a Financial Advisory Services based in Mumbai.

"A few isolated cases cannot warrant the branding of the entire banking Industry. These cases should be treated as a part of the corrupt practices. No responsible bank deliberately flouts rules. They are only keen in expanding their business within the permissible framework. For those three banks, chances are remote that the practice of money laundering is rampant."

RBI stand

It is natural for the banking regulator to take stock of this kind situation and follow it up. The ministry of financial services too is reportedly keeping close watch on related developments.

"RBI is collecting information. We are in touch with those banks. So far, no notice has been to them," Urjit Patel, deputy governor RBI told reporters at a conference here in Mumbai.

Down the memory lane....

The incident is reminiscent of one Tehelka expose in March, 2001, immediately after the annual Budget. It was about George Fernandes, the former Union defence minister in an alleged arms deal. At the then time, share market had crashed.

saikat.das@network18online.com

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Will take firm action if needed: Govt on Cobrapost expose

Cobrapost.com's alleged expose about money laundering racket run by the country's top three banks- ICICI Bank , HDFC Bank and Axis Bank today not only shook the markets but also central government and banking regulator Reserve Bank of India.

Rajiv Takru Banking Secretary in a conversation with CNBC-TV18 today said that Reserve Bank of India had already contacted the banks involved in the Cobrapost sting and also stressed that if anything wrong was found then the government will comedown heavily on culprits. He however said that government was still trying to collect more information on the expose and will take corrective action only after listening to all concerned parties. 

Cobra Expose: Is money laundering a common case for banks?

Cobrapost.com, which is founded and run by an investigative journalist Aniruddha Bahal today alleged that it had conducted a sting operation exposing the nationwide money laundering racket, run by ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Axis Bank. It claimed to have hundred hours of video recording covering branches of these banks and their employees.

Below is the verbatim transcript of the Rajiv Takru's interview.

Q: At a time when the government is appealing to tax payers to file returns- there are these alleged violations on the country's largest banks. What is the action the government will take and more importantly has Cobrapost handed over those video recordings to you?

A: I would clarify that I was personally in State Bank of India (SBI) board meeting today when these SMSes started coming in about this expose on TV. I have seen bits and pieces of this expose and I got some downloads also from the internet. On the basis of the preliminary information I have, it showed that this sting has been carried out at various locations by the Cobrapost in different parts, I think different states, different branches and so on. It was pretty explicit from what I saw in passing. So, prima-facie appeared little serious. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has got into the act immediately, we have got into the act, we are trying to collect more information. The banks have been contacted by my department as well and the RBI has also contacted them. Unfortunately the governor and the deputy governor both were out of the country. I have spoken to the other deputy governors, he spoke to the CGM concerned, the executive directors and they are all on the job. We are collecting some information. It is extremely important that we don't react in terms of a knee jerk reaction but at the same time it is also equally important.

Q: What exactly are the steps that you are taking? The banks at their end have said that they will make an investigation into these allegations their top priority. From the governments end, from the RBIs end what exactly are the steps that are being taken?

A: Let me clarify. I am glad to hear that banks are doing in-house investigation which is most welcome. What worries me about the whole thing everybody in these sting operations is coming out with a same kind of response, although it is carried out at a number of places. If these are actually bank employees, this would mean a remarkable coincidence that these people are doing it individually and coming out with the same reaction. I would say that this would need to go a little beyond in-house investigations, and that is exactly what the RBI and the government would be doing.

Q: Are you looking at a timeline to do this?

A: My timeline would be as soon as possible. At the same time I must also in all fairness give a chance to everybody concerned to come out and the RBI must also in all fairness give a chance to everybody to come out with their version. After that there would be a number of agencies which would get involved because as you said there is something about money laundering here. There would be so many things which are involved here, if this is true. I personally think that this thing is likely to drag on for some time but the corrective action and whatever firm actions are required on the part of government irrespective of which agency will be taken. I don't think anybody should have any doubt in their mind that if there is anything wrong the government is going to come down on this with a very heavy hand.

Q: I am sure you have already reached out to the senior executives, the chairman and managing directors etc at these banks. What kind of reactions have you got from them?

A: I never spoke to anybody, but my joint secretary spoke with them and what he told me was that, they said that they are looking at it and they will give us a report by today evening. Today evening, I don't know what has happened because I was on the plane. Tomorrow morning I would know about this, but in any case the report they would give is that they are looking into it. I don't want them to jump to a conclusion but at the same time we are not going to wait for ever.

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Maruti Suzuki board to discuss Guj plant plans in April

Mar 13, 2013, 10.20 PM IST

Maruti Suzuki's much touted Gujarat plant proposal will be formally taken up by the board of the company in April. According to company insiders Maruti will complete the 'status report' on the plant by the end of the month which will then be presented before the board next month.

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Maruti Suzuki board to discuss Guj plant plans in April

Maruti Suzuki's much touted Gujarat plant proposal will be formally taken up by the board of the company in April. According to company insiders Maruti will complete the 'status report' on the plant by the end of the month which will then be presented before the board next month.

Like this story, share it with millions of investors on M3

Maruti Suzuki board to discuss Guj plant plans in April

Maruti Suzuki's much touted Gujarat plant proposal will be formally taken up by the board of the company in April. According to company insiders Maruti will complete the 'status report' on the plant by the end of the month which will then be presented before the board next month.

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To download current article in Word format, click here.

Maruti Suzuki's much touted Gujarat plant proposal will be formally taken up by the board of the company in April. According to company insiders Maruti will complete the 'status report' on the plant by the end of the month which will then be presented before the board next month.

Sources say following a formal approval the construction work at the plant should start by June or July this year. CNBC-TV18 reported earlier that the company has acquired an additional 500 acres of land in Gujarat to expand its manufacturing footprint in the state.

Sources also add that on Friday the company board will meet to plan out the expenditure for the new fiscal which would be chaired by Osamu Suzuki chairman of Suzuki Motor Corp.

To download current article in Word format, click here.

From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'

The latest earning numbers FIRST on CNBC-TV18

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India growth story still credible, says RBI Governor

Moneycontrol Bureau

Ahead of its mid-quarter monetary policy review on March-19, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor D Subbarao underscored India's growth potential even if the current GDP growth hit 15-quarter low of 4.5%. However, he cautioned on the high rate of inflation, which still remains above the central bank's comfort level of 4-6%.

"The India growth story is still credible and the long term growth drivers are still intact," Subbarao said in his speech delivered at London School of Economics on India's macroeconomic challenges.

"If we do the right things, we can get back on a high growth trajectory. We can  accelerate growth and improve welfare only if we effectively implement wide ranging economic and governance reforms. Slipping up on this will amount to a costly and potentially irreversible squandering away of opportunities."

He further stressed that government needs to lead the process of economic revival while admitting that RBI too has a key role to play.

Inflation

India's headline wholesale price index inflation had been above 7 percent from 2009 until January, when it fell to 6.62 percent from 7.18 percent in. The WPI inflation data for February is due on Thursday and is expected to have eased further to 6.54 percent, according to a Reuters poll.

Subbarao said that both demand and supply side factors has pushed India's inflation to uncomfortable levels. Food inflation had been the key driver from the supply side. Food inflation is still the worrying trend as it remained high in January. Inflation on food articles rose to 11.88% in January 2013 from 11.16% in December 2012.

Also read: Core banking must for co-op banks by Dec 31: RBI

Despite the high inflation many in industry believe that the central bank would cut repo rate by 25 bps in the upcoming monetary policy owing to moderation of growth.

"Inflation persists at an elevated level and the current account deficit is likely to be the highest ever, suggesting that the economy is growing beyond its capacity and that the potential growth may be lower than even 7 per cent," the governor observed.

Apart from inflation control, controlling widening fiscal deficit has also been the key priority of the centre. Food and oil subsidy has been the key contributors in this. In January the government deregulated diesel prices and allowed retailers to increases prices gradually over period of one year. Subbarao said that desubsidization would be inflationary in short term but price  pressures will even out over the medium term.

"Reduction in subsidies will remove price distortions, improve efficiency and provide a much better investment environment," he said.

 

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Sebi exempts govt from making open offer for Central Bank

Market regulator Sebi has exempted Government of India (GoI) from making an open offer for public shareholders pursuant to its proposal to hike stake in Central Bank of India to 85.31 percent.

The government has proposed to acquire about 30.84 crore shares of the bank through preferential allotment. This would increase the government's holding in the bank from 79.15 percent to 85.31 percent.

Also Read: Sebi-Sahara case: SAT adjourns hearing till March 23

In an order issued yesterday, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said "this is a fit case to grant exemption to the Government of India from the obligation to make an open offer".

The regulator said the government which is expected to infuse Rs 2,406 crore into the Central Bank of India would enable the PSU lender to achieve the 8 percent 'Capital to Risk-weighted Assets Ratio (CRAR)' as per the BASEL II norms.

"Higher CRAR is a factor that represents that a bank or a financial institution has sufficient capital in order to keep it out of financial difficulty and protect the interest of its depositors and in turn the economy," Sebi said.

Further, the issue price of Rs 78 per share is found to be in accordance with regulations on 'Issue of Capital and Disclosure Requirements', it said. "The target company (the bank) has also undertaken that the capital raised through the preferential allotment to Government would not be used by it for making investment in whatever form, in any of its subsidiaries, joint ventures," Sebi said.

It also observed that the hike in the stake of Government in the bank following the proposed preferential allotment, the minimum public shareholding would be maintained. As per official documents available with Sebi, Government has decided to infuse capital to the tune of Rs 2,406 crores into the bank through preferential allotment of shares.

Further, the bank's board of directors have approved the same and have also called for an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting (EGM) of shareholders on March 18, 2013 to pass necessary resolution for issue of shares to GoI.

"It has been submitted that the infusion by Government would also give additional leverage to the target company to raise further equity capital from the public by way of rights/follow-on public offer or from Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP/GDR) at a later date, as and when the need arises," the order said.

Central bank of India had filed an application with Sebi dated February 15, 2013 on behalf of the GoI seeking the exemption.

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Jaguar Land Rover global sales up 3% in February

Tata Motors-owned Jaguar Land Rover today reported three per cent increase in global sales at 26,855 units in February from the same month last year. 

"February sales were up in almost every major market: 20 per cent in Asia Pacific, 20 per cent in North America, 15 per cent in the UK, and 6 per cent in Europe," the company said in a statement. 

In China, sales were down by 22 per cent reflecting the Chinese New Year falling in February this year and January last year, it added.

During the month, Jaguar sold 4,595 units, up 27 per cent with increased sales of the XF, and the XJ, it said, adding Land Rover sold 22,260 units in February, down slightly when compared to the same month last year.

Domestic passenger car sales plunge 26% in Feb: SIAM

Commenting on the sale performance, Jaguar Land Rover,Director of Group Sales Operations Phil Popham, said: "Jaguar Land Rover's sales momentum continues with strong sales performance in February across most major markets. In China, our sales were influenced by the New Year celebrations."

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Walmart lobbying:Panel probing charge to give report by Apr

A government-appointed committee, that is probing into media reports on disclosures of Walmart in the US regarding its lobbying activities and whether the retail giant undertook any activity in India in contravention of law, will submit its report by April.
     "The government has appointed one-man inquiry committee regarding media reports concerning Walmart vide resolution dated January 31, 2013. The committee has been asked to submit its report within three months from issuance of the resolution," Minister of State for Commerce and Industry S
Jagathrakshakan said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
     In January, the Union Cabinet had decided that the probe would be conducted by a retired judge of Supreme Court or Chief Justice of a High Court.
     The committee was mandated to inquire into media reports on disclosures of Walmart before the US senate regarding their lobbying activities. It will also probe whether the US retail giant undertook any activities in Indian in  contravention of any Indian law.
     As per the lobbying disclosure reports filed by Walmart with the US Senate, the company had spent close to USD 25 million (about Rs 125 crore) since 2008 on its various lobbying activities, including on the issues related to
enhanced market access for investment in India.
     The minister also said that the RBI has informed that the matter related to Bharti-Walmart/Cedar Support Services Ltd has been referred to the  enforcement Directorate for further investigations.
     "No time frame has been fixed by the government for conducting the enquiry," he added.
     Further, the minister said that the Central Vigilance Commission has informed that it has not received any demand from the All India Traders Association to inquire into alleged Walmart bribery case.
     In a separate reply, he said that during the meeting of Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma and Walmart CEO Doug McMillon, the CEO has conveyed that they are studying the conditions in India.
     "He was assured about the finality of the policy on FDI in multibrand retail trading and the provision clarifications on the policy, if required," he added.

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Workers call off strike at Bosch's Bangalore plant

Auto components maker Bosch today said a section of employees at its Bangalore plant protesting since March 7 today called off the strike following successful talks with the management.

"The workmen have resumed work at the factory premises starting from today's night shift," Bosch said in a statement. The management and the MEA (MICO Employee's Association) union meeting concluded with a quick resolution on the issues, supported by the intervention of Additional Labour
Commissioner, Bosch said.

"An agreement was reached on the working model for the new production line as per well established industrial engineering standards. Based on this, the suspension of one employee has been withdrawn. However, the enquiry on the
employee will still continue," it said.

M&M Nashik plant workers end strike after co strikes deal

Bosch Management stressed that in accordance with its reputation of a fair employer, all decisions pertaining to business shall be in favour of the organisation and its employees.

Bosch will continue to act fairly yet firmly in all such situations, the company said.

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