NIIT to set up educational kiosks in Bhutan

Hyderabad: IT training and education company NIIT has launched a new initiative called 'Playground Kiosks’ in the hermit kingdom of Bhutan.

The idea in a way fructified after discussions with the present King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck and senior government officials.

Accordingly, NIIT will be associated in driving the IT literacy programme. “We will set up 130 touchscreen, Playground kiosks in different parts of the neighbouring country in due course," said Mr Rajendra Pawar, Chairman of the company.

The kiosk (computer learning point) will have a satellite dish, a solar panel and will be run by NIIT. All that the Bhutanese student or citizen has to do is get into the kiosk, log on and he/she will get connected to the world, to surf, learn and entertain, he told Business Line in a chat recently in the coastal town of Tenali in Andhra Pradesh, where he received the prestigious Dr Y. Nayudamma memorial award for 2011.

The initiative is part of the Bhutanese Government’s vision to create an IT-enabled society that supports its sustainable economy. It is aimed at getting youth onto using computers, training teachers, civil servants etc. The young King, who studied in India had seen some of the work of NIIT.

“We had discussions, when the Indian Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, had visited the country during the SAARC Summit also and the project was finalised. We are in the process of implementing," he said.

The project aims to reach out to at least one lakh students, train a few thousand IT professionals, schools and enterprises in a couple of years.

Ospyn Tech sets up office in Singapore

Thiruvananthapuram: Technopark-based Ospyn Technologies has opened an office in Singapore with the aim of strengthening its position in the Southeast Asian market.

Ospyn specialises in building enterprise-scale applications employing open source tools and technologies. South East Asia is emerging as new economic growth engine and is witnessing high technology adoptions, according to Mr Kishore Kumar, Director, Ospyn.

The company plans to launch Hrapps (human resource applications) and CaseDesk (online complaint management system) solutions to tap available opportunities.

Ospyn plans to build a strong technology team in Singapore. Mr Kishore Kumar said that the company saw robust growth prospects there.

Mr Parasadu Varghese, Managing Director, said that the proximity to customers is an aspect that underscores the company’s commitment to superior service standards and shortened decision-making cycle. “Our presence in Singapore would help in assisting customers in Southeast Asia to stay technologically competitive,” he added.

Adani Ports gets nod to build dry bulk terminal at Kandla

Ahmedabad: Diversified Rs 30,000 crore Adani Group's venture Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) received letter of intent from the Kandla Port Trust of Government of India to set up a dry bulk terminal on build, operate and transfer basis.

APSEZ emerged as the highest bidder on revenue share basis and has been awarded the concession in a competitive bidding scenario. The dry bulk terminal will come up at Tekra near Tuna outside Kandla Creek at the Kandla Port, which is India's largest port by volumes. The construction of the new bulk terminal will begin after signing of the concession agreement with the Kandla Port Trust in next couple of weeks.

APSEZ will invest Rs 1,200 crore to commission four berths. The depth at Tekra is estimated to be 16.5 meter and it is aiming to accommodate ships carrying upto one lakh tonne of DWT. Meanwhile, APSEZ is waiting for the response from the African government to commission a port facility. It has already identified potential locations and submitted a proposal to the government of Africa.

"We are extremely pleased to partner with the Government of India and the Kandla Port Trust and would like to thank them for their faith and confidence in the Adani Group's execution and operating capabilities for setting up world class ports. The Kandla Port's strategic location will be an important factor in attracting cargo from the north-west hinterland and will assist Adani Ports to cross cargo handling volumes of 200 million tonnes by 2020," APSEZ wholetime director Rajeeva Sinha said. He added that the company is working on brownfield and greenfield projects for capacity addition at various locations.

APSEZ CFO B Ravi stated that the project will become operational in phases and all four berths are expected to be commissioned in next couple of years.

Adani Ports is claiming to be the only private port infrastructure company to operate and construct ports and terminals across six locations in India - Mundra, Dahej and Hazira in Gujarat, Mormugao in Goa and Visakhapatnam. Its port at Mundra in on West Coast is the fourth largest commercial and largest private port in India.

Last week, Adani Group announced to focus on resources, logistics and energy. All of these clusters are confident of emulating the group's leadership philosophy of utilising cutting-edge innovation and technology for growth and expansion, read the media statement issued by APSEZ.

India tops US in using smartphone to go online

New Delhi: India still has a long way to go increasing its smartphone penetration but those who are already connected seem to be using it heavily.

A recent mobile survey conducted by IPSOS and Google reveals that Indian smartphone users are accessing the Internet more than their counterparts in the US.

According to the survey, 56 per cent of smartphone users in the country access the Internet multiple times a day, nearly 40 per cent surf the Net at least once a day and only 6 per cent never use their phone for connecting to the Web. In comparison, 11 per cent of smartphone users in the US never use their device to access the Net and 53 per cent use it to surf multiple times a day.

Emails, Social Networking
Indians also score higher when it comes to accessing emails and social networking sites on their smart phones. According to survey, about 76 per cent of smartphone users in India access social networking sites on their devices compared to 54 per cent in the US.

“The survey reiterates our belief in ‘mobile first'. Culturally, even beyond the well-educated, mainstream Indians are technology curious and device savvy. We believe that the Internet-like telephony did, is making the leap from wired Internet to mobile, and hundreds of millions of Indians will go online on their mobile devices,” said Mr Lalitesh Katragadda, Country Head, India Product, Google India, told Business Line.

“At Google, we are building a powerful, simple, personable mobile ecosystem that helps every user be connected as they want and when they want to,” he added.

The survey reveals the usage of smartphone between the age group of 18- 29 is the highest in the country. While 36 per cent of all smartphone owners in India are in this age group, only 17 per cent are in the 30 to 49 age group.

Music tops the chart
In terms of usage, 77 per cent of smartphone owners listen to music, while 33 per cent use it for playing games and 32 per cent read newspapers or magazine.

According to Canalys, Indian smartphone market stood at 3 million units in the third quarter of 2011 up from 1.7 million units in the same period in 2010. The Google survey points out that 66 per cent of existing smart phone users believe they would access the Internet more through their handhelds in the future.

Indian Railways to develop three rail corridors in Chattisgarh

New Delhi: Indian Railways has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the government of Chattisgarh for the development of three rail corridors for both freight and passenger purpose in the state.

The rail corridors would be developed in northern region of Chhatisgarh state, approximately 452 kilometres in total length.

These corridors are on the 180 kilometres on Eastern Corridor which will connect mines, a 150 km long corridor in the northern region and a 122 km long East-West Corridor.

These corridors will be implemented through specific Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) or any other appropriate model of Public Private Partnership (PPP), which will be granted appropriate concession for this purpose by Ministry of Railways.

The Ministry of Railways on its own or through its Public Sector Undertaking and Government of Chhatisgarh state on its own or through its designated agencies will participate in the SPVs as equity partners. Under this MOU, Government of Chhatisgarh state will provide land owned by the State Government and the cost of such land will be part of Government of Chhatisgarh state's equity in the SPVs.

The alignment of these corridors will be such as to connect towns and villages in the region also. East corridor will connect Gharghoda and Dharamajaygarh, North Corridor will connect Katghora, Parsa and Surjpur and East-West Corridor will connect Katghora, Pasan and Sindurgarh.

Government of Chhatisgarh state will complete the process of environmental/forest clearances for the projects within a period of two years from the date of application for such clearances. The SPVs will be required to complete the construction of the Corridors within a period of five years from the formation.

Yamaha looks at making 250-cc sports bikes locally

Mumbai: Gauging at the success of the 250cc sports bike retailed by Honda, fellow Japanese competitor Yamaha is also gearing up for local manufacturing of its planned 250cc sports bike, as against assembly operations done by Bajaj Auto for Kawasaki.

A locally manufactured motorcycle will entail zero duty, thereby, allowing the company to price the product competitively as against 30 per cent duty attracted by an assembled product, where different parts of the bike are imported to be assembled together.

Arch-rival Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) has been clocking an average of 3,000 units every month on the CBR250R sports bike, which the it fully makes in India. Over the last few months, Honda is in the process of phasing out the CBR250R, to make way for the new 2012 model.

Roy Kurian, national business head, India Yamaha Motor, said, "The market for 250cc is growing and we are studying that. There are a couple of models in that segment and people are upgrading to 250cc bikes. We will do 100 per cent localisation of that bike...we will manufacture it here."

Talks about Yamaha launching a 250cc bike has been doing the rounds for several months, but the company has only delayed its entry into the segment. "We have taken the feedback from people who have bought 200-250cc bikes and our feedback says they are not fully 'satisfied' with their products. So there is a need for a better bike than what is available today. Internationally, we have the Fazer 250, but I cannot comment when we will launch a bike in that segment,” added Kurian.

Bajaj Auto imports several parts of the 250cc-powered Kawasaki Ninja into India, before assembling them at its plant in Chakan, Pune. Due to added duties, the Ninja is priced well above the price position of the Honda CBR 250R. While the Ninja costs Rs 300,000 (on-road Mumbai), Honda's CBR250R costs nearly half of that at Rs 155,000 (on-road Mumbai). Reports suggest that Yamaha has been doing a market study for a 250cc bike, which according to sources was scheduled for launch last year. However, the management decided to gauge the response for the Honda CBR250R.

This year, Yamaha has decided to focus on scooters, which is scheduled for launch in the second half. It is confident of achieving sales of 400,000 units (including exports) in the next year. This would constitute 40 per cent of total targeted sales of one million by 2013, said Kurian.

"While we are focussing on scooters this year, it does not mean we are moving away from bikes. The bikes will remain as our main stay in the longer term,” added Kurian.

Corporate travel to grow 10-15% this year

New Delhi: Undeterred by the global slowdown, Indian Inc is spending on corporate travel, pushing up the outbound market for MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions). The Indian outbound MICE market is estimated to be around $550-600 million and is expected to increase by 10%-15% this year.

About 1.5-1.8 million passengers travelled outbound for meetings and conventions. Pharmaceuticals, cement FMCG, IT and financial services are the major industries contributing to the sector.

Forecasting a strong growth, Travelport COO Heena Akhtar said the industry was expected to grow by 10-15%. "The slowdown meant that regular companies cut down on their corporate travel last year. But this year, we are expecting a revival in incentivized travel and meetings by corporates,'' she said.

According to a study on India's MICE market by Synovate Business Consulting, the most popular destinations in Europe in the last two years included Germany with 73% opting for the destination followed by UK (52%), France (51%) and Switzerland (45%).

Speaking on the interest in Germany, German National Tourist Office director (sales and marketing) Romit Theophilus said, "Indians have a high spending capacity and we are expecting a 10-15% growth in business tourist arrivals this year.''

GNTO has seen a sustained growth of 20% year-on-year from Indian travelers with the number of visitor overnights growing by 26.2% in 2010 as compared to January-December 2009.

Lower hotel rates and carrier options in Europe supported by infrastructure, the vast number of businesses placed in European countries and services have popularized Germany as a business travel destination according to the report.

Other destinations too have seen significant growth from Indian tourist arrivals under the MICE segment including Hong Kong by 12%, Malaysia (15%), Thailand (30%) and Czech Republic by 40%.

The study also pointed out that top management accounted for 70% of the meetings and 50% of the conferences in MICE trips. Incentive trips were mostly conducted for executives and middle management accounting for 30% of the MICE trips.

Among the factors considered important for corporate travel are nature tourism, food and dining and cultural tourism, the report said.

Incidentally, countries like Austria, Indonesia, Turkey and Bhutan have offered discounted offers to woo large size groups while new entrants like Czech Republic, Spain and South Africa are pitching for an India-centric policy to tap the Indian MICE segment.

Franchise market growing at over 30% per annum

Hyderabad: The country’s franchise market, estimated to be $4 billion in 2011, is growing at a healthy pace of over 30 per cent per annum with tier II and tier III cities gradually getting hooked to the network of retailers and franchisers.

If the education sector was in the forefront offering franchise options, it now encompasses food and beverages and other services sectors, according to representatives taking part at the two-day FRO 2012 being hosted at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC).

Mr Gaurav Marya, President of Franchise India, said: “Franchising in India has witnessed impressive growth of around 30-35 per cent year-after-year over the last 4-5 years with an estimated turnover of $4 billion. It is helping transform good ideas into businesses. The FRO serves as a platform to identify, foster and commercialise innovative business start-up ideas and to meet the demands of today’s dynamic entrepreneurial arena.”

Brainworks, Buzz, Chhabra 555, Coffee Beans and Tea & Leaf, Cookieman, Gelato, Juice Salon, Mother Earth, Kwality Walls, New Zealand Naturals, are among a host of others taking part in the concurrent exposition.

The exposition serves as a regional platform for potential tie-ups where companies present their franchise concepts. Typically, franchise options come with a starting investment of Rs 5 lakh going up to Rs 5 crore.

More than 5,000 participants are expected to take part during the event and get a chance to interface with companies’ representatives and explore opportunities for collaboration.

TRF Ltd inks pact with German firm

Kolkata: TRF Limited, part of the Tata Group, has entered into an exclusive agreement with Schade Lagertechnik GmbH to manufacture and market the latter's yard equipment in India. This agreement aims to meet the need for higher capacity stackers, portal scraper reclaimers, circular storage systems as well as wagon tipplers to meet TRF's ambitious growth plans in infrastructure industries like, steel, power ports, cement and mining.

As part of the agreement, Schade of Germany will provide TRF, a leader in material handling equipment and processing systems, the necessary know-how, assistance and key components for making higher capacity yard equipment. The agreement allows TRF to sell Schade's equipment in India.

The dual advantage of producing the high capacity bulk material handling equipment at a comparatively lower cost in India, at TRF's Jamshedpur plant, and the application of technical expertise from Schade will give domestic infrastructure sector access to world-class German technology at competitive prices.

Commenting on the agreement, Sudhir Deoras, managing director, TRF Ltd said: "We have worked with Schade in the past and together we would be able to meet customer needs." Incidentally, TRF and Schade have ealier worked together to supply and instal Asia's first and biggest radial stacker reclaimer at NSPCL's thermal power plant at Bhilai.

Speaking on the ocassion, Karl-Heinz Fiegenbaum, managing director, Schade said: "We have been looking out to join hands for the Indian market with a well established equipment manufacturer serving the local bulk materials handling sector." This tie up will also meet the needs of our joint future clients in India."

Schade, Germany has nearly 130 years of experience in bulk material handling equipment and has supplied more than 600 machines worldwide. It enjoys the benefit of a global network combined with large product range and high expertise. The alliance will thus create opportunities for the cross-fertilisation of technical capabilities and pave the way for transfer of knowledge, especially best practices and expertise within the two companies.

TRF has extensive experience in the design, supply and installation of bulk material handling equipment including the design, manufacture and erection of stackers, reclaimers and wagon tipplers. TRF also undertakes turnkey projects for infrastructure development industries such as power and steel plants, port, cement, chemical and mining.

Agriculture Ministry, Isro to forecast accurate farm production

New Delhi: The union agriculture ministry is gearing up to provide advance and accurate forecast of farm output in the kharif season by setting up a remote sensing centre in New Delhi with the help of Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro). The centre is likely to be operational in a month's time.

"Isro has developed basic procedures, models, and software packages for crop area and production forecasting, using remote sensing and weather data. We will be engaging seven Isro scientists who, along with our agriculture scientists, will come out with reliable information about agri output," said agriculture secretary Prabeer Kumar Basu.

The technology will be used for the analysis of cropping system (satellites provide valuable inputs for diversification and intensification of crops), mapping of sodic and usar soils, assessing the impact of droughts and floods, weather forecasting and monsoon prediction.

"The prediction of monsoon is difficult even with remote sensing technology. But the assessment of drought is quite easy. Satellite data will help us in contingency planning and for drought declaration process. We will extend the use of this technology for the analysis of water index and rainfed areas," he said.

The ministry is running a country-wide project, 'Forecasting of agriculture outputs through satellite, agrometeorology and Land-based observations' (FASAL) for forecasting major crops including wheat, rice, millet, jowar, bajra, oilseeds and sugarcane. From this year onwards, remote sensing technology will be used to forecast horticulture output as well.

Now, outsource research work to scientists of top universities

Chennai: A company that employs a number of researchers to work on a complex problem can instead outsource it to scientists and researchers from top Indian academic institutions to find a solution. That's what Xerox India Research, the youngest global research lab of the $22-billion leading company, is doing.

Through a concept called Open Innovation, Xerox India Research has brought together top-notch scientists, along with the company's researchers and engineers, to work on complex projects that Xerox wants to implement.

And the partnership is not restricted to the India centre, but researchers from global Xerox Research labs have access to the “best of the Indian brains” in this global hub, Ms Meera Sampath, Director of Xerox Research Centre India, recently toldBusiness Line.

Open Innovation is today the core of Xerox India research. The centre has eight partnerships with top academic institutions, including IIT-Madras, IIT-Bombay, IIT-Kharagpur, Indian Institute of Science, IIT-Mandi and Srishti Labs.

Research partnerships cover a broad range of topics such as cloud computing, services marketplace design, multi-lingual technology development, personalised information delivery, video-based patient monitoring and rural technology initiatives, she said.

Even before Xerox started its research centre in India in 2010, the company decided that this lab would be built on a model of ‘open innovation' and started working with local universities. Xerox has such a model in the US and Europe but in India this will be the fundamental to how “we operate,” she said.

Ms Sampath said the India centre acts as a traditional research lab with its own researchers collaborating with colleagues in other global labs. In addition, the lab is a central hub to connect people from the Europe, US, with institutes like IIT-Madras, IIT-Kharaghpur and the School of Design.

“One of the goals internally is that every researcher hired in India will not only work on their core research work, but also with one or two open innovation projects. For us, it is not the size of the people we have inside the lab, but it is the strength and size of this whole ecosystem that we are building. Every university gives an opportunity for us to work with one or two professors and three or four students,” she said.

It is not just more people working for you, but also tapping in to a skill that “we may not develop as a core competency in-house.” Within the company we have researchers working on cloud computing but for things like user design it makes sense to tap experts outside and leverage their expertise. For the students too, this helps as they are working on projects that are inspired by the business needs,” she said.

Su-Kam, Kohler tie up for hybrid power back-up

Chennai: Su-Kam Power Systems Ltd and Kohler Power Systems, US, have introduced range of diesel and gas generators. Both companies have entered into a supply, distribution marketing pact and have conceived a hybrid solution offering inverter and genset, according to a press release.

Kohler India Corporation will collaborate with Su-Kam to provide the customised solution based on the hybrid concept. The unique features include priority-based load sharing between inverter and DG sets, efficiency under critical power conditions and reduction in carbon footprint. A graphic user interface regularly updates the user on the voltage, frequency and current supply. It also prevents blackouts by updating the user on the fuel level, engine temperature, battery voltage and engine oil pressure.

Sembcorp India plant signs 10 year coal contract

New Delhi: Singapore-based Sembcorp Industries said its Indian joint venture, Thermal Powertech Corp, has signed an agreement with Indonesia's PT Bayan Resources for supply of about one million tonnes of coal per year for 10 years.

The contract, which is for an aggregate of 10 million tonnes of coal, is expected to commence in 2014, Sembcorp said in a statement.

Sembcorp owns 49% stake in Thermal Powertech Corp through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Sembcorp Utilities, while Gayatri Energy Ventures, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gayatri Projects, owns the rest.

"With plant construction progressing on track at the project site in Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh's SPSR Nellore District, this coal agreement marks yet another significant milestone for Sembcorp's first Indian power plant project, a 1,320-megawatt coal-fired power plant," the statement said.

"With part of our coal supply successfully secured at a competitive price and construction of the plant and its boiler turbines and generators well underway, we are on track to complete the project on schedule and begin full commercial operations in 2014," Sembcorp Utilities chief executive officer Atul Nargund said.

Listed on Indonesian stock exchange, Bayan is the sixth largest producer and exporter of thermal coal in Indonesia. It owns the Balikpapan Coal Terminal, one of the largest coal terminals in East Kalimantan with a handling capacity of 15 million tonnes per annum.

This signing is not expected to have a material impact on the earnings per share and net asset value per share of Sembcorp Industries for the current financial year, the statement said.

Exports during current fiscal will be around $300 b: Sharma

Mumbai: The country's exports during the current fiscal would be around $300 billion, an increase of 22 per cent from $ 245 billion achieved last year, said the Union Commerce Minister, Mr Anand Sharma, on Thursday.

He was interacting with the media after reviewing the progress of the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project.

Mr Sharma said that growth in exports have been achieved in spite of very challenging circumstances and global contraction of demand. “The conscious strategy which we have adopted of accessing new markets have sustained our exports and would be able to withstand the increasing pressure on current and trade account,” he said.

He said that exports have to be sustained by a robust manufacturing sector. Therefore projects such as DMIC and National Manufacturing Zones needs to be given a boost. Today DMIC is one of the biggest infrastructure projects on the anvil, which will impact 43 per cent of the national population. In the long run, DMIC will attract an investment of about $100 billion.

Riding along with the industrial corridor would be the National Manufacturing Zones (NMZ), which would be full-fledged industrial townships focussed on manufacturing industries. Seven such zones are being planned along the DMIC, of which two would be in Maharashtra, Mr Sharma said.

Also addressing the media, the Maharashtra Chief Minister, Mr Prithviraj Chavan, said that in the first phase of the project, Dighi port industrial area in Raigad district spread over 2,500 km and Shendra Bidkin mega industrial area of 845 km in Aurangabad have been identified as NMZs. Both the regions would be developed with an investment of about Rs 8,766 crore, he said.

For proper implementation of the DMIC project in the State, a joint venture between the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Corporation and the Maharashtra Government will be set up, which will have an independent team for implementing the project, Mr Chavan said.

India invites Saudi Arabia to invest in oil sector

New Delhi: India has invited Saudi participation in upcoming investment opportunities in its petroleum upstream and downstream sector including OPaL’s Petrochemical project at Dahej and OMPL’s Petrochemical project at Mangalore.

An offer was made to the Saudi side for considering equity participation in these projects as a strategic investor, said Mr R.P.N. Singh, Minister of State for Petroleum & Natural Gas, after the bilateral meetings with Prince Abdul Aziz Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz, Assistant Minister for Petroleum Affairs, Saudi Arabia.

Other proposed investment opportunities such as Indian Oil Corporation’s LNG project at Ennore, Bharat Petroleum Corporation’s LNG terminal at Kochi, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation’s grass-root refinery in Visakhapatnam and Indian Oil Corporations petrochemical plant at Paradip were also discussed.

Since both Saudi Arabia and India are prominent actors in the International Energy Forum (IEF) comprising 88 countries, which is the world’s principal vehicle for the ongoing global energy dialogue, several issues related to the IEF were also discussed, he said.

Ivey ties up with MDI Gurgaon

Mumbai: The Richard Ivey School of Business (Ivey) is expanding its footprint in India through its partnerships in areas of case study preparation, research and executive education. The Richard Ivey School of Business today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon, for development of India-focussed business case studies and distribute them globally. Further, Ivey will also be developing an executive development programme for a large Indian telecom player.

The partnership with MDI will look at training high-potential faculty and case writers in case writing and case teaching process, developing a case writing and case teaching culture in Indian management schools, and expanding the research networks of the institutions.

In an interview with Business Standard, Carol Stephenson, Dean, Richard Ivey School of Business, said, "We are partnering with MDI Gurgaon to develop joint cases. I believe that case based learning is a highly effective and relevant teaching methodology to make management education more attuned to real world business challenges, particularly in fast-growing and emerging economies such as India."

Ivey has a partnership with Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Bangalore, for research and Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad, for developing case studies. The recent MoU is a step in that direction. At the Ivey campus in Toronto, around 10 per cent of students in its MBA programme are Indians. "We have been associated with India for a long time. The number of Indian students in our campuses is also increasing, especially after our alumni, an Indian businessman in Canada has announced 50 per cent scholarships for Indian students," informed Stephenson.

She also said that the Indian students at Ivey, Toronto campus, were looking at coming back to India. “India has the opportunities — entrepreneurial and otherwise. That is why our students are looking at the country more than ever before. Moreover, our mandatory international business trip to India, as a part of the curriculum, is raising awareness among the students about the country, encouraging them to take up jobs here,” opined the Dean.

In terms of executive education, Ivey has been working with several corporates for their internal programmes. Ivey has already worked with GAIL for the latter executive development programme. “Executive education has been our forte. We are thus looking at more partnerships with Indian corporates in this area,” said Stephenson.

The Dean said that the quality brought to executive education was of prime importance. Using its own faculty, unique case method, implementable solutions and getting industry practitioners to the executive education programme has been the focus of Ivey, according to her. "Companies are now realising that they cannot compromise with executive education. Talent is what makes a company and we hope to play a significant role in nurturing this talent among Indian organisations," she concluded.

Nichrome India ships $1 million sugar packaging machinery to White Nile

une: Nichrome India Ltd, a Pune headquartered packaging machinery manufacturer from India has shipped out a turnkey order of US $ 1 million for sugar packing to White Nile from Sudan, one of the largest sugar plants in the world.

The contract was awarded by ISGEC, a turnkey project supply company from Delhi. This plant which will be packing about 700 tons per day for retail sale and would have ten lines of Nichrome machines complete with feeding systems, packing machine, metal detectors, conveying systems, post packaging systems in one integrated set up.

"Recently we bagged an order from Germany to supply HFFS machine followed by this particular order of supplying sugar packaging machine to Sudan,"" Harish Joshi, managing director, Nichrome India Ltd.

""Africa is growing market for processed and packaged commodity. Nichrome has excellent foot print in this market with several projects in food / non -food commodity packing plants. Nichrome expects to reach turnover of over USD 10 million a year from African markets in next couple of years,""said Mr Joshi. Nichrome has already worked on 3 such plants of various capacities in Africa over last 15 months.

Hero MotoCorp joins hands with Erik Buell Racing

New Delhi: Hero MotoCorp, the world's largest two-wheeler maker, has signed a technology-sharing deal with US motorcycle firm Erik Buell Racing (EBR), a year after ending a 27-year-old pact with Japan's Honda Motors.

Munjals-owned Hero MotoCorp will buy technology from EBR without sharing profits or ownership. After its December 2010 breakup with Honda, the Indian company had been scouting for new technology to compete better in the domestic two-wheeler segment where it holds 56% market share.

"It's a very flexible partnership where they will develop cutting-edge technology based on our needs and market demands," Hero MotoCorp managing director and CEO Pawan Munjal said, adding that the company will first develop bikes bigger than its top-end 225cc Karizma ZMR.

EBR, a specialist in customised superbikes, is already working on some of Hero MotoCorp's products and will develop new bikes and scooters that are likely to hit the market in 2013. Hero does not intend to launch 1,000cc and above superbikes immediately and will gradually move up the value chain.

Hero MotoCorp, earlier known as Hero Honda, competes with Bajaj, TVS, Honda and Yamaha in the domestic two-wheeler segment, which is forecast to grow 10%-12% in the next fiscal year. It had grown into the world's largest-selling bike brand on the back of technology from the Japanese automaker, with which it was sharing equity and paying royalty on every product. Honda, which operates its own subsidiary in India, is currently Hero's closest rival in the domestic market.

Hero, one of largest business houses in India, posted its highest quarterly profit at Rs 613 crore in the quarter ended December 31. The company, which is reported to have cash reserves of more than Rs 4,000 crore, plans to enlarge its R&D setup at Daruhera into a full-fledged design and engineering centre with EBR's help.

"We are open to all options as we move into being a diversified automotive company," Munjal said.

EBR has already developed a hybrid scooter concept, Leap, which was showcased by Hero at the Auto Expo in New Delhi earlier this year.

"We are already customising technologies for Hero MotoCorp using the frugal Indian engineering expertise that would be available for developing different kinds of two wheelers," EBR chairman Eric Buell said, adding, "After Leap, we plan to bring in some bikes that would have a global appeal and can be locally manufactured."

Separately, Hero also announced plans to enter motorcycle racing by sponsoring two teams-Hero and AMSOIL Hero-in the AMA Pro Racing National Guard Superbikes Championship in the USA. "As a company to nurture sporting talent, we intend to develop a full-fledged team for racing and would gradually develop teams from India," Munjal said.

Australia turns focus to South, keen on more bilateral trade

Madurai: The signing of strategic partnership with India in 2009 has enabled Australia to raise its diplomatic strength and engage in the promotion of more bilateral trade and investment in the region and establish contact with cities such as Madurai, said Mr .David Holly, Consul General to South India, Australian Consulate General, Chennai, here recently.

Addressing an interactive session on ‘India- Australia Partnership: Trade and Investment' organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), he said that the increase in diplomatic strength has facilitated devotion of more resources to South India in particular with the establishment of offices in Bangalore and Kochi.

Revenue
Stating that Australia has been the third largest source of revenue for Indian IT companies that has been growing by about 30 per cent, he mentioned that under the Australia-India Strategic Research Fund, a project worth Rs 3.7 crore has been signed with the Madurai Kamaraj University on waste management with particular focus on water treatment.

A project on cyber security is also under way with the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, he added.

Mr Michael Carter, Consul Commercial and Trade Commissioner, Australia Trade Commission, making a power point presentation on the Australian economy and growing ties with India, said that during the last fiscal the bilateral trade stood at A$ 21 billion and is poised to reach A$ 40 billion in three years. Companies from Tamil Nadu included Polaris Software, Elgi Equipment, Sundaram Business Services, CUMI Australia and Sabero Organics.

Mr R. Dinesh, Vice-Chairman, CII, Tamil Nadu State Council, said that tourism in the region had great potential and Australian tour operators could link up with local tour operators.

Collaboration
Marketing and packaging of food products is another area where collaboration between the two countries could be explored.

That IT companies in the small-scale sector in Madurai had global potential was also pointed out.

Earlier, Mr Shyam Prakash Gupta, Chairman, CII, Madurai Zone, in his address observed that Australia had, in large numbers, students from India. Mr A.Kathir Kamanathan, Member, CII Madurai Zonal Council, proposed the vote of thanks.

SEBI eases advertising code for mutual fund industry

Mumbai: SEBI has loosened the advertising code for the mutual fund industry making it more ‘principle-based, rather than rule-based'.

The rationale behind the change in the advertising code was that the existing regulations were rule-based and imposed a lot of restrictions. AMCs had difficulty in complying with the many prescriptive norms on advertisements (such as mandatory disclosures in standard warnings, font sizes, time for audio visual display).

With respect to the amendment, SEBI has mandated that the advertising, which would include all forms of communication, should avoid extensive use of technical or legal terminology'. It should also be devoid of any extensive details which “may detract the investors”.

Information contained in the advertisement should be timely and consistent with the disclosures made in the documents, such as the scheme information document, statement of additional information and key information memorandum. The standard warning in print form is required to be in legible fonts. In the audio-visual format, the advertisement is required to be in 14 words running for at least 5 seconds. This may be considered as clear and understandable.

M&M to enter Korea with Ssangyong

New Delhi: In a move to increasingly synergise operations with subsidiary Ssangyong Motor Company (SMC), homegrown auto major, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), is looking at commencing production and sales of its products in Korea.

Pawan Goenka, president (automotive and farm equipment divisions), M&M, said, “We are integrating operations with SMC, we have decided to develop all new platforms jointly with our Korean subsidiary. A new product based on a new platform will not be out till 2015. In the meantime, we have decided to bring Rexton to India and are now looking at assembling XUV500 in Korea.”

While Ssangyong products would be retailed under the Korean brand in India, the company is yet to decide on branding Mahindra products in Korea. The first product from the Sangyong portfolio, premium sports utility vehicle Rexton, would hit Indian roads towards the end of this year. The Korando C is expected to follow suit in 2013. M&M is investing close to Rs 100 crore for setting up a body shop to produce the Rexton at its plant in Chakan, Maharashtra.

“We want to synergise our operations with that of Ssangyong in sourcing, manufacturing and distributing products to better profitability from resulting economies of scale. The purchase head at SMC is an expat from India and two-three resourcing deals are already underway,” added Goenka.

Mahindra & Mahindra, which currently straddles the UV segment in the country with Bolero, Xylo, Scorpio and the newly launched XUV500, is looking at leveraging SMC’s strong research and development capabilities to develop products to expand its portfolio for global markets.

The company, which had acquired 70 per cent stake in SMC in November last year, is jointly developing two new platforms with the Korean utility vehicle maker – one each in India and Korea. The acquisition made for Rs 2,100 crore was the largest outbound deal recorded in the domestic automotive industry.

While M&M has no plans immediately to enter the United States by leveraging SMC’s distribution network in the country, the company has initiated talks with Sangyong’s distributor in Russia Solaris to assemble Mahindra products.

Goenka informed, “Russia is the second largest market for Ssangyong after Korea. As many as 600,000 SUVs are sold there annually. We are in talks with our partner to decide on what product platforms make sense for the market. If the negotiations materialise, we will start assembling Mahindra products in Russia from completely knocked down kits in two years.”

SMC, which posted a volume growth of 40 per cent, sold between 1,13,000-1,140,000 units in 2011. The company has fallen short of sales target of 1,20,000 units, due to the slowdown in its largest market Europe. SMC is now looking at boosting volumes in emerging markets of India, Russia and China to more than double sales to 300,000 units by 2015-16.

The Korean car maker, at present, has 1,300-strong dealer network in 98 countries. SMC’s line-up comprises a luxury sedan, four SUVs and a multipurpose vehicle.

Ranbaxy launches cholesterol drug in Australia

New Delhi: Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd has launched blockbuster drug Atorvastatin in the Australian market. The company has introduced the product under the brand name, ‘Trovas' and the drug will be available in bottles and blister packs, through retail pharmacy chains.

Atorvastatin, a cholesterol reducing drug, is the most prescribed statin in Australia and represents the largest patent expiry opportunity ever in the Australian pharmaceutical market with a current market size of approximately $680 million.

The drug company had earlier launched the drug in the US in direct competition to Pfizer's largest selling drug Lipitor.

Commenting on the development, Mr Alex Evans, Managing Director, Ranbaxy Australia said, “Ranbaxy is privileged to be the first generic company in Australia to introduce Atorvastatin. We remain committed to offering the product at an affordable price that will be beneficial to both the Australian healthcare system, and most importantly, to patients in Australia.”

The continent is an important strategic market for Ranbaxy, which entered the Australian market in November 2006.

Reliance Industries Ltd finalises $450-M JV with Russian rubber giant Sibur

Mumbai: Reliance Industries (RIL) and Russian rubber giant Sibur, Eastern Europe's largest maker of petrochemicals, on Tuesday announced the formation of a joint venture company called Reliance Sibur Elastomers that aims to become the fourth largest supplier of butyl rubber - an input for tyres - in the world.

"In the first year of production the company could target a turnover of 2,500 crore," said Nikhil Meswani, executive director, RIL.

The company will produce 100,000 tons of butyl rubber per year at a new plant located in the industrial complex in Jamnagar, Gujarat that also contains the world's largest greenfield refinery. The JV will be the first manufacturer of butyl rubber in India, and will cater to the demand for synthetic rubber from the Indian automotive industry.

That demand, a little more than 75,000 tonnes per year, is currently satisfied by imports.

"Our product will be significantly cheaper than the $4,000-5,000 per tonne cost of imported butyl rubber as it will be manufactured locally and our refinery feedstock will be used," added Meswani

Reliance will own 74.9% of the joint venture company with Sibur accounting for the rest. The JV will invest $450 million to construct the facility, which is expected to be commissioned by mid-2014.

The two partners have also signed a technology licensing agreement facilitating the use Sibur's proprietary butyl rubber production technology at the new production facility.

Sibur will develop basic engineering design for the facility and also train the JV's personnel at its production site in Togliatti, Russia.

"We plan to cater to the large domestic demand and will use the existing supply contracts of Sibur," added Meswani. RIL had first announced its intent to form this JV in December 2010 and will now commission the facility in the second half of 2014.

German firm Steinbach sets up Indian arm

Pune: Steinbach & Partner, the Germany-based global executive search and HR consultancy firm, has entered the Indian market and set up a wholly-owned subsidiary, headquartered in Pune.

“Pune was a natural choice for us to start India operations, since it is home to over 200 German companies and over 1,500 German professionals that are engaged in the auto and engineering businesses,” Mr Sebastian Steinbach, Director and Board Member, Steinbach & Partner, said.

“In the next 2-3 years, we will start our centres in Mumbai, New Delhi and Bangalore, and initially focus on sectors like automotive, engineering and life sciences,” said Mr Ramgopal Rao, President and Country Head, Steinbach and Partner Executive Consultants India Private Ltd.

He added that the company was targeting revenue of €1 million from its Indian subsidiary in the first three years of operations.

Steinbach and Partner uses scientific suitability tools and interviewing techniques such as the Hogan Test and Leadership Versatility Index (LVI) amongst its methods to scrutinize and assess candidates for performance capabilities and culture fit.

The company has a special cell that caters to the needs of start-ups/venture capital-funded companies and has recruited experts for over 100 companies financed with venture capital. The service will also be launched in India in due time.

BSE to launch green index from today

New Delhi: To promote firms working on sustainable business practices, the BSE is expected to launch its second thematic index, the BSE-GREENEX, on Wednesday.

A pick of 20 companies from the BSE 100, the index gives equal weightage to both energy efficiency and profitability — together indicating a long-term sustainable strategy. The Union Corporate Affairs Minister, Mr Veerappa Moily, is expected to inaugurate the new initiative at Mumbai.

25th index
“Though there are other such indices globally focussing on green credentials, this is the first which is based on actual performance in the energy efficiency front, rather than stated future plans,” a source close to the development toldBusiness Line.

The 25{+t}{+h}dynamic index at the BSE, the BSE-GREENEX, has been co-developed with gTrade, a domestic sustainability firm working on financial innovations in energy efficiency. While BSE provides the financial analytics, the carbon analytics are provided by gTrade.

Right time
The index is targeted at retail, as well as institutional investors such as asset managers and pension funds looking for investments in companies with strong long-term prospects and develop green financial products.

“This is a good time for such an index as there is a global policy emphasis on sustainability as resources are getting expensive and scarce,” the source said.

“Research over the last three years has shown that this index is performing better than the Sensex, indicating that companies that are able to balance energy efficiency and profitability, give better returns for investors,” he added.

The index follows a sector-specific algorithm, whereas a benchmark each company is measured only against the best in the same specific industry based on publically disclosed energy and financial data. Thus, if for example, on measures NTPC against other power generation firms, one can know the relative efficiency levels.

Constructive
Mr Ashvin Parekh, Ernst & Young's National Leader for Financial Services said such an index is “constructive and welcome” for retail investors as it will help them make better decisions.

“Currently, there are very few instruments for retail investors and the market is run by FIIs and institutions, who have their own analysts. Any scenario that helps retail investors participate more meaningfully is very beneficial,” he said.

Farm equipment makers are upbeat over robust demand

Chandigarh: Farm equipment manufacturers in the northern region, especially SMEs and their vendors, are upbeat over the robust demand for farm equipment in the domestic market. They are betting big on the Indian farm mechanisation market, which is estimated at over Rs 4,000 crore a year (excluding tractors).

There are over 400 SME manufacturers and vendors in the northern region, comprising Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. Some of the SMEs market their product under their own brand name while others sell to large established players.

Using indigenous technology and with the help of competitive pricing, these manufacturers cater to the domestic market as well as export to Sri Lanka, Nepal, Iraq, Iran and the southern African countries.

According to analysts, labour shortages, subsidies by both Central and state governments as well as easy financing by financial institutions have given a boost to this sector, which is witnessing 20-25 per cent year-on-year growth.

Sonalika Agro Industries Corporation Director Rajesh Thakur said, “The farm mechanisation sector has witnessed rapid growth in rural areas in the recent past, because of labour shortages. It is quality, competitive pricing and service which are driving the growth of manufacturers based in the northern region.”

Farm mechanisation has been promoted vigorously by the Central and state governments. Farm implements that recently have been made eligible for bank financing, in addition to existing implements, include multi-crop threshers, sadd drills, rotavator bed planters, tractor-mounted sprayers, potato diggers (manual and automatic), caster threshers, sugarcane cutters and planters.

The state governments provide a subsidy on the purchase of these machines that can go up to 50 per cent, depending on the machine.

In Punjab alone, according to the “state focus” prepared by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard), the credit requirement for farm mechanisation in 2012-13 is estimated at Rs 1,748 crore (including tractors). This makes farm mechanisation the third-largest sector in the state in terms of credit requirement, after crop loans and dairy development.

Farm mechanisation in Punjab had until recently been a “tractorisation” process, as the state had about 492,000 registered tractors as on March 31, 2009.

However, the use of other kinds of farm equipment – power tillers, bullock/tractor drawn implements, reapers, threshers, cleaners/graders, zero-till seed-cum-fertiliser drills, raised-bed planters, reapers and rotavators – has also increased significantly over the last few years, making it an attractive sector for manufacturers. In Haryana farm mechanisation is a Rs 1,000 crore market.

The managing director of Haryana-based Ashoka Foundry & Engineering Works, Kapil Gupta, said, “We have been doing very well over the last few years. In order to meet the robust demand, we are expanding our manufacturing capacity.”

His company manufactures agricultural equipments such as automatic and semi-automatic potato planters, seed-cum-fertiliser drills, sugar trench planters, tillage equipment and sugarcane cutter and planters.

Analysts said the factors driving the growth of farm mechanisation in the northern region are high quality, low cost and trouble-free maintenance. Punjab has about 40-60 farm implement manufacturers that focus on the complete value chain of farm mechanisation solutions and cater to both the domestic and the international market.

Greenko to commission wind farms in Maharashtra by May

Hyderabad: Greenko Group, a listed entity of the Alternative Investment Market of London Stock Exchange, focussing on clean energy power plants, is set to commission 165 megawatt (MW) of wind energy farms in Maharashtra by May, taking its installed capacity of power generation from about 220 MW to about 385 MW.

The Managing Director and CEO of the Hyderabad-based Greenko, Mr Anil Chalamalasetty, toldBusiness Linethat the company is at advanced stage of commissioning these wind energy assets located in Satara district of Maharashtra, and expects to commission these wind farms with a total generating capacity of 165 MW.

This would take the company's energy generation capacity up from about 200 MW now, which includes 120 MW of hydel power generation, 80 MW of biomass plants and a liquid fuel powered plant, the last one has come through an acquisition.

The company has strategic venture with the US-based major GE (General Electric) for the implementation of wind farms in the country. A venture has been set up by Greenko wherein GE financial services arm had teamed up in October last to invest up to $50 million.

In the Ratnagiri project, Greenko has deployed 1.6-MW GE turbines, designed for conditions with lower wind speeds. The company is in the process of implementing a series of wind energy projects in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan, through this association.

Prudential PLC, Aloe funds, TPG Growth, Scottish Windows, Capital Group and Blackrock are among investors who have helped raise up to $500 million for projects underway.

Toshiba JSW wins Rs 2,300-cr order from NTPC

Bangalore: Japanese power equipment major Toshiba JSW Turbine & Generator will supply turbines for the Rs 10,000-crore thermal power plant in Karnataka.

According to a press statement, the company will supply three 800 MW supercritical steam turbine and generator island packages for NTPC's Kudgi super thermal power project, Stage-I, in Kudgi. The equipment will be manufactured at the company's plant in Chennai.

Contract Value
The contract value is around Rs. 2300 crore and delivery of the equipment is expected to start in 2013, the press statement said.

The Kudgi project is NTPC's first in Karnataka, and the State Government had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with NTPC in 2009 for the proposed project. According to the statement, Toshiba has already supplied five 830 MW supercritical steam turbines and generators for the Mundra Ultra Mega thermal power plant owned by Coastal Gujarat Power Ltd, a 100 per cent subsidiary of Tata Power Company, and will supply two 660-MW supercritical steam turbines and generators for the Salaya-II Thermal Power Plant operated by Essar Power Gujarat Limited.

Govt to boost investment in powerlooms

Mumbai: The government is planning to boost investment in power loom industry by opting for cluster development in the 12th five year plan (starting April 2012), said Mr A.B. Joshi, Textile Commissioner on Monday.

Speaking at the inaugural function of Texpo 2012, a buyer-seller meet and exhibition of power loom fabrics, made ups and home textiles, Mr Joshi said the Government will consider setting up of yarn banks to ensure availability of quality yarns to the textile industry.

The event was organised by Powerloom Development and Export Promotion Council (PDEXCIL) along with Hindustan Chamber of Commerce, Bharat Merchant Chamber and Mumbai Textile Merchants Mahajan.

Bangladesh to set up India-specific SEZs

Kolkata: Encouraged by increasing apparel exports to India following a duty-free treaty (with India), Bangladesh is planning to set up two Special Economic Zones (SEZ) for specifically wooing Indian companies, Mr Abdul Matlub Ahmad, President, India Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said here on Monday.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar (BCIM) Business Forum Meet, Mr Ahmad said that each of the SEZs will come up on 100-acre plots of land in Kishoreganj and Chattak, in Bangladesh. While the Kishoreganj SEZ will cater to garment manufacturers, the Chattak SEZ will be a multi-purpose zone. Both SEZs will be built by a private entity based in Bangladesh.

“We are targeting Indian garment manufacturers in such areas as Tirupur (Tamil Nadu) and Ludhiana (Punjab) for garment SEZs and we are receiving positive feedback,” Mr Ahmad said.

According to Mr Ahmad with a duty-free treaty, export to India is likely to double to $1 billion (approximately Rs 5,000 crore) by June 2012, from $500 million (approximately Rs 2,500 crore) last year. Meanwhile, the BCIM forum further discussed the need for greater regional co-operation between India and China, on the one hand, and the smaller countries of Myanmar and Bangladesh, on the other. Mr Sandipan Chakravortty, Managing Director, Tata Steel Processing & Distribution Ltd., said that bilateral trade between India and Bangladesh has remained more or less static and needs to grow.

He added that in the case of trade with China, India needs to emphasise on expanding its exports. Wine, telecommunications, food and beverages and education are some of the sectors with immense opportunities.

Jindal steel to spend $300 million to develop new, existing mines in Africa

Johannesburg: Jindal Steel and Power, India's biggest producer of the alloy by market value, plans to spend $300 million in developing new and existing mines in Africa.

The move is part of the company's strategy to source coal assets abroad to meet raw material demand of its steel and power plants at home. Jindal Africa, the company's Africa subsidiary, would invest $250 million in developing a coalmine in Mozambique's coal-rich Moatize region, Ashish Kumar, CEO of Jindal Africa, told ET on the sidelines of an international mining meet.

He said the remaining funds would be used to expand the capacity of its mine in Piet Retief in South Africa's Mpumalanga province. Kumar said the Mozambique mine is expected to start operations this year, producing 1 million tonne of coal.

He said the company would raise its capacity to 10 mt over the next few years. The capacity of the South Africa mine would be raised from 0.8 mt to 1.3 mt by fiscal 2013, he said. The steel and power producer is expanding its footprint in Africa, a continent known for its rich and largely untapped mineral wealth.

Jindal Africa has so far acquired 30 prospecting licenses for coal, manganese , iron ore and diamonds in Tanzania, Zambia, Madagascar, Mozambique and South Africa. The group is also constructing rail and port infrastructure in Mozambique and has agreed to build a 2,600 MW thermal power plant in the country.

"We came into Africa only in 2008 and since then we have been investing in the projects," Kumar told Mining Indaba, a conference of mining companies from across the world. "It is only of late that we have decided to build our corporate brand presence across the continent ."

Jindal Africa was the first foreign company to secure a mining license in Mozambique. It was also the first to get into the difficult terrain south of Zambezi river. "Our presence there has opened up doors for many other investors to come into the region," said Manoj Gupta, country head of Jindal Africa.

"While we have made reasonable progress in Mozambique and South Africa, we are at an exploratory stage in Tanzania, Zambia and Madagascar. It will take us 2 to 3 years to take up mining there."

Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Kolkata IIMs make it to Asia-Pacific top 10 again

Bangalore: The Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) - Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Calcutta - continue to be the quality B-schools in the country.

The trio has figured in the top 10 in the Asia-Pacific region. The QS Global 200 Business Schools Report 2012 has put these B-schools among other Indian schools in the global rankings.

IIM-Ahmedabad is ranked second, IIM-Bangalore's rank is fifth and IIM-Calcutta is ranked eighth.

IIM-A and IIM-C have shown the biggest improvement in employer opinion this year in the region by improving four places.

Indian School of Business has been ranked seventh, S P Jain Institute of Management and Research is at 16 and Indian Institute of Foreign Trade at 21.

INSEAD, Singapore is number one in the region for the third consecutive year. Melbourne Business School (University of Melbourne, Australia), NUS Business School, ( National University of Singapore) and University of New South Wales were some of the other institutes that featured among the top 10 in the region.

The QS global report, which originated in the early 1990s, provides a detailed overview of the most popular business schools around the world based on information given by global recruiters.

It lists out 200 business schools from which employers prefer to recruit MBAs. The ratings are made regionwise (Africa and the Middle East; Asia-Pacific; Europe; Latin America; North America) and MBA specialization ratings.

According to the report, even though business schools in the United States and Europe remain the most popular destinations for MBA, schools in other partsm, like in the Asia-Pacific, are gaining popularity.

"Business schools in the Asia-Pacific region are looking at the standard of top American and European institutions as indicators of how they compare and where they could improve. Furthermore, the economic growth in some Asian countries, particularly in China and India, has heightened the demand for more accredited business schools in the region in order to train the next generation of successful business leaders," says the report.

"IIM-B has shown gradual improvements in the ratings, climbing from sixth (2009) to fifth (2010) and this year missed the top cluster by just 2.7 points," the report says.

However, there is a worry about international student enrolment.

"Many of Asia's business schools lack in international student enrolment, causing concern among employers who are looking for graduates to work in a multinational environment," the report says.

The percentage of international students in IIM-A, IIM-B, IIM-C and ISB is 1, 10, 3 and 5 respectively.

Crowning glory: Indira Gandhi International Airport second best in the world

New Delhi: Delhi's IGI airport has been ranked the second-best airport in the world for 2011by theAirportsCouncil International. The airport scored this distinction in the category of airports with 25-40 million passengers per annum. Last year , it had been ranked fourth in the same category. The airport scored 4.72 of a possible 5 in the airport service quality index , coming 6in the overall airport ranking for 2011.

This is a massive jump for the airport which, before privatization in 2007, had scored 3.02 on the ASQ and did not manage a rank in the top 100. Delhi International Airport (P) Ltd (DIAL) commended the efforts of agencies such as customs , immigration , CISF , airlines , concessionaires , housekeeping and other support staff for contributing to the image make-over for the airport.

DIAL's CEO I Prabhakara Rao said : "IGIA has come a long way in the last five years since we took over. We have ensured that quality has become a way of life not just with DIAL employees , but with all stakeholders of the IGI airport family. We are confident that all 30 ,000 plus members of the IGI airport family will continue to strive for excellence and we hope to improve our position even further in the coming years."

IGI airport handled a record number of 35 million passengers in 2011. The airport has an annual passenger capacity of over 60 million of which terminal 3 can alone handle 34 million passengers. The airport also handled over 6 lakh tonnes of cargo and over 3 lakh aircraft movements in 2011.

Airports Council International is the only global trade representative of airports with 580 members operating from 1,650 airports in 179 countries and territories.

Consumer spending to rise 4 times by 2020, says a joint study by CII and Boston Consulting Group

Mumbai: Consumer spending in the country is likely to grow nearly four times in a decade to $3.6 trillion by 2020, driven by rising incomes and aspirations, widespread media proliferation and better physical reach across the country, says a study.

A joint report by Boston Consulting Group and industrial body Confederation of Indian Industry ( CII) says the overall consumer spending in 2010 was $977 billion. The study, 'The Tiger Roars - How a billion plus people consume and shop' , will be released on Thursday.

"The Indian consumer has shifted from forced denial to affordable indulgence," says Thomas Varghese, chairman of CII's national committee on retail and chief executive officer of Aditya Birla Retail. This "sensible consumption" has the potential to drive the economic growth of the country for years to come, he says.

Organised retail has developed an enabling environment to satisfy this consumption growth and allowing foreign retailers to invest in the country will boost it further, Varghese says. PepsiCo India Region Chairman & CEO Manu Anand, who is also the chairman of CII's national committee on FMCG, says that while the dramatic growth of the market is well known, the changing patterns of and attitudes toward consumption are not widely understood.

"It is critical for FMCG companies to understand the nature of this consumption demand and what is driving it," he says. "The Indian consumer pyramid is shaping into a diamond, but more importantly income is only one variable that is driving this consumption," he says. For instance, within the same income segment, attitudes and behaviours are dramatically different as consumers are trading up and down at the same time.

India's first monorail tested in Mumbai

Mumbai: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) on Saturday conducted an electrical trial run of the Mumbai monorail, from Wadala to Mysore Colony — a distance of 4.5 km. The first phase of the project, from Wadala to Chembur, is expected to be completed by November 2012. The project is being implemented by MMRDA, with Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and a consortium of Malaysian infrastructure Scomi Engineering.

Dilip Kawathkar, joint project director (PR), MMRDA, said: “This is one of the electrical trial runs that we conducted on Saturday. Phase-I of the monorail is expected to be completed by late October or November this year.”

The project that would connect Wadala to Chembur (8.26 km) in Phase-I and Jacob Circle to Wadala (11.28 km) in Phase-II, will reduce travel time between the two localities from 90 minutes to 44 minutes. The tentative fare structure on the stretch, according to MMRDA, will range from Rs 8 to Rs 20.

The project scope will involve design, construction, operation and maintenance (for three years) of the monorail system between Jacob Circle and Chembur. It is being done under an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract.

The 19.56-km corridor will cost around Rs 2,460 crore (plus taxes) for the two phases. The second phase is expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2013. The civil work on the line in Phase-I is likely to end by August and the trial runs could begin thereafter.

Small IT cos will play a big role in future: Nasscom chief

Tenali: Small IT companies will play a big role in the growth of IT sector in the coming decade, according to Mr Rajendra Singh Pawar, Chairman of National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom).

He was speaking here on Saturday evening after receiving the Twentieth Dr Y.Nayudamma Memorial Award from the Supreme Court Judge, Mr Justice Jasti Chelameswar.

Mr Pawar said by the end of the current financial year, the IT industry in the country would be of the size of $100 billion and by the end of 2020, the target of Nasscom was to achieve $225 billion, giving employment to 10 million people. Currently, 3 million people were employed in the sector.

He said Nasscom was making all attempts to bridge the digital divide in the country by taking IT to rural areas.

In the fields of education and medicine, he said IT would bring about a revolutionary change in the future. Unlike in the rest of the world, in India IT would reach the masses through the mobile phone.

He said Nasscom was also taking initiatives to minimise electronic waste and to make IT sector eco-friendly. He said the Andhra Pradesh Government was in the forefront in introducing IT in governance. Now the other states were emulating Andhra Pradesh, he added.

Citizens' services would be delivered in future by employing IT. In the agriculture sector too IT would play a big role in future, Mr Pawar said.

Middlemen would be eliminated and the farmer would get a fair price for his produce.

He recalled the services of the late Dr.Y.Nayudamma for development of science and technology in the country.

Mr Justice J. Chelameswar, Mr P. Vishnu Murthy, Managing trustee of Dr Y.Nayudamma memorial trust, Mr R. Sampath, senior journalist, and Mr Ratish Nayudamma, son of Y. Nayudamma, also spoke on the occasion.

UST Global expands its footprints in India

Chennai: After being a prominent employer in the IT sector in tier 2 cities in Kerala, California-based IT services company UST Global has embarked on an expansion in Bangalore.

Company officials said UST Global's new facility in Bangalore can accommodate 500-600 associates, with the capacity to expand up to a headcount of 5,000. In Kerala, the company operates out of Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi.

UST Global chairman Satendra Gupta said the company's operations had been centred around India and the Philippines, and that it made sense to the company to step up its presence in India's IT capital.

Company country head Alexander Varghese said the availability of a large talent pool was one of the key attributes that went in favour of the company choosing Bangalore for expansion.

In Kerala, the company is building a campus in the Thiruvananthapuram special economic zone. The 3 million sq ft campus is expected to be a major hub for offshore IT services offered by the company, which focuses on delivering IT and business solutions to the Global 1,000 market.

Infosys, Wipro among top global companies in smart-grid software

Chennai: Infosys and Wipro have been named among the top seven vendors in the world of smart-grid software, a recent research report of GTM Research has said. Smart grids are those that have electrical devices with embedded software that can give out a fund of data in order that the grid may be better managed. Software is a key part of smart grids.

GTM Research, a well-known greentech research company, sought to find out who the Big Fish are in each segment of smart grid software. Under the head ‘Utility systems development and integration, data analytics and cyber security', GTM has named seven companies. Infosys and Wipro are in the elite company of five other global giants – IBM, Oracle, Siemens, Accenture and Schneider Electric.

Even in this well-knit world, having two home-grown biggies is seen as an advantage because smart grid is an area that specially requires local knowledge. Several experts have commented on the uniqueness of the Indian grid and hence the uniqueness of the opportunities any revamping of it provides.

At a conference in Mumbai on smart grid, Dr Rajit Gadh, Professor at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), stressed on the “importance of determining the local nuances of the Indian market.”

Speaking toBusiness Linelast week, Mr Anand Padmanabhan, Senior Vice-President, Energy, Natural Resources & Utilities, Wipro Technologies, noted that India is characterised by the need to manage demand rather than supply of electricity, very different from the developed countries.

Wipro and Infosys have experience of having worked abroad on smart grids and with their knowledge of India too, are well placed to serve the needs of the emerging smart grid in India. According to a report (of Zpryme) the Indian government will spend $11 billion to reduce line losses to less than 15 percent in five years in urban and high-density areas. One-fifth of those funds will be dedicated to using IT at state-run distribution companies.

IT companies have solutions such as back-end solutions, remote infrastructure maintenance, CRM, systems integrations. Wipro and Infosys also know smart grid.

India is seen as the place where smart grid could be built from the scratch, leapfrogging several technologies that emerged and expired in the last several years.

With the experience of having worked abroad, Wipro knows what needs to be done in India now so that the grid is good still ten years down the line, said Mr Padmanabhan.

US companies keen on joint ventures

Hyderabad: US companies are looking at forming joint ventures with their Indian counterparts in the areas of engineering, information technology, data entry and healthcare, according to Ms Susan Au Allen, President and Chief Executive Officer, the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation.

Addressing the captains of industry in a programme organised by the Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry on the occasion of a US trade delegation visit here on Saturday, she said small companies here could explore the possibility of expanding to the US.

India has the advantage of largest human resource base of English speaking people. However, the US companies were no longer seeking India as a cheaper location for business outsourcing/other activities, she said.

“Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Philippines are cheaper than India. India is moving towards hi-end projects,'' she added.

On the perception of India in the US, Ms Allen said the Americans were now feeling that their jobs were going to India.

The visit of the US delegation was organised by the Fapcci, Hyderabad Management Association and GMRI Technology and Services Pvt Ltd, according to a release.

TIL brings out India's first magazine 'Tweek' for tablets

New Delhi: Times Internet Limited has launched 'Tweek', India's first magazine on the tablet that can be accessed on the iPad and will soon be available on the iPhone and Android.

"With Ats launch, we intend to pioneer the 'tablet magazine' space in India," says Rishi Khiani, CEO, Times Internet Limited. Tweek will feature stories from around the world, across categories such as business, entertainment, lifestyle and sports.

It will enable the reader to not just read a story, but also to listen to it and watch it.

The Tweek application for the tablet, has been developed in partnership with cloud-based mobile publishing company GENWI.

World Kitchen launches India subsidiary; ties up with TTK

New Delhi: World Kitchen Holding Company LLC, the Illinois-based firm which markets and distributes high-end kitchenware brands like Corelle, Corningware and Pyrex cutlery, on Thursday announced it is setting up a wholly-owned subsidiary in India to be called World Kitchen (India).

Under the new subsidiary, World Kitchen will sell kitchenware to consumers through retail outlets and channel partners.

A press release issued by the company said World Kitchen Holding has tied up with TTK Prestige as a distribution partner for the southern states.

Joseph Mallof, president and CEO of World Kitchen Holding Company said in a statement: "Establishing an Indian subsidiary will enable us to better meet the demands of a rapidly evolving consumer base." World Kitchen Company also operates as an Asian entity called World Kitchen (Asia Pacific) based in Singapore.

Medical devices maker Covidien sets up India R&D centre

Hyderabad: Covidien, a US-based manufacturer of medical devices and pharmaceuticals, has set up its first research and development centre in the country.

“The Indian healthcare devices market is part of our focus on emerging markets. The Hyderabad centre will enable us to improve product time to market and create valued-innovation,” Mr Robert Frechette, Vice-President (Engineering Services), told newspersons after the inauguration of the centre here on Thursday.

The value of the Indian medical devices market is estimated at $4 billion, and is clocking a growth rate of 15 per cent annually , he added.

Apart from designing products to suit local market needs, the R&D unit would utilise India's huge talent pool to provide a range of engineering services for the company's medical products business.

The company plans to hire over 350 professionals for the centre over the next two years. Some 30 people are already working at the 40,000-square-foot facility.

Mr Arjun Sarker, Managing Director — Indian sub-continent, Covidien, said the business focus in India would be on surgical solutions and medical devices, though the company is strong in the pharmaceuticals business too.

I&B, Tourism Ministries to promote India as film hub

ew Delhi: In a bid to give a fillip to the ‘Incredible India' campaign and cinema as a sub-brand of Incredible India at various international film festivals and markets abroad, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Ministry of Tourism on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding to provide support for film tourism.

According to the MoU, the Ministry of Tourism will provide budgetary support for identified film festivals and provide a single window clearance for film shooting permissions. It will create a film tourism vertical, promoting India as a filming destination both for domestic and foreign film producers.

The Ministries would constitute a National Level Committee for coordination with various stakeholders for promotion of India as a tourism and film destination. The Committee will initiate dialogues with the State Government and Union Territories within India for development of locations for film shootings.

“India produces a large number of films which are a brand in themselves and as a destination we are quite attractive. The idea is to synergise the attempts of both the Ministries,” said Ms Ambika Soni, Information and Broadcasting Minister.

The MoU is expected to increase world tourist arrivals in the country from 0.06 per cent to 1.0 per cent by the end of the 12th Five-Year Plan. This would result in achieving 11.37 million foreign tourist arrivals by 2016, as compared to 6.29 million foreign tourists in 2011. “The additional 5 million inbound tourist would create three crore jobs in the country,” said the Minster of Tourism, Mr Subodh Kant Sahay.

Last year, the I&B Ministry had tried to integrate the brand ‘Cinemas of India' with the ‘Incredible India' campaign at the Cannes Film Festival.

Amway India to set up Rs 300-cr greenfield facility

Kolkata: Amway India, a direct selling FMCG company, plans to set up its first greenfield manufacturing facility in the country at an estimated investment of about Rs 300 crore.

The plant is expected to be commissioned in 2014 and will primarily manufacture products under the nutrition and beauty categories, said Mr William S. Pinckney, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Amway India.

Financials
The company is aiming at a turnover of Rs 2,500 crore in the current fiscal (it follows the January-December accounting year).

Amway witnessed a 19 per cent growth in turnover at Rs 2,130 crore last year, Mr Pinckney said.

The growth in revenues was primarily driven by sale of nutritional supplement products under the brand ‘Nutrilite', followed by beauty and healthcare products, he said.

Ad spend
“The double-digit growth in the last four years has been buoyed by the launch of world-class superior-quality products in the lead categories of health and beauty, increased consumer access strategy coupled with experimental marketing and brand awareness, and product penetration in semi-urban and rural markets,” he said.

The company has earmarked Rs 53 crore towards advertising and marketing this year.

Marico buys Paras' personal care brands from Reckitt

Mumbai: Homegrown consumer products company Marico has acquired the personal care portfolio of Paras from British consumer goods maker Reckitt Benckiser. While Marico did not disclose the deal size, analysts estimate the portfolio, which includes brands such as Livon, Set Wet and Zatak, to be valued at Rs 600-700 crore.

Reckitt put the personal care business, likely to close this financial year with sales of Rs 150 crore, on the block soon after it acquired Paras last year. Morgan Stanley was the advisor to Reckitt on the current transaction. So at Rs 600 crore, it will be four times the sales.

In December, Reckitt acquired Paras Pharma’s over-the-counter and personal care portfolio for Rs 3,260 crore, at seven times its then sales.

For Marico, the current acquisition is a “good complement” to its existing business, which includes mainly hair oil brand Parachute and edible oil Saffola. Milind Sarwate, group chief financial officer, Marico, said the acquisition would give it a greater foothold in the male grooming segment apart from personal care. “All the three Paras brands have been growing at a clip of about 20 per cent per annum,” he said, adding: “The acquisition allows Marico to participate in high-growth categories.”

“You can create a category of the future. Operationally, there are great synergies and we can reach out to a global audience with these additional brands. We already have existing brands of our own in these categories, but now, this will boost our value-added portfolio,” said Saugata Gupta, chief executive of Marico’s consumer products business.

By industry estimates, the male grooming category, including pre- and post-shaving products, men’s toiletries, skin care and hair care products, is close to Rs 3,000 crore in size.

The segments of haircare (Set Wet and Livon) and deodorants (Zatak), in particular, are growing at a clip of 25 per cent and are estimated to be Rs 300 crore and Rs 400 crore in size, respectively.

Marico said it would complete the acquisition in two to three months. It would fund the deal using a mix of debt, equity and internal accruals.

Reckitt had said it wanted to focus on the healthcare portfolio of Paras, which has brands such as D'Cold, Krack and Moov, in an effort to drive greater synergies with its existing business.

Globally, Reckitt is focusing hard on healthcare besides household care, a key category for the company. The Rs 2,000-crore Reckitt India derives bulk of its revenues from Dettol, which plays on the health & wellness platform.

Reckitt’s global chief executive, Rakesh Kapoor, is also said to be excited about healthcare, especially in emerging markets, where the potential is substantial.

US delegation to visit West Bengal on February 17 with focus on port sector

Kolkata: A fairly large US delegation is tipped to visit West Bengal on February 17. The team will, essentially, focus on the port sector. The delegation will begin its India trip with Kolkata and then travel to other cities.

According to Ms Judy Reinke, minister counselor for commercial affairs in the US embassy in Delhi, members from at least seven US companies, US Trade and Development Agency and Overseas Private Investment Corporation will form part of the delegation. Ms Reinke was speaking in the city recently.

Incidentally, the companies will include the Port of Baltimore, Ellicott Dredges, DSC Dredges, Great Lakes Bridge & Dock Company and Thermo Fisher. During their two-day stay in Kolkata, the delegation will meet the Union minister of state for shipping, Mukul Roy, and travel to Haldia.

This will be the first visit by a US team to Kolkata in four years. ""This trip will pave the way for more visits by US teams to this city. For instance, we are expecting a water management delegation in April and a mining delegation in December, to mention just two of them,"" Ms Reinke said.

Amongst sectors which interest the US, from the point of view of investment, embrace ports, mining, water management, agri equipment and agriculture in general. The US has certainly changed its strategy as far as trade with Kolkata, and India, goes. ""The efforts are visible,"" Ms Reinke said.

3 Indian firms get diamond processing licences in Botswana

Mumbai: The opening of Botswana as a major diamond trading hub has opened a new window of opportunity for Indian processing companies.

Three diamond merchants from India have secured licences for participating directly in benefication projects there to ensure supply of rough diamonds.

The move assumes significance as setting up diamond processing units will not only assure rough supplies from Diamond Trading Company (DTC), the marketing arm of the world’s largest mining company, De Beers, but also ensure control over price fluctuations, besides sustained supplies.

While Shrenuj & Co had received licences three years ago, the company has spent $5 million so far in developing a small processing unit. Now, the Shreyas Doshi-led company plans to invest another $5-10 million to set up a full-fledged large diamond cutting and polishing unit in Botswana. Suashish Diamonds and Blue Star are the other two companies that have secured licences in Botswana.

“The detailed plan is being worked out. But, we are planning to invest another $5-10 million as working capital for procuring plant and machinery for a large processing unit,” said Doshi, chairman of the company.

Shrenuj & Co started its South African operations in 2009, marking its presence in the 14th country worldwide. This development follows commencement of its manufacturing unit in Botswana in August the same year. These operations in the southern part of the African continent provide continued access to rough diamonds directly from the mining sources. In these times when diamond reserves are dwindling, these developments acquire importance. Through its South African office, Shrenuj gains access to very high quality rough diamonds from all of southern Africa. The company has already been granted a site by DTC Botswana.

Suashish’s principal manufacturing units are in India, with global distribution through subsidiaries and strategic partnerships in all major markets across the world.

Blue Star Diamonds is a private sector company that offers services in gems, jewellery and watches, with annual total turnover of Rs 250-500 crore. The government of Botswana has issued 21 licences so far to global players, of which five have been given to Indian-origin companies.

NIIT bags Rs 300 cr project from Home Ministry

Infotech Solutions vendor NIIT Technologies today said it has bagged a deal worth Rs 300 crore to implement a Union Home Ministry project called the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS), which will be part of the proposed Natgrid.

The company has been selected as the system integrator in Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh. It is in active pursuit of similar opportunities in other states as well, a senior company official said. Execution of work is already on in Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand.

"These wins are an endorsement of our leadership in providing IT solutions to the government. We have a history of successful implementations with IT programmes in Defence and home affairs," NIIT Technologies chief executive Arvind Thakur said here on the sidelines of the Nasscom leadership summit.

The CCTNS is a comprehensive and integrated nationwide system designed to help the police investigate crime and detect criminals, on which the Union Home Ministry plans to spend Rs 2,000 crore.

The system is expected to connect and share real-time information and data on crime and criminals from across the country thus strengthening the information base of investigating officers.

After the implementation of the system throughout the country, over 14,000 police stations spanning 6,000 district police headquarters, fingerprint bureaux and forensic science laboratories will be linked to a common IT platform enabling investigating officials to get the data of any criminal at the click of a mouse.

"FIRs and photographs can be made available from any police station to any other police station in real-time, after the project is completed across the country," a company official said.

Recently, NIIT Tech also commissioned a Rs 228-crore 'Intranet Prahari' project for the Border Security Force.

Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Kolkata IIMs make it to Asia-Pacific top 10 again

Bangalore: The Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) - Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Calcutta - continue to be the quality B-schools in the country.

The trio has figured in the top 10 in the Asia-Pacific region. The QS Global 200 Business Schools Report 2012 has put these B-schools among other Indian schools in the global rankings.

IIM-Ahmedabad is ranked second, IIM-Bangalore's rank is fifth and IIM-Calcutta is ranked eighth.

IIM-A and IIM-C have shown the biggest improvement in employer opinion this year in the region by improving four places.

Indian School of Business has been ranked seventh, S P Jain Institute of Management and Research is at 16 and Indian Institute of Foreign Trade at 21.

INSEAD, Singapore is number one in the region for the third consecutive year. Melbourne Business School (University of Melbourne, Australia), NUS Business School, ( National University of Singapore) and University of New South Wales were some of the other institutes that featured among the top 10 in the region.

The QS global report, which originated in the early 1990s, provides a detailed overview of the most popular business schools around the world based on information given by global recruiters.

It lists out 200 business schools from which employers prefer to recruit MBAs. The ratings are made regionwise (Africa and the Middle East; Asia-Pacific; Europe; Latin America; North America) and MBA specialization ratings.

According to the report, even though business schools in the United States and Europe remain the most popular destinations for MBA, schools in other partsm, like in the Asia-Pacific, are gaining popularity.

"Business schools in the Asia-Pacific region are looking at the standard of top American and European institutions as indicators of how they compare and where they could improve. Furthermore, the economic growth in some Asian countries, particularly in China and India, has heightened the demand for more accredited business schools in the region in order to train the next generation of successful business leaders," says the report.

"IIM-B has shown gradual improvements in the ratings, climbing from sixth (2009) to fifth (2010) and this year missed the top cluster by just 2.7 points," the report says.

However, there is a worry about international student enrolment.

"Many of Asia's business schools lack in international student enrolment, causing concern among employers who are looking for graduates to work in a multinational environment," the report says.

The percentage of international students in IIM-A, IIM-B, IIM-C and ISB is 1, 10, 3 and 5 respectively.

Kandla Port awards Rs 1,060-cr dry bulk terminal project to Adani Port and SEZ

Ahmedabad: The Kandla Port Trust (KPT) on Tuesday awarded the Rs 1,060-crore dry bulk terminal development project, off Tekra near Tuna, to its perceived competitor-cum-neighbour, Adani Port and SEZ Ltd (APSEZL), which runs the Mundra Port in Gujarat.

The KPT board, in its meeting, took up the issue of the award of the public-private partnership (PPP) in the project, for which APSEZL had emerged as the successful bidder and short-listed for consideration of the award.

In its January 9 meeting, the Board could not decide on the award as some members suggested that APSEZL be asked to make a presentation assuring that the company, which operates the largest private port in India, would fulfil its promises and complete the project, as stipulated.

In Tuesday's meeting, the board, which had asked APSEZL to make a presentation, raised several queries with the bidder.

The Adani company assured that it was “very serious” about implementing the project and has the required expertise, Mr M.A. Bhaskar Achar, Vice-Chairman, toldBusiness Line.

The project will bring in 14 million tonnes (mt) of cargo annually to Kandla Port.

The Adanis would develop the satellite port in two years, which is part of the 30-year concession.

Crowning glory: Indira Gandhi International Airport second best in the world

New Delhi: Delhi's IGI airport has been ranked the second-best airport in the world for 2011by theAirportsCouncil International. The airport scored this distinction in the category of airports with 25-40 million passengers per annum. Last year , it had been ranked fourth in the same category. The airport scored 4.72 of a possible 5 in the airport service quality index , coming 6in the overall airport ranking for 2011.

This is a massive jump for the airport which, before privatization in 2007, had scored 3.02 on the ASQ and did not manage a rank in the top 100. Delhi International Airport (P) Ltd (DIAL) commended the efforts of agencies such as customs , immigration , CISF , airlines , concessionaires , housekeeping and other support staff for contributing to the image make-over for the airport.

DIAL's CEO I Prabhakara Rao said : "IGIA has come a long way in the last five years since we took over. We have ensured that quality has become a way of life not just with DIAL employees , but with all stakeholders of the IGI airport family. We are confident that all 30 ,000 plus members of the IGI airport family will continue to strive for excellence and we hope to improve our position even further in the coming years."

IGI airport handled a record number of 35 million passengers in 2011. The airport has an annual passenger capacity of over 60 million of which terminal 3 can alone handle 34 million passengers. The airport also handled over 6 lakh tonnes of cargo and over 3 lakh aircraft movements in 2011.

Airports Council International is the only global trade representative of airports with 580 members operating from 1,650 airports in 179 countries and territories.

RBI to permit non-banking entities to set up ATMs

Mumbai: In a bid to accelerate the growth and penetration of ATMs in the country, the Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday said it plans to permit non-banking entities to set up, own and operate ATMs.

ATMs rolled out by non-banks will be like White Label ATMs (WLA) and will provide ATM services to customers of all banks, the RBI said in its Draft Guidelines for WLAs.

Non-bank entities proposing to set up WLAs have to apply to the RBI seeking authorisation under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act 2007. Such entities should have a minimum net worth of Rs. 100 crore at the time of making the application and on a continuing basis after issue of the requisite authorisation.

Being non-bank owned ATMs, the guidelines on five free transactions in a month for using other bank ATMs will not be applicable for transactions made on the WLAs. The charges for the transactions have to be displayed on the screen before the customer initiates the transaction.

'Sponsor Bank'
The WLA operator will have to declare one “Sponsor Bank”, which will serve as the Settlement Bank for the settlement of all the service transactions at the WLAs. The Sponsor Bank should be a member of one of the ATM networks authorised by the RBI and also be a member of the RTGS.

While the primary responsibility to redress grievance of customers relating to failed ATM transactions will vest with the Card Issuing Bank, the Sponsor Bank will provide necessary support in this regard.

The RBI's directives on the time-lines for resolution of complaints of failed ATM transactions will also apply to transactions at the WLAs.

The WLA operator can choose the location of the WLA. However, it will adhere to annual targets and the ratio of WLA between Tier I &II and Tier III-VI centres that may be stipulated by the RBI.

PM for speedy clearance of road projects

New Delhi: The government has decided to fast-track the clearance of roads and highways projects in the remaining months of the current financial year.

After a directive from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the ministry of road transport and highways has decided to award 15 major projects, totalling 1,547 kilometres of roads, this financial year. Another 11 road projects (1,731 km) would be considered by the public-private partnership approval committee next week. “This will ensure the target for the current financial year of 7,999 km is met on time,” said a release from the Prime Minister’s Office.

In a meeting attended by the member-secretary in the Planning Commission, the secretary in the department of economic affairs, the secretary in the ministry of road transport & highways, and principal secretary to the prime minister, Pulok Chatterjee, it was decided cabinet approvals for the exercise would be sought next week.

The cabinet committee on infrastructure would also consider the ministry’s proposal on the eastern peripheral expressway to clear the project in its meeting next week.

Consumer spending to rise 4 times by 2020, says a joint study by CII and Boston Consulting Group

umbai: Consumer spending in the country is likely to grow nearly four times in a decade to $3.6 trillion by 2020, driven by rising incomes and aspirations, widespread media proliferation and better physical reach across the country, says a study.

A joint report by Boston Consulting Group and industrial body Confederation of Indian Industry ( CII) says the overall consumer spending in 2010 was $977 billion. The study, 'The Tiger Roars - How a billion plus people consume and shop' , will be released on Thursday.

"The Indian consumer has shifted from forced denial to affordable indulgence," says Thomas Varghese, chairman of CII's national committee on retail and chief executive officer of Aditya Birla Retail. This "sensible consumption" has the potential to drive the economic growth of the country for years to come, he says.

Organised retail has developed an enabling environment to satisfy this consumption growth and allowing foreign retailers to invest in the country will boost it further, Varghese says. PepsiCo India Region Chairman & CEO Manu Anand, who is also the chairman of CII's national committee on FMCG, says that while the dramatic growth of the market is well known, the changing patterns of and attitudes toward consumption are not widely understood.

"It is critical for FMCG companies to understand the nature of this consumption demand and what is driving it," he says. "The Indian consumer pyramid is shaping into a diamond, but more importantly income is only one variable that is driving this consumption," he says. For instance, within the same income segment, attitudes and behaviours are dramatically different as consumers are trading up and down at the same time.