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Finance Minister assures GTB depositors their money

What is India News Service, July 27, 2004, 1700 hrs IST


Even as Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram assured Global Trust Bank (GTB) depositors their interests would be protected, the Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) stepped in to retrieve the crisis-ridden GTB. Emphasising that the depositors\92 money was reasonably safe, Mr Chidambaram said it was for this reason that a three-month moratorium was slapped on the GTB by the Reserve Bank of India, which was a wise and a prudent decision.

Freedom on prices: The government today decided to grant limited freedom to the public sector oil companies to fix petrol and diesel prices, within a range of 10 per cent. The decision was taken at the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA).

Chronic defaulters mapped: Reliance Infocomm has hired over 200 lawyers across the country for making speedy collections and recoveries from chronic defaulters. These lawyers specialise in handling cases of willful default, fraud and cheque bouncing.

WTO: India for protecting farmers\92 interest: Union Commerce Minister Kamal Nath conveyed to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General that New Delhi is committed to protecting the livelihood of its 600-million subsistence farmers at any cost and not interested in claiming a share in the global farm cake.

Mineral sector for clarity in policy: The Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) has urged the state governments to come out with a clearly defined policy in regard to the development of mineral resources. 

FM vows to recover taxes from non-salaried class: Taxmen have been asked to go after rich non-salaried class to plug evasion and chalk out an Action Plan to recover direct tax arrears that run into more than Rs 87,000 crore. Finance Minister P Chidambaram said he would also came down heavily on errant tax officials against whom complaints have been lodged.

Judge refuses to hear Lodha\92s plea: In an anti-climax, the legal tussle between the Birlas and the Lodhas over the controversial will of Priyamvada Birla could not be taken up as the designated judge of the Calcutta High Court refused to hear Mr R S Lodha\92s petition on the plea that he (the judge) was close to one of the Birla clan members.

Anti-outsourcing issue benefited Indian IT- expert: Contrary to popular perception, the outcry against outsourcing has tremendously helped in promoting Indian software industry in the US. The backlash has created good awareness about Indian IT firms as well as the benefits of outsourcing among the global companies, according to an IT industry executive.

Rise in interest rates to hit PSU Banks: Warning PSU banks against heavily relying on investments on government bonds in a declining interest rate regime, credit rating agency ICRA said profits of banks may come under pressure if interest rate moves up.

Global Trust depositors will be safeguarded':Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC), which is all set to absorb the financially-troubled Global Trust Bank (GTB) soon, has assured all depositors of the GTB that they would get their money back as there was enough liquidity with OBC to take care of their needs.

Hutch ties up with Citibank for mobile commerce: Cellular operator Hutch today announced a tie-up with Citibank and MasterCard International to launch co-branded debit and credit card offering mobile commerce capabilities to Hutch customers. 

Housing finance ticks 29 p.c. growth: Thanks to the housing boom, direct housing finance disbursals by banks and finance companies rose by 29 per cent to Rs. 53,685 crore during 2003-04, National Housing Bank said today. 

Bajaj Auto to augment production:With `Bajaj CT 100' crossing the one lakh sales mark since its the launch 81 days back, Bajaj Auto said on Monday that it would ramp up production capacity to meet increasing demand for the entry level 100cc motorbike. 

Additional duty on computers: The Government today announced additional import duty on personal computers to correct the anomaly caused by higher excise duty on its components in the Union Budget. 

Anil Ambani wants say on water: Industrialist and Rajya Sabha member Anil Ambani has sent a letter to the Chairman of the House, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, detailing
his assets \93in the interest of transparency, fair disclosure and good governance\94. Ambani\92s declaration will enable him to participate in various discussions in the
Rajya Sabha, including on subjects where his business interests might be involved. 

Sensex up 36 points in early deals: The indices started the day on a positive note with a gap of 13 points at 5,131. The markets have consolidated their gains further due to
all round buying. The Sensex is now up 36 points at 5,154. 

Overall:

FM assures depositors of their money: Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram assured Global Trust Bank (GTB) depositors their money is protected and safe.

Defaulters mapped: Reliance Infocomm has hired lawyers for making speedy collections and recoveries from chronic defaulters.

FM to recover taxes from non-salaried class: Taxmen have been asked to go after rich non-salaried class to recover direct tax arrears that run into more than Rs 87,000 crore.