Business & Economy

Suzuki's independent plans
leave government angry

What is India News Service, Monday, September 21, 2004, 1700 hrs IST


The Indian government and Suzuki Motor Corporation are on a collision course, with the ministry of heavy industries questioning the investments announced by Suzuki in India a week ago.

Accusing Suzuki of violating the joint venture agreement on Maruti Udyog, the ministry today wrote to the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), saying that any Suzuki proposal for an investment in these ventures should not be cleared as the government\92s concurrence, mandatory under existing norms (Press Note 18), has not been sought.

Minister of State for Heavy Industries Santosh Mohan Deb said Suzuki\92s announcement, made without taking the government into confidence, amounts to breach of \93understanding\94 of the agreement.

Direct tax collections for April-Sept 15 period up 50 pc: Net direct tax collections of the Union Government have surged 50.7 per cent during April-September 15, 2004 at Rs 27,240 crore as against Rs 18,077 crore in same period last year.

Kharif foodgrain output estimates lower: Erratic monsoons have taken their toll, with the Government on Monday estimating the country's production of kharif foodgrains during 2004-05 at 100.29 million tonnes (mt), against last year's corresponding level of 112. 04 mt.

Piaggio to make Indian arm its global hub: Italian auto major Piaggio Spa is making its wholly-owned Indian subsidiary the global manufacturing hub for three-wheelers.

Canon India eyes over 200% sales growth: Canon India hopes to increase growth by over 200 per cent growth in the next three years, largely helped by increasing sales of digital cameras.

Mallya ropes in JetBlue honcho to head Kingfisher Air: UB Group Chairman Vijay Mallya's Kingfisher Airlines Ltd has inducted Alex Wilcox as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) to head the airline venture expected to start operations early next year.

Aztec Software to buy Disha for $12.1 m: Aztec Software and Technology Services Ltd will acquire Disha Technologies in a $12.1-million stock and cash deal.

Bullet Train on way to India: The first Bullet Train will zoom between Mumbai and Ahmedabad even though the original plan was for a Delhi-Mumbai line.

RIL cuts polymer prices by Rs 2,000 per tonne: RELIANCE Industries Ltd (RIL) has announced a reduction of Rs 2,000 per tonne on prices of all types of polymers. The company said this has been done to help the Government efforts to battle inflation and contain consumer prices.
 
Australia threatens to withdraw from series, says BCCI counsel: Australia has threatened to pull out of the four-test series against India slated to begin on October 6, as broadcast rights are still not in place, K.K. Venugopal, Counsel for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), said.

Newspapers come back fighting odds: Newspapers have made a strong comeback after a tough decade marked by economic recession, newsprint price crisis, and challenges from cable, satellite broadcasting and the Internet.

Tatas stall all investment projects in Bangladesh: The Tatas put on hold plans to invest $2 billion in various projects in Bangladesh, citing "political instability" as the reason.
 
Reliance MF launches media and entertainment fund: Reliance Mutual Fund has launched the Reliance media and entertainment fund, an open ended scheme that invests
in equity related or fixed income securities in this sector.

 
Overall:

Government wrote to Suzuki: It is angry that the Japanese company is not taking its Indian partners into confidence.

Piaggio said it would make India the hub: The three-wheeler manufacturing sector will get a boost.

Tatas withdrew from Bangladesh: They have put on hold ambitious plans, saying the political climate in that country had turned unstable.