The death of a participant in a clinical trial by a Hyderabad-based contract research firm has refocused attention on the practices followed by an industry which is said to have great promise, because it can earn good dollars by leveraging cheap Indian skills.
It is unfortunate that Corporate India's image should be dented in this fashion; but it would be even more unfortunate if the Satyam case did not lead to a more careful scrutiny of what exactly goes on in Corporate India.
The government needs to do some more to get real estate transactions going. One is to figure out a way to bring prices down to more realistic levels, without crossing into the realm of formal controls.
The decisions come within 24 hours of the home loan package offered by public sector banks. Chennai-based Indian Bank reduced interest rates of domestic term deposits of Rs 1-5 crore (Rs 10-50 million) by 150-25 basis points across various maturities.
The government on Sunday announced a package of Rs 1,400 crore (Rs 14 billion) under the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme and 2 per cent interest subsidy up to March 31 next year. But the textile industry had demanded 4 per cent interest subsidy along with reintroduction of the duty drawback scheme.
Manmohan Singh may be the best suited to take charge of the finance ministry after Mr Chidambaram's shift to the home ministry. The problem is that Dr Singh already has a full-time job.
It is hard for the lay observer to understand why it should take 60 hours for crack commandos of the National Security Guard to clear a hotel of four attackers.
Hotels are not typically equipped to handle terrorist attacks and present ideal soft targets around the world, according to experts. Even the private security guards that the hotels hire do not always have the expertise to use weapons. This is set to change now, hotel officials say.
Parsvnath Developers is expected to sack its non-performing staff post Diwali as part of its cost cutting measures. "Non performers have to go. Cost cutting measures will start in 15 to 20 days,'' said Pradeep Jain, chairman of Parsvnath, told reporters on the sidelines of a conference in New Delhi on Friday.
A combination of timing (the Pay Commission), political compulsions (the loan waiver) and circumstances beyond the government's control (high energy prices) have contributed to a significant reversal of what was shaping up as a very healthy trend.
Sample this. Five cyber-thieves, allegedly part of a network that hacked into the account of a Noida businessman, were nabbed today for a Rs 1.66 crore (Rs 16.6-million) cyber hack. They used Internet banking to transfer the money from the businessman's account with the Punjab National Bank's Noida branch to their own account.
The plan asks private parties to buy project land directly from farmers, with the government stepping in to acquire only the final 30% required after 70% has been sold by farmers of their own free will.
The August numbers for the index of industrial production were a shock, reporting growth of barely 1.3 per cent -- the worst in many years. The manufacturing sub-sector did even worse, with 1.1 per cent growth.
While a price cut will go down very well with people who have been struggling to cope with inflation, it would be irresponsible on the part of the government to cut prices.
While 22 per cent of the promoters' stake in Ranbaxy was sold through an off-market transaction, the remaining came from a preferential share allotment. Daiichi Sankyo had earlier picked up more than 20 per cent of Ranbaxy's shares through an open offer. Ranbaxy Chairman and Managing Director Malvinder Mohan Singh said the remaining 12-13 per cent promoter shareholding will change hands in the coming weeks, thereby taking Daiichi's share in Ranbaxy to over 60 per cent.
India Inc, while welcoming the Reserve Bank of India's move to cut the key interest rate, expressed doubts on lenders' response to pass on the benefits to customers.
Infosys had bid at 600 pence a share for the UK company. Infosys will get the one per cent inducement fee that Axon has to pay to the party unable to close the deal.
New York-based REcap Partners-LLC is all set to buy out Chennai-based business process outsourcing firm HOV Services along with its two units operational in Beijing and Hong Kong for around Rs 950 crore
Dow India would comply with all the directives stated by the government to work outa solution to the current situation, the company said. Recently the company's research facility at Chakan was razed by a group of villagers, following which members of the Warkari sect claimed responsibility for the act, saying they would not allow the facility to come up at a place which is sacred to the followers of the 17th century Bhakti movement saint Tukaram.
Though FDI is allowed in the sector, foreign carriers cannot acquire stakes in Indian airlines.
