Raghuvir Badrinath &Amp; T E Narasimhan

Stories by Raghuvir Badrinath &Amp; T E Narasimhan

5.5 mn await job offers from TN govt

5.5 mn await job offers from TN govt

Rediff.com   23 Mar 2009

Of the over 900,000 registered with the exchange for government jobs in 2008, only 26,752 got placed. The previous AIADMK government had put on hold new recruitments, except in departments like police, teachers and medicines. After the DMK government took over, it was decided to fill the vacancies across all departments through the exchange. Since then, 232,417 vacancies were filled, of which 46,931 candidates were appointed in various posts through the employment exchange.

Vivek Paul starts new PE fund

Vivek Paul starts new PE fund

Rediff.com   21 Mar 2009

Aims to raise $400 million for Akansa Capital.

Subhiksha's bank account to be attached

Subhiksha's bank account to be attached

Rediff.com   10 Mar 2009

A senior EPFO official said, "(Subhiksha) was given 15 days, starting February 20, to pay the PF dues. Since these were not paid, we will go ahead with the action and set a target to collect the dues before March 31, 2009, when the fiscal year comes to an end." The PF dues to be paid for the June-September period of 2008 were around Rs 1.46 crore. The status of Subhiksha's PF payments in other parts of the country will also be checked.

'7 nuclear reactors to be ready by Sept 2010'

'7 nuclear reactors to be ready by Sept 2010'

Rediff.com   9 Mar 2009

Baldev Raj, scientist and director, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam, said the current installed nuclear power generation capacity is likely to increase five-fold to 25,000 Mwe by 2050 from the current 3,900 Mwe. The proposed expansion would require over Rs 125,000 crore. Nuclear power accounts for 3 per cent of India's total electricity generation and is estimated to go up to 25 per cent in 2050.

PF office may query ICICI Venture on dues

PF office may query ICICI Venture on dues

Rediff.com   21 Feb 2009

Rules out involvement of nominee and independent directors.

Auto slowdown hits Hosur units

Auto slowdown hits Hosur units

Rediff.com   19 Feb 2009

The town houses some 1,500 small and tiny units, of which 75 per cent are engaged in manufacturing components for the automotive industry. The town houses some 1,500 small and tiny units, of which 75 per cent are engaged in manufacturing components for the automotive industry.

Subhiksha defaults on PF dues

Subhiksha defaults on PF dues

Rediff.com   12 Feb 2009

The Employees' Provident Fund Office in Chennai said it intends to attach the properties of the promoters of struggling retail chain Subhiksha to meet provident fund dues for around 4,500 employees in and around the city.

3 more standalone firms to enter health insurance

3 more standalone firms to enter health insurance

Rediff.com   3 Feb 2009

According to the IRDA's data in 2007-08, the health insurance segment was estimated to be around Rs 5,152 crore, with only 2 per cent of the total population being covered. Realising the potential and advantages -- the segment has been growing at 37 per cent since 2002 -- both life and non-life insurers are offering health insurance products. Health insurance in 2007-08 accounted for 0.2 per cent of the individual regular premium for life insurance companies in India.

GMR Infra haggles to buy SA company for $100 mn

GMR Infra haggles to buy SA company for $100 mn

Rediff.com   3 Feb 2009

The present offer is a third of Homeland Mining's initial valuation. GMR Energy, a part of GMR Infrastructure, had valued this coal mining firm at $310 million when it acquired a small stake in April 2008. "In our due diligence, we have found out that we had valued this firm much higher based on various factors such as how many layers one has to mine to access the worthwhile coal," a GMR Group official said.

Co-promoter Kotecha exits Pyramid Saimira

Co-promoter Kotecha exits Pyramid Saimira

Rediff.com   16 Jan 2009

Nirmal Kotecha, co-promoter of Pyramid Symira, a Chennai-based entertainment company, has sold his entire stake in the company. He was holding 24.89 per cent stake in the company as on September 2008.

Tatas pull out of JV with Sasken

Tatas pull out of JV with Sasken

Rediff.com   16 Jan 2009

The JV TACO Sasken Automotive Electronics has been called off and over 100 people working for the JV have been asked to quit. In January 2007, Sasken and Tata AutoComp Systems had formed the JV with a focus on automotive electronics products in the areas of telematics, infotainment and occupant convenience. However sources say that even two years after its formation, the JV could hardly make any progress.

Life insurers on recruitment spree

Life insurers on recruitment spree

Rediff.com   8 Jan 2009

A cross section of life insurers, while discussing their expansion and recruitment plans, said most jobs would be created in sales and services. With the industry expected to touch $52 billion in 2010 from $35 billion in 2007-08, insurers were bullish about the prospects. According to an industry analyst, the availability of manpower now is enormous and relatively cheaper since all major industries have stopped recruitment.

Taj group to expand serviced apartments biz

Taj group to expand serviced apartments biz

Rediff.com   6 Jan 2009

The Indian Hotels Company, the Tata Group firm which runs the Taj Group of Hotels in the country, is set to expand its offerings by getting into serviced apartments business and by widening the portfolio of its wildlife resorts.

UB Group to expand portfolio

UB Group to expand portfolio

Rediff.com   6 Jan 2009

UB Group's other businesses are being aggressively being ramped up. The group recently entered apparel exports to add to its leather exports business. These are in addition to a sturdy fertiliser arm, an engineering construction firm and a property development business which is getting into building high-end apartments.

IIT alumni to improve ITIs, spur rural jobs

IIT alumni to improve ITIs, spur rural jobs

Rediff.com   23 Dec 2008

The Indian Institute of Technology alumni is planning to create a new fund to support its various social projects. The projects are expected to create job opportunities for rural youth and transform India's Industrial Training Institutes.

Major ports to tighten security

Major ports to tighten security

Rediff.com   2 Dec 2008

Port administrations are planning to install IT gadgets like Radio Frequency Identification tags in trucks, scanners and also use speedboats for patrolling. The boats alone are likely to cost around Rs 40-50 crore (Rs 400-500 million). Union Minister of Shipping T R Baalu has also asked the directorate general of shipping to undertake a special audit on security in all the major ports to ensure compliance with all security measures.

Rs 7,000 cr may come into insurance sector

Rs 7,000 cr may come into insurance sector

Rediff.com   1 Dec 2008

The Union government's recent approval to the insurance Bill, which proposes, among other things, to raise the cap on foreign direct investment to 49 per cent from 26 per cent for private sector insurance companies, is expected to bring around Rs 7,000 crore (Rs 70 billion) into the industry, according to industry representatives. However, the Bill is yet to be introduced in Parliament.

Insurance cover lapse rate set to decrease

Insurance cover lapse rate set to decrease

Rediff.com   27 Nov 2008

A committee headed by Irda's member actuary R Kannan has suggested a grace period of 15 days for policyholders who pay premium on a monthly basis, while a 30 days grace period will be available to those who pay their premium annually, half-yearly or quarterly.

European shoe makers turn to India

European shoe makers turn to India

Rediff.com   24 Nov 2008

According to industry representatives, Chinese products, which used to be cheaper by around 10 per cent compared to Indian products, are no longer cheaper due to the increase in labour costs in China. The costs of labour have risen by around 40 per cent since January 2008 in China. Implementation of the European Union anti-dumping duty and Chinese currency Yuan appreciating against the US dollar are the other stated reasons.

JPMorgan may invest in Narayana's realty assets

JPMorgan may invest in Narayana's realty assets

Rediff.com   20 Nov 2008

The US-based global financial company is understood to have shown a "keen interest" in helping the hospital, which has 140 acres in its land bank, to unlock the value of its real estate assets.