HD TV is all set to make a grand entry in India by the year-end. Direct-To-Home operators -- Dish TV and Reliance Communications -- are planning to offer HD TV set top boxes, though at a premium.
The brain drain, it seems, is passe. India is becoming one of the hottest destinations for expatriates (both those of Indian origin and foreigners) for top jobs. That is because big business houses in India are ready to offer pay packets that are equivalent to and sometimes more than global benchmarks. This is a key finding of a study of senior recruitment trends by US-based SpencerStuart, a leading executive search firm that specialises in recruiting CEOs, presidents and COO
Jairam Ramesh has taken over as the minister of state for power. According to him, the Tenth Five-Year Plan was a disaster in terms of capacity addition & so was the Ninth Plan. Of the target of around 41,000 Mw, only 23,000 Mw was added. In effect, the first 2 years will see an addition of almost the same capacity as the entire Tenth Plan. But achieving the Eleventh Plan target of 80,000 Mw is going to be a big challenge. He hopes to see at least 3-4 more projects in a year.
Led by Huawei Technologies and ZTE, Chinese manufacturers are challenging the domination of European equipment-makers by grabbing contracts (some of which are in advanced stages of negotiations) worth over $2 billion in 2008 -- nearly one thirds of the Indian market of around $6 billion.
The govt is likely to propose to the EU that it will validate security procedures in its airports before allowing passengers to carry duty-free goods to India. This is in retaliation to a similar proposal made by EU last year, which led to protests from companies operating duty-free shops in India. EU officials would have to validate the security systems at Indian airports before allowing transit passengers to buy at duty-free shops here, resulting in dispute between the two.
Even as the government grapples with a surge in prices, a three-year old initiative to recast the index that measures wholesale prices is not getting anywhere fast. The revised index is likely to take at least another year to implement and may spill over into the tenure of the next government.
The Italian luxury brand is open to working on traditional Indian clothing and creating a limited domestic collection using local tradition and design. At the moment, Gucci has two stores in Mumbai and Delhi and is planning to open two more, one of which will be in Bangalore. Gucci offers a range of products including bags, footwear, ready-to-wear, perfumes and watches. Apart from Gucci, its other brands include YSL, Sergio Rossi, Stella McCartney, Bottega Veneta, watch brand
No less than 4.5 million government employees will soon have more money in their pockets. And they can thank Justice Bellur Narayanaswamy Srikrishna for it. Still, public records do not have much information on the man.
The Defence sector is unhappy with the Sixth Pay Commission. The points of discontent include the fact that the Military Service Pay will only begin from the date of acceptance of the award possibly 3 months from now even as their civilian counterparts will get salary arrears from January 2006 onwards. Defence officers want to be compensated for the interim period vis--vis their civilian colleagues. They are also unhappy with the quantification of arduous service conditions.
Sam Pitroda-backed Vavasi Telegence's request for unused radio frequency to be allotted to launch mobile services across the country is unlikely to be met by the department of telecommunication because it said international technology specifications for this wireless technology do not exist. Instead, DoT is considering the option of allotting the company spectrum in the 400 to 430 MHz band, radio frequencies that are currently not used for mobile services in India.
Tasked with gathering over Rs 6,87,715 crore (or nearly $168 billion) as revenue receipts in 2008-09, the two agencies the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) will be headed by a succession of bureaucrats with unusually short tenures.
Cola wars are pass, it's things like mobile phone services that are the real competition for Coke products, said Neville Isdell, chairman and chief operating officer of Coca-Cola, the world's largest beverage company. In India, strategy is no longer about competing with global rival PepsiCo or other local soft drink brands. Instead, it's about influencing consumer choice away from such purchases as rock-bottom pre-paid mobile cards to buying a Coke product.
Mauritius has rejected compensation of Rs 500 crore to plug loopholes in double taxation avoidance treaty. Mauritius accounts for nearly half of all foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows to India. With the tightening of tax laws, India attempted to amend the treaty. Due to the treaty, India was suffering over Rs 4,000 crore loss annually for some years in terms of revenue foregone on account of the capital gains exemption for investors routing their funds through Mauritius.
Some large companies said the measure would broaden and deepen the equity cult in the country, but feel that a blanket 25 per cent minimum public shareholding norm should not be applied indiscriminately to all companies. The ministry had floated the paper on February 1 and asked for public comments by the month-end. The minimum public shareholding limit now is 10 per cent.
Private airports at Bangalore and Hyderabad have proposed heavy user development fees. The UDF is much higher compared to leading airports in the world.
State-owned Mahangar Telephone Nigam's (MTNL) ambitious drive to become a major player in the internet protocol TV (IPTV) services sector is facing a roadblock. IPTV is a technology that uses telephone lines to provide TV programming to viewers.
Even as the debate over off-Budget liabilities continues, former finance ministry bureaucrats and leading economists say it's time the government went beyond the targets in the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act.
The $100-million fund, which has the option to raise a further $200 million, will benefit small and medium enterprises engaged in defence production.
The European Union has drawn up an initial negative list of 416 tradeable items on which it does not intend to provide duty cuts as part of the proposed free trade agreement with India
RComm will test launch its direct to home services Big TV this week, which would include some niche channels that are currently not available in India.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances