Earlier, a public interest litigation was filed by the Delhi Science Forum, which opposed the government’s move to allow the existing operators to shift to a revenue sharing scheme.

The existing operators who wish to get such new licences should give an undertaking stating that the shift to revenue sharing from fixed licence payments would be subject to consent from the new government that will be formed at the centre after the elections.
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Indian rupee will be under pressure
Mumbai: The fluid situation on the Indo-Pakistan border, in the aftermath of India shooting down a Pakistani aircraft in the Gujarat Border, is expected to put pressure on the Indian rupee. The rupee is poised to go past the 43.50 mark against the US dollar today as it could open at a much lower price of around Rs.43.47/48 to the US dollar.

Foreign exchange dealers opined that the inter-bank market will not be keen to keep the rupee up. Already demand from the Indian corporate sector for dollars has been rising. Coupled with this the weak sentiment will take the rupee down further it is said.

Gilt prices also crashed by 25-30 paise in the secondary market. There was huge selling pressure by banks that forced gilts to react sharply.
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Maharashtra state bond issue oversubscribed
Mumbai: The Rs.400-crore bond issue by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation has evoked an excellent response, with the collection amount touching Rs.950 crore. The MSRDC bonds were issued in order to fund the Mumbai-Pune expressway, the Mumbai flyover and railway overbridges in Maharashtra.

There were four instruments offered by the state corporation: Two fixed-rate bonds of five years and 10-years maturity, two floating-rate bonds of 10-years and 12-years maturity. These bonds are guaranteed by the Maharashtra state government.
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Uco Bank may decide that there’s no free lunch
Calcutta: The management at Uco Bank may decide to cut off salaries to employees for days on which they are absent, according to a report in the Economic Times. This move is part of the bank’s renewed effort to restructure its operations.

Uco Bank had earlier tried borrowing from the money market to stabilise operations, but found it could become unsustainable in the long run, what with a fluctuating call market. It is now in the process of stepping up efforts to prop up its deposits, which are actually dropping in a few states.
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Cement prices to firm up
New Delhi: Cement prices in Delhi and other northern states are expected to go up by Rs.5 per 50-kg bag, after an agreement reached to this effect between the cement companies. This works out to an increase of Rs.100 per tonne.

After the increase, cement prices would now be around Rs.143 in Delhi, Rs.145-148 in Punjab, Rs.141-148 in Haryana and in Rajasthan, Rs.140 for a 50 kg bag.

Cement despatches have gone up by over 20 per cent during the April-August period of 1999. So far, cement prices in the north had remained depressed. Cement prices in Mumbai and Tamil Nadu are around Rs.160 and Rs.180 per bag respectively.
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NBFCs to be monitored
Mumbai: The non-banking finance companies and unincorporated bodies in Maharashtra will be monitored by a regional co-ordination committee. This was decided at a meeting between the Reserve Bank of India, state-level officials and other regulatory agencies.

This committee will help in sharing information and follow-up on the regulation of NBFCs, and will meet at regular intervals. Such meetings of regulators are expected to improve quality in terms of supervision of NBFCs.
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Dhanalakshmi Bank plans tie-up
Thrissur: The Dhanalakshmi Bank, based in Thrissur, Kerala, is holding talks with Indian and foreign financial players for possible tie-ups or strategic alliances, according to a report in The Economic Times. The bank plans to increase its capital base to Rs.100 crore by the year 2001, according to its chairman, T M Venkatraman.

Dhanalakshmi Bank is now in talks with private sector banks, foreign banks and mutual funds, among others, for strategic alliances. It has a branch network of over 100 branches, which can be used by the strategic partner. Venkatraman also feels that if such an alliance does not work, the bank would then go in for a rights issue or a private placement, but would keep it as the last option.

The bank is in the process of restructuring after it got the Reserve Bank nod in this regard.
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