Citibank, IFC and NIIT to join hands for high-tech education
Kolkata: Citibank N A, NIIT and International Finance Corporation (IFC) have signed an tripartite agreement to develop a Rs. 400 crore student loan programme for high tech education to be provided by NIIT. The student loan programme to be jointly developed by Citibank, NIIT and IFC is the first and the largest of its kind in India.

The programme is designed to offer students of information technology a loan for a seven-year period, which will cover 90 per cent of the fees for advanced web-centric education package. The loan comes at an attractive interest rate and the student's parents or guardian will be a co-borrower to the loan.

The loan programme covers the cost of tuition, a multi-media personal computer and printer, along with an Internet connection.
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Bangalore to host Bio.com 2001
Mumbai: Bangalore will be hosting `Bio.com 2001', in a bid to attract biotech start-ups into the state. The event to be organised between April 15-17, 2001, will cover topics like genomics, bio-informatics, gene therapy, cell therapy, cancer biology, novel therapeutics, neurosciences and proteomics.

Around 7000 professionals from all over the country are expected to visit the exhibition, which promises to be a B2B event, with around 50 companies participating in the event. The three-day event will also feature a full day seminar on venture capital financing.
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Electronic component units freeze fresh investment
New Delhi: Leading companies in the Indian electronic component sector have decided to freeze fresh investments into the sector because existing zero custom duty structure has made it unviable for companies to invest in India. Already companies like Matsushita and Hotline, which had committed investments in fresh manufacturing capacity have decided to adopt a "wait and watch’ attitude.

While Hotline was considering investing Rs 250 crore in a colour display tube project, while Matsushita was reportedly exploring the possibility of setting up a passive components venture in the country. Another component major Elin Electronics was also considering a stepper motors venture, which could result in investments of around Rs 50 crore. Others MNCs, which have frozen their investment plans, include Dutch major BC Components, Austrian major AT&S, Tyco Electronics.

A significant number of companies could be actually looking at sourcing their component requirements from China and other cheaper destinations. Industry analysts say, if certain benefits like the modified electronic hardware technology park (EHTP) scheme are extended to the components sector, it could make it more attractive for investors to invest in production base in hi-tech products.
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