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BSNL
realises WLL services are not faring well
Ahmedabad: Not even a year has passed since it
launched wireless in local loop (WLL) services, but now
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has already realised that
the services are not paying them enough. But, instead
of taking remedial action, the BSNL brass has recommended
a go-slow approach on procurement of WLL handsets despite
the fact that it has pumped in almost Rs 800 crore on
installation of WLL-CDMA infrastructure. The move is likely
to assist private sector players Reliance and Tata, which
have already stolen a march over BSNL to further consolidate
their position in the limited mobility arena.
This
is evident from the fact that a move is afoot in BSNL
to cut back on advance procurement orders (APOs) it had
placed for the purchase of WLL-CDMA handsets in April.
According to sources, while the approximately Rs 250-crore
tender for procurement of 4.2 lakh WLL handsets as per
latest CDMA 2001X specifications was floated in August
last year and APOs were placed on successful bidders after
due technical and commercial evaluation of the bids, confirmed
orders are yet to be placed. But what is causing widespread
consternation among successful bidders is the fact that
instead of placing orders, BSNL is actually re-assessing
the feasibility of placing orders for the entire tendered
quantities.
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Remuneration
disclosures: Exemption likely for foreign entities
New Delhi: To ensure that Indian entities operating
abroad do not suffer any competitive disadvantage due
to disclosure requirements of remuneration under the Indian
company law, the Department of Company Affairs (DCA) is
likely to exempt them from furnishing such details. A
DCA sub-committee of the Company Law Advisory Committee
examining the issue has recommended that there should
be no requirement for disclosure of remuneration for employees
posted overseas other than senior managerial personnel
such as executive directors and one level below the board,
as defined in the corporate governance code. Disclosure
will also have to be made for those employees who receive
remuneration that is more than what a managing director
or whole-time directors and hold along with spouse and
children more than two per cent of equity capital. In
case of relatives of directors disclosure has also been
mandated. Further, the sub-committee recommended that
there should be no distinction between different industries
when granting such exemptions. "A total removal of
disclosure requirement except for the said categories
needs to be considered," informed sources said.
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Apollo
Hospitals
to appoint an international
auditor
Chennai: Apollo Hospitals plans to replace its
domestic auditor with an international one in the forthcoming
annual general meeting (AGM) to meet the needs of the
overseas dimension to its business. The company intends
to seek shareholders' permission to replace its existing
auditor, S. Viswanathan, with Deloitte Haskins & Sells.
"It is not that Indian auditors are not good. The
change is driven by a need for applying international
norms," said S.K. Venkataraman, chief financial officer.
He also indicated that perception mattered when dealing
with international investors who would be more comfortable
with select firms. It may be recalled that Apollo bagged
a contract to manage a multi-specialty hospital in Dubai
a few months ago. Company officials indicated that the
group would attempt to bag contracts to manage more hospitals
abroad. Currently, Apollo has entrusted Deloitte with
the task of studying depreciation norms overseas in order
to apply it here.
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HLL
to relaunch Brooke Bond tea brand soon
Mumbai: Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) is planning to
relaunch its flagship tea brand ‘Brooke Bond Tea’
within a month in order to revitalise the brand. As part
of its marketing strategy, HLL also plans to relaunch
Brooke Bond as a master brand with a revamped identity
and logo, confirmed key industry sources. Incidentally,
a new strategy is worked out by Shining Emotional Surplus,
a strategic growth consultancy founded by Shombit Sengupta.
According to a leading retailer in Mumbai, some select
shops already display new packets with a new Brooke Bond
logo. “While Red Label and Taj Mahal are in carton
packs, Taaza now comes in a poly pack. And the new design
shows a tea garden crowned with a sun in many shades,”
the retailer said. The ad line reads, “Since 1869
Brooke Bond Cheers Your Senses.” At present, the
umbrella brands of Brooke Bond include Taj Mahal, Red
Label and Taaza. It is also learnt that Shining was hired
over a year ago to work on the master brand strategy and
create master media communication including retail and
outdoors.
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Godrej
to unveil Snuggy baby
care
products
Mumbai: After the recent buyout of Snuggy, the
Godrej group is now planning to launch a slew of baby
care products under the Snuggy brand soon. Godrej Consumer
Products Ltd (GCPL) had announced the acquisition of the
Snuggy trademark and copyright from Shogun Diapers Ltd
last month. The company is in the process of drawing up
plans to extend the brand name to other baby products
like soap, talc, shampoo, oil, etc., in a bid to leverage
the Snuggy brand in India. While GCPL will continue to
import the Snuggy brand of diapers, other baby products
under the brand will be manufactured in India, as and
when the company decides to roll them out. A company official
said that the logical extension of Snuggy into other baby
products would also expand the scope of GCPL’s portfolio
which currently consists of soaps, hair colour, liquid
detergent and other toiletries. Baby care is a sizeable
category in India. The move to enter this category will
position Godrej in direct competition with leading baby
caret player Johnson & Johnson. Godrej will also compete
with Wipro, which is present in baby care products. Snuggy
is the first brand of disposable baby diapers to be launched
in India. The brand had a turnover of around Rs five crore
in 2001-02.
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SPGL
defers its board meeting to 16 July
Mumbai: Spectrum Power Generation Ltd (SPGL), which
got a breather from the Supreme Court (SC) for the issuance
of shares of Rs 52.04 crore to Industrial Development
Bank of India (IDBI)-led consortium till July 10, has
deferred its board meeting slated for June 30 to July
16. SPGL has conveyed its decision to IDBI-led consortium
and Spectrum Technologies USA, which hold equity of $9.3
million in the company. Earlier, IDBI had asked SPGL to
convene a board meeting to review what progress it had
made on the implementation of the SC order of May 8. The
apex court had ruled that SPGL would issue these shares
to IDBI by June 19, the documents would be executed and
registered within two weeks of IDBI sending the drafts
of the mortgage deeds. The apex court had ordered that
a meeting be held for the appointment of fresh director/managing
director and/or chairman in accordance with law. In addition,
the apex court had asked SPGL to complete the issuance
of preference shares till June 30 as the proceeds to be
utilised for the repayment of dues of Rs 200 crore to
the IDBI-led consortium. However, SPGL approached the
apex court with a plea that it should be granted three-month
time for the issuance of shares to IDBI as it has yet
to receive arrears
from the Aptransco.
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Aventis
to come out with anti-diabetes drug
New Delhi: Aventis Pharma India is introducing
its anti-diabetes drug Lantus within the current calendar
year, and its osteoporosis drug Actonel could follow soon
after this. Aventis managing director Ramesh Subrahmanian
told, “Lantus is an important drug for us. We have
lined up the launch of the same in the second half of
2003.” The company is currently in the process of
getting regulatory clearance for Lantus. “For competitive
reasons, we shall not be in a position to divulge the
current status of the approval process, nor can we share
the exact date of the launch of the drug,” said Subrahmanian.
At an analyst meet recently, the management had divulged
that the investment in the Lantus product launch would
be very high as they expected it to be a major brand within
three to four years. While the quantum of such investments
was not being divulged, they added that such investments
are not expected to hit the company’s margins.
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Maruti
to rope in SBI associates for car finance
New Delhi: The Rs 9,426-crore Maruti Udyog Ltd
(MUL) is strengthening its car financing network with
the proposed induction of the associates of the State
Bank Of India (SBI). The fresh move to rope in seven associates
of the SBI including State Bank of Patiala, State Bank
of Bikaner, State Bank of Punjab comes close on the heels
of an alliance with the SBI (branded SBI-MUL Finance)
in February 2003. The new initiative is critical as a
single associate like State Bank of Patiala has 748 branches
and a large customer base. Earlier, the tie-up with SBI,
which has over 9,000 branches, has already given MUL access
to unrepresented, remote parts of the country where the
car financing is not available through any organised channel.
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Tata
Tele to start CDMA services by mid-July
Mumbai: Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) Ltd will
launch its Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) services
by mid-July in the Maharashtra circle and by early August
in Mumbai, even as it is planning to roll out pre-paid
CDMA cards in India. “The systems and infrastructure
are in place and we expect to provide connectivity in
Maharashtra circle comprising Pune, Nagpur, Aurangabad
and Nashik in July, while that in Mumbai will take a fortnight
more,” TTML chief operating officer YVL Pandit said
here on Sunday.
TTML
expects to provide connectivity to about 1.5 lakh to two
lakh customers in Maharashtra circle and Mumbai also,
within a span of eight to 10 months, he said. The Tata
company, which was planning to invest Rs 350 crore for
rolling out wireless CDMA services in Maharashtra circle,
has already exhausted the amount, he said, adding it made
additional investments in the state. He, however, did
not divulge the additional amount or time-frame for investments,
saying the company was working on it. The COO said CDMA
rollout was progressing as per the company’s plans
and reiterated that TTML would distribute Nokia, Motorola,
LG and Kyocar handsets to customers. On the company’s
launch of pre-paid CDMA cards in the country,Pandit said
it would take a “couple of months”.
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Aluminium
firms' export revenues may rise
Mumbai: The spurt in premiums will see Indian primary
aluminium manufacturers like Nalco, Hindalco and Balco
recording better export revenues. The industry now seems
to be bullish on the LME (London Metal Exchange) which
is moving up steadily. The international aluminium market
witnessing a steady increase in premiums on primary aluminium
is also being attributed to the bullish sentiment at the
LME. According to industry sources, over the last six
months premiums have increased substantially. The officials
said that premiums in Japan have increased by $25 to $30
over the past six months, while in Western Europe the
premiums have increased by $70 per tonne. The domestic
market movement is, however, being termed as steady, rather
than stagnant. An official from one of the largest producers
of aluminium in India said that ingot prices have been
hovering at around Rs 81,000 per tonne for almost six
months now. The official added that the spurt in prices
has only been to the extent of primary producers withdrawing
discounts.
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BPO
investors retreat as MNCs venture in
Mumbai: Several call centre companies, including
those set up by venture funds or business houses, are
looking for an exit as competition in the segment heats
up with the entry of several multinationals.Promoters/venture
investors in First Ring, I-Seva, Vision Heathsource, Zentac
and Tracmail are learnt to have expressed interest in
offloading part or whole of their holding to strategic
investors. Epicenter Technologies, owned by the Kalyani
group, was said to be considering the same, but has now
decided to form a joint venture with a large US coinvestmentmpany
that will help it ramp up business, according to banking
sources. The reason for this upheaval is the current upswing
in the BPO sector, with almost every industry player —
domestic and international — looking at India to
set up operations. Big players such as GE and HSBC are
setting up captive operations, while those like US-based
service providers EDS, Convergys ADP, Exult, and Affiliated
Computer Services are looking to India to expand business.
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