Toyota to launch Innova - End of the road for Qualis
Bangalore: Bokings for Qualis will be stopped from the beginning of the new year, even as Toyota readies itself to replace the vehicle with Innova early next year. The new Innova is expected to be priced at Rs8.5 lakh (ex-showroom) and will be launched by February-end.

Innova, the new vehicle from the Toyota stable, is considered to be more in the league of a crossover vehicle and is built on the IMV (international multi-purpose vehicle) platform. Positioned as a lifestyle product, Innova has an aerodynamic body and its exterior design is far more stylish than Qualis.

Innova, launched in Indonesia couple of months ago, would be modified to suit Indian conditions. Toyota is investing around Rs600 crore on the vehicle, which will be funded through internal accruals.
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HCL Tech completes buy-out
New Delhi: HCL Technologies Ltd has said that it has allotted 1.93 crore fully paid-up equity shares to Deutsche Bank AG (DBAG), in consideration for acquiring 4,900 issued and outstanding shares of DSI Financial Solutions, Singapore, representing a 49 per cent stake in DSI.

HCL Technologies informed BSE that "the company has allotted 19,358,989 fully paid up equity shares of Rs 2 each at a price of Rs 361 per share (including Rs 359 per share as share premium) to Deutsche Bank AG, in consideration for acquiring 4,900 issued and outstanding shares of DSI Financial Solutions Pte Ltd, Singapore representing 49 per cent stake in DSI."

The issue of shares by HCL Technologies is in terms of its joint venture agreement with DB dated September 2001 and it constitutes the purchase consideration for acquiring the balance 49 per cent stake in DSI Financial Solutions Pte Ltd (DSI), Singapore, which until now was held by DB. At the conclusion of this transaction, DSI and its wholly owned subsidiary DSL Software Ltd, will become wholly-owned subsidiaries of HCL.
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Mittal: Tax reliefs can reduce mobile tariffs by thirty per cent
New Delhi: Mobile tariffs could come down by as much as 30 per cent if the Government brought down the levies on telecom services, the Chairman and Group Managing Director, Bharti Enterprises, Sunil Mittal, has said.

"I think there is a scope (for reduction) of about 30 per cent. As much as 15 per cent goes as licence fee, five per cent as wireless charges and nearly 10 per cent as access deficit charges (ADC).

This is a 30 per cent cess that is sitting on top of service tax, which is another 10 per cent," Mr Mittal said on the sidelines of FICCI plenary session on `Vision of the new Economy' here.

Terming mobile telephony as "necessary essential services" and not a premium service, he said, "telecom is serving the nation. If that is so, it cannot be taxed in a five-star way. This 40 per cent levies must come down and what we can promise on behalf of the industry is that we will bring down the tariffs fully in line with whatever the Government gives us as a relief," he said.

He said the actual reduction would depend on the quantum of reduction of the levies. "The service tax will never go away, but the balance 30 per cent, that goes to the Government for running telecom services, is certainly an opportunity," Mr Mittal said.

He said that the telecom department should get more spectrum released from defence authorities, railways and other users who were sitting on commercial spectrum and move them on to more efficient spectrum.
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Mittal: `No damage to undersea cable link to Singapore'
New Delhi: The Bharti Group said that its joint venture undersea cable link to Singapore has not suffered damage on account of Sunday's tsunami that devastated a large coastal swathe of South East and South Asia.

"Everything is fine and there is no damage to the cable. But loss to human lives and property has been acute. Our company will be responding in coming days in whatever way we can... " the Bharti Enterprises' Chairman and Group managing director, Sunil Mittal, has clarified.
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