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1 Pages 25th

FEBRUARY 03rd

March 2011 www.xedintellect.com

BUSINESS NEWS

NEWS DIGEST

IN BRIEF

BUDGET-2011

COMPILED BY

SALIENT FEATURES OF BUDG2011-12

BSE SENSEX : 18,848

INR/1 Dollar: Rs.44.9INR/1 Euro : Rs. 62.8

ECONOMIC

INDICATORS

ndia's ballooning trade

deficit unsustainable:

govt

COVER STORY

INTERNATIONAL

NEWS

Boeing Wins $35-Billion

Us Air Force Deal

MISCELLNEOUS NEWS

Gaddafi strikes at

town, rebels eye

foreign help

XED NEWSLETTER a weekly news bulletin

(as on 04.03.201Budget 2011, A bag full of opportunities or

Pandoras Box?

Expenditure in 2011-12estimated at Rs.12, 57,729

crore.

Growth at 8.75 percent to9.25 percent in 2011-12.

Rs.343, 000 crore of markeborrowings in 2011-12.

Revenue gain of Rs.11, 000crore from increase inindirect taxes.

FIIs can invest $40 billion icorporate bonds.

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TOP 10 HEADLINES OF THE WEEK

1. India's ballooning trade deficit unsustainable: govt.2. Aamirs Thanda with Coca-Cola.3. Vodafone emerges biggest gainer of MNP adds nearly 1.9 lakh users.4. Tata Motors showcases small car 'Pixel' at Geneva Motor Show.5. Hrithik is the highest paid film star on TV.6. Jindal Steel plans worlds largest plant in Orissa.7. Boeing Wins $35-Billion US Air Force Deal.8. Yunus removed as Grameen Banks MD.9. Gaddafi strikes at town, rebels eye foreign help.10.Tihar inmates make a killing in placements.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Does the difference between the age of a country's

people and its leader matter?

At first glance, it appears that less than half of all MPs

in the current Lok Sabha have entered politics through

the grassroots. 46.8% of the MPs have no significant

family political background. Three out of ten MPs

(28.6%) entered politics through family connections.

There is a direct linear relationship between age and

hereditary MPs, a greater proportion of younger MPs

have a family political background, in comparison to

others. All MPs whose age is less than 30 years are

hereditary. More than two-thirds of MPs aged under 40

are hereditary. Since a hereditary MP is likely to join

parliament at an early age, this translates into a

decade of political advantage for him/her.

Egypt's median age is 24. President Hosni Mubarak was the

fifth-oldest leader in the world before he was toppled aged

82. The countries in the chart suggest that such a wide gap

is more common in autocracies like Saudi Arabia, Yemen,

Algeria, Cuba and North Korea. Democracies, by contrast,

seem to prefer more youthful leaders these days, though

India and Italy are exceptions to this trend.

Stock Market Indices as on 04thMar11 Values

BSE SENSEX 18,848NSE Nifty 5,543

Current Market Rates as on 04 Mar11 Values

Rupee / 1Dollar 44.90Rupee/ 1Euro 62.80

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COVER STORY: BUDGET 2011, A BAG FULL OF OPPORTUNITIES OR PANDORAS BOX?

What is the purpose of a Budget? In layman terms it is the distribution of moneythat the government has taken or borrowed from you, the taxpayer. A Budget is amechanism rather than a solution. This budget like every other earlier evokedmixed response from media, economists, political parties and everyone who lovesto express his/her opinions on economic activities of big magnitude. It has beenpresented at a time when the Indian economy is heading towards a high growthtrajectory, albeit certain challenges such as elevated inflation, high Current AccounDeficit (CAD), and moderating growth of industrial production, which have surfaced

in the recent past.

Fiscal Arithmetic for FY12:For Financial Year2012, total expenditure is budgeted to increase by 3.38% to Rs 12,577.29 bn ascompared to the revised estimates (RE) of Rs 12,165.76 bn for Financial Year 2011.As in the last budget, the Plan expenditure received a major boost with anallocation of Rs 4,415.47 bn, an increase of 11.78% over the FY11 RE. The non-plan expenditure, however, is budgeted to register a marginal decline compared tothe revised estimates of FY11; the expenditure on this front is slated to decline by0.65%. The subsidy burden is budgeted to decline by 12.54% during FY12 overFY11 RE, owing to relatively lower budgeted fertilizer & petroleum subsidy burdenand decline in budgeted payments to lending institutions against debt waiver anddebt relief scheme for farmers. It is important to note here that if the internationalcrude oil prices continue to rise unabated, the strain on petroleum subsidy might

increase.How the budget fared in different sectors:Energy: The proposals in respect of the energy sector oil and gas, power and renewable were as anticipated; theroll forward of the income tax holiday for power by a year, denial of tax holiday for the ongoing round of NELP andindirect tax concessions for renewable. These were quite predictable. Bold initiatives hoped via policy announcementsuch as diesel decontrol, were notable by their omission. The budget subsidy for under recovery of petroleum prices iswoefully inadequate and will fall short unless reforms are undertaken rapidly.

Serving the Services: Budget 2011 proposes relatively limited changes in the taxing framework for the FinanciaServices industry. Though, on the face of it, it may appear that the Budget could have done more for the FinanciaServices industry, on balance, it seems to be a fairly good budget as it has targeted an annual growth rate ofapproximately 8.6%, and has put much more emphasis on the infrastructure sector, which is closely inter-twined withthe Financial Services industry. This would help the Financial Services industry leverage off the various initiativestaken by the Government for benefitting the infrastructure sector.

Infrastructure & Real Estate:Budget 2011 doled out quite a few measures both tax andnon-tax in order to boost investment in infrastructure sector. Key non-tax proposals includeissuance of tax-free bonds to the tune of Rs 300 billion, extension of tax exemption by a yeaon tax-saving infrastructure bonds, proposal to introduce special infrastructure debt funds toattract foreign financing in infrastructure sector and hike in FII investment limit by anadditional USD 20 billion for investment in infrastructure-related sectors. On the indirect taxesside there are material changes which may have far reaching impact for the infrastructuresector, such as significant revamp of CENVAT credit scheme necessitating a relook atprevailing tax positions; change in levy of service tax from receipt to accrual basis andintroduction of prosecution provisions.

Agriculture: Food for thought or thought for foodIn the budget the Government further enhanced its thrust to improve the storage facilities in

the agriculture sector by allocating funds for creation of warehousing facilities. Facilitating forfurther private sector participation will ensure reduction in wastage of farm output, thereby enhancing greater foodsecurity going ahead. There has been announcement of new initiatives such as accelerated Fodder DevelopmentProgramme which bodes well for the sector. The Government also placed due emphasis on resolving the supply chainblockages in the agricultural sector which required serious attention besides, considerably stepping up the credit flow.

Fertilizer:The major move in the sector which will drive investment is by including capital investment in fertilizerproduction as an infrastructure sub sector which will help to mitigate the risk of investing. Moreover, extending thebenefits of investment linked deduction to businesses engaged in the production of fertilizers will increase the flow ofcapital in the sector. The governments intention to move to a NBS of fertilizers not only bodes well for the industry

but also promotes balanced use of fertilizer. Further, the proposed system of direct transfer of subsidy for fertilizers isseen as a good move for the domestic industry.

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India looked interested in her largest quantifiable asset (HumanResource): Integrated Child Development Services has got a boost. Anallocation made for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment GuaranteeScheme amounting to Rs 400 is expected to contribute to the employabilityin rural areas. Swaranjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) will bepromoted for establishing micro-enterprises in rural areas and they willinclude people from SCs/STs and people with disability. Mr. Mukherjee hasreduced the eligibility criterion for availing Rs. 200 per month under theIndira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme for below poverty line to 60years from 65 years. And for those who 80 years and above the pension

amount is being raised from Rs. 200 at present to Rs. 500 per month.Income Tax relief is provided to general tax payers as the limit has beenincreased by Rs. 20,000 from current limit of Rs 1.60 lacs to Rs. 1.80 lacs.Also the eligibility for pension is proposed to be reduced from 65 years atpresent to 60 years. Further, for those who are 80 years and above, thepension amount is being raised from Rs 200 at present to Rs 500 per month.

Education: Government showed strong intentions of promoting educationsector byan allocation of Rs 210 bn for Sarva Shikha Abhiyan which is 40%higher than Rs 150 bn allocated in FY11. We also might see a lot ofvocational courses coming along and a strong commitment to bolster the notso successful MID Day Meal program. The Connectivity to all 1,500institutions of Higher Learning and Research through optical fiber backboneis a major move in technical up gradation of the educational sector. Also

introduction of a scholarship scheme in FY12 for needy students belongingto the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes studying in classes ninth andtenth would benefit about 40 lakh Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribestudents.

Regional Development: By allocating 36.40% of the total plan outlay forthe social sector during FY12, the Government has reiterated its emphasis for the upliftment of the weaker sections othe country. In order to enhance financial inclusion, a dedicated fund with a corpus of Rs 1 bn have been created forsmaller MFIs besides, forming a Womens Self Help Groups Development Fund which would enhance theempowerment of women.

Sentiments galore or populist agenda:While the senior citizens (BPL beneficiaries) have been given a speciaattention under the pension schemes, the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana has been extended to cover unorganizedsector workers in hazardous mining and associated industries. The Government has also paid due attention for furthe

development of the backward regions, allocating funds for the infrastructure needs for Ladakh and Kashmir besidesdirecting funds for addressing problems related to Left Wing extremism affected districts. Moreover, for the first timespecific allocations have been earmarked towards Scheduled Castes Sub-plan and Tribal Sub-plan. Besides, theGovernments focus on drinking water, health and sanitation is another positive aspect for the social sector in thisbudget.

Rural Infrastructure: The plan expenditure for infrastructure sector to constitutearound 48.50% of total plan outlay for FY12 a growth of 23.03% over the UnionBudget 2010-11, indicating an increased thrust on the sector. Over 11% rise inbudgetary allocation on road transport & highways is expected to encourage thetransportation and logistics sector in India. The Budget provides thrust throughvarious financing schemes. Since most of the infrastructure companies areorganised in the form of SPVs, FIIs would also now be permitted to invest inunlisted bonds with a lock-in of three years. A rise in the cap of FII investment in

corporate bonds with residual maturity of five years, issued by infrastructurecompanies, to US$ 25 bn from US$ 20 bn would also provide impetus to theinfrastructure development. Additionally, allowing for tax free bonds to the tune ofRs 300 bn by various Government undertakings including IRFC, NHAI, HUDCO andPorts would further support infrastructure financing.

IT & ITeS: Crying loudThe Government has announced in the budget to levy MAT on companies which areoperating in SEZs from FY12. The budget also makes no mention of the extensionof the sunset clause under the Software Technology Park of India (STPI) Act,related to deduction in respect of export profits beyond FY11. These moves will impact the IT sector as profit marginsof IT companies (especially small and medium) who enjoyed tax exemptions under the above mentioned schemes isexpected to come down.

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Hospitality: Pay more to avail moreThe introduction of service tax on hotels, air conditioned restaurants as well asincreasing the same on air travel is a negative for the overall hospitality sector.With the introduction of 5% and 3% effective burden on hotels accommodationand air conditioned restaurants serving liquor respectively, billing amount to thecustomers will increase thereby impacting the overall business in the hotelindustry. Further, rise in service tax on domestic as well as international airtravel and introduction of 10% tax in the domestic higher class travel willincrease the overall cost of air travel putting a negative impact on the aviationsector.

In Black and White:Indian companies that do business in suchcountries will be charged a higher withholding tax-like fee on servicesthey offer. These companies will also have to face transfer pricing auditsto prove they are not shifting profits outside India. They wont get anytax benefits in India on payments made to financial institutions based insuch countries. They will also have to explain the source of funds.

Criticisms: In showing a fiscal deficit of 4.6% of the GDP for 2011-12compared to 4.8% mandated by the Thirteenth Finance Commission, theFM has indulged in sheer deception and tried to bury this deception ina lot of verbiage. The fiscal deficit projected in Budget estimates 2010-11was 3, 81,408 crore. In revised estimates, it is 4, 00,998 crore despitethe 3G bonanza. The actual deficit for 2009-10 was 4, 18,482 crore. So

if the fiscal deficit for 2010-11 is 5.1% of GDP instead of 5.5%, the creditdoesnt go to expenditure contraction or higher revenues, it goes to theunexpected one-time windfall gain from 3G and the higher growth rateprojected for the year.

On infrastructure, the Budget is a huge disappointment. The FM has notexplained why the government is constructing only 4 km of nationalhighways a day, instead of the 20 km announced with fanfare two yearsago. There is no effort to roll back the last Budgets hikes in petroleumduties. There is no reference to prohibiting huge speculative trading inthe commodity exchanges. Nor is there is any reference to releasing fromcentral godowns food stocks that are more than double the buffer norm.Any, if not all, of these measures would have eased the pressure onprices. There is a relief of 11,500 crore in direct taxes, a subsidy to the

rich, while there is an additional mobilization of 11,300 crore through indirect taxes, a burden on the consumers. ThisBudget, therefore, continues with the philosophy that subsidies to the rich are incentives for growth while those to thepoor are detrimental.

No concrete measures such as reviewing the double taxation avoidance agreement with Mauritius, through which 42%of foreign capital inflows to India are routed. With the now-declared desire to appease international finance capital,India is being rendered vulnerable to global speculative shocks, particularly with Indias current account deficitwidening. During the last three years, corporate and personal income tax concessions, according to the budgetaryStatement of Revenue Foregone, amounts to a whopping 3,61,415 crore. If this revenue were collected and utilizedfor public investments, we would have been able to build our much-needed infrastructure and generate employment.

There is so much leakage in PDS, NREGS, ICDS and other schemes. The STPI taxbenefit would have allowed them to reinvest and grow big. The two biggest attractionsfor SEZs no MAT and no DDT have been neutralized in one shot. This move wiladversely impact exports and defeat the goal of doubling Indias exports to $450billion by 2014.

At a time when world agri commodity prices are on the rise, Indian farmers deserve tobe encouraged to meet that demand and raise their incomes in the process, nothobbled through export restrictions. On healthcare front the budget would directly hitthe poor consumers seeking healthcare and argued it would have been better if thetax was levied on super-specialty hospitals which were owned by and cater to the rich

Conclusion: India missed a trick or two with its latest fiscal budget. Projections from Finance Minister PranabMukherjee of a moderately declining deficit make sense only by ignoring the funny accounting and assuming theeconomy keeps rocketing ahead. With state spending, inflation and commodity prices all increasing, India it betting onhigher economic growth to solve its problems.

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BUSINESS NEWS

1. India's ballooning trade deficit unsustainable: govt-Reuters Feb 23The Indian government raised "serious concern" on Wednesday about a trade deficit thatcould more than double to $278.5 billion in three years and may cause an unsustainablecurrent account deficit. The trade deficit of Asia's third-largest economy could widen to 12.8percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2014 from 7.2 percent in this fiscal year oncurrent trends, leading to a higher reliance on foreign capital inflows to plug the currentaccount gap, a trade ministry document showed.

India is on track to exceed a 15 percent export growth target in the financial year ending thisMarch. While IT and service exports have played a huge role in India's economic boom,

merchandise exports have lagged behind the potential of the world's second-fastest growing major economy, which isseen returning to a pre-crisis growth rate of 9 percent soon.

2. Aamirs Thanda With Coca-Cola-ET Feb 28Coca-Cola has decided not to renew its brand endorsement contract with Aamir Khan, its biggestbrand ambassador for more than a decade, as the beverages maker is looking for younger facesto connect with the youth brand Cokes core target. Coke is the second brand to drop thecountrys costliest celebrity endorser in the past six months after biscuit maker ParleProducts. Since then, his nephew Imran Khan has been appearing in fresh Coca-Colacommercials.The star behind blockbuster films like Lagaan and Taare Zameen Par has been the face of Cokes most populacampaigns over the years, including thanda matlab Coca-Cola and paanch matlab chota coke. Interestingly, PepsiCo

had dropped the other big superstar of Bollywood, Shahrukh Khan, two years ago, replacing him with a much youngerRanbir Kapoor as the ambassador of brand Pepsi. When Parle Products decided not to renew its contract with Aamir,its officials said the company will go for regional endorsements in line with their regional plan. It had hired regionaactors Ravi Kishan and Rituparno Sengupta for its Monaco salty biscuits brand.

3. Vodafone emerges biggest gainer of MNP, adds nearly 1.9 lakh users- PTI Feb 27Nearly a month after the nationwide rollout of mobile number portability services, VodafoneEssar has emerged as the biggest gainer, notching up 1.9 lakh new subscribers, whereasstate-owned BSNL lost more customers than it attracted from other service providers. Sincethe launch of MNP services, nearly 20 lakh mobile subscribers have switched service providersusing the facility. MNP allows users to change service providers while retaining their phonenumbers.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had launched nationwide MNP services on January 20 thisyear. According to latest available figures, Vodafone Essar gained as many as 1.9 lakh

customers, followed by Idea Cellular, with a net gain of 1.5 lakh subscribers. All that a customer needs to do forchanging his telecom operator is pay a maximum of Rs 19. He/she will get a new service provider within sevenworking days as per the guidelines of the sectoral regulator, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.

4. Tata Motors showcases small car 'Pixel' at Geneva Motor Show- PTI Mar 01Tata Motors today showcased concept small car 'Pixel', based on the Rs 1 lakh car 'Nano',for the European market at the ongoing 81st Geneva Motor Show. Based on Tata Nano,the new car is a four seater with just over three metres in length, the company said.

The car will be powered by a 1.2 litre diesel engine and the company claims that it willgive a mileage of about 29 km per litre and CO2 emission of 89 grams in everykilometre. Besides the Pixel, the company is displaying other car models such as Indica Vista Electric Vehicle and Aria

at the motor show.

5. Hrithik is the highest paid filmstar on TV- PTI Mar 01Bollywood heartthrob Hrithik Roshan , who is making his television debut as a dance reality show

judge, is the highest paid film star on small screen. The shooting for "Just Dance" the dancreality show on Star Plus will start next month where the 37-year-old film star will judgecontestants along with choreographers Farah Khan and Vaibhavi Merchant.

Hrithik is looking forward to a successful inning on the small screen after his two previous films'Kites' and 'Guzaarish' bombed at the box office. But sources close to the actor claim that theHrithik is indeed the highest paid actor on television. "He gets Rs two crore per episode. Whereas

Salman Khan shot for his last TV show only during the weekends and would wrap up two episodes in a single day andtake home a pay packet of Rs 2.5 crore," sources said.

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6. Jindal Steel plans worlds largest plant in Orissa- PTI Feb 26Optimistic of commissioning first phase of its proposed six-million tonnes per annum(mtpa) steel project by March 2012 in the state, Jindal Steel and Power (JSPL) todaysaid it would set up the worlds biggest steel plant in Orissa. The capacity will beexpanded to 20 mtpa in next 10 years. This will be the biggest steel plant in the world,"executive vice- chairman and managing director Naveen Jindal said after meeting chiefminister Naveen Patnaik.

Stating the company had already invested `10,000 crore and placed the order for another `5,000 crore for its Orissasteel project, Jindal said they would start operations with the commissioning of a two mtpa steel plant in the first

phase.We will be able to achieve the capacity of six mtpa by 2013," he said, adding the company was planning a biginvestment in the state.

7. Infosys American Staff Sues Firm For Visa Fraud-BS Feb 27An American employee of Infosys has filed a case against the company accusing it of visa and taxfraud. In his complaint filed before an Alabama Court early this week, one Jack Palmer said heworked for Infosys as a Principal - Enterprise Solutions since August 2008.

In his-13 page complaint, he alleged Infosys sent lower level and unskilled foreigners to the US towork in fulltime positions at its customer sites in direct violation of immigration laws. PTI

8. M&M to rectify Stallio gearboxBS Feb 27Automaker Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has offered to rectify a problem in the gearbox ofsome of its 110cc Stallio motorcycles. The Stallio marked the entry of the maker of utility

vehicles and tractors into the highly competitive motorcycle market. Responding to a queryon problems with the Stallio gearbox, M&M in a statement said: We... are aware that certain

parts of the bike require some fine tuning and adjustment in asmall proportion of the product.We are proactively addressing the same.

Since its launch in September 2010, M&M has sold over 5,135 Stallios until January this year. However, average salesof the Stallio during the last two months have been less than 400 units a month. In comparison, the countrys leadingtwowheeler makers like Hero Honda, Bajaj Auto, TVS Motor and Honda sell an average of over 100,000 bikes a monthin the 75-125cc segment.

9. India becomes a jewel in the Capgemini crown-BS Feb 27When Paris headquartered IT consulting and services firm Capgemini recently promotedthree Indian leaders to global position, it signalled the importance of India and Indianleadership in the companys growth plan. The8.7 billion Capgemini is one of the few

European IT firms to have successfully used India as an offshore centre.

For instance, Salil Parekh will head the $4-billion application services business ofCapgemini that include North America, the UK and Asia Pacific. He will also be responsiblefor hyper growth markets like India. Before this, Parekh was the chief executive officer(CEO) of global financial services, Asia Pacific and India offshore. The India unit is one o

the largest centres for the group with over 31,000 employees. At present the total offshoring capability of thecompany is 38 per cent (includes centres in India, Philippines, China and Brazil). Capgemini increased its India focuspost acquisition of Kanbay in 2006. It joins the rank of many of the other multi-national firms in India who have madeIndia as their hub for innovation or centre of their software development programme.

10.Law and order situation in many states affecting coal mining- BS Feb 27The coal ministry has cited law and order problems, especially in Jharkhand,Chhattisgarh, Orissa and West Bengal, inordinate delays in land acquisition and the

considerably long wait for mining lease approvals as major roadblocks for coal projects.Land acquisition is one major hurdle to expansion of coal projects or starting of newones. The problems are basically relief and rehabilitation (R&R) issues such as delays inauthentication of claims of tenants, the nonavailability of valid title document, relatedcourt cases, rehabilitation and the demand for higher compensation.

A fast-growing economy offers a huge domestic market (with relatively inelasticdemand) for coal Wide gap between the price of domestic coal and that in theinternational market should give comfort to domestic industry and encourage higherinvestment in the sector. But delays in various clearances, land acquisition continue toaffect coal mining Opposition from various quarters to the opening up of coal sector toprivate sector investment for commercial mining will impede speedier growth of the sector Leveraging bilateral andmultilateral relations for coal assets acquisition.

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11.RBNL plans to launch TV channels in neighbouring countries-PTI Feb 27Reliance Broadcast Network Ltd, a part of Anil Ambani-led ADA Group, is in the process oflaunching television channels in neighbouring countries such as Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan,Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Maldives. The company has already launched a general entertainment TVchannel Big CBS Prime in partnership with CBS Studios International in India and two newchannels Love and Spark are slated for launch next month.

Besides, expanding internationally, RBNL is also enhancing its distribution within India. Thechannels are currently available in India through DTH service providers such as Videocon, Sunand cable operators. The company have already signed up with Airtel Digital and are looking at

TataSky and Dish TV.

12.Karnataka cancels pvt yard licence of Metro Cash & Carry-BS Mar 01The Karnataka government on Monday cancelled the private market yard licence to Germanretail giant Metro Cash & Carry, following protests by agriculture traders here. The tradershad shut shops indefinitely from Monday to protest the granting of licence. Chief Minister B SYeddyurappa yesterday ordered the cancellation of licence with immediate effect.

The state governments licence to Metro Cash & Carry India Pvt Ltd on January 18 allowed itto trade in the 112 notified agriculture commodities, including pulses and cereals, from bothits outlets outside the APMC yard in Yeswantpur. The traders had objected to it arguing it wasaviolation of the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC) Act. The Act stipulates thatno private trader can sell notified commodities within a 25 km radius from the APMC yards in the state.

13.RIL Talking to Orix to Buy IL&FS Holding for $1.2 b- ET Feb 28The Reliance Industries group, owned by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, isnegotiating with Japans Orix Corporation to acquire its 23.87% stake inInfrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS), one of Indias leadinginfrastructure developers and financiers, for around $1.2 billion. If the deamaterialises, it will make Reliance the second largest investor in IL&FS afterLife Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and will pave the way for its entryinto the financial services business.

The financial services business had been out of bounds for the older Ambanbrother as part of a non-compete pact with younger sibling Anil Ambani. Butfollowing a settlement last May, this pact was scrapped and group companies

of both brothers are free to pursue any business they wish. RIL has acquired licences to offer wireless broadbandservices across India marking its re-entry into telecom.

14.Budget 2011: Factories to power India's growth story in the coming decade- ET Mar 02Manufacturing will contribute a quarter of Indias gross domestic product over adecade with the government betting on the sector to power economic expansion andto create jobs for its young population. Share of manufacturing in the worlds secondfastest-growing major economy, after China, stagnated to 15-16% in the last fiveyears. The GDP growth has been led by the services sector that contributed over 50%in the last few years. In China, manufacturing contributes about 40% of the GDP.

Development of physical infrastructure need to go hand in hand for manufacturing togrow. Just building manufacturing plants making capital goods may not get the desired impact if there are notransport means to get the goods to the market. The share of services grew to about 55-60% of the GDP while that omanufacturing stagnated at around 16%, Mitra said. India is the second fastest-growing car market in the world afteChina with sales growing at 30% this year.

15.E-mail marketing set to log in growth of over 100% every year- ET Feb 27With millions of Indians having access to e-mails and their number growing rapidly, e-maimarketing is expected to grow at over 100 per cent every year, an industry expert has said. E-mail marketing is a form of direct marketing which uses electronic mail as a means ofcommunicating commercial or fund-raising messages to audience.

E-mails, directly or indirectly, influence 48 per cent of marketing budget of an average sizeenterprise and are used mainly for promotional and informational purposes, he said. Around80-90-million Indians have access to e-mails. The total e-mail marketing size is around Rs 40crore and "we expect the market to grow up to Rs 500 crore in the next few years," he said.

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16.Plastic ban shuts down gutkha factories in Karnataka-TNN Mar 02Faced with a ban on plastic sachets, gutkha manufacturers have shut shop and gone home. Whilethis could have the desired effect on people's health and reduce the incidence of oral cancer, itwould also help maintain a cleaner environment, with no sachets adding to the litter. According tothe Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), almost all gutkha factories stoppedmanufacturing from Tuesday, until they find a cheap and acceptable packing alternative.

But doctors don't think the ban is going to be very effective. "I don't think there will be a majorimpact if the cost of packaging increases or the price does. Heavy tax should have been levied on the product.However, there is some evidence that if the cost of the pack increases, consumption of addictive substances reduces a

little," said Dr Moni Abraham Kuriakose, director of surgical oncology, Mazumdar-Shaw Cancer Centre.

17.Malaysia to recruit 45,000 foreign workers, mostly from India- ET Feb 27Malaysia is set to recruit some 45,000 foreign workers, mostly from India , to overcomemassive labour shortages, particularly in the country's small-scale business sectors. HumanResources Minister Dr S. Subramaniam, who is of Indian ethnic origin, today said the thegovernment has approved the recruitment of 45,000 foreign workers to meet the demand in13 small-scale business sectors, which are currently facing manpower shortage.

He said the government had now agreed to approve the entry of 45,000 foreign workers into13 business sectors to meet the initial requirement so that they can continue

operating. Subramaniam said the approval was to ease labour shortage in various sectors, including restaurants,grocery shops and the textile industry which had difficulty in recruiting local workers. He said most of the foreignworkers were from India. Ethnic Indians form eight per cent of Malaysia's population of 27 million people.

18.Budget 2011: BMW, Audi, Mercedes prices may zoom by over Rs 8 lakh- ET Mar 02Playing a partypooper to the countrys growing clout in the luxury car segment, a newprovision in the Budget could well lead to a hefty hike, over Rs 8 lakh or more, in the prices ofentryl evel cars of the companies like BMW, Audi and Mercedes. In what appears to be a boltfrom the blue for the luxury carmakers, mainly from the German stable, a change in definitionof completely knocked down (CKD) car is threatening to derail the softer import duty regime.

In simple terms, this implies that auto companies that are doing CKD business in India withfully-imported pre-assembled critical parts like engines or gearbox or transmission cannotclaim the lower 10% import duty on them as these will no longer be defined as CKDs. This would bring these vehicleson a par with fully-built units and thus slap a hefty 60% import duty on them, which would go up to 110% after theaddition of counter-vailing duty, VAT and other local levies. The models affected could be all entry-level luxury carsThe affected companies have approached the auto industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam)

for help.

19.Fickle Sensex Changes Mood, Jumps 623 Points- ET Mar 02Benchmark indices posted their biggest single-day gain in 22 months on Tuesday as thegovernments lower-than-expected fiscal deficit estimate for 2011-12 prompted traders toreverse their bearish bets. But investors are skeptical about the endurance of the recentstock market rebound because a renewed rally in crude oil prices would raise doubts onwhether the government would meet its budget shortfall target.

BSEs 30-share Sensex rose 623.10 points, or 3.50%, to 18,446. All shares on the indexended with gains. NSEs 50-share Nifty gained 189 points, or 3.54%, to 5,522. In the broad

market, gainers outnumbered losers 2128:759 on the BSE. Shares of automobile companies led gainers on Tuesdayafter the government did not raise excise duty, contrary to expectations that taxes would be increased. BSEs Auto

Index rose 5.6%, the highest among all sectoral gauges on Tuesday.

20.Renault plans aggressive India strategy-IST Mar 02With the Logan episode behind it, Renault India is making a more concentrated attempt to getit right this time. Starting with the launch of the Fluence, a large sedan with the Honda Civicand Toyota Corolla as competition, by the middle of this year, followed by the Koleos SUV bythe end of the year, Renault is looking at a top-down strategy for India. These two cars will befollowed by three more by the end of 2012 or the beginning of 2013. The latter currently sellsthe Micra and will soon introduce the Sunny by the middle of this year; both cars utilise the Vplatform. With these five cars, Renault hopes to be a volume player in India. The Duster willalso be exported. Renault is also mulling a new small car, their sixth model in the country, tobe introduced by 2013 or 2014, to operate in the segment dominated by the Maruti SuzukiAlto. The new car is independent of the low-cost car that Bajaj is developing, which will be marketed by Renault.Entry-level small car in the Alto segment by 2013; aims to be among top 10 in India in 3years

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

21.Boeing Wins $35-Billion Us Air Force Deal-BS Feb 25Boeing, the sole supplier of aerial refueling tankers to the US Air Force since 1948, beatEuropean Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co for a $35 billion programme to build 179 newtankers, the Pentagon said yesterday. It was the Chicago-based companys third try at thecontract since Congress and the Air Force first proposed the tanker replacement program inlate 2001 a contest in which Boeing was viewed as an underdog, said an analyst.

Boeing will manufacture basic 767-model aircraft in Everett, Washington, and convert them

into tankers in Wichita, Kansas, during the first stage of a three part Air Force programmestretching decades to replace its tanker fleet. The initial contract for the development phase was valued at $3.5billion. The entire first phase covers 13 production lots through 2027. The Pratt & Whitney unit of United Technologieswill provide the engines. Boeing says the win will create and sustain 50,000 jobs among 800 suppliers in 40 states.

22.Yunus removed as Grameen Banks MD- Reuters Mar 02Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has been removed from his position as head ofmicrolender Grameen Bank, Bangladeshs central bank said on Wednesday, followingallegations of irregularities in its operations. Yunus, 70, set up Grameen Bank and hasbeen its managing director since 2000.

Yunus has denied any financial irregularities and his supporters say he is beingdiscredited by the government because of a feud with Hasina dating back to 2007, whenhe tried to set up a political party while Bangladesh was ruled by an interim military

government. The official retirement age of managing directors at commercial banks is 60.Yunus has said the banks board, which is mainly made up of borrowers, allows him to stay on as long as he is able toperform his duties.

23.Samsung launches ultra-slim notebook, targets Apple-Reuters Feb 24South Koreas Samsung launched an ultra-slim notebook on Thursday, seeking to bolster itspresence in the high-end mobile computer segment dominated by Apple Inc. Samsungemerging as one of the strongest rivals to challenge Apple in the booming smartphone andtablet computer market, is eyeing the notebook market, in which Apple is seeking to replicatethe success of the iPhone and iPad with its MacBook series.

Samsung launched the lightweight 9 Series notebook on Thursday to compete with Apples

ultra-thin MacBook Air, introduced in October. Samsung said the new laptop would cost 2.5million won ($2,218) in Korea and would launch globally launched from next month in the

Americas and Europe. Apple displaced Hewlett-Packard last quarter as the worlds top mobile PC maker, propelled bystrong sales of its iPad tablet, according to research firm DisplaySearch.

24.3 Navy ships to set sail for Libya to evacuate Indians-ET Feb 25Having woken up belatedly to what it called "sharp and unprecedented deterioration" in thesituation in Libya, the government on Thursday was scrambling to launch evacuation operationsfor the around 18,000 Indians stuck in the violence-hit country. Three naval warships will nowhead for Libya to supplement the evacuation operation. Though it will take around 10 days forthem to sail the 4,000 nautical miles to Libya, the three warships are needed to ferry around9,500 Indians from Libyan ports like Tripoli and Benghazi to Malta and Alexandria (Egypt), fromwhere they can be airlifted to India.

The ministry of external affairs on Thursday said Scotia Prince, which has a seating capacity of1,200, will sail to Benghazi which will be the initial focus of rescue operations. MEA personnel and medical teams willbe on board to assist the evacuees.

25.Apple's Jobs puts on lively iPad 2 show-Reuters Mar 02A thin but energetic Steve Jobs made a surprise return to the spotlight on Wednesday, takingthe stage to unveil Apple Inc's new iPad and drawing a standing ovation. Defying speculation insome tabloid reports that he was seriously ailing, Jobs took swipes at rivals and mockedcompeting tablet computers. Striding back and forth across the stage at the Yerba BuenaCenter, Jobs spoke passionately about the iPad 2's features as No. 2 and heir apparent TimCook looked on.

The $499 device is thinner than the iPhone 4, twice as fast as the last tablet, camera-equippedand ships March 11 in the United States and March 25 in 26 more countries. The surprisingly fast roll-out highlightsthe fierce competition in the tablet market.

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MISCELLANEOUS NEWS

26.Gaddafi strikes at town, rebels eye foreign help-Reuters Mar 02Muammar Gaddafi launched a land and air offensive to retake territory in Libya's east at dawn onWednesday, sparking a rebel call for foreign air strikes on African mercenaries they said werehelping him stay in power. The veteran ruler twinned the attack with a fiery propaganda broadsideagainst the rebels, playing on both nationalist opinion and Western jitters by saying much bloodwould be shed in "another Vietnam" if foreign powers intervened in the crisis.

On the battlefield, government troops briefly captured Brega, an oil export terminal, before being driven back byrebels who have held the town 800 km (500 miles) east of Tripoli for about a week, rebel officers said, adding theywere ready to move westwards against Gaddafi's forces if he refused to quit.

27.Tihar inmates make a killing in placements-TNN Feb 26It was a special campus placement session. Eight companies interviewed 46 candidates. Fourteen were given job

offers while the rest are hopeful. Whats special is that the campus was Delhis Tihar jail,and the candidates, inmates serving time there. Agarwal Packers and Movers, one of thecountrys largest companies in their field, was one of the companies that agreed to be partof the drive.

These 46 inmates were chosen for their impeccable conduct, said Neeraj Kumar, DG(Prisons). Agarwal Packers picked up seven inmates, Vedanta Foundation and Good HouseKeeping recruited two each, and JRA & Associates and ASP Sealing made an offer each.

28.WikiLeaks, Arab uprisings nominated for Nobel Peace Prize-IST Mar 01Key figures in the wave of uprisings across the Arab world and whistleblower websiteWikiLeaks are among a record 241 candidates in the running for this year's Nobel PeacePrize. The names of nominees are kept secret by the Nobel Institute for 50 years, butdirector Geir Lundestad said on Tuesday the 2011 list of nominees was influenced by thepopular uprisings in the Arab world.

There were 237 nominations for last year's award, a record at the time. Those who areentitled to nominate are allowed to reveal the name of the person or organisation they have proposed, if they wish todo so, and it is already known that WikiLeaks are on this year's list. Also known to be on the list of nominees are thethree men considered to be the creators of the Internet: Americans Larry Roberts and Vint Cerf and Britain's TimBerners-Lee.

29.30 pc drop in number of Indian students in Australia in 2010- PTI Feb 25The number of Indian students in Australia has recorded a decline of over 30 per cent

last year following a spate of attacks targeting them in that country, the governmentsaid today. According to the Student Visa Programme Report released by theDepartment of Immigration and Citizenship of Australia on February 11 this year, therewere 59,719 student visa holders from India as on December 31, 2010, compared to85,560 as on December 31, 2009, Minister of State for External Affairs E Ahamed toldRajya Sabha in a written reply.

This shows a decline of 30.2 per cent, he said. Apart from a series of attacks on India students, other factors such asthe global financial crisis, ongoing college closures creating uncertainty about the stability of Australian educationproviders and the rising value of the Australian dollar also contributed to the drop in number of Indians seekingadmission into institutions there, he said. Among the reasons for the lower number of admissions was introduction oa range of changes to Australia's visa processing procedures and skilled migration programme, the government said.

30.BCCI slams ICC official for criticising Dhoni on Umpires Decision Review System issue- TNN Mar 02The BCCI today slammed ICC General Manager Dave Richardson for criticizing Indiancaptain Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the latter had expressed his grouse on the UmpiresDecision Review System (UDRS). In a hard-hitting letter to the ICC Chief Executive HaroonLorgat, BCCI Secretary N Srinivasan said Richardson has no business to criticise Dhoni andhe should be instructed not to do so in future.

Dhoni had questioned "adulteration of technology with human thinking" when Englandbatsman Ian Bell was ruled not out off a Yuvraj Singh delivery even after TV replaysshowed that the ball would have hit stumps, leading to Richardson asking the Indian captain to read the rules relatedto UDRS first before criticising it. Srinivasan went on the say that Richardson's comments on the issue wastantamount to pressurising Dhoni when the World Cup is going on.