The total market capitalisation of 16 entities listed as American Depository Receipts plunged 7.6 billion dollars last month, amid the US markets witnessing high volatility primarily on concerns of deepening economic recession.
Infosys and Wipro together shed as much as 3.5 billion dollars in market valuation. Wipro lost the most at 1.8 billion dollars, last month.
The market capitalisation of Infosys dropped by 1.7 billion dollars while crisis-ridden Satyam Computer and IT firm Patni Computer Services together dropped by 231 million dollars.
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| The by-election, considered a litmus test for both the CPI(M) and Trinamool Congress, could smoothen the process for the Trinamool and the Congress to forge their long-discussed alliance for the Lok Sabha poll. |
There is an urgent need for remedial steps to turn around the poor performance of the agriculture sector and move towards a positive growth, according to a farmers' body.
A day after laying down office as Lok Sabha speaker, which also marked the conclusion of an almost four decade long political career, veteran leftist Somnath Chatterjee on Friday asserted that communism was no political party's "monopoly" - and that he would forever remain a "comrade".
"Communism is no party's monopoly. I am still a communist," a relaxed Chatterjee, who was expelled from the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) for defying a diktat to step down ahead of a trust vote in parliament last year, told reporters new DELHI.
Asked if he was still a comrade, he laughed and told the questioner: "Even you are a comrade."
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| During the hearing of Maytas Infra matter this week, CLB repeatedly asked the government to furnish evidence to support their allegations against the company's present board and its promoters (former Satyam Chairman Ramalinga Raju'kin). "Tell me incidences, how company is suffering? How they (directors) are not discharging their duties? How it has affected the public interest...?" he said after the government failed to substantiate its allegations by producing evidence. But deputy directors of the Corporate Affairs Ministry representing the government, kept saying they were seeking only interim relief and that at this stage, "mere intention (of committing irregularities) needs to be established". On this, the CLB chief said, "Show me material evidence. I want to see it before taking any decision. I have to follow principles of law and can't go merely on allegations." |
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According to financial services firm Goldman Sachs, growth is likely to slow down to 6.7 per cent in 2008-09 and might further weaken to 5.8 per cent in the year 2009-10.
“We are not going for any fare revision at this stage. The drop in ATF will help the airline to recover from the huge accumulated losses faced,” said a spokesperson for nofrills carrier SpiceJet. The Indian aviation sector witnessed a traffic slump of 9% in 2008 over the previous year. The seat factor (average passengers travelling per aircraft) has come down to around 64% in January this year from 73% in the corresponding period last year. The worst affected have been Kingfisher Red and Go Air. In the past airlines have been hiking fares and cutting capacity to cut mounting losses. Besides a base fare of Rs 1,000-1 ,500, airlines charge around Rs 3,000 as fuel surcharge and taxes per ticket sold in the domestic market. Kingfisher Airlines, which operates flights under two brands — Kingfisher Airlines as the full service carriers and Kingfisher Red, a low-fare subsidiary — too has decided not to change fares. “There has been drop in ATF prices but other operating costs have been rising. We are paying high amount for lease rentals and our maintenance bill on aircraft checks have increased on the back of stronger dollar. There is no scope for any immediate fare revision. Hence, we have to wait for sometime before taking any decision ,” said a company spokesperson.
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| Zardari may be "sincere" but he has to take decisive action: FM 2009-03-01 [11:47:23 hrs] | |
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| "I believe he (Zardari) has desire to fight against terrorism... (but) my belief is not adequate. It must be backed by action taken by the government and authorities of Pakistan." This came even as Admiral Noman Bashir, the Pak navy chief, retracted his statement on Friday that the terrorists of 26/11 had not taken the sea route into India, saying that he stood by the interior ministry's investigations. Indian Defence Minister A K Antony rubbished the claim. When asked about the resumption of bilateral ties the Foreign Minister said, "The issue is not relationship between India and Pakistan. The issue is how to fight terrorism, how to dismantle infrastructure facilities available on Pakistani territory with the Pakistani elements who use these and attack India. How to bring the terrorists to justice. These are the issues. Not the India-Pakistan relationship." He emphasised that currently India's focus was on the issue of how Pakistan tackles terrorism rather than on ways to improve bilateral relations. "It is not the question of improving bilateral relationship. Bilateral relations are there. People to people contact is still there," he said. He stressed for tough action by Pakistan. "The onus is on Pakistani authorities to dismantle the infrastructure facilities available to the terrorists, to bring to justice the perpetrators of terror and to cooperate with India in achieving this objective." Giving the outspoken British foreign secretary David Miliband another black eye, Mukherjee also rejected his contention that India had raised the "temperature" in ties with Pakistan. "We have never raised the temperature. This is the phrase I think the British foreign secretary used and I do not think that... no I have not raised the temperature," he said. |
| Seat sharing hurdle for Opposition 2009-03-01 [14:23:47 hrs] | |
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| Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee herself disclosed the figure of 12 at a news conference in Kolkata on Saturday. "As of now, we have no adjustment with anyone," she said. "Some of them had earlier spoken to us. We had given them the list of seats the six that they have and six others. But that was about two months ago. In the meantime, no one has spoken to us." Mamata also made it clear that Trinamool would have no adjustment with BJP. "We are not with BJP," she said. In the past two months, Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) leaders have repeatedly stressed that Congress can have adjustments with Trinamool, "but only at terms honourable to Congress". This indicated that the six additional seats Mamata had offered Congress was not to the liking of PCC leaders, said observers. PCC leaders, at their meetings with AICC representatives, had insisted on at least one seat in each district, except the ones that have only one seat Cooch Behar, South Dinajpur and Purulia along with Kolkata North and Malda North seats. This totalled 19 seats, including the six sitting seats for Congress. Sources said Congress wanted to contest at least two seats in south Bengal, in which they had a fair chance of winning. Besides Kolkata North, it could claim seats in North 24-Parganas and Hooghly, such as Basirhat, the newly created Bongaon and Serampore. For Trinamool, however, both Kolkata North and Malda North could be a bone of contention. The former would be a prestigious seat where Congress heavyweights who had lately sided with Trinamool, such as Sudip Bandyopadhyay or Somen Mitra, could be a contender. Former Malda zilla parishad sabhadhipati Gautam Chakraborty, who had recently left Congress to join Trinamool, would be a contender for the Malda North seat. Trinamool would also want the seat to have a presence in North Bengal. The coming days could, therefore, see hard bargaining between Congress and Trinamool over seats. "Congress has 543 seats to contest, while we have only 42," Mamata argued. Though AICC general secretary Keshava Rao would visit Kolkata on Sunday and discuss Trinamool's offer with PCC leaders, Mamata herself indicated that she would like to clinch the deal with the Congress high command. "I can talk to anyone; that is political courtesy. But I will talk to those with whom it is necessary to talk. PCC has no role in this. I have not spoken to them." Mamata, however, emphasized that Trinamool was ready to go it alone if the talks with Congress did not make headway. "I don't want a split in votes. People have already formed an alliance. They are with us. If there is no progress in talks, we are not afraid," she said. |
| Every minute five going joblessthis year 2009-03-01 [14:20:54 hrs] | |
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| While a few are calling it simply layoffs and terminations, others have nomenclatures like right sizing, voluntary separation packages and workforce optimisation. With the global economic downturn forcing one and all to adopt various cost-cutting measures, firms are estimated to have already cut close to 10 million jobs during 2008, but, with no immediate recovery in sight from the ongoing crisis, more steps are being taken to save every single penny. However, as a saving grace for the employees, most of the layoffs of 2009 so far happened in January, when a whopping 80,000 job cuts were announced on a single day on January 26, and February has been relatively better. In February, mining major Anglo American said it would reduce its workforce by 19,000 employees while Japan's Panasonic announced 15,000 jobs cuts. Further, auto giant General Motors revealed 10,000 layoffs whereas Nortel would slash 3,200 jobs. Finnish phone maker Nokia is looking to trim its global workforce by as many as 1,000 employees through introduction of a voluntary resignation package. Last month, other entities which announced layoffs include Macy's (7,000), Goodyear (5,000), Micron (2,000) and UBS (1,600). Caterpillar, Pfizer, telecom firm Sprint Nextel Corp and home improvement retailer Home Depot together accounted for 61,000 lay-off announcements on January 26. The total job cuts announced on that day worldwide had crossed 80,000. Japanese entities too have come up with drastic job cuts, with electronics major NEC announcing that it would bring down the workforce by more than 20,000 employees, including outsourced workforce. The reductions would be at "poorly performing group companies", the firm noted in a statement, adding it would also be bringing down outsourcing through "increased in-house development". Another electronics giant Hitachi would be slashing up to 7,000 jobs. The layoffs are continuing to climb in the wake of deepening financial turmoil, which has resulted in both consumers and businesses cutting down on their spending. Netherlands-based electronics firm Philips and financial services company ING, together would be slashing as many as 13,000 jobs in the coming months. Other companies which have unveiled plans to slash jobs this year include Alcoa (13,500), BHP Billiton (6,000), Motorola (4,000), Honda (3,100) and Kodak (3,000). Moreover, the bankruptcy of US electronics retailer Circuit City in January is anticipated to affect 30,000 employees. In another indication of the deteriorating economic situation, US -- the world's largest economy -- shrank 6.2 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2008. The contraction is much higher than the earlier estimates of 3.8 per cent. Presenting a gloomy outlook, the International Labour Organisation has projected that job losses worldwide could be over 50 million in 2009, if the global economic situation continues to deteriorate. |
In kerala, another MARXIST base,ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) is unable to come up with a seat-sharing formula for the upcoming general elections due to squabbles among the allies.
A meeting of the LDF Saturday failed to come up to an agreement and another round is slated for Monday.
In the 2004 elections, LDF constituents Communist Party of India-Marxists (CPI-M) contested 14 seats, the Communist Party of India (CPI) four, the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) and Kerala Congress (Joseph) one seat each.
The Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), the Congress-S and the Nationalist Congress Party are also part of the ruling front.
CPI state secretary Veliyam Bharghavan Sunday said: “At no cost will we part with Ponanni seat and so is the case with Mavelikara seat.”
According to party insiders, the CPI-M is keen on re-allocation of seats on the basis of a formula. It is reportedly also interested in Kozhikode Lok Sabha seat which has been with the JD-S since 1980.
The talks with the RSP also ended on the same note, with the party adamant on its claim for Kollam seat which was taken from it by the CPI-M in 1999.
“We have made our stand clear and the talks will be held again tomorrow (Monday),” state general secretary V.P. Ramakrishna Pillai said.
So, barring the Kerala Congress (Joseph), which has been allocated the Idukki seat, the talks with others appear to have reached a dead end.
Taking a dig at the LDF, state Congress president Ramesh Chennithala Sunday said the CPI-M is treating its allies as “servants” and not giving them their “due share”.
“It seems that after the elections, the LDF will have only CPI-M,” said Chennithala.
The LDF has 19 seats from Kerala while Minister of State for External Affairs E. Ahmed is the lone United Progressive Alliance MP from the state.
India supports HASINA but could not know anything before as it was unaware of the PROSPECT of BANGA BANDHU Mijib. How isolated happnes to be India thanks to the INDO US NUKE DEAL and strategic realliance in US ISRAEL Lead, is evident from the fact that Virtually rejecting India's appeal to "pause" hostilities with the LTTE, the Sri Lankan government said on Sunday that the conflict will "stop immediately" when the Tamil rebels lay down their arms.
Seeking to dispel the security concerns arising out of the mutiny in the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday said the Bangladesh Government was competent to handle the situation in wake of the revolt.
"We want development and stability in all our neighbouring countries. Especially, I wish success to the newly constituted government in Bangladesh," Mukherjee said after inaugurating a seminar at Jadavpur University here.
Asked about the reports suggesting ISI's hand in the mutiny, Mukherjee said, "It is the internal matter of Bangladesh. They are competent to handle the situation."
Ironically enough, the WAR against TERROR remains on TOP in the AGENDA of the RULING Hegemonies in the SHIFTED WAR ZONE in Indian Ocean to benefit the GLOBAL ZIONIST ILLUMINITI, India INCs and WEAPON INDUSTRY as SAARC member states have agreed to establish a high-level panel of 'Eminent Experts' to strengthen the group's anti-terrorism mechanisms as it underlined its resolve to combat the menace in the region.
“We reiterate our commitment to implement measures against organizing, instigating, facilitating, financing, fund raising, encouraging, tolerating and providing training for or otherwise supporting terrorist activities,” the Declaration on Cooperation in Combating Terrorism stated at the end of the two-day deliberations of the 31st SAARC Council ministers meeting here on Saturday.
The foreign ministers of the region agreed to step up efforts to ratify and effectively implement the 'SAARC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters'. “We agree to urgently ratify and effectively implement the SAARC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, signed at the 15th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit in Colombo last year,” it said.
Indian Minister of State for External Affairs, E. Ahamed, represented India at the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) ministerial meeting from February 27-28.
According to the declaration on terrorism, the SAARC would establish a 'High-level Group of Eminent Experts' to review and make proposals to further strengthen SAARC anti-terrorism mechanisms, including for pragmatic cooperation.
Congress leaders claimed that by withdrawing their candidate, they had sent a signal that they were eager for seat-sharing with the Trinamool Congress to form a durable anti-Left counter in West Bengal.
Congress and Trinamool insiders said the victory would boost the confidence of the proponents of an alliance between the Trinamool Congress and Congress.
It also proved wrong CPI-M calculations that it would be able to win back support of the people who had voted against them in the panchayat election in South 24-Parganas district in May, 2008 when the Trinamool Congress for the first time had captured control of the Zilla Parishad.
CPI(M) veteran Jyoti Basu two days back had sounded a caution that the coming together of Trinamool Congress and Congress might pose difficulty for the Left Front in the general elections and may result in a reduced strength in Parliament.
Reports yesterday said battle lines in Washington were hardening over the broad policy shifts represented by the budget plan, which killed off the idea of small government with a vast schedule of tax and spend. The President vowed yesterday to fight powerful US interest groups as he sought to push through Congress the ambitious plan that could help reshape American society. Mr Obama is asking Congress to enact contentious measures that have been debated, but not decided, in calmer times: cut subsidies for big farms; combat global warming with a pollution tax on industries; raise taxes on the wealthy; and make big changes to the healthcare system.
"The system we have now might work for the powerful and well-connected interests that have run Washington for far too long," Mr Obama said in his weekly radio and video address.
"But I don't. I work for the American people."
He said the budget plan he presented on Friday would help millions of people, but only if Congress overcame resistance from deep-pocket lobbies.
"I know these steps won't sit well with the special interests and lobbyists who are invested in the old way of doing business, and I know they're gearing up for a fight," Mr Obama said, using tough-guy language reminiscent of his predecessor, George W.Bush. "My message to them is this: so am I."
While OBAMA succeeded , our own subaltern leaders engaged in CASTEOLOY only and never addressed the countrywide Social Forces and Productive classes. Like the Marxists it could not lead a GREAT Indian resistance against GESTAPO, GENOCIDE CULTURE AND mass Destruction by LPG MAFIA!
Subaltern leadership in India could not break the MENTAL BARRIER of ENSLAVEMENT and sought SLVATION in HINDUTVA and CREAMY Layer.
Left parties have kickstarted their pre-poll exercise with their top leaders deciding to woo 'secular' parties in both UPA and NDA to join forces and provide an alternative to Congress and BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
In a bid to present a unified face and not to confuse the cadre, the top brass of the CPI(M), CPI, RSP and Forward Bloc have decided not to air differences, including those over seat-sharing among them in public and speak in one voice on issues like their stance towards Congress in case of government formation after the Lok Sabha elections.
CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat has not ruled out supporting a secular government in which Congress may be a part but not leading it, but has said it was "unlikely" that such a scenario would emerge.
"I can't rule it out, but it seems unlikely," he said in a recent interview.
The Left is likely to issue a call to secular forces in NDA which are "perturbed by BJP's Hindutva agenda and parties in UPA which are unhappy with Congress' privatise or perish policy," a senior Left leader said.
The call will also contain an appeal to general public that why they should "reject both Congress and BJP", he said.
The CPI(M) Central Committee is meeting here on March 7 and 8 to fine tune the election strategy of the party. The CPI National Executive has already met here last week.
The CPI(M) has already begun a series of public meetings and campaigns in some states, especially those in the Hindi heartland.
In some of these states like Punjab, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, the party is likely to put up at least one candidate each.
The effort in these states would be to concentrate the entire state party and mass organisational strength for the success of the candidates, the leader said.
Left leaders have in the recent past held a series of parleys with counterparts from parties like AIADMK, TDP and JD(S). Apart from this, informal discussions have also been held with regional parties in states like Orissa and Bihar.
Politburo member Sitaram Yechury had recently said the Lok Sabha elections should be used as a "window of opportunity" by creating a political alternative which steers clear of both Congress and BJP-led coalitions and ensures a "decisive shift" in the country's policies.
To help raise the standards of corporate governance in the country, industry body CII has joined hands with three premier organisations and will introduce a programme on the subject this year.
The organisation namely-- National Institute of Securities Market, Global Corporate Governance Forum and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development are believed to be one of the most respected in their domain.
The proposed programme will target trainers who would further provide training to interested parties-- in corporate, professional and academic sectors-- and directors of companies who wish to enhance their leadership skills.
Besides this, the programme would also train media to enhance and upgrade their skills in investigative reporting in the area of corporate governance.
The Global Corporate Governance Forum, after considerable research and preparation, has developed a Corporate Governance Board Leadership Training Resources tool kit, which is already being used for Board Leadership and training the trainer programmes worldwide.
The subject gained importance in the wake of the Satyam Fraud case that came to light in January and few other firms which came under scanner recently.
Super luxury car maker Rolls Royce Motor Cars, which sells the Phantom range of luxury sedans, is eyeing to sell 14 cars in India in the current calendar year, same as it did in the last year.
"India is a major market for us in the Asian region and we hope to sell as many cars in 2009 as we did last year and it is an achievement," Rolls-Royce Motor Cars General Manager (South and East Asia Pacific) Matthew J Bennett said.
The company, which has one dealership each in Delhi and Mumbai, today completed its offering of the entire Phantom family in India with the introduction of Phantom Coupe priced at over Rs 4 crore.
Mamata puts ball into Congress court for alliance
Kolkata (PTI): Putting the ball into the Congress court for forging an alliance with the TC in the coming Lok Sabha polls, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Sunday said it was up to the Congress to decide on a tie-up.
"If they (Congress) want to talk, they can talk. It depends on them. From our side we have no problem," Banerjee told reporters when asked about an alliance with Congress in the LS polls. "the Congress is a separate political party and it is their decision whether or not to go for an alliance. We are willing to defeat the CPI(M). If they want to fight together, let them decide," she remarked.
The European Union pledge of unity came at a summit intended to bridge differences over how to fight recession and address fears that some countries could take steps that undermine the EU commitment to a single market and solidarity between members.
The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), holding a summit in Thailand on the same day, endorsed fiscal stimulus, monetary easing, access to credit and trade financing, and measures to stimulate domestic demand.
Warning that recession could cause new divisions in Europe two decades after the collapse of communist rule in the east, Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany said: "We should not allow a new 'Iron Curtain' to ... divide Europe into two parts."
Addressing such concerns, a draft statement prepared for the summit declared: "The meeting must ensure that maximum possible use is made of the single market as an engine for recovery to support growth and jobs."
The Union is split between rich countries such as France that want strong action to buoy industry, especially carmakers, and poorer ones -- largely in the east -- that cannot afford such bail-outs.
The summit did not, however, agree on any regional aid package to the whole of central and eastern Europe after opposition from German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Germany, the bloc's biggest economy, has said EU nations must be ready to help each other but has not explained how. It has resisted proposals such as issuing a eurozone bond to raise funds for worse-off members of the currency zone.
Hungary called last week for a 180 billion euro ($228 billion) aid package for central and eastern Europe, whose currencies have taken a battering in the crisis.
But Merkel said the former communist countries of central and eastern Europe were not all in the same state.
Hungary also called last week for rules on entering the 16-nation euro zone should be relaxed to help others to enjoy the exchange rate stability it offers.
But Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, who chairs the group of euro zone countries, ruled this out.
Meanwhile an ASEAN statement agreed, much like the EU, to stand firm against protectionism and refrain from introducing or raising new trade barriers. It also called for "bold and urgent reform" of the international financial system.
"We will be severely tested from now on, both as a group and as a part of the broader Asia region," Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva told the summit's opening on Saturday.
"As the financial crisis deepens, the world will look towards our region for action and for confidence."
The budget proposal seeks $US3.6 trillion ($5.6 trillion) for the fiscal year that begins in the US on October 1. Congress begins reviewing Mr Obama's request this week.
The scale of Mr Obama's ambition began to sink in at the weekend. If his budget for 2010 passes through Congress largely unscathed, it will represent "the biggest redistribution of income from the wealthy to the middle class and poor this nation has seen in more than 40 years", said Robert Reich, a former secretary of labour under Bill Clinton who has been advising Mr Obama.
"It is the boldest budget we have seen since the Reagan administration, and drives a nail in the coffin of Reaganomics. We can basically say goodbye to the philosophy espoused by Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher," he said. The US economy contracted by 6.2 per cent in the final three months of last year, its worst showing in a quarter of a century. Mr Obama says the crisis calls for gutsy actions.
Under the President's proposal, the US's wealthiest 5 per cent would pay $US1 trillion in higher taxes over the next decade, while most others would get tax cuts. Industries would buy and trade permits to emit heat-trapping gases. Higher-income older people would pay more for government health insurance benefits. Drug companies would receive smaller profits from the Government. Banks would play a much smaller role in student loans. Passing the budget, even with a Democratic-controlled Congress, "won't be easy", Mr Obama said, "because it represents real and dramatic change; it also represents a threat to the status quo in Washington."
Mr Obama's $US3.6 trillion budget proposal includes $US770 billion in tax cuts over 10 years for the "middle class", the American term for everyone from the moderately well-off to the working poor; $US150 billion for funding "green" energy sources, and $US634 billion towards introducing universal healthcare.
The numbers are almost beyond the power of imagination, but it is clear somebody will have to pick up the bill. A hefty $US1 trillion or so will come from new taxes on the rich, paid for by families earning more than $US250,000 a year, increases in capital gains tax and limits on generous tax deductions, including those for charitable contributions. An extra $US80 billion a year is predicted to come from auctioning off carbon permits under yet-to-be determined cap-and-trade legislation - if and when it actually happens.
The politics of "tax and spend" is not only back in vogue, it has also become an essential component of the US economic recovery plan. Mr Obama has seized on the "once-in-a-generation" crisis to fulfil his campaign pledges on expanding education and health, and greening the economy, with scant regard for the ballooning deficit - the largest, relative to the size of government, since World War II.
Reagan once said: "The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help'." Mr Obama has made just such a promise to restore the US's fortunes, and the rest of the world can only pray that it works.
"So the revolution has come," one US commentator noted. "Now, will it bring a new egalite? Or will we simply lose our heads?"
Republicans believe Mr Obama has finally emerged in his true colours.
I have been telling in my speeches in public and in my writeups that only WOMEN understand the POLITICAL ECONOMY simply becaue they encounter the TRUTH while manageing HOME!When it comes to money, women really are more responsible then men, with an international survey finding that they're less likely to get into debt and strive harder to become financially independent.The global Reuters Synovate survey polled some 4,500 women in 12 countries about money matters. An equal number of men were also asked several questions related to finances.The survey showed that just over half respondents of both genders said women are more responsible with money than men, with the highest level of agreement found in Mexico, where 72 percent of people believed women were better at handling finances.
What about the BRAHMIN headed Maoist Naxal parties boasing to capture the RURAL BHARATVARSH for a REVOLUTION. Just see the case study of CPIML Liberation led By VINOD MISHRA and Now by DIPANKAR Bhattachary. The party allies with Mamata in nandigram Insurrection and Singur uprising, criticises most CPIM and ends to forge an alliance with the Parliamentary LEFT. parliamentary MILEAGE becomes the ULTIMATE GOAL!
Bihar is all set to witness triangular contest in the coming Lok Sabha polls as the newly-formed Left bloc today decided to contest 33 out of 40 Lok Sabha seats in the state.
CPI, CPI(M) and CPI-ML (Liberation) for the first time have entered into a poll alliance.
In a joint address to mediapersons by the three left parties here, CPI state secretary Badri Narayan Lal said, "CPI-ML (Liberation) will contest 20 seats, CPI will field candidates in eight seats and CPM will fight on five seats."
There would be no friendly fight between the parties anywhere in the state, Lal said.
Left bloc would not field candidates in Kishanganj, Sitamarhi, Vaishali, Hajipur (SC), Chapra, Munger and Aurangabad seats. They would back candidates other than RJD, or any constituent party of UPA or NDA in these seats. The decision to support individual candidates or any other party would be taken later, he said.
CPI-ML (Liberation) state secretary Nand Kishore said the party would field candidates for Buxar, Sasaram (SC), Ara, Karakat, Patliputra, Jehanabad, Gaya (SC), Nalanda, Patna Saheb, Gopalganj (SC), Siwan, Maharajganj, Valimikinagar, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur (SC), Darbhanga, Jhanjharpur, Katihar, Purnia and Araria constituencies.
CPI would contest Begusarai, Banka, Motihari, Madhubani, Jamui, Khagaria, Madhepura and Sheohar seats. CPI(M) state secretary Vijaykant Thakur said they would contest Nawada, Bhagalpur, West Champaran, Ujiyarpur and Supaul constituencies.
On a query on similar alliance in West Bengal, Kishore said they have some reservations on certain issues with CPI(M) there.
Meanwhile,Banned CPI(Maoist) rebels blasted railway tracks in Bihar's Jamui district and torched a portion of Ratanpur station in adjoining Munger early on Sunday during a bandh by them disrupting train services on the Patna-Howrah main line for more than 7 hours.
Heavily armed Maoist ultras blasted the up and down tracks near a culvert close to Bhalui halt between Jamalpur and Kiul stations in Jamui district around 2 am, barely 15 minutes after Howrah-Motihari Mithila Express crossed the section. The blast uprooted both the up and down tracks and damaged the overhead traction wires, chief public relations officer of East Central Railway A K Chandra said. At least seven trains, including Sealdah-Delhi Lalquila Express, Howrah-Amritsar Punjab Mail and Patna-Howrah Janshatabdi Express, were stranded at different railway stations following the blast.
India had sent a "very strong demarche" which led to the US removing India from the mandate of special representative to Afghanistan and
Pakistan Richard Holbrooke, according to the prime minister's special envoy on climate change, Shyam Saran.
Saran said this during a question and answer session, after delivering a speech on the geo-strategic implications of the financial crisis Saturday evening, adding that India was able to communicate its concern on including India in Holbrooke's mandate as an example of an early dialogue with the Obama Administration.
"As you have seen in the case of the mandate for the special representative from the United States, I think the fact that we made a very strong demarche concerning that and how this will not be well-received in India, it did have an impact," he said.
"Therefore, we should not take it for granted that we are not in a position to influence decisions that are being taken there".
Saran made this observation when talking about the possibility of the US government putting in place protectionist measures, which could adversely affect Indian economic interests.
Noting that while there is "no doubt that there is a trend toward protectionism", Saran also cautioned that India should "not jump the gun" yet since the impact on the ground has not really started to take place, in the context of the US measure affecting the Indian IT industry.
Therefore, he said that it was "very important that we should intensify our dialogue with the new administration". "We may not be able to address our concerns, unless we have a high-level early dialogue with the new administration," Saran said.
Earlier, during the campaign period in October 2008, US president Barack Obama had stated that in order to make Pakistan focus on its domestic militancy, US should mediate between it and India to resolve the Kashmir imbroglio. This led to reports that the US was including India in Holbrooke's mandate.
Then, in a television interview broadcast last month, national security advisor MK Narayanan said India had been concerned about Obama's linking Pakistan's settlement on its western border and the Kashmir issue and had conveyed the issue to the US.
"I do think that we could make President Obama understand; if he does have any such views then he is barking up the wrong tree," he said.
Regulatory Authority for warehousing sector soon
New Delhi (PTI): The government is likely to form a Warehousing Regulatory Authority soon for facilitating credit extended to the farmers from banks against their produce stored in accredited godowns.
"The Authority will soon be constituted, the process is on," a top official of Food Ministry said.
A committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary will select the Chairman and Members of the Authority, sources said, adding that the Chairman would be of the rank of a secretary.
With the help of some private sector warehousing firms, farmers are getting loans from banks, although in miniscule amount, against their produce. Warehousing companies like NBHC and NCMSL have tied up with banks and are providing warehouse receipts to farmers for availing loans.
Warehouse receipt has been made a negotiable instrument through Warehousing (Development & Regulation) Act, which was passed in 2007 to help farmers take loans from banks against their agricultural produce.
However, the Centre is yet to notify the Act due to a legal hitch as it would have to simultaneously register warehouses with the regulatory authority.
The objective of 'Inclusive Growth' envisaged in the 11th Five Year Plan is 'reduction of hunger and poverty, improvement of rural livelihoods and human health and facilitating equitable socially, environmentally and economically sustainable development', Reddy said.
However, he alleged that the programmes and the schemes planned for fulfilling these objectives are given paltry sums in the farm sector.
The proposed increase in budget allocation for agriculture is a meagre 1.6 per cent, which does not even take care of estimated price rise next year, Reddy said.
He said there is a need for redoubling efforts in developing rural infrastructure, which also indicates doubling of fund allocation.
Slums and economic stimulus
28 Feb 2009, 0134 hrs IST, R Gopalakrishnan ,
Viewers around the world have found the film Slumdog Millionaire inspirational. Its power came from pointing to the human ability to leap out of
the shithole of circumstance clutching a dream. Public policy now battling the economic downturn through stimulus packages in many places could still take clues from the core message of the film. People have the capacity to remake their lives if given the opportunity. Every economic stimulus holds the potential to radically stimulate not just the economy, but also its politics and its public policy.
Let us cut to India. The stimulus package has seen housing as a sector that needs support for its obvious multipliers in increasing demands for industrial goods like steel and cement as well as employment. To promote low-cost housing, a provision has been made for an interest subsidy of 5% for housing loans up to Rs 1 lakh.
While this subsidy would result in bringing down the effective rate of interest for the prospective homeowner to around 4%, one key constraint remains. That relates to availability of land for the poor to be able to avail of such a loan. For the income segment that would take a loan of this amount, it is most unlikely that there is access to land in the cities.
However there is an obvious category of urban poor — in many Indian cities a third of its population — who are sitting on land. Quite literally, as they are deemed as “squatters” whose possession of land is illegal. It is entirely possible that the children of the Danny Boyle film who walked the Oscar red carpet belong to the category whose homes are illegal.
The people in the slums, contrary to popular perception as a research on Sangam Vihar, a large Delhi slum, has pointed out, are people who have incomes double the official poverty line. They are capable of accessing these home loans at the reduced rate of interest now on offer and improve their housing stock. Today they cannot because they do
not have property rights on such land.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Slums-and-economic-stimulus/articleshow/4203187.cms
PepsiCo to spend $5 million on kids, women in India, Bangladesh
New Delhi (PTI): As part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative, soft drink major PepsiCo will be spending five million dollar (about Rs 25.5 crore) over malnourished children in India and Bangladesh.
The programme would be carried out by PepsiCo Foundation under 'Save the Children' initiative to create awareness about health, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene among the rural population, the company said in a statement.
This initiative is likely to benefit about 6,50,000 children under the age of five, along with lactating women, in these two countries.
PepsiCo Foundation has earmarked 2.5 million dollar for India, and would start with three districts in Rajasthan and implement its programme through community health groups.
"With this new project, we seek to introduce and encourage healthy practices among mothers and children, so that they carry them for the rest of their life," PepsiCo Foundation Chairman Indra Nooyi said.
An estimated 50,000 people would be touched through water and sanitation activities across Churu, Tonk and Banswara districts in Rajasthan. The programme is likely to cover 65 villages and eight urban wards in the state
Govt to invest up to Rs 2,500 crore in pharma R&D
New Delhi (PTI): In one of the biggest pharma R&D initiatives, the government has proposed to invest up to Rs 2,500 crore with a similar amount from private players for promoting innovation.
"Our focus will be on neglected diseases, for which developed countries are not investing enough till now," a senior government official told PTI.
The government is planning to mobilise an investment of more than one billion dollars in the next five years for promoting innovation here and half of this amount is expected to be contributed by the domestic pharmaceutical industry while the remaining would be provided by the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers.
Private players would initially hesitate to make such large investments, so the government has decided to take the lead by investing around half the estimated budget initially for a period of two-three years, sources said.
The department has formulated the detailed programme and has sent it to the Prime Minister's Office for final approval.
Global consultancy firm Mckinsey has helped the department in formulating the entire programme on which the work would begin following Prime Minister's nod. The opinion of 15 private pharmaceutical companies was solicited before making any progress on the concept paper.
The programme aims at making India one of the top five global pharmaceutical innovation hubs by 2020.
As a part of the programme, the department proposed to undertake pro-active steps such as building infrastructure through public private partnership and offering financial incentives to encourage innovation in the drug development.
It would also be involved in shaping a favourable regulatory environment for promoting research in the sector.
.64 lakh potential jobs lost due to project delays: Assocham
New Delhi (PTI): Eighteen big projects in sectors like steel and power could have created jobs for 1.64 lakh people if these did not face bottlenecks in land acquisition and environmental clearance, industry body Assocham said on Sunday.
"Smooth implementation of the projects could have created job opportunities for at least 1.64 lakh people directly and 2.7 lakh people indirectly," Assocham President Sajjan Jindal said.
Jindal's remarks come in the face of reports of large- scale job losses in the manufacturing sector which has shrunk by 0.2 per cent in the third quarter this fiscal under the impact of global financial crisis.
The projects, which are stuck in the procedural hassles for the last four years include POSCO and M&Ms joint venture in Chennai with Renault and Nissan, the chamber said.
The planned investment in all these projects was Rs 2.44 lakh crore, it said.
The POSCO project alone could have generated employment for 35,730 people, the chamber said. Other steel projects facing delays are those of Tata Steel in Jharkhand and Arcelor - Mittal in Orissa and Jharkhand.
Timely implementation of the the M&M joint venture with Renault and Nissan could have created jobs for at least 5,000 people.
Economy to grow by around 7 pc in FY'09, hopes PRANAB MUKHERJEE holding FINMIN for the ailing PM.The Reserve Bank of India has asked banks to look at the possibility of lowering lending rates with economic growth beginning to falter. While bank CEOs told RBI governor that it’s difficult for lending rates to soften, unless interest on deposits comes down, chances are that some banks may give in to the moral suasion by the central bank and cut rates.
US President Barack Obama has apprehended that passing of his annual budget in the Congress "won't be easy" as 'interests groups' from insurance, banking and oil sectors may try to scuttle its smooth passage, as his pro-people provisions affect their business.
In India, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor D Subbarao met planning commission deputy chairman Monetk Singh Ahluwalia on Saturday to discuss the agenda for the forthcoming meeting of the finance ministers and central bank governors of the G-20 countries.
"The agenda (of the meeting) is for G-20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors," Mr Subbarao told reporters here. Department of Economic Affairs secretary Ashok Chawla was also present in the meeting.
Earlier this week Mr Subbarao had met finance minister Pranab Mukherjee also to discuss several issues, including the possibility of further measures to bring down interest rates.
The government announced on Saturday that incentives under a Rs 325-crore package for leather and textile exports would be available only Financial crisis
Competitive economies
Ghosts of 1929
US mortgage crisis
on shipments to the US and Europe and was limited to six months from April 1.
The government announced the multi-crore package on Thursday to support exporters hit by demand slump in the US and Europe, pending a decision on who would benefit from it.
"In pursuance of this announcement, it was decided... to grant benefits under Market Linked Focus Product Scheme at a special rate of two per cent on... value of exports of all leather products and apparels," Commerce Minister Kamal Nath said today.
He said: "This incentive will be available to exports of products to European Union and the USA only. This special benefit is for a limited period of six months." The benefits would accrue on exports made from April 1, this year.
The US and Europe account for 80 per cent of India's leather exports valued at $3.5 billion. This year the growth is likely to be flat, Leather Export Promotion Council Chairman Habib Hussain said.
As US President Barack Obama vowed to eliminate tax benefits for American firms shipping jobs to foreign countries, India has said it is Top Indian outsourcing cos against any protectionist move as it would affect its IT industry.
"The IT industry will be affected due to the impact of financial meltdown...substantial number of Indian workers are there..we will have to address this issue...we are opposing protectionism, not only here but at every forum," Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee told an interview to a news channel.
"We can't just go for country specific solution for such problem...issue is that our IT industry will be affected," he said.
Revival in steel and cement sectors and ample funds available with states for spending today gave the centre the confidence that the country will grow by around 7 per cent in the current fiscal.
For the first nine months of this fiscal, the economy grew by 6.9 per cent and the government's advance estimates pegged the growth at 7.1 per cent for the entire 2008-09.
Replying to a question on economic growth during an interview, Mukherjee said, "All these are estimates and of course between 6.9 and 7.1 (there is) not much difference, but I do hope when the final figures come out it would be around seven per cent."
The economy grew by 5.3 per cent in the third quarter of current fiscal.
To a query whether market is losing confidence due to slackening growth, he said, "I don't agree with your (interviewer's) contention." He said exact numbers could be known only after it becomes clear how will economy respond to stimulus packages.
"All these things...have to be seen for example slow revival of steel and cement industry has started, housing industry have been made adequate allocations, states have been provided funds, they themselves have good cash reserves of about Rs 91,000 crore, quite a few of them would like to spend a substantial quantum of money this year... all this would be available after March 31," he added.
"These are speculation, estimates...How will economy respond to stimulus package, how is it going to respond to the various steps we have taken in the fiscal year."
When asked whether measures to stimulate economy in the Interim Budget were taken under pressure, he said, "No, this is a normal practice. Every FM does (it)."
"I have followed exactly the same pattern as every other FM does. I have not changed an iota of the direct tax. I have not imposed any new tax to mop up additional resources, that is the constitutional propriety," he said.
The Finance Minister had cut service tax, excise duty by two per cent each, besides extending four per cent reduction in excise duty beyond this fiscal to propel the slowing down economy.
He said,"(The) government is continuing... as and when situation would demand we would respond. Situation demanded...we responded, it is still unfolding and we would have to respond in future."
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday announced a skill enhancement training and aid package for the slowdown-hit diamond
workers in the state.
Under the package, unemployed diamond workers from Surat, Ahmedabad and Bhavnagar will get a stipend of Rs.100 per day during their training period. Stipend limit is fixed at Rs.2,500 per month, Modi said.
Many diamond artisans in these areas were rendered jobless as the global economic slowdown has hit the diamond industry hard.
A four-month training module has been designed for the workers in diamond assortment, bruiting, grading of diamonds, planning and making jewellery and other trade related skills.
Once they finish the training, the state government would help them get loans under different schemes like the Vajpayee Bankable Scheme, the Kutir and Gramodhyog schemes, and the Prime Minister's Employment Programme.
In the first phase, Rs.120 million have been sanctioned to train 15,000 diamond workers, officials said.
Cong-TC tie-up can't dent Left : Biman Bose
Purulia (PTI): Ahead of the crucial alliance talks between Trinamool Congress and Congress' central leadership for the Lok Sabha elections, Left Front Chairman Biman Bose today said any such alliance would not do any good for West Bengal.
"Any Congress-Trinamool alliance in the coming Lok Sabha elections would be a bad sign for the state," the senior CPI(M) leader told reporters here.
However, Bose asserted "any opportunistic coming together, or non-alliance among anti-left forces" wouldn't change the poll prospects of the Left front which will again secure the majority seats.
Bose's comments came on a day the Trinamool Congress indicated for the first time that it could leave 12 seats to the Congress in case of a tie up and said there was no question of an understanding with BJP. "We don't want division of anti-CPI-M votes, Nobody wants it," TC supremo Mamata Banerjee said in Kolkata.
Significantly CPI(M) patriarch Jyoti Basu said on Friday that the Marxists would face a tough battle if the Congress-Trinamool alliance came through and might see the number of seats reduced compared to the 2004 Lok Sabha poll.
Turning to the Maoist activities in Purulia, West Midnapore and Bankura districts, the CPI(M) leader said, "they are indulging in all destructive and violent activities but they will be rightly treated by the people in due time."
Bose said the Maoists were calling bandhs out of frustration.
Gujarat govt probing role of firms in recycling medical waste
Ahmedabad (PTI): Gujarat Health Department is investigating the role of about seven companies which could be involved in the recycling of the biomedical waste, health department officials said on Sunday.
"We are investigating companies who could be involved in recycling of biomedical waste across the country. There are some seven companies whose names have cropped up during investigation," Commissioner, Health, Amarjeet Singh told PTI here.
"Couple of companies are based in Gujarat while some are from other states. The matter is under investigation," he said.
However, Singh refused to divulge more information as the matter was under investigation.
Sources said that an investigating team is likely to be sent to the states concerned from where the suspected companies are operating.
Following the hepatitis outbreak in the Sabarakantha district, which has till date claimed 56 lives, the Guajrat government has started crack down operation on those who are violating norms of safe medical practice and disposal of biomedical waste.
The health officials of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) had on Saturday raided a godown where over 20 tonne of biomedical waste was stored and sealed it.
Health officer, AMC, Manish Fancy claimed the waste was stored to be recycled. The biomedical waste that was found included used syringes, needles, multiple dose of vials, IV sets, medicine bottles and pediatric droppers, he added.
The waste was found from the Bhariravnath bottles in Memco area in the eastern part of the city.
Further investigation revealed that there were certain companies based in Gujarat and outside the state which were purchasing the waste from them, AMC Medical Health Officer Dr Suhash Kulkarni said.
"From the inventory records seized during the raid, we found that the waste material was washed, cleaned and supplied to various companies. Most are based in Gujarat, while some are from outside," he said.
"We are investigating the companies whose names were in the inventory of the Bhairvanath Bottles," Kulkarni added.
The AMC officials have raided several godowns of scrap dealers over the past three days in the city and sealed six of them. Over 50 tonnes of biomedical waste was recovered from these godowns.
The state government that swung into action following the Hepatitis outbreak in the Sabarkantha district, mainly in its Modasa taluka, has till date filed complaints against more than 20 doctors and booked more than 50 fake doctors and touts operating with proper licenses.
Obama asked the Congress to pass his budget. The new US President is trying to fight the raging unemployment plaguing the recession hit American economy.
"I realise that passing this budget won't be easy," Obama said in his weekly radio address. This is because, Obama said it not only represents "real and dramatic change" but also represents a "threat to the status quo" in Washington.
"I know that the insurance industry won't like the idea that they'll have to bid competitively to continue offering Medicare coverage, but that's how we'll help preserve and protect Medicare and lower health care costs for American families," Obama said, referring to the specific provisions of his budget that was sent to the US Congress Thursday.
"I know that banks and big student lenders won't like the idea that we're ending their huge taxpayer subsidies, but that's how we'll save taxpayers nearly $ 50 billion and make college more affordable," he said.
"I know that oil and gas companies won't like us ending nearly $ 30 billion in tax breaks, but that's how we'll help fund a renewable energy economy that will create new jobs and new industries," Obama said.
Meanwhile, Billionaire Warren Buffett says all kinds of investors finished 2008 bloodied and confused because of the dysfunctional credit
market and other financial turmoil.
Buffett says in his letter to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholders that the economic environment made many people adopt a creed he used to see on restaurant walls years ago. That creed was: ``In God we trust, all others pay cash.''
But Buffett remains optimistic about the country's future. He says America has faced bigger economic challenges in the past, including two World Wars and the Great Depression.
Buffett says he's certain ``the nation's economy will be in shambles throughout 2009.''
But he says America's best days remain ahead.
Economic growth slowed much more than expected in the December quarter, slumping to its weakest pace in almost six years and raising
expectations the central bank would cut rates, possibly as soon as this weekend.
Both manufacturing and farm output in Asia's third-biggest economy dropped from a year earlier and the data prompted a weak share market to extend losses to more than 2 per cent, which in turn pushed the rupee to a record low.
Figures provide the latest evidence of the impact in Asia of the global financial crisis that has already forced Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong into recession and pushed Thailand and South Korea into economic contractions.
"We have been calling for significant rate cuts for a long time. We are looking for a 100 basis points cut as soon as probably tomorrow in the repo rate and reverse repo rate," said Sailesh Jha, senior regional economist at Barclays Capital.
"After seeing this number, I think the market is now pricing in a 100 basis points cut."
The economy in the December quarter grew by 5.3 per cent from a year earlier, below forecasts of 6.2 per cent and the previous quarter's growth of 7.6 per cent.
It marked the slowest growth since the March quarter of 2003, and while India is far from recession many analysts say growth is grinding down to level that threatens jobs and a rise in poverty, underlining the need for more action by policy makers to stimulate activity.
The central bank cut its main lending rate, the repo rate, by 350 basis points to 5.50 per cent in four moves between Oct 20 and Jan 2, but it held rates steady at a review in late January because banks were yet to pass on the full extent of its rate cuts.
DISMAL DATA
India's economy has lost altitude from growth rates of 9.0 per cent or higher in the past three fiscal years, and economists said the government's forecast of 7.1 per cent growth in the 2008/09 fiscal year ending March 31 would not be met.
"The overly optimistic projection now needs to be revised downward," Moodys, economist Sherman Chan said.
"The sharper-than-expected deceleration in the December quarter perhaps makes up for the slowdown that should have taken place in the September quarter when the rest of the region began to show strong signs of fatigue," she said in a report.
But junior finance minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said the government still expected growth of around 7 per cent in 2008/09, and had anticipated December quarter growth would be below market expectations.
Cereally challenged
The Financial Express
Fri, Feb 27 02:30 AM
India's food economy is looking at a problem of plenty. Government granaries are holding quantities of wheat and rice far above their buffer norms. Plus, wheat production in 2009 is estimated to be a near-record 78 million tonnes. Government wheat stocks in the central pool on February 1, 2009 are estimated to be 20.19 million tonnes, while rice stocks are estimated to be 16.77 million tonnes. Wheat stocks on April 1, 2009 is expected to be around 10.31 million tonnes, far above the year-ending buffer requirement of 4.0 million tonnes, while rice stocks on October 1, 2009 are projected to be 5.91 million tonnes, more than the norm of 5.2 million tonnes. High inventories have already created a storage problem for Food Corporation of India (FCI). Storage will be a bigger problem when the new rabi procurement starts from April 1. FCI will need additional storage space for more than 4.3 million tonnes in Punjab and 4.4 million tonnes in Haryana for the new wheat stocks. The cost of creating additional sarkari storage is high. The government should, therefore, first ease the two-year-long ban on wheat and wheat product exports and, second, relax the stock limit and disclosure norms for private traders.
Increasing allocation for the above poverty line (APL) category under the targeted public distribution system—this has started in small measure—is another possible response. But this will further increase the food subsidy bill, which at last count was around Rs 44,000 crore, against the 2008-09 Budget estimate of Rs 33,000 crore. The subsidy jump is mainly on account of the stagnant central issue price of foodgrains (CIP) in the face of higher supply costs (procurement price plus storage plus transportation charges) of wheat and rice. The cost of supplying wheat to government programmes rose to Rs 1,458.83 per quintal in 2008-09, from Rs 1,214.39 a quintal in 2006-07. But the CIP of wheat has remained at the 2002 level of Rs 200 per quintal for the Antyodaya Anna Yojna scheme, Rs 415 for below poverty line schemes and Rs 610 for APL schemes. Clearly, therefore, increasing the supply of foodgrains through the rationing system will have ruinous effects on food subsidy bill. Extensively using surplus wheat for NREG may be an idea. But the surplus problem can't be tackled unless exports are allowed and private storage is encouraged. Of course, with a bumper wheat crop in Australia and good harvests expected in Ukraine—these are considered higher quality than most of India's wheat—finding export markets will be tough. That's all the more reason for the government to act quickly.
source:The Financial Express
Suicides mount as farm crisis sweeps India
The fears of a sharp slowdown in India were confirmed Friday, with official data showing economic growth at just 5.3 percent for the third quarter of this fiscal - the slowest since 2003 - as against 8.9 percent in the like period of the previous year.
The growth in gross domestic product (GDP) has dipped from 7.6 percent for the second quarter and 7.9 percent for the first quarter, the latest data released by the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) showed.
Overall, the growth for the first nine months of the current fiscal has dropped to 6.9 percent, as opposed to the impressive 9 percent economic expansion in the corresponding period last fiscal, the data showed.
The latest growth figures now put a question mark over India being able to log the 7 percent or higher growth in the current fiscal year, as predicted by the government and projected by the central bank.
The lower growth numbers also come as a major shock for the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, which will face national elections soon, but industry lobbies feel the economy should get a lift soon.
'The stimulus packages announced by the government will definitely come to rescue of industry in the course of time. One does not need to grow extremely pessimist about India's growth story,' said the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham).
'We expect the quarter-four growth to be much better on higher spending and a good rabi crop,' said Ashok Chawla, the secretary for economic affairs in the finance ministry. 'We expect the 2008-09 growth to be close to 7 percent.'
But global rating agency Moody's did not share the government's perception and said the near-7 percent target would be certainly missed with a growth of no more than 5 percent predicted for the first half of calendar year 2009.
'A recovery seems far from sight, as the fiscal stimulus does not appear strong enough to foster a rebound the way China's fiscal boost is expected to do,' said Sherman Chan, an economist with Moody's Economy.com.
What has come as a major cause for worry is the 2.2 percent decline in farm output and 0.2 percent drop in manufacturing as shown by the fresh figures, even as construction logged a much lower growth of 6.7 percent in the quarter under review.
Economic activities that registered reasonable growth in the third quarter were mining (5.3 percent), hospitality, transport and communications (6.8 percent), banking, insurance and realty (9.5 percent) and government services (17.3 percent).
'One of the reasons for the decline is the slide in agriculture. A negative 2.2 percent does have an impact,' said D.K. Joshi, the principal economist with the rating agency Credit Rating Information Services of India Ltd (Crisil).
'Yet, one must not forget that the decline is on a very high base of nearly 7 percent last year,' Joshi told IANS. 'All sectors have shown weakness, but manufacturing has a greater impact because of its overall weight.'
Joshi predicted that the Indian economy would grow at between 6.5 percent and 7 percent this fiscal. 'Closer to 6.5 percent, I would say.'
According to the Moody's economist, trade and tourism-related sectors were also showing signs of fatigue. 'Further moderation is expected this year as exports are set to tumble and visitor arrivals are bound to be subdued when major economies around the world remain in recession,' said Chan.
'When global economic conditions begin to improve, India will see a bottom. Although the emerging giant is driven mainly by domestic consumption, it is still hurt by external weakness through a slump in exports and foreign-funded investments,' Chan said.
Looking ahead, another leading industry lobby, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), urged the central bank to cut its cash reserve ratio, the repo rate and the reverse repo rate, and induce commercial banks to lower their interest rates.
'This should not be too difficult, as inflation has already come down to below 4 percent. Further, the government must send strong signals to the banks to direct credit for productive activities and to support investors and consumers alike,' said the chamber's new president Harsh Pati Singhania.
At least 200,000 farmers have killed themselves in India in the last 12 years as governments have imposed policies suited to the global market on poor regions of the country. Peter Arkell reports.
The suicide of a small cotton farmer in India, Anil Kondba Shende, aged 33, who swallowed a bottle of pesticide and fell down dead in front of his mud house, was recently highlighted by the New York Times in an article about the distress of small farmers in India.
For the policeman who recorded the death, it was the eighth suicide he had attended in six months. When the farmer’s wife, who had been tending a sick relative in a nearby village, returned, she shrouded her face in her “cheap blue sari and wailed at the top of her lungs. `Your father is dead`, she screamed at her small son who stood before her dazed”.
About 200,000 small farmers in India have killed themselves in the last 12 years, with new farming practices and neo-liberal government policies all contributing to the distress of the 100 million small farmers in the country.
A new study, Farmers Suicides in India: Magnitudes, Trends and Spatial Patterns, by Karkada Nagaraj of the Madras Institute of Development Studies, analyses the figures from all the states in India, and tries to cut through the confusion regarding the numbers and regional patterns of this “epidemic”.
The study concludes that farm suicides are increasing, not only directly but as a percentage of the whole population, with particularly sharp jumps in the years 1998 (with an 18% rise) and 2002. The average figure for the five years from 2002-2006 is 17,513 a year. They are nearly all men and 30% of them are men between the age of 15 and 29.
Because the figures reported as suicides by the police are not entirely reliable, the study estimates that the actual figures are even higher. And with circumstantial evidence pointing to a general decline in the numbers of small farmers, from 111 million in 1991 to about 104 million in 2002, and a even lower figure in 2008, the figures are even more shocking.
The report also studies the regional variations, dividing the states into four categories, between those where the rate is around the national average, to those where it is much higher. There is a group of five states, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh in the heartland of India, where the suicide rate is twice the national average. Here, in the years 1997-2006, the number of farm suicides increased on average at an annual compound growth rate of 5.4% which means that if this trend continues the number of suicides would double every 13-14 years.
It is the state of Maharashtra where the problem is particularly acute, with a rate of increase that would double the number of suicides of small farmers every six to seven years, and the report records this state as “the graveyard of farmers today”.
The study pinpoints an area comprising parts of all these five most-affected states in Central India. “It would be a safe guess”, the report says “that it is in this semi-arid, poor, backward region in the heartland of India where the problem of farm suicides in terms of number, rate, intensity and trend would be the most acute and distressing”.
In the final section of the study, the factors underlying the farmers’ suicides are examined. The report is at pains to emphasise the importance of underlying social and economic causes, rather than trying to explain the problem in terms of single causes such as alcoholism or unsustainable life-style or family problems, which is the method often favoured by the authorities and which end ups by blaming the victims. In Maharashtra, for example the state functionaries have been trying to “delink farm suicides from the agrarian crisis”.
The author argues that it would be perverse not to see the acute agrarian crisis as the underlying factor in the epidemic of suicides. But why, if the crisis is country-wide, do the figures indicate such strong regional variations? Why are the numbers of suicides so high in the one group of states in Central India? The area in question is undeveloped and economically backward, is highly water-stressed, with poor irrigation and scanty, uncertain rainfall, as well as poor soil. With this high degree of vulnerability, the agrarian crisis, when it came, caused particularly severe social problems.
The agrarian crisis itself, the study says, was “precipitated by the neo-liberal state policies in operation since the beginning of the 1990s”. Capital expenditure by the state declined as part of its stabilisation measures, while investment in irrigation and soil conservation was cut, with very serious consequences.
“Banking reforms meant that organised credit to agriculture practically dried up … costs of production particularly of cash crops like cotton shot up. On top of all this, external trade liberalisation in the form of withdrawal of farm quotas and tariffs provided the ground for farm price crash.” The state more or less withdrew its support services in a fragile area where farmers were dependent on them.
“The space vacated by the state”, the study continues, “was taken up by private agents, particularly in areas like credit, supply of seeds and fertilisers, extensions services … and marketing of crops.” There was no regulation of the operation of these agents and “their relationship with the farmers was essentially a predatory one”.
All this resulted in a loss of livelihood for large numbers of farmers in a area where there was no alternative work. What distinguished these five states, particularly the one state of Maharashtra, from the rest was this very great vulnerability to any change or crisis, and it was only a matter of time, the study implies before other states become similarly vulnerable as the crisis worsens.
The study ends by calling for a complete reorientation of agrarian polices, the repeal of all neo-liberal policies and for basic institutional transformation as a basis for comprehensive modernisation. “Such basic changes in state policies rarely come without pressures created by mass movements … India has had an enviable tradition of farmers’ movements, with large-scale mobilisations taking place as late as the 1980s. But today such movements seem to have dried up. Large numbers of farmers seem to be taking their lives rather than taking to the streets. And suicide is a cry of desperation rather than a form of social protest. It is this aspect of the situation which is as disturbing as the epidemic of farm suicides that we witness today,” the study concludes.
This scientific analysis of the figures and its conclusions are supported by other writers and commentators. Countercurrents describes the essence of the crisis eloquently:
“As farming is delinked from the earth, the soil, the biodiversity, and the climate, and linked to global corporations and global markets; and the generosity of the earth is replaced by the greed of the corporations, the viability of small farmers and small farms is destroyed. Farmers suicides are the most tragic and dramatic symptom of the crisis of survival faced by Indian peasants.”
In 1998, the policies of the World Bank forced India to open up the seed industry to companies like Monsanto, Cargill and Syngenta. Seeds saved each year by the farmer were replaced by corporate seeds which required fertilisers and pesticides, and which had to be bought each year. A free resource available on farms or in the state warehouses that had been set up in an earlier period in order to assist farmers, became, overnight, a commodity to be purchased every year by the farmers in many areas.
This development, away from bio-diversity to monoculture in agriculture or uniformity, increases both the risks and the disastrous consequences of crop failure. Furthermore, the agribusiness corporations stand accused of introducing unadapted and untested varieties of corn, cotton and other crops, leading in some areas to complete failure. In the state of Bihar, when Monsanto’s hybrid corn replaced the farm-saved seeds, an entire crop failed which cost the farmers there 4 billion rupees.
With falling world prices (until recently anyway), rising production costs and unfair subsidies in the rich countries like the US, the move away from traditional bio-diverse and sustainable farming towards the growing of cash crops for the global market is causing untold misery for the huge numbers of families dependent on the land.
10 April 2008
http://www.aworldtowin.net/frontline/Indianfarmersuicides.html
Jobs drought preceded farm crisis
Long before the drought bit deep, Anantapur was already in trouble. The close links between workers, farming and industry were broken by the new policies of the 1990s. P Sainath continues his series on farmer suicides in Andhra.
August 2004: ANANTAPUR (ANDHRA PRADESH), JULY 29. When Hyder Wali was thrown out of his job in the 1990s, he went out looking for an autorickshaw to drive. Sadly, thousands of others in his situation had the same idea at the same time.
The number of autos in Anantapur town shot up from 2,500 in the late 1980s to over 10,000 by the end of the next decade. "For jobless people here, there were few other options," says Mr. Wali. Soon, "there were too many autos. Earnings fell from Rs. 80 a day after costs, to half that or less."
It was not just the auto trade that collapsed. As thousands of workers lost their jobs and purchasing power in the mid-`90s, the farm crisis here grew. Countless small farmers saw their already troubled markets shrink further. The forced closures of large numbers of factories in this period hit the farmer long before the present drought did. Anantapur is the worst-affected district in the ongoing farm crisis.
The Andhra Pradesh Lightings where Mr. Wali worked for years was a joint venture. "This unit had problems but could have been turned around. We won State awards for best products and quality more than once," says Mr. Wali. "But the private partner did not care. And the Government would not listen to us." So the 750 workers dependent on the company lost their jobs.
Closures and lockouts
AP farmers' suicides
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• When farmers die
• Sinking borewells, rising debt
• Death of a carpenter
• Anatomy of a health disaster
• Micro-credit, maxi risk
• Percentage raj
• Naidu: image and reality
• Dreaming of water, drowning in..
• Seeds of suicide - I
• Seeds of suicide - II
• Jobs drought before crisis
• How the better half dies
• How the better half dies - II
• The after-death industry
• The policy has no clothes
• Farmers lose crores in insurance
• Renew lapsed insurance policies
The process began in the late 1980s with the closure of the Guntakal Spinning Mills. "That was one of the biggest in Asia," says V. Rambhupal, CITU district president. "Some 3,000 jobs were lost. Then came the rapid closures and lockouts of the 1990s. Hundreds of workers were thrown out when the Government-owned Nizam Sugar Factory Limited was sold and shut down. Since the NSFL used local produce, it also hit peasants badly." These were not drought-stricken farmers, but cane growers with a crop to sell.
"Likewise," says Mr. Rambhupal, "closing the mulberry research centre at Penugonda hurt sericulture in Anantapur." The 1990s saw a wave of closures of both Government and private units in the district. Allwyn, the Bharat Gold Mining Ltd., and A.P. Oilfed were just a few amongst those that folded. The Pattabhi Forge and Anantapur Cotton Mills also went down with many others. "It was the Government's policy to close lots of its own units. Private owners did the same for their own reasons," says Mr. Rambhupal.
Rise in child labour
The shut downs went on through the 1990s. Many other units either folded or saw major retrenchment. A huge rise in child labour accompanied the process. And a big drop in wages further hit purchasing power. Where workers (as in A.P. Lightings) wanted the chance to run their own units, "we were told it was impossible. No credit would be given," says Mr. Wali.
Meanwhile, close to 70 per cent of oil mills dealing with groundnut also shut down. And while employment growth in rural Andhra Pradesh fell to 0.29 per cent during this period ? lower than in the rest of the country ? Anantapur fared even worse.
Some former employees of the NSFL run tiny teashops and `beedi bunks' close to their old factory. People like B. Rajagopal who earned Rs. 4,500 a month in the late 1990s is lucky if he makes half of that now with his `beedi bunk.' Many tried migrating for jobs. "Five or six of our fellow workers even died," says Mr. Rajagopal. "Some of them were quite young. The stress was too much."
Picture: The cocoon market at Hindupur has seen a serious decline with the dumping of huge quantities of Chinese silk. Since nearly 60 per cent of this taluka's ryots depend on sericulture, the impact has been devastating (Courtesy: The Hindu; photo by P.Sainath).
"The Government made us sell them these grounds at Rs. 2,000 an acre before the plant came up in 1979," says Ugra Narashimappa. He is one of 29 small farmers who lost all their holdings to the NSFL for a pittance. "Now we are landless. They promised us jobs that never came. Instead, this land is being sold for Rs. 50,000 an acre."
Real estate was booming and there was money to be made on the unit's 160 acres. The NSFL was sold to a company that shut it down here and shifted its equipment to Karnataka. This, ex-workers point out, leaves the land up for sale. "They should give it back to us," insist the now landless and jobless farmers. But they know it won't happen.
Land of `milk and silk'
The Hindupur region, known as the land of `milk and silk,' sank on both fronts. "The children of milk producers drink less of it today," says Krishna Reddy, a farmer here. Their families have to sell every litre they can and that at very low prices. The dairies that used to buy the milk take much less now. Some are closed." Silk is in the doldrums. "Output prices have sunk while input costs have soared," says Visweswara Reddy, district general secretary of the A.P. Ryuthu Sangham (APRS). "The dumping of Chinese silk led to a crash in prices that crushed our producers. And you can see the WTO's impact in this taluka where 60 per cent of ryots depend on sericulture. The Government reduced import duties on silk from 100 to 30 per cent. Bigwigs in the silk trade in Gujarat also lobbied to get that done. Our growers were hit and thus reduced acreage for mulberry."
"Up to 25 tonnes of cocoons came here each day in the 1990s," says Mujib Khan at the Hindupur market. "Today, you won't see 20 quintals." All this, points out Mr. Visweswara Reddy, "has fractured both jobs and farming."
Silk imports from China saw cocoon rates fall from Rs. 250 a kg in 1992 to Rs. 70 and less within a few years. In 2002, the APRS led over 10,000 angry farmers in a major protest. Their struggle forced the Government to take some action against dumping. But largescale smuggling and imports continue. Silk, which cost Rs. 2,200 a kg 12 years ago, sells for about a third of that now.
Long before the drought bit deep, Anantapur was already in trouble. The close links between workers, farming and industry were broken by the new policies of the 1990s. Thousands of workers and farmers were being displaced at the same time, with no new options. As jobs became scarce and farmers faced new costs and lost old markets, and as credit vanished, Anantapur slipped further into crisis. "A crisis driven by policy," says Mr. Rambhupal of the CITU. But now laid entirely at the door of drought. (Courtesy: The Hindu) ?
P Sainath
August 2004
P Sainath is one of the two recipients of the A.H. Boerma Award, 2001, granted for his contributions in changing the nature of the development debate on food, hunger and rural development in the Indian media. In July 2004, he was awarded the Prem Bhatia Award for excellence in political reporting and analysis for 2003-04 in recognition of his "outstanding, indeed exceptional, work on the problems of the poorest of the poor, especially in Andhra Pradesh." He is the Rural Affairs Editor at The Hindu.
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India Inc's investment in group cos rises 60.3%
28 Feb 2009, 0906 hrs IST, Tushar K Mahanti , ET Bureau
If scarcity of bank finance is feared to affect Corporate India’s investment activities in the current year, there is another development which may
prove equally damaging.
Riding high on a steady rise in margins, companies in recent years have not only funded the larger part of their own investment activities through internal generation but have also invested in group companies to meet their fund requirements.
Now as margins declined, aggregate net profit of 1,500 large companies declined by 11.2% during the first half of 2008-09 over the corresponding period of 2007-08, they would certainly be not in a position to invest in group companies.
This will have serious impact on the future investment activities of Corporate India. For, funds from sister concerns have become a major source of capital of the companies in recent years.
An ET survey of 200 large companies finds that their investment in group companies has increased by a massive 60.3% in 2007-08 from Rs 1,26,289 crore in 2006-07 to Rs 2,02,477 crore. The share of group companies in total investment of the sample companies has increased from 55.2% to 60.2% during the same period.
At the individual level as many as 177 of the 200 sample companies have either increased their investment in group companies or have kept the investment unchanged in 2007-08 over the previous year.
The share of group companies in total investment comprising investment in group companies, mutual funds, government securities, debentures, etc, has increased in about half of them. Incidentally, the total investment of the group companies itself has increased sharply last year following rise in margins, total investment increased 47% from Rs 2,28,985 crore in 2006-07 to Rs 3,36,182 crore last year.
Consider Reliance Industries: Its investment in group companies has increased 32.5% last year from Rs 14,146 crore in 2006-07 to Rs 18,762 crore. Total investment of Reliance during the same period has increased 26.2% from Rs 16,251 crore to Rs 20,516 crore. The share of group companies in total investment has increased from 87% in 2006-07 to 91.4% in 2007-08.
The investment in group companies of Hindalco Industries has increased by nearly four times from Rs 1,120 crore in 2006-07 to Rs 4,243 crore in 2007-08. The share of the group companies in total investment has gone up by more than two and a half times from 12.7% to 30.1% during this period.
And if Tata Steel’s investment in group companies has declined in 2007-08, it still accounted for more than threefourth of its total investment. In fact, the total investment of Tata Steel itself has declined in 2007-08, down 32.8% from Rs 6,106 crore in 2006-07 to Rs 4,103 crore in 2007-08.
The private sector companies had much higher exposure to their group companies compared to either the public sector undertakings (PSU) or the MNCs. Thus while, the investment in group companies of 12 PSUs in the list accounted for about 21% of their total investment in 2007-08 that of 167 private sector companies accounted for a huge 73%.
The rate of rise in actual investment in group companies too was substantially higher for the private sector companies, up 76.4% compared to only 6.9% of the PSUs. The actual investment of the MNCs in their group companies has risen only 6.9% last year. The share of group companies in their total investment has in fact, declined from 63% in 2006-07 to 57% in 2007-08.
Post-Satyam, companies add fresh clauses to contracts
28 Feb 2009, 1302 hrs IST, Mini Joseph Tejaswi, TNN
BANGALORE: Call it the Satyam effect or just precautionary measures during turmoil. Global outsourcers are busy adding fresh clauses to contracts The Great Fall of Satyam
Satyam: Full Coverage
The crux of the scam in Satyam
Top Accounting scandals
Five facts about Satyam
given to Indian vendors to ensure business continuity.
While there is widespread recognition that there is no substitute to India as an outsourcing destination, global customers are keen to introduce additional security clauses in contracts to ensure safety in case of any crisis.
Some are even considering addition of a “project portability clause’’, wherein they would be able to move projects entirely to other providers, to ensure safety and work continuity. Some insist that vendors maintain “buffer providers’’ so that work does not suffer in case of any untoward incident.
Stephanie Moore, former VP at Forrester Research and currently chief marketing officer of UST Global, says: “There’s a lot of caution in the minds of customers today. They want to have a thorough look at vendors prior to entering into any work commitment. Today they are concerned about providers’ corporate governance, infrastructure, actual financial status, audit processes, HR policies, etc.’’
Gartner principle research analyst Diptarup Chakraborti said, “They are realigning projects, slashing down components in a project, renegotiating prices, and cutting delivery cycles, as priorities have changed. They want to make contractual clauses more stringent making providers much more accountable.’’
Technology for cities
23 Feb 2009, 0304 hrs IST, Kala S Sridhar,
The interim budget of the central government, however insignificant, increased allocations for the UPA government’s flagship programmes, including
the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) which received an allocation of Rs 11,842 crore.
This is much needed, given that 20% of the country’s urban households are denied access to safe drinking water, 58% do not have safe sanitation, and more than 40% of garbage generated is left uncollected in India’s cities for want of proper waste management.
While none of the south Asian countries have universal access to basic services like water supply or sanitation even as of 2002, data from the water and sanitation programme indicate that access to water supply is better in Iran, Maldives and Sri Lanka than it is in India and access to sanitation is better in Pakistan and Maldives than in India.
Urbanisation in India has been undergoing changes with the share of urban population in the total growing from 11% in 1901 to 29% in 2001. India’s urban population is expected to increase to 500 million by 2021. While this absolute number is daunting, part of this urbanisation has been attributed to the “attraction of city lights.”
While the natural growth rate of population is the biggest contributing factor to urban growth, the Census of India acknowledges that migration is also one of the contributing factors. The migration data of 2001 Census indicate that 20.5 million people enumerated in urban areas are migrants from rural areas who moved in within the last 10 years. Rural-urban migration constitutes a significant component of inter-state migration (about 41.1 million as of 2001) taking place within the country.
Clearly, haphazard migration is not the way to urbanise and there are many undesirable outcomes that have resulted because of migration. While public service delivery problems (highlighted above) are not caused by migration per se, they are no doubt aggravated by it.
Migration from rural to urban areas poses a major challenge to attaining the Millennium Development Goals. This calls for greater attention to migration and its associated problems in India. Migration also does not have homogenous impacts on the destination region. Some migrants are skilled and others are unskilled.
Skilled migrants have likely impacts on the travel time to work (by adding to traffic with their fleet of vehicles). For instance, in Bangalore, the one way travel time increased from only 24 minutes in 1991 to nearly 40 minutes in 2001. However, unskilled migrants might contribute to increases in solid waste generation on roads. In many Indian cities, more than half the solid waste is neither collected nor disposed. Hence it is important to address problems of both types.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Technology_for_cities/articleshow/4172682.cms
New policy to trigger growth in coal-rich states
28 Feb 2009, 0019 hrs IST, Subhash Narayan , ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: Projects in states with coal mines may be given preferential treatment in allocation of coal blocks as the government looks to push
growth in coal-rich states that remain economically backward. The new policy, which forms part of the proposal to allow competitive bidding for coal blocks, may allow companies that use fuel for projects in the same state to match the highest bid if it is within 5% of the offer, said a government official.
As per the proposal, the system of preference will come into effect only if the bidder is willing to match the highest bid for the block. This will ensure that the government gets the fair price of its coal blocks. The
government expects that the proposed policy will encourage private companies in power, cement and steel sectors to set up units in backward states, said an official with coal ministry.
The policy will benefit states like Orissa, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and West Bengal. Almost 80% of the coal reserves are in the eastern region that has seen relatively low industrial activity compared with states in the southern and western regions.
A proposal in this regard has been included in the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2008 that has been cleared by a parliamentary standing committee with some riders. “This is a welcome step as it will boost economic development in mineral-rich states. However, efforts should be made to facilitate fast approvals, as most of these mines are located in forest areas,” said JSW Steel director (finance) Seshagiri Rao.
Rs 2200cr paper mill deal signed |
| OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT |
Calcutta, Feb. 27: The Bengal government and the Emami Group today inked an agreement to build the state’s largest wood-based paper mill at Kultikri, West Midnapore. The Rs 2,200-crore project will cover 1,400 acres, half of which is already with the government. Emami will buy the remaining 700 acres directly from farmers. “Officials of the group have developed a good rapport with the people (of Kultikri) as they have been regularly visiting the place for a long time. They will hopefully have no problem in getting the land,” industries secretary Sabyasachi Sen said after the deal was signed. Recycled water from the mill be used for agriculture, he added. The project is expected to create direct employment for 1,000 people and 4,000 more indirectly. “We shall start construction within a year so that production can begin in three years after that,” said R.S. Agarwal, joint Emami chairman. The plant will be part of a paper and allied products park being developed by the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) about 185km from Calcutta. With a capacity of 600 tonnes a day, it will require around 6 lakh tonnes of pulpable wood. Emami director Manish Goenka said the state had promised 1.8 lakh tonnes of wood. Bengal sells all its wood to outsiders in the absence of a wood-based paper producer. The company also plans to undertake social forestry in Orissa and Bengal for raw material. “The chief minister has told us to explore the possibility of using jute stems as raw material,” Goenka said. Sen and WBIDC managing director Subrata Gupta represented the state in today’s deal. Agarwal and the other Emami chairman, R.S. Goenka, were on the other side. “Such a huge (paper) pro-ject is coming up for the first time in Bengal,” chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said. |
special article
There Is Not Much Left To Hide
by Martin Kämpchen
Whenever poverty is depicted in literature or in films, there is an outcry. V.S. Naipaul was harshly criticized for his book, An Area of Darkness, so was Günter Grass for his Kolkata diary Show your Tongue. More recently, Booker Prize winner Aravind Adiga’s novel White Tiger was subjected to the same routine. In films, City of Joy was so vehemently rejected by Kolkata that filming in a slum was made impossible by protests and street fights. And now Slumdog Millionaire had a bad press because it shows “India’s dark underbelly” to the world.
The argument of these critics is: While poverty undeniably exists, India contains more than just her poverty. Why should a book or a film focus on poverty when there is so much more to discover in India which is positive and beautiful? Such a book or film, the argument continues, presents a slanted and even malicious image of the country. These critics themselves are unhappy to identify with the poverty and misery of their country’s slums. They rather wish to identify with the positive aspects of their country going perhaps as far as saying, subconsciously, that these aspects represent the “real” India, while poverty is an aberration unworthy of further discussion.
At this point many people will launch their counter-criticism. First, even official statistics of the government and of recognized agencies confirm the facts of poverty in various statistics. Besides, in the cities poverty is an easily perceptible reality. So, why not depict such an obvious reality? Second, no writer or film director can be faulted for the choice of his or her subject. Whether they show slum life or middle class life or monastic life cannot be made the basis of criticism. How do they treat the subject of their work, is the all-important consideration.
In India, the print media and television are brutally honest and open. They are the first to portray and castigate the injustices of poverty. Here, critics will normally not object as long these portrayals are domestically consumed. They become annoyed only when such grim portrayals are internationally disseminated. Then suddenly the prestige and honour of the country are at stake.
I compare this to the typical family situation: While family members are bound to be open among themselves about the strife and struggles the family goes through, they would like to bar the outside world from knowing about their affairs. Likewise, these critics want India to speak in two tongues: One tongue, openly critical and forthright, speaking within India, and another tongue, showing a false front of respectability towards other nations. The problem in our globalizing world is that the borders between the domestic and the international domains are becoming blurred. Many critics may be aware of this but hesitate to draw the consequences. Poverty becomes an internationally open fact.
American or European teams shooting films in slums and villages have been a normal occurrence much before the age of economic globalization. The advent of handcams has made such films possible even without the red tape of government approval. There is not much left to hide. Nowadays, film crews have an international mould. This could also be seen looking at Slumdog Millionaire with its mix of Indian and British talent. When the discussion raged whether India or Britain should take credit for the film’s success, the director Danny Boyle typically declared: “The film has been made with the best resources available globally.”
Yet, the overriding consideration is, again, how poverty is being depicted. First, critics are appropriately concerned about the poor getting a fair representation in both domestic and Western films. The poor should not become, once again, the victims of certain dominant forces. Second, it is important to realize that a feature film and a novel are not academic treatises. A work of art cannot be committed to representing poverty covering all its layers and ramifications. Art does not need to say everything there can be said on a particular subject. So if critics complain that Slumdog Millionaire has not shown the advances in prosperity India has recently made, or has no feministic angle, I can only say that such an expectation is unjustified. Art need not inform, rather it should inspire and excite.
The one artistically legitimate question we must pose is whether the film has represented the life of Jamal Malik, the young tea-seller, truthfully or not. Has the film created a true character within the excruciatingly difficult living conditions of a Mumbai slum? Put differently, has Jamal’s character and life story been credibly and compellingly amalgamated with his environment, the Dharavi slum? These are not questions related to poverty, but to aesthetics. If a writer or director is able to create a persuasive story with true-to-life persons and a story-line that is emotionally and intellectually “valuable”, then we can say that we have an excellent novel or film.
This definition rejects romanticizing poverty as well as sensationalizing it. Romanticizing poverty means to portray poor people as totally good and honest, hard-working and idealistic. This is untruthful; poor people are given to espousing virtues and vices as anybody else. The opposite is equally untrue, namely that poor people are per se scheming, thieving and dishonest human beings; that the life of the poor is nothing but dismal, without a glimmer of hope and joy. It is to this prejudice the term “pornography of poverty” alludes which was often mentioned in connection with Slumdog Millionaire.
A valid work of art must be guided by the principles of “truth” and “goodness”. Art must necessarily encompass a value which always is something positive and is truthful in itself. Hence any work of art depicting poverty or any other reality in solely dark colours is certainly a weak and unconvincing work. By the same token, any reality which in itself is abjectly negative cannot be transformed into art as it lacks positive elements. I discussed this earlier citing a novel on the German concentration camps (The Statesman, 2 April 2008). This should silence the critics who feel that India is represented in a purely negative mould. Whenever this is indeed the case, we can ignore it as a poor work of art soon to be forgotten.
There is another response we must give to the critics who believe that India’s image is being tarnished by certain books and films. Rather than carping about the representations of poverty, why do they themselves not contribute to the alleviation of poverty and the spread of social justice in their own immediate neighbourhood? This is a complex, a life-transforming and humbling experience.
The shame and irritation they may feel while seeing the representations of poverty will then shift to feeling shame and dismay about poverty in real life. From a position of comfortable dominance they will enter a space in which they are urged to question their judgments, views and decisions constantly and fruitfully. And urged to act.
The writer is a German scholar, based in Santiniketan
Investors swamped by economy, bank woes
LONDON: Two months into 2009 and equity investors are having a worse time than they did last year, with global stocks at six-year lows and little respite in sight.
So it is hard to imagine that this week's central bank interest rate decisions in Britain and the euro zone or the release of key US jobs data will do much to persuade investors to start buying again.
Sentiment is essentially being swamped -- some might say drowned -- by the deteriorating world economy and continuing angst about the precarious state of the global financial system.
As Reuters polls showed last week it has left investors in a state of high risk aversion and sitting squarely on the sidelines.
"The combination of doubt about the economic recovery, further earnings downgrades and looming nationalisation of some large US banks (has) proved a toxic mix for markets," wrote Joost van Leenders, an asset allocator at Fortis Investments.
And new problems just keep piling on. Troubles in eastern and central Europe have now risen high up the agenda amid deep concern among policy makers about a spillover into the euro zone banking system.
In numerical terms, global stocks are actually on track for a worse year than 2008. As measured by MSCI, they have fallen nearly 18 per cent so far this year, compared with around 8 per cent for the same period a year ago.
It has all rather dampened earlier hopes that the worst of the financial and economic crisis has passed and that the much-touted green shoots of recovery are about to sprout.
Banking health remains the main concern. The blue chip Dow Jones industrial average, for example, was at 12-year lows last week on concerns about the possible nationalisation of giant Citigroup.
The US deal on Friday to boost its stake in the bank fell short of that but the potential still rattled investors.
VAMPIRES? That said, many professional investors appear to be keeping their nerve, with increasing numbers saying they are seeing value in oversold markets.
The Reuters polls last week showed hardly any change between January and February in the portfolio stances of major global investment houses. Indeed, there was a very slight increase in exposure to stocks.
This would suggest that while investors are generally sticking to the sidelines, they are not being particularly spooked by the continuing stream of bad news.
Deeper into the Reuters data, however, were some stark regional differences. European investors, for example, were by far the most bearish, hanging on to more than twice the amount of cash than they normally do.
"For the second quarter running, firms selling services to businesses saw the volume and value of their business, profitability and numbers employed fall at the fastest rate in the survey's ten-year history," the Confederation of British Industry Service Sector survey highlighted.
Sharp falls in business volumes and profitability were reported by companies for three months to February, along with plans to scale back investments and jobs.
Elaborating further CBI Chief Economic Adviser Ian McCafferty said: "The effects of a global recession are being keenly felt by services firms. Jobs are already being lost at the fastest rate in over ten years from the whole of the service sector, and firms' expectations suggest conditions will remain depressed for some time to come."
The quarterly survey, conducted between January 28 and February 11, covers 196 service sector firms across business and professional services, such as accountancy, legal and marketing firms, and consumer services, including hotels, bars and restaurants, travel and leisure.
Won’t get better soon, learn to live with slowdown
Indian politicians and citizens are mostly in denial about the impact of the global meltdown on India. Politicians make brave statements laughing away the slowdown, saying India will be least hit and first out of the slump. Three stimulus packages in three months have been announced with fanfare. But the slowdown continues. Impatient citizens and Opposition parties demand additional stimuli. But this rests on the illusion that the economy will return to fast growth if only it imbibes enough caffeine. Sorry, but this is not a problem of caffeine shortage. The world is going through the worst downswing since the Great Depression, and India willy nilly has to go downward with the rest of the world. We should expect the slowdown to continue for several quarters, until the world economy recovers. We must batten down our hatches and patiently ride out this storm. Official data have just revealed the ugly truth that GDP growth declined to a dismal 5.3% in the October-December quarter, way below official expectations. Agriculture declined by an unexpected 2.2% in this period: poor harvests of sugarcane, cotton, pulses and oilseeds overwhelmed gains in rice, horticulture and animal husbandry. In this quarter, the Pay Commission award boosted community services growth by a whopping 17%. This is mostly illusory: higher pay does not mean better service. Despite this illusory boost, overall GDP growth only touched 5.3%. This lends credence to the IMF’s forecast of 5.1% GDP growth for the calendar year 2009. We may experience some small improvement in the last quarter of 2009, but a return to fast growth will have to wait till late 2010, or even 2011.
Let nobody think that more stimulus packages will somehow save us. The slump was not caused by lack of government stimulus — it occurred despite an enormous stimulus from Chidambaram’s 2008 budget through the farm loan waiver, Pay Commission award, and spiraling subsidies for petroleum products, fertilisers and food. Because of these — and falling tax revenue — the overall fiscal deficit of the Centre and states in 2008-09 will be a massive 11% of GDP. Yet, this massive stimulus proved helpless to combat the global downswing. India’s 9% growth in the preceding five years was due to an unprecedented global boom, not great reforms or cleverness on our part. A huge global tide lifted all boats — even Africa grew at an unprecedented 6%. Alas, the tide is now falling, and lowering all boats. Drinking more caffeine will not raise India’s boat in a falling tide. Recreating a rotten system 25 Feb 2009, 0344 hrs IST, Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar, ET Bureau
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