NEWS – JULY 2007
- High-speed rail corridor likely for Hyderabad
The Business Line, July 09, 2007 - ARPU levels for cell firms close to ‘unviability’ mark
The Business Line, July 07, 2007 - Petroleum regulatory board set up
The Business Line, July 06, 2007 - GoM may give nod for new mining policy
The Business Line, July 05, 2007 - FDI cap review on the cards
The Business Line, July 14, 2007 - Cement plants unable to meet demand despite operating to full capacity
The Business Line, July 16, 2007 - Mobile firms ready to battle it out at TRAI open house
The Business Line, July 18, 2007 - Urban regulatory authority mooted
The Business Line, July 21, 2007 - BSNL may hike termination charges for ILD calls
The Business Line, July 21, 2007 - Air passengers body for setting up regulatory authority
The Business Line, July 24, 2007 - Cement companies deny cartelisation in prices
The Business Line, July 26, 2007 - Transparency please, say air passengers
The Economic Times, July 29, 2007
High-speed rail corridor likely for Hyderabad
The Business Line, July 09, 2007
Hyderabad, July 8 With the GHIAL (GMR Hyderabad International Airport) getting ready for commercial operations early next year, the Andhra Pradesh Government is planning to lay a ‘high-speed’ rail corridor connecting Hyderabad with the coastal town of Machilipatnam.
ARPU levels for cell firms close to ‘unviability’ mark
The Business Line, July 07, 2007
Alarm bells may have started ringing for mobile operators with the average revenue per user (ARPU) inching closer to the Rs 200-mark, below which operations are considered to be unviable. With mobile operators announcing a slew of tariff reductions in the long distance segment and roaming services, the ARPU for GSM operators during the January-March quarter has declined further by 5.7 per cent from Rs 316 in the previous quarter to below the Rs 300-mark for the first time, while the CDMA-based operators are already hovering around the Rs 202-per-month mark.
Petroleum regulatory board set up
The Business Line, July 06, 2007
The Petroleum & Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) has been formally established by the Government. Mr L. Mansingh has taken over as the first Chairperson of the board while Mr L.K. Singhvi, Mr B.S. Negi and Ms Sudha Mahalingam have joined as members.
GoM may give nod for new mining policy
The Business Line, July 05, 2007
New Delhi, July 4 The Group of Ministers (GoM) on mining is likely to give its go-ahead to the new mining policy when it meets on Friday. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a seminar here on Wednesday, Dr T. Subbarami Reddy, Minister of State for Mines, said, “The policy is likely to be cleared by the GoM after the meeting on July 6 and then we hope to table it in Parliament during the monsoon session.”
FDI cap review on the cards
The Business Line, July 14, 2007
The Government is likely to complete the review of direct and indirect holding of foreign direct investments caps (in all sectors) by the end of this month. Official sources indicated that the entire exercise, including a revision in the definition of indirect holding, is likely to be completed and forwarded to the Cabinet in the next two weeks.
Cement plants unable to meet demand despite operating to full capacity
The Business Line, July 16, 2007
Chennai, July 15 Most cement plants across the country are operating at close to or a little more than full capacity and yet they are not able to meet the demand in the market. In normal times, most manufacturers would have gone in for maintenance shutdown of the plants either just before the onset of the southwest monsoon or after the rains have started. They would build up stocks to meet the demand after the monsoon. But that is not possible this year because of the heavy demand, say manufacturers.
Mobile firms ready to battle it out at TRAI open house
The Business Line, July 18, 2007/i>
New Delhi, July 17 Even as cellular operators are set to fight it out at the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) open house on Wednesday over a number of policy issues related to capping the number of mobile operators and mixed use of technology, four Members of Parliament have thrown their weight behind the camp supporting open market competition.
Urban regulatory authority mooted
The Business Line, July 21, 2007
The Urban Development Minister, Mr Jaipal Reddy, on Saturday stressed on the need to have urban regulatory authority to ensure transparency and a dispute resolution mechanism in urban development projects taken on public private partnership basis. He said this while speaking to the Chief Secretaries of various States in a conference on public private partnership here today. “Just like the telecom regulator, an urban regulatory authority is required so to have transparency and so that disputes could be resolved,” said he said. He also stressed on the need for the Planning Commission to allocate more funds for smaller and medium towns.
BSNL may hike termination charges for ILD calls
The Business Line, July 21, 2007
Appreciation of rupee against dollar is now having an impact on the international long distance telephony segment as well. State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) is proposing to increase the termination rates for incoming international long distance calls being routed through its Bharat Lanka Cable. The proposed increase is as high as 30 per cent in some cases where the termination charges is being revised up from 4 cents per minute to 5.6 cents per minute.
Air passengers body for setting up regulatory authority
The Business Line, July 24, 2007
Thiruvananthapuram, July 23 The Air Passengers Association of India (APAI) says that India must set up an Aviation Regulatory Authority that covers the entire aviation industry. Speaking to the media after a meeting of the association’s national executive committee, Mr D. Sudhakara Reddy, Founder and National President, APAI, said that India needs such a regulatory body given the tremendous growth in the country’s aviation sector. While the Government is currently looking at establishing an Airport Economic Regulatory Authority of India, this body will deal only with issues related to airport tariffs and charges, he pointed out.
Cement companies deny cartelisation in prices
The Business Line, July 26, 2007
New Delhi/Chennai, July 25 Major cement companies have strongly denied any attempts at cartelisation as has been alleged by the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission (MRTPC). The Commission had issued notices to 14 of the largest cement manufacturing companies following a preliminary investigation by the Commission’s Director-General of Investigation and Registration (DGIR) that found that these companies indulged in cartelisation.
Transparency please, say air passengers
The Economic Times, July 29, 2007
An air ticket for Rs 99? Too good to be true, isn’t it? Low cost carriers (LCCs) may think they have customers in their thrall with such misleading advertisements, but passengers ain’t buying it. They want transparency, and from all airlines. Advertise full prices, including taxes and charges, so that we don’t get taken for a ride, they say. This was revealed in a recent survey conducted among 2,000 passengers in key airports of India by Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation