SBI to cut interest on education loan

Sunday, February 26, 2012

State Bank of India (SBI) has taken in-principle decision to slash interest on education loans by up to 1 percentage point. “The bank has taken in-principle decision to cut (interest on) education loan,” SBI Managing Director and Chief Finance Officer Diwakar Gupta told PTI.

“Announcement would be made soon. The bank will issue the notification shortly,” he added.

Without giving details of quantum of rate cut, he said, it may be up to 100 basis points.

Interest rates on education loans range from 12.25 per cent to 14.50 per cent, depending on their quantum and the duration.

The education loan book of SBI constitutes under 7 per cent of its Rs 1.75 lakh crore retail loan portfolio. In the quarter ended December, the bank saw its education loan books swell by 14.17 per cent.

SBI is also offering a concession of 50 basis points on interest rates for loans given to female students.

Earlier this month, SBI Chairman Pratip Chaudhuri had said the possibility of a reduction in base rate at this point of time looks bleak as the bank has absorbed last three RBI policy rate hikes without raising its base rate.

The lender’s base rate stands at 10 per cent as of now, which is the lowest in the country.

About the possible slashing of home loan rates, he had said the possibility was “less.”

“The possibility of (reduction) in home loans is less as the rate is 10.50 per cent and the base rate is 10 per cent. Hence, the possibility is less. Moreover, the tenor of a home loan is 25—30 years, (so) we have to think about it a lot,” Mr. Chaudhuri had said.

He, however, had said in case of further CRR cut by the central bank, the entire rate structure will come down.

On January 24, the Reserve Bank had reduced the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 0.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent to infuse liquidity into the system, and indicated a reversal of tight money policy stance.

Read Post | comments (1)

Raja accuses CBI of creating ‘false witness’

Friday, December 23, 2011

Former Telecom Diplomat and the key accused in the 2G scam A. Raja on Fri accused the Central Bureau of Investigation in a City retinue of making his ex-aide Aseervatham Achary a "specious witness" to declare against him.

"He is a created incorrect attestor and this is my supreme showcase," senior advocate Sushil Kumar, who is defending Mr. Aristocrat, contended before Primary CBI Judge O.P. Saini.

Mr. Achary, Mr. Raja's quondam additional clubby helper and a key CBI undergo in the cover, in his buildup gave details of how Mr. Patrician was in regularised deed with additional accused corporate honchos and their companies which were acknowledged spectrum in infringement of law.

Mr. Kumar, breed examining the signer, further contended that Mr. Achary's evidence on Weekday of state threatened by a individual movement in the grounds gathering was a "drama" which was motivated to impact the pending bond orison of Mr. Raja's late backstage desk and co-accused R.K. Chandolia which would be heard by the Dominant Deference on Jan 2.

"This complete episode was meant for Jan 2 when Chandolia's recognizance is coming in the Dominant Solicit as he (Mr. Achary) told the authorities that the organism threatening him was motion with Chandolia," Mr. Kumar far said.

At this present, the adjudicate desired to bang whether Mr. Achary had earlier complained near any threat to his story.

"He (Mr. Achary) did not say anything originally and had he said it then it would love been on list and some of them (accused) would not get got bail," the jurist said.

Mr. Patrician, who had refused for over a period to cover investigate witnesses expression he would not do so deedbox the CBI files its bag train paper and completes its penetrate in the containerful, started his vindication on Weekday by skeptical Mr. Achary.

The CBI had filed the base criminate wrapper on Dec 12 after which Mr. Raja had said that he module span investigate witnesses only when unexclusive servants oust on the emerge of governing insurance.

Mr. Aristocrat had posed several questions to Mr. Achary ranging from his conversation with past corporate lobbyist Niira Radia to oftentimes dynamical his abode and transferable numbers.

Mr. Achary had on Thursday complained to the justice that he was receiving threats from a individual nowadays in the courtroom who was motility with Mr. Chandolia in the greeting.

The man, who had proven to run off, was caught but was free in the evening after the Delhi personnel saved no prospect to capture him after interrogating him.

Read Post | comments

2G: Behura’s bail plea dismissed

Friday, December 16, 2011

The Delhi Squeaking Authorities Weekday dismissed the recognisance exertion of former medium intimate Siddhartha Behura, one of the 14 accused in the 2G spectrum percentage swindle.

Read Post | comments

Indian Rupee hits low against dollar

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

The Indian rupee closed at a record low against the dollar in Mumbai on Tuesday, amid growing dollar demand by Indian oil refiners and other importers.The rupee was down to 52.21 to the greenback at the close of markets after touching 52.73 during the day. The rupee closed at 52.15 on Monday.

Read Post | comments

1996 Telecom Scam - Sukhram sentenced to five year jail

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Former Telecom Minister Sukhram sentenced to five year imprisonment on Saturday by  Delhi Court after being convicted of taking Rs 3 lakhs as bribe to give a lucrative contract to a Haryana Telecom Ltd(HTL)  in 1996.

Read Post | comments

Not possible to cut petro-products price: Pranab

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday said the two most vexed issues facing the nation are price rise in essential commodities and petro-products.It is not possible for the Centre to decrease the price of petro-products because huge subsidies are already being given to the oil companies for sale of fuel at controlled rates, Mr. Mukherjee told a Congress seminar here.

Read Post | comments

Kingfisher Apologises to flyers

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Due to rough whether, Kingfisher Airlines has recently sent an apology mail to its frequent flyer club members to explain the reason of cancellation of numerous flights.They said that the move was necessary to reconfigure their aircrafts for better service feedback.

Read Post | comments

Pranab Mukherjee To World Bank - "think out of the box"

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Indian Finance Minister Mr.Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday said that the World Bank should have to find some ways to improve its capital base so as to enhance lending to developing countries.

Read Post | comments

Corporates under Lokpal : CVC

Sunday, September 18, 2011

As the Lokpal debate rages, the CVC feels corporates should be brought under the purview of the proposed anti-corruption bill to check graft effectively.

It also favours that corruption in higher levels of bureaucracy and among political executives should be dealt with by the Lokpal provided there is a proper demarcation of work to avoid overlapping of powers with the CVC.

“Lokpal should cover corruption in higher bureaucracy and among political executives. There may also be a provision, as in UK bribery law, where a bribe giver is punished. We are also not against bringing corporates under the purview of Lokpal,” Central Vigilance Commissioner Pradeep Kumar told PTI in an interview.

At present CVC has no power to check corruption in private firms. However, the Commission refers cases of criminal conspiracy and corruption by government officials and private persons to the CBI.

“Lokpal may investigate cases of corruption involving political executives (ministers). In case they are found involved in wrong doings then action against them should be taken as per the law,” he said.

Mr. Kumar, who took over the reins of country’s top anti-graft body in July this year, cautioned that there should not be complexity in exercising powers by Lokpal to avoid delay in checking corruption.

“All civil servants are governed by departmental punishment rules. The CVC, in some cases, may impose penalty directly while it has to seek sanction for prosecution against senior officials. The Lokpal may look into these aspects (and simplify the process),” he said.

The CVC’s view may be conveyed to the Parliamentary Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice for Lokpal when the Commission appears before it.

The 31-member House panel, reconstituted a few days ago, is likely to call the CVC either on September 23 or 24 after the delay in its constitution resulted in cancelling the Commission’s presentation twice — on September 7 and 15.

Mr. Kumar wanted extension of the vigilance mechanism in graft cases through speedy enquiries and prosecution procedures.

“The standard of proof (evidence) is lower in the Prevention of Corruption Act, which is time consuming. There is preponderance of probability. That is why there are a bulk of cases going on in courts. Cases under the PC Act are pending for over 10-15 years,” the CVC said.

The Commission covers corruption involving central government officials working in banks, public sector units and other undertakings of the Government of India.

Read Post | comments

Kanimozi steps towards court for bail

Saturday, September 17, 2011

DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi’s daughter and party MP Kanimozhi, arrested for her alleged role in 2G spectrum allocation scam, today moved a Delhi court for bail, her second attempt to get the relief.

Lodged in Tihar jail since May 20 following rejection of her bail plea by Special judge O P Saini, Kanimozhi approached his court for bail a day after the court breached its self-imposed deadline to frame charges in the case. The court listed her bail plea for hearing on October 1.

While refusing bail to various 2G scam accused, the Supreme Court had earlier asked them to move the trial court for bail after framing of charges in the case.

While pleading innocence, 43-year-old Kanimozhi also prayed for bail on account of her being a woman MP and the mother of a school-going child. She moved the court for bail along with Kalaignar TV CEO Sharad Kumar.

Kanimozhi approached the court pleading that neither she nor DMK-run Kalaignar TV received spectrum licence and that she was not the beneficiary of the “loan transaction of Rs 200 crore” in the 2G scam either.

“The petitioner (Kanimozhi) has no role in the alleged conspiracy in allocation of UAS licence, valuable and scarce spectrum in various telecom circles and other undue favours to Swan Telecom Pvt Ltd (accused in the case) during 2007-2008 etc,” said the bail plea filed on behalf of Kanimozhi.

“Neither she nor Kalaignar TV Pvt Ltd is a beneficiary of spectrum licence either,” said he bail plea filed by her counsel V G Pragasam and S J Aristotle.

Read Post | comments

Obama-Singh will meet again this year

The White House expects meetings between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at different fora later this year, but has ruled out any bilateral talks between them next week in New York where they would attend the annual session of the UN General Assembly.

“We don’t have any bilateral meetings planned at this point,” US Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters while briefing them on Obama’s agenda in New York.

“I think that it is our expectation that the President will be able to see — in his travels later this year,including to the East Asia Summit and other forums, he’ll have opportunities to engage with Prime Minister Singh,” Rhodes said last evening.

Obama would be travelling to New York for three days next week beginning Monday to attend the General Assembly session of the United Nations.Besides addressing the UN General Assembly, Obama would be meeting leaders of some countries.

Prominent among them are Libya’s Mustafa Abdul Jalil;Afghan President Hamid Karzai; Brazilian President Dilma Rouseff; Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda of Japan; Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom, President Nicolas Sarkozy of France and President Salva Kiir of South Sudan.

While the focus of his meetings and his remarks at the UN will be pressing global issues like Libya, Palestine,economic matters and the Middle East, the US President is expected to reiterate his position on the reforms of the UN Security Council and support India’s bid for its permanent membership.

“There’s been no evolution in the US position. We obviously have expressed our support for permanent membership for India…,” Rhodes said.

Read Post | comments

India rebuffs China's objections to oil exploration

Friday, September 16, 2011

India on Thursday dismissed Chinese objections over its oil exploration projects in two Vietnamese blocks in the South China Sea, saying its cooperation with Vietnam was as per international laws and it would like the cooperation to grow. 

Noting that there was an active programme of trade and economic cooperation with Vietnam, External Affairs Ministry official Spokesperson Vishnu Prakash said cooperation in the area of energy, hydrocarbon as well as renewable energy was one of the important facets of it.

He was replying to a question on China asking India and other countries to refrain from oil exploration in maritime areas offered by Vietnam in the South China Sea, claiming it enjoys "indisputable sovereignty" there.

He said ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) has been in Vietnam for quite sometime in offshore oil and natural gas exploration field and that they were in the process of further expanding cooperation and operation and Essar, a subsidiary of Essar oil Ltd, has also been awarded a gas block in Vietnam.

"This is one important area of cooperation and we would like this area of cooperation to grow. Our cooperation with Vietnam or with any other country for that matter in the world is always as per as international laws, norms and conventions," Prakash said.

He also reiterated India's position that New Delhi "supports freedom of navigation in South China Sea and hopes that all parties to the dispute would abide by the 2002 declaration of conduct in South China Sea."

The issues are expected to find a place in the Joint Commission Meeting, to be co-chaired by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna along with his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh, in Hanoi tomorrow.

China warns India on maritime explorations

The ongoing tension between India and China has taken a new turn with the Dragon nation issuing a warning to its neighbouring country asking it to refrain from any oil exploration in the disputed South China Sea.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu said that India should avoid any agreement with Vietnam in the area, saying that China enjoys an indisputable sovereignty in the region.

“Our consistent position is that we are opposed to any country engaging in oil and gas exploration and development activities in waters under China's jurisdiction,” she said in reply to a question that Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is planning to come up with exploration projects in two blocks that Vietnam claims.

The tension between China, Vietnam, Philippines and some other nations in the areas has flared up in recent times amidst allegations that Chinese navy is continuously encroaching their areas.

China’s warning came at a time when Indian External Affairs Minister S M Krishna is scheduled to visit Hanoi this week.

Just recently, Chinese troops had also entered Indian territory in the Leh region and demolished bunkers.

Read Post | comments

SIDBI working with NSE to set up separate exchange for SMEs

The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) is working in close tandem with the National Stock Exchange (NSE) to establish a separate exchange for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which will be unveil shortly.

S Muhnot, Chairman and Managing Director of SIDBI, said, “It will be a separate exchange within the NSE. It is likely to be operational in this financial year, may be another two months or three. The international venture funds, which are not coming to the MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) sector today, will also come in the sector.” The SMEs would have the potential to secure equity from the market via the exchange and also develop their business.

Mr Muhnot has stated that SIDBI has been working to get the firms into the exchange. SIDBI has stated that it will unveil Nominated Investors Liquidity Fund, which will be helping these market makers.

Mr Muhnot has also stated that the Nominated Investors Liquidity Fund of nearly Rs 60 crore will be unveiled this year. The second fund will be India Opportunities Fund worth Rs 500 crore. Discussion for the third fund is taking place and it is expected to be worth Rs 300 crore.

Read Post | comments

RBI surges key interest rates by 25 bps

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has surged the key interest rates by 25 basis points (bps), its 12th such surge since March 2010 since it is concerned about the high inflation. This move will make auto, home and other loans more expensive.

After the surge, the short-term lending (repo) rate was at 8.25% and the short-term borrowing rate (reverse repo) stood at 7.25%.
The RBI while making the announcement its mid-term review of the monetary policy has maintained all the other rates and ratios unchanged.

According to a statement from RBI, “The monetary tightening effected so far by the Reserve Bank has helped in containing inflation and anchoring inflationary expectations, though both remain at levels beyond the Reserve Bank's comfort zone.”

Although, RBI has revised the key rates many times since March 2010, but inflation has still risen from 9.2% during July to 9.8% during August this year.

RBI has stated that the monetary stance will get influenced by the inclinations of the downward movement in the inflation trajectory.

Moreover, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in the first quarter (April-June) of the 2011-12 financial year has moderated to 7.7% from 8.8% in the corresponding period year ago, after witnessing slowdown in the industrial output growth in July to 3.3%, which is the lowest level in 21-months time.

Read Post | comments

Centre may announce new exports sop scheme to replace DEPB

Centre is expected to introduce today a new scheme with the aim to replace the popular tax refund Duty Entitlement Pass Book (DEPB) for the exporters, which is scheduled to end on September 30.

Centre has been spending annually almost Rs 8,500 crore for reimbursing the exporters on the taxes paid on import equivalent to the content of export products, under the Duty Entitlement Pass Book (DEPB) scheme. The main beneficiaries are sectors such as engineering, automobile and chemicals.

It is quite popular among the Indian exporters due to its lucrative rates and also flexibility which are not available in the other refund mechanism - Duty Drawback. The exporters have been creating pressure that they should be permitted similar kind of benefits even if the nomenclature of the DEPB is altered.

The Union Finance Ministry has worked out a compromise between the DEPB and also Duty Drawback. The details of the scheme would be declared by Finance Secretary RS Gujral and the senior officials of the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC).

Although exports have witnessed significant performance, surging by 54.2% between April-August 2011 to $134.5 billion, there are still concerns that the momentum won't be sustained due to the surging economic problems in US and also in Europe.

Read Post | comments

Indian bakery market registering 8% steady growth: Assocham

India's bakery market is worth Rs 3,295 crore and it is witnessing a steady growth rate of 8%, stated the industry body the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham).

More than 20-lakh tonnes of bread and 15-lakh tonnes of biscuits are manufactured in one single year. Moreover, Bread and rolls along with biscuits and cookies make up for 82% of the bakery products, said Assocham.

Furthermore, Cakes, pastries, buns and rusk make up for the rest. Nearly 65% of bakery products are manufactured in the unorganised sector.

DS Rawat, Secretary General, Assocham, “Due to increasing consumer gravitation towards convenience products and healthy food products, the bakery industry has undergone a virtual metamorphosis since 2004.”

Reports claim that the per capita consumption of bread is just 1.75 kg. The southern states consume almost 32% of the bread manufactured in India and in the northern, western and eastern states consume 27%, 23% and 18% respectively.

Moreover, Maharashtra and West Bengal have got large number of bakery units. Almost 55% of biscuits are consumed in the rural areas due to long shelf life and also popular taste, stated Mr DS Rawat.

Read Post | comments