Indian Economy - News & Updates - Archive

[Contrarian]

Key indices set new peaks, Nifty at 4000; Sensex at 13,857

Key indices on Friday charged ahead, with the National Stock Exchange index Nifty reaching an all-time intra-day high of over 4,000 points and the Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex at 13,857.

The BSE Sensex ended higher by 148.47 points at 13,844.78 on frantic buying by funds led by shares of capital goods, auto and banking segments.

In similar fashion, NSE index Nifty closed higher by 43.10 points at 3,997.60, after touching a record intra-day high of 4,001.30 just before the closing bell.

The major support to the bourses came in from heavyweight stocks such as Reliance Industries, Infosys, Tata Motors, Hero Honda, Maruti Udyog, Motors, Bajaj Auto, State Bank of India and ICICI Bank.

 

[Contrarian]

Govt to consider policy changes to attract more FDI: Montek

The government will consider policy changes while finalising the 11th Five-Year Plan to attract more foreign direct investment and remittances, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said on Friday.

"In the course of the finalisation of the 11th Plan, if we find some areas to further improve remittances and attract more FDI, we will look into it," he said after releasing the Regional Poverty Profile 2005 prepared by SAARC Secretariat.

In the report, the SAARC Secretariat has estimated the receipts of remittances in 2004 at around 22 billion dollars against a mere 4.4 billion dollar FDI flow into the country.

Ahluwalia said there was no doubt the country was doing well on remittances as also FDI.

"Our position on the external account is good," he said.

Asked about the current FDI policies, Ahluwalia said: "The policies at the moment are good enough. But we would want the policies to help increase the revenues." Remittance has been an important source of foreign exchange supporting growth and has contributed positively to income, consumption and savings.

Nearly 25 million NRIs (Non Resident Indians) sent close to 22 billion dollars back home in 2004. This, together with FDI, provided an impetus to the economy and raised the GDP growth level to well above 8 per cent.

According to estimates, India has the largest share of remittances from a total of about 100 billion dollars. China and Mexico are close behind. In the SAARC region, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh were among the top recipients of remittances in 2004.

 

[Contrarian]

US business seeks GSP renewal for India

A US chamber-led coalition of nearly 180 companies and associations has urged Congress to approve a tax and trade package including renewal of a programme offering trade benefits to India.

The coalition representing a broad spectrum of the US business community made the plea to approve six "critical programmes that would expand US trade and economic competitiveness and promote a number of US foreign policy objectives" in a letter on Friday to House and Senate leaders.

Specifically, it urged the lame-duck session of Congress to renew the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) programme describing it as "an effective trade tool bolstering domestic manufacturing, expanding consumer choice, and promoting economic growth in developing countries."

Allowing GSP to expire could lead to months of significant trade disruption. Not only will GSP beneficiary countries suffer losses of important export orders, but American companies who rely on lower-cost preference programme inputs-which often include raw materials, components and parts used in US manufacturing-will see their costs escalate and their competitiveness decline, it said.

"Moreover, small and medium-sized businesses will suffer the most, since they lack financial resources to pay the import duties that will re-emerge if Congress does not act," said the letter to Republican House speaker J Dennis Hastert, Senate majority leader Bill Frist and House and Senate Democratic minority leaders, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid.

The US Trade Representative (USTR) is currently looking at a proposal to limit, suspend or withdraw trade preferences to India and a dozen other countries as part of a major GSP review ordered after the collapse of world trade talks.

 

[Contrarian]

The SMS way to lend or borrow

SMS or short messaging service may soon be the ideal way to lend or borrow if a New Delhi-based software expert succeeds in perfecting the system for American markets.

The near-ubiquitous power of SMS could be used to undertake solutions like delivering news headlines to subscribers and other specialist needs, said Sirtaj Singh Kang, chief of Sapphire Mobile Systems.

"We expect to get rolling by early February in the US," Kang, an NRI who returned to India five years ago, said.

Kang's company is "aimed at a young urban market" and student-oriented cities in the United States. It is for people who are tech and mobile-savvy, but don't necessarily have a lot of disposable money.

The 31-year-old said: "Our management team is in the US , but our development work is going on in Delhi. (Getting the solution over to) India is not on the cards yet. Our management team doesn't have experience with an Indian market. But we're looking for skills to launch in India too."

"The market here (in India) is huge. In villages, you don't get ATMs (automated teller machines). But mobile coverage is there."

On a visit to Bangalore, Kang was talking to software experts on "writing an SMS service with free software".

"Unlike other countries, SMS in India is pretty much affordable. It costs a little more than a 30 second phone call," Kang said.

There was "certain mistrust" in using a mobile phone for commercial transactions. "Both in terms of security of the network, or worse, when your phone gets lost or stolen."

"But we are pretty confident that we've handled most of these issues in a sensible way. We've made it more secure than a credit card transaction," he added.

Costs per transaction would depend on the deal offered by the banks. "But we want it to be small enough for people to want it, and for it to actually become a cash and cheque-replacement," he said.

Kang, who lived in Australia and is now based in New Delhi's New Friends Colony, was a hacker working on the K Desktop Environment project to provide a contemporary desktop environment for Unix workstations.

 

[Contrarian]

TATA group forays into hypermarket

The TATA group is in an advanced stage of discussion with British retail giant Tesco for a debut in the 'hypermarket' sector in India. A hypermarket is a huge retail facility, a superstore, which carries an enormous range of products under one roof.

The Tata-Tesco talks are for a strategic alliance, which will eventually be converted into a joint venture as and when the government allows foreign direct investment (FDI) in the retail sector, sources in the industry said.

This would be the third venture of the Tata Group into the retail segment. Trent Limited, headed by Noel Tata, is one of the oldest retail companies of the country, which runs an apparel retail chain under the brand name 'Westside'. Last October, Infiniti Retail, a 100 per cent subsidiary of Tata Sons, entered into a technical alliance with Australian retail chain Woolworths to start India’s first large-format specialist retail chain for consumer electronics and durables under the brand name Croma.

The sources said the Tata-Tesco partnership would be along the lines of the Infiniti-Woolworths alliance. Since the government has not allowed FDI in the retail segment, in the first stage it will be a technical alliance, which will eventually turn into a 74:26 joint venture where the Tatas will have the larger stake, the sources said.

The broad agreement is almost finalised and a formal announcement will be made shortly, the sources said. The alliance will focus on the hypermarket segment in all major cities in the initial stage. Although the financial details are not available, sources said since the hypermarkets would be started in all major cities the initial investment would be more than a billion dollars.

However, a Tata Group spokesman, while reverting a detailed questionnaire from HT, said the news of the proposed Tata-Tesco alliance was incorrect. He said he would not comment on market speculations.

Prior to the talks with the Tata Group, Tesco was in discussion with the Bharti Group, which eventually failed, as Tesco was not interested in making the required investment. Bharti has entered into a strategic alliance with the US retail giant Wal-Mart.

 

[Contrarian]

Ranbaxy breaks big into South Africa with $70 m acquisition

The country's largest pharmaceutical company, Ranbaxy Laboratories, is well into an acquisition spree overseas, and has added another big buy to its bag with the purchase of South Africa's fifth largest generic drug maker, Be-Tabs Pharmaceuticals (Pty) Ltd, for $70 million. That tops seven companies across the globe that the Delhi-based company has already bought for a total of more than $450 to 470 million since January this year.

Ranbaxy's biggest buyout yet has been that of Romania-based Terapia, which was sealed for $324 million.

"Ranbaxy is continuously looking for inorganic growth in the overseas markets,” Malvinder Singh, Ranbaxy's chief executive officer, told Hindustan Times on Friday. The purchase strengthen's Ranbaxy's hold over South Africa, where Be-Tabs is the nation's largest pencillin maker.

The acquisition of Be-Tabs is subject to requisite approvals from South Africa’s Competition Council Authority and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2007.

BE Tabs, with current sales of around $30 million, is among the most established companies in South Africa. “Be-Tabs is a significant acquisition in a market that is large and growing with high entry barriers," Singh said.

Be Tabs has a strong over-the-counter (OTC) drug portfolio with significant brand recognition that can be leveraged by Ranbaxy with wholesalers, pharmacists and consumers.

The transaction will be funded by from foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) and is valued at 2.2 times of sales and 7.7 times of EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation) multiples.

“The acquisition of Be-Tabs’ results in considerable synergies and further strengthens Ranbaxy’s foothold in South Africa. It reinforces our position by expanding our portfolio in a key market that is exhibiting strong growth potential. The move will help us to provide effective disease management solutions in support of the government’s objective to make healthcare affordable to a wider cross-section of the population,” said Singh.

South Africa is the largest pharma market in Africa, valued at close to $2 billion, with a high potential for generic product growth.

Dr Rashid Bhikha, Chairman Be-Tabs, said: "Ranbaxy’s stature as a global generic pharma player brings further credibility to Be-Tabs' 30-year-old rich heritage in South Africa and will take it to its next phase of growth."

Email Gaurav Choudhury:[email protected]

 

[Contrarian]

Private players lure TRAI talent with better pay

It may not be so easy in cricket, but in the frenetic world of telecommunications, where talent is as much in demand as handsets and talk-plans are, the industry regulator is finding himself like a soccer referee whose linesmen leave to join the teams on the ground.

The chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is taking the exit of some prized senior executives in his stride, but others in the body say poaching by private companies and discontent among senior staff members over pay and perquisites are threatening to eat into the regulator's talent pool.

Companies like Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications and Hutchison Essar Ltd are looking for hot talent to keep customers from churning out, and they also need some talent with regulatory knowledge. And what better place to poach them than government-funded or appointed bodies where knowledge levels run high, but pay-scales are not competitive enough? Private players pay three to six times the compensation that staff who work with the regulator earn for work involving comparable skills and experience, industry officials say.

"While it is true that things can be improved, we cannot and should not compare the salary aspects with the private sector. People join government services for various reasons. The critical criterion is to have a feeling of public service," Nirpendra Mishra, TRAI's chairman, told the Hindustan Times. "One or two people joining the private sector from TRAI will not reduce our talent pool," he said.

After feasting on public sector telecom giants Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd, private sector hawks are preying on the regulator that had painstakingly built a team which has gained respect and recognition among peers across the world. It does not help that TRAI is also losing out some senior staff to global deputation assignments in organisations such as the World Bank. TRAI has been seeking powers similar to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to maintain its financial independence. It had sought a 0.05 per cent share of the revenues that telecom and TV operators generate each year to help pay its officers and staff better. The government has not moved on it for years.

Over the last few months, four senior TRAI officials have moved on or are in the process. S.N Gupta, principal advisor, fixed networks, is said to be on his way to helping UK's BT Plc in a senior position to oversee technical aspects. Praveen Sharma, joint advisor, mobile networks, joined Reliance Communications Ltd, and has since moved to Tata-run VSNL. Sunil Gupta, deputy advisor, financial analysis, is likely to join Reliance soon, say TRAI sources. D.K Gupta, joint advisor, legal, is also likely to join a private telecom operator, they said. Neither of them could be reached for comment. S.N Gupta confirmed to the Hindustan Times that he had resigned but it was not clear what he would do next.

"I cannot join any telecom operator in India but I would be an independent consultant to overseas multinational telecom companies, but it will take some months," he said.

TRAI officials said their pay-packets are small, with no housing leases from the employer. They even have to vacate government accommodation if they join the regulator. Besides, perquisites like transport allowances were withdrawn after October 2003, when TRAI's employees were declared to be of the same status as their central government counterparts.

 

[Contrarian]

TRAI favours regulation in domestic bandwidth market

After regulating the international bandwidth prices, telecom regulator TRAI is understood to be in favour of tariff regulation in the domestic bandwidth market to remove bottlenecks for effective competition in the segment.

Bandwidth is the medium of carriage of data and voice services across countries in the world (IPLC) or across the country (Domestic Leased Circuit).

It is appropriate to continue with the tariff regulation in the DLC market until such time the competition becomes adequate and effective. The long-term goal of the Authority is to establish effective competition in the sector such that regulation of tariff may not be required, a TRAI official said.

There are evidences of lack of competition in the 'local lead' (last mile access) within city circuit segment.

The non-availability of local leads, which has been represented by various stakeholders/service providers, appears to be the main bottleneck for promotion of competition in DLC market, the official said.

 

[Contrarian]

Indian IT firm launches product in UK

Zensar Technologies, an Indian IT and BPO major with an office in Slough, Berkshire, has launched its Global Delivery Platform (GDP) to support businesses looking to design, develop, implement and maintain business applications.

The GDP was a unique way of designing and implementing business processes, which will radically change existing consultancy methods, accumulate knowledge in-house and reduce time-to-market for new application implementation.

The statement said that GDP will be rolled out to academic institutions, software entrepreneurs and major clients worldwide in stages. As part of British GDP academic initiative, Zensar has teamed up with the School of Entrepreneurship and Business (SEB) at the University of Essex, where a Centre of Excellence, with 20 seats to start with, is being set up to utilise the GDP.

A stream of students will learn to use the system as part of their studies and will take the knowledge with them out into the business world. As part of the programme with SEB, Zensar will be sponsoring PhD research studentship on technology-based entrepreneurship over a period of three years at the SEB, University of Essex.

Jay Mitra, Head of SEB at the University of Essex, said, "This unique transnational initiative combining technology and entrepreneurship is at the heart of new ways of thinking around constellations of excellence building relationships and working together for sustainable economic growth through learning and doing. We hope this new venture will be a beacon for innovative forms of learning in both industry and academia."

"Today's long-winded application development takes up to a year to deliver a solution and involves major expense and time commitment on the part of the customer and massive consultancy fees to go along with it," said Ganesh Natarajan, Deputy Chairman and Managing Director of Zensar.

"We chose the UK for the initial launch because we see major demand and potential here, in this fiercely competitive market," he said.

Zensar recently opened its new European headquarters in Slough. It employs over 3,400 people globally with nearly 200 people based in Britain and Europe. The release said that it had a 'robust customer base', and had formed strong partnerships with Fujitsu, Sun Microsystems and Oracle. Its customers include Marks & Spencer, National Grid, Cisco Systems, and Electronic Arts.

The major elements of GDP are: identifying and laying down the business process, designing the platform agnostic solution, manufacturing the application, and testing and enabling the users to manage the entire solution-building process in a collaborative manner.

It has been designed to enable people collaborating on the solution to be based anywhere in the world, and bringing together the best skills wherever they may be, a company press release said.

"GDP puts the power and control back into the hands of the customer and enables them to introduce their solutions to the market much more quickly, while also retaining the expert knowledge of their business within their company. This is a major leap forward in business process automation.

The statement added that Zensar's GDP was the realisation of a wider concept called Global-On-Demand (GOD), which enabled collaboration of a company's business and technology team seamlessly in a secure, monitored environment to achieve distributed design, project management using a common set of tools, techniques and process to define and deliver world-class solution from wherever they are in the world.

"One of the problems of the business world has always been the need to 'hand over' the development process to highly technical people - usually external consultants - who go away and develop a solution," explained Dilip Ittyera, Chief Architect and Evangelist of the Zensar GDP initiative.

"What we are talking about here is a truly disruptive development process. It is a paradigm shift from conventional outsourcing practices to collaborative global sourcing using the best-in-class capabilities," he said.

 

[Contrarian]

Jet gets security clearance, can fly to US

et Airways may finally get to fly to the US. The US Department of Transportation is understood to have given a security clearance to Jet Airways, paving the way for the Indian carrier to launch flights to the US. Jet Airways, however, refused to comment on the matter and maintained it was yet to receive any official communication from Washington.

In February 2005, the Indian government had granted approval to the Naresh Goyal-promoted carrier to fly three times a week to New York via Brussles. But allegations by a US namesake that the airline had links with terrorist masterminds like Dawood Ibrahim and outfits such as Al-Qaeda had put the brakes on the Indian carrier's American plans.

"The Department of Transportation has given the economic authority to Jet Airways. This means that the airline has been cleared to fly to the US after it works out the operational details like flight timings, schedules, slots and other issues," the PTI quoted a US Embassy spokesperson as saying. The spokesperson added that this was the "first tangible benefit" coming out of the 'Open Sky' agreement between Delhi and Washington.

The security clearance follows a green signal from the US State Department, which probed the US-based company's complaint.

On Monday, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel had said that procedures had to be followed.

"Issues are being resolved between the governments," he said.

Jet Airways is expecting the delivery of Boeing 777-300s in April next year. The airline has signed an agreement with Boeing for acquiring 10 777-300s and with Airbus Industrie for an equal number of A330-200s.

Recently, Jet Airways sought the Civil Aviation Ministry's clearance to fly to New York and San Francisco from the summer of 2007. It also asked for permission to fly to Toronto, via Hong Kong and via Dusseldorf, from next year, and to China.

Other destinations it plans to fly to in the near future are South Africa, Kenya, Mauritius, Rome, Zurich, Munich and Frankfurt.

(With PTI inputs)

 

[Contrarian]

India, US sign pact to boost aviation ties

The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) of the United States and the ministry of civil aviation signed a memorandum of agreement (MoA) on Monday paving the way for technical assistance from US on a host of aviation related matters. But officials said the pact did not cover security aspects, and mainly concerned logistics and administration.

The cabinet had approved the signing of this agreement in May this year. "The agreement provides for assistance by the FAA to the civil aviation sector in India in developing and modernising the civil aviation infrastructure in the managerial, operational and technical areas," said a civil aviation ministry statement.

Besides technical and managerial expertise, the FAA will provide training for Indian civil aviation personnel. It will also provide assistance in inspection and calibration of civil aviation equipment and air navigation facility in India.

FAA administrator Marlon Blakey said that the MoA is "not really a security agreement. It is a bilateral aviation safety agreement".

The MoA is an umbrella agreement and would have many subordinate agreements as and when signed with different agencies such as the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

"The agreement is in the nature of a framework agreement, which would create enabling provisions for seeking specific assistance from the FAA. All assistance under this agreement will be on the basis of reimbursement of costs," the statement said.

Civil aviation minister Praful Patel said that India would receive guidance and expertise of the FAA which would be helpful to manage the volume of aviation traffic in the coming years.

 

[Contrarian]

India-Pak trade can cross $6 billion: Report

Trade between India and Pakistan can increase to a phenomenal level of 6.6 billion dollars if barriers are removed and the neighbouring country implements the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA) agreement, an ICRIER report has said.

India's exports increased by 157 per cent to 428.1 million dollars and imports by 143 per cent to 82.1 million dollars in the first quarter of 2006-07 as against the corresponding period last year, according to official figures.

"Trade between the two nations is very small as compared to trade between India and its other large partners in South Asia," Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations said in a report on 'India-Pakistan trade'.

On the other hand, informal trade through a third country is estimated to be in the range of two billion dollars, the report said.

"With several regions integrating further through the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), it is imperative for the South Asian countries to enhance the pace of their liberalisation," it added.

In a larger context, South Asia is the least integrated region compared to other regions, namely East Asia, Europe and Central Asia, Latin America, Middle East, North Africa and Sub-Sahara Africa.

Regional liberalisation within Asia indicates that SAFTA would ultimately lead to integration with a larger community within the continent through BIMSTEC and ASEAN, the paper said. However, success of SAFTA in turn would depend on trade relations between India and Pakistan.

 

[Contrarian]

Birla to enter domestic retail sector

Close on the heels of the Bharti Group and Reliance, who have announced big plans to set up their retail ventures, Aditya Birla group, one of the top three industrial houses in the country, is also concretising its plans to enter the domestic retail sector.

After months of deliberation, the metals powerhouse has started hiring people for its retail business.

The group’s retail venture would be in hypermarkets or large discount stores, sources said. These are different from departmental stores. Shopper’s Stop follows the departmental store model, while Big Bazaar is the closest approximation to hypermarkets in the country today.

The company has roped in Suman Sinha, the son of former finance minister Jaswant Sinha, to head its retail venture.

People to be hired include sourcing and merchandising professionals, quality control people, experts in supply chain, store design and business development.

The company, which currently employs over 82,000 people, expects to ramp up its employee base significantly through the exercise, sources said.

Incidentally, the retail space in the country is set for a churn with Sunil Mittal-controlled Bharti and Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance getting into the race to capture the burgeoning pockets of the Indian middle class.

The reason for the interest by big houses is essentially the highly fragmented nature of the Indian retail segment. Only 3 per cent of Indian retail, which is estimated to be $300 billion, is organised, the rest being small and medium retailers. Large players include Kishore Biyani’s Pantaloon and Tata Group-owned Trent, which owns Westside.

Tatas have recently inked a venture with Woolworths of Australia, and are planning to launch a chain of consumer durable stores to be called Croma.

Bharti would be setting up a joint venture with Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, and the number two company on the Fortune 500 list of companies. The entry of Wal-Mart is expected widely to be a seal of approval for the Indian retail industry.

That the Aditya Birla Group is planning to take retail to be a major part of its operations in the country is evident in the scale of hiring. This would include cash and carry and back-end operations, contrary to Bharti’s model, where only the backend will be handled by Wal-Mart, with Bharti owning the stores and the front end.

There has been widespread debate over the entry of multinational corporations in the retail segment, the latest being the Left parties threatening agitations on Monday in a note to the United Progressive Alliance.

 

[Contrarian]

Oil cartel robbing India's GDP: Chidambaram

Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram has accused the oil producing countries' cartel for robbing India of one per cent GDP growth by resorting to speculation and unjustifiably increasing crude prices. The price has crossed $70 (Rs 3150) per barrel a few months back.

Participating in a plenary panel discussion at the annual India Economic Summit, organised by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the CII, which opened on Sunday, Chidambaram called upon developed countries like European Union bloc and the United States to take a stand against the 'exploitation unleashed by oil-producing countries'.

Citing the 8-9 per cent annual increase in crude consumption, Chidambaram proposed a price band for crude between $40-50 per barrel.

Chidambaram said that both oil producing and oil consuming countries should mutually determine the price band.

He pointed out that the Russian budget had been prepared with the assumption that oil prices would be $45 per barrel. "When the prices topped $70 per barrel, they (Russians) made a killing," said Chidambaram.

Chidambaram noted that in India the government has to divert a large chunk of its development revenues to foot the bloated oil import bill.

He said the government issued oil bonds which was "unfair on future generations". Oil bonds would ensure staggered payment to oil companies that are importing crude. Over 70 per cent of India's crude requirements are met through imports.

He disagreed with Infosys CEO Nandan Nilkeni and CII President R Seshasayee that the volatility in crude prices was 'purely due to the demand - supply gap'. The Finance Minister attributed the rise in crude prices from $55 to 78 to 'pure speculation'.

"Better sense should prevail on the oil producing countries," he said. They should stop this speculation and increase in crude prices thereby hurting the development agenda of developing countries like India.

He cautioned that if such speculation continued, the millennium development goals - mitigation of poverty -- set by United Nations could not be met by developing countries.

While UAE-based Chairman of Emaar Properties Mohamed A Alabbar skirted the crude pricing issue, US-based Chairman of CH2M HILL Companies Ralph R Peterson conceded, "There is an exploitation going on".

Even on issues like emission of green house gases, Chidambaram took a hard line against the developed countries. He was unwilling to accept the argument that poorer countries contributed to larger green house gas emission. "If energy consumption is lower then the green house gases emission would also be lower," Chidambaram said.

He asked developed countries to provide resources and clean coal technologies to countries like India and financial support to African countries. "We do not need money. They (EU and US) should provide access to resources and technologies," Chidambaram said.

Chidambaram also set aside the argument that China and India were primarily responsible for green house gas emission.

Earlier, making his initial presentation on "India in a World at Risk", Chidambaram identified water as the biggest challenge. Comprehensive policy framework coupled with desalination, water recycling, conservation and right pricing was recommended by the panelists.

Finance Minister also stated that economic growth should be made inclusive so that anti-globalisation sentiments do not result in protectionism. Chidambaram said that in democratic polity, young generation was driving greater liberalisation.

 

[Adux]

Good post Malay!

Imho Bangaluru has the best airport in the country at this moment and soon it will become an international hub connecting Australia with Europe and North America.
Did you know that Bill Gates Microsoft specially asked US DoT to gain landingrights for North West Airlines between Seattle and Bangaluru via Amsterdam?
Unfortunately the service after three flights already due logistical and security concerns.
Northwest's alliance partner KLM came with thrice a week service between Amsterdam and Hyderabad instead linking it to 20 major cities in the US.



Yes, this is a very disappointing development, one that should ring bells in New Delhi.
Despite heavy growth in manufacturing sectgor, India basically relies on agro-economy. Over 65% of the total population is concentrated in rural area's, including over 60% of the laborforce. This is one part of the huge population which will not gain the status of middle class income in a long time to come unless revolutionary steps are taken.

Misery among the poor of the rural area's is heartbreaking, there's killing among poor indebted farmers, people sell their children to save them from starvation!!

Earlier this year Delhi announed a reflief package for the poorest, a disappointing amount of $800 million, i.e. 0.01% of the GDP.
The help is to reach farmers as soft loans and thru bank accounts only to avoid mismanagement and corruption.
Unfortunately 90% of the farmers don't even have a bank account and rely on traditional private loans from landlords, money brokers and family which often results in losing their land as unpaid depth.

Tell me why Delhi is reluctant to do more for the green sector?

Neo bangalore has one of the worst airports in the country, but they are [plannin to improve it, and also along with that a new one is being built.

Adu