New Delhi: Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan has written a strongly-worded letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh opposing any move to bypass required green clearances for mega project approvals by the proposed National Investment Board (NIB) mooted by Finance Minister P Chidambaram. The proposed NIB is envisaged to act as a final body for clearing big investment proposals after which no ministry will have power to raise objections. Natarajan in her...
07:20 AM, Oct 10, 2012
Kuala Lumpur: AirAsia is keen to have more presence in India if the "aviation environment" and tax structure are "conducive and friendly" for low-cost airline operations, the group's CEO Tony Fernandes has said. He felt that though the Indian government has allowed 49 per cent foreign direct investments in the country's civil aviation sector, the cost of operating an airline were still higher than many developed nations. "This is the...
03:14 AM, Oct 10, 2012
Stockholm: IKEA, the world's largest furniture retailer, pushed ahead on Monday with a plan to open its first stores in India following the relaxation of rules on sourcing from local suppliers. India last month eased the heavily criticised rules, anxious not to scare off IKEA, one of the few big name firms that has unveiled plans to invest in the country, or any others willing to follow. The Swedish retailer...
12:39 AM, Oct 09, 2012
Kolkata: Failing to elicit adequate response from banks and other financial institutions to invest in its proposed financial hub at New Town on the city's northern periphery, the West Bengal government is considering offering a fresh package. "We are ready to offer a fresh package, if Expressions of Interest (EOIs) are not received for all plots within October 31, the last date for its submission", state urban development minister Firhad...
09:20 PM, Oct 08, 2012
Former Army chief General (retd) VK Singh has slammed the Centre's move to allow 51 per cent foreign direct investment in retail saying it will hurt the farmers. "We must think long and hard before implementing FDI in retail. We must look at why other countries are shutting it down. This is because it harms farmers and small businesses," he said. The Opposition parties and a few allies of the ...
08:49 AM, Oct 07, 2012
Srinagar: Ratan Tata, chairman of the Tata Group, said in Sriangar on Friday that Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi had opened the door for India Inc. to invest in Jammu and Kashmir. During a meeting with the local entrepreneurs on Friday, Ratan Tata said, "Rahul Gandhi has opened not only a window but a door for Indian Inc. to invest in Jammu and Kashmir. We are keen to invest in...
01:50 AM, Oct 06, 2012
Srinagar: Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi will be holding an interaction session with the students of the Kashmir University on Friday. Rahul's delegation will include country's top corporate chiefs who will also be addressing the students. The event aims at allaying the fears of big business houses who want to invest in the state and create jobs in the valley. The delegation of businessmen includes Ratan Tata, Kumar Mangalam Birla,...
12:08 PM, Oct 05, 2012
Chennai: Banana farmers are confident that they have an edge over big multi-brand retailers. With their cooperative model, they are not worried by FDI in multi-brand retail. CNN-IBN travelled to Tamil Nadu to see how farmers there responded to FDI. The banana farmers of Theni district in Tamil Nadu are not wary of FDI in multi-brand retail. They have formed a banana co-operative that deals with city traders, giving them...
09:21 AM, Oct 05, 2012
Bangalore: Promising incentives and uninterrupted power, the BJP ruled Chhattisgarh on Thursday held a road show here to lure investors from Information Technology and Bio-technology sectors. The road show is being organised ahead of the November one Global Investors Meet (GIM) in Naya Raipur, a new planned township built on 8,000 hectare by the state government. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh told reporters after a one-on-one meeting with investors from...
05:22 PM, Oct 04, 2012
New Delhi: Keeping with its promise that "reforms are here to stay", the UPA government is planning to introduce more reforms in the country. The latest being the 26 per cent FDI in pension and 46 per cent in insurance, which the Cabinet is expected to clear on Thursday. But as the government is preparing for the second round of reforms, the Opposition is getting ready to stymie the move....
05:18 PM, Oct 04, 2012
New Delhi: Many farmers of Gujarat and Haryana have been working with multi-national companies for years. CNN-IBN travelled to the two states tracking reactions on FDI in retail. The farmers in the two states seem to be seeing it as a welcome step. Farmer Satish Singh no longer has the stress of dealing with middlemen to sell his vegetables at the local mandi. He and 150 other farmers from Bakhtawarpur...
09:13 AM, Oct 04, 2012
New Delhi: Even as the BJP is fiercely opposed to FDI in multi-brand retail, party president Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday called for foreign funds in other areas and said the atmosphere should be made conducive to industrial investment. Speaking at a function of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), Gadkari said foreign investment had stopped coming into the country and Indian industrialists were investing abroad. "The atmosphere in the country is...
12:51 AM, Oct 03, 2012
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee may have pulled out of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government over her opposition to the Centre's decision to allow 51 per cent foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail. But back in her own state capital, the verdict seems to be split on whether FDI will be good or bad for the people. At Kolkata's largest wholesale market, Posta Bazar, traders seem to...
07:35 AM, Oct 01, 2012
Manmohan Singh's statements come in the wake of a public speech by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi wherein he questioned the PM and his government over the proposed reforms. ...
08:16 PM, Sep 29, 2012
New Delhi: Taking on the Opposition, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday made it clear that the "ongoing" reforms process was here to stay. Speaking to reporters, Singh questioned, "What has America got to do with reforms in India?" before adding that India was an independent country and could not be dictated by anybody. Manmohan Singh's statements come in the wake of a public speech by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra...
12:30 PM, Sep 29, 2012
New Delhi: Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Friday gave his backing to the Centre's proposal to allow 51 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail, however, adding that it won't be implemented immediately in Kerala. Speaking to reporters, Chandy said that he would support FDI in retail, but political compulsions will stop him from implementing it in his state. "At present we are ruling it out, but...
07:22 AM, Sep 29, 2012
New Delhi: Fitch Ratings has cut its 2012 growth forecasts for India to 6 percent from 6.5 per cent on deteriorating global growth outlook with diminished willingness or capacity to respond with domestic policy loosening, compared with 2009. India's economic outlook remains challenging. Investment rose just 0.7 per cent YoY in second quarter of 2012, with higher-frequency indicators pointing to another weak outturn in Q3. "Ongoing concerns over government economic...
11:48 AM, Sep 28, 2012
New Delhi: In a fresh attack on the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday released a letter in which Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had in 2002 opposed foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail. The letter was written by Singh in 2002 to the chairman of the foreign trade committee opposing foreign investments in retail. This comes just days after the Manmohan Singh government announced...
11:43 PM, Sep 27, 2012
New Delhi: The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) will push ahead with reforms, that's the message that Finance Minister P Chidambaram sought to give post the UPA Coordination Committee meet on Thursday. "No specific reforms were discussed. We discussed the need for reforms. We agree that the reforms are going to be a burden to people, but they are unavoidable," said Chidambaram, adding that the reforms had been welcomed by the...
12:13 PM, Sep 27, 2012
New Delhi: Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid on Thursday slammed ex-ally Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee saying her remarks on the UPA and the Congress were not reasonable. Mamata, in an exclusive interview to IBN18 Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai, had claimed that the UPA ran on 'money and muscle power'. Khurshid said that it was 'good alliteration but not reasonable politics'. "She has her compulsions. The language probably appeals to her...
11:54 AM, Sep 27, 2012
