Thanks for the link kaushik. Looks very informative.

latest MCH GIS maps of HYDERABAD

http://61.17.44.41/website/

Source: Moneycontrol.com (http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/kanbayinternationalfinancialservices/kanbaytoinvest50mmorehyderabad/market/stocks/article/246369/1)
Kanbay to invest $50 m more in Hyderabad

Kanbay International Inc, a technology solutions provider for the financial services industry, would invest up to $50 million in expanding its Hyderabad operations.

The company today commissioned its second campus in Hyderabad spread over 15-acre site. It has proposed to add about 3,000 more people in the near term. The company currently employs about 1,900 people in two centres in Hyderabad.

Within the next 12 to 14 months, Kanbay expects its Hyderabad headcount to grow to about 5,500 people.

In one year, the company added about 1,000 people in Hyderabad alone, complementing expansion in Pune and Chennai.

The President and Chief Executive Officer of Kanbay, Mr Raymond Spencer, said: "Kanbay's business is strong and growing. Kanbay's centres in Pune, Hyderabad and Chennai have made significant contributions to the company's overall business growth. The company aims to be a $1 billion company by 2010."

The campus, when completed, will have a capacity to host about 4,500 associates. There are active plans to evaluate additional facilities in Andhra Pradesh as also in the country.

The company, which has taken up about 30 acres site in Mahindra Park near Chennai, plans to expand operations there soon.

The Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, who inaugurated the centre, said that Andhra Pradesh would have about 15 IT Special Economic Zones, which would be the highest for any State in the country.

The State would develop necessary infrastructure to support this growth.

While assuring the IT companies of Government support, Dr Reddy said the 160-km ORR (outer ring road) project along with necessary infrastructure and satellite townships dotting this high growth corridor will ease the traffic significantly.

Thai airways to start Bangkok-Hyderabad flights this month
Bangkok | October 20, 2006 11:37:35 AM IST Webindia123.com

Thai Airways International will begin operating three flights a week between Bangkok and Hyderabad later this month, the national carrier said.

This will make Hyderabad Thai Airways’ sixth destination in India after Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Kolkata.
UNI XC SHB HS1026

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/21/stories/2006102108620400.htm
State eyes Fortune 500 companies

HYDERABAD: The Information Technology (IT) boom is headed towards another major jump with the decision of the State Government to tap Fortune 500 companies for investments here.

After Microsoft and IBM, which were already grounded here, the Government on Friday gave the go ahead to Novartis to start its operations in IT Enabled Services (ITES). A team of Novartis called on Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy when it was agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding next Wednesday.

Novartis, the fourth major pharma company in the world, was invited by the Government to set up the ITES along with R&D facility. IT Secretary K. Ratna Prabha was also in the US a few days ago to negotiate with the CEOs of nearly 25 top IT, ITES and hardware companies. Ms. Prabha told The Hindu that she met the cream of the industry and they evinced interest in locating their units here.

Hardware sector : "We are also trying to get an anchor client in the hardware sector in which we could not make a dent. Such a client was important to create a network of ancillaries," she said.

Ms. Prabha said the State had become the IT destination during the period as seen from the sanctioning of 32 Special Economic Zones (SEZs), the highest in the country.

Ms. Prabha stoutly denied that the IT industry was being developed without involving the small and medium enterprises (SMEs). In fact, ten million sft of built in area was developed for them at the Hi-TeC city here.

lots of activity. to counter Mr. Maran, something like this is def required.

Bangalore and Hyderabad hold most costly hotels in the world - a sign of booming outsourcing
Harish Baliga Oct. 22, 2006 Rediff.com

American diplomats traveling on international missions stay in approved hotels. U.S. government survey finds that Bangalore and Hyderabad hold the costliest world-class hotels in the world. The third place goes to london and Paris jointly. Interestingly New Delhi comes sixth.

A hotel of average American standard costs in Bangalore cost around $300 a night – the price tag is staggering in any comparison. Hyderabad runs a little behind with the price tag around $275. New Delhi is around $200 per night.

The same hotel that you can rend around $75 in San Francisco is renting in Bangalore for $300 a night.

What does that mean?: The supply is miniscule because 99% hotels in India does not fit in American standard. Howeverer one or two that has built for the sole purpose of housing Americans can charge anything they want.

The outsourcing booms has created the artificial rate inflation in hotel rooms of these cities.

But onething is for certain, these hotels are good. Indian outsourcing boom is real.

http://inwww.rediff.com/newshound/ap.html
India will be third largest economy by 2025: World Bank

Syed Amin Jafri | October 23, 2006 20:55 IST Rediff.com

India will become the third largest economy in the world after China and the United States of America, according to World Bank managing director Graeme Wheeler.

Addressing a media conference in Hyderabad on Monday evening, Wheeler praised India's tremendous progress in recent years and emphasised the need for sustaining the growth in the high-value sectors along with the strides in the healthcare and education sectors.

The World Bank MD earlier spent a hectic day interacting with women self-help groups, village organisations, children, mandal samakhya members, physically challenged persons as well as HIV-positive persons during his visit to Ibrahimpally and Chevella in neighbouring Rangareddy district. He also had interaction with Zilla Samakhya members at Jubilee Hall.

He disclosed that "six projects from Andhra Pradesh are in the pipeline for a cumulative net financial commitment of one billion dollars from the World Bank over the next three to four years."

He said that a budgetary support operation-the third tranche of Andhra Pradesh Reform Loan/Credit-has just been appraised and "it is expected to be presented to the Bank's Board of Executive Directors in January 2007."

He explained that the World Bank's projects currently being implemented in the state include three single-state projects (two rural poverty reduction programmes and a community forest management project) as well as several multi-state/ national projects that include a number of health projects and one project each on hydrology and the improvement of technical and engineering education.

The three single-state investment projects for a net commitment of 369 million dollars that are currently under implementation in the state are AP District Poverty Initiatives project and AP Rural Poverty Reduction project, collectively known as the Velugu programme, for which the World Bank lending amounts to $230 million.

These projects seek to enable the state's rural poor, particularly the poorest of the poor, to improve their livelihoods and quality of life. They build on the AP government's investments in self-help groups of poor rural women over the last 10 years.

Over the past five years, these projects have supported more than half a million self-help groups and 910 federations, covering eight million households in over 29,000 villages. The coverage works out to 90 per cent of all poor rural households in the state, Wheeler said and added that he was truly impressed with his first interaction with self-help groups.

The Bank's $108 million Community Forest Management project aims to improve forest management and reduce rural poverty by making the poor and primarily tribal forest-dependent communities assume full responsibility for the development and maintenance of forests formally placed under their stewardship. The project covers 5,000 villages in 14 districts of the state.

Wheeler said that the World Bank has a longstanding development partnership with Andhra Pradesh based on a shared commitment to poverty reduction. The Bank's current lending portfolio (net commitment) in the state amounts to $400 million.

He explained that in the past several years, the Bank has financed a variety of investment projects in the state- for rural roads and state highways, child nutrition, irrigation and power-as well as two structural adjustment loans which focused on fiscal, governance and power sector issues.

He praised Andhra Pradesh for forging ahead with sectoral reforms in various fields and said that the Bank was happy with the state's policy initiatives to reform the various sectors.

Rural Development Minister D Srinivas said that the lending for self-help groups from the banks at nominal interest rate of three percent per annum increased from Rs 1,200 crore (Rs 12 billion) in 2004-05 to Rs 2,000 crore (Rs 20 billion) in 2005-06. The target for the current financial year 2006-07 is Rs 3,000 crore (Rs 30 billion), he added.

Praful Patel, vice-president, South Asian Region World Bank and Faiz Omar, acting country director for India, World Bank, were present at the media meet.
lets hope, the beaurocracy would be able to sustain and continue these programs,
no matter which party gets to power.

http://www.deccan.com/City/CityNews.asp
MCH cracks down on highrise

Hyderabad, Oct. 23: The Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) on Monday decided to demolish the sixth and seventh floors of MJ Towers at Punjagutta, where three persons died in a fire accident on Saturday night. According to sources, MJ Towers had a permitted height of 15 metres but it was built up to 25.1 metres. According to officials, building regulations were also violated while constructing the building. Director-general, fire services, Alok Srivastava had also listed out fire safety violations in the building.

The action against MJ Towers is expected to kick off the MCH’s drive against highrise buildings that do not have fire safety equipment. MCH said that it would seal those buildings after a week. “We will not spare any highrise building. We will seal all those buildings [which fail to meet norms] after a week,” said MCH commissioner Sanjay Jaju.
Buildings which have more than five floors or stand above 15 metres are classified as highrise.

As many as 253 multi-storied buildings in MCH and Huda limits have failed to meet regulations. Both MCH and Huda have failed to implement fire safety norms despite an order of the AP High Court. After the fire accident in Pushpanjali complex in Koti on February 5 this year, the MCH had served notices to buildings to implement the regulations. Officials estimated that about Rs 15 lakh is required to instal fire safety equipment in a building.

The MCH warned 141 highrise builders to implement fire safety measures before September 10, 2006. Some of these builders have partly implemented the rules. Forty-four owners who did not respond will face action, officials said. Huda said that it was the responsibility of the surrounding municipalities to take action against erring builders. In all, 112 buildings that come under Huda limits were served notices.

“We only give technical approval to highrise buildings. The municipalities ha-ve to implement all the rules including fire safety regulations before issuing a final no-objection certificate,” a senior official at Huda told this correspondent.
who is to blame - the builders or the law makers?
how do they implement these rules in the other metros?

http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/10/paradise-goes-wi-fi.asp
Monday, October 23, 2006
Paradise goes Wi-fi
For over five decades the Paradise Restaurant in Secunderabad has been a hot spot for connoisseurs of biryani. Quite a few things have changed since the heydays. One thing that hasn't, is the taste of what can be termed a Hyderabadi's staple diet. On an administrative level the eatery has been adopting modern techniques. This time, the restaurant has resolved to arm its waiters with hand-held PDAs.

With the entire restaurant complex hot spotted and a new Wi-Fi online order booking and processing software in place, the 1000-seater restaurant is in for a facelift. The present DOS-based billing system will be a thing of past after the Ramzan festivities. Once implemented completely, restaurant order booking would be taken on PDAs.

A local company HyperSoft Technologies Limited has developed the software. The company, which primarily makes share broking accounting software, has deployed 14 PDAs at the restaurant besides training the stewards and kitchen staff.

"We would have seven PDAs running at a time. The rest would be on charging mode as these PDAs can run for three hours. We have deployed touch screen monitors at the restaurant's kitchens," explains Feroze R Bhote, vice-president, HyperSoft.

Orders taken by a steward would be displayed on the touch screen monitor place in the kitchens. The restaurant has a total of five kitchens. The steward can cancel the order within a stipulated time to be decided by the restaurant. Once the orders are placed, the kitchen in-charge can prioritize the items on the touch screen monitor. Once the ordered dish is prepared, the kitchen in-charge puts it on the ready-to-serve list.

"While it speeds up their order-taking process, it can also check pilfering. This is what we observed during the trial period," says Bhote. The software was run for one month on a trial basis.

http://www.business-standard.com/economy/storypage.php?tab=r&autono=262706&subLeft=1&leftnm=3
Semiconductor policy gets FinMin, Plan panel nod
Rupesh Janve / New Delhi October 24, 2006 Business Standard

Manufacturing units have come a step closer to getting their tax liability reduced with the proposed semiconductor fabrication policy, which allows companies unlimited loss carry forward facility, having been approved by both the Planning Commission and the finance ministry. Only the approval from the Cabinet is awaited.

The proposal, which will make the policy attractive to foreign companies, has been pending for a few months now. The loss carry forward facility is being given after studying the information technology ministry’s proposal to allow 100 per cent depreciation upfront.

The finance ministry had, however, earlier rejected the proposal on revenue consideration and said it is ready to give 33 per cent depreciation for three years. “Manufacturing units will now be able to reduce their tax liability accordingly,” a senior Planning Commission official said.

The IT ministry had asked for 100 per cent depreciation in the year of investment in the project, and excise duty paid on inputs to be made cenvatable against the excise duty paid on final products like wafers and semiconductors.

North Block, however, suggested a cenvat of 4 per cent for the semiconductor units and tax benefits at par with special economic zones. It also said cenvat exemption would be given to high technology products only.

The finance ministry has also supported the IT ministry’s proposal to extend the net foreign exchange positivity clause by 10 years in case of information technology SEZs. For multi-product SEZs, it said the net foreign positivity would be given for five years.

“Relaxing the positivity clause will be an additional benefit for units in export processing zones. It will also be helpful if zero excise duty is levied on imported raw materials,” said MJ Zarabi, former chairman and managing director, state-owned semi-conductor complex, Chandigarh.

The IT ministry has also advocated giving income tax and excise duty benefits to units set up in Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal. At the same time, the finance ministry has turned down the IT ministry’s proposal for research grants to be given to semi-conductor manufacturing units.

But objecting to the IT ministry’s proposal, the revenue department had pointed out that 100 per cent income tax exemption for 10 years, coupled with exemption on profits ploughed back for the next five years, would have an implication of Rs 17,500 crore. Excise duty reductions would also cost the government Rs 9,000 crore.

would this help speed up the FAB City projects?

Nice updates babji.There was a proposal earlier to make the tank bund area Wi-Fi,has it been completed?

Five landfills near city soon

source:http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/23/stories/2006102313560300.htm

The Government is planning to construct five landfills in the districts abutting the twin cities for an integrated municipal solid waste (MSW) management plan covering all the surrounding 12 municipalities and the MCH.

The plan presented to Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy recently gives itself a three-year timeframe to put the required infrastructure in place.

It is estimated to cost about Rs. 480.50 crores with landfill construction alone expected to cost up to Rs. 470 crores.

Open dumping ground


The rest of the money -- Rs. 10.50 crores -- is to be spent on construction of five new garbage transfer stations and improving the transfer stations at Indira Park, Yousufguda and Ziaguda.

Jawaharnagar, adjoining Kapra municipality, is currently the only open dumping ground for all civic bodies making up the capital region.

This will be the first site for building the long delayed sanitary landfill spread over 100 acres.

Taking into account the growth of the city, permission has been sought to construct four more landfills on highways leading towards Medak (40 acres), Mahabubnagar (100 acres), Nalgonda (150 acres) and Warangal (80 acres).

Municipalities of L.B. Nagar, Kukatpally, Malkajgiri, Kapra, Uppal, Qutbullapur, Alwal, Rajendernagar, Serilingampally, Gaddiannaram, Ramachandrapuram, and Patancheru are said to be generating 1,260.24 metric tonnes of solid waste a day with 636 open points.

MCH generates close to 2,500 metric tonnes and total solid waste is 3,760 metric tonnes.

The integrated plan comprises of strengthening door-to-door garbage collection, night sweeping on main roads, public conveniences, dumper bins, modern transport fleet, outsourcing supervision, etc.

Door-to-door collection


As per the MSW status report of surrounding municipalities, there is 100 per cent door-to-door collection in Gaddiannaram and Kapra, 98 per cent in Qutbullapur, 95 per cent in Patancheru, 90 per cent each in Uppal and Kukatpally, 87 per cent in Alwal, Malkajgiri and Rajendernagar, 80 per cent in Ramachandrapuram, 72 per cent in Serilingampally and 70 per cent in L.B. Nagar.

Municipalities will need 223 night sanitation workers, 602 dumper bins, 56 dumper placers and 1,489 rickshaws and 43 public conveniences plus link up through a wireless communication network to bring MSW management to `normal standards.'

New garbage transfer stations are planned at Fatullaguda, Samsiguda, Kapra, Rajendernagar and Serilingampally to cover the entire city.

Vermi-compost plants are planned at Fathullaguda, Ramakrishnapuram, Ammuguda, Ramanthapur, Macha Bollarum, Sudarshannagar, Papi Reddy Colony, Eight Battalion Kondapur and other sites in Kapra, Kukatpally and Patancheru.

Moldtek to set up KPO campus

http://www.andhracafe.com/index.php?m=show&id=11551

Moldtek Technologies Limited, a provider of packaging, engineering and BPO services, has decided to set up a KPO campus in Hyderabad.


The company has already earmarked Rs.15 crore for the upcoming KPO unit and has acquired land at Jubilee hills in Hyderabad for the proposed expansion.

Moldtek's existing KPO division provides complex engineering services like designing and detailing for its clients in USA, Canada, Gulf and Europe.

http://www.business-standard.com/economy/storypage.php?tab=r&autono=262706&subLeft=1&leftnm=3
Semiconductor policy gets FinMin, Plan panel nod
Rupesh Janve / New Delhi October 24, 2006 Business Standard

would this help speed up the FAB City projects?
SemIndia defers chip making plans

SemIndia Fab Pvt Ltd has decided to postpone its proposed $3-billion investment to set up India’s first chip manufacturing plant as it is unable to agree with the government on financial support to the unit’s shareholding. Instead, it will set up a smaller facility for assembly, testing, manufacturing and packaging of memory chips (ATMC) next year.

It will also review its investment plans once a more favourable policy is announced by the government.
http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=144428

I think its a big blow?..No more FABCITY?? for AP??

SemIndia is a bogus company I feel!!
How could they (YSR/Maran) trust SemIndia when they havent executed anything of this magnitude before? Were they looking for cheap land?

SemIndia defers chip making plans

SemIndia Fab Pvt Ltd has decided to postpone its proposed $3-billion investment to set up India’s first chip manufacturing plant as it is unable to agree with the government on financial support to the unit’s shareholding. Instead, it will set up a smaller facility for assembly, testing, manufacturing and packaging of memory chips (ATMC) next year.

It will also review its investment plans once a more favourable policy is announced by the government.
http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=144428

GoAP is aware of this development (during the first week of Oct). YSR even took an appointment with the PM to expedite faster processing of the policy and visited NewDelhi, but the meeting has been postponed at that time because the Polavaram Irrigation project came up for final discussions at the central Govt level at that time.

according to SemIndia's new plans, GoAP has revised the land allotment to SemIndia to facilitate their new plans. Also, GoAP is going ahead with the FAB City project and they are also doing some marketing on their own.

so, $3Bn or not, Fab City is "ON".
we may here about some more new players soon.

I think its a big blow?..No more FABCITY?? for AP??

SemIndia might end up playing a smaller roll than originally been projected.
However, FAB City is "ON". We may also here about some new players soon.

here is a news article from Deccan Chronicle dated Oct 3, 2006:

SemIndia’s Fab City share cut to 75 acres


Hyderabad, Oct. 3: The State government seems to have decided to “restrict” the role of SemIndia chairman Vinod K Agarwal in the proposed Fab City. SemIndia, which was earlier projected as the chief promoter of the 5,000-acre Fab City, will now be given 75 acres. The decision was taken at the first board meeting of Fab City Special Purpose Vehicle, which the State government now controls with three directors on the board.

The board decided to give the remaining land on lease to any semiconductor manufacturing and testing company that comes forward to set up a facility in Fab City. Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy was informed of the board’s decisions at a high level meeting here on Tuesday. He also reviewed the progress of the initiatives launched by SemIndia.

After the meeting, Dr Reddy told mediapersons that he would take up the issue of the Centre delaying the semiconductor policy with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his visit to New Delhi on Wednesday. Maintaining that the State government had moved the issue with the Centre about eight months ago, the Chief Minister said several investors were waiting for the announcement of the policy.

After the much-hyped launch of Fab City, the government was now receiving inputs about the financial strength and capabilities of Mr Agarwal, whose company Logic Vision in United States had incurred heavy losses in the last few years. He quit the company and shifted base to Hyderabad with SemIndia.

Official sources told this correspondent that SemIndia had been asked by the government to concentrate on setting up the ATMP [Assembly, Test, Marketing and Packing] which Mr Agarwal had projected as the first phase of the project. SemIndia had announced that the unit would be ready by June 2007 at the time of laying foundation stone for Fab City in June.

A note issued by the Chief Minister’s Office on Wednesday makes it clear that the ATMP is still a non-starter. According to the note, a team of international and local world-class experts of SemIndia had been operating in the city for implementation of the project.” It said that SemIndia had engaged the Ramky Group as consultants to apply for clearances.

The Chief Minister was told that the construction of ATMP plant would start immediately after the clearances were obtained. He was told that the financial tie-ups were finalised for the ATMP plant. Sources said efforts were on to rope in a top official of the Software Technology Parks of India for the project. The Fab City board also decided that 300 acres would be developed with all infrastructure though consultant Surbana International, a Singapore based company which was asked to prepare the master plan for 1,200 acres.

http://www.deccan.com/City/CityNews.asp
YSR to complain to PM

Hyderabad, Oct. 24: Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy has decided to personally take up with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of inordinate delay on the part of the Union ministry of information technology in finalising policy guidelines on incentives to attract Fab (fabrication) manufacturing units. The absence of a definitive policy has affected the Fab City project at Shamshabad.

Sources in the Secretariat said that the Chief Minister, who had written several letters to the Centre seeking a nation-wide policy for semi-conductor units, would now lodge a protest with the Prime Minister against lack of response, particularly from finance minister P. Chidambaram and IT minister Dayanidhi Maran.

Dr Singh would be on a day’s visit to the State on Thursday. He is scheduled to deliver a lecture at the National Police Academy on the city outskirts in the morning and lay the foundation stone for a road project at Kothakota in Mahbubnagar in the afternoon.

Dr Reddy would point out to the Prime Minister that SemIndia Limited, which is the facilitator for bringing in units to the proposed Fab City, has said that unless there are clear policy guidelines on the incentives from the Centre, it would not be possible to attract units.

At present, it was contemplating to start only an assembling unit, rather than real Fab manufacturing units, at the Shamshabad Fab City. Though the Fab City can house more than 10 Fab units and their supporting industries, so far only two companies — Advanced Micro Devices of USA and Flextronics of Singapore — have signed agreements with SemIndia. Since the foundation stone was laid on June 7, there has not been much progress. The Chief Minister expressed apprehensions that if there was a further delay, the interested Fab units might

SemIndia seems to have done their part to a great extent though it turned out to be less than expected...
but, did we (GoI) do our part well?

Source: The Hindu (http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/25/stories/2006102510090100.htm)

New airport to be ready by 2008

HYDERABAD: An action plan has been prepared to make the Hyderabad International Airport at Shamshabad here operational by March 2008 as major site-preparation works of the Greenfield airport are complete.

The plan seeks to complete the construction of the main components by November 2007.

Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy asked officials to complete construction of the access road to the airport from the National Highway 7 by February 2007 and all other connecting roads, including an elevated expressway, as early as possible.

Reviewing the progress of works on different airports and sea ports in the State at a meeting here on Tuesday, the Chief Minister noted that 43 per cent of the overall works of the international airport were over. The boundary wall, a major portion of the runway and taxi ways were almost complete and the project execution was ahead of schedule by a few months.

He also directed officials to launch the necessary follow-up action to implement the decision to develop an international airport at Visakhapatnam for which the Airports Authority of India would shortly conduct a feasibility study.

Small airports

Roads & Buildings Minister J. Rammohan Rao later told reporters that a draft memorandum of understanding (MoU) had been sent to the AAI on developing Rajahmundry and Vijayawada airports and additional land allotted for them. The meeting also considered proposals to develop small airports at Tadepalligudem, Nellore and Kadapa. Night landing facility would be made available at Tirupati airport soon.

The Minister said work was in full swing on the Rs. 1,800-crore Gangavaram Port near Visakhapatnam being set up as world class multi-purpose facility to handle ships of up to 2,30,000 DWT capacity.

http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/10/fabcity-troubles-continue.asp
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Fabcity troubles continue

Semindia Fab is postponing its proposed $3 billion investment to set up India's first chip manufacturing plant as it was unable to agree with the government on financial support to the unit's shareholding.

Assembly, testing, manufacturing and packaging already secured orders worth $400 million Nokia, Flextronics, AMD and others. Instead, it will set up a smaller facility for assembly, testing, manufacturing and packaging of memory chips (ATMC) next year, and review investment plans once a more favourable policy is announced by the Centre.

Sandalwood Partners managing partner and Semindia Fab director Bob Kondamoori said: "We will start with the back end ATMC by the third quarter of 2007 to show our keenness to set up the $3 billion Fab City in Hyderabad." Sandalwood Partners was one of the equity investors in the first phase of the project, and held a 5 per cent stake.

"For ATMC, the company has secured orders worth $400 million Nokia, Flextronics, AMD and others," Kondamoori said, adding that the company had a single major order worth $200 million from a leading hardware manufacturer. The Andhra Pradesh government had already cleared the allotment of 75 acres of land for the ATMC facility, he said.

Semindia had achieved financial closure on $100 million for the first phase. On an equity base of $30 million, promoters Sandalwood Partners and Flextronics together pooled in $10 million each, Kondamoori said. "Initially, we will be importing chips from Singapore and other countries and will get them tested, assembled and packaged at our facility in Hyderabad. We plan to manufacture 200 million packaged chips annually," he added.

By doing so in India, buyers would get a margin of over 8 per cent on a chip. "If the average cost of memory chip is around $5 globally, Semindia can offer it between $4.3 and $4.5 a chip," he pointed out. The chips were for mobile phones, set-top boxes, handheld devices, consumer electronics and a number of other applications. Of the 200 million units, 100 million units would be sold in India, while the rest would be earmarked for global majors.

Semindia had already received a commitment from existing buyers for an investment of $800 million in the second phase, with AMD alone willing to invest and offer technology transfer to the facility. "We have signed an agreement with AMD for tech transfer recently," Kondamoor revealed.

Source: Indian express

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/25/stories/2006102515620300.htm

`Targets' set for MCH staff

HYDERABAD: Municipal Commissioner Sanjay Jaju has directed his officials to bring at least 1,000 non-commercial units under the bulk garbage system in a phased manner from the present 200 units.

Reviewing the door-to-door collection of garbage and bulk garbage system in Circle Five of MCH here on Tuesday, Mr. Jaju also directed officials to issue identity cards to sanitation workers for easy identification in the field and to fix targets for sanitary supervisors to bring more number of units in the bulk garbage system net.

Earlier, the commissioner along with senior officials inspected the road widening works in the circle, during which he asked the officials to speed up the widening work from Ameerpet to Balanagar crossroads and to remove obstructing electric poles on the widened roads.

Sites inspected :He also told them not to allow any encroachments on the widened portions. Mr. Jaju also inspected a few sites proposed for commercial complexes and instructed officials to strictly follow guidelines before accepting the proposals.

http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/10/story-of-nacharam.asp
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
The Story of Nacharam

The industrial belt tag that hindered Nacharam in making it big on the realty radar for long appears to be fading fast. Even though pollution is a major issue land prices are as high as Rs.15000 per square yard and cost of a flat is at Rs.2000 per square feet. In just two years, the locality has witnessed a sudden burst in construction activity sending land prices soaring high.

A host of residential colonies have come up and brought along the paraphernalia of educational institutions, office establishments and small and big commercial enterprises that changed the contours of Nacharam in a short span.

The coming of IT giant GE among a host of others and the presence of research and scientific institutions along Tarnaka-Nagole stretch has fuelled the demand for a slice of land here.

The rentals have started heading for the as most localities in Habsiguda and Tarnaka have reached a state of saturation. "Areas such as HMT Colony, Snehapuri and Annapurna Nagar here are favoured most by the IT crowd. The rent for a three bedroom flat ranges between Rs. 5,000 and Rs. 7,000 while a two bedroom flat comes at Rs. 4,500 to Rs. 5,000," says T. Purushottam of S.R. Projects.

Real estate agents point out that more than 10 apartments are coming up along the Nacharam main road up to Mallapur. "Flats are available for a price range of Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 2,000 per square feet," says A. Raja of N.R. Estate Agency. Buying a piece of land has also become a costly affair here. "It is affordable if you are willing to go till Mallapur village. Along Nacharam main road, a square yard cost between Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 15,000," says a real estate agent...

"HMT and Snehapuri are model colonies and with help from residents we have built parks and made colonies free from garbage. More amenities including street lighting in uncovered areas are being worked out," says Mr. Reddy.

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/26/stories/2006102618590100.htm

MRTS routes await approval

HYDERABAD: All the three proposed routes of Hyderabad Metro's phase one for a distance of 66.39 km now await the Government's approval after they have been more or less finalised by the Empowered Committee of senior officials.

While there is no route change for line one - Miyapur to L.B.Nagar (29.8 km & 27 stations) and line two - Jubilee Bus Station to Falaknuma (14.78 km & 16 stations), a major change has already been made for line three - Habsiguda-Shilparamam (21.74 km & 20 stations).

Line one route : Line one will traverse through JNTU, KPHB Colony, Kukatpally, Balanagar, Moosapet, Bharatnagar, Erragadda, ESI Hospital, S.R.Nagar, Ameerpet, Punjagutta, Erramanzil, Khairatabad, Secretariat, Ravindra Bharathi, Assembly, Gandhi Bhavan, M.J. Market, Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station, Malakpet, Moosarambagh, Dilsukhnagar and L.B.Nagar.

Line two will traverse through Parade Grounds, Secunderabad station, Ramnagar, Chikkadpally, Narayanaguda, Sultan Bazar, Osmania Medical College, Salar Jung Museum, Charminar, Shalibanda, Shamsheergunj, Jangamet and Falaknuma.

The line will be laid at least half a kilometre away from historic sites like Charminar and Museum, said Project Director N.V.S. Reddy.

Bus terminals : All three routes will touch major bus terminals located in four corners like the Jubilee Bus Station, Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station at Imlibun, Dilsukhnagar Bus Station, Miyapur Bus Station and Charminar Bus Station.

Line three starting from Habsiguda has been altered to pass through Begumpet, Ameerpet, Madhuranagar, Yousufguda and Jubilee Hills instead of the Punjagutta-Banjara Hills-Jubilee Hills route due to steep curvature of 70 metres radius at the Rajiv Gandhi statue.

Interchange stations with the railways will be at Nampally, Secunderabad and Begumpet. For Metro, line one and line two will have an interchange station at Osmania Medical College in Koti, line 1 and line 3 interchange station will be at Ameerpet and for line 2 and line 3 at Parade Grounds. Interchange stations for MRTS with existing MMTS network will be at Bharatnagar, Begumpet, Khairatabad, Malakpet and Falaknuma. Railway lines will be crossed over at Alugadda Bavi, Hotel Ramakrishna, Old Gandhi Hospital, Begumpet, Malakpet, Khairatabad and Bharatnagar. Work may be grounded in a few months.
It looks like the technical bids have been received!.
next steps ...
Finalize Tech bids ... ... ... NOV 2006?
Select BOT developer ... .. JAN 2007?
Start works ... ... ... ... ... FEB 2007?

http://i13.************/33da6g3.jpg

Line one route will traverse through: JNTU, KPHB Colony, Kukatpally, Balanagar, Moosapet, Bharatnagar, Erragadda, ESI Hospital, S.R.Nagar, Ameerpet, Punjagutta, Erramanzil, Khairatabad, Secretariat, Ravindra Bharathi, Assembly, Gandhi Bhavan, M.J. Market, Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station, Malakpet, Moosarambagh, Dilsukhnagar and L.B.Nagar.

Line two route will traverse through: Parade Grounds, Secunderabad station, Ramnagar, Chikkadpally, Narayanaguda, Sultan Bazar, Osmania Medical College, Salar Jung Museum, Charminar, Shalibanda, Shamsheergunj, Jangamet and Falaknuma.

Line three route will traverse through:Habsiguda Begumpet, Ameerpet, Madhuranagar, Yousufguda and Jubilee Hills

http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/26/stories/2006102614480200.htm
URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/26/stories/2006102614480200.htm
Lifelike works of art

http://i14.************/2qx8275.jpg

IMPRESSIVE: Paintings done by students of Siri Drawing and Oil Painting Institute on display at the ITC Grand Kakatiya Sheraton and Towers.

HYDERABAD: Images so very real. The subjects' eyes appear to convey their feelings, as does the water that almost appears to be flowing. The leaves seem to move with the breeze and the branches sway ever so softly with the wind. Mother nature in all her splendour.

That was the scene striking the eyes of a visitor to the ITC Grand Kakatiya Sheraton and Towers here. Some 100 oil paintings, the works of 40 students of city-based Siri Drawing and Oil Painting Institute, run by artist couple Swamy and Sivakumari, were on display for five days in Hyder Mahal.

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/26/stories/2006102618590100.htm

MRTS routes await approval


It looks like the technical bids have been received!.
next steps ...
Finalize Tech bids ... ... ... NOV 2006?
Select BOT developer ... .. JAN 2007?
Start works ... ... ... ... ... FEB 2007?

Yay!......at last some news on the MRTS project.

I like the first line.......passes through a number of main stations......cool!

Exclusive bus lanes on anvil

Hyderabad: There is good news for motorists. One need no longer be worried about buses zigzagging on main roads and stop haphazardly at bus stops. On at least two main roads to start with in the city, there will be exclusive bus lanes.

The town planning department of the MCH is planning 25-feet wide bus lanes on SP Road and Erragadda-Ameerpet road as part of road widening works. Only buses will be allowed to ply on these lanes. The bus lanes are planned alongside 10-feet wide footpaths on the main roads.

Once the road widening works which are progressing comes to an end, some of the main roads in the city will look something like this—10 feet of footpath, 25 feet of exclusive bus lanes, 36 feet for three-lane traffic and a five-feet wide divider. The same composition will exist on the other side of the divider.

“The main constraint in the city is that people keep getting off and into buses at traffic signals and so it is important that the buses ply on the extreme left side of the road,” B Purushottam Reddy, chief city planner of the MCH, told TOI on Wednesday. Accordingly, the town planning wing of the MCH is planning to have wide foot paths. This means that along with wider roads, footpaths will also get wider.

In many areas like the Ameerpet road, the MCH is coming up with 6 to 10-feet wide footpaths with 2-feet wide space for plants and trees.

An official with the MCH said that insufficient footpaths are a reason for pedestrians using roads. This effectively reduces the area left for vehicle traffic. The idea of the MCH is to encourage more people to use the footpaths.
Finally, my agitation over foot-paths issue seems to be working. :yes:
:banana2:

Ur not the only one with a sidewalk issue: I too feel they're important.

thats good news raghavendra.One of the most imp problem we are facing is the lack of footpaths.good to see that the mch is finally waking up.

regarding the MRTS,the alignment of the line 3,might create some issues.
Do you guys think that the removal of Punjagutta and banjara hills from the route will cause a bit of inconvinience?as line 1 almost covers yousufguda etc?

Great Video of THE HITEC CITY

Hey guys enjoy this great video.Shows the whole Hitec Area

ALL CREDIT TO AMAR
SOURCE :Google Videos

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3172753415492011143&q=hyderabad+hitec+city&hl=en

thats good news raghavendra.One of the most imp problem we are facing is the lack of footpaths.good to see that the mch is finally waking up.

regarding the MRTS,the alignment of the line 3,might create some issues.
Do you guys think that the removal of Punjagutta and banjara hills from the route will cause a bit of inconvinience?as line 1 almost covers yousufguda etc?

The removal of Punjagutta is a potential issue but not B.Hills: it is a "classy" area and thus most residents probably wound't want to take PT...no matter how good. I guess they're elitists in that respect.

Also, the Kukatpally line will go through Punjagutta, so that will help reduce the need for buses on that route to an extent.

Suchirindia launches Rs 200cr realty project in Hyderabad (http://business-standard.com/compindustry/storypage.php?tab=r&autono=262885&subLeft=1&leftnm=1)

City-based realty player Suchirindia Developers Private Limited announced a Rs 200-crore cosmopolitan residential project – Timberleaf – in Hyderabad on Tuesday.

The gated community venture, coming up on 25 acres near the Shamshabad International Airport on the outskirts of the city, would have 123 Spanish and Italian villas.

Each of the villas, to be built on 320 square yards with a built-up space of 3,600 sqft in duplex form, comes with a price tag of Rs 1.24 crore.

The project will have Wi-fi enablement and a water purifier plant, besides facilities like health centre, gymnasium, computerised information centre, jogging track, ATM and a centralised gas station.

A kindergarten school, music rooms with instruments, study and tuition rooms, library and a cyber cafe are also being planned for kids.

Keeping the profile of potential buyers in view, the company is offering security features that include key-less entry, intruder alarms, watchman-tracking device, gas-leak detectors, boom-barriers at the main entry and CCTV integrated with cable TV.

"We expect the entire project to be complete by December 2008," he said.

City to host global pharma meet
http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/27/stories/2006102716830400.htm

A four-day global bio-pharma conference-2006 will be held here from November 9 during which a biotechnology (BT) boot camp will be conducted for entrepreneurs, senior executives and researchers.

`Synergies in global biotechnology industry' is the theme of the conference organised by the Global Bio Pharma Conference Group, a non-profit body of professionals representing multi-national companies.

The first two days of deliberations will be followed by the boot camp to be conducted by Stephen Sammut from Wharton Business School, a press release said.

Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy will inaugurate the event. Scientists, CEOs of pharma majors and academicians from leading business schools of India and USA will participate.

Topics include new initiatives in BT, clinical research, regulatory aspects and technology transfer.

The conference is being supported by the Bulk Drugs Manufacturers Association, pharmaceutical professionals, Florida International University, Indian Drug Manufacturers Association, Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council and Intelligent Enterprise Solutions Inc

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/27/stories/2006102716830400.htm

City to host global pharma meet

HYDERABAD: A four-day global bio-pharma conference-2006 will be held here from November 9 during which a biotechnology (BT) boot camp will be conducted for entrepreneurs, senior executives and researchers.

`Synergies in global biotechnology industry' is the theme of the conference organised by the Global Bio Pharma Conference Group, a non-profit body of professionals representing multi-national companies.

The first two days of deliberations will be followed by the boot camp to be conducted by Stephen Sammut from Wharton Business School, a press release said.

Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy will inaugurate the event. Scientists, CEOs of pharma majors and academicians from leading business schools of India and USA will participate.

Topics include new initiatives in BT, clinical research, regulatory aspects and technology transfer.

The conference is being supported by the Bulk Drugs Manufacturers Association, pharmaceutical professionals, Florida International University, Indian Drug Manufacturers Association, Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council and Intelligent Enterprise Solutions Inc.

ORR: Court declines to invoke Article 355
http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/27/stories/2006102708560400.htm

A Division Bench of the High Court on Thursday declined to entertain a miscellaneous petition to invoke Article 355 in the name of situation arising out of alleged illegal activities in connection with Outer Ring Road project (ORR).

The Bench was hearing a writ petition filed by the Telugu Desam functionaries complaining against the State Government that they have committed serious irregularities in the project.

Appropriate orders


The Bench further directed the Central Government to respond and pass appropriate orders on the request made by the State Government seeking a CBI probe.

When the case had come up for hearing on Thursday, the petitioner's counsel said that an amendment petition has been filed seeking amendment of the prayer for a direction invoking Article 355 which declares that it shall be the duty of the Centre to protect every State against external aggression and internal disturbances.

However, the Bench was not inclined to entertain this plea for amending the prayer and adjourned the matter by four weeks.

Great Video of THE HITEC CITY

Hey guys enjoy this great video.Shows the whole Hitec Area

ALL CREDIT TO AMAR
SOURCE :Google Videos

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3172753415492011143&q=hyderabad+hitec+city&hl=en

ENJOY THE VIDEO

RIL to launch first retail store in Hyderabad
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1060335

Reliance Industries, India's largest private firm, is likely to launch its first retail store in Hyderabad in the next fortnight.

The Mukesh Ambani-run company is planning to open five to 10 retail stores in Hyderabad within a fortnight, industry sources said.

A company spokesperson, however, declined to comment.

Nita Ambani, Mukesh Ambani's wife, is designing the stores and will be incharge of branding.

While Mukesh Ambani aide Manoj Modi will head the company's retail venture, Nita Ambani would be incharge of branding, communications and people outreach.

She would deal with Reliance Retail's corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives as well as reach out to stakeholders including farmers, middle class consumers and suppliers.

:dj:

Source: The Hindu (http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/27/stories/2006102715180300.htm)
347 new buses for city

Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD: The city region of APSRTC will soon add 347 new buses to its fleet. The corporation has sanctioned the buses for the financial year 2006-07, according to Regional Manager C. Panduranga Murthy.

Mr. Murthy, addressing the newly appointed traffic guides at the Zonal Staff Training College at Hakeempet on Thursday, said the occupancy ratio of the city region has gone up from 58 to 74 per cent, a record in the history of RTC.

Except for Bangalore Metro Transport Services and RTC, urban transport services across the country were incurring losses. "We achieved 16 per cent growth in the occupancy ratio only because of steps taken up for passengers' convenience," he said.

He said 50 traffic guides would be deployed at Patny in Secunderabad, Paradise, Tadbund, Bowenpally, Balanagar, Narsapur crossroads and Kukatpally to regulate the movement of vehicular traffic at bus bays, assist commuters and prevent autorickshaws from ferrying passengers. Traffic guides would also be arranged at bus stops on the main stretches from Lakdikapul to Tolichowki and Charminar to Lakdikapul in a phased manner.

Now that they are planning exclusive bus lanes, I think buses of this kind are feasible. :)

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/7258/brts02kp4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

If anyone has doubt about their manoeuverability, check this video....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6qwRIg36Gw

This newspaper report says that Central government might announce semi-conductor policy during the cabinet meeting that is going to take place in november. :)

http://www.vaarttha.com/vaarttha/hed15.asp

^^ that'll be good for the Fab-City right?

this is probably a stupid question, but where in HYD is the FabCity planned?

Does anyone has the idea of the route map that PM laid a foundation stone yesterday in AP. How does the route map connects nagpur, bangalore and hyderabad on NH-7? Please post if you have any article?

that'll be good for the Fab-City right?

this is probably a stupid question, but where in HYD is the FabCity planned?
Yes, that will be good for fab-city.

Fab-city is coming up in Shamshabad and Maheshwaram area.

BTW, how did you read that telugu newspaper report ? :naughty:

Does anyone has the idea of the route map that PM laid a foundation stone yesterday in AP. How does the route map connects nagpur, bangalore and hyderabad on NH-7? Please post if you have any article?
hope this helps:
http://www.nhai.org/Nsew_english.htm

NH7: B'lore - Anantapur - Kurnool - Kothakota - Hyd - Armur - Nnagpur

Now that they are planning exclusive bus lanes, I think buses of this kind are feasible. :)

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/7258/brts02kp4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

If anyone has doubt about their manoeuverability, check this video....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6qwRIg36Gw

thats a great idea.
but the constraints are, RTC drivers' driving habits and maintenance infra in AP for such buses.
Police keep complaining about lack of respect for traffic rules on the part of RTC drivers.
and the turn around time for the new Volvo buses, even for a minor repair , is a minimum of one week.
btw, the video is great and road is almost empty - imagine 90 degree turns on 1 or 2 lane roads...

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/28/stories/2006102819590100.htm
Court's strict orders on illegal constructions

HYDERABAD: Commissioners of municipalities and municipal corporations in the State can no more afford to sit over representations made by citizens regarding illegal constructions.

A Bench of the High Court on Friday made it clear that within two weeks the representations had to be acted upon and responses sent back to the complainants.

The Bench passed this far-reaching orders to be sent to each municipality and municipal corporation by the Principal Secretary of Municipal Administration while disposing of a case filed by Sri Ramakrishna Baktha Samajam of Bapatla, Guntur district.

The Ramakrishna Baktha Samajam filed the writ petition complaining that the constructions in violation of the sanctioned plan were going on and a big building was being constructed without leaving setback as mandated in the sanctioned plan.

It was further complained that the Municipal Commissioner had not acted upon the representation even after inspecting the site. The Bench granted stay and directed the municipal council to inform the court about the action taken. The Municipal Commissioner informed the court that he had issued notice.

Several cases: The Bench took note of the fact that several cases were being filed complaining against the inaction of the municipal authorities in this regard.

The Bench speaking through the Chief Justice made it clear that from now on every complaint made regarding construction without a sanctioned plan, construction in violation of the sanctioned plan, constructions made in violation of the zonal development plans shall be looked into and action initiated and complainant shall be informed within two weeks.

The Bench gave permission to the Ramakrishna Baktha Samajam to approach the court if the Commissioner did not continue to act in letter and spirit of the municipal law.
its not clear, how they wanna resolve...
impose a penalty and regularise, or dismantle, or ...

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/28/stories/2006102817870300.htm
21 additional bus services in twin cities

HYDERABAD: The city region of APSRTC will be operating 21 additional bus services from different parts of the city from Saturday.

Five additional trips will be operated on route number 290T/S from Torrur to Jubilee Bus Station via Hayathnagar, L. B. Nagar crossroads, Nagole crossroads, Uppal crossroads, Tarnaka and Secunderabad from Saturday.

Six more services will be operated on route number 158 Y/P from Dilsukhnagar to Peddamma Temple via Women's College, Lakdikapul, Khairatabad, Yousufguda, Venkatagiri crossroads and Jubilee Hills check-post and
two more trips on route number 127 LV/D from Dilsukhnagar to L. V. Prasad Eye Hospital at Banjara Hills via Women's College, Lakdikapul and Masab Tank from Saturday.
Eight services will be operated on the route number 22K from Bharatnagar to Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station via Kowkur, Risala Bazaar, Bolarum, Alwal, Lal Bazaar, Secunderabad and Koti from November 1.
what happened to the SETWIN buses?
are they plying?

what happened to the SETWIN buses?
are they plying?

Yes, they are in action. We can find a number of them on DSNR - Kukatpally route. :)

Fab’ulous hopes, but where is the manpower?
Saturday October 28 2006 10:20 IST Newindpress

HYDERABAD: Locally-qualified job aspirants perk up at the very mention of Fab City. Understandably so, given all the hype and hoopla that accompanied its announcement. Floodgates of opportunity would be thrown open to qualified scientists, technocrats and engineers at the higher-end -- or so it was thought. Correct, but then the required hands have to be imported!

In the initial stages at least, Fab City would be a boon only to technocrats currently based outside the country rather than within it.

So, while the proposed Fab City would undoubtedly have the potential to create tens of thousands of jobs, the vital question is where does one secure the manpower with the requisite expertise? Meeting the demand for the hardware/semiconductor industry is not an easy job and concerted efforts should have begun by now, feel analysts.

“The manpower needed for Fab City will be a mix of technical, semi-technical and non-technical people,” says Vinod K Agarwal, chairman SemIndia.

India has the manpower for semi-technical and non-technical areas. But the tough task of training people within lies ahead and research institutions of the highest calibre would have to be set up to create a steady stream of specialised manpower, he feels.

Another requirement relates to the development of a suitable eco-system. “We need to develop a complete eco-system like the Suzhou Industrial Park in China,” says Venkat Rajaraman, vice-president (engineering), Portal Player.

“Semiconductor manufacturing requires an entire eco-system right from semiconductor (IC) design houses to Test, Assembly & Packaging (TAP) houses and wafer fabs. Research institutes, universities, colleges and social infrastructure are also necessary. So, for the Fab City vision to be fulfilled, the entire eco-system has to be established,” he noted.

Against this backdrop, industry pundits say it would have been wise to start at the bottom, addressing the basic needs of the industry first. Otherwise Fab City would turn out “like the Railways which were introduced in India -- the routes laid out haphazardly to benefit only British investors”, says an industry expert.

All this boils down to laying stress on producing world-class Ph Ds in basic sciences -- chemistry, physics, and materials sciences (disciplines which ironically had suffered in the country in the wake of the software boom) -- and experienced operators who can run the machines, feel industry sources.

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/29/stories/2006102915270300.htm

MCH wants structures removed for road widening
100-ft-wide road from Masab Tank to Nagarjuna Junction
Road plan showing affected property will be given to owners

HYDERABAD: The MCH has directed owners of buildings to remove steps and other structures on road portions earmarked for widening along the Masab Tank Crossroads to Nagarjuna Junction on Road No.1, Banjara Hills.

Chief City Planner B. Purushothama Reddy said on Saturday that a road development plan has been okayed to extend the stretch for a width of 100 ft starting from Wednesday next (November 1) and as such, it was necessary to remove such structures.

The MCH had earlier sanctioned building permissions for some properties after duly taking over the affected portions in the proposed widening as per prevailing statutory provisions but some constructions had come up, he said.

Road plan :Seeking cooperation from the owners and general public, Mr. Reddy said the road plan showing the extent of affected area of the property will be given to the owners along with consent forms. The civic staff will personally inspect and explain the procedure to the affected parties.

The MCH will pay the requisite structural compensation for the affected property owners or re-construct the affected properties besides also extending other benefits as per GO 483. Transfer of developmental rights will also be allowed, he added.

For more information, the following officials can be contacted: City Planner - K. Purushothama Reddy (98496-641199), ACP-5 Mohd. Khalid Sanwar (98490-06049), ACP-4 K. Narsing Rao (98665-22713), TPAs Mohd. Iqbal (99499-94003) and R.E. Nageswara Rao (99499-94017).

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/29/stories/2006102913890200.htm
Two special purpose vehicles likely for MRTS

HYDERABAD: While the Empowered Committee debates the legal, financial and technological issues it is now becoming clear that there will be two separate special purpose vehicles (SPV) for Hyderabad's Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS).

Other than the Hyderabad Metro Rail Corporation, the selected Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) developer(s) will also form an SPV for construction, running and maintenance of the project. The committee headed by Chief Secretary J. Harinarayana is also working on different contractual packages to be awarded to the prospective developers for which six national-international consortia are vying.

Financial bids: An independent engineer is also to be appointed to oversee the project construction since the term of the current technical consultant Span-SEMALY will cease to exist once it helps the Government in clearing the technical and financial bids, says Project Director N.V.S. Reddy.

Altogether, the committee held three meetings to examine in detail the issues of tender packages, technical specifications, performance criteria, State's share, Centre's grant, developer's role, concessionaire agreement and so on. Mr. Reddy claimed that the bid documents were by and large vetted. Considering this was perhaps the single largest project in the public-private partnership mode, there were several complex issues involved like obligations and warranties by each other to be studied.

Fare structure: "These are large gestation high risk projects, hence we have to look at the lenders' comfort, BOT developer's risk, financial intent of the State and public interest. We want to have private sector's efficiency while protecting larger interest of the society," he says. For instance, the fare structure will have to be `attractively' structured without causing much loss. Benchmarks are being set for quality, safety and reliability.

Such has been the detailing done by the committee that it has been looking into collision resistant and anti-climber features of the coaches, ergonomically designed drivers' cabins to reduce fatigue and automatic train control system where speed of a train is automatically controlled during a face off.
next steps:
Finalize Tech bids ... ... ... Nov 2006
Select BOT developer ... .. Dec 2006
Form HMRC ... ... ... ... ... Jan 2007
Form BOT's SPV ... ... ... . Jan 2007
Appoint Overseer Engr ... . Jan 2007
Start works ... ... ... ... ... Jan 2007
===========================

Very gud. By the looks of things.....it appears that the Gov. and the MCH are taking really gud care in shaping up the MRTS project.

:)

Rooms with a view: Tariffs, occupancy up for third year

Corporate Bureau

Mumbai, Oct 28 Hospitality majors in India have witnessed a confidence-boosting increase, both in occupancy and average room rates (ARRs), for the third year in a row. The industry, which saw a 12-month growth of 23.7% in average rate during 2005-06, continued to grow at a similar pace, as opposed to the 20.7% growth of the previous year.

The all-India occupancy mark too touched the 70.8% mark for the first time and many cities were completely sold out on a number of weekday nights, resulting in hotels hiking their rates sharply. The largest increases were seen in the luxury segment, followed by the mid-market and budget segments.

According to hospitality consulting and appraisal firm HVS International, hotels in cities like Delhi, Hyderabad and Jaipur were able to charge higher tariffs because of the demand-supply imbalance. Hotels across all categories also witnessed an improved foreign-domestic guest ratio. Therefore, despite a stronger rupee, the growth in average rate in dollar terms was higher across all categories.

Hyderabad replaced Bangalore as the fastest growing average rate market, registering a growth rate of 36.7% — an important achievement, considering that the city was the weakest in terms of average rate ten years ago. Goa and Kolkata saw the highest growth in occupancies, followed by Chennai and Hyderabad. The occupancy levels for Hyderabad (83.1%) and Delhi (81.7%) are those unmatched for nearly ten years. Bangalore, however, registered a marginal decline to notch up an occupancy of 79.6%. Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai achieved 78.3%, 76.4% and 75.3% occupancy levels respectively.

But capacity addition is being planned and according to industry estimates, the potential new room supply has already touched 48,500 new rooms. This does not include Pune, which alone has at least 25 hotels under development. Also, about 4,600 rooms will enter this market in the next five years.

The biggest growth in proposed supply of new hotel rooms is being witnessed in the two IT cities of Bangalore and Hyderabad. However, HVS believes that an acute shortage of rooms will prevail in these five-six major markets, at least for the next four years, which will result in huge levels of un-accommodated demand.
URL: http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=144877

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/29/stories/2006102915270300.htm

MCH wants structures removed for road widening

This is quite welcome, though I'm quite curious as to how certain properties, i.e. GVK One, Taj Krishna, Taj Residency, etc. will handle it. Although both Taj Hotels have plenty of spare land, GVK One may have to lose its proposed dedicated traffic bay for incoming traffic (hopefully not).

I hope this project will get off the ground as quickly as B.Hills Rds. 2 & 3, SP Road, and J. Hills Rd. # 36.

Also, they need to pay attention to sidewalk quality when widening B. Hills Rd. No. 1 up to Masab Tank Jn. The sidewalks must be interestingly tiled, and the medians must be green beyond Taj Krishna Jn.

So for a rough estimate, let's take a road width of 100ft. Then, subtract 10ft (5ft on either side) for sidewalks. Then 5ft for the center divider. That's 85ft. Then, make 10ft (5ft on either side) into dedicated parking lanes (with tiles, like on Necklace Rd), then 5ft (2.5ft on either side) into dedicated bicycle lanes. That gives us 70ft. We then divide it by 8ft (standard lane width on surface streets) to give us 64ft with a remainder of 6ft. Of the 6ft remainder, 3ft on either side should be added to the parking spaces, making them 8ft wide each. Of the remaining 64ft, they should make 32ft carriageways (4 lanes each) on either side of the median.

To refresh your memory, here's my proposed layout again:

5ft sidewalk:8ft parking lane:2.5ft bicycle lane:32ft 4-lane carriageway:5ft median:32ft 4-lane carriageway:2.5ft bicycle lane:8ft parking lane:5ft sidewalk.

The sidewalks should be fenced near intersections, with gaps at the crosswalks.

Last but not least: they should add parking meters to the parking lanes. You will have to paralell park in 6m-long horisontal divisions along the sidewalk, and each 6m division shall have one parking meter. I don't have any suggestions for the price, but how about Rs. 5 for 15 min? Don't worry if you feel it's too high, bicyclists will have free bike racks at select points on the sidewalk, and motorcyclists will have their own unmetered parking spots ever 5 car spots. Also, motorcyclists and small car owners will be able to use the existing underground parking lots already present in some of the buildings along this road. Parking fees for the underground parking lots will still remain under the owners' discretion under my proposal.

The pavement on the main carriageways will need to be paved a bit deeper into the ground, or perhaps even concretized. Once all this is done, the speed limit can easily be increased to 65km/h. Currently, it is 20km/h, though the actual flow of traffic is usually 45-55km/h at off-peak times.

If you have any suggestions, feel free to post them.

One of the world's fastest car the Bentley Continental Flying Spur has now been launched in Hyderabad.


Priced in the range of Rs 1.9 to Rs 2 crore, the British-based company is to offer this four-door variant in the Continental series which can touch a speed of 290 kmph to a select 60-70 super-rich people of Hyderabad.

With a mileage of just 5 km per litre the luxury vehicle boasts of a six-litre, 12-cylinder, twin-turbocharged engine which can power it from 0-60 mph in only 4.9 seconds.

Other features include seven standard and cost option alloy sports wheels, a DVD satellite navigation system that can route the traveller across continents without having to change the disc, a Bluetooth telephone system, advanced keyless entry and ignition technology, four-zone climate control, electronically adjustable front seats with lumbar message, memory and heating, and gearshift paddles on the multi-function steering wheel.

Bentley entered India in 2003. Worldwide, the company has sold about 8,000 cars so far, all models included. In India, it sells about 20 cars a year. It has a showroom only in New Delhi but has held roadshows in Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore.

The Bentley Continental Flying Spur is one of the fastest cars in the world and it has now been launched in Hyderabad, reports CNBC-TV18.

It can be driven at a top speed of 312 kilometres an hour. It's got a 552 horse power engine and an equally stunning price tag of Rs 1.95 crore.

Bentley has produced 10,000 such cars across the world this year, up from a thousand in 2003.

The Bentley Continental Flying Spur is one of the fastest cars in the world and it has now been launched in Hyderabad, reports CNBC-TV18.

It can be driven at a top speed of 312 kilometres an hour. It's got a 552 horse power engine and an equally stunning price tag of Rs 1.95 crore.

Bentley has produced 10,000 such cars across the world this year, up from a thousand in 2003.

http://news.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/hyderabadbentleycontinentalflyingspur/bentleycontinentalflyingspursnowhyderabad/11/56/article/247792

http://www.andhracafe.com/index.php?m=show&id=11713

Those lucky few Hyderabadis who will buy this car are sure gonna have a ball when the ORR opens. However, I hope they won't ever have to go into the old city with those things.

So for a rough estimate, let's take a road width of 100ft. Then, subtract 10ft (5ft on either side) for sidewalks. Then 5ft for the center divider. That's 85ft. Then, make 10ft (5ft on either side) into dedicated parking lanes (with tiles, like on Necklace Rd), then 5ft (2.5ft on either side) into dedicated bicycle lanes. That gives us 70ft. We then divide it by 8ft (standard lane width on surface streets) to give us 64ft with a remainder of 6ft. Of the 6ft remainder, 3ft on either side should be added to the parking spaces, making them 8ft wide each. Of the remaining 64ft, they should make 32ft carriageways (4 lanes each) on either side of the median.

To refresh your memory, here's my proposed layout again:

5ft sidewalk:8ft parking lane:2.5ft bicycle lane:32ft 4-lane carriageway:5ft median:32ft 4-lane carriageway:2.5ft bicycle lane:8ft parking lane:5ft sidewalk.

The sidewalks should be fenced near intersections, with gaps at the crosswalks.

Last but not least: they should add parking meters to the parking lanes. You will have to paralell park in 6m-long horisontal divisions along the sidewalk, and each 6m division shall have one parking meter. I don't have any suggestions for the price, but how about Rs. 5 for 15 min? Don't worry if you feel it's too high, bicyclists will have free bike racks at select points on the sidewalk, and motorcyclists will have their own unmetered parking spots ever 5 car spots. Also, motorcyclists and small car owners will be able to use the existing underground parking lots already present in some of the buildings along this road. Parking fees for the underground parking lots will still remain under the owners' discretion under my proposal.

The pavement on the main carriageways will need to be paved a bit deeper into the ground, or perhaps even concretized. Once all this is done, the speed limit can easily be increased to 65km/h. Currently, it is 20km/h, though the actual flow of traffic is usually 45-55km/h at off-peak times.

If you have any suggestions, feel free to post them.
^^ Bicycle lanes ??!!

IMO, rather than having bicycle lanes, we can allocate that space for an extra wide sidewalks, coz road no-1 is a main shopping area and we can see a heavy pedestrians movement there. :)

I just saw in TV that Reliance retail's first shop is opening today at Banjara Hills. :)

Where is this new Reliance shop?

As for the bicycle lane/sidewalk issue, why not make the bicycle lanes 1.5ft instead od 2.5ft and put 6ft sidewalks instead of 5ft ones?

New layout:

6ft sidewalk:8ft parking lane:1.5ft bicycle lane:32ft 4-lane carriageway:5ft median:32ft 4-lane carriageway:1.5ft bicycle lane:8ft parking lane:6ft sidewalk.

Last but not least, FOBs should be built at the following locations:


Nagarjuna Circle, just after the end of the Punjagutta Flyover, on Both Rd. #1 and Rd. #2
GVK One, at the Rs. #7 (I.K. Road) and Rd. # 4 Roundabouts
F9, at Rd. #10 Jn, over all the existing crosswalks on rd. #1 and on Rd. #10 at the Jn.
Care Hospital, at Rd. # 11 Jn.
Taj Banjara, to allow the hotel's guests direct access to the pedestrian shopping district.
Rd #12 Jn, with FOBs over all the existing crosswalks on the Jn.
Masab Tank Jn. paralell to the existing flyover.

Hyderabad, Oct 29 (IANS) A world-class spa, a training centre in spa technology and hospitality, five-star hotels and an urban entertainment centre are among the key tourism projects coming up in and around Hyderabad with a total investment of Rs.7 billion.

Andhra Pradesh has attracted about Rs.9 billion of private investment in tourism projects during last two years while the state government has spent Rs.2 billion on the sector.


Tourism Minister J. Geeta Reddy Sunday disclosed these figures while releasing a new investor-friendly tourism policy.


The state already claims to be the number one in domestic tourism. 'Almost 89 million domestic tourists are coming to Hyderabad every year,' she said.


Replying to the argument that a large number of tourists were pilgrims visiting the famous temple of Lord Venkateswara at Tirupati, she said: 'A lot of them come to Hyderabad which has become a major hub of business tourism in the country.'


A five-star hotel with more than 250 rooms and 100 service apartments is coming up near Hitec City, the IT hub, at an estimated cost of Rs.5 billion. The Hilton group also plans to develop a hotel in the area, which already has a world-class convention centre and a five-star hotel developed by the Dubai-based Emmar group.


New Delhi-based Indian Hotels and Health Resorts Hospitality Private Limited, the owners of famous Ananda spa in Himalayas, and the state government are jointly setting up a world class spa, hotel and training centre in spa technology and hospitality on 14.94 acres at Nanakramguda on the outskirts of Hyderabad at a cost of Rs.1 billion.


The other major project is an urban entertainment centre on 5.61 acres of land at Basheerbagh in the heart of the city. The centre, to be developed with an estimated cost of Rs.1.37 billion, will have a mega shopping mall, multiplexes, business convention centre, ethnic bazaar and theme parks.


Geeta Reddy said a health spa, hotels, multi-theme park, convention centre and urban entertainment centre were also coming up in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam.


To attract new investment in the sector, the government will offer various incentives including investment subsidy of 20 percent of the project cost subject to a maximum of Rs.2 million. To encourage upgradation to international standards, selected hotels will be offered an incentive of 15 percent of the project cost.


In another move to promote tourism, the state government had a tie-up with Air Deccan to link Hyderabad with popular tourist destinations outside the state like Goa, Coimbatore and Cochin.


The tourism department has appointed shooter Amit Sanghi and golf player P. Krishna Reddy as its brand ambassadors.

© 2006 Indo-Asian News Service

http://news.monstersandcritics.com/india/article_1215851.php/Tourism_projects_worth_Rs.7_bn_coming_up_in_Hyderabad

HYDERABAD, India (AFX) - Reliance Industries said it will open a series of stores here this week in a pilot project as part of its efforts to set up a nationwide chain of retail stores on the lines of Wal-Mart of the US.

The 11 'neighbourhood' stores, to be called Reliance Fresh, will sell groceries and other goods from Friday as a pilot project to 'understand customer needs,' Reliance said.

'We are starting a pilot journey of listening to customers and learning from them,' said Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries whose main business is petroleum refining.

Ambani has said he wants to make the company's new stores arm, Reliance Retail, a 'Wal-Mart in India' and has set an annual sales target of 25 bln usd by 2011.


Reliance plans to invest 7-8 bln usd in setting up its stores arm that will cover 1,500 Indian cities and towns in the country, said a senior Reliance official.

It will sell a host of products from food and clothes to consumer durables in a mix of formats from convenience stores to hypermarkets.

'Indians are changing to consumers who buy from compulsion because they want something, not because of necessity,' the Reliance official who did not wish to be named said.

The first stores will range in size from 2,000-5,000 square feet.

'The company will continuously fine-tune its offerings based on customer responses' over the next few months in different locations and using various formats, the official said.

But Reliance aims to ramp up operations swiftly and have 4,000 stores by 2010 with some as big as 150,000 square feet, the official said.

'We want to reach out to more than 60 percent of the population in four years time,' the official told Agence France-Presse.

The retail company aims to be India's biggest private-sector generator of jobs and eventual employ some 500,000 people, he said, adding at least 25,000 have already been hired.

Reliance has been racing to set up deals with state governments to establish rural hubs to buy fruit, vegetables, pulses and dairy goods from farmers as it moves to build a 'state-of-the-art supply chain spanning the entire country,' the official said.


http://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/afx/2006/10/29/afx3127985.html

[QUOTE=Naga_Solidus;10275523]
So for a rough estimate, let's take a road width of 100ft. Then, subtract 10ft (5ft on either side) for sidewalks. Then 5ft for the center divider. That's 85ft. Then, make 10ft (5ft on either side) into dedicated parking lanes (with tiles, like on Necklace Rd), then 5ft (2.5ft on either side) into dedicated bicycle lanes. That gives us 70ft. We then divide it by 8ft (standard lane width on surface streets) to give us 64ft with a remainder of 6ft. Of the 6ft remainder, 3ft on either side should be added to the parking spaces, making them 8ft wide each. Of the remaining 64ft, they should make 32ft carriageways (4 lanes each) on either side of the median.

To refresh your memory, here's my proposed layout again:

5ft sidewalk:8ft parking lane:2.5ft bicycle lane:32ft 4-lane carriageway:5ft median:32ft 4-lane carriageway:2.5ft bicycle lane:8ft parking lane:5ft sidewalk...
sounds good.
however, this is gonna be one of the busiest feeder routes for HIAL bound traffic.
and all the hotels and malls enroute are expected to provide parking for their customers
plus, there will be private parking facilities.
also, an express bus (Sec-bad - Begumpet - HIAL) via this route is not ruled out.

so, how about making it a 10 lane carriageway...

Hyderabad Update V

(contd from Hyderabad Update IV)

http://skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=10280143#post10280143

Lets continue in the new thread (Hyderabad UpdateV):

http://skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=10280132#post10280132

[QUOTE=Naga_Solidus;10275523]
So for a rough estimate, let's take a road width of 100ft. Then, subtract 10ft (5ft on either side) for sidewalks. Then 5ft for the center divider. That's 85ft. Then, make 10ft (5ft on either side) into dedicated parking lanes (with tiles, like on Necklace Rd), then 5ft (2.5ft on either side) into dedicated bicycle lanes. That gives us 70ft. We then divide it by 8ft (standard lane width on surface streets) to give us 64ft with a remainder of 6ft. Of the 6ft remainder, 3ft on either side should be added to the parking spaces, making them 8ft wide each. Of the remaining 64ft, they should make 32ft carriageways (4 lanes each) on either side of the median.

To refresh your memory, here's my proposed layout again:

5ft sidewalk:8ft parking lane:2.5ft bicycle lane:32ft 4-lane carriageway:5ft median:32ft 4-lane carriageway:2.5ft bicycle lane:8ft parking lane:5ft sidewalk...

sounds Good to me.

however, this is gonna be one of the busiest feeder routes for HIAL bound traffic.
and all the hotels and malls enroute are expected to provide parking for their customers
plus, there will be private parking facilities.
also, an express bus (Sec-bad - Begumpet - HIAL) via this route is not ruled out.
most of the star hotels in the city would also start plying their courtesy pickup vans thru this route.

so, how about making it a 10 lane carriageway...

Andhra, the next big tourism destination

Syed Amin Jafri in Hyderabad | October 29, 2006 20:08 IST Rediff.com

About a dozen major tourism projects are under implementation in Andhra Pradesh at a capital cost of Rs 700 crore. A few more projects costing a few hundred crores of rupees are also on the anvil, according to Minister for Tourism Dr J Geeta Reddy.

Speaking to newsmen after launching the AP Tourism Policy 2006 on Sunday, Reddy said that the new projects included star hotels, urban entertainment centre, health spas, multi-theme park, convention centres, food courts, etc.

The Delhi-based Indian Hotels and Health Resorts Hospitality Private Limited and the state government is setting up a world-class spa, hotel and training centre in an area of 14 acres at Nanakramguda on the city outskirts at an estimated cost of Rs 100 crore. The project is scheduled for completion by September 2007.

To bridge the demand supply gap for star hotel rooms in Hyderabad, which requires 2,000 additional rooms per day for 2006-07, the government has decided to set up a five-star hotel with 250 rooms and 100 service apartments through private participation of a consortium consisting of My Home Constructions Pvt Ltd, VBC Pvt Ltd and Eastern India Hotels Ltd at a project cost of Rs 214 crore.

An urban entertainment centre with mega shopping mall, multiplexes, business convention centres, ethnic bazaar and other unique theme parks is coming up at a 5.61 acre at Bashirbagh in the City. A consortium of Pantaloon India Limited and SBPL INFRASTRUCTURE LTD is developing the Rs 137.53-crore project.

A food courts project at Lower Bank Bund near Hussainsagar lake in the city is being developed by Hyderabad Expo Trade Centre Pvt Ltd at a cost of Rs 7.5 crore. The project is scheduled for inauguration by the end of December. A budget hotel to cater to the needs of middle class domestic tourists is also being developed at Lower Tank bund on a 2.88-acre site at an estimated cost of Rs 40 crore. A multi-level car parking lot is being developed at a cost of Rs 10 crore at Lower Tank to cater to the needs of tourists.

An eco-friendly spa with organic food restaurant is planned at Durgam Cheruvu (Secret Lake) in Jubilee Hills area. A drive-in-theatre-cum-parking facility with ethnic food courts is also planned opposite Shilparamam near Hitec City at Madhapur...
don't we need another multilevel parking lot in Basheerbagh?

AP TOURISM PROJECTS IN PIPE LINE

Sl.No. Name of the Project and Location Cost of Project (Rs.in Crs.)

1. Three Star Hotel at Madhapur (Shilparamam)................ 20.00

2. Three Star Hotel at Durgam Cheruvu,Hyderabad............ 20.00

3. Five Star Hotel at Madhapur (Shilpa-kala Vedika), Hyd . 100.00

4. Urban Entertainment Centre at Basheerbagh, Hyderabad. 100.00

5. Multi Level Car Parking at Lower Tank Bund, Hyderabad.... 10.00

6. Budget Hotel at Lower Tank Bund, Hyderabad... ... ... ... . 40.00

http://www.outlookmoney.com/scripts/IIH026C1.asp?sectionid=10&categoryid=71&articleid=6158&sideshowid=2002&NoCache=10%2F13%2F2006+7%3A37%3A18+PM

India's top 50 cities based on quality of life to live in...
Hyd ranks #35 on a scale of 50
some of the smaller towns/cities with huge industrial bases have scored better

Oxford to set up research centre in India

http://www.deccan.com/Nation/NationalNews.asp#top
Mumbai, Oct. 29: Oxford University, the oldest varsity in the English speaking world, may be breaking new ground with plans to set up its first business research centre outside UK in India to study the sub-continent nation’s rapidly expanding economy. The university will invest £10 million initially to set up its first business research centre, which will study a wide span of issues in the country starting from infrastructure and education to social entrepreneurship and business taxation, Oxford “Said Business School” dean Prof. Colin Mayer said.

“This is the first centre outside UK and will be a huge commitment as far as Oxford is concerned. There will be a study centre in Oxford that will lead the research works in India,” he said. The centre is expected to be operational by next year. “For outsiders, the growth of India is a lesson to learn and for the country, there are a lot of challenges. We are bringing in international attention to the success of India and trying to involve the policy makers and the corporate India to address issues related to infrastructure and education in the country,” Prof. Mayer said.

The Oxford’s India centre will have representatives from the business world as well as from the policy decision makers, he added. “The policy makers and the business heads will guide the centre. We are in the process of designing the nature of advisory board of the centre in India,” Prof. Mayer said. Maintaining that the country has got a lot of entrepreneurship excellence, Prof. Mayer said Oxford has plans to polish those skills. “As the next step, we will be training the entrepreneurship talent in India. The country has got a huge managerial expertise and entrepreneurship skills,” he said.
does Hyd get lucky ...

thanks for the updates babji.Sad to hear about the ranking of hyderabad,how come it has a low rank?does it include the suburbs?

thanks for the updates babji.Sad to hear about the ranking of hyderabad,how come it has a low rank?does it include the suburbs?

I think, its just the kind of sampling they have taken.
If you look at Salem, for example, its big town/small city with a huge industrial base. SAIL etc. almost every house hold is an employee or a small business owner, or a farmer etc, so they could certainly lead a better life, have better law and order, provide better education to their kids.

so are Kochi (Ports and tourism and remittances?) Ghaziabad (Industry?) and Visakha (VSP and Port, Navy etc).
Hyd is a 400 year old city, mostly middle class house holds, still growing in all 4 directions...

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/30/stories/2006103014600300.htm

Bolarum-Falaknuma chord line to ease train traffic

HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad Division of South Central Railway is proposing to lay a 20- km chord line connecting Bolarum and Falaknuma to assist free flow of local trains and ease traffic congestion at Secunderabad station.

The proposed line provides a supplement way for local trains to ply on the Lalaguda and Seetaphalmandi routes there by making it easy for residents of Malkajgiri, Moulali and Seetaphalmandi to reach Falaknuma and Bolarum without stress.

Hyderabad Divisional Railway Manager Rajiv Vishnoi says Secunderabad station is saturated in terms of traffic. Once the chord line is laid, trains can ply directly and need not halt at Secunderabad.

Tenders have been called and work on the chord line will be completed by March 2007.

http://i14.************/4379imx.jpg

should they extend local trains to Shamshabad?
should they increase frequency?

Sunday, October 29, 2006
Kukatpally : Aint No price higher
http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/10/kukatpally-aint-no-price-higher.asp

House-owners earlier used to collect Rs.2,500 to 3,000 as rent, but they are now collecting Rs.8,000. A fully furnished duplex flat commands a price tag of Rs.1.5 crore while an ordinary double-bed room flat is for Rs.25 lakhs. A mere 200 square yards of plot commands a price of Rs. 50 lakhs these days.

Such is the demand for houses in Kukatpally, which a few years ago was but a sleepy little colony with few basic amenities to boast of, that software engineers are ready to shell down six months rent as advance payment. Truly, a trend unheard of in the city till date.

As the locality is just few kilometres away from the cyber hub at Madhapur, where several IT companies have sprang up, techies prefer tolive here rather than go for the plush bungalows of Banjara Hills, Jubilee Hills, Somajiguda, Punjagutta and Marredpally areas where traffic congestion abounds.

One of the factors that contributed to the sudden rise in rental prices is the new Spinal Road that connects Hitec City main road with Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU). "Due to the new access, it hardly takes us 10 minutes to reach the Hitec city from the JNTU side," says U. Shiva Prasad, a resident of Phase-III in Kukatpally Housing Board Colony. Earlier, reaching Madhapur from here would have entailed a long and circuitous route touching Miyapur and Hafeezpet.

Several new ventures grounded by leading real estate companies have supplemented the boom here. And the entire area appears set for a major facelift what with the announcement of a multiplex theatre, a star hotel and shopping mall by Madhucon Projects Limited. This is to come up on a nine-acre site located on Mumbai National Highway NH-9 right in front of the JNTU campus. City-based Indu Projects Limited is coming with an integrated township "Fortune Fields" at Kukatpally. Houses for rent are not easily available in certain areas like Phase-VI and IX. Employees going abroad on an official assignment, say, for a couple of months, prefer to hold the premises by paying up rent for the period of absence rather than vacate the place.

Taking advantage of the growing demand, many a house-owner has jacked up his rental. "For instance, house-owners earlier used to collect Rs.2,500 to 3,000 as rent, but they are now collecting Rs.8,000," an industrialist K. Chandra Mohan Reddy, a resident of Phase-IX in Kukatpally, said.

"This area is well connected by train services from the Hitec City and bus facility from Kukatpally main road. It also has hospitals, cinema theatres, bus depot, shopping malls and restaurants catering to the needs of residents who are mostly settlers from different regions in the State," says an official of the Andhra Pradesh Housing Board.

Source: Economic times epaper

SemIndia Would Take Up Project’s Phase Two Only When Policy Is In Place
http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/5079/semln2.jpg

ADELAY in announcing the semiconductor policy by the Centre could impact the proposed $3-billion fab project in Andhra Pradesh. SemIndia, which is promoting the project, has got an offer of 50% cash subsidy by the German government for locating the project there. It is understood that SemIndia would take up the capitalintensive, second phase of the project in Andhra Pradesh only when policy is in place. “SemIndia is embarking on two different projects. First, setting up its own fab costing $3 billion, which will make wafer chips. The other is an infrastructure project built over 1,200 acres that will facilitate semiconductor manufacturing called Fab City. The proposed semiconductor policy will help the project directly because without the incentives implied in the policy there cannot be any Fab in India,” SemIndia chairman Vinod Agarwal told ET, in an e-mail .
The company has sought a 25% cash subsidy on the total project cost. For now, in the absence of a policy, the company has decided to start the first phase of the project, a sophisticated assembly and test facility. The first phase, requiring $100-million investment, will take 12 months to be operational. The company is raising $30 million in equity and the rest in debt. Mr Agarwal points out that, internationally, governments were offering cash benefits to the tune of 30%-35%. “We are waiting for a policy, which can incentivise our project, making it more viable. Besides, we are investing in developing the infrastructure around the facility as part of the Fab City project. In other countries, the entire infrastructure will be provided by the government free of cost to the fab company.” At present, the Andhra Pradesh government has earmarked 300 acres to the Fab City, of which 75 acres has been handed over to the company for the manufacturing facility. “Fab City will house about 200 suppliers as key partners without whom a capital intensive project like a fab facility cannot survive,” said Mr Agarwal. SemIndia vice-chairman Bob Kondamuri said the company would start the second phase of the fab facility only if policy guidelines were in place. The first phase, which involves assembly, testing, manufacturing and packaging of chip will be completed by June next year.
“It will have a capacity to generate $400 million in revenues. We have already received orders from seven big players for this. In the second phase, we will set up wafer manufacturing facility.” he said.

I wonder why GoI is still sleeping on the Semiconductor policy.

[QUOTE]

sounds Good to me.

however, this is gonna be one of the busiest feeder routes for HIAL bound traffic.
and all the hotels and malls enroute are expected to provide parking for their customers
plus, there will be private parking facilities.
also, an express bus (Sec-bad - Begumpet - HIAL) via this route is not ruled out.
most of the star hotels in the city would also start plying their courtesy pickup vans thru this route.

so, how about making it a 10 lane carriageway...
Another possibility (though somewhat pricey) is this: a 4-lane elevated viaduct can be built on top of the center divider (it's 5 feet in my proposal so that's plenty of space for pillars), catering to through traffic and with off ramps at (a) the two roundabouts, (b), and (c) Masab Tank jn, with ramps towards the Airport Expwy as well as towards Khairatabad. The viaduct can start at at J V R park, with ramps connecting to the upcoming Punjagutta Flyover and to Rd #2. Traffic headed towards the airport can use the elvated viaduct, and local traffic headed towards local destinations on Rd #1 can use the ground level. The design speed of the viaduct should be 80 km/h, with 65km/h on the ground level (which will still have stoplights and roundabouts).

I am sure semiconductor policy will be announced by this year end.
Looks like lots of investors are keen on semindia. Once the semiconductor policy is announced then it will intresting to see its progress. One thing is for sure , semindia is going to be a big hit.
I wonder why GoI is still sleeping on the Semiconductor policy.

NEW DELHI — Motorola Inc. on Monday opened a new telecom software development center in southern India as of part of its efforts to expand operations and counter the dominance of rival Nokia Corp. here.

The new Research and Development Center in Hyderabad will employ more than 1,000 engineers, Motorola said in a statement.

The statement didn't disclose how much the company was investing in the center.

The announcement came nearly four months after Motorola decided to invest US$100 million to build a handset and telecom equipment plant near another southern Indian city _ Chennai.

The U.S. electronics maker currently has six research and development centers in India. The company began operations in the country in 1991 and employs around 3,000 software engineers, who design nearly 40 percent of the software used in Motorola phones worldwide.

"Software is a major driver of technology and our Hyderabad facility's focus on software engineering addresses a key aspect of our global operations," Motorola Chairman and CEO Edward J. Zander was quoted as saying in the statement.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4296913.html

YSR wants hardware boom

http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/31/stories/2006103115790500.htm

http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/31/images/2006103115790501.jpg

Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy has asked Motorola Inc., a Fortune 100 global communications leader, to consider locating its hardware manufacturing facilities in the State.

Inaugurating Motorola's Research and Development facility here on Monday, the Chief Minister said that in addition to the talent pool of technocrats and engineers available in the State, the Government was willing to extend full support to improve the infrastructure. Though the State had been witnessing significant growth in the software segment, the growth on the hardware side was not along expected lines.

Dr. Reddy said the Motorola management could consider harnessing human resources from Jawahar Knowledge Centres, set up as a "last mile" requirement for training students coming out of colleges to suit the industry needs. Motorola's new facility, involving an investment of over Rs. 60 crores, has been developed on 2.3 acres with a built in space of 1.67 lakh sq. ft and has capacity to house 1,000 members.
Motorola chairman and CEO Edward J. Zander said the new facility would be involved in development of software solutions for the company's mobile phones and also work on developing software for low cost infrastructure solutions including WiMax Technologies.

Motorola Chief Technology Officer Padmashree Warrior said from a humble beginning with handful of employees in 1998, the company had increased its strength to 800. The new facility would be involved in the development of cutting-edge technologies in handset network and connected home products segment. Union Mines Minister T. Subbarami Reddy and others also spoke.

http://www.deccan.com/City/CityNews.asp
Metro rail minimum fare to be Rs 8

Hyderabad, Oct. 30: The minimum fare of the proposed metro rail is likely to be Rs 8 and the maximum Rs 19. Officials, however defend the rather steep rates, stating that it would not be much of a burden in 2010 when the project would be on rails, so to say. At the proposed rate, a passenger travelling from Miyapur to LB Nagar and back will have to pay Rs 38.

There will be an escalation clause in the project agreement and a regulatory authority will review the fares as and when necessary. This means that there is the possibility of a fare hike in the future. The Mass Rapid Transport System was proposed as a solution to the heavy traffic congestion in the city. Authorities expect the metro rail to carry at least 16 lakh passengers every day to their destinations.

The estimated cost of the project is Rs 8,760 crores and it will cover 66 km in three routes. An empowered committee headed by chief secretary J. Harinarayana will discuss fare and other related issues of the metro rail project on November 1. The committee’s proposal will later be submitted for the approval of the Cabinet.

“The government has directed us to give top priority in safeguarding the interests of the commuters while finalising the agreement,” said MRTS project director N.V.S. Reddy. The State government feels that if the fare is reduced, foreign companies may not come forward to take up the project. It is learnt that the government may hold a pre-bid conference for six short-listed consortia of companies in November and will finalise the tenders as early as possible.

I don't think the proposed fares are that high. It would take a lot more if anyone hires an auto or a taxi in the same route.

Although , the rates might be a bit higher than the normal RTC rates.......u are required to pay up for the world class network that the metro is providing us with.

:|

Tourism projects worth Rs.7 bn coming up in Hyderabad

http://news.monstersandcritics.com/india/article_1215851.php/Tourism_projects_worth_Rs.7_bn_coming_up_in_Hyderabad

A world-class spa, a training centre in spa technology and hospitality, five-star hotels and an urban entertainment centre are among the key tourism projects coming up in and around Hyderabad with a total investment of Rs.7 billion.

Andhra Pradesh has attracted about Rs.9 billion of private investment in tourism projects during last two years while the state government has spent Rs.2 billion on the sector.


Tourism Minister J. Geeta Reddy Sunday disclosed these figures while releasing a new investor-friendly tourism policy.


The state already claims to be the number one in domestic tourism. 'Almost 89 million domestic tourists are coming to Hyderabad every year,' she said.


Replying to the argument that a large number of tourists were pilgrims visiting the famous temple of Lord Venkateswara at Tirupati, she said: 'A lot of them come to Hyderabad which has become a major hub of business tourism in the country.'


A five-star hotel with more than 250 rooms and 100 service apartments is coming up near Hitec City, the IT hub, at an estimated cost of Rs.5 billion. The Hilton group also plans to develop a hotel in the area, which already has a world-class convention centre and a five-star hotel developed by the Dubai-based Emmar group.


New Delhi-based Indian Hotels and Health Resorts Hospitality Private Limited, the owners of famous Ananda spa in Himalayas, and the state government are jointly setting up a world class spa, hotel and training centre in spa technology and hospitality on 14.94 acres at Nanakramguda on the outskirts of Hyderabad at a cost of Rs.1 billion.

The other major project is an urban entertainment centre on 5.61 acres of land at Basheerbagh in the heart of the city. The centre, to be developed with an estimated cost of Rs.1.37 billion, will have a mega shopping mall, multiplexes, business convention centre, ethnic bazaar and theme parks.


Geeta Reddy said a health spa, hotels, multi-theme park, convention centre and urban entertainment centre were also coming up in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam.


To attract new investment in the sector, the government will offer various incentives including investment subsidy of 20 percent of the project cost subject to a maximum of Rs.2 million. To encourage upgradation to international standards, selected hotels will be offered an incentive of 15 percent of the project cost.


In another move to promote tourism, the state government had a tie-up with Air Deccan to link Hyderabad with popular tourist destinations outside the state like Goa, Coimbatore and Cochin.


The tourism department has appointed shooter Amit Sanghi and golf player P. Krishna Reddy as its brand ambassadors

Source: Great Andhra

http://www.greatandhra.com/business/2006/singapore_airport.php

Another strong company into the fray......

Singapore Airlines keen on Hyderabad airport project
The ground-handling arm of Singapore Airlines (SIA) is keen on a new airport project in the Indian city of Hyderabad, the chief executive said in a published report Tuesday.

Singapore Airport Terminal Services (SATS) has 'expressed interest' in the project, Ng Chin Hwee told The Straits Times, adding that it is in discussions with potential partners.

SATS recently won all three contracts it had bid for at Bangalore's new airport in cargo, passenger handling and catering.

Hyderabad's airport is scheduled to open in 2008.

SATS' overseas business earned 15.6 million Singapore dollars ($10.1 million) in the quarter, which ended Sep 30, a 1.3 percent hike over the corresponding period a year ago.

It has 16 joint ventures in eight Asian countries, including India and China.

'We have always articulated that we would like to expand regionally,' Ng said.

Prospects are bullish in Asia and the Middle East, he added.

CinePlanet: Upcoming 4 Screen Multiplex.

http://img420.imageshack.us/img420/949/hyd1uh4.gif

CinePlanet: Upcoming 4 Screen Multiplex.

http://img420.imageshack.us/img420/949/hyd1uh4.gif
^^ Where is this multiplex coming up?

I saw that Maheshwari/Parameshwari theatre complex in Abids has been dismantled. Does anyone know what is coming up in that place? :?

Autos in city to have Digital Meters and Audiometers soon

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/264122.cms

Soon you will stop whining about exorbitant fares charged by auto drivers in the city.

After dilly dallying for some time, the government on Tuesday finally issued GO 213 making it mandatory for all auto rickshaws in the state to install digital meters. These meters would replace the conventional ones that are prone to tampering. The digital meters that are in vogue in Delhi and Bangalore have proven to be tamper-proof. In the last assembly session, transport minister Kanna Lakshminarayana had told the members that digital meters would be made compulsory in a month's time.

In the state, the 3.8 lakh auto rickshaws would have to install digital meters with audiometer facility. The audiometer at the end of the journey announces the fare and the distance travelled. In the city, there are nearly one lakh auto rickshaws. Each digital meter is expected to cost Rs 1,300 to Rs 1,500. However, there are no digital meter manufacturers in the state. The transport department will collect data on the dealers and retailers in the state who could supply the required number of meters. The GO was issued by the government after months of stringent opposition by auto drivers' unions.

The government has asked the state transport commissioner to implement the provision after duly collecting the logistics of availability.

"By one year, all autos in the state would have to fall in line and install the meters. For new autos, digital meters could be made mandatory in the coming weeks," a transport official told TOI on Tuesday.

City buses may run on bio-fuel soon

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/264193.cms

After experimenting with various fuels, state-owned Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) is all set to introduce bio-diesel as an alternative fuel in its bus fleet in the city.

The bio-fuel experiment was taken up by the city region of APSRTC to curb pollution. The experiment concluded in September and results were out early this month.

Initially, the experiment was done on a bus of Dilsukhnagar depot under controlled conditions on the L B Nagar-Sanatnagar route on June 5, 2005. In a bid to expand the range of study, the experiment was extended to 30 buses of Hyderabad II, Picket and Cantonment depots at random in the last few months.

The experiment was conducted on different categories of buses and makes, including city and long-distance services with varied run-life and on different bio-fuel types comprising diverse proportions of bio-fuel and diesel. Various variants of bio-diesel like B5, B10 and B20 fuel types were used. Barring a minute performance drop in kilometre per litre, the bio-fuel concept fared better with acceptable levels of emission, according to APSRTC officials.

Bio-diesel is an alternative clean fuel which is bio-degradable and non-toxic free of sulphur and aromatics. It is derived from vegetable oil fats. Neighbouring Karnataka is also experimenting with the fuel on 100 of its buses.

The experiment was suspended for 25 days due to lack of bio-fuel supply from the private organisation that supplied the fuel at a discounted price of Rs 25 per litre.

The oil content was also giving out a fishy smell and it was not feasible to carry the experiment further with passengers complaining of bad odour in buses.

The experiment was resumed later. "The results have proved satisfactory. The corporation will call for tenders to procure the fuel," said APSRTC chief mechanical engineer (operations) P V D Jaya Shanker Prasad.

HUDA seeks control over 36 villages
Tuesday October 31 2006 09:12 IST Newindpress
HYDERABAD: Unable to control the spurt in construction activity in as many as 36 villages on its periphery, the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HUDA) has urged the State Government to bring the entire area covered by GO MS 111 of 1996 under its jurisdiction.

The GO was issued following the Supreme Court’s direction to the State Government not to allow any activity resulting in groundwater pollution within 10 km radius of the catchment areas of Osmansagar and Himayatsagar, which are among the major sources of drinking water for the twin cities.

Only 48 of the total 84 villages covered by the GO fall in the limits of either HUDA or the newly constituted Hyderabad Airport Development Authority (HADA).

In a letter to the State Government last month, HUDA said it was increasingly becoming difficult for it or HADA to enforce town-planning regulations in the 36 villages as they are governed by Gram Panchayats.

“The haphazard construction activity outside HUDA and HADA limits will also be a violation of the Supreme Court directive,” HUDA said.

“In view of their contiguity and location, we have requested the Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) Department to bring 35 villages under HUDA limits and one under HADA jurisdiction,” HUDA officials told this website's newspaper.

According to the officials, the move will fetch additional revenue to the two urban development authorities in the form of fee and development charges for layouts.

“Even if the development charges are fixed at Rs 10 per sq m, the urban bodies will get around Rs 40,000 per acre, which is quite substantial and can be pumped into various other developmental activities. It will also help curb the unauthorised lay-outs being issued by the gram panchayats,” they said.

According to MA&UD officials, the proposal is under consideration of the State Government and orders bringing the 36 villages under the jurisdiction of the two urban bodies will be issued soon.

http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/11/hyderabad-tops-offshoring.asp
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Hyderabad tops offshoring Competitiveness
neoIT, a leading services globalization consulting firm, today issued the Global City Competitiveness Report which analyzes twenty-four cities in terms of their current and future attractiveness for services globalization.
Full Report: Click Here
http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/11/hyderabad-tops-offshoring.asp

The Global City Competitiveness Report provides enterprises a perspective on the current strengths and weaknesses of various cities in order to find a fit that meets their global sourcing requirements.
In 2004, neoIT issued the first Offshore City Competitiveness Report, ranking twenty seven Indian cities based on their attractiveness for offshoring. In the past two years, since the groundbreaking report was issued by neoIT, multiple sourcing centers of excellence have emerged across the globe, with India home to several of the most established cities.

"There have been many changes in the past two years, with more cities emerging in the race to service global organizations," stated neoIT CEO, Atul Vashistha. "This trend is fueled by clients utilizing a portfolio approach that spans the globe and the need to identify new destinations as more established destinations become hard-pressed to keep up with the demand for services. Our goal is to provide timely information so that neoIT clients can make informed decisions on choosing global sourcing destinations that will best meet their needs."

neoIT identified two key determinants of location and scored locations based on these variants:

Generic factors which are independent of the country from which the work is offshored, or the industry of the offshoring enterprise: Human capital, costs, infrastructure, environment and risks fall into this category

Enterprise-specific factors: factors which are dependent on the source country, industry of the enterprise, or the specific processes being offshored. These include language compatibility, physical proximity, socio-economic affinity and sector-specific expertise availability.

Ranking generic factors exclusively, the cities of Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai top the list. Ho Chi Minh City, Manila, Shanghai and Moscow are the highest ranked cities outside of India.

Based on enterprise-specific factors, the white paper looks at several case studies and applies selection criteria to rank the best cities for each example. In addition, the research paper examines factors that will shape the market in three to four years, and predicts the future competitiveness based on the talent pool in each city.

The Global City Competitiveness Report provides enterprises a perspective on the current strengths and weaknesses of various cities in order to find a fit that meets their global sourcing requirements. For service providers looking to expand services delivery capability, the report can help identify locations of untapped labor pools and strong support infrastructure that facilitates such growth.

Source: Yahoo!


Full Report:
http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/images/special/Global_City_Competitiveness.pdf

http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/11/hyderabad-tops-offshoring.asp

i saw that Maheshwari/Parameshwari theatre complex in Abids has been dismantled. Does anyone know what is coming up in that place?
__________________
An adlab's multiplx is coming up there."Adlabs Maheshwari/Parameshwari

i saw that Maheshwari/Parameshwari theatre complex in Abids has been dismantled. Does anyone know what is coming up in that place?
__________________
An adlab's multiplx is coming up there."Adlabs Maheshwari/Parameshwari
Thanx a lot for the info ....harry :)

Hyderabad, Nov 01: The diamond and jewellery manufacturing units at Hyderabad gems SEZ (special economic zone) would commence their operations by June next year.

The first batch of 1,000 trainees at the diamond and jewellery training centre on the city outskirts, today received appointment certificates from Andhra Pradsh Chief Miniter Y S Rajasekhara Reddy.

The trainees would be absorbed into the diamond and jewellery manufacturing units coming up at the SEZ, Mehul Choksi, chairman of Gitanjali Group, the promoters of the gems SEZ, told reporters after a delegation of the company met Chief Minister at the secretariat.

After handing over the appointment orders to the trainees, the chief minister expressed happiness over creating jobs to the local unemployed youth.

The trainees would be paid Rs 750 to Rs 1,500 during the training period and after absorption would be getting not less than Rs 3,500 per month.

The diamond and jewellery training centre is the first unit to be completed as per the schedule at the SEZ.

"The induction of the first batch of trainees is a realization of our primary objective and a matter of great pride. The SEZ will help bring prosperity to the region," Choksi said.


http://www.zeenews.com/znnew/articles.asp?aid=332755&ssid=50&sid=BUS

CinePlanet, a new multi-plex at Kompally is the third multiplex after Pra-sad’s and PVR, to come up in Hyderabad. To be built on a total area of 63,000 sq.ft., Cine Planet will be jointly leased by D. Suresh Babu, owner of Suresh Production and Sunil Nar-ang of Asian Theatres. It is situated on NH7 which is known as the entertain-ment zone as it also has other entertainment places like Runway9, Dhola-ri-
whereas, one screen will have 900 seats. The equip-ments installed in the mult-iplex includes Westrex Xenon projectors, Hark-ness Hall screens, Speaker and Amplifiers by Electro Voice and the seats ins-talled by Baba & Sons. Aslam Associates is the architectural firm in charge of the designing of the project.
CinePlanet will have two theatres on the ground flo-or while the other two will

The CinePlanet multiplex at Kompally, Hyderabad

dhani etc.
The multiplex will have four screens out of which three screens will have a seating capacity of 500
be housed on the secon-dfloor of the structure. The other features of the project include food court spread over 9,000 sq.ft. on
the third floor, gaming zone, shop-ping mall, etc. It has a parking area for around 500 cars.A total of 30,000 sq.ft. is reserved for
commercial purpose. Cine-Planet is on the last stage of construction and will open its door for the cineg-oers in few months

www.cinema-systemsindia.com/may-2006/news&technology/page12.html

Where is this multiplex coming up?

I saw that Maheshwari/Parameshwari theatre complex in Abids has been dismantled. Does anyone know what is coming up in that place?
__________________
At kompally

G.S.Center Point, Punjagutta Crossroads

Seven floors of shopping and office space.
- 1,60,000 sft of shopping space
- 90,000 sft of office space
- 1,00,000 sft of covered parking space for nearly 1,000 vehicles.

http://img331.imageshack.us/img331/4489/gecenteret4.gif


http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/9292/gecenter1xd3.gif

G.S 24 Carat , Ameerpet

Seven floors of shopping and recreational space.
1,80,000 sft of shopping space on 4 floors.
30,000 sft for entertainment, restaurant and conference facilities.
30,000 sft exclusively for a multiplex theatre.
90,000 sft of parking space.

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/4783/gscarat24js8.gif



http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/8536/building2ul8.jpg

Parsvnath Developers plans Rs 70cr project in Hyd (http://business-standard.com/compindustry/storypage.php?tab=r&autono=263450&subLeft=1&leftnm=1)

New Delhi-based real estate player, Parsvnath Developers Limited, is on the course to set up a commercial project in Hyderabad, involving an investment of Rs 60-70 crore.

The proposed project will comprise a shopping mall, five-star hotel and multiplex with a total built-up area of four lakh square feet.

Addressing mediapersons in connection with the company's forthcoming initial public offering here on Tuesday, Parsvnath Developers' managing director Sanjeev Jain said, “We have purchased 2.5 acres of land at Kukatpally at a government auction at Rs 18 crore per acre for the proposed project. We are currently in the process of preparing a project report and will soon submit the same to the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (Huda). It will take another two-three months for receiving final approval from the authority.”

The project will entail an investment between Rs 60 crore and Rs 70 crore, excluding the land cost, according to Jain.

http://www.deccan.com/City/CityNews.asp
CM tells MCH to begin works


Hyderabad, Nov. 1: Chief Minister Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy on Wednesday directed the Hyderabad Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) and the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) to take up works in the old city as part of the Rs 2,000-crores package announced by him.

The Chief Minister was reviewing the action taken report on assurances and announcements made by him during his surprise visit to old city on October 12 with senior officials of the Municipal Administration and Urban development, Education and Housing departments.

He expressed his concern over the irregular clearance of garbage in twin cities and instructed the MCH commissioner to provide better sanitation standards in the city. The Chief Minister asked water board MD Jawahar Reddy to tie up with various banks and complete implimentation of sewerage master plan in twin cities in three years’ time. The master plan includes underground sewerage works.

Now, fly past Hyderabad traffic chaos
Ganesh S Lakshman
[ 2 Nov, 2006 0213hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
HYDERABAD: While the chaos on city roads during peak hours is worsening by the day and is bad news for most, a privileged few may soon be able to zoom from one point to another in a matter of minutes — in a helicopter charter taxi.

The service is being planned by Status Helicopter Services (SHS) and is likely to be operational in a few months. It's target: Corporate and VIP travellers.

"We have already applied to the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for permission to operate three helicopters. We expect the licence to operate the air charter taxi very soon,"SHS director Gurmeet Singh Dua told TOI. Dua plans to lease three Bell-407 single-engine choppers from the manufacturing company. The five-seater, including pilot, costs Rs 16 crore apiece. According to Dua, the Bell-407 chopper is the only one not involved in any accidents in Indian conditions.

"The life of a chopper is 20,000 hours. Unlike some operators already active in the country, all our choppers would be brand new and would pose no risk to the passenger,"Dua said. As for the prices, Dua intends to charge Rs 1.2 lakh for an hour's flying. "For stand-by time, we would charge half the price,"he said.

"A corporate team can fly from Begumpet airport to Hi-Tec City in about 15-20 minutes, while the same would take about 90 minutes by road,"he said. A customer for whom time is precious, travelling by the chopper would be the equivalent of travelling in the executive class of a plane, he said.

While the board of directors of the director general of security has to give the security clearance for the air taxi service, the committee of civil aviation has to issue the operating licence. Both of them come under the DGCA.

Dua said his company has identified 4 sites for helipad — Jubilee Hills, Shamirpet, Dilsukhnagar and Maheshwaram mandal. Apart from intra-city travelling by the corporate bigwigs and VIPs, the company also plans to focus on religious travel from the city to Tirupati.

Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Gems SEZ operations by June
The diamond and jewellery manufacturing units at Hyderabad gems SEZ (special economic zone) would commence their operations by June next year.

The first batch of 1,000 trainees at the diamond and jewellery training centre on the city outskirts, today received appointment certificates from Andhra Pradsh Chief Miniter Y S Rajasekhara Reddy.

The trainees would be absorbed into the diamond and jewellery manufacturing units coming up at the SEZ, Mehul Choksi, chairman of Gitanjali Group, the promoters of the gems SEZ, told reporters after a delegation of the company met Chief Minister at the secretariat.

After handing over the appointment orders to the trainees, the chief minister expressed happiness over creating jobs to the local unemployed youth. The trainees would be paid Rs 750 to Rs 1,500 during the training period and after absorption would be getting not less than Rs 3,500 per month. The diamond and jewellery training centre is the first unit to be completed as per the schedule at the SEZ. "The induction of the first batch of trainees is a realization of our primary objective and a matter of great pride. The SEZ will help bring prosperity to the region," Choksi said.
http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/11/gems-sez-operations-by-june.asp

Tourism flourishes in Andhra Pradesh

Wednesday, November 1, 2006 (Hyderabad): NDTV.com

For much of its existence, Andhra Pradesh has been recognised for its leadership role in the agricultural sector. In its 50th year, the state is now being recognised as a tourism powerhouse, attracting the largest number of domestic tourists.

Ever since the largest Imax screen in the world opened in Hyderabad two years ago, it has been Govind's, a vendor, favourite spot to sell masala chat. With the growing number of regular visitors and tourists to the multiplex, his fortunes have become upwardly mobile as well.

“All kinds of people from all over come here. Some even come to eat my chat. Business has picked up,” said Govind.

Hot destination: Not surprising then that Andhra Pradesh is now the country's number one destination. Over nine crore domestic tourists visited the state in 2005-2006 - much more than the number to Uttar Pradesh, Goa and Kerala.

The flip side, however, is that Andhra Pradesh needs to thank God for that because 55 per cent of these tourists are pilgrims to Lord Balaji's shrine at Tirumala.

Hyderabad is also the preferred choice for convention tourism, leading to a sharp increase in the number of business travelers, which has compelled the hospitality industry to get its act together.

In the last couple of years, six star hotels have set up shop and another eight existing hotels will add more rooms in the next six months. Nearly 70 budget hotels have come up as well.

“This is the right time. Till 2010, there is enough time and good time to invest. The world is looking at Hyderabad now,” said Pradeep Dutt, Joint Secretary, AP Hotels Association.

The icing on the cake is that Andhra Pradesh has achieved the distinction in its golden jubilee year.

The success story of an Indian animation company

Shobha Warrier | November 01, 2006 Rediff.com

It has been an eventful five years for 32-year-old Rajiv Chilakalapudi ever since he began to nurture his Hyderabad-based animation company, Green Gold Animation Pvt Ltd.

The company that started with just four people in 2001 is now 70-strong. But Chilakalapudi says the employee strength will rise to 1,000 in the next three years. As managing director of Green Gold Animation, he speaks at major business forums in India -- like the ones organised by FICCI, NASSCOM, etc -- as an expert in the field.

The products from his company -- Vikram aur Betal and Krishna are aired on Cartoon Network and Doordarshan. More programmes are on the way, he assures.

In a candid chat with rediff.com, Rajiv speaks about how he made his passion a success.

Cartoons, a passion even as a child. Like all kids, I too was really fascinated by cartoons as a child. I remember getting up very early in the morning on Sundays to watch the Disney cartoons on Doordarshan. I used to wonder why there were only Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck and no Indian characters.

Though I was not an artist, I had lots of ideas then and there. I went on to do engineering as there were no courses on animation back then.

After my graduation from Osmania University in 1995, I went to the USA to do Masters in Computer Science. I worked as a software engineer in the US for three years. All through my studies, and also later on, my desire was to be in the animation industry.

Three years into my job as a software engineer, I began looking at the animation industry with more interest. I found that there were not many animation companies in India, and saw a large potential in the market.

Learning animation. I saved as much money as I could in those three years and went to an animation school in San Francisco.

I then knew animation was what I wanted to do in my life. What I was doing till then was just mundane work where there was no creativity. I didn't enjoy what I was doing. I decided to come back to India. It was intuition that gave me the courage to chuck my well paying job and come back to India to start my own animation company.

My parents were shocked. My father flew down to the United States to dissuade me. He asked me, 'Are you crazy? Why do you want to do this?' I managed to convince him how passionate I was about my plans. Then he wanted to see my business plan. When I showed him my plan, he felt it was a good one, that there was future in it and that it was worth taking the risk.

I came back not only because India is a huge market but also because I love my country. I am very patriotic and I believe that India will be a superpower soon.

Animation company in Hyderabad. I didn't waste time after I reached Hyderabad. I looked for a place immediately. We started with four people. We could not find any animators then. So, we recruited technical people.

I not only invested whatever I had saved but my father's and brother's money too. Altogether my initial investment was about Rs 75 lakh (Rs 7.5 million). We needed Rs 50 lakh (Rs 5 million) for the machinery itself. When we started out, the machinery was very expensive. Even the software was worth Rs 8 lakh (Rs 800,000), but all that has come down now.

Green Gold Animation Pvt Ltd. The year was 2001. We named our company Green Gold Animation Pvt Ltd. I wanted a colourful name. Green is nature and nature is associated with creativity. And, gold is Goddess Lakshmi.

What we did first was create a presentation for a US-based corporate though it was actually not our forte. But initially we decided to do all the jobs that came our way.

Although we did a lot of animation for advertisers, nobody was interested in any animation products, I found. So, we decided to create our own product.

Created an alien named Bongo Although it was a big risk, we created Bongo. It is an animation-cum-live action television series more on the lines of the alien in the film, Koi Mil Gaya. Bongo is a friendly alien who helps people. We spoke to many TV channels but nobody was interested; every one wanted only saas-bahu serials.

We then approached Doordarshan. Luckily for us, they were looking for children's programmes then. Our programme was first aired on Doordarshan by the end of 2004. Although there were gaps in between, it still is shown on Doordarshan every Saturday afternoon.

It was a great day for us when Bongo was first aired on Doordarshan. We were all eagerly waiting; the titles came and then the power went off. It was an anti-climax. The response also was amazing. It was at number three among all the kids' programmes.

Deal with Cartoon Network. Then we approached Cartoon Network with the idea of Vikram aur Betal. They were not sure about the commercial success of the idea. So they asked us to develop the product and show it to them. The risk was ours.

As we believed in our quality, we made the entire show and delivered it to Cartoon Network. They loved the programme and bought it. That was again, 2004. Vikram aur Betal was a turning point for us. It gave us a huge mileage.

Here comes Krishna! After Vikram aur Betal, we spoke to Cartoon Network about the tales of Lord Krishna. They accepted that too. The first part of Krishna -- about his birth-- was shown on Janmashtami day this year. It is a 75-minute programme which will be aired on Cartoon Network every three months. It is more like a feature film.

We are also making a film on Chhota Bheem.

The struggle We struggled immensely in the initial years. For five years, there was nothing but work for us. When we create original content, it is very difficult to sell it. If we can't sell a product, what will happen to the company? It was a very big risk we were taking.

As the market was at a nascent stage then, we thought we would suffer now so that the returns would come later. Our patience paid off as today we are a brand name in the animation industry.

From India, we are the number one animation supplier to Cartoon Network.

Now, we have 70 people working with us. Our revenue is around Rs 2 crore (Rs 20 million) this year. We expect to double our revenues ever year. Now the sky is the limit. I have faith that one day we will make a world renowned movie and will make India proud of us.

Indian content is as yet unexplored and in the future you will see Indian stories being watched all over the world. People are tired of seeing the same old Jack and Jill stories. Indian characters are unique and they will rule the world soon.

The first successful animation film was The Jungle Book and it was based in India and all the characters are Indian and have Indian names. Our first animation feature film of 100 minutes will be on Lord Ganesh and it will be released on the next Ganesh Chaturthi in 2007.

We want to start animation schools all over India as there is severe manpower shortage and a lot of poaching takes place now, which is not healthy for the industry. We may require 1,000 people in the next three years. Our ambition is to be the number one in the world like Walt Disney. In the next ten years, we want to be a global player.

Fun Republic Multiplex will be coming up with 6 screens at the u/c Sigma mall , Begumpet. (Scheduled to be opened in march, 2007)
http://www.esselgroup.com/local.asp?parentid=3&contentid=30&innerContentid=53&innerParentid=30 :)

http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/8312/funrepublic1ip7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/5229/funrepublic2rw8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

another late comer.......

Expressway to be way behind new airport

Hyderabad: Work on the largest flyover in India, the ‘Elevated Expressway Corridor’, has finally started after a delay of nearly six months. As a result, the expressway will not be ready by the time the first flight takes off at the new airport in Shamshabad.

The Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (Huda) had delayed the tender process by six months due to financial problems and extended the deadline by another six months at the request of the companies taking up the works. The 11.5-km-long flyover starting from Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital at Humayunagar and ending at Aramgarh crossroads of Rajendranagar is now likely to be completed by March 2009.

“Of course, the flyover will not be ready by the time the new airport comes up. However, the existing inner ring road will be widened making it a six-lane road for the smooth flow of traffic in the airport direction by the time the airport is completed,” says Huda chief engineer Vivek Deshmukh.

Hyderabad: From being a relatively low-profile state, Andhra Pradesh has gradually come into the limelight with the infotech boom. So much so, that it’s being seen as the next IT destination after Bangalore.


But with an ambition to match strides with IT's leading destination, Bangalore, Hyderabad's hi-tech dreams will sure have to take a gigantic leap to compete.


Big names in the IT industry, Infosys and IBM to Wipro and Satyam, are all looking at expansion plans in AP, making it the next tech hub of South India.


But does Hyderabad have what it takes to crack Bangalore's infotech dominion?



"There is no denying that Bangalore is way ahead but we are certainly trying," Secretary, IT and Communications, K Ratna Prabha said.


Hyderabad is still lagging behind as far as numbers are concerned.


Export earnings of AP are at Rs 12,500 crore while Karnataka leads with Rs 80,000 crore.


The total number of employees in the IT sector in Hyderabad is 1.5 lakh while Bangalore has as many as four lakh employees.


Despite the state government's incentives for attracting IT investors through InfoTech Special Economic Zones, experts say, it's the growing real estate prices and infrastructural facilities that is making many multinationals reconsider.


"There's only so much that a city can handle. It’s saturated and rising real estate rates are also making many IT companies move to smaller cities," Dean (Research), IIIT, Professor P J Narayanan said.


After two decades of low literacy rates and little exposure to information technology, Hyderabad is trying hard to come up and compete with Silicon Valley's favourite –Bangalore.


"The real estate market is discouraging many investors and its artificial price rise," President, Telugu Desam Party, Chandrababu Naidu said.


For Hyderabad to get a larger share in the infotech pie, the state government will have to provide better infrastructure and more incentives for those looking to set-up IT companies in the pearl city.


(With inputs from Mansi Sharma)

http://www.ibnlive.com/news/bangalore-vs-hyderabad-in-it-race/25245-3.html

Does anyone have any idea about the new infosys campus which was to come up in Hyderabad??Any developements??

After the white revolution, India is witnessing a new revolution – the Retail Revolution. In the last few years, there has been a spurt in the retail market and an unprecedented growth in the large format retail showrooms and multipurpose shopping arenas. And being the most happening place, Hyderabad is not lagging behind. Welcome to Club 4 Mall.



The first of its kind in twin cities, Club 4 Mall will unfold a whole new world of shopping, entertainment and up market commercial activities.




PLACING YOUR BUSINESS ON A HIGH PEDESTAL:
Coming up just opposite Secunderabad Club –the most sought after place of the metropolis, Club 4 Mall will readily offer its occupants the cream of Hyderabad in a platter and ensure the success of their business. The sprawling mega complex in 2 acres will provide the ideal place for shopping for the people of white residential areas like Secunderabad, Gunrock, Marredpally, Vikrampuri, Sainikpuri, Begumpet etc.

PARK YOUR WORRIES BEFORE YOU ENTER:
The comfort of shopoing at Club 4 Mall will begin right from parking he vehicle. The vast area which include Terrace parking – a novel concept in Hyderabad – will be different, making life easy for the visitors.




SHOPS IN PROPORTIN TO YOUR BUSINESS ASPIRATIONS:
The gigantic mall will be an architectural marvel, designed to give distinct advantage to every shop. With a total area of over 1,00,000 sft., the sizes of shops may very – starting from a small 1000 sft., shop for a designer boutique it can go up to 20,000 sft., for a mega showroom – making it the ideal place for the best brands across all product segments. Deliberations with some of the best known multinational companies are already in progress. This could also be made a profitable investment opportunity by buying the space and letting it out to MNCs for wich Club 4 Mall can do the negotiations if desired.





MAKING SHOPPING A PART OF ENTERTAINING EXPERIENCE:
Carefully missing entertainment with shopping, Club 4 Mall will give a wonderful experience to the entire family. Elaborate provisions will be made for mind blowing entertainment such as Bowling Alley, Virtual Reality, Video games and many more so that the kids can have a ball while parents keep shopping.

A FESAST TO THE EYES AND PALATE TOO:
Exclusive food court with global cuisine options will make the shopping complete and enjoyable. Country’s major names will put up world class restaurants, Coffee shops, Ice-cream parlours, etc.



VAASTHU:
Respecting the traditional beliefs, Club 4 Mall is planned perfectly as per Vaasthu. Renowned consultants have extended their services in making it perfect from all aspects.


TRULY WORLD CLASS:
Club 4 Mall is designed to set new standards in facilities, aesthetics and shopping experience. Surrounded by breathtaking landscaping, water bodies and illumination, the very sight of the mall will give a regressing feeling prompting the onlookers to step in. the atrium at the mall will be stunning experience in itself, captivating he visitors with wide lobbies, see-through elevators and meticulously planned interior decor that marvels with architectural splendor. The giant TV screens will facilitate eye-catching promotions and merchandising for the brand owners. Having the best of features for both business units and customers, Club 4 Mall is designed to change the very perception of business and set new standards for mega retail shopping complexes, to emulate.


http://www.ascogroup.com/cfm.htm

http://www.ascogroup.com/cfm.htm

nice updates everyone

Karnataka exports: Rs. 80000 crore?????

it's more like 45000 crore.

Source: Financial Express (http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=145304)
HYDERABAD, NOV 2: Pharma major Novartis Inc, has proposed to set up a huge research and development facility near Hyderabad with an overall investment of Rs 500 crore in the next five years. This would figure among the largest foreign investment in an R&D facility in India.

Besides, the company also plans to establish IT backup facility at the same site, sources told FE.

According to Andhra Pradesh government sources, the company is expected to sign an agreement with the government next week to formalise the land sale. Hyderabad is probably being chosen for its unofficial status as India's bulk drugs capital. Besides, Hyderabad is believed to have a pool of over 10,000 scientists. Some of India's most well known research laboratories like the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology and the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology are also based in Hyderabad. Together, these factors provide for an eco-system to support research in the city.

The company is seeking about 150 acres of land to pursue its research business in India, sources said. The government has agreed in-principle to provide the land in Medak district, the hometown of the state industry minister Geeta Reddy. The location will also be the IT backend source for the company.

“The company has identified the required land at Sultanpur in Medak district and it is expected to enter into an agreement with the AP government next week,” reliable sources said.

They said that the government is selling the proposed land at a cost of Rs 30 lakh per acre. The project, once completed in the next five years, will generate about 5,000 direct jobs, sources added.

^^ Wow.......a great new R & D facility.

And even the government is set to make some bucks off the land deal to.....a great bonus!

another late comer.......
Expressway to be way behind new airport

Hyderabad: Work on the largest flyover in India, the ‘Elevated Expressway Corridor’, has finally started after a delay of nearly six months. As a result, the expressway will not be ready by the time the first flight takes off at the new airport in Shamshabad.

The Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (Huda) had delayed the tender process by six months due to financial problems and extended the deadline by another six months at the request of the companies taking up the works. The 11.5-km-long flyover starting from Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital at Humayunagar and ending at Aramgarh crossroads of Rajendranagar is now likely to be completed by March 2009.

“Of course, the flyover will not be ready by the time the new airport comes up. However, the existing inner ring road will be widened making it a six-lane road for the smooth flow of traffic in the airport direction by the time the airport is completed,” says Huda chief engineer Vivek Deshmukh.
any idea about the source of this news?
this is a lil bit different from what they said on Oct 04, 2006. they said: "connectivity to HIAL would be provided within 20 months, by April 2008"
http://i12.************/2q0ufyx.jpg
The Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy looking at a model of the elevated Expressway Corridor from Mehdipatnam to Aramghar junction in Hyderabad on March 16, 2006. Photo: K. Ramesh Babu

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/10/04/stories/2006100417530300.htm
Work on expressway to begin soon
HYDERABAD: With the completion of the general arrangement drawings for the crucial components of the 11.5 km elevated expressway corridor from Mehdipatnam to the International Airport at Shamshabad, work on the ground would begin in about a week.

The work on the longest elevated expressway in the country would have four components - flyover from Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital to Aramghar, underpass at Aramghar, trumpet interchange on the Bangalore Highway for easy connectivity from the highway to the International Airport and strengthening and widening the existing inner ring road from Rethibowli junction to Aramghar junction - according to HUDA chief engineer Vivek Deshmukh.
Unique feature

`Trumpet interchange' is a unique feature of the elevated expressway facilitating smooth flow of vehicles coming from various directions to the International Airport.

The developer, Simplex Somdutt, a joint venture company, bagged the project by quoting Rs.439 crores. The company was given letter of acceptance by HUDA on August 9 and the letter to proceed on September 1.
A site at Shamshabad has been given on lease for the company to set up the batching plant for producing concrete, casting of girders. As of now, batching plant has been erected and preparation is on for casting of girders, Mr. Deshmukh said.

With water lines and AP Transco cables criss-crossing the site of the expressway, the Metro Water Works and AP Transco have been requested to shift utilities and HUDA would bear the expenses. Meanwhile, the Municipal Corporation and Urban Forestry wing of HUDA would translocate existing plants at the median.

Besides the ongoing preparatory work, the project has also got Environment Impact Assessment clearance by the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board in the recently held technical committee meeting, Mr. Deshmukh said. The 26-month duration for completion of the project would be calculated from September 1when the Letter to Proceed was given to the company. However, connectivity to the International Airport would be provided within 20 months, by April 2008, Mr. Deshmukh disclosed.== Just the highlights on the EEway

four components:
1. flyover from Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital to Aramghar, 2. underpass at Aramghar,
3. trumpet interchange on the B'lore Hwy for easy connectivity from the hwy to the HIAL
4. and strengthening and widening the existing inner ring road from Rethibowli jn to Aramghar jn

connectivity to HIAL would be provided within 20 months: . (April 2008)

Source: Financial Express (http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=145304)



holy shit!!! this is awesome. good company for Dr. Reddy's as both these companies will be involved in serious research...:)

UAE institute seeks SETWIN’s help in running training courses
Thursday November 2 2006 09:33 IST

HYDERABAD: In what can be seen as a sign of its success, the Society for Employment Promotion and Training in Twin Cities (SETWIN) has been approached by two institutes including one from the United Arab Emirates for franchise.

The Indo Vimal Sons Exporters Pvt Ltd, Latur is keen on introducing SETWIN’s diploma and PG diploma programmes in hotel management while the Emirate Professional Training Institute, Sharjah had sought help in conducting specific courses as per the requirement of the United Arab Emirates, SETWIN Managing Director M Madana Mohana Rao told this website’s newspaper.

SETWIN had sought the approval from government to accord permission for the two institutes to run courses, he said adding that the UAE institute would be asked to bear the travel expenses for the SETWIN faculty whenever they visit UAE.

“The request from the Gulf institute was a testimonial to the growing reputation of SETWIN as a reliable provider of job-oriented programmes in the country,” Rao felt.

Stating that the demand for the SETWIN para-medical courses was also on the rise, Rao said hospitals like MEDWIN and EMESCO had also requested for franchise. SETWIN introduced 55 new courses and forayed into new areas of management, para-medical, hospital management and fire and safety services.

In addition to its own 18 centres, SETWIN’s franchisees grow from 45 to 95 across the State, he said. A major revamping is also on the cards. Hitherto, examinations used to be conducted once in two months, without announcing the results in between.

Under the new system, the examinations will be conducted once every three months after the announcement of the results of the previous exams. This would enable the failed candidates to appear for the immediate turn of exams, Raod felt.

“We are also insisting that classes for the new batches be conducted only after the current batch completes its term. For our own centres, it has been stipulated that each batch should have a minimum of 20 seats so that the centres have to compete with the private institutions in terms of quality,” the SETWIN MD said.

On the financial front, the franchises currently generate Rs 10 lakh. The government had recently increased the budgetary support from Rs 4.61 crore from previous Rs 2.61 crore.

Meanwhile, of the 100 SETWIN bus services permitted in the city, 36 have started plying on various sanctioned routes. The remaining buses are likely to hit the city roads in about a month.

All the buses should meet Euro III standards and should have four crew members per bus - two male and two female.

Cognizant 3rd-qtr profit up, plans India expansion

The software services company also said it will spend $200 million through the end of 2008 to expand its infrastructure in India.

The company will buy land and build facilities in Chennai, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune in India and add over 3 million square feet of space with the capacity for more than 30,000 new employees

Source: Reuters (http://in.today.reuters.com/News/newsArticle.aspx?type=technologyNews&storyID=2006-11-02T235354Z_01_NOOTR_RTRJONC_0_India-274740-2.xml)

:cheers:

More investment on the way.......

any idea about the source of this news?


Times of India, Hyderabad edition, Nov 2, 2006. Page no-3. here's the link ..... :)

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Skins/TOI/Client.asp?Daily=TOIH&login=ragece&Enter=true&Skin=TOI&AppName=1

great news regarding the novartis facility.

Agree with pding the exports of karnataka are around 40000 cr.

source : TOI, Nov 3 ,2006.
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Skins/TOI/Client.asp?Daily=TOIH&login=ragece&Enter=true&Skin=TOI&AppName=1

City is now top global hub for outsourcing

New Delhi: Indian cities led by Delhi’s national capital region (NCR) have grabbed the top seven slots in a global ranking of the competitiveness of cities as outsourcing destinations. Close on the heels of Delhi, are Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai according to a study released by US-based consulting firm NeoIT.
The other three Indian cities at the top of the list are Pune, Chennai and Kolkata in that order. Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam), Manila (Phillipines) and Shanghai (China) are the three non-Indian cities which figure among the top 10 offshoring destination. Beyond that piece of good news, there is a word of caution. According to the study, in the next three to four years, several cities in Eastern Europe and China could become major rivals to Indian ones as outsourcing destinations. The study projects that Warsaw (Poland) would be right at the top of the list by then, along with two Indian cities, Hyderabad and Kolkata.

Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore could have fallen well behind by that time, with Mumbai and Bangalore likely to be not even in the top 15, while Delhi too could drop out of the top 10. India would still have three of the top five slots, with Chennai joining Kolkata and Hyderabad in that category. The choice of outsourcing cities is based on both generic enterprise-specific factors, the study, done by NeoIT, points out. Generic factors are independent of the country from which work is offshored, with the entrepreneur offshoring his work mainly to benefit from cheap labour. The other generic determinants are availability of proper infrastructure and lower country risk.

However, the study says, times are changing and the ‘one size fits all’ approach has lost its relevance. With offshoring emerging as a major business process and companies offshoring both core and value-added processes, enterprise specific factors are going to determine the choice of location. These include language compatibility, physical proximity, socio-economic affinity as well as availability of sector-specific expertise.

The traditional locations, it predicts, will be already heated up and there is possible chance of a supply crunch in them. Languages other than English will also start being in demand. This could make Eastern Europe difficult to ignore.

In the next three to four years, therefore, Warsaw, Budapest and Prague could be cities in demand. Budapest has already established itself as the European language voice centre and Mexico as a Spanish voice centre.

China will also emerge as a destination for cheaper labour and knowledge of Korean and Japanese language. Other destinations such as Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Pakistan are also going to play the low labour card.

.......

expect wider roads soon...... :)

MCH to go on razing spree

Hyderabad: The Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) will bulldoze 2,008 properties on 61 roads, including Banjara Hills Road No. 1, in the next one year.

Till date, the civic body has taken over land worth Rs 200 crore from residents of the twin cities for roadwidening. It claims to have taken over 17,240 sq yds from 2,980 properties in eight months. MCH town planning officials submitted these details, in the form of a note, to the AP Legislature Assembly Committee on Estimates on October 16.

Massive road-widening was taken up in the last one and half years. Nearly 300 properties got affected on the Charminar-Falaknuma road and about 270 on Road No 2 and 3, Banjara Hills, Road No 36, Jubilee Hills, it said. Massive road-widening works on SP Road, Punjagutta-Erragadda road, Balkampet road were taken up, while in a couple of days road would be widened on Road No 1, Banjara Hills, the note added.

Most of the land victims are being given transferable development rights (TDR) to construct buildings with additional builtup area and a few affected owners were being given land and structural compensation if they insist.

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http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEU20061102230421&Page=U&Title=Hyderabad&Topic=0&
KBR Park, Langer Houz roads are the deadliest
Friday November 3 2006 09:25 IST

HYDERABAD: Accidents occur everyday across the twin cities but have you ever wondered which are the accident-prone roads? In an effort to curb the number of accidents, the traffic police of Hyderabad have just concluded a study, which reveals startling facts about city’s roads in terms of accidents.

From the statistics available with the department, the traffic police carried out a study of accidents and their fatal nature. The study has helped them identify such road stretches with a brief history of accidents, casualties and injured people. The study apart from focussing on total number of accidents and the number of fatalities has also categorised accidents under various police station limits.

In terms of total number of accidents, the road from NFCL Island to KBR Park is way ahead of other roads, as it has accounted for 198 mishaps in which 21 people died and 227 were injured in the past three years.

Speaking to this website’s newspaper, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) A K Khan said the accidents occurred at three junctions – Srinagar Colony, Majid and NFCL junctions. ‘‘Some youths who live in posh localities ride trendy vehicles in a drunken state. No wonder accidents occur,’’ he said.

On the other hand, the road from Langer Houz to Golkonda has topped the list in terms of number of casualties. About 51 lives were lost and 161 were injured in not less than 143 accidents that occurred in the past three years.

Interestingly, the road from Langer Houz to Tolichowki too had been accident-prone with 44 casualties in 174 accidents. ‘‘This is due to heavy movement of trucks and tankers on this route and we hope this rate will come down once the ring road is opened for vehicles,’’ Khan said.

Among the traffic police stations in the city, Asif Nagar and Trimulgherry accounted for more accidents. Accidents that occurred on the outskirts like Langer Houz, Tolichowki and Golkonda came under Asif Nagar police station limits. A large number of heavy vehicles from Vijayawada, Mumbai and Karimnagar highways pass through the Trimulgherry police station limits, which explains the high accident rate there. These two peripheral police stations accounted for 300 deaths amongst themselves in the past one-year.

Armed with the study findings, the traffic police are now working on measures to prevent accidents. ‘‘Based on the study, instructions have been given to teams that patrol these roads and areas,’’ Khan said.

Motorola to make sub-2 k handsets

[ FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 03, 2006 12:26:44 PM] Economic Times

HYDERABAD: Motorola, one of the leading telecom technology and handset manufacturers in the world, is gearing up to trigger a price war of sorts in the basic mobile handset market.

This time, the company is targeting the mass market segment and will launch a handset — in its Motofone series — for less than Rs 2,000 per handset. The launch is slated to be in the next few months in India
.
“This is a mass market product. It will have basic phone features and FM radio,” Motorola’s executive VP and chief technology officer Padmasree Warrior said. Motorola has been working on developing and launching sub-$40 handsets specifically targeted at developing markets including India. “These handsets are meant to give us volumes,” she said.

However, officials said, the final pricing of the product to be launched in India would be decided after considering the price patterns in the competitors’ product range.

Motorola is also planning to make its Hyderabad facility a centre of excellence for handset technology. “The Hyderabad centre plays an important role in all the handset models by contributing key handset applications,” he said.

One of the reasons for the high fatality rate on KBR Park Rd. is poorly-designed Jn. with B. Hills Rd. #3. Also, one of the carriageways on the hilly section next to KBR Park is in bad shape and lacks a sidewalk for pedestrians on the same side. The same sidewalk issue holds as the road goes into Film Nagar towards Little Italy, where the side facing the restaurant lacks any sort of sidewalk (this is a pedestrian safety issue). The Jn. towards Whisper Valley could also use an upgrade.

source : http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Skins/TOI/Client.asp?Daily=TOIH&login=ragece&Enter=true&Skin=TOI&AppName=1

LEGAL WRANGLES
Huda raises red flag on its own townships

Hyderabad: Close on the heels of the Growth Corridor project along both sides of the Outer Ring Road being put on the back burner, the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (Huda) has decided to put the townships project on hold, apparently perturbed over the court battle on land acquisitions. In fact, there seems to have no indication that any of the proposed 13 integrated townships would be materialised this year.

Huda, which initially proposed 22 townships to develop the outskirts of the city, reduced the number to 13 following the realty boom.

However, the urban body had announced that the twin projects—ORR and satellite townships—would be taken up simultaneously. But as soon as it notified land for the project, the locals approached the court and secured stay over land acquisition.

Now, Tellapur where Huda has 400 acres of its own is the only place left for developing a township without any resistance. “We would like to go ahead with the project starting from Tellapur this year,” ORR project director Piyush Kumar told TOI.

Besides the urban body has notified private land in surrounding areas which include about 42 acres in Adibatla, 89 acres in Almasguda, 461 acres in Nadargul, 251 acres in Raikunta, 191 acres in Mankhal, 42 acres in Kismatpur, 35 acres in Dargah Khaleej Khan, 175 acres in Injapur, 151 acres in Turkayamjal, 633 acres in Antaipally, 551 acres in Srinagar, 93 acres in Tellapur and 830 acres in Uppal.

But it is facing strong resistance from residents in Nadargul, Mankhal, Srinagar and Uppal areas. In Srinagar, where most of the notified land belongs to the family members and relatives of former home minister T Devender Goud, the owners approached the court to secure a stay. It is learnt that land owners at many place are demanding huge compensation for their land.

“We are not able to acquire land even after notifying them. As the ORR package has not been finalised yet, we cannot go ahead with the townships project,” said a senior Huda official.

“The urban development authority would file a counter in the court against stay in Nadargul, Mankhal, Srinagar and Uppal to vacate the stay,” he added.

http://www.deccan.com/home/homedetails.asp#Poppalguda%20land%20to%20fetch%20%20Rs%203,000cr

Poppalguda land to fetch Rs 3,000cr

Hyderabad, Nov. 4: The State government has decided to auction off the controversial evacuee lands in Poppalguda. The lands will be handed over to the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (Huda), which will auction them. It is expected that the lands will fetch a price of Rs 3,000 crore. A controversy arose over the evacuee lands after former revenue secretary D.C. Rosaiah issued orders in favour of some private claimants in his capacity as chief settlement commissioner.

The Telugu Desam had then alleged that Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy had a role in this. To rebut the allegation, the government approached the High Court and got Mr Rosaiah’s order suspended. The High Court also allowed the government to dispose of the lands “in a transparent manner through public auction.”
Armed with the court order, the Chief Minister has ordered that 180 acres be handed over to Huda for auction. Sources close to the Chief Minister told this correspondent that the move was also meant to give a fitting reply to the TD. “After seeing the successful marketing of Golden Mile in Kokapet we realised that Huda is the best agency to take up this auction,” a senior official said.

Of course, the auction would be subject to the final outcome of the writ petition in the court. Huda officials have prepared a tentative plan, according to which half of the land would be sold in one piece while the remaining half would be auctioned as five-acre plots. “The individual plots will be sold first and their price will be used to fix the rate for the 90-acre plot,” said an official.

Huda would then seek proposals from the top developers and would give the land to whoever quotes the highest price. “We are confident that the average price in Poppalguda would be Rs 15 crore per acre,” said the official. “It is close to the city and it is not covered by GO 111, which will give more freedom to promoters.”

http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEU20061103230820&Page=U&Title=Hyderabad&Topic=0&
Beautified Mir Alam tank set to offer a visual treat
Saturday November 4 2006 09:29 IST
HYDERABAD: Works relating to beautification and conservation of Mir Alam Tank are expected to be completed and the lake will be thrown open to public shortly.

The HUDA has completed the construction of a 30-feet wide peripheral bund stretched about seven kms including the stone revetment to the slide slopes as well as the chain line fencing to the peripheral bund on habitation side. Greenery and plantations have also been developed besides a nursery.

Presently, works are in progress for developing about five acre part situated on the western shore of the tank along with some other works pertaining to the sewage inflow along the peripheral bund.

Mir Alam is the only lake in the old city, which used to attract a large number of visitors including the tourists from outside. Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HUDA) is spending Rs 25 crores for the conversation and beautification of the tank. The 10-MLD Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP) costing about Rs 20 crores has been completed and trial run is going on.

Chairman D Sudheer Reddy, along with Hyderabad MP, Asaddudin Owaisi, Charminar MLA Ahmed Pasha Quadri, Vice-Chairman Jayesh Ranjan and Executive Director K S Reddy inspected the works at the tank. Sudheer Reddy said that the tank, which was the source of drinking water to the Hyderabad till 1958, got polluted due to the large inflow of sewerage generated from the residential areas in the catchments area into the lake. To restore the polluted tank to its original form, HUDA has taken up works under Green Hyderabad Environment Programme (GHEP) a few years ago.

In pursuance of the request of Asaddudin Owaisi, HUDA has agreed to redevelop the drainage system at Hassan Nagar at a cost of Rs 1 crores. Owaisi informed HUDA chairman that due to lack of drainage line in the said locality, the sewerage was being directly let into the tank leading to pollution.

LAND DISPUTE: A four-acre land adjoining the highway near tank and can be described as a gateway the old city is in dispute. The MP requested the HUDA authorities to initiate steps to settle the dispute.

Sudheer Reddy assured the MP that he would take up the issue with Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy personally and convene a meeting with the private parties who stake a claim the land, HUDA officials, MP and MLA concerned to sort out the issue amicably. If HUDA gets the land, it proposes to construct a under-water park on the lines of a similar park in Singapore.

Later, Chairman, VC and Charminar MLA visited the dilapidated Qursheed Jha Devidi in Hussaini Alam, a notified heritage building where Government College for women is being run. HUDA has agreed to spend Rs 1 crores to renovate the heritage building. It was built by Paigah family in 1890.

Kukatpally-BHEL stretch turning shopping hub
Saturday November 4 2006 09:10 IST
HYDERABAD: It may pain realtors to admit it, but going by the potent silent business boom the Kukatpally-BHEL stretch on the other end of the city is witnessing recently, it may eclipse the projected development in and around Shamshabad, and of course the trade fortunes too.

Big names in the retail segment from jewellery, garments, furniture to pubs and restaurants are soon going to not only liven up the entire business scene in Kukatpally, Hydernagar, Miyapur and the seemingly lost lands adjoining the highway but also drag it further to areas beyond.

As in western movies, recently the cavalry has just appeared over the hill in the shape of the garment and jewellery major RS Brothers, which opened an outlet in the Housing Board. And to boot it, grapevine has it that the early bird is reportedly making a fast buck at this place compared to their other outlets elsewhere in the city.

The household garments brand in city, Chermas also joined the race by launching its fourth outlet in Hydernagar while yet another major brand is busy constructing its own premises near the JNTU. ‘‘There is a lot of retail potential here which remains unexplored,’’ says Damodar of Khazana Furniture, which is soon opening shop in Miyapur.

Major hospitality and entertainment players have also taken note of the trend and the huge prospects here. On the highway from Kukatpally to BHEL, four double theatres are nearing completion. According to informed sources, three trendy pubs have also been lined up for opening soon.

Many reasons for this retail interest in the region. ‘‘This is a spin-off of the IT development in Madhapur. Most of the IT professionals are staying in and around Kukatpally - Miyapur belt and their spending levels are very high,’’ says one of the managing partners of a leading hotel chain in city.

After showing its impact on the construction industry, the positive effects of IT industry growth are now percolating to other areas and this a welcome sign,’’ adds HM Sharma, a senior executive at Ness Technologies. The fact that the Malaysian Township will be ready for occupation soon, is also factoring in the business boom in the region.

Though a mall and a multiplex are in the offing there, the large-scale residential township alone is sufficient to generate a good business in a vast spread, according to analysts. The increasing traffic snarls in the city are also helping the business boom in different clusters.

‘‘After a full day’s work, it is an uphill task for us to go to the centre of the city either for recreation or for shopping,’’ says M Raja, a software professional working for Computer Associates. ‘‘Earlier, the Kukatpally-Miyapur region only meant education and travels. But now many things are happening and we are happy about it,’’ adds Raja, who resides at Miyapur.
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEU20061103224904&Page=U&Title=Hyderabad&Topic=0&

Is this road set for widening like the bit of NH9 from Sanathnagar through Punjagutta? If so, it's good. If not, they may have to do so soon, and IMO they should build an elevated expwy on top of the median if they widen it. That way, traffic heading towards ICRISAT won't have to be obstructed by shopping traffic, esp. since widening the road would require the acquisition of parking space.

...they should build an elevated expwy on top of the median if they widen it...
thats a good idea. that way the local business traffic and thru traffic will not have to compete with each other.
however, inner city roads are of high priority at this time.
esp, all the city roads connecting NH7 should be widened as an alternate route plan for HIAL.
just in case of traffic delays on ORR and EEwy ...

expect wider roads soon...... :)
Hyderabad: The Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) will bulldoze 2,008 properties on 61 roads, including Banjara Hills Road No. 1, in the next one year...

Massive road-widening was taken up in the last one and half years. Nearly 300 properties got affected on the Charminar-Falaknuma road and about 270 on Road No 2 and 3, Banjara Hills, Road No 36, Jubilee Hills, it said. Massive road-widening works on SP Road, Punjagutta-Erragadda road, Balkampet road were taken up, while in a couple of days road would be widened on Road No 1, Banjara Hills, the note added.


this is a good news.
Taj Hotel Banjara and Taj Krishna could expect more company in terms of new star hotels.

http://www.business-standard.com/economy/storypage.php?tab=r&autono=263817&subLeft=1&leftnm=3
Semiconductor policy before Cabinet soon

BS Reporter / Bangalore November 06, 2006
A draft version of the much-delayed semiconductor policy will be placed before the Union Cabinet for approval soon.

“I cannot specify the deadline. All I can say is that the semiconductor policy will be out soon. A Cabinet note on the policy is being prepared,” Union IT Minister Dayanidhi Maran told reporters here today.

According to him, all “hurdles” in the way of the policy had been overcome...
He said the policy aimed at creating a perfect ecosystem for growth of all aspects of the semiconductor industry.
URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/11/06/stories/2006110601150200.htm
Semiconductor policy soon: Maran
Bangalore Nov. 5
, The Union Government would soon announce its policy on the semiconductor industry, said the Union Minister for Communication and IT, Mr Dayanidhi Maran, on Sunday.

The Ministries of Communication and IT and Finance were working together to formulate the policy, Mr Maran told presspersons in Bangalore after a function where leading semiconductor company SemIndia and Belgium-based IMEC, Europe's leading independent nanoelectronics and nanotechnology research institute, signed an MoU for research and development collaboration.

"We will try to do it as fast as possible," Mr Maran said adding, "a cabinet note on the proposed policy is on its way". About the reported differences between the two ministries on incentives to be given for the semiconductor industry, Mr Maran said, "We are in a democratic set up. But at the end of the day, we are batting on the same side."

The SemIndia founder, Chairman and CEO, Mr Vinod Agarwal, said there were concerned over the delay in announcement of the policy, which was ``disturbing'' and would send a ``wrong signal''. But, Mr Agarwal noted, the Government was trying to work out a consensus on the proposed policy and the Prime Minister was fully committed to it.

SemIndia, which intends to build a semiconductor fab in Hyderabad by 2007 with production ramp-up beginning 2009, intends to take up research with IMEC on the next generations of semiconductor process technologies.

"This collaboration would focus on developing foundry-compatible 130 nano metre and 90 nano metre CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) processes for logic and mixed signal products," Mr Vinod Agarwal said.

SemIndia will rely on IMEC's expertise in developing and transferring advanced CMOS processes. "In second phase, SemIndia plans to collaborate with IEMC on advanced semiconductor processes of 65 nano metre and 45 nano metre," he said.

The IMEC Vice-President for Strategic Relations, Mr Roger de Keersmaecker, said IMEC acknowledged the fact that India is fast emerging in the nanoelectronic, R&D and manufacturing segments. "India's booming economy and microelectronics market, large and educated workforce and a sound legal framework for intellectual property protection form the basic ingredients for successful R&D collaborations," he said.

cool. this looks like another step forward for FAB City project.

AC buses for IT pros
(Deccan Chronicle)

Hyderabad, Nov. 5: APSRTC city region has come out with a new plan to entice IT professionals to travel in city buses and expects more revenues to earn. Most of the corporate staff and IT professionals in the city have been using 4,500 cars to attend office and return home.

This led to traffic congestion of late in the city particularly during peak hours. The Railway officials tried to convince the IT professionals to travel in MMTS services but most of them could not make use of the trains because of limited routes and services. RTC city region felt that the buses can fulfill their needs with its accessibility into nook and corner in Hyderabad.

“As many as 100 air conditioned buses will be allocated exclusively to cater the needs of corporate employees,” said K. Sanjeeva Reddy, chairman of RTC Hyderabad region. RTC has ordered 250 modern buses with all facilities and among them 100 will be AC buses. The buses will run in long distance routes like Hitec City-Kukatpally and Dilsukh Nagar-Hitec City.
this would help decongest the roads to a certain extent... but would it become popular?

New look for footpath
http://www.hindu.com/2006/11/07/stories/2006110716020300.htm

Now that it has restored the footpath at Koti, the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad is ready with a plan to give the entire road stretch a new look.

The 80-ft wide road will be given a fresh bitumen coat with central median modern lighting and 10-12 ft wide footpaths on either side.
The road divider may be altered after studying the traffic flows, says Additional Commissioner (Planning & Projects) K. Dhananjaya Reddy.

Encroachments on the sides too will be removed and parking streamlined.

Permission has been given to Andhra Bank to convert their ground floor into complete parking zone for its staff.

Mr. Reddy has pointed out that as per court order, 134 and odd booksellers were accommodated inside the subway (60-odd) and in the new commercial complex at Sultan Bazar (70-odd).

`Hotel Basher' sealed


The MCH on Monday sealed `Hotel Basher' on the Punjagutta crossroads and sent the seized non-vegetarian food items for analysis following a raid.

The raid was led by Commissioner Sanjay Jaju himself who was accompanied by Additional Commissioners Anuradha (West Zone) and Ram Mohan Rao (Health & Sanitation).

http://www.deccan.com/home/homedetails.asp#AP%20media%20baron%20is%20accused%20of%20chit%20fraud
15,000cr worth forest land is grabbed

Hyderabad, Nov. 6: Encroa-chers have occupied forest land worth thousands of crores of rupees around the city. A survey conducted by the forest department at the Tumkunta forest block revealed that 300 hectares of the total 478 hectares were under illegal occupation. Forest officials were shocked to discover that a fly ash factory and a poultry feed unit had been constructed in the protected forest area without permission.

On conducting further inspections, they came across farm houses, small scale units and layouts in the protected forest. Boundary stones had been removed in many areas. Hyderabad north and south ranges together have 26,589 hectares (66,500 acres) of protected forest land. Forest officials estimate that 5,300 acres of this land may have been encroached upon. The land is valued at Rs 15,000 crore.
Realtors have been making a beeline for the villages that fall under these ranges for obvious reasons. These villages include Shamirpet, Sahebnagar, Gurramguda, Turkayamjal, Maheswaram, Upperapally, Kuntluru, Lalgadi, Malakpet, Keesara, Dharmaram, Peerzadiguda, Medchal and others. Authorities are pretty certain that the encroachments occurred with the connivance of the forest and revenue officials.

Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Vigilance) Sunil Kumar said that all steps would be taken to evict encroachers from protected forest lands. A senior forest officer lamented that no survey had been conducted in the forest land for the last 20 years. “We failed to protect the valuable property,” he said. This time too, there was heavy pressure from some lobbies not to continue with the survey, he added.

“Only if the empowered committee of the Supreme Court intervenes will there be any change in the scenario,” the officer felt. Hyderabad DFO Mohammed Akbar refused to divulge the extent of land under illegal occupation but admitted that officials had noticed some illegal structures. “We will not spare anyone who encroaches upon protected forest lands,” he said. It is estimated that 3.50-lakh hectares of forest land are under encroachment in the whole of the State.

Koti book bazaar is razed

Hyderabad, Nov. 6: South India’s biggest second-hand book market in Koti was reduced to rubble by officials of the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad on Monday. Armed with a High Court order, MCH officials, along with the police, enthusiastically pulled down 104 shops in the area...

Some shop owners started shifting their books on Sunday night itself to the alternate spots provided in the MCH commercial complex in Sultan Bazaar and the Koti subway.

MCH officials said that the shop owners had been given enough time.

MCH Additional Commissioner Dhanunjaya Reddy said that a pavement would be constructed in the vacated area for pedestrians. “Similar demolition works will be taken up in other areas of the city after serving notices to encroachers,” he added.
URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/07/stories/2006110716020300.htm

IMG deal: Centre sends ordinance back to govt
Ganesh S Lakshman
[ 7 Nov, 2006 0257hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]

HYDERABAD: In a setback to the state government's move to cancel the memorandum of understanding (MoU) regarding the IMG-Bharata Academies' sports project inked between the Florida-based sports management group and the previous N Chandrababu Naidu government, the Union law ministry is understood to have returned the draft ordinance seeking to cancel the deal. This is on the grounds that it has not been properly worded in legal terms.

While the department of youth advancement and sports affairs officials refused to comment on the development, a top official confirmed to TOI that the ordinance has been sent back. "The Centre has returned the ordinance. They told us that some amendments have to be made in the ordinance. Our legal department is at the job and will send it to the Centre soon," the official said.
While the state is insistent on cancelling it, the issue is generating a lot of political and legal heat. The ordinance to cancel the deal was drafted despite the contract signed between the Naidu government and IMG-B precluding the possibility of any legislation cancelling it and also mentioning that any arbitration could be made only at the International Court of Arbitration in London.

The state cabinet had recommended issuance of an ordinance in October on the grounds that the deal was signed by a caretaker government; that land was given at a cheap rate; and that there was no connection between IMG-B Academies and IMG Florida. Both IMG Florida and IMG-B officials had dismissed the three charges as false and baseless.

The Naidu government had entered into an MoU with IMG-B, a subsidiary of International Management Group East, which is a subsidiary of IMG Academies, Florida, in 2003 to establish a Rs 700-crore sports academy spread over 400 acres in Gachibowli, including seven stadiums which promised to promote world-class sporting activities and churn out Olympians and world class sports personnel.

However, soon after the Y S Rajasekhara Reddy government took over in May 2004, it decided to examine afresh 61 land allotments made by the previous regime of five acres and above, including the IMG-B project. A committee of ministers examined the matter and suggested that IMG-B should enter into a fresh sale deed with the new government failing which the existing deed should be cancelled.

http://www.deccan.com/home/homedetails.asp#AP%20media%20baron%20is%20accused%20of%20chit%20fraud
AP media baron is accused of chit fraud

New Delhi, Nov. 6: Margadarsi Financiers, a company owned by an Andhra Pradesh media magnate, has been accused of fraud running into crores of rupees by a Congress member of Parliament. Margadarsi Financiers is owned Mr Ramoji Rao, the owner of the Eenadu group of newspapers and TV channels, Congress MP from Rajahmundry (Andhra Pradesh) Aruna Kumar Vundavalli said.

The Congress MP has made a written representation to Union finance minister P. Chidambaram to “thoroughly enquire” into the activities of the Hyderabad-based firm, which he claims is operating in contravention of the Reserve Bank of India Act of 1934. Mr Aruna Kumar, who met Mr Chidambaram on Monday, later held a press conference to release the letter, which was accompanied by a detailed balance sheet of Margadarsi Financiers.

In his letter to Mr Chidambaram, the Rajahmundry MP has stated that “Margadarsi Financiers, a Hyderabad-based Hindu Undivided Family, has been engaged in the business of non-banking financial activities, that is, accepting deposits and unsecured loans from the general public and deploying the same as investments in the group companies against the Rules and Regulations of the Provisions of Sec. 45-S of the RBI Act, 1934.”

“You are kindly aware that with a view to safeguarding and protecting the interests of the depositors, Parliament has introduced Chapter 3-C in the RBI Act, 1934 and brought in Sec. 45-S into the said legislation expressly prohibiting Individuals, partnership firms or an Unincorporated Association of Individuals from accepting any deposits from the public unless it is from relatives, as defined under Sub-sec (3) of Sec 45-S,” Mr Kumar’s letter read.

“The said sub-section under its explanation provides that ‘for the purposes of this section a person shall be deemed to be a relative of another if and only if they are members of a Hindu Undivided Family, clearly covering the activities of HUF also within the scope of the Unincorporated Association of Individuals....,’” the letter read.

The Rajahmundry MP alleged in his letter: “As against this mandate, Margadarsi Financiers, a HUF by status, has raised as on 31.3.05 a sum of Rs 2,201 crores as deposits from the public and reported an accumulated loss of Rs 1,100 crores as on that day...” “Another very important issue is that whereas Margadarsi Financiers is incurring losses every year upwards of Rs 200 crores, the total profits of all the group companies in which the investments are made out of the deposits collected by Margadarsi Financiers, as per our information, is not more than Rs 100 crores per annum, and this clearly means that there is no way that the existing depositors can be serviced,” the letter claimed.

“This clearly means that for reasons best known to RBI, they have not been exercising their supervisory and regulatory control over Margadarsi Financiers, which is why they are able to carry on their activities with impunity. Interestingly, even the income-tax department, where the financial statements are filed year after year for assessments, has also kept quiet without enquiring into whether annual accretions to the deposits are from the members of the general public or the amounts recycled clandestinely and against the provisions of the Money Laundering Act,” Mr Aruna Kumar alleged.

Along with the letter, Mr Aruna Kumar has also released portions of the act that mention the list of 22 relatives considered as part of the HUF. They are the father, mother (including step-mother), son (including stepson), son’s wife, daughter (including stepdaughter), father’s father, father’s mother, mother’s mother, mother’s father, son’s son, son’s daughter, son’s daughter’s husband, daughter’s son, daughter’s son’s wife, daughter’s daughter, daughter’s daughter’s husband, brother (including step-brother), sister (including step-sister), brother’s wife and sister’s husband.

The balance sheet of Margadarsi Financiers that accompanied Mr Kumar’s letter shows investments of Rs 6,714,234,839.79 in intra units and similarly Rs 992,500 in Ushodaya News Agencies and Rs 110,000,000.00 in Ushodaya News Agencies A/C-II.

Forest Officials find: 15,000cr worth forest land is grabbed

AP media baron is accused of chit fraud

IMG Deal: "The Centre has returned the ordinance. They told us that some amendments have to be made in the ordinance. Our legal department is at the job and will send it to the Centre soon," the official said.

Is there a storm brewing up in AP politics?
will it benefit the people of the state??
will it hamper the dev projects???

Salary Survey Report - City: Hyderabad

http://www.payscale.com/research/IN/City=Hyderabad/Salary/by_Employer

Sunday, November 05, 2006
Exclusive : Show me the money
The following is the break down of salaries of tech workers based on many parameters. This survey gives a clear picture how rapidly the Indian IT sector is moving ahead.

The starting salary is very attractive compared to other jobs. However, if the trend continues this way I am afraid in near future the IT industry will be more expensive and foreign countries will lose interest to outsource IT services to India. Naturally, they will have to seek other alternatives. If India wants to remain competitive then Indian government must invest on technology education and training on an emergency basis. The entrance of fresh skilled faces can only create a balance and would not let the salary hike go out of control.

Source: http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/11/exclusive-show-me-money.asp

Monday, November 06, 2006
Suresh Productions Multiplex at Kompally

To be built on a total area of 63,000 sq.ft., Cine Planet will be jointly leased by D. Suresh Babu, owner of Suresh Production and Sunil Narang of Asian Theatres. It is situated on NH7 which is known as the entertain-ment zone as it also has other entertainment places like Runway9, Dhola-ri-dhani etc. The multiplex will have four screens out of which three screens will have a seating capacity of 500 whereas, one screen will have 900 seats. The equipments installed in the multiplex includes Westrex Xenon projectors, Harkness Hall screens, Speaker and Amplifiers by Electro Voice and the seats installed by Baba & Sons. Aslam Associates is the architectural firm in charge of the designing of the project.

CinePlanet will have two theatres on the ground floor while the other two will be housed on the secondfloor of the structure. The other features of the project include food court spread over 9,000 sq.ft. on the third floor, gaming zone, shopping mall, etc. It has a parking area for around 500 cars.A total of 30,000 sq.ft. is reserved for commercial purpose. CinePlanet is on the last stage of construction and will open its door for the cinegoers in few months.

Monday, November 06, 2006
Rs 300cr Neighbourhood
Koncept Ambience Group has taken up a Rs 300-crore project to create 'The Neighbourhood', a mix of independent row houses, flats and villas at Gundlapochampally, on the outskirts of Hyderabad.

The self-contained integrated residential township, as the promoters call it, has got all the statutory clearances and would have 290 houses and 450 condominiums. The cost would range between Rs 35 lakhs to Rs 75 lakhs
Situated about 12 kms from the main commercial areas of Secunderabad on the Medchal highway road, the project is spread over 50 acres and would have 70 per cent green, lungspace, according to Mr Mahabir P. Agrawall, Chairman of the Group.

The self-contained integrated residential township, as the promoters call it, has got all the statutory clearances and would have 290 houses and 450 condominiums. The cost would range between Rs 35 lakhs to Rs 75 lakhs. Terming it as a low density residential gated community, Mr Agrawall said only 1.6 million sq ft of total built up area would be their in the 50 acres, which means only 32,000 sq ft per acre, against the industry average of one lakh sq ft per acre.

The customer will have choices and can buy a dream villa, a row house or a condominium, with the best facilities as well as an integrated electronic security system. Work on the project has already begun and handing over would start in the next 18 months.

The company has got foreign direct investment, through some high networth individual based in the US, and has ploughed in internal resources, he said.

Source: The Hindu

Monday, November 06, 2006
Its Raining Malls!
To say that it's raining malls in happening Hyderabad would be an exaggeration. But there is also a mad rush among real estate developers and builders. With real estate booming in the city, both in residential and commercial property development, the herd is heading towards constructing malls.

The city has got what retailers love relatively reasonable property prices and people who love to shop ..... Retail property Prices have risen just 15 per cent over the past year and experts believe they will rise less than 30 per cent in the coming year.

With Reliance Retail opening its supermarket in Hyderabad and many others planning retail investments, the city has become the new retail hotspot of the region.

Consider this: there are around 15 malls slated to come up in and around the city in the next few months to a year. Some of the big names include the GVK One Mall in the upmarket Banjara Hills and MPM Mall in the same area. In fact, contrary to popular perception that there is an oversupply of space for malls and retail, there is a growing demand for them. "It is not true that there is an oversupply of space. In fact, many of the malls are not planned correctly by developers. Moreover, most of them do not have a good understanding of the economics of the tenants' business and pricing them accordingly," observes Arvind Singhal, chairman, Technopak, a consultancy specialising in retailing and consumer goods. That is the reason why in some areas there is a dearth of customers, and some are even offering mall space as as office space.

Hyderabad Retail Space
Company ........... Retail Plan (sq feet)
Reliance Retail .................... 5 lakh
Landmark's Max Retail .......... 1 lakh
IVRCL ................................ 6 lakh
Lanco ................................ 8 lakh
GVK .................................. 5 lakh
Rahejas (Inorbit) ................. 6 lakh
Divyashree ........................ 4 lakh

Moreover, there is a herd instinct among developers resulting in a heavy concentration of malls in some select areas like Gachi Bowli and Kukatpally. For instance, infrastructure majors Lanco and IVRCL are coming up with their own brands of malls in the Gachi Bowli area, dubbed the IT and ITeS bay of Hyderabad.

"Yes, it's a herd mentality leading to a skew in the spread. There are many areas which are good catchment areas for malls to come up like Tarnaka, Uppal in the south and Tirumalgiri in the north with a vast middle and upper middle class population but the rush seems towards the West for the IT crowd," explains I Syamprasad Reddy, managing director, Indu Projects Ltd. Another interesting trend of the spread of malls in the twin cities is their preference for the existing commercial locations, often converting old properties even cinema theatres into malls which neither have the space nor the supporting facilities for a mall. Parking space is one major issue that often causes chaos in the surrounding areas. This is done either by flouting building norms or by making use of loopholes in the weak building laws.

While this is so, observers say that the demand for malls will remain buoyant for the next five or more years once the skew is corrected. "There will be a definite demand for malls. But the issue is of rent. Most developers price it based on the old showroom on the ground floor, and offices on the first and above floors model which is not logical anymore," points out Reddy. According to one estimate at least 600 million sq ft of space is required.

Hyderabad has a million square feet of retail space under construction and it's expected to cross three million in the next two years. And the city has got what retailers love relatively reasonable property prices and people who love to shop.

Source: CNN-IBN / Financial Express

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/07/stories/2006110716010300.htm

`Works costing 3.76 cr. taken up'

HYDERABAD: Secunderabad MP Anjan Kumar Yadav said on Monday that development works costing Rs. 3.76 crores had been taken up across the Parliament segment during the past two-and-a-half years. The maximum works were in Musheerabad (Rs.1.44 crores), while the other extreme was in Maharajgunj (Rs. 25.12 lakhs).

Mr. Yadav told a press conference here that he had proposed a massive contribution for development works in Secunderabad and that Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy had promised to announce them soon. When asked about the value, he said it would certainly not be less than what was recently announced for Hyderabad.

Those proposed in Secunderabad would primarily be in slum areas.

Mr. Yadav said a proposal sent by him for a Sainik school in the constituency to the Defence Ministry had been favourably considered. The Cantonment Board had been asked to identify 30 acres

Koti book bazaar is razed


what koti down????
was such a wonderful place..

Koti book bazaar is razed


what koti down????
was such a wonderful place..

Koti is getting a face lift.

http://i13.************/3zjb9rs.jpg http://i13.************/2m5fhci.jpg
Koti second hand book bazaar ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Koti sub way on a rainy day

MCH has relocated the second hand book bazar.
They are widening the roads and side walks.
134 plus booksellers were accommodated
inside the subway (60+) and in the new commercial complex (70+).
Hopefully, the book sellers would find their new locations better, secure and profitable.

http://i14.************/3448379.jpg
Koti Sultan bazaar - Popular sidewalk mall

Hyderabad farmers trade land for cash
Tejeswi Pratima Tuesday, November 7, 2006 (Hyderabad): NDTV

Hyderabad residents are shelling out more for their vegetables.

This is not just due to seasonal variations but because huge chunks of vegetable growing lands around Hyderabad have started commanding enormous prices in the real estate market.

It has been a daily routine for Panduranga Rao to come to the Rythu Bazaar or farmers' direct sell market in Hyderabad to sell vegetables grown on six acres on the city's outskirts.

But now Rao has decided that he is not going to do that for much longer.

"We get hardly four hours of electricity in a day and I don't get good profits. At the same time one-acre land is fetching Rs 50 lakh. If I save the money and use only Rs 5 lakh for money lending business I can live happily," said Panduranga Rao.

Sale impact: It is an option several farmers like Rao have already exercised after having discovered that they can harvest gold from their land by selling it, instead of tilling it.

Prestigious projects like the Outer Ring Road and the new airport project have pushed up land prices around the city.

"If half acre land is getting Rs one crore in some areas, why will the farmer want to grow? He will sell the land, take the money and enjoy his life," said a farmer.

"All around the International Airport it has been 100 per cent farmers who have sold their land. Farmers used to grow vegetables and flowers. It will definitely have an impact," said Devender Goud, MLA, Ranga Reddy District.

Prices soar: Horticulture officials say supply of vegetables into Hyderabad has taken a sharp downward turn and is a major reason for pushing up prices.

In March, tomatoes cost Rs five a kg, it now sells at Rs 10. The price of cabbage has doubled from Rs 5 to Rs 10. Carrots have gone up from Rs five to Rs 12 a kg. French beans from Rs 8 to Rs 16 a kg and capsicum from Rs 14 to Rs 24.

"Earlier if we invested Rs 30, we would get vegetables for the entire week. But now we can hardly get two vegetables. Any vegetable you want to buy seems to be over Rs 10 a kg,'' said a resident.

It is not just the vegetable farmers who are suddenly a rare species around Hyderabad.

Farmers who grow grapes and flowers too have turned sellers in Ranga Reddy district and used that money to buy land in Nalgonda and Mahbubnagar districts, further away from Hyderabad.

thanks babji...
thats a much better news

yes it is def a better news. and stuff like this def puts the political opportunists to a halt or atleast takes some energy out of those ppl.

GMR plans SEZ in Hyderabad
Sidhartha & Byas Anand
[ 7 Nov, 2006 2254hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
NEW DELHI: The Hyderabad-based GMR group — which has won the contract to modernise Delhi airport — is joining the bandwagon of Indian enterprises setting up special economic zones (SEZ).

Unlike other corporates who are on a land acquisition spree to cash in on the boom in the tax free enclaves, GMR is planning to invest Rs 1,500 crore to set up a multi-product SEZ with special focus on aviation-related activities in the area adjoining Hyderabad's greenfield airport.

Sources said the company had approached the board of approvals, which clears SEZ proposals, to move ahead with the project, which wil be spread over 250 acres.

"GMR owns around 700-750 acres of land in Shamsabad, where the new Hyderabad airport is being built. A part of this land, around 250 acres, has been earmarked for this SEZ project," a source said.

Andhra Pradesh has already given its go-ahead to setting up the SEZ. "It will be a multi-product SEZ, which will focus on avionics and aviation components, aircraft maintenance, besides consumer electronics," the source said.

While the grant of SEZ status will help the promoter save on taxes, the proposal is expected to go through some heavy scrutiny by the home ministry, which wants a closer look at all project near strategic locations including ports and airports.

No date has been fixed for BoA's next meeting, which is expected to consider over 60 fresh proposals — including GMR's — in addition to the 170-odd projects which have been approved in-principle but are awaiting a final go ahead after the land acquisition and security mapping have been carried out. To ensure that the security agencies get enough vetting time, BoA has decided to double the scrutiny period to 30 days.

The GMR project, officials said, is part of GMR's development plan for the new airport in Hyderabad under which the firm also plans to establish two hotels in the airport area. In the first stage, it plans to have a mid-market hotel close to the airport.

"It will be a multi-product SEZ, which will focus on avionics and aviation components, aircraft maintenance, besides consumer electronics"



hopefully, it can attract defence companies and more importantly, small Indian companies working in those areas to setup R&D Centres.

Yes. It would certainlly open a whole new dimension to the technological developments in Hyd.

We can expect more from GMR.

7 building owners arrested


Hyderabad, Nov. 7: Cyberabad police have arrested seven persons who own buildings within the full tank area of various protected lakes in the city and surrounding areas.
The arrests were made on the basis of complaints given by revenue officials about the harm being caused to the water bodies by these buildings.

However, the arrested include those owners who constructed buildings on layouts approved by the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (Huda). In their overzealousness to implement court directives and to protect the lake bunds from land sharks, officials have not even spared those whose building plans were approved by municipalities.

Police booked criminal cases under section 49 and 50 of Irrigation Act and section 430, 431 and 432 of IPC against these building owners. Lack of clarity about the issue among revenue officials is causing much hear-tburn to building owners. Ranga Reddy joint-collector V. Seshadri said that full tank area had been demarcated to protect the lakes. “In Ranga Reddy district alone, we surveyed 99 tanks and found 3,000 such structures including multi storied and single storied buildings,” he disclosed.

Mr Seshadri added that orders were given that criminal cases should be filed only in connection with fresh constructions. “We have asked the task force to decide on existing constructions,” he said. However, arrested building owners say that they had bought the land from patta owners. “I constructed the house eight years ago with all the required approvals,” said a building owner. “The full tank level issue cropped up only recently and now they are taking action against us.”

Saroornagar Mandal Revenue Officer K. Prasada Rao said that cases would be booked against Huda and municipal officials who approved the layouts. However, most revenue officials are confused about the issue and police are also impulsively taking action on the complaints filed by such officials.

L.B. Nagar inspector V. Surender Reddy said that most of the building owners had all the relevant documents. "But we have no option," he said. In Hayatnagar police station limits, however, only realtors are being arrested and not building owners. "We are not arresting the innocent owners," said Inspector Ghouse Moinuddin.

Multi-storeyed parking complex in old city first


Hyderabad, Nov. 7: The first exclusive multi-storeyed parking complex of the twin cities will come up in old city. It will be a five-floor building with parking space for over 400 cars with semi-automated facility. While the conventional ramps will be in place for parking two to three floors below the ground level i.e. cellar and sub-cellar, an automated machine will take the vehicles to floors above ground level. The complex will come in 2,150 square metres of area at Old Pension Office in Khilwath.

Three firms including GVK, the Mumbai-based Patel Engineering limited and Delhi-based Futurage Infrastructure India limited have offered to ground the project on Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis. Though all the three firms qualified on the “technically capability” front, the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) has short-listed Patel Engineering and Futurage Infra going by a set of parameters laid own by it.

In a day or two, the civic body will issue the Requests for proposals (RFPs) followed by seeking financial bids from the agencies in due course of time. The firm which offers the least off set period or BOT period will be awarded the contract.
http://www.deccan.com/City/CityNews.asp

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/08/stories/2006110817760300.htm

MCH to take over site inside Nehru park

HYDERABAD: The Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad has decided to take over the property inside Chacha Nehru Park at Masab Tank where a private firm was running a sports centre since the lease period was over and no tax was being paid for several months.

Mayor Teegala Krishna Reddy directed Commissioner Sanjay Jaju to initiate action `immediately' at the recent Council meeting after it was pointed out that there was an "unnecessary delay" in taking over the property despite court orders.

The decision was taken after officials admitted that rules do not permit extending a lease period beyond three years under any circumstances. There was also furore over lack of proper information about the corporation assets, including leased properties.

Mr. Jaju said of the 1,066 open sites about 673 were developed and fencing will be taken up to protect them. There were encroachments in 82 properties and digital photographs were being taken as part of a survey taken up to list them.

He also said 86 community halls of the 391 were being `misused' and within a week steps would be taken to put them to productive use by either starting a library, reading room, gymnasium, literacy centre, etc.

Missing files : However, the Commissioner admitted that about 170 odd files pertaining to period of 1982-86 on the leased lands were `lost' when they were being transferred from one department to another!

A panel of all floor leaders are to probe into this case and submit a report within 20 days. A resolution was also passed to request the Government to see that a no objection certificate from the MCH was necessary for setting up wine shops (212 in Hyderabad) as it was being done for bars and restaurants. This was necessary to keep a check on parking and misuse of premises as was pointed out by the police.

Mr. Jaju said four NoCs were issued to bars and 13 to restaurants in the last one year and all trades were divided into 21 categories. Automatic annual renewal of licences through eSeva has been halted and licences will be issued only after an inspection of three parameters - adequate parking space, location (residential/commercial) and booking under the bulk garbage system to prevent dumping of hotel waste into dumper bins were essential.

Anti-larval drive : The MCH's urban malaria scheme personnel had covered 51,083 houses so far for taking up anti-larval operations and also sprayed 13.7 km of open drains with larvicides for controlling mosquito breeding.

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/08/stories/2006110816780200.htm
City chosen for opening branch of German Research Foundation

The city emerging as science capital of India: V-C
The State capital accounts for 50 per cent bulk drug exports from the country
Andhra Pradesh is the first State to announce a biotech policy

HYDERABAD: Hyderabad has become the chosen city of German Research Foundation (DFG), a prestigious German central public funding organisation, to open its branch after Delhi in the country.

DFG, with a budget of 1.4 billion euro for promoting research in Germany and encouraging international collaboration in science and humanities, has set up five branches in the world so far -- Washington, Beijing, Moscow, New Delhi and now Hyderabad.

The Association for German Culture (Goethe Zentrium), Nampally, set up in city two years ago, to promote German language and culture, will serve as an outreach for the DFG.

Giving the details to media persons here on Tuesday, DFG Vice-President H. Hacker said that apart from promoting research in Germany, DFG fostered scientific excellence through competition, advised parliaments and public authorities on science and research issues and supported young researchers world over.

"India is an upcoming country not only as an economic power but also in science and technology and it is time research collaboration is stimulated between India and Germany in a big way. The DFG branch in city will facilitate it," Dr. Hacker said.

The DFG-DST and DFG-INSA agreements would help future joint collaborative efforts. University of Hyderabad Vice-Chancellor Seyed E. Hasnain said Hyderabad was chosen by DFG as the city was emerging as science capital of India.

It accounted for 50 per cent bulk drug exports from the country and has about 40 research institutes funded by various central organisations. Andhra Pradesh was the first State to announce a biotech policy, set up Biotech Park where Phase I was fully occupied, phase II fully allotted while allotment was on for the third phase.

The Consul General, Delhi, Heinz Kopp, said South India contributed for 40 per cent of Indian economy and Hyderabad with several positive features was chosen to represent South India.

Extend support : Later inaugurating the branch, Dr. Hacker called for intensifying Indo-German academic and research collaboration.

He said the cooperation remained one-sided with more Indian scholars visiting Germany than their counterparts coming here. He said under a new scheme, DFG would extend support to young German researchers to undertake research projects in India.

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/08/stories/2006110817750300.htm

HUDA gets Fitch rating

New Delhi: Global credit rating agency Fitch assigned a `stable outlook' to Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HUDA).

The National `A (Ind)' issuer rating took into consideration the company's strong symbiotic relationship with the Government of Andhra Pradesh and its contribution to economic and infrastructural development of Hyderabad Metropolitan Area (HMA), Fitch said in a release.

It also reflects sound cash position with Rs. 400 crores of cash and equivalents as deposits with various banks.

The rating is supported by the company management's consideration for the establishment of a debt service reserve account. - PTI

Sewerage work to start in old city

http://www.hindu.com/2006/11/08/stories/2006110817770300.htm

The Hyderabad Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board has set into motion the ambitious sewerage master plan for the twin cities zeroing in on a section of the old city for grounding the works. It has already commissioned local consultants to carry out physical verification of the localities and work out the costs and a detailed project report is likely by December first week.

This would be the first component of the Rs. 2,000 crores project and would cost Rs. 100 crores.

"We are looking at the old city which poses challenges in terms of outdated infrastructure and difficult alignment. We are mapping a couple of areas," HWMSSB Managing Director K.S. Jawahar Reddy explained.

YSR sets deadline


Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, at a high-level meeting last week, had directed the HMWSSB officials to start works on the sewerage master plan at the earliest, tying up with various banks and complete it in three years.

The master plan also includes the Rs. 800 crores underground sewerage network for the old city.

System outdated


The existing network covers about 65 per cent of the MCH area while a major portion of the surrounding municipalities do not have an underground sewerage system at all.

The existing system was outdated and overloaded thanks to rapid growth of population over the years.

Keeping in view the needs of the city by 2021, the Mumbai-based consultant AIC Ltd prepared a Sewerage Master Plan covering an area of 351.63 sq. km. way back in 1994.
Master plan


"While the Master plan gave conceptual designs and a broad picture, a detailed estimate is crucial to make the plan workable making a physical verification of the areas, checking the levels and alignment, route to be taken, nalas to be crossed besides working out the costing."

Towards that end, the water board has called for expression of interest from consultants to translate the entire Master Plan into a reality while work on parts of the old city component was assigned to local consultants `since we were given two months time to begin'.

Efforts were also on to tie up funds, the crucial element of the project.

State to be approached


"We have prepared a detailed proposal seeking Government consent to authorise water board to borrow from nationalised banks. We asked it to provide debt servicing and make provisions in the budget," he said.

The water board will be forwarding the proposal to the Government in a day or two.

This is how the footpath looks now at koti.

http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/7302/kotinr8.jpg

Mch is demanding 1500 rs from shopkeepers as rent to use 30 sqft of space in the subway apart from an initial fee of 32000 rs.
Isnt it inhuman?
http://www.hindu.com/2006/11/08/stories/2006110817110400.htm

http://www.business-standard.com/general/storypage_test.php?&autono=264029

Celestica, a Canadian electronics manufacturing services company, today formally inaugurated its manufacturing facility, built with an investment of Rs 30 crore, in Hyderabad.

It is the company's first Indian manufacturing facility following the acquisition of Raminish Electronics Private Limited, a local component manufacturer, in the year 2005.

Speaking on the occasion, John Perri, president of Celestica and in charge of Asian operations, said the company was bullish on India for its impressive economic growth and vast talent pool available for specialised areas like electronics.

He said the company was eager to increase the headcount from the present 500 in the near future.

However, he did not elaborate on the time frame and the actual number.

According to Perri, the new facility is equipped with the capabilities ranging from new product introduction and prototyping, to printed circuit assembly (PCA) to be served by the markets including consumer electronics, office equipment, power electronics, telecommunications, energy management and automotive sectors.

Celestica supplies components to leading companies including Dell, Hewlett Packard, IBM and Motorola.

WG McEwen, consul and trade commissioner of Canadian Consulate, said the commencement of Celestica's operations was an indication of growing business interests of Canadian companies in Andhra Pradesh.

He also disclosed that Canadian companies would look at investment opportunities in medical and healthcare sectors in the state during their forthcoming business visit.

Announcing the inauguration of the new facility, Ponnala Laxmaiah, state minister for major and medium irrigation, said Andhra Pradesh was currently making inroads into the emerging sectors of electronics industry accounting for a domestic production worth about Rs 3,500 crore and an export production of Rs 100 crore.

He also referred to the state government's ambitious Fab City project stating that a major electronics and consumer durables manufacturing base was expected to be established in the state with the active policy support and incentives extended by the state government.

http://www.business-standard.com/general/storypage_test.php?&autono=264032

CSS Software India, the Indian IT services subsidiary of the US headquartered Cybernet Software Systems (CSS), plans to hire over 500 professionals over the next 12 months to take its headcount to 650 from the existing 150 in the country.

As a part of this expansion, it has opened an office in Hyderabad.

The company is aggressively targeting the Andhra Pradesh ERP market. It is focusing on small and medium manufacturing and engineering companies in this regard.

“With our aggressive expansion into Andhra Pradesh, we are confident of establishing a strong footprint in the IT services market and expect to double our customer base over the next 6-12 months,” the company’s business head, Mani Sam, said in a press release here on Tuesday.

CSS Software currently has over 10 customers in India.

Thanx for the info @Babji and @grimm :)

allegations against Margadarshi has become a fodder for its rivals and much needed excuse for mud slinging.

Eenadu group's rivals like TV9, Vaartha, Andhra jyothi, Gemini TV are making hay while the sun is shining brightly.

here is a news report from vaartha, arch rival of eenadu...

http://www.vaarttha.com/vaarttha/hed2.asp

mean while, eenadu has to run for cover by repeatedly airing the clip which shows Ramoji Rao codemn the allegations and assuring the depositors.

G.S 24 Carat , Ameerpet

Seven floors of shopping and recreational space.
1,80,000 sft of shopping space on 4 floors.
30,000 sft for entertainment, restaurant and conference facilities.
30,000 sft exclusively for a multiplex theatre.
90,000 sft of parking space.

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/4783/gscarat24js8.gif

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/8536/building2ul8.jpg

^^ Adlabs multiplex is coming up in this building. Sign boards have been installed on all the four sides of the building. It's almost finished and should be opening in next month.

I guess this would create further traffic problems for the already cramped somajiguda - SR nagar stretch.

Celestica supplies components to leading companies including Dell, Hewlett Packard, IBM and Motorola



that's nice!!!

RIL plans Geophysics school in Hyderabad
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/403200611081850.htm

Reliance Industries is contemplating setting up of a School of Geophysics and Geo-sciences in this city, given its proximity to Krishna Godavari basin and basins on the east coast that have huge oil and gas potential.

Speaking on the company's future plans for Andhra Pradesh, RIL Chairman and MD, Mukesh Ambani, told reporters here that fundamentally, within India there is a need to build capacity for geophysists and geo-scientist and we will seriously look at building a school in this regard at Hyderabad."

"We have spent billion of dollars on exploration. For Andhra Pradesh, whatever oil and gas we find, should first benefit the local people. It should go to the households of the local areas which we will pursue single-mindedly," he added.

Speaking about other sources of energy, which needed to be tapped apart from oil and gas, he said there was a potential in nuclear energy, which was also related to geo-sciences as uranium findings have to be done.

"India is underexplored in minerals and the potential for the country is very high," he said.

On looking at other states for reserves of oil and gas apart from Krishna and Godavari, he said, "We will work as team India to find more gas and oil reserves."

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/09/stories/2006110902191804.htm

Godrej Properties' IT park project

CHENNAI: Godrej Properties announced on Wednesday its plans to enter the Hyderabad real estate market by setting up a new IT park project. The company has already finalised 34 acres of land at Patancheruvu in Hyderabad on which it intends to develop six million sq. ft. of IT space. It has purchased the land from Rallis India, a Tata group company. The property touches the NH - 9 (Hyderabad-Mumbai) and is located on the APIIC's industrial estate.

The Maran Factor
Finally, credit goes to the meticulous way in which Dayanidhi Maran, the Minister of Communications and IT coaxed companies into setting up their facilities in Chennai (Maran contested election for the first time and got elected to the 14th Lok Sabha from the Central Madras constituency).
Making his position clear, Maran, while addressing an industry meet in Chennai recently said, “I am trying to promote India as a major destination for investment in software and hardware, and Chennai, in particular, for telecom-related activities. I believe there are going to be several more telecom companies that will invest in this southern city.” He created a cell in the ministry in association with the Tamil Nadu government for smooth clearance of projects headed for Chennai. It is not without reason that he is often seen in Chennai making one announcement after the other. However, according to some media reports, some companies who finally selected Chennai were in favor of other locations like Mumbai and Bangalore.
viewpoint (or, is this a open secrete?) .
should GoAP rotate the ministers of such key ministries on a round robin basis,
so all states would get equal opportunuty?

viewpoint:

Chennai Calling
With $1 bn of investment already, Chennai races ahead of Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai

http://www.voicendata.com/content/top_stories/106083102.asp

“I am trying to promote India as a major destination for investment in software and hardware, and Chennai, in particular, for telecom-related activities. I believe there are going to be several more telecom companies that will invest in this southern city”
-Dayanidhi Maran, Minister of Communications and IT

http://www.voicendata.com/content/top_stories/206083102.asp

The Maran Factor
Finally, credit goes to the meticulous way in which Dayanidhi Maran, the Minister of Communications and IT coaxed companies into setting up their facilities in Chennai (Maran contested election for the first time and got elected to the 14th Lok Sabha from the Central Madras constituency).
Making his position clear, Maran, while addressing an industry meet in Chennai recently said, “I am trying to promote India as a major destination for investment in software and hardware, and Chennai, in particular, for telecom-related activities. I believe there are going to be several more telecom companies that will invest in this southern city.” He created a cell in the ministry in association with the Tamil Nadu government for smooth clearance of projects headed for Chennai. It is not without reason that he is often seen in Chennai making one announcement after the other. However, according to some media reports, some companies who finally selected Chennai were in favor of other locations like Mumbai and Bangalore.

CM hints at probe into Margadarsi finances
[ 9 Nov, 2006 0226hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]

HYDERABAD: Chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy on Wednesday hinted at the state favouring speedy inquiry into allegations of financial impropriety against Margadarsi Financiers owned by media baron Ch Ramoji Rao.
A political row has been kicked off in the state after such allegations were made by Rajahmundry Congress MP Aruna Kumar Vundavalli.

Speaking to reporters in New Delhi after meeting finance minister P Chidambaram, the chief minister said, "Aruna Kumar has made basically two allegations. One that Margadarsi Financiers is collecting deposits in contravention of the law and the second that the firm is losing Rs 250 crore every year and that the profits of all group companies put together are not more than Rs 30 to 40 crore which raises issues of liquidity.

Every year, heavy deposits are being mobilised to cover its losses. This issue figured in my meeting with Chidambaram." More importantly, the chief minister said, "It is basically for the Government of India and the RBI to take appropriate action in such situations.

The state government has little role in such cases. But when Prudential Bank collapsed, there was lot of pressure on us from depositors.

Hence, we want the RBI to take appropriate action as per law to protect the interests of depositors. The finance minister told me that the issue has been brought to his notice and that it is being examined."

Margadarsi Financiers managing director Shailaja Kiran told TOI that only those depositors whose amount had matured sought to withdraw the money on Wednesday. "Others whose amounts have not matured as yet did not withdraw the money,"she said.

Meanwhile, Aruna Kumar hinted at launching an agitation against Margadarsi Financiers if it does not make public the details of its assets and liabilities and explain under what rules an unincorporated company was collecting huge deposits from the public.

At a press conference on Wednesday, he said that instead of clarifying the questions raised by him, the company bosses were resorting to mud-slinging against him and the Congress party. He said the company was trying to "manufacture consent" to show that all was well and that it enjoyed unflinching faith among public.

Asked why the operations of the finance company were never questioned by the RBI or by any government in the last 32 years, Aruna Kumar said that was because of the "larger than life"image of Ramoji Rao.

When asked if the law differentiates between persons based on their status, he hastened to add that any agency would act only when there are complaints. "So far no one has lodged any complaint," he added.

Source: Economic times

• No Time For Semiconductor Policy; To Begin Production

WITH the Centre yet to take any concrete steps on formulating a semiconductor policy, SemIndia has gone ahead and started a part of its Hyderabad project that does not depend on the policy. This will be a $100-million assembly-test-mark-pack (ATMP) plant which will manufacture flip chips, a type of packaging, from 2007.
Mr Vinod Agarwal, president & CEO, SemIndia, told ET,“We have begun early construction on the 200,000-sq ft building and we should be ready for production by next year.” He added that the production capacity by dollar volume would be $100 million in the first year and reach $400 million in another couple of years.
It’s clearly driven by demand and we are in talks with companies like AMD and Broadcom which are focusing on the India market, he said.
“The equity piece of the funding in the ATMP is $30 million, led by VC firm Sandalwood Partners with $17 million, promoters of SemIndia and strategic investors like Flextronics. The rest $70 million is from debt and project financing led by some equipment suppliers,” said Mr Agarwal. The ATMP is expected to employ over 10,000 people in three years.
SemIndia is the anchor customer in the 1,200-acre Fab City project in Hyderabad. While phase I of Fab City is being built on 300 acres, SemIndia will be located on 75 acres of this. For the second phase, which is the main fab, the consortium is currently waiting for the Centre’s semiconductor policy. The total project cost is estimated at $3 billion of which $1 billion will be equity while $2 billion will come from debt from banks like SBI and ICICI Bank and project financing. “Of the equity, we are expecting the government to invest straight cash of $260 million. Strategic investors including AMD, mutual funds, investors and promoters will chip in for the rest $740 million,” Mr Agarwal said.
The SemIndia chief also expressed hope that the semiconductor policy is formulated soon, else his company could look at other options. “Our investors are counting on incentives by the government. If the policy is delayed by six months, then the economics of the project gets affected. We could look at going elsewhere, countries like Germany, Malaysia and the US offer lot of advantages to companies to set up fab,” he said.

Production capacity by dollar volume to be $100 m in the first year
Plans to employ 10,000 people in three years
Plant to manufacture flip chips, a type of packaging, from 2007

BS Reporter / Hyderabad November 09, 2006



Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani today announced the setting up of a school of geophysicists in Hyderabad in association with Oil and Natural Gas Corporation in view of growing demand for skilled manpower in the oil and natural gas exploration sector.

Mukesh, on the sidelines of the international seminar of geophysicists, said the country needs to build capacities in the oil and gas sector to make use of its enormous potential. He said it also has a great potential in nuclear energy. “The Indian story is just beginning. It will unfold with the results of exploration of blocks under NELP 6 and 7,” he said.

Mukesh said the company would provide piped gas to domestic households in Andhra as part of its commitment to the welfare of common people. “K-G basin’s first gas will go to the common people before it is made available to the industry,” he said, adding Reliance was very much committed to the welfare of Andhra Pradesh.

The state government had asked the company to provide gas to meet the needs of the state before taking it to elsewhere in the country. The state has also proposed to develop a gas grid for utilisation of natural gas for various sectors in the state.

Commenting on the plan for piped gas supply by Reliance, a senior government official said the government initiative on the proposed gas grid was aimed at ensuring filling the gaps wherever private players are unwilling to reach out.

Replying to another question, Ambani said the company was willing to cooperate with other players like ONGC in sharing of exploration rigs to optimise costs.
http://www.business-standard.com/common/storypage.php?autono=264194&leftnm=1&subLeft=0&chkFlg=


http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/403200611081850.htm

companies like Birla, Tata, and Reliance have the muscle to establish centres of excellence in there areas of specialization. good for the country!!!

Biotech SEZ to come up near Hyderabad

Source: The Hindu (http://www.hindu.com/2006/11/10/stories/2006111003990600.htm)
HYDERABAD: The Centre has given the green signal for setting up a sector-specific SEZ in biotechnology at Genome Valley, near here, according to Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy. Inaugurating Global Bio-Pharma Conference-2006 here on Thursday, Dr. Reddy said that Hyderabad was the fastest growing city in biotechnology R&D innovation and contract manufacturing. Stating that biotechnology would help improve economic development, he called for its effective use to increase food production. Promising the Government's help, he urged pharmaceutical executives, entrepreneurs and scientists to synergise the opportunities and challenges in establishing new ventures. He wanted more collaborations between the State and the West to solve emerging and life-threatening diseases, including chikungunya, dengue and flu.

Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development D. Purandareswari said the Indian biotech industry's revenues were $1.1 billion in 2004-05. The Association of Biotechnology-Led Enterprises (ABLE) was aiming to push the growth to $5 billion to generate one million jobs by 2009.

Referring to the challenges faced by the biotech sector, she said one of the problems was lack of qualified candidates as there was gap between curriculum and market demand. The U.S.-based biopharmaceutical firm Novavax was planning to collaborate with city-based Bharat Biotech to produce a vaccine for pandemic flu, its executive director Niranjan Kumar said. He said the trials were planned for next year as the company was in the process of developing the technology

Tellapur land to fetch Rs 2,000cr

http://www.deccan.com

The Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (Huda) is hoping to raise more than Rs 2,000 crores by auctioning off 400 acres of land in Tellapur near Hitec City. As of now, Huda has fixed Rs 4 crores as the reserve price per acre of land in Tellapur. It had earlier auctioned off the lands at Kokapet at a price of Rs 14.5 crores per acre. Tellapur falls in Medak district and is located five kilometres away from Hitec City. The plan is to set up an integrated township in the area which can also house information technology firms.

“We will use the money raised in the auction for constructing the Outer Ring Road,” said a senior Huda official. The development of the township would be undertaken in the private-public partnership and the developer will get back his investments by marketing the houses and commercial complexes. As many as 34 short-listed companies are expected to submit their design and commercial bids on or before November 20. The successful bidder has to pay 70 per cent of the amount within two months and remaining 30 per cent within five years. Huda will get 12 per cent of the amount as premium after the development of township.

The developer will have to allocate 30 per cent area for residences and another 30 per cent for commercial, office complexes and multiplexes. Firms competing for bids include 1. Larsen and Toubro Ltd; 2. Unitech Ltd; 3. Emaar Properties PJSC, Emaar MGF Land Pvt. Ltd. and MGF Developments Ltd; 4. B.Seenaiah and Company Projects Ltd, China Railways 18th Bureau Group and Srinivasa Construction Ltd; 5. Shipra Estates Ltd; 6. IVR Prime Urban Developers Limited and IVRCL Infrastructure and Projects Ltd; 7. Reliance Utilities and Power Ltd Reliance Engineering Associates Pvt. Ltd; 8. Indiabulls Financial Services Ltd, Shapoorji Pallonji and Co Ltd. and AZ Developers; 9. Lanco Infratech Pvt. Ltd., Lanco Kondapalli Ltd and IDFC Ltd among others.

150 acres for Novartis

http://www.hindu.com/2006/11/10/stories/2006111008130400.htm

The Government signed a deal with pharmaceutical giant Novartis here on Thursday providing for allotment of 150 acres of its land at Sultanpur in Medak district, near Hyderabad, to enable the company set up a project of IT-enabled services and research and development.

The MoU was signed by K. Ratna Prabha, Secretary, IT and Communication, and Ranjit Shahani, vice-chairman and MD, Novartis India, at the Secretariat in the presence of Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy and IT Minister P. Sabitha Reddy.

Novartis will invest Rs. 300 crores-Rs.500 crores to set up its ITES and R&D facility at Sultanpur which will provide employment to about 1,000 IT professionals initially and to 3,000-5,000 ultimately.

Ms. Ratna Prabha said the company had zeroed in on the State for setting up its facility, impressed by the prevailing congenial atmosphere and the pro-active and investor-friendly policies of the Government.

Source: Econimic times

Firm Ties Up With Watchdata To Source And Market Smart Card-Based Products In India

BARTRONICS India is planning to set up a chip manufacturing base in Hyderabad at an investment of Rs 160 crore. This will be set up in collaboration with Singapore-based Watchdata Technologies, from whom Bartronics currently sources these chips The company plans to commence operations of this facility by 2008. The project would be funded through debt and equity.
“Now that we have tied up with Watchdata Technologies for sourcing and marketing of smart cardbased products in India and its neighbouring countries, we will look at backward integration. The step forward in this would be manufacturing our own chips,” Bartronics managing director and chief executive officer Sudhir Rao told ET. This would be part of the second phase of expansion, for which it would raise around Rs 225 crore to Rs 250 crore.
The company is also considering setting up an office in Bahrain to cater to the Middle-East market. This office would focus on the smart cards and RFID markets. “We may also enter the US where the RFID market is very mature and are looking for partners there,” said Mr Rao. Bartronics currently has 135 employees and is planning to grow to 250 in the next two years. With the chip manufacturing unit in place, it would grow to around 350 employees.

the row between AP and Maran never ends. :ohno:
:bash:

source : http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Skins/TOI/Client.asp?Daily=TOIH&login=ragece&Enter=true&Skin=TOI&AppName=1

Maran’s move may spell doom for SEZ

Hyderabad: The government has expressed serious concern over the active moves of Union communications and information technology minister Dayanidhi Maran to get extended beyond 2009 the sunset clause which ensures a tax holiday for IT companies operating under the Software Technology Parks of India (STPI).

Officials said if the sunset clause was extended, then it would spell doom for the 27 IT Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in AP for which the state government has already secured formal approvals. With 27 IT SEZs out of the 149 in the country, AP has among the largest for any state and once the SEZs come up, they are expected to give a major boost for AP to surge ahead of its rival states in software exports.

STPI is a society set up by the department of IT in the ministry of communications and IT in 1991 to boost software exports from India and has Maran as its chairman. The sunset clause valid till 2009 given to the companies operating under STPI allows the firms to enjoy income-tax holiday as per section 10 A of the Income Tax Act, 100 per cent customs duty exemption on imports of capital equipment and 100 per cent excise duty exemption and sales in the domestic tariff area up to 50 per cent of its exports, among others.

The AP government is of the view that unlike the proposed SEZs, which have a one million sq ft of office space creation as mandatory clause and a major export obligation, the STPI units have no stipulation on jobs creation as well as have minimal export obligation.

“If the sunset clause is extended, the SEZs will never take off as most of the IT firms would prefer to continue operating in the STPIs where the tax benefits would continue. There will be no incentive for them to move into SEZs and gain concessions as they would continue to enjoy the tax holiday,” said an official.

One major reason for Maran to seek extension of the sunset clause, according to sources, is to maintain control of the IT sector which he may lose once the SEZs come up because the latter are under the commerce ministry. “The IT sector would slip out of his hands once the SEZs come up as it will be the commerce ministry that would be calling the shots,” said sources.

However, the state appears to be up against a formidable lobby seeking extension of the sunset clause. Apart from Maran, it includes the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) as well as the leading software giants which are currently enjoying the tax benefits.

source : http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Skins/TOI/Client.asp?Daily=TOIH&login=ragece&Enter=true&Skin=TOI&AppName=1

Master plan to overhaul drainage system in city

Hyderabad: A master plan overhauling sewerage system of the city will be prepared by Water Board. It will be designed to cater to the needs of the city till 2046.

The board is gearing up for the new master plan following instructions by chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. Instead of the board staff taking up the work, a private agency will be appointed to conduct a detailed survey and submit the report to Water Board in the next four months.

The board would spend Rs 2,000 crore for overhauling the sewerage network, which was laid by the Nizam to cater to a population of five lakh.

The project would be funded by the Union government under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). Of Rs 2,000 crore, Rs 1,200 crore would be spent for relaying sewer lines in the new city and Rs 800 crore for the Old City.

In 1994, the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) and AIC Watson Consultants did a joint survey and concluded that Rs 600 crore was enough to overhaul the sewerage network in the city.

However, the Water Board is not ready to accept the study as the city has seen a sea change in the last 12 years. “We will use report as the base for the new master plan,” Water Boarddirector (projects) C G Gowtham Reddy told TOI.

The board has called for tenders for expression of interest to take up the survey. The last date for agencies to express their willingness for the survey work is November 15. Tenders would be finalised in the first week of December. The agency would have to submit its report to the Water Board within four months, he added.

Meanwhile, a Rs 100-crore sewerage modification work has been approved which would be taken up in a few days. A survey has already been started which will be completed soon, the director said.

Saudi Arabia plans consulate in Hyderabad

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200611101969.htm

Saudi Arabia's Ambassador Saleh Nin Mohammed Al-Ghamdi has said his country plans to set up a consulate in the Andhra Pradesh capital.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry is holding talks with India's External Affairs Ministry on this issue, he said at a reception hosted by Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy here last night in honour of visiting Saudi Arabian Higher Education Minister Khaled Bin Mohammad Al-Angari.

"The consulate will not only help people of Andhra Pradesh in obtaining visas but strengthen the relations between India and Saudi Arabia," Al-Ghamdi said.

The Saudi Minister said he was impressed with the rapid strides made by Hyderabad in the IT sector.

The 12-member Saudi team visited IT district Hitec City and the offices of Satyam Computer and Indian School of Business. It also visited the Central University of Hyderabad and evinced interest in cooperating with it.

The team expressed a keenness to collaborate in computer sciences, management, English and life sciences.

the row between AP and Maran never ends. :ohno:
:bash:

source : http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Skins/TOI/Client.asp?Daily=TOIH&login=ragece&Enter=true&Skin=TOI&AppName=1
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How about this ? MP's cutting across party lines oppose SEZ.
:lol:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/402046.cms

http://www.cyberabadtimes.net/2006/11/att-in-hyderabad.asp
Friday, November 10, 2006
AT&T in Hyderabad

AT&T Inc has launched its networking services for the corporate market in a joint venture with Mahindra Telecommunications Investment Ltd.

The American telecom giant, in India since 2000 by partnering with VSNL and providing switching products and solutions. AT&T will offer advanced networking services to corporates in key verticals and expand its existing base of over 400 customers.
AT&T India has obtained the licence to operate in the international and national long distance (ILD & NLD) arena for $1.1 million and will have five nodes across the country. These would be located at Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai.

"With India emerging as a major outsourcing provider of software and IT-enabled services, world class telecom backbone has become critical for enterprises to operate their networks seamlessly," Sanjiv Bhagat, chief executive and managing director of AT&T Global Network Services India, said. The joint venture is expected to start operations early next year.

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How about this ? MP's cutting across party lines oppose SEZ.
:lol:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/402046.cms

i think these two are two diff issues.

in a democratic set up, MPs have a right to express their views, some times even against the issues approved and recommended by the cabinet - either out of ignorance, or to make news, or to impress their constituency vote bank.

whereas the The C&IT Minister manipulating policies and/or trying to break pre-set rules is something more serious. The C&IT Minister is expected to be a more serious player, represent and implement policies, show more responsibilty and inculcate confidence in the minds of present and future investors.
Giving room to the vested interests on the part of the Minister paints a very poor picture of the GoI.

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/11/stories/2006111118630500.htm

Bending road rules

http://i15.************/2u53pqv.jpg

HEIGHT OF SAFETY?: A car is precariously perched on a divider after ramming into it at Begumpet on Friday. — PHOTO: K. Ramesh Babu

Thank God, there was a divider!
otherwise, there would have been a head-on collision and fatalities...
and they should build bigger and stronger deviders to prevent fatalities.

i think these two are two diff issues.

in a democratic set up, MPs have a right to express their views, some times even against the issues approved and recommended by the cabinet - either out of ignorance, or to make news, or to impress their constituency vote bank.

whereas the The C&IT Minister manipulating policies and/or trying to break pre-set rules is something more serious. The C&IT Minister is expected to be a more serious player, represent and implement policies, show more responsibilty and inculcate confidence in the minds of present and future investors.
Giving room to the vested interests on the part of the Minister paints a very poor picture of the GoI.

I don't see any vested interests from the minister. If STPI scheme is extended, companies will continue to register with STPI rather moving into SEZ. In what way, it is going to affect investments ? Companies will keep coming to a city with good talent pool and infrastructure. Every state has IT SEZ's and I see vested interests from AP to lobby against the scheme.

I don't see any vested interests from the minister. If STPI scheme is extended, companies will continue to register with STPI rather moving into SEZ. In what way, it is going to affect investments ? Companies will keep coming to a city with good talent pool and infrastructure. Every state has IT SEZ's and I see vested interests from AP to lobby against the scheme.

STPI is a society set in 1991 ... The sunset clause valid till 2009

...unlike the proposed SEZs, which have a one million sq ft of office space creation as mandatory clause and a major export obligation, the STPI units have no stipulation on jobs creation as well as have minimal export obligation.

“If the sunset clause is extended, the SEZs will never take off as most of the IT firms would prefer to continue operating in the STPIs where the tax benefits would continue. There will be no incentive for them to move into SEZs and gain concessions as they would continue to enjoy the tax holiday,” said an official.

One major reason for Maran to seek extension of the sunset clause, according to sources, is to maintain control of the IT sector which he may lose once the SEZs come up because the latter are under the commerce ministry. “The IT sector would slip out of his hands once the SEZs come up as it will be the commerce ministry that would be calling the shots,” said sources.

companies under STPI have been already enjoying benefits since 1991.
several new and MNC companies are expected to open shop in SEZs.
isn't there a conflict of interests btn STPI and SEZs?
aren't they both brain childs of GOI?
why break rules now and ruin SEZs?
isn't there a vested interest?

vested interest...?? in favor of his ministry or in favor of his constituency??

coz if u bring up the ol' chennai factor again let me remind u that tn too has more than 15 sezs and karnataka is no laggard either...

vested interest...?? in favor of his ministry or in favor of his constituency??

coz if u bring up the ol' chennai factor again let me remind u that tn too has more than 15 sezs and karnataka is no laggard either...

how else do you justify this change in policy outlook?

india is working overtime to stage its first Formula One race, possibly in 2010, following talks with the sport's commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone, a motorsport official said yesterday.

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=161484&Sn=SPOR&IssueID=29236

would do good for the tourism industry if it came to AP

Whatver happened to CBN's F1 Hyderabad plan?

IMO, Chennai is probably the best city for F1 since it already has Sriperibudur circuit, but their road infra needs a massive overhaul. Bangalore has the same problem, and it doesnt even have a car racetrack either.

Hyderabad needs an overhaul, is getting it (but it's been delayed by a misguided environmentalist), but it needs a dedicated track, unless the plan is to block off a few city streets and have them race there (like in Monaco).

Hyd is out of race for F1.
CBN wanted to go in a big way.
but YSR (and congress in general) not interested at all.
they think, its a big waste of precious land in the city.

just a difference of perception ...

Formula One in 2010: Too soon, too much
BS Reporters / Mumbai/Kolkata November 11, 2006
The one city which can have an F1 circuit within is New Delhi.

For starters, you need a world-class airport, plenty of hotel rooms, communication facilities, roads that access the circuit to the closest city and high-tech medical facilities and hospitals.

Each F1 team transports on an average 30 tonnes of equipment comprising 10,000 parts, from laptops and walkie-talkies right down to paper napkins with the team logo on it. And there are at least 100 employees in the team who have to travel with the equipment. Besides this, there are the F1 cars. Teams typically take three cars with them and with a few engines too.

Then you need at least a 747 or a medium-sized aircraft to transport all this. Of course, F1 drivers are usually highly paid and can afford their own aircraft, too. The airport should be able to handle these arrivals and all the cargo. Transport to the circuit requires specially equipped trucks and other vehicles. Teams need cars on hire, decent accommodation and communication tools as well. Remember, all this is for just one team. In the 2006 season, there were 11 teams, and it is safe to assume that it will be the same in 2010 too.

Then there are the fans — not just the domestic variety but the international grand prix aficionados, too. Which means their own requirements in terms of accommodation, communication and transport.

Creating a fresh world-class F1 circuit can cost anything between Rs 800 crore and Rs 1,500 crore. The circuit location is critical. It has to be close to a major city for all the above reasons

Cities like Kolkata and Hyderabad are clearly not in the race. While West Bengal Industries Minister Nirupam Sen says the proposal submitted by a UK-based non-resident Indian has died a natural death, one of the first announcements made by the Congress government in Andhra Pradesh was that the project has been shelved.

The one city which can have a F1 circuit within is New Delhi. If it gets a spanking new airport, more hotels, permissions from the security forces and all the added paraphernalia by 2010, then the New Delhi race of the 2010 F1 season will be a treat.

And the man who probably holds the key is Vijay Mallya, who counts Ecclestone as one of his acquaintances.

IMHO, Kovai,TN should be the place for F1.
Has a long history in racing.

GMR to set up aviation SEZ in Hyderabad
Source: IRIS NEWS DIGEST (11 November 2006)

GMR, the consortium modernising Delhi and Hyderabad international airport is planning an aviation zone in Hyderabad, reports Economic Times.

Under the plans envisaged, the proposed multi-product SEZ will focus on aviation-related activities and will be a part of Hyderabad international airport. GMR has set aside Rs 15 billion for the project. The airport, which involves an estimated investment of over Rs 17 billion in the first phase, is expected to complete by April `08.

The Andhra Pradesh government has already given its go-ahead for the multi-product SEZ. The proposed zone will undertake activities such as avionics and aviation components, aircraft maintenance and consumer electronics.

GMR has 750 acres of land in Shamshabad near Hyderabad that would be used for building the SEZ. While the state government has given its nod for the project, it still awaits approval of the commerce and industry ministry. If the proposal is accepted, the aviation sector would get its first SEZ.

SEZ status would give considerable benefits like tax holiday for 15 years. These incentives would include income tax exemption to the tune of 100% for first five years, 50% for the next five years and 100% on the profits ploughed back into the business for corresponding five years. It can also avail of the benefits of service tax exemption and zero duty on capital goods.

GMR group holds majority stake (63%) in the Hyderabad International Airport (HIAL). The remaining share is with Malaysian Airports (11%), Airports Authority of India (13%) and Andhra Pradesh government (13%).

how else do you justify this change in policy outlook?

The IT Ministry is going to push for a 10-year extension of the current tax holiday enjoyed by STPs. What does this really mean for the Indian technology sector?

How will the taxation structure work from now on because we are given to understand that the taxation structure was due to expire in March 2009? Would you essentially press till 2019 and how much would it offset the demand for IT SEZs that stands today?

Even in 2000, when the sunset clause was introduced, there were several IT majors Mr. Nandan Nilekani in particular, saying that it is time that the IT industry starts paying back. Isn’t there a cause to believe that it is time the IT industry starts paying some taxes extension for another 10 years will be quite something?

So would you assume that the number of IT SEZs would go down, if the extension was given?

Would you be able to quantify this in terms of the value of the kind of savings that you would see going in for this extension vis-à-vis an SEZ? by how much you actually think the SEZ rush would actually go down?

Excerpts from CNBC - TV18’s exclusive interview with Kiran Karnik

http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/kirankarniknasscom/extensionstpiisbettersolutionnasscom/market/stocks/article/250190

how else do you justify this change in policy outlook?


With the income tax concessions for software companies coming to an end by March 2009, the IT and communications minister, Dayanidhi Maran wants the extension of deadline, so that the benefit continues “for some more time.”

Maran was of the view that those units registered with Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), should continue to get the income tax benefits. “A major portion of SMEs are STPI members. Small companies cannot afford to invest 10 million square feet to get the SEZ advantage and therefore, I am of the view that the STPI units should continue to get the benefits,” he said. According to him, STPIs had proven track record and there has been no defaults till date.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/305095.cms

companies under STPI have been already enjoying benefits since 1991.
several new and MNC companies are expected to open shop in SEZs.
isn't there a conflict of interests btn STPI and SEZs?
aren't they both brain childs of GOI?
why break rules now and ruin SEZs?
isn't there a vested interest?

I don't think you understood the issues correctly.

First of all, Maran could still control IT specific SEZs and will probably do because of their STPI experience. Second, SEZ concept was created so that SEZ developers can develop all infrastructure that is required for it and make it a self sustained township. But this has been completely diluted by allowing IT specific SEZ in an area of just about 25 acres. This was stupid and you might as well continue with good old STPI. Infact, STPI is a lot better because the rules are clearly understood. SEZs are clueless on how to regulate the operations. And third, SEZ is discriminatory. It helps the big IT companies in continuing their tax free period whereas smaller companies would be at a disadvantage. It is argued that it is these smaller companies that bring in new innovations. And finally, I don't understand why both STPI and SEZ can't co-exist. And if SEZs are approved, then

Also, how is it discriminatory? Chennai too has many approved IT SEZs and I think the only functioning ones: Mahindra city, Olympia Tech park etc (if not the only ones, the first one: Infosys at Mahindra city). And many more waiting to be approved. Either media is writing such rubbish or AP politicians/ administrators are reading it wrong.

Also, I would like to state that I am not for IT SEZs at all. IT companies enjoyed these tax benefits for last many years. NRN of Infosys doesn't want these benefits. They are mature enough and it is about time they start paying taxes. SEZs should be created to only promote manufacturing. Just look at the kind of employment numbers that Nokia or Flextronics are talking about even within such small area/investment. We should probably have gone with 3-5 large SEZs which are port based. SEZs in current form are no different from many industrial parks. There are many of industrial parks in TN without any of these tax benefits and yet they created huge employment. SEZs were supposed to be on a totally different scale. That is why they were offered to be considered as foreign territory. Commerce ministry has completely messed it. RBI considers it as nothing more than a real estate investment.

http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/kirankarniknasscom/extensionstpiisbettersolutionnasscom/market/stocks/article/250190

Extension of STPI is a better solution: NASSCOM
2006-11-09 13:56 Source : Moneycontrol.com
Contd. from page : 1

Q: So would you assume that the number of IT SEZs would go down, if the extension was given?

A: If the STPI extension is given, then I am certain that we won't have as much of push on to this. Many of the people are being practically forced into this mode; not forced into mode of SEZ, but into the mode of buying more land than they need because there are land stipulations in the SEZ, which are not really essential for the IT industry. It is nice to have a big campus for this kind of business, you can have a couple of thousand people in a multi-storied building and create great work.

As we know, much of the IT industry started very literally in garages and basatis and you don’t need huge fancy campus to necessarily do well. It is nice to have that, but it is not necessary. The SEZ will almost make it compulsory for you to have that.

Q: Would you be able to quantify this in terms of the value of the kind of savings that you would see going in for this extension vis-à-vis an SEZ? A SEZ would typically offer a 100% waiver for the first five years in revenues, which would essentially go down to 50% for the next five years and then over to about 10-15 years, it would come down to about 50% of the profits put back. If you are seeing incrementally that there is not much of a difference in terms of taxation in these two structures, how much do you actually see in terms of value, the STP actually benefiting as opposed to the SEZ? And by how much you actually think the SEZ rush would actually go down?

A: It’s difficult to quantify. Any model you run will have so many assumptions, so it’s tough to really come with something authentic. But I would say that the opportunities are lost if you don’t continue the STPI scheme; it can be quite substantial.

You can throw up any figure you like, but even conservatively, you would see at least a 20% loss of possible revenue for two reasons; one is that for some of the multinationals investing in India, would find it more convenient to go to a different location, where they get all the benefits without necessarily investing in land, building and so on, which some of them are a little adversed to do. They prefer a model, some of them in fact follow a particular model of only going for this space and not buying. On the SEZ side, there are some fine print clauses, which can make some companies a bit uneasy.

Second, you would have Indian companies, who do not or cannot afford to have a large SEZ, but have an option of adding a few 100 people, who may make their choices by saying instead of adding so many people here, I will add a few more in my centre in Philippines or Malaysia or China, wherever else. The net result of these two, if you take just a figure of 20% and then compute that in terms of employment loss and then work that back in terms of not just employment loss, but also revenue gain and loss.

I think there is a very strong case through any kind of sensitivity modeling to say that continuation of STPI will be revenue neutral, if not revenue positive for the government

the justification provided in this reply appears to be just opposite of the views expressed by FM (loss in projected revenues) to delay/curtail the Semiconductor policy.

there is no reason why we should not encourage IT SEZs, if the MNCs are willing to invest on a large scale, build their own infra and run their own businesses. It gives a long term gaurantee for the MNCs as well as to the people/Govt of India in terms of jobs, sustainability, growth and taxes after the tax holiday period.
plus, the SEZs also help as growth engines for indirect/support infra industry such as housing, roads, highways etc.

I don't think you understood the issues correctly.

First of all, Maran could still control IT specific SEZs and will probably do because of their STPI experience. Second, SEZ concept was created so that SEZ developers can develop all infrastructure that is required for it and make it a self sustained township. But this has been completely diluted by allowing IT specific SEZ in an area of just about 25 acres. This was stupid and you might as well continue with good old STPI. Infact, STPI is a lot better because the rules are clearly understood. SEZs are clueless on how to regulate the operations. And third, SEZ is discriminatory. It helps the big IT companies in continuing their tax free period whereas smaller companies would be at a disadvantage. It is argued that it is these smaller companies that bring in new innovations. And finally, I don't understand why both STPI and SEZ can't co-exist. And if SEZs are approved, then

Also, how is it discriminatory? Chennai too has many approved IT SEZs and I think the only functioning ones: Mahindra city, Olympia Tech park etc (if not the only ones, the first one: Infosys at Mahindra city). And many more waiting to be approved. Either media is writing such rubbish or AP politicians/ administrators are reading it wrong.

Also, I would like to state that I am not for IT SEZs at all. IT companies enjoyed these tax benefits for last many years. NRN of Infosys doesn't want these benefits. They are mature enough and it is about time they start paying taxes. SEZs should be created to only promote manufacturing. Just look at the kind of employment numbers that Nokia or Flextronics are talking about even within such small area/investment. We should probably have gone with 3-5 large SEZs which are port based. SEZs in current form are no different from many industrial parks. There are many of industrial parks in TN without any of these tax benefits and yet they created huge employment. SEZs were supposed to be on a totally different scale. That is why they were offered to be considered as foreign territory. Commerce ministry has completely messed it. RBI considers it as nothing more than a real estate investment.

going by this argument, are we assuming that India would be the only destination for ever for IT MNCs ? or even, for major Indian IT players?

if you don't present them a reason and incentive to build a permanent home in India, it only becomes too easy for them to close shop here and go to China, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia or wherever they find cheaper costs. or, on the other hand, you will end up contuinig the STPI benefits for ever ...

there is no reason why MNCs can't own some land, build, and reap some benefit out of real estate value as an indirect benefit. they are doing enough for the people and the Govt of India as international business ambassidors apart from helping to build up our foreign currency reserves.

NRN of Infosys can say what he said, because Infosys is well established.
and absence of IT MNCs in India would suit him even better.

what about all those new and future MNCs who want to open shop in India and make India their home?
don't we indians feel proud when we look at the MNC skyscrappers in india and Indian IT export figures?
would you think the Indian IT industry could have grown this big, just by extending STPI Sunset clause and by not encouraging/ promoting IT SEZs?

With the income tax concessions for software companies coming to an end by March 2009, the IT and communications minister, Dayanidhi Maran wants the extension of deadline, so that the benefit continues “for some more time.”

Maran was of the view that those units registered with Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), should continue to get the income tax benefits. “A major portion of SMEs are STPI members. Small companies cannot afford to invest 10 million square feet to get the SEZ advantage and therefore, I am of the view that the STPI units should continue to get the benefits,” he said. According to him, STPIs had proven track record and there has been no defaults till date.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/305095.cms

don't we have private IT SEZs, where small companies can hire space and get the SEZ advantage?

going by this argument, are we assuming that India would be the only destination for ever for IT MNCs ? or even, for major Indian IT players?

if you don't present them a reason and incentive to build a permanent home in India, it only becomes too easy for them to close shop here and go to China, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia or wherever they find cheaper costs. or, on the other hand, you will end up contuinig the STPI benefits for ever ...

there is no reason why MNCs can't own some land, build, and reap some benefit out of real estate value as an indirect benefit. they are doing enough for the people and the Govt of India as international business ambassidors apart from helping to build up our foreign currency reserves.

NRN of Infosys can say what he said, because Infosys is well established.
and absence of IT MNCs in India would suit him even better.

what about all those new and future MNCs who want to open shop in India and make India their home?
don't we indians feel proud when we look at the MNC skyscrappers in india and Indian IT export figures?
would you think the Indian IT industry could have grown this big, just by extending STPI Sunset clause and by not encouraging/ promoting IT SEZs?

I didn't understand most of your arguments. But what exactly do you think is the difference between a STPI and IT SEZ?

I didn't understand most of your arguments. But what exactly do you think is the difference between a STPI and IT SEZ?

are you saying, there is no diff?

don't we have private IT SEZs, where small companies can hire space and get the SEZ advantage?

Yes, they could. But what happens if some of them decide to get out. Wouldn't it cease to be a SEZ because this building would then employ lesser number of people than what is prescribed for SEZ? May be they can have a contract with every occupant saying they will remain in the building till end of SEZ timeframe.

are you saying, there is no diff?

Do you understand what STPI and SEZ are?

Now I am confused
Can anyone come up with differences between SEZ It specific/STPI
Why maran is bashed for everything?
How AP is the only state affected?
How does TN gain from it ?

BTW Looking at lot of numbers from Mohan guruswamy it looks like TN got the least amount from Indian govt in the form of grants for last 50yrs!!

Do you understand what STPI and SEZ are?

may be, you can clarify a lil bit ... for the benefit of all who want to know.

Govt may cap number of IT SEZs
BS Reporter / New Delhi November 09, 2006
Except for a probable cap on the total number of Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in the information technology sector, the UPA regime will not entertain any demand of the Left allies seeking amendments in the SEZ Act and Rules in the forthcoming winter session of Parliament.

As for the endless debate on the revenue loss through tax concessions in SEZs, the Ministry of Commerce has decided to commission a study on it by an independent organisation. The study report will be out in the next three to six months, Commerce Secretary GK Pillai said at a conclave on SEZs organised by Assocham here today.

Although the government had not taken a decision to put a cap on IT SEZs, the Board of Approvals was of the view that the existing 148 SEZs in this sector were enough for the time being and, therefore, there would be no more in-principle approval of IT SEZs, said Pillai. Formal approval, however, can be given if a group that has already been granted in-principle approval comes up with the land.

The Left parties’ contention on sector-wise caps on SEZs did not hold the ground because the small number of SEZs in other sectors still left much potential untapped-- only textile and pharma SEZs were in double digits (13 each), he said.

According to the commerce secretary, the existing strength of IT SEZs can employ 12.5 lakh people: “Are you anticipating 12.5 lakh people to move into IT SEZs in the next three years?”

The Left parties had earlier demanded from the government adoption of the West Bengal model of SEZs providing for at least 50 per cent minimum processing area. Pillai said that as per the Urban Development Act, minimum processing area could not be increased beyond 35 per cent.

Pillai also rejected the Left’s contention, put forward by CPI national secretary D Raja, that SEZs have been exempted from operation of labour laws. Except the Customs Act, all other laws including labour laws are applicable in SEZs. A study committee of Parliament is at present visiting SEZs and according to them, working conditions in SEZs were quite reasonable.

Addressing Raja’s demand to give land on lease instead of selling it to developers, Pillai said most of the state governments were giving land only on lease . He said the Board of Approvals had earlier given clearance for 237 SEZs (involving 34,510 hectares of land) of which 41 had been notified with an investment of over Rs 5,000 crore in the past seven months. The Board had also given in principle clearance for additional 166 SEZs for which ground work was being undertaken by their developers.

In the 237 SEZs, the titles for 17,800 hectares of land are with private parties, while the remaining land is with industrial development corporations.

http://www.indianexpress.com/sunday/story/16453._.html

THE IDEA EXCHANGE Montek Singh Ahluwalia at the EXPRESS
‘Widespread response to SEZs proves there is some oomph in the idea'
http://i15.************/33u3bdz.jpg
UNNI RAJEN SHANKER: How important are the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) to India’s economic reforms?

I supported the idea of SEZs but there are two difficulties. The first is the loss of tax revenue, related to misuse. The second issue is land, which is a tough one. Land is actually a state government issue but the idea of not using land for industry is nonsensical, especially in the light of our aim to reduce people in agriculture to 10 per cent and doubling productivity. You don’t need all the land for crops — productivity in China is double and our population is not going to double. Land scams are a serious issue but the state governments can declare a transparent policy and then move forward on SEZs.

Problems apart, the widespread response to SEZs proves that there is some oomph in the idea.

Ahluwalia, a St Stephen's and Oxford alumnus and the first director of the IMF's Independent Evaluation Office, was tasked by the PM to turn the Planning Commission into a bustling intellectual workshop for big policy ideas. The jury has to be necessarily out on how far Ahluwalia, who had free-wheeling interaction with Express staffers over lunch, will succeed in transforming an institution many had predicted would wither away along with Indian socialism. But betting on Montek is not a high-risk strategy. Ask the prime minister.

http://www.andhracafe.com/index.php?m=show&id=12191
Biotech SEZ near Hyderabad
Updated: 11-10-2006 By andhracafe

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy said that the Centre has given the green signal for setting up a sector-specific SEZ in biotechnology at Genome Valley near Hyderabad.

The CM after inaugurating Global Bio-Pharma Conference-2006 said that Hyderabad was the fastest growing city in biotechnology R&D innovation and contract manufacturing. Stating that biotechnology would help improve economic development, he called for its effective use to increase food production.

Promising the Government's help, he urged pharmaceutical executives, entrepreneurs and scientists to synergise the opportunities and challenges in establishing new ventures.

He wanted more collaborations between the State and the West to solve emerging and life-threatening diseases, including chikungunya, dengue and flu. Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development D. Purandareswari said the Indian biotech industry's revenues were $1.1 billion in 2004-05.

The Association of Biotechnology-Led Enterprises (ABLE) was aiming to push the growth to $5 billion to generate one million jobs by 2009.

Special Economic Zones (SEZ's):

SEZ's are duty free enclaves and are treated as foreign territory for trade operations & duties and tariffs. SEZ's provide internationally competitive & hassle free environment for exports, units may be set up in SEZ’s for manufacture of goods, rendering of services & trading. Up to 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in manufacturing sector is allowed through automatic route barring a few sectors. Units in SEZ’s have to be net foreign exchange earners within 3 years.

Other benefits of SEZ's

Exemption from customs duty on import of capital goods, raw materials, consumables & spares

Exemption from Central Excise duty on procurement of capital goods, raw materials, consumables, spares, etc. from the domestic market

100% income tax exemption for a block of five years;

50% tax exemptions for two years; &

Up to 50% of the Profits ploughed back for next 3 years under S.10-A of Income Tax Act

Reimbursement of Central Sales Tax paid on domestic purchases

STP Scheme

The Software Technology Park Scheme (under The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, Govt. of India) is a 100% Export Oriented Scheme for undertaking Software Development/IT enabled services for Export using Data Communication links or in the form of physical exports including export of professional services for rendering consultancy services and development of software.

A Software Technology Park may be set up by the Central Government, State Government, Public or Private Sector undertakings or any combination thereof. An STP may be an individual unit by itself or it may be one of such units located in an area designated as STP Complex by the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology.

The unique feature of the STP scheme is the provisioning of single-point contact services for member units, enabling them to conduct exports operations at a pace commensurate with international practices

Scheme Benefits & Highlights

Approvals are given under single window clearance scheme.

A company can set up STP unit anywhere in India.

100% Foreign Equity is permitted and approved by jurisdictional Director of STPI.

All the imports of Hardware & Software in the STP units are completely duty free.

Import of second-hand capital goods is also permitted.

Unit shall be a positive net foreign exchange earner. Net Foreign Exchange Earnings (NFE) shall be calculated cumulatively in blocks of five years, starting from the commencement of production

Use of computer system for commercial training purposes is permissible subject to the condition that no computer terminals are installed outside the STP premises.

The sales in the Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) shall be permissible up to 50% of the export in value terms.

STP units are exempted from payment of corporate income tax up to 2010. (For assessment year 2003-2004 10 % of profit will be taxed).

The capital goods purchased from the Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) are entitled for benefits like exemption of excise Duty & reimbursement of Central Sales Tax (CST).

Capital invested by Foreign Entrepreneurs, Know-How Fees, Royalty, Dividend etc., can be freely repatriated after payment of Income Taxes due on them, if any.

Repartition of foreign currency for payments can be freely done

Semiconductor units to get SEZ benefits
SUBHASH NARAYAN

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ TUESDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2006 12:37:18 AM]

NEW DELHI: In a bid to boost the semiconductor and nano technology sectors in the country, the government is planning to extend a host of fiscal incentives including benefits at par with special economic zones (SEZ) units and application of lower Cenvat rate of 4%.

The finance ministry, which is evaluating the scheme of fiscal incentives to be included in the Fab Policy, has agreed to extend incentive schemes applicable to SEZ units to semiconductor industry too, an official source said.


• Fab Policy to be placed before Cabinet for approval
• Units may get income-tax and excise benefits on par with special-category states
• Finmin no to IT ministry request for R&D grants
• Depreciation at 33% to be distributed over three years
• Industry seeking more fiscal incentives due to its capital-intensive nature


The ministry has, however, toned down a proposal from the IT ministry to reduce Cenvat rate to 4% for the entire industry agreeing to restrict the sop only to high-tech areas, the source added.

The changes are now expected to be included in the Fab Policy that is soon expected to be placed before the Cabinet for approval.

Differences between the IT ministry and the finance ministry over fiscal package for the semiconductor industry had held back announcement of the Fab Policy. Finance minister P Chidambaram mentioned about the policy in his Budget speech this year.

The finance ministry has also agreed to look into a proposal to extend income-tax and excise benefit to semiconductor units at par with those available in special-category states such as Uttaranchal and Himachal Pradesh. It has, however, turned down IT ministry’s request to give grants to the units for R&D activities.

With regard to depreciation benefit, both finance ministry and Planning Commission are of the view that instead of giving 100% depreciation benefit in the first year itself, the same should be offered at 33% each for three consecutive years with unlimited loss carry-forward facility. The IT ministry had favoured depreciation of 100% because of high obsolescence of equipment used by the industry.

Sources said that finance ministry is also evaluating a proposal for extending net foreign exchange positivity clause — a unit becoming net foreign exchange earner for getting tax sops — for semiconductor industry by 10 years. In the case of SEZs, the units have to become net foreign exchange earners by fifth year of operation.

The semiconductor industry has been seeking fiscal incentives due to its capital-intensive nature. The cost of setting up a typical semiconductor fabrication utility works out to Rs 4,000 crore.

If the government approves net set of incentives in the semiconductor policy, it would give impetus to projects like that of SemIndia’s which is planning to invest $3 billion for setting up a semiconductor fab plant at Hyderabad. Global giants such as Intel and Texas Instruments are also looking at major investments in manufacturing of chips.
http://infotech.indiatimes.com/Tech_News/News/Semiconductor_fab_units_to_get_SEZ_benefits/articleshow/2236274.cms

http://realitycheck.wordpress.com/2006/10/13/it-sez-we-will-be-right-back-after-this-break/

IT SEZ : Everyone loves a holiday
Posted by realitycheck on October 13th, 2006

And now for something completely different.

I love Indias IT industry. This is not your usual rant against the low-tech wage arbitration model. I have no problems with moving down the so called value chain if that is what it takes to enable growth. I think lower down the value chain is even desirable in India because it takes 100x more people to produce the same revenue as a product company. This means 100x more jobs. Indian IT industry has provided an escape vent for millions, enabled large scale immigration and resultant forex remittances, replaced snake charmers as the image of India. I admire Narayan Murthy, Azim Premji, Ramadorai for keeping their focus and transforming their companies into multi-billion dollar corporations.

So, what seems to be the problem ?

The problem is the tax holiday enjoyed by these companies. Like other things in India, the exception always seeks to become the rule. Once benefits are given they cant be taken back or cut down. The existing tax holiday under the STPI scheme is set to expire in 2009. This means all IT companies will have to pay 30+% corporate tax as well as indirect taxes like any other company. While this would result in a major revenue boost to the central and state governments, the IT companies are setting up SEZs or lobbying to extend the 2009 deadline. Before I dive deep, some background about the existing tax holiday.

STPI Scheme:
STPI (Software Technology Park India) is a scheme that dates back to the early years of the IT industry. It allowed for a 10-year exemption from Corporate Income Tax (upto 90% of turnover), Sales Tax, Customs Duty, Excise duty. Details here . Back in the day, the infant IT companies could not deal with the astronomical cost of telecommunications, archaic customs duty rules, and a high rate of taxation. So the initial 10-year tax holiday helped an infant industry attain critical mass. Even though companies like Infosys are 20 years old, they are still able to avail of the 10-year tax holiday by setting up new units with fresh 10-year extensions. For companies outside the STPI, the corporate income tax rate alone is 36-37% ( Corporate Income Tax = 35%, Surcharge = 2.5%, Education cess = 2%). Sales tax exemption is 10-12% for states and 3-4% for Union Territories (UT). This is why you dont find all IT companies in UTs. The contribution of the STPI tax holiday to the overall success of the IT story cannot be underestimated. I would rate it as one of the best initiatives undertaken by the Indian government. Some more here in Basab Pradhans blog. He is an ex-head of global sales and marketing at Infosys.

The problem is, we have all grown up now. IT is a $30 billion dollar industry. Infosys, TCS, Wipro are all on track to cross $3bn in revenues this year. They have all built giant campuses, have long term customer contracts, have large cash reserves. Their founders are no longer needy entrepreneurs who need to fight against bureaucracy. As they are primarily wage-arbitrators (nothing wrong with it) - they do not have to invest in R&D or long term product development. These three are already the top three private sector employers in terms of headcount. TCS at around 75,000, Infosys at 66,000 and Wipro at 65,000, beatTata Steel at 38,000 and Reliance Industries at 40,000.

India needs money, lots of it for its social, education, military, and infrastructure programs. I question the very logic of inviting private sector for every highway project. To keep such a cash-rich and mature industry out of the corporate and excise tax regime is ill advised. The IT industry, atleast the big ones can easily absorb the tax charge. Even the IT bosses admit that readily.

So, anyway the party it set to end in 2009. If all IT companies come out of the scheme - the Indian government will realize between $3-5 billion dollars (15-25000 cr) in direct taxes alone (this figure is based on projected size of the IT industry at a 36% tax rate on a $50bn size). Some figures for profit before tax : Wipro (2005 profit 2400 Cr), Infosys (2005 profit 3008 cr), TCS (2005 profit 3356 cr). If these companies maintain the current growth I think the $3-5 bn figure is in the right ballpark. This does not take into account the customs duty, excise duty and sales tax exemption. That could push the figure even higher. I dont want to get further into these statistics. I realize the dangers of voodoo amateur economics. Can some one who is more knowledgeable provide accurate numbers ? Probably someone like Atanu Dey.

Enter the SEZ

The SEZ policy is welcome, very welcome. We need islands of non-interference. The devil is in the details as usual. The centre has formally approved 212 SEZ units with an inprinciple approval to 152 more. Read more here. I dont buy the usual rhetoric that poor farmers will be affected and the like. First of all, large landowners are not necessarily poor. Everyday, dozens of large landowners are turning into instant millionaires by turning in their lands to real estate / IT giants. The government must assure prevailing rates to them and/or issue bonds tied to the future development of the area. It must also take into account small and marginal landowners interests and device a new scheme for them which ties them monetarily into future development in that area. The issue must stop there.

Now back to the IT companies. Since the SEZ policy has been announced the IT companies are wondering if they can use it to extend their tax holidays.

Infosys, Wipro, Satyam, TCS - the big boys of Indian IT are each setting up a Special Economic Zone. Why just them, over 100 IT SEZs are in the offing. That’s more than half the total number of SEZ applications cleared by the government. The big attraction - tax benefits! After all the industry has not yet got an extension to the tax holiday on software exports upto 2009.

Source : Moneycontrol

The SEZs provide a 15 year tax holiday to the IT companies after 2009. The details : 100% exempti0n for the first 5, 50% for the next 5, and variable for another 5 based on reinvestment in SEZs.

Why the government should withdraw or minimize tax holidays to IT companies ?

The government should seriously consider the forward and backward linkages of IT companies to the local economy before granting tax benefits.

Yes, IT companies employ a lot of people who pay taxes. That is not a valid argument because even if the tax holiday is withdrawn the employees will still pay taxes. So, it is not a “either-or” question. Employees pay individual income tax and companies pay excise and corporate income tax. If this is to be used as an argument in favor of the tax holiday - then you have to establish that imposing taxes reduces employment opportunites and retards growth.

The tax holiday is a precious tool. If used right, it will help such as the case with the STPI. If abused, it will spoil the already powerful corporates and will stifle new competition.

Tax holidays for strategic companies such as Nokia, BMW are worthwhile - they bring technology into Indian soil that does not exist. We must consider tax holidays to LCD panel manufacturers, semi conductor fabs, memory makers, and contract manufacturers for electronic and white goods. We dont have the capabilities in these areas yet.

Tax holidays for software product companies are needed. The services and products companies are totally different. While there is some overlap in terms of engineers, the processes and business models, and the technical depth required are different. This industry is still in its infancy, and needs to be encouraged. Tax incentives provided to these units will be reinvested by them in research and development activities.

The most important reason is : The IT companies cannot function as castles isolated from the society around it. Today you see IT companies running their own trasport buses side by side with dilapidated city buses which have hapless folks hanging on for dear life. The right way is to pay taxes, make the governments richer, so every citizens standard of life improves. In the face of such disparity between the haves/have-nots we need more information from the government about why this IT Tax holiday should continue from STPI to the SEZs.

I love money and I think everyone should. I am not in anyway envious of the wealth created by these companies for their founders or employees.

Apollo Says:
October 13th, 2006 at 10:35 am
I agree with ur views. The tax sops to established IT companies must stop.period. but if u leave a loophole saying that product companies or product startups will be exempt then surely these established companies will take advantage of that too. i think the whole benefit package should be ended on 2009. The IT biggies will threaten to take their business elsewhere since their business model is like u said based on cost arbitration. But if we fall for that line it will be like rewarding them for not moving up the value chain in this tax free period. Whichever way we see it, i feel the Tax holiday should end.

check this link for more:
http://realitycheck.wordpress.com/2006/10/13/it-sez-we-will-be-right-back-after-this-break/

URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/02/23/stories/2006022303060400.htm

Software parks seek parity with SEZs — `Extend tax sops beyond stipulated sunset clause of 2009'
Moumita Bakshi Chatterjee New Delhi , Feb. 22

SOFTWARE Technology Parks of India (STPI) has asked the Government to bring it on par with special economic zones (SEZs) by extending tax benefits allowed to units registered under it beyond the stipulated sunset clause of 2009.

The move assumes significance as 4,000 software companies, including 3,000-3,500 small and medium companies, are currently registered under the STP scheme, contributing nearly 80-90 per cent of the overall software exports.

"We have sought extension of benefits under the STP scheme beyond 2009. We have also said that the STP framework has been a successful scheme for software units, and can be used for effective implementation of SEZs," Mr B.V. Naidu, Director of STP Bangalore, told Business Line.

At present, the units located under the STP scheme enjoy sops, including income-tax holiday as per section 10A of the Income Tax Act; 100 per cent customs duty exemption on imports of capital equipment; and import of equipment on a loan or lease basis. Among the other benefits are the import of all relevant equipment/goods (including second-hand equipment, except prohibited items); 100 per cent excise duty exemption on indigenous items procurement; and sales in the Domestic Tariff Area up to 50 per cent of the foreign exchange earned by the STP/Electronic Hardware Technology Park unit.

Mr Kiran Karnik, President of National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom), said the industry had already raised the issue with the Government on the grounds that SEZs are more beneficial to the manufacturing sector. Moreover, the STP scheme allows companies the flexibility of being physically located outside STP premises.

"Small and medium software companies may not be able to afford the rentals in an SEZ, which are already moving upwards. We fear that the benefit of export, instead of going to small scale units, may go to developers," Mr Karnik said.

Nasscom has urged the Government to recognise STPI as an SEZ for the existing units, saying that such a move would not only give fillip to smaller players, but also help sustain the growth in smaller cities and towns where STPs are currently operating.
© Copyright 2000 - 2006 The Hindu Business Line

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/334889.cms

Govt may extend tax holiday for STPI units

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ MONDAY, NOVEMBER 06, 2006 02:24:31 AM]

BANGALORE: The Union ministry for information technology is preparing a cabinet note seeking extension of the 10-year tax holiday currently being enjoyed by units in Software Technology Parks of India(STPI), according to the Union IT minister Mr Dayanidhi Maran.

Mr Maran’s comments come at a time when the sunset clause(for tax-exemption) for these units comes to a close in March ’09.

He was talking to the media on the sidelines of the signing of a memorandum of understanding(MoU) between SemIndia and IMEC, a Belgian nanotechnology and nano-electronics research institute.

Queried about the proposed semi-conductor policy, Mr Maran said his department was seized of the issue and that the policy being proposed would see support being extended to cutting-edge technology in this space as technological obsolence was major issue.

Mr Maran said that it was not just semi-conductor companies, but even Indian researchers settled in the US who were keen to set up a fab city(fabrication city) in India.

The MoU signed by SemIndia envisages support being given IMEC for setting up a semi-conductor foundry by ’07 with a production ramp-up in ’09. “The partnership aims at developing 130nm and 90nm chip-sets targetting markets like mobile phones. We would also collaborate on process for 65 nm and 45 nm products,” said Vinod Agarwal, founder chairman and CEO of SemIndia.

Mr Gilbert Declerck, president and CEO of IMEC said that the institute was also in talks with another Indian institution to sign a MoU on the lines of what it has done with SemIndia.

The MoU was signed in the presence of Union finance minister P Chidambaram and the Belgian prime minister Mr Guy Verhofstadt. IMEC headquartered in Leuven in Belgium had revenues of euro 197m in ’05.

Special Economic Zones (SEZ's):



STP Scheme

Okay, so you are good at searching and cut-pasting. But tell us now why you favor IT SEZ instead of extending STPI scheme.

The problem is not with STPI or SEZ.
Its the maran-bashing that happens on hyd thread.
The solution is for all maran-supporters to move to your own thread/forum.
Your acidic comments to support maran will only add fuel to the hatred.

I wonder if people of other states also feel compelled to support like this on internet. Ex: Lalu was bashed for developing only Bihar here. Either his supporter s cannot use internet or they are saner.

Why maran is bashed for everything?
How AP is the only state affected?
How does TN gain from it ?


coz, he acts like a minister from TN and not like a minister from India. here's an example.

http://www.sourceonline.in/news/details.asp?news_id=2

Flextronics, Solectron may follow Intel with manufacturing bases in India

Flextronics, Solectron may follow Intel with manufacturing bases in India Mobile handsets and telecom equipment manufacturers in the US, Flextronics and Solectron, are likely to follow Intel in establishing manufacturing bases in India shortly. An estimated $1 billion-plus worth of investments are expected to be pumped into India in the coming months by these three companies alone, following Union Minister for IT & Communications Dayanidhi Maran's five-day trip to the US to get manufacturing companies into India. In addition, UT Starcom, which supplies switches and modems to BSNL, has also shown interest in setting up a manufacturing unit in India and Cisco is focusing on extending its R&D operations to India, says Mr Maran, who returned to Chennai on Saturday night from the USA. "A bulk of these investments is likely to be attracted by Chennai, which may well become the electronic manufacturing hub, especially after Nokia announced its decision to set up its plant near the city," Mr Maran told. On its part, the central government will assist these companies, by co-ordinating with the respective state governments, whichever place they choose to establish their base in India. "If we miss this opportunity, we cannot get them back to the country. Within India, one state's loss could be another state's gain," he said. The team's focus was Intel, which was to choose between India, China and Vietnam. Mr Maran had "quite a long" discussion with Mr Craig Barrett, chairman, Intel. "I think, I succeeded in convincing Intel, and a formal announcement will come in a month. It will be setting up an assembly test manufacturing (ATM) unit in India with substantial investments," Mr Maran said. Flextronics is said to be the world's largest contract maker of handsets and an OEM supplier to all telecom and base station manufacturers like Ericsson, Nokia and Nortel. "They have big expansion plans in manufacturing and I made a strong pitch for Chennai," he said. Solectron, another major manufacturer like Flextronics, that supplies chips and related equipment to Nokia, Ericsson and Nortel, has shown similar interest in establishing a manufacturing base in either Chennai or Bangalore. Likewise, UT Starcom, too, has shown "serious interest" in setting up a unit in Chennai or Bangalore.

I dont understand what this has to do with SEZ discussion.

I dont want to Chennai vs Hyd discussion again. Everyone would support thier state for investments infact maran is taking central pool or money to chennai rather making it easy for people choosing chennai, any company would set up wherever they feel things will be profitable, Minister's assistance would be of very low priority compared to infrastructure, state govt support, human resource etc ...
TN offers quantitative advantage with respect to tech workers with "ITI/Polytechnic" qualification which is very very important for electronics manufacturing. Maran cannot win over companies with his charm or threats without explaining competetive advantage of Chennai over other cities.
May be because of the first mover's advantage electronics manufacturing this also has ripple effects.

coz, he acts like a minister from TN and not like a minister from India. here's an example.

http://www.sourceonline.in/news/details.asp?news_id=2
I dont see any justification for AP folks to bash Maran. Are you even aware of the fact that Maran
is an elected MP from Central Chennai and not some constitiencey from Hyderabad. So what is wrong if he tries to promote his constituency /city first. After all thats what he he should be doing in the first place. Secondly, Maran is not hijacking some central govt investments to Chennai. He is only inviting Private investors to his const. How in the hell is it stopping AP from getting inestments?. And regarding STPI-SEZ, this rule if for the whole country and not made with AP in mind. I see this as Maran's effort to safeguard the interests of Samller Desi IT companies and helping them enjoy the same benefits as the biggies in SEZ. So this madness about bashing maran should end.

The problem is not with STPI or SEZ.
Its the maran-bashing that happens on hyd thread.
The solution is for all maran-supporters to move to your own thread/forum.
Your acidic comments to support maran will only add fuel to the hatred.

I wonder if people of other states also feel compelled to support like this on internet. Ex: Lalu was bashed for developing only Bihar here. Either his supporter s cannot use internet or they are saner.

So defending Maran is insanity to you??
Ok let us do something Saner( according to Upendora) May be we should start a thread to bash the Ministers from AP, like what you guys do!! Because Ministers from AP are also silently trying to hijack a huge cental investment to AP.

Here is an example of Mr.Pallam Raju (Union minister) trying to put pressure on ONGC to seup refinery in Kakinada, when ONGC has indicated that a refinery in Kakinad would be unviable.


http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/11/stories/2006111109790300.htm

Kakinada: The Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) has second thoughts on establishment of refinery in the Kakinada SEZ.

"The Centre has not taken any decision. It is not easy for the ONGC to shelve its project here," Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy told newsmen here on Friday.

He said that he and Union Minister of State for Defence M.M. Pallamraju were putting pressure on the Centre to ensure that the refinery was established here.


How about TN gutys starting a bashing thread on Pallam Raju ? Is that saner enough.

The problem is not with STPI or SEZ.
Its the maran-bashing that happens on hyd thread.
The solution is for all maran-supporters to move to your own thread/forum.
Your acidic comments to support maran will only add fuel to the hatred.

I wonder if people of other states also feel compelled to support like this on internet. Ex: Lalu was bashed for developing only Bihar here. Either his supporter s cannot use internet or they are saner.

well said.
btw, its not just on the Hyd thread...
The Maran Factor
Finally, credit goes to the meticulous way in which Dayanidhi Maran, the Minister of Communications and IT coaxed companies into setting up their facilities in Chennai (Maran contested election for the first time and got elected to the 14th Lok Sabha from the Central Madras constituency).
Making his position clear, Maran, while addressing an industry meet in Chennai recently said, “I am trying to promote India as a major destination for investment in software and hardware, and Chennai, in particular, for telecom-related activities. I believe there are going to be several more telecom companies that will invest in this southern city.” He created a cell in the ministry in association with the Tamil Nadu government for smooth clearance of projects headed for Chennai. It is not without reason that he is often seen in Chennai making one announcement after the other. However, according to some media reports, some companies who finally selected Chennai were in favor of other locations like Mumbai and Bangalore.
view point.


Here is an example of Mr.Pallam Raju (Union minister) trying to put pressure on ONGC to seup refinery in Kakinada, when ONGC has indicated that a refinery in Kakinad would be unviable.

He said that he and Union Minister of State for Defence M.M. Pallamraju were putting pressure on the Centre to ensure that the refinery was established here.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2005/09/04/stories/2005090402410100.htm
Pallamraju is only pursuing what was already proposed for his state. (MOU signed Sep 04,2005).
he is not trying to hijack any projects that were in favor of other locations.
I think there is a BIG difference btn these two.

... Maran cannot win over companies with his charm or threats without explaining competetive advantage of Chennai over other cities...

please read this:
http://allaboutpolitics.blogspot.com/2006/05/dayanidhi-maran-vs-ratan-tata-question.html

Dayanidhi Maran vs Ratan Tata - Question of Ethics
At the time of writing this post, elections to TN Assembly is over and the state is eagerly awaiting the verdict.

Sometime during the heat of the campaign - roughly about 2 weeks before the elections - The New Indian Express published an exclusive report alleging that the Union Minister for IT & Communications - Dayanidhi Maran has pressurised Ratan Tata of Tata Group of Companies into selling 33% of Tata-Star DTH project to Sun TV group at a price significantly lower than the market rate. The newspaper alleged that the Union Minister for IT & Communications threatened Tata that the clearance for the latter's telecom projects would be at stake if the shares were not divested to Sun TV group in which the Minister happens to be a promoter and whose Chief Executive Kalanidhi Maran happens to be the Minister's own brother. The New Indian Express raised series of questions to Tata on this issue, who declined to comment.

While the above kicked of the storm in the electoral campaign along the expected lines, it was expected that there would be some detailed explanation from one of the parties or an exoneration/promise of inquiry by the Prime Minister. But more than 2 weeks after the report was published, no further information has come out. Dayanidhi Maran has denied the allegation as baseless and has threatened to file a law suit against the newspaper (or may be he has already filed one). Tata has not denied any of the allegations published by The New Indian Express. To add more spice to the issue, Ratan Tata wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh a letter expressing his distress at the attitude of the Department of Communications in not responding to his letter of April 3. He also referred to his earlier correspondence of May 20, 2005 to Minister Dayanidhi Maran. It is to be noted that Ratan Tata did not specify anything about the above allegations to the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister for his part has avoided the press since the controversy erupted and very diplomatically did not go any where near this topic when he campaigned for DMK led alliance in the State last week.

At the risk of sounding biased, this writer feels that the queries raised by The New Indian Express have raised serious questions about the constitutional propriety and political morality in the actions of the Union Minister for IT & Communications, Dayanidhi Maran. It is to be noted that when Dayanidhi Maran was appointed to head the Communications Ministry in 2004, there were widespread resentment against the move as it was a well known fact that Marans were the promoters of the Sun TV, whose business is being regulated by the Communications Ministry. Those murmurs started to gain credence when AIADMK affiliated Jaya TV was denied permission to start a news channel by the Communications Ministry while a Kerala based TV channel got the permission in a matter of days. Also, Raj TV - another competitor of Sun TV group was asked to discontinue broadcast of two of its channels over some technical violation, while such violations by other language channels were overlooked.

The issue of political morality is not confined to India alone. It is prevalent in many countries where parliamentary democracy is practised, especially in United Kingdom, whose model Indian Constitution has adopted. Based on the practices in the UK and other countries in dealing with this issue, India has constituted for each House of its Parliament, a Committee on Ethics. But unlike other countries, the above said committees lack authority. The Indian Parliament has failed to create an impartial authority to ensure ethical conduct of members and ministers. Few years back, there was a talk about empowering Lok Pal to deal with comlaints on unethical deeds, but nothing seem to have moved in that direction.

It is often said that when the Indian Constitution was drafted more than five decades ago, it was done with the thought that men of noble thoughts & impeccable integrity would be elected to the corridors of power and hence loopholes in the constitution were overlooked in the hope that they would never be traversed through. The law makers of the early days did live up to that hope. In 1951, when Congress MP - H.G.Mudgal was in the midst of an allegation for tabling questions for a remuneration (the earlier day version of 'cash for questions'), the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru did not have any hesitation in appointing a Parliament Committee headed by Tiruvellor Thattai Krishnamachari (known as TTK), that ruled his expulsion from the Parliament.

Incidentally, six years later the same T.T.Krishnamachari, who was the country's Finance Minister had to resign as Justice Chagla Commission held him (ir)responsible for asking LIC to buy shares in a Calcutta based Mundhra company. Party considerations did not prevent Prime Minister Nehru and the Congress members to appoint a commission and to uphold the judicial decision. (It is a different matter that TTK was back in the job as Finance Minister and was forced to resign again giving him the dubious distinction of being the only Indian Finance Minister to have been removed twice. More on that in a separate post.)

In 1987, when Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi appointed the current Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram as the Union Minister of State for Textiles, the latter denied the post as he felt that would amount to constituional impropriety as some of his relatives were in the textile related businesses. Much later, in 1991 the very same Palaniappan Chidambaram resigned from the Union Ministry as he & his wife were shareholders in a company whose shares were dealt by Harshad Mehta, who was under investigation for the stock market scam of early 1990s. Ironically, there was no charge of any personal gain of any sorts for P. Chidambaram or his family in the above case.

Coming back to the Maran vs Tata issue, it would also do a world of good for Dayanidhi Maran to quit from the Union Cabinet and request a speedy, impartial investigation as Lal Krishna Advani did in 1996 when his name appeared in Hawala scam (LK Advani resigned as a Leader of Opposition and didn't contest in elections until his name was cleared in the Hawala case). If the charges raised by The New Indian Express are found to be baseless, it would not only boost Maran's political credibility, but would also give him a very legitimate reason to take the above newspaper to the cleaners, rather than firing of defamation threats.

As the above doesn't seem to happen, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh must assume responsibility in seeing to that the charges are thoroughly investigated for he is the one who appointed Dayanidhi Maran as the Union Communications Minister. As done by Jawaharlal Nehru, Manmohan Singh must refer the matter to a public inquiry, which could be seen as a warning to errant administrators. Other wise, Manmohan Singh's image as one of the upfront politicians in the country would take a severe beating. So would be the confidence of the electorate on our much envied democratic setup.
posted by Indian Voter at 5/09/2006 09:44:00 PM

15 Comments:
KK said...
Nice post, Was very informative about TTK. Hope Dayanidhi maran resigns and prove his credibility.

view point.
http://news.oneindia.in/2006/04/26/bjp-alarmed-over-reports-of-maran-threat-to-ratan-tata-1146056765.html

BJP alarmed over reports of Maran threat to Ratan Tata
Wednesday, April 26 2006 18:00(IST)

Chennai, Apr 26: Terming as 'alarming' reports in a section of the media that Union Communication Minister Dayanidhi Maran had threatened Tata Group Chariman Ratan Tata over the DTH project, the Bharatiya Janata Party today demanded that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh shift him immediately from the portfolio.

'This is an alarming and serious matter. This could be one of the scandals of the UPA Government,' BJP national secretary and in charge of party affairs in Tamil Nadu, Bandaru Dattatreya told the press.

Misuse of authority to further the interest of a family business was a serious matter, he said here, adding that Mr Maran had flouted even the minimum ethics to be followed by a Union Minister.

'The Prime Minister should enquire the matter and shift Mr Maran immediately from the Communication portfolio,' he said.

Stating that Mr Maran's family was running several satellite TV channels, he said prima facie, there was a strong case against him as per newspaper reports. Dr Singh should take serious note of it.

According to reports in a section of the media, Mr Dayanidhi Maran allegedly threatened Mr Tata that he would 'finish off Tata's telecom project' if 33 per cent share in Tata-Star DTH (Direct To Home) project was not given to Sun TV,owned by his brother Kalanidhi Maran.
UNI

http://www.indiadaily.org/entry/union-finance-minister-unaware-of-tata-maran-episode-is-it-so/
Union Finance Minister Unaware of Tata-Maran Episode: Is It So?
But our Union finance minister P Chidambaram is totally unaware about this halo boo and has said that he has no ‘first-hand information’ this issue. Isn’t it surprising, that media knows it, political parties know it but our finance minister is ignorant or is he pretending to be the one?

http://www.thehindu.com/2006/05/01/stories/2006050110040100.htm
Advani wants Maran shifted

Okay, so you are good at searching and cut-pasting. But tell us now why you favor IT SEZ instead of extending STPI scheme.

agree, you may be a better expert on this subject.
so, why and for how long should they extend benefits for STPI?
which plan is BETTER for the country on a long term basis - SEZ or STPI? and why?
which plan helps them to build a home, expand their base and move up the value chain ?
could some one throw some light on this.

agree, you may be a better expert on this subject.
so, why and for how long should they extend benefits for STPI?
which plan is BETTER for the country on a long term basis - SEZ or STPI? and why?
which plan helps them to build a home, expand their base and move up the value chain ?
could some one throw some light on this.

I already specified my preferences. No extension to STPI. No IT SEZ. Promote only 3-5 port based SEZ of minimum 3000 hectares which was the original intent. Reason I say port based is, these are export oriented industrial zones. And you need world class airport and seaport for physical movement of such goods.

Come on guys, let's stop this bashing activity. Instead of looking TN, MH or any other state, let's start thinking about China and other neighbouring countries to progress further.

Yeah MAran threatened TATA and TATA thus invested couple of billions in Chennai I see Tata's investment everywhere in Chennai and TN
TATA is moving its head quarters to chennai too
you know what TCS invested in Chennai from early 1990's because of threat from TN ministers!! I agree Maran tommorow will threaten bill gates/balmer and MS will move to Chennai!!

Nice one Babji! I couldnt resist laughing out lout with your point!!

I already specified my preferences. No extension to STPI. No IT SEZ. Promote only 3-5 port based SEZ of minimum 3000 hectares which was the original intent. Reason I say port based is, these are export oriented industrial zones. And you need world class airport and seaport for physical movement of such goods.

This is a good plan.
I think this is the kind of model some countries like China and Malaysia followed.
But many Indian cities and even some states do not have world class airport and/or seaport
They need a different kind of plan to participate and benefit from the growing economy
This is just my opinion.

This is the way I view at STPI and IT SEZs.
Will be glad to hear about any other views. (++: advantages, --: disadv, ==: opinion)

STPI:
++ Easy for small IT companies to open shop, avail benefits and sustain
++ Limited size, limited costs, efficient and room to invent innovative products
-- Easy for companies to close shop and go else where after Sunset clause
-- No compelling reason for companies to expand, build a home and help sustain economy after Sunset clause
-- Companies benefit but no obligation to benefit the country on a long-term basis
-- Companies get comfortable, avail benefits as long as you extend Sunset clause: a liability to the exchequer.

IT SEZ:
++ Easy for MNCs and medium/large size companies to open shop, avail benefits and sustain
++Unlimited size, comparable costs, cost effective and they also invent innovative products.
++ Build a home, well establish, and become a part of the growth engines for economy
++ Companies have an incentive of appreciation of real estate, become stable and sustainable
++ Companies have an obligation to perform and expand in terms of staff and returns
++ Companies have to perform show results for the fear of losing name and fame

-- Difficult for small companies to open shop and establish (high investment)
-- Incur heavy losses if they fail during the initial phase

== So, may be they should extend STPI benefits only to new comers/ the first 5-10 years only.
== If the Companies can’t grow and expand within 10 years, no more STPI benefits for them.
== But if you keep extending Sunset clause, how do you prevent old STPI companies to change name, register with a new name and keep availing benefits without any obligation to grow, expand and sustain?

I think, IT SEZ are better for the country’s economy on a long-term basis.

I dont see any justification for AP folks to bash Maran...............

It's not just we ,who hate Maran. There are many other people who share the same opinion. There are number of controversies regarding his role as a minister. He attracted criticization from all corners for his behavior.

http://www.newindpress.com/Column.asp?ID=IE620060502001537&P=old

A Telecom Ministry that is run by Maran for Sun TV

S Gurumurthy

The telecom world sees Dayanidhi Maran wear two hats: one, as the Telecom Minister; the other, as the Promoter of Sun TV. The Sun document offering shares to the public, issued few weeks back, introduces one 'Dayanidhi Maran' as part of the Promoter Group of Sun, and stops at that. But that he is also the Telecom Minister who as government handles Sun as a licensee is concealed.

The reason why the Sun offer document hesitates to say that the Promoter group member Dayanidhi is the Minister Dayanidhi also is obvious. In his dual role inheres an irreconcilable conflict between his constitutional position as the Minister of Telecom and his business interest in Sun. But this mix-up is no accident, and not because an ignorant Prime Minister gave him a wrong portfolio.

A flashback to how Dayanidhi Maran became the Telecom Minister is crucially instructive. The 2004 Lok Sabha elections lifted Dayanidhi Maran from an air-conditioned board room and landed him into dusty street politics. After the elections DMK supremo Karunanidhi forthwith entered into a secret deal with Sonia through her emissary Janardhan Reddy about who should be appointed ministers from the DMK and what portfolio be given to them. Dayanidhi's name figured prominently in the secret pact as the Telecom Minister.

This was long before the ministry was constituted. The DMK support to Congress was based on this secret pact.

To understand how critical the Telecom Ministry is to control the new economy it is crucial to decipher how important it is for Sun TV to control it through Dayanidhi. This Ministry rations among the users the new economy asset the radio frequency waves, called 'spectrum' in technical language, through which sounds which we hear in cell phones or radio and images which we see on TV screen are transmitted. All wireless users - whether radio stations or cellphone operators, TV telecasters or fast Internet Service providers --have to get the frequency allocated by Dayanidhi's ministry. In short, without licence from Maran's ministry use of wireless is not allowed in law.

The ministry's website claims: "The Wireless Planning and Coordination [WPC]wing of the DoT is the authority for spectrum management, including Licensing, and caters to the needs of all wireless users in the country". The Ministry further claims that WPC performs 'the statutory functions of the government' and 'issues licences' for 'wireless stations'.

The Standing Advisory Committee on Radio Frequency Allocation [SACFA] makes recommendations for spectrum allocation and use by all wireless-based businesses in the country. Spectrum rationing is the most potent power in the wireless-driven modern economy.

Cable TVs cannot operate without wireless license as TV programmes have to be first up-linked to Satellite and then down-linked, both through wireless, and distributed through cable to households.

The Maran apologists would say 'but TV business does not come under Telecom ministry; it is under Information and Broadcasting Ministry'. This is a red herring. The question is who actually dictates terms to the TV business in rationing Spectrum?

Information and Broadcasting Ministry is just a post office on Spectrum-related issues. It is Dayanidhi's Telecom ministry that solely controls and rations the issue of wireless licences for all uses, including TV transmission.

See how Dayanidhi exercises this power not as Minister but as just the Promoter of Sun TV. An instance in point is the Jaya TV case. It had asked for permission from WPC for operating a 24-hour news channel like Sun News. Jaya TV did not seek additional spectrum. It merely asked for more intense use of the spectrum already given to it. The approval should have been granted as a formality.

Jaya TV had applied for approval in May 2004 and it has not got permission till today, that is, for two years. Jaya TV filed a writ and the court told the government to decide the issue within a stipulated time. The Writ Petition cited how another channel 'Kairali' was given identical permission within days of application. [It is no one's case that if it had had the like chance the AIADMK would have treated Sun TV differently].

Jaya TV is a known enemy for DMK. But what about the Tata Group? When the DTH license application of their joint venture with Sky landed on Dayanidhi's desk, against all norms of propriety and Ministerial conduct, he kept it pending while his brother conducted a parallel discussion for Sun TV's entry into the joint venture; only after adverse media comment and pressure from the Prime Minister's Office was the Tata-Sky license cleared by his Ministry.

How about spectrum allocations for telecom service providers? The Standing Committee of Parliament attached to the Telecom Ministry has made serious adverse comments on Dayanidhi's handling of spectrum allocation to service providers, and the differential treatment of operators using different technologies, in its report of December 2005.

It is a matter of national concern whether a scarce resource like spectrum should continue to be given away free, but there has been no response from Dayanidhi to the proposal for pricing of spectrum, including one national player's offer of paying a substantial sum of Rs 1500 crores for the allocation of spectrum for 3G services.

Dayanidhi's proximity to certain players may explain his reluctance to take decisions that are in the national interest, and explain why the Prime Minister has finally been forced to constitute a group of ministers to decide on spectrum policy as the Telecom Minister's policy on spectrum had become a tool of favour and disfavour.

The changes in Sun TV business plans and the changes in the government policies went hand in hand. Sun TV floated two companies Kal Radio [on October 7,2005] and South Asia FM [on November 9, 2005] for entry into wire and wireless telephony and other services. Forthwith, drastic liberalisation of telecom policy was announced on November 10, 2005 by Dayanidhi's Ministry as if to welcome the Sun companies into telecom business.

Despite critical comment from the Finance Ministry, the licence fee for the National Long Distance telephone was reduced from Rs.100 crores to just Rs 2.5, yes Rs 2.5 crores (and this at a time when several telecom players were on the verge of taking National Long Distance licenses, which could have earned the public exchequer several hundred crores of revenue)! And the International Long Distance licence fee was reduced from Rs 25 crores to Rs 2.5 crores.

Restrictions like the minimum net worth needed for grant of licence or the rollout of network in rural areas were all removed. Voice over Internet was allowed. Cable operators were allowed to carry voice traffic. Obviously the Maran family had advance knowledge of the policy changes and formed companies in anticipation of the policy changes.

Again, Sun TV claims that it has got the letter of intent for DTH licence from I&B Ministry. But with that almost ends I&B Ministry's role. Thereafter it is Dayanidhi Maran's Ministry which has to grant the Spectrum under the wireless policy procedures.

The DTH policy says that after letter of intent is issued by the I&B ministry, the applicant will 'apply to the WPC wing of the Ministry of Telecommunications for seeking wireless operational licences' for DTH. So the one who grants the wireless licence to Sun TV whose promoter is Dayanidhi Maran is Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran!

Identical is the case of the 67 out of 338 FM radio licences in 91 cities of India obtained by Sun TV group. It bid for 84, got 67 and would retain under the law some 46, and sell the balance. The wireless licences for the huge FM radio business of Sun TV whose promoter is Dayanidhi Maran would also be granted only by Dayanidhi Maran, the Telecom Minister.

Obviously the Sun TV group would not be treated like Tata group. It need not have to wait for two years or apply to the court like Jaya TV. It would probably get the spectrum like Kairali TV. This is the Ministry's rule for the Maran family.

Yes, it is Maran, the Minister, who grants licenses to Marans the Promoters of Sun TV and it is he who delays and denies them to those who compete with his business and who he is not inclined to. The functions of Maran the Minister and the interests of Marans the Sun TV promoters seem harmonious.

The conflict is only between his function as the Minister and the interests of the public. In short the Telecom Ministry is run by Dayanidhi Maran for Sun TV and against those who are not for Sun TV.

Lalu was bashed for developing only Bihar here. Either his supporter s cannot use internet or they are saner.

ha ha what did Lalu do ever for Bihar. Only good thing he had done to Bihar is loosing this time. That too was done by people of Bihar.

Even if all the politicians of India were transfered to Bihar to work day and night, it will take couple of decades to bring Bihar up from Kundas.

It's not just we ,who hate Maran. There are many other people who share the same opinion. There are number of controversies regarding his role as a minister. He attracted criticization from all corners for his behavior.

http://www.newindpress.com/Column.asp?ID=IE620060502001537&P=old

Its understandable. You like only people who gets good things to AP. Every city or state is like that. As far as we are concerned, we like people who does good things to us.

Yeah MAran threatened TATA and TATA thus invested couple of billions in Chennai I see Tata's investment everywhere in Chennai and TN
TATA is moving its head quarters to chennai too
you know what TCS invested in Chennai from early 1990's because of threat from TN ministers!! I agree Maran tommorow will threaten bill gates/balmer and MS will move to Chennai!!

Nice one Babji! I couldnt resist laughing out lout with your point!!

I dont consider it as a joke.. I believe that Maran might have threatened TATA.

TR.Balu also had threatned Ambani when he was an environmental minister in BJP regime. Recently for TN state election, both TR Balu and Maran had forced Ambani to give huge donation for election expense and Ambani was not happy about that. I have also read that Ambani was against P.Chindambam becoming finance minister, i donno the reason..so these are all not new in politics...there are no permanent friends or foe in politics... Ratan and Ambani are politicians too...if they need favour from the politicians they'll go back to them.

http://www.deccan.com/home/homedetails.asp#4%20die%20in%20Singareni%20coal%20mine
State to take over land encroached by Film City

Hyderabad, Nov. 12: The State government on Saturday announced that it would take over assigned land alienated to the Ramoji Film City, apart from the land allegedly encroached upon by it on the city outskirts. In an “unofficial leak” to some newspapers, the State government declared that it was planning to launch a drive to identify the lands allegedly encroached upon by RFC, and also the assigned lands alienated in its favour.

It would take over such lands for public purpose, in accordance with the ordinance promulgated recently amending the AP Assigned Lands (Prohibition of Transfer) Act, the sources said. [Assigned lands are those given to weaker sections: These lands were allegedly purchased from the beneficiaries by several persons.] The State Cabinet is expected to discuss the RFC lands issue on Monday. According to government sources, the Ranga Reddy district collector has identified 3,600 acres of assigned lands, including those in possession of RFC, alienated in violation of Act 9 of 1977 and it has been resumed to the government.

The district collector has sought permission from the government to hand over the lands to the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (Huda) for construction of housing for low and middle income groups. The government has already given permission in respect of 566.04 acres and a file is under process for giving permission to hand over the rest of the area to Huda, the sources said, The unofficial note said that according to the website of Ramoji Film City, it is spread over 1,600 acres of land. As per revenue records, RFC should have 1,400 acres only.

As per preliminary inquiries made by revenue authorities, Ramoji Film City has allegedly encroached upon government land and purchased assigned land to the extent of 270.22 acres. The authorities identified assigned lands allegedly in possession of RFC as 14.27 acres in survey No. 189 in Naganpalli village, 2 acres in survey No. 278/79/A, AA and E in Polkampalli village; 3.20 acres in Sy No. 218 at Abdullapurmet village; 241.55 acres in Sy No. 275, 276, 277, 281, 298, 299, 300 and 301 in Anajpur village and 8.9 acres in Sy No. 131/9 in Surmaiguda village.

The unofficial note said RFC had allegedly purchased Bhoodan lands to the extent of 31 acres in Surmaiguda village in Sy Nos. 131/5, 131/6, 131/7, 131/8 and 131/9 and put them to commercial use. Six years ago, it also acquired 20.03 acres of Patelkunta tank land in Sy No. 445, stating that it would beautify the lake. But so far it has reportedly neither developed nor beautified the land. The catchment area of this tank has been converted into Film City and a boundary wall has been constructed obstructing the free inflow of rain water into the tank, the note said.

Sources said that RFC had obstructed an established cart track from Naganpalli to Anajpur by constructing a compound wall, thereby preventing public passage. Sizeable land belonging to reserve forests has been allegedly encroached upon by the RFC. The government is considering launching a joint survey of the reserve forest area by the forest and revenue departments to find out the exact encroachments by RFC, sources said.

The government feels that there is a lot of unsurveyed government land within the circumference of RFC and if a comprehensive land survey is undertaken, much more unauthorised encroachments would come to light. “The government has decided to take a tough stand on the land dealings of RFC. If it happens, the RFC will be left with a very meagre extent of land.

This is contrary to the claim of Mr Ramoji Rao that the value of his assets is much more than the losses of Rs 1,100 crores incurred by Margadarsi Financiers and that he can dispose of his lands to pay the depositors. This is nothing but misleading the gullible depositors,” government sources said.
looks like the Congress and the TDP are pitching in for a big fight.
may be they should allow Ramoji Rao to pay penalities, instead of down sizing RFC.
that money can be used by the Govt to do what they want to do .

http://www.deccan.com/City/CityNews.asp#top
MCH admits its halls have turned dens

Hyderabad, Nov. 12: Eighty-eight of the 391 community halls that the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad had given over for community development activities are being used by anti-socials. A majority of the halls are used by the local committees for running anganwadis, balwadis, schools, tailoring centres and reading rooms. The other 88 serve as dens for nefarious activities at night, though many of them by day are used as school and for community development programmes.

Some of the halls are used as bars where local goons drink liquor. The neighbourhood committees dare not say a thing or else they are allegedly beaten up. “Girls and women staying near such community halls cannot venture out after 7 pm. Anti-social elements pass comments on them and have threatened local people who tried to talk sense into them,” said a woman.

MCH additional commissioner (urban community development) Y. Satyanarayana confirmed that the halls were being misused. “When the issue was brought to our notice, we had a survey conducted and found out that as many as 88 halls were being used for purposes other than they were given to the locals,” he said.

Stating that the officials have started the process of taking over such halls, Mr Satyanarayana said the civic body would provide facilities like gymnasiums, reading rooms, libraries and other community development programmes in the halls which are now being used as dens, depending upon local demand.
why can't MCH involve the community leaders and the local police to keep periodical checks ...

Sunday, November 12, 2006
Where are the boundaries?

Hyderabad's boundaries are more elastic now. Townships are sprouting all over from Thumkunta on Karimnagar road to Mansanpally and Kandukur on Srisailam Highway to Annojiguda close to Ghatkesar and there seem to be no dearth of takers, the deals are sealed in a jiffy.

The trend is changing fast. Distances do not matter much now. Most are willing to commute and this is resulting in the radius for suburbs getting stretched further. Such is the mad rush for some fresh air and a little parking space.

Some of the leading projects coming up in these stretches include City Square's plans to develop 5,000 units spread over Moinabad, Medchal, Timmapur, Maheswaram, Mammidipalli and Shamshabad and Koncept Ambience's plans of 'The Neighbourhood' at Gundlapochampally and 'Casa Estabana' near Satyam Technology Centre at Medchal.

The trend is changing fast. Distances do not matter much now. Most are willing to commute and this is resulting in the radius for suburbs getting stretched further. Till recently, life revolved around the city and an address to boast lay around its heart. Property aspirations were confined to areas such as Marredpally, Banjara Hills, Masab Tank, Jubilee Hills with Madhapur and Kondapur joining the list a couple of years ago. Next on priority list were colonies in Tarnaka, Bowenpally, Nallakunta and so on.

Initially, it was seen as a trend suited for the affluent classes with only villas and costly duplex and triplex houses came up. But as the demand grew, more and more players began paying attention to the emerging areas. This way, most of the prominent developers in the city already have announced at least one or two ventures beyond what were considered the suburban limits. Row houses, apartment blocks and independent housing too is fast picking up in these places.

The choking of the city and plots turning sparse too is a contributing factor. The skyrocketing of property prices an open plot was auctioned for Rs.58,500 per sq.yd. recently did not leave much scope for new investors and those driven by the desire for a roof of their own. Also these spots seem to offer right option to those smitten by fresh air, a small garden in front of the house, space for vehicle parking and for children to play around. These are facilities the city is hardly in position to provide these days.

The concept of gated community too caught up quickly and a majority of the developers have their projects drawn up on these lines. A horde of projects is in various stages of completion along Nizampet, Bachupally, Ameenpur, Maheswaram, Gollur, Nagaram and Annojiguda. Layouts are also being processed at Chinna Mangalaram,

According to developers, though the concept initially caught the fancy of IT employed young investors, it picked up with almost all classes. To cater to different wallets, the builders have projects with units that came in a wide range starting from Rs.20 lakhs to a crore and more.

But for some relatively new areas, most boast of good infrastructural amenities including medicare, educational institutions, shopping malls and markets which promise to make life as good, and better in some aspects, than in city. No pollution to worry about, no traffic congestions to wade through, lots of free and open space and green environs. And then, most projects come with facilities such as club house, gymnasium, swimming pool, parks and all.

Source: The Hindu

URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/13/stories/2006111320590100.htm

Central varsity `lands' in soup again

HYDERABAD: Even as University of Hyderabad (UoH) finds itself in a muddle over the earmarking of 200 acres of land to Care Foundation, the fate of 137 acres of the 534 acres it doled out to IMG Bharata Academy during Chandrababu Naidu's regime hangs in balance.

The Naidu Government entered into an agreement with IMG Bharata in August 2003 and handed over a mandate to them to manage sports complexes at Gachibowli and promote sports events. IMG Bharata was allotted 850 acres of land at Serilingampally and Mamidipally at a very nominal price.

The university alienated 534 acres of its land for the project. Then Government promised to compensate the loss by allotting same amount of land near the university after the institution declined to accept monetary compensation.

The Government later identified 394 acres in Gopanpally, adjacent to the university, and transferred the same to the institution. The remaining 134 acres of land was kept pending in search of a suitable place.

When university officials met Chief Minister Y.S Rajasekhara Reddy recently seeking the remaining land, he reportedly ticked them off for alienating the land. Sources said the Chief Minister went to the extent of saying that it was done to favour Mr. Naidu ignoring the objectives of the university.

Though the Government's decision to cancel the deal with IMG Bharata has heartened the varsity authorities, the `mood' of the Government is a reason for worry. Sources said the Chief Minister was particularly peeved at the university giving away such a huge extent of its land for activities other than academics.

Meanwhile, the varsity authorities blame senior officials of the Government for the impasse. An official of HCU said that the Ranga Reddy district Collector had already identified the land and even the Chief Minister was in favour of allocating it but senior officials were preventing its transfer.

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Skins/TOI/Client.asp?Daily=TOIH&login=ragece&Enter=true&Skin=TOI&AppName=1

PREVENTIVE MEASURE
Twin control towers to watch over Hi-Tec City
Madhapur Tower To The See Light Of Day By Next Week

Hyderabad: With various terrorist groups considering information technology (IT) installations as soft targets, the Cyberabad Security Council (CSC) has decided to set up two control towers — one each in Madhapur and Gachibowli — to send real-time alerts to software companies and their employees incase terror strikes .

The Madhapur tower located near IT hub Cyber Gateway will be inaugurated next week.

These towers will be connected to local police stations and IT companies in Hi-Tec City. They would be networked with state-ofthe-art communication devices, including high-end computers, phones and closed-circuit television cameras.

In case of a terrorist strike at any IT installation in the country, the control room attached to the tower will send alerts in the form of mail on real-time basis to all companies and employees in its network.

Primarily to ally fears and stymie panic by providing details of the incident. Apart from security alerts, general police alerts, fire accidents would also be communicated to them. In case of an emergency and message to be routed to only a particular company, the control room sends a specific alert.

The control tower would also keep tabs on civic issues like traffic jams on important routes so that employees can take alternative routes to beat snarls and reach home early.

“The first control tower will be opened next week, while the second one in Gachibowli may be ready in another two to three months,’’ says Mallikarjuna Rao, secretary of the Cyberabad Security Council.

The CSC, which has the mandate to oversee a gamut of issues related to software companies, has also decided to provide training to security personnel of all IT companies next month on the drill to be followed in case of a terrorist attack or an accident. A former Army Major has come forward to provide training to the security personnel.

The laying of foundation stone for the exclusive fire station for IT companies would take place by November-end.

This fire station is coming up on private-public partnership basis. The state government has already released its share of funds for the station.


City to go greener by 70 parks today

Hyderabad: In a record of sorts, 70 colony parks will be inaugurated on a single day on Monday by respective division corporators in the city.
Apart from these parks, sports complexes at Vijayanagar Colony and Golconda will be thrown open for the public too.

The officials hastily fixed the inauguration date as the term of the corporators would end in February, 2007. The MCH’s standing committee has directed the officials on November 8 to complete all inaugurations in a week. The inaugurations have been pending since October, 2006 but the chief minister had postponed it.

The sports complex at Vijayanagar Colony, which has been constructed at a cost of Rs 2.13 crore, has facilities like swimming pool, badminton court, separate spaces for gymnastics, skating, yoga, table tennis, carroms and chess. The Golconda Sports Complex, constructed for Rs 34 lakh, has facilities for cricket, a gymnasium, table tennis, carroms and chess rooms.

Its understandable. You like only people who gets good things to AP. Every city or state is like that. As far as we are concerned, we like people who does good things to us.


nice job tryin' to be smart...


i disagree. if Maran wants to do good for TN then let him become IT minister for TN. he already has the image and connections to a lot of ppl around the world. as IT minister for TN he can keep those contacts and work exclusively for TN.

now pls don't start talkin' about CBN. he was AP's CM and worked for AP. so, i don't see what's wrong with that even though he might have used his influence. But Maran is INDIA's IT and Communication Minister. I hope it is clear now, for the umpteenth time.

I dont consider it as a joke.. I believe that Maran might have threatened TATA.

TR.Balu also had threatned Ambani when he was an environmental minister in BJP regime. Recently for TN state election, both TR Balu and Maran had forced Ambani to give huge donation for election expense and Ambani was not happy about that. I have also read that Ambani was against P.Chindambam becoming finance minister, i donno the reason..so these are all not new in politics...there are no permanent friends or foe in politics... Ratan and Ambani are politicians too...if they need favour from the politicians they'll go back to them.


thank you very much for being frank. politics in India is dirty:bash: :bash:

nice job tryin' to be smart...


i disagree. if Maran wants to do good for TN then let him become IT minister for TN. he already has the image and connections to a lot of ppl around the world. as IT minister for TN he can keep those contacts and work exclusively for TN.

now pls don't start talkin' about CBN. he was AP's CM and worked for AP. so, i don't see what's wrong with that even though he might have used his influence. But Maran is INDIA's IT and Communication Minister. I hope it is clear now, for the umpteenth time.

It doen't matter if u agree or dis-agree. All we care is the elected representatives - state or central delivers in whaterver way they can. In this case, he is delivering. :lol:

Nice logic... Whats wrong when State CM used his influence to bring projects to his home but not an central min ...to his home state... after all he will be elected again from TN not from AP etc....

FYI its Maran.. who brought Semindia to India rather than nothing happening from Intel...

If ppl think maran is not doing anything for other states than TN.. then nobody can help..

nice job tryin' to be smart...


i disagree. if Maran wants to do good for TN then let him become IT minister for TN. he already has the image and connections to a lot of ppl around the world. as IT minister for TN he can keep those contacts and work exclusively for TN.

now pls don't start talkin' about CBN. he was AP's CM and worked for AP. so, i don't see what's wrong with that even though he might have used his influence. But Maran is INDIA's IT and Communication Minister. I hope it is clear now, for the umpteenth time.

Nice logic... Whats wrong when State CM used his influence to bring projects to his home but not an central min ...to his home state... after all he will be elected again from TN not from AP etc....

FYI its Maran.. who brought Semindia to India rather than nothing happening from Intel...

If ppl think maran is not doing anything for other states than TN.. then nobody can help..


I wanted to mention a recent development. Nagpur got the MRO facility from Boeing because the central minister is from that place. Now he is trying to get Airbus facility and Aviation Academy there.

Nehru / Rajiv / Sonia family have done tons of things to UP. Why ?

Lallu helped to set up a Railway factory in Bihar recently. If some one goes by industrial climate, there are other places in the country that could have bagged that investment.

So this is very normal. Nothing to cry about!!

another trouble from m*r*n p.raghavendra6[/B];10427707]the row between AP and Maran never ends. :ohno:
:bash:


Why don't you create a link in the CHAIBAR called "Let's bash MARAN aka m*r*n" and save some precious space for Hyderabad Updates.

Fab project may chip away from city
K V Ramana [ 14 Nov, 2006 0255hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]

HYDERABAD: It's no longer a battle between Hyderabad and Bangalore or Chennai. With SemIndia, the anchor client at the proposed 1,200-acre Fab city near Hyderabad, getting desperate as the incentive package in the to-be-announced semiconductor policy is not expected to be attractive, many countries have started eyeing the project.

Sources indicate that Germany, Malaysia and China are ahead in the race with an attractive incentive package. However, SemIndia is waiting for the announcement of semiconductor policy, expected sometime next week. "There are proposals that have come in from other countries. We are committed to India and our name (SemIndia) says that,"Bob Kondamuri, managing director of Sandalwood Partners — an investor in SemIndia — told TOI from the US.

However, SemIndia's commitment to India is not without riders. The company has plans to set up a fab with an investment outlay of about $2 billion. And, the promoters of the company are seeking incentives worth at least 25 per cent of the project cost. "If it is not 25 per cent, it is not viable for us. We are waiting for the policy to specify the quantum of incentives we would get and the decision to go ahead with the project in India depends on the package," Kondamuri said.

According to sources, while Germany is offering an incentive package equal to about 30 per cent of the project cost, China is willing to offer about 50 to 100 per cent. Malaysia too is offering an aggressive package.

"If the incentives package is 4 or even 10 per cent, it doesn't make sense to go ahead with the project. Our investors are not willing to settle for anything less than 25 per cent," Kondamuri said. Kondamuri along with Vinod Agarwal, chairman of SemIndia, are currently in talks with several investors to achieve the financial closure of the $3-billion fab project, which is said to be the first major step in promoting Hyderabad as a semiconductor manufacturing destination.

nice job tryin' to be smart...


i disagree. if Maran wants to do good for TN then let him become IT minister for TN. he already has the image and connections to a lot of ppl around the world. as IT minister for TN he can keep those contacts and work exclusively for TN.

now pls don't start talkin' about CBN. he was AP's CM and worked for AP. so, i don't see what's wrong with that even though he might have used his influence. But Maran is INDIA's IT and Communication Minister. I hope it is clear now, for the umpteenth time.

Correct. Maran is IT&C minister of India and he is bringing investment to India. :) I think you accept that Chennai is in India.

DP...

Correct. Maran is IT&C minister of India and he is bringing investment to India. :) I think you accept that Chennai is in India.

Almost 50 yrs after independence, this is the first time that the TN ministers had a say in the things running in delhi. for fifty yrs the central ministers were partial and they supported the North/West India[almost neglecting TN - may due to its then anti Hindi protests]. This is the first time were the Center/State coordination is workin a bit.

Take the plan allocations for the state by center, you can see in the Article by MG,the plan allocations for TN is very less compared to the other states. AP has more per capita plan allocations compared to other southern states...Recently YSR thanked our PM for allocating max funds to AP than other states. CBN had influence on the Center during his regime and brought about great things to AP. Now TN has good relations with the Center and is trying to make most of it.

Well, Maran is just projecting Chennai as a destination and he has got nothing to do with the decisions made by big MNCs.even u might have heard abt Maran fighting with the finance ministry for the SemIndia pjt[that single investment in AP outscores all the investments made in TN]...

to add my point that Maran is not the only factor, take the case of Nokia or Flextronics[or anyother investment for that matter]: only Chennai provides them with talented labour[large pool of ITI/polytechnics], best airpot in India[time to deliver the cargo is the best among the airorts in india]+ one of the best port [actually 2] in india. And not all are flocking to chennai.

CBN, during his regime, made H'bad from zero to hero by bringin in Microsoft, Oracle,etc ..this was really astonishing and accolades poured in from every corner, even from TN.. b'cos he was able to attrct MNCs by showcasing the infrastructure of H'bad.. he had very strong voice in the center and he was able to get more fund allocations compared to other states and invest them to develop world class infrastructure[as far as i know only during the CBN regime the infra of AP improved considerably]..meanwhile TN got very little plan allocations during that corresponding period[not even now - u can even compare the per capita plan allocations made to each state]. All know that though TDP didnt have minister in the then BJP ministry, AP was the largest beneficiary. CBN was able to get the maximum for AP...

While there are many advantages AP is enjoying even now, they are a bit not visible explicitly. whereas only thing every one sees is Maran... incidentally it was Maran's father[late murasoli maran] who wanted SEZ in India.. and now AP has more SEZ than anyother state.

guys...be sure not to miss the weekly " golden south" programme on cnn ibn during this month......potraying the cultural, economic and the political success of the south....!!!

guys...be sure not to miss the weekly " golden south" programme on cnn ibn during this month......potraying the cultural, economic and the political success of the south....!!!

can you post the date n time of the telecast?

wednesdays 8.30