27.10.2006

Foreigners buying agricultural land in Goa
Extant government rules allow only people with business visas and that too of an indefinite period to invest in agricultural land in India. As Government of India never issues this type of visas, its policy is not to allow foreigners to invest in agricultural lands. They could invest only in industrial activity.

Private labels
An own brand introduced by a retailer is known as a private label.

Globally private labels are a big trend. They have a 17% share of the consumer FMCG market.

They hold a market share of 6% in emerging markets.

First international low-cost airline to come to India
Air Arabia

Indian travel industry
Indian online travel industry is estimated to grow from $300 mln in 2005 to $2 bn over the next three years.

Expedia, the world’s leading travel portal will launch its operations in India in Q1 of 2007.

Online tourism market in India is expected to cross $750 mln in 2006.

The Indian tourism market is a $38 bn industry and is expected to touch $90 bn by 2010.

Autojunction
Is the online B2C platform through which Tata Motors plans to market its Rs. 1 lk car. The portal is expected to reduce the transaction costs by 8% to 15%.

Regional airlines likely to get sops
The government is considering to exempt these carriers from paying airport and navigation charges for the first five years of operations.

Initially these benefits will be given to those carriers which have aircraft of less than 80 seats.

Footprints from sands of time
Cuatro Cienegas in Mexico is where fossilized footprints in stone are recently found.

Genetic secrets of bee revealed
It is the 3rd insect to have is genes fully mapped. The other two are fruit fly and mosquito.

India’s iron ore reserves
According to Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan, the country has 22 bn tonnes of iron reserves, of which about 8 bn tonnes are proven reserves.

In 2005-06 the country produced about 150 mln tonnes of iron ore of which 90 mln tonnes was exported and the remaining was consumed by steel plants.