06.12.2006

• Illegal web calls by BPOs may be axed
• Govt. is proposing to require all call centers and BPOs to furnish the name of the authorized service provider from which bandwidth and internet telephony minutes are taken.
• These companies to given an undertaking that they will not use services of unlicensed foreign providers.
• DoT estimates that such unlicensed companies provide about 30 mln minutes internet telephony per month to corporates.
• BSE senex has crossed the 14,000 mark for the first time yesterday.
• CITU partnership with American Trade Union
• CITU, the trade union arm of the CPM is believed to be in talks with AFL (American Federation of Labour) for the latter’s cooperation in planning and implementing a countrywide campaign against US retail giant WalMart’s entry into India.
• AFL was one of the first federations of labour unions in the US and was founded in Columbus, Ohio in 1886 by Sameul Gompers.
• FII inflows
• Currently placed at $8.5 bn on a year to date basis.
• They have pumped in about Rs. 17,100 cr into the stock market while local mutual funds have pumped in about Rs. 638 cr.
• Service tax hike
• Proposal is to hike it to 14% from the current 12% with a view to bring in nearer the VAT rate.
• Such brining in is expected to make the transition to a comprehensive GST (Goods and Services Tax) more easy. It is expected to happen in 2010.
• Loss of account of CST abolition to states is currently put at Rs. 12,000 cr by the states.
• A single man committee headed by T. R. Rustagi is looking into a procedural overhaul of the service tax. It is looking at the circulars which have outlived their utility and can be weeded out.
• The Great Indian Middle Class
• There is more of middle class in our rural areas than urban areas. The middle income population strength is placed at 25 mln in rural areas as compared to the 20 mln in urban areas.
• About 700 mln people are living in 6.3 lk villages in about 125 mln households.
• India’s nuclear potential
• India has the second largest thorium reserves in the world. They are estimated to be between 3,60,000 and 5,18,000 tonnes.
• India’s uranium reserves are placed at about 70,000 tonnes.
• Buoyancy in Incometax collections
• The IT collections are placed at Rs. 98,298 cr till November 15^th. Last year for the same period they were at Rs. 69,465 cr.
• Armed Forces Special Powers Act
• I covered briefly about it on 15.10.2006.
• This Act was essentially meant to give the Indian army and paramilitary forces a freer hand in dealing effectively with various insurgencies in both Manipur and the rest of the Northeast. But it has often been misused to suppress any expression of legitimate democratic sentiment that does not fit in the Indian state’s bill.
• A 5 member committee headed by Justice B.P. Jeevan Reddy has recommended repealing this Act.
• Manipur had a different political trajectory. It did not participate in the anti-colonial struggle. It was assimilated into the Indian Union in 1949, against wishes of certain sections in Manipur.