LIC chief sees room for all players
It will be challenging to maintain growth, retain market share and meet policyholders' reasonable expectations, says S B Mathur, chairman, LIC.
LIC plans to woo the young executive
The monolith needs to be more active, especially in cities where people are more knowledgeable about insurance products, says S B Mathur, chairman, LIC.
'No one will invest just because rates are low'
India's fiscal is a concern in the medium term, but it is the lack of investment demand that is of immediate concern, says RBI Governor Bimal Jalan.
'We do not expect a price war'
Today, the customer demands features, reliability and technology and we will harness our strengths in these areas to consolidate our market share, says Sanjeev Bajaj, VP (finance) Bajaj Auto.
'Nirma should be debt free in 18 months'
'The Nirma group has no plans to bid for any of the companies that have been identified by the government for divestment,' says Hiren K Patel, CMD, Nirma Consumer Care.
'How can anyone say I am against
divestment?'
'Out of the entire divestment proceeds, 80 per cent have been
contributed by the petroleum industry,' Petroleum Minister Ram
Naik tells Syed Firdaus Ashraf in an exclusive interview.
'We are tying up a bunch of alliances' Onkar S Kanwar, chairman of Apollo Tyres, talks about the company's business plans and turnover target over the next three years.
'The issue is not risk or monopoly;
the issue is Reliance'
'The worst case scenario is Reliance buying both HPCL and BPCL. Even in that case Indian Oil will still control 54 per cent of the Indian oil market. So who says it's a monopoly?' asks economist Jairam
Ramesh.
'This will be the last bailout'
'There is no question of a shortfall any longer, perceived or real,' UTI Chairman M Damodaran tells Kanchana Suggu in an exclusive interview.
'Why should PSUs be kept away?'
'I have not spoken about any review of the divestment programme. What I am saying is we should find out whether the road we have taken is the right one,' says Defence Minister George Fernandes.
'India Inc needs to be more competitive'
'I believe India will continue to be one of the fastest growing economies, but the CII has identified some issues that need to be addressed to attain this,' says CII president Ashok Soota.
'Cigarette lobby is behind gutkha ban'
With the ban on gutkha coming into effect from Thursday, Manikchand group chairman R M Dhariwal says the product is harmful only if consumed in excess.
'Forecast not unrealistic. We can achieve 8% GDP growth'
Increase in domestic savings, rise in FDI inflows, and improvement in the fiscal situation will help India maintain a fast growth rate, says Prodipto Ghosh, additional secretary to the prime minister.
'FIs, banks must recast HPL debt'
Haldia Petrochemicals is on the recovery track and if problems like cost of raw material and cost of money are sorted out, it will be a viable entity, says Tarun Das, non-executive chairman, HPL.
'Innovation doesn't neccessarily mean profitability'
Semiconductors are an out of favour sector right now that will come roaring back because of breathtaking innovation, predicts Guy Kawasaki, Apple evangelist and founder, Garage Technology Ventures.
'Telecom primed for a revolution'
The telecom industry will witness a revolution in the coming days and the number of mobile phone users in India will rise to 50 million by 2005, says Sunil Mittal, chairman, Bharti Enterprises.
'Industry, academia must come together'
To churn out quality engineers, from technical and personality points, a finishing school is necessary in India, says S Mahalingam, executive vice president TCS.
'Personal credibility was never in doubt'
While no one was uncomfortable with the people and the teams, it was the name, and so we had to find a different brand to operate under, says Bobby Parikh, CEO, Ernst & Young (India).
'We always had on eye on them'
E&Y have always respected Andersen for how they treat their people and clients, says Paul Ostling, global executive partner, Ernst & Young.
'We have no plans to hit the market for 3 yrs'
Despite huge provisioning drawing down from reserves, ICICI Bank is not in a hurry to come out with an IPO, says K V Kamath, managing director and CEO, ICICI Bank.
'My biggest concern is growth'
The recent signs of recovery may not translate into economic growth, says Bimal Jalan, Governor, Reserve Bank of India.
'We are moving in the wrong direction'
'Barring China, which has made significant progress in this area, the number of food insecure people has gone up in all other parts of the world, ' says Dr Per Pinstrup-Andersen, director general, International Food Policy Research Institute.
'India is not the best country to invest'
'The amount of excitement about India amongst foreign investors is close to zero right now. Unless we are economically strong, we will not be taken seriously,' says Prof Pankaj Ghemawat of Harvard University's Graduate School of Business Administration.
'Indian tourism might pick up from October'
The Pacific-Asia Travel Association meet in New Delhi from April 14 will help India showcase its tourism bounties and give a boost to the industry, feels V K Duggal, Director General of Department of Tourism.
'Budgets have lost their credibility'
'No one is ever pulled up for not implementing the promises made in the Budgets,' says Subodh Bhargav, former president, CII.
'It's a Budget of missed opportunity'
While Sinha did pay some attention to agriculture and the reforms process, more radical measures were necessary, says Dr M S Swaminathan an eminent agriculture scientist.
'This Budget is mildly positive'
"There are no bold initiatives to remove the obstacles to make Indian companies globally competitive," says R Seshasayee, MD, Ashok Leyland.
'It is a positive Budget'
"I think people have not understood what the finance minister wants to do. The cost of production of a lot of companies will reduce now," says Rahul Bajaj, chairman, Bajaj Auto.
'The Budget needs to lose its relevance'
'Once policies are set and taxes are rationalized, the Budget should not have mystique that it has today,' says Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha.
'This is not an adventurous Budget'
'The important thing is that the signals in the Budget are the right ones,' says Dr Rajendra Pachauri, head of Tata Energy Research Institute.
'Aid has made us a nation of beggars'
'I have always believed in trade, not aid. I would love to see development aid come down to zero. India should behave like a modern, self-confident economy, which believes in trade,' says Jairam Ramesh.
'I feel sorry for Sinha'
'His hands are really tied. Only politics plays a role in the Budget. We have always been taken for a ride and will continue to be,' says K Mahesh, chairman and MD, Sundaram Lining Ltd.
'I think this Budget will be investor-friendly'
'The finance minister would definitely want to promote investments because the growth rate is slowing down,' says noted economist Dr U Sankar.
'Steps needed to check expenditure' K C Pant, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, believes the Plan panel approach paper will propel India into the high growth orbit
'Cooking gas prices must not be hiked' Nilima Sinha, wife of Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha, speaks about her expectations from the forthcoming Union Budget.
'Excise duty structure may be rationalised'
"All hurdles in the path of the hardware sector must go. Also, the temptation to tax the category must be kept in abeyance," says Harish Bijoor, COO of Zip Telecom.
'The Indian tractor industry is ready to face the Chinese threat'
"If India wants to match China, and if we want to play a fairly big role in the food chain of the world, our economy has to grow fast enough. We should be able to say we are growing at 8 per cent or 10 per cent," feels Mallika Srinivasan, director of TAFE.
'The lure of the United States continues' Cyrus Nallaseth, president of the United States Lawyers' Association, talks about the immigration scenario post-September 11.
'India can totally dominate global tourism market'
'We plan to market India as a destination internationally, and tell the Indian government about the massive potential earnings from tourism, says Sami Zoghbi, managing director, Le Meridien's India region.
'WTO gains for India have been negligible'
Post-Doha, India has adopted a self-congratulatory attitude, terming it a 'victory' and a 'triumph of sorts'. In essence, it is just a futile exercise in self-deception,' says noted food policy analyst Dr Devinder Sharma.
'UK is the gateway for Indian IT pros to Europe'
UK is well-positioned to provide the ideal platform for Indian firms to tap the European market, says Douglas Alexander, UK's minister of state for e-commerce.
'Working with the FM was good. He was very receptive'
'It was good to be around when a lot of policy changes were made, but I won't be here for next year's budget,' says Rakesh Mohan, Sinha's economic adviser, who resigned recently due to 'personal reasons'.
'I see India as a real powerhouse'
Work will flow to India as opposed to Indians migrating to the US. India is a real powerhouse when it comes to talented manpower,' says venture capitalist Ray Stata.
'India has adopted CMM faster than any other nation'
The guru of the capability maturity model, Dr Bill Curtis, who designed People-CMM, says that companies who adopt this model are better suited to facing the economic slowdown.
'India must get the world to condemn what the US is doing with patents'
'If Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights is to be a binding treaty, then the Convention on Biological Biodiversity must be an equally binding treaty. The Americans must be forced to accept it,' says Suman Sahai, Convener, Gene Campaign.
'We have resoundingly lost the basmati case'
RiceTec has got every single commercial advantage it needs to market the rice. Those who are saying that our trade will not be affected are fools,' says Suman Sahai, Convener, Gene Campaign.
'WTO cannot be blamed for our inaction'
'We have been sleeping over the inevitable challenges that we knew would arise out of signing the WTO pact. But there's no point in looking back. We should pull up our socks now,' says Dr M S Swaminathan.
'Pakistan has deliberately kept trade with India restricted'
'The Kashmir issue looms large over Pakistan's policymakers and unless that is resolved trade ties cannot be improved,' says Zia Khaleli, secretary general, International Chamber of Commerce, Pakistan.
'A new WTO round is useful'
'India can play a more effective role if it joins the negotiations soon,' says US Trade Represntative Robert Zoellick.
'These are not crown jewels, these are bleeding ulcers'
'We must tell the people about the public sector's condition. People are confused because nobody is doing it. People think that family silver is being sold when we talk about divestment,' says Arun Shourie, Union Minister of State for Divestment.
'Everything in India has become dysfunctional'
'A fractured legislature and bad administration make swift decisions impossible. We need to speed up reforms or we will be bankrupt before we take steps to save ourselves,' says Arun Shourie, Union Minister of State for Divestment.
'US-64 crisis may help boost private MFs'
'Investors who went to UTI only for security will now seek more options and look at other mutual funds,' says Vivek Reddy, chief executive, Kothari Pioneer.
'Investment banking set for big growth in India'
"I am very optimistic about investment banking in India. But, like everything else in India, we will take two steps forward, slow down, take a step backwards and then move again," says Udayan Bose, managing director, Lazard.
'We don't want privatisation'
'We don't want contract system. We don't want divestment. We don't want the opening up of the economy,' says Sharad Rao, Municipal Majdoor Sangh leader.
'I am so alone' Dewang Mehta, the late President of Nasscom, spoke to rediff.com just a few days before his demise about himself and his vision for the Indian IT industry.
'We will protect the Indian farmer as long as we can'
Shanta Kumar, Union Minister for Food, says that the government has levied heavy import duties on foreign produce to safeguard the domestic industry. 'But, the Indian farmers must produce better quality stuff,' he says.
'India has tremendous growth potential' Phil Spender, Managing Director, Ford India, feels that India is one of the most exciting markets in the world for car manufacturers.
'People's confidence in UTI has been totally eroded' Kirit Somaiya, MP and president, Investors' Greivances Forum, says that the stock market crisis was caused by some operators with help from promoters, financiers and co-op banks.
'Ketan Parekh accepted making mistakes'
'Ketan Parekh is a soft-spoken man. He accepted his mistakes, saying he took money from the banks, used it on the stockmarket and lost,' says Hemant Nagrale, Superintendent of Police, CBI.
'Retail investors have learnt a lesson'
'Retail investors persist on following what the latest fashionable big bull is doing. They are guaranteed to only lose money by doing that,' says John Band, CEO, ASK Raymond James.
'The current economic slowdown is transient'
'This crisis is temporary. But I still think people we will have to wait for the last quarter of this year before things really start looking up,' says E Heige Weiner-Trapness, managing director-Asia, Goldman Sachs.
'Beer is in for a boom time now'
'I have urged the government to increase the number of beer outlets and give licenses freely. Let youngsters drink beer and not get pushed into hard liquor,' says Vijay Mallya, Chairman, UB Group.
'Kerala will emerge as the top IT state'
The future is in content and IT&ES, as much as software. Kerala has inherent strengths in both these areas; and is poised be the top IT state, says Aruna Sundararajan, IT Secretary, Kerala.
'There is no crisis in the market' Deena Mehta, BSE's first-ever woman president, feels there is no need to panic as there are enough checks and balances in place. 'It is impossible for one individual to influence the markets,' she says.
'We are opposed to the way the Balco deal was done'
'Balco has been sold very cheaply. There was any transparency in the deal. The govt sold off 51% against the recommended 40%…', says P N Sharma, general secretary, Balco Employees' Union.
'I don't see any positive steps this time too' 'I have listened to 30 Budgets and in all the Budgets, what they have said was, we are increasing the customs duty of something and reducing the excise duty of something. That is not healthcare of the nation,' says Dr Pratap Reddy, chairman, Apollo Hospitals.
'I don't see the govt taking any serious steps to reform fiscal policy'
Sluggish economic growth is the biggest worry. This is due to lack of infrastructure investments. But I'm quite pessimistic about the government's moves and have no false expectations,' says Venu Srinivasan, Chairman, TVS Suzuki.
'No employee will lose his job due to the merger'
'We have no surplus staff. We have only 2,600 people for our 264 branches. We will be recruiting more people soon,' says K M Thiagarajan, chairman, Bank of Madura.
'India staked all its assets to Enron'
'People are not aware of the magnitude of the crisis facing the state,' says Enron Action group member Dr Om Damani.
'The WTO pact on agriculture will kill our farmers'
'Cheaper agriculture products will flood our markets from Arpil 1, and the government has done nothing to ready our farmers for impending doom,' says Dr M S Swaminathan.
'A new team is in place. Expect a very good Budget 2001'
'I am too small a fry to be commenting on such momentous matters as what George Bush becoming US president signifies for the Indian economy,' says Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha.
'38,000 NBFCs raised Rs 400 billion and vanished'
'It is a fallacy to say the Takeover Code is going to help everyone. Those who stand to benefit are a fraction of the investing community.' Kirit Somaiya, MP and president of the Investors Grievances Forum, on investor protection.
'India is carrying out a homeopathic solution to economics'
'It would be impossible to achieve a growth rate of 8 or 9 per cent because the economic revolution is largely happening only in IT and related fields. That is the tragedy,' says economic guru Marti G Subrahmanyam.
'The Dabhol tariff is not the highest in the country'
'We are always willing to discuss issues with our various stakeholders. However, this does not necessarily mean we will be renegotiating the contract,' says Dabhol Power Corporation CEO Neil McGregor.
'Our business at Kumbh Mela is clean, law-abiding'
'We've invested nearly Rs 20 million on the camp project at the Kumbh Mela. The idea is to promote spiritual tourism, not five-star invasion of a religious event,' says Cox & Kings's chief operating officer (leisure) L P Singh.
'We are not corporate raiders by design'
After selling his 10.5 per cent stake in Gesco for Rs 163.5 million on Monday, Abhishek Dalmia, in his first interview after he clinched the deal, reveals why he did what he did.
