Category Archives: Business & Economy

Full-fledged operations at Vizag airport from January

Business & Economy

Visakhapatnam :

The Indian Navy seems to have finally decided to give Vizagites and people of Coastal Andhra the perfect New Year gift. Come January, the naval authorities have agreed to completely throw open the Vizag airport for 24/7 operations round the year. Currently, the Navy allows only 24/7 operations thrice a week and the airport is closed for late night flights on the remaining four days of the week.
Making this announcement on the sidelines of a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) meet here on Wednesday, Union minister of state for commerce and industry D Purandeswari said it was confirmed to her by none other than Eastern Naval Command Flag officer commanding-in-chief vice admiral Anil Chopra.

“The airport will be operational for five days a week from November 1, 2013, and all through the year from January first week next year. It is a good opportunity as it will not only facilitate trade, but also result in expanding the international outreach,” Purandeswari, who is also the sitting MP from Visakhapatnam, said.

Vizag airport, which is under control of the Navy, is the only other international airport in the state after Hyderabad. While two direct international flights ferry passengers from the city to Dubai and Singapore, its growth has been hampered due to lack of round the clock operations.

The opening up of the airport to full-fledged operations is expected to bring many more international and domestic carriers flying in. At present, various airlines operate 30 services (15 flights) daily to different domestic and international destinations from Visakhapatnam airport, which has a 10,000-ft long runway.

Air Travellers Association of India president D Varada Reddy said the opening up of the airport for round the clock operations will immediately see passenger traffic rise by 10% as many more international and domestic flights will kick off, which is why the Indian Navy should allow 24/7/365 operations immediately instead of waiting for November 1 or January 1.

“With the green signal from the Navy, we will get many more flights in the next six months. Vizag airport’s financial performance too has been encouraging,” said Visakhapatnam Air Travellers Association (VATA) representative P Vishnu Kumar Raju.

“We will get more international flights thanks to this decision. Representatives of Thai Airways have already visited the Port City and are keen on running direct services to Bangkok, while Air Arabia authorities will also be visiting the city in October to explore the possibility of direct flights,” said Vizag Development Council representative O Naresh Kumar.

While the revenues clocked by Vizag airport have doubled in the last four years from Rs 12.29 crore in 2009-10 to Rs 30 crore in 2012-13, the number of passengers flying into Vizag too has soared in the last decade, crossing the one million mark in 2012-13 as compared to 1.74 lakh in 2003-04. As per the statistics of the Airports Authority of India, the number of incoming and outgoing passengers has already flown past the 85,000 mark per month. Cargo handling too has witnessed a steep 70% increase from 668.94 tonnes in 2004-05 to 1786.58 tonnes in 2012-13.

The move to step up 24/7 connectivity from November 1 will see Singaporean carrier Silk Airways add one more flight on Saturdays from November 4. Silk Airways currently operates direct flights thrice a week. Domestic carrier IndiGo is already set to start direct Hyderabad-Vizag-Mumbai and Mumbai-Vizag-Hyderabad flights from September 20, taking up the total number of arrivals and departures to 34 daily.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Visakhapatnam> Visakhapatnam Airport / by TNN / September 19th, 2013

Pochampally weavers to get their due

Business & Economy
K.Sambhashiva Rao, Union Minister for Textiles, interacting with a weaver at handloom park at Kanumukula village in Nalgonda district on Monday. / Photo: Singam Venkataramana / The Hindu
K.Sambhashiva Rao, Union Minister for Textiles, interacting with a weaver at handloom park at Kanumukula village in Nalgonda district on Monday. / Photo: Singam Venkataramana / The Hindu

Union Textile Minister Kavuri Sambasiva Rao has sanctioned Rs.15 crore for bringing production at Pochampally Handloom Park Limited (PHPL) to its full capacity very soon. Besides, the Union Minister also assured weavers of getting Rs. 15 crore from the State government for PHPL’s development.

“I am going to meet Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy on Monday to apprise him about the need for sanctioning funds to PHPL,” Mr. Rao said.

On Monday, the Union Minister along with senior officials of his ministry arrived at PHPL in Kanumukkala village near Pochampally mandal headquarters to understand issues in the Park where production started in November 2008. PHPL, set up under Scheme for Integrated Textiles Park, is equipped with infrastructure for 2,000 functional handlooms, but at present only 150 looms are functional because of funds shortage. At the time of setting up of the handloom park in the 26 acre land, the Union government had sanctioned 40 per cent ( Rs. 13.6 crore) of the amount and provided the remaining 60 per cent (Rs. 21 crore) of the amount through banks to 35 Weaver Entrepreneurs to complete the project. “Since then, the borrowed amount multiplied and increased to Rs. 39 crore as weavers failed to pay the interest, CEO of PHPL, H.K. Chari said. Mr. Rao held discussions with officials of his ministry and decided to sanction Rs. 15 crore for the revival of PHPL. The weavers also demanded that the Union Minister set up an Indian Institute of Handloom and Textile Technology at PHPL.

NTC INVESTMENT

The National Textiles Corporation will invest Rs. 464 crore in processing a spinning and weaving project in the State. The Union Textile Ministry has agreed to sanction proposals for 40 new projects under group approach and 15 under cluster approach.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Andhra Pradesh / by Staff Reporter / Pochampally (Nalgonda) – September 17th, 2013

Latvia and India strengthen cooperation in education in Hyderabad

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Education, World Opinion

On September 15, continuing his official visit to India, Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics met with Andhra Pradesh Governor Ekkadu S.L. Narasimhan and expressed Latvia’s interest in building cooperation with this developed region of India, reports LETA.

Ekkadu S.L. Narasimhan and Edgars Rinkevics. Photo: flickr.com
Ekkadu S.L. Narasimhan and Edgars Rinkevics. Photo: flickr.com

The Foreign Ministry is planning to appoint a Latvian honorary consul in Hyderabad District. The Governor expressed support for Latvia’s cooperation initiatives and mentioned cooperation in the fields of energy, higher education, environmental protection and infrastructure development as offering excellent prospects.

“We know about Latvia’s success in economy and state development. We are interested in Latvia’s experience in the production of renewable energy, especially in the use of wind and water energy,” Ekkadu S.L. Narasimhan indicated. “It is important to develop tourism and cultural contacts, so that we could learn more about Latvia, and you – about India and Hyderabad District,” the governor continued.

Rinkevics informed the Indian side that Riga will be next year’s European Capital of Culture and invited representatives from Hyderabad to make use of this opportunity to introduce Latvia to India’s culture and art. University of Latvia Rector Marcis Auzins told the governor about the Hindi Language and Cultural Cooperation Center at the University of Latvia and plans for future cooperation with India’s universities.

Cooperation in education, one of the central topics of the visit, will be continued during discussions between Rinkevics, Latvian university representatives and University of Hyderabad administration and staff. Latvian and Indian university staff shared opinions on the study and research process and agreed about the exchange of students and academic staff. To facilitate further contacts, a cooperation agreement between the University of Latvia and the University of Hyderabad will be drawn up and signed in the near future.

In Hyderabad, the official delegation of Latvia and entrepreneurs had a meeting with representatives from the Andhra Pradesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry led by Srinivas Ayyadevara. A great interest by the Indian business people present at the meeting was felt in possibilities for developing trade cooperation with Latvia and investing in this country. Rinkevics and Latvian business people answered questions about Latvia’s business environment, financial and tax policy and the adoption of the euro planned next year. The minister also gave interviews for the mass media, including the EENADU television company.

Today, the delegation, headed by Rinkevics, will go to the State of Tamil Nadu, where meetings will be held with the governor and representatives from the Chamber of Industry and Commerce. At the University of Madras, a cooperation agreement will be signed between the University of Madras and the University of Latvia and a lecture will be delivered to outline Latvia’s view on the European Union-India relations.

Rinkevics’ stay in India will conclude with a visit to Delhi on September 18-20, when the Latvian foreign minister will be received by his counterpart, Indian External Affairs Minister Shri Salman Khurshid. Rinkevics will also meet with the country’s Indian Culture Minister Chandresh Kumari, Communications and Information Technology Minister Kapil Sibal and deliver an address at the International Relations Institute of Jawaharlal Nehru University.

source: http://www.baltic-course.com / The Baltic Course / Home> Education & Science / BC, Riga / September 17th, 2013

International Paper inaugurates 100-crore cut size sheeter in India

Business & Economy, Science & Technology

International Paper Group (Andhra Pradesh paper mills) announced the inauguration of a new Bielomatick A4 sheeter at its Rajahmundry unit, Andhra Pradesh.

(l-r) Rampraveen Swaminathan, MD and CEO, APPM and William Michael Amick Jr, president - IP India
(l-r) Rampraveen Swaminathan, MD and CEO, APPM and William Michael Amick Jr, president – IP India

William Michael Amick Jr, president, IP India and chairman, APPM said, “The new investment in the Rajahmundry Mill reiterates International Paper’s commitment to India. The branded copier paper market has good growth potential in India. The advanced sheeter and IP’s global leadership in the copier market will allow us to serve this market with world class products. We continue to be optimistic about the business potential which India offers.” first of its kind sheeter installed by International Paper in India, the Bielomatik A4 line is one of the best sheeting lines in the world and our Rajahmundry facility will now have automation of this level whilst enabling the mill to increase the conversion capacity of the branded copiers”, said Amick.

The state-of-the-art sheeting line at the new facility converts paper reels into A4, A3 and FS size products. The automated process installed in the facility has advanced ream wrapping, carton packing and palletizing capabilities. The conversion capacity of the new facility is 265 MT/day.

According to Amick, the addition of the Bielomatik A4 line has boosted their A4 sheeting capacity by 90,000MT/ year.

source: http://www.printweek.in / Print Week India / Home> News> Finishing /by Anand Srinivasan / September 11th, 2013

Aurobindo Pharma to buy Hyacinths Pharma

Business & Economy

Hyderabad :

Aurobindo Pharma Ltd will acquire Hyacinths Pharma Pvt Ltd, a company engaged in production of active pharmaceutical ingredients.

“The Hyacinths, which has about 53 acres near Aurobindo’s unit at Pydibhimavaram in Srikakulum district of Andhra Pradesh, is yet to commence production but has all necessary approvals. The location is convenient for the Hyderabad-based company’s expansion plans,” the company informed the BSE on Thursday.

In addition, it would also acquire 25 per cent stake in Silicon Life Sciences Pvt Ltd, a joint venture of Aurobindo Pharma and Trident Chemphar Ltd, to make it the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary.

Silicon Life has a production facility in Ramky Pharma City in Vishakapatnam. In addition to these decisions, the company’s board, at its meeting held on Thursday, also approved the transfer of injectables Unit IV as a going concern to Curepro Parenterals Ltd, its wholly-owned subsidiary.

Aurobindo’s scrip declined 2.19 per cent on the BSE on Thursday to end at Rs 182.75.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home> Companies / by The Hindu Bureau / September 12th, 2013

Andhra’s ITeS exports outstrip India’s average

Business & Economy, Science & Technology

Hyderabad :

Despite the shadow of political uncertainty looming large, the state’s IT/ITeS exports clocked a healthy 26% growth in 2012-13 fiscal, outstripping the national growth rate of 23% for FY13.

State’s IT/ITeS exports grew to Rs 51,285 crore as against Rs 40,646 crore during the corresponding period last year, said the state IT department on Saturday. India’s IT/ITeS exports grew 23% to Rs 4,10,836 crore in 2012-13 financial year from Rs 3,32,769 crore in 2011-12 financial year.

According to data released by the AP IT department, the state’s overall IT revenues from IT/ITeS exports, special economic zones (SEZs), Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) and domestic business rose 26.17% to Rs 64,354 crore in 2012-13 financial year as compared to Rs 53,246 crore in the previous financial year.

Hyderabad continued to hog the limelight with a lion’s share of the overall IT/ITeS business in AP at over Rs 62,722.51 crore out of the total state IT/ITeS revenues of Rs 64,354 crore. According to the data provided by the IT department, the industry was able to generate 13.7 lakh jobs, including 3.2 lakh direct jobs and 10.5 lakh indirect jobs in FY13.

Commenting on the performance of the industry, state IT and communications minister Ponnala Laxmaiah said, “Contrary to popular perception that political uncertainty has hit the IT industry in the state, the figures reveal that the so called uncertainty has not blocked the way for the development of IT/ ITeS in the state.”

Interestingly, despite the economic slowdown, tier-II and tier-III cities too saw their IT business improve in the last fiscal. While Visakhapatnam’s IT/ITeS revenues soared 20% to Rs 1,445 crore in 2012-13 as against Rs 1,200 crore in 2011-12, that of Vijayawada shot up to Rs 115.26 crore as compared to Rs 95.6 crore and Tirupati’s increased to Rs 6.93 crore as against Rs 4.25 crore in the period under review. Kakinada’s IT/ITeS revenue almost doubled to Rs 61.54 crore in 2012-13 as against Rs 34.67 crore in 2011-12 fiscal.

The area occupied by the IT/ITeS industry in tier-II cities too rose to 13.5 lakh square feet in FY13 as compared to 12 lakh square feet in FY 12.

According to the data, US continues to be a major market for the state’s IT/ITeS industry with about 74% of the IT/ITeS exports meant for US and 17% to Europe.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / TNN / September 15th, 2013

Record revenue from mango loading at Nuzvid

Business & Economy, Nature, Records, All
The Hindu
The Hindu

The division has already netted Rs. 4.56 crore

Krishna District is home to one of the best mango varieties in the country and export of the King of Fruits to other States in the country is on an average around 30,000 tonnes annually through the Railways.

This season is not considered to be a very good year for mango crop, but better than last season, helped the Railways also achieve handling 24,415 tonnes from April 1 to May 21 creating a sort of record as the projections for the season are reaching beyond 30,000 tonnes. Last season the Vijayawada Division of South Central Railway had handled only 25,200 tonnes, but now with another 10 days to go for the season to come to an end, Divisional Railway Manager Pradeep Kumar hopes they will gross the highest revenue too.

With freight tariff going up by 25 per cent from June 1 last year, the Division has already netted Rs.4.56 crore sending out 20 rakes comprising 42 covered wagons per rake. “There is still some demand from the aggregators and exporters to send mangoes to Anand Nagar Delhi station and we are ready to supply any number of rakes within a short notice,” the DRM told The Hindu on Wednesday.

While each wagon can be loaded with 30 tonnes, it takes about five to six hours and the Railways places wagons at Nuzvid station at 7 a.m. everyday and ensures that the rake crosses Andhra Pradesh same day to reach New Delhi within 48 hours to ensure the half-ripe Mangoes are just ripe enough for consumption and are sold in the market in Northern States.

The 2009-10 season saw the highest loading of 32 wagons sending out 34,314 tonnes. Now every care is taken in loading and staking them and providing the wagon with a mesh window to keep airflow in-tact. Banginapalli, Chinna Rasalu, Totapuri and Collector are the popular ones. This is one of the two dedicated mango loading stations in the country with other also being Andhra Pradesh – Vizianagaram, now under East Coast Railway.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by Ramesh Susarla / Vijayawada – May 23rd, 2013

Panoramic Group launches in City of Pearls

Business & Economy

 Branded as United-21 Hyderabad, this premium property is the group’s 37th property. The hotel is centrally located at Secunderabad opposite the Passport Office.

PanoramicHF19sept2013

Mumbai :

Panoramic Group, a diversified multi-national conglomerate with business interests in several sectors, has launched its latest property in Hyderabad. This marks the group’s 37th property. The United 21-Hyderabad hotel is centrally located in Secunderabad opposite the passport office. This property forms a part of the group’s timeshare arm Magic Holidays, which is now one of the leading players in the vacation-ownership space in India. Recently, the Group also opened a property in Lonavala, Maharashtra.

The United 21-Hyderabad property is equipped with all modern amenities and is one of the premium properties owned by the Group. There are 58 rooms that are currently functional; this includes 17 suite rooms, 23 super deluxe rooms and 28 deluxe rooms. There is a multi-cuisine restaurant ‘Spices & Sauces’, a lounge bar called ‘Waves’ and a 24-hour coffee shop ‘Anytime’ which serves mouth-watering delicacies and a selection of beverages.

Mr. Hitesh Kshatriya, Chief Operating Officer of Panoramic Group, which owns Magic Holidays, said, “The United 21-Hyderabad property marks our entry into the City of Nizams. Hyderabad is a very important market for us as it is a converging point for both business and leisure travelers. This is our endeavor to provide our customers with experiences that match up to the ‘Unforgettable Times’ promise.”

“We have noticed that Hyderabad is a market that attracts a lot of traffic as the IT industry is booming over here, apart from this it is also a very important destination for tourists who are going to other places in Andhra Pradesh. Keeping all these factors in mind we decided to launch our property here before the festive season. Our Hyderabad property is one of the premium properties in our portfolio, it features all modern equipments and has been designed in a very fluidic and aesthetic style keeping the guest’s comfort in mind. The hotel is centrally located so it is ideal for all kinds of travellers,” he added.

The company’s promise of ‘Unforgettable Times’, which is an integral part of the repositioning, seeks to provide customers with a holiday experience like never before that will keep them coming back for more such magical moments. This promise comes along with the assurance of affordable and flexible holidays supplemented with assured booking of holidays in some of the best locations in India and abroad.

source: http://www.traveldailynews.asia / Travel Daily News Asia-Pacific / Home> News> Regional News> Asia-Pacific / by Theodore Koumelis / September 10th, 2013

Cigniti Tech opens new global test centre in Hyderabad

Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion

The new facility houses cloud-enabled performance test lab in addition to the existing mobile, robotics labs, helping the company’s clients further leverage its infrastructure

Cigniti Technologies Limited (formerly Chakkilam Infotech Limited), a city-based independent software testing company , opened a 34,000-sft global test engineering centre in Hyderabad on Monday. With the addition of the new facility, the company now has a total of 95,000 sft of space across Hyderabad, Dallas and Toronto.

“With the addition of this new centre, we are well equipped to meet our current and future growth needs while we continue to expand our operations further. Today, Cigniti is a 800-plus people organisation worldwide and we plan to hire another 400 by 2014 as we move forward,” Cigniti chief executive officer, Sudhakar Pennam , said in a release.

The new facility houses cloud-enabled performance test lab in addition to the existing mobile, robotics labs, helping the company’s clients further leverage its infrastructure, he added.

The company had in March this year inaugurated a mobile test lab (or competency unit) at its Hyderabad facility, from where it is offering its proprietary mobile and on-the-cloud testing platforms.

The lab enables Cigniti’s clients to quickly set up test harnesses and complete testing their mobile applications on multiple platforms, devices and networks.

source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> Companies> News / by BS Reporter / Hyderabad – September 02nd, 2013

We want to strengthen our presence outside Andhra Pradesh

Business & Economy

State Bank of Hyderabad, one of the oldest banks in the South and the largest among the associate banks of the State Bank of India, is spreading its wings beyond Andhra Pradesh in a big way.

The 71-year-old bank opened over 200 branches in the last couple of years, with over half of these outside Andhra Pradesh. “Not that we do not want to open more branches in Andhra Pradesh, but we want to have a wider presence,” said M. Bhagavantha Rao, Managing Director of the bank, in an interview to Business Line.

Excerpts from the interview:

State Bank of Hyderabad seems to be on an expansion spree, particularly outside Andhra Pradesh. Why the sudden shift?

Our expansion drive is part of our move to concentrate beyond our traditional areas of Andhra Pradesh and parts of Karnataka and Maharashtra. Last year, we opened zonal offices in Mumbai and Delhi to extend our reach. Recently, we opened branches in Raipur, Ranchi and Patna.

We are planning to open more branches during the current financial year. Of the 200 branches we opened last, 60 per cent was outside Andhra Pradesh.

This ratio will keep increasing as we go forward. Not that we do not want to open more branches in Andhra Pradesh, but we want to have a wider presence. We have over 1,000 branches in Andhra Pradesh, in addition to several banking correspondents operating throughout the State.

How long does a new branch take to break even?

Depending on the rental and number of employees, it may vary. For us, on an average, it takes 12-15 months. We can break even much earlier, if the number of staff is lesser.

We will need at least 4-5 people in a new branch. All our new branches are giving us good business. For example, last year we opened branches in Kelambakkam, Chitlapakkam, Urapakkam and Sholinganallur — the southern suburbs of Chennai. Within 15-16 months, these branches contributed at least Rs 10 crore of business each.

What is the bank’s total business and how much of it comes from Andhra Pradesh at present?

At the end of the first quarter of the current fiscal, our total business stood at over Rs 2.10-lakh crore. Of this, 50 per cent came from Andhra Pradesh, and the remaining from rest of the country.

What is your turnover target for the next couple of years?

We want to achieve a business turnover of Rs 3-lakh crore by 2015, and we are on track to get there.

Considering the current economic situation….

(He interrupts) Our profitability may come under pressure, due to various provisioning and the general slowdown, but not the topline.

What is your strategy to achieve the growth target?

First, we want to expand our footprint to other geographies, particularly in the South this year. At present, we have 49 branches in this region. We want to take it to 65 by the end of the current financial year. We are planning to set up two branches in Kerala and 14 more in Tamil Nadu, including an all-women branch in Salem in October.

Second, we want to focus more on retail deposits and advances this year with more stress on car loans and the MSME (micro, small and medium enterprise) segment. This year being ‘the year of MSMEs’, we are planning Rs 9,000 crore of additional business from this segment. We have already done about Rs 1,500 crore so far.

There is great potential in this sector. All it requires is a bit of planning and training. As entrepreneurs require some sort of handholding, we need to have some trained people with us. This took some time for us. Now, we are completely equipped. We have posted 600 officers to manage the MSME business.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home> Industry> Banking / by R. Ravikumar  ravikumar.r@thehindu.co.in / September 02nd, 2013