Mumbai:Adlabs Films Ltd said on Monday it has entered into agreements with several cinema properties and will be operating a 200 screen cinema chain in the US, covering 28 cities. The cinemas would play Hollywood and Indian language movies.
Reuters
ONGC cuts gas supply after pipeline leak
Mumbai: State-run explorer Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) said it had cut gas supplies by about 0.5 million cu. m per day following a leak in a pipeline off the west coast of India. The leakage occurred on Sunday morning in a gas pipeline from its Heera field off the Mumbai coast, ONGC said in a statement late on Sunday. It said repair work was taken up immediately and the pipeline had been depressurized. “The pipeline would be made fully operational within a week’s time,” it said.
Reuters
Bharti offers to top RCom bid for spectrum
Mumbai: The country’s biggest wireless operator, Bharti Airtel Ltd, said it is prepared to pay more than Reliance Communications Ltd for additional airwaves to maintain its lead in the world’s fastest growing major mobile phone market.
Bharti, based in New Delhi, offered Rs2,650 crore for the spectrum, above the Rs1,650 crore floor price set by the regulator that Reliance paid. Bharti said it will also fight changes to rules for allocating airwaves that favour its Mumbai-based rival.
The “only plausible explanation” for allowing Reliance to extend its global system for mobile communications network is the money, managing director Akhil Gupta said in a letter to the telecommunications ministry. “We are left with no option but to follow the same practice.” The race to win more spectrum in the world’s third largest mobile phone market is intensifying after record subscriber growth crowded the airwaves and led to poor call quality. Rival operator Tata Teleservices on Monday filed a separate petition seeking parity with Bharti in garnering the radio frequencies used for wireless services.
Bloomberg
Scheme cleared to help sugar-cane farmers
New Delhi: The government on Monday cleared a scheme for financing sugar companies to enable them to clear cane price arrears to the farmers for the years, 2006-07 and 2007-08.
The quantum of total loan amount will be fixed by the Centre, and will be equivalent to the central excise duty payable on total sugar production by sugar mills during these two years. The loan will be given by the banks including co-operative banks.
The banks will be provided full interest subvention (subsidy) by the government at 12%, for a maximum of six years.
Sangeeta Singh
Govt to go by AG on DIAL fund-raising plan
New Delhi: The government will go by the attorney general’s opinion on whether the current financial plan proposed by the Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) for floating subsidiaries and raising deposits is acceptable or not, civil aviation minister Praful Patel said on Monday.