Government to formulate national fibre policy by year-end

October 7th, 2009 KOLKATA - In a bid to encourage jute production, Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran Wednesday pushed for hiking the minimum support price paid for the golden fibre by Rs.300 per quintal, nearly 22 percent over the present Rs.1,375 paid to farmers. "The ministry of textiles is working with the industry.

August 18th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The foreign trade policy for the next five years will be announced Aug 27, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said here Tuesday. "We will soon be coming out with our foreign trade policy for the next five years and have had discussions with all the stakeholders," Sharma said while delivering the valedictory address of a national workshop on 'Achieving Exponential Growth in Agro Exports' organised by the Agricultural and Processed Food Export Development Authority here.

August 7th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India has released 53.5 million dollars of subsidies to textile firms to upgrade their technology. This was disclosed by Union Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran while addressing a press conference here on Thursday.

July 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - With the exports dipping for the second consecutive month in May, the allocation for the market development scheme for exporters has been increased 148 percent to Rs.124 crore, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said while presenting the union budget for 2009-10 in the Lok Sabha Monday. The market development scheme provides support to exporters in developing new markets.

July 5th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government has offered a helping hand to the country's ailing textile sector by announcing a Rs.3,000-crore ($627 million) financial package to waive loan overdues of handloom cooperatives and make available loans at concessional rates for the industry. "The government has formulated a financial package of Rs.3,000 crore for waiver of the overdues of loans of the handloom cooperatives of the country and also, to provide loans at concessional rates of 7 percent per annum," Minister of State for Textiles Panabaka Lakshmi has said.

July 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - The defence ministry has agreed to vacate spectrum for commercial use, Minister of State for Communications and IT Gurudas Kamat said Friday. According to an accord reached between the defence and the telecommunications ministries, the latter will set up an exclusive optical fibre cable (OFC) network for the armed forces.

June 24th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government will spend Rs.1,100 crore (Rs.11 billion) annually till 2012 to provide subsidies and upgrade technology to the textile sector, Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran said here Wednesday. The Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS), which was launched to improve competitiveness and overall long term viability of the industry, has been extended till March 31, 2012.

June 19th, 2009 MUMBAI - Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran wants the sector to develop the "Made in India" brand and diversify into markets beyond the US and the European Union. "The US and EU markets are brand-driven, and through branding we will be able to create a niche market for Indian textiles products and ensure higher value realisation per unit, Maran told reporters here Friday.

June 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Trevira, a Germany-based polyester fibre manufacturer acquired by Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) in 2004, has filed an application in a provincial court in the European country to start insolvency proceedings. A press release issued here Wednesday by RIL said the application for insolvency proceedings had been filed in the Augsburg court in the state of Bavaria.

May 26th, 2009 MUMBAI - Reliance Communications (RCom), India's second largest telecom operator, Tuesday said it has received approval from its shareholders for the demerger of its optic fibre division and subsequent merger with wholly-owned subsidiary Reliance Infratel. "The demerger will help reduce set-up and operating costs resulting in cost efficiency coupled with greater financial flexibility, the company said in a regulatory statement.

May 11th, 2009 KOLKATA - The Left will join a government in which it can play a 'meaningful role', Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader and West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said here Monday. 'If an alternate government is formed according to an unified agenda, there is a change in the country's internal, economic and foreign policies, and we can play a meaningful role to achieve that, we will join that government,' Bhattacharjee told reporters at a meet-the-press programme here.

May 9th, 2009 KOLKATA - The Left parties are working to formulate a common policy within the Third Front, taking into account the political culture of its constituents, Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Prakash Karat said here Saturday. 'We're trying to make our own political platform through a common minimum programme.

May 4th, 2009 KOLKATA - Asserting that there existed a lack of coordination among various security agencies in combating terrorism, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Monday called for an alternative policy direction to fight the menace. Addressing a 'Meet the press' at the Kolkata Press Club, CPI-M politburo member Sitaram Yechury said only a non-Congress and non-BJP regime at the centre could formulate an alternative policy direction on the issue.

April 21st, 2009 KOLKATA - Power cable manufacturer Universal, an M.P. Birla group company, has signed a pact with the Japan-based Furukawa Electric for manufacturing and marketing optical fibre in India.

April 3rd, 2009 KOLKATA - Kolkata Fashion Week (KFW) kicked off with designer Bibi Russell's latest collection here last evening. The KFW showcased Russell's superb collection whose every piece is purely handmade, from the clothes to the shoes to the jewellery.