Cancel service tax on foreign remittances: Goa NRI
http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=141866

Panaji, June 30 (IBNS) Commissioner for Goa NRI Affairs Dr Wilfred Menezes Mesquita has requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to cancel the Centre’s plan to charge 12.36 percent on all foreign remittances to India.

The letter addressed to the Prime Minister on Friday is in the wake of strong resentment among the local community demanding to roll back the tax. Mesquita said the “reported decision to impose the service tax” will dampen spirits of Goans to work abroad.

“The decision has generated tremendous resentment among the Goan public in general and the overseas Goan community in particular,” he said in the letter.

Mesquita explained that tax on the money of the hardworking people has raised apprehensions that NRIs might resort to illegal routes such as “Hawala” instead of repatriating their money through the normal banking channels.

“Goans have been emigrating since pre liberation times as hardly any employment opportunities were available furing the erstwhile Portuguese regime…The horizons of migrations in the present time has been extended to several countries,” the letter reads.

(Reporting by John Edwards)

The Air India Story: Has the Maharaja Become a Pauper?
http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=141453
Special Correspondent | Daijiworld Media Network
 
Jun 27: Is 50 days too small a period to kill the ‘Maharaja’? This question is necessitated considering that the pilot’s strike of Air India is nearing 50 days.

There are enough indications that the mischievous Maharaja, known worldwide for his grace, dignity, naughtiness and symbol of high living in India, is on the death bed gasping for last minute oxygen, which is not forthcoming. So who is responsible for the sorry state of affairs of this ‘Maharaja’ whose name is synonymous with Air India, the country’s national carrier? Apart from ministers and bureaucrats who have contributed for the present mess in the airlines it is a pity that the striking pilots themselves are hitting the last nail in the coffin of the airlines and hastening its death, hurting their own cause in the process.

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Monsoon to gain strength in next 48 hours: IMD
http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/monsoon-to-gain-strength-in-next-48-hours...
Last Updated: Monday, July 02, 2012  | Zeenews Bureau

New Delhi: The Indian Metrological Department (IMD) on Monday sought to assure all sweltering in heat in North India, saying Monsoon would gain strength in the next 48 hours.

Addressing a press conference, IMD director SC Bhan said Monsoon rains are expected to travel northwards in the next two days.  “There is an upper air circulation in Bay of Bengal, which is expected to move towards North in three to four days. This will bring along Monsoon rains,” Bhan said.

Monsoon is currently held up in Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, and eastern Uttar Pradesh. It had reached eastern UP on June 21.  Describing the present Monsoon conditions as neutral, the official said rains are likely in Delhi by weekend.

Pre-monsoon showers could lash Delhi and nearby areas as early as in the next two to three days. According to him, the June rain deficit is likely to be compensated this month.

The month of June recorded 31% deficit in Monsoon rains in northwest India, he added.

Tata Consultancy Services says hello to New Successor, Cyrus Mistry
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/news/software-services/TCS-says-hello-to-Cyrus...
PTI | Jun 30, 2012, 02.22PM IST

Mumbai: With the US and European markets battling slowdown, India's largest software company Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on Friday said it is looking at opportunities in Australia and Middle East for growth.

"Western markets continue to be a matter of concern... Australia, Middle East markets expected to be areas for growth for TCS," TCS CEO and MD N Chandrasekaran said at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) here.

Future opportunities for TCS are extremely good and banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) segment continues to be the thrust area for the company, he added. The company has opened multiple development centres in Latin America, China and Philippines, Chandrasekaran informed shareholders.

A slowing US market, which accounts for more than 60 per cent of the Indian IT industry's exports, along with euro-zone debt crisis is forcing Indian IT firms to look at other markets like the Middle East and Asia.

The company is also focussing on non-linear growth model and is betting big on three strategic initiatives to drive this growth. These include software products (TCS financial solutions), platform-based BPO, and iON (IT-as-a-service solution for small and medium businesses). TCS, in FY2011-12, registered 15 per cent increase in net profit to Rs 13,517 crore, while its revenue increased 31 per cent to Rs 48,894 crore. "All geographies, markets and verticals grew in double digits this year," TCS Chairman Ratan Tata said.

Tata introduced Cyrus Mistry, the anointed successor at the Tata Group, to the shareholders and investors and said he is confident of Mistry's capability of leading the company to new heights of success. "Mistry embraces all ethical values ingrained in the Tata Group," Tata added.

Besides TCS, Mistry is also on the boards of Tata Power Company, Tata Industries, and Tata Teleservices. He was chosen as the successor to Tata in November, 2011 and will take over later this year.