Arrest Warrant Issued Against Vivek and Suresh Oberoi

Breaking News! A non- bailable arrest warrant has been issued against actor Vivek Oberoi and his father Suresh Oberoi in a cheque bounce case, which put the actors in a major trouble.

The Oberois had allegedly issued a cheque worth Rs. 3 crore, which was bounced. A Metropolitan court issued a non-bailable warrant on the basis of a complaint filed by Jawaharlal Agicha.


Suresh Oberoi's relative and his company's MD Anand Oberoi and his manager Anil Lalwani had approached Agicha for the financial aid to the company for the promotion of their brands in India as well as abroad.

According to the complaint, Agicha was issued some post-dated cheques as repayment of the Rs 3.9-crore loan. However, he received only Rs 50,000 in January 2010 via cheque and rest of the Union Bank of India cheque worth Rs 3 crore bounced. The cheque was bounced by New India Co-op Bank, Versova with a remark ‘account closed'.

Agicha had approached the court in December 2010. But the Oberois had not appeared before the court despite repeated notice that led to issue a non-bailable warrant against them.

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Real Estate - What Does The Future Hold?

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised the interest rates by a higher-than-expected 50 basis points recently, stepping up its fight against persistently high inflation. The Reserve Bank of India increased the repo rate to 8%. The market had expected the hike to be around 25 basis points.

Annual headline inflation has accelerated to 9.44% in June. Inflation rate measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) stood at 9.06% in May and at 10.55% in June last year. This is way ahead of the comfort zone of the government.

Real estate developers and home buyers will feel the pinch of higher interest rates, which could slow down home sales. Higher interest will push up monthly installments for home loans for existing as well as new home buyers.

As per Jones LaSalle India, purchasing activity which had seen a drop during the last tranche of interest rate hikes will see a further drop in buyer interest now. Owing to the last 10 rate hikes by RBI, EMIs for housing loan have risen 25% to Rs 980 per Rs 1 lakh of borrowing, and consequently loan eligibility for homebuyers has declined 20%.

IN LAST FEW QUARTERS

The real estate index has corrected nearly 37% over the last one year. The real estate market is hanging on a sword edge with multiple triggers slowing the market down.

Not only buyers, but even the real estate companies are also in troubled waters. Cost of funds for developers ranges anywhere in the range of 14.5% to 16%, depending on the credibility of the borrower. The rate hike is only making it more expensive. Also the banks have not been willing to lend to the real estate sector in the recent past. The Reserve Bank of India has laid out strict and tedious due diligence standards for banks in sanctioning loans to the real estate sector.

The banks have to verify the documents, including cross verification with the local administration, to ensure that frauds are eliminated. RBI has also asked banks to independently verify the authenticity of chartered accountant certificate, property valuation certificate, legal certificate, guarantee/line of credit or any other third-party certification submitted by the borrower. This could delay loan sanctions at all levels and may lead a further blow to the real estate sector that is witnessing slowing sales and rising losses.

Selective lending, higher rates and stricter verifications have forced many developers to tap other sources of funds, which are much more expensive than bank lending.

The industry is facing a crunch and the fund gap over the next five years alone would be as high as US$ 70 billion. The RBI announcement, therefore, could be detrimental to the growth of the industry and economy.

Higher construction costs: The price rise of the key components - steel, cement, bricks and labour are causing worries for the real estate sector. There has been an 18% gross rise in construction cost over the last 2 years (2011 over 2009). As per DLF, steel and cement make 40% of cost of construction and civil costs (i.e. – steel, cement, labour) constitute around 70% of total costs. High global demand for commodities, higher production and transportation costs partly due to higher fuel prices has led to the rise in prices of commodities. Further, demand for skilled labour has led to the labour cost seeing a rise of 25% in the past decade.

While some developers believe that input costs have peaked or are close to peaking, some think that inflationary pressures could likely continue in the near term. This would cause margin erosions for few players, or delays in old projects, changes in product mix and one-time cost adjustments. Some developers have even indicating of passing the increases in costs on to customers, which may see some slowdown in sales.

On the sales front, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune and Kolkata witnessed a further slow down further, while Gurgaon and Chennai gained. Also the new launches were at slightly lower number across pan India. Launches declined to 13.5 mn sq. ft in March 2011 (from 21.5 mn sq. ft in February 2011) as cautious developers faced regulatory and funding hurdles.

On the price front, the movement has been in a narrow range in the past few quarters as developers have held on and buyers have been playing a waiting game. The past few months have puzzled property buyers. On account of conflicting signals on realty prices, the buyers are confused as to wait for prices to fall or rush to buy before they appreciate. The trend of higher prices was followed by the correction in the market.

Now the question is whether this price fall going to continue or there will be an upsurge?

While in the current situation of tight liquidity conditions, increasing inventories, rising interest rates and construction costs, buyers may stand to gain as the real estate developers may have to opt for distress sale to improve their cash flows. However, rising interest rates (expected to go up further as inflation continues to remain high) may make the home loans expensive for the buyers. Even the rental yields are expected to rise as residential prices correct and owners compensate by increasing rental rates.

Hence, if you is looking to buy your first home or upgrade to a bigger house and are ready to invest in it for a long time horizon, then there is no right or wrong time. It may not be sensible idea to time the market to buy a house. However, just make sure that you are due diligent in terms of getting the best price deals and proper documentation to have no further worries.

[Source]

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CBI Rejects Ramdev's Aide Balkrishna's Plea

Balkrishna on Thursday sought 20 days time to appear before the CBI for questioning in a case under the Passport Act, claiming he has applied for a UK visa and his travel document is with that mission.

The agency, however, rejected his plea and asked him to appear without the passport tomorrow for questioning, CBI sources said.

The CBI had asked him to present himself for questioning today but sources in the agency said Balkrishna sent a fax in the morning, saying his passport is with the British High Commission for visa purposes and a reply from there was expected after about 20 days.

In his fax, Balkrishna said he was also consulting Supreme Court lawyer Ram Jethmalani and pleaded that any other date after 20 days may be given to him.

He said he came to know about the CBI notice, which was pasted on the ashram gate, yesterday.

The CBI has rejected his plea and asked him to appear without his passport tomorrow, they said.

Meanwhile, sources said Balkrishna is likely to move to Uttarakhand High Court to seek anticipatory bail.

The CBI has earlier issued a look-out notice against Balkrishna after registering a case against him under section 420 (cheating) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC for procuring fake degree and for violating section 12 of the Indian Passport Act (knowingly furnishing false documents for getting passport).

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Be Careful At The Indian Airports

Be Careful at the Indian Airports, This is a well organized conspiracy by Indian Immigration, Police, Customs and Air India staff with networking at all the Indian International Airports.. Be careful when ever you give your passport to Immigration/ Customs/Air India staff. The pass port can be easily tampered and can create trouble to you. They have found easy way of making money from NRIs. This is the way it works:

At the time of the passenger's departure, if the passenger is not looking at the officer while he is stamping the exit, the officer very cleverly tears away one of the page from the passport. When the passenger leaves the immigration counter, the case is reported on his computer terminal with full details. Now all over India they have got full details of the passenger with Red Flag flashing on the Passport number entered by the departure immigration officer. They have made their money by doing above.

On arrival next time, he is interrogated.

Subject to the passenger's period of stay abroad, his income and standing etc., the price to get rid of the problem is settled by the Police and Immigration people. If someone argues, his future is spoiled because there are always some innocent fellows who think the honesty is the basis of getting justice in India .

Please advise every passenger to be careful at the airport. Whenever they hand over the passport to the counters of Air India , or immigration or the customs, they must be vigilant, should not remove eyes from the passport even if the officer in front tries to divert their attention.

Also, please pass this information to all friends, media men and important politicians. Every month 20-30 cases are happening all over India to rob the NRIs the minute he lands. Similar case has happened with Aramco's Arifuddin. He was traveling with his family. They had six passports. They
Got the visa of America and decided to go via Hyderabad from Jeddah. They reached Hyderabad .Stayed about a month and left for the States. When they reached the States, the page of the American visa on his wife's passport was missing. At the time of departure from Hyderabad it was there, the whole family had to return to Hyderabad helplessly. On arrival at Bombay back, they were caught by the police and now it is over 2 months, they are running after the Police, Immigration officers and the Courts. On going in to details with him, he found out the following: One cannot imagine, neither can believe, that the Indian Immigration dept can play such a nasty game to harass the innocent passengers.

All the passengers traveling to & fro India via Bombay and Hyderabad must be aware of this conspiracy. Every month 15 to 20cases are taking place, at each mentioned airport, of holding the passengers in the crime of tearing away the passport pages. On interviewing some of them, none of them was aware of what had happened. They don't know why, when and who tore away the page from the middle of the passport. One can imagine the sufferings of such people at the hands of the immigration, police and the court procedures in India after that. The number of cases is increasing in the last 2-3 years. People who are arriving at the immigration, they are questioned and their passports are being held and they have to go in interrogation. Obviously, the conspiracy started about 2 to 3 years ago, now the results are coming. Some of the Air India counter staff too is involved in this conspiracy.

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EMI Can Now Be Slashed

A quarter-on-quarter hike in home loan rates for the past 18 months has made things difficult for existing home loan customers. Home loans have now touched an eight-year high following the RBI’s 50 basis point hike on its repo rate (the rate at which the RBI lends money to banks).

Financial planners say the series of hikes affected the budgets of most families as 90% of new borrowers opted for floating rates during the low-rate-teaser-rate regime.

This means a small fraction of the fat EMI you pay goes towards the repayment of the principal amount while the bulk goes in interests. With interest rates on housing loans breaching the 12% per annum mark, existing borrowers face the prospect of either paying the same EMI for the rest of their lives or liquidating the nest-egg fund to pay a part of the housing loan upfront.

So, what should you do to make things work in your interest. Buy the spread. Housing finance companies do not advertise it because it does not translate into profits for them. When you buy the spread, your home loan interest effectively moves back to the comfort zone in which it was a little over a year ago.

Suppose you took a loan at 10% per annum interest a couple of years ago. The prevailing prime lending rate (PLR) at that time was 13% per annum. But you were given a spread of 3% in keeping with the loan rates prevailing then. Now, the PLR has shot up to 15.5% and your interest rate has proportionately gone up to 12.5%.

“Buying the spread from your home finance company reduces your effective rate of interest to that extent,” Harsh Roongta, said.

“You should dump your home finance company and go to a new financier if the company does not give you the rate it is offering to new customers.”

Existing customers can bring their interest rates at par with that of new customers by way of buying the spread. The floating rates now range between 10 and 11%. The fixed rate now is more than 13% with most housing finance companies.

Financial planner Anantram Rao said those with floating rates could get a further spread of 2% by paying a fee of 1.5% of the principal outstanding amount. “This will immediately bring down you interest to 10.5%,” Rao said. Also, the fee paid for the spread can be recovered in less than six months, he said. “The benefits run into lakhs for the remaining repayment period.”

Ever since the new PLR-based computation method has come into force, buying the spread is even more effective, a senior official from a leading home finance company said. “In 2010, the PLR became dynamic. Call it coincidence, even rates started shooting up pushing the PLR by almost 200 points in little more than a year,” he said.

At present, the PLR is 15.5% and it is effectively the prevailing interest rate as well. The interest rates have gone up almost 25% in the past one year and existing borrowers are burdened with a proportionate increase in their outstanding amount because of either higher EMI or increased tenure.

[Source]

Check Now Your EMI Will Be "Home Loan EMI Calculator"

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Rs10 lakh, The EMI Will Additionally Increase By Rs350

Will there be a slowdown in the real estate market? Will property prices crash?

These questions plagued experts and home buyers after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday decided to hike lending and borrowing rates by 50 basis points.

This might result in developers pressing the panic button and start disposing of flats in their remaining inventory to pay off mounting debts and interest.

“High volumes of houses on sale will decrease property rates in the city. But, if developers do not succumb to the RBI's pressure, property rates may rise again,” said a real estate expert.

This is the 11th repo rate hike in the last 16 months to tame the high inflation.

“Bankers will increase key policy rates that will have an impact on the interest rates on various loans. So, if person has taken a loan of Rs10 lakh, the EMI will additionally increase by Rs350,” said Paras Gundecha, president of the Maharashtra Chamber of Housing Industry. “Moreover, the civic corporation recently increased 100% premium of the use of additional floor space index. As borrowers, developers also have to pay high interest rates to banks. This load will be passed on to the buyers.”
“Banks should absorb the current RBI hike to reduce the burden on homebuyers,” he suggested.

Pranay Vakil, chairman of Knight Frank, India, feels the RBI’s base rate hike will impact both current and prospective buyers.

“The cost of construction has increased after steel and cement prices jumped by almost 20%. For developers, borrowing will become expensive and they will have little choice. They have to dispose all remaining inventory early to repay loans and mounting interest. The hike might force them to decrease property rate to pay the loan. If it happens then the RBI has achieved its objective,” explained Vakil.

But, he also pointed out that during the earlier base rate hikes, developers were not compelled to reduce property rates. “We have little hope from this hike too. Rather than tackling the root of the disease, the authority is wasting time treating the symptoms.”

Anurag Mathur, managing director of Cushman & Wakefield India, said the repo rate hike was unexpected. “It will weigh down demand in the residential segment. The change in the rates will negatively affect the end users capacity to raise debt. Banks will hike their interest rates on home loans and other loan products," he said.

“Higher rate of interest will lead to market stagnation and in some micro markets that are largely driven by end users, moderate correction in values as well. Capital values, however, will largely continue to hold steady for the next quarter or two,” predicted Mathur.

[Source]

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IRDA For More Cos To Participate In Pension Market

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) on Friday said that domination of one company in the pension market could be risky and it was important for other insurance companies to participate actively, reports PTI.

"There is a structural problem that will unwind for the regulator and the industry as a whole, and will affect the country. More than 90% of all the pensions are actually in the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). There is such a huge concentration in one institution. I think that is a recipe for high risk," IRDA chairman, J Hari Narayan, said at an insurance summit here.

"I think it is too much of a risk to be allowed to continue. Therefore, we must build up mechanisms which allow other companies also to participate actively in the pension market," he added.

Mr Narayan further said that pension funds should offer life annuity and companies that sell pension products should have a guaranteed capital.

"I think at the very minimum that every product that is sold as a pension product should have a capital guarantee so that the principal is safe," he said.

Pension plans are estimated to account for about 30% of the life insurance industry's business.

Meanwhile, Mr Narayan said that the regulatory body was working towards creating an exchange for re-insurance, but did not divulge when the mechanism would be in place.

"We have tried to create a platform on re-insurance, which is more transparent and more like a re-insurance exchange. Initial work is going on. What we visualise is that all matters on re-insurance will be routed only through the exchange. The advantage will be that transactions are clear and there cannot be any glitches in terms of the fine print of the policy," he said.

Mr Narayan said the insurance industry was more like a teenager going through exciting times but said there were a few challenges that needed to be addressed.

He said in case of insurance firms floated by banks, the average cost of premium was higher than that of LIC. Though there are some recommendations to allow a bank to have stakes in two insurance firms, he did not agree with this, he said.

"The problem that I have in two insurance companies operating in the same space is the premium is perverse to the bank as to which product they will be selling at branch level.

The perverse incentive at branch level is not correct. And I don't think that is a healthy practice. We cannot be having two across the same space," he said.

Mr Narayan pointed out that banks have huge potential to market insurance products.

"From the 80,000 branches across India, only 7,000 sell insurance policies. The bulk of the branches have not been used for selling insurance. We will be failing in our duty, certainly as a regulator, if we don't enable the greater use of the branch outreach," he said.

On distribution front he said that many agents were not happy as the pay was low, but said it was not possible to increase the commission.

"Is it wise to so largely front load commission? Should we look at flattening the commission differentials? At present, we cannot assess it because we are bound by the present Insurance Act," he said, adding that the amendment bill if passed could bring about some changes.

[Source]

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Real State - To Buy Or Not

The real estate market is hanging on the razor’s edge and multiple triggers are slowing the market down. This article examines the current trends in the realty market.

Funding pressures

The sector is facing funding woes in the current environment of rising rates. The Reserve Bank of India had raised interest rates in June 2011 for the 10th time since March 2010. Further, inflation as measured by the wholesale price index rose 9.44 per cent in June, up from 9.06 per cent in May, thus smashing hopes of a pause of a further rise in interest rate.

This has led to higher costs for the buyers. According to analysts, purchasing activity which had seen a drop during the last tranche of interest rate hikes will see a further drop in buyer interest now. Owing to the last 10 rate hikes by the central bank, EMIs for housing loan have risen 25 per cent to Rs 980 per Rs 1 lakh of borrowing, and consequently loan eligibility for home buyers has declined 20 per cent.

Not only buyers, but even the real estate companies are also in troubled waters. Cost of funds for developers ranges anywhere in the range of 14.5-16 per cent depending on the credibility of the borrower. The rate hike is only making it more expensive. Also the banks have been skeptical about lending to the real estate sector in the recent past. The Reserve Bank of India has laid out strict and tedious due diligence standards for banks in sanctioning loans to the real estate sector. The banks have to verify the documents, including cross verification with the local administration to ensure that frauds are eliminated. The central bank has also asked banks to independently verify the authenticity of the chartered accountant’s certificate, property valuation certificate, legal certificate, guarantee/line of credit or any other third-party certification submitted by the borrower.

This could delay loan sanctions at all levels and may lead a further blow to the real estate sector that is witnessing slowing sales and rising losses.

Selective lending, higher rates and stricter verifications have forced many developers to tap other sources of funds, which are much more expensive than bank lending.

Higher costs

The rise in prices of steel, cement, bricks and labour are causing worries for the real estate sector. There has been an 18 per cent gross rise in construction costs over the last two years. Steel and cement alone make up to 40 per cent of the cost of construction and civil costs (i.e. steel, cement, labour) constitute around 70 per cent of total costs. High global demand for commodities, higher production and transportation costs partly due to higher fuel prices has led to the rise in prices of commodities. Further, demand for skilled labour has led to the labour cost seeing a rise of 25 per cent in the past decade.

While some developers believe that input costs have peaked or are close to peaking, some think that inflationary pressures could continue in the near term. This would cause margin erosions for few players, or delays in old projects, changes in product mix and one-time cost adjustments. Some developers have even indicated passing the increases in costs on to customers, which may see some slowdown in sales.

On the sales front, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune and Kolkata witnessed a further slowdown, while Gurgaon and Chennai gained. Also the new launches were at slightly lower numbers across pan India. Launches declined to 13.5 million square feet in March 2011, from 21.5 million sqare feet a month ago as cautious developers faced regulatory and funding hurdles.

On the price front, the movement has been in a narrow range in the past few quarters as developers have held on and buyers have been playing a waiting game. The past few months have puzzled property buyers. On account of conflicting signals on realty prices, the buyers are confused: whether to wait for prices to fall or rush to buy before they appreciate. The trend of higher prices was followed by the correction in the market.

Now the question is whether this trend will continue, or will there be an upsurge?

While in the current situation of tight liquidity conditions, increasing inventories, rising interest rates and construction costs, buyers may stand to gain as the real estate developers may have to opt for distress sale to improve their cash flows. However, rising interest rates (expected to go up further as inflation continues to remain high) may make the home loans expensive for the buyers. Even the rental yields are expected to rise as residential prices correct and owners compensate by increasing rental rates.

[Source]

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Noida Extn Takeover Spared Ex-MLA

Quashing acquisition of 589 hectares of land in Patwari village in Noida Extension by the UP government, the Allahabad High Court upheld the farmers’ stand that authorities breached their right to equality with a “pick and choose” policy in acquiring land by sparing a select few, including one belonging to a former MLA.

Perusing a survey report adduced in court as it adjudicated the challenge to the land acquisition by 11 farmers, a division bench of Justices Sunil Ambawani and S S Tiwari noted that the actions of the government authorities, including Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA), was “vitiated” since the farmers’ fundamental right was transgressed upon.

“We also find merit in the appellants’ plea that the acquisition of their land is vitiated due to violation of the doctrine of equality enshrined in Article 14 of the Constitution. A reading of the survey report shows that the committee constituted by the State Government had recommended release of land measuring 18.9725 hectares. A large chunk of land measuring 4.3840 hectares was not acquired apparently because the same belong to an ex-member of the legislative assembly,” the bench said in its July 19 judgment, a copy of which was made available on Friday.

Dismissing the argument that some land was released because owners had already constructed houses, the court noted a bias: “Many parcels of land were released from acquisition because the land owners had already raised constructions and were using the same as dwelling units... The appellants had also raised constructions on their land and were using the same for residential and agricultural purposes. Why their land was not left out from acquisition has not been explained in the counter affidavit filed by the respondents.”

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Part-Time MBA Courses- Why?

What is the first thought that comes to your mind when you hear about Part-time MBA Courses? Or shall I say, do you know about part-time MBA? Is it some kind of correspondence course? Is it useful? Oh, there is no ROI in part-time courses... Most of the working executives face such questions.

In this article, I would be addressing some of these doubts.

The objective of these courses is 'two-way' learning. Now you would wonder what is two-way learning. Management education in India has been heavily bent towards full-time MBA. The creamy layer of full-time MBAs become heroes in media. Media seems to neglect that fact that the highest salary getter always have very strong experience. Most of the full-timers join to earn money, and it becomes more relevant when the percentage of joiners are freshers having no work experience or relatively negligible work experience. So learning is generally missing in such classes.

Two way leaning is for the students and teachers. Part-time students learn new concepts which can be validated in real context immediately in their respective firms. And teachers get valuable knowledge about the validity of their theories from part-time students' experiences. That's like a win-win situation for any B-school and for the students. And this is the reason why most of the reputed institutes are going for part-time / executive courses. Not to mention that the institute gets good industry interface and part-time students becomes brand ambassadors for these institutes.

No wonder, why such courses are very popular in developed countries.

Now that the objective is clear, we need to know in what way part-time courses are different from other courses. Part-time courses have same level of teaching as in full-time courses but stretched over three years. Yes, your read it right. The contents of part-time and full-time courses are entirely same. However, the disadvantage with full-time courses is that the stress is on grades and not learning as it pays them finally. Executive courses are more focused on a particular functional area.

Correspondence courses do not provide face-to-face teaching, which is very very essential for any course. Until and unless one faces regular exams, clarify doubts from teachers, the sense of ownership can not come. That's the reason why online courses could never become popular anywhere in the world.

As there is growing need for MBA professional, working executives and organisations are realising the importance of part-time MBA. There would be more and more MBA professionals in India, and this would become a necessary requirement to reach to the top level of management. So it is essential to understand the real value of such courses in terms of both learning and monetary perspective. Both are important.

Leaning perspective has already been discussed. Talking about monetary benefits, the comparison is done for monetary gains and loss compared to full-time. A normal two-years experience (minimum requirement for any part-time course in India) executive would be earning around 3 LPA. Some guys earn even more and some guys less. Taking this figure as base for two years, the total amount is 6 LPA (discounting the increase in salary over years and also increase in money by time value of money concept). This was opportunity cost for leaving job and going for full-time course. Also, the actual cost of doing MBA is generally around 3-4 Lakhs (could cost more including the interest to be paid on loan, cost of staying in hostel, food, etc.). Overall, the cost comes around 10 Lakhs. And yes, don't forget the loss in experience for the 2 years!

So all the working executives who go for full-time courses have to answer this question. Is it really worth paying such huge amount? I hope this would bring some clarity towards such courses.

This article is not to demean any other management courses but to give the part-time course its due importance, which it truly deserves. And also clarifying what is the objective of such courses and how is it comparable vis-à-vis other management courses. I hope that students would be in better position to decide what and which management course will suit their requirement.

[Source]

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ICICI Lombard, Star Health & New India Assurance bid for insurance scheme for poor

Three general insurance companies - ICICI Lombard Health Insurance, Star Health Insurance and New India Assurance Health Insurance - have bid for a lucrative Maharashtra government health insurance scheme for poor, a scheme the general insurance council (GIC) said companies should 'desist' from because of a 'refund' clause.

The GIC is a statutory body under the Indian Insurance Act 1938 and represents all non-life insurers in the country.

There are 22 general insurance companies in India. Most of them abided by the GIC directive but others went ahead and submitted bids for the Rajiv Gandhi Jeevandayi Arogya Yojana (RGJAY) scheme of the Maharashtra government.

RGJAY's CEO, K Venkatesham confirmed to ET that ICICI Lombard, Star Health Insurance, and public sector New India Assurance, are the three final contenders.

ICICI Lombard's bid, ET learns, is the lowest.

Depending on the bid, the successful bidder will get a premium of about Rs 2,000 crore. In response to an ET query ICICI Lombard spokesperson clarified that the company received the GIC directive after it had submitted the bid.

"The communication from GI Council was received consequent to submission of our tender application for RSJY," ICICI Lombard spokesperson said.

The company also said that the directive was recommendatory.

"We would like to clarify that the said communication from GI Council was recommendatory," the spokesperson said.

"We request all the non-life insurance companies to desist from agreeing to the 'refund' clause 14 of Part 1, section A of the scheme," said SL Mohan, secretary general GIC in a letter to all non-life insurers.

The GIC had further referred to an IRDA circular which advise insurance firms not to agree to profit sharing while bidding for a tender.

Under the RGJAY scheme, the insurers would have to refund 90% of the left over surplus to the government after claims at the end of the policy period.

Other non-life insurers are not happy with some of the companies going ahead despite the GIC directive and have decided to take up the issue with the insurance regulator Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) and state government of Maharashtra.

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Salman-Sanju Baba to host season 5 of ''Bigg Boss'' together

Mumbai, Jul 20 (PTI) For the first time, popular reality show 'Bigg Boss' has roped in two Bollywood actors to host the show. 'Dabangg' star Salman Khan and actor Sanjay Dutt will come together to host the fifth season of 'Bigg Boss'. The show is expected to go on air in October. "Over the last three years, Colors has taken 'Bigg Boss' to newer heights of entertainment and popularity. Now, with both Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt as hosts, we are sure that the appeal of 'Bigg Boss- season 5' will touch unprecedented heights," Head of Programming, Colors, Ashvini Yardi said. Salman, who had hosted the fourth season of the reality show, is the only celebrity, who will be hosting this show for the second time. 'Bigg Boss' is a reality show where celebrity contestants stay in a house for about three months, cut off from the outside world. They are overseen by a 'mysterious person' known as 'Bigg Boss'. The first season that kick-started in the year 2006, saw actor Arshad Warsi hosting the show, followed by actress Shilpa Shetty. While, Megastar Amitabh Bachchan hosted the third season, the fourth one was hosted by Salman.

[Source]

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Safe Banking - Know About More Fraudulent Methods

With growing usage of the Internet for banking transactions, fraudsters are constantly coming up with ways and means to steal money online from unsuspecting victims like you. The most common type of online account theft, is called 'Phishing'. Please visit our Safe Banking section to know about more fraudulent methods of extracting your confidential details.

While we make every effort to protect your account, it is very important that you do not share your confidential banking information with anyone and take precautions to safeguard yourself against online frauds.

It is really easy to transact online in a safe manner if you take some simple precautions.

• Do not reply to any email, asking for confidential information like your Internet Banking user id or password, even if the sender claims to be your bank. Your bank will never send e-mails asking for your confidential details.

• Do not access your bank account through links in e-mails. Type the web address in the browser.

• If you have made a financial transaction from a cybercafe or a shared computer, change your password at the earliest.

• Log off and close your browser after using Internet Banking.

Visit ICICI Safe Banking section at: http://www.icicibank.com/phishing to know about more fraudulent methods of extracting your confidential details.

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Bankers Want a Halt To Interest Rate Hikes

Amid a steep slowdown in credit off-take and an unexpected spike in deposits, bankers on Monday urged Reserve Bank of India to hold the policy rates at the current levels, and sought a clearer picture on the future interest rates and inflation scenarios at the policy review next week.

"Credit growth has been too lax for some time now. So we want the monetary authority to send out to a signal that there is a pause on rate tightening. Such a stance can send out the right signal to bankers as well as the industry.

We have also urged RBI to come out with a clear statement on the future interest rate and inflation scenarios in the July 26 policy document, so that the banks and the industry can plan better," chief executive officer of Indian Banks Association, K Ramakrishnan, told reporters.

He was talking to the media after the customary pre-policy meeting with RBI brass at Mint Road office in Mumbai.

Prominent bankers, led by State Bank chairman Pratip Chaudhuri, HDFC Bank's Aditya Puri, Bank of Baroda's M D Mallya and Bank of India's Alok Misra met deputy governor Subir Gokarn and aired views on the interest rates, credit and deposit growth, overall economic growth, stressed assets and other macroeconomic data ahead of the first quarter policy review on July 26.

In its attempt to tame inflation, the central bank has spiked its key rates a record 10 times, whereby it has ratcheted up the short-term lending (repo) and reverse repo or borrowing rates by a massive 275 basis points since March '10.

Analysts are expecting another 25 bps spike on July 26 as inflation remains still highly sticky.

Since the June provisional inflation number has sniffed at a double-digit mark at 9.44 percent on the back of the recent hike in fuel prices, analysts and the industry are expecting further fillip to price rise, and another bout of tightening next week by RBI.

Bank of Baroda chairman and managing director M D Mallya, who is also chairman of IBA, warned of a steeper slowdown in credit growth; and said as no new projects are being planned by the industry, it is unlikely that banks will see an uptick in advances in the current quarter as well.

However, he said, the industry would wait a while longer to decide whether to scale growth target further down.

On the sectors which have seen the most muted level of credit growth, he said it was mostly the infrastructure space.

Ironically, this was one of the most vibrant sectors last year, he pointed out. Telecom alone took out nearly Rs 70,000 crore (Rs 700 billion) from the system last year to pay for the spectrum licences, he said.

The head of the third largest state-run lender also warned that bankers could see more deterioration in the asset quality of SME advances going forward, if the overall industry scene remained cloudy as it is today.

On the liability front, the bankers in general have been witnessing reasonable growth in deposits, especially savings accounts.

Bank of India chairman and managing director Alok Misra said it was a bit early to revise downward the industry's growth target, even as the early signals were not encouraging.

[Source]

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Employee Mediclaim Benefits Set To Shrink

If you're banking solely on the health cover provided by your employer to take care of your and your family's insurance needs, it's time to change the strategy. You will have to beef up your insurance portfolio with an individual policy as group policies offered by employers are slowly undergoing a transformation.

Restrictions, such as those on room rent and sub-limits on claims, which were a part of individual mediclaim policies so far, are slowly being incorporated in group insurance covers too.

Compare Indian Providers Rates Of Family Health Insurance [Source]

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LIC Housing Finance plans to launch Rs 500-cr fund in Sept

LIC Housing Finance Ltd plans to launch a Rs 500-crore venture capital (VC) fund for urban infrastructure development by September, according to its director and chief executive officer, V K Sharma.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the company’s property exhibition here today, he said LIC Housing Finance had already started the process for launching the fund. The company is also planning to launch a pure fixed rate housing loan product.

LIC Housing Finance would raise interest rates if the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) increases its key policy rates. “The increase in interest rates is squeezing our margin. We did not increase the rates when the central bank revised these last time. We are waiting for the RBI guidance and if the rates are increased again, we also have to go for a rate hike,” said Sharma. It had increased its interest rates by 25 basis points twice in the recent past, in March and June, following the interest rate hikes by RBI.

Sharma said there would not be more than two upward revision in interest rates in future. However, he expressed hopes that the rates would come down after that.

The current interest rate of LIC Housing Finance is around 10.15 per cent for loans up to Rs 20 lakh and around 10.75 per cent for loans above that, on floating rate basis.

The company is expecting a net interest margin of 2.7-2.8 per cent this financial year. It has a nine per cent market share in the country’s housing finance business and is expecting a 25 per cent overall growth this financial year. It is also looking at a loan disbursement of Rs 5,500 crore in southern states, compared to Rs 4,125 crore in the previous financial year, according to Sharma.

Apply LIC Home Loan

[Source]

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Muthoot Finance To Offer Loans Against Gold ETF Units

Muthoot Finance Ltd, which claims to be the largest gold finance NBFC in India, on Friday said it will now offer loans against Gold ETF (Exchange Traded Funds) units as security.

Launching the service, Muthoot Finance Ltd Managing Director George Alexander Muthoot told reporters here that the loans against gold ETF units was a scheme through which Muthoot Finance plans to venture into a totally new segment of gold financing, which would not only add value, but also enable the company to service the financial requirements of newer customer segments.

The new scheme would come into force by this month end and would enable the customers to avail finance at the rate of 15 per cent interest against their Gold ETF units to the extent of 85 per cent of the Net Asset Value of ETFs.

Muthoot has tied up with Benchmark, for offering the service, which would be available at 30 branches of Muthoot all over the country in the first phase and would be later extended to all 3,000 of its branches.

He said the company expects to extend up to Rs 1,000 crore worth of loans this fiscal.

Gold ETFs have seen a progressive rise in popularity throughout the country over the past two to three years, attaining a whopping size of over Rs 5,000 crore as of June this year, resulting out of active investments from over 320,000 investors, according to National Stock Exchange Assistant Vice-President and Southern Region Head Sunita Anand.

Benchmark Asset Management Company Pvt Ltd National Head-Sales Anil Desai said the golf ETF loan scheme by Muthoot Finance Ltd would act as a source for investors in gold ETFs to raise funds against their investment units during times of need, instead of selling those units.

Commonly referred as ‘paper gold’, gold ETFs are mutual fund units issued by asset management companies against 99.5 per cent purity physical gold deposited with a SEBI-registered custodian.

Gold ETFs are listed and traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold like stocks on a real time basis.

These funds are passively managed and mirror domestic gold prices. By enabling investors to invest in gold without holding it in physical form, gold ETFs offer a rather unique investment opportunity to investors.

[Source]

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TCS Beats, CLSA Says It Will 'Underperform'

Tata Consultancy Services shares surged over 3% Friday after the largest software services exporter of the country reported better-than-expected earnings for the first quarter.

TCS’ net profit of Rs 2,380 crore in April-June was flat sequentially, but higher than Rs 2,240 crore analysts according to a CNBC TV18 poll had expected. First quarter revenue was at Rs 10,797 crore, compared with analysts’ expectation of Rs 10,674 crore.

Rival Infosys had earlier this week dissapointed the market with earnings slightly below analysts expectations and full year guidance little changed from what it had forecast earlier.

"TCS’ 26.2% EBIT margin for the quarter came ahead of the erstwhile margin leader Infosys. However, it was the strong topline growth that took centre stage...The key surprise was the strong growth in telecom vertical (up 14.3% quarter-on-quarter)," brokerage CLSA said in a report. Rival Infosys had seen a decline in the telecom sector during the same period, it noted.

However, the brokerage maintained its "underperform" rating on TCS, saying an unfavourable macro-environment could limit its ability to meet/beat elevated street expectations in the second half of the current fiscal.

"Valuations at 21x March 2012 earnings are indicative of the street’s optimism on continuation of the current growth trajectory and this remains the key challenge for the stock ahead," CLSA analysts Nimish Joshi and Arati Mishra said.

A few other brokerages in contrast sounded more bullish on TCS.

JP Morgan and Edelweiss maintained their "overweight" and "buy" respectively, and Sharekhan upgraded the stock to "buy" from "hold."

"TCS is demonstrating that is continually raising the bar in the sector and extending its lead in indefatigable fashion," JP Morgan’s Viju George and Amit Sharma said in a report.

"TCS reiterates strong demand (even for discretionary projects) and sees a robust pipeline even in Europe. This is in contrast to the commentary of Infosys that it is witnessing some slowness in decision-making on discretionary spending – which supports our contention that growth issues at Infosys are largely company-specific," the two analysts said.

Analysts at Sharekhan said that TCS had "positively surprised" with a "smart performance" in the first quarter and the buoyant management commentary provided further comfort to its estimates for fiscal 2012 and 2013.

Sharekhan is expecting TCS’s net profit at Rs 10,412 crore on revenue of Rs 46,937 crore for the current fiscal, and a net profit of Rs 12,214 crore on revenue of Rs 55,447 crore for fiscal 2013. EBIT margin is likely to be around 27.4%, it said.

"TCS has multiple margin levers at its disposal, which we believe, will sustain its margins, shielding it from continued pressures on account of wage increases across the industry. End-to-end full services offerings, traction in emerging markets, ability to roll up large acquisitions, improving sales and marketing prowess and willingness to take multiple big bets (different go-to-market models) are among the key rationales for TCS to sustain its long term hi-growth trajectory," said Ganesh Duvvuri and Kunal Sangoi of Edelweiss Securities.

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Google Changing Way Brain Remembers Information

Internet search engines like Google are changing the way our brains remember information, according to a new study that says readily available information online makes people easily forget facts since computers become their external memory ".

Researchers from Harvard University and Columbia University said Google and databases such as Amazon.com, IMDb.com serve as an external "memory, where information is stored collectively outside ourselves".

People are more likely to remember things they think they will not be able to find online and will have a harder time recalling information which they know they can easily access online, the study added.

"Since the advent of search engines, we are re-organising the way we remember things," Columbia University psychologist Betsy Sparrow said.

Our brains rely on the Internet for memory in much the same way they rely on the memory of a friend, family member or co-worker.

The research also found that people remembered where they stored their information or where to look for information on the internet better than they remembered the information itself.

In the paper titled "Google Effects on Memory: Consequences of Having Information at Our Fingertips," researchers conducted four experiments.

They gave students 40 statements, asking them to type the information on a computer.

Those who were told the information would be saved had a much harder time remembering the statements later than those who were told it would be erased.

Similarly, Columbia students were asked a series of questions and allowed to take notes.

The students who were told the information would be saved in one of six computer folders had a harder time remembering the information later than those who were told it would be erased.

About 60 Harvard students were asked to type trivia, such as "An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain," into computers, and were told either the information would be saved or erased.

People who believed the data would be saved were less likely to remember, according to the study published online by the journal Science.

In the last experiment, Columbia undergraduates were told the same information would be saved in files with names such as 'facts', 'data' and 'names'.

The students remembered the file names better than the information itself, the study said.

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Google Registers Huge Q2 Profits

Google Inc has reported a 36 per cent growth in net income to $2.51 billion for the April-June period of 2011 driven by robust performance of core search business coupled with growing strength in other areas such as social network.

In the year-ago period, the company had a net income of $1.84 billion, the Internet search firm said in a statement.

The company posted revenues of $9.03 billion for the second quarter ended June 30, 2011, an increase of 32 per cent compared to the same period of 2010.

"We had a great quarter, with revenue up 32 per cent year on year for a record breaking over $9 billion of revenue," Google CEO Larry Page said.

Google, which recently launched a social network site called Google plus is believed to have more than 10 million people plugged into it. The company is "super excited about the amazing response to Google+ which lets you (user)share just like in real life".

The robust quarterly numbers indicate that company is not only growing in its core search business but also powering ahead in other areas such as new businesses like Google+ and Android.

In addition, the company is also expanding in areas such as mobile and display advertising.

Google-owned sites generated revenues of $6.23 billion in the second quarter of 2011, or 69 per cent of total revenues. This represents a 39 per cent jump over the year-ago quarter 2010 revenues of $4.50 billion.

Besides, the company's partner sites generated revenues, through AdSense programmes, of $2.48 billion, in the second quarter of 2011, up 20 per cent from the year-ago period'.

Internet search giant said its paid clicks, a measure of how frequently consumers click on its ads, grew 18 per cent in the second quarter compared with the same period a year earlier. The average price that marketers paid Google per click rose 12 per cent from a year earlier.

During the quarter, the company has hired over 2,400 new personnel to touch 28,768 employees as of June 30, 2011.
[Source]

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Mumbai Blasts: Indian Cities On High Alert

Mumbai (Bombay) and other Indian cities have woken up to a state of high alert after three blasts shook the commercial capital, killing 21 and hurting dozens.

Indian PM Manmohan Singh appealed to the people of Mumbai "to remain calm and show a united face".

Later the United Nations strongly condemned Wednesday's attack, describing it as "heinous".

No group has said they carried out the atttack, which took place in three districts during evening rush hour.

Earlier, Maharashtra state's Chief Minister, Prithviraj Chavan said he believed the blasts were "a co-ordinated attack by terrorists", as the explosions had occurred within minutes of one another.

The attacks are the deadliest in Mumbai since November 2008 when 10 gunmen launched a three-day co-ordinated raid in which 166 people were killed.

'Home-made bombs'

One explosion was reported in the Zaveri Bazaar, another in the Opera House business district and a third in Dadar district in the city centre.

All three bombs were reported within a 15-minute period, starting at around 1850 local time (1320 GMT).

Police sources were reported as saying the explosions were caused by home-made bombs.

Mumbai was put on a state of high alert and a commando team is standing by.

The capital, Delhi, Calcutta and several other cities have also been put on alert, with police being stepped up at public places like malls, cinemas, parks and transport terminals.

Peter Wittig, the current president of the UN Security Council, said members of the UN body condemned the attack "in the strongest terms".

"They expressed their deep sympathy and sincere condolences to the victims of these heinous crimes and acts and to their families and to the people and government of India," he said.

"The Security Council is determined to combat all forms of terrorism," he added.

Forensics teams have arrived from Delhi and Hyderabad to examine the explosion sites.

The biggest explosion occurred at the Opera House in an area known as a hub for diamond traders.

One witness said he had tried to help by getting the wounded onto motorbikes to take them to hospital.

"We came outside, and the area was filled with black smoke. There were bodies lying all over the street, there was lots of blood... We saw many bodies missing arms and missing legs," Aagam Doshi told Reuters news agency.

Most of Mumbai, however, began to return to normal life as dawn broke on Thursday, with vendors making their usual rounds and schools kept open despite the attack.

Mumbai has been targeted many times in recent years.

The 2008 attacks, which targeted two high-end hotels, a busy train station, a Jewish centre and other sites frequented by foreigners, were blamed on the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group.

Pakistan was quick to condemn the latest explosions, in a statement issued by the foreign ministry.

Peace talks between Pakistan and India have only recently resumed since they were broken off after the 2008 attacks.

[Source]

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Safe Banking Information From ICICI Bank On Phishing And Online Frauds

Phishing e-mails

• Fraudsters send out e-mails asking for your confidential banking information like user ID, password, PIN, CVV, debit card grid-values etc.
• With this information the fraudster takes money out of your account or shops online.
• The e-mails appear to look like they have been sent from public authorities like The Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Do not respond to such e-mails, RBI or ICICI Bank will never ask for your confidential banking details.

RBI has issued a clarification that it has never sent any e-mails and also appeals to the members of the public not to respond to such e-mails and not to share their bank account details with anyone for any purpose.

Online frauds

• Fraudsters send attractive offers to consumers through letters, e-mails, calls, SMS's etc luring them to invest in schemes or opportunities that sound too good to be true.
• The offers are apparently signed by senior authorities of RBI.
• They often ask consumers to remit money in an unknown account.

Be alert, they are fake offers. RBI and ICICI Bank cautions you not to respond in any manner to such offers of moneys from abroad.

RBI does not undertake any type of money arrangement, by whatever name called, and it does not take any responsibility for recovering moneys remitted in response to such fake communications.

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WHAT SHOULD YOU DO WHEN YOUR CAR METS AN ACCIDENT ??

Accidents can happen at any time, any place so it is always best to be prepared. Motor vehicle accidents in particular, have a high frequency rate so having insurance would not just be an advantage but a requirement

Being in an accident without any proof of insurance is worse, aside from paying a fine, you will lose your driver’s license. Also, if you’re the cause the accident and you do not have liability insurance, you may have to pay for the third party property damage and the injured person, yourself and these costs may be substantial.

While car insurance can certainly give drivers peace of mind and security, it can be quite complicated once you actually get into a car accident. There are certain do’s and don’t’s in any insurance transaction, so in order to fully maximize your insurance, here are essential must do’s and for car insurance claims:

When a Crash Occurs

Stop your vehicle in a safe place. In most areas it is illegal to leave the scene of an accident. Determine if anyone in your vehicle or other involved vehicles is hurt. Summon an ambulance, if needed. After the accident, if you’re able, make sure you take pictures of the scene, get the contact information of the people involved and take note of the details of the accident such as the weather condition or other factors such as traffic lights, etc. See a doctor after an accident, he will be able to treat your wounds and diagnose further necessary treatment and medical attention.

Report the Accident

Laws in some areas require that all accidents be reported. Contact your insurance company as soon as possible when you get involved in a car accident. Many insurance companies also require that crashes be reported to police if there is any involvement of third party damage, or they may deny payment of claims.

THE CONTACT CENTER FOR INSURANCE COMPANY WILL HELP YOU TO LOCATE NEAREST SERVICE GARAGE FOR VEHICLE REPAIR AND PROCESS OF CLAIM.

Be honest with your insurance company. Concealment of material facts, no matter how insignificant or potentially embarrassing you think it is, can invalidate your policy so always make sure you give your insurance company truthful information.

Be Cooperative
When police officers arrive on the scene, be cooperative, and provide any requested information. Get the names of the officers on the scene, and ask them to provide you with any information necessary for you to obtain an accident report. Also exchange contact information and insurance information with others involved in the crash. Get the names of witnesses and their contact information as well.

Know the difference between replacement coverage and depreciated or actual cash value.
Don’t settle a personal property loss for actual cash value when your policy provides for replacement.

If you ever find yourself in a situation where you don’t feel you’re getting fair compensation from an insurance company, either with regards to medical expenses, auto damage or anything else to which you think you’re entitled, talk to your agent or call center of insurance or Customer service manager ( claims ) or your attorney about your claim.

Do review and understand your coverage before talking to your insurer or your agent. Read the "Coverage" and "Exclusion" sections of you policy in particular.

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Track Your PF Account With A Click Of Mouse

An update of your Provident Fund (PF) account's balance is only a mouse click away. The Employees' Provident Fund Organization ( EPFO ) on Friday posted a link in its website , enabling members to get their PF account balance update as SMS alert on their cell phones.

Members only need to furnish their respective PF account numbers to avail this facility. EPFO had been conducting an internal trial of this software for the past two months.

"The idea is to make the system transparent. Now, an employee can regularly check, whether the amount, which is being deducted every month from h/his salary, is getting deposited with us. If s/he finds any discrepancy , the individual can take the matter up with the employer or us," said central provident fund commissioner S Chatterjee.

EPFO has also started online tracking of PF claims as part of the initiative to inculcate transparency . Account update details too are available online for each of the 120 EPFO offices in the country . The labour minister has set a target of December 2011 for all PF accounts to be updated.

The organization has also completed updating of the 4.72crore pending accounts for 2008-09 ahead of the September deadline . The finance ministry had set this timeframe while approving the 9.5% interest rate for 2010-11 year.
[Source]

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Health Insurance Portability May Miss July 1, 2011 Kick-off

You may have to wait a little longer to get a portable health insurance policy. Insurance companies are seeking more ‘clarity' and time to implement the portability of health insurance which is supposed to come into effect from July 1, 2011.

Representatives of general insurance companies are meeting Mr J. Hari Narayan, Chairman, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA), on Friday to bring to his notice some issues of immediate concern in switching over to the portable health insurance regime.

“The move is good but there are certain issues to be sorted out before July 1. We, along with other insurers, will be talking to the regulator,” Mr G. Srinivasan, Chairman and Managing Director, United India Insurance Company Ltd, told Business Line.

According to industry experts, the implementation of portability from July 1 would be difficult from a company's perspective.

“Greater clarity is needed on some vital issues. For instance, If we want to accept a health policy from a customer of others, obviously some information on previous medical/claim history is required,” Mr B. Subrahmanyam, Vice-President, Bharati AXA General Insurance Company, said.

There is also confusion on the applicability of portability to various types of health plans which are broadly divided into basic plans and plans with option of benefit component (in case of hospitalisation) and indemnity.

“It is also not understood how portability would be effected from a health plan offered by a life insurance company to a general insurer,” Mr Subrahmanyam said.

“If you see from a customer point of view, there could be hitches as well. The migration from one company to another cannot be a smooth affair if serious issues are not settled,” said the head of a leading general insurance company.

“Many companies, however, have done their groundwork on underwriting, documentation and other procedures to be followed in case IRDA insists on giving the portability without any postponement. But we are hopeful our request will be considered,” he added.

When contacted, a senior IRDA official said the regulator would take a decision keeping in view the interest of the policyholder as well as companies. “First, we have to talk to the companies,” he said.

In February 2011, the IRDA had directed insurers to ensue health policy portability and had also ensured the companies that it would make policy-wise claim history available for effecting quick portability.

[Source]

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ICICI Bank's Home Loans Will Be 25 Basis Points Higher

Interest rates on home and other loans from ICICI Bank have gone up by 25 basis points following a decision by the country's largest private lender to increase its benchmark rates.

As a result of this increase interest rates on ICICI Bank's home loans will be 25 basis points higher than its rivals HDFC and State Bank of India, which offer loans at 10.25%. The bank said the increase was in line with the hike in its cost of funds. The increase in Base Rate, which has taken place within a fortnight of Reserve Bank of India raising policy rates by 25 basis points, will be effective from July 4. A 25 basis points increase in lending rates would push up the equated monthly instalment on a 20-year, Rs 30 lakh home loan by over Rs 500. ICICI Bank is the first major lender to respond to RBI's policy measures. Some lenders are holding back a hike over fears that credit growth may falter.

Last week, ING Vysya Bank was the among the first to revise rates with a 25 basis point hike in its Base Rate. Following an increase in policy rates last week, HDFC said that it would wait to see to what extent the increase in rates pushes up cost of funds. In an interview to ET Now On Thursday, Krishna Kumar, managing director, State Bank of India said the bank would soon have a meeting of its asset liability committee and take a view on interest rates.

According to Kumar, Reserve Bank is likely to increase rates in its July policy review as well if inflation continues to remain high.

ICICI Bank's Base Rate will now be 9.5% as against 9.25% at present. The Base Rate is the benchmark for all loans availed after July 1, 2010. The prime lending rate (PLR) which is the benchmark for older rates and the Floating Reference Rate – the peg from retail loans have also been hiked by 25 basis points.

Last week in an interview to a news agency, NS Kannan, chief financial officer, ICICI Bank said that overall loan growth for the bank in 1011-12 would be around18%-20%, which is in line with the industry, but slower than predictions (made at the start of the fiscal) of a 23%-25% industry credit growth. Kannan also said that retail loan growth this fiscal was likely to lag at 15%-17%, with retail portfolio likely between 35%-39% of the total loan book.

[Source]

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Team Anna to meet Sonia Gandhi 2ed July 11

New Delhi, July 1 (IANS) Congress president Sonia Gandhi will Saturday meet Gandhian Anna Hazare and other representatives of civil society to discuss the Lokpal bill.

'The meeting between team Anna and Sonia Gandhi is confirmed for tomorrow (July 2),' Aswathi Muralidharan, a member of the NGO Parivartan which is canvassing support for the Lokpal bill, told IANS.

The meeting is scheduled for 4.30 p.m. It was earlier scheduled for June 30, but was cancelled.

Former top cop Kiran Bedi, who is part of the civil society team, Friday tweeted that it was better that they will be meeting Gandhi Saturday, now that they have met the opposition parties and know their point of view.

'Meeting of team Anna with SG (Sonia Gandhi) at 4.30 p.m. Better, now that we could read BJP's and other opposition parties' mind,' Bedi said.

Team Anna has been meeting political party leaders to build a consensus on the bill drafted by the civil society. The team met Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders Friday.

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