Revenue from operations surged by 32% year-on-year to Rs 8,564 crore, compared to Rs 6,479 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.

State-owned Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) continues to demonstrate robust financial performance, with its consolidated net profit for the quarter ending March 31, 2024, surging by 30% to reach Rs 1,797 crore, compared to Rs 1,382 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. This significant growth in net profit is reflective of the company's efficient operational strategies and effective cost management measures.

Moreover, BEL witnessed a remarkable 32% increase in revenue from operations during the same quarter, soaring to Rs 8,564 crore from Rs 6,479 crore in the previous year. This substantial rise in revenue underscores BEL's strong market position and the increasing demand for its products and services.

The company's performance for the entire fiscal year 2023-24 also exhibited a commendable growth trajectory, with a turnover of Rs 19,819.93 crore, marking a notable increase of 14.35% compared to Rs 17,333.37 crore recorded in the previous fiscal year. This growth reflects BEL's consistent efforts to expand its market presence and capitalize on emerging opportunities in the defense and electronics sectors.

BEL's order book position as of April 1, 2024, stood at an impressive Rs 75,934 crore, indicating a robust pipeline of future projects and contracts. This substantial order book provides visibility and stability to the company's revenue stream, positioning it for sustained growth in the coming quarters.

In addition to its strong financial performance, BEL has also been making significant strides in securing strategic contracts and partnerships. In February, the company inked a notable Rs 2,269-crore deal with the defense ministry for the procurement of 11 Shakti warfare systems, along with associated equipment. These advanced electronic warfare systems, which will be installed on-board the frontline warships of the Indian Navy, underscore BEL's technological prowess and its pivotal role in bolstering the country's defense capabilities.

The Shakti warfare systems are designed to accurately intercept electronic emissions and implement countermeasures in highly challenging electromagnetic environments, enhancing the Navy's operational readiness and combat effectiveness. This contract further reinforces BEL's position as a trusted partner for the Indian defense forces and highlights its contributions to strengthening national security.

Overall, BEL's strong financial performance, coupled with its strategic contracts and technological advancements, underscores its resilience and potential for sustained growth in the dynamic defense and electronics sectors.

Nomura expects the entire telecom industry to take a material tariff hike of 15% following the conclusion of the Lok Sabha election.
Brokerage firm Nomura has upgraded Vodafone Idea to "neutral" from its earlier rating of "sell," marking the second upgrade for the telecom service provider this month.

The brokerage said that Vodafone Idea is set to meet "clear skies ahead" but a long journey remains to be traversed. However, the tempest or the storm, has largely passed, according to Nomura.

Earlier in May, brokerage firm BoFA Securities had also upgraded the stock to "Neutral."

Nomura has increased its price target on Vodafone Idea by over 100% to ?15 from ?6.5 earlier. The brokerage said that the outlook for the entire telecom industry has improved considerably.

All players are aligned on the need for an increase in the Average Revenue per User (ARPU) and the industry setting into a three-player private market.

Last week, brokerage firm Kotak Institutional Equities had also written in its note that the fund raising exercise from Vodafone Idea ensures continuation of a 3+1 telecom market in India, with three being the incumbent private players, along with the state-run BSNL.

Like many other analysts on the street, Nomura too believes that an impending tariff hike will be a key trigger for stocks like Vodafone Idea. It expects the entire telecom industry to take a material tariff hike of 15% following the conclusion of the Lok Sabha election.

Nomura also expects the government to offer some form of relief to Vodafone Idea when its upcoming payments are due in financial year 2025.

Vodafone Idea has to cough up ?29,000 crore in the second half of financial year 2026 and ?43,000 crore from financial year 2027 to financial year 2031. In case the government ends up converting the dues into equity their stake may go up to 81%, while promoter stake could fall to 9% from 36% currently.

Brokerages may not have issued "buy" recommendations on Vodafone Idea post its ?18,000 crore Follow-on Public Offer (FPO) but are shifting to a "wait-and-watch" mode. Seven out of the 18 analysts who have coverage on Vodafone Idea have a "neutral" rating on the stock, while IIFL has an "Add" rating. 10 other analysts still have a "sell" call on the stock.

Nuvama Alternative and Quantitative Research also expects Vodafone Idea to be a potential MSCI inclusion during its August review, which can result in potential inflows of $212 million.

Among those 10, JPMorgan remains "underweight" on the stock but raised its price target to ?7 from ?3 earlier. It said that fund raising is not sufficient for competitiveness. CLSA also maintained its "sell" rating on the stock with a price target of ?7, citing that AGR and debt relief is critical.

Shares of Vodafone Idea are still down 22% so far this year, but have risen nearly 90% in the last 12 months.

The Shipping Ministry is working to shift to an 80 percent landlord model by the end of this decade to increase efficiency and reduce logistics costs at major ports, a senior government said on Saturday
 

New Delhi: Shift to Landlord Model to Enhance Port Efficiency by 2030

The Shipping Ministry of India is striving to transition to an 80 percent landlord model at major ports by the end of this decade, aiming to boost efficiency and reduce logistics costs, a senior government official announced on Saturday. Under the landlord model, private entities manage operational aspects, while the port authority retains a regulatory and landlord role.

At the CII Annual Business Summit 2024, Ports, Shipping, and Waterways Secretary TK Ramachandran highlighted that Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNPT) has become India's first major port to fully adopt the landlord model, with all berths operated under the public-private partnership (PPP) framework. The PPP model is seen as an effective means to attract investment into the port sector.

India has 12 major ports with substantial capacity. "We aim to shift to an 80 percent landlord model by the end of this decade," Ramachandran stated. He emphasized that the Shipping Ministry's strategy to improve cost-efficiency and ease of doing business revolves around four pillars: developing port-based industrial clusters, investing in the maritime sector, ensuring successful PPPs, and promoting multi-modality.

A decade ago, India had only five national waterways, but now the number has expanded to 111. Significant legislative reforms have been undertaken, including updates to the Major Ports Act and the Inland Vessels Act, alongside amendments to model concession agreements (MCAs) to make them more attractive to the private sector, financial institutions, and investors.

These initiatives reflect India's commitment to modernizing its maritime infrastructure, fostering economic growth, and enhancing its position in global trade.

Equity benchmark indices closed the special trading session on a firm note on Saturday, extending their rally to the third day running amid fresh foreign fund inflows

New Delhi: Equity benchmark indices closed the special trading session on a firm note on Saturday, extending their rally to a third consecutive day amid fresh foreign fund inflows.

The 30-share BSE Sensex rose by 88.91 points, or 0.12%, to close at 74,005.94, after reaching a session high of 74,162.76. The NSE Nifty advanced 35.90 points, or 0.16%, to 22,502.

The NSE and BSE conducted the special trading session on May 18 to test their preparedness for major disruptions, involving an intra-day switch from the Primary Site (PR) to the Disaster Recovery (DR) site.

The market capitalization of BSE-listed companies hit an all-time high of Rs 4,12,36,791.05 crore during this session.

Among the Sensex gainers were Nestle, Power Grid, Tata Motors, Tata Consultancy Services, HCL Technologies, Hindustan Unilever, and State Bank of India. JSW Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti, and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the laggards.

Wall Street ended mostly higher on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average surpassing 40,000 for the first time, driven by optimism from a softer-than-expected April inflation report, which increased expectations of a September rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) became net buyers on Friday, purchasing equities worth Rs 1,616.79 crore.

VK Vijayakumar of Geojit Financial Services highlighted that the Dow's record close would provide global support for equity markets, while the shift of FIIs to buying alleviated market pressure.

On Friday, the BSE benchmark rose by 253.31 points, or 0.34%, to 73,917.03, and the NSE Nifty increased by 62.25 points, or 0.28%, to 22,466.10. The BSE smallcap index climbed 0.77% and the midcap index advanced 0.48%.

For the week, the BSE benchmark gained 1,341.47 points, or 1.84%, and the Nifty rose by 446.8 points, or 2%.

The special trading sessions aim to ensure business continuity in case of major disruptions at the primary trading sites.

GAIL has hired a LNG carrier from NYSE-listed Cool Company for a 14-year period to augment its transportation capability to meet India's rising gas needs
 

New Delhi: State-owned gas utility GAIL (India) Ltd has entered a long-term agreement with NYSE-listed Cool Company to enhance its LNG transportation capacity. GAIL has hired a newbuild liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier from CoolCo for a 14-year period starting in early 2025, with an option to extend the charter for an additional two years.

GAIL currently operates a fleet of four LNG carriers, and the new vessel from CoolCo will be the fifth. This strategic addition aims to support GAIL’s efforts in meeting India's increasing demand for natural gas. The carrier will transport super-chilled fuel from the US, leveraging GAIL’s existing contracts to purchase 2.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG from Sabine Pass Liquefaction LLC since February 2018, and another 2.3 MTPA from the Cove Point LNG liquefaction terminal.

GAIL’s global LNG portfolio stands at approximately 14 MTPA, utilizing its fleet to import gas to India. Last year, GAIL expanded its fleet by chartering two LNG carriers from the Japanese shipping company Mitsui OSK Lines. The first vessel, GAIL Bhuwan, was chartered in 2021, followed by GAIL Urja in December 2023.

S Bairagi, Executive Director of Marketing Shipping & International LNG at GAIL, expressed enthusiasm about the new LNG carrier from CoolCo, emphasizing its role in GAIL’s plans to address the growing natural gas demand in India.

Richard Tyrrell, CEO of CoolCo, praised the long-term charter agreement, highlighting the advanced technology and superior economic and environmental performance of the newbuild LNG carrier, which will ensure efficient and cost-effective transportation of LNG for GAIL.

CoolCo specializes in LNG shipping with a portfolio balancing short and long-term charters. It plans to grow further with two newbuilds scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2024. CoolCo’s strategy also includes exploring opportunities for vessel acquisitions and potential consolidation in the fragmented market segment.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled steep tariff increases on an array of Chinese imports including steel and aluminium.
India's steel industry, already reeling from cheaper imports, is worried about a surge in shipments from China after the United States imposed tariffs on Chinese steel, industry executives and analysts said.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled steep tariff increases on an array of Chinese imports including steel and aluminium.

"India is already under grave threat of import because all major steel consuming economies are shutting their doors on these steel producing countries," said Alok Sahay, secretary general at Indian Steel Association (ISA).

"We are highly vulnerable to surging and predatory import," Sahay said.
ISA counts the country's top steelmakers, such as JSW Steel Ltd and Tata Steel Ltd, among its members.
 

Spooked by cheaper Chinese steel coming into India over the past two years, Indian steel producers have often complained about unbridled imports from Beijing.

Weak steel demand at home has encouraged China, the world's biggest producer of the alloy, to offload its surplus stocks by offering competitive rates to Indian buyers, hurting Indian producers.

Steelmakers have lobbied India's government to intervene to curb supplies from Beijing.

The government has resisted calls for curbs on imports, citing strong local steel demand, stoked by a spurt in economic activity.

India's steel consumption rose 13.4% to 136 million metric tons during the fiscal year to March 2024.

India turned a net importer of finished steel during the 2023/24 fiscal year. In 2023/24, China was the top steel exporter to India and its shipments reached 2.7 million metric tons, nearly double from a year earlier, according to provisional government data.

"Safeguards are essential, but nothing can happen till the new government is in place," said a senior executive at a major steel firm. He didn't wish to be named in line with his company's policy.

India began voting on April 19 in a seven-phase election, with ballots set to be counted on June 4.

"If domestic prices and margins drop sharply due to an import surge, we expect the government to introduce tariff-related measures," said Akash Gupta, a director at Fitch Ratings.

New Delhi/Mumbai: JSW Steel expects to improve margins in the ongoing fiscal year, driven by cooling input costs, rising steel prices, and enhanced operational efficiencies, Jayant Acharya, joint managing director and chief executive, said.
 

"We had a strong financial year (FY24) in spite of Q4 challenges. We expect that FY25 will continue to be good as well," Acharya told Mint.

"This is because the cost will come down and the prices are now picking up after bottoming out. So, we expect prices to be stable, operating efficiencies to improve with some cost-saving projects, enhancing our margins and the absolute Ebitda," he said, adding that sales volumes will also pick up after the ongoing national elections.
 

The Sajjan Jindal-led steel company reported a 65% fall in profit during Q4FY24 due to high input costs and other expenses. The cost of raw materials consumed by the company rose to ?24,541 crore in January-March, against ?23,905 crore in the same period of FY23. The company’s consolidated Ebitda, or earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization, dropped 15% sequentially to ?6,124 crore. Its operating margin stood at 13.2% during the quarter.

Imports from China, though, remain a cause for concern, given their demand is poised to remain flat while global demand is expected to increase by 30 million tonnes (mt). About 35-40% of this increased demand is likely to come from India, Acharya said.

“India is growing at a faster rate than other economies and we have witnessed Chinese exports going up overall in the world this year also. We remain concerned about the imports coming into the country. Last year, these imports from China went up by 93% and stood at about 2.7 million tonnes," he added.

The company continues to closely monitor the imports coming into the country and has urged the authorities to keep a close watch as well, not just on China but also other Asean countries, with whom India has a free trade agreement (FTA).
 

The company plans to maintain its share of exports as a proportion of the total sales volume at 12-15%. “The European market has bottomed out, the US has some barriers in place, but the Middle East and other areas will continue to show dramatic growth in infrastructure manufacturing and so our focus remains optimistic as we continue to tap the available opportunities," he added.

Exports during FY24 accounted for 13% of the total sales volume of 24.8 mt.

JSW Steel has proposed ?20,000 crore of capital expenditure for FY25, as it aims to raise its manufacturing capacity to 50 mt by 2030, from more than 29 mt currently.

This comes at a time when the company’s net debt remains significant at ?73,916 crore, even after lowering by ?5,305 crore during Q4FY24. The company believes its debt level is not yet an irritant in its expansion plans as the ratios remain within limits.

“The net debt is going down continuously, and we will continue to expand as we have been (doing), as the ratios remain within the range. We will keep our financial allocation of capital, we don’t see a challenge, whether we will be able to reduce it (net debt) that is difficult, but our focus is on keeping the ratios healthy," Acharya added.

The Mumbai-based steel manufacturer will continue to evaluate various options for refinancing it's maturing debt, including foreign and domestic debt instruments, to optimize its borrowing costs and ensure financial stability, Acharya said.

The company also recently announced the acquisition of Minas de Revuboe Limitada (MDR), a premium hard-coking coal mine project in the Moatize Basin of Tete Province in Mozambique. The company acquired 92.19% of the asset for $80 million, with board approval on extending it to 100%. The development of the mine will begin after the full agreement is fully closed and approved.

The GDP numbers for the fourth quarter (January-March 2024) and the provisional estimates for the 2023-24 fiscal are scheduled to be released by the government on May 31.
India Ratings and Research expects the country's GDP growth rate for the March quarter at 6.7% and around 6.9-7% for the 2023-24 fiscal, its principal economist Sunil Kumar Sinha said. The GDP numbers for the fourth quarter (January-March 2024) and the provisional estimates for the 2023-24 fiscal are scheduled to be released by the government on May 31.
The Indian economy grew 8.2% in the June quarter, 8.1% in the September quarter and 8.4% in the December quarter of 2023-24. "We are expecting the fourth quarter growth to be 6.7% and the overall GDP growth for FY24 to be around 6.9-7%," Sinha told.

In a major security breach on the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament terror attack, two people jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber from the public gallery during Zero Hour on December 13, 2023, released yellow smoke from canisters and shouted slogans before being overpowered by MPs.

New Delhi: More than 3,300 CISF personnel will take over the complete counterterrorism and anti- sabotage security duties at the Parliament complex from Monday following the withdrawal of over 1,400 CRPF staff from the country's most important symbol of democracy, official sources said. The parliament duty group (PDG) of the CRPF wound up its entire administrative and operational paraphernalia - vehicles, weapons and commandos - from of the complex on Friday and its commander, a deputy inspector general (DIG)-rank officer, handed over all the security points in the complex to the incoming CISF group, the sources said. A total of 3,317 Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel are being inducted for securing both the old and new Parliament buildings and the associated structures in this complex located in central Delhi after the government directed it to take over the task from the CRPF following the December 13 security breach incident of last year, a senior officer told PTI In a major security breach on the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament terror attack. two people jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber from the public gallery during Zero Hour on December 13, 2023, released yellow smoke from canisters and shouted slogans before being overpowered by MPs.

Outside the Parliament premises around the same time that day, two other persons sprayed coloured smoke from canisters while shouting slogans. Following this incident, a committee under the chairmanship Of CRPF DG was setup to 100k into the overall security issues Of the Parliament complex and make suitable recommendations. The CISF counterterrorism security unit will take over the full charge of the Parliament complex from 6 am on Monday, May 20, the officer said, requesting anonymity. It has deployed its staff to guard all the flap entry gates Of the complex, posted canine squads, firefighting personnel along with fire tenders, manpower at CCTV monitoring control room and communication centre apart from the pass section, watch towers apart from specialists to undertake anti-sabotage checks and other operations at the Parliament complex, he said.

With this, the CRPF PDG, Delhi Police (about 150 personnel) and the parliament security staff (PSS) Who jointly secured the Parliament till now, stand withdrawn, a senior CISF officer said, He said the CISF personnel have been undertaking familiarisation exercise of the complex for the last 10 days and the men and women personnel of the force who will man reception areas have been given light blue full sleeved shirts and brown pants apart from safari suits as their new uniform. The first officer quoted above added that the PDG unit is expected to be merged with the six-battalion strong VIP security wing of the CRPF, while the PSS staff could be tasked afresh for rendering security and protocol duties at other central government installations. Some PSS staff could be retained for manning the lobbies Of the house for marshal duties, but a final decision is yet to be taken, he said. The CISF contingent, according to sources, has been deployed on a temporary manner called the 'internal security duty pattern' and it is expected that it will be granted a full-fledged sanction as new government assumes office after the ongoing general elections, sources said. The CISF personnel have been imparted refresher training in baggage screening, personal frisking, bomb detection and disposal, quick reaction terrorist counter, sniper task and public interaction and courtesy before being sent for the Parliament duty.

They have also trained recently with the black cat' commandos of the National Security Guard (NSG) Who were air-dropped from an IAF helicopter on the new Parliament complex to simulate a terrorist attack, the sources said. A CRPF officer said PDG troops who left the Parliament complex on May 17 clicked selfies and took photographs as a token of remembrance of 'efficiently' guarding the country's highest temple of democracy. "During the 2001 terrorist attack, CRPF personnel showed extreme bravery along with personnel from other agencies to defeat the dastardly assault with one personnel laying down her life in the line Of duty while some others receiving gallantry medals and in 2023, they were not responsible for the breach that took place." "The PDG personnel felt sad that they had to surrender this duty despite giving their best," the CRPF officer said.

State-owned Bank of Maharashtra recorded the highest growth rate last fiscal in terms of total business and deposit mobilisation among public sector lenders at a time when most banks are facing difficulty in achieving double-digit growth. The Pune- headquartered lender has registered a 15.94 per cent rise in the total business (domestic) in FY24, followed by the country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) with 13.12 per cent growth, according to published financial numbers of the public sector banks (PSBs).
However, SBI's total business (deposit and advances) was about 16.7 times higher at Rs 79,52,784 crore compared to Rs 4,74,411 crore of Bank of Maharashtra (BOM) in absolute terms.

Similarly, BOM continued to maintain its top spot in terms of growth in deposit mobilisation, with a 15.66 per cent rise in FY24. It was followed by SBI (11.07 per cent), Bank of India (11.05 per cent) and Canara Bank (10.98 per cent).
Out of 12 public sector banks, only these four lenders could log a double-digit growth in deposits in the financial year 2023-24.
In terms of low-cost CASA deposits, the Bank of Maharashtra continued to top the chart with 52.73 per cent growth, followed by the Central Bank of India with a 50.02 per cent rise at the end of March 2024.
A higher level of current account and savings accounts helps banks to keep their cost of funds low.
With regard to loan growth, the Kolkata-based UCO Bank was a tad higher at 16.38 per cent, followed by BOM at 16.30 per cent. SBI also reported 16.26 per cent growth in advances in FY24.

Loan growth of remaining public sector banks was lower than 16 per cent during the fiscal.
On the asset quality side, the Bank of Maharashtra and SBI reported the lowest gross non-performing assets with 1.88 per cent and 2.24 per cent, respectively, as of March 31, 2024. In terms of net NPAs, BOM and Indian Bank reported the lowest numbers, with 0.2 per cent and 0.43 per cent, respectively.
In terms of capital adequacy ratio, the Bank of Maharashtra was leading PSBs at 17.38 per cent, followed by Indian Overseas Bank at 17.28 per cent and Punjab & Sind Bank at 17.16 at the end of FY24.

Both the CITU and the INTTUC have said that they will start a major agitation on this issue soon.
Chandan Mal and Ramu Tudu, two labourers were killed and two others have been injured when a portion of a boundary wall collapsed on them during drainage system construction work at Durgapur Steel Plant (DSP) here today.

The incident has created a stir as there have been regular incidents of fatal incidents involving workers and employees of central public sector Durgapur Steel Plant.

The workers have blamed the factory inspector, labour minister and the district INTTUC along with the plant management and the steel ministry responsible for the present situation.
 

Both the CITU and the INTTUC have said that they will start a major agitation on this issue soon. Durgapur Steel Plant (DSP) is awaiting modernisation, as its machineries are getting aged and outdated.

Bulu Mal and Suresh, two other labourers have been admitted in hospital in critical condition.

The debris was being removed through cranes and excavators. The victims were trapped inside the debris. Manas Dutta, leader of a trade union said that all the victims have been recovered and no one else is trapped.

Kirti Azad, TMC candidate for the Burdwan Durgapur Lok Sabha seat has demanded compensation for the victim’s families and urged to increase safety measures for the labourers at Durgapur Steel Plant.

The Government is working on detailed guidelines for companies looking at investments under the electric-vehicle (EV) policy, an official said on Friday
 

New Delhi: The Government is working on detailed guidelines for companies looking at investments under the electric-vehicle (EV) policy, and a second round of consultation with stakeholders is expected soon, an official said on Friday.

The Ministry of Heavy Industries has already held the first round of consultation last month.

The guidelines will include information about applications, portal links and the project monitoring agency (PMA), the official added.

It will cover and clarify matters which were not covered in the policy.

The official also clarified that auto firms in India can apply under the policy to seek incentives by committing to the required investments.

"They can apply under the new policy for an import license for a certain number of EVs, and in order to qualify, they will have to commit to us the investments," the official said.

Companies already present in India need not register a new subsidiary to apply under the policy.

"Investment has to be a green field. The company doesn't have to be greenfield," the official clarified.

Even those companies, which started investing in the EV ecosystem before the announcement of the policy, will be eligible for incentives under the policy.

"What matters is when they start spending money. It is not that they would have invested much so far. Whatever they invest theoretically is legit," the official pointed out.

After the guidelines are in place, the Government will set up a portal to accept applications and monitor compliance with the policy.

On March 15, the government approved an electric-vehicle policy, under which duty concessions will be given to companies setting up manufacturing units in the country with a minimum investment of USD 500 million, a move aimed at attracting major global players like US-based Tesla.

As per the policy, a company will get three years to set up manufacturing facilities in India, and start commercial production of e-vehicles, and reach 50 percent domestic value addition (DVA) within five years at the maximum.

The companies that would set up manufacturing facilities for EV passenger cars will be allowed to import a limited number of cars at lower customs/import duty of 15 percent on vehicles costing USD 35,000 and above for five years from the date of issuance of the approval letter by the government.

Further, applications of auto companies from countries that are sharing a land border with India "will have to go through the much more onerous scrutiny".

Under foreign direct investment norms, applications from China, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar, and Afghanistan require mandatory government approval for investments in any sector within India.

At present, cars imported as completely built units (CBUs) attract customs duty ranging from 70 percent to 100 percent, depending on engine size and cost, insurance and freight (CIF) value less or above USD 40,000.

DFS Secretary Vivek Joshi on Friday said he cannot comment on the merger or privatisation of Public Sector Banks (PSBs) during the ongoing Lok Sabha polls.
 

New Delhi: Department of Financial Services Secretary Vivek Joshi on Friday said he cannot comment on the merger or privatisation of Public Sector Banks (PSBs) during the ongoing Lok Sabha polls.

Asked to clarify reports of the merger of PSBs, he said, "Elections are going on, it is not appropriate to comment on such issues."
 

The government in the past had done consolidated of PSBs in two tranches.

The mega consolidation, which took effect from April 1, 2020, saw 10 PSBs consolidate into four --? Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank of India merged with Punjab National Bank; Syndicate Bank merged with Canara Bank; Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank merged with Union Bank of India; and Allahabad Bank with Indian Bank.

Prior to this mega consolidation, Vijaya Bank and Dena Bank had merged with Bank of Baroda with effect from April 1, 2019.

Policy on the beneficiation of low grade iron ore is expected to be completed within three months' time, says Steel Secretary.
New Delhi: The government is working on a policy for low grade iron ore beneficiation, a move that will increase the usage of iron ore with less iron content in steel production.
 

Speaking to PTI, Steel Secretary Nagendra Nath Sinha said the Ministry of Steel along with the Ministry of Mines and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of India is working on the policy.

When asked about the timeline, he said the policy on the beneficiation of low grade iron ore is expected to be completed within three months' time.

"There may be some concessions on the royalty (on production of fines in the policy)," Sinha said without elaborating further.

While lump ore or high-grade iron ore contains 65.53 percent Fe (iron), fines are inferior grade ore and have 64 percent and less Fe content.

The use of iron ore with less iron content needs beneficiation which adds to the cost of steel production.

Earlier, Union Steel Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia had asked the domestic steel industry to adopt low-carbon emitting steel-making processes, while cautioning that key raw materials coking coal and iron ore may not be a viable option in the future based on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) parameters.

In a relief for Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP), shipment of essential raw material from Adani Gangavaram Port Ltd (AGPL) has resumed, said an official on Friday.

Shipment of raw materials such as coking coal, limestone and others, which are key for making steel, had been disrupted since April 12.
 

Atul Bhatt, chairman and managing director (CMD), VSP, which is also known as Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd (RINL), thanked all the stakeholders for resolving the impasse which crippled the industry for more than a month.

"Bhatt extended his heartfelt gratitude to all the stakeholders who played a crucial role in resolving the crisis of transportation of essential raw material from AGPL to RINL," a press release from the steel plant said.
 

He said their collective efforts have been instrumental in ensuring the continuity of RINL operations and sustaining economic growth in the region.

On May 8, nearly 1,000 RINL employees marched to the nearby Gangavaram port to plead with its agitating employees to allow the shipments.

Elated over the resumption, Bhatt noted the development helps in safeguarding the steel plant's assets and jobs.

He also thanked the Indian Railways, Visakhapatnam Port Authority (VPA) and other entities for their support.

Further, he highlighted that RINL is focused on ramping up production in a phased manner based on raw material availability and also minimising the losses suffered in the past one month due to the raw material crisis.