The unit was bought by Kitchen Appliances India Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Videocon, in December 1998 but the transfer was delayed by over a year by Philips employees who moved the courts against the deal. The Supreme Court cleared the transfer in October last year.

The unit's general manager, Goutam Sengupta, said that the CTVs assembled here are the latest offering from Videocon International. This is one of the products that will be launched under the `New Technology Series.'

``This model, which will marketed under the Videocon brandname, has a super flat picture tube, a remote headphone effective within a300 metre radius and a Bazooka sound system,'' Sengupta told The Financial Express.

He said the Salt Lake factory is also assembling Akai and Sansui sets. The plant, bought for Rs 9 crore, can assemble 1,200 sets an hour. On Monday, it was to assemble 200 Akai sets. From Tuesday, it will churn out Sansui products.

Philips had discontinued production at the Salt Lake factory in June 1998 after it decided to get out of actual assembly work and to concentrate on printed circuit boards. Kitchen Appliances got the factory rolling again on January 4 this year. Sengupta said: ``We have set a capacity utilisation target of 50,000 televisions per month by July. On a daily basis the target is 1,200 sets by March and 1,800 sets by June.''

The Salt Lake factory, the ninth manufacturing unit of Videocon, will be catering first to the eastern markets and then to Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. At present, Videocon's factories in western India supply the market here.

Sengupta admitted that Videcon's logistic costswill come down, but ruled out price cuts for the eastern region. ``Yes, our freight costs will come down but it will be negated by our investments. Moreover, our prices are already competitive and I do not think there would be any further reduction in prices,'' he said. He said the local unit will also help reduce the sales tax burden of nearly 18 per cent on TVs brought from Maharashtra. However, Videocon will not lower the prices.

Kitchen Appliances, which doubled turnover from Rs 200 crore in 1997-98 to Rs 412 crore in 1998-99, may also import a facility to make printed circuit boards at the Salt Lake unit.

Sengupta said the company plans to invest around Rs 40 crore, including the Rs 9 crore paid to Philips and another Rs 2 crore for refurbishing activities.