BSES bags Rs 665cr EPC contracts
The Mumbai-based utility BSES has bagged EPC contracts worth Rs 665 crore during 2000-'01, an increase of 40 per cent over the previous year's contracts worth Rs 350 crore. Top BSES sources told The Financial Express that with a large number of power projects expected to be implemented in the coming years, there will be enormous scope in the EPC contracts business.

Yashwant Sinha indisposed
Finance minister Yashwant Sinha is indisposed and will not be attending the Nagpur session of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Sinha did not attend office on Friday and went to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences for a check-up.

VSNL board approves 2:1 bonus
The VSNL board has approved a liberal bonus to shareholders by offering two shares for every share held. Consequently, the authorised share capital of the company would increase to Rs 300 crore from the current Rs 100 crore, VSNL said.

eFE Page II Uniform coding for sale tax
The process of evolving a uniform classification and coding of commodities for computing of sales tax under the value-added tax (VAT) system has already begun at the Centre for Taxation Studies (CTS). The project will coincide with the adoption of the VAT system throughout the country by April 2002.

Auto component exports fixed at $1 bn
Auto component industry has set an ambitious target to treble its exports to about one billion dollars. "We have set an ambitious exports target of achieving one billion dollars by 2005. Our focus is to explore new markets in the WTO era," newly-elected chief of Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India L Ganesh said. ITC Hotels to enter global marketITC Hotels is planning to enter the international hospitality market via the ownership and management of properties overseas even as it strengthens its position in India through a slew of new projects. "It is possible to build a global hotels business byowning and managing properties overseas," ITC Hotels chairman YC Deveshwar said.

Wyeth Lederle to launch four drugs
Wyeth Lederle plans to launch in the current year Zosyn, a hospital antibiotic for severe infections, and an oncology product, which increases the platelet count for patients under chemotherapy treatment. The company also plans to launch two more products this year in the female healthcare segment.

Sensex down 42 points at 4417
For a major part of the day, stocks from the software sector remained firm, but later came under strong selling pressure and lost substantially from the peak in the last one hour, and the Sensex ended 42 points down at 4417 points.

TRAI paper on licensing issues
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has released a consultation paper on licensing issues relating to Public Mobile Radio Trunking Service Providers to discuss various aspects including entry fee and revenue sharing. The paper touches upon issues like determining the entry fee, percentage of revenue to be shared with licensor and defining revenue for the purpose and basis of selection of additional operators, a TRAI release said.