All Things Great & Small
PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI UNVEILS DR SUBHASH CHANDRA’S AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Self-made billionaire Dr Subhash Chandra, who heads the Essel Group of Companies and ZEE, has published his memoir The Z Factor: My Journey as the Wrong Man at the Right Time, which was formally launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on January 20 this year. The book has been written by Dr Chandra, along with Pranjal Sharma, and published by Harper Collins. At the unveiling, Prime Minister Modi praised the media mogul’s continuous efforts to achieve excellence and his contribution to society and education. Dr Chandra started his entrepreneurial career at 20, when he came to Delhi with virtually nothing. He went on to establish a lucrative rice export business and has since diversified into media, theme parks, packaging, infrastructure development, and more.
VEDANTA LTD WINS COUNTRY’S FIRST GOLD MINE AUCTION
Vedanta Ltd (a unit of London-listed Vedanta Resources Plc) has won the auction of the Baghmara mine in Chhattisgarh, in what constitutes the country’s very first gold mine auction. Vedanta bagged the mining and exploration rights of the 6.08 sq km mine after quoting the highest bid of 12.55 per cent of the Indian Bureau of Mines price of R74,712 ($1,087) for a troy ounce. The other companies who took part in the auction were Krishna Global Mineral Limited, Rungta Mines Limited and Sainik Mining and Allied Services Limited. The Baghmara mine is estimated to have a potential for 2,700 kg of gold.
ARCELORMITTAL SUFFERS HUGE LOSS FOR 2015
ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steel maker, is reported to have suffered a huge loss of about eight billion dollars for 2015. This loss was chiefly on account of falling steel prices (supposedly because of the excess capacity in China) and a write down in its books the value of its mining operations. To stem the tide, the company’s mining business has reportedly reduced cash costs by 20 per cent and a further 10 per cent cut in costs is targeted for 2016.
BAJAJ AUTO INTRODUCES NEW 150 CC MOTORCYCLE
To make the most of the growing 150 cc motorcycle market, Bajaj Auto has launched its third model in the category within the year. The new model, Bajaj V15, follows the success of its predecessors, Bajaj Avenger 150 and Bajaj Pulsar AS150. This is the first bike from the Bajaj stable to be christened with a ‘V’, the ‘V’ prefix having been inspired by the decommissioned INS Vikrant (India’s first aircraft carrier), whose metal has been used by the auto major to manufacture some parts of the V15. However, the bikes using the metal from the vessel would be available only in an introductory limited edition model. Subsequent lots manufactured by the company would be of the regular version, whose price would be lower than the limited edition model.
RAJASTHAN GOVERNMENT SETS MINIMUM WAGES FOR DOMESTIC HELPS
Domestic helps in Rajasthan are a happier lot these days, thanks to the Vasundhara Raje government setting a minimum wage of R5,642 per month for domestic helps (for an entire day’s chores) and a limit on their working hours as well. According to a recent directive by the state’s labour department, the said minimum wage (effective from January 1, 2016) is for eight hours of work per day, and exclusive of any additional benefits such as food, clothing and accommodation that the employer might provide. As for employers who are already paying more than the said amount, they should continue to do so. In case of additional hours of work, the employer would have to pay double the minimum wage fixed per hour for each hour of extra work. Also, domestic helps hired for just washing dishes and laundry would have to be paid a minimum R705 per month, for a family of four, the amount going up by 10 per cent of the minimum for bigger families.
