Use Gas For Cooking, Not In Power Plants Says Panel; Govt Creates Elite Unit To Probe Financial Crimes; Sensex Up 55 Pts

Thursday, May 19, 2011 SPECIAL LEAD Click here for India Business Update Mobile Version USE GAS FOR COOKING, NOT IN POWER PLANTS: PANEL Calling for market-determined pricing of natural gas, a high-level government committee has recommended the use of gas as an industrial fuel and for cooking and transport purposes instead of burning it in power and fertiliser plants. In its draft report, the high-powered committee headed by former Finance Secretary Ashok Chawla on allocation of natural resources said that subsidised gas should not be provided as an input (feedstock) for power plants since most of the output (electricity) is sold at market price. read more LEAD STORIES SENSEX SNAPS 3-DAY FALL, UP 55 PTS Sensex closed at 18,141.40 points snapping a three-day losing streak after strong results from heavyweights. Nifty ended at 5428.10 up 7.50 points. read more GOVT CREATES ELITE UNIT TO PROBE FINANCIAL CRIMES The Finance Ministry has decided to set up a specialised wing to probe financial crimes like terror financing, money laundering and trail black money. read more RAJA RANKS 2ND IN TIME'S 'IGNOMINIOUS' LIST Former Telecom Minister A Raja who figures in the 'ignominious' list of Time Magazine is ahead of Muammar Gaddafi, Kim Jong-II and Italian PM. read more TOP STORIES • Food inflation drops to 18-mth low of 7.7% • Cairn extends Vedanta deal deadline again • Oil ministry orders Reliance gas for core users • Bharti Hexacom stake sale put on hold • Lokpal Bill drafting process slow: Shanti Bhushan • India Inc to face no fresh tax liability from IFRS • Air India's Rs 20,000-cr debt recast by June-end • L&T Q4 net up 17% at Rs 1,686 cr • Jet FY11 loss narrows to Rs 86 cr from Rs 420 cr • Scooters India divestment approved; stock jumps 5% • Crompton Greaves buys Sweden firm for Rs 370 cr • Hind National Glass buys German firm Agenda Glass • Galaxy Surfactants withdraws IPO on tepid response • Trinamool Congress' Mukul Roy is new Rlys Minister • Regional movies beat Bollywood at National Awards • Strauss resigns as IMF chief, Lagarde frontrunner • LinkedIn shares almost double in NYSE debut • Glencore IPO muted as eyes turn to LinkedIn debut • Citigroup's $16 mn retention award to CEO Pandit • Lady Gaga ousts Oprah on Forbes celebrity power list more stories TOP VIDEOS We May Become Uncompetitive If DEPB Is Withdrawn: Rajiv Bajaj, MD, Bajaj Auto E-Auctions Of Coal Should Continue And Has Approval Of Supreme Court: NC Jha, Chairman, Coal India Uncomfortably High Inflation Will Persist For Few More Months: Shankar Acharya, Honorary Professor & Member Board Of Governor, ICRIER AT A GLANCE BSE 18141.4 +55.2 NSE 5428.1 +7.5 TURNOVER Rs. 104,089 cr BSE CASH Rs. 2,396 cr NSE CASH Rs. 9,398 cr NSE F&O Rs. 92,294 cr BULLION GOLD 21867 -112 SILVER 53550 -194 CRUDE NYMEX 102.25 -0.08 BRENT 112.53 +0.23 FOREX $ / Re 44.94 -0.12 £ / Re 72.65 +0.02 € / Re 64.147 -0.04 EVENTS 20 May Mamata Banerjee To Be Sworn In As West Bengal Chief Minister The Hindu Board Meet To Decide The Succession Plan Petition Against Panel On Lokpal Bill To Be Heard 20-25 May Manmohan Singh To Attend India Africa Summit In Ethiopia 23 May 1st Session Of Newly Elected Tamil Nadu Assembly 24 May 2G Scam: Court To Decide On Shahid Balwa's Bail Application EXPERT VIEWS "I deny with the greatest possible firmness all of the allegations that have been made against me. I want to devote all my strength, all my time, and all my energy to proving my innocence." Dominique Strauss-Kahn Former IMF Chief "The deadline for drafting Jan Lok Pal Bill is June 30. The progress so far has been slow. I, as co-chairperson, am worried whether we will be able to meet our deadline." Shanti Bhushan Co-Chairman, Joint Draft Committee, Lokpal Bill "It is difficult to say if the government can deliver on a 4.6% fiscal deficit target. Unless there is adjustment on expenditure or tax, it is difficult to attain it." D Subbarao RBI Governor WATCH OUT Tech Toyz This week on the appraisal special of Tech Toyz we teach you how to speak 'bossish'. The language all bosses speak but no employee understands. We tell you what bosses mean when they say things like 'team player', 'economic downturn' and well, 'asset'! Also on the show we assess the performance of Acer's brand new tablet the iconea and the world's first dual core processor phone - the LG Optimus 2X! SHOW TIMINGS Fri 6:30 pm Sat 8:30 pm Sun 1 pm