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The search for an ultra- light,fuel-efficient super safe car, will now move from the drawing boards and research labs of international steel manufacturers, to the factory sheds of one of the top-notch auto makers.

Initiated by international steel and auto majors in September 1995, the Ultra Light Steel Auto Body Projects (ULSAB) has generated a whole host of research data on fuel efficiency, strength, weight and safety of ultra-light steel. With the research stage now over, the process to identify the auto manufacturer who will actually develop the auto body will begin. Tisco officials said. Tisco is the sole Indian full member of the ULSAB project which has the participation of 35 companies from 18 countries.

The ULSAB project was originally conceived by U.S. and German auto and steel makers, like Porsche (now owned by Volkswagen) and Ford.

GUFIC Bioscience Ltd, a bio science company has posted a net profit of Rs 60.53 lakh in the third quarter ended December 31, 2001 compared to Rs 11.81 lakh in the corresponding period of the previous year. In this third quarter, the company reported a turnover of Rs. 1037.47 lakh as compared to 651.49 lakh as compared to Rs 651.49 lakh in the corresponding period last year. The operating profit has increased by 239 per cent to Rs 70.53 lakh for the third quarter ended December 31, 2001 as against Rs 20.81 lakh for the corresponding period in the previous year.

Panacea Biotech’s total income has gone up by 24 per cent to Rs 119.98 crore for the quarter ended December 2001, up from Rs 96.89 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal. The PBT of the company increased by 16 percent to Rs 24.01 crore from Rs 20.63 crore reported in the corresponding quarter of the previous year, Net profit for the quarter ended December 2001, the total income went up by Rs. 212.25 crore from Rs 171.85 crore reported in the corresponding period for the previous year.

Mirc Electronics Ltd, manufacturers of the Onida brand of televisions, has achieved net sales Rs 248.41 crore in the third quarter under review compared with Rs 215.24 crore in the corresponding quarter ended December 31, 2000. The company’s net profit ha spurted by 23 per cent to Rs 15.94 crore. For the nine months ended December 31, 2001, Mirc has posted sales of Rs 560.7 crore compared with Rs 560.80 crore for the corresponding period previous year.. The net profit stands at Rs 26.04 crore.

PBT for networking major D-Link (India) Ltd has registered a total income for three month period stood at Rs 3813.65 lakh. The PBT for the three month period stood at at Rs. 241.63 lakh. After making provision for taxation, the net provision for taxation, the net profit for the three month stood at Rs 216.63 lakh, an increase of eight per cent over the corresponding period in the previous year.

Private sector bank Bank of Punjab, has registered a 42 per cent in the net profit of the third quarter of the current financial year over the corresponding year. The operating profit of half year has gone up to Rs 50.42 crore from Rs 39.22 crore previous year.

J.B. Chemicals and pharmaceuticals Ltd has achieved net sales of Rs 7,836.86 lakh for the third quarter ended December 31, 2001 as compared to Rs 6,496.82 lakh for the corresponding period last year, an increase of 20.63 per cent. PBT stood at Rs 1412.24 lakh reflecting an increase of 82.46 per cent. The PAT stood at Rs 1004.59 reflecting an increase of 75.02 per cent.

Nilkamal Plastics Ltd registered gross sales for the third quarter ended December 31, 2001 amounting to Rs 67.85 crore compared to Rs 68.10 crore, for the corresponding period previous year. The company’s net profit for the third quarter has increased by nearly 95 per cent to Rs 2.96 crore. For the nine months ended December 31, 2001 gross sales were at Rs 199.70 crore compared to Rs 206.27 crore, the company’s net profit was Rs 5.99 crore.

BPL Mobile has achieved a gross revenue in excess of Rs 725 crore and expects of Rs 725 crore and expects to touch Rs 1,000 crore by March 2002, with an operating profit of Rs 240 crore for this fiscal. This would represent a 37 per cent growth in operating profit respectively over the previous year.

For the nine months period from April 1, 2001 to December 31, 2001, the sales of the company stood at Rs 4,617 lakh as against Rs 3,934 lakh in the corresponding period last year. Indicating with a 17 per cent. The company earned an EBIDTA of Rs 403 lakh as against Rs 347 lakh reported in the corresponding period last fiscal, showing a 16 per cent increase. Profit earned is at Rs. 9.95 lakh for the quarter ended December 31, 2001.

Eonour Technologies Ltd has shown an all-round growth for the third quarter ended December2001The company’s total sales, during the third quarter period ended December 2001 have gone up by 38.4 per cent to Rs 16.93 crore from Rs 12.23 crore for the corresponding period in the last year. The gross profit, during this period has moved up by 26 per cent to Rs 562.46 lakh from Rs 444.11 lakh for the third quarter of the previous fiscal.

Czech car maker Skoda Auto, part of the Volkswagen Group of Germany, is launching a midsize car Fabia and a luxury car Laurin And Klement in the Indian market this year, company officials said.

Aurobindo Pharma has launched Cefpirome, a fourth generation broad spectrum injectable cephalosporin for the first time in India. The drug, IV-CEF, will be available in three parenteral dosage forms. Cefpirome offers enormous advantages in the spectrum of anti-bacterial treatment, especially in life threatening infections.

Detroit-based Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories, which receives research and development support from Mumbai-based Sun Pharmaceuticals, has started manufacturing and marketing its recently approved drug, Metformin Hydrochloride, which is a bio-equivalent of Bristol Myers Squibb’s Glucophage. The drug, which is used in the treatment of diabetes, has an estimated total drug market of $ 1.8 billion. Metformin Hydrochloride is a drug of choice for diabetes.

Casil Health Products Limited (CHPL) a group company of the Ahmedabad-based Cadila Pharmaceuticles, has executed a Rs 1.5 crore worth Sulfolane (tetramethylene sulfone) order from the Chinese Petroleum Corporation, Taiwan, CHPL is the only manufacturer of Sulfolane in Asia.

Eli Lilly and Company has launched a new drug ‘Xigris’ which reduces the risk of death from overwhelming septic infections. Sepsis has emerged as the prime killer disease in intensive care units.

Buoyed by the acquisition of Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited, the Tata group says it is now open to the idea of acquiring government equity in the other two telecom giants, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), when they are put up for divestment by the Centre.

Shareholders of Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) have approved a proposal to sell the company’s seeds business to its subsidiary Paras Extra Growth Seeds Ltd. An official statement from HLL said there were 129.86 crore voted in favour of the resolution and only 56.81 lakh votes were polled against it, HLL informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The 48,000 crore-rupee Tata Group is considering a merger of the National Radio and Electronics Company (Nelco) with Tata Power as part of an exercise to consolidate its communications business.

Colgate-Palmolive (India) Ltd has declared a 25 per cent (Rs 2.50 per share) interim dividend for fiscal 2001-2002. The dividend would involve a total pay-out of Rs 37.5 crore (inclusive of the dividend distribution tax), the company said in a release on Friday.

Global energy firm Royal Dutch/Shell and the state-run Gas Authority of India Ltd (Gail) have submitted bids to buy a minority stake in Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPL), which is laying a 2,500-km gas grid criss-crossing Gujarat, an official of the project said on Friday. GSPL said in December it would sell up to 49 per cent equity in the project to foreign and domestic companies.

Infosys Technologies (Infy) is foraying into newer regions with its flagship banking solution, Finacle. The regions, the company is keenly looking at includes Africa, Western Europe, Latin America, South East Asia and the Middle East. For the West African market, the company has already roped in Accenture as implemention partner.

Godrej has acquired a 26 per cent stake in personalitree Academy Ltd for Rs 1.2 crore. Personalitree is a fast growing, e-varsity providing online soft skills training. It offers Interactive training modules in soft skills like communication, lateral thinking, public speaking and creativity, all applied to the business sphere.

“Personalitree courses are superb to tone and texture and we especially liked the simplicity with which a user can impibe the learning. E-training will, we believe, take off substantially in India, Personalitree has already built up an impressive client list, and, on our part, we have decided to introduce the training courses within the Godrej, chairman, Godrej group, said.

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