Govt must not add to banks' problems of stressed assets

Help with NPA clean-up

Business Standard

Justice for crimes against women remains elusive

Still no country for women

Lower inflation has worrying implications for fisc, India Inc

Debt blues

Sustained IIP uptick would need redoubled effort

Better numbers

A long way to go

Bullet train hopes

Stopping climate change will need political will

A non-binding agreement

India Inc must provide information on harassment panels

Decent disclosure

Telecom regulator should ensure that rules are not misused by one telco to monopolise airwaves in a coveted frequency

New spectrum caps may lead to 4G monopoly

Indian companies get left out of the procurement process because they cannot fulfil ambitious military specifications

Defence equipment parameters should be realistic

The Congress should make a coherent and sensible political case for this alleged "vendetta" on the floor of the House rather than disrupt its functioning

Why Congress should not disrupt Parliament over a court case

Unless irrigation expands, agriculture will not be drought-proof

Rural distress intensifies

Till a few years ago Brazil, the world's seventh-largest economy, was a star among emerging markets. Fuelled by a global commodities boom, the economy grew seven per cent-plus in 2010, and under the charismatic President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, social policies combined with market-friendly economics saw a sharp reduction in poverty. In 2008, Standard & Poor's (S&P) first awarded Brazil investment-grade status, a remarkable turnaround for an economy that suffered a debt crisis in the 1980s and hyperinflation in the 1990s that required a bail-out by the International Monetary Fund. Yet, last week S&P downgraded Brazil's credit rating to junk status; the economy is expected to shrink three per cent in 2015; inflation is in double digits; and the Budget deficit is nearing nine per cent of gross domestic product or GDP.Much of this is the result of waning demand from China, the principal buyer for Brazil's oil, ores and soya. But a large part of its problems is due to mishan

Brazil's big fall

Scenario planning to minimise disasters is a must

A job for NDMA

Regulator for private coaching doesn't address the real problem

A risky move

Fed rate hike may be priced in, but dangers remain

Misplaced confidence

The list of companies in which banks have decided to convert their debt into equity under the strategic debt restructuring scheme is getting longer by the day: Visa Steel, Jyoti Structures, IVRCL, Electrosteel Steels, Gammon India and Monnet Ispat & Energy. Under the rules, banks have 18 months to sell the companies they have thus acquired and recover their dues. This scheme was introduced in June by the Reserve Bank of India after the corporate debt restructuring programme didn't make much progress in helping banks bring down their bad assets. Under strategic debt restructuring, the asset classification remains what it was before the debt got converted into equity. This means that banks don't have to make higher provisions against their bad assets for a period of 18 months. This temporary respite perhaps explains why banks have shown such alacrity to convert debt into equity.While banks look enthusiastic about the new scheme, there are practical problems in its implementation. For

Banks as managers

At odds and evens

Hockey deserves more attention and resources

World class in Raipur

Govt's focus on 'smart cities' is fine, but basic amenities must be put into place first

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