Both the companies, Blakk Cosmetics and Evolutionman, sell nail polish for men and are trying to create a market for it. TBWA/Chiat Day Amul. The first electric locomotive of the RailwaysÂ under the Vadodara division having Amul branding was launched in the first week of March 2013. Tabasco sauce and the colour of the peppers is  Tabasco red. John Player after whom the famous cigarette brand Player's is named. Allen's curve named after Professor Thomas J Allen of MIT. Wolf Olins, a brand consultancy based in London, was responsible for them. Pepsi. It's changing the bottle design for its 16 and 20 ounce bottles for the first time since 1977. Mini. The Mini car from BMW. The logo of the management consulting firm Bain & Co. It represents a compass pointing to true north that reminds its employees to stick to its true principles always. It originated from a doodle drawn by its chairman-to-be Orid Gadiesh in 1992 just before he delivered a companywide speech.There were six correct en

Answers to last week's quiz (#299)

Business Standard

What is unique about these two US companies that sell men's line of beauty products - Blakk Cosmetics and Evolutionman?

The Strategist Quiz (#299)

Business rivalry prompted this person to hold shocking public demonstrations of electrocution of dogs, cows, horses and even an elephant in order to discredit AC power during the 1890s. Name the person and his arch rival.

The Strategist Quiz (#300)

A scheme that allows for an annual food subsidy of almost Rs 131,000 cr comes with its own set of problems for the government

Food subsidy is a plateful

The move has helped the retailers to cut costs and inventory

Retailers spruce up back-end operations

The family of SFI leader Sudipto Gupta today said that they did not expect justice from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and reiterated the demand for a CBI inquiry into his death after meeting Governor M K Narayanan."We want a CBI inquiry into Sudipto's death because a CBI inquiry can only bring out the truth," the SFI leader's sister Sumita told newsmen after meeting the Governor at the Raj Bhavan with her father Pronob Gupta and Leader of the Opposition Suryakanta Mishra.Sumita said the Governor heard them, but did not make any comment. Asked whether the family would appeal to the chief minister, Sumita said, "We don't expect anything from her."We had asked for justice and instead of giving justice she had termed my brother's death a petty matter. So we have no expectations from her. That is why we came to meet the governor," she said.

SFI leader's family demands CBI inquiry

Press Trust of India

State owned power trading firm Gridco is likely to miss its solar power purchase obligation for 2012-13.As per the direction of Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC), Gridco was to purchase 25.75 million units of solar power during the yeat. But it has procured only 12.45 million units (mu) till December, leaving a deficit of 13.29 mu which seems unlikely to be met. Gridco has purchased 6.54 mu from solar power projects set up in the state and the balance 5.9 mu as bundled power from NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Ltd, a fully owned subsidiary of the maharatna power firm.Minister for science & technology Ramesh Majhi said in a written reply in the state assembly that as per OERC norms, Gridco and other obligated entities were required to meet 5.5 percent of their total power requirement from renewable sources. This included 0.15 per cent solar power.In 2011-12, Gridco had a huge shortfall of 17.671 mu in terms of solar power purchase. In the same fiscal, all captive generating

Gridco may miss solar power purchase target for 2012-13

BS Reporter

In a bid to resolve the stalemate over the panchayat elections in West Bengal, the State Election Commission's counsel met the Advocate General this evening at the prodding of Justice Biswanath Somadder of the Calcutta High Court.SEC counsel Samaraditya Pal met Advocate General Bimal Chatterjee at his residence and discussed the issue for a little over one hour from 7.30 pm. They did not speak to the media on the matter.Justice Somadder, who is hearing a petition of the SEC against the government on the panchayat polls in the state, had yesterday stated that it appeared that both the government and the commission were anxious to hold the elections in time, but a mechanism should be put in place to ensure that it was free and fair.The judge had requested the SEC's counsel and the Advocate General to sit together over the weekend so that something could be worked out.While the state government wants to hold the elections with its own police force and if necessary, requisition them from n

SEC's counsel, Advocate General meet over panchayat polls

The Odisha state assembly today passed Xavier University Bill, 2013, thereby paving way for the Xavier Institute of Management Bhubaneswar (XIMB) to get the status of unitary university.The bill made it mandatory for the institute to fill up half of their seats with students from the state."The university will function within two years. While no other private university has provision of reservation for Odia students, a world class university like Xavier will have such facility," said Badri Narayan Patra, state minister for higher education.Xavier will be the sixth private university in the state, after KIIT, Siksha o Anusandhan (SoA), Centurion, ICFAI and Sri Sri University.The institute had been pursuing the matter at the government level for past three years and finally got the cabinet nod last month after issues such as land requirement and reservation for Odia students were sorted out.The institute had originally sought 100 acres for its proposed second campus and finally settled w

Xavier Versity bill passed in assembly

Twenty two, out of 41 public sector undertakings (PSUs) of Assam,incurred loss to the tune of Rs. 654.25 crore in the financial year of 2011-12, as per the latest accounts finalised by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India.Addressing a press conference, CH Kharshiing, accountant general (audit) said: "The losses are attributable to various deficiencies in the functioning of PSUs. A review of three year's audit reports of CAG shows that the state PSU's losses of Rs . 1,831.01 crore and infructuous investments of Rs . 3.21 crore were controllable with better management."The major contributors of profit were Assam Gas Company Limited, which registered a profit of 49.77 crore, followed by Assam State Minor Irrigation Development Corporation Limited, which registered a profit of 14.32 crore.Heavy losses were incurred by Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (Rs . 14.32 crore), Assam Electricity Grid Corporation Limited (Rs . 54.12 crore), Assam Power Generation Corporation L

22 Assam PSUs incurred Rs 654 cr loss in 2011-12

Major industries operating in Odisha have spent Rs 806.03 crore on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities since 2000

Industries spent Rs 806 cr on CSR

State owned power trading firm Gridco is likely to miss its solar power purchase obligation for 2012-13.

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) is planning to transform about 700 primary agriculture cooperative societies (PACS) into multiservice service centres (MSCs) in Andhra Pradesh in the current year.The multiservice centre concept involves PACS taking up farm-related businesses like selling fertilisers to supplement their interest income and become financially viable in the process.KR Nair, chief general manager, Nabard -AP regional office, said they had already converted 140 PACs into MSCs in the state in the first year of launching this scheme in 2012-13. The bank had provided Rs 13.12 crore credit support for this purpose in AP and it is one-third of the amount spent on MSCs across India, according to him.Nabard raises funds at  competitive rates from the market while leveraging its higher credit rating and channelises the same for credit support to banks and governments under various schemes, including the refinance.

Nabard to transform 700 primary co-op  societies into multiservice centres

Ernakulam district, the financial capital of Kerala, will have a banking credit plan of Rs 12,995 crore during  the FY13-14.A district-level review committee of banks held on Friday approved the credit plan, envisaging a growth of  23.36 per cent from the previous fiscal. The growth target under the priority sector is 17.28 per cent.S Jayamohan Nair, deputy general manager, Union Bank of India, who inaugurated the meeting, said Union Bank was planning to open a full- fledged branch at Kadamakkudy, the only unbanked panchayat in the district.Lead district manager AR Jayaprakash informed the meeting that during the October-December, 2012 quarter, deposits in the district increased by Rs 1,669.40 crore taking the total to Rs 46,591.68 crore. Advances increased by Rs 2,614.96 crore to Rs 49,413.83 crore.The performance under the priority sector advance under the district credit plan 2012-13 was 78.89 per cent  as against the half-yearly target of 75 per cent.  The CD ratio increased to 106

Ernakulam district credit plan pegged at Rs 12,995 cr for fiscal 2013-14

R Thyagarajan, founder chairman of Shriram Group, received the Padma Bhushan on April 5 from President Pranab Mukherjee. He is the founder of the Rs 60,000-crore group.

Padma Bhushan for Shriram Group founder

During 2012-13, exports of cars from here increased to 272,345 units compared with 252,640 units last year, even though the overall container traffic during the fiscal droppedThe Chennai Port Trust has posted an operating surplus of Rs 42 crore for the fiscal year 2012-13 despite a ban on usage of its facilities for iron ore and shifting of coal handling to Ennore Port. It is looking at new projects, including a roll-in, roll-out car parking facility, to support the increasing demand from the automobile manufacturers, according to a senior port official.The port posted an operating surplus of Rs 42 crore and a net surplus of Rs 15 crore before tax as a result of cost-cutting measures and its works to improve efficiency in operational areas.The cargo handled by it, however, declined four per cent to 53.40 million tonne during 2012-13 as compared with 55.71 million tonne in the same period last year.Speaking to reporters regarding the performance of the port in 2012-13, Atulya Mishra, ch

Chennai Port posts operating surplus of Rs 42 cr

The board of directors of Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) has approved the agreement to be signed between KMRL and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC)  for the execution of the first phase of the project. The agreement would be formally signed between KMRL and DMRC soon.The board also discussed the changes to be made to the technical parametres pursuant to the adoption of the communication based train control (CBTC) system of signaling.It also approved the invitation of expressions of interest (EoIs) for preparing a master plan for the development of 17.315 acres of land at Kakkanad. KMRL intends to develop this area into a modern multi-utility centre combining the various requirements of the citizens of Kochi and it is expected that this facility will include urban amenities like markets and civic facilities as well as recreational centres.The Kakkanad facility will also provide supplementary revenues for improving the financial bottomlines of the metro project.The board also discusse

Kochi metro to sign pact with DMRC soon

While ticket aspirants, particularly in the Congress, are waiting with bated breath for announcement of the list for the May five Assembly polls, one thing appears certain at this stage itself - that the elections would not be short on the glamour quotient.BSR Congress floated by the former BJP Minister B Sriramulu today two named Kannada actresses - Pooja Gandhi and Rakshita Prem to contest from Raichur and Chamarajanagar, respectively. Pooja, who shot into fame with low-budget film 'Mungaru Male' which went on to become a superhit raking in the moolah and continues to be a sought after actress.She first joined the JD(S) of former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and then set sail with political heavyweight B S Yeddyurappa's Karnataka Janata Paksha (KJP) for a brief spell before joining forces with BSR Congress. BSR Congress, whose influence is limited to a fewdistricts, received a drubbing in the recent urban local bodies polls, winning just 86 seats of the total of nearly 5,000 up for

Assembly elections not short on glamour quotient

A complaint charging Karnataka Food and Civil Supplies Minister V Somanna with amassing assets disproportionate to known sources of income was filed today before the Lokayukta Court for the second time.A similar complaint was filed by social activist L Chetan Kumar last year, but was withdrawn. However, businessman Ramakrishna filed the same complaint before the court, seeking a probe.He alleged that Sommana, who became a public servant by joining as a salesman in Janata Bazaar in 1974 had amassed assets worth Rs 17.88 crore by 2010. The complainant sought an investigation under 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.Somanna faces another complaint before the same court pertaining to alleged denotification of land for pecuniary gain.

Complaint filed against minister in Lokayukta

JD(S) headed by former prime minister H D Devegowda today announced its first list of 122 candidates for the May 5 Karnataka Assembly elections which also included one of his sons and a daughter-in-law. First off the blocks to release the list among the three major political parties, JD(S) fielded Gowda's son, H D Kumaraswamy and another Lok Sabha member N Cheluvarayaswamy besides rewarding some defectors from ruling BJP.Kumaraswamy, the party's state unit President and Bangalore Rural MP, would contest from Ramanagara, while his wife Anita has been fielded from neighbouring Channapatna. With this, Anita has shifted from Madugiri constituency in Tumkur to Bangalore Rural district.Mandya MP, N Cheluvarayaswamy, is the party candidate from Nagamangala, which he had represented in the past. Raju Gouda alias Narasimha Naik (Surapura), Manappa Vajjal (Lingasagur) andH S Shankaralinge Gowda (Cha-maraja), who resigned from BJP recently, were fielded in their respective constituencies.   Gouda

LS member Kumaraswamy in Janata Dal (S) election list

Public mistrust of our institutions of political parties, government and big business is the root cause of policy log jam, according to Arun Maira, member of the Planning Commission.Delivering the third convocation address at The ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education University here on Friday, Maira said growing mistrust was leading more people to protest and prevent changes in policies proposed by government and advocated by business."The message is clear. Institutions of government, political parties and business must be reformed," he said.Stating that the Indian political landscape was churning, he said parties of left, right and centre were maneuvering for elected space. "Therefore, I ask, could India provide the bridge between free-market capitalism and democracy?"As we march into the 21st Century, Maira said the challenge before us was to make capitalism and economics our tools, rather than human beings becoming their tools.Incidentally, prior to joining the Planning Commission,

Public mistrust is root cause of policy jam: Arun Maira

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