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NEWSNOTES
WORLD WATCH
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Jiaxuan (left) with Russian Foreign Minister Igor
Ivanov on September 11
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China: The Chinese choose their words
with care, so when China's Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan talks of addressing
terrorism bilaterally with India it means much. The statement came shortly
after a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman called Pakistan a neighbour
rather than an ally.
Current developments surrounding Afghanistan
have put foreign policies around the world in a flux. Having American
warplanes in its neighbourhood has been a nightmare for China as much
as Russia. Yet that is happening now. The Chinese have reacted cautiously;
they have indicated their support for the US action but voiced their own
concerns about Tibet and Xinjiang. Militant Islamic movements in Xinjiang,
where the Uighur ethnic group are in a majority, have been a growing problem
for China. The Uighurs want an independent homeland and India has conveyed
to the Chinese that they are being indoctrinated in jehad by the Taliban.
The Chinese concern over terrorism was amplified
in the first meeting of the Centre Against Terror in Kyrgyzstan last week
which was attended by officials from China, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan,
Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. All of them agreed to take steps to clear out
the sources of terror in Afghanistan. These countries, called the Shanghai
Six, first met this June to promote economic cooperation between members
and battle Islamic militancy. Central Asia has the largest reserves of
oil and natural gas in the world and the US has been investing in the
region.
In all this, there are areas wherein Indian
and Chinese interests converge. Though China has contributed largely to
Pakistan's military build-up, its concerns about terrorism match those
of India. This could lead to a lasting understanding-or prove a mere blip
on the screen.
—Shishir Gupta
Baba Of Blasphemy
 Baba
Piara Singh Bhaniarawala, the man who has the Panthic Morcha on the march,
is suddenly a threat to peace in Punjab. Yet his penchant for blasphemy
is not new. The 41-year-old was excommunicated from the Akal Takht in
1998 for distorting the Guru Granth Sahib. He was asked to appear before
the Takht but refused to do so, claiming he was an incarnation of Guru
Gobind Singh. Now there is even talk of capital punishment, but no political
grouping wanted to alienate him then because he was seen as the key to
the Dalit votebank: most of his five lakh supporters are Dalits.
—Ramesh Vinayak
SPOTLIGHT
IPOs Vanish With Market Crash
Fraudulent promoters, regulatory lapses to blame
This is probably the worst performance ever
of the primary market in India. In the past six months, only two initial
public offerings (IPOs) have been made, for a meagre Rs 6 crore. Thirty-five
companies, including Nimbus Communications and Divi's Laboratories, have
allowed their SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) approval for
an IPO to lapse. For the record, approvals are typically valid for a year
and form the last stage of public-issue planning.
If the past is dismal, the future looks bleak.
In the second half of the current fiscal year, most of the 43 companies-including
Punjab National Bank and Mahindra British Telecom, which had obtained
SEBI's approval for an IPO, have deferred their plans. At present, there
are only three IPOs for Rs 8 crore awaiting SEBI's approval.
Who is to blame? Fraudulent promoters and lapses
by regulatory authorities. "By ignoring the investors' interests,
we have systematically killed the IPO," says Prithvi Haldea, managing
director, Prime Database. Promoters often do not report the company's
performance to investors. About 3,000 companies have raised money from
the primary market and simply disappeared.
Regulatory bodies have failed to punish fraudulent
promoters. As the primary market continues to shrink, SEBI will have to
do more than just hide behind the excuse of "bearish sentiments".
—Malini Goyal
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