Export diesel to Bangladesh

GUWAHATI: State-run Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL) on Monday said it has signed a 15-year agreement with Bangladesh Petroleum Corp (BPC) for export of diesel to the neighbouring nation, a company release said.

"In a historic development, Numaligarh Refinery Ltd inked a 15-year long term sale and purchase agreement with BPC for export of gas oil (diesel) to Bangladesh," the company said in the statement.

The agreement was signed between NRL Managing Director P Padmanabhan and BPC Chairman A H Rahmatul Muneem in presence of India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at Dhaka on Sunday, it added.

"Under the deal, BPC will initially take up to 0.25 million metric tonne per annum (MMTPA)) of gas oil from NRL for the first three years via the proposed 133-km Indo-bangla Friendship Pipeline (IBFPL) with a capacity of 1 MMTPA," the company said. The export quantity will be increased gradually from 0.25 MMTPA to 0.40 MMTPA over a period of 15 years and will come into effect after the pipeline is built, it added.

"The aforesaid deal with NRL is Bangladesh's first longterm agreement with any Indian oil company," the Assam-based petroleum firm said. Earlier, India and Bangladesh had entered into a new era of petroleum trade with a goodwill train, flagged off by the Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in March 2016, from NRL'S Siliguri marketing terminal to the neighbouring country.

In April 2017, another railway rake containing diesel from NRL'S Siliguri marketing terminal to BPC'S Parbitipur depot was flagged off by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina through remote device from New Delhi. NEW DELHI: State-run aerospace behemoth Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) on Monday strongly pitched for going ahead with the fifth-generation fighter jet project with Russia, though the Indian Air Force is understood to have reservations over it.

HAL Chairman and Managing Director T Suvarna Raju said the multi-billion dollar codevelopment project with Russia will be an opportunity as no country has ever offered such critical technology to India.

"We are still hopeful. It is an opportunity for the industry as well as for the country. This is an opportunity for us to go in for this kind of (high) technology which has not been offered to us by any other country (except Russia)," he said.

Asked about IAF'S reservations about the project, Raju did not give a direct reply and insisted that it would help India's aerospace sector to a great extent.

"The impact of the project will be very positive. FGFA (Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft) is my dream, I am hopeful about it," Raju told reporters on the sidelines of an event.

He said it will take three years for the first FGFA to fly from the day the government gives the go ahead to the project.

A high-level committee set up by the government to examine various aspects of the project has recently submitted its report and the defence ministry is likely to take a call on it soon.

In 2007, India and Russia had inked an inter-governmental pact for the FGFA project.

In December 2010, India had agreed to pay $295 million (Rs 1,897 crore) towards the preliminary design of the fighter, which is called in India as the 'Perspective Multi- role Fighter'.

However, the negotiations faced various hurdles in the subsequent years. NEW DELHI: The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Monday adjourned the hearing of the contempt plea filed against fast food major Mcdonald's Corporation and its Indian arm by estranged Indian partner Vikram Bakshi.

During the proceedings, counsel appearing for Mcdonald's informed that the Delhi High Court would on October 25 hear a petition in which it has challenged the show cause notice for contempt issued by the tribunal.

Following this, a NCLT bench headed by Chairman Justice MM Kumar adjourned the matter to November 7 for the next hearing.

MIPL, a subsidiary of Mcdonald's Corporation had filed a writ petition before the High Court questioning the validity of the contempt notice issued by the NCLT against it.

On September 5, NCLT had issued show-cause notice to fast food major Mcdonald's Corporation and Mcdonald's India Pvt Ltd (MIPL) over the contempt plea filed by Bakshi.

He had alleged that by terminating it licence the USbased food giant has violated the NCLT order dated July 13 which reinstated him as the Managing Director of CPRL and also refrained Mcdonald's Corporation to interfere in the functioning of CPRL.

Counsel for both sides submitted that they would try to complete their arguments before the high court on October 25.

The tribunal also directed the parties to file their replies based on the outcome of the high court order.

In August, the food chain had terminated the franchise licence of 169 outlets run by Bakshi in north and east India which led to a legal battle between the parties.

While Bakshi challenged the termination terming it as illegal, Mcdonalds' alleged breach of contract terms and payment default by Bakshi.