India on Thursday successfully launched the GSAT-6A satellite that would provide mobile communication facilities, using its heavy rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F08), in a copy book style.

The GSLV-MkII rocket slung the satellite in a geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) from where it would be taken up to its final geostationary orbit by three orbit raising manoeuvres.

ISRO’s scientists at the mission control centre were visibly happy, slapping each others’ backs and hugging each other once the rocket ejected the satellite into the intended orbit.

Precisely at 4.56 p.m., the GSLV rocket ascended into the sky from the second launch pad here at Satish Dhawan Space Centre and the 49.1 metre tall rocket, weighing 415.6 tonne, slung the two tonne satellite into the intended orbit 17.46 minutes into its flight.

The purpose of the satellite is to provide mobile communication applications in S-band in five spot beams and C-band in one beam during its 10-year life span.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said that the GSAT-6A was similar to the GSAT-6 put into orbit in 2015.

The GSLV is a three stage/engine rocket. The core of first stage is fired with solid fuel while the four strap-on motors by liquid fuel. The second stage is the liquid fuel-propelled and the third is the cryogenic engine.

According to ISRO, two improvements — induction of high-thrust Vikas engine and electromechanical actuation system — have been made in the rocket’s second stage this time around.

One of the crucial rocket engines is the cryogenic engine, designed and developed by ISRO, and more efficient than the other two variants as it provides more thrust for every kilogram of propellant burnt.

With this successful launch, India established the performance of its GSLV-MkII rocket which in future may fetch orders from third parties for launching their satellites.

India puts into orbit foreign satellites for a fee using its lighter rocket – the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) as their weight is not much.

Revenue for launching satellites depends on weight of the satellite – higher the weight, higher will be the revenue.

According to the latest Economic Survey, foreign exchange earnings of India from export of satellite launch services increased noticeably in 2015-16 and 2016-17 to Rs 394 crore and Rs 275 crore from Rs 149 crore in 2014-15.

(IANS)

The Income-Tax Department on Thursday released a pan-India list of 24 defaulting individuals and companies who owe about Rs 490 crore in taxes to the exchequer but have either gone untraceable or have reported inadequate assets for payment of dues

The department issued an advertisement as part of its name and shame defaulters policy in leading national dailies titled ‘List of defaulters of Income Tax and Corporate Tax’

The notice, issued by a nodal office of the Principal Director General of Income Tax in Delhi, “advised” the named defaulters to pay their tax arrears immediately

The public announcement carries the identity of the firm or the individual, the name of their directors and partners, the date of incorporation of the company (date of birth in case of individuals), their Permanent Account Number (PAN) or the Tax Deduction Account Number (TAN), their last known address and business profile, the amount of tax defaulted, assessment year and the respective jurisdictional I-T authority

These defaulting firms were in the business sectors like food processing, bullion trading, software, real estate, breweries and manufacture of ingots among others

The maximum tax dues of over Rs 86.27 crore is against a Delhi-based company named Ms Stock Guru, India and its partner Lokeshwar Dev and the notice said the assessee has gone untraceable and also has inadequate assets to pay the income tax

The dues for this firm are for the assessment years (AYs) 2009-10 and 2010-11. Some of the defaulters on the list have not paid their taxes for the assessment year 1989-90

A Kolkata-based individual Arjun Sonkar, as per the notice, has an I-T default of over Rs 51.37 crore and is “not traceable” now. He is followed by Kishan Sharma, another individual from the West Bengal capital, who the department said is in default of Rs 47.52 crore of income tax.

The total tax default amount by 24 entities, from cities like Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Vijaywada, Nashik, Surat, Delhi, Vadodara, Kolkata and others, is about Rs 490 crore

A senior I-T Department official said the public list is aimed to make people aware so that they can help the department in nabbing these defaulters, if they have any information about them

The notice also carried a disclaimer that the “entries in the list are specific to the tax arrear/assessment year mentioned and the tax defaulter’s address, business, shareholding and management may have changed” now

It added that the amount of default “shall further increase” after due interest is levied on it

The department has carried out this exercise over the last few years and?had named 96 such entities which have huge tax liabilities on them but they have either gone non- traceable or have shown no assets for recovery

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the policy- making body of the I-T department, had few years back adopted the strategy of bringing out the names of chronic defaulters in public domain and had also begun posting these names on its official website.

Privately-run Karnataka Bank Ltd has informed the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) that Gitanjali Gems of scam-hit Mehul Choksi had committed a Rs 86.5 crore fraud in the fund-based working capital.

“We have reported a fraud to the RBI amounting to Rs 86.47 crore in the fund-based working capital facilities extended to Gitanjali Gems Ltd on account of non-realisation of export bills and diversion of funds,” said the Mangaluru-based bank in a regulatory filing on the BSE late on Wednesday night.

The scheduled commercial bank, however, clarified it does not have any Letter of Understanding (LoU) exposure in Choksi’s company.

“The working capital facilities were extended by the bank under consortium arrangement and provisions will be made as per the RBI guidelines,” the bank’s Company Secretary Prasanna Patil said in the filing.

Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are already facing investigation in the Rs 13,540-crore fraud they committed on the state-run Punjab National Bank’s Mumbai branch, which came to light after they left the country in early January.

(Ians)

NASA is now targeting May 2020 for the launch of its James Webb Space Telescope, the $8 billion dollar Hubble successor.
The announcement on Tuesday made after an independent assessment of remaining tasks for the highly complex space observatory further pushes the launch target of the next-generation space telescope by about a year.

“Webb is the highest priority project for the agency’s Science Mission Directorate, and the largest international space science project in US history,” said acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot.

“All the observatory’s flight hardware is now complete, however, the issues brought to light with the spacecraft element are prompting us to take the necessary steps to refocus our efforts on the completion of this ambitious and complex observatory,” Lightfoot said.

Testing the hardware on the observatory’s telescope element and spacecraft element demonstrate that these systems individually meet their requirements.

However, recent findings from the project’s Standing Review Board (SRB) indicate more time is needed to test and integrate these components together and then perform environmental testing at Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems in Redondo Beach, California, the project’s observatory contractor.

NASA said it is also establishing an external Independent Review Board (IRB), chaired by Thomas Young, a highly respected NASA and industry veteran who is often called on to chair advisory committees and analyse organisational and technical issues.

NASA will consider the findings and recommendations of both the boards’ findings for defining a more specific launch time frame.

The US space agency will then provide its assessment in a report to Congress this summer.

Webb is an international project led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and the Canadian Space Agency.

NASA will work with its partner, ESA, on a new launch readiness date for the Ariane 5 vehicle that will launch Webb into space.

ESA is providing the Ariane 5 as part of its scientific collaboration.

Once a new launch readiness date is determined, NASA said it will provide a cost estimate that may exceed the projected $8 billion development cost to complete the final phase of testing and prepare for launch.

Additional steps to address project challenges include increasing NASA engineering oversight, personnel changes, and new management reporting structures.

“Considering the investment NASA and our international partners have made, we want to proceed systematically through these last tests, with the additional time necessary, to be ready for a May 2020 launch,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, Associate Administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.

(Ians)

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced special measures for transaction of central and state government business by banks handling government accounts on March 31 in view of the closing of the financial year on that day.

In a release late on Tuesday, the RBI also said special arrangements have been made to conduct special clearing operations on March 31 in order to facilitate government receipts and payments.

“With a view to providing greater convenience to tax payers, it has been decided that RBI offices and all designated branches of agency banks conducting government banking will keep their counters open up to 8.00 p.m. on March 31, 2018.

“Electronic transactions can be done till the midnight of that day,” it said.

“To facilitate government receipts and payments, necessary arrangements have also been made to conduct special clearing operations across the country. Centralised payment systems such as the RTGS and NEFT will also be operational with the above extended business hours.”

“As far as April 2, 2018 is concerned, since it has been declared as a holiday to enable the banks to close their yearly accounts, although RBI offices will work on that day, centralised payment systems such as the RTGS and NEFT will not be operational on that day,” the statement added.

(IANS)

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Yet another bank fraud has come to light, with the CBI filing a case against Hyderabad-based Totem Infrastructure Ltd for allegedly defrauding a consortium of eight banks led by Union Bank of India (UBI) to the tune of Rs 1,394 crore.

A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team also carried out raids at several places here after filing the FIR against the firm and its Promoters and Directors Tottempudi Salalith and his wife Tottempudi Kavita.

The CBI filed the case on the basis of a complaint filed by UBI which was cheated of Rs 303.84 crore by the firm.

“Loan was taken from a consortium of eight banks including UBI which was the lead bank. Total dues outstanding for the consortium is Rs 1,394.43 crore. This account became NPA on June 30, 2012 after loan and interest payment default,” a CBI official said.

Totem Infrastructure was in the business of road projects, water works and building construction.

It is alleged that funds were diverted and expenditure was inflated, the official said.

On Wednesday, the CBI filed a case against a Chennai-based jeweller, Kanishk Gold Pvt Ltd, for defrauding a consortium of 14 banks led by the State Bank of India to the tune of Rs 824.15 crore in the form of loans that have now been declared as non-performing asset (NPA).

(IANS)

The CBI on Thursday said that it was questioning the directors of Kanishk Gold Pvt. Ltd. (KGPL) in connection with its ongoing probe into the alleged defrauding a consortium of 14 banks led by the SBI to the tune of Rs 824 crore.

A Central Bureau of Investigation official told IANS: “Questioning of KGPL Directors Bhoopesh Kumar Jain and Neeta Jain is being carried out at our Bengaluru office.”

Bhoopesh and Neeta Jain had arrived here on Wednesday evening, according to the official.

The questioning comes in the wake of the case it registered against the Chennai-based jeweller on Wednesday for defrauding the consortium of Rs 824.15 crore in the form of loans, now been declared a non-performing asset (NPA).

The agency also conducted searches at KGPL’s office as well as official and residential premise of accused persons at various places in Chennai.