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Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009
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National

Joint venture approved for cargo handling at airports

P. Sunderarajan

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Monday gave its nod for the proposal of the National Aviation Company of India Limited to set up a joint venture company with Singapore Air Terminal Services for undertaking ground and cargo-handling activities at various airports in the country.

The two companies would have 50:50 equity share in the joint venture.

Chaired by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, in the absence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the Cabinet also gave its nod for a scheme to allow scientific institutions and their scientists to get associated with knowledge-based enterprises.

The scheme would allow scientists working in public- funded research and academic institutions to have equity stakes in scientific enterprises and spin-offs while remaining in professional employment with their research and academic organisations.

Further, the Cabinet gave its nod for expanding the scope of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-managed New Millenium Leadership Initiative by increasing the outlay for it to Rs.700 crore in the XI plan period from 205 in the recently ended X plan period and allowing newer mechanisms for undertaking R&D in public-private partnership mode.

Besides, the Cabinet approved the establishment of a National Institute of Biomedical Genomics at Kalyani in West Bengal as an autonomous institution at a cost of Rs.210 crore.

Pensionary benefits

The Cabinet also approved to extend the special pensionary benefits, applicable to government servants recruited before January 1, 2004, to those who were recruited after that date as a temporary measure. The government employees, who joined service after January 1, 2004, are covered by the defined pension scheme which does not address situations like dying in harness, indirect pension, family pension and disability pension.

A high-level task force is currently looking into the issue. Monday’s decision would take care of the issue until the panel submits its report.

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