• India Well on its Way to Achieving CFC Reduction Targets
• India Marks Turf in Undersea Treasure Hunt
• A Manned Mission Next: ISRO Chairman
• Cadence Eyes India Advantage For Chip Development
• Reliance Comm Launches Submarine Cable
• Domestic Anti-Spam Software Mart to Touch $7 m
• Zydus Forays Into Generics Market of Japan
• 'Ayurvedic Wellness Plan' For IT Professionals
• IIT Kharagpur Develops Polyphenol Extraction Tech

• India Tops in Bridging Digital Divide
• World's First Anti-EGFR Cancer Antibody launched
• Anyone For Hen That Lays 300 Eggs?
• Ranbaxy Launches New Drug For Asthma
• M&M Has Big Hybrid Plans For India
• Meteorite Fall in Rajasthan Village
• Biocon to Provide Alternative to Antibiotics
• India to Make MiG-29 Engines With Russian Help
• India, France to Discuss Civilian Nuke Cooperation: Mukherjee

It would be imperative for India to replicate the urban competitive model in its mobile telephony segment in the rural areas with a view to improving the country's ranking in the global digital opportunity index (DOI), according to LIRNEasia, a regional information and communication technology policy and regulation research and capacity-building organisation. The organisation seeks to improve the lives of the people of Asia by facilitating their use of information and communications technology (ICT) by catalysing reform of laws, policies and regulations to enable those uses and by building Asia-based human capacity through research, training, consulting and advocacy. Speaking to Business Line on the sidelines of a six-nation LIRNEasia workshop being held here, Ms Payal Malik, a New-Delhi based Senior Researcher of LIRNEasia, said that India is currently ranked 119 among 180 countries in the global DOI, behind nations such as Russia, China and Brazil. The DOI - which was decided upon by stakeholders participating in the 2nd World Summit on Information Society held in Tunisia last year - identified 11 indicators across three broad categories such as opportunity, infrastructure and utilisation as yardsticks for the ranking exercise. However, based on historical data gathered for 2001-2005, India ranked first in terms of being able to bridge the domestic digital divide. The driving force behind this is believed to be the performance of the mobile sector, which resulted from proactive Government policies and appropriate regulatory interventions. Ms Malik said: "Competition drove down tariffs even as the major chunk of the opportunity index is defined by affordability and access to mobile telephony. While India did well on this score, the country performed poorly as the lack of competition in the fixed telephony sector impacted the rollout of basic infrastructure and Internet access." While India's teledensity went up from two per cent in 1999 to 12.80 per cent earlier this year, it was the mobile sector - mostly in metros and States such as Gujarat, Kerala, Karnataka and Punjab - that propelled the growth. In 2005-06, the mobile sector grew by 72.62 per cent against 8.64 per cent growth registered by the fixed telephony segment. The success of the Indian telecom sector has been attributed largely to the progressive lowering of tariffs.

Courtesy: The Hindu, September 18, 2006

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India has achieved a 50 per cent target of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) production from 22,558 metric tonnes to 11,294 metric tonnes and consumption from 6,681 metric tonnes to 1,940 metric tonnes. The most critical and important target of production and consumption of another ozone depleting substance used as a cleaning and process agent - Carbon Tetra Chloride (CTC) - has also been achieved by adopting suitable alternative technology for non-feedstock applications of CTC. This was announced by Minister of State for Environment and Forest Namo Narain Meena at a function here on Saturday to mark the 12th International Day for Preservation of Ozone Layer, which is observed to commemorate the date of signing of the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer. Mr. Meena said the Government has developed new policies and regulatory measures such as customs and excise duty exemption to investments made by the industries converting to non-ODS technology since 1995. These provisions will be extended during the current financial year 2006-2007. He said India has so far received about Rs. 1000 crore to phase-out 23,000 metric tonnes production of CFC and CTC and about 22,000 metric tonnes consumption of CFC, CTC, Halon and methyl chloroform. He attributed this success to the active role taken by industries, government authorities, technical institutions, experts, NGOs and said India has complied with its commitment under the Montreal Protocol successfully. Mr. Meena also presented the National awards for Prevention of Pollution as well as the Rajiv Gandhi Environment Awards for clean technology. These awards are given annually to encourage industrial units to take significant steps and measures towards prevention of environment pollution.

Courtesy: The Hindu, September 18, 2006

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Biotechnology behemoth Biocon has launched BIOMAb-EGFR, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody-based drug for treating solid tumours of epithelial origin, such as head and neck cancers. Launched by film star Shah Rukh Khan in Bangalore on Sunday, the new drug is engineered to specifically target and block the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) that proliferates cancer cells. Launched across India, BIOMAb-EGFR will be available as a unit carton of four vials. The drug is the first of its kind to be clinically developed in India and is the first anti-EGFR humanized monoclonal antibody for cancer to be made commercially available anywhere in the world. According to the company, the product has shown consistent response in clinical trials initiated both in India and globally, and will later be extended to other indications. It will be manufactured at the Biocon Park. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CMD, Biocon, said pricing will be finalised by next week and the drug will be priced at least "40% below other MNC drugs" of its category. "This launch spearheads Biocon's foray into proprietary immunotherapeutics and today, we join the exclusive league of monoclonal antibody developers worldwide. While therapeutic monoclonal antibodies have been introduced in the country, they are beyond the reach of a majority of cancer patients because of their prohibitive cost," she said.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, September 18, 2006

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An Indian undersea secret has been kept so well over the past four years that even MPs who got wind of it during the monsoon session of Parliament were not allowed to ask questions. In Delhi, discussions currently on between oceanographers and diplomats, from the new Ministry of Earth Sciences and the Ministry of External Affairs, mark the last stages of an exercise that began in 2002 with secretive ocean experiments that will eventually allow India to lay claim to vast undersea reserves of oil and minerals. Dozens of top scientists from a clutch of national laboratories have used cutting-edge equipment - securing the first digital images of a remote undersea realm up to 8 km below the seabed in undisclosed locations - to collect data in advance of an international law that will allow a band of about 50 nations to claim territory up to the edges of the continental shelves on which they ride. Like most nations, India currently claims seabed territory up to the current limit of 200 nautical miles, or 370 km, offshore. The frenetic activity has not come too soon: this year, France, Ireland, Spain and the UK sought rights to jointly exploit an Ireland-sized zone on the Atlantic seabed. Russia, Australia and New Zealand have also submitted claims. India is guarding the exact figure of extended continental shelf it will claim - neighbouring nations too are preparing claims - to extend undersea landholdings and explore what an official called "the final frontier" of vast oil and energy reserves unclaimed under the seabed. "It is a significant number," was the only comment from PS Goel, secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences. Surveyors travelling 32,000 km in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal have finally completed their work, and the two ministries hope to finalise the plan within two months, so it can go to the cabinet this year. India has a deadline of 2009 to file claims before the UN's New York-based Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) - for rights over the natural resources beneath, if it can prove its seabed is a natural extension of the outer edge of the subcontinental landmass. "At present production, India's oil and gas reserves will last 30 years," said V.K. Sibal, director-general for hydrocarbons, Ministry of Petroleum, Delhi. "Extending the continental shelf will help India find resources for sustainable development." For 20 months between 2002 and 2004, scientists conducted India's first-ever offshore experiments bouncing sound waves off the seabed to check the thickness of seabed sediments, data that the CLCS requires.

Courtesy: Hindustan Times, September 17, 2006

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The Indian Council of Agricultural Research will soon sell products and technology, which its scientists have developed over the decades, to private companies. And these include everything from lobster traps to the bird-flu vaccine. The guidelines for such intellectual property-related transfers will be finalised by the ICAR's governing body on Tuesday, director-general Mangala Rai told HT. The move is evoking great corporate interest. Abhiram Seth, executive director of PepsiCo India, said in several areas "frontline work has been done by the ICAR". "But the pricing has to be realistic," he said. The ICAR has hundreds of products and technologies on offer, including agriculture software, lamb-fattening techniques, harvesting and tilling machines, solar candles, food-preservation technology and even hens that laid 300 eggs a year in lab tests. Unlike the West, which is dominated by private research labs, in India, agricultural research is mostly done in government institutes. For long, the inventions were taken to farmers and consumers through government agencies. But the delivery -- caught as usual in the red tape -- has been tardy. This is what the ICAR plans to change by selling technology. But some urge caution. "Companies could end up patenting and monopolising the technology which they buy from the ICAR and which has been developed at the taxpayers' expense," said Arun Raina, chief executive of the Floral Seed Company, Dehradun. One of ICAR's recent achievements was developing the bird-flu vaccine, 40,000 samples of which are being produced each month in its laboratories. "We will like private firms to step in and start the production of the vaccine which can stop the spread of the H5N1 virus," said Rai. The hitch: no private company in India has the safety standards required for it.

Courtesy: Hindustan Times, September 17, 2006

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A manned mission will be the culmination of the development of space technology in India, Isro chairman, Dr Madhavan Nair said here on Tuesday. "Man's presence in space has already proved to be of great advantage. We are taking space research seriously. It (a manned mission) will dominate the agenda of the long term space programme," Dr Nair elaborated, while delivering Air Marshal Subrato Mukherjee memorial oration as part of the on-going 54th international congress of aviation and aerospace medicine here. In his view, the main, and perhaps the only, hurdle would be the cost of the manned mission which, as per today's calculation, would be around Rs 10,000 crores. Dr Nair explained, "We can use a combination of sophisticated instruments and robots to do most of the jobs in space. But putting a man in Indian space is significant, to cap the technological development we have achieved so far, that too after we were driven into corner due to non-availability of space-related foreign technology." On the proposed ambitious mission to moon, Chandrayan-I, Dr Nair said, "We are working on sending a totally instrumental satellite to the moon's orbit, about 3.5 lakh km away, mainly to look at the moon's surface in detail and explore the mineral wealth. We are looking at Helium-3 that could be brought to earth to be used in our nuclear reactors as fuel." He disclosed that the design part of the vehicle for the moon mission is complete and the launch is fixed for 2008. On aerospace medicine, the Isro chief said that major challenge would be to study and find solutions of problems that could arise in the cardiovascular system of an astronaut and the changes in gravity, flow of fluids in the human body during the voyage. "The first two days in space can create havoc to the human body. Mitigation study revealed that the bone marrow will decline and there will be muscle degradation. Heavy radiation conditions will be the other important aspect that have to be overcome. Aerospace medicine can revolutionise the maintenance of a support system for a human being in space," Dr Nair signed of.

Courtesy: The Asian Age, September 13, 2006

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Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd on Tuesday announced the launch of its branded product, Avessa inhalation capsules in India for the treatment of Asthma. Avessa (Formoterol + Fluticasone) is available as Rheocaps Avessa 100 mcg, Avessa 250 mcg and 500 mcg and is to be used with the Rheohaler, a capsule based multidose dry powder inhaler, the country's biggest drugmaker informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. "We are delighted to launch the world's first unique combination product Avessa, in India, which reinforces our strong commitment to develop and introduce convenient solutions for asthmatic patients," the company's Regional Director (India and Middle East) Sanjeev I Dani said. Earlier this year Ranbaxy had launched Osonide (Ciclesonide) Inhaler, a novel once-a-day product in this segment. In May it had entered into an in-licensing agreement with Netherlands-based pharma company Eurodrug Laboratories, for the asthma product Doxophylline - a novel Xanthine Bronchodilator sold under the brand name 'Synasma'.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, September 13, 2006

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Global chip design major Cadence is joining hands with domestic educational institutions to create opportunities for the growth of the semiconductor industry. "We are tying up with various universities to train students and create awareness about the industry. Our aim is to prepare a vast talent pool that can be picked by the semiconductor industry. Initially, the companies shifted a part of their operations to low-cost geographies such as India. When they realised the resources available here, the approach changed. Now, the country is reckoned as a major player. But there are some gaps that need to be filled up," said Rahul Arya, marketing director, (India & Saarc), Cadence. Quoting a survey by the VLSI Society of India, Arya noted that less than 1,000 students graduating annually specialise in semiconductors. To meet the demand, the firm has launched education initiatives such as the Finishing School Program in collaboration with the University of Santa Cruz Extension, US, and Time-To-Market Inc (TTM) in India. Similarly, Cadence and Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU), which has more than 100 affiliated engineering colleges in Karnataka, have launched a programme to provide students practical experience in end-to-end design. Cadence has tie-ups with the IIT Kharagpur and IIT Bombay on various design initiatives. The domestic research & development (R&D) team of Cadence has already contributed to the development of its new Virtuoso custom design platform for advanced analog, mixed-signal and custom digital design. The first customer shipment of this new platform is likely to happen in October this year. Cadence, which started its operations in the country as early as 1987, has an R&D centre in Noida, support team in Bangalore and sales office in Hyderabad. It has over 5,100 employees globally, with more than 750 in the country. According to Cadence the new Virtuoso platform provides an integrated design environment and capabilities for constraint management. It also provides new technologies for verification, floor-planning and routing to help designers accelerate the overall integrated circuit (IC) design flow. About 130 chip firms are currently operating out of the country, employing over 10,000 engineers. As many as 18 of the top 25 chip companies in the world have set up their centres in the country. "The opportunities are immense. We have to reorient the huge supply of talent pool by taking initiatives," he added.

Courtesy: Business Standard: September 12, 2006

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India will finally see an indigenous hybrid being commercially run. M&M plans to launch its first hybrid vehicle in 18 months. The first one will be a mild hybrid while a full-fledged hybrid is expected to be launched in the next three years. The company is also expected to launch a four-wheeled electric vehicle sometime next year. Arun Jaura, senior vice-president, automotive sector R&D and PD told ET, "We have some exciting plans for hybrids in India. Our first hybrid, namely the mild hybrid, which will run on both fuel and batteries, is expected to be on the roads by the end of 18 months." The hybrid is initially expected to be on the Scorpio platform. The mild hybrid will deliver 10% fuel efficiency as compared to normal passenger cars. The battery used for the mild hybrid will be run for shorter spans. "Our mild hybrid will be followed by the launch of a full-hybrid which is expected to be on the road in the next three years," he said. This hybrid is expected to be 50% more fuel efficient and will have longer running batteries. "Besides Scorpio platforms, we are also looking at other SUV platforms like Bolero to make hybrids. By '12 we expect significant volumes to come from hybrid vehicles," added Mr Jaura. The auto company is also working on an electricity run 4 wheeler. "We are working on an electric vehicle on both passenger and cargo platforms," he said. The electric 4-wheeler is also expected to be launched late next year. This would be M&M's second electric vehicle. The company launched a 3-wheeler electric vehicle called the Bijlee some time ago.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, September 08, 2006

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Reliance Communications Ltd., top-ranked CDMA-mobile services carrier, inaugurated an undersea cable on Tuesday aimed at providing cheaper bandwidth to retail and commercial users. The 2.56 terabit Falcon submarine cable system connects 11 countries on its entire length of 11,859 km from India's financial hub Mumbai to Egypt. This new cable will be a part of Reliance Communications' Flag Telecom Global Network which already has cables running through 35 countries spanning four continents. India, which has a population of more than one billion, has a sizeable expatriate community working in the Middle East. Asia's fourth-largest economy also enjoys close trading links with many countries in the region like Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Demand for bandwidth is also growing within India where the export-oriented software services sector and the banking industry are large consumers. Reliance Communications competes mainly with Bharti Airtel Ltd. and Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd. in the bandwidth market.

Courtesy: www.financialexpress.com, September 06, 2006

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A meteorite fell at Kanvarpura village near Rawatbhata, where the Rajasthan Atomic Power Plant is situated, on August 29. It weighs 6.8 kg and is of a rare type as it consists of 90 per cent iron. At a press conference here on Monday, the Geological Survey of India (GSI) said the Kanvarpura incident was an "unspectacular event" compared to the meteorite shower in Gujarat recently. GSI Deputy Director-General (western region) R.S. Goyal said no fireworks were seen as the meteorite fell around 1:37 p.m. "The bright sunlight masked any glow in the sky, and the event would have probably gone unreported but for two shepherds who reported the matter at a police station." Dr. Goyal said the shepherds got frightened after the meteorite fell with a loud sound. They beat the meteorite with lathis and dragged it some distance, before immersing it in water. GSI scientists, who rushed to the village, recovered the meteorite with the help of the local administration. He said the meteorite could have caused devastation on an "unimaginable scale" if it had fallen on the Rawatbhata Atomic Power Plant. At least 10 cosmic bodies have fallen in the State, especially in its western parts, since 1995. The previous incident was reported at Bhuka village in Barmer district in June 2005.

Courtesy: The Hindu, September 06, 2006

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The value of anti-spam software market is expected to touch $7 million in India and $1 billion worldwide by 2007. The domestic revenue of anti-spam software grew to $4.5 million in 2005-06 from $0.5 million in 2003-04. There are nearly 4.5 lakh users of anti-spam software and the number is increasing fast. Globally, since Norton introduced anti-spam software in 1999 the number of users has gone up to 40 million. The software filters e-mails at the server, client (personal computer) and gateway levels. Symantec, Microsoft, Data Infocom, Spamboomerang, McAfee and Trend Micro are some major developers of anti-spam software. Price of the software varies from company to company. Data Infocom provides server-level anti-spam at $4,000 for unlimited users. While Microsoft offers anti-spam at $19, McAfee quotes $25 for it and Trend Micro provides the software at $30 per account, annually. Doug Hauger, director (business & marketing operations), Microsoft India, said, "Our company has released Microsoft Antigen e-mail security products, which include Antigen for Exchange, Antigen for SMTP (simple mail transfer protocol) Gateways, Antigen Spam Manager and Antigen Enterprise Manager." Data Infocom CEO Ajay Data said e-mail should be used carefully. One must be very cautious while giving/ mentioning one's e-mail address over the internet. "One should not click on the mail that has come from an unknown source," he added. In India, Microsoft leads the anti-spam market with a share of 40 per cent followed by Data Infocom (30 per cent), Trend Micro (8.7 per cent), McAfee (7.5 per cent).

Courtesy: www.business-standard.com, September 06, 2006

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Bangalore-based biotechnology major Biocon Ltd said its subsidiary Syngene International Pvt Ltd has signed an agreement with Sweden's innate Pharmaceuticals AB for jointly manufacturing and marketing drugs to counteract bacterial diarrhoeal disease. Under the cooperation agreement the two companies would develop, manufacture and market virulence blockers, which are a new class of drugs that could become an alternative to antibiotics, Biocon said. Virulence blockers disarm certain bacteria, rendering them incapable of causing disease without affecting the body as normal bacterial flora and thereby reduce risk of bacteria developing resistance to the drug. Clinical studies of the therapeutic effect of the drugs would be conducted over the next three years and a candidate drug would be developed to the stage of phase II study in patients with diarrhoeal disease. Innate pharmaceuticals would have European marketing rights, while Syngene would have rights to other parts of the world market and each company would receive royalties on the sales conducted by the other, Biocon informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. "We are delighted to announce this long term research cooperation with innate pharmaceuticals. Together we are committed to developing virulence blockers as alternatives and complements to antibiotics," Chief Operating Officer of Syngene International Goutam Das said.

Courtesy: www.financialexpress.com, September 06, 2006

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Cadila Healthcare Ltd on Monday announced the foray of Zydus group into the generic market of Japan and the establishment of a wholly owned subsidiary in the country. The subsidiary, Zydus Pharma Inc, would market formulation generics and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients in Japan, the company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. Zydus Pharma Inc would initiate the process for registration of products in 2007, besides marketing generics. The company would also explore collaborations and alliances with Japanese pharmaceutical companies in areas such as joint research and development, co-marketing, contract manufacturing for Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients, intermediates and formulations, it said. The subsidiary, headquartered at Shinjuku-ku in Tokyo, would be headed by Kazuhiro Kawabata as the President. "Meeting healthcare needs with affordable, high quality therapies has been our constant endeavour. We have been engaged in building healthier communities globally and reaching out to people in the US, Europe, Latin America and across the world. We now have an opportunity to extend our commitment to the people of Japan. We hope to do this by leveraging our strengths and expertise as a global healthcare provider and providing innovative healthcare solutions", Zydus Group Chairman and Managing Director Pankaj R Patel said.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, September 05, 2006

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Russia will help India make modernised engines for the MiG-29 fighters of the Indian Air Force under a USD 250 million deal. Russia's state-run 'Rosoboronexport' arms exporting corporation has just signed the deal with India under which Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) will make 120 RD-33 series 3 jet engines at its Koraput plant for the upgradation of MiG-29 fighters. By January 2007 Moscow-based Chernyshev Machine-building plant will supply 20 RD-33 jet engines with extended life-cycle for trials in India, according to Kommersant daily. The engine designer - St. Petersburg-based Klimovv- is also one of the players in the deal with India. Both of them are part of the RAC MiG corporation. In the first stage HAL will make 120 engines, which would cost less than those directly bought from Russia. This deal would help HAL master the assembly of next generation jet engines, including RD-33MK (Sea Wasp) engines for deck based MiG-29K naval fighters being acquired under the Gorshkov aircraft carrier deal. It will also help develop thrust-vectoring engines for the MiG-35 fighters, which Russia is fielding for USD 9 billion Indian tender for 126 advanced combat jets, the daily writes quoting experts. Later this month RAC MiG is planning to sign about USD 1 billion deal with India for the modernisation and upgradation of 66 MiG-29 fighters in service with the IAF.

Courtesy: The Pioneer, September 05, 2006

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Chennai-based Sowkhya Ayurvedic Therapy centre has developed an ayurvedic treatment package for corporates and software professionals. Called `Ayurvedic Wellness Plan', the package is designed to prevent the attack of `lifestyle' diseases and to help the professionals maintain general physical and mental fitness. The clinic observed that last year, a majority of patients visiting the centre were IT personnel exhibiting various manifestations of work-related stress such as pain, migraine, sleep disorders, fatigue, impotence, infertility and acute acidity. Software professionals in particular also suffer from `computer vision syndrome' and backaches. This package will look to address these problems with Panchakarma (ayurvedic detoxification therapy) and Rasayana Chikitsa (ayurvedic rejuvenation therapy), "tools that are effective in prevention of `lifestyle' diseases", the release said.

Courtesy: www.thehindubusinessline.com, September 04, 2006

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The French offer of cooperation in civilian nuclear energy development is likely to figure prominently in defence dialogue with India on Monday as Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Sunday that New Delhi wanted to deepen strategic relationship with Paris. "France has assured us of cooperating in development of nuclear energy for civil use," Mukherjee told newsmen on arrival here adding "India wants to take this process forward". The Minister's remarks came as Indo-US agreement on civilian nuclear deal is still pending with the US Congress. Impressing on the United States that the process of removing the embargo and lifting of ban on supply of fissile material should be speeded up, Mukherjee said the absence of this is coming in the way of accessing much-needed nuclear material for India's power producing reactors.

Courtesy: Hindustan Times, September 03, 2006

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The Science and Technology Entrepreneur Park (STEP) at the Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur has developed 'laboratory scale technology' for extraction of polyphenol from green tea leaves, which has become popular as a raw material for the pharmaceuticals and cosmetics industries. The price of polyphenol powder could be between Rs 1,000-5,000 per gm. Polyphenols, polymers of phenol, have the property of reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. N R Mondal, managing director, STEP and professor in the department of ocean engineering and naval architecture of IIT-Kharagpur said that the recently developed technology could be used to extract five gm of polyphenol powder from one kg of tea leaves. "The conventional extraction process uses toxic solvent for extraction of polyphenol. But the new process will use membrane separation technology, which is not only energy efficient but will no longer use of toxic solvents," he explained. "Polyphenol is slowly becoming popular as a raw material for the drug & pharma and cosmetics industries due to its anti-oxidant and anti-carcinogenic properties. Once the market is assured, it will become a profitable venture," he explained. Japan and China are the major suppliers exporting mainly to the US and Europe. Most of the Indian drug and pharmaceutical companies import it from Japanese suppliers, said Mondal. The new technology would enable extraction of polyphenol powder upto 60 per cent purity level and hence would be of highest quality, he assured. Mondal said that the average cost involved to set up project with a capacity of producing 100 gm of polyphenol powder per day would be around Rs 20 lakh, of which Rs 15 lakh would be equipment cost and the remaining for raw materials for one year. "This can emerge as a profitable business proposition for small and medium enterprises as the return would be very high, provided a decent market size can be assured. Looking at the current scenario, it may not be very attractive for large companies because of lack of assured market size," he added. Apart from green tea, polyphenol is also found in olive oil, pomegranate, few vegetables and fruits.

Courtesy: www.business-standard.com, September 01, 2006

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