Former Indian captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi dies

 Mansur Ali Khan, formerly known as the Nawab of Pataudi, died due to respiratory ailments here on Thursday. The former cricketer who led India to many wins, was 70.

Pataudi Jr, as Mansur was also known, played 46 Tests for India between 1961 and 1975. His first-class career spanned over almost two decades and he made a prolific impact on Indian cricket with not just his forceful batting and medium-pace bowling but through his sheer determination to excel. He was appointed India captain at an early age of 21 and is regarded widely as the man who uplifted the team from being resigned to defeats to a spirit to fight for a win.

Mansur led the Indian team to its first overseas victory when New Zealand surrendered to his side in the 1967 series. The win and the subsequent victories were not just the result of playing well on the field but off it as well. Mansur was known to think differently and tackle the each opposition with a different approach. He recognised, for instance, that India must play with three spinners because spin was the key against foreign teams. It played dividends then and continues to do so now as in contemporary cricket, spin and not pace is considered as India's bowling might.

That captaincy came barely months after a life-threatening accident made Mansur's achievement stand out more. After all there is a genuine reason why he soon came to also be known as Tiger. Mansur was involved in a very serious car accident that left him with no vision in his right eye. Yet, he managed to excel not just as  a player but also as a leader for which he was honoured with the Arjuna Award in 1964 and the Padma Shri in 1967.

Two years after receiving the Padma Shri, Mansur married Bollywood actress Sharmila Tagore and retired from cricket in 1975. He had since been actively involved with the game as first an ICC match referee and then as a cricket analyst.

Rupee may give mkts some sleepless nights ahead

It was mayhem once again on Dalal Street with indices falling like ninepins. The NSE Nifty cracked below the all-important 5,000 mark as the dreadful opening in the European markets had investors running for cover.

The depreciating rupee is causing major pain for the market. “The risk aversion has gone up, which means investors will be scared of investing in markets beyond their immediate shores,” explains R Jagannathan, editor-in-chief, moneycontrol.com. 

Flexituff International IPO to open on Sept 29

Polymer products company Flexituff International is set to open its initial public offering of 67.5 lakh equity shares for subscription next week. The issue comprises of a fresh issue of 45 lakh equity shares and an offer for sale of up to 22.5 lakh shares by Clearwater Capital Partners (Cyprus) Limited.

The company manufactures FIBC, geo-textile fabric and ground cover, reverse printed BOPP woven bags, special PP bags including leno bags at its three manufacturing units located in Pithampur (MP) and Kashipur (Uttrakhand).

It also has a recycling and reprocessing plant at Kandla for recovering polypropylene and making various compounds of plastics. Its subsidiary, Lakshmi Incorporated, USA manufactures reclosable extruded zipper profile.

The issue will open for subscription on Thursday, September 29 and close on October 4 for QIB bidders. Other bidders will put in bids till October 5.

The net issue proceeds are proposed to be used for expansion of manufacturing facilities at SEZ and DTA units at Pithampur; setting up of Dripper project at Kashipur, and also for working capital requirements.

Promoters' stake will be reduced to 25.97% from 32.75% post issue. Clearwater Capital Partners (Cyprus) will offload 15.77% stake through issue.

For the year ended March 31, 2011, the company reported net profit of Rs 30.97 crore on total income of Rs 618.39 crore.

Collins Stewart Inga Private Limited is the book running lead manager to the issue.

Food inflation slips to 8.84%, but no relief for common man

Food inflation fell to 8.84% in the week ended September 10 from 9.47% in the previous week, but provided no relief to the common man as prices of key commodities continued to rule high.

Prices of most commodities, barring wheat, continued to remain firm on an annual basis, as per Wholesale Price Index (WPI) data released by the government today.

According to experts, the fall in inflation on a weekly basis is on account of statistical reasons, called as "high base effect". Food inflation was above 16% in the corresponding period last year.

As per the data, wheat prices during the week were down 2.72% year-on-year.

However, onions became more expensive by 29% and potatoes 13.78%. Overall, vegetables became 12.13% dearer.

Milk prices, too, were up by 10.38%, while fruits grew dearer by 17.67% and eggs, meat and fish prices rose by 9.28% year-on-year.

Prices of cereals also went up, by 4.13%, during the week under review. Even the prices of pulses, which had exhibited a declining trend during recent months, rose by 1.49% during the week ended September 10.

Overall, inflation in primary articles stood at 12.17% for the week ending September 10, compared to 13.04% in the previous week. Primary articles constitute over 20% of the WPI basket.

Non-food articles, which include fibres, oil seeds and minerals, recorded 17.42% inflation during the week ended September 10, up from 18.49% in the previous week, ended September 3.

Meanwhile, inflation in the fuel and power segment went up to 13.96% during the week ended September 10 from 13.01% in the previous seven-day period.

Experts are of the view that despite the latest fall, pressure on the food price front will continue to keep the government and the Reserve Bank on their toes.

Headline inflation, which factors in manufactured items, fuels and non-food primary items, in addition to food commodities, stood at a 13-month high of 9.78% in August.

The Reserve Bank has already hiked policy rates 12 times since March, 2010, to tame demand and curb inflation.

Sensex crashed over 500 points

Sensex crashed over 500 points to 16,533 as the Indian rupee slumped below 49 per dollar with global sell-off adding fuel to the fire. The 50-share NSE Niftyalso tumbled 161 points to 4,972.

The Indian rupee slipped to 49.08 per dollar, down 0.76 or 1.57% from yesterday's closing value, signalling huge outflow of money from India. Huge fresh shorts were seen in the market; Nifty 5000 put shed more than 20 lakh shares in open interest.

European markets too fell further; France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE plunged 4% each.

On the home turf, the broader indices too were following the same trend; the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices lost more than 2%.

Among sectors, the BSE Realty, Metal, Oil & Gas, Capital Goods, Bank and Auto indices were down 3-4%. Power, IT, FMCG and Healthare dropped 2-2.7%.

Heavyweights Reliance Industries and Bharti Airtel crashed 5% each.

At 13:42 hours IST : Sensex drops over 450 pts; Re nears 49/$, Europe dips 3-4%

Further fall in European markets and a sharp crack in major sectors has made the Indian equity benchmarks even weaker. The 30-share BSE Sensex slipped 469 points to 16,595 and the 50-share NSE Nifty fell 140 points to 4,992. A continuously depreciating rupee may be signaling offloading of exposure from foreign institutional investors.

Federal Reserve's statement spooked all global markets. European markets extended fall; France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE were down 3-4%. The Dow Jones Futures dropped over 1%.