Voltas profit up 29%

Voltas Ltd has reported a 29.16 per cent rise in its net profit for fiscal ended March 31 at Rs 50.41 crore compared with Rs 39.03 crore in the previous fiscal. The board of the Tata company has recommended a 50 per cent dividend for the year. Net sales last year increased to Rs 1,441.43 crore against Rs 1,329.94 crore in 2003-04.

Uttam steel

Uttam Galva Steel has chalked out a $60-million expansion plan to double its galvanised and cold-rolled steel manufacturing capacity in the next two years. Cold rolled steel production will be raised to 1 million tonnes and galvanised steel to 75,000 tonnes by the end of 2006.

Syndicate

Syndicate Bank has achieved a global business of Rs 74,031 crore in the last fiscal registering a growth of 15.5 per cent and a net profit of Rs 403 crore. The bank has declared a final dividend of 14 per cent in addition to an interim dividend of 6 per cent.

BSNL phones

Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) has registered 10 million mobile subscribers, out of which, 1.6 million are in the eastern zone, 2.10 million in western zone, 2.60 million in the north and 3.70 million in the south. It plans to add 4 million subscribers every quarter during this fiscal, the company said.

Sogo tiles

Sogo Ceramic Private Ltd is targeting a first-year turnover of Rs 60 crore from the sale of its new vitrified tiles. Promoted by the Samay group which manufactures clocks, the company has launched super white tiles under the brand Megha, priced between Rs 70 per sq ft and Rs 125 per sq ft.

SBI tie-up

State Bank of India?s (SBI) Mumbai circle has entered into a tie-up with Karjat-based Growell Agro Forestry Corporation to launch contract farming for cultivating jatropha. The bank has handed over loan disbursal letters to more than 70 farmers. SBI has earmarked Rs 5 crore for financing contract farming on 5,000 acres in the current year to more than 3,000 farmers.

Tata Tele

Tata Teleservices will invest Rs 600 crore in the current fiscal in the east to expand its network in Orissa, Bengal, the combined circles of Jharkhand and Bihar and Calcutta. The company plans to install 400 more cell-sites to the existing 500 to facilitate rolling out of services in nearly 350 towns from the present 80.

Nokia sets

Nokia will roll out handsets from its manufacturing facility in Chennai in the second half of 2006, said an official.

Sakata Inx

Sakata Inx Corporation of Japan is planning to make India its global outsourcing hub for offset printing inks through its wholly owned subsidiary here.