New Delhi, Nov. 12 A firm recovery in the country’s industrial output appears to be under way. Industrial production grew 9.1 per cent in September, higher than the 6.03 per cent growth recorded in the same month last year, the latest official data show. The increase in the output of capital goods and consumer durables in September confirmed that investment sentiments in the economy had picked up and Indian industry is emerging out of the downturn phase. Capital goods output grew 12.8 per cent on a year-on-year basis in September 2009 compared with 8.3 per cent in August and 2 per cent in July. Consumer durables continued to shine in September with a growth of 22.2 per cent, according to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data released by the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) here on Thursday.

Stimulus helps The Government’s efforts to support growth through fiscal stimulus measures in an environment of global economic downturn seem to have paid dividends. From June, there has been a smart recovery in industrial output even as the growth in September was lower than the revised growth rate of 10.95 per cent in August. All the major sectors — manufacturing, mining and electricity generation — recorded higher growth in output in September than the previous month. While manufacturing output in September grew 9.3 per cent (5.5 per cent in August), the corresponding increase for mining and electricity was 8.6 per cent (8.4 per cent) and 7.9 per cent (6.6 per cent) respectively. For the first half of the current fiscal, industrial output grew 6.5 per cent, against the five per cent growth recorded in the same period last year. While the manufacturing sector output grew 6.3 per cent (5.3 per cent in April-September 2008), mining and electricity too recorded smart growth in output during the first half of the current fiscal.

In terms of industries, 12 out of the 17 industry groups had shown positive growth during September, the CSO said. The better than expected industrial output performance in September is going to add to the ongoing debate on an appropriate time for exit from fiscal stimulus. Already, the Government has indicated that the stimulus would be wound down next fiscal. It remains to be seen if all of them will be wound down in one go or in phases. The recovery in industrial output will only push the decision in favour of an early exit, industry observers said. Reacting to the latest IIP data, the FICCI President, Mr Harsh Pati Singhania, said today’s numbers confirm that a sustained recovery was under way.

“This growth comes on the back of a muted performance of the core sector in September as it grew by about 4 per cent and therefore indicates that the rest of the industrial economy was growing at a fast clip. “If the policy framework is left untouched, we can expect this performance to continue in the months ahead. And if the Government pushes ahead with the critical reforms that are on the table then this growth would be accelerated,” he said. The recovery in industrial output in the second quarter has also helped to some extent curtail the decline in indirect tax collections.

TOI: Like yourself, there seems to be no limit to Tendulkar's genius too. The entire country is celebrating his 20th year in international cricket. How do you look at this monumental achievement? LATA: My heartiest congratulations to him. I have seen Sachin right from the time he made his debut as a sixteen-year-old. Since then, he has gone on to climb dizzy heights, he's got married, raised a family, and somehow remained the same humble man throughout. It's really amazing to know he has been around for 20 years. I greet him and his family. May God bless him and may he go on for another 40 years!

TOI:You have been an ardent admirer of the game, from Sunil Gavaskar to Sachin. What do you like about Tendulkar when he graces the crease? LATA: Like Sunil Gavaskar, there's a comforting thought that Sachin will hold the fort, that Team India is safe. Though each stroke is a stroke of genius, I have a distinct liking for his straight drive. I also admire the way he looks up to the heavens every time he completes a half-century or century. It means he is thanking God for blessing him, and that's a great thing. Who can forget the 1999 World Cup, when he played on even though his father passed away midway through the tournament? Sachin took a break to attend the funeral and returned quickly to score a century, then looked up to the skies to seek his father's blessings. It was a very touching and emotional moment for every Indian. The poignancy of that moment has stayed in the minds of all who watched that knock. I am no exception. TOI: If you were asked to play favourites between Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin, who would you pick? LATA: To be honest, it's difficult to pick one. They played in different eras and both brought laurels to the country. Sunil had his own distinct style while Sachin is in a class of his own. Both are legends in their own right. Having said that, I think Sunil retired a bit early. And what else can I say about Sachin? The fact that Don Bradman, the greatest batsman ever, was reminded of himself while watching Sachin bat is the best tribute he can ever get.

TOI: Talk us through your first meeting with Tendulkar... LATA: Although I don't remember the first time, I remember having met him once at Raj Thackeray's residence. That was on his birthday, on the 24th of April, which incidentally is also my father's death anniversary. I got a call from Raj requesting me to come over to meet Sachin. Since it was his birthday, I asked Raj what gift I could get for the young batsman. I remember we all sat outside, chatting. I presented Sachin with an idol of Sai Baba. As I did that, Sachin touched my feet and said, 'you are like my mother'. Usne mujhe maa ka darja diya. I was really moved.

TOI: He is passionate about your singing, and that of Kishore Kumar's.. LATA: I know he likes to hear my songs and I feel humbled. He has also been to a couple of my concerts. But he never came up to me to say, 'I am here.' That's his greatness. In fact, I didn't notice him the first time he was there to watch me sing. The next time he came with his wife. I think it was in Mumbai or Pune. My brother Hridaynath Mangeshkar informed me that Sachin was in the audience. Then I noticed him and said 'namaste' from the stage. What I really like about Sachin is that despite being a great player, he is so humble and down to earth. I know he has broken so many records, done the country proud and won so many awards. For doing all that and still conducting himself respectfully all along, I think, he deserves a Bharat Ratna. Why just a Bharat Ratna, I would like to honour Sachin with a 'Vishwa Ratna'!

NEW DELHI: The cash-strapped Maharaja will not go bankrupt, at least for now. The government on Thursday agreed to inject Rs 2,000 crore in AI this fiscal in a phase-wise manner of Rs 400 crore per month, subject to the airline cuts costs and increases revenue. The Pranab Mukherjee-headed Group of Ministers (GoM) met on Thursday and decided to do a monthly review of AI's performance before giving the next tranche of Rs 400 crore.

Without a bailout, the AI-IA combine — that has a monthly cash loss of Rs 400 crore — may not have survived beyond this year. The aviation ministry was eying Rs 5,000 crore and Rs 9,000 crore as equity infusion and aircraft purchase assistance over next three years. But the GoM has for now agreed to recommend to the Union Cabinet phase-wise infusion of fund till March 2010. Future funding will be decided on AI's progress card. GoM's biggest worry was how deep-in-red AI would fund the Rs 55,000 crore order to acquire 111 new aircraft. The civil aviation ministry pointed out that AI-IA combine's aircraft order size has been halved in value terms.

"Out of the 111 new planes, 50 were wide body aircraft that accounted for over 65% of the total bill. Of these big ones, 27 Boeing 787 Dreamliners are nowhere on radar as they are yet to fly. Delivery of three Boeing 77 have been deferred to 2013 and three of them — already with AI — are being leased out. So, the aircraft order in terms of monetary value has been halved with these 33 twin aisle planes out of the radar," said sources. Both Mukherjee and Chidamabaram are learnt to have been sceptical of AI's tall claims on revenue and cost fronts. "Employees must know this money has not come easily and focus on cost-cutting has to remain," they are learnt to have told Patel and the AI management. Patel told TOI: "A number of steps will be taken to cut costs by rationalising routes and leasing aircraft. Cutting salaries is not the only way to cut costs and the management must look at all other means very closely. There is no room for complacency as fund infusion is closely linked to achieving success on cost cutting and revenue generation."

The GoM is also learnt to have promised Arvind Jadhav, CMD, certain degree of freedom to take tough decisions without any interference. In a previous GoM, Chidambaram had questioned the accountability of bureaucrats who headed AI in the past and presided over its decline. "By early January, a number of tough steps will be taken. This will be in terms of cutting loss-making routes and instilling discipline," said highly-placed sources. AI loses Rs 3,000 crore on 30-odd routes alone and most of them could be closed.

LONDON: British Airways and Iberia of Spain approved on Thursday a preliminary agreement on a merger that would create a European aviation giant, the airlines said. The new airline would have 419 aircraft and fly to 205 destinations, with the merger expected to be finalised by the end of 2010, the airlines said in a joint statement.

"The merger will create a strong European airline well able to compete in the 21st century," BA chief executive Willie Walsh said. "Both airlines will retain their brands and heritage while achieving significant synergies as a combined force," he said. The announcement comes after both airlines held separate board meeting talks throughout Thursday on a possible merger that would create a European aviation giant to rival Air France-KLM and Lufthansa. A merger would create Europe's second biggest airline by stock market capitalisation, and third biggest by income, with around 60 million passengers per year and combined synergies of 400 million euros (358 million pounds).

British Airways will hold 55 percent of the new company, while Iberia will hold 45 per cent, with the headquarters based in London, the statement said. Walsh will be chief executive of the company, and Iberia chairman Antonio Vazquez will be chairman, the statement said. Vazquez hailed the agreement, saying they were "laying the foundations of what will be one of the most important airlines in the world, a real global airline." "It has been a long process where many people, both at British Airways and Iberia, have worked very hard to reach this agreement. But in the end it was worth it," he said. "I believe that, thanks to this transaction, which is the most important in the European airline industry in recent years, we are more prepared than ever to face future challenges."

Both airlines have suffered heavy losses because of plunging demand for air travel in the fierce global economic downturn -- but it was unclear whether a merger would remedy the situation, analysts have said. The pair announced in July 2008 that they were in talks for an all-share merger. But discussions have bogged down in differences over the balance of control and the size of BA's pension-fund deficit. Iberia has the right to back out of the deal if the outcome of negotiations between BA and the administrators of its pension deficit is not "in Iberia's reasonable opinion, satisfactory," the statement said. The two airlines are seeking to merge at a time when the industry has been badly hit by a slump in passenger and cargo traffic. BA last week announced more job cuts and posted a loss of 217 million pounds in the six months to September 30, compared with a loss of 49 million pounds during the same period of 2008. Iberia, meanwhile, plunged into the red in the second quarter with a loss of 72.8 million euros against a 21.2-million-euro profit in the second quarter of 2008. The Spanish carrier releases third-quarter earnings on Friday.