Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL), a government owned PSU, has slashed tariffs on unlimited broadband home plans.

Under new tariffs, home users would now get double broadband speed at the same earlier price. These new tariffs have already been made effective from August 15.

Under its new unlimited broadband schemes, MTNL is now offering a broadband speed up to 512Kbps for Rs 999, up to 1 Mbps for Rs 1599, up to 2 Mbps for 3999 and up to 4 Mbps for 9999.

It is actually the double speed what MTNL was offering earlier.

Expressing confidence in India in spite of Mumbai terror attacks, Actis, a leading worldwide private equity investor, has announced that it has decided to pump one billion US dollar (over Rs 5,000 crore) in the country in the coming 3-4 fiscals.

According to the sources, the firm, has raised 2.9 billion US dollar for pumping across emerging markets.

While commenting on the investment, Mr. J M Trivedi, Actis Partner and Head for South Asia stated, "We remain positive on the Indian growth story and will continue to build value for our partners and investors."

State Bank of India, a leading private sector lender has announced that it has clinched a pact with Insurance Australia Group (IAG) with the aim to form a new conglomerate which would cater to the general insurance business in the domestic market.

Under the terms of JV agreement, SBI will be the owner of 74 percent stake in the new entity, while the remaining 26 percent will be hold by IAG.

While commenting on the agreement, Mr. O P Bhatt said, "Insurance penetration in India is very low and the general insurance industry is expected to grow at a brisk rate of

State Bank of India has informed that it has got sanction from Reserve Bank for a joint venture with Societe Generale, a leading financial services group from Europe, for providing custodial and related services in the country.

According to the sources, SBI will own 65% equity in the new joint venture that will be build to undertake the business, while the remaining 35 per cent will be hold by Societe Generale Securities Services.

The source further revealed that the new conglomerate intends to start operations by the first quarter of fiscal 2009.

Mumbai headquartered Accentia Technologies, has announced that the company envisages adding 1000 seats at the special economic zones (SEZ) in Vizag and Bhubaneshwar, with the aim to meet the increasing demand of health care outsourcing services.

According to the sources, the conglomerate has already secured 1 acre of land each in the proposed special economic zones (SEZ).

Accentia Technologies offers end-to-end business process management (BPM) solutions for the healthcare, financial and insurance sectors. The company operates primarily in India, the US and the UAE.

Mumbai headquartered Glenmark pharmaceuticals has annpunced that the US affiliate of the company Glenmark Generics has got final sanction from US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to sell Ranitidine Hydrochloride on prescription basis.

The approval has been granted for 150 mg and 300 mg dosage of the drug.

According to the sources, Ranitidine is indicated for prevention and developing of ulcer in the stomach. The drug also reduces stomach pain, diarrhea, and loss of appetite that ulcers can cause.

PBA Infrastructure, a leading construction conglomerate, has announced that the joint venture of the company PBA-Consite has bagged two construction orders worth Rs 450 million from Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA).

According to the sources, the first order has been secured for construction of skywalk at Ulhasnagar (East), while the second is for construction of skywalk at Ulhasnagar (West) from MMRDA.

Ulhasnagar is a town in Maharashtra State, India which is approximately 60 Kms from the city of Mumbai