HDFC Mutual Fund launched Fixed Maturity Plan 182 Days April 2011 (1) with face value of Rs. 10 per unit : open for subscription on 5 April and close for subscription on 7 April 2011.

HDFC Mutual Fund has launched a new fixed term fund named as HDFC Fixed Maturity Plan 182 Days April 2011 (1), under HDFC Fixed Maturity Plans - Series XVII, a close-ended income scheme. The duration of the scheme will be 182 days. The face value of the new issue will be Rs. 10 per unit. The new issue will open for subscription on 5 April and close for subscription on 7 April 2011.

The investment objective of the plan is to generate regular income through investments in debt / money market instruments and government securities maturing on or before the maturity date of the plan.

The scheme shall offer two options - growth and dividend option.

The scheme would invest 60% to 100% of assets in debt & money market instruments including securitized debt. The scheme may invest up to 40% of net assets in government securities.

The minimum application amount is Rs. 5000 and in multiples of Rs. 10 thereafter.

The fund seeks to collect a minimum subscription (minimum target) amount of Rs. 1 crore under the scheme during the NFO period.

Entry and exit load charge will be nil for the scheme.

Benchmark Index will be CRISIL Liquid Fund Index.

The scheme will be managed by Mr. Bharat Pareek and Mr. Miten Lathia. 

src: indiaInfoline

Taurus Mutual Fund has launched Taurus Fixed Maturity Plan 367 Days Series C, a close-ended income scheme: new issue closes on 11th March

Taurus Mutual Fund has launched Taurus Fixed Maturity Plan 367 Days Series C, a close-ended income scheme.



The investment objective of the scheme is to generate income with
minimum volatility through investments in a portfolio of debt and money
market instruments maturing on or before the maturity of the scheme. The
tenor is 367 days.



The new issue closes on 11th March. The minimum investment amount is Rs5,000.



CRISIL Short Term Bond Fund Index is the benchmark index. Rahul Pal and Pankaj Jain are the fund managers.

What is variable life insurance plan (VLIP) and its difference with unit-linked insurance plan (ULIP ) , Advantage of VLIP and all about premium which combines investment and insurance

A variable life
insurance plan (VLIP) combines investment and
insurance, just like an unit-linked insurance plan (ULIP). Variable
life insurance schemes offer flexibility in the proportion of mortality
and savings components.

These plans
also offer more transparency, simplicity, quick liquidity, guaranteed
minimum returns, transparent charges and ample risk cover. This type of
life insurance allows you to participate in several investment options
simultaneously targeting your premiums to separate accounts.


Generally, the optional investment funds include stocks,
bonds, money market funds, equity funds, or a combination of them all.
Variable Life Insurance allows you to switch from one sub-account to
another.

You can also apply the
interest earned on these investments toward the premium, reducing the
amount you pay. In a departure from the ULIPs, the returns are declared
by insurance companies annually and are not linked to the stock market.


One part of the premium is
allocated to buy life insurance. The balance is invested in bonds or
equities. The premium amount cannot be altered in the course of the
policy, but the death benefit and savings element can be reviewed and
altered as the policyholder's circumstances change.


You can increase your insurance protection and decrease the
investment component, or vice versa. Another feature of this plan is
that it does not get automatically canceled if the policyholder fails
to pay the premiums as long as the premiums paid till date meet policy
requirements. Under the plans, the premiums paid by the holder, after
deduction of charges, will be credited to the account maintained
separately for each policyholder.


If all due premiums are paid, the amount held in the policyholder's
account will earn an annual interest which will be guaranteed for the
entire policy term. In addition to this guaranteed return, if all due
premiums are paid, the individual policyholder's account may earn an
additional return depending upon the experience under the plan.


There is an option to pay additional
(top-up) premiums without any increase in risk cover to the extent of
total basic premiums paid under the policy. The premiums can be paid
regularly at yearly, half-yearly, quarterly or monthly (through ECS mode
only) intervals over the term of the policy. The sum assured ranges
from 10 to 30 times the annualised premium, depending on age of entry.


There are two types of variable life
insurance plans - participating and non-participating. Participating
plans offer a guaranteed return, while nonparticipating plans offer an
annual bonus at the end of each financial year in addition to guaranteed
returns.

The minimum sum assured
is Rs 50,000 or 10 times the annualised premium, whichever is higher for
entry at the age below 45 years. After that age, the maximum is Rs
50,000 or seven times the annualised premium.


Top-up premium is allowed throughout the term. In case the
insured decides to increase his contribution through a onetime top-up, a
maximum of up to three percent charges may be deducted from the top-up.
The product also provides for loans up to 60 percent of the balance at a
specific rate of interest. 

src:ET

Power Project Investments in Bihar

One of the key focus of the Government of Bihar has been infrastructure development. We have seen the government invest in roads, Primary healthcare and education. The government also realizes that power will also play a major role in the development of Bihar and hence has increased focus on power generation projects in Bihar. Thus between 2006 and 2009 power generation projects worth more than 73,000 crores have been approved or are in the various stages of approval. If all these project materialize, then the total power generation capacity of Bihar will have increased by more than 18,000 mega watts. This will definitely go a long way in the development of Bihar.

While SIPB (State Investment Promotion Board) of Bihar has approved or conditionally approved all these projects, the Bihar cabinet is still taking its sweet time to approve the projects.





The Bihar cabinet has only approved 3 projects that will result in a total of 5,440 mega watts of power generation capacity with an investment of 22,779 crores India rupees.

As the government of Bihar has itself said that Bihar will need more than 8000 mega watts of power in the in next 5 years, it should speed up the process of making more approvals. The projects that are approved by the cabinet are 

Company : Type : Power capacity (MW): Location : Inv (Cr) 

JAS Infrastructure Capital Pvt. Ltd. : Thermal : 2640 : Banka : 11120

Adhunik Power & Natural Resources Ltd. : Thermal : 1000 : Kahalgaon, Bhagalpur : 4369.45 

M/S Nalanda Power Company Limited : Thermal : 1800 : Pirpainti, Bhagalpur : 7290

On another note, the Bihar government should also focus on giving approvals to green energy projects which will benefit Bihar more in the long run. Thus solar energy projects and Biomass projects should be encouraged. Currently most power projects in Bihar are Thermal/Coal based.

I have extracted a list of power projects in Bihar and am listing the ones with more than 100 MW production capacity.The list of all projects approved from 2006 to July 2009 can also be accessed here : Power Projects Bihar