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ICICI's big pay chequesAn innocuous little notice sent out by the ICICI has boggled the minds of those who are doing their sums. Dated Ma...

ICICI8217;s big pay cheques

An innocuous little notice sent out by the ICICI has boggled the minds of those who are doing their sums. Dated May 5, it proposes to double the salaries of ICICI8217;s top three executives 8212; K V Kamath, Lalita Gupte and S H Bhojani. The MD and CEO, K V Kamath, can potentially earn up to Rs 1 crore per annum. How? His salary is going to be anywhere between Rs 2 and Rs 4 lakh per month 8212; that is Rs 24 to 48 lakh per annum. Add to this his bonus entitlement of up to 100 per cent and he could get Rs 48 to Rs 98 lakh per annum. This excludes normal perks such as furnished accommodation, club fees, car etc. Gupte and Bhojani have settled at slightly less. They stand to earn Rs 1.6 to Rs 3.2 lakh per month with the bonus and other perks as applicable to Kamath 8212; a possible maximum of Rs 76 lakh plus. Clearly, ICICI and its board think that the performance of the top management deserves such a reward. So what if the NPAs rise and the share price languishes. The board, who will clearthis huge hike also, has a lovely lollipop. The non-whole time directors can now collect a commission of 1 per cent of net profits with a hefty ceiling of Rs 50 lakh. As far as we can gather, other institutions including its largest shareholders such as UTI the new leaders of corporate governance are still reeling with shock. If they react, we will keep you posted.

Check your account now

This could be happening to your bank account. In November last, a senior executive in Mumbai received a letter from Bank of India BOI, which declared him a valued customer and listed his rights. It was a bank that cared, the letter said. Come May and he was in for a rude shock. He discovered that at least a dozen cheques deposited in his daughter8217;s account since March 1999 adding up to Rs 22,000 plus had not even been sent for clearance. On checking with BOI, he was shown a box full of such cheques, and asked to fish out the cheques. The reason for not sending the cheques for clearance 8212; the daughter hadturned into a major. The bank was too short of manpower to deal with the cheques or inform the account-holder. When the executive raised a stink, BOI offered to compensate by paying interest for the period when the money was not credited. What will happen to depositors who are unaware that their cheques are lying in a box? If this is the state of nationalised banks, it is time they were overhauled, shrunk or shutdown.

Traumatic telecommunications

It is obvious that the TRAI has messed up on the tariffs. Already, one consumer body 8212; the United Consumers of India 8212; has filed a case against the extortionate rise in local call tariffs. More groups are expected to join the litigation. The corporate sector, which was smug and unconcerned at the new tariffs, is in for a knock too. Cell phone companies who are already losing customers because of the hike in rental rates to Rs 600 are now demanding that land phone users pay four times the charge for calling a cell phone from August 1. This alone is boundto send telephone bills of business houses, particularly those in publishing houses, sky rocketing. This could lead to two results. People will stop calling mobiles unless the recipient agrees to reverse charges or corporates will have to restrict calls to mobiles the way they do long distance calls. One thing is certain; the cell phone market is going to find it impossible to grow and a struggle to keep from shrinking.

Montek8217;s next move

The rumour mills have started working again. Former finance secretary Montek Singh Ahluwalia was not expected to remain happy with his Planning Commission posting for long. He is now headed for the kind of posting that bureaucrats would die for. We hear that Ahluwalia may be moving to Washington either as deputy MD or special advisor to the managing director of the IMF.

Author8217;s e-mail: suchetadalalyahoo.com