Maharashtra State Financial Corporation

MSFC is a statutory Corporation set up under the State Financial Corporations (SFCs) Act, 1951.

JURISDICTION :
State of Maharashtra (since 1962), State of Goa and the union Territory of Daman & Diu
(since 1964).

FUNCTIONS
To provide mainly the term loan assistance to small and medium scale industries for acquiring fixed assets like land, building, plant & machinery. Loans are presently extended for expansion, diversification, technology development, enlarging product mix / product range, quality improvement including ISO 9000 series certifications and also for Take-Over of Term Loan accounts from Banks . otherFinancial Institutions in case of good borrowers of the Corporation.

FEE BASED ACTIVITIES :
Preparation of Project Appraisal / Feasibility Report etc.

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE :
Besides the Head Office at Mumbai (Bombay), MSFC has 7 Regional Offices and 12 Branch Offices in
Maharashtra and Goa.

The Regional Offices are located at Aurangabad, Kolhapur, Nagpur, Nashik, Pune & Thane in Maharashtra and at Panaji in Goa. The Branch Offices are located at Ahmednagar, Akola, Amravati, Beed, Chandraupr, Chiplun, Jalgaon, Latur, Nanded, Sangli, Satara and Solapur.

ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES
i) Industrial Activities such as manufacturing, assembling, servicing, processing, preservation, transportation,
setting-up industrial estates, etc.
ii) Activities such as Nursing Homes, Hotels, Restaurants, Tourism Related Activities
iii) Medical Practitioners are eligible for loan for acquiring Electro Medical and other equipment for professional
use.
iv) Qualified Professionals in Management, Engineering, Architecture, Accountancy etc desiring to undertake
expansion of their professional practice / consultancy ventures.
v) Other Service Activities declared as eligible under the SFCs Act.

vi) Proposed :
Commercial Complexes, Multiplexes, Marriage Halls, Group Housing / Residential Complex, etc.
The Small Scale Industrial Units should have SSI Registration while Service Enterprises should be registered with
the appropriate authority.

LOAN LIMIT : Rs. 5 Crore.
QUANTUM OF ASSISTANCE :
While deciding upon the quantum of loan, minimum promoters contribution and the prescribed Debt Equity Ratio
(DER) are taken into consideration. Higher margin and / or shorter repayment period may be insisted depending
upon the nature and rate of technological obsolescence and the risk perception for the project.

DEBT EQUITY RATIO (DER)
Permissible DER for the project is upto 2:1 depending upon the loan amount, nature of assets and risk perception but DER upto 1:1 may be insisted upon keeping in mind viability and collateral security. "Equity" includes promoters' contribution, share capital, seed capital, State Govt. subsidy, portion of accruals, deposits / interest free unsecured loanss (Quasi Equity) raised by the promoters etc. "Debt" includes long term loans, deferred payments, etc.

PROCEDURE FOR SANCTION OF LOAN :
The loan application forms are available free of charge which are to be submitted to the concerned Regional Office
duly filled in with required additional particulars. Preliminary clearance for further processing of the proposal is
given after scrutiny of the proposal and interaction with the promoters by the Screening Committee at the Regional Office or at the Head Office depending upon the loan amount. Detailed Technical and Financial Appraisal of the proposal for the loan is submitted to the Appropriate Authority for sanction of the loan.

PROCESSING FEE

Loan upto Rs.10 Lakh	:	0.7% of the amount sanctioned
Loan above Rs. 10Lakh	:	1% of the amount sanctioned subject to the maximum of Rs.1 Lakh

DISBURSEMENT OF LOAN :
Loan amount is disbursed after the promoters have complied with the terms & conditions stipulated in the
Sanction Letter.

Disbursement is made in stages depending upon the fixed assets acquired / created. Promoters have to furnish
necessary documents, valuation reports and Chartered Accountant's Certificate in the prescribed format to prove
the expenditure incurred. Physical verification of the assets acquired / created is carried out before disbursement
of loan.

The disbursement amount is released by keeping the margin stipulated on the value of the specific assets upon
completion of the legal formalities / documentation.

SECURITY :
i. Prime security in the form of fixed assets viz. land, building, plant & machinery financed by the Corporation
ii. Collateral security depending upon the type of project, location, technological obsolescence, risk perception
etc.

INTEREST RATES :
As may be decided by the Board of Directors of the Corporation from time to time. Presently the rate of interest is 13 % with 1.5 % incentive for prompt payment of principal installments and interest on due dates.

REPAYMENT PERIOD
Repayment schedule is fixed on the basis of the debt servicing capacity of the project. Maximum 8 years' repayment period inclusive of the moratorium period up to 2 years from the date of first disbursement is given. For certain schemes shorter repayment period is prescribed. Only interest payment commences during the moratorium period.

For repayment of Principal : Quarterly Installments.
For payment of interest : Monthly installments.

PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS (Till March - 2004)
Term Loans Sanctioned Investment Catalysed No. of Units Assisted Employment Generated Share of SSI Sector (Numberwise)	Rs. 3417 crore Rs. 6672 crore 58549 14.09 Lakh 94 %

HEAD OFFICE
United India Building, 1st Floor, Sir P. M. Road, Fort, Mumbai - 400 001
* Tel. : (022) 22691911 / 12 / 13 / 14 * Fax : (022) 22691915
* E - Mail : msfchead@vsnl.net * Web : www.msfcfinance.com

REGIONAL OFFICES :
* Mumbai - Konkan * Thane, Daman & Diu * Pune * Nashik * Kolhapur * Aurangabad
* Amravati * Nagpur and * Panaji (Goa)

The State Industrial & Investment Corporation Of Maharashtra Limited (SICOM)

SICOM is a premier financial institution located in Mumbai, dedicated to catalyzing development in the Industry, Services and Infrastructure sectors in India by providing tailor-made financial solutions and advisory services to entrepreneurs, companies in the private and public sector and Government bodies.

SICOM Limited was established in 1966, by the Govt. of Maharashtra as a 100% state owned company, with the objective of industrialising the backward areas of the State of Maharashtra. In the 38 years since its inception, SICOM, as the State Industrial Development Corporation (SIDC) for Maharashtra, has offered a range of services and extended Long Term Financial Assistance of more than Rs. 4,000 crores to over 3,000 units. The total investment catalysed in the backward areas of the state was to the tune of Rs. 85,000 cores.

Nature of operations :
In the past, term lending was the predominant activity for SICOM, with other services having a smaller share in terms of percentage of the total income. Over the last five years the product-mix has been diversified and SICOM now offers a range of services, which include fund based , as well as non-fund-based services. Fund based activities include providing of financial assistance by way of long term loans, leasing, short and medium term loans, and bills discounting. The above activities are supplemented by fee based activities like corporate advisory services, mergers, amalgamations and restructuring. SICOM's infrastructure advisory services include feasibility study, preparation of bid documents, loan syndication and assisting in identification of joint venture partners. Even though SICOM has diversified its product range, industrial financing continues to be the focus area of operation for SICOM.

SICOM hopes to play a major role for the IT enterprise that are being set up in the State of Maharashtra. SICOM has realised that IT entrepreneurs have special needs and SICOM has designed new products which cater to their specific needs. The customized term loan packages, that are project oriented or cash flow related are offered to these companies.

SICOM has launched a venture fund with participation from SIDBI and UWB. The fund is managed by SICOM and is targeted to provide equity support to companies in Information Technology sector. The fund operates from Pune. Information about the fund can he had from it's website www.sicomindia.com.

SICOM's website www.sicomindia.com provides more information about SICOM and nature of its operations. There is also a special section on “buy and sell opportunities” wherein entrepreneurs who are interested in seeking or offering industrial properties, sick units / mergers / acquisitions / partnership opportunities get a chance to interact on-line, this facility is found very useful by investors.

To international and domestic entrepreneurs, SICOM provides value added advice in setting up projects in Maharashtra. This includes advice on
i) Project Location ii) Govt. Clearances iii) Assistance in Legal Documentation
iv) Arranging for infrastructure v) Funds syndication.

SICOM has been a profit making organization and has played a prominent role in the Industrial Development in the State of Maharashtra. SICOM is the nodal agency for NRI investment and FDI in Maharashtra. Further, SICOM successfully pioneered and operated the Package Scheme of Incentives of GoM. In 1995, following Government of India's policies of economic liberalisation and privatisation of PSUs, Govt. of Maharashtra privatized SICOM. Accordingly, 51% of GoM's stake in SICOM was divested, making SICOM the first and only SIDC so far, where Government has reduced its holding to below 50%.

Initially, SICOM adopted the Growth Centre strategy whereby select centres were identified viz. Nashik, Aurangabad, Nagpur, Roha, Butibori, etc. and then concentrated efforts were made to provide support services to nurture the industrialists setting up projects in these Growth Centres. It was believed that once the wheel of industrial development was set in motion, social development would follow. Over the years, one has seen this strategy bearing fruits. SICOM played an important role in implementing the Govt. of Maharashtra's specially designed policy offering incentives to the industrialists investing in backward area.

SICOM today
SICOM has five regional presence in Delhi, Nagpur, Pune, Aurangabad and Nashik. SICOM believes in continuously upgrading it's products and providing a wide range of financial and advisory services to Indian and International Investors.

SICOM is acting as an effective catalyst to encash the strengths of Maharashtra, such as industrial culture, comfortable power position, qualified human resources, excellent infrastructure, State Government's initiatives in attracting private investment in the infrastructure projects, good telecommunication network, five star category industrial parks with abundant water supply, excellent social infrastructure in the industrial locations, in attracting foreign investment as well as investment from the NRIs and Indian companies in Maharashtra. Corporate Office :
SICOM Limited, 'Nirmal', Nariman Point, Mumbai 400 021. Tel. No. : 5657 2700 / 2202 3018
Fax No. : 2282 5781 / 2288 2895 E-mail : agarde@sicomindia.com Website : www.sicomindia.com

Regional Offices :
Aurangabad : Anand Bhavan, 166, N-5 (South), CIDCO, Aurangabad 431 001.
Tel.No. : 0240 2484580 / 2484590 Fax No. : 0240 2484570 E-mail : bkedar@sicomindia.com

Nagpur : Udyog Bhavan, 3rd Floor, Civil Lines, Nagpur 440 001.
Tel.No. : 0712 2564358 / 2552312 Fax No. : 0712 2561575 E-mail : jsalve@sicomindia.com

Nashik : Ground Floor, Common Service Centre, Nashik Trambak Road, MIDC Area, Satpur,
Nashik 422 007
Tel.No. : 95253 2354770 Fax No. : 95253 2354719 E-mail : rbhosale@sicomindia.com

Pune : Kubera Chambers, Dr.Rajendra Prasad Road, Opp. Sancheti Hospital, Shivaji Nagar,
Pune 411 005.
Tel.No. : 9520 2553 33 71 / 2553 81 67 Fax No. : 9520 25533201 E-mail : amahadik@sicomindia.com

New Delhi : 2 B, Vandana Building, 2nd Floor, 11, Tolstoy Marg, New Delhi 110 001.
Tel.No. : 011 23736738 Fax No. : 011 2373 6928 E-mail : mdas@sicomindia.com

Trademark

WHAT IS A TRADEMARK?

A trademark is a word, name, logo or symbol or phrase or device, which is used in trade with goods to indicate the source of the goods and to distinguish them from the goods of others. A service mark is the same as a trademark except that it identifies and distinguishes the source of a service rather than a product. The terms "trademark" and "mark" are commonly used to refer to both trademarks and service marks.
Trademark rights may be used to prevent others from using a confusingly similar mark, but not to prevent others from making the same goods or from selling the same goods or services under a clearly different mark. Trademarks, which are used in interState or foreign commerce, may be registered with the Trademark Office of concerned countries individually or through Madrid Agreement Route . India is yet to become Member of the Madrid agreement.
There exist three different types of trademark protection:

• Common law
• State / Federal registration

In order to gain common law rights in a trademark, the owner must use the mark on goods or services in commerce. These rights may be limited to the area in which the owner is doing business. Countries like India have, only federal registration system for trademarks. However some countries like USA have provision of registration in any State as well as from the federal trademarks office. In order to secure a State registration, the owner must use the goods or services in commerce and simply file the mark with the Secretary of State. The boundaries of protection for a State trademark are limited to the particular State. A federal trademark registration extends the owner's trademark rights nationwide. The federal registration serves as notice to all other trademark owners and generally trumps any other form of trademark protection, of course with some limitations

Functions of a Trade Mark

1. It identifies the product of its origin
2. It guaranties its unchanged quality
3. It advertises the products &
4. It creates an image for products

RELEVANT FORMS AND PROCEDURE FOR OBTAINING TRADEMARK IN INDIA

(a) Objectives

The aim of the Trademarks Registry is to provide for registration and better protection of trade marks in India and for the prevention of the use of fraudulent marks on merchandise.

b) Functions

The Trademarks Registry had been functioning since 1.9.1940 for the administration of the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958 read with the Trade and Merchandise Rules, 1959 Since September 20, 2003 the Trademarks Act 1999 read with The Trademark Rules 2001 has come in force

Apart from the above, the Trade Marks Registry has other functions like issue of search reports as to whether an identical or deceptively similar trade mark is already registered or filed, preliminary advice regarding distinctiveness of a trade mark, issuing of search certificate for use under the Copyright Act, preparation of search materials, maintenance of Register of Trade Marks, preparation of annual statistical reports, publication of Trade Marks Journal, publication of annual reports and the like. The new Trademark Rules have provisions to enable users / customers obtain Trademark Search. Report within a week.

Through a Government of India initiated project for modernisation and administration of the Trade Marks Registry with UNDP/WIPO assistance, it has resulted in the computerisation system functioning, fee receipt generation, numbering of applications, preliminary search report, examination of application, journal printing, renewal, change of name and address of registered proprietors etc. Complete database of trademarks is now available from its administrative organization.

c) Procedure for registration of trade marks

Before applying for registration of a trade mark, it is desirable to conduct a market survey through an investigating agency, etc. to ascertain whether any identical or deceptively similar mark is used for the same goods or services by any other person /party in the market.

It is also desirable before applying for registration to obtain preliminary advice regarding the distinctiveness of the mark from the Registrar by making a request on form TM-55 with the prescribed fee of Rs.50/-. The request on form TM-55 can be filed at the Trade Marks Registry, Mumbai or at the regional branch offices at Delhi , Kolkata, Chennai or Ahamadabad.

Also a request on form TM-54 can be made with prescribed fee of Rs.50/- to the Trade Marks Registry, Mumbai or at the said any branches to obtain an official report to ascertain whether any identical or deceptively similar trade mark is pending for registration in respect of the same goods services. It is also possible to make a personal inspection or search through the records of the Trade Marks Registry on payment of prescribed fee of Rs.50/- per hour.

After following the above procedure, an application for a trademark may be made on form TM-1 with the prescribed fee of Rs.300/- at the appropriate office of the Trademarks Registry. The appropriate office means the office within whose territorial limits the applicant resides or has his principal place of business in India . In case of a foreign applicant, the place mentioned as address for service in India will determine the appropriate office at which the application should be filed.

An application on form TM-1 should be filed in triplicate along with fee of Rs.300/- and with 10 copies of additional representations of the mark. The additional representations shall contain the mark, name and address of the applicant, or MOA in case of a Society / Company, class, goods and date if any from which the mark has been used etc. A trademark particularly a device or figurative mark may preferably be a black and white representation on bromide prints of dimension of 8 cm x 8 cm. However if colour' is also an attribute in the Trademark for its distinctiveness, coloured photographs / print may be provided instead of said bromide paper.All the fees may be paid in cash, or Demand Draft or local cheques drawn in a scheduled bank at the place where the appropriate office is located payable in the name of the Registrar of Trademarks. An application to register a trademark should be made in respect of goods comprised in one class only.