Newsmakers: Real Estate Bill, Vijay Mallya, car sales, ICICI bank and more

Rajya Sabha passes real estate regulation bill
A bill seeking to regulate the real estate sector, bring in transparency and help protect consumer interests was passed by the Rajya Sabha today. Moving 'The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2015' for consideration and passage, Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said it aims to protect the interests of buyers and bring more transparency in the sector.

Pressure on Vijay Mallya dials up, trademarks seized
A group of Indian banks, seeking to recover more than $1 billion in loans from Kingfisher Airlines, has taken possession of nine trademarks related to the defunct carrier as the mystery over the whereabouts of its chief, Vijay Mallya, deepens. Mallya, who built his fortune with Kingfisher Beer and is a guarantor to the debt, left the country last week, a lawyer for the lenders told the Indian Supreme Court on Wednesday. The banks have asked the court to demand his return and to impound his passport.

Siam cuts passenger vehicles growth forecast
Auto industry body Siam on Thursday cut the growth forecast for passenger vehicles sales for the ongoing and next fiscals, expecting demand to suffer due to infrastructure cess of up to 4 per cent announced in the Budget. Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam) has pegged the sales growth for passenger vehicles (PVs) at 6-8 per cent this fiscal and 11 per cent for the next.

Honda begins sale of zero-emissions car
Japanese auto giant Honda Motor Co. on Thursday began the sale of its new Clarity Fuel Cell, the world's first five-passenger sedan-type fuel cell vehicle (FCV) which has zero carbon emissions as it runs on hydrogen. The Clarity vehicle features a cruising range of around 750 km, meaning a driver can drive for up to that distance on a full tank, which marks an increase of about 30 percent compared to the previous FCV model, the company announced.

ICICI Bank launches credit-linked subsidy scheme under PMAY
Country's largest private sector lender ICICI Bank today launched a credit-linked subsidy scheme for home loans under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). Under this scheme, individuals including women borrowers from the economically weaker section and low income group will be able to acquire and construct the first brick-and-mortar house of the family by paying significantly lower equated monthly installments (EMIs), ICICI Bank said in a statement.