Subhash Mohanti

Kolkata, September 20

ITC LTD is unleashing a broad spectrum corporate campaign from September 22 to emphasise the company's transformation from a predominantly cigarette manufacturer to a well diversified conglomerate. This is the first time that ITC is embarking on such a major ad campaign in the last three years.

ITC has already dropped the dots from its name and informed major stock exchanges accordingly on Wednesday. The company had earlier got the resolution on the same passed by shareholders at the annual general meeting. Even the latest balancesheet has the company's name spelt out as "I.T.C. Limited" on the cover. The dots between the letters will now be removed.

The move to do away with the dots follows the decision to indentify itself as a multi-business portfolio company which encompasses "a wide range of businesses, like hoteliering, packaging and printing, speciality papers, greeting cards, lifestyle retailing and agri exports apart from cigarettes and tobacco."

ITC, it may be recalled, has already decided to merge its paperboards subsidiary, ITC Bhadrachalam, with itself. The ad campaign that ITC proposes to launch this weekend will be followed by one which will emphasise the company's contribution and commitment to the country. The tone indeed was set by chairman Y.C. Deveshwar at the AGM itself when he had said : "All organs of society need to play a constructive role in partnership towards the fulfillment of this complex task.

The role of the Indian corporate sector in this regard is critical ... The major challenge is the rapid attainment of international competitiveness by making a successful transition from an era of relative protection to the fully globalised markets of tomorrow ..."

Meanwhile, the ITC board will meet on Friday to discuss, among other things, what its legions of shareholders want to know most of all - the swap ratio of ITC and ITC Bhadrachalam.