Cash saves the day

To escape the tech carnage, few tech funds have assumed last resort -- to remain in cash. "Call it the cash shelter!" Technology stocks have plunged to abysmal levels but investors in Tata IT Sector Fund are not complaining. It is no different for unitholders in Birla IT and Chola Freedom Technology. Well, courtesy high cash exposures, investors in the three funds are smiling amidst a widespread gloom. Even as most fund managers waited for an elusive turnaround in the tech sector and stayed almost fully invested, Tata IT fund managers were assiduously knitting a survival strategy around a high cash component. Ditto for Chola Freedom, which went into an overdrive with its money market investments since the beginning of the current calendar. Thus, on the black Wednesday, when most tech funds simply caved in, Tata IT shed a mere 10 paise or 1.36% with its NAV settling at Rs 6.91. The fund had a whopping 83% in money markets on March 31, 2001. In other words, it was sitting on a cash pile of nearly Rs 20 crore while the top holding of MTNL had an investment of mere Rs 83 lakh! However, it is not just prudent management from the AMC. Tata IT was also very lucky to receive fresh investments of around Rs 10 crore in February. With