X X
NEW DELHI, MUMBAI, BENGALURU, KOLKATA, CHENNAI, AHMEDABAD, HYDERABAD, CHANDIGARH*, PUNE*
Friday, July 16, 2021
As RIL expands, so
do its subsidiaries
Kalpana Pathak
kalpana.p@livemint.com
MUMBAI
R
eliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has
added 499 units and affiliates in
just over four years as the refiner
and chemicals maker expanded into
new businesses, including telecom and
renewable energy.
India’s most valuable company had
88 Indian and 47 foreign units in
2016-17. That increased to 296 Indian
and 53 foreign subsidiaries in 2020-21,
according to RIL’s latest annual report.
The number of joint venture compa-
nies, both Indian and foreign, have
more than doubled from 24 in 2016-17
to 52 in 2020-21, and affiliate companies
increased nearly fivefold from 20 in
2016-17 to 98 in 2020-21. These subsidi-
aries are spread across RIL’s businesses
in petrochemicals, retail, telecom, digi-
tal services, real estate, exploration and
production, textiles and media.
“Over the past few years, RIL has
been acquiring both small and big
startups. For each such transaction,
the company creates a new subsidiary.
Also, there is a lot of investment that is
happening into smaller companies or
joint ventures or associate companies
via subsidiaries,” said an analyst track-
ing RIL at a local brokerage.
An RIL spokesperson did not reply
to an email sent on Tuesday.
Since 2016-17, RIL made $3.3 billion
in acquisitions with 14% in retail, 80%
in telecom, media and technology, and
6% in energy. Its latest acquisition was
Stoke Park Ltd, a luxury property in
the UK, for £57million.
The company has made more than
+ helps do that, it would serve our
30 acquisitions in the past three years
in the startup space alone. A majority of
the acquisitions were done to add
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livemint.com
Spreading wings
Reliance Industries had 88 Indian and 47
foreign subsidiaries in FY17. That jumped
to 296 Indian and 53 foreign units in FY21.
2016-17 2020-21
296
88
47
India Foreign
Source: RIL annual reports
SARVESH KUMAR SHARMA/MINT
value or fill gaps in RIL’s consumer
offerings. These investments fall under
the five categories of telecom, retail,
education, healthcare and agriculture.
Analysts said that with its new busi-
ness segments, including digital com-
merce, telecom and now renewables,
RIL is actively looking to acquire more
startups and mature companies. These
acquisitions lead to the formation of
new units and are sometimes consoli-
dated into a holding company.
In October, RIL carved out its oil-to-
chemicals business as a precursor to a
stake sale to Saudi Aramco. In Febru-
ary last year, it consolidated its media
businesses under Network18. In 2019,
the company created Jio Platforms for
its digital businesses.
“Conglomerates like RIL have a wide
corporate holding structure with multi-
ple subsidiaries. However, subsidiaries
are also created to mitigate and segregate
risks, save taxes and channel funding or
resources for specific projects,” said
another Mumbai-based equity analyst.
VOL. 15 NO. 168
QUICK EDIT
Scrap
sedition
“Does the government want to
retain the sedition law 75 years
after Independence?” This was
the big question posed by a
Supreme Court bench led by
the Chief Justice of India N.V.
Ramana. The court was hearing
a petition challenging the con-
stitutional validity of Section
124A of the Indian Penal Code,
a colonial-era law notorious for
53 its frequent misuse against
those deemed ‘anti-national’.
“The use of sedition,” observed
Ramana, “is like giving a saw to
the carpenter to cut a piece of
wood, and he uses it to cut the
entire forest itself.”
Section 124A, with its non-
bailable provisions and loose
wording that gives govern-
ments a club to thwack dissent,
as it covers the incitement of
disaffection towards the pre-
vailing regime, has in recent
times been wielded against
members of opposition parties
as well as civil-society activists
who are critical of the current
dispensation. Under the British
raj, it served as a tool against
non-violent resistance, as
mounted by Mahatma Gandhi.
Today, it stifles the very free-
dom we had struggled for. This
malevolent leftover law should
be scrapped. If our apex court
constitutional ideals well.
X X

PLAIN FACTS

Number of vaccination
sites falls by 28% in July
BY RASHMI KUNDU, HOWINDIALIVES.COM

A
mid growing fears of a third wave of covid-19 infections, India’s access to vaccination has taken a turn for the worse.
The average number of operational vaccination centres in the country dropped by 28% in the first two weeks of July,
compared to the last 10 days of June when the Union government took over the distribution of vaccines from states.
This month, India had about 34,000 operational vaccination sites, even lower than the first 20 days of June. Three states—
Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh—saw this number drop by more than 50%.
Some state governments, including Tamil Nadu and Telangana, said the decrease was due to shortage of vaccines, while
Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday blamed states for mismanaging vaccine distribution. The Union
health ministry said states, Union territories, and private hospitals had about 15 million unused vaccine doses.
A district-wise breakup of vaccination sites shows that most of the country has faced poorer access this month, some
districts more than the others. In all, 577 of 717 districts saw a decline in vaccination sites. In 110 districts, the number of
operational vaccination centres came down by over 50%.
This is in sharp contrast to the last 10 days of June, when 457 districts saw an increase in the number of functioning vaccina-
tion sites, and the average daily doses given at each site jumped to 116. In July, the average daily doses per site is down to 79.

Eight out of 10 districts in India saw a decline

in the number of vaccination sites in July
Change in sites in the first two weeks of
July versus the last 10 days of June

Ten of the top 15 districts by vaccination

Decrease
sites saw a drop in access
Increase
Daily average functioning vaccination sites
Same
NA
Last 10 days First two weeks
District State of June of July
Bengaluru Urban Karnataka 698 691
Varanasi
Pune Maharashtra 507 369
Mysuru Karnataka 355 341
Raigarh Chhattisgarh 306 334
Kalaburagi Karnataka 256 303
Kolhapur Maharashtra 319 275
Mumbai Maharashtra 326 273
Rae Bareli Uttar Pradesh 110 273

Adilabad Kolkata West Bengal 309 272

Yadgir Karnataka 311 267
Bengaluru
Urban Chennai East Champaran Bihar 177 261
Bidar Karnataka 196 218
North 24 Parganas West Bengal 283 216
Raigad Maharashtra 222 214
Koppal Karnataka 253 198

Data as of 14 July or latest available. Source: Cowin

+

Japanese Podium India climbed four spots in vaccination

coverage growth last week
INDIA HAS registered an 8.2% growth in vaccination coverage Weekly change in covid-19 Cumulative covid-19
vaccine doses vaccinations
—measured in terms of share of population that has received at per 100 people (in %) per 100 people
least one dose—climbing four spots to third position among the Japan 10.6 50.3
10 most populous countries. The growth rate is up from 7.4% Philippines 10.4 12.3
last week, but down compared to 11.6% a fortnight ago. India 8.2 28.1
Meanwhile, China continued to make huge strides in mass Russia 8.1 33.4
vaccination, having administered 1.4 billion doses, 11.6% more Brazil 6.3 55.1
than all countries in Africa, Europe, Oceania, North and South Indonesia 6.0 18.8
Americas combined, according to data available on Our World Mexico 5.8 39.8
China 4.4 97.4
in Data.
US 1 100.2
Earlier this month, Japan had accelerated its pace of Bangladesh 0 6.1
vaccination in preparation for the Tokyo Olympics, slated to 1. Data for 10 most-populous countries, arranged in descending order of
begin on 23 July. After registering 26% growth in coverage last weekly change in doses. Pakistan, Nigeria and Ethiopia excluded due to
inadequate data. 2. Data as of 13 July or latest available. 3. Number of doses
week, it has slowed to 10.6% this week. So far, Japan has may not indicate full vaccination since many vaccines require multiple doses.
vaccinated 31% of its population with at least one dose. Source: Our World in Data, World Bank

Seven of the top 10 districts with most

new cases last week are in Kerala
Long Covid
New confirmed cases in each district in the last seven days WHILE THE NUMBER of new cases in India decreased by
<100 NA 7% in the past week, it has gone up in the five districts that
100–500 have been reporting the most new infections. In all, 54
500–1,000
1,000–5,000
districts from 17 states and Union territories witnessed an
>5,000 increase in cases registered in each of the last two weeks.
Kerala’s Malappuram reported over 12,000 cases, the
highest in any district in five weeks. Maharashtra’s Nandurbar
Kolhapur saw the steepest growth, jumping to 349 cases this week from
10,543 just 11 last week.
The northeastern states are still reeling under the impact of
Kozhikode the second wave, and have 15 of the country’s 23 districts that
10,331
saw an increase in cases in each of the last four weeks. Twelve
Thrissur
Malappuram 9,919 of these districts have been consistently registering over 150
12,544 cases every week. Mamit in Mizoram saw its cases double to
Latest data as of 7.30 pm on 14 July. Source: howindialives.com 142 cases in a week.

Fatal U-Turn Maharashtra and Kerala lead in the

country in the number of deaths
AFTER DECREASING for two weeks, the number of deaths in Rolling 7-day average of deaths
Maharashtra Kerala
some parts of the country is again on the rise. As many as 25 362 119
districts—including eight from Odisha, six from Maharashtra, 1,000
and three from Kerala—saw deaths gradually increase in each of
the last three weeks. In fact, the week-on-week death tally in Odisha
Odisha has been on a rise in the past one month. Pune recorded 100 Karnataka
567 deaths in the past seven days, becoming the first district to go Tamil Nadu
Assam
past 500 in a week since late June. Seven districts have reported Andhra
10 Pradesh
more than 150 deaths each in the past seven days, all from
Manipur West Bengal
Maharashtra. Both Palghar and Thane saw a threefold jump.
Telangana
Mass vaccination, the most effective solution to offset the
1 Data for top 10 states by cases
impact of a probable third wave, has lost some of its momentum it as on 14 July. The vertical axis
uses a logarithmic scale, which
got from the Union government late last month. Currently, at 3.8 makes the scale appear smaller
million doses a day, it is just slightly higher than the 3.2 million than it actually is.
0.1
doses averaged in early June. This needs to pick up. 6 Jan 2021 14 Jul
www.howindialives.com is a database and search engine for Source: Ministry of health and family welfare

public data. AHMED RAZA KHAN

PEANUTS by Charles M. Schulz

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X X
X X
NEW DELHI, MUMBAI, BENGALURU, KOLKATA, CHENNAI, AHMEDABAD, HYDERABAD, CHANDIGARH*, PUNE*
Friday, July 16, 2021
SENSEX 53,158.85 254.80
Power users may soon
get to choose supplier
Cabinet may consider landmark bill to reform power distribution biz
Utpal Bhaskar
utpal.b@livemint.com
NEW DELHI
T
he Union cabinet may
shortly consider the Elec-
tricity (Amendment) Bill,
2021, that aims to de-li-
cense power supply,
allowing multiple distributors in the
same area and giving consumers the
option to switch power suppliers.
Post the cabinet’s approval, the bill
is expected to be introduced in the
monsoon session of Parliament that
begins on Monday. According to the
Lok Sabha bulletin, the bill is in the
tentative list of government’s legisla-
tive and financial business that is
expected to be taken up during the
sixth session of the 17th Lok Sabha.
Speaking at a conference organized
by lobby group Confederation of Indian
Industry (CII), power minister Raj
Kumar Singh on Thursday said all
stakeholders, including states, industry
and the ministries, have been consulted
over the proposed amendments.
“Now, it is final, so we have pro-
posed it to be taken up in the cabinet,”
Singh said. “It also has a provision for
de-licensing distribution, which again
+ is a major reform. And which I think
should happen. We have consulted all
the states, and no state has raised any
objections. Why should they? Because
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livemint.com
NIFTY 15,924.20
MORE CHOICE
The landmark Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2021 is expected to be introduced
in the monsoon session of Parliament that begins on Monday.
Discoms' dues to generation
companies (in ₹ cr)
Central
public sector
enterprises
25,972
Overdue amount
(by end May)
70,153
Independent
power
producers
32,814
11,367
Source: Ministry of
power’s PRAAPTI portal
we are not tampering with their
present distribution companies. They
will continue functioning as they are.
But, because we are de-licensing it,
other people will have the opportunity
to come and compete. Which is as it
should be,” Singh added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi ear-
lier said electricity consumers should
be able to choose their supplier like
they do with any other retail com-
modity. With the distribution compa-
nies being the weakest link in the
electricity value chain, the Union
VOL. 15 NO. 168
70.25 DOLLAR ₹74.55
L
OPEN MARKET
REFORM allows con-
sumers to choose their
power supplier like they
do with any commodity
ISSUES related to high
levels of cross subsidy,
losses, poor infra will need
to be resolved, say experts
THE bill spells out fines
Renewable for any failure by dis-
energy coms to meet renewable
producers purchase obligations
SARVESH KUMAR SHARMA/MINT
budget presented earlier this year
announced the creation of a frame-
work to allow consumers to choose
their electricity suppliers.
Experts said issues related to high
levels of cross-subsidy, losses and
poor infrastructure will also need to
be resolved. “The success of de-li-
censing or retail competition will crit-
ically depend on its ability to address
the core issues relating to (a) the high
level of cross-subsidies in retail tariffs;
TURN TO PAGE 6
Rs 5.00 IN DELHI-NCR; Rs 6.00 OUTSIDE DELHI-NCR. PRICE WITH HINDUSTAN TIMES Rs 9.50 (FOR DELHI & NCR)
The subtle art of keeping
India’s lights on
₹0.04 EURO ₹88.30
LIC books record
stock market gain
ahead of share sale
Anirudh Laskar
anirudh.l@livemint.com
MUMBAI
ife Insurance Corp. of
India (LIC), which is work-
ing on the biggest public
share sale in the country,
booked record stock market
profit of over ₹10,000 crore in
the April-June period, two peo-
ple aware of the matter said.
State-owned LIC, the largest
insurer in the country, is also
the biggest domestic investor
in Indian markets, buying
shares worth ₹94,000 crore in
FY21 to reach a total stock mar-
ket investment of ₹8 trillion at
the end of the fiscal year.
“Being a contrarian inves-
tor, LIC has the advantage of
booking profits from shares
that were bought many years
back when there was hardly
any other insurer. This is pos-
sibly the highest June-quarter
profit,” said a LIC official, one
of the two people cited above.
“We have sold shares worth
around ₹20,000 crore in the
first quarter of this tough year
of the pandemic, from which a
profit of more than ₹10,000
crore was made,” the person
said seeking anonymity.
In the quarter ended 30
June, when the second wave of
the covid pandemic lashed
uP10
₹0.37 OIL $73.73
Record haul
LIC’s profits primarily come
from sale of shares in its
large non-linked portfolio.
Profit from sale of shares (in ₹ cr)
Apr-Jun 2020 7,000
Apr-Jun 2021 10,000
Firms in which LIC reduced its
stake in Apr-Jun 2021
Stake sold (in ₹ cr)
HDFC Bank
HDFC Ltd 921
3,149 22
Biocon
Source: Mint Research
PARAS JAIN/MINT
India with daily new cases at
one point crossing 400,000,
markets surged over 6%, help-
ing LIC book large profits. The
record profit-booking is also
expected to help the govern-
ment attract more investors to
the mega-IPO in the works.
In April-June last year, LIC
booked a profit of a little over
₹7,000 crore. Between April
and October 2020, LIC had
booked around ₹15,000 crore
as profits in the capital market.
In the June quarter, LIC cut
its stake in Housing Develop-
TURN TO PAGE 6
Centre invites proposals
to manage LIC IPO >P5
Are you ready for
reemergence fashion?
$1.03 GOLD ₹48,199
Wipro reports
its best quarter
ever on robust
revenue growth
Ayushman Baruah
ayushman.b@livemint.com
BENGALURU
W
ipro Ltd posted its
“best ever” quar-
terly earnings on
Thursday, with chief executive
Thierry Delaporte steering a
turnaround of the software
services provider that has
lagged behind its rivals for
much of the past decade. His
efforts, albeit, have been
helped by a global embrace of
digital technologies.
The Bengaluru-based com-
pany said fiscal first-quarter
profit rose 35% to ₹3,230 crore
from a year ago, beating ana-
lyst estimates by a wide mar-
gin. Revenue grew 22.4% to
₹18,250 crore in the three
months to 30 June. Analysts
expected profit and revenue of
₹2,826.2 crore and ₹17,602.6
crore, respectively, according
to a Bloomberg survey.
Delaporte, who completed a
year in office this month, is
executing a five-point strat-
egy, including prioritizing sec-
tors and markets, strengthen-
ing relationships with strate-
gic clients and partners,
enhancing the portfolio of
business solutions, building
talent at scale and simplifying
TURN TO PAGE 6
16 PAGES
uP14
₹234
DON’T MISS
Markets at a record high as Fed
signals it won’t tighten policy yet
Markets closed at a record high on Thursday as
dovish comments by the US Federal Reserve
on interest rates boosted investor sentiment.
The S&P BSE Sensex gained 254.80 points, or
0.48%, closing at 53,158.85. The Nifty jumped
70.25 points, or 0.44%, to 15,924.20. >P6
Civil aviation ministry issues
draft national drone policy
Civilian use of drones will not be allowed
without a unique identification number,
according to the draft Drone Rules, 2021,
which was released on Thursday for public
consultation by the Union ministry of civil
aviation. >P5
Centre transfers ₹75,000 crore
to states as GST compensation
The central government on Thursday
transferred ₹75,000 crore it borrowed from
the market to states in goods and services
tax (GST) compensation, helping states to
spend early in the financial year to support
economic recovery. >P9
SC seeks Centre’s response on
scrapping colonial-era sedition law
Pointing to its ‘enormous power of misuse’,
the Supreme Court on Thursday asked the
Centre why it should not scrap the colonial
sedition law that was once used to oppress
leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi and Bal
Gangadhar Tilak. >P2
X X

02 FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI ECONOMY & POLICY LIVEMINT.COM

m MINT SHORTS
Sebi moves Supreme Court against
Sedition law a serious threat PM praises
UP govt for
SAT order on Franklin Templeton
New Delhi: Markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board
of India (Sebi) has moved the Supreme Court against the 28 June
order of Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) which stayed its
to individual liberty, says SC controlling
covid crisis
decision to bar Franklin Templeton Asset Management (India)
from launching new debt schemes for two years and had asked HT Correspondent
the fund house to refund a little over ₹512 crore. Sebi moved the letters@hindustantimes.com
top court on Wednesday against the relief granted to Franklin Apex court to examine multiple cases calling for striking down Section 124A after two weeks LUCKNOW
Templeton by SAT. PTI

P
rime Minister Narendra
Utkarsh Anand the attorney general to assist it in adju- Modi during a visit to his
Ola commences bookings for utkarsh.anand@hindustantimes.com dicating a petition filed by S.G. Vom- Lok Sabha constituency
batkere, a former army officer. This in Varanasi on Thursday
upcoming electric scooter NEW DELHI
petition questioned the constitutional praised the Uttar Pradesh (UP)

P
REUTERS
ointing to its “enormous validity of Section 124A, and sought a government for its handling of
power of misuse”, the directive to quash all proceedings the covid-19 crisis, saying that
Supreme Court on Thursday under the section pending with the the way it controlled the sec-
asked the Centre why it police and courts across the country. ond wave of the infection was
should not scrap the colonial On Thursday, as the matter com- “unprecedented”.
sedition law that was once used to menced, Venugopal pointed out that Describing the efforts of the
oppress leaders such as Mahatma Gan- there were at least two other cases on government in combating
dhi and Bal Gangadhar Tilak. the validity of Section 124A pending covid-19 as “commendable”,
The government’s top law officer, before other benches of the Supreme the Prime Minister said UP’s
attorney general K.K. Venugopal, sub- Court and hence, the CJI bench could population was more than that
mitted that the entire law need not be hear all these matters together. At this of a dozen big countries yet the
struck down and that the court could point, senior counsel Shyam Divan way “it has controlled the sec-
lay down strict guidelines so that the submitted that the Editors Guild of ond wave of the coronavirus
New Delhi: Ola Electric on Thursday said it has com- provision meets its legal purpose. India has also filed a petition for strik- and stopped its spread is
menced reservations for its upcoming electric scooter. The court observed that indiscrimi- The Supreme Court said it was concerned about the misuse of the sedition law ing down the sedition law and their unprecedented”.
Starting from Thursday, consumers can reserve their Ola nate use of Section 124A (sedition) in and the lack of accountability of the executive and investigating agencies. MINT petition should also be clubbed. His remarks came in the
Scooter on olaelectric.com by paying a refundable deposit the Indian Penal Code (IPC) is like a saw The bench then agreed to hear all run-up to the assembly elec-
of ₹499, the company said in a statement. “India’s EV revo- in the hands of a carpenter who cuts the about the “misuse of the law and lack of “There is no dispute that it is a colo- these matters together. tions due in the state in 2022.
lution begins today as we open reservations for our electric entire forest instead of a tree. accountability of the executive and the nial law and was used by the British to “If you see the history of this section, Modi also said that Uttar
scooter, the first in our range of upcoming EVs,” Ola chair- “Unfortunately, continuance of this investigating agencies”. suppress freedom and was used against the conviction rate is very low. The Pradesh was emerging as the
man and group chief executive officer Bhavish Aggarwal law after 75 years... This government The court’s comments come amid a Mahatma Gandhi, Bal Gangadhar enormous power of misuse of this sec- leading investment destina-
said in a statement. PTI has been scrapping many obsolete spike in the number of sedition cases. Tilak. Is this law still needed after 75 tion can be compared with a carpenter tion of the country due to the
laws. We don’t know why years of independence? given a saw. Instead of cutting a tree, he environment created by the
they are not looking into COLONIAL LAW Do you have to keep it in cuts the entire forest,” the bench said. UP government led by chief
JEE Main exams postponed by four this law? Continuance of the statute book?” the “Take the 66A IT Act—thousands of minister Yogi Adityanath.
this law is a serious threat ATTORNEY general HE said the court SOLICITOR general bench, which also cases were registered even after it hav- The Prime Minister inaugu-
weeks amid demand from students to the functioning of K.K. Venugopal could lay down strict Tushar Mehta sought included justices A.S. ing been struck down. If the police rated and laid the foundation
submitted that the guidelines so that time to place the
New Delhi: The Union government on Thursday postponed institutions and individu- entire law need the provision meets Centre’s formal Bopanna and Hrishikesh want to fix somebody, it can invoke stones of multiple develop-
the fourth session of the joint entrance exam main (JEE Main) als’ liberty,” said a bench not be struck down its legal purpose response on record Roy, asked Venugopal. 124A also. Everybody is a little scared ment projects worth ₹1,583
by four weeks amid a growing demand from students to headed by Chief Justice Solicitor general Tus- when this section can be invoked. crore at the IIT-BHU ground.
increase the gap between third and fourth session. Accord- of India N.V. Ramana. har Mehta sought time to These are all issues which need to be He also inaugurated the Vara-
ingly, JEE Main fourth session will now take place between Putting the central government on Between 2016 and 2019, according to place the Centre’s response on record. looked into... If a political party wants nasi International Coopera-
26August and 2 September instead of 27 July and 2 August notice over a clutch of petitions that data from the National Crime Records The penal provision is punishable to suppress dissenting voices, they can tion and Convention Centre-
announced on 6 July. PRASHANT K. NANDA have pressed for striking down Section Bureau, the number of such cases rose with a jail term ranging between three use this law to book others,” said the Rudraksh, which has been
124A (sedition) of the IPC, the court by 160% to 93. But in 2019, the convic- years to life, with or without a fine. bench, adding it will examine all these built with Japanese assistance
emphasized that it was concerned tion rate in such cases was a mere 3.3%. On Wednesday, the bench requested cases on Section 124A after two weeks. later in the day.
‘Airport slot allocation in India
needs regulation, transparency’
India opposes fisheries deal at WTO CBSE asks schools
HT

+ Asit Ranjan Mishra

asit.m@livemint.com
ing Indian fishermen and their
livelihood, Goyal said. “How-
to moderate marks
NEW DELHI ever, I am disappointed to note
that we are still short of finding Prashant K. Nanda The board said it has “pro-

I
ndia on Thursday opposed a the right balance and fairness prashant.n@livemint.com vided marks, including distri-
move by developed coun- in the agreement,” he said. NEW DELHI bution of marks, based on best
tries at the World Trade WTO members should not performance of the previous

Organization (WTO) to scrap
subsidies for fishermen,
New Delhi: Existing slot allocation systems at Indian air- demanding a balance between
ports are not aligned with global best practices and there current and future fishing
is an urgent need for strong regulations, transparency and needs of developing countries,
centralized coordination, aviation consultancy Capa India as well as effective special and
said at a webinar on Thursday.The slot allocation frame- differential treatment (S&DT)
work in India scores poorly compared with systems in the keeping in mind their devel-
EU, the UK and the US, which are driven by strong regula- opmental needs.
tion and high levels of transparency, it said. RHIK KUNDU “An important element of
what India wants is appropri-
ate and effective S&DT, in the
Chemspec Chemicals files papers true spirit as enshrined in the
guiding principles of the Mar-
for ₹700 crore IPO with Sebi rakesh Agreement. Limiting
New Delhi: Chemspec Chemicals Ltd has filed preliminary S&DT to poor and artisanal
papers with capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange fishermen only is neither
Board of India (Sebi) to raise ₹700 crore through an initial share appropriate nor affordable and
sale. The initial public offering (IPO) is entirely an offer for sale not acceptable at all. S&DT has
for shares worth ₹233.4 crore by promoters, draft red herring to be for a country as a whole.
prospectus filed with Sebi showed. PTI We need S&DT to not only
protect livelihoods of poor
fishermen but also to address
70% Gen Z job applicants were food security concerns of a
nation, have the necessary pol-
rejected during pandemic: report icy space for developing the
New Delhi: Jobs application of around 70% of Gen Z aspirants, fisheries sector and for the
or those below 24 years, were rejected during the ongoing pan- time required to put in place
demic. A fresh survey released on World Youth Skills Day Thurs- systems to implement the dis-
day, by job networking platform LinkedIn said this was due to the ciplines,” India’s trade minis-
lack of opportunities, slower recruitment process and more com- ter Piyush Goyal said during
petition. STAFF WRITER the ministerial meeting on
T
repeat the mistakes made dur- he Central Board of Sec- three years, which is taken as
ing the Uruguay Round that ondary Education reference for the purpose of
allowed unequal and trade- (CBSE) on Thursday moderation”. This means if a
distorting entitlements for asked schools to moderate stu- school has 100 students and
select developed members, dents’ marks, basing them on only 15% of them have scored
particularly in agriculture, their average score of the past above 95% on an average in the
India needs effective special and differential treatment to while unfairly constraining three years, and restrict the past three years in internal and
protect livelihoods of poor fishermen as well as to address food less developed members who number of Class 12 students independent assessment, it
security concerns, said trade minister Piyush Goyal. HT did not have the capacity and getting more than 95% marks. cannot award 16% or above
resources to support their If a particular school or a percentage of students marks
fisheries negotiations at WTO. such as Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, industry or farmers then, India group of schools is found in excess of 95%.
Developed countries claim Karnataka, and Kerala. said. inflating marks, the CBSE “They will have to restrict
that fisheries subsidies, esti- A deal is mostly targeted at “Fisheries are a common itself will moderate the scores the number of students at each
mated to be in tens of billions China, which is the largest endowment to humanity, a before announcing the results level of overall marks from
of dollars annually, create sig- catcher and exporter of fish global public commons. by 31 July, it said, warning that 95% and above to ensure that
nificant distortions in global and provides huge domestic Therefore, the sharing of this wrong-doers will face action. this is not more than the num-
fish markets and subsidy to its fish- should be in an equitable and The circular comes as it is ber of students scoring these
are a major factor India demanded a ermen. India is a just manner. Any unbalanced feared that some schools may overall marks as per the best
for overfishing balance between distant seventh or unequal agreement would inflate marks as exams have historic performance of last
and overcapacity current and among top fish bind us into current fishing been cancelled and results will three years,” the CBSE said.
and the depletion future fishing exporters and arrangements, which may not be based on school-level per- The new assessment
of fishes. Devel- does not indulge necessarily meet everyone’s formances in theory, practical scheme based on a 30:30:40
oping countries
needs of
in illegal, unre- future requirements. As we and project work. And schools model after exams were can-
such as India developing ported and discuss sustainability, it is are playing a bigger role in the celled has entrusted schools to
want to protect countries unregulated essential that big subsidizers result calculation this year. do the bulk of the assessment
subsidies for low- (IUU) fishing, take greater responsibility to “To ensure comparability work based on internal assess-
i n c o m e , which WTO reduce their subsidies and and fairness at the higher ment, practical and project
resource-poor fishermen for wants to curb. fishing capacities, in accord- range of marks, schools should works. While the performance
whom it is a matter of liveli- India is very keen to finalize ance with the principles of pol- exercise due diligence and of a student in Class 10 and 11
hood and who constitute a sig- the agreement because irra- luter pays and common but ensure there is no bunching of will be awarded 30% weight
nificant proportion of the tional subsidies and overfish- differentiated responsibili- total marks in the range of 95% each, the Class 12 performance
electorate in coastal belt states ing by many countries is hurt- ties,” the minister said. and above,” the CBSE said. will get 40% weightage.

Centre warns states of 3rd wave, urges strict adherence to covid protocol CORRECTIONS AND
CLARIFICATIONS
Mint welcomes comments,
Neetu Chandra Sharma to result in another surge in about the blatant violations of their expenditure proposals to meeting, and offered guidance suggestions or complaints
neetu.s@livemint.com cases. I would like to reiterate covid-appropriate behaviour strengthen their respective on policies of the ministry on about errors.
NEW DELHI the need for focussed public by people, following the relaxa- healthcare infrastructure to the different aspects of covid
Readers can alert the
health measures by states and tions in lockdown restrictions. streamline covid-19 response management.
newsroom to any errors in the

T
he government on
Thursday warned states
of an imminent third
wave of the covid-19 pandemic
if gross violations of covid-19
protocols continued unabated.
In a letter to states, health
secretary Rajesh Bhushan said
violations of covid-19 norms
have been observed in various
parts of the country, especially
by people using public trans-
port, by tourist at hill stations,
and local markets across
regions. “Such complacency at
this juncture has the potential
Union territories (UTs). It is Bhalla also urged so that the Centre Following the decline in the paper by emailing us, with your
imperative to adhere to the states to issue The govt asked can ensure timely number of active cases, states full name and address to
guiding principles of covid-19 strict directions to states to send sanction of funds and UTs have been gradually feedback@livemint.com.
containment and management district and local their expenditure u n d e r the easing mobility restrictions.
with a special focus on the five- authorities for ₹23,123-crore Bhalla said the process should It is our policy to promptly
proposals to respond to all complaints.
fold strategy of test-track-treat- regulating crowds
strengthen their Covid Emer- be carefully calibrated. Readers dissatisfied with the
vaccinate, and adherence to to contain the gency Response India has vaccinated 394.9 response or concerned about
covid-appropriate behaviour,” spread of covid-19. healthcare and Health Sys- million people as of Thursday. Mint’s journalistic integrity may
said Bhushan. In a letter to states, health secretary said violations of covid-19 He said the con- infrastructure tems Prepared- So far, 31 million people have write directly to the editor by
“Focussed and sustained norms have been observed in various parts of the country. PTI cerned officers ness Package: been infected by the virus and sending an email to
high levels of testing, relentless should be held Phase II. 412,000 have died because of asktheeditor@livemint.com
contact tracing, comprehen- super-spreader events are of in our battle against covid-19,” personally responsible for any The health ministry also covid. In the last 24 hours, Mint’s journalistic Code of
sive vaccination and ensuring essence. I, therefore, urge you he added. laxity in strict enforcement of reviewed the preparations 41,806 new cases were Conduct that governs our
strict adherence to covid-ap- to take appropriate steps to On Wednesday, home secre- covid protocols. under the package with health reported. The active caseload newsroom is available at
propriate behaviour in ensure that we do not lose the tary Ajay Bhalla had warned On Thursday, the govern- secretaries and senior officials stood at 432,041 or 1.39% of the www.livemint.com
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LIVEMINT.COM DEALS, TECH & STARTUPS FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI 03

m MINT SHORTS Google Cloud adds 2nd Temasek shifts its

Record $43 bn worth deals made in stake in Manipal
H1 ’21 ; 10 unicorns created: report
Mumbai: The January-June period of 2021 saw 20% rise in deals
to a record high of $43 billion (about ₹3.2 trillion) besides creation
of 10 new unicorns, despite the devastating second wave of the
cloud region in country to Shears India
pandemic, according to a report by Grant Thornton . The period
saw completion of 856 deals worth $43 billion with an average Ranjani Raghavan &
deal size of $50 million, the report said. While in volume terms, Payal Ganguly
it is 42% more than the year-ago period’s, in value terms it is Customers are expected to benefit from improved biz continuity planning
higher by 20% over last year, which is a record, it said. PTI NEW DELHI

Ayushman Baruah

T
emasek Holdings Ltd has
L&T Infotech reports 19.3% rise ayushman.b@livemint.com shifted its stake in Mani-
pal Health Enterprises
in Q1FY22 net profit at ₹496.8 cr BENGALURU
Pvt. Ltd to its new Indian

G
oogle Cloud launched its healthcare platform Shears
new cloud region in Delhi- Healthcare India, the Singa-
NCR (National Capital pore state investor’s India head
Region) on Thursday to Ravi Lambah and deputy head Temasek Holdings India head
serve its customers in India Promeet Ghosh said. Ravi Lambah.
and Asia-Pacific. This new Google Cloud R. Venkatesh, previously a
region is the second such in India after director at Temasek in India, is terms, the India portfolio has
Mumbai and the 10th in Asia-Pacific. the chief executive officer of grown to 5% exposure of its
The need for a second cloud region in Shears Healthcare India plat- global assets under manage-
India stems from the enormous growth in form that was created a couple ment (AUM) in FY21 from 4%
demand for capacity building, disaster months ago, they said in an exposure in FY20. Its net
recovery solutions and low latency, interview. investments in India exceeded
Thomas Kurian, chief executive officer, “Shears India has been cre- its net divestments, Ghosh said.
Mumbai: L&T Infotech (LTI) on Thursday reported a Google Cloud, told reporters. “India is one ated for investments where we Like most other investors,
19.3% rise in consolidated net profit to ₹496.8 crore for the of our fastest-growing markets.” have an operating involve- Temasek is also riding on the
June 2021 quarter, and declared a special dividend of ₹10 The Delhi-NCR region has joined the ment,” Lambah said. growing trend of digitization in
per share. The company had registered a net profit of ₹416.4 existing 25 Google Cloud regions across The need for a second cloud region in India stems from growing demand for capacity Temasek fully owns the India that has sustained after
crore in the year-ago period, LTI said in a statement. Its rev- the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific building and disaster recovery solutions, said Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian. Shears platform and has the outbreak of the ongoing
enue was up 17.4% to ₹3,462.5 crore in the reported quarter connected via Google’s network. restructured the entity for dif- covid-19 pandemic.
from ₹2,949.2 crore in the year-ago period, it added. “We As the second cloud region, customers The Delhi-NCR cloud region is aimed at director, Google Cloud India. ferent geographies it operates The firm has identified four
are pleased to report our best ever Q1 sequential growth of are expected to benefit from improved helping companies in regulated industries HDFC Bank, a customer of Google in. Its other investments in trends which are ‘digitization’,
5.1%, driven by holistic growth across our verticals, service business continuity planning, while main- that have high requirements for disaster Cloud, said it is investing in technology healthcare include Dr Agarwal ‘future of consumption’, ‘sus-
lines, client pyramid and geographies,” LTI chief executive taining data sovereignty. recovery solutions. platforms to both run and build the bank. Healthcare Ltd, where it tainable living’ and ‘longer
officer and managing director Sanjay Jalona said. PTI Global cloud computing companies are “Customers will have the ability to “Towards this, the Google Cloud region acquired a minority lifespans’, Lambah
increasingly expanding their footprint in establish private connections via inter- in Delhi-NCR will enable us to enhance stake in 2019. It also said.
India to ride on the digital transformation connect to utilize the Delhi-NCR region our resiliency and help us in building an owns a minority stake The trends on digi-
Consumer lending fintech startup wave accelerated due to the pandemic. with existing partners,” the company said. active-active design framework for our in Global Health Pvt. tization and the
Last year, Amazon Web Services said it “As we slowly emerge from the crisis of new-generation applications on the Ltd that operates Medanta-The evolving future of consumer
Credit Fair raises $15 mn in funding will invest $2.77 billion to set up cloud,” said Ramesh Medicity. behaviour structurally fit India
New Delhi: Credit Fair, a consumer lending fintech startup, has a second cloud infrastructure NETWORK EXPANSION Lakshminarayanan, chief There are no specific plans to the best, Lambah said. “As we
raised $15 million (about ₹111 crore) as part of a seed funding region in Hyderabad by mid- information officer, HDFC shift Global Health to the think about deploying capital
round led by angel investors Anand Ladsariya and Alok Agarwal 2022 to serve its growing cus- THIS new Google IT has joined the CLOUD computing Bank. Shears platform as of now, the going forward, we will be
of Striver Capital Advisors. Credit Fair will leverage the capital tomer base in the country. Cloud region is the existing 25 Google firms are expanding Similarly, mobile adver- firm said. guided by the trends that we
second such in India Cloud regions across their footprint in India
infusion to augment its technology team, enhance underwriting “With this new region, Goo- after Mumbai and the Americas, Europe to ride on the digital tising company InMobi The platform is looking at a have identified,” he said.
models and expand into tier II and III cities to scale its assets gle Cloud customers operating 10th in Asia-Pacific and the Asia-Pacific transformation wave Group said that with the couple of fresh investments in Temasek’s investments over
under management (AUM), a statement said. PTI in India will benefit from low arrival of the Google Cloud India, the executives said, with- the last year have focussed on
latency and high performance Delhi-NCR region, it sees an out specifying details. these themes. Last week, Tem-
of their cloud-based workloads and data. the past 18 months, we are turning our opportunity to continue closing the gap Temasek’s overall India asek invested alongside War-
OneCode raises $5 million from Designed for high availability, the region focus to helping Indian businesses accel- between users and products. portfolio exposure has grown burg Pincus in ride hailing cab
opens with three availability zones to pro- erate their digital transformation, deep- “We can’t wait to continue giving our in absolute and in percentage aggregator Ola, and also
Surge, Nexus Venture and others tect against service disruptions and offers ening our commitment to India’s digitiza- users truly meaningful experiences that terms in FY21 against FY20, invested in D2C meat brand
New Delhi: OneCode, a platform to digitize the sales ecosystem, a portfolio of key products, including tion and economic recovery…The Google are speedy, scale well and are relevant to Ghosh said. Licious earlier this month.
+ Thursday said it has raised $5 million (about ₹37.2 crore) in
on Compute Engine, App Engine, Google Cloud region in Delhi-NCR will help our them by expanding the use of our current The India portfolio holding Temasek also made two fol-
funding led by Sequoia Capital India’s Surge and Nexus Venture Kubernetes Engine, Cloud Bigtable, customers adapt to new requirements, tools working on Google Cloud with the in absolute terms stands at $14 low-on investments in API
Partners, with participation from WaterBridge Ventures.The Cloud Spanner and BigQuery,” Google new opportunities and new ways of work- opening of a new region,” said Mohit Sax- billion in FY21 against $9 bil- Holdings twice over the last six
funding round was also supported by angel investors . PTI Cloud said in a statement. ing,” said Bikram Singh Bedi, managing ena, co-founder, InMobi. lion in FY20. In percentage months.

CDPQ-Piramal credit platform exits LEAP

Debjyoti Roy sent to LEAP India did not elicit Management, a wholly owned
debjyoti.roy@hindustantimes.com any response till press time. subsidiary of Piramal Enter-
NEW DELHI LEAP India, which was prises Ltd (PEL), announced
founded in 2013, provides the credit platform in February

T
he $300 million credit
platform announced last
February by Canadian
pension fund Caisse de Dépôt
et Placement du Québec
(CDPQ) and Piramal Asset
Management Pvt. Ltd has
exited a venture capital-backed
supply chain solutions pro-
vider, according to a person
aware of the development.
The platform has logged out
of pallet pooling firm LEAP
India through the structured
finance route, said the person
mentioned above.
Of the ₹250 crore ($33.5 mil-
lion) raised by LEAP India from
HDFC Bank, Aditya Birla Capi-
tal Ltd and IDFC First Bank,
₹150 crore was given to the
platform to help it exit, the per-
son said. The remaining ₹100
crore will be used for growth.
Piramal Capital & Housing
LEAP India provides returnable
and customized packaging
solutions to industries.
Finance Ltd had extended a
credit line of ₹200 crore to
LEAP India in 2018, which was
transferred to the platform, the
person said.
The platform’s loan had
been repaid partly earlier and
the latest development marked
the final instalment of the debt,
the person said. The platform
took no haircut while exiting
the company. An email query
returnable and customized
packaging solutions to indus-
tries. It offers wooden pallets
and foldable large containers,
which are used for storing and
moving products across the
supply chain.
LEAP India primarily caters
to packaged consumer goods,
consumer durables,
beverages, e-com-
merce, retail, auto
and auto-component
manufacturing sectors. The
firm serves more than 600 cus-
tomers and 7,000 touchpoints
from a pan-India network of 18
warehouses.
Equity investors in the firm
include Morgan Stanley’s India
Infrastructure Fund, Interna-
tional Finance Corporation,
IndiaNivesh, Mayfield Capital
and Sixth Sense Ventures.
CDPQ and Piramal Asset
2020 to offer private credit to
Indian firms across sectors
such as manufacturing, con-
sumer, industrial, pharmaceu-
ticals and logistics.
CDPQ would bring in 75% of
the $300 million corpus, the
firms had said at the time.
The platform is the second
instance of CDPQ and
PEL collaborating for
co-investment oppor-
tunities. In 2017,
CDPQ’s real estate arm Ivanhoé
Cambridge committed $250
million towards a co-invest-
ment platform with PEL to pro-
vide long-term equity to blue-
chip residential developers.
Earlier this year, VCCircle
reported that the credit plat-
form was in advanced discus-
sions to invest in a Chennai-
based franchisee bottler for
Coca-Cola India.

Inshorts raises $60 mn from Vy, others

Tarush Bhalla helping some of these people commerce, jobs and classi-
tarush.b@livemint.com in their quest of keeping them- fieds. The social network is
BENGALURU selves informed, and we are available in more than 11
thrilled to have Vy Capital join regional Indian languages and

N
ews content aggrega-
tor Inshorts on Thurs-
day said it has raised
$60 million in a funding round
led by global technology
investor Vy Capital.
With this, Inshorts Pte Ltd
has raised $140 million over
the past one year alone from
Lee Fixel-backed Addition,
Tiger Global Management,
SIG and A91 Partners for its
core news aggregator business
(Inshorts) and location-based
social network Public.
The latest round values the
startup at a little more than
$500 million, two persons
aware of the matter said on
condition of anonymity.
“The world is changing
every minute, and each one of
us has an inherent desire to
remain updated about these
changes. Both Inshorts app
and Public app are aimed at
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X X
us in our journey,” Azhar
Iqubal, co-founder and chief
executive officer, Inshorts and
Public, said in a statement.
In March, Public had raised
₹300 crore (or roughly $40
million) from A91 Partners.
Last year, the social media app
had also bagged ₹260 crore (or
roughly $35 million) led by
Addition.
Inshorts, which was started
eight years ago, provides
60-word news snippets to
users and currently claims to
have 10 million users, with a
large part of its user base resid-
ing in tier-1 metros and cities.
“We are excited to partner
with Azhar and team in their
journey to build one of the
largest content platforms out
of India, running two market-
leading properties with a rap-
idly growing user base. We
look forward to working
Azhar Iqubal, co-founder and
CEO of Inshorts and Public.
closely with the company and
the team as it enters the next
phase of scaling,” said Vamsi
Duvvuri, partner, Vy Capital.
On the other hand, Public
app is relatively new and was
launched in April 2019 with a
focus on tier-2, 3 and 4 geo-
graphies.
Public app provides updates
and happenings around a
user’s location, enabling local
claims to have more than 50
million users across India.
“We believe that all of us
want to remain connected to
our locality as much as we
want to remain connected to
our friends and family. While
many large platforms like
Facebook, Instagram and
Snapchat have been built for
the latter, the problem of con-
necting to our locality remains
unsolved and Public is our
attempt for the same,” said
founder Iqubal.
Several brands such as GSK,
Amazon and HDFC Bank use
Public as a medium to reach
out to audiences in smaller
towns and cities, the company
had said earlier.
It also said earlier that more
than 50,000 elected officials Celebrating 21 Years of Excellence
and government authorities Laying the Foundations for an
are using Public to reach out to ESG-Ready Corporate India
citizens on the ground.
X X

04 FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI MARK TO MARKET LIVEMINT.COM

S&P BSE Sensex Nifty 50 Nifty 500 Nifty Next 50 Nifty 100 S&P BSE Mid-cap S&P BSE Small Cap
CLOSE PERCENT CHANGE CLOSE PERCENT CHANGE CLOSE PERCENT CHANGE CLOSE PERCENT CHANGE CLOSE PERCENT CHANGE CLOSE PERCENT CHANGE CLOSE PERCENT CHANGE

53,158.85 0.48 15,924.20 0.44 13,720.35 0.43 39,001.85 0.33 16,160.20 0.43 23,026.64 0.31 26,362.80 0.43
PREVIOUS CLOSE OPEN PREVIOUS CLOSE OPEN PREVIOUS CLOSE OPEN PREVIOUS CLOSE OPEN PREVIOUS CLOSE OPEN PREVIOUS CLOSE OPEN PREVIOUS CLOSE OPEN

52,904.05 52,968.89 15,853.95 15,872.15 13,661.10 13,686.35 38,874.00 38,987.20 16,091.50 16,114.10 22,954.85 22,993.18 26,251.19 26,376.11
HIGH LOW HIGH LOW HIGH LOW HIGH LOW HIGH LOW HIGH LOW HIGH LOW

53,266.12 52,948.43 15,952.35 15,855.00 13,738.60 13,677.35 39,066.65 38,930.80 16,184.70 16,100.15 23,044.53 22,978.30 26,422.78 26,336.56

m MINT SHORTS
Wall Street has surrendered
As RBI pulls up Mastercard on data
to the $500 billion ETF rush
US money managers could not stop the march towards
exchange-traded funds (ETFs), so they decided to join
it instead. Now, it’s more like a stampede. ETFs are on
norms, lenders need a visa to grow
the brink of luring more money in seven months than Aparna Iyer The company has indicated that it For now, banks can re-negotiate
in any calendar year on record. At $488.5 billion and aparna.i@livemint.com would work with the regulator in with Visa and RuPay, the only card Cardless in India
counting, they will likely break the $497 billion full-year resolving the issue. The regulator’s companies without any restrictions on The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has dominated retail transactions amid a

T
record set in 2020 in weeks, possibly days. Within that he tussle to keep customer intentions seem clear that it is not operations. But a shift to a new card decline in card payments, presenting a challenge for global card companies in India.
surge is a historic capitulation by the mutual fund data onshore has finally ready to compromise. network cannot be done overnight. Cards UPI Share of Mastercard in total cards
industry. Investors have long been migrating to the made the Reserve Bank of Global card companies issue debit This is evident from RBL Bank, Total retail payments (in ₹ trillion) Share of other cards (in %)
cheaper, easier-to-trade and more tax-efficient vehicle. India (RBI) punish global cards, credit cards and prepaid cards.which said that it would tie up with 120

Now, even the most-storied money managers are card companies, with Mas- Mastercard is a large card issuer in Visa, but would be able to issue new 13.97
launching ETFs in a bid to stay relevant, and some—like tercard Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd the latest India, with a third of the market in its
cards only after 8-10 weeks. Bajaj 90
FY20 20.64
Vanguard Group—are handling their clients’ conver- one to get pulled up. fold. Analysts worry that if the status
Finance Ltd and RBL Bank Ltd stand to
sions for them. Almost all of the 25 largest asset manag- India’s lenders won’t be able to issue quo on restrictions remained, it wouldlose the most growth given that their 35.86 60
ers in the US offer an ETF or plan to do so, according to any new Mastercard-powered cards to dent card issuance growth for lenders cards are powered by Mastercard.
Bloomberg Intelligence. BLOOMBERG their customers starting The shares of these 12.93 30
next week until the com- LENDING WOES two lenders were down
FY21 40.03
pany adheres to the regu- on Thursday.
0 0
lator’s data localization NEW Mastercard THE restrictions on BANKS can negotiate Moreover, co-branded 50.23 0
Losing momentum norms. RBI had put cards will not be Mastercard could with Visa and RuPay cards tend to have only
SBI Cards Bajaj
and Payment Finance
ICICI
Bank
Axis
Bank
RBL
Bank
Oil slides as US fuel inventories expand. issued from next dent card issuance but a shift to a new Systems
restrictions on two other week unless the firm growth for lenders in card network can’t be one specific operator Source: RBI, Nomura research
WTI futures (in $ a barrel) companies, American adheres to data rules the medium-term done overnight and, according to Nom-
80 Express and Diner’s ura Financial Advisory & SATISH KUMAR/MINT

Club, in April this year on Securities (India) Pvt. ICICI Securities Ltd analysts in a note. retail transaction base after the Unified
75
similar grounds. in the medium term. Ltd, this segment is the fastest growing. That said, most banks have tie-ups Payments Interface (UPI) came into
70 72.51 The key issue is that global card Visa, which holds almost half the SBI Cards and Payment Services Ltd with multiple card firms, which may being two years ago. Last year, UPI
companies are required to keep the market share, has not been pulled up, may face trouble given its large base of cushion the blow somewhat. Credit transactions totalled a massive ₹40 tril-
65 data pertaining to transactions in a sys- but the company hasn’t confirmed co-branded cards, though Mastercard’s cards are a high-yielding lucrative lion, while transactions of all cards put
tem in India and were asked to comply whether it is compliant with the norms. overall share is 10% for the lender. business for lenders and have already together were not more than ₹15 tril-
60 with this norm within six months after While restrictions on Mastercard are “If a particular Mastercard been slowing due to the pandemic. lion. As global card companies grapple
the rules were issued in April 2018. sure to hurt lenders because of its large co-branded credit card has high contri- When it comes to debit cards, some with data regulations, they also need to
55 52.36
One may note that Mastercard has share, a similar imposition on Visa bution to the overall mix of a credit disruption is unavoidable. However, safeguard their relevance in the overall
50 been pulled up after two whole years would play havoc on the growth of new card player, it will have a higher impact we should note that the cards payment payment sphere amid growing digital
15 Jan 2021 15 Jul 2021
since the rules came into force. credit card issuance and spends. on the issuer’s business growth,” wrote system has lost share in the overall options.
Source: Bloomberg
SATISH KUMAR/MINT

Oil extends losses amid rising

US stockpile, Opec+ standoff
GAIL’s performance to get a L&T Tech becomes the latest
Oil fell for a second day after a surprise jump in US pet-
rol stockpiles tempered signs that the American market
has returned to robust health. Futures in New York slid
boost from higher gas prices beneficiary of froth in markets
+ near $72 a barrel after falling 2.8% on Wednesday, the Ujjval Jauhari Harsha Jethmalani
most since mid-May. American inventories of petrol Favourable uptick “The stock has run up sharply its operating profit margin
and distillates—a category that includes diesel—both ujjval.j@livemint.com harsha.j@livemint.com and is trading at 30 times FY23 improved by 70 basis points (bps)
Rising prices are positive for the profitability of GAIL’s gas
rose last week. Demand for petrol pulled back from price to earnings. This makes it on a sequential basis to 17.3%.
trading segment.

G S
record levels seen at the start of the month, but average AIL (India) Ltd shares hares of L&T Technology one of the most expensive stocks According to the company’s
Henry Hub natural gas Spot LNG Prices (in $/mmBtu)
levels of consumption are returning to normal. There have given up some of Services Ltd (LTTS) and that too for a discretionary management, the wage hike
20
were also signs Opec+ may be able to revive supplies their gains over con- jumped 19% on the NSE on spend dependent engineering impact of around 150bps and
soon, as delegates said the United Arab Emirates (UAE) cerns on the lockdown-related Thursday after it announced the and research and development higher sub-contractor costs were
made significant progress in resolving its standoff with disruptions during Q1. The 15 June-quarter results. The move (ERD) business,” said a report by absorbed by tailwinds from oper-
Saudi Arabia. Oil has rallied more than 50% this year as stock is, however, still up about was so sharp that even shares of P h i l l i p C a p i t a l ational efficiencies,
the vaccine rollout lifts demand in major economies 18% year-to-date. 10 parent company Larsen & (India) Pvt. Ltd The firm said that cost optimization
such as the US and China, and fosters a recovery in Analysts maintain a positive Toubro Ltd rose by over 4%. before the 19% jump the wage hike’s and growth in the
Europe. BLOOMBERG outlook for the company as However, the jump has not in the stock. Discre- impact was offset higher margin busi-
5
higher crude prices remain made much of an impact on ana- tionary spending by tailwinds from ness.
favourable. Natural gas prices, lysts. “LTTS’s Q1FY22 earnings tends to be erratic The sequential
operational
China poised to challenge US after remaining weak for long, 0
Jan 2021 Jul 2021E*
were ahead of our estimates, pri- and can cause reve-
efficiencies and
constant currency
are now firming up. marily led by its higher profit nue growth rates to revenue growth of
with record crude production Notably, the company is the
Note: mmBtu is million British thermal units *E is estimates Source: ICICI Securities Ltd
margins. However, this does fluctuate. cost optimization 4.3% was largely in
Chinese oil companies processed a record volume of largest transporter of natural SATISH KUMAR/MINT
nothing to our FY23 earnings For now, the line with the Street’s
crude in June, offering further signs that Asia’s largest gas through its pipelines in non-contracted (back-to-back) petchem,” said HDFC Securi- estimates, as the already firm’s growth rates estimates, aided by
economy may surpass the US to become the world’s big- India and remains the key ben- volume would earn a higher ties Ltd analysts. expected margin improvements and near-term prospects are an improvement in client met-
gest refining nation this year. Volumes hit 14.86 million eficiary of rising gas demand. trading margin and could see a The broker pegs 9% CAGR are flowing in earlier than antici- decent, though all this and more rics. Growth was healthy across
barrels per day last month, up 3.8% from May, according The higher gas prices could continuation of margin uptick expansion in gas transmission pated. As such, we view the rise in is priced into the stock. The stock verticals, except medical devices.
to Bloomberg calculations based on data from the also boost the company’s gas in the scenario of higher crude volume over FY21-23 on the the stock as purely a valuation now trades at more than 35 times Geography-wise growth was led
National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday. That com- trading revenues. prices, higher spot LNG prices back of an increase in domestic multiple re-rating, with no great FY23 earnings, based on Phillip- by North America and Europe.
pares with a daily average of 16.17 million barrels in the Analysts at Jefferies India and stable US Henry Hub gas gas production. The increase in reason to support it,” said an ana- Capital estimates. The company also won six
US in June, data from the Department of Energy show. Pvt. Ltd said in a recent note: prices. However, analysts demand for regasified LNG and lyst at an institutional brokerage, A key highlight of the Q1 earn- large deals of over $10 million
China’s refining capacity has nearly tripled since the “Our FY22E expect GAIL’s gas the completion of major pipe- requesting anonymity. ings was that despite wage hikes, during the quarter. It revised its
turn of the millennium and the International Energy Ebitda estimates GAIL is the largest transmission vol- lines in the eastern and south- FY22 revenue growth guidance
Agency predicts that it will overtake the US this year. could see a 15% transporter of ume to see some ern parts of India are expected Ahead of the curve to 15-17% from 13-15% earlier.
Crude processing capacity will expand to 1 billion ton- upgrade on the natural gas in impact in Q1FY22 to provide further impetus to “Compared to the relatively low
nes a year, or 20 million barrels/day, by 2025, China back of higher India and remains due to lower gas gas volumes. L&T Technology Services Ltd reported an increase in its profit margin base of FY21, we were already
ahead of analysts' expectations.
National Petroleum Corp. forecast earlier. BLOOMBERG natural gas trad- estimating a higher growth num-
a key beneficiary consumption by News reports also suggest
Revenue (in $ million) Ebit margin (in %) (right-hand scale)
ber for this fiscal,” said the analyst
ing and LPG prof- city gas distribu- that the company plans to
itability if crude of rising gas tors, power utili- monetize a few of its pipeline 250 20
cited above.
demand 206
sustains at $70.” ties and refineries. assets through the infrastruc- It appears some investors are
Pick-up in hiring The company Gas trading seg- ture investment trust (InvIT)
200
171
18
viewing LTTS with a new lens,
The ending of restrictions saw job openings in the UK had already seen ment may miti- route. “The proposed InvIT 150 17.3 16 where it is no longer merely an
reach a record level in June. the gas trading segment gate some of the impact. could re-rate the valuation ERD services firm, but a digital
100 14
Job openings in the UK (in thousands) rebound to profits during the “We expect GAIL to report a multiple of transmission busi- ERD firm. Other stocks in the
1,000
962
March quarter after reporting 4% jump in Ebitda sequentially ness from 6.5x to 9x, lifting 50 12 ERD space such as Tata Elxsi Ltd,
continued losses during the during Q1, owing to profitabil- GAIL’s fair value by 20% (₹30/ 12.1 KPIT Tech Ltd and Cyient Ltd
795 previous three quarters. ity in the gas trading segment share), provided sizeable assets 0 10 have also rallied sharply in the
800 Q1FY21 Q1FY22
Analysts at Reliance Securi- offsetting the flat transmission are transferred,” said analysts Note: Ebit is short for earnings before interest and tax. Source: Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd
past year, rising 400%, 272% and
ties Ltd said GAIL’s US LNG and lower volumes in at Jefferies India Pvt. Ltd. 257%, respectively.
600
SATISH KUMAR/MINT

400

200
Feb 2020 Jun 2021
Margin pressure and softer sales worry consumer durables cos
Source: Bloomberg
Ujjval Jauhari said they expect Q1FY22 reve- monitor trends post the easing same is encouraging, the pace
SATISH KUMAR/MINT
ujjval.j@livemint.com nue to increase 49% y-o-y for
Cost pressure of lockdown curbs. may pick up thereafter.
Rising prices of key commodities are putting pressure on the
consumer durables companies Cooling products such as However, with softer sales in
UK firms hire at a record pace margins of consumer durables manufacturers.

C
onsumer durables man-
in June as economy reopens ufacturers saw a soft
UK companies added payrolls at a record pace in June June quarter, with sales
as the reopening of the economy triggered an unprece- taking a hit amid the second
dented scramble for staff. The number of employees on wave of the pandemic that led to
company books climbed by 356,000, the Office for regional lockdowns.
National Statistics said on Thursday. Demand for staff The impact, however, was
rose, with vacancies in June alone increasing to a record less severe compared to the
962,000, up 7% from May. “The rise in vacancies con- year-ago period, which saw a
firms the ongoing struggle to hire staff,” said Suren stringent nationwide lockdown.
Thiru, head of economics at the British Chambers of As a result, the companies
Commerce. “The recruitment difficulties faced by firms may still be able to report good
go well beyond temporary bottlenecks. Staff shortages year-on-year (y-o-y) growth in
may drag on any recovery.” The figures come a day after sales, even as the numbers are
Bank of England’s deputy governor Dave Ramsden lower sequentially, and stay
highlighted the unexpected buoyancy of the labour below the levels seen in the
market and signalled that officials may soon have to June 2019 quarter.
consider whether to withdraw emergency stimulus to Analysts at Motilal Oswal
keep inflationary pressures in check. BLOOMBERG Financial Services Ltd (MOFSL)
under their coverage. On a
sequential basis, the same is
pegged to decline by 32%.
Demand recovery across the
sector had been faster than
expected during FY21, but the
second covid wave disrupted
the recovery process and led to
lower offtake during April-May,
said analysts.
May was the worst hit in
terms of sales of consumer
durables such as air-condition-
ers, said Harshit Kapadia, vice-
president, consumer durables &
electrical and capital goods,
Elara Capital.
This is likely to have a signifi-
cant bearing on sales growth of
Price (in ₹ per kg)
Copper Aluminium
400
138
Q1FY21
room air-conditioners in FY22.
Rising commodity prices will
also continue to exert pressure
on margins. MOFSL pegs
Ebitda margins at 8.6% for com-
panies under its coverage ver-
room air-conditioners, fans and
745 air coolers were the most
650 impacted, said analysts at
Emkay Global Financial Servi-
ces Ltd. Although, there was
recovery in June, with the last 15
173 196 days seeing a healthy rebound
for cooling products as a heat-
wave battered northern India,
Q4FY21 Q1FY22 the pace has been slower than
Source: Emkay Global Financial Services Ltd
last year.
Pent-up demand that
SATISH KUMAR/MINT
boosted sales last year may also
sus 12.4% in the previous quar- not be as strong. Dealer stock-
ter. Not surprisingly, net profits ing has been hit by expectation
are estimated to decline 55.8% of a third wave. Kapadia said
sequentially, even though they eyes will be on the kickstart pro-
may more than double on year. vided by the beginning of the
The Street will continue to festive season in August. If the
the June quarter and lack of a
smart recovery, price hikes in
consumer durables remain
uncertain, leading to concerns
on margins. While sustainabil-
ity of cost-reduction initiatives
undertaken by the companies
may support, certain costs such
as advertising and promotional
expenses are expected to
return. Any reduction in the
fixed costs, if sustainable, could
emerge as a key future catalyst,
said analysts.
Market leaders such as
Havells India Ltd, Voltas Ltd
and Blue Star Ltd have seen cor-
rections of up to 17 % since their
recent highs in February-April.

Mark to Market writers do not have positions in the companies they have discussed here

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LIVEMINT.COM CORPORATE FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI 05

Centre invites proposals to Bankers fear huge disruption

from RBI ban on Mastercard
manage LIC public listing Gopika Gopakumar &
Shayan Ghosh

MUMBAI

A
Reserve Bank of India
Dipam says it will appoint up to 10 i-bankers, who will decide on size and timing of the IPO (RBI) decision to bar
global card network
Mastercard from issuing new
Asit Ranjan Mishra “The shortlisted bidders would be cards, close on the heels of sim-
asit.m@livemint.com required to demonstrate their creden- ilar punitive actions on two
NEW DELHI tials before an inter-ministerial group other card networks, will cause
(IMG) through a presentation, covering significant disruption in India’s

T
he government has invited these areas. The IMG would evaluate the evolving payments system, said
proposals for appointing bidders on these criteria and proposals two senior executives of private
investment bankers, legal received and shortlist them for opening sector banks on the condition
advisers, registrar and share of their financial bids,” Dipam said. of anonymity. Banks that solely depend on Mastercard will take at least two
transfer agents (RTAs), and an Bids can be submitted till 5 August Banks that solely depend on months to move their business to either Visa or RuPay. REUTERS
advertising agency for managing the ini- and will be opened on 6 August. Mastercard will take at least
tial public offering (IPO) of Life Insur- The investment bankers will decide two months to move their busi- not come across publicly as “RBL Bank expects to start
ance Corporation of India (LIC), which the size of the IPO, its structure and tim- ness to either Visa, the sole tough,” said the second banker. issuance of credit cards on the
is poised to become the biggest share ing in consultation with Dipam. The global survivor so far, or home- However, the central bank’s Visa payment network after the
sale by an Indian company. bankers will also be responsible for grown RuPay. actions have come as a blessing technology integration, which
Last week, the Union cabinet cleared undertaking due diligence activities, RBI had on Wednesday for Visa and RuPay. Visa will is expected to take eight to 10
the IPO of LIC, India’s largest insurer, preparing the IPO documents, and com- restricted Mastercard from probably be the sole gainer of weeks,” the bank said in a regu-
which is expected to be listed on stock pleting regulatory formalities with the on-boarding new customers market share in credit cards, latory filing on Thursday.
exchanges in the March quarter of FY22. markets and insurance regulators, stock from 22 July for failing to com- while RuPay will strengthen its The Nomura report said
The government is betting on the share exchanges, and the registrar of compa- ply with its data localization foothold in the debit card HDFC Bank has 60% of its card
sale to help narrow its fiscal deficit amid nies. They are also expected to ensure norms. space, experts pointed out. schemes tied to Mastercard,
rising expenditure and a slump in reve- LIC is expected to be listed on stock exchanges in the March quarter of FY22. HT the best return from the IPO to the gov- At the centre of these restric- “As far as credit cards are American Express and Diners
nues because of the pandemic. The gov- ernment by conducting a pre-market tions is a regulation from April concerned, it is expected to be Club, while for Axis Bank and
ernment has set a mammoth ₹1.75 tril- said. Services Ltd. Its associates include IDBI survey and holding roadshows to gener- 2018 that mandated all pay- a windfall for Visa in the next ICICI Bank, it is 35-36%. How-
lion disinvestment target for the fiscal In her FY21 budget speech, Union Bank Ltd, LIC Mutual Fund, and LIC ate interest among prospective inves- ments data from India to be few months as banks have little ever, HDFC Bank is already
year. finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman Housing Finance Ltd. The govern- tors. They will also underwrite the IPO, stored in the country. choice. under RBI curbs on credit card
“The listing of shares of LIC on the first revealed the government’s plan to ment’s decision to privatize IDBI Bank is allocate shares and provide after-sale This initially did not sit well RuPay will not issuances from
stock exchanges would entail part-sale list LIC on stock exchanges, holding that expected to further unlock value for support. with many companies, but find much benefit RBI has restricted December and,
of government’s stake in LIC and raising listing of companies on stock exchanges LIC. Bids have also been invited from most eventually complied. in credit cards as Mastercard from thus, may not be
of fresh equity share capital for LIC disciplines a company, provides access Dipam on Thursday said it will domestic law firms to act as the legal Institutions such as Visa and even today many on-boarding new i n c r e m e n t a l l y
through a prospectus based IPO in the to financial markets, and unlocks its appoint up to 10 investment bankers, adviser to the transaction. The domestic Mastercard are systemically global websites hurt by the ban.
domestic market according to Securities value, and gives retail investors the who will form a team and would be firm should submit its proposal in con- important as they oversee do not accept the
customers for Experts also
and Exchange Board of India’s (Sebi’s) opportunity to participate in the wealth called book running lead managers. junction with an international law firm thousands of transactions. card network,” failing to comply said the ban on
rules and regulations. The potential size that is created. Interested bidders must have handled at of repute, with similar experience and according to the first banker. “A said Parijat Garg, with data Mastercard could
of the IPO is expected to be larger expertise in public offerings in capi- fine would have been more a fintech expert. localization rules impact liability
than any precedent in Indian mar- APPOINTMENT CRITERIA tal markets. The domestic legal appropriate than a ban as such Asked about account acquisi-
kets. To achieve a successful IPO, it adviser will be responsible for draft- sudden moves create a lot of data localization tion as debit card
is the endeavour of the government BIDDERS must have THEY should have THE shortlisted BIDS can be ing the draft red herring prospectus, disruption not only for banks, compliance and whether it was issuances will be hit. “Large
of India to attract investment from handled at least one managed at least
transaction of IPO of one equity capital
bidders have to
demonstrate their
submitted till 5
August and will be
the red herring prospectus, and the but also for customers,” said the in touch with the central bank, banks such as HDFC Bank and
institutional investors, both domes- a size of ₹5,000 market transaction credentials before an opened on 6 August, final prospectus for filing with Sebi banker mentioned above. It a spokesperson for Visa said the Axis Bank added close to 6.5-7
tic and global, in addition to the crore or more or at least 1 OFS/QIP inter-ministerial group said Dipam and the stock exchanges while the would have been better if RBI company will revert as soon as million liability accounts in
retail investors,” the department of foreign legal adviser will be respon- had given a warning six months it has an update. FY21. While the exact propor-
investment and public asset man- sible for drafting of selling restric- in advance to stakeholders. The restrictions on Master- tion of Mastercard vs Visa vs
agement (Dipam) said in bid documents LIC has a branch each outside India in least one transaction of IPO of a size of tions in the jurisdictions where interna- The banking regulator is card will affect three credit card RuPay debit cards are not avail-
posted on its website. the UK, Fiji, and Mauritius, a wholly- ₹5,000 crore or more and have man- tional marketing shall be done and filing sending out a larger message issuers the most, a report by able, most banks offer all vari-
The percentage of paid-up equity to owned subsidiary in Singapore, and aged at least one equity capital market of documents in other jurisdictions. that everybody has to adhere to brokerage Nomura pointed out ants. The ban could tempora-
be issued as part of the IPO will be deter- joint ventures in Bahrain, Kenya, Sri transaction or should have managed at Dipam has also sought the service of local rules, said the second on Thursday. RBL Bank, Yes rily affect liability account
+ mined later, Dipam said. “A part of the Lanka, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, and Bangla- least one offer for sale (OFS) or qualified an advertising agency to conceptualize, banker mentioned above. Bank and Bajaj Finserv have acquisitions in our view,” said a
public offering may be reserved for desh. Its subsidiaries in India include institutional placement (QIP) of ₹15,000 design, and develop 360 degree media “RBI was earlier more facili- their entire credit card scheme Macquarie report.
employees and policyholders of LIC,” it LIC Pension Fund Ltd and LIC Cards crore or more. campaigns across platforms. tative in its discussions and did on Mastercard. gopika.g@livemint.com

WhatsApp reveals it banned 2 million Govt issues draft national drone policy Rhik Kundu The coverage of drones
Indian users in first compliance report rhik.k@livemint.com
NEW DELHI
have also been increased from
300kg to 500kg and will cover
drone taxis. Besides, the MCA
Prasid Banerjee

C
trace the first originator of a ivilian use of drones will facilitate development of
prasid.b@livemint.com message within the country. will not be allowed drone corridors for cargo
NEW DELHI “WhatsApp is an industry without a unique iden- delivery and set up a drone
leader among end-to-end tification number, according promotion council to facilitate

M
essaging platform
WhatsApp banned
two million Indian
accounts for abusing the plat-
form’s services between 15
May and 15 June, the com-
pany said in its first compli-
ance report published under
India’s new IT rules.
More than 95% of these
bans are because of unautho-
rized use of automated or bulk
messaging, the company said
on Thursday. The compliance
report will be published every
30-45 days from now on.
“The abuse detection oper-
ates at three stages of an
account’s lifestyle, at registra-
tion, during messaging, and in
response to negative feed-
back, which we receive in the
form of user reports and
blocks. A team of analysts
augments these systems to
evaluate edge cases and help
improve our effectiveness
over time,” the company said
in the report.
Indian accounts are those
registered with the suffix +91.
encrypted messaging services to the draft Drone Rules, 2021, a business-friendly regulatory
in preventing and combating which was released on Thurs- environment. The last date for
abuse. In line with the day for public consultation by receiving public comment is 5
requirements of India’s Inter- the ministry of civil aviation August, MCA said.
mediary Guidelines, 2021, (MCA). The new rules will Civilian use of drones will not be allowed without a unique “The MCA’s decision to lib-
today we have published our soon replace the Unmanned identification number, according to the draft rules. ISTOCK eralize the drone policy even
first edition of the monthly Aircraft System (UAS) rules, after the recent drone inci-
report,” the company said. 2021, which was released on 12 pliance. The digital sky plat- and for research and develop- dents in Jammu showcases the
Significant social media March, the ministry said in a form will be a business- ment organizations operating government’s bold approach
intermediaries, which is statement. friendly single-window online such drones. For R&D to promote the use of the
defined as any intermediary According to the draft rules, system with minimal human (research and development) drone and focus on the devel-
with more than 5 million operators must generate a interference and permissions organizations, security clear- opment of counter-drone
users in India, are required to unique identification number will be self-generated. ance for airworthiness or prior technology to address the
A compliance report by the messaging platform will be published publish monthly compliance for each drone on the digital An interactive airspace map permission for remote pilot threat posed by rogue drones,”
every 30-45 days from now on. REUTERS reports under India’s new IT sky platform, which has been with three zones will be dis- licence will not be required said Smit Shah, director of
rules. built to provide a secure and played on the digital sky plat- before registration or issuance industry body Drone Federa-
Further, the company’s against 63 of these requests. WhatsApp’s parent Face- scalable system to support form. “Yellow zone will be of a licence, and unique identi- tion of India.
grievance officer received a The platform did not dis- book, microblogging plat- drone technology frame- reduced from 45km to 12km fication number. “The current draft is a wel-
total of 345 close how many form Twitter and search works, and for issuing flight from the airport perimeter. No According to the draft rules, come move and will go a long
requests during Over 95% of these i n f o r m a t i o n engine giant Google had also permissions and managing flight permission required up there will be no restriction on way in facilitating investments
the period. This bans between 15 r e q u e s t s it published their compliance unmanned aircraft operations to 400 feet in green zones and drone operations by foreign- in drone technology in India,
includes 70 May and 15 June received from reports earlier this month. and traffic. up to 200 feet in the area owned companies registered said Anjan Dasgupta, Partner
account support are because of the government. Twitter has also published its The draft Drone Rules, between 8 and 12 km from the in India. The Directorate Gen- at DSK Legal. “This is particu-
queries, 204
unauthorized use WhatsApp is
global transparency report, 2021, offers safety features airport perimeter,” the draft eral of Foreign Trade (DGFT) larly interesting due to the fact
appeals to a ban, fighting a case according to which India was such as the no-permission-no- rules said. A copy of the draft will be responsible for regulat- that in spite of the recent secu-
20 other support of automated or a g a i n s t the the “single largest source” of take-off (NPNT) framework, Drone Rules 2021 has been ing import of drones and rity threat, the government
queries, 43 prod- bulk messaging Indian govern- government information real-time tracking beacon and reviewed by Mint. drone components, while the went ahead and took cogni-
uct support que- ment, opposing requests. The country geofencing, which are The draft rules said pilot Quality Council of India and zance of the feedback given by
ries, and 8 per- the traceability accounted for 25% of all infor- expected to be notified in the licences will not be required certification entities autho- the stakeholders and pushed
taining to user safety issues. clause in India’s new IT Rules, mation requests received dur- future and a six-month win- for micro drones used for non- rised by it will issue certifi- through this simplified legisla-
The company took action which requires platforms to ing July-December 2020. dow will be provided for com- commercial use, nano drones cates of airworthiness. tion,” Dasgupta added.

Second wave’s impact on home sales less harsh than in 2020: report
Madhurima Nandy report. Project launches num- 2021, about 71,963 were sold in quately demonstrates the need uncertainties arising from eco- tum got impacted by the sec-
madhurima.n@livemint.com bered 103,238 units in the Jan- the January-March period and for similar measures else- nomic disruptions caused by ond covid wave that began at
BENGALURU uary-June period, a 71% surge just 27,453 units in the June where to revive the residential the second covid wave. the end of March.
over the corresponding period quarter. market, said the report. However, Baijal said the res- “The reduction in repo rate,

T
he impact of the second
wave of the coronavirus
pandemic has been
more of a speed bump than a
major obstruction for the resi-
dential market in India, even
as home sales and launches fell
in the April-June period com-
pared with the previous quar-
ter.
The first six months of 2021
(January-June) recorded sales
of 99,416 residential units, up
67% compared with the first
half of 2020, according to
estate agent Knight Frank
India’s ‘India Real Estate - Res-
idential, January-June 2021’
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last year.
However, the highest num-
ber of sales and launches came
in the January-March quarter
on account of the stamp duty
relaxation in Maharashtra, low
home loan rates and pent-up
demand after the pandemic’s
first wave.
The second wave, which led
to multiple regional lock-
downs amid a health crisis,
resulted in a sharp sequential
drop of 62% and 43% in the
volume of sales and launches,
respectively, in April-June.
Of the 99,416 residential
units sold in the first half of
Of the 103,238 units
launched in January-June,
only 27,232 units were
launched in the June quarter
and the remaining 76,006
units were launched in the
January-March period.
“The gradual resumption of
economic activity and increas-
ing availability of the vaccine
had sparked market traction in
the second half of 2020 and
this momentum carried over
into Q1 2021,” said Shishir Bai-
jal, chairman and managing
director, Knight Frank India.
“The second wave of cov-
id-19 infections has impeded
The second wave resulted in a sequential drop of 62% and 43% in
the volume of sales and launches, respectively, in April-June. MINT
this momentum but should be
seen as more of a speed bump
as y-o-y (year-on-year) growth
in market volumes remains
strong in half-yearly and quar-
terly terms in the January to
June 2021 period,” said Baijal.
The temporary stamp duty
cut, which spiked home sales
in Mumbai and Pune, ade-
As sales volumes idential segment stamp duty, ready reckoner
stabilized, espe- REALTY will remain buoy- rate has been crucial in driving
cially in the early CHECK ant due to the atti- the sales momentum in the
part of the Janu- tudinal shift in second half of 2020 and the
ary-June period, THE first six months potential buyers, first quarter of 2021. Post the
unsold inventory saw sales of 99,416
residential units, up
and as and when stamp duty revision, lucrative
decreased by 1% in 67% compared with normality returns, offers from developers man-
the first six months the first half of 2020 the sales volumes aged to sustain the momen-
compared with the should pick up tum. Developers recalibrated
same period last PROJECT launches pace. their approach towards new
numbered 103,238
year. P r i c e s units in Jan-Jun, a 71% During the early launches to suit the current
remained mostly surge over the same part of this year, time, while developing prop-
contained with a period last year sales volumes in erties that address the current
reduction of 1-2% key markets were new-age home buyers’
on a y-o-y basis. skewed by Mumbai demand,” said Rohit Poddar,
Sales in the affordable house and Pune, which together managing director of Mumbai-
segment, or homes below ₹50 made up more than 45% of the based Poddar Housing and
lakh, were impacted by the sales. However, this momen- Development Ltd.
X X

06 FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI CORPORATE LIVEMINT.COM

Markets at record high m

MOVES
A weekly list of C-Suiters who have moved up

as Fed signals support the corporate ladder either within or outside

their companies.
Aarti
Sharma
Appointed as director-East at
Coca-Cola India

Abhilash Appointed as India chief executive

Panda officer at Dizo
The keen retail interest seen in the Zomato IPO is likely to bode Positive revision in revenue guidance by IT firms also boosted sentiment Anchit Appointed as chief commercial
well for other technology startups preparing their IPOs. NURPHOTO
Gupta officer at MYSUN

Zomato share sale Nasrin Sultana

nasrin.s@livemint.com
MUMBAI
Lifetime high
Sensex gained 254.80 points, or
Anita
Nayyar
Appointed as chief operating
officer- Media & Communications
at Patanjali Ayurved

subscribed 5.07
0.48%, to close at record 53,158.85

M
arkets closed at a record on Thursday. Ankit Appointed as marketing director
high on Thursday as dovish Desai at Hershey India
53,200
comments by the US Fed- 53,158.85

times on day two eral Reserve on interest

rates boosted investor sen-
timent. The S&P BSE Sensex gained
53,000
Sensex Ashutosh
Shukla
Appointed as chief operating
officer at Cosmos-Maya

254.80 points, or 0.48%, closing at Divya Appointed as head-human resources

Ashwin Ramarathinam
ashwin.r@livemint.com
MUMBAI
ICICI Prudential, Kotak MF,
Nippon Life India and SBI Life
Insurance invested in the
company via the anchor book.
53,158.85. The Nifty 50 jumped 70.25 Garg India and South Asia at Uber
52,800
points, or 0.44%, at 15,924.20. Appointed as vice
Equities in other parts of Asia Pacific Jacxine president-information security at
mostly rose more. The Shanghai Compos- Fernandez Bangalore International Airport

T
he initial public offer
(IPO) of Zomato Ltd was
subscribed 5.07 times
on day two, receiving bids for
3.65 billion shares for the
719.23 million shares available.
The portion reserved for
retail investors was subscribed
4.99 times. While the qualified
institutional buyer category
was subscribed 7.46 times, the
employees’ category was sub-
scribed 36% and the non-insti-
tutional investor category was
subscribed 48%.
Earlier on Tuesday, a day
ahead of the opening of the
IPO, the company had seen
strong demand for its shares in
the anchor book allocation.
The online food delivery
platform raised ₹4,196 crore
from several prominent insti-
tutional investors, including
the Government of Singapore,
Canadian pension funds
Canada Pension Plan Invest-
ment Board and OMERS,
BlackRock Global Funds, T
Rowe Price, Fidelity, Aber-
deen Global Indian Equity,
+ Baillie Gifford, Steadview Cap-
ital, Goldman Sachs, Neuber-
ger Berman, Abu Dhabi
Investment Authority and Pin-
eBridge Global Funds.
Among domestic investors,
Axis MF, HDFC Trustee, SBI
MF, Aditya Birla Sun Life,
The Zomato IPO had been
fully subscribed on the first
day of the offering on Wednes-
day, led by retail investors.
Within minutes of opening,
the retail segment was fully
subscribed, and by the end of
the day, small investors had
bid for 2.85 times the number
of shares on offer.
Zomato is India’s first major
new-age technology company
to go public. The keen retail
interest seen in the IPO on the
first day is likely to bode well
for other technology compa-
nies preparing their IPOs,
including Paytm, MobiKwik,
Nykaa and PolicyBazaar.
The IPO comprises a sale of
new shares worth ₹9,000
crore and existing Info Edge
shares worth ₹375 crore in a
₹72-76 price band.
Over FY18-21, Zomato grew
its revenue at 62% CAGR
(compound annual growth
rate). While business is at a
nascent stage and has just
started gaining traction since
FY18, Ebitda losses have
reduced a lot with the scale-up
in the business and per-unit
economics turning profitable.
In FY21, Zomato recorded
32.1 million average monthly
active users, of which 6.8 mil-
lion monthly transacting users
placed transactions.
ite Index in China rose 1.02%, Hong Kong’s 52,600
Hang Seng Index gained 0.85%, South Jasrita Appointed as deputy director-brand
Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.66% while in Dhir and communications at Max India
Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 1.15%. 52,400
“On Wednesday, the US market closed Kamal Appointed as head-assets
52,318.6 at Bandhan Bank
in green after a dovish commentary from Batra
the Federal Reserve chairman (Jerome 52,200
Powell ), suggesting the central bank is not 1 Jul 15 Jul Kartik Appointed as chief people officer
Rao at MyGlamm
likely to begin the tightening of monetary Source: Bloomberg Indices rose nearly 0.5% taking cues from
policy anytime soon. This led to optimism their global peers. HT
Naveen Appointed as chief executive officer
in the equity market, which was supported at Unibic Foods
by the positive revision in the revenue gui- slowing the US central bank’s $120 billion despite the second covid wave,” he said.
Pandey
dance by the major Indian information in monthly bond purchases, is “still a way Analysts are optimistic that corporate Naveen Appointed as director-corporate
technology companies,” said Neeraj Chad- off”, Powell said, with 7.5 million jobs still earnings momentum in the first quarter of communications and public
awar, head, quantitative research at Axis missing from before the pandemic. the fiscal year 2021-22 (FY22) will continue
Soni relations at Emcure Pharmaceuticals
Securities. Higher crude prices, spread of delta plus to provide confidence and comfort to Appointed as deputy chief
“Overall, we remain constructive on the variant globally and weakening rupee investors despite steep valuations. “Indian Nirbhik human resources officer at
market and believe the dips should be util- could be a near risk for markets, according equities have not only remained resilient Goel VFS Global
ized to build positions in the recommended to Binod Modi, head, strategy at Reliance through the second wave, but have outper- Nissan Appointed as chief executive
themes. However, rising inflation, dollar Securities. “However, we continue to formed their emerging market counter- officer at Metro Brands
index, rising con- parts. This is
Joseph
cern over the delta WAVE OF OPTIMISM mainly attributa- Appointed as vice president
Poornima -marketing communications
variant of SARS- ble to the strong
Matthan at RMZ Corp
CoV-2 and the EQUITIES in other HONG Kong’s Hang THE gains came after INDIA appears showing of large
m a n a g e m e n t parts of Asia Pacific
rose more. China’s
Seng Index gained
0.85%, while South
Powell pledged
‘powerful support’ to
poised for a multi-
year earnings growth
Indian corporates’ Rahul Appointed as chief information
c o m m e n t a r i e s Shanghai Composite earnings, which officer and head of operations &
Korea’s Kospi complete the US cycle, say analysts at Bhardwaj customer service at Fullerton
post Q1 will be the rose 1.02% advanced 0.66% economic recovery Deutsche Bank have made effi-
near-term moni- ciency as well as Ramya Appointed as head -customer
torable indicators market share Balasubramanian experience at Mahindra Group
for the market,” Chadawar said. believe that the underlying strength of the gains over enterprises in the so-called
Powell on Wednesday pledged “power- market remains intact and, therefore, any unorganized sector,” Deutsche Bank said Rishi Appointed as chief marketing
Sharma officer at Zolo
ful support” to complete the US economic meaningful correction in the market in a 12 July note.
recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. should be taken as an opportunity to get in India appears poised for a multi-year
Saakshi V Appointed as marketing director at
In testimony to the US House of Represent- quality stocks. Visible improvement in key earnings growth cycle, led by global trends Kimberly-Clark India
atives Financial Services Committee, Pow- economic data including the index of in digital and commodities, as well as con- Menon
ell said he is confident recent price hikes industrial production, import-export busi- tinuing domestic demand from a young Sriram Appointed as country head, India
are associated with the country’s post-pan- ness momentum, and visible traction in demographic, according to analysts at and South-East Asia at Creditas
Ramnarayan Solutions
demic reopening and will fade. Any move overall economic activities in June indicate Deutsche Bank.
to reduce support for the economy, by first healthy corporate earnings for Q1FY22 Reuters contributed to this story. Source: Accord India, executive search worldwide

Electricity reforms LIC books record ₹10,000 crore Alteria deploys $90 mn in H1
on Centre’s agenda stock market profit in April-June Swaraj Singh Dhanjal
swaraj.d@livemint.com
MUMBAI
FROM PAGE 1 FROM PAGE 1 The agents then made huge

A
efforts to push sales through lteria Capital, India’s
(b) inefficiencies in the form of ment Finance Corp. Ltd by online media, and it worked,” largest venture debt
T&D (transmission and distribu- ₹3,149 crore, based on Thurs- the second person said. fund, has deployed a
tion)/ AT&C (aggregate techni- day’s closing price. The With over 1.2 million agents record $90 million in venture
cal and commercial) losses; and insurer also sold shares of on the ground, this channel debt deals in the first six
(c) poor state of T&D infrastruc- HDFC Bank Ltd, Biocon Ltd has traditionally been LIC’s months of calendar year 2021,
ture,” said Debasish Mishra, a and Hero Motocorp Ltd dur- main source of premium as venture debt becomes more
partner at consultant Deloitte ing the June quarter. LIC also income, and as a part of the mainstream in India’s fast-
India. sold shares in many other digitalization strategy, almost growing startup ecosystem that
“Imposition of restrictions to listed firms, but the sharehold- the entire agency channel has is churning out unicorns at a
address existing tariff distor- ing patterns of only 17 such adopted digital media to sell, record pace. Alteria Capital managing partner Vinod Murali (right) says the
tions (to avoid cherry-picking) firms have been updated so far. renew and service policies. “In H1CY21, Alteria funded rise in venture debt deals is the sign of a maturing ecosystem.
and/or imposition of universal The bill also lays down the rights LIC’s profits primarily come “This will ensure LIC’s more than 20 companies with
supply obligation on new sup- and duties of consumers. MINT from the sale of shares in its LIC may invest up to ₹1 trillion growth estimates and profits total commitments of $90 mil- Some recent deals done by be attractive. While large
pliers despite having 100% large non-linked portfolio, in equities this fiscal. MINT remain intact before the lion. This is by far the largest Alteria include Infra.Market, equity cheques are showing
access would defeat the objec- electricity consumers, as the including traditional life insurer comes up with what is deployment in such a period Dealshare and Mensa Brands. interest, the debt is an impor-
tive of creating an industry government plans to ensure insurance policies. ₹75,000 crore to ₹1 trillion in expected to be the country’s and a sign of the increasing Sectors that have been in tant variable for this model to
structure, which is driven by round-the-clock supply to con- LIC plans to invest over ₹5 equities this fiscal. biggest-ever IPO,” said the maturity of the ecosystem. A vogue include consumer, succeed,” he said.
market forces,” he added. sumers across the country. trillion in FY21, the two people The insurer, which has second person. few years ago, the size of the financial services and B2B plat- “We have also seen special
The bill also proposes While India has an installed cited above said on condition of adopted a massive digitaliza- LIC’s record profit essentially entire market used to be forms. But one emerging sector situations like acquisition fin-
appointing a member with a power generation capacity of anonymity. Half of this will go tion drive, is targeting a pre- means three things. One, the around this much,” said Vinod that has been in focus recently ance as in the case for Exotel
legal background in every 383.373GW, the demand has into government securities, 15% mium income growth of at insurer will be able to pay better Murali, managing partner of is the Thrasio model, Murali where we helped finance their
electricity regulatory commis- usually been lower than into infrastructure-related least 20% this fiscal, even bonuses and returns; two, it Alteria Capital. said. “We have partnered with recent acquisition of Ameyo,”
sion and strengthening the 200GW. However, this instruments and 35% into equi- though lockdown curbs have expands LIC’s investible surplus, Alteria, founded by Murali Mensa with a commitment of Murali said.
Appellate Tribunal for Elec- changed on 7 July when India’s ties, non-convertible deben- restricted physical meetings which can provide vital support and Ajay Hattangadi, is raising $10 million upfront. This model In its second fund, Alteria is
tricity (Aptel). The draft law peak electricity demand tures, mutual funds and com- between prospective policy- to stock markets at uncertain its second debt fund for which relies on focused identification also exploring new deal struc-
also spells out penalties for any breached the 200GW mark. mercial papers. holders and agents. “In the ini- times; and, three, the ability to it has already achieved a first of consumer brands and strong tures, in line with the new
failure by power distribution “We have a growing econ- “Typically, 15-20% goes into tial stage after the covid second generate such profits may attract close of ₹1,325 crore. execution, but equally needs needs of a maturing startup
companies to meet renewable omy, and demand has crossed equities,” said the second person. wave hit, sales were getting new customers and ensure better For its first fund, the firm had the leverage construct to be in ecosystem and rising investor
purchase obliga- 200GW,” Singh This means LIC may invest sluggish again like last year. dividends for the government. raised ₹960 crore in 2019. place for the business model to interest in venture debt.
tions. Discoms said, adding, “Our
are required to The plan has its demand is sub-
b u y a f i x e d origins in an earlier stantially more
amount
renewable
energy to reduce
of plan to separate
the so-called
carriage and
than what was in
the peak covid
times. The
Wipro reports best quarter ever on robust earnings in Q1
their reliance on demand will grow,
fossil fuels. content operations and it will grow FROM PAGE 1 Wipro expects revenue for est-ever net addition of 12,000 gic market units in January, all (Cloud Infrastructure, Digital
“The people of discoms rapidly.” the second quarter to be in the people in the June quarter, tak- of which reported strong Operations, Risk and Enterprise
need choice. If “And this (elec- the operating model, to accel- range of $2.53-2.58 billion, ing the total headcount to growth. While Americas 1 and Cyber Security Services) grew
one distribution tricity demand) erate growth. translating to a sequential 209,890 employees. Further, Americas 2 grew 18% and 24%, 15.9% annually in constant cur-
company is not performing gives us the space to carry out The disruptions caused by growth of 5-7%. Unlike Infosys, the company will hire 6,000 respectively, rency.
well, if its service is not up to energy transition which other- the pandemic have accelerated which provides full-year fore- freshers in the current quarter Europe grew the Dollar revenue rose “At present,
standard, they should have a wise would have been difficult. digital adoption by companies, casts, Wipro typically guides for and roll out 30,000 offers for fastest at 32.5% 12.2% to $2.41 bn from W i p r o h a s a
choice to switch companies— Because of the growing offering new opportunities for the quarter ahead. However, freshers in FY22. year-on-year in the preceding quarter healthy pipeline,
to a company that gives better demand, this space is available companies such as Wipro. Delaporte said Wipro is “well Wipro completed the acquisi- constant cur- on the back of eight and its vision looks
service. So, this will happen,” to us,” Singh said. Wipro’s dollar revenue ahead of double-digit growth tion of London-based Capco in rency. Growth in
large deal wins worth good. If it can align
Singh added. Simultaneously, India is grew 12.2% to $2.41 billion for the full year”. April for $1.45 billion to bolster the Asia Pacific its execution to
The long-discussed plan has working on a plan to privatize from the preceding March The operating margin for its presence in the banking, Middle East Africa a total contract value strategy, it can
its origins in an earlier proposal discoms in the eight Union ter- quarter on the back of eight the June quarter, however, Wipro chief executive officer financial services and insurance (APMEA) region of $715 million drive better finan-
for separation of the so-called ritories. This comes in the large deal wins worth a total narrowed to 18.8% from 21% in Thierry Delaporte. (BFSI) segment, which contrib- was muted at cial performance.
carriage and content opera- backdrop of the cabinet com- contract value of $715 million. the preceding three months utes 30% to revenues. “We are 0.8%, but the Wipro has faced
tions of discoms. Carriage mittee on economic affairs last This was the company’s fastest because of high costs related to demand in the industry for tal- beginning with the integration “deal pipeline is healthy and challenges concerning its
refers to the distribution aspect month approving the marquee sequential growth in 38 quar- attrition and hiring. ent. Wipro said it continues with and seeing very good momen- growing”, Delaporte said. growth in the past. The first-
and content to power itself. ₹3.03 trillion power discom ters, surpassing its own quar- Voluntary attrition for the its talent retention measures tum on our joint go-to-market The two global business lines quarter performance indicates a
In addition, the Electricity reform scheme, wherein the terly forecast of 2-4%, exclud- June quarter rose to 15.5% from and will be offering salary hikes strategy,” Delaporte said. iDEAS (Integrated Digital, Engi- positive shift, but it is too early to
(Amendment) Bill also lays Centre’s share will be ₹97,631 ing the acquisitions of Capco 12.1% in the preceding three to 80% of its employees in Sep- Wipro reorganized its IT ser- neering and Application Servi- conclude,” said D.D. Mishra, sen-
down the rights and duties of crore. and Ampion. months, indicating strong tember. Wipro made the high- vices segment into four strate- ces) grew 25.3% while iCORE ior research director, Gartner.
This PDF was originally uploaded to Mint Newspaper - ePaper (https://t.me/mint_epaper). Subscribe now to get this edition before anyone else!! Backup channel: @news_backup
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LIVEMINT.COM CORPORATE FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI 07

Consumers still drawn to TENSION TILL THE HOLICOW COMES HOME

Why does all this matter? Why does dark matter, well, matter?
Well, at a meeting famous in cosmological circles— in Santa Bar-

health products: Nielsen A M AT T E R

OF NUMBERS
DILIP D’SOUZA
bara in 2019— Adam Riess himself gave a lecture in which he
offered evidence for something that had rankled in those circles
for several years. The universe, he said, was expanding faster than
that accepted value of the Hubble Constant would suggest.
A group of astronomers calling themselves HoLiCOW (H0 Lenses
in COSMOGRAIL’s Wellspring—never mind the expansion except
Respond to this column at to note the reference to a lens, and H0 is the Hubble Constant)— has
feedback@livemint.com been working with a quite different method to measure the expan-
Demand for transparency in food labelling, traditional ingredients grows sion of the universe. They use quasars whose light has been bent—

T
here’s a prank I occasionally play on an unsuspecting wife or
daughter. She’ll stand on a scale to check her weight. Without
Suneera Tandon her knowledge, I’ll pull gently on her hem, or put a foot on the
suneera.t@livemint.com scale and press. Result: the weight is suddenly higher than she
NEW DELHI expects, which usually results in either frantic moans or, lately, “Cut
it out, D!” The universe is like that. Not that it plays pranks on wives,
“gravitationally lensed”— by massive galaxies on its way to us. The
effect of this lensing is that we see a quasar not just as one spot of
light, but as several bright images. This means that the light has fol-
lowed different paths around the intervening galaxy to reach us at
different times. Of particular relevance and utility here is that qua-
sars vary in brightness. The HoLiCOW team timed this variation in

C
onsumers are more inclined you understand. But there’s plenty of evidence that it is filled with each lensed image, which gave them the delay between the different
towards health products and invisible “dark matter”, and what’s visible is only a fraction of its total paths of light. This delay is related directly to the Hubble Constant.
immunity boosters as they mass. That is, the stuff we can see or detect in the universe—galaxies, HoLiCOW used six quasars to gather this data. Their measure-
become more cautious of their stars, planets, dust—is not all there is. There’s dark matter too. ment of the Constant agrees well with the value astronomers have
personal health and hygiene, a How do we know of its existence? Various observations suggest got using Gaia and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), which my
year after the first coronavirus infections it—like certain gravitational effects that are not explained by visible last column explained. That value is about 73.3km/s/Mpc.
were reported in India. objects. Galaxies spin, but some spin as if they contain much more No doubt you noticed the difference. HoLiCOW has a number
Consumers are also likely to demand matter than is visible. Imagine trying to whirl a stone on the end of for the Constant that’s almost 9% greater than ÙCDM’s number.
transparency in labelling of food and per- a string, but there’s an invisible boulder hanging from the middle Riess and his colleagues, in turn, worked with Gaia and the HST
sonal care products and seek brands that of the string. Stars emit light, and this light sometimes seems to and yet another method—a “cosmic distance ladder”, meaning
are chemical free and infused with tradi- “bend”. Thanks to Albert Einstein, we know this phenomenon they went step by step across the universe to calculate distances.
tional Indian ingredients, according to an well. It is caused by objects whose gravity noticeably changes the Their Hubble Constant estimate was 74 km/s/Mps—as you see, in
India-specific study by NielsenIQ BASES course of light—exactly as if the objects are acting like lenses. But agreement with HoLiCOW.
conducted in May. from some stars, we see the light bending, so we know there’s a Clashing Is this just measurement error? No,
The researcher studied consumer pref- massive object between them and us, but we can’t see or otherwise measurements because this value for the Constant has
erences across food, home cleaning, and Several large companies such as Dabur India have bolstered the so-called health detect it. In fact, some estimates suggest that up to 85% of the mass popped up again and again as HoLiCOW
personal care products. The study could quotient in their basic and existing branded packaged foods. MINT of the stuff that fills our universe is dark matter. No prank on an of the Hubble and Riess’s colleagues have worked to
form the basis of future product develop- unsuspecting wife has added to her weight on that scale. But it was Constant means refine their estimates. In fact, this is a sta-
ment for large, packaged consumer goods goods undergoes a shift. is another claim consumers find highly for the discovery of this dark matter (strictly “dark energy”, but I’ll other factors tistically significant difference from the
companies, NielsenIQ said. For each of “We observe a high interest for ingredi- appealing. Ingredients boosting immunity, gloss over that distinction here) that Saul Perlmutter, Adam Riess may be at play Planck number—a “five sigma” differ-
these categories, NielsenIQ BASES sur- ents that boost immunity, body strength, rank among the top ten benefits sought by and Brian Schmidt won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2011. ence. That’s real enough that scientists
veyed 500 consumers to evaluate claims and brain health and can, therefore, help consumers,” it said. Estimates like these come to us from studying the very early have even given it a name, the Hubble
based on their relative importance and consumers achieve an all-rounded well- The demand for health foods is not new growth of the universe. Cosmologists collected data about micro- “tension”. Some are beginning to speculate that there’s something
uniqueness. ness, addressing not just the body but also and the pandemic has only accelerated the waves that left their sources many billion years ago, when the uni- else going on here, something fundamental that we haven’t come to
“Some trends have accelerated as a result the mind,” said Vidya Sen, South Asia trend. This has prompted several large verse was just 380,000 years old. Now 380,000 may seem like an grips with yet, something missing in the ÙCDM model of the uni-
of the covid-19 pandemic, while consumer leader for BASES. companies such as Dabur India Ltd, Marico enormous number, but compared to the age of the universe today— verse that cosmologists have built over the years. That something
priorities have adjusted to the crisis. Con- The consumer of the future will look out Ltd, and Hindustan Unilever Ltd, to bolster about 14 billion years—it is a vanishingly tiny sliver of time. By cosmo- acts to speed up the expansion of the universe.
sumers in India have put health first and more and more for products that will act on the so-called health quotient in their basic logical standards, the universe was extremely young then. So if the At that Santa Barbara meeting, Riess put it this way: “If the late
63% of respondents indicate and existing branded pack- light from such sources tells us something, it is about the state of the and early universe don’t agree, we have to be open to the possibility
that they pay more attention to SURVEY FINDINGS aged foods. universe at that very young age. And what it tells us is the same story of new physics.” Yet the real measure of this tension may be that
a nutritious diet. “Health through food is as above: the objects we can see or detect make up only a small frac- there are other numbers still. At that same Santa Barbara gathering,
Consumers are more care- 63% of respondents 56% prefer products CONSUMERS will becoming less negotiable in tion of the cosmos. But by observing this “cosmic microwave back- other astronomers were not quite ready to follow Riess’s line of
ful about hygiene holistically indicate that they
pay more attention
for disinfecting look out for products
surfaces, 63% wanted that will act on brain
the minds of consumers and ground” (CMB) radiation, astronomers get a map of the universe at thought. Wendy Freedman and Barry Madore, wife and husband
with regard to disinfecting to a nutritious diet, products for washing health, gut health, that’s where it is finding trac- that young moment. They can then, in a sense, play the tape of the at the University of Chicago, used different stars for their calcula-
surfaces (56%), cleaning meat the survey said hands, it said and anxiety tion,” Piyush Patnaik, manag- universe’s evolution from that time to today, as it follows Einstein’s tions. They concluded that the Hubble Constant was 69.8km/s/
and vegetables (60%), and ing director, Cargill oil busi- theory of gravity. This theory of the cosmos grew out of the discovery Mpc. That’s well short of Riess’s 74, not much above the Planck 67.4
washing hands (63%), the ness in India said in a recent of dark matter, and is called ÙCDM. (That’s the Greek letter lambda, figure, certainly not a “five sigma” gap. A few months later, they had
researcher said in findings of its survey brain health, gut health, and anxiety, Sen interview. The company sells cooking oils Ù, standing for dark energy, and Cold Dark Matter, CDM.) refined their estimate some more, to 69.6 km/s/Mpc.
shared on Thursday. said. In India, for instance, when it comes to under the Sweekar, NatureFresh, and Playing the tape in this fashion gives us an idea how fast the uni- So what’s going on? The short answer is really “we don’t know.”
Demand for health and wellness prod- packaged foods, clean labels, holistic Gemini brands. Among the top post-covid verse is expanding. More accurately, how much the expansion of There’s clearly a gap that must be accounted for. But is it due to
ucts, as well as cleaning and sanitation health, and brands perceived as sustainable consumer trends observed by the com- the universe is accelerating: and that measure is the Hubble Con- dark matter? Or to new physics? What?
products, picked up following the corona- and socially responsible are the biggest pany, demand for what consumers believe stant, which I mentioned in my last column here. By this theory and There are rumours that at Santa Barbara, Madore sang these
+ virus outbreak in India. The demand has considerations for consumers buying these is healthy is high. “Consumers are clearly method, the Hubble Constant works out to about 67.4 kilometers lines from an old song: “Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right;
since cooled off as consumers adjusted to products. “The claim of ingredients grown looking at more health and wellness in per second per megaparsec (km/s/Mpc). Since the Planck Space here I am, stuck in the middle with you!”
the new normal. However, NielsenIQ organically, without the use of chemicals their baseline staples. This is happening Telescope was originally used to map the CMB, this is usually To which I might add, “HoLiCOW!”
expects some of these habits to stick as con- and pesticides, ranks 1 out of the 30 claims because there is fear (about their health referred to as the Planck estimate of the Hubble Constant. Other Once a computer scientist, Dilip D’Souza now lives in Mumbai and
sumer perception towards branded daily tested. Meanwhile, 100% pure ingredients post covid),” Patnaik said. observations of the young universe have produced the same figure. writes for his dinners. His Twitter handle is @DeathEndsFun

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Lata Jha
in “Employment News”. The eligibility criteria and application format can be
lata.j@livemint.com
downloaded from Delhi Jal Board website i.e. “www.delhijalboard.nic.in”
NEW DELHI
ISSUED BY P.R.O. (WATER)
Advt. No. J.S.V. 184 (2021-22) ASSTT. COMMISSIONER (D)

T
he streaming industry in
India could touch $15 bil-
lion over the next nine
years, including $12.5 billion for
video streaming and $2.5 bil-
lion for audio, a new report
said, sharply up from an esti-
mated $1.7 billion in FY20.
According to the report by
independent transaction advi-
sory firm RBSA Advisors, key
factors driving this growth are
India’s second-highest per cap-
ita consumption of online vid-
eos in the world, the cheapest
mobile data in the world priced
at ₹18.5 per GB, the growth in
rural internet penetration (esti-
mated to be 24% as of 2018),
and the steep rise of smart-
phone users, estimated at more
than 760 million in 2021.
The average monthly data
usage per user in India
increased 20% year-on-year to
13.5 GB in December 2020 as
Indians spent about five hours
daily on a smartphone, as per
the Mobile Broadband India
Traffic Index 2021. Streaming
apps, also called over-the-top
(OTT) apps, account for a large
share of this data.
“The pandemic has changed
the way audiences consume
media. An undeniable trend
surfaced in this period with the
adoption of OTTs. The growing
market and consumer appetite
for content of choice available
on OTT platforms fuelled this
spurt. OTTs offer a never-be-
fore consumer experience—
choice of content, ease of
access, choice of device or
mediums and liberal censor-
ship policy,” Rajeev Shah, MD
and CEO of RBSA Advisors,
said in a statement.
He added that the pandemic
has accelerated the shift in con-
sumer behaviour, advancing a
disruption that would have
otherwise taken at least half a
Small towns will fuel further
growth in the OTT landscape,
said the report. BLOOMBERG
decade.
Smartphones with afforda-
ble data have also brought the
native speaker base of 22
scheduled Indian languages
from tier-2, 3 and 4 cities online
and created a massive opportu-
nity for OTT services, increas-
ingly focusing on regional lan-
guage content.
The next wave of growth in
the OTT landscape will come
from these small towns and the
vernacular language-speaking
population, the report said.
With access to better net-
works, digital connectivity and
smartphones, OTT platforms
in India have increasingly
attracted subscribers on a con-
current basis. Apart from for-
eign services such as Disney+
Hotstar, Amazon Prime Video
and Netflix, the space is seeing
many local and regional OTT
players such as SonyLIV, Voot,
ZEE5, Eros Now, ALTBalaji,
Hoichoi and Adda Times.
Massive investments made
by these OTT platforms in orig-
inal programming as well as
acquired content will help sub-
scription video-on-demand
make up 93% of the total OTT
revenue in India (as compared
to 87% globally), increasing at a
compound annual growth rate
(CAGR) of 30.7% between
2019 and 2024, according to
the RBSA Advisors’ report.
DELHI JAL BOARD
OFFICE OF THE EX. ENGINEER (NE) II
R-POCKET, DILSHAD GARDEN, DELHI-95
“STOP CORONA; Wear Mask, Follow Physical Distancing, Maintain Hand Hygiene”
PRESS NIT NO. 10 (2021-22)
S. Name of Work Amount put EMD Tender Date of release of Last date/time of receipt
No. to tender Amount Fees tender in eprocurement of tender through
solution eprocurement solution
1. Replacement of old/deep and damaged 48,70,258.00 EMD 500.00 14.07.2021 27.07.2021
150-100mm dia water line at gali no.- Exempted upto
1 to 5, Tukmirpur Ext. under Karawal 02.30 P.M.
Nagar, AC-70
Tender ID No. 2021_DJB_205781_3
All the terms and conditions including technical specification and special conditions is available on Delhi Govt. Website https://delhi.
govtprocurement.com.
ISSUED BY P.R.O. (WATER) (Sukhpal Chauhan)
Advt. No. J.S.V. 183(2021-22) EX. ENGINEER (NE)-II
PENSION FUND REGULATORY AND DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
B-14/A, Chhatrapati Shivaji Bhawan
Qutab Institutional Area, Katwaria Sarai, New Delhi-110016
CORRIGENDUM TO THE NOTICE ISSUED BY PFRDA ON 01.07.2021
Reference is invited to the Advertisement issued by the Pension Fund
Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) on 01.07.2021 in
the newspapers and the detailed notice hosted on the website of the
Authority inviting proposals for selection of Sponsors of Pension Funds
(PFs) for NPS Government Sector Schemes, Private Sector Schemes
and/or any other scheme regulated/administered by the Authority
under PFRDA (Registration of Pension Funds) Guidelines, 2021.
In a partial modification of the above mentioned guidelines under point
no. 11 of Pre-Qualification Criteria mentioned under clause 9, in line 4,
the words “forty-nine per cent.” shall be substituted with “seventy-four
per cent.” in line with the PFRDA (Pension Fund) Regulations, 2015 and
subsequent amendments thereto. Annexure IV of these guidelines is
also stands revised in accordance with the above change.
Sumit Kumar
davp 15102/11/0005/2122 General Manager

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NEW DELHI GLOBAL LIVEMINT.COM

CATL rides electric-

China to walk a fine economic vehicle boom to over
line after posting Q2 growth $200 bn valuation
Joanne Chiu
feedback@livemint.com

C
hina’s battery cham-
Beijing is on track to meet its full-year growth target of 6%, but mounting risks lurk beneath the solid numbers pion is drawing
strength from the elec-
tric-vehicle boom.
Stella Yifan Xie comed by Beijing, is likely to be deter- ing, which for more than a year has Shares of Contemporary
feedback@livemint.com mined by several closely watched fac- consistently been the weakest piece of Amperex Technology Co. have
HONG KONG tors, including export demand, prop- China’s pandemic rebound. soared 62% this year, as of
erty-sector investment and consumer Economists have been debating for Thursday. That has given the

D
espite a solid economic
performance in the sec-
ond quarter of the year,
Chinese policy makers
are expected to walk a fine
line between supporting growth amid
rising downside pressures and letting
the economy run its course as they
pivot to tackle longer-term challenges.
China said its economy expanded
by 7.9% in the three months ending
June compared with a year earlier.
Monthly readings of industrial output,
retail sales, fixed-asset investment and
urban unemployment all met or
topped expectations in June, keeping
China on track to meet the official full-
year growth target of 6% or more.
Averaging growth rates from the
past two years to strip out pandemic-
induced statistical distortions, China’s
economy expanded by 5.5% in the sec-
ond quarter—higher than the average
5% growth rate for the first quarter of
the year, and drawing close to the pre-
pandemic trend line.
But beneath the robust growth
numbers lurk mounting risks for the
economy, including an expected
tapering off in global demand for Chi-
nese goods, slower investment in
manufacturing and real estate, and the
threat of fresh covid-19 outbreaks that
could weigh on domestic consump-
tion. China’s economic rebound also
remains unbalanced, with domestic
demand languishing while factory
production and exports propel the
economy.
“There is no obvious driver from the
domestic economy to power growth
+ ahead,” said Betty Wang, senior China
economist at ANZ, though she added
that exports could continue to buck
predictions of a comedown even after
more than a year of outperformance.
Opec sees world oil demand reaching pre-pandemic level in 2022
Reuters 2022,” Opec said. “These
feedback@livemint.com include improved contain-
LONDON ment of covid-19, particularly
in emerging and developing
China said its economy expanded by 7.9% y-o-y in June quarter.
The question now is whether Bei-
jing is comfortable with the economy
on a slower growth trajectory.
At times, Chinese authorities have
suggested that they are not too wor-
ried about a downshift, instead
emphasizing the importance of avoid-
ing less-efficient investments
designed to boost growth at any cost.
With its recovery on a stable footing
and far ahead of the rest of the world’s,
some economists
say Beijing sees a
window of oppor-
tunity to tackle
longer-term structural problems such
as high debt, low productivity, demo-
graphic worries and climate change.
Yet Beijing could be forced to act if
things deteriorate more quickly than
expected. Last week, China’s central
bank unleashed fresh liquidity to the
financial system in large part to sup-
port small businesses, though it had
earlier pledged to avoid making “a
sharp turn” in monetary policy.
Just a few months earlier, China was
AFP
the first major economy to pull back
pandemic stimulus. Economists from
ING and Natixis expect China’s central
bank to unleash more stimulus in the
form of another cut in the reserve
requirement ratio for banks, following
one announced last week.
China’s attempts to fine-tune its
monetary policy suggest it remains
torn over whether to shift decisively
toward further easing or tightening,
said Bruce Pang,
head of macro and
strategy research
at China Renais-
sance Securities.
Wei He, a Beijing-based economist
at research firm Gavekal Dragonom-
ics, regards the new liquidity from the
central bank last week as a clear easing
signal, but also believes it’s unlikely
that China will tweak its key policy
rates in the short run. “The downward
pressure is largely manageable,” he
said.
The pace of any slowdown, though
not unexpected and perhaps even wel-
spending.
China’s export sector has been bol-
stered for months by buoyant Western
consumer demand for Chinese-made
laptops, yoga mats, bicycles and other
goods. But the good times may not last,
some economists warn, pointing to a
looming shift in overseas spending
patterns as covid-era restrictions are
lifted, tilting consumption toward
in-person services and away from buy-
ing goods.
At least for now, China’s exports
have been supported in part by accel-
erating demand from Europe and
Japan, replacing some of the waning
American demand, said Larry Hu,
chief China economist at Macquarie
Group. China’s exports accelerated
growth in June, defying expectations
of a slowdown.
Another key factor will be invest-
ment spending, particularly into man-
ufacturing and China’s housing sector.
A focus of Beijing’s longer-term
attempts to rectify economic imbalan-
ces has been curbing fresh funding to
real estate—a campaign that econo-
mists believe policy makers are com-
mitted to. The property sector, which
accounts for some 7% of China’s GDP,
has played a major role in stabilizing
growth during previous slowdowns.
But a further tightening of credit for
real-estate developers could trigger
more bond defaults in the second half
of the year, analysts say.
“Beijing is determined to reduce
reliance on the property sector,” said
Ting Lu, chief China economist at
Nomura. Soaring prices for raw mate-
rial could dent investor interest in
pouring more money into new-home
construction and manufacturing, he
said.
And then there is consumer spend-
stimulus and with the outlook
“depending primarily on cov-
id-19-related developments”,
Opec said.
months whether consumption, which
has shown signs of promise but has
been battered by frequent covid-19
outbreaks, can reach pre-covid levels
this year. Averaging growth rates from
the past two years, retail-sales growth
has languished at 4.9% in June,
according to ANZ—a far cry from the
8% year-over-year growth rate before
the pandemic hit.
An unstable job market for China’s
lower-wage earners and higher prop-
erty prices have prompted an increase
in precautionary savings, which has
hit overall spending, said Shen Jian-
guang, chief economist at JD Digits,
the finance arm of e-commerce plat-
form JD.com.
Even as the surveyed urban unem-
ployment rate has dropped to 5% in
June from 5.4% in January, the jobless
rate for those aged 16 to 24 years old,
including fresh college graduates, has
moved in the opposite direction,
climbing to 15.4% in June from 12.7% in
January.
That is not to say that there isn’t a
desire to spend more. Wei Zhigang, a
43-year-old sales manager at a midsize
property developer in coastal Zhejiang
province, said his income took a hit
during the pandemic last year as sales
dropped by nearly 50% from 2019 lev-
els. Business has recovered more
slowly than expected this year, he said.
As a result, Mr. Wei and his family,
who used to travel to the U.S. at least
once a year for holidays but are now
stuck within China, have been taking
fewer trips and instead saving more
money. “I’d prefer to travel abroad if I
can,” he said. “The money you saved
ends up depreciating over time unless
you spend it now.”
Grace Zhu contributed to this article.
©2021 DOW JONES & COMPANY, INC
plans for the rest of 2021 after
a dispute between Saudi Ara-
bia and the United Arab Emir-
ates disrupted talks. Reuters
company, also known as CATL,
a market value of roughly $203
billion, making it the third-
largest business listed in main-
land China.
The rally has outpaced rises
for rival battery makers Pana-
sonic Corp. of Japan, whose
share have gained 10.5%, and
LG Chem Ltd. in South Korea,
which logged a slight drop in
the same period. CATL has also
outperformed EV makers such
as Tesla Inc., NIO Inc. and
XPeng Inc., whose shares have
struggled after surging last
year.
The stock has been boosted
by recent deals signed with
Tesla and others, plus record
sales growth at China’s NIO,
XPeng and Li Auto Inc., said
Kelvin Lau, an analyst at Daiwa
Capital Markets.
The three Chinese compa-
nies all buy lithium-ion batter-
ies from CATL, which is based
in the southeastern province of
Fujian.
In June, CATL extended a
deal to supply Tesla’s Shanghai
factory with battery packs until
2025. It has also recently
secured new customers includ-
ing Mercedes-Benz, a unit of
Germany’s Daimler AG.
Some 25% to 30% of global
passenger car sales will be elec-
tric by 2030, up from less than
4% in 2020,
as govern-
ments seek
to phase
out cars that use internal-com-
bustion engines, said Neil Bev-
eridge, senior energy analyst at
Sanford C. Bernstein. “The
2020s will be the golden age of
the battery industry in terms of
growth,” he said.
Mr. Beveridge said CATL
had 30% of the global EV bat-
tery market, and more than half
of the market in China, giving it
significant cost advantages
over competitors. In turn, he
said that helped make it more
Recent deals signed with Tesla
boosted CATL stock. BLOOMBERG
Chien, a senior analyst at Hong
Kong-based investment com-
pany HSZ Group. “However,
leading component makers
like CATL will remain key ben-
eficiaries in the long run, no
matter which EV brand emer-
ges as the winner in China’s
electric-car race,” he said.
Since early 2019, CATL has
been one of the top 10 holdings
in the firm’s HSZ China Fund,
Mr. Chien added.
Money managers Allianz
Global Investors Asia Pacific
Ltd. and Pacific Asset Manage-
ment Co. are among the foreign
institutions with holdings in
CATL, according to FactSet. In
total, 8% of the company’s free
float, or freely traded shares not
held by major long-term share-
holders, are owned by offshore
investors through the Stock
Connect trading link between
Shenzhen and Hong Kong,
according to Wind.
To be sure, the run-up has
given CATL an exceptionally
high valuation. The stock now
trades at about 103 times fore-
cast earnings for the next 12
months, according to FactSet.
The equiva-
lent price-
earnings
ratios for LG
Chem and Panasonic are 19.3
times and 13.2 times, respec-
tively. CATL’s first-quarter net
profit was 1.95 billion yuan—
the equivalent of $301 million,
and more than double what it
earned in the same quarter a
year earlier.
Other potential headwinds
include geopolitical tensions
between the U.S. and China,
something that Mr. Beveridge
at Bernstein said could make it
harder for the group to grow

T
he Organization of the
Petroleum Exporting
Countries (Opec) stuck
to its forecast for a strong
recovery in world oil demand
in the rest of 2021 and pre-
dicted oil use would rise in
2022 at similar to pre-pan-
demic rates, led by growth in
the US, China and India.
Opec said in its monthly
report on Thursday that
demand next year would rise
by 3.4% to 99.86 million bar-
rels per day (bpd), and would
average more than 100 million
bpd in the second half of 2022.
“Solid expectations exist for
global economic growth in
countries, which are forecast
to spur oil demand to reach
pre-pandemic levels in 2022.”
The report reflects Opec’s
confidence that demand will
recover robustly from the pan-
demic, allowing the group and
its allies to further ease record
supply curbs made in 2020.
Some analysts have said world
oil demand may have peaked
in 2019.
Opec’s report said 2019
demand averaged 99.98 mil-
lion bpd.
Opec also maintained its
prediction that demand would
grow by 5.95 million bpd in
2021.
Oil was trading below $74 a
barrel after the Opec report
was released. The price has
climbed more than 40% this
year with the help of supply
cuts by Opec and its allies, a
group known as Opec+.
The report showed higher
output from Opec and forecast
more supplies from rivals in
Opec said demand next year would rise by 3.4% to 99.86 million 2022, including US shale pro-
barrels per day (bpd). AP ducers.
Opec+ agreed in April to
Opec forecast oil demand in although US oil use would stay gradually ease output cuts
China and India would exceed just below 2019 levels. from May to July. Thursday’s
pre-pandemic levels next year. World economic growth report showed Opec produc-
It said the United States would was expected to slow to 4.1% tion in June rose 590,000 bpd
make the biggest contribution next year from 5.5% in 2021, to 26.03 million bpd.
to 2022 demand growth, still supported by government Opec+ has yet to decide on
reported on Wednesday that
the two had reached a compro-
mise.
The report forecast a 2.1 mil-
lion bpd rise in supply from
Opec’s rivals in 2022 as higher
prices spur investment. Opec
sees output of US shale oil,
another term for shale, rising
by 500,000 bpd in 2022, after
a contraction this year.
The extra barrels will limit
growth in demand for Opec
crude next year, but Opec still
sees the world needing 28.7
million bpd from its members,
up 1.1 million bpd from 2021
and, in theory, allowing higher
Opec production.
profitable than rivals, with a
gross profit margin of 28% last
year. Gross profit measures
revenue minus the costs, such
as labor and materials, directly
incurred in making those
goods.
Some investors say the com-
pany is a better bet than some
of the EV makers it serves.
Many fledgling companies in
the sector remain unprofitable,
and competition is intensifying
as traditional auto manufactur-
ers expand their new-energy
vehicle lineups.
“It’s too risky to bet on a
brand as the electric-car race
has just started,” said Dennis
internationally.
A potential industry glut
could also cut into margins:
Bernstein estimates 180 giga-
factories, or giant battery
plants, are planned world-
wide, including 140 in China.
Still, analysts say CATL will
be hard to dislodge from its
position.
“CATL should be able to
maintain its dominant position
in the lithium-ion battery mar-
ket in the next five years,” said
Mr. Lau at Daiwa, citing its abil-
ity to innovate and its ties with
local and international car
makers.
©2021 DOW JONES & COMPANY, INC.

Many jobs lost in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic just aren’t coming back
Lauren Weber In low-wage sectors such as requests for comment. 180,000 jobs, based on pre- labor inflation, according to
feedback@livemint.com 2021—down just 0.5% from the employees and contractors in hospitality and leisure, the Other chains are moving in pandemic employment num- John Peyton, CEO of Apple-
end of 2019—even though US 2020 amid a drastic decline in push to cut staffing costs is the same direction, partly to bers, in a workforce that con- bee’s parent Dine Brands

C
ompanies see automa-
tion and other labour-
saving steps as a way to
emerge from the health crisis
with a permanently smaller
workforce
Job openings are at a record
high, leaving the impression
that employers are hiring like
never before. But many busi-
nesses that laid off workers dur-
ing the pandemic are already
predicting they will need fewer
employees in the future.
As with past economic
shocks, the pandemic-induced
recession was a catalyst for
employers to invest in automa-
tion and implement other
changes designed to curb hir-
ing. In industries ranging from
hotels to aerospace to restau-
rants, businesses have
reviewed their operations and
discovered ways to save on
labour costs for the long term.
Economic data show that
companies have learned to do
more with less over the last 16
months or so. Output nearly
recovered to pre-pandemic
levels in the first quarter of
workers put in 4.3% fewer
hours than they did before the
health crisis.
“When demand falls, it’s a
natural time to retool or invest
because you won’t lose custom-
ers or sales while you tinker and
shut things down,” said Brad
Hershbein, senior economist at
the W.E. Upjohn Institute for
Employment Research. “You
don’t want to interrupt busi-
ness when it’s at its peak.”
The changes will require
many workers to adapt.
Though the job market is
strong right now for highly paid
professionals and low-wage
service workers alike, not
everyone can find a match for
their skills, experience or loca-
tion, creating a paradox of rela-
tively high unemployment
combined with record job
openings. Economists say it can
be a prolonged process for
some laid-off workers to find
jobs or acquire the skills
needed for new careers.
Raytheon Technologies
Corp., the biggest US aerospace
supplier by sales, laid off 21,000
air travel. Raytheon said in Jan-
uary that efforts to modernize
its factories and back-office
operations would boost profit
margins and reduce the need to
bring back all those jobs. The
company said that most if not
all of the 4,500 contract work-
ers who were let go in 2020
wouldn’t be called back.
The pandemic accelerated
some of the company’s plans to
automate factories and imple-
ment more digital technology,
said Paolo Dal Cin, the execu-
tive vice president of opera-
tions and supply chain at Ray-
theon, which was formed last
year through the merger of
Raytheon Co. and United
Technologies Corp.
“We have over 500 equip-
ment automation and equip-
ment upgrade projects that we
plan to deploy over the next
three to five years,” he said in an
interview. Among them, the
company is connecting more
than 20,000 pieces of equip-
ment into its networks so that
data is collected automatically
and sent to engineers, quality
The pandemic was a catalyst
for employers to invest in
automation to curb hiring. AFP
inspectors and others. Some of
those data collection activities
were previously handled by
contract workers who in many
cases will no longer be needed.
Raytheon plans to add peo-
ple back selectively while reas-
signing current employees
whose jobs are automated. Mr.
Dal Cin said some projects
focus on quality as well as labor
savings, for example, by auto-
mating the assembly or pro-
duction of complex parts where
precision and accuracy can be
improved through technology.
driven partly by short-term
labour shortages and expecta-
tions that wages will continue
rising due to a combination of
market forces and possible
changes to local and federal
laws. In May 2020, as covid-19
surged in the US and the travel
and hospitality industries cra-
tered, the chief executive of
Host Hotels & Resorts Inc., a
large operator of Hyatt and
Marriott hotels, described the
pandemic “truly as an opportu-
nity to redefine the hotel oper-
ating model.”
CEO Jim Risoleo said the
hotel chain planned to limit
housekeeping at many of its
properties and re-configure its
food and beverage operations.
“It is really going to be opt in to
housekeeping services as
opposed to opt out going for-
ward,” he said during a Novem-
ber call with analysts and inves-
tors. The firm also reduced
management staff by 30% in
2020 in its food and beverage
department and said the
changes would be permanent.
The company didn’t respond to
address current challenges in
hiring staff. Last week Hilton
Worldwide Holdings Inc.
announced a CleanStay pro-
gram, saying that most of its
U.S. properties are adopting “a
flexible housekeeping policy,”
with daily service available
upon request. “Full deep clean-
ings will be conducted prior to
check-in and on every fifth day
f o r desire to
extended
stays,” it
said.
Daily housekeeping will still
be free for those who request it.
But Hilton businesses “will be
higher-margin and require less
labor than they did pre-covid,”
CEO Christopher Nassetta said
on a conference call in Febru-
ary. The company declined to
comment on how many fewer
housekeepers it would employ
once all the changes are imple-
mented. Unite Here, a union
that represents hotel workers,
published a report in June esti-
mating that the end of daily
room cleaning could result in
an industrywide loss of up to
sists primarily of Black and His-
panic women, many of them
immigrants. The union has
negotiated agreements with
some hotels and localities to
require daily cleaning.
Restaurants have become
rapid adopters of technology
during the pandemic as two
forces—labor shortages that are
pushing wages higher and a
reduce
close con-
t a c t
between customers and
employees—raise the return on
such investments.
At restaurant and entertain-
ment chain Dave & Buster’s
Entertainment Inc., customers
now use digital tablets to order
food and drink, allowing man-
agers to schedule fewer servers,
the company’s chief operating
officer, Margo Manning, said
on a call with investors in June.
Applebee’s is now using tablets
to allow customers to pay at
their tables without summon-
ing a waiter. The hand-held
screens provide a hedge against
Global Inc. The US tax code
encourages investments in
automation, particularly after
the Trump administration’s tax
cuts, said Daron Acemoglu, an
economist at the Massachu-
setts Institute of Technology
who studies the impact of auto-
mation on workers. Firms pay
around 25 cents in taxes for
every dollar they pay workers,
compared with 5 cents for
every dollar spent on machines
because companies can write
off capital investments, he said.
Given the expense and com-
plexity of large automation
projects, they aren’t always the
right solution for companies
facing worker shortages or
wanting to reduce costs, Mr.
Acemoglu said. But there are a
lot of piecemeal automation
steps that companies can take
that may be cost-effective, he
added. “If you’re going to try to
completely revamp your fac-
tory, that’s very expensive. But
if you’re a retailer, if you intro-
duce 10 checkout kiosks, that’s
not very expensive.”
©2021 DOW JONES & COMPANY, INC.

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LIVEMINT.COM NEWS WRAP FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI 09

TWEETS OF THE DAY Ursula von der Leyen Narendra Modi Nithin Kamath
Motilal Oswal @vonderleyen @narendramodi @Nithin0dha
@MrMotilalOswal Women economic empow- I have always wanted The most underappreciated
Accepting that you own erment is freedom of choice our Railway Stations aspect of building a successful
and control nothing in on how to combine your job to be of top quality, business is just how important
this world is the begin- and family life & aim as high where apart from being at the right place and
ning of peace and to a as you want! Our job as travels there is a the right time is. All you can
greater extent your women leaders is to create boost to commerce, control is how you build your
happiness. the right conditions for this. hospitality and more. team & hence the products.

BharatPe eyes $6 bn BILATERAL TIES Cadila arm sells

TPV from its PoS biz animal health biz

F C
intech firm BharatPe on Thursday said it is
planning to scale up its point of sale (PoS)
business by three times and has set a target
of $6 billion (about ₹44,719 crore) in annualized
transaction processed value (TPV) by the end of
2021-22. BharatPe, which is the third largest
player in private PoS category, is also working
on ramping up its reach by five times and sell
‘BharatSwipe’ in 80 cities across India by the
end of the ongoing fiscal year, a statement said.
Besides, it is planning to expand brand
partnerships significantly, and offer consumer
credit to drive further value on the PoS business,
it added. BharatPe had launched BharatSwipe,
its card payment acceptance machine in the
second half of 2020. “This (PoS) business has
scaled up rapidly, and now contributes 20% to
the overall payments TPV of the company.
Today, BharatPe has an installed base of over 1
lakh BharatSwipe machines across 16 cities in
the country,” it said in the statement.
adila Healthcare said its wholly owned
subsidiary Zydus Animal Health and
Investment has completed the sale of its
animal healthcare established markets
undertaking to Multiples Alternate Asset
Management-led consortium for ₹2,921 crore.
“The transaction of sale and disposal is
completed /closed today i.e. 14 July, 2021,”
Cadila Healthcare said in a regulatory filing.
In May this year, Zydus Animal Health and
Investment has entered into definitive pacts for
sale of its animal healthcare established markets
undertaking to Multiples Alternate Asset
Management-led consortium for ₹2,921 crore.
The consortium agreed to purchase the
undertaking through a special purpose vehicle
controlled by them, in the name of Zenex
Animal Health India, Cadila had said. Animal
Healthcare Established Markets Undertaking is
focused on India and other countries. PTI
PTI

Foreign minister S. Jaishankar meets Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Tashkent on Thursday amid fears of a Taliban takeover in Afghanistan. PTI

Centre transfers ₹75,000 crore With this expansion, Amazon India will now have

RBI governor Shaktikanta Das.

‘Financial inclusion
MINT
to states as GST compensation more than 60 fulfilment centres.

Amazon expands
BLOOMBERG

still RBI’s priority’ storage capacity

E-
commerce major Amazon India on

R
+ eserve Bank of India (RBI) governor
Shaktikanta Das on Friday said financial
inclusion will continue to be RBI’s policy
priority as India recovers from the pandemic.
Speaking at the Economic Times Financial
Inclusion Summit, Das said that all stakeholders
must ensure that risks like mis-selling,
cybersecurity and data privacy are addressed
Thursday said that it will be expanding
The amount is expected to help states preparing for a possible third wave of covid its storage capacity by more than 43
million cubic feet across 15 states to support its
850,000 sellers across the country. This will
Gireesh Chandra Prasad afloat and protect jobs. It is also expected to help crore and Gujarat ₹6,151 crore. Haryana, Kerala and translate into the launch of 11 new fulfilment
gireesh.p@livemint.com relieve the tension between Centre and opposi- Punjab too were big gainers. centres (FCs) and expansion of 9 existing ones
NEW DELHI tion-ruled states over delays in GST compensation The scheme of borrowing from the market to across Maharashtra, Bihar, Gujarat, Assam and
payments ahead of the monsoon session of Parlia- complement the compensation paid out of GST Rajasthan, among others. With this expansion,

T
and trust be promoted in the financial system
through appropriate financial education and
awareness. “There is need for accelerated
universal reach of bank accounts along with
access to financial products relating to credit,
investment, insurance and pension,” he said.
Das also said that greater focus is now being
given to addressing the vulnerable segments of
the economy and population. RBI is paying
attention to consumer protection and
improving capacity of customers, so that
responsible and sustainable use of financial
services can be achieved, he added.
RBI has also decided to construct and
periodically publish a “Financial Inclusion
Index” (FI Index) to measure the extent of
financial inclusion. GOPIKA GOPAKUMAR
he central government on Thursday
transferred ₹75,000 crore it borrowed
from the market to states in goods and
services tax (GST) compensation, help-
ing states to spend early in the financial
year to support economic recovery. Union territo-
ries with a legislature will also receive the funds.
The Union finance ministry said in a statement
that this is almost half of ₹1.59 trillion the Centre
had agreed to transfer to states as part of GST com-
pensation financed through borrowing, and is in
addition to another ₹1 trillion being transferred in
instalments from GST cess collection.
The move is expected to be a big relief to states
that are making healthcare investments to prepare
for a possible third wave of the covid pandemic and
are financially supporting small businesses to stay
ment beginning Monday. cess receipts was agreed by the GST Council on 28 Amazon India will have more than 60 fulfilment
The total GST compensation that states would May. Last year, a similar arrangement was adopted centres and more than 25 specialized sites
be getting in FY22 as cess collection was dedicated to Amazon Fresh selection for daily
would be ₹2.59 tril- insufficient to meet essentials and groceries, across India. “This
lion. The part of it States with large economies such as the requirement of expansion will also provide a fillip to the
paid out of proceeds Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat states that suffered ancillary businesses who support us including
of GST cess levied
on items like auto- received ₹8,542 crore, ₹6,501 crore revenue losses from
the indirect tax
those involved in packaging, logistics, and
transportation, among others,” said Akhil
mobiles is being and ₹6,151 crore, respectively reform. The Centre Saxena, vice-president, customer fulfilment
released to states on had agreed to make operations, Asia Pacific, Middle East and North
a bimonthly basis. up for the states’ rev- Africa and Latin America. TARUSH BHALLA
The amount of compensation financed through enue losses for the first five years of the GST roll-
debt will form part of states’ fiscal deficit, and not out until June 2022 as part of a grand bargain to get
the Centre’s. states on board for the 2017 tax reform. States are
States with large economies are the biggest pitching for an extension of GST compensation by
recipients of compensation in absolute terms. Kar- another five years. A special GST Council meeting
Muthoot arm raises
nataka received ₹8,542 crore, Maharashtra ₹6,501 will be held in August to discuss this.
₹75 crore via MLDs

M
uthoot Microfin Ltd, the
Synergy gets nod to microfinance arm of the
Archies steps into e-commerce space Thiruvananthapuram-based Muthoot
acquire JSW stake Pappachan Group, on Thursday said it has
raised ₹75 crore through market-linked
homegrown and international skincare, debentures (MLDs) in June. The debentures,

T
he Competition Commission of India
(CCI) has approved the stake acquisition in
JSW Cement by Synergy Metals
Investments Holding under the green channel
route—the automatic approval system, whereby
a combination is deemed to have been approved
by CCI upon receiving the filing of the notice for
the combination by the parties concerned. “The
acquirer proposes to acquire a minority equity
stake in the target,” as per a combination notice
filed with the regulator. Noting the purpose of
the transaction, it said the proposed
combination fits well with the acquirer’s vision
of investing in leading companies with potential
to achieve attractive investment returns. It also
haircare, cosmetic and fragrance brands
for the website. Some of the brands listed
on the site include Skinn by Titan,
Mamaearth, Beardo, The Man Company
and Ajmal Perfumes, among others. The
company plans to bring 100 more such
brands in the next quarter and take this
figure to 500 in a year’s time. These
products will be priced between ₹999 and
₹1,499. “We are currently looking at the
mass-market but may have some premium
products in a limited way,” said Hanisha
The company has partnered with 45 brands Kapoor, chief operating officer, Archies
for the website. MINT Beauty.
“Beauty is the one of fastest growing
China’s foreign minister Wang Yi has called for a
mutually acceptable solution through talks. AFP
China seeks border
which were issued on a private placement
basis, are slated to mature over a period of 18
months, it said. “These funds will be utilized
for disbursements to microfinance clients.
We are expecting a rebound in the rural
economy post the pandemic woes and we are
well-equipped to service the sector with
ample fund, operational reach, and adequate
resources. We also plan to close our $50
million equity,” said Sadaf Sayeed, chief
executive officer of Muthoot Microfin. The
company is looking to diversify its funding
sources and raise₹500-600 crore this
financial year through MLDs. STAFF WRITER

noted that acquirer is the investment fund of its
controlling entity, Synergy Metals and Mining
Fund I LP, which invests in the industrials,
metals and power sectors globally. “Commission
receives green channel notice by Synergy
Metals ...to acquisition of equity stake in JSW
Cement and is deemed approved,” the regulator
A
fter witnessing the rise of e-
commerce firms throught the
pandemic, greeting cards and
gifting firm Archies Ltd has launched its
dedicated beauty category site
Archiesbeauty.com.
The company has partnered with 45
dispute resolution
consumer product sector in India growing
from $7 billion in 2014 to $10 billion in
2021. There has also been a major shift in
IFC invests $16.5 mn
C
usage of beauty products from special hina on Thursday said its foreign minister
occasion to everyday use. Therefore, we
decided to venture into the category,” she
Wang Yi had told his Indian counterpart S.
Jaishankar that it is ready to seek a in MedGenome
said. SAUMYA TEWARI “mutually acceptable solution” through talks to

said in a tweet on Wednesday.
Pant, support staff test covid-positive; trio placed in isolation
PTI issues that require “urgent treatment”—a
reference to tensions along its common borders
with India. This came a day after Jaishankar
conveyed to Wang that prolonging the existing
situation in eastern Ladakh—where tens of
thousands of troops were in an eyeball to eyeball
confrontation for more than 14 months—was
I
nternational Finance Corporation (IFC), a
member of the World Bank Group, is
investing $16.5 million (about ₹123 crore) in
genetic diagnostics and research company
MedGenome to increase access to covid-19
testing in India. The partnership, besides
increasing access to covid-19 testing, will also

W
icketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant and throwdown specialist
Dayanand Garani tested positive for covid-19, while three others
were placed in precautionary isolation as the dreaded virus hit the
Indian cricket team ahead of next month’s Test series against hosts England.
Bowling coach Bharath Arun and reserve wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha
were put in isolation for having come in contact with Garani along with standby
opener Abhimanyu Easwaran, whose inclusion had raked up a recent storm.
Garani’s covid report came this morning. The team will undergo daily covid
tests from now on. “Pant, who had not stayed in the team hotel during the break
period, tested positive on 8 July. He is asymptomatic and currently undergoing
self-isolation at the place where he reported positive,” BCCI sectetary Jay Shah
said in an official statement. “He will be able to join the squad in Durham after
returning two negative RT-PCR tests,” he added. It is learnt the Arun, Easwaran
and Saha have all tested negative but have to follow the UK government’s
health safety protocol for the 10-day isolation period. PTI
Rishabh Pant can join the team in Durham after two negative tests.
visibly impacting the bilateral ties in a “negative
manner”. The talks between the foreign ministers
took place in the Tajik capital Dushanbe on
Wednesday and lasted an hour, according to a
tweet by Jaishankar. It comes amid a stalemate in
the disengagement process between the two
militaries at several friction points in eastern
Ladakh . In a statement posted on its website on
Thursday, the Chinese foreign ministry said Wang
had said India-China relations remained at a “low
point” while the situation at the border has
“generally been easing” after troop withdrawal
from Pangong lake. Wang also repeated Beijing’s
position that it was not responsible for the tensions
GETTY on the India-China border. ELIZABETH ROCHE
support research to better help understand the
virus and its variants, and the management of
future outbreaks, IFC and MedGenome said in a
statement on Thursday. IFC’s equity investment
will support the expansion of MedGenome’s
diagnostic services as well as boost genomic data
from South Asian populations, which can help
provide valuable insights into complex diseases
and help develop effective medical solutions for
diverse populations, it added. “With IFC’s
support, we will continue to expand our services
across India, bringing tests directly to the
communities most affected by the pandemic,”
MedGenome founder and chairman Sam
Santhosh said. PTI

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10 FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI LONG STORY LIVEMINT.COM

REPORTAGE | TALKING POINTS | IDEAS | INSIGHT | THE BOTTOMLINE

THE SUBTLE ART OF

KEEPING INDIA’S LIGHTS ON
The task of running one of the world’s largest nationwide power grids is a unique challenge. How is it done?

What makes an already arduous task more difficult is the cyberattacks

on the Indian power grid. The grid is under constant attack, with at
least 30 events reported daily. MINT

Utpal Bhaskar immensely complex set of operations that
utpal.b@livemint.com ensure a continuous flow of electricity.
NEW DELHI Like all good things in life, one’s presence
is only felt by one’s absence. While the elec-
only gets exacerbated. The Union govern-
ment plans to set up a regional grid that will
be leveraged to create a common electricity
market for the neighbouring countries.
The unprecedented ramp down and the
mint
SHORT subsequent build-up of electricity load had
STORY to be done successfully, within a small win-
dow of nine minutes—something that
Pradesh, Chandigarh and Jammu and
Kashmir.
Unlike the power systems in Europe,
China and US that have stabilized, India’s

N
ot many who pass by a nonde- tricity demand came down during the pan- While India already has power transmis- hasn’t been tried anywhere in the world on power system is still on a high growth tra-
script building on the way to demic, its value was felt manifold,” Soonee, sion links with Bhutan, Nepal and Bangla- WHAT such a scale. jectory. By 2030, power requirement
the Sitaram Bhartia Institute who earlier headed Posoco, added. desh, the plan is to establish a connection Any sudden change in demand pattern would stand at 817GW with more than half
of Science and Research in with Myanmar and Sri Lanka. The highly trained team of could impact the grid frequency, with the of the demand being met by clean energy,
south Delhi would be aware of THE SYMPHONY “Over the years, the power system has operators at the National Load global standard requiring the frequency to according to Central Electricity Authority
Despatch Centre (NLDC) keeps
its importance in their lives. Nestled into
south Delhi’s leafy Qutab Institutional area, O ne of the key pressure points in man-
aging the load dispatch centre is the
this building houses the National Load fact that multiple fuel sources feed India’s
been so oversimplified for the users that
they often forget the mammoth effort that
goes on 24x7 to ensure that electrons start
an eagle eye on India’s national
power grid—capable of
be kept close to 50Hz. The April perform-
ance also added heft to the ambitious global
electricity grid plan, which aims to leverage
(CEA), the country’s apex power sector
planning body. “We are in the adolescent
stage, which comes with its own set of
Despatch Centre (NLDC)—the nerve cen- growing demand for electricity. India has flowing the moment a customer switches transferring 105GW of electricity. solar power generated in one geography to problems. We have to go from ‘fan to
tre of India’s power grid system. an installed power generation capacity of on a light or a machine,” Pillai, who is also feed the electricity demands of other fridge’… and the grid has to grow more,”
It is the NLDC that sits at the top of an 383.4GW. Of this, coal-fuelled plants chairman of the Global Smart Grid Federa- nations through the ambitious “One Sun, Soonee added.
extensive network designed to ensure that account for more than half of the total share tion, said. AND One World, One Grid” (OSOWOG). This comes at a time when the Cabinet
India gets the electricity that it needs. (about 202GW), with gas, nuclear and What makes an already arduous task Committee on Economic Affairs recently
Often unimaginatively compared to the air hydro accounting for 25GW, 7GW and TRAINING FIGHTER PILOTS The pandemic has added to more difficult are the cyberattacks on the approved the marquee ₹3.03 trillion power
the set of challenges faced by
traffic control, it’s the NLDC’s highly 46GW, respectively. As India makes a con-
trained team of operators, working in three certed push to go green, the share of infirm
stressful shifts of eight hours each, who sources such as solar and wind power will
I t takes years of training for an operator to
take command in the control room. With
an exceptional sense of situational aware-
operators, with the power
demand fluctuating in 2020 as
Indian power grid. The grid is under con-
stant attack, with at least 30 events
reported daily, as reported by Mint earlier.
distribution company (discom) reform
scheme aimed at improving the reliability
and quality of power supply. As part of the
keep an eagle eye on India’s national power have to rise, which will add to the complex- ness, they are gradually eased into the homes consumed power for A majority of the attacks originate from plan, the Union government aims to have
grid— capable of transferring 105 gigawatts ity of grid management. Solar and wind process by being acclimatized. Apart from longer durations. China, Singapore, Russia and the Com- supervisory control and data acquisition
(GW) of electricity from one corner of the currently constitute 96GW in the electric- training on simulators, this involves regu- monwealth of Independent States (CIS) (Scada) across urban areas and a distribu-
country to another. To put this into per- ity mix. “It is a big orchestra and (the) entire lar examination and certification. An oper- countries. The attacks reached a crescendo tion management system (DMS) in at least
spective, this quantum of electricity is orchestra has to continuously create a sym- ator is really tested only when things go MOREOVER earlier this year, when Red Echo, a hacker 100 urban centres.
enough to take care of the entire power phony, wherein, the instruments and the awry. “That’s the time when situational group affiliated with the Chinese govern- Moreover, the system will also have to
demand of the UK. While orchestrating musicians keep on changing,” said Soonee. awareness is important. It takes time to As India makes a concerted push ment, repeatedly targeted India’s load dis- take into account India’s energy transfor-
this daily dance of moving electricity across Given the number and types of power train an operator. They are like jet fighter to go green, the share of infirm patch centres. The massive campaign mation plan that involves a raft of green
the country is a challenge even under nor- generation plants, electricity transmission pilots. In the control room, we are always sources such as solar and wind could have caused widespread blackouts. measures, including clean electricity,
mal circumstances, the covid-19 pandemic links and distribution loads spread across questioning—what is happening? Why is it power will have to rise, which will “This is a real and present danger. Imag- green mobility, battery storage and green
has imposed some unique difficulties. the country, there should be a perfect sym- happening and what is likely to happen? It add to the complexity of grid ine the consequences if only one such hydrogen to help reduce pollution and
Power demand fluctuated over the course phony so that the holy grail of India’s power is like having plan B, C, D, E and F in place… management. attack is successful. If power supplies get facilitate commitments made at the 21st
of 2020, as many industries shut and system management is met—a grid fre- all at the same time,” Soonee said. switched off, the country comes to a halt,” conference of the parties (COP-21), the
homes consumed power for longer dura- quency in the range of 49.9–50.05 hertz Everything has to be calibrated—be it said a top government official requesting United Nations (UN) climate change con-
tions. (Hz). This involves close coordination the prevalent temperature, weather, sea- hydropower plants that were located anonymity. After the attack, a massive ference, held in France in 2015.
“We run the single largest synchronous between the grid operators and the power son, the availability of a particular power downstream to curtail operations in order training exercise has been initiated, with Several states and power distribution
grid in the world. There are challenges but generators—across coal, gas, hydro, plant or a transmission link and even if it is to protect their turbine blades from the particular emphasis on the types of cyber- companies are also working on setting up
we have managed (during the pandemic),” nuclear and green energy sources—man- the finals of the Euro cup on a certain day. high silt content, thereby resulting in that attacks that one has to watch out for. Access defence mechanisms, such as “islanding”.
said K.V.S. Bawa, chairman and managing aged by the Centre, states and the private With football fans switching on their televi- generation capacity being taken offline. denial training is also underway to make Such a system helps isolate the fallout of a
director, Power System Operation Corp. sector, with every part of the closely linked sion sets at 12.30 am on match day, the “Our (grid) system operators in India the grid harder to penetrate. grid disturbance on the national power
Ltd (Posoco). State-run Posoco oversees chain involved in transmission and distri- power system had to calibrate for the sud- have been among the finest in the world,” grid, restricting it to a particular region.
the country’s critical electricity load man- bution sector doing their job. A small error, den demand surge. said Shubhranshu Patnaik, partner at WHEN THE MUSIC STOPS This mechanism also allows a particular
agement functions through the NLDC and if not rectified in time, can shut down the
a set of regional load dis-
patch centres (RLDCs)
entire grid.
“The grid has to match
This requires an astute understanding of
all the moving parts. In such a scenario, var-
ious fuel sources provide different sets of
Deloitte. “Grid reliability has been
achieved despite lower levels of automa-
tion than the western world, lack of mean-
E ven the best-laid plans can often go region or essential service provider to iso-
awry. This came to
bear when India wit-
late itself in the event of a
grid failure.
and state load despatch The Union government plans the consumption with solutions. India’s hydropower stations play ingful ancillary services and a significant nessed massive power India’s peak electricity However, these meas-
centres (SLDCs). India to set up a regional grid that generation in real-time a key role in balancing the grid. These weaknesses at the intra-state level,” he transmission failures in demand continues to scale at ures are still some time
has 33 SLDCs, five which is not easy, partic- hydropower plants can be swiftly turned on added. mid-2012, which left away from becoming a
RLDCs—for the five will be leveraged to create a ularly with an increasing and off, unlike thermal power plants which While their ability to handle sudden exi- around 700 million peo- a record pace. By the year reality in most parts of
regional grids that form common electricity market share of renewable usually take around four hours to be gencies is constantly tested, sometimes, the ple without electricity. 2030, the country’s power the country. And until
the national grid—and energy resources that are brought online if the boilers are already lit operators do get a curveball—even by their On 31 July, the north- these proposals turn into
one NLDC. for the neighbouring intermittent,” said Reji and a day in the event of a cold start. In standards. The latest case in point was what ern grid collapsed, and on requirement is expected to reality, it is the grid oper-
“What will happen if Kumar Pillai, president, comparison, gas-fuelled projects take unfolded on the evening of 5 April 2020, in 1 August, the blackout ators who will have to
(the) electricity stops?” countries India Smart Grid Forum, around 30 minutes to come online. While the early days of what would end up being widened bringing down stand at 817GW ensure a safe flight path
wonders Sushil Kumar a public-private partner- the hydro plants take the least time to be a prolonged nationwide lockdown. the northern and eastern for India’s power grid,
Soonee, an advisor with Posoco and the ship formed by the power ministry. “When switched on or off, they are also prone to At 9 pm on 5 April, heeding Prime Minis- networks as well. According to experts, a even as the country’s peak electricity
man credited with building a robust power a customer switches on an appliance, that unforeseen risks. ter Narendra Modi’s call, India switched off variation in electricity demand led to a dip demand continues to scale to an all-time
system that dances in tandem to fulfil the additional power should start flowing from The operators need to calibrate for all lights for 9 minutes. The load sharply in the voltage. This dip in voltage, in turn, high (it recently breached the 200 GW
country’s electricity needs. A grid collapse the grid and the grid operators have to get types of exigencies, such as an abrupt rise in dropped and kept on falling as people tripped a critical transmission link and led mark). The task will require constant train-
is the worst-case scenario for any transmis- that extra power from the cheapest genera- the silt levels—as was seen in the waters of switched off more than just lights. The esti- to a domino effect, tripping other links. ing, up-to-date technology and a lot of grit
sion utility; if this happens, states that draw tion sources.” the Rishiganga river following a glacier mated electricity load reduction went off This affected electricity supplies to states and determination.
power from that particular network will go With the Indian grid starting to get con- burst and flash flood in Uttarakhand in the charts and was at 32GW—enough to such as Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Hary- “One wrong move, and a symphony
without power. “It is difficult to explain the nected to the neighbourhood, the problem February this year. This prompted some meet the entire power demand of Pakistan. ana, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Himachal becomes a cacophony,” cautioned Soonee.
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LIVEMINT.COM MINT MONEY FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI 11

Can derivative strategies aid How

A
much a house costs in Bengaluru
house is probably the biggest spend for most Indians. And
with urban population increasing manifold, buying a house

in growing portfolio returns?

in a large city, which is where most jobs are likely to be, has
become difficult—the main obstacle being cost. Determining a
property’s value is difficult. Our compilation of property prices of
prominent localities in major cities and surrounding areas across
India may help you compare and make an informed decision.
Here are the prices of some properties across three bands.

No. of Average unit Average price Approximate

Location
Such strategies are risky and suitable only for those with a high risk appetite and net worth bedrooms size (sq. ft) (₹/sq. ft) price (₹ lakh)

ISTOCKPHOTO
Under ₹50 lakh
Neil Borate
neil.b@livemint.com
Supporting role Chandapura 1BHK 550–650 3,350–3,775 19.3–23.3
Derivatives can be an ancillary strategy to contain risk or to

A
moderately enhance return in the core portfolio for high risk Gottigere 2BHK 800–1,000 3,700–4,000 32.5–36.5
common lament among
appetite investors. Understanding their loss potential is key.
investors sitting on the
STRATEGY Electronic City Phase–2 2BHK 900–1,050 3,500–3,850 34.0–38.0
sidelines of India’s turbo-
charged bull market is that Invest 785,000 in Sell Nifty put at strike Devanahalli 2BHK 950–1,000 4,000–4,200 38.5–42.0
they are comfortable debt funds at 4% p.a. 14,500 expiring in 1 month
investing in the market, but not at cur-
In this strategy, the investor who wants to enter the market at a lower level, Tumkur Road 2BHK 800–1,200 4,000–4,800 42.0–46.0
rent levels. For such individuals, Harish
Menon, founder and chief executive buys debt and sells a put at a low strike price to pocket the premium
₹50 lakh-₹75 lakh
officer, H Zone Capital, has an unortho- The FOMO strategy Total portfolio
dox solution. Menon, who is also a Sebi- Nifty today (with put)
15,700 790,000 Varthur 2BHK 950–1,200 4,650–5,200 51.0–55.0
registered financial adviser (Sebi-RIA),
suggests investing in debt mutual Lot size 787,617
785,000 Kadugodi 2BHK 1,000–1,200 4,600–5,100 51.4–55.4
funds, and simultaneously selling puts 50
for his sophisticated clients. Value of debt
780,000 investments Yelahanka 2BHK 1,100–1,200 4,750–5,100 54.8–59.0
Using derivatives to enhance portfo- Lot value
lio returns is highly risky, but a small 785,000
775,000 Loss on Thanisandra 2BHK 1,050–1,250 4,900–5,300 56.7–60.7
segment of advisers believes it adds put option
value, albeit for only investors with a Premium (-)₹18,550
770,000
collected Sarjapur Road 2BHK 1,100–1,250 5,000–5,300 58.5–62.5
high risk appetite and high net-worth. 1,450 769,067
They advocate derivatives as an ancil- 765,000
lary strategy to contain risk or to mod- 16500 16100 15700 15300 14900 14500 14100 Above ₹75 lakh
Nifty on expiry
erately enhance return in the core port-
folio. They do not generally recom- Whitefield 2BHK 1,200–1,500 5,500–6,500 79.0–83.0
mend using derivatives as a leveraged income while waiting for the correc- in the market. “We hedge the portfolios professional fund manager. I don’t
instrument to earn outsized returns. tion,” he explained. “The key point of sophisticated clients using put even suggest derivatives to my high Marathahalli 2BHK 1,100–1,550 5,800–6,500 79.5–83.5
Menon typically recommends two here is that the investor would have options. Normally, we only hedge net-worth (HNI) clients,” said Kalpesh
strategies to his clients. For those who shifted from debt to equity anyway on 30-40% of the equity portfolios and we Ashar, founder, Full Circle Financial Budigere Cross 3BHK 1,400–1,550 5,500–6,100 83.5–87.5
are heavily in the market and don’t see such corrections. The Nifty put adds do it when there is a high-risk event Planners and Advisors, a Sebi-RIA.
much further upside, he suggests a cov- extra income to the portfolio.” coming up. We are cautious with this. While derivatives used well can Kanakapura Road 3BHK 1,400–1,500 6,000–6,200 86.5–90.5
ered call strategy. A call option is the This is a high-risk strategy. For Only next month index puts are suffi- hedge a portfolio’s downside or add to
right to buy a stock or index at a partic- instance, an investor sell- ciently liquid in India and overall returns for a sophisticated HNI, Hebbal 3BHK 1,600–2,400 8,000–11,000 188.0–192.0
ular price. Selling this option means ing a 15,000 put when the Selling a call or they aren’t good for the investors should be mindful of the risk Look out for real estate data in this space for cities such as Delhi and NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Pune
giving someone else that right and thus Nifty is at 15,800 levels put is even more mid- and small-cap parts they contain. A call or put option only and Hyderabad. The list is not exhaustive. Data as on 13 July 2021.
The average price is the base rate on saleable area, and excludes infrastructure charges and government taxes.
involves capping your upside in return would pocket a small pre- risky because of a client’s portfolio. The pays off if the market movement is
Source: Cushman and Wakefield Research India
for a premium. “This works best during mium but expose himself your loss is not hedging cost varies enor- greater than the option premium you
the current market situation where to severe losses if the mar- mously, but is usually have paid for it. Selling a call or put is
limited to the
Nifty is largely range-bound. This strat- ket were to crash below 0.5-75% of the portfolio even more risky because your loss is
egy is not a hedge. If an investor wants 15,000. To accept this loss premium you value,” she said. not limited to the premium you have
have paid
to hedge the portfolio, then the pre-
mium received on selling calls can be
used to buy Nifty puts, thereby reduc-
as equivalent to what
would have happened if
the investor had actually
Approaches such as
Menon’s or Prabhu’s
remain a minority, with
paid. Trading in derivatives requires
you to place a margin (a certain sum of
money) with a broker and sharp move-
Keep boosting your investments
ing losses when the market has a fall,”
+ he said. For investors who are comfort-
able entering at particular levels that
entered the index at the 15,000 level most advisers preferring to stay away
not only requires sophisticated finan- from derivatives altogether. “I have not
cial understanding but also cast-iron recommended derivatives to my cli-
ments in stock prices can lead to the
broker suddenly asking for a greater
margin (called a margin call). The gains
each year, or when income rises
are lower than the current market lev- discipline. ents, nor do I personally invest in them. from derivative trading are also taxed as
els, Menon suggests a combination of Roopali Prabhu, chief investment Even mutual fund managers have been business income, which is as per slab ISTOCKPHOTO
debt funds and selling put options. officer at Sanctum Wealth, takes a unable to use them effectively and rate. This can be less favourable than Surya Bhatia annual income. Also, you
“This strategy is suitable for investors more conservative approach while rec- that’s why I stay away from arbitrage the 15% short-term capital gains tax should get health insurance for
who are waiting for a correction before ommending derivatives to her clients. funds. But if at all you are keen on hedg- applied to gains in stocks or mutual I work in the manufactur- all your family members.
entering equity. The objective of sell- She limits their use to buying put ing through derivatives, use the mutual funds and 10% long-term capital gains ing sector with a take-home
ing Nifty put is to earn premium options when there is a major event risk fund route and leave the decisions to a tax on gains above ₹1 lakh per annum. salary of ₹65,000 and my My employees’ pension
wife is working in the IT scheme (EPS) account cur-
sector with a take-home sal- rently has ₹80,000. I am 50
ary of ₹60,000. I am repay- now. At what age will I be

Tata Mutual Fund launches a business cycle fund ing a home loan at an
equated monthly instal-
ment (EMI) of ₹44,000 for
eligible to get a pension?
Will the amount I currently
have in my EPS account
ISTOCKPHOTO the next 12 years. My daugh- keep earning yearly inter-
Staff Writer shorter. Cycles which earlier other portfolio parameters ter is 1.5 years old. My pri- est till I attain my retire-
mintmoney@livemint.com lasted 4-5 years have now such as portfolio churn, market mary goal is wealth creation ment age even if I do not
shortened to 1-2 years. Over the cap allocation and number of to meet my goals such as a work with any employer

T
ata Mutual Fund has
announced the launch of
Tata Business Cycle
Fund, an open-ended equity
scheme following the business
cycle-based investing theme.
The new fund offer (NFO)
opens on 16 July and will close
on 30 July.
Tata Business Cycle Fund
aims to deploy the business
cycle approach to identify eco-
nomic trends and invest in sec-
tors and stocks that are likely to
outperform, a release issued by
the mutual fund house said.
During an expansion phase,
it will buy either sector leaders
or companies benefiting dis-
proportionately from the sec-
toral tailwinds, it said. During a
contraction phase, it will invest
in companies from sectors that
provide a cushion during
downcycles, the release added.
The scheme will be bench-
marked to the Nifty 500 Total
Returns Index (TRI) and will be
managed by Rahul Singh, chief
investment officer, equities,
Tata Asset Management; and
Murthy Nagarajan, head of
fixed income at Tata Mutual
Fund on the debt side. For its
overseas allocation, it will be
managed by Venkat Samala.
The scheme is allowed to invest
up to 20% of its corpus outside
India.
Speaking of the launch,
Singh said, “The focus has
shifted to business cycles
investing for two reasons. Busi-
ness cycles have become
last few years, the impact of stocks will be dependent on the retirement corpus, and my ever in future?
top-down sector allocations stage of the economic cycle, the child’s education and mar- ASK MINT —Shekhar Chatterjee
has been on alpha generation, release from Tata Mutual Fund riage. My existing system- m
which has been added. atic investment plans (SIPs) You are eligible to start get-
very high. This The new fund will ICICI Pruden- are about ₹26,000 a month, increase in savings may ting a pension at the age of 58,
fund would invest use the business tial Business which I have started within change, but increasing your provided you have completed
in businesses on a cycle approach to Cycle Fund was a year. I plan to step up some investments every year, or as 10 years of service. You can
macro basis, with identify economic launched in Janu- of my SIPs by a minimum of and when your income even start receiving a pension
at least 80% of the ary and is up 10%. Please advise if my increases, is essential. from the age of 50, but that will
trends and invest 12.28% as of 14
portfolio invested investment plans are okay In addition, you must ensure come at a reduced rate. Alter-
as per business in sectors likely to July, roughly on a or need correction. that you review your portfolio natively, you can defer pension
cycles theme. We outperform par with the S&P —Joshua every six months and take cor- to the age of 60 and can earn
believe cycles BSE 500. L&T rective measures if required, more.
have become Business Cycles The investment rationale i.e. if a scheme underperforms, EPS account does not earn
shorter and a portfolio needs to Fund was launched in 2014, but and the process you are follow- you may need to change it. any interest.
adapt quickly to the changing has lagged the S&P BSE 500 ing are in order. You are very Also, ensure that nominations Surya Bhatia is managing
environment. Hence, the need with a 11.65% CAGR compared right in starting monthly for all your investments are in partner of Asset Managers.
to have Tata Business Cycle with 15.19% on the benchmark. investments and are doing well place.
Fund in your portfolio.” However, the concept has when you say that you want to Further, as both of you are Do you have a personal
Compared with other diver- gained ground among fund increase your monthly invest- working and are having a loan finance query? Send in your
sified funds, the business cycles houses with Aditya Birla Sun ments by 10% after a year of to repay, ensure that you are queries at
theme allows greater sector Life Asset Management Com- investment. This is important well protected by a term life mintmoney@livemint.com
and get them answered by
concentration in terms of sec- pany also filing papers with and should be followed reli- insurance that covers both of
industry experts.
tor over/underweight. The Sebi for a business cycle fund. giously. The percentage of you. This can be 7-8 times your

UNDERSTAND RISKS WELL BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO HOP ON TO THE IPO BANDWAGON
ISTOCKPHOTO
a significant amount of wealth. Nonetheless, when they see the time and again. Although this is not true of all startups, it is impor-
stocks move up sharply on the first day, they can get swayed into tant to be aware about this change in dynamics from going pri-
POWER believing that this stock is on its way up and therefore can get
tempted to buy more in the secondary market—and this is some-
vate to public and the impact it can have on a company.
Timing: Why is it that all these IPOs are coming at roughly the
POINT thing to be cautious about. It is better to buy based on fundamen- same time? Each unicorn has a different business model. Is it a
tals rather than looking at the fact that someone else might have coincidence that suddenly all these unicorns realize that right
RISHAD MANEKIA made money in a stock. now is the time to go public with their company? Or is it that
Pricing: There is a reason that a company is raising money. many of their existing investors see that the overall stock market
We welcome your views and comments at Sometimes, the funds raised is for the purpose of expanding the is frothy, and they can therefore
mintmoney@livemint.com underlying business. But in many cases, particularly for the new Knowing a extract maximum gains now compared
unicorns, the reason for going public is to give an exit to existing company and with a few months down the road?

I
t is IPO (initial public offering) season again, and many of investors and shareholders. These shareholders typically are They may be wrong, but it is some-
India’s unicorns are now looking to list on the market. These large institutional funds and employees of the company. These being able to thing to be cautious about.
IPOs have gotten a lot of investor interest because funds are are some of the smartest investors on the planet and have a very judge if it can Startups have a huge novelty factor,
being raised for startups that many investors are very familiar deep understanding of their own company. No outsider would make money and it is tempting to want to participate
with. It is tempting when you see a company go from zero to hero know as much as they do about the business prospects of the firm are different in their story. After all, many of us have
to want to participate in that story. being listed. Every person wants to maximize his/her profits and, heard about knowing what you invest
But just because these flashy new startups have shown tremen- therefore, these IPOs are priced to perfection—to make maxi- in. But there is a difference between
dous growth in the past does not mean they will show similar mum money for the current shareholders as well as merchant knowing a company and being able to fundamentally judge if you
growth in the future. It is important to remember a few things bankers. Sure, they could be wrong, but an investor must ask burner and, in fact, the companies are loss-making. However, can make money by participating in its story. And, therefore, a
when thinking about these companies. himself/herself what edge they are bringing to the table and what public market shareholders have very different expectations retail investor should really question where his/her edge lies.
Listing day: Purely because of the unbelievable amount of insights do they have which the promoters and existing share- from private investors. Public shareholders expect both profit Some might still feel that they have a deep understanding and can
retail interest, you might see these stocks move up on listing day. holders have missed. And, more important, is this edge enough and growth. But for many of these startups, it is difficult to transi- make money. But for most, it is better to avoid the hype, diversify
However, if you look at the history of many IPOs, the gains on list- to give the new investor profits on their investments? tion to a business model away from freebies and towards profita- and leave the role of investing either to professional managers or
ing often do not necessarily translate into long-term perform- Growth and profits: Many new unicorns that have come up bility. Moreover, when you take away discounts, it will have a to the simple low-cost passive funds.
ance. And, because of the way the IPOs are allocated, retail inves- in the past few years have become big on the back of burning major impact on growth. Investors don’t have to look very far for Rishad Manekia is founder and managing director, Kairos
tors might not actually get many shares in their account to create money and on discounts. Many a time, profits are on the back- examples such as Uber in the US where we have seen this play out Capital Pvt. Ltd.
This PDF was originally uploaded to Mint Newspaper - ePaper (https://t.me/mint_epaper). Subscribe now to get this edition before anyone else!! Backup channel: @news_backup
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12 FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI VIEWS LIVEMINT.COM

OUR VIEW MY VIEW | FARM TRUTHS

REUTERS

A panoramic look at our three

decades of economic reforms
Most Indians have little to celebrate in a policy paradigm that has delivered rather uneven results

outdo the previous regimes on that. The
same policy framework of greater pri-
vate-sector participation at the cost of
the government’s role has been a slogan
of the present dispensation.
Still, 30 years on, the situation for
most of our population remains
unchanged. The reforms created a class
of rich entrepreneurs and a small but
HIMANSHU vocal middle class in urban areas, but it
is associate professor at Jawaharlal Nehru also contributed to widening inequality,
University and visiting fellow at the Centre which has worsened after 1991 and is
de Sciences Humaines, New Delhi now at its worst level since 1947 on
almost all dimensions. The widening of
disparities is not limited to gaps across
that was junked about two years ago by
the Centre had shown, perhaps for the
first time, a decline in real consumption
and a rise in poverty. Today, a declining
share of wages in manufacturing and for
the economy as a whole means sluggish
growth in worker incomes. Rising infor-
malization and contractualization of the
country’s workforce has been a factor in
the worsening of most workers’ working
conditions. The past decade has seen
almost stagnant real wages for a majority
of casual workers.
Such outcomes on these indicators is
not surprising, given the philosophy of

Branson’s ‘space’ flight

households in income or consumption, the 1991 reforms. In many ways, they are

T
his month marks the 30th anniver- but also between urban and rural areas, no different from our pre-reform eco-
sary of the economic reforms between laggard states and developed nomic policies, all of which were supply-
launched by our then finance ones. Disparities have increased even side responses. While our pre-1991 plans
minister Manmohan Singh in his budget further in terms of access to health and also focused on supply-side responses

cracked open a market speech of 24 July 1991. Three decades is a

sufficiently long time to take stock of
what they meant for the economy as a
whole and for various sections of society.
education and several other human-
development indicators. On most of
these, be it education, health, women’s
workforce participation and hunger, we
through state intervention and control,
the reforms attempted to use the private
sector for the task through a liberalized
regulatory framework and business-
They certainly contributed to a mar- remain at the bottom of any global chart friendly fiscal and monetary policies. But
ginal increase in the growth rate of our of comparison. The logic of reforms an absence of concern for distributional
Whether Virgin’s boss actually went past our frontier to the dark yonder is irrelevant. What economy as measured by gross domestic meant that expenditure on welfare and inequities and aggregate-demand man-
product (GDP). Average annual growth investment in human development were agement has continued as the defining
matters is the experience he’s offering space tourists in a market set to achieve escape velocity over the past three decades has been not a policy priority. feature of our economic policymaking.
5.8% per annum, slightly higher than The situation is no different on The consequences of supply-side-
5.6% in the decade before 1991. But even employment, with our latest data sug- biased reforms will show up in a further
this growth has been uneven, with the gesting an absolute decline on this count worsening of income distribution and

T
his week, London-based Virgin
group’s co-founder Richard Bran-
son grabbed eyeballs across the
globe, which was not unusual, for
an act that was. The British billion-
aire who started out with niche
music and made it big on a strategy of exploring
novel spaces in diverse markets—a ‘brand
promise’ that defied business gurus on ‘core
competence’—flew to the edge of space in an
+ ad capsule for his extra-terrestrial tourism
venture. It was a spectacle that stirred demand
for Virgin Galactic’s space rides aboard its
six-seater craft VSS Unity at $250,000 per seat
for 4 minutes of weightless existence with a
wonderful view. It was a fizzy moment, but this
newly cracked-open market lost some of its fizz
soon after, as dismissals of his famed flight flew
around social media. As he had reached just
85km above the planet’s surface, carped some,
it was really just another high-altitude flight.
Virgin’s archrival, Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin,
keen to play pioneer itself, drew attention to its
the countdown to this private race for space rate sliding to only 5% in the last decade. and a historic rise in unemployment eventually slow growth down. This is
began back in 1996, when a clutch of benefac- Clearly, our growth acceleration was not rates. An official consumption survey what the Indian economy appears to be
sustained, despite a pick-up in the pace going through currently. Even before
tors put up $10 million as an ‘X Prize’— of reforms. However, on a long-term the pandemic, it was showing signs of
renamed the Ansari X Prize in 2004—for the comparison, the economy did better distress, driven by a decline in demand.
first non-government entity to send a crew on than its 4.1% average of the first 40 years QUICK READ This slowdown is not an aberration, but
a reusable craft into space twice within two of independence. But then, growth rates an expected outcome of the nature of
weeks. The aim was not just to rouse the spirit are deceptive. In any case, our first four The economic reforms of 1991 our economic reforms.
decades should be compared with the shifted the framework of Indian Things have taken a turn for the worse
of exploration, but also spur investment in a pre-1947 phase, and on that score, we policymaking and upped growth with the pandemic. But the chorus for
field with such big challenges of innovation saw a massive growth improvement. a bit but inequality now is worse more reforms and supply-side interven-
that its spin-offs would eventually yield kalei- Yet, a proper assessment of 1991’s and worsening even as we lag on tions is unlikely to ease our demand situ-
doscopic benefits for the rest of us left down reforms must go beyond growth rates. human development indices. ation. The problem this time is not like
here in the grasp of gravity. Indeed, several of Perhaps their biggest contribution was a the 1991 crisis. It needs a response based
change in India’s economic paradigm, It’s worth a debate whether on a proper understanding of our condi-
the technologies we use in our daily lives can which redefined the vocabulary of similar reforms and further tion. What is needed at this point is not
be traced to breakthroughs achieved for Indian policymaking. Every government supply-side interventions will more of the same reforms, but a funda-
grand ventures in need of whizzy new skills. after 1991 has embraced the philosophy aid our economy in its current mental shift in the way economic policy
As private businesses prosper in this fast- of liberalization and privatization that state or we need to rethink is designed, keeping people and workers
rising sector, breaking the monopoly of state- those reforms initiated and has tried to the policy paradigm in place. at the centre of the exercise.
run missions, we could make big advances in
ways we can’t even picture yet. Joyrides for
the rich, in other words, could fund a lot more
to come. Once Elon Musk’s SpaceX makes
its debut, the world will witness a three-way
contest like none other. As of now, Branson, www.livemint.com New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chandigarh*, Pune* Saturday, July 16, 2011 Vol.5 No.168 `5.00 12 PAGES
16
+ 20 PAGES LOUNGE + 4 MARKETS PAGES

own intent to cross the so-called Kármán line, whose project had seemed a laggard in recent Q&A:Pranab Bardhan on
inequality of opportunity >4
MEDIA: News International CEO Rebekah

beyond which it is so airless that nothing can fly
years, even as investors blew hot and cold over
Brooks resigns >12
BANKING: Barclays to merge corporate,
investment banking units in India >3
EXCLUSIVE PARTNER
CORPORATE: Google’s quarterly earnings
surge 36%, putting firm back in favour >12

without its own power. Some 15km further out, its prospects, has stolen a lead. SENSEX 18,561.92 æ 56.28

CENSUS 2011
NIFTY 5,581.1 æ 18.7 DOLLAR `44.51 Æ `0.01 EURO `62.83 æ `0.51 GOLD `22,890 Æ `140 OIL $116.81 æ $1.54

QUICK EDIT Space travel is

this is usually taken by scientists as the real In the final analysis, whether Virgin’s craft Fresh thrust to urbanization
Trend may redefine the
political economy of the
frontier of space. By this yardstick, Branson’s did or didn’t go into space should not make us
country, forcing a shift
in public policy focus
towards urban India
Talking to
the US
SOUTHERN COMFORT
I f there is one thing
that external affairs
minister S.M. Krishna
should avoid next week life-enhancing,
India’s urbanization, the bulk of which is concentrated in the country’s southern
Percentage share
when he meets US
states, has received fresh momentum, according to the 2011 census.
INDIA Less than 30 secretary of state Hillary
Clinton, it is to complain
Percentage share of urban population out of the total population
30.01-35
about India’s trouble

and anything that’s

Greater than 35 with terrorism and
B Y A SIT R ANJAN M ISHRA
L IZ M ATHEW
& 2001 2011 the role of its western
neighbour in fomenting
························· trouble in our territory.
NEW DELHI Manipur
There is little the US

inaugural trip fell short. split any hair. The arc of our planet would look
Gujarat Gujarat

I ndia’s Census 2011 shows West Mizoram can do about it. And
Bengal
that one in every three In- raising the issue makes it
dians now lives in an urban appear that India is less
habitat and that the move to- Maharashtra Maharashtra than capable of handling
wards towns and cities has hap- its problems and those
pened mostly in south India, in its neighbourhood.

life-enhancing is worth
contiguously from Maharashtra Andhra Pradesh The issue he should
to Tamil Nadu. raise, for sure, is that
Goa Goa

Did it? The space tourism market appears no less beautiful on this side of Kármán’s line
According to the latest census, of the revised Nuclear
31.2% of the total population Suppliers Group (NSG)
Karnataka Karnataka
lives in urban centres compared guidelines and how they
with 27.8% in 2001 and 25.5% in Andaman and Andaman and smack of double dealing
Nicobar Islands Nicobar Islands
1991. Of the 1.21 billion popula- Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu on the part of the US. He
tion, 833 million live in rural In- certainly should make
dia while the remaining 377 mil-
62.17 Kerala it clear to his visitor that
2001
lion reside in urban India. unless the NSG issue
49.76 2011
The number of towns in the 48.45 47.72 45.23 is resolved to India’s
44.04

doing. It makes you

42.43

to have taken off anyway, with Virgin’s subor- or that. In any case, it’s a continuum. While
country rose 53.74% to 7,935 in 42.58 satisfaction, the US
37.36 38.57
the last decade. The census de- 33.99 35.67 33.49 should say goodbye to
fines all places with a municipal- 32.63 setting up any nuclear
ity, corporation, cantonment 25.96 27.3 power plants in this
board or notified town area com- country.
mittee as a town. The US is a friend of
The trend, if sustained, say India, but some firmness
some experts, will redefine the Goa Tamil Nadu Kerala Maharashtra Gujarat Karnataka Andaman and Andhra Pradesh in dealing with it is
political economy of the country, Nicobar Islands needed, for now.
Source: Census of India

bital seats all the buzz among would-be space- fans of Star Trek will have a long wait for any-
forcing a shift in public policy fo-
AHMED RAZA KHAN/MINT
cus towards urban India. Fur-

want to live forever.

ther, the fact that urbanization
has gained momentum in the
South also opens up new oppor-
tunities for the consumer econo-
my.
The biggest trend towards ur-
banization is in southern India,
has added Karnataka and Kerala
to the list, while more than 30%
of the population lives in urban
areas in Andhra Pradesh.
The southern states also saw
the fastest economic growth in
the last decade, drawing in asso-
gal and Manipur have seen faster
urbanization than the rest of the
country. Gujarat and Maharash-
tra already had more than 35%
living in urban centres by 2001.
In terms of urban population,
the top three states are Mahar-

farers who have the money to spare. The com- thing like on that TV show, what counts for
where all states except Andhra
Pradesh have more than 35% of
the population in urban centres.
While by the earlier census in
2001 more than 35% were al-
ready living in urban areas in
Tamil Nadu, the latest census
ciated migration from other
states. In 2007-08, the economies
of Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra
Pradesh grew at 10.42%, 12.92%
and 10.62%, respectively.
Among other states, Haryana,
Punjab, Uttarakhand, West Ben-
ashtra with 50.8 million, Uttar
Pradesh with 44.4 million and
Tamil Nadu with 34.9 million.
Saloni Nangia, senior vice-
president (retail) at Technopak
TURN TO PAGE 3®

pany claims a robust response from across the most in this market is the core experience on Four leading
OFCD ISSUE

Sahara sent to Sebi’s cable firms in

appellate tribunal
world. To join the action as soon as possible, offer. And this, in terms of bodily sensation,
B Y N IKHIL K ANEKAL &
K HUSHBOO N ARAYAN
·························
NEW DELHI/MUMBAI
merger talks
R AY B R A D BU RY
B Y S HUCHI B ANSAL &
the Securities Appellate Tribunal A NUSHREE C HANDRAN
(SAT) to examine the question of ·························
whether they could use OFCDs NEW DELHI/MUMBAI

T he fate of two Sahara group

companies that raised mon-
ey through optionally fully con-
vertible debentures (OFCDs)
to raise money from investors.
Sahara agreed not to raise any
more deposits from investors
until SAT decides the case.
“We are directing SAT to dis-
F our major television cable
distribution companies—
Digicable Networks (India)
Pvt. Ltd, Hathway Cable and
Data Com Pvt. Ltd, IndusInd

Bezos reportedly expects to take his shot into is about being afloat up there, not airless. So
will be decided by the appellate
tribunal of the Securities and Ex-
change Board of India (Sebi)
within three months.
The Supreme Court on Friday
disposed of special leave peti-
tions filed by Sahara Commodity
Services Corp. Ltd (earlier
known as Sahara India Real Es-
pose of the matter within eight
weeks from the date of filing
(parties have three weeks to file
the case before SAT),” said a
bench comprising Chief Justice
S.H. Kapadia and justices K.S.
Radhakrishnan and Swatanter
Kumar. “We are asking for an
early hearing because this is a
Media and Communications
Ltd (InCable), and DEN Net-
works Ltd—are in talks to merge
their businesses and create a sin-
gle cable network, prompted by
consolidation moves in other
parts of the industry.
The four companies, or multi-
system operators (MSOs) as they

the dark yonder on 20 July, before Blue Ori- long as the feel of it is on the ticket and safety
tate Corp. Ltd, or SIRECL) and
Sahara Housing Investment
Corp. Ltd (SHICL), and asked
Mint is also available for R9.50 with
Hindustan Times under a combo offer
very important matter. It a fun-
damental question of law.”
On 23 June, Sebi directed the
two Sahara companies to refund
TURN TO PAGE 2®
are called, appointed Ernst and
Young and Deutsche Bank AG to
come up with a feasibility report
on the proposal. Together these
TURN TO PAGE 2®

gin launches a similar tour service. In a way, springs no nasty surprises, it’ll probably sell.

GUEST VIEW

G-Secs could attract more shrugs than retail investors

When we look at returns, there is an inher-
MADAN SABNAVIS ent contradiction in the way our schemes
have been formulated. The government
already has in place small-savings schemes
that are open to retail investors. One can go
for various options offering better returns
The question of liquidity is important for more than 100 transactions in a day. Another Direct retail investing in G-Secs, as pro-
individuals, as banks allow one to go in for 30-40 would be recording less than 10 posed, may not be a quick starter for all these
premature withdrawals by paying a small trades. The interesting thing about G-Secs is reasons. Drawing individuals to the corpo-
penalty. This is among the reasons people that the benchmarks tracked by the Fixed rate bond market has been a challenge all
have fixed deposits. Postal deposits can also Income Money Market and Derivatives Asso- along. Highly-rated bonds find subscribers
be withdrawn before maturity, but the same ciation of India show reasonably good levels when returns are good. But most of them

is chief economist, Care Ratings
and author of ‘Hits & Misses:
The Indian Banking Story’
This PDF was originally uploaded to Mint Newspaper - ePaper (https://t.me/mint_epaper). Subscribe now to get this edition before anyone else!! Backup channel: @news_backup
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G
etting retail investors into any seg-
ment is the ultimate vindication of a
market’s success, and hence the
Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) move to enable
retail investment in government securities
(G-secs) is noteworthy. We also talk of the
same for India’s corporate bond and com-
modity derivative markets because having
more players adds buoyancy. While allowing
such an entry is good, the broader question
is whether it will work.
As a saver, an individual looks out for
three things: Safety (a matter of risk), return
and liquidity. This is what has made people
keep money in bank deposits even though
they provide very low returns. Such savers
are taken for granted and there is no lobby
group to promote their interests. If one
looks at the G-Secs market, all these factors
will come into play as individuals review
their options. Safety is a no-brainer when it
comes to these bonds, as there is no ques-
tion of a default under any circumstance.
How about the other two?
than government paper. The current returns
on G-Secs are as follows: 10-year bonds give
6.1-6.15%, 5-year bonds 5.7-5.8% and 3-year
ones around 5%. Post office deposits give
5.5% and 6.7% for 3 and 5 years respectively.
National Savings Certificates (NSCs) yield
6.8%, while a Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) which
goes for 10 years provides 6.9%. The floating
bond scheme gives 35 basis points more than
an NSC, so that’s 7.15% now (it is reset every
quarter). The government’s small savings
options give higher returns because they are
defined this way. A panel led by Usha Thorat
had recommended that these schemes be
priced at 50 basis points above G-Secs, which
makes higher yields tautological.
Here, one is not talking of bonds issued by
government-run agencies such as National
Thermal Power Corp, National Highways
Authority of India, etc, which offer higher
rates than G-Secs. At times, there have been
issuances of tax-free bonds that attracted
retail investors in droves. Individuals are
happy to hold these bonds.
does not hold for certificates (which can be of trading, as their prices (and yields) serve as would be holding the paper to maturity.
liquidated early only under extreme condi- market signals. Here, it is the 1, 3, 5, 10 and Buyers also need to understand market
tions like death). What about G-Secs? 15-year benchmark bonds that usually make dynamics. If one buys a security, its price is
Like any saleable bond, G-Secs can be sold the mark. But the curious thing is that once important, as the investor gets its face value
in the market at any time, as these are listed a security ceases to be a benchmark, it moves of ₹100 at maturity (besides two half-yearly
for trading right after their issuance. Holders to the background and is no longer actively payments of annual interest). If the 6.79%
need to recognize, though, that any deal in traded. The market works on the basis of 2027 paper, say, is bought at ₹103.28, one
the secondary market maturity or tenure, and gets ₹100 in 2027. Bond math is not easy and
will involve a gain or loss, after a year, a 5-year bond requires a clear understanding, unlike the
and a rising interest-rate QUICK READ becomes a 4-year one and equities we’re all largely familiar with.
regime will get reflected the market loses interest. Retail investors already have access to
in declining prices, which Government securities now So, a retail investor may G-Secs through various gilt schemes that are
would mean a loss. It is available to retail investors are get excited investing in, run by mutual fund houses. Here, they get
not predefined, unlike for not simple alternatives to bank say, a newly-issued 6.10% exposure to a wider set of government secu-
a deposit, on which deposits for various reasons 2031 bond, but would rities, including dated paper as well as trea-
50-100 basis points may including the fact that they can find it hard to sell after a sury bills, depending on the way the specific
be deducted as a penalty. deliver either gains or losses. year once it turns into fund is structured. The investment and pay-
The next big issue is illiquid nine-year paper. offs are professionally handled, as the fund
whether it is easy to sell G-Secs may not be as liquid The only way this deal manager takes care of all these issues. With
one’s holdings. as savers would like and retail will work for the retail this option being exercised with enthusiasm
As of date, there are 95 buyers would also need to investor is if it is held to by individuals, does it really make sense to
government securities understand complex market maturity. But then, a yield start buying G-Secs being issued? The
that are listed. However, dynamics before they put their of 6.1% is lower than a answer is a big shoulder shrug.
not more than 4-5 have money in these instruments. KVP’s 6.9%. These are the author’s personal views.
X X

LIVEMINT.COM VIEWS FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI 13

THEIR VIEW M I N T C U R AT O R

Potential long-term economic The crypto revolution will not

be public but can’t be stopped
consequences of the pandemic Private innovation is superior and governments are far too slow

Likely hysteresis and a closing demographic window make a case for wide-ranging reforms to sustain high economic growth

RUETERS

TYLER COWEN
is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He is a
professor of economics at George Mason
University
SUDIPTO MUNDLE
is a distinguished fellow at the National Council
of Applied Economic Research.

A
revolution is pending in finance,
and the world is only beginning to
realize it. Financial institutions will

N
o one really knows what the long-
term consequences of the covid
pandemic will be. From the experi-
ence gained in India and abroad,
epidemiologists and doctors have
learnt a great deal about how the
virus behaves, how to contain its spread, and how to
treat infected persons. But they know little about
the long-term health consequences of covid infec-
tion simply because enough time has not passed to
observe such consequences. However, this column
is not about the epidemiological and health conse-
quences of the pandemic, but it’s possible long-
term economic consequences for India.
The seductive symmetry of V-shaped growth
curves that often follow an adverse economic shock
induces many analysts to quickly pronounce after a
shock that the economy is bouncing back. How-
ever, such curves that simply reflect the ‘bowstring’
effect of a negative shock can be quite misleading. A
strong upswing may follow a sharp contraction, but
all it means in terms of levels is that the economy is
getting back to where it was before the shock. In the
present case, most forecasts have suggested that the
Indian economy will grow by about 8% to 10% dur-
+ ing 2021-22. This implies the economy will be more
or less back to the level where it was in 2019-20,
about ₹146-149 trillion at constant (2011-12) prices.
Two years have been lost to the pandemic.
But where will the economy go from there? In a
recent exercise at the National Council of Applied
Economic Research, we have looked at a few
possible scenarios and their long-term implica-
tions, benchmarked against a counterfactual
growth path the economy might have followed
had there been no pandemic. These exercises
reveal hysteresis—effects of the pandemic shock
that will persist for a very long time.
In the optimistic scenario, it is assumed that after
recording a growth of over 10% this year, the econ-
omy will continue to grow at a high trend rate of 7%.
Even in this scenario, the economy catches up with
the ‘no pandemic’ growth path only by 2029-30. In
the pessimistic case, it is assumed that because of a
third covid wave, a weak policy response to it and
inadequate macroeconomic stimulus, the economy
will grow at 8.4% this year, then settle down to a
low steady state growth path of 4.5%, increasingly
falling behind the ‘no pandemic’ growth path. A
third intermediate scenario assumed that effective
management of the third wave and appropriate
expansionary macroeconomic policies would
enable the economy to settle at the pre-pandemic
trend growth path of 5.8% after growing at 8.4% in
the current year. Despite this, the intermediate
path will always lag behind the ‘no pandemic’ path
because of the two lost years.
Apart from the long-lasting adverse effect of the
pandemic, the other main takeaway is that the
have to take a radically different approach The US Fed won’t move on a CBDC without
to information technology just to stay in approval from the US Congress BLOOMBERG
business. Bullish Global, a crypto firm, is
planning to go public this year, with an a great deal of information technology—
expected valuation of $9 billion. Circle and they are improving rapidly. The impli-
Internet Financial, the company behind cation is that a central bank digital cur-
stablecoin, is also planning to be publicly rency, or a CBDC, is a solution in search of
listed, as is cryptocurrency platform Bakkt a problem.
Holdings. Financial markets are difficult to Quarles also suggested that the Fed tol-
predict, but at this point, 12 years after Bit- erate stablecoins, just as central banking
coin, it’s hard to argue that this is a bubble. has coexisted and indeed thrived with
Ask yourself a question. Why shouldn’t numerous other private-sector innova-
finance and payments be as easy as sending tions. Stablecoins can serve as a private-
an email? Anyone who grew up on com- sector experiment to see if individuals and
puter games and texting probably thinks institutions truly desire a radically differ-
that running a financial system should be ent payments system, in this case based on
equally frictionless and cheap, especially if crypto and blockchains. If they do, the sys-
there existed a mature central bank digital tem can evolve by having some but not all
currency. There’s no reason money can’t be transactions shift toward stablecoin.
transferred via simple communication. Due There need not be any ‘do or die’ date of
to the large amount of money at stake, there transition requiring a perfectly functioning
would need to be higher levels of security CBDC. But insofar as those stablecoins can
than with email. But some mix of bioscans, achieve the very simple methods of funds
multi-factor authorization and hardware transfer outlined above, market partici-
security (more than a password) ought to pants will continue to use them more.
economy can only get back to its pre-pandemic network of primary health centres, which is the suffice. These safeguards shouldn’t cost Quarles argued that with suitable but
growth path at high growth rates of around 7% or base of our public healthcare system. While this very much once they are in place. non-extraordinary regulation of stablecoin
more. Two points are important to note in this administrative foundation exists, it is non-func- One vision is that governments and cen- issuers, such a system could prove stable.
regard. Even at this high growth rate, the catch-up tional in many states. Hopefully, the present crisis tral banks will run these systems, making He even seems to prefer the private-sector
will only happen by the year 2029-30. This is also will motivate the central and state governments to governments and central banks far more alternative: “It seems to me that there has
the year when our low demographic dependency urgently introduce this reform. The urgency of also important in finance. For many institu- been considerable private-sector innova-
ratio will bottom out, implying that the narrow win- reforming our basic education system and skilling tions, private banks would not be needed to tion in the payments industry without a
dow for India’s so-called demographic dividend programmes has already been mentioned. get access the payments system, and so the CBDC, and it is conceivable that a Fed
will start closing. A third urgent area of reform is role of private banks would shrink. The CBDC, or even plans for one, might deter
That leaves just a few years to the fragile financial sector. As the central bank in turn would have more funds private-sector innovation by effectively
take advantage of this potential QUICK READ latest Financial Stability Report to deploy, and inevitably it would apply ‘occupying the field’.” In essence, Quarles
dividend. That will entail, first, a (FSR) points out, the gross non- some amount of discretion to those funds. is willing to tolerate a system in which pri-
complete reform of our dysfunc- Post-covid scenarios chalked out performing assets (GNPA) ratio If the role of government is to expand, vately-issued dollar equivalents become a
tional basic education system to by NCAER indicate that effects of has not deteriorated further in and if private banks are to suffer, it would major means of consummating payments
improve learning outcomes. this shock will persist for a long 2021. But this has happened only create significant issues of the sort that the outside of the Fed’s traditional institutions.
That alone will enable secondary time and we can’t expect a quick because of regulatory forbear- US political system is often not very good at Presumably capital requirements would be
school graduates to acquire skills return to our pre-pandemic ance by the Reserve Bank of India resolving. The US Federal Reserve has used to ensure solvency.
that can make them employable. growth path even in the most on account of covid. The FSR made it clear it won’t create a digital cur- For many onlookers, even hearing of
It will also require a more effec- optimistic of recovery cases. stress tests indicate that even in rency without approval from Congress, but innovation in finance raises worries about
tive skilling programme, driven its base case, the GNPA ratio is Congress is notorious for being slow or systemic risk. But perhaps the US would do
by potential employers even if it Reforms must urgently cover likely to rise to nearly 10% by even unable to act, especially on issues better by letting information technology
is publicly financed and, finally, healthcare, education, energy, March 2022. In a severe stress involving the US government’s role in the advance than trying to shut it down. And if
rapidly growing employment the financial sector and trade case, it could rise to over 11%. The American economy. you are afraid of instability, are you really so
opportunities to absorb the large policy at the very least for us to power sector, especially the dis- And these squabbles are not purely parti- keen to see foreign central bank digital cur-
slack of unemployment and brighten our growth prospects. tribution system in states, is san. Given the US government’s record rencies fill up this space?
underemployment. Absent these another constraint that requires with technology—remember the botched If you are still sceptical, ask yourself two
prerequisites, the demographic dividend will turn urgent reform attention, even as we start a long rollout of the Obamacare website?—can we final questions. First, which has been more
into a disaster, as has often been pointed out. journey of transformation from high-carbon fossil be so sure that a central bank digital cur- innovative on these issues: the private sec-
The other point is that a high trend growth rate fuels to renewable energy. Finally, the regressive rency would be hack-proof and well-func- tor or the public sector? Second, how real-
of 7% or more can only be sustained through an return to discretionary tariff hikes and other protec- tioning from the start? istic are the prospects that Congress takes
ambitious, wide ranging 1991-like reform pro- tionist trade policy measures needs reversal if the In a remarkably honest yet radical any effective action at all? This is now a
gramme to offset the adverse effects of the two-year country wishes to successfully compete in global speech last month about stablecoins, Fed world in which radical monetary ideas are
pandemic shock. The first priority for this in markets. Governor Randal Quarles argued that cur- produced and consumed like potato chips.
present conditions is a complete overhaul of the These are the author’s personal views. rent payments systems already incorporate I say, pass the bag. ©BLOOMBERG

MY VIEW | PEN DRIVE

Creating job-creators requires us to celebrate failure

to HEIs, as sought in the NEP, is designed to
TULSI JAYAKUMAR help them pursue innovation and excellence.
However, despite the best intentions of both
the government and concerned leadership
teams, our best-laid plans may go astray.
Our big demand-side challenge to entre-
To understand this, look at the statistics entrepreneurship is much like losing weight. startup teams. The military then provides a
available from the entrepreneurial world: It can happen only through a series of ‘small natural ‘national incubator’ for Israelis. The
90% of all startups fail, with 10% failing steps’ taken every day, rather than a burst of adversities faced by Israelis are a source of
within the very first year and about 70% yo-yo fasting or high-intensity exercise now national competitive advantage, while the
within 2-5 years. With failure being anath- and then. Institutions and academics will diversity of its population, comprising
ema to the Indian psyche, the lesson is clear. need to work hard at not only imbuing their mainly immigrants, has made them natural

is professor of economics
at Bhavan’s SP Jain
Institute of Management
& Research.
W
hat will it take to turn young job-
seekers in India into job-creators?
Can we foster and nurture entre-
preneurial talent within higher education
institutes (HEIs)? An important topic, no
doubt, given that India faces the spectre of
joblessness, even as the economy tries to
crawl its way out of a pandemic-led reces-
sion. It was also a topic I was invited to speak
on recently, to a gathering of academics con-
stituting leadership teams from Maharash-
tra’s autonomous undergraduate colleges.
Nurturing entrepreneurship has been
taken up as an agenda item at the highest
level. The National Education Policy 2020,
through its appeal for more creative, innova-
tive and pioneering youth, refers to compe-
tencies typically associated with entrepre-
neurs. It also seeks to remove rigidities of the
erstwhile education system, speaking of
multi-disciplinary and holistic education to
ensure life-long learning—all hallmarks of an
entrepreneurial culture. Graded autonomy
preneurship lies within an Indian attitude
towards achievement and a perceived linear
relationship with education. Conventional
education is seen as a passport to respect and
success, with dropping out of college not an
option for children from ‘good families’.
Indian parents make every attempt to ensure
that everything that can be taught gets
learnt. Life, especially in cities, is a mad rush
to keep kids up with the Joneses at swim-
ming, horse-riding, gymnastics, piano,
dance, origami and every new fad in town.
The Indian drive for success and its abhor-
rence of failure is much recognized, even cel-
ebrated. Take the 12-year record that stu-
dents of Indian descent have held in the
Scripps National Spelling Bee Competition
in the US, broken only in 2021 by an African-
American. Indians also further the cause of
science and technology across the world. But
our education system has failed at making a
mark in the field of entrepreneurship. Sim-
ply put, demand for entrepreneurship is low.
Unless we begin to accept and celebrate fail- curricular and pedagogical structures with risk-takers. Israel, with only about 8.7 million
ure in schools, homes and in communities, creativity and risk-taking, they will need to people, cannot provide markets for all its
entrepreneurship will remain a pipe dream. pro-actively seek to build a culture that innovations, forcing its entrepreneurs to be
There is also the issue of entrepreneurial encourages entrepreneurship, rather than compete aggressively for global customers.
orientation (EO), which separates the haves the current tick-the-box approach. Its government has facilitated creative ways
of entrepreneurial talent from its have-nots. For some perspective, consider the case of of funding, provided tax incentives to foreign
EO is identified as com- Israel, a country that is venture capitalists and offered to match their
prising five dimensions: only 0.07 times as large as investments with state funds through a plan
autonomy, innovative- QUICK READ Maharashtra and yet a called Yozma (‘initiative’ in Hebrew).
ness, risk-taking ability, global hub for entrepre- Besides, Israel’s research and development
pro-activeness and com- Failure seems anathema to the neurship and innovation. expenditure is 4.4% of its gross domestic
petitive aggressiveness. Indian psyche and unless we At the heart of its entre- product, much higher than that of most
While HEIs seek to nur- begin to accept and celebrate it preneurship culture is its developed countries. Starting and running a
ture EO among students, in schools, homes and elsewhere, compulsory military ser- company is cheaper in Israel than in most
how many such institu- an entrepreneurial culture vice that all young men other places, and families are proud to have
tions could claim to have could remain a pipe dream. and women have to go entrepreneurs willing to embrace failure.
EO themselves? through. A stint in the Thus, creating job creators would need
Colleges and HEIs in Our institutions of higher military exposes young- India to become one large incubator, with
India do have their learning haven’t made much sters to the latest technol- the government, academia, industry and the
e-cells and even incuba- headway in fostering the spirit ogies, while working in financial sector working together, but more
tors today. However, one of entrepreneurship but that teams and accomplishing importantly, by cultivating a national culture
swallow does not a spring only means we have to find tasks helps them translate that eases our acceptance of failure.
make. Trying to create a better way to go about it. natural partnerships into These are the author’s personal views

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14 FRIDAY, 16 JULY 2021

NEW DELHI BUSINESS OF LIFE INDULGE LIVEMINT.COM

Are you ready for

reemergence fashion?
Fashion has always
reflected the times we A pack of four Airtags costs upwards of ₹10,000

live in. We now need to APPLE AIRTAGS REVIEW

balance the simplicity of
comfort clothing with the
excitement of dressing up
Hang it, track it,
find it, anywhere
DRESS
SENSE
in the world
S U J ATA A S S O M U L L Prasid Banerjee
prasid.b@htlive.com
Write to us at

L
businessoflife@livemint.com ocation trackers can’t particularly be called ‘new’ gadgets,
but Apple’s entry certainly gives the segment a boost of sorts.
The company’s tiny poker chip like trackers, called Airtags,

I
f the vaccination drives continue and
people follow precautionary meas-
ures, it soon may be time to replace
zoom dressing with reemergence
dressing. After the Black Death of
the 14th century, clothing became more
flamboyant. After the 1918 Spanish Flu,
Flapper Girls arrived. In today’s cov-
id-19 world, a question many
designers are trying to answer is:
how will we be dressing in the
post-pandemic era?
“People would want to
show-off survival and that they
are ready to venture a brave new
world with positive authority,”
says Nimish Shah, the creative
director of Indian contemporary
label Bhaane.
+ The re-emerge look is cur-
rently trending in fashion. We
want clothes that are bold and
beautiful, colour is back and prints
are making a joyous return. It is a sum-
mer of reopening, even if travel restric-
tions are in place. Even if it is just
going to your local market, or
meeting close (and vaccinated)
friends for a leisurely lunch at
home, clothes now need to look
towards a cheerful future.
American Italophile J.J. Mar-
tin started La Double J in 2015 on
the premise of designing items that
bring joy and that are all inspired by vintage
prints and are all proudly Made in Italy. The
fashion editor-turned-creator took a brave step
during these unprecedented times, opening her
first brick and mortar store in Milan in May. On
the opening day, “Ready to resurrect” was
splashed across her shop windows.
“Now is the moment to unpeel the dry and
deadened layers of ourselves, to unshackle any
chains tethered to fear, and to truly rise up and
out of our previous state of consciousness. Res-
urrection is a rebirth,” says Martin. And what
better way to do this than with mood lifting
retro prints in vibrant hues on easy and forgiv-
ing silhouettes—you can be a maximalist yet be
uncomplicated and effortless.
After months of cozy loungewear, we are not
ready to even veer towards the “no pain, no
gain” mantra of fashion. As Martin says, “Per-
sonally I’ve been wearing flat comfortable shoes
for a very long time now and I can’t imagine
going back to high heels on a permanent basis
ever. That being said, no one wants to live in
their sweatpants.”
A SPLASH OF COLOURS
Fashion labels are also addressing this moment,
with their choice of colours and silhouettes.
London-based Han Chong is the founder of cult
brand Self Portrait, a label known for its party
(clockwise from above) A Self Portrait dress that combines ease with elegance; relaxed looks by
Bhaane; and model Taylor Hill in chic Etro outfit at the 74th Cannes Film Festival earlier this week
dresses that have a sense of ease. “ I think dress-
ing had already started to evolve significantly
even before the pandemic. I’ve been thinking a
lot about the modern wardrobe and had already
noticed that people were starting to steer
towards styles that have more fluidity and ease,”
he says. “People want to feel uplifted, and I think
that dressing is going to be a big part of making
us feel more like ourselves again.”
His pre-fall 2021 collection had a feel of struc-
ture yet was fluid. Colour wise, there were some
pretty and romantic powder pastels, some pie-
. iPhone will be able to locate it, virtually anywhere in the world.
ces in bright tangerine orange. You see colour
again in his Fall 2021 collection, and the use of
his signature ruffles and dainty details seemed
more restrained than in his pre-pandemic col-
lections. “I want our clothes to feel mood
enhancing, to excite and uplift, day or night. I
try to do this by exploring colours and prints,”
says the designer.
As Martin explains, “A luscious, brightly col-
oured and printed dress will do wonders to lift
your spirits. Colour has a very strong energetic
frequency attached to it; so it’s only natural that
we feel more expanded and cheerful when we
wear it. The trick is to find dresses that are beau-
tiful but also comfortable and easy to wear.”
It is only natural when you have been starved
of reasons to dress up that you feel like going on
a binge. But if the last year has taught us any-
thing, it is the importance of caution— a notion
reinforced with talks of a third wave. Even
before the pandemic, “conscious” had become
the fashion buzzword.
The period of lockdown has made us more
aware of the need to be responsible in our fash-
ion choices. Today, many designers and con-
sumers are vowing to be more mindful of their
sartorial choices. People want clothes that give
them that instant good factor and ones that can
be worn on repeat for years to come. Nine-to-
nine dressing, seasonless, elevated essentials—
these are things consumers want today.
Which is why when Martin was designing her
collection she kept in mind that women were
looking for pieces that would take you from
“weekend to the office to cocktails and din-
ner…People just want ease, but that doesn’t
mean they don’t want to look beautiful too.”
This time at home has made the customer
reflect. They are clear on what they want and
will not just blindly follow fashion diktats.
As Self Portrait’s Chong says, “I think it’s
important to be mindful of the ever changing
needs of the modern consumer.”
Dress Sense is a monthly column that takes a
look at the clothes that we wear every day and
what they mean to us.
have been rumoured literally for years, and they’re designed for
one specific purpose — to find things.
The idea is simple, attach an Airtag to anything and your
It uses Apple’s ‘Find My’ network, a technology that also allows
you to find a lost Apple device, to keep track of things. The Airtags
are meant to be attached to a key ring, a bag or pretty much any-
thing. It works quite the same way as any other location tracker,
including popular ones like the Tile Mate and Tile Pro.
Apple is even selling key-rings and stylish loops, so you can
attach an Airtag to another device. You can simply slip an Airtag
into your bag or suitcase to keep tracking it. The accesso-
ries are meant for those who want to show off their pur-
chase. But Apple’s accessories always have features that
tie users specifically into its ecosystem, and the Airtags
are no different. They have a feature called ‘Precision
Finding’, which uses the accelerometer, camera and
gyroscope on an iPhone to provide sort of an indoor
GPS to find the Airtags. The Find My app shows
the user how far they are from the tracker, and
will even show a directional arrow as you get
closer to it.
In fact, this is perhaps the first real use-case for
ultra-wideband tech that Apple started putting on
iPhones a few years ago. The technology is
similar to Bluetooth, but offers much better
directional capabilities, which is how
Apple determines exactly where an Air-
tag is in your home.
The company also wants to take
advantage of the sheer size of Apple’s
iPhone network around the world. Airtag
users will be able to take advantage of Apple’s
entire Find My network if an item is lost. Putting the device in
“lost mode” will allow anyone on the Find My network to notify
the user, or even call them, if the Airtag is in their vicinity. It sig-
nificantly enhances the tracking capabilities of the Airtags as
compared to any other tracker in competition. The Find My net-
work is based on Apple Maps, which isn’t as useful in India as it
is overseas, which may affect the overall tracking capabilities.
The Airtags also have a distinct disadvantage that all other
location trackers do as well. The sound it plays when you’re trying
to locate it is too low for countries like India, which are generally
quite noisy. While it’s easy to locate the sound when you’re at
home, it’s not as easy when you’re outdoors, especially when the
Airtags are stuffed in your bag.
Another noteworthy element is the price of these devices.
Apple is charging ₹3,190 for a single Airtag and upwards of
₹10,000 for a pack of four. That’s a lot of money for something
that’s effectively meant to deal with carelessness.
For more gadget reviews, visit mintlounge.in/smartliving

HANDWOUND

Rolex, Mt Everest and the rise of GADA watches

When it comes to would be even better! The legendary Him-
alayan climber Eric Shipton, who was con-
Himalayan peaks. The ones who do proba-
bly wear G-Shocks.
Terra in two sizes in time for the Olympics,
both in 18k yellow gold. When Audemars
wristwatches, the go- sidered for the longest time to be the like- But the sports watch as a concept lives Piguet launched the Royal Oak in 1972 and
liest person to summit Everest, wore on. These days, they’re referred to as Patek Philippe the Nautilus in 1976, a new
anywhere-do-anything Rolex Oyster watches in ‘bubbleback’ GADA (‘go-anywhere-do-anything’) niche was created: that of the luxury steel
steel sports watch is cases on many Himalayan expeditions. watches. Take the Seiko Alpinist, for sports watch. It says something about the
During the Swiss attempt to climb Everest example. The Japanese watchmaking appeal of sports watches that for both
where the real action is in 1952, Tenzing Norgay had been given a giant created its first sports watch in 1959, these doyens of haute horology with doz-
Rolex to wear, but he and his climbing the Laurel Alpinist. It was a rugged ens of iconic complicated references to
partner Raymond Lambert had to turn no-frills watch, much like the Explorer, their names, it’s the Royal Oak and the
Bibek Bhattacharya back 250m from the summit. Still, Norgay meant to be used by Japanese mountain- Nautilus that are the most popular.
bibek.b@htlive.com was gifted a gold Datejust by Rolex to eers. Through the 1960s, Seiko released So what should you be looking for in
commemorate the climb. successive lines of Alpinists, but from the your GADA watch? It should be con-

I
t all started with Mt Everest. On 29 May
1953, Tenzing Norgay and Edmund
Hillary successfully scaled the peak of
the highest mountain on Earth. The fact
that numerous expeditions, mostly Brit-
ish, had been trying since 1921 to conquer
the “third Pole”, meant that this was a big
deal. When the English establishment tied
it to the coronation of Queen Elizabeth, on
2 June 1953, a mere four days later, it
became an even bigger deal. For any com-
pany associated with the 1953 Everest
expedition, this was advertising goldmine.
It certainly was for Rolex.
Rolex’s canny founder Hans Wilsdorf
had been supplying wristwatches to Ever-
est expeditions since 1933. In part, it was to
test how the company’s highly engineered
and water resistant watches would per-
form at extreme conditions. If anyone
summited wearing a Rolex, well, that
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The next year, Norgay, Hillary and sev-
eral other members of the expedition
were given Rolex watches, a white dial
Rolex 6098. Some of them, including Hill-
ary, also wore another watch, the Smiths
De Luxe. When Hillary and Norgay sum-
mited, both Smiths (an English watch-
maker of great repute at the time) and
Rolex went to town with advertisements
extolling how rugged and dependable
their watches were. As has been conclu-
sively proved in a brilliant article in The
Outdoor Journal in June this year, Rolex
didn’t make it to the top, because Hillary
was wearing his Smiths. He had admitted
as much. Norgay probably wasn’t wearing
any watch that day.
Be that as it may, Rolex was there at the
expedition and that was enough. In 1953,
it launched the iconic Explorer, a black
dial steel sports watch, 36mm in diameter,
The Seiko Alpinist SPB155 from 2020 is a great modern GADA watch.
with 100m water resistance, and the 3, 6
and 9 hour markers printed in Arabic
numerals on the dial. Positioning itself as
a rugged outdoors watch by a company
that had summited Everest, the Explorer
popularised a new concept of the sports
watch. Of course, you could say that a
sports watch wasn’t anything new. After
all, Cartier had designed its first wrist-
watch for aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont
in 1904. But for a younger demographic in
BIBEK BHATTACHARYA
the 1950s and 60s, wearing a Rolex
Explorer or an Omega Seamaster was
more desirable than the overly formal
dress watches of earlier generations. The
Smiths Everest, a watch that was also
released in the 1950s to cash in on the
Everest ascent, was also very popular.
Rolex, meanwhile, made a successful tran-
sition into a luxury watch brand, and these
days, it’s fair to say that people who can
afford to buy Rolexes don’t try to climb
latter part of that decade, the brand
focused primarily on its iconic dive
watches and a whole host of sports
watches on its Seiko 5 line. In the 1990s,
the Alpinist was re-imagined, this time
with the addition of an inner rotating
compass bezel and signature cathedral
hands. Since then, the line has remained
a cult favourite among watch enthusiasts
while undergoing regular refreshes by
Seiko. In late 2020, a slimmer version of
the Alpinist was launched without the
compass bezel and textured dials, and next
month will see a new line of Alpinists
inspired by the Laurel Alpinist of 1959.
Nearly all prestige watchmakers have
their own steel sports watch. Omega’s
Railmaster and the Seamaster Aqua Terra
are wonderfully rugged yet elegant
watches that often fly under the radar.
Indeed, Omega has just released the Aqua
structed from good quality stainless steel,
should preferably have a water resistance
rating of 100m or higher (bigger props for
a screw down crown), with a good auto-
matic or quartz movement. The automatic
ones should have a power reserve of 40
hours. Both the Seiko 5 Sports and the
Tissot PRX series make for great entry-
level options. The Alpinist and the Oris
Big Crown Pointer Date are excellent mid-
range option. If your budget runs higher,
then check out the Aqua Terra and the
Explorer, as well as IWC’s pilot’s watches.
And if you have millions to burn, get on
the wait list for a Royal Oak or a Nautilus!
But whichever watch you buy, wear them,
don’t baby them, and don’t be afraid to put
a few scratches on them. That’s what they
are meant for.
Handwound is a fortnightly column on
watches and watchmaking.