Professional Documents
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₹10 • Pages 10 • Volume 29 • Number 128
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MEGA PUBLIC OFFER
Banks feel the heat of slower Sikkim: Trade on MCX sees
LIC IPO subscribed
huge dip as ED initiates probe
1.79 times on Day 5
Mumbai, May 8
The IPO of Life
Insurance
Corporation of
recovery under IBC process Trading volumes
fall to 0.75% in April
The papers show that two
clients, including Valley Dis
India was
Financial creditors’ On bumpy road and bankruptcy proceedings tributors LLP and JMVD Mar
across the country. The reduced from 6% in February ket Solutions, registered wit
subscribed realisation hit a ■
Clogged NCLT, reduced buyer interest for appetite of corporates to take h Delhi and Kolkata based
1.79 times on Sunday, the distressed assets, Covid-induced procedural over distressed assets coupled PALAK SHAH brokers, have emerged the
fifth day of bidding. Bids for record low of 10.2% in delays weigh on lenders’ recovery with the inordinate delays Mumbai, May 8 key suspects, generating the
over 29.08 crore shares were Q4 against 13.4% ■
Financial creditors’ realisation below caused by protracted legal The speculative commodity majority of the volumes on
received against 16.2 crore battles before the NCLT and the trading volumes worth bil MCX from Sikkim.
shares on offer by 7 pm, in Q3 and 49.2% in Q2 liquidation value for first time
NCLAT have effectively resulted lions of dollars on the Multi As per the sources, the
according to data with the ■
Growing unease among lenders for in poor recoveries of debts Commodity Exchange (MCX) probe so far has shown that
stock exchanges. There KR SRIVATS invoking IBC due to procedural delays owed to financial creditors, she by Sikkimbased traders JMVD was a client of Pace
continued to be strong New Delhi, May 8 added. seem to have been wiped out Stock Broking and the ac
■
Not many takers for low-value firms and MSMEs
interest from LIC Financial creditors are clearly The Covid19 lockdowns have on the back of a probe by the Vanishing trades count of Valley Distributors
policyholders and
■
With shortage of NCLT members, backlog yet to be cleared Month % share Unique
feeling the pinch of pandemic also affected the functioning of State government and En was with East India Securiti
employees. The portion (2022) of Skkim client
induced slowdown in insolv the courts resulting in a huge forcement Directorate. The es. The Financial Intelligence
reserved for eligible traders codes
ency and bankruptcy proceed realisation of ₹1,288 crore in Q4 The appetite of potential in pendency of court cases. This market share of Sikkim on MCX Unit (FIU) is also probing if
policyholders was subscribed ings, inordinate delays in resol was lower than the liquidation vestors to acquire stressed as has resulted in the corporate in based traders in the overall the exchange was required
5.04 times, while that Jan 3.41 2122
ution process and the waning value of ₹1,316 crore. Till end sets in India has been on a solvency resolution process los turnover on MCX declined to to file suspicious transac
reserved for eligible Feb 5.46 2217
appetite of potential investors March 2022, since the launch of gradual decline, she said. ing steam, Karanjawala said. just 0.75 per cent in April tions reports and if it had
employees was subscribed March 3.85 2300
to acquire distressed assets in IBC, the cumulative recovery for Various factors are being at Yogendra Aldak, Partner, Lak from 5.5 per cent in done so, the sources said.
3.79 times. P10 India. lenders, post resolution, tributed to lower resolution shmikumaran & Sridharan At February. April 0.75 2378 Sources pointed out that
This was revealed by the latest dropped to 32.9 per cent against rates under the IBC regime, torneys, said that some of the The probe was ordered one of the letters from
DISINVESTMENT PROCESS IBBI data which showed that fin 35.9 per cent up to September 31, starting from pandemicin key factors that have contrib after a report by BusinessLine traders from other States. Sikkim’s Senior Superintend
‘SCI, BEML sell-off likely ancial creditors’ realisation, as a 2021. duced shadow cast on a com uted to a plummeted recovery on April 4 revealed that The 5.5 per cent share of ent of Police has erred in de
to be delayed further’ percentage of their admitted In absolute terms, the realisa pany’s revival to delays in resol under IBC is delay in the process Sikkim was being used as a Sikkim traders on MCX manding data from MCX
New Delhi, May 8 claims in JanuaryMarch 2022 tion for financial creditors till ution and liquidation process. of insolvency. The prime reas tax haven by commodity translated into volumes chairman Saurabh Chandra
The strategic disinvestment quarter, hit a record low of 10.21 end March 2022 stood at Due to the difficulty in provid ons for delay are nonfilling of speculators, who were pos worth a massive $6 billion in for a period between 2003
of Shipping Corporation of per cent, much lower than the ₹2,25,294 crore — much higher ing turnaround roadmaps, the vacancies before the Tribunal, sibly also indulging in a a single month, and such and 2019 while the volumes
India and Bharat Earth 13.4 per cent realised the previ than the liquidation value of interest of potential buyers is of rise in the backlog of cases, in money laundering trading has been on a from Sikkim on MCX started
Movers Limited is likely to be ous corresponding quarter. For ₹1,31,448 crore. The cumulative ten reduced, resulting in lower sufficient knowledge and train racket. Reacting to rise for nearly two going up mainly in 2020.
delayed further, a senior the JulySeptember 2021 admitted claims of financial recovery rate, Gandhi added. ing of the stakeholders, etc. it, Sikkim Chief years now. An
government official has quarter, it was 49.17 per cent. creditors till end March 2022 Given the alternatives of li “The government must take Minister Prem other report by Zero tax arrangement
indicated. “The processes In JanuaryMarch 2022, as were ₹6,84,901 crore. quidation process, the immediate actions to respond Singh Tamang BusinessLine on Sources say that it has fur
that are involved before many as 29 Corporate Insolv Sushmita Gandhi, Partner, In timelines are even blurred due to these issues before the situ said he suspec April 25 also re ther come to light that many
disinvestment, such as the ency Resolution Process (CIRP) dusLaw, said the recovery to contesting priorities, lack of ation becomes alarming and ted that traders vealed that high frequency traders (HFT)
demerger, are taking time. yielded resolution plans with through resolution plans being potential buyers, fluctuating IBC fails to serve its purpose,” from other States Sikkim traders were using Sikkim as a base
Once they are completed, different degrees of realisation snubbed to below the asset li market values, etc making hair Aldak said. could be using on MCX were also to trade on both MCX and
only then disinvestment compared to the liquidation quidation value is indeed a cuts on resolution plan seem Kumar Saurabh Singh, Part Sikkim residents as a enjoying a stamp other equity exchanges in
process could be taken to value. As against the admitted cause for concern, as it goes ing as the lesser of the two evils ner, Khaitan & Co, said that low front and, hence, ordered duty waiver. Mumbai too due to the zero
conclusion,” said the official claims of financial creditors of against the basic tenet that the for lenders. recoveries in IBC recently is a re the State vigilance depart tax arrangement.
on Sunday. The government ₹12,610 crore, the amount realis value maximisation of the as flection of slowing down of the ment to dig deep into the KYC demanded Some of these brokers
wants to sell its entire 63.75 able by such creditors stood at sets of a debtor under the code Covid fallout NCLT process and delays in res scam. Proberelated documents who are involved in HFT
per cent shareholding in SCI ₹1,288 crore, which is about 10.21 is only possible if the same is re Tahira Karanjawala, Principal olution. Delay in the processcre Commodity speculation now show that both the trading from Sikkim were
along with management per cent. vived as a going concern, rather Associate, Karanjawala & Co, ates uncertainty for all stake on the MCX attracts 30 per Sikkim government and the earlier fined by market regu
control, while in BEML it has than being stripped for parts said the aftermath of the global holders, resulting in low cent income tax but since ED have demanded KYC and lator SEBI for their role in il
proposed to disinvest 26 per Quarterly realisation down and liquidated. However, the pandemic and the resultant interest for the asset and con Sikkim residents enjoy ex other data from the MCX legitimate use of colocation
cent with the transfer of In fact, what is worrying is that reasons for lenders opting for economic slowdown has also sequently lower recovery, he emption from India’s IT Act, with regard to those trading trading systems, said the
management control. P10 for the first time, the quarterly such approach are not far to see. had its effect on the insolvency said. they were being used by on the exchange. sources.
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2 NEWS BusinessLine
MONDAY • MAY 9 • 2022
Kitex Group begins work on ₹1,600cr
Wav2Lip helps reduce drudgery in video content creation fibretoapparel cluster in Telangana
Talk for a minute and deep fake tech lysis videos. “An edtech OUR BUREAU and Rural Development
company in India too is us Hyderabad, May 8 Minister E Dayakar Rao laid
can generate hours of content ing the technology to gen After last year’s dramatic the foundation stone for the
erate videos for their stu turn of events that promp project on Saturday.
KV KURMANATH the text. Why, you can even dents,” he said. ted it to look at Telangana The Kitex cluster, which
Hyderabad, May 8 make the characters in the Mukhopadhyay said the for expansion, garments will be spread over 200
Even as there are fears of popular movie Pushpa technology reduces operat major Kitex Group has be acres, can manufacture
deepfake technology pos speak in different (dubbed) ing costs and time to pro gun work on its integrated seven lakh pieces of gar
ing a threat to the reputa languages with perfect lip duce a video. fibretoapparel manufac ments a day and employ
tion of celebrities and movement, irrespective of The product allows the users After building a solution turing cluster at the about 15,000 people. The
people in power, a Hydera the fact that different dub to feed a script and select an for the media and edtech Kakatiya Mega Textile Park first unit of the project is ex
badbased startup has de bing artistes are lending avatar of their choice sectors, NeuralSync AI is at Warangal. pected to be operational by
veloped an artificial intelli their voices,” Pavan Reddy, working on a version to ad The world’s No 2 manu the end of 2022.
gencebased solution that Chief Executive Officer of users to feed a script and se dress the needs of the film facturer of infant wear will
promises to revolutionise NeuralSync AI, told lect an avatar of their industry. invest ₹1,600 crore to de Ganesha Ecosphere projects
how visual content is BusinessLine. choice, or create their own velop the project, which is The ministers also inaugur
created. The AIbased solution avatar with different back Pay per use expected to be completed in ated the first phase of Gane
All it takes is just a catches the nuances of how grounds and create videos It charges $34 for a simple 2023. sha Ecosphere’s project in
minute’s video footage of a lips are moved to spell in minutes. talking head for a minute. If The Telangana govern the textile park.
person talking on any sub words and juxtaposes the there are more than one ment had acted swiftly last The PET (polyethylene
ject and the Wav2Lip solu same when the newer Feeding the script person in a frame, Neural year after seeing reports of terephthalate) bottle recyc
tion developed by Neural words or dialogues are fed “Alternatively, users can Sync AI will charge $10 a the Kitex Group’s ‘unpleas ling company has invested
Sync AI can make a video of into the system. also upload video and au minute. ant experience’ with the about ₹350 crore to manu
that person talking for “Unlike similar tools dio pairs on the platform to The startup is in talks Kerala government. facture recycled polyester
hours. available in the market, it is generate lipsynced videos,” with a few Bollywood and It sent a private jet and in fibre and yarn among other
The technology enables language and voice inde Reddy said. Tollywood filmmakers. vited the top brass of the products.
the person in the video to pendent and works on any Within two months of its NeuralSync AI is now tar group, including its Man The two plants, which will
make perfect lip move face, including CGI faces,” soft launch, NeuralSync AI geting to further enhance aging Director Sabu M come up in an area of 50
ments for the text that is fed Rudrabha Mukhopadhyay, has already signed two an the product and achieve Jacob, and offered sops to acres, will conform to
into the system. Founder and CTO of Neural chor clients, including a US global scaleup by joining invest in the greenfield tex USFDA (Food and Drug Ad
“It looks exactly as if that Sync AI, said. media house that is using it an international incubator tile park at Warangal. ministration of the US) and
person is talking or reading The product allows the to generate news and ana in the US. Telangana IT and Indus EFSA (European Food Safety
tries Minister KT Rama Rao Authority) norms.
CM .. . ... . . ...BM-BME
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BusinessLine
MONDAY • MAY 9 • 2022 3
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4 CORPORATE FILE • P E O P L E • S T R A T E G Y • W O R K P L A C E
BusinessLine
MONDAY • MAY 9 • 2022
NEW DIVIDE
IN THE LIMELIGHT
I
PALAK SHAH t’s déjà vu at training giant market. Pawar says NIIT’s corpor group grew 144 per cent yearon
NIIT. In 2004, it had restruc ate business currently ranks in year. While the RPS acquisition
‘T he child is the father of the man’ is an old
proverb that fits well on the Ambani sib
lings Isha and Akash, both of whom are now
tured and split into two,
hiving off its software ser
vices business into another en
the top five globally and expects
to grow at a CAGR of 20 per cent
with 20 per cent margins. “We
contributed to some of the
growth, the company in its filing
said robust customer expansion
leading the transformation at Reliance group, tity, which it eventually sold in have some very good science too played a part.
the $300 billion conglomerate. Among the 2019 to Barings Pvt Equity for which we have created and some The market has rewarded the
two, Isha, aged 30, is fast emerging as the face ₹2,627 crore, returning to focus of which we have acquired and a demerger news — stock price has
of the $100 billion Reliance Retail Ventures on its first love, education. NIIT good balance sheet.” In late 2021, gone up by 50 per cent since the
(RRVL) that offers everything from consumer Technologies was the most prof it acquired RPS Consulting, a announcement. “Separating out
electronics, food and grocery to fashion, jew itable distraction we had, says firm that offers IT training and the corporate learning and skills
elry and footwear. the group’s CoFounder and certification courses. The idea, and careers verticals into inde
A graduate in business administration Chairman, Rajendra Pawar, with says Pawar, is to take the CLG pendent companies is a good
from Stanford Business School, Isha has been a pleased smile. business to halfabillion dollars move to unlock value.
the driving force behind RRVL’s recent acquis Circa 2022, and the 41yearold by which time it expects to be Corporate learning and B2C
itions, with an idea to own top brands in every company that pioneered IT edu among the top three globally. focussed skilling segments
segment the group’s retail arm operates in. cation for the masses in India, It’s true that NIIT has evolved march to different drummers —
Isha oversees strategy development and im and reported revenue of ₹949.5 in the last 40 years, but as ana customer needs, capital require
plementation for all marketing teams, includ crore in FY21 (PAT 143 crore) has lyst Kashyap Kompella, CEO, ments, marketing strategy,
ing digital, advertising, communications and announced that it is splitting RPA2AI points out, despite being product focus, the whole play
creative for RRVL. into two again. Why the split? Ex a pioneer, it did not aggressively book is different,” says Kom
All of the recent acquisitions by RRVL in plains Pawar, “We saw ourselves Co-founders all (From left to right) Vijay Thadani, P Rajendran, Arvind Thakur and Rajendra Pawar go after emerging edtech oppor pella.
cluding Hamleys, the iconic British toys retail involved in a learning businesss tunities, the ones Byjus, Un However, while he feels Man
er, online lingerie retailer Zivame, Urban Lad of two types — they are inter After two years of thinking, he Thadani, P Rajendran and Arvind training. “NIIT Technologies was academy and Upgrad have done, aged Training Services is a stable
der, Netmeds and Just Dial had Isha’s stamp, linked, but different.” One is the says, they decided to run the divi Thakur, it was a pioneer in its very helpful for us because it commanding valuation in bil market opportunity, B2C skills
Reliance insiders say. RRVL has signed exclus Corporate Learning Group sions as two independently lis field. The Aptechs and others gave practical knowledge to lions (Byjus $22 billion, Un and careers is hypercompetitive
ive partnerships with over 45 international (CLG), accounting for 8085 per ted entities. “We will have two en launched much later, but NIIT people we were training.” academy $3.4 billion). “It has an and crowded and NIIT would
brands. Isha, a fashionista herself, is also cred cent of the company’s revenue, gines running, two boards, two held steady. The proposition it Now that the distraction — as enviable brand recognition, need to bring fresh thinking to
ited for the launch of the fashion portal and the other the Skills and Ca sets of shareholders, except we started with was there were lots he terms the IT services com scale, infrastructure and trust. the space.
Ajio. As per Isha’s own admission, she con reers business (SNC). “The con give one share of the new com of young bright graduates but pany, which Arvind Thakur over But you also wonder if they “The pandemic has shaken up
siders movie star Priyanka Chopra as one of tent creation, learning engine, pany that will be formed to exist not enough jobs, even as the saw — is out of the way, the focus missed the latest edtech wave the corporate L&D space and cus
her closest friends and an elder sister. testing engine, platforms were ing shareholders (of NIIT Ltd).” field of computers and informa is on growing the learning solu and let go of opportunities to tomers realise the need for
Isha formally joined Reliance Jio and Reli common, but were being used According to Pawar, the pro tion technology was just begin tions business. And it’s back create more unicorns from the greater investments to make
ance Retail in 2014. Since then, the retail busi very differently,” says Pawar. cess has just been kicked off and ning to emerge in India, which again to thinking hard about tal NIIT family,” he says. employees more productive and
ness has become the second fastestgrowing “We felt there were two traject it will take 12 to 18 months — at would need the talent. “There ent and jobs. Even though NIIT is Perhaps the demerger will al engaged. As a leader in the space,
retailer in the world, according to a 2022 De ories and two kinds of things go the end of which there will be fore, we said if you have a college today run by a professional CEO, low NIIT to go after these as well? NIIT can hope to capitalise on
loitte report. She also ing on with the brand NIIT. We two separate companies — NIIT degree and no job, we could Swapnesh Lalla, Pawar and But Pawar says they are pretty the shifting trends and continue
helps Akash with brand felt the geographies of the two Ltd and NIIT Learning Solutions. train and connect you with jobs Thadani (both 71 years old) are clear where they want to play to grow revenue and profits,"
ing and consumer re businesses were different, the “The first will be focussed on the of the future. So we were in a fairly hands on — though much and where they don’t. “We won’t says Kompella.
lated decisions at Re business strategies different, individual to make their career sense, anticipating these jobs to of their time is also devoted to get into the tutorials and test On SNC, he says, while NIIT has
liance Jio. and the customer profiles differ and progress, while the second come,” explains Pawar. their passion project, NIIT Uni prep space, which is where strengths such as a strong brand
Mukesh Ambani ent,” he adds. will help organisations improve Of course, NIIT’s model and versity in Neemrana, Rajasthan, much of the edtech action is,” he name, a good track record of job
has often said Isha The CLG business is B2B and business outcomes using learn target audience kept evolving — along with P Rajendran (69). asserts. Quarter three of FY2021 placements and a strong bal
was the inspira mostly focussed on North Amer ing. We are reworking when computers became per As Pawar says, there's a huge 22 was a good one for NIIT. The ance sheet, B2C has both
tion behind the ica/EU with Fortune 1000 com everything in NIIT Ltd to reen vasive, it launched basic courses shortage of talent, both at entry premium and volume segments,
launch of Jio, since panies as target customers, gage at a big scale with a new for housewives and the elderly, level as well as midlevel due to and they must create differenti
she seeded the idea while SNC is focussed mainly on model and new methods. What and started training working the transformation the world is ated offerings for both groups.
of fastpaced in India, China and Africa, and has helps is the salience of the brand professionals in sectors like undergoing. People in all func “Digital and AI technologies
ternet in India both B2C and B2B customers. continues to be very high,” says banking and retail equipping tions need to be technology have enabled several edtech in
in 2011 after “When we exited the technolo Pawar. them with IT skills. It also savvy. And all companies now re novations around content cus
staying gies business, we had cash in branched into software services. quire good cyber security, good tomisation, content delivery
abroad for hand and started thinking about It’s all about talent Pawar explains they did so tak IT networks and knowledge of and significantly enhanced the
studies for a use of capital and how it could When NIIT launched in 1981 as an ing inspiration from medical digital tools. The opportunity for user experience, and NIIT has
few years. be deployed to grow both busi IT training firm, founded by pro education, which combines aca a training company is immense. some catchup to do on these
nesses,” says Pawar. fessionals Rajendra Pawar, Vijay demic knowledge with practical The global corporate training fronts," he concludes.
INVESTOR’S CORNER
TABLE TALK
TAM, team and timing are important
Amit Somani of Prime Venture Partners on changing investing styles The blooming of Cisco’s Daisy
Daisy Chittilapilly, President, Cisco India & SAARC, on how serendipity brought her into IT
VENKATESHA BABU lected by HCL. No, not the tech sales manager to a team lead and cies, speed of execution, its lean,
company, but Hindustan Con finally responsible for the entire mean machine — all of that at
O
n a sultry summer af struction Ltd. However, when KeralaKarnatakaGoa territory. tracted me. Even then I took three
ternoon in they took over a month to send months to send my resume,” she
Bengaluru, I meet her an offer letter, Wipro picked Choosing wisely says with a laugh.
Daisy Chittilapilly for her up with an appointment let Wipro tried grooming her for By now, having polished off a
a luncheon at the Oberoi. In spite ter on the same day. bigger roles by making her a part few rotis myself, I point out she
of the perennial traffic chaos out Daisy says she jumped into the of the internal innovation coun has hardly consumed anything,
side, the hotel has retained its domestic sales business at Wipro, cil to play the role of an influen as she continues to nibble on the
oldworld charm and a sense of as she moved cities to be in Pune. cer. Even as several of her peers kebab platter. What has also in
calm from a bygone era. Of the 32 sales persons Wipro moved to the USA in evolving trigued me is unlike most tech
Having tracked the evolution hired that year, three were wo roles within Wipro, Daisy says she nology professionals, in her 26
of the tech industry for over 25 men. A major part of Daisy’s man was not attracted. “My brother year career — she has worked only
years, I mention it is unfortunate date was to sell Apple products — had moved to the Middle East with two companies, her first job
there have been so few women as Wipro was its reseller in the and I wanted at least one of us to at Wipro, where she stayed for
leading tech companies. While country — and some lowend stay in India, if our parents re eight years, and now the current
Nasscom says women con ethernet products of vari quired, especially as my father one at Cisco for 17 plus years.
stitute 35 per cent of the ous brands to govern had retired by then.” “That is because both companies
Accidental VCs Amit Somani, Managing Partner, Prime Venture Partners Indian technology ment customers like Eight years into Wipro, several are such wonderful places. Eth
workforce of five mil the police, NIC and companies — most of them MNCs ical, straightforward, ahead of
CHITRA NARAYANAN need. Some want access to our Rolo Every business is not an iconic com lion, there are still very some midsized and partners of Wipro which was the technology curve and good
dex. Some may want help in build pany.” So we spend a large amount few in leadership posi corporates. then a system integrator — tried places to work,” she explains.
Early stage India-focussed VC ing their product strategy or busi of time even before investing on fig tions. Daisy says she is a to woo her. Daisy says Cisco, However, having tracked Cisco
fund, Prime Venture Partners, set up ness strategy. uring out — Can this be a large vi As we order some drinks foodie and loves to try all which she knew well, as it was India for nearly two decades and
by Shripati Acharya, Sanjay Swamy able company, hopefully an iconic to beat the summer heat — cuisines, though her petite also a partner of Wipro, reached interacted with at least five of her
and Bala Parthasarthy in 2012 How many exits in these ten and generational one. ginger ale for her and fresh form indicates that not only she out to her. “There was no dearth predecessors, apart from two of
turned 10 recently. It also closed its years? What has changed are three tender coconut water for me — I is a conscious consumer, but also of opportunities and I had been its global CEOs, I push back and
fourth fund of $120 million in Febru- We have had several exits. In 2015, things — TAM, Timing and ask her whether she is related to ensures she stays fit. Since I am a approached by several compan ask her “while Cisco has been all
ary, taking the total capital under there was ZipDial to Twitter. Last Team. Earlier we did not pay too Kochouseph Chittilapilly, the Ker vegetarian, Daisy too decides to ies earlier. But having seen how that and more, it also has a repu
management across all Prime Ven- year was a big bonanza with three much attention to TAM (Total Ad ala business baron who heads the opt for the same. We end up or Cisco works — its vision, passion, tation for being a very demand
ture Partners funds to over $250 mil- big exits – Recko to Stripe, its first ac dressable Market). Now we are only VGuard and Wonderla group. dering a veg kebab platter, some ability to spot business adjacen ing, hardcharging place with a
lion. Its first three fundraises were quisition in India, Perpule to willing to back companies that have Daisy laughs and says no, be lasooni saag plus paneer makhani highpressure environment,
for $8 million in 2012, $46 million in Amazon India and Happay was ac very large addressable markets. fore adding that the extended to go with our tandoori rotis and where senior people get laidoff if
2015, and $72 million in 2018. Busi- quired by Cred. One of our compan Second, we pay more attention to Chittilapilly family hail from the garlic naans. they didn’t meet quarterly num
nessLine caught up with Amit ies has filed for an IPO. Indian mar timing. The why now question. We IrinjalakudaThrissur belt of Ker About her Wipro experience bers.”
Somani, Managing Partner at kets are opening up for IPOs. firmly believe there is no bad start ala. The first six years of her life she says “While everybody talks Daisy doesn’t bat an eyelid
Prime, who joined the firm in 2014, up idea. It’s just the question of tim were spent in Mumbai as her about inclusivity and diversity and says, “Yes, I had heard that
to get a sense of investing trends. Has your style of investing ing. There are great ideas that some father worked for Air India, in its now, Wipro was practising those about all American MNCs too,
Excerpts: changed over the last ten years? times are too early. accounts department. However, things back then, by offering but one of the things for
We are an earlystage fund. We come Third, we have become more nu in 1980, she and her threeyear women like me opportunities.” leaders is about mental
Congrats on the tenth in early, when a lot is not known anced on how we back entrepren old brother, along with their Eighteen months into her stint strength and resilience.
anniversary. What defines your about the company. One thing that eurs, looking at the team and the homemaker mother, moved to in Pune, and her good work in Leadership is not just
investing style and the journey has not changed is we look for cat people. Thiruvananthapuram, when AI cracking tough government about being a postman
so far? egorydefining companies. Every had an opening for her father in deals, and ensuring the com and passing on things
One unique thing about Prime is one of our companies is trying to do What are the broad trends in the city. pany was paid after sales, down the line. But
that we are all operators and entre something unique and different. Of investing in general today? Always good at studies, and en meant she was moved to the providing direction, in
preneurs, company builders and course, you will eventually bump I think the market is flush with cap couraged by a convent sister who more dynamic Bengaluru mar spiration and ensuring
product builders. So we call into competition, but you will be ital. Capital will become a commod had taught her at Holy Angels ket. This was late 1990s, and things get done.” Under
ourselves accidental VCs. Back in doing something hatke. ity. Firms will get distinguished by School, she wrote the entrance with the Y2K boom and unpre her leadership, Cisco In
2012, when Prime was started, the either their circle of competence or exams for engineering dia has evolved more to li
idea was to bring in a Silicon Valley Isn’t it riskier to back such by what else you can bring to the and qualified. “My fecycle partnerships with
style of professionalism to India. It companies? table beyond capital. If you look at father was always customers rather than
started with a demo fund of a little Our loss has been very low. Out of 40 the US and China, that’s how they supportive of transactional ones.
less than $8 million. I joined the companies to date there have been have evolved. whatever we did. I To pay forward for all the
firm two years after that in 2014. It only three shutdowns. There are over 200 VC firms was also very clear that I ‘help and guidance’ she re
has been a wonderful journey so far. So what has not changed in how there. The entrepreneur has so wanted to study and ceived, Daisy says “she tries to
We have seen the entrepreneurial we invest is: many choices, but they are not go work,” says Daisy. talk to people and act as a
ecosystem, capital markets and First, the fact we look for category ing to talk to 200. So being special sounding board in spite of her
ourselves evolve. From a modest defining companies. We say the ised will become crucial for VC Serendipitous moments hectic schedule.” Daisy also
fund of $8 million in 2012, we have firm must be doing 10x better than firms. A jack of all trades will no It was serendipity too that she cedented growth of the IT sec taught English at a government
come to $120 million in 2022. We the rest. t work. You have to be more distin landed in the IT industry. When tor, opportunities were dimea school near Commercial Street
have invested so far in 40 compan Second thing — we look at guished. There will be a prolifera campus placements happened in dozen. By then her gogetting at before Covid struck. Being single
RANGA RAJAN
ies. Another unique thing about whether there is a viable business to tion of micro VCs with tiny fund 1995 at College of Engineering, titude had ensured she had also gives her the freedom to en
Prime is that in addition to the cap build. I have a lovely quote on this — sizes of $8–10 million or so. Trivandrum , the now electrical climbed the ladder from being an joy ‘travel and reading,’ both key
ital, we try to give startups all the “Every feature is not a product. Many funds are today USD funds. and electronics engineer was se account manager to a regional hobbies for the Cisco boss.
help they ask for, whatever they Every product is not a business. Some INR funds will also start.
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MONDAY • MAY 9 • 2022 BUSINESSLINE ON CAMPUS • M A N A G E M E N T • E N G I N E E R I N G • A C C O U N T A N C Y
5
KL Deemed-to-be University
Nayanta University to open in 2024 NEP to provide flexibility
has established KL Global Promoted by members of CII, the industry body will help give shape to the project SRM’s Ravi Pachamuthu says educational institutions
Business School in Kondapur,
Hyderabad. The B-school is
VINAY KAMATH collaboration with CII on af will find it tough to adapt to the new regime
B BASKAR firmative action. CII mem
N
said to offer a variety of
courses such as global MBA,
ayanta University, a bers work with around TE RAJA SIMHAN students. If a student does lege for the next four or five
liberal arts fullser 30,000 schools in the coun not like an institution, he/ years. The college can plan
T
executive MBA, PG
programmes, management
vice institution, try, which are largely located he National Edu she can shift to any other the P&L accordingly. How
development and leadership
promoted by mem in disadvantaged areas. We cation Policy after one year. “It will be ever, under the NEP, there is
development programmes,
bers of the Confederation of were clear about not wanting (NEP) is going to like number portability in no guarantee that a stu
and holds accreditations
Indian Industry (CII), which is to start a university for the be a lot more stu the telecom sector wherein dent will stay with the col
from NAAC and NIRF. It also
helping give shape to this uni rich. We wanted to tap into dentcentric and educa if a person doesn't like the lege for four years. There
permits lateral entry for
versity project, conceived the talent of India and tional institutions may service of a provider, they are going to be a lot of un
certain eligible programmes.
four years ago, is expected to identify talented children in find it difficult to cope with have the option to switch certainties. “Colleges will
Additionally, it has tie-ups
kick off its first academic year the 1213 age group and this. As a policy, it is very over to another. The NEP be like another boutique.
with foreign universities
in 2024. provide them with the re good; however, during im will be based on the credit We don’t know when the
such as Massachusetts
Set up under the Telangana quisite facilities, so they can plementation, there will be system, and will be main customer will come and
Institute of Technology,
State Universities Act, the new get into top universities on a lot of challenges, says tained by the government. whether he is happy with
University of California,
university will come up over merit,” explains Forbes. Ravi Pachamuthu, Chair The entire education sys the product or not,” he
National University of
25 acres in Hyderabad at an The university, when it man, SRM Group of tem will be based on says.
Singapore, and The State
educational hub near the comes up, will provide some Institutions. merit,” he said. “Today, education is ser
University of New York,
GMR airport. form of financial aid to half “I believe our education The new system will put viceoriented, and will be
among others. These
The fullservice university Value proposition Collaboration with various industrialists the students. “Maybe a system should change, and a lot of pressure on the fac come businessoriented. In
affiliations are said to
will offer public policy as a quarter of them will need full this has been due for sev ulty as they need to ensure the past, we can plan for
provide stipend-assisted
field of study, then humanit We plan to add technical Chandra, who was IIMB Dir financial aid, another eral years. The NEP will lead that students stay with the the next five years. How
internships, exchange
ies, social sciences and phys fields later as we feel engin ector and now heads quarter, partial aid and the to a better education sys college for four years. If 100 ever, under the new sys
programmes, and
ical sciences, and then move eering and management Ahmedabad University; and rest will be selffinanced,” he tem,” he said. students are joining a class, tem, we need to plan just
opportunities to obtain dual
onto professional fields in fields are already quite well Ramesh Mangaleswaran of adds. The way the NEP is and 10 leave during a year it for the present,” explains
degrees for students.
phase II. This will be the latest served in the country.” McKinsey. Explaining how the in presented by the govern will not be a problem. How Pachamuthu.
addition to the growing list of Forbes says the CII Univer dustry interface with the hu ment and in the media, the ever, if 70 leave, what will “We are also ready to
privately funded liberal arts sity will differentiate itself BLoC EXCLUSIVE manities discipline will play education standards will happen, he asks. The whole change our system based
universities springing up from other major private uni out, Forbes says there is a be on par globally. This system will collapse and on NEP. We won’t find it dif
IIT-M computer around the country. versities such as Ashoka, “The idea is to have about growing realisation that does not mean the present the faculty will be held re ficult to change. The only
science courses Krea, Ahmedabad University, 20 industrial groups and add even in the most technical education system is not on sponsible for student attri problem will be to retain
go online for free Collaborative efforts and others of the ilk, through more later but also ensure companies, one needs con par, he says. tion. students. If they leave, how
In an interview with BL on a strong industry connect, in that no one group ends up textual skills. So far, it has been subject For institutions, it will be do you attract students
Indian Campus, Naushad Forbes, Co ternships, and by building controlling the venture. This “You, of course, need the oriented and based on like the IT industry as em from other colleges? We
Institute of Chairman, Forbes Marshall, practical knowledge into the will ensure the university’s depth of domain knowledge. marks, but under the NEP, a ployees keep hopping to will be like the software
Technology and a former CII President, coursework. autonomy and independ But you also need breadth student cannot just have another firm. “We need to companies and poach
Madras has says, “This project got going A number of industrialists ence. Founders will have and the ability to connect dif the subject knowledge, but satisfy students in all man from others,” he quips.
launched a when a group of CII members have collaborated on this more responsibility, but ferent domains to really ad they should be able to put ners. Students will dictate “There is a possibility that a
new got together and decided to project, apart from Forbes’ equal authority with other vance and to come up with it to use effectively. terms to the faculty. It may student may shift to four
initiative to make computer set up something ambitious, company, Forbes Marshall. supporters,” says Forbes. The good solutions. We already For example, just design be good or bad,” he adds. colleges in four years. It can
science courses on subjects large scale and worldclass. Among the industrial groups core team is in contact with have good engineering insti ing a spectacle frame is not be a learning experience,
such as programming, data So, this was a collective effort are Godrej and Thermax. several more industry tutes graduating good qual enough and the student A boutique system he adds.
structures, computer to start a university, which Other supporters of the pro groups, but as Forbes says, ity engineers, who give you should also know how to In the “We are prepared for the
organisation, and algorithms, over time will become a full ject are Kris Gopalakrishnan, they will talk about those as that depth in domain know manufacture it; present it present sys change. The brickand
available online for free. Each service worldclass one. The CoFounder of In their funding materialises. ledge. So, what we now need to the market, and make a tem, if a mortar model will reduce
course has recordings of live idea is to start with a master’s fosys; Bharat Puri from Pi In phase one of the project is to provide context. One of viable business out of it. student is and virtual education will
lectures taught to students at programme in public policy dilite; Raj Dugar from Fidelity the budget is ₹1,000 crore. the things we have planned is “The NEP will also enable on board, increase like in the Covid
IIT Madras during the next year. And, we want to Private Equity; MM Ven “We would like to have com that in the first year all stu students to become entre he will not times. Like the settop box,
pandemic, which is now start a fouryear under katachalam of the Mur mitments in place for ₹500 dents will take courses in preneurs,” he adds. leave the education content will also
available to the public, graduate programme ugappa Group; Banmali crore now; we need ₹300 both cultural and technical col be provided in a box and
streaming on YouTube. The in 2024. The thought Agrawala from Tata crore in the first three years,” literacy. Both are needed to Pachamuthu says the student can view it as
faculty from the department is to start with human Sons; and Satish Reddy says Forbes. be engaged and productive under the NEP, it is and when required.
of computer science and ities, social sciences, from Dr Reddy’s. citizens,” explains Forbes. going to be diffi “Covid19 has taught us
engineering have created a and physical sciences. Apart from industri Bridging gaps cult for the man how to cope during tough
YouTube playlist containing alists, others guiding While CII itself won’t invest agement to retain times. We have already set
the core courses that can be
X
W
Naushad Forbes the project are Ashok directly in this university Read more stories on up a good elearning plat
accessed by students, Co-Chairman, Mishra, project, the industry body is form. We are prepared for
management, engineering Ravi Pachamuthu
educational institutions, Forbes Marshall, erstwhile dir helping greatly in getting the both physical and virtual
and accountancy on Chairman, SRM
teachers, and anyone and a former CII ector, IIT Bom project underway. learning environments,”
www.bloncampus.com Group of
interested. President bay; Pankaj “We will have an ongoing he explains.
Institutions
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MONDAY • MAY 9 • 2022
0
xyz
A
s a regulator that dons many hats, the rate will not be increased. But now
we have a situation of being ‘accom
Reserve Bank of India is often criti
modative while focusing on with
cised for focussing too much on its MADAN SABNAVIS
drawal of accommodation’, which
macro objectives, while neglecting its can be a tongue twister. This has
T
customer protection mandate. But its recent he MPC/RBI announce been accompanied by increasing
Master Directions, which significantly rewrite ment on rates on May 4 is both the repo rate as well as the
unique not only because CRR.
the rules for the issue of credit cards, can do it came from the blue but Therefore, the conventional way
much to improve the credit card user experi also because the language and tone of looking at monetary policy
ence. Complaints against credit card issuers fig were quite different from the what stance has changed and the market
ure prominently in RBI’s annual Banking Om one normally expects. The idea of has to guess every time what ac
having a bimonthly monetary commodative stance means. Inter
budsman reports with the number of such policy is to ensure there is certainty estingly, a question can be asked as
complaints more than trebling from 12,647 in in expectations, where the market to what would then be the ingredi
FY18 to 40,271 in FY21. Unsolicited card issues, be players can take a call without there ents of a neutral stance.
ing billed for undelivered cards, wrong report being the ‘noise’ element. The pan
demic did definitely cause a devi Inflation targeting
ing of defaults to credit bureaus, levy of excess
ation as the MPC (Monetary Policy Third, inflation targeting may not
ive charges and interest and strongarm tactics Committee) met at any time that be the only variable besides GDP for
used by recovery agents are the key grouses was required and policy decisions the MPC. It may be recollected that
aired by customers. The Master Directions ad were taken. the MPC had the mandate of target
dress most of these issues. But now that a precedent has ing CPI inflation at 4 per cent with a
been set in normal times, what are band of 2 per cent on both sides. But Surprise can be a new way of making monetary policy more effective. GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO
Banks’ practise of issuing unsolicited cards the takeaways from this exercise? once the pandemic set in, central
and upgrades without customers requesting The first and the most obvious is banks across the world pledged to same path? Fourth, conventionally, amount will be withdrawn from ment took precedence over stock
them, is a key source of fraud with such cards that the MPC can meet without do everything that was required to the RBI has been changing the repo the system. market considerations. This inde
misused before reaching the customer. The new prior intimation. Normally, the pro stabilise growth which meant fol rate by 25 basis points (bps) at a The signal sent is that while pendent view is significant because
tocol is that the public gets to know lowing ultraeasy monetary policy. time. In 2019, there was an experi OMOs (open market operations) clearly the MPC is looking closely at
directions plug this gap by requiring the cus that the members are meeting. This focus on growth has so far held ment with 35 bps from 5.75 per cent are deployed and there could be fulfilling its objectives of working
tomer’s explicit written consent for a new card But the surprise element here is the RBI back from addressing infla to 5.40 per cent while in 2020 the sale of securities at some point of to tame inflation.
or upgrade, with OTP authentication required significant because going by the tion. pitch was for 40 bps to bring it time, the RBI would also use the It must also be remembered that
for activation. Acquiring a credit card is often far doctrine of economics under the In the April policy, the RBI did down to 4 per cent from 4.4 per CRR to impound funds. Therefore, the RBI also is the banker to the gov
‘rational expectations’ banner, highlight the threat of inflation but cent. there can further rounds of CRR ernment and hence has to manage
easier than surrendering one, with unused
which was popularised by Thomas left the rates unchanged. Interest Therefore going ahead, the hike. For banks this is not good the cost of debt. This has been one
cards prone to accumulate penal charges Sargent and Neil Wallace, policy ingly, nothing much has changed changes in repo rate need not be in news because OMOs would have reason why the central bank has to
without one’s knowledge. RBI has cut this risk by works only if the market is sur since then; hence, the sudden con multiples of 25 bps and an odd 35 meant holding securities which also work to keep interest rates
requiring issuers to deactivate cards within prised. There is a lot of truth in this vening of the MPC can be attributed bps cannot be ruled out at some gave a return of 6.57.5 per cent, down. But now with the repo rate
seven days of a customer’s request and to initi theory. When everyone expects the to the fact that there is concern on stage. This can be a surprise ele while this permanent withdrawal being increased, the Centre and
RBI to increase/ decrease rates and the external front, too, where FPIs ment for the market. of liquidity means a monetary loss States will have to pay more for
ate closure if a card is unused for a year. The bulk the MPC decides accordingly, then have been negative and there is re Fifth, the CRR, though reduced for banks, because even if kept in their debt.
of card misselling and identity fraud happens it is said that the market has already lentless pressure on the rupee. by 100 bps during the pandemic, SDF for a year they would yield This announcement may just be
via telemarketing. RBI has now put the onus of discounted the action and there is With the Fed planning rate hikes, has been virtually moribund for a around ₹3,600 crore. There is hence the beginning of another variety of
assessing creditworthiness using customer no material difference. In such a it does appear that currency man long time. But the use of CRR now to an opportunity cost involved. monetary policy presentation in
case, one says that the policy is not agement has also entered the con withdraw liquidity of ₹87,000 Sixth, the timing of the policy on terms of timing and content.
data solely on the issuing bank, while treating all really potent. Surprise can be a new sideration of the RBI/MPC. This crore is interesting as this is a per the day of the LIC IPO is also inter Should markets be ready for more
partners as selling agents. Fintech firms which way of making monetary policy makes sense as repo rate hike nar manent removal of liquidity from esting. It would have been known surprises?
tie up with banks and use data analytics to issue more effective. rows down the interest rate differ the system. The amount of surplus that the stock market would fall
cards are unhappy with this move, but it is an es Second, the term ‘being accom ential with, say, the Fed’s anchor liquidity in the system has been once the repo rate was hiked. But The writer is Chief Economist, Bank of
modative’ has to be viewed differ rate. But will this then mean that ₹57 lakh crore for more than a year this has not deterred the MPC from Baroda, and author of ‘Lockdown or
sential customer protection measure. Many
ently when it comes to the stance of every time the Fed keeps increasing now and the market has been taking a call on rates, as probably Economic Destruction’. Views are
card users land in a debt trap as they are un the MPC. Earlier, an ‘accommodat rates, we will have to follow the guessing for long as to how this timing it before the Fed announce personal
aware of basic terms and conditions, such as the
levy of interest if you pay only minimum dues
and the loading of interest when dues are con
verted to EMIs. They also mistake the monthly
rate of interest for annual rates. Card issuers
have now been asked to be more transparent by
quoting interest in terms of annualised percent
Rlys on the right track on train manufacture
age rate, disclosing the interest component in After earlier botched efforts, the Railways seems to be seriously moving towards a judicious mix of government and private play
EMIs and sharing important card terms and con
ditions at multiple points of contact. Welcome SUDHANSHU MANI factories, there is speculation that priving a thriving, albeit not very ef tracks being upgraded on select
the 400 trains announced were in ficient, government sector. routes. It is not good that train
T
as these steps are, they may still not protect card he biggest news related to addition to them, to be manufac The Railways has floated a large building for Railways on one side
users, if the latter remain lax in reading through Indian Railways in the tured by rolling stock majors of the tender of around ₹26,000 crore for and Metros/RRTs on the other are
documentation. latest Budget was the an world and their associates in India. the procurement of 200 upgraded exclusive domains. The Railways’
The directions also try to address the issue of nouncement of 400 new These associates are in the private equivalents of Vande Bharat trains initiatives would pave the way for
generation Vande Bharat trains to sector, barring BEML, which is on to be built by a contractor in ICF exploiting possible synergies
card issuers misreporting delays and defaults to
be built in three years. The common the block for disinvestment. and at Latur, a factory set up re among all the factories.
credit bureaus leading to a downgrade in credit reaction in the Railways and indus Industry watchers remained cently by the government. It may Unlike its previous botched ef
scores. Issuers will need to give card users seven trial circles was that the govern sceptical in the backdrop of the look like a halfmeasure but it forts, if the Railways successfully
day notice before such reporting. But it is not ment had overreached. government not following up on its would help upgrade the Vande moves to get modern trains manu
just defaults on credit card dues that lead to a This was because not even one recent radical projects like opera Greater focus now on private sector Bharat trains to truly worldclass factured through private builders,
train was made after the success of tion of private trains and corporat levelsl. it would be nothing short of a wa
cut in one’s credit score, but also the use of mul the first two in 201819, and the fin isation of the Railways’ production smoothly, with ordering well on its Close on the heels of this tender, tershed. Why? Because the Rail
tiple cards and high credit utilisation. It is also ancial performance of the Railways units (PUs) into a corporation way. This was followed by the notice it is expected that bids would be ways’ PUs have functioned for long
ironical that while issuers use credit scores as a is so poor that such a massive in called Indian Railways Rolling to manufacture 1,200 locomotives called for another lot of 200 alu on assured orders, with no competi
key input to decide on whether one is eligible for vestment in passenger trains, Stock Company. at its Dahod factory in PPP mode. minium Vande Bharat trains; alu tion to contend with. They do have
which are largely losing proposi Earlier too, efforts by the Rail It has become increasingly clear minium trains are lighter, aesthet core competence but it has not
a card, they do not offer better interest rates to tions, seemed bizarre. ways to engage major rolling stock that the government means busi icallysuperior and more been exploited, depending as they
customers with sound credit scores. RBI should The massive jump in investments manufacturers through a tender ness and it would next pursue its energyefficient. It would be better are exclusively on orders handed
nudge banks towards differential rates and look in railway projects reflects the gov for modern train sets or setting up a vision to order 400 trains from the if the project envisages that these out by the Railway Board as part of
into the opaque workings of credit bureaus. ernment’s resolve to invest in key train manufacturing unit under private sector at a cost of ₹52,000 be built in private factories in India. their Annual Production Pro
sectors of the economy and the lack PPP at Kancharapara had ended crore, thereby indicating a gradual That would signal a determined gramme.
of commensurate increase in rev with a whimper. shift in manufacturing of rolling move to leverage the nonRailway A judicious mix of government
enue was not a hinderance as long stock to the private sector and manufacturing capacities in the and private play for manufacture of
as the investments serve the eco Big move downsizing its PUs. country, what with four such factor trains is necessary. Exciting times
nomy well in the long term. In quick succession of the Budget It was argued earlier in these ies in place and at least two under seem to be on the horizon for
POCKET RAVIKANTH
It is clear that the government is announcements this year, came the columns that the government construction. passengers.
betting strongly on Vande Bharat news of tendering for a massive would move cautiously ahead with It is expected that these trains
trains. While 104 rakes would be 90,000 freight wagons at a cost of this strategy without declaring its should be designed to be good for The writer, a Retd. General Manager,
manufactured mainly at the Integ ₹30,000 crore, which the Railways intention explicitly, given the senti 160200 km/h speed range and, Indian Railways, is an independent rail
ral Coach factory (ICF) and its other has navigated quickly and ments and politics involved in de therefore, be futureready for the consultant
Published by N. Ravi at Kasturi Buildings, 859 & 860, Anna Salai, Chennai-600002 and Printed by N. Vaidyanathan at Dangat Media Pvt Ltd, No. 22, Dighe MIDC, Vishnu Nagar, TTC Industrial Area, Dighe, Navi Mumbai-400701 on behalf of THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD., Chennai-600002. Editor: Raghuvir Srinivasan (Editor responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act). ISSN 0971 - 7528
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MONDAY • MAY 9 • 2022 BOOKS 7
BOOK REVIEW BOOK EXTRACT NEW READS
Transformational ideas
Innovations that have made the nation what it is today
Cross-currents of change
SIVARAM PILLAI many youngsters know the details of The author explores the business history of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in the 18th century
these dramatic developments which lit
I
f there is one book that I would re erally saved millions from hunger and Extracts from the book ‘Kings, Com- the complexities better. that it could have continued well
commend every young Indian death? pany and Communities: Andhra- For a clear understanding of into the early parts of the eight
Title: Soli Sorabjee: Life and
should read, that would be Indian In- Oral Rehydration Therapy, which saves Telangana in Eighteenth Century In- these issues, let me illustrate the eenth century as well. The
Times: An Authorized
novation, Not Jugaad; 100 Ideas That millions of infants from the clutches of dia’ by G Naga Sridhar case of the port city of Masulipat sources point out to a nearsim
Biography
Transformed India by Dinesh C Sharma. I death every year, not just in India, but nam which was one of the most ilar picture during the period un
A
Author: Abhinav
have not come across another book across the globe, is a treatment for central theme in the vibrant commercial centres in der study. On the basis of this, it
Chandrachud
which captures so well the contributions diarrhoea that was developed as an easy debate on eighteenth eighteenthcentury eastern Dec can be postulated that trade in
Publisher: Penguin Viking
made by many, some famous and many touse treatment procedure by an Indian century India has been can. The discontinuity of eco eighteenthcentury eastern Dec
Definitive and
unsung heroes, in significantly shaping doctor, Dilip Mahalanabis, who was the impact of the hin nomic activity in Masulipatnam can had seen some periodic ec
comprehensive, this first
the country we are today. working to prevent and treat dehydra terland affairs on trade in partic could be a focal point for any con lipses.
biography of Soli Sorabjee
As the author points out, when India fi tion among refugees of the Bangladesh ular and economic activity in clusion of the nature of trade in But, in general, the regional
opens a window into the life
nally obtained Independence from colo war in 1971. general. Most of the traditional the region in the period under economy appears to have been
and times of one of India’s
nial rule in 1947, the country was steeped Based on the treatment methods ad scholars tried to relate the im study. In the seventeenth cen on a thriving note and this can
foremost constitutional
in poverty, backwardness, illiteracy, ill opted by Dr Mahalanabis, WHO pact of political confusion fol tury, Masulipatnam was con disqualify the notion that the
experts.
health, irrationality, superstitions, in launched in 1978 the global diarrhoeal lowing the death of Aurangzeb sidered a ‘safe haven’ for trade eighteenth century was a dark
equality and injustice. We still have to disease control programme, with ORS as and the growth in the independ and commerce. Title: Kings, Company and age as far as economic aspects are
deal with many issues in this list, but con the main strategy. ence and power of regional elite This was a major port for the Communities: concerned. In fact, this can be de
sider this: India today is selfsufficient in Does an average Indian youth today with a relative fall in the law and hinterland in the north Coro AndhraTelangana in scribed as a formative period in
food as against depending on doles from know that, even in the 1970s and 1980s, order. Besides, the commercial mandel for the areas up to Hy Eighteenth Century India the economic history of eastern
other nations in 1947; is the largest pro the average waiting period to procure a rivalries among the European derabad in the south and up to Author: G Naga Sridhar Deccan because of the gradual
ducer of milk in the world; our life ex telephone connection (what we call as trading companies for suprem Ludur and Nurhanpur in the Publisher: Primus Books integration of the region into the
pectancy grew from 31 in 1947 to land lines today!) was close to 15 acy on Indian soil had a devastat north. It acted as a major port for Pages: 126 viscidities of the global trade.
70 in 2022; is a key global player years? Compare that with the situ ing impact on the local trade and the rich Qutub Shahi Kingdom Price: ₹995 The promising economic as
in information technology and ation today. Would you not like to commerce. and attracted many articles of pects of eastern Deccan could be
so on .... This came about due to read about the events that dra With the theory of political de trade from the hinterland for chants of the time and European listed as one of the factors for the
contributions from many sci matically changed this scenario, cline being challenged due to the exports. trading companies. The work competition for the Northern Title: Troll Proof Branding in
entists, engineers, industrial starting from the Subscriber rise of regional elites in different also gives an inventory of com Circars between the French and the Age of Doppelgangers
ists, political leaders and plan Trunk Dialling (STD) booths in the regions in India, it becomes per Economic order modities. There is a reference in the English. It might be more be Author: Gaurav Sood
ners. Let me share a few late 1980s, the brainchild of Sam tinent to examine the changing It can be argued that the contem Hamsavimsathi to eleven variet neficial to investigate the dynam Publisher: SAGE
examples: Pitroda, to the 1.2 billion mobile patterns and to establish porary Telugu sources besides ies of saris and a hundred variet ics of the newlyemerging Publications
subscriber base in India today? whether there was any continu the EIC records help in stating ies of paddy. A comparison of the centres in the broader context of The book discusses the world
Title: Indian of monstrous doppelgangers
Self-sufficiency in food Innovation, Not Do you know that, for the first ity or not. that it is very difficult to apply the inventories and trade centres the mushrooming urban and
In 194243, about four years be Jugaad: 100 Ideas time, Public Interest Litigation While the centrality of the term ‘overall decline’ to the eco mentioned in the seventeenth semiurban centres in the region and various reasons and
fore we obtained Independence, that Transformed (PIL) was used as a tool in 1979 by Coromandel Coast in the trade nomic order of the region in the century text Sukasaptasati and under study. situations that create
one of worst famines hit us and India two Supreme Court lawyers, patterns of the eighteenth cen early decades of the eighteenth the eighteenthcentury text In the eighteenth century, the negative imagery of personal
we lost 4.3 million lives. We did Author: Dinesh C Kapila Hingorani and her hus tury is wellrecognised by the century on two grounds. First, Hamsavimsathi shows that there region had witnessed a conver and public brands.
not have enough foodgrain cul Sharma band Nirmal Hingorani, to se economic historians, eastern the trade networks that connec had been much continuity gence of different social pro
tivation to feed our population Publisher: Roli cure the release of over 40,000 Deccan in most occasions re ted the hinterland of Telangana between the seventeenth and the cesses with a rare mix of tradi
of 300 million at that time. Books under trials who were being mained outside the purview of region with that of Masulipat eighteenth century. Naray tionalism, as reflected in the
Today, we are not only selfsuffi Price: ₹487 held in prisons, mostly in Bihar, main studies with occasional nam were still intact, though it anamatya, the author of Ham- contemporary Telugu literature.
cient in food production to feed on flimsy grounds? The Hingor footnotes and references. The suffered occasionally because of savimsathi, refers to a merchant This was also the time for ger
a population more than four times that, ani couple fought nearly 100 such PILs, present study hopes to fulfil the banditry and the Maratha raids. of higher strata, named Vishnu mination of a new social world
but also export foodgrains. This was providing relief to millions of people and need for a tangible study on the There are many references in dasa, who was consulted by the where the impact of colonial he
made possible due to dramatic develop leading to a change of law in many cases. region and attempts to answer the contemporary Telugu literat Dutch in Ceylon (Ilamu Valvda), gemony can truly be felt. The so
ments in the early 1960s, often referred to Although I am a senior citizen, had a some of the questions that are vi ure of trade and commerce in and the EIC traders for tradere cial context was marked by the
as the Green Revolution. three decades long corporate career and tal for characterizing eighteenth the eighteenth century. Ham- lated purposes. presence of three distinct influ
The foresight of then Prime Minister, have been an entrepreneur for the last 10 century eastern Deccan. The savimsathi refers to rich mer Interestingly, the health of ences — the traditional Telugu so Title: An Intent To Serve
Lal Bahadur Shastri, to appoint C Sub years, I was not aware of some of the in problem is not only in identify chants like Vasumantha, Somad rural economy can also be ciety organised on the lines of Author: Tejendra Khanna
ramaniam as the Food and Agriculture novations among the list of 100 innova ing the patterns and participants atta and Visnudasa. This kind of gleaned from the description of varna or caste, a more complex Publisher: HarperCollins
Minister, and his resourcefulness to back tions covered by Dinesh Sharma in this in commercial networks but also description of merchants pre households in the Telugu literat fusion of Persian culture con India
scientists such as MS Swaminathan, BP book. Reading this book has made me to place them in some frame supposes a good interaction ure. While Sukhasaptasati gives a sciously patronized by the Asaf An insider's look into the
Pal and DS Athwal and the fortitude realise that a great nation is built by work that would help us to under between the prominent mer welldocumented reflection of Jahi state and the beginning of a workings of Indian
shown by these scientists to bring to our many unsung heroes.. MEET THE AUTHOR the booming trade and com colonial cultural hegemony bureaucracy, with fascinating
country modern high yielding varieties merce during the seventeenth which itself was quite complex details about the way
of wheat and rice along with high input The reviewer is an entrepreneur and G Naga Sridhar, a Senior Deputy Editor with the The Hindu century in eastern Deccan, it is in view of its economic and polit government business is
agriculture, saved our country. How co-founder, Proklean Technologies BusinessLine,is also a passionate researcher of history not totally illogical to assume ical underpinnings. transacted on the ground.
T
Top corporate houses in the country as well as public
he proliferation of opera to limit government budget deficits. defined with the total budgeted ex ally, the values of these expenditures
sector undertakings and multinationals have either
tional subsidies in the Specifically, the FRBM targets say penditure in the denominator. The are available in the budget shelved or postponed a total of 62 projects involving a
Union and State budgets that budget deficits should not be subsidy cap’s numerator would be documents. combined investment of ₹77,682.33 crore during financial
is holding back India’s more than a stated percentage (cur the total operational subsidies in This is a narrow definition of total year 200102, according to an annual survey of Indian
economic progress. The reason is rently 3 per cent) of GDP. the budgeted expenditure. operational subsidies. It does not projects conducted by Projects Today, a division of
that Subsidy Raj squeezes out gov Although the FRBM targets are a How to make this formulation capture the reality that some sub Economic Research India Ltd, which monitors live projects
ernment investments that are ne precedent for subsidy caps, they are practical? sidies could take the form of re in the country. Out of this, the top 15 projects together
cessary for longterm growth. different from the former. The FRBM First, we need a workable defini duced revenue generation. accounted for ₹53,760.56 crore or 69.2 per cent of the
Thus, it is essential that the total targets focus on overall deficits, and explicitly in many IMF loans. In par tion of operational subsidies. For example, the Railways has a proposed investments.
amount of subsidies in Union/State don’t pay any attention to the ticular, the IMF often requires bor Second, a broadly accepted number very high operating ratio, which
Finance Ministry to go slow on gasohol plan
government budgets is held back to makeup of the government budget rowing government to limit sub for a subsidy cap is required. And, fi means that they do not generate
The domestic sugar industry has received a setback with
levels where adequate government expenditure. The subsidy caps focus sidies that it thinks are not nally, there’s a need to spell out what enough revenues because they sub
the Finance Ministry deciding to go slow on issuing the
investment is feasible. Let’s call on the makeup of the government welltargeted for the poor. Overall, happens when governments fail to sidise passenger traffic and their crucial notification, giving effect to the Budget proposal to
these limits as subsidy caps. The expenditure, and do not pay any at like the FRBM targets, the IMF is meet the subsidy cap. workers. A broad definition of oper allow a 75 paise per litre surcharge concession on
core idea underlying subsidy caps as tention to overall deficits. looking to limit government defi Since the concept itself is new, it’s ational subsidies would capture ethanoldoped petrol. In his 200203 Budget, the Finance
a numerical constraint on govern cits, and cutting back poorly tar too early for these details to be avail these subsidies. Minister, Mr Yashwant Sinha, had imposed a surcharge of
ments has many precedents in In Key concerns geted subsidies is seen as one way of able; we need quite a bit of analyt In short, the Union/State govern ₹6 per litre on petrol (motor spirit), even while limiting
dia. For example, India has capped In short, there are two types of con limiting the deficits. ical and empirical work to develop ments need to function under sub the cess at ₹5.25 per litre for petrol blended with 5 per cent
the number of ministers in Union/ cerns about government budgets: Thus, the subsidy cap concept is them. sidy caps for India to boost govern ethanol.
State governments. too much expenditure, and too loosely related to the IMF’s approach Yet, even at this stage, we can add ment investments and the growth
KPMG to buy Andersen consulting for $284 m
And there is a cap on castebased much of a particular type of ex to subsidies, with many differences. some details that would help create rate. It is time to start thinking seri
KPMG Consulting Inc agreed to buy Arthur Andersen LLP’s
reservations. In the economic con penditure that slows down eco The most important difference is a workable definition. ously about formulating workable
consulting business for as much as $284 million as
text, the Reserve Bank of India has nomic growth. We need two differ that the IMF’s approach is designed In simple terms, operational sub ways to define and implement sub Andersen struggles to survive amid a criminal trial over
set for itself a numerical target ent instruments — FRBM targets and to rescue failing economies, while sidies are government expendit sidy caps. shredding Enron Corp documents. KPMG, the thirdlargest
range for inflation. This target limits subsidy caps — to address these two subsidy caps are designed to pro ures, excluding wages and debt ser US accounting firm, will purchase as many as 23
the RBI’s freedom in implementing independent concerns. mote faster growth in economies vice, that do not aim to promote The writer is an economist who independent Andersen consulting units, KPMG said in a
monetary policy. The subsidy cap concept is impli like India that are not failing, and higher growth, more jobs, or asset recently wrote ‘India’s Path to statement. As many as 6.5 million shares also will be issued
The most relevant precedent for cit in the International Monetary don’t need IMF loans. creation. Examples are energy sub Prosperity 2022-2047: A Workable over a threeyear period to Andersen’s consulting partners
subsidy caps is the Fiscal Responsib Fund’s thinking, and does show up Unlike the FRBM targets, which sidies, MGNREGA expenditures, and Agenda for the Next 10-15 Years.’ who join KPMG Consulting.
7. Speaking
DOWN
1. Song from opera (4)
ACROSS
7. Equal grind not
DOWN
1. A bit of opera In particular I always show (4)
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O
immediately after a heart attack. ne technology is walking Houston’s Children’s Nutrition Re
Prof Mauro Giacca of the School of Cardiovascular Medicine into our lives straight out search Centre. Children were seen
and Sciences, King’s College, London, has discovered three of science fiction. “to walk away from CocaCola" at the
naturally occurring ‘cardio-protective proteins’ that can Imagine this: A digital cafeteria. Incidentally, the digital
retain the heart tissues damaged by the myocardial avatar of a child (with parents’ per vaccine project of CMU has de
infarction. Giacca’s work began at the International Center for mission, of course) is entered into a veloped “a software platform for
Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), Trieste, Italy. game in the metaverse. As part of the neurocognitive training and habit
ICGEB is an autonomous organisation, set up by the immersive virtual reality experi formation,” called ‘fooya!’, to posit
governments of India and Italy. ence, the child’s brain is ‘tuned’ to ively influence children’s food
The three proteins can prevent the progression of heart avoid foods that could later lead to choices.
attack towards heart failure. A UK-based biotech start-up, lifestyle diseases such as diabetes Prakash’s peers and seniors ap
Forcefield Therapeutics, of which Giaccia is the ‘Scientific and hypertension. Thanks to this plaud his work. In an email to Busi-
Founder’, is developing easily administrable formulations to ‘neurocognitive training’ the child ness Line, Dr Ramayya Krishnan,
enable rapid treatment soon after an MI event, before the avoids unhealthy food even in real Dean, Heinz College, Carnegie Mel
heart damage becomes irreversible. In a press release from life. lon University, says: “The work of
Forcefield Therapeutics, Giacca notes, “Despite decades of In other words, the child has been Bhargav Sri Prakash and his innova
research, no current treatment is able to prevent the death of given a ‘digital vaccine’. tion team, along with researchers
cardiomyocytes or a reduction in lifespan and quality of life All of this might sound strange or and scientists of the digital vaccine
following acute MI. By redefining the search for farfetched, but it is part of an emer project aims to find solutions for
cardioprotective therapies, we have identified proteins that ging science called ‘digital thera globalscale societal health prob
have not been previously linked to cardiac health, but which peutics’, which aims to deliver med lems through new frontiers of
hold the potential to retain heart function, preventing ical care through smartphones, neural networks and metaverse
premature death of heart cells and thus counteracting the tablets and similar devices. A Chen technology for disease prevention.
deleterious effects of MI.” naibased entrepreneur and founder The grant of a patent by the USPTO in
of the life sciences startup Friends this exciting new field is a signal of
New wheat, chapati sweet Learn, Bhargav Sri Prakash has just the defensible value in translating
Scientists at the Punjab Agricultural been given a patent by the US Patent transformational research from our
University (PAU) have developed a new and Trademark Office, for the ‘sys labs for application in the real
wheat variety — ’PBW1Chapati’ — which tems and methods for digital vac world.”
they say will make for a dough that is more cine’ that he developed as part of the Video games on mobile devices have potential to influence a child’s dietary and lifestyle behaviours, experts say ISTOCK.COM Prakash’s digital vaccine adds to
pliable, sweet, chewy and fluffy. The wheat US Carnegie Mellon University’s ‘di the product suite of ‘digital thera
variety has just been released to Punjab farmers for gital vaccine project’. ated with better actual food reality company, Vmerse, to help uni a game in metaverse, a lot of data peutics’, a growing branch of medi
cultivation. Prakash, a mechanical engineer choices,” it says. versities admit students from those about the child’s behaviour is cine. According to a report in MedAd-
Till now, the ‘gold standard’ wheat varieties for chapatis have from Chennai’s Anna University, told strata of society that required affirm gathered; artificial intelligence pro News magazine, the market for
been C306 and PBW175. Both yield lovely chapatis, but the Quantum that with a digital vaccine Simulation technology ative action. Vmerse gave prospect cesses this data to decipher which digital therapeutics is expected to
plants have become susceptible to ‘stripe and brown rust’ there was “no injection, no inges Prakash, 45, played professional ten ive students a virtual feel of the uni kinds of experiences the child grow from $3.4 billion in 2021 to $13.1
diseases. The challenge, therefore, was to combine high-yield tion”; only the brain is induced nis in his younger days and repres versity. should be exposed to, in order to fa billion in 2026, at a CAGR of 31.4 per
potential and disease resistance. through an immersive metaverse ex ented India in international junior By the time Vmerse was sold to an cilitate “implicit learning”. cent. In the US, companies like Pear
The wheat breeding team at PAU has developed a new variety perience to develop certain tennis events. After a year in BITS, Pil other American company, Prakash By repeatedly creating associ Therapeutics and Kaia Health have
using marker-assisted selection for a linked stripe rust and physiological changes to help avoid ani, he dropped out to join Anna Uni had gathered experience in simula ations between certain actions and been making waves with products
leaf rust gene, Lr57/Yr40, in the PBW175 background. The diseases. versity, Chennai, to be able to con tion and virtual reality. A fellowship their consequences in the virtual like reSET (Pear) for substance abuse
team has retained the chapati making parameters using When a pharma company devel tinue playing tennis and pursue his took him to Kansas, where he world, such as falling ill or securing a disorder and MSK (Kaia) for muscu
biochemical tests. ops a vaccine, it goes to a doctor or a other passion, car racing. (In those worked with Dr Amanda Bruce, a reward, the child could be nudged loskeletal pain. These products are
hospital to market it. Prakash’s ‘mar days, Chennai had the Sholavaram renowned neuroscientist who was towards a healthy lifestyle. delivered through smartphones, but
Methane capture ket’, instead, is a school — digital vac race track.) In this way, a healthy life using functional MRI (FMRI) scans to Thus, a digital vaccine was born. are said to be different from wellness
Scientists at the Indian Institute of cines work on children by letting style was hardwired into him. study the behaviour of children, to This, in a way, is the opposite of apps because they undertake rigor
Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad, their digital avatars experience the Later, after completing his mas see which part of the brain was caus how advertisements of food com ous randomised control tests before
have computationally designed a hybrid positive and negative consequences ter’s in automotive engineering at ing the risk of metabolic diseases in panies are meant to work. For ex launching. There is a ‘Digital Thera
material that can capture methane and of their actions, which serve as learn the University of Michigan, Ann Ar children. ample, using popular cartoon char peutics Alliance’, whose website,
also act as catalyst to convert it to ings for real life. bor, Prakash started CAD Corpora Says Prakash: “Having experience acters on food products to woo www.dtxalliance.org, lists allied
high-purity hydrogen. They have also “Video games on mobile devices tion to provide simulation services in virtual reality and simulation, we young buyers. companies and products.
simulated and designed a process for in have great potential to influence a to automotive companies. This in found that we could actually simu In the last two years, “we realised But Prakash’s invention is the first
situ capture of carbon dioxide and its conversion to child’s dietary and lifestyle behavi volved simulating aspects like fuel late a set of scenarios involving that we are in a position to also boost vaccine.
high-purity hydrogen from non-fuel grade bioethanol ors,” notes a writeup on Carnegie economy, crash resistance, emis foods and games and also deliber the immune system to lower the risk
through a mechanism called optimised intensified chemical Mellon University’s website. “We sions and performance to help build ately send messages to the brain — so of infectious diseases,” Prakash says. X
W
looping reforming. The latter research has been published in find strong evidence of the positive a better car prototype. CAD Corpora that we could link these areas with We value your feedback.
the Elsevier journal Chemical Engineering and Processing. effect of the mobile game on actual tion was later taken over by “a De working memory, selfregulation, re Digital therapeutics Do send your comments to
The researchers have also fabricated a facility at the institute food choices and identify strategic troitbased automotive company”. wards.” But does it actually work? Yes, it quantum@thehindu.co.in
to further the study on carbon capture and conversion. game play patterns that are associ In 2005, Prakash started a virtual As the digital avatar goes through does, says Prakash. In 2013, the re
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BusinessLine
MONDAY • MAY 9 • 2022 BANKING & FINANCE 9
WHAT’S NEW
Insurance companies raise prices
Elevated loss ratios, along with medical inflation, have
Time for the RBI to try out something NUE
driven insurance companies to raise prices of both The central bank is fine-tuning regulations around payments, but can it keep the umbrella entity on the backburner for long?
retail and group health plans,
according to ‘Indian Health
Insurance’ update by Motilal Oswal. HAMSINI KARTHIK sized at about $88 billion, and Visa
While new customers have been and Mastercard handle 72 per cent
impacted by higher prices, existing
customers have seen a
doublewhammy of agerelated
increases as well as price hikes, the
H ow often do you have to
retry digital payments
through the UPI QR code or
the app? Two years ago, the answer
was almost zero. Now, it’s not the
of the global business. While in
volume terms, India leads globally
on the payments front, in value
terms, we are a distant second to
China, the market leader.
broking firm said. Health policies have seen increase in
average prices led by higher claims and medical same. The average UPI transaction Therefore, without a justifiable
inflation, with the average premium increasing to rejection rates of top 50 banks in In scale, the need for a duopoly may
₹25,649 in the JanuaryMarch 2022 quarter against dia stood at less than a per cent in not have arrived just yet and this
₹25,124 in the OctoberDecember 2021 quarter. March 2021. In March 2022, it was may be the contention of the regu
nearly 1.5 per cent, the reason being lator as well.
the multitude increase in UPI
‘MPC rate hike good for the banking sector’ usage. IPL reference
State Bank of India’s Economic Research Department Envisaging a situation like this In 2007, Subhash Chandra’s Zee En
(ERD) believes that the monetary policy committee’s two years ago, the RBI decided to tertainment conceptualised the In
decision to hike the repo rate by 40 basis points will be create a new payments infrastruc dian Cricket League. It didn’t have
ultimately good for the banking sector as the risk will ture called the new umbrella entity the BCCI’s blessings, but the cricket
get repriced properly. or NUE. A cutoff date of March 31, ing authority liked the idea and
The situation now is different than what it was during 2021, was fixed for interested entit sowed the seeds for Indian Premier
the global financial crisis, wherein the lending started ies to make their applications. League next year. Today, the IPL has
increasing aggressively (FY05 onwards), much before There were six applicants. Around routed the traditional formats such
the rate hike cycle began (March 2010 till October September last year, it was almost as test and oneday cricket in terms
2011), said the ERD in its Ecowrap report. Currently, the official that the RBI placed the li of scale and eyeballs.
rate hike cycle has begun and now the bank lending censing process in cold storage, NPCI and its UPI offerings are at
will increase factoring in the risk, it added. though subsequently, in February, that spot where IPL currently is.
the RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das In volume terms, India leads globally on payments front; in value terms, we are a distant second to China, the market leader Should the BCCI add more teams to
Capex revival could get delayed: Ind-Ra said the applications are under IPL or create a parallel to IPL? The
review. 15 years old. It was initially designed that the applicants didn’t size up source associated with the licens RBI needs to take a similar call and
India Ratings and Research (IndRa) believes that over Three months have lapsed since, to handle some online money wir the NUE opportunity prudently. ing process. the answer to this boils down to one
the medium term, inflationary pressures, supply chain and industry participants say they ing and debit/credit card transac NUE was perhaps being seen as an While the regulator’s thought point – is there scope for
disruptions and weak consumption demand could are yet to hear from the regulator tions. As the digital modes opportunity to up the valuations process isn’t known, with India’s di differentiation?
upset the current revival in credit regarding the status of their applic widened, the scope of PSS also in game, considering that each con gital economy expected to touch NUE’s scope of operations in
growth. Furthermore, the ations. This brings us to the moot creased, but there still are some sortium included an established $800 billion by 2030, a near 10x clude setting up, managing and op
reversal of the interest rate point – can the RBI afford to keep weak links in regulations, which fintech player. jump from 2020 levels, it’s a matter erating a new payment system in
cycle as signified by the 40 NUE on the back burner for long? the RBI is gradually addressing. At a time when valuations were of time that we have solutions to the retail space, most of which NPCI
basis points (bps) No, considering the growing “Before NUE licences are taken starting to plateau, contending for handle this expansion. already does. So, unless NUE can of
increase in repo rate by volumes of digital transactions, up, it’s important to strengthen PSS a NUE licence would have bumped fer something truly new, there may
the Reserve Bank of India and the plethora of businesses Act and that is being taken up as pri up their asking rates. But its well Need for an alternative be no incremental reason for exist
would weigh down credit helmed by NPCI, the time for a cred ority,” said a person close to the de after furnishing their applications CokePepsi, MastercardVisa and In ing UPI customers to migrate out of
growth as borrowings become ible alternative is now. But are the velopments. The RBI’s decision to that concerns around NUE’s com dia’s very own BSENSE are ex the platform.
costlier. stakeholders – the RBI and the ap repeal redundant laws and replace petitiveness against NPCI on UPI amples of successful duopolies, Unless the NUE contenders have
The rating agency noted that the banking system’s plicants – ready to embrace the sys them with ones which hold relev payments, when the latter has zero who have retained the majority the will and wherewithal and, more
credit growth offtake has shown a significant pickup tem and, more importantly, is there ance currently is a step in that direc MDR or merchant discount rate market share between themselves. importantly, the regulator’s bless
in the early part of FY23, with credit growth of 11.2 per a scope for incremental value tion. Expect more on this front. charges or the gamut of NUE being For a country as densely populated ings to do what NSE did, creating a
cent yearonyear (yoy) as on April 8, 2022, compared adding proposition? Finding an Evidently, the regulator has more quite restricted in comparison with as ours, NPCI alone may be inad new platform may just be a name
to 5.3 per cent yoy in the same period in April 2021 swers to these questions will help ground to clear before it can zeroin NPCI, are surfacing. equate to handle the volumes and sake exercise. In short, now is the
and highest since July 2019. Based on the feedback understand the need for NUE. on NUE licences. “It seems as though the applic validates the base case for a number time to take a call on NUE, given the
received from its rated issuers, IndRa said capex The Payment and Settlement Sys But how prepared are the applic ants took the plunge, assuming two market infrastructure player in volume explosion, but if there is
revival could get delayed as many of them have tems (PSS) Act, which was enacted ants? Few minutes of conversation that with a little bit of lobbying and the payments business. But have we resistance to do some outofbox
deferred their capex plans as they await more clarity to govern digital or noncash or with representatives of the licence the restrictive regulations would be reached the scale yet? thinking, there is no need for some
on the macroeconomic front. cash equivalent payments, is about applicants is enough to understand amended,” said a highly placed Global payments market was thing NUE
G old, for thousands of
years, has been
viewed as an invest
ment option and this trend
continues even today. In
Further, the pandemic
has also rapidly increased
the digitisation process
across sectors, and gold
loan financing sector was
fluctuation in gold spot
prices, and a limit to the
trading hours, this shift will
be gradual.
When it comes to factors
fact, India is considered to no exception. The expecta like purity, lack of design
be one of biggest con tions from consumers are ing costs, uniform pricing
sumers of gold, second only high and it is up to the and a much more flexible
after China, and according lenders to make use of the way to invest, digital gold
to the World Gold Council, available technology at has an upper hand. Further,
Indian households have their disposal and innovate customers who are scep
stocked nearly 24,000 to to meet customer demands. tical can also purchase di
25,000 tonnes of gold. Super apps and other di gital gold in much smaller
Of this, less than 10 per gital innovations like avail quantities, to test the wa
cent of gold is playing out ing loans and other bank ters before making a bigger
in the organised market, in ing facilities from the commitment.
cluding gold loan compan comfort of one’s own home, The future of the gold
ies. Also, in a recent survey which earlier involved loan industry is linked to
conducted by India Gold heaps of paperwork and further digital integration
Policy Centre (IGPC) at the branch visits, have been on of technology and new in
Indian Institute of Manage the rise. novations. In India, the use
ment, Ahmedabad (IIMA), of digital wallets and online
over 75 per cent of Indian Digital gold payment options like UPI
households confessed to Technology and blockchain have drastically increased.
owning gold in some form are not just hot trends in In the future, products like
or the other. the market, but they will goldsecured credit cards
With the pandemic bring have an impact across sec and gold wallets are likely
ing forth its own set of chal tors and industries, too, in to enter the market, too. In
lenges in the last few years, cluding the gold loan in fact, many players had
most of us have suffered in dustry. Digital gold, and earlier introduced a card fa
some form or the other. For gold in the form of ETFs, cility and are working to
many, especially lowin SGBs and goldoriented mu wards relaunching the
come households, un tual funds, have seen a same in the near future.
banked customers, MSMEs rapid increase in invest Recently, many fintech
and SMEs, gold emerged as ments, especially among players, including mobile e
a safe haven, when big insti millennials. wallet companies and
tutions and banks held In the future, digital gold brokers, have initiated gold
wallet facilities for their
customers, allowing them
to buy certified and pure 24
karat gold.
They are able to make
rapid and easy money trans
fers and get hasslefree mi
croloan services in no time.
All we would need in addi
tion would be a regulatory
body overseeing the devel
opments and progress of
such initiatives, which can
also inspire further innova
tions in the sector.
Competition rises
Given the good prospects of
gold loan sector, we see
many players offering gold
loan and the competition is
rising; however, this is not a
dampener and is only a test
ament to the huge oppor
tunity the sector has to of
Indian households have stocked nearly 24,000 to 25,000 fer. In fact, Muthoot Finance
tonnes of gold has seen good growth in
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MONDAY • MAY 9 • 2022
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