Aneesh Phadnis And Subrata Panda

Stories by Aneesh Phadnis And Subrata Panda

HDFC Bank plans mega infra revamp to tackle outages

HDFC Bank plans mega infra revamp to tackle outages

Rediff.com   25 Jun 2021

After facing multiple outages that irked the regulator, the country's largest private sector lender, HDFC Bank, is revamping its technology infrastructure by making large scale investments, wherein it is bringing new talent, getting into cloud-native stacks, a shift from the traditional monolithic IT infrastructures, and working with strategic partners for better products and services. The bank management is clear that it will do whatever it takes in line with its growth path to ramp up its technology infrastructure.

'Covid-related death claims are a concern'

'Covid-related death claims are a concern'

Rediff.com   24 Jun 2021

'The overall death claims have gone up.'

Vedanta arm is paying almost nothing for Videocon group: NCLT

Vedanta arm is paying almost nothing for Videocon group: NCLT

Rediff.com   16 Jun 2021

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved the resolution plan of Twin Star Technologies -- a promoter entity of the Vedanta Resources group -- for the Videocon group. But it has pointed out that the successful resolution applicant is "paying almost nothing" as the amount offered is only 4.15 per cent of total outstanding claim. It noted the hair cut for all the creditors is 95.85 per cent and suggested to both committee of creditors (CoC) and the successful applicant an increase in the payout.

REVEALED! Design of the Navi Mumbai airport

REVEALED! Design of the Navi Mumbai airport

Rediff.com   10 Jun 2021

The Navi Mumbai international airport will boast three interconnected multi-level terminals with a lotus-inspired design, according to the master plan prepared by its outgoing developer. The GVK group, which completed 15 years of airport business, shared the first look of the Navi Mumbai airport. The group in 2018 had commissioned British firm Zaha Hadid Architects to design the main terminal and air traffic control tower. The master plan of the airport was approved by the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) in 2019.

Another proof that 2nd Covid wave is creating havoc

Another proof that 2nd Covid wave is creating havoc

Rediff.com   9 Jun 2021

Auto-debit payment bounces have gone up for the second consecutive month in May, emphasising the stress building up due to a halt in economic activities as authorities lock down various parts of the country to stop the spread of the virus in the second wave. According to the National Automated Clearing House (NACH) data, in May, of the 85.7 million transactions initiated, 35.91 per cent, or 30.8 million transactions, failed.

Piramal Group's resolution plan for beleaguered DHFL gets NCLT nod

Piramal Group's resolution plan for beleaguered DHFL gets NCLT nod

Rediff.com   8 Jun 2021

The Mumbai Bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Monday approved Piramal Group's resolution plan for the beleaguered Dewan Housing Finance Ltd (DHFL), which has been reeling from the insolvency process since 2019. The plan put forward by Piramal Group, which has offered to pay Rs 37,250 crore, has been approved by the committee of creditors (CoC), the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

Airlines cut wages, re-negotiate contracts to tide over Covid-19 crisis

Airlines cut wages, re-negotiate contracts to tide over Covid-19 crisis

Rediff.com   3 Jun 2021

Airlines are slashing salaries and re-negotiating vendor contracts as drastic fall in passengers has hurt revenue. Go First has cut staff salaries by around 16 per cent while IndiGo and SpiceJet are enforcing a leave without pay (LWP) policy and pay by the hour structure respectively to prune expenses. Vistara, which reversed pay cuts for junior staff including managers and cabin crew in March, is not touching employee salaries at the moment and instead focusing on vendor renegotiation and maximising cargo revenue. An Air India executive said efforts are on to pay salaries by 7th or 8th of June.

How PSBs plan to restructure loans of up to Rs 25 cr

How PSBs plan to restructure loans of up to Rs 25 cr

Rediff.com   31 May 2021

Public sector banks, including the country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI), have come out with a templated approach for restructuring retail and small business loans of up to Rs 25 crore under the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Covid restructuring package 2.0. They have also come out with standardised products to make funds available to business entities for improving healthcare infrastructure and to individuals for meeting Covid treatment expenses. Business loans have been divided into three categories.

UK regulator probes Air India's data leak impacting 4.5 mn passengers

UK regulator probes Air India's data leak impacting 4.5 mn passengers

Rediff.com   26 May 2021

EU and UK laws require airlines to incorporate data protection measures and report data breach to regulators within 72 hours. Non-compliance can invite steep fines.

ULIPs remain popular despite tax tweak

ULIPs remain popular despite tax tweak

Rediff.com   5 May 2021

These products are extremely transparent and are the lowest charged products in the insurance space. The policyholder has to only pay the fund management charge. Hence, from the cost side, ULIPs are very competitive.

Start-ups, venture capitalists offer funds to tackle Oxygen scarcity

Start-ups, venture capitalists offer funds to tackle Oxygen scarcity

Rediff.com   26 Apr 2021

Amid oxygen shortage and a faltering health system in the country, India is seeing over 300,000 cases daily.

HDFC Bank readies plan to tackle frequent outages

HDFC Bank readies plan to tackle frequent outages

Rediff.com   20 Apr 2021

The bank has decided to embark on a 'Technology Transformation agenda' to provide its customers smoother, faster, and better banking experience.

India's Sputnik V decision a win for Russia's soft power diplomacy

India's Sputnik V decision a win for Russia's soft power diplomacy

Rediff.com   20 Apr 2021

The Russian vaccine has been registered in more than 55 countries and is gaining recognition in the virtual world -- being the only to have its own Facebook page, YouTube channel and a Twitter handle, reports Aneesh Phadnis

The 2nd wave: Insurers brace for rise in Covid-19 policy claims

The 2nd wave: Insurers brace for rise in Covid-19 policy claims

Rediff.com   19 Apr 2021

The unprecedented rise in Covid-19 infections in the country, which many are terming as the second wave, has also resulted in a rise in Covid-related claims for general and health insurance companies as hospitalisations have gone up. The insurers have received more than a million Covid-related claims as of April, 2021. According to the data compiled by General Insurance Council, the reported claims total 1.014 million, amounting to more than Rs 14,800 crore.

Maha curfew: 50% factories may remain shut for next fortnight

Maha curfew: 50% factories may remain shut for next fortnight

Rediff.com   15 Apr 2021

According to the order, all factories producing essential goods and services will remain operational at full capacity.

Maharashtra traders body plans to defy Covid curbs, open stores

Maharashtra traders body plans to defy Covid curbs, open stores

Rediff.com   10 Apr 2021

'Traders have stocked up for upcoming festivals and will make a loss if stores remain shut now. We suffered last year. We can't suffer again. There is no scientific basis for closing all commercial establishments. How long will the government keep them shut?'

Infections rise in Nagpur with second wave

Infections rise in Nagpur with second wave

Rediff.com   10 Apr 2021

One reason for the surge in cases is the spread of infection at large weddings. Weddings turned out to be super spreaders.

You will soon be able to withdraw cash from digital wallets

You will soon be able to withdraw cash from digital wallets

Rediff.com   8 Apr 2021

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday proposed to make interoperability mandatory for digital payments firms. It also allowed users to withdraw cash from e-wallets and fintech companies to process RTGS and NEFT transactions. The RBI expressed dissatisfaction over prepaid payment instruments' (PPIs') failure to migrate towards full-KYC (know your customer) PPIs, and therefore interoperability, even two years after guidelines were issued.

Labs say capping RT-PCR rates is big blow to business

Labs say capping RT-PCR rates is big blow to business

Rediff.com   3 Apr 2021

'We urge the government to have discussions with private labs on the actual cost of running a test.'

RuPay takes on Visa and Mastercard with a little govt help

RuPay takes on Visa and Mastercard with a little govt help

Rediff.com   30 Mar 2021

RuPay is working on how to increase offers to customers. It is also focused on technology innovation in the card payment system.