Aneesh Phadnis And Viveat Susan Pinto

Stories by Aneesh Phadnis And Viveat Susan Pinto

Why Air India is leaving passenger luggage behind at Delhi airport

Why Air India is leaving passenger luggage behind at Delhi airport

Rediff.com   23 Aug 2021

Air India is leaving behind some 50 bags at the Delhi airport as it flies to the US, reducing what it carries after the closure of Afghanistan's airspace increased flight time by at least 30 minutes. Air India flies the Boeing 777 and 787 aircraft to New York, Newark, Chicago, Washington and San Francisco.

Indian students hung out to dry

Indian students hung out to dry

Rediff.com   21 Aug 2021

With Canada, Australia extending restrictions, admission seekers are deferring their studies or looking elsewhere.

More bad news: Vodafone Idea may get notice for licence fee delay

More bad news: Vodafone Idea may get notice for licence fee delay

Rediff.com   20 Aug 2021

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is in the process of issuing a show-cause notice to Vodafone Idea (Vi) for delaying the payment of licence fee. Companies pay 8 per cent of their adjusted gross revenue as licence fee. This also includes a universal service obligation levy. The fee is collected from each of the 22 telecom circles in the country on a quarterly basis.

Vi lost 12.4 mn subscribers in Q1, most since March '20

Vi lost 12.4 mn subscribers in Q1, most since March '20

Rediff.com   16 Aug 2021

Vodafone Idea (Vi) lost 12.4 million subscribers in the first quarter of FY22, the most since the fourth quarter of FY20, as the second wave of Covid hurt its operational and financial performance. Vi had managed to trim subscriber losses in the third and fourth quarters of FY21. However, it lost 12.4 million subscribers and its customer base shrunk to 255.4 million in the first quarter of FY22. Sequential fall in 4G users was modest, indicating that most of the loss was in the low-margin 2G segment.

Minimum one-way Delhi-London airfare zooms over Rs 1 lakh

Minimum one-way Delhi-London airfare zooms over Rs 1 lakh

Rediff.com   9 Aug 2021

Minimum one-way air fares between Delhi and London are priced upwards of Rs one lakh in August due to limited number of seats, data collected by Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) shows. The United Kingdom has included India in the amber list and the change came into effect from Sunday. With this, passengers from India needn't undergo institutional quarantine and can self-isolate at home for 10 days.

How India can 'keep' Vodafone Idea

How India can 'keep' Vodafone Idea

Rediff.com   27 Jul 2021

The government should convert Vodafone Idea's (Vi) debt into equity to avoid a duopoly in the telecom sector, Deutsche Bank Research said in its report on Monday. This, the bank suggested, would be the only viable solution in the backdrop of the Supreme Court dismissing the telecom company's application for recomputation of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues.

Tata Sons sets the ball rolling for buying Air India

Tata Sons sets the ball rolling for buying Air India

Rediff.com   21 Jul 2021

Tata Sons has started the process of due diligence of state-owned Air India and its subsidiary Air India Express. Sources said the group has appointed Bain and Company and Seabury Group for this purpose. Once complete, a financial bid will be submitted and a deal to take over the airline is likely to fructify by end of this year or even earlier, people involved in the process said. Simultaneously, the group has brought in veterans in the aviation business from Delta and United Airlines to prepare a plan for post-merger integration of Air India with its existing airline ventures. Tata Sons operates Vistara - a 51:49 percent joint venture with Singapore Airlines and Air Asia India, in which Tatas hold 83.67 per cent stakes.

Over 200 Indians stuck in Serbia due to surprise quarantine rule

Over 200 Indians stuck in Serbia due to surprise quarantine rule

Rediff.com   13 Jul 2021

Serbia has become one of the transit points for Indians heading to Canada and the US. Canada requires passengers from India to take an RT-PCR test from a third country, while the US wants them to spend 14 days outside of India. As a result, many students are taking the Serbia route to Canada, and the US.

Will Jet Airways manage to get enough airport slots?

Will Jet Airways manage to get enough airport slots?

Rediff.com   8 Jul 2021

As and when Jet Airways applies for slots, these would be allocated among all airlines according to guidelines, without any claim of historicity in favour of any airline. Slots would be given to Jet only from the available remaining pool.

Why urban poor remain a worry for FMCG companies

Why urban poor remain a worry for FMCG companies

Rediff.com   7 Jul 2021

As the second wave of the pandemic ebbs and the daily caseload falls, the struggles of the urban poor have come into focus. Many have suffered income and job losses after two successive waves. The second wave, in particular, has seen the poor being hit hard on account of lack of medical and financial help. For the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies this has meant that an important segment is under severe distress.

95% Jet staff must consent to Kalrock-Jalan proposal or lose benefits

95% Jet staff must consent to Kalrock-Jalan proposal or lose benefits

Rediff.com   6 Jul 2021

At least 95 per cent of Jet Airways employees will have to give their consent to the Kalrock-Jalan consortium's proposal or lose benefits offered to them under the revival plan. Voting on the consortium's offer for employees and workmen began on Monday and will go on till August 4. The National Company Law Tribunal cleared the consortium proposal to revive the airline on June 22. While Jet Airways had admitted claims of around Rs 15,000 crore, the consortium has offered to settle claims of Rs 475 crore of financial and non financial creditors.

India's consumption story moving fast once again

India's consumption story moving fast once again

Rediff.com   1 Jul 2021

Sanjiv Mehta, chairman of the country's largest consumer goods company, HUL, believes that the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic between April and June this year has been a mere pause in India's consumption story, and that it will not change the country's overall growth trajectory. India is poised for growth, especially in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector, Mehta told shareholders at the company's annual general meeting on Tuesday. The signs of recovery are becoming evident with many states lifting lockdown restrictions in recent weeks.

Jet Airways assured of slots by around 30 airports

Jet Airways assured of slots by around 30 airports

Rediff.com   28 Jun 2021

The Kalrock-Jalan consortium - new owners of Jet Airways - has got an assurance from around 30 airports that if the airline restarts operations, 170 pairs of slots can be made available. However, whether those slots will be according to the airline's demand will depend on the order of the insolvency court, which is slated to come next week. Sources said the new management feels it is extremely important that some of those slots are restored or else its business plan of operating Jet as a premium carrier will not be viable.

Colgate-Palmolive ready to ride the herbal wave

Colgate-Palmolive ready to ride the herbal wave

Rediff.com   21 Jun 2021

Colgate-Palmolive India is placing greater emphasis on freshness, whitening, therapeutic, and family toothpastes, as rivals such as Dabur and Patanjali dominate the growing naturals segment of the market. Once under 5 per cent of the Rs 10,000-crore domestic toothpaste market, the naturals segment, which includes ayurvedic and herbal variants, is now 25-30 per cent of the market, industry executives said. Growth rates of the naturals segment are estimated to be in the region of 8-9 per cent in volume terms. In value terms, the growth rate for naturals is around 10-12 per cent, sector experts said.

Despite Covid surge, TV advertising volumes rise 64% YoY

Despite Covid surge, TV advertising volumes rise 64% YoY

Rediff.com   18 Jun 2021

Advertising on television continued to show momentum in May despite the surge in Covid-19 infections and the temporary suspension of the Indian Premier League (IPL), a high-impact television property. The data shared by the Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) on Thursday shows that advertising volumes in May were up 64 per cent year-on-year. However, there was a marginal dip sequentially, that is, in comparison to April 2021, when advertising had touched a record high owing to the start of the summer season and the return of the IPL to India after being held in the United Arab Emirates in 2020.

3rd Wave Fears: India Inc trims FY22 growth outlook

3rd Wave Fears: India Inc trims FY22 growth outlook

Rediff.com   16 Jun 2021

'While most companies were bullish before the second wave of double-digit sales growth in FY22, that may not be the case now.'

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.

Heineken can now buy extra stake in United Breweries

Heineken can now buy extra stake in United Breweries

Rediff.com   9 Jun 2021

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Tuesday said that the proposed additional stake buy in United Breweries (UB) by Dutch major Heineken does not raise any competition concerns, effectively clearing the deal. In its order, the CCI said, "It is submitted that the proposed transaction does not give rise to competition concerns regardless of delineation of the relevant market for the purpose of this filing." UB is the country's largest beer company, while Heineken is the world's second-largest brewer after Anheuser-Busch (AB) InBev.

How much did Zee earn from Radhe?

How much did Zee earn from Radhe?

Rediff.com   4 Jun 2021

Zee is estimated to have paid around Rs 225 crore for the complete rights of Radhe. The total revenue that it may earn could be around Rs 135 crore, implying a shortfall of Rs 90 crore.

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.