Arindam Majumder, Twesh Mishra, Shreya Jai &Amp; Shivani Shinde

Stories by Arindam Majumder, Twesh Mishra, Shreya Jai &Amp; Shivani Shinde

As aviation opens up, GE bets on India's wide-body aircraft market

As aviation opens up, GE bets on India's wide-body aircraft market

Rediff.com   26 Mar 2022

The slot constraint in Indian airports is also going to play a role in pushing airlines to have wide bodies.

Airlines send out SOS as loans dry up, fuel prices hit record high

Airlines send out SOS as loans dry up, fuel prices hit record high

Rediff.com   24 Mar 2022

Loans for Indian airlines have dried up as banks have become cautious to lend to the sector.

TCS' $50-bn goal below its growth standards

TCS' $50-bn goal below its growth standards

Rediff.com   22 Mar 2022

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) - the largest information technology (IT) services provider in India and the second-largest globally - recently set an ambitious goal of $50 billion in revenue by 2030. The growth required to reach this goal, however, is lower than the company's own standards. In the past decade, TCS revenues, or net sales in US dollar terms, have grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.5 per cent, from $10.2 in 2011-12, to an expected $25.3 billion during 2021-22 (FY22), based on its revenue trend in the first nine months of FY22.

French aerospace major Thales has big India plans

French aerospace major Thales has big India plans

Rediff.com   21 Mar 2022

French aerospace major Thales Group is eyeing major expansion in India. The group has started planning to set up a maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) organisation in India to support Indian airlines - many of which are its customers for avionics support. "We are looking to set up an MRO, so that they don't have to travel to West Asia or Singapore. "Final decision is yet to be taken, but this is a clear intent showing the growth potential in India that we are looking to set up a sub-centre here," said Yannick Assouad, executive vice-president, avionics at Thales, who was on her maiden visit to the group's India office at Bengaluru since taking charge.

Volkswagen is betting on Virtus to gain market share in India

Volkswagen is betting on Virtus to gain market share in India

Rediff.com   9 Mar 2022

Amid a rush of sport utility vehicle sales, Volkswagen is betting on its premium mid-sized sedan - the Virtus - to gain market share in India. The Volkswagen Virtus is the second product under the India 2.0 project being developed on the MQB-A0 IN platform, with up to 95 per cent localisation levels. In February, the company registered an 84 per cent year-on-year growth in sales, primarily driving on the Taigun it launched last year.

TCS tweaks leadership, Suresh Muthuswami made chairman, North America

TCS tweaks leadership, Suresh Muthuswami made chairman, North America

Rediff.com   24 Feb 2022

IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has made changes to its leadership roles in North America. As part of the changes Suresh Muthuswami has been elevated to the role of chairman, North America, said sources in the know. This is one of the most significant leadership changes the company has announced for the region. The reason for the changes in the North American region, the largest in terms of revenue for TCS, is because Surya Kant who has been at the helm of North America for the past 16 years is stepping down by the end of the fiscal year, as he retires.

Why prices of petrol, diesel are likely to rise

Why prices of petrol, diesel are likely to rise

Rediff.com   21 Feb 2022

A proposal in the Union Budget 2022-23 to raise excise duty on dirtier, unblended retail petrol and diesel has met with some resistance from the petroleum ministry. However, finance ministry officials say no such communication arguing against the levy of extra duty on diesel has been received from the oil ministry. Until there are discussions between the two departments, the proposal will not be tweaked in the Finance Bill. The Rs 2 per litre additional excise duty proposed on unblended fuels in the Finance Bill will result in a uniform hike of diesel prices across the country from October 1.

'Aviation ministry's role doesn't end with Air India'

'Aviation ministry's role doesn't end with Air India'

Rediff.com   16 Feb 2022

'Government shouldn't be in the business of running airlines, instead it should develop the ecosystem of civil aviation.'

Ford Motors among 20 auto firms shortlisted for output-linked incentive scheme

Ford Motors among 20 auto firms shortlisted for output-linked incentive scheme

Rediff.com   12 Feb 2022

Ford, which had announced to quit the Indian market last year, said it was exploring the possibility of using one of its plants in India to produce electric cars for exports.

TCS bags electronic passport mandate from MEA

TCS bags electronic passport mandate from MEA

Rediff.com   8 Feb 2022

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has bagged -- from the Ministry of External Affairs -- the contract for delivering electronic passports (e-passports), according to sources. This deal is in addition to the second phase of implementing the Passport Seva Program, which the company got from the ministry. Players such as Thales India and HP participated in this deal, which is expected to be of Rs 1,000-1,200 crore.

How the Tatas finally brought Maharaja home

How the Tatas finally brought Maharaja home

Rediff.com   7 Feb 2022

The Tatas have the know-how to quickly close deals which can otherwise get caught in legal wrangle. In 2018, on the day the National Company Law Tribunal declared Tata Steel as the winner of the bid for bankrupt Bhushan Steel, Bhushan promoter Neeraj Singhal was planning to file for a stay order. He did get the case listed for the following day, but the judge did not admit it, deferring it until the following week. The Tatas used the narrow window of 48 hours to close the deal and take control of the company.

Will the new management manage to revive Jet Airways ahead of March deadline?

Will the new management manage to revive Jet Airways ahead of March deadline?

Rediff.com   4 Feb 2022

The consortium of UAE-based businessman Murari Lal Jalan and UK-based private equity fund Kalrock Capital is rushing to restart Jet Airways' operations, even though differences have emerged over who will fund expenses before operations commence, sources said. The airline applied to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for recertification of its air operator certificate in the last week of January. The regulator is likely to inspect the airline's preparedness to operate a flight in the middle of this month, after which it will be asked to operate a proving flight to demonstrate its ability to conduct flights safely and in accordance with rules.

Is another oil price hike looming in India?

Is another oil price hike looming in India?

Rediff.com   28 Jan 2022

India is back on the diplomatic table pushing oil producing countries to raise production in a bid to cool down runaway oil prices. Brent crude oil prices traded above $90 a barrel, on Thursday, for the first time since 2014. Brent is the most popular marker for crude oil trade. It is used as a benchmark for two-thirds of the world's internationally traded crude oil.

TCS world's second most valuable IT brand, Infy fastest growing

TCS world's second most valuable IT brand, Infy fastest growing

Rediff.com   27 Jan 2022

Infosys has emerged as the fastest growing IT services brand following 52 per cent brand value growth since last year and 80 per cent since 2020 to $12.8 billion, earning it third spot, the brand valuation consultancy said in its latest Global 500 IT Services Ranking report. TCS and Infosys have pushed IBM to fourth spot from second. IBM's brand value now stands at $10.6 billion, a decline of 34 per cent from last year and 50 per cent since 2020.

Jhunjhunwala the biggest draw as investors line up to board Akasa

Jhunjhunwala the biggest draw as investors line up to board Akasa

Rediff.com   25 Jan 2022

Veterans in the travel industry, a well-known corporate lawyer, and a marquee US-based hedge fund have backed the upcoming low-cost airline Akasa Air. Founded by former Jet Airways chief executive officer (CEO) Vinay Dube, the venture counts ace stock trader and investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala as its biggest financial backer with an investment of around Rs 300 crore. A person with knowledge of the development said most of the people were well known to Jhunjhunwala and Dube, who approached them during the conception stage.

Strictly enforce one hand bag rule: Govt to airlines

Strictly enforce one hand bag rule: Govt to airlines

Rediff.com   22 Jan 2022

Airline executives said the rule is conflicting as regulator's own rules permits a passenger to carry multiple other things like laptop bag, ladies' hand bag, blanket, item bought at duty free shops, reports Arindam Majumder.

'Everybody wants to travel on an airline where they feel respected'

'Everybody wants to travel on an airline where they feel respected'

Rediff.com   21 Jan 2022

'Our focus is not going to be metro to metro routes.' 'We will begin by focusing on metro to non-metro (routes).' 'Metro to tier-2 cities or tier-3 cities is where there is a lot of space for affordable, efficient carriers.'

HCL Tech to hire 40,000-45,000 freshers for FY23 to meet attrition threat

HCL Tech to hire 40,000-45,000 freshers for FY23 to meet attrition threat

Rediff.com   19 Jan 2022

HCL Technologies plans to double its fresher hiring for the upcoming financial year (FY23) as attrition continues to inch up. The company said that it will hire 40,000-45,000 freshers for FY23, up from 20,000-22,000 target for FY22. The company also stated that to ease supply-side constraints and to have access to diversified skills, it was expanding into other geographies over the next three-four quarters. "Some of the geographies that we are investing in to source talent include countries like Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Guatemala, Costa Rica. We are also ramping up our presence in Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, etc.

Broken mementos sour the experience for some PM auction bidders

Broken mementos sour the experience for some PM auction bidders

Rediff.com   18 Jan 2022

Recipients of these damaged mementos have been given the option to either seek a refund of their bid amount or get a replacement for these broken items.

How Indian IT giants are playing catch-up in consultancy

How Indian IT giants are playing catch-up in consultancy

Rediff.com   18 Jan 2022

The analyst community tracking the Indian IT services industry took special note of Accenture's first quarter (Q1) performance, which showcased the rapid growth of its consulting business that outperformed its outsourcing business. Bookings indicate that the trend will continue. Consulting bookings increased 41.6 per cent year-on-year (yoy) to $9.4 billion, higher than the 17.6 per cent growth in outsourcing to $7.4 billion. The management commentary was also more bullish on the consulting business.