Ruchika Chitravanshi, Dev Chatterjee

Stories by Ruchika Chitravanshi, Dev Chatterjee

Tata group keen to enter chip manufacturing: Chandrasekaran

Tata group keen to enter chip manufacturing: Chandrasekaran

Rediff.com   10 Aug 2021

The Tata group is looking to make a foray into semiconductor (also known as chips) manufacturing and it has set up a business to seize the opportunity, Chairman N Chandrasekaran said on Monday. "At the Tata group, we have already pivoted into a number of new businesses like electronics manufacturing, 5G network equipment as well as semiconductors, in all probability," he said while speaking at the annual general meeting of the IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Chandrasekaran said global supply chains, currently heavily dependent on China, would see a big change in a post-pandemic world with businesses shifting their reliance to other countries.

Future's poor FY21 results could spell trouble for Biyani

Future's poor FY21 results could spell trouble for Biyani

Rediff.com   7 Aug 2021

For the fiscal ended 2021, the group has made a loss of Rs 5,943 crore on sales of Rs 11,723 crore, a drop of 66 per cent over fiscal 2020. The group's total debt was up by 7 per cent to Rs 20,742 crore.

Mumbai all set for its BIGGEST infra transformation

Mumbai all set for its BIGGEST infra transformation

Rediff.com   5 Aug 2021

Mumbai, India's financial capital, is set for a mega transformation with a massive patch of land opening up for redevelopment; a new metro railway ready to start services by the year-end; and the country's oldest railway station, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, going for modernisation with private sector participation. Work on Mumbai's second airport will start from next month, while construction of the sea link connecting central Mumbai to Navi Mumbai has already moved into a fast lane despite Covid-induced lockdowns. Also, a coastal road project, connecting Nariman Point to Worli, is under way and will help decongest the city to quite an extent. Of all these mega infrastructure projects, the one that has a huge potential to change the city's skyline is the Eastern Waterfront project - to be built on the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) land.

Zee founder Subhash Chandra settles 91.2% of debt with 43 lenders

Zee founder Subhash Chandra settles 91.2% of debt with 43 lenders

Rediff.com   4 Aug 2021

The Essel group founder, Subhash Chandra has settled 91.2 per cent of his debt with 43 lenders, and the remaining dues are in the process of being paid. "I am happy to report that we have come out of the financial stress situation by settling 91.2% of our total debt to 43 lenders in 110 accounts. "About 88.3% of the amount has been paid, while the remaining 2.9% is in the process of being paid. "We are making all the required efforts to settle the remaining 8.8% of our total debt.

Dubai tycoon slaps $8 bn suit on BoB, EY in New York for ignoring 'fraud'

Dubai tycoon slaps $8 bn suit on BoB, EY in New York for ignoring 'fraud'

Rediff.com   30 Jul 2021

Dubai-based billionaire BR Shetty has sued Bank of Baroda (BoB) and audit firm Ernst & Young (EY) in a New York court, accusing them of ignoring fictitious and fraudulent transactions that resulted in NMC Healthcare going bankrupt. Shetty is seeking $8 billion in damages in the suit that also names the top management of NMC Healthcare, and Netherlands-based Credit Europe Bank. A top NMC Healthcare official confirmed the development to Business Standard and said despite several meetings, senior BoB officials in India did not take remedial steps for fear of getting involved in an international ponzi scheme perpetrated by then senior management officials.

Biocon chief: Sebi's insider trading laws need an overhaul

Biocon chief: Sebi's insider trading laws need an overhaul

Rediff.com   26 Jul 2021

When Biocon chairperson Kiran Majumdar-Shaw - well known for raising issues ranging from lack of civic services in Bengaluru to climate change - decided to take on the Indian stock market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), she forced the Indian corporate world and legal community to take notice. In an interview to Business Standard, Majumdar-Shaw called a Sebi order to impose a fine on insider trading charges against a Biocon employee and an external consultant an "Agatha Christie" fiction, which destroyed the reputation of "innocent people". "The order is pure harassment and has caused huge reputational damage to us and goes against the principles of good governance promised by this government," Mazumdar-Shaw said. "We will certainly appeal this," she added.

Bird flu: The Rs 90,000 cr poultry industry is in a fix

Bird flu: The Rs 90,000 cr poultry industry is in a fix

Rediff.com   22 Jul 2021

The death of a 11-year-old boy due to 'bird-flu', even before the devastating effects of the second Covid wave have waned, has alarmed the medical fraternity though they assert that human-to-human transmission of H5N1 virus is extremely rare. The event has also put the Rs 90,000 crore domestic poultry industry which was seeing some uptick in demand after months of low sales last year into a spot of bother, as any curb on sale or production of eggs or chicken could have a devastating impact on its revenues. It is estimated that around 60 million people are directly impacted by the poultry sector in India. H5N1 virus, also commonly known as bird flu, is known to spread from chickens but other birds such as ducks and crow are also carriers of the virus.

Tata, Reliance ready for mother of all battles

Tata, Reliance ready for mother of all battles

Rediff.com   20 Jul 2021

'The competition between the two is definitely going to be of great interest to the Indian market.'

Kirloskars latest business family to feud over settlement

Kirloskars latest business family to feud over settlement

Rediff.com   17 Jul 2021

Sanjay Kirloskar, promoter of Kirloskar Brothers, moves Supreme Court to enforce a family settlement signed in 2009.

Why is NCDC not in the centre of managing the Covid-19 crisis?

Why is NCDC not in the centre of managing the Covid-19 crisis?

Rediff.com   12 Jul 2021

'We have the technical expertise, and international collaborations. We also have robust real-time data. We are a university of pandemic management. If the ministry neglects the role of NCDC, it is the loss of the country'

Will Sudhir Valia, Suraksha's 'deal maker' manage to bag Jaypee Infra?

Will Sudhir Valia, Suraksha's 'deal maker' manage to bag Jaypee Infra?

Rediff.com   7 Jul 2021

With the Jaypee acquisition, the Suraksha group, which made lenders an offer of Rs 7,736 crore, will be able to expand its footprint in north India after making inroads in Mumbai's real estate market over the past year. Sudhir Valia, the promoter, was a co-founder and executive director of India's biggest pharmaceutical firm, Sun Pharmaceuticals, and is a close relative of Dilip Shanghvi.

Fear and myths injecting Covid vaccine hesitancy

Fear and myths injecting Covid vaccine hesitancy

Rediff.com   6 Jul 2021

A June 11 survey by cLocalCircles across 299 districts puts overall vaccine hesitancy levels at 18 per cent, with 11 per cent of the respondents saying they were not convinced if the currently available vaccines would protect them against the new strains; and 5 per cent said they do not plan to take the vaccine at all.

Tata vs JioMart: The next big corporate battle to watch

Tata vs JioMart: The next big corporate battle to watch

Rediff.com   29 Jun 2021

Mukesh Ambani-owned RIL's JioMart is set to launch a slew of new products including financial services, electronics to airline tickets to take on the competition from upcoming rivals like the Tata Super app and other established players including PayTM, Amazon and Flipkart. This comes at a time when RIL's e-commerce revenues are set to grow by 35 per cent to $15 billion within four years and its core retail revenue is expected to grow at the same pace to $44 billion, as per a forecast by Goldman Sachs. "The Tata vs JioMart war will be the next big corporate battle to watch. "While Tata has an upper hand like in-house products and brands, RIL has the backing of global biggies like Google, Facebook and Microsoft," said head of a rating firm asking not to be quoted.

Economists sceptical about Sitharaman's Covid stimulus

Economists sceptical about Sitharaman's Covid stimulus

Rediff.com   29 Jun 2021

Direct economic stimulus measures such as tax cuts for individuals and industry would have helped to prop up the Indian economy which was hit hard by the lockdowns across several states in India, say economists and corporate leaders. While the measures announced on Monday are focussed more on the supply side, these steps would take a lot of time to move the needle for the economy.

At current rate, all Indians will be vaccinated by Sept 2022

At current rate, all Indians will be vaccinated by Sept 2022

Rediff.com   28 Jun 2021

865 million Indian adults require vaccination.

Adani group strikes first coal from its Carmichael mine in Australia

Adani group strikes first coal from its Carmichael mine in Australia

Rediff.com   25 Jun 2021

The Adani group struck first coal from its Carmichael, Australia project on Thursday and will start shipping to its customers according to schedule. With this, the project will not only lift the economic prospects of the hitherto barren Australian outback, but also help Indian power plants to source cheap coal. The project had faced protests from a section of population with several banks even refusing to fund it. The group, however, went ahead with the project which included construction of a brand new railway line connecting an Australian port to the mine -- situated 300 kilometers away in Queensland.

Dilution norms for large IPOs tweaked

Dilution norms for large IPOs tweaked

Rediff.com   21 Jun 2021

Easier dilution norms for mega initial public offerings (IPOs) have come into effect. Companies with post-listing market capitalisation (m-cap) of more than Rs 1 trillion will not be required to dilute a minimum of 10 per cent. The move to relax dilution norms is seen as a precursor to Life Insurance Corporation's IPO. The central government has said companies with an m-cap exceeding Rs 1 trillion will have to dilute Rs 5,000 crore and at least 5 per cent of their m-cap. Experts said the earlier framework discouraged large companies from listing since they were forced to offload a large volume of shares during the time of their IPO.

Covid impact: Million dollar M&A deals sealed on phone, Zoom calls

Covid impact: Million dollar M&A deals sealed on phone, Zoom calls

Rediff.com   17 Jun 2021

Some buyers are insisting on a clause in the agreement that the whole deal hinges on physical verification at a later date with some part of payment kept in escrow.

These 50 listed companies raised money from investors and 'vanished'!

These 50 listed companies raised money from investors and 'vanished'!

Rediff.com   14 Jun 2021

A number of listed companies are not to be found on their registered address. The stock exchange has also been unable to contact them through other means. These 50 companies had been suspended for violations for more than six months. The BSE had reached out to them with show cause notices in December 2020.

FAQ: Is it safe to take antibody cocktail for Covid-19?

FAQ: Is it safe to take antibody cocktail for Covid-19?

Rediff.com   10 Jun 2021

According to medical practitioners, the treatment is especially useful in controlling disease among those who have not received the vaccine or got only one shot and also the high-risk contacts of a patient.