Sachin P Mampatta And Sohini Das

Stories by Sachin P Mampatta And Sohini Das

Fortis plans acquisitions, may opt for neutral brand name

Fortis plans acquisitions, may opt for neutral brand name

Rediff.com   22 Jan 2024

Delhi-headquartered Fortis Healthcare is open to acquisition of hospitals with over 250-300 bed sizes as part of its strategy to grow at a faster clip. It may also opt for a neutral brand name soon. Neutral brand is a new brand, which is not owned by any of the stakeholders.

Domestic pharma market grew by 6.8% in 2023

Domestic pharma market grew by 6.8% in 2023

Rediff.com   22 Jan 2024

The Indian pharmaceutical market (IPM) grew 6.8 per cent to touch a turnover of ~1.93 trillion in calendar year 2023, despite volumes going down marginally by 0.9 per cent. This indicates the price increase has been the major growth driver. Growth in the moving annual turnover (the previous 12 months' turnover) in December was 5.1 per cent and that in new product introduction 2.6 per cent, while volumes dipped 0.9 per cent, leading to an overall growth rate of 6.8 per cent, according to the data from market research firm Pharmatrac.

Have You Heard Of Zombie Companies?

Have You Heard Of Zombie Companies?

Rediff.com   17 Jan 2024

If Indian companies were people, around 20 per cent of the listed space would be individuals whose salaries don't cover their loan instalments.

Guess How Many Indians Filed Tax Returns? A Record 81.8 Million!

Guess How Many Indians Filed Tax Returns? A Record 81.8 Million!

Rediff.com   16 Jan 2024

Many individuals filing tax returns declare zero tax liability. They accounted for two-thirds of the total individual returns filed.

From Ashok Leyland to VECV, busmakers' sales entered the fast lane in 2023

From Ashok Leyland to VECV, busmakers' sales entered the fast lane in 2023

Rediff.com   10 Jan 2024

The demand for buses largely remained robust in 2023, driven by the increasing need for public mobility and replacement. Ashok Leyland Limited (ALL) recorded a 64 per cent year-on-year increase in sales of medium and heavy commercial vehicle (MHCV) buses during the April-to-December period of 2023 to 11,216 units. Volvo Eicher Commercial Vehicles (VECV) posted 24.7 per cent sales growth between April and December for light and medium-duty buses, and 36.9 per cent growth for heavy-duty buses.

Govt Project Launches Hit All-Time Low

Govt Project Launches Hit All-Time Low

Rediff.com   10 Jan 2024

Government announcements for the building of new roads, railways, and other capital expenditure (capex) projects may have hit an all-time low, according to numbers for the December quarter.

'APIs are a very strategic part of Biocon's business'

'APIs are a very strategic part of Biocon's business'

Rediff.com   7 Jan 2024

'There is no reason why we should break this business up.'

Trade generics growth to dent value expansion of domestic drug market

Trade generics growth to dent value expansion of domestic drug market

Rediff.com   2 Jan 2024

Rising penetration of trade generic medicines is eating into the value growth of the domestic pharmaceutical market, showed a recent analysis. According to a Kotak Institutional Equities analysis, 70-110 basis points (bps) annual dent is expected from trade generics and Jan Aushadhi on Indian Pharma Market (IPM) growth at least until FY27-28 (see chart). Trade generic medicines are those that are not pushed into the market through doctor promotions.

Hyderabad firm develops next-gen XBB1.5 Covid vax, awaits trial nod

Hyderabad firm develops next-gen XBB1.5 Covid vax, awaits trial nod

Rediff.com   28 Dec 2023

As of now, Gennova Biopharmaceuticals has launched a vaccine, Gemcovac-OM, which is based on the Omicron variant.

Does India have enough vaccine reserves to combat another Covid wave?

Does India have enough vaccine reserves to combat another Covid wave?

Rediff.com   27 Dec 2023

According to CoWIN data, only 73 vaccination centres are currently active in India, of which 32 are government-run.

Are hospitals ready to handle Covid surge?

Are hospitals ready to handle Covid surge?

Rediff.com   26 Dec 2023

Larger hospitals are not worried about a spike in cases, as they are now accustomed to converting ICUs and general wards into negative pressure zones or isolation rooms. For smaller hospitals, the task is tedious.

40,175 Manufacturers Vanish From Tax Data

40,175 Manufacturers Vanish From Tax Data

Rediff.com   23 Dec 2023

Manufacturing's share in the profit pool of companies had declined before the pandemic.

Medica + Manipal Will Overtake Apollo

Medica + Manipal Will Overtake Apollo

Rediff.com   12 Dec 2023

Next year Medica and Manipal will merge, making the amalgamated entity the largest corporate hospital chain in the country, overtaking Apollo Hospitals Enterprises.

Caste Is Back In The Electoral Equation

Caste Is Back In The Electoral Equation

Rediff.com   20 Nov 2023

Bihar has fertile grounds for caste to emerge as an electoral issue.

Wilful Defaulters Dues Rise To Rs 100 Crores Per Day

Wilful Defaulters Dues Rise To Rs 100 Crores Per Day

Rediff.com   17 Nov 2023

Wilful defaulters owe SBI Rs 80,000 crore. 10 nationalised banks are owed another Rs 1.5 trillion.

Mutual Funds Invested In Nearly 1,000 Companies

Mutual Funds Invested In Nearly 1,000 Companies

Rediff.com   16 Nov 2023

The number of companies had touched a low of 792 in July 2020 amid heightened uncertainty because of COVID-19.

Auto industry Q2 preview: Product mix, commodity tailwinds to aid margins

Auto industry Q2 preview: Product mix, commodity tailwinds to aid margins

Rediff.com   21 Oct 2023

Automobile manufacturers are likely to report strong numbers for the September quarter of Financial Year 2023-24 (Q2 FY24), riding on growth across segments and offset by a marginal drop in overall two-wheeler (2W) volumes. Higher average selling price (ASP) year-on-year (YoY), which was necessitated by price hikes taken by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and an improved product mix will also aid revenues and margins. Moreover, commodity prices are down on a YoY basis, leading to higher margins in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda).

Number of women in blue-collar jobs increasing across manufacturing sector

Number of women in blue-collar jobs increasing across manufacturing sector

Rediff.com   20 Oct 2023

"Lady candidates need not apply." So read the postscript in a job notice from Telco (now Tata Motors) on a notice board in the corridors of the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (now Bengaluru), in 1974. Irked, Sudha Murty, who was then pursuing her masters in computer science at the institute, wrote a postcard to JRD Tata, expressing her surprise at this gender discrimination, especially since the Tata Group were pioneers on many fronts. Shortly, Murty became the first woman on the firm's shop floor.

Israel trade with India doubled after Covid-19 pandemic

Israel trade with India doubled after Covid-19 pandemic

Rediff.com   16 Oct 2023

India's trade ties with Israel have only strengthened in the years after 2019. The total value of trade rose to $10.5 billion on a rolling four-quarter basis in June 2023 from $5.5 billion in the same month in 2019, shows a Business Standard analysis of data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). A rolling four-quarter number provides a comparable figure across different time periods.

Select unsecured loans up by nearly Rs 7 trillion since 2019

Select unsecured loans up by nearly Rs 7 trillion since 2019

Rediff.com   16 Oct 2023

People are availing far more of certain kinds of unsecured loans than was the case before the pandemic. Bank lending for buying consumer durables and funding of credit cards and other personal loans have risen by Rs 6.9 trillion between August 2019 and August 2023, shows a Business Standard analysis of data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). These loans are typically unsecured, which means they are provided without collateral.