Sachin P Mampatta And Sohini Das

Stories by Sachin P Mampatta And Sohini Das

Ni-kshay Mitra: Crowdfunding To Fight TB

Ni-kshay Mitra: Crowdfunding To Fight TB

Rediff.com   17 Sep 2022

This would be India's largest crowd-funded programme to help patients with a particular disease.

Explained: How India's crude import sources have changed over time

Explained: How India's crude import sources have changed over time

Rediff.com   16 Sep 2022

India's crude oil imports are coming in from a changing mix of countries, with the top three accounting for around 60 per cent of total imports. Russia emerged as the largest source of crude oil imports for India in June, as per the latest available data from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The data which is released with a lag, showed that Russian imports accounted for 24 per cent of the total crude imports into the country.

34 new drugs added to 'essential medicines' list, 26 dropped

34 new drugs added to 'essential medicines' list, 26 dropped

Rediff.com   14 Sep 2022

As many as 34 new drugs were added to and 26 dropped from an updated list of essential medicines on Tuesday, with the government saying this will reduce "patients' out-of-pocket expenditure". The National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM 2022) has 384 drugs, up from 376 in 2015. "Drafting this list is a lengthy process, and around 350 experts from across India have held over 140 consultation meetings to draft the NLEM 2022," Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said.

Coming Soon, New Ways To Vaccinate

Coming Soon, New Ways To Vaccinate

Rediff.com   3 Sep 2022

'Just put a patch on your arm and the vaccine can be absorbed by the body.'

Businessmen suicides outnumber farmers' for 2nd year in a row

Businessmen suicides outnumber farmers' for 2nd year in a row

Rediff.com   31 Aug 2022

The states recording the highest number of such deaths include Karnataka (14.3 per cent), Maharashtra (13.2 per cent), and Madhya Pradesh (11.3 per cent). Tamil Nadu (9.4 per cent) and Telangana (7.5 per cent) were the other two in the top five.

Rs 1 Trillion Freebies By State Govts

Rs 1 Trillion Freebies By State Govts

Rediff.com   27 Aug 2022

'The power sector accounts for much of the financial burden of state governments in India.'

When Rakesh Jhunjhunwala used to get Rs 60 as trainee CA

When Rakesh Jhunjhunwala used to get Rs 60 as trainee CA

Rediff.com   22 Aug 2022

Nearly four decades ago, when Rakesh Jhunjhunwala was a young chartered accountant in training, he was paid a conveyance of Rs 60. Deductions would take away Rs 15 from this princely sum and he was left with Rs 45 by the time the allowance made its way to his hands. He would save as much as he could from this amount, so that he would have a small amount to spend when he met his friends on the weekend at Chicken Centre. This was an eatery popular with the young at the time, perhaps because food and drink were affordable even for those new to the workforce.

Ethical Code to keep doctor, drugmaker nexus at bay not mandatory yet

Ethical Code to keep doctor, drugmaker nexus at bay not mandatory yet

Rediff.com   22 Aug 2022

'Gift-giving' - from free dinners and drug samples to promotional merchandise - seems to be driving drugmakers' marketing - a marketing prescription deeply entrenched in the industry. This is a well-oiled racket that sees pharmaceutical (pharma) companies 'gifting' doctors to push their respective drugs under the guise of marketing. But is there a cure in sight to end this unhealthy alliance? The recent controversy following the income-tax raids on Bengaluru-based drugmaker Micro Labs, makers of popular paracetamol brand Dolo-650, has brought this to the fore, again.

Foreign companies' interest in India fades, shows data

Foreign companies' interest in India fades, shows data

Rediff.com   19 Aug 2022

George Acland from Great Britain ran a coffee plantation in Sri Lanka and set up India's first jute mill in 1855. He raised capital and imported the machinery for the mill on the banks of the Hooghly in West Bengal. His company wasn't a great success, but his pioneering work paved the way for India to dominate the jute industry.

Biocon Biologics Plan Molecule Launch Every 1-2 Years

Biocon Biologics Plan Molecule Launch Every 1-2 Years

Rediff.com   17 Aug 2022

'The tie-up with Serum Institute Life Sciences brings to the table their strengths in manufacturing and also their vaccine portfolio.'

'Around 100 million doses will definitely be wasted'

'Around 100 million doses will definitely be wasted'

Rediff.com   13 Aug 2022

'We are trying to salvage 50-100 million doses of Covishield with the latest drive on booster doses.'

How start-ups are shaking up offline pharma business

How start-ups are shaking up offline pharma business

Rediff.com   3 Aug 2022

Bulk of the medicine sales in the $22-24 billion domestic pharma market happens through offline retail chemists. With the entry of online pharmacies, this space has started to witness a shake-up. Sample this: Dawaa Dost, a Rajasthan based digital health start-up, generates medicine orders from 'kirana' stores and women self-help groups (SHGs) that operate in villages, and then service these orders through its affiliated network of pharmacies. Biddano, another health-tech start-up, has a platform that acts as an aggregator for neighbourhood chemist shops.

India Sees 8 Aviation Accidents Every Year

India Sees 8 Aviation Accidents Every Year

Rediff.com   30 Jul 2022

The number of serious incidents has more than doubled in the last seven years.

Investors pushing back more on top executive pay hikes

Investors pushing back more on top executive pay hikes

Rediff.com   28 Jul 2022

Investors are pushing back more often against companies' resolutions on what is paid out to top executives. In the first four months of financial year 2022-23 (FY23), there have already been five such rejections, according to shareholder voting data from tracker Adrian, a platform maintained by the proxy advisory firm Institutional Investor Advisory Services India (IiAS). Two of these have been at multiplex chain PVR and direct-to-home company Dish TV India.

India-Japan Trade: The Abe Effect

India-Japan Trade: The Abe Effect

Rediff.com   21 Jul 2022

During Abe's tenure, Japan had announced support for a number of major projects. These included the bullet train project between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, besides allocations for a freight corridor between Mumbai and New Delhi.

India's rising medical devices imports hurt small and medium units

India's rising medical devices imports hurt small and medium units

Rediff.com   19 Jul 2022

India's medical devices imports surged 41 per cent to touch Rs 63,200 crore in 2021-22, led by a 48 per cent year-on-year (YoY) jump in imports from China to Rs 13,538 crore, the commerce ministry data analysed by the Association of Indian Medical Device Industry (AiMeD) has showed. Local industry players say this has led to several small and medium units to shut shop. Rakesh Vaid of Usha Fabs, a garments exporter, had started making N95 masks in his Gurgaon factory during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

For the first time, Centre allows a private player to process opium

For the first time, Centre allows a private player to process opium

Rediff.com   14 Jul 2022

The central government has for the first time allowed a private company, Bajaj Healthcare, to process opium to extract alkaloids used to make pain-killers, cough syrups, and even cancer drugs. Two government factories in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh, and Neemuch, Madhya Pradesh, do the work yet, processing some 800 tonnes of opium gum annually to extract alkaloids. The government on Tuesday gave Thane-based Bajaj Healthcare an initial contract to process 500 tonnes of opium gum annually and wants production to be at 800 tonnes per annum (tpa) in the next five years, indicating the state's exit from the highly-regulated sector.

Long-Short Funds Hold Fort In Turbulent Times

Long-Short Funds Hold Fort In Turbulent Times

Rediff.com   5 Jul 2022

Most of the long-only funds are closed-ended. This means that investors have to lock in their money for a fixed period before they can take it back.

7 out of 9 neighbouring nations charge less for petrol than India

7 out of 9 neighbouring nations charge less for petrol than India

Rediff.com   28 Jun 2022

Amid news of a fuel shortage in some parts of the country and wider unrest over fuel issues in the neighbourhood, an analysis of the data from international tracker globalpetrolprices.com shows that the per litre price of petrol is higher in India than in seven out of its nine neighbours.

Private placements at lowest since 2014; total money raised down 23%

Private placements at lowest since 2014; total money raised down 23%

Rediff.com   24 Jun 2022

The total amount of money various entities have raised through the private placement route is at its lowest since 2014. They raised a total of Rs 1.96 trillion in the first five months of 2022, revealed the numbers from PRIME Database. It is down 23.4 per cent from the Rs 2.56 trillion raised in the corresponding period in 2021.