Sohini Das &Amp;Amp; Deepak Patel

Stories by Sohini Das &Amp;Amp; Deepak Patel

Why Drug Prices Won't Increase This Year

Why Drug Prices Won't Increase This Year

Rediff.com   5 Apr 2024

The government has been stringent with pricing changes. Prices of 651 essential medicines came down from April 1, 2023 by 6.73 per cent with the government capping ceiling prices of these drugs.

Flight schedule to normalise in 2-3 days: Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan

Flight schedule to normalise in 2-3 days: Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan

Rediff.com   4 Apr 2024

High pilot utilisation, combined with a portion of pilots taking sick leave at the end of March has resulted in the cancellations during the last couple of days, chief executive officer (CEO) of Vistara, Vinod Kannan, said during a meeting with the pilots on Wednesday.

Vistara cancellations lead to surge in spot airfares by up to 38%

Vistara cancellations lead to surge in spot airfares by up to 38%

Rediff.com   4 Apr 2024

The spot airfares on major routes, where Vistara cancelled flights on Tuesday, have surged by up to 38 per cent, according to data provided by Cleartrip. The spot airfares for Tuesday were compared with March 5. Vistara has cancelled 52 flights on routes such as Delhi-Indore, Delhi-Srinagar, Mumbai-Kochi, and Bengaluru-Udaipur as a certain section of pilots went on sick leave, reportedly protesting against the new salary structure that was introduced as part of the airline's merger with Air India.

Why Hospital Stays Are Getting Shorter

Why Hospital Stays Are Getting Shorter

Rediff.com   3 Apr 2024

'Every hospital now tracks length of stay closely.' 'More efficiency is brought into the system now.'

Bajaj Auto to pump Rs 3,000 crore into finance subsidiary

Bajaj Auto to pump Rs 3,000 crore into finance subsidiary

Rediff.com   1 Apr 2024

Bajaj Auto, India's leading two-wheeler (2W) and three-wheeler (3W) maker, is scaling up its wholly owned finance subsidiary, Bajaj Auto Credit Ltd (BACL), with an investment of more than Rs 3,000 crore planned over the next two financial years, company's managing director Rajiv Bajaj said. BACL has already started commercial operations, Bajaj recently said on the sidelines of the group's CSR identity event. According to rating agency CRISIL, BACL's operations began on January 1 after receiving its licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in August last year.

Frontline Relive Pandemic Nightmare

Frontline Relive Pandemic Nightmare

Rediff.com   1 Apr 2024

Battling the virus, enduring separation from loved ones, and working extended hours became part of the job.

Indian pharma companies bank on 'mother brands' to boost revenue growth

Indian pharma companies bank on 'mother brands' to boost revenue growth

Rediff.com   28 Mar 2024

Indian pharma companies are focussing on flagship products or mother brands under which they launch various new combinations to ensure robust revenue growth as well as therapy leadership. An analysis by market research firm Pharmarack showed how such flagship brands have posted strong growth CAGR in the last five years, with some even doubling sales. Sheetal Sapale, vice-president, commercial at Pharmarack, said, "Mother brands are analogous to an aggressive player who has put in a lot of effort during the prime years of life but now continues to silently nurture the brand family to collectively cross newer benchmarks of success."

Will Ombudsman Fix Air Travel Hassles?

Will Ombudsman Fix Air Travel Hassles?

Rediff.com   26 Mar 2024

'The ministry may like to consider setting up an ombudsman similar to electricity ombudsman and insurance ombudsman, to ensure a time-bound resolution of consumer issues within the airline sector.'

VW aims to drive in 15% sales growth this year

VW aims to drive in 15% sales growth this year

Rediff.com   22 Mar 2024

Volkswagen Passenger Cars is targeting a volume sales growth of about 15 per cent in the country in 2024, even as it expects the Indian passenger vehicle (PV) industry to grow by 5-7 per cent in the current year, its India brand director, Ashish Gupta, said on Thursday. This means the company is expecting to grow 2-3 times faster than the Indian PV industry in 2024. But globally, the German automaker is expecting just 3 per cent rise in sales this year, down from 12 per cent last year.

Team of 80 people harmonising ops of 4 Tata airlines: Air India CEO

Team of 80 people harmonising ops of 4 Tata airlines: Air India CEO

Rediff.com   11 Mar 2024

Over the past eight months, a team of 80 people has been diligently working to harmonise operating procedures across four airlines run by the Tata group, as part of two mergers, revealed Campbell Wilson, Air India's chief executive officer (CEO), on Friday. The Tata group is consolidating its aviation business by merging four airlines into two: Air India and Vistara are merging to form a single full-service carrier, while AIX Connect and Air India Express are combining to create a unified low-cost carrier (as a subsidiary of Air India).

Vistara rejects reports its pilot woes disrupted flight operations

Vistara rejects reports its pilot woes disrupted flight operations

Rediff.com   8 Mar 2024

The flight cancellations and delays of Vistara in the last few days were due to unfavourable weather, air traffic congestion and unforeseen aircraft maintenance, and cannot be solely attributed to pilot absenteeism, the airline said on Thursday. The airline's response comes after reports stated that some pilots had gone on sick leave to protest the new salary structure offered to them as part of Vistara's merger with Air India. "We confirm that we have had a few flight cancellations and unavoidable delays in the last few days.

Hero MotoCorp losing rural 2-wheeler market share to other companies

Hero MotoCorp losing rural 2-wheeler market share to other companies

Rediff.com   29 Feb 2024

Hero MotoCorp, India's largest two-wheeler maker, has seen a decline in its market share in rural areas since 2018, losing ground to major competitors such as TVS Motor Company, Bajaj Auto, and Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI), according to data from JATO Dynamics reviewed by Business Standard. Hero's share of rural two-wheeler sales in India has dropped from 40.4 per cent in 2018 to 33.3 per cent in 2023. In contrast, Bajaj's share increased from 12.7 per cent in 2018 to 13.9 per cent, HMSI's from 21.8 per cent to 22.2 per cent, and TVS' from 15.5 per cent to 17.8 per cent. Suzuki Motorcycle India has also seen its share rise from 1.7 per cent to 2.5 per cent.

Skoda to drive in Brezza, Sonet rival in H1FY25

Skoda to drive in Brezza, Sonet rival in H1FY25

Rediff.com   28 Feb 2024

koda Auto India is set to drive in a new car by the first half of next year to reach its target of 100,000 unit annual sales in the country by 2026. The compact sports utility vehicle (SUV) will be positioned against the likes of Maruti Brezza, Hyundai Venue, and Kia Sonet, and would be competitively priced, a senior company official said. koda will also export the car to right-hand-drive markets like Australia, New Zealand and the Asean nations.

'The formulations business been a growth driver'

'The formulations business been a growth driver'

Rediff.com   24 Feb 2024

'However, we have seen weakness in our active pharmaceutical ingredients business.'

Airlines cancel 12 Mumbai routes due to congestion; airfares rise 193%

Airlines cancel 12 Mumbai routes due to congestion; airfares rise 193%

Rediff.com   23 Feb 2024

Airfares have nearly doubled in a matter of days on routes hit by the cancellation of 200 weekly flights linking Mumbai airport to 12 cities. The fares have soared as high as 193 per cent following a recent government order to cancel flights to ease "persistent congestion" that was causing delays. Aside from the reduction in flights on 12 routes, two destinations - Hubli and Jabalpur - have lost connectivity with Mumbai since last week, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium's data reviewed

Airlines record lowest on-time figures in 11 months in Jan amid fog issues

Airlines record lowest on-time figures in 11 months in Jan amid fog issues

Rediff.com   19 Feb 2024

The on-time performance (OTP) of Indian carriers took a major dip in January as dense fog foiled their flight schedules. According to data from the Ministry of Civil Aviation reviewed by Business Standard, five out of six major Indian carriers - IndiGo, Air India, AIX Connect, Akasa Air, and Vistara - recorded their lowest OTPs in at least the last 11 months. In response to queries, an Air India spokesperson said that during this winter, northern India experienced unusually prolonged periods of dense fog affecting traffic at the airline's two largest hubs -- Delhi and Mumbai.

Tax poser in the way of Hyundai local arm listing

Tax poser in the way of Hyundai local arm listing

Rediff.com   15 Feb 2024

South Korean auto giant Hyundai Motor Company is considering tax implications of listing its Indian unit before taking a final call, according to sources privy to the development. Hyundai Motor is mulling an initial public offering (IPO) for its Indian arm to raise around $3 billion (at a valuation of up to $30 billion), and talks are in the early stages between the company and bankers, banking sources revealed. Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL), however, declined to comment on the development.

DGCA issues guidelines to prevent runway incursions, calls for training

DGCA issues guidelines to prevent runway incursions, calls for training

Rediff.com   13 Feb 2024

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday issued specific measures for aviation sector players to mitigate the risk of runway incursions at Indian airports. The measures include activating stop bars by Air Traffic Controllers (ATC) to inform aircraft when not to proceed, establishing contingency plans in case stop bars malfunction, establishing runway safety teams at airports, and conducting comprehensive training programs for pilots, ATC personnel, aircraft maintenance engineers, and airport drivers.

Rooftop solar charges up electric vehicle boom in India's smaller cities

Rooftop solar charges up electric vehicle boom in India's smaller cities

Rediff.com   12 Feb 2024

The push given to rooftop solar installation in the Interim Budget ties in with its high rate of adoption in Tier-II and -III cities of India. If original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the automobile industry, government, and the solar sector are to be believed, in cities of Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Kerala, 45-50 per cent of electric-vehicle (EV) users are employing rooftop power to charge their vehicles. This is compared to the national average of 25 per cent, say industry sources.

Kinetic Luna back after 2 decades, in e-avatar

Kinetic Luna back after 2 decades, in e-avatar

Rediff.com   9 Feb 2024

Kinetic on Wednesday relaunched the iconic two-wheeler Luna in an electric avatar, addressing the demand for affordable electric vehicles (EVs), more than two decades after its initial introduction. e-Luna will be available at an introductory ex-showroom price of Rs 69,990, as announced by Sulajja Firodia Motwani, founder and chief executive officer of Kinetic Green, after Union Road Minister Nitin Gadkari launched the vehicle. Motwani pointed out that the current top 10 electric two-wheelers in the country are priced between Rs 1.05 lakh and Rs 1.49 lakh, making them a "luxury" that is not "practical and accessible" for most people in India.