Somesh Jha And Arindam Majumder

Stories by Somesh Jha And Arindam Majumder

Covid air pocket leaves flyers with forced vouchers

Covid air pocket leaves flyers with forced vouchers

Rediff.com   6 Apr 2020

International and Indian airlines are refusing to refund cash and giving credit that can be used later.

Government takes up pay cut, layoffs with India Inc

Government takes up pay cut, layoffs with India Inc

Rediff.com   6 Apr 2020

A senior official in the central labour commissioner's office said the efforts of the government were to resolve the cases amicably and not to press for legal action against employers. "Everyone is going through tough times. We could initiate legal action if we want but that's not the idea. We want to address the issues amicably," the official said.

Revealed: Politics behind the long walk home

Revealed: Politics behind the long walk home

Rediff.com   31 Mar 2020

The Centre and state governments bonded and then fell apart during the longest lockdown walk.

Why migrant labourers have little choice but to head home

Why migrant labourers have little choice but to head home

Rediff.com   26 Mar 2020

Around 81 per cent of the workers constitute the unorganised sector - devoid of any social security cover and outside the purview of a complex set of labour laws.

Airlines seek govt help to pay salary

Airlines seek govt help to pay salary

Rediff.com   25 Mar 2020

Chief executive officers of airlines have asked the government to bear 50 per cent of three months' salaries of employees.

Coronavirus may lead to 68% of aircraft being grounded

Coronavirus may lead to 68% of aircraft being grounded

Rediff.com   21 Mar 2020

According to a calculation by the government, India's airlines currently have 633 aircraft of which they may operate only 200.

Coronavirus: Airlines drastically cut operations, ground aircraft

Coronavirus: Airlines drastically cut operations, ground aircraft

Rediff.com   21 Mar 2020

Key stimuli of the government's relief package will be a tax break on jet fuel, waiver of parking and landing charges at airports for the next six months and deferment of payment to oil companies by three months.

Coronavirus outbreak: Airlines seek relief package from govt

Coronavirus outbreak: Airlines seek relief package from govt

Rediff.com   12 Mar 2020

Airlines sought a limited period concession of the standing rule of slot allocation, which mandates that firms must operate at least 80 per cent of their allocated slots.

Bonanza for around 30 mn industrial workers

Bonanza for around 30 mn industrial workers

Rediff.com   11 Mar 2020

The Seventh Pay Commission had decided to choose the CPI-IW as the index for adjusting inflation for central government employees.

Coronavirus fears see drop in domestic flight bookings

Coronavirus fears see drop in domestic flight bookings

Rediff.com   10 Mar 2020

Executives of Indian airlines said that the drop is primarily for flights to major metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, which are the prime revenue generators on the domestic front.

Is Hero ready for an e-future?

Is Hero ready for an e-future?

Rediff.com   9 Mar 2020

'What volumes will we have with a Rs 1 lakh product?' 'As a company, we will not restrict it to a segment.'

Coronavirus: Supply disruption puts car sales in slow lane

Coronavirus: Supply disruption puts car sales in slow lane

Rediff.com   2 Mar 2020

Companies also said confidence was yet to return among buyers, with many holding back their decision to buy cars.

With coronavirus going strong, aviation cos feel the heat

With coronavirus going strong, aviation cos feel the heat

Rediff.com   29 Feb 2020

Reduction in fuel price was supposed to bring back good luck for Indian airlines. But with the global spread of coronavirus, airlines are being forced to rejig their network, cut flights, and delay launches.

Coronavirus won't have too big an impact on Indian airlines' revenues

Coronavirus won't have too big an impact on Indian airlines' revenues

Rediff.com   24 Feb 2020

Air India, IndiGo, and SpiceJet have suspended flights to China and Hong Kong.

RBI to rejig financial year in line with government's

RBI to rejig financial year in line with government's

Rediff.com   16 Feb 2020

Taking advantage of the RBI's different accounting year, the Centre had started demanding an interim dividend till the time the latter's final balance sheet is prepared (usually in August). To address this anomaly, an expert committee led by former RBI governor Bimal Jalan had recommended aligning the RBI's financial year with that of the government.

WhatsApp Pay gets nod, eyes lion's share of market

WhatsApp Pay gets nod, eyes lion's share of market

Rediff.com   8 Feb 2020

Facebook-owned messaging service WhatsApp has secured regulatory approval for launching its digital payment platform -- WhatApp Pay -- in a phased manner, close to two years after the US-based company's pilot run.

Why EPFO blocked accounts of 1 mn employees

Why EPFO blocked accounts of 1 mn employees

Rediff.com   6 Feb 2020

The government has found about 900,000 beneficiaries of its flagship job formalisation scheme, the PMRPY, were ineligible in the first place as they were part of the formal economy even before the inception of the scheme. The EPFO has also recovered Rs 222 crore so far from the employers concerned.

Coronavirus may lead to delayed car deliveries

Coronavirus may lead to delayed car deliveries

Rediff.com   6 Feb 2020

After years of giving free passes to counterparts from Korea, Japan, US in the Indian auto market, Chinese automakers had planned a major push to grab the fifth largest car market in the world. But the shutdown of factories and logistics hubs in the country following the outbreak of coronavirus is slowly constricting the business of Chinese auto majors which have recently entered India.

Chinese makers make up for shortfall at Auto Expo

Chinese makers make up for shortfall at Auto Expo

Rediff.com   6 Feb 2020

The number of participating automakers has fallen from 50 in 2018 to 30 this year. The count of exhibitors, including technology companies, has come down from 119 to 112. And showstopper luxury and supercar brands, including Toyota, Jeep, Lamborghini, Porsche, and Volvo will be missing. Similarly, the commercial vehicle makers also gave the show a miss -- a prolonged economic slowdown has dented their fortunes and near chances of any recovery.

Will bank customers pay for higher depositors' insurance?

Will bank customers pay for higher depositors' insurance?

Rediff.com   3 Feb 2020

'The banks cannot pass on the hike in premiums to its customers, according to the norms. The premium won't go up substantially in any case and may be hiked to 12-13 paise (per deposit of Rs 100 a year),' Finance Secretary Rajiv Kumar said.