Surajeet Das Gupta &Amp; Sohini Das

Stories by Surajeet Das Gupta &Amp; Sohini Das

The little-known company that's buying up distressed telcos

The little-known company that's buying up distressed telcos

Rediff.com   24 Jan 2020

UV Asset Reconstruction Company Ltd has made the highest bid of Rs 16,000 crore to buy Anil Ambani group's Reliance Communications and Reliance Telecom, which are in the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). Last year it was the highest bidder for taking over Aircel's assets for an upfront payment of Rs 150 crore. Surajeet Das Gupta and Dev Chatterjee dig deeper to find out more about this little known company.

Adamant Trai says will implement new tariff order by March 1

Adamant Trai says will implement new tariff order by March 1

Rediff.com   14 Jan 2020

Reiterating its position, TRAI, which oversees both the telecom and television sectors in the country, said the amendments suggested on January 1 had been done to correct "distortions" in the market and address pricing issues.

Price relief for diabetes patients as drugs go off patent

Price relief for diabetes patients as drugs go off patent

Rediff.com   13 Jan 2020

At least two key drugs in the gliptin category have already gone off patent and cheaper variants are crowding the market. Also, several patent expiries are round the corner for the newest category of drugs - SGLT-2 inhibitors or gliflozins.

Why Yes Bank audit committee chief quit

Why Yes Bank audit committee chief quit

Rediff.com   13 Jan 2020

Uttam Prakash Agarwal alleged that Citax and Braich offers were incomplete and did not include firm commitment as to the price, size, timings, confirmation from the banks about availability of the funds.

How Avengers stole the Indian box office

How Avengers stole the Indian box office

Rediff.com   1 Jan 2020

'If you look at the Number 1 film in India this year across Bollywood and other regional film industries, it is Avengers: Endgame.'

How Ashish Bharat Ram transformed SRF

How Ashish Bharat Ram transformed SRF

Rediff.com   29 Dec 2019

SRF

High-end phone smuggling is costing govt exchequer Rs 2,400 crore annually

High-end phone smuggling is costing govt exchequer Rs 2,400 crore annually

Rediff.com   28 Dec 2019

As much as Rs 8,000 crore worth of mobile phones in this segment - out of a total of Rs 15,000 crore - come into the country through the grey market. The government imposed the duty on these phones primarily to encourage domestic production but the strategy has failed as the bulk of high end mobile phones are currently imported.

How Uber plans to cover 200 cities by 2020-end

How Uber plans to cover 200 cities by 2020-end

Rediff.com   25 Dec 2019

The key driver of this expansion will be not car-hailing but bike-taxi service. The company is willing to partner local players that have a similar offer and would like to come on their platform.

What is the future of e-pharmacies in India?

What is the future of e-pharmacies in India?

Rediff.com   19 Dec 2019

PharmEasy, 1mg and Netmeds believe that their disruptive capabilities will power their brands despite the recent court ruling. The Drug Controller General of India recently directed all state FDAs to stop the online sale of medicines as per a Delhi high court order of last year.

How govt plans to ensure faster availability of new drugs

How govt plans to ensure faster availability of new drugs

Rediff.com   16 Dec 2019

Concerned about the rise of antibiotic resistance and the time it takes for drugs developed abroad to reach Indians, the government is considering holding its own clinical trials. Clinical trials for new drugs have so far primarily been conducted only by private Indian or foreign drug firms. But given the stringent nature of India's regulatory environment for clinical trials, several pharmaceutical companies have moved their trials out of India. As a result, only 1.2 per cent of global clinical trials take place in India.

How govt plans to buy med devices cheaply for Ayushman

How govt plans to buy med devices cheaply for Ayushman

Rediff.com   15 Dec 2019

According to a senior government official, the plan is to do "collective bargaining" for certain medical devices and implants by assuring a bulk requirement to the manufacturers. "The requirement for these devices runs into millions. We assure them that the requirement is going to be in bulk. In return, they should offer us better rates," he said.

Why prices of vitamin C, antibiotics could shoot up

Why prices of vitamin C, antibiotics could shoot up

Rediff.com   14 Dec 2019

The government said that "in exercise of extraordinary powers in public interest, conferred by paragraph 19 of the DPCO, 2013", the ceiling prices of 21 key formulations had been increased. These formulations include common medicines like BCG vaccines, penicillin, malaria and leprosy medicines (Dapsone), life-saving drugs like Furosemide (used to treat fluid build-up due to heart failure, liver scarring, or kidney disease), vitamin C, some common antibiotics, and anti-allergy medicines.

If Voda Idea shuts shop, Airtel to gain the most

If Voda Idea shuts shop, Airtel to gain the most

Rediff.com   11 Dec 2019

If Vodafone Idea shuts, a bulk of the high-paying ARPU customers will move to Airtel as Reliance Jio does not have a comprehensive postpaid offering like it, and have aggressively preferred to play in the prepaid market. The bulk of Vodafone Idea customers use 2G phones and only a few of them use data. It will be easier for Airtel to woo these customers as they can shift seamlessly to its 2G network without changing handsets or even SIM cards,

Reliance, Airtel and 2 others bid for three Anil Ambani group companies

Reliance, Airtel and 2 others bid for three Anil Ambani group companies

Rediff.com   26 Nov 2019

The three companies for sale are Reliance Communications, Reliance Telecom and Reliance Infratel.

The story behind Vodafone's fall in India

The story behind Vodafone's fall in India

Rediff.com   24 Nov 2019

Cut-throat competition, high spectrum costs, and frequent flip-flops in government policies have made it difficult for Vodafone to make money in the country.

Why air tickets in India are going cheap

Why air tickets in India are going cheap

Rediff.com   18 Nov 2019

Airlines say that they are keeping their fingers crossed for December - another peak period - when, based on current bookings, the air fares for those who buy early are more or less in line with last year.

Telcos told to clear AGR dues in 3 months

Telcos told to clear AGR dues in 3 months

Rediff.com   14 Nov 2019

However, the government is readying a relief package and it could include a cut in the licence fee to 5 per cent, two years' moratorium on paying spectrum charges with interest, and referring the GST tax refund issue to the Council.

Airtel bids for RCom spectrum, Jio seeks deadline extension

Airtel bids for RCom spectrum, Jio seeks deadline extension

Rediff.com   13 Nov 2019

It is believed that apart from Bharti Airtel and Bharti Infratel, there are four players that have made a bid.

Lupin sells Japan arm to Unison for Rs 3,702 cr

Lupin sells Japan arm to Unison for Rs 3,702 cr

Rediff.com   12 Nov 2019

The company will now focus on specialty products in Japan; it is open to inorganic opportunities, especially in India.

Indian skies fall short on wide-bodied aircraft

Indian skies fall short on wide-bodied aircraft

Rediff.com   7 Nov 2019

The collapse of Jet Airways has everything to do with the falling number of wide-bodied aircraft.