Surajeet Das Gupta, Shine Jacob

Stories by Surajeet Das Gupta, Shine Jacob

India's textile and apparel exports outshine pre-Covid numbers

India's textile and apparel exports outshine pre-Covid numbers

Rediff.com   27 Dec 2021

Backed by the China-plus-one policy, India's textile and apparel exports have seen a 53 per cent growth during the April-November period of the current fiscal year at around $26 billion. This compares to the figure of $17 billion during the same period in FY21. According to Wazir Textile Index, all major companies including Welspun, Vardhman, Trident, KPR Mills, Indo Count, RSWM, Filatex, Nahar Spg and Indorama have posted higher sales during the first half of the current fiscal year compared to the pre-pandemic year.

Govt plans to complete 5G auction in July

Govt plans to complete 5G auction in July

Rediff.com   24 Dec 2021

The government is looking at a time frame within the first two weeks of July to kick off and complete the upcoming 5G auctions, according to discussions between officials and stakeholders. It is expected that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) will give its recommendations on the base price by March, after which the necessary cabinet clearances will be given. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had earlier looked at undertaking the auction in the first quarter of 2022 but decided to push it back. Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had also said that the auctions are likely to take place in April-May.

Riding on innovation, Old Monk eyes record 10 million sales next year

Riding on innovation, Old Monk eyes record 10 million sales next year

Rediff.com   22 Dec 2021

With innovations such as the introduction of new variants and the launch of tetra packs, Mohan Meakin (MML) aims to achieve a record high sales of around 10 million units of Old Monk in 2022. From almost 3 million units a few years ago, sales volume has rebounded substantially. "Today, we are over 8 million units and are targeting record sales of 10 million next year," said Vinay Mohan, the director of Mohan Meakin (MML). Mohan said the company had started giving franchisees in states where tetra packs have good sales.

COVID: Kerala model still a success

COVID: Kerala model still a success

Rediff.com   22 Dec 2021

'Kerala is on a par with global standards.'

Realme Eyes Top Spot In Mobile Market

Realme Eyes Top Spot In Mobile Market

Rediff.com   18 Dec 2021

'Last year we sold 18 million phones in India, this year we should do 23-24 million, and next year our target is to hit 40 million.'

The Omicron Threat To India's Movie Biz

The Omicron Threat To India's Movie Biz

Rediff.com   18 Dec 2021

The cinema industry is staring at a loss of at least Rs 5,000 crore at the box office over the next six months if Omicron proves to be a spoiler.

Telecom gear makers want PLI scheme extended by a year

Telecom gear makers want PLI scheme extended by a year

Rediff.com   15 Dec 2021

With the spectrum auction now delayed till at least next May, the expected 5G orders for telecom equipment have not been sealed, the companies point out. Surajeet Das Gupta reports.

Spread of Omicron puts spanner in back-to-office work

Spread of Omicron puts spanner in back-to-office work

Rediff.com   14 Dec 2021

The spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus has made Indian companies persist with their policy of banning overseas trips and allowing only essential travel within India. The IT services firms, which had planned to ask their employees to return to the workplace, are also waiting and watching the Covid-19 situation before fully opening up their offices. Large conglomerates like the Tatas, Birla, JSW and Reliance are continuing with the mandatory social distancing and masking policies within their office premises.

PE firm Multiples looks to raise $10 billion by 2030

PE firm Multiples looks to raise $10 billion by 2030

Rediff.com   13 Dec 2021

Of the amount, the home-grown private equity player founded by Renuka Ramnath plans to deploy $8 billion in various companies as part of its blueprint for growth.

Realme overtakes Samsung, grabs second spot in smartphone market

Realme overtakes Samsung, grabs second spot in smartphone market

Rediff.com   13 Dec 2021

Mobile device maker Realme has overtaken South Korean giant Samsung to grab the second spot in the branded smartphone market, with 18 per cent volume share in October this year, revealed Counterpoint Research. Its rival Samsung ended October with 16 per cent share. Xiaomi (including its brand POCO) was at 20 per cent; Vivo at 13 per cent. The ascent brings Realme closer to its ambition to reach the No. 1 berth by 2022 when it hopes to sell over 40 million smartphones annually.

'We have enough risk capital'

'We have enough risk capital'

Rediff.com   10 Dec 2021

'Should we shortchange our investors by exiting early?'

Telecom companies may ring in 5G services on Independence Day

Telecom companies may ring in 5G services on Independence Day

Rediff.com   4 Dec 2021

The government is engaged in talks with telecom firms for a launch of commercial 5G services in some cities by Independence Day and has assured them that spectrum auction will take place in April-May, providing them a three to four-month window for the rollout. A top executive of a leading telecom gear company said the deadline was feasible in some cases. "It can be achieved in some cities as it will take us 4-6 weeks to deploy a network, once the equipment or components have reached India.

Bollywood Bets On Sooryanvanshi Effect

Bollywood Bets On Sooryanvanshi Effect

Rediff.com   27 Nov 2021

Buoyed by Sooryavanshi's success, the Hindi film industry is banking on 25-30 big movies lined up with a collective cost tag of Rs 2,000 crore.

Akshay, Rajinikanth Pump Life Back into the Movies

Akshay, Rajinikanth Pump Life Back into the Movies

Rediff.com   24 Nov 2021

Sooryavanshi and Annaatthe have already collected 6 percent of the film industry's 2020 revenue.

After rain havoc 'Smart City' Chennai reels under politics

After rain havoc 'Smart City' Chennai reels under politics

Rediff.com   23 Nov 2021

Chennai is one of the cities where works have been completed for almost 62 per cent of the money lined up -- Rs 599 crore of the Rs 959 crore has been utilised so far. Despite this, there was no respite for the people in the city this time either, with North Chennai being the worst affected.

Chip shortage delays Ola Electric scooter deliveries

Chip shortage delays Ola Electric scooter deliveries

Rediff.com   22 Nov 2021

Ola Electric is moving the delivery for the first batch of its electric scooters to between December 15 to the end of the month, a two- to four-week delay from its earlier schedule, due to a shortage of chipsets and electronic parts. The first batch of deliveries were scheduled for November 30 but the company decided to delay them after a meeting between its factory team and the global supply chain on Saturday. It became clear that the late delivery of chips and electronic parts was only 'getting worse', sources told Business Standard. Ola has apologised to customers for the delay and said it is "ramping up production as fast as we can so that you can get your Ola S1 at the earliest". It has stopped taking any new bookings until the chip shortage has eased, say sources.

90% chipmakers have design footprint in India: Intel

90% chipmakers have design footprint in India: Intel

Rediff.com   16 Nov 2021

As many as 2,000 chips are annually designed in India by semi-conductor and fabless companies, Intel India managing director Prakash Mallya said in a conversation with Business Standard. Mallya was reiterating the importance of India in the semi-conductor sweepstakes. "As much as 90 per cent of the semi-conductor companies have a design footprint in India.

Chip shortage may last up to two years, say Qualcomm and Intel

Chip shortage may last up to two years, say Qualcomm and Intel

Rediff.com   4 Nov 2021

Leading microchip providers Qualcomm and Intel say the chip shortage might last anything between four months to a year, perhaps even two years, depending on the various product categories - mobile devices, ICE, electric vehicles, appliances, data centres. Prakash Mallya, MD, Intel India and vice president, sales and marketing and communications group, said the spike in demand was huge, and cut across segments from PCs, phones, appliances and auto leading to the shortage.

Business travel takes off again on a wing and a prayer

Business travel takes off again on a wing and a prayer

Rediff.com   2 Nov 2021

Business executives are finally dusting off their long-unused suitcases to resume travel, thanks to a good vaccination rate, a drop in fresh cases, and an easing of travel restrictions. It comes as a huge relief for the ravaged aviation, travel and hospitality sectors. "We are witnessing a 40 per cent recovery on pre-covid volumes from our business travellers, signalling the return of corporate confidence in air travel," said Indiver Rastogi, president & group head, Global Business Travel, Thomas Cook (India) & SOTC.

Meesho charts disruptive strategy, to deliver free in non-tier 1 towns

Meesho charts disruptive strategy, to deliver free in non-tier 1 towns

Rediff.com   1 Nov 2021

Social e-commerce platform Meesho is set to disrupt the food and grocery market by offering free home delivery on all orders in over 200 below Tier 1 cities in a year's time, in the first phase. It is also disrupting the monetization model by focusing primarily on advertising revenues rather than commissions from sellers, as distinct from its competitors. The move is expected to challenge the big players in the sector which include Jio Mart, Tata's Big Basket, Amazon, Grofers, and others, many of which have minimum prices for free delivery.