Top 10 biz headlines: LPG crisis, Sitharaman on liquidity issue, and more

India braces for LPG supply crisis after terror attack on Saudi Aramco
This festive season, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) delivery in the country is bearing the brunt of a recent terror attack at the Saudi Aramco facilities. A shortfall in assured supply from the energy major has resulted in a huge booking backlog across states such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, Punjab and Goa, according to industry sources. Read More
No liquidity crisis: FM after 'tonic-like' meeting with private banks

Demand is back in the system, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Thursday, expressing hope that it, along with increased lending, would perk up the economy in the second half of the current financial year. Read More
Govt seeks steep cut in devolution to states from existing 42% of tax pool
The central government, in its memorandum to the Fifteenth Finance Commission (15th FC), has sought a substantial decrease in devolution to states from the existing 42 per cent of the divisible tax pool. Read More
New framework to bail out stressed financial companies likely today
Amid the crisis at Dewan Housing Finance (DHFL), financial sector regulators are planning a framework for resolving stressed financial conglomerates. The new framework, which will be discussed by the regulators at a meeting in Mumbai on Friday, will help adopt a uniform approach on bailing out such companies. Read More
Govt might seek extension of ECB to boost NBFC credit in economy
The government may ask the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to allow co-origination of loans for deposit-taking non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) as well in a bid to boost credit in economy. Read More
Effective tax rates applicable to Indian firms still among the highest
The recent cut in the corporation tax rates may ease the burden on corporates. But more steps are required for making the country globally competitive from the perspective of corporation tax. Read More
Fairfax Financial Holdings sells 5% stake in ICICI Lombard for Rs 2,562 crore
FAL Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Canadian investor Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings, has sold 4.99 per cent equity stake in ICICI Lombard general insurance for Rs 2,562 crore in a block deal. Read More
SoftBank may Shelve Plan to Invest in Piramal Group
Masayoshi Son’s Soft-Bank may call off talks aimed at backing the Piramal Group’s financial services arm, Piramal Capital and Housing Finance, over irreconcilable differences, Economic Times reported. The Mumbai-based conglomerate was negotiating a deal that would have spun off the group’s housing finance division into a separate company with SoftBank investing around $1 billion for a significant stake, they added. In its July 15 edition, ET had reported that the deal would likely happen only if Piramal Group moved away from wholesale loans to consumer lending.
Govt Wants Oil Cos to Pay Rs 34,000 Cr in Dividend
The government wants oil companies to pay Rs 34,000 crore in dividend, profit petroleum and royalty in this financial year, about 15% more than they did last year, in a bid to raise resources for public spending amid economic slowdown and corporate tax cuts, reports Economic Times. The finance ministry recently conveyed to the petroleum and natural gas ministry that state-run oil companies would need to step up dividend payout this year, which will increase overall revenue receipt from the oil sector and help the government meet its revenue target, said people aware of the matter.
Essel Group in talks with Adani to sell solar energy assets
The Essel Group, which needs to sell a host of assets to stave off loan defaults, is in talks with the Adani group to sell its remaining solar energy portfolio, Livemint reported. Essel is rushing to complete its unfinished solar power projects of 480 megawatts (MW) to sell them to Adani Green Energy Ltd, the group’s renewable energy arm, the people said, requesting anonymity.

PMC Bank crisis: No need to get into this now, says FM Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the RBI as a regulator was handling the PMC Bank issue and also provided some relaxation. “I don't think I'll get into this at this stage. Will wait, let there be some kind of comprehensive picture emerging post which certainly government will have to see what best can be done...," she said.
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The government's intention is to have a stable environment, she said. RBI has raised cash withdrawal limit for PMC Bank customers to Rs 10,000 per account from Rs 1,000 earlier over the next six months.

Vikram had hard landing; NASA releases images of Chandrayaan 2 landing site

NASA on Friday released high-resolution images captured by its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) during its flyby of the lunar region where India's ambitious Chandrayaan 2 mission attempted a soft landing near the Moon's uncharted south pole, and found Vikram had a hard landing.
The Vikram lander module attempted a soft landing on a small patch of lunar highland smooth plains between Simpelius N and Manzinus C craters before losing communication with ISRO on September 7.

"Vikram had a hard landing and the precise location of the spacecraft in the lunar highlands has yet to be determined, NASA said.
The scene was captured from a Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera Quickmap fly-around of the targeted landing site image width is about 150 kilometres across the centre.
Vikram was scheduled to touch down on September. 7. This event was India's first attempt at a soft landing on the Moon. The site was located about 600 kilometres from the south pole in a relatively ancient terrain, according to the US space agency.
The LRO passed over the landing site on September 17 and acquired a set of high-resolution images of the area; so far the LROC team has not been able to locate or image the lander.

NASA
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@NASA
Our @LRO_NASA mission imaged the targeted landing site of India’s Chandrayaan-2 lander, Vikram. The images were taken at dusk, and the team was not able to locate the lander. More images will be taken in October during a flyby in favorable lighting. More: https://go.nasa.gov/2n03HuV
Lunar surfaceLunar surface with names of locations
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LRO will next fly over the landing site on October 14 when lighting conditions will be more favourable, John Keller, Deputy Project Scientist Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission, Goddard Space Flight Centre, told PTI via email.
"It was dusk when the landing area was imaged and thus large shadows covered much of the terrain; it is possible that the Vikram lander is hiding in a shadow. The lighting will be favourable when LRO passes over the site in October and once again attempts to locate and image the lander," NASA said.

'Not an extra day': SC wants arguments in Ayodhya case to end by Oct 18

The Supreme Court Thursday asked Hindu and Muslim parties to give it a time for completing arguments in the politically sensitive Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case, warning there it will not allow hearings after October 18.
"There will not be any extra day after October 18. It will be miraculous, if we deliver the judgement in four weeks in the matter," said Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi, who is set to retire on November 17.

CJI-headed 5-judge bench, also comprising Justices S A Bobde, D Y Chandrachud, Ashok Bhushan and S A Nazeer, asked Muslim parties to wrap up their arguments on the ASI report during the course of the day and continue to other arguments.
There are holidays in October for Dussehera and Diwali, and only one advocate of the four Hindu parties will be allowed to give the rejoinder arguments.
Senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan, who is appearing for the Muslim parties, suggested that the extra-one hour arrangement of hearings till 5pm should continue.
The CJI told lawyers appearing for parties who wanted to intervene that "we will go on hearing the arguments. If any new point is there you can make your submission at the rejoinder stage. Enough is enough, today is 32nd day of hearing in the matter, we cannot allow this plea or that".
On September 18, the top court had set October 18 as deadline for conclusion of hearings land title dispute, which raised the possibility of a verdict in the case by mid-November.
The apex court had also said the parties to the dispute can amicably resolve the matter through mediation if they wanted to, but the lawyers must conclude the day-to-day hearings by October 18 so that the judges get about four weeks to write the judgment.
It had said that the day-to-day proceedings in the land dispute case have reached "an advanced stage" and will continue.
The apex court had on August 6 commenced day-to-day proceedings in the case as the mediation proceedings initiated to find the amicable resolution had failed.
The court had taken note of the report of the three-member panel, also comprising spiritual guru and founder of the Art of Living foundation Sri Sri Ravishankar and senior advocate and renowned mediator Sriram Panchu, that mediation proceedings, which went on for about four months, did not result in any final settlement and it had to decide the matter pending before it.
The court, which had on March 8 referred the matter for mediation, had asked for in-camera proceedings to be completed within eight weeks, but later granted time till August 15 after the panel's earlier report said the mediators were "optimistic" about an amicable solution.
The top court fixed the seat for mediation process in Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh, around 7 km from Ayodhya, and said adequate arrangements, including the venue of the mediation, place of stay of the mediators, their security, travel should be forthwith arranged by the state government.
It had perused a report about the progress of mediation process till July 18 and said its contents will remain confidential.
Fourteen appeals have been filed in the apex court against the 2010 Allahabad High Court judgment, delivered in four civil suits, that the 2.77-acre land in Ayodhya be partitioned equally among the three parties -- the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla.
The Babri Masjid, constructed at the disputed site in the 16th century by Shia Muslim Mir Baqi, was demolished on December 6, 1992, sparking communal riots in the country.

Whistleblower says White House sought to lock down call records

Multiple White House officials were “deeply disturbed” by US President Donald Trump’s call with the Ukrainian president and the administration attempted to “lock down” records of the interaction, according to a whistle-blower’s complaint made public Thursday.
The information in the complaint was gathered from multiple US officials, according to the whistle-blower’s account, which the intelligence community’s inspector general said “appears credible.” “The White House officials who told me this information were deeply disturbed by what had transpired in the phone call. They told me that there was already a ‘discussion ongoing’ with White House lawyers about how to treat the call because of the likelihood, in the officials’ retelling, that they had witnessed the president abuse his office for personal gain,” according to the complaint.

The whistle-blower said that senior White House officials used unusual procedures when handling the records of Trump’s July 25 conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
They said it wasn’t the first time that a presidential transcript was put into a “code word-level system solely for the purpose of protecting politically sensitive — rather than national security sensitive — information.”
The redacted complaint and a letter from the inspector general to acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire were declassified and released ahead of a hearing Thursday morning of the House Intelligence Committee.
The whistle-blower’s complaint points to possible violations of campaign finance law as well as an attempt to seek foreign assistance to interfere in or influence a federal election. It implicates Trump’s lawyer as well as Attorney General William Barr.
Trump calls inquiry a ‘joke’
Trump on Wednesday dismissed as a “joke” the grounds laid out for the impeachment inquiry into him, as Democrats stood firm in accusing the US president of a “mafia-style shakedown” of his Ukrainian counterpart. Trump denied claims he abused his office by repeatedly urging Zelensky to probe his rival Joe Biden — as confirmed in a call transcript released by the White House.
The next explosive episode in the rapidly unfolding impeachment drama is set for Thursday, when acting director of national intelligence Joseph McGuire testifies on Capitol Hill. “They are getting hit hard on this witch hunt because when they look at the information, it's a joke,” said the president.

Donald Trump warns of market crash in flurry of anti-impeachment tweets

President Donald Trump predicted sinking stocks and a reversal of economic gains if House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry proceeds.
“If they actually did this the markets would crash,” Trump said in a tweet Thursday morning that cites stock session lows after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s impeachment inquiry was announced Tuesday.

Trump said the strong stock market and economy wasn’t “luck” in the tweet, one of more than a dozen sent early Thursday related to impeachment and defending himself against wrongdoing related to a request for Ukraine to investigate a chief 2020 Democratic rival, former Vice President Joe Biden.
Trump called Democrats’ inquiry the “greatest scam in the history of American politics,” in a separate tweet.
The investigation proceeds Thursday as Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Macguire testifies before the House Intelligence Committee on a whistle-blower complaint detailing Trump’s July 25 request to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. A redacted version of that complaint has been declassified and is expected to be released Thursday, according to people familiar with the matter who have asked not to be named to discuss information that’s not yet public.

Abhinav Kumar, face of Trivago ads, joins Paytm as VP-product marketing

Abhinav Kumar, the face of travel search engine Trivago’s advertisements in India, has joined fintech major Paytm as Vice President Product Marketing. Kumar, who was the country development head (India) for the travel portal became an overnight internet sensation of sorts after he came in a slew of advertisements of the company.
Paytm which has been on a hiring spree for the last several months confirmed his appointment. “We are excited to have Kumar on-board, who is known for his expertise in product marketing. We are in the next phase of our growth, and his skills and expertise will be instrumental to our efforts of expanding digital payments in our country,” Paytm spokesperson said.

Kumar completed his Master's in International Management from University of Trento, Italy and has extensive experience in digital marketing. During his time at Trivago and thanks to the advertisements, the company gained massive recall and brand value which helped in the company's India expansion.
Paytm also recently announced that Vikas Garg, currently Sr. Vice President – Finance, has been promoted as Deputy CFO of the company. Garg has been associated with the company for over a decade and has led the financial operations.

MARKET LIVE: Sensex, Nifty volatile; Tata Motors declines 4%, ITC up 2%

Benchmark indices were highly volatile in the early morning trade on Friday.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex was ruling flat with neagtive bias at 38,950 levels while NSE's Nifty50 index was trading around 11,550 levels.
Infosys (1.5 per cent), NTPC (1.2 per cent), and ITC (1 per cent) were the top gainers at the 30-share Sensex, while YES Bank (3 per cent), Tata Motors (2.3 per cent), and Vedanta (2.11 per cent) were the top laggards.
Sectorally, only IT and FMCG indices were trading in the green. Nifty Bank index dipped 300 points in the morning trade to trade 0.93 per cent lower. Weakness was also seen in Nifty Realty index (down 1 per cent), Nifty Private bank index (down 0.94 per cent), and Nifty Metal index (down 0.84 per cent).
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-cap index was trading flat, down 0.03 per cent. The S&P BSE Small-cap index, on the contrary, was up 0.17 per cent.
GLOBAL CUES
U.S. stocks slipped on Thursday as the release of a whistleblower report against Trump kept uncertainty high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3 per cent, the S&P 500 lost 0.24 per cent, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.58 per cent. Asian shares also dipped in Friday's morning trade. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.09 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei slid 0.54 per cent.
Oil prices steadied off two-week lows. Brent crude futures fell 0.53 per cent to $62.41 a barrel.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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10:04 AM
Market check
09:59 AM
YES Bank hits fresh 6-year low on nearly 2% stake sale by promoter
Shares of YES Bank hit a fresh six-year low of Rs 48.50, down 5 per cent on the BSE in the intra-day deals on Friday after YES Capital, one of the promoter entities of the private lender, sold nearly 2 per cent stake in the bank.

“YES Capital (India) Private Ltd (“YCPL”), part of the promoter group of YES Bank, has today sold 1.8 per cent shareholding in the Bank,” YES Bank said in a press release on Thursday after market hours. READ MORE

09:46 AM
Rupee opens 8 paise lower against US dollar amid drop in oil prices
The rupee on Friday opened 8 paise lower at 70.96 against the US dollar amid weak Asian equities and drop in crude oil prices. The domestic unit on Thursday strengthened by 16 paise to close at 70.88 as investor sentiment got a lift after US President Donald Trump said a trade deal with China could happen sooner than expected. READ MORE

09:43 AM
Reliance Capital falls 2.7%
-- Brickwork downgraded rating on Reliance Capital’s secured NCDs program, market linked debentures and subordinated debt to ‘D’ due to delay in interest payment for NCDs.

09:41 AM
Quess Corp gains over 2%
-- It has allotted equity shares by way of private placement on a preferential issue basis to Amazon.com NV Investment Holdings LLC.

09:40 AM
Phoenix Mills dips over 2.5%
-- Promoters of the company are planning to sell 38 lakh shares, or 2.5 per cent stake, as per reports.

09:39 AM
ICICI Lombard GIC adds 1%
- FAL Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Canadian investor Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings, has sold 4.99 per cent equity stake in ICICI Lombard general insurance for Rs 2,562 crore in a block deal.

09:26 AM
YES Bank continues to bleed, slips around 4% after Rana Kapoor sells another 1.8%
09:24 AM
BUZZING STOCK | Tata Motors down nearly 3%
09:23 AM
BUZZING STOCK | Lakshmi Viilas Bank hits lower circuit
09:22 AM
Sector Watch | Top gainers and losers on the NSE
09:21 AM
FIRST TRADE | Losers and gainers on the S&P BSE Sensex
09:19 AM
OPENING BELL
At 09:17 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading 149 points or 0.38 per cent lower at 38,841.06, while NSE's Nifty50 index was quoting 48 points or 0.42 per cent lower at 11,523.15 levels.
09:14 AM
NEWS ALERT | Strides Pharma has announced suspension of Ranitidine drug's sale in the US market: BSE filing
-- Sale suspended until further clarity by US FDA
Alert: Sale of Ranitidine was under scanner after US FDA raised issue of carcinogenic NDMA being present in the drug
09:08 AM
NEWS ALERT | FM to brief media at around 4:30 pm today: Govt official
Alert: FM to hold meeting with key ministries for CAPEX done so far, and requirement ahead
09:06 AM
Top gainers and losers on S&P BSE Sensex during Pre-open
09:06 AM
Market at Pre-open
09:05 AM
Market at Pre-open
09:01 AM
Rupee Opening Alert
Rupee opens weaker at 70.96 per US dollar vs Thursday's close of Rs 70.88
08:58 AM
New framework to bail out stressed financial companies likely today
Amid the crisis at Dewan Housing Finance (DHFL), financial sector regulators are planning a framework for resolving stressed financial conglomerates. The new framework, which will be discussed by the regulators at a meeting in Mumbai on Friday, will help adopt a uniform approach on bailing out such companies. READ MORE

08:52 AM
NEWS ALERT | Future Retail's promoter creates pledge on 1.3 cr shares from Sept 18-20: CNBC TV18
-- Future Ent's promoter releases a pledge on 28 lakh shares
08:49 AM
Stocks to watch: YES Bank, Phoenix Mills, ICICI Lombard, Coffee Day, NBFCs
Here's a look at the top stocks that may remain in focus today -

YES Bank: YES Capital, one of the promoter entities of YES Bank, on Thursday sold 1.8 per cent stake in the private lender. The share sale helped the promoter group entity, owned by Rana Kapoor’s family, raise around Rs 240 crore. READ MORE

ICICI Lombard: FAL Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Canadian investor Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings, has sold 4.99 per cent equity stake in ICICI Lombard general insurance for Rs 2,562 crore in a block deal. READ MORE HERE
Sensex,Nifty,investor,market,shares,stock,bull
08:46 AM
NEWS ALERT | Insolvency law panel's sub-committee submits recommendations on resoln mechanism for stressed fin cos: sources to CNBC TV18
-- Recommends regulators, RBI and Sebi, to have final say on whether or not resolution process has to be initiated
-- Only listed companies to be covered; deposit-taking, systemically imp companies to be out of the ambit
-- DHFL won't be covered under the IBC resolution process
-- Financial experts, not a resolution professional, to be appointed to run these stressed assets
-- Moratorium period begins as soon as the insolvency plea is filed
-- Quasi banks, merchant banks, credit rating agencies could be part of the resolution process
-- RBI not in favour of including large, systemically imp NBFCs

08:36 AM
ICICI Bank stock a good bet, but look out for retail NPAs, say analysts
ICICI Bank has benefited from the challenges facing peers in the sector. In the June quarter, when the private lender demonstrated its ability to correct its asset quality issues sharply, it regained investors’ trust significantly.

Brokerages including Morgan Stanley and Nomura have increased their allocation to the ICICI Bank stock in recent weeks, as competitors face issues such as possible slowdown in retail loans and elevated provisioning costs. READ MORE

08:30 AM
Kotak Mutual Fund pays pending balance amount to its FMP investors
Kotak Mutual Fund (MF) has paid the pending balance amount to its fixed maturity plan (FMP) investors, which it had to withhold at the time of maturity, having entered into a ‘standstill’ agreement with Essel group promoters to realise fair value of its investments in the group’s firms. In a note to investors, Kotak MF said: “In early Sept­ember, a portion of invest­ment was realised from the promoters’ stake sale to Invesco Oppenheimer Funds, which was paid to all unitholders. Further, the balance amount (principal + accrued interest) has been realised.” “The proceeds towards full redemption of your balance units have been transferred to your bank account,” the note added.
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08:25 AM
PMC Bank chairman Waryam Singh's connection with HDIL runs deep
S Waryam Singh, chairman of Punjab & Maharashtra Co-operative Bank (PMC Bank), held 1.91 per cent in real estate company Housing Development & Infrastructure (HDIL) till September 2017. Singh, 67, who joined the HDIL board as director in 2005, quit to return to the bank as chairman in 2015, a position he had held between 1999 and 2005. READ FULL REPORT HERE

08:22 AM
Today's picks: From Wipro to Tata Steel, hot stocks to watch on Friday
Bank Nifty

Current: 30,013 (fut: 30,264)

Target: NA

Stop-long positions at 30,000. Stop-short positions at 30,400.

Big moves could go till 30,650, 29,800. Trend could go negative on profit booking. READ MORE
08:20 AM
NEWS ALERT
Ministry of Finance
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@FinMinIndia
Union Finance & Corporate Affiars Minister Smt @nsitharaman be holding a meeting with Secretaries and Financial Advisors of key selected Ministeries to review total CAPEX by the Ministries in 2019-20 till now and plan for future CAPEX in current FY , today in New Delhi.
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08:18 AM
Derivatives strategy by HDFC Securities: Buy Oct Future for Reliance Ind
Buy Reliance October Future @ Rs 1,304

Stop loss: Rs 1,280

Target: Rs 1,350

Rationale:

1) We have seen long build up in the Reliance futures’, where we have seen rise in Open Interest with price rising by 1.3 per cent.

2) Stock price has broken out on the daily chart by closing above the resistance level of 1293 level yesterday. READ FULL STRATEGY HERE
08:16 AM
Top stock recommendations by Anand Rathi: Buy Voltas, Reliance Ind, Concor
CONCOR: BUY

TGT: Rs 700

SL: Rs 580

The stock has provided a breakout from the ascending triangular pattern with a clear buy crossover in its momentum indicators on the daily, weekly and monthly MACD. The stock has also formed a new life time high; hence the overall momentum is absolutely in favor of the bulls. The volumes have expanded with a breakout on the upside. READ MORE HERE

No liquidity crisis: FM after 'tonic-like' meeting with private banks

Demand is back in the system, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Thursday, expressing hope that it, along with increased lending, would perk up the economy in the second half of the current financial year.
The finance minister’s statement came amid growing concerns about a slowing economy. The economic growth plunged to an over six-year low of 5 per cent in the first quarter.

“Things are looking forward and upward from here, and we hope to take this message across,” Sitharaman said after holding a meeting with top executives of private sector banks, housing finance companies, and micro finance institutions (MFIs). Last week, she had met heads of public sector banks and asked them to go for an outreach programme to step up lending.
None of the bankers in the meeting on Thursday said they faced any liquidity issues. They, however, admitted there were some glitches, such as those related to know-your-customer (KYC) norms and co-origination of loans by non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) and others. They also said there was enough demand for loans, she added.
“On the whole, it was a very tonic-like meeting where I heard good things, positive things," she said, adding that “the message I got is that consumption is happening and there are no liquidity issues".Finance Secretary Rajiv Kumar invited private sector banks to join the outreach programme in 400 districts for potential lending. The first phase of the programme will start in 250 districts from October 3-7, he said. The next phase will begin around Diwali. Maintaining that there was no liquidity issue, Kumar said the outreach programme was being organised to take advantage of the festival season.
No liquidity crisis: FM after 'tonic-like' meeting with private banks
“We see a huge opportunity in the outreach programme announced by the government. We feel that this is an opportunity for us to do our dharma,” Kotak Bank Vice Chairman and Managing Director Uday Kotak said.
The finance minister indicated that the economic slowdown seemed to have bottomed out and the coming festive season would help the economy start looking up.
Bandhan Bank CEO Chandra Shekhar Ghosh said demand for credit was comparatively slow in the first two quarters of the year, but might pick up during Durga Puja.
Sitharaman said private sector bankers told her that problems related to commercial vehicles were cyclical and would be over in a couple of quarters. So far as passenger vehicles were concerned, these were largely driven by sentiment and lending to the segment would gather pace in the near future, the FM was told. “If there was a problem in liquidity, it was related to wholesale financing and not retail,” Sitharaman said.
She said affordable housing had really taken off, but some of the bankers demanded that the upper limit for loans in the segment be raised to Rs 50 lakh from Rs 45 lakh.
Sitharaman said MFIs were there in remote areas of the country and they told her there was still demand and that they were growing at 10-20 per cent.
Bankers also told the FM the services sector, which dominates the economy, showed a high appetite for credit. IDFC First Bank CEO V Vaidyanathan said the finance minister gave two hours of patient hearing to the lenders. He said demand was strong at the lower end of the ecosystem and there was “no slowdown at all”.

Private sector's share in LIC's portfolio plunges to 16-year low

The private sector has a lower share in the portfolio of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) now than at any point since 2003. It accounts for 14.9 per cent of the total investments, according to numbers analysed from the Reserve Bank of India’s Handbook of Statistics on the Indian Economy.
The LIC has been reportedly helped by a number of public sector divestments, as well as banks such as IDBI, which may have resulted in a shrinking pool available to the private sector. This is despite the private sector companies outperforming their public sector counterparts.

The BSE PSU index has declined 4.9 per cent in 2019 so far. The Sensex, which is a broad index representative of the country’s largest companies including large private sector ones, has risen 8.4 per cent. In fact, the PSU index has underperformed the benchmark Sensex in 11 out of the last 16 years.
The private sector share had last slipped below 15 per cent in 2003, when it was 11.68 per cent. It peaked for the subsequent period in 2010 at 25.72 per cent. It has since fallen for nine years in a row, to reach its present level.
Meanwhile, the public sector’s share in total investments stands at its third-highest level since liberalisation. The 85.07 per cent share in 2019 is higher than any year except 2002 (87.15 per cent) and 2003 (87.22 per cent).
Private sector's share in LIC's portfolio plunges to 16-year low
The numbers don’t add up to exactly 100 per cent, given that there are investments in the joint and co-operative sectors included.
The two account for Rs 1,098 crore in total. The overall investment in LIC stands at Rs 26.61 trillion. Of this,
Rs 26.4 trillion is invested in stock exchange securities. It also has a loan book of Rs 24,909 crore. A look at the last available annual report shows the life insurer has a majority of its investments in government securities.
“In respect of non-linked business, corporation earned Rs 1,55,071.90 crore as interest and Rs 9,768.82 crore as dividend, returning a yield of 7.71 per cent for the year. The corporation also earned rent of Rs 455.98 crore on investment property, Rs 9,576.81 crore by way of interest on policy loans, and Rs 20.97 crore as interest on loan on mortgages. A further Rs 19,512.94 crore was realised as net profit from the sale of equities, government securities and other securities (including amortisation) taking the total yield to 8.66 per cent,” according to the FY18 annual report.
“Typically, LIC has supported the divestment programme of the government from time-to-time, and in a bigger way since 2014. The investments by LIC do not seem to be driven solely with the target of efficient allocation of capital. It has also been looking at social objectives. With more stake sales on the anvil, unless the government looks at pure strategic divestment, one might well see the private sector’s share in LIC’s investment falling further,” said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities.
The size and parentage of LIC may mean there is little impact for policyholders, according to Swapnil Pawar, founder of financial services firm Asqi Advisors.
“Most of the investors go in with an implicit assumption that LIC itself can’t possibly fail,” he added.

Sachin Bansal to be CEO again, buys majority stake in microfinance company

Billionaire Sachin Bansal is returning to an executive role, more than a year after he left e-commerce company Flipkart.
Bansal has picked up a majority stake in Chaitanya Rural Intermediation Development Services (CRIDS), a company which runs microfinance institution Chaitanya India Fin Credit (CIFCPL). He will be CRIDS's new chief executive officer (CEO), said a statement by his communications manager.

Bansal invested Rs 739 crore, roughly $104 million, in CRIDS: Rs 600 as primary infusion and the rest in buying out existing shareholders. His exact stake in the company is undisclosed.
“This acquisition is our entry into financial services,” said Bansal, in a statement. He added that CRIDS founder Anand Rao and co-founder Samit Shetty, will continue to be with the firm and spearhead their existing roles.
“Sachin brings with him the ability of building huge scale grounds up to CRIDS,” said Shetty.
CRIDS, which started in 2009, focuses on low-income borrowers for vehicle finance, housing loans, small business loans and education loans. It has 176 branches across 32 districts, and a total of 1,582 employees, according to the company’s latest annual report.
In FY19, it disbursed loans around Rs 800 crore in loans and had total assets under-management of Rs 567 crore. In the last fiscal, the company’s loan book grew by 61 per cent, with an active customer base growth of 32 per cent and a growth in average loan outstanding per client of 22%. Its net profit was Rs 7.25 crore, up from Rs 4.66 crore the year before.
Bansal is a co-founder of Flipkart, India’s most valued start-up, but sold his shares for $1 billion when Walmart took over the company. Little has been disclosed about his plans for CRIDS, a 10-year-old lender which focuses on rural, low-income customers in Karnataka, Bihar, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh.
Bansal has dabbled in start-ups after leaving Flipkart. He has made debt investments in a variety of ventures like Vogo, Bounce, and Kissht and financing firms Altica Capital and Indostar Capital Finance. Some of these investments are from BACQ, a venture started last year with his IIT-Delhi batch mate, Ankit Agarwal.
Bansal’s biggest bet is Ola, where he committed to invest $100 million in January. A source close to the deal said the equity investment is around $25 million, while the rest is structured debt. Ather Energy, the electric scooter start-up, is another substantial investment where he has put in close to $35 million. He has over a dozen angel investment from his time at Flipkart and beyond.
Bansal’s bet in on CRIDS comes in the backdrop of the rise of specialised lenders and mobile payment companies. According to Boston Consulting Group, more than 1,000 fintechs have come up in India the last seven years.

Homebuyers unlikely to gain from reduction in corporation tax rates

Prospective homebuyers are unlikely to reap any benefit from the corporation tax rate cut announced by Finance Minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman last Friday as developers are in mood not to cut prices of apartments.
They feel unit prices are already pretty low. Sitharaman had reduced tax on corporate entities from 30 per cent to effectively 25.7 per cent, in a bid to boost the economy reeling from a slowdown.

But property developers will not pass on any benefit to homebuyers in the form of price cuts.
“Prices are already low. They will remain low, as supply will go up after the reduction in tax. Market forces will not allow prices to go up,” said Rajeev Talwar, chief executive at DLF, the largest listed developer in the country.
He added that prices had not gone up since 2007 because of an oversupply and delay in completion of projects. “If the economy gets a boost, it will help the real estate sector as well,” Talwar said.
J C Sharma, vice-chairman at Bengaluru-based Sobha, said prices were low because of market dynamics. “Developers are absorbing all increase in costs of labour, raw materials and so on. We do not know whether decrease in prices will bring back the demand,” he added.
chartSharma said input costs for developers had gone up since the introduction of the new goods and services tax rates, which do not allow deduction of input tax credit.
The government reduced the GST rates on home from 12 per cent to 5 per cent in March, but has disallowed deduction of input tax credit. Niranjan Hiranandani said there was “no room” to cut prices to boost demand. He said according to income tax rules, if a developer cuts prices by 5 per cent both buyers and sellers have to pay a extra tax.
“Capital investment, which had stopped, will start again. When developers invest money, they will invest in new projects, construct properties and generate employment. People will buy these properties. There will be a multiplier effect,” Hiranandani said. There has been a large pile up of residential real estate because of high prices and slowdown in demand. There is unsold residential inventory worth Rs 90,000 crore, according to some estimates.
A Mumbai-based property developer said when 85 per cent of homebuilders are incurring losses a cut in taxes will not help. “If the government wants to boost housing demand, they should cut housing loan rates and individual income tax rates,” he said.

IRCTC looks to raise Rs 645 cr via IPO, at price band of Rs 315-320 a share

Online ticketing, tourism and the catering arm of railways, Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) on Wednesday said it is looking to raise up to Rs 645 crore through an initial public offering (IPO).
The price band of the IPO is fixed at Rs 315 to Rs 320 per equity share.
The issue comprises an offer for sale of 2.01 crore shares of the face value of Rs 10.
Out of the total issue size, 1,60,000 equity shares are reserved for eligible employees.
The issue will open on September 30 and closes on October 3.
"Through the IPO, we are offloading 12.5 per cent stake and it will bring down the government's stake to 87.5 per cent," the company's chairman and managing director, Mahendra Pratap Mall told reporters.
The company will not receive any proceeds from the offer and all proceeds will go to the selling shareholder, which is the government.
The book running lead managers to the offer are IDBI Capital Markets & Securities SBI Capital Markets and YES Securities (India).

Extending debt instrument maturity is like default: Sebi circular

Any extension given to a corporate entity by extending the debt instrument’s maturity needs to be considered a ‘default’ for the purpose of valuation, according to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The norm was laid out in a circular issued on Tuesday night, a day before Essel Group announced that lenders had granted it more time to repay its dues.
Earlier, Sebi Chairman Ajay Tyagi had stated that the regulator didn’t acknowledge ‘standstill’ agreements between mutual funds (MFs) and promoters. However, Sebi had not yet formally laid down norms to govern such arrangements.

Sources say the move could impact those fund houses that are giving extensions to the Essel Group promoters and have exposure to debt papers that are maturing in September.
“Valuation agencies will now be required to give pricing in line with these new norms when the maturities of debt instruments are extended,” said a debt fund manager, requesting anonymity.
The current norms require MFs to take a markdown of 75 per cent on secured exposures that are downgraded to default grade or ‘D’.
“The regulator can decide to give an exception to MFs in Essel’s case as fund houses had entered into discussions on another extension with the promoters before the circular was issued by Sebi,” said another executive, also asking to remain unidentified.
“MFs holding papers maturing beyond September 30 are unlikely to get impacted by this move,” the fund manager added.
MF exposures to Essel Group firms are secured against the pledged shares of the promoters as part of the loan-against-share (LAS) structures.
chartIn January, MFs along with other lenders had entered into a ‘standstill’ agreement with Essel promoters where it was agreed that no ‘default’ will be declared on account of a steep fall in the price of Zee shares, which were pledged by the promoters as collateral. Also, the creditors decided to give time to the promoters till September 30 to settle the dues. This also extended the maturity of certain debt instruments till the end of September.
On Wednesday, Essel Group said its lenders had agreed to further extend the timeline beyond September-end, enabling the group to ‘optimise value output from the sale of its assets’.
Earlier this month, the group cleared part of its dues by transferring the proceeds from the promoters’ stake sale in Zee Entertainment. The payment halved the outstanding exposure of most MFs exposed to LAS structures of Essel Group firms.
The promoters had reached an agreement with Invesco Oppenheimer to sell up to an 11 per cent stake in Zee for Rs 4,224 crore.
While some MFs are believed to have sold the pledged shares of Zee to recover their dues, some fund houses have decided to give the Essel group promoters more time to pay up the remaining dues.
“We feel that promoters can realise the right value of their stake in Zee if they are given additional time. This would lead to better recovery for investors,” said a senior executive.
Overall, the MF industry had a Rs 5,000-Rs 6,000 crore of debt exposure to Essel Group firms before the first tranche of dues were received.

India's animal spirits are hushed as consumer demand remains subdued

India’s economic growth showed little signs of a recovery from a six-year-low, with investment and consumption activity in August remaining fairly subdued.
The dial on a gauge measuring overall economic activity was stuck in the same position as the previous month, with two of the eight high-frequency indicators compiled by Bloomberg News showing weakness and five others staying steady. Car sales in August slumped the most on record while demand for bank loans weakened, underlining worsening consumer spending.

The dashboard measures “animal spirits” -- a term coined by British economist John Maynard Keynes to refer to investors’ confidence in taking action -- and uses the three-month weighted average to smooth out volatility in the single-month numbers.
The reading, which comes ahead of the central bank’s monetary policy decision next week, strengthens the case for more measures to bolster growth. Since late August, the government has unveiled a series of steps, including $20 billion in corporate tax cuts, to support the economy after growth cooled to 5 per cent in the quarter ended June -- the weakest expansion since March 2013.
Here are the details of the dashboard:
Business Activity
Activity in India’s private sector eased in August from a month ago, reflecting a slowdown in new business. The weakness in both manufacturing and services activity was reflected in the purchasing managers surveys, contributing to a fall in the composite index to 52.6 during the month from 53.9 in July.
While input prices for services and the manufacturing sector rose during the month, manufacturers refrained from passing on costs amid efforts to boost sales.
Subdued price pressures are likely to give the central bank space to continue easing monetary policy, after already lowering the benchmark interest rate by 110 basis points so far this year.
Exports
Exports fell 6.1 per cent in August from a year earlier, against a 2.3 per cent rise in the previous month, with economists attributing the decline to an adverse global trading environment, and base effects. Weak domestic demand dragged down imports, helping keep the trade gap broadly unchanged from a month ago.
Consumer Activity
Consumer spending was muted, including in rural areas. That backs a recent report by market researcher Nielsen that lowered its 2019 growth forecast for the fast-moving consumer goods sector to 9 per cent-10 per cent from an earlier estimate of 11 -12 per cent.
Urban consumers curtailed spending as well, as the growth slowdown triggered fear of job losses.
That sentiment is weighing on demand for loans, with overall credit growth reaching 10.3 per cent in August -- the slowest pace of expansion in more than a year -- and down from 14.2 per cent in April, according to central bank data.
The Citi India Financial Conditions Index, a liquidity indicator, showed overall conditions tightening.
Industrial Activity
India’s core infrastructure industries’ output, which constitutes 40 per cent of total industrial production, grew 2.1 per cent in July from a year ago. The data offered mixed cues, with moderately healthy growth in cement and steel offsetting a contraction in coal, crude oil, natural gas and refinery output.
Industrial output growth accelerated to 4.3 per cent in July from 1.2 per cent in June. While the headline number showed a bounce, the production of capital goods -- an important indicator of future demand-- contracted for a third straight month. Both core sector and industrial output numbers are reported with a one-month lag.

MARKET LIVE: Sensex gains 300 pts, Nifty above 11,500; banks, NBFCs rally

A share broker monitors market fluctuation
Benchmark indices opened in the positive territory on Thursday ahead of the expiry of the Futures and Options (F&O) contracts for the September series.
The S&P BSE Sensex of the BSE was ruling over 38,952 levels, up 360 points, or 0.93 per cent, while the NSE's Nifty50 index was trading above 11,556 level, up 116 points, or 1.02 per cent.
ICICI Bank, Maruti Suzuki India, IndusInd Bank, and Bajaj Finance were the rop gainer sin the early trade on the Sensex, gaining in the range of 1 - 2 per cent. On the other hand, YES Bank dipped the most, down over 4 per cent, followed by HCL Tech (down 0.86 per cent), and Power Grid (down 0.4 per cent).
Sectorally, all the indices were trading in the green. Nifty Bank and Nifty Auto indices were trading 0.8 per cent higher, followed by gains in Nifty Financial Services, and FMCG indices.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.4 per cent, while the S&P BSE Small-cap index gained 0.3 per cent.

GLOBAL CUES
On Wall Street, stocks rose as investors shrugged off the news of an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.61 per cent, the S&P 500 gained 0.62 per cent, and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.05 per cent. Asian stocks edged up on Thursday. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.1 per cent. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.45 per cent. Australian shares were up 0.13 per cent.
Oil futures rose in Asia in a sign of cautious optimism about global economic prospects. Brent crude rose 0.29 per cent to $62.54 per barrel.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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10:04 AM
Cut in corporate tax rate mildly credit positive for construction & infra firms: ICRA
Many large-size construction companies were paying an effective tax rate of over 30%, which will come down to ~25% with the revision in the corporate tax rate, provided they avail the lower tax rate option. Some construction companies with focus on infrastructure projects were paying a lower effective tax rate in the last few years as they were availing of the tax exemptions under Section 80-IA for projects which started execution before April-2017. Since, this tax exemption was project-specific and most of these projects are either completed or likely to be completed by FY2020, the effective tax rate for such companies was also expected to go up from FY2020/FY2021 onwards. With the reduction in corporate tax rate, such companies would also benefit from lower corporate tax rate. Some construction companies have sizeable MAT credit entitlement/assets on their books and hence clarity on whether they will be able to use this post moving to the lower corporate tax regime would be crucial.

10:02 AM
MOFSL on auto sector
We believe that the sizeable corporate tax cut (10%) by the government improves the long-term attractiveness of the auto sector, as the cyclical revival in demand
would be complemented by disproportionate RoE improvement due to lower taxes. Our top-picks are Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) and Motherson Sumi (MSS) in large-caps, while Ashok Leyland and Endurance Technologies are our mid-cap picks. We remain cautious on mainstream 2W players due to disruption from BS6 and faster electrification in hypercompetitive environment. However, Eicher Motors (EIM) is our only pick from 2W space.

10:01 AM
Nifty IT index slips
09:58 AM
Momentum Picks by ICICI Securities
09:53 AM
Market check
09:43 AM
Gati locked in 5% upper circuit band
Allcargo Logistics is in talks to buy a stake in smaller rival Gati Ltd, Bloomberg reported citing sources, as India’s biggest cargo company attempts to boost its presence across Asia’s third-largest economy.

09:42 AM
IDBI Bank dips over 2%
09:40 AM
MOIL gains 2.6%
HSBC has upgraded the stock to buy with the target price Rs 180 /share.

09:40 AM
Financials rally on report Govt could notify rules for resolution of NBFCs
09:36 AM
IndiGo hits 52-week high
Morgan Stanley has raised target price of Rs 2,261, up 25 per cent from its current market price

09:34 AM
Glaxosmithkline Pharma slides over 3%
09:26 AM
Sterlite Technologies jumps over 3.5%
Broadband solution provider Sterlite Technologies said its Mauritius-based arm has signed a pact to acquire entire stake in the UK-based Impact Data Solutions at an enterprise value of around Rs 105 crore.

09:23 AM
YES Bank dips over 2%
In a regulatory filing, the private sector lender said it is awaiting Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approval to increase the authorised share capital of the bank before a planned share sale.

09:22 AM
CG Power gains 5%
The company has appointed Ashish Kumar Guha as its chairman, after Gautam Thapar was ousted from the position in August for allegedly being involved in financial irregularities.

09:21 AM
DHFL dips 4%
09:21 AM
NEWS ALERT | 19.4 lakh shares of ZEEL trade in a block deal on NSE
09:19 AM
Sectoral trends at NSE during Opening trade
09:19 AM
Top gainers and losers on S&P BSE Sensex during Opening trade
09:18 AM
Market at Open
09:18 AM
Market at Open
09:11 AM
NEWS ALERT | Govt likely to bring resolution plan for NBFCs: sources to CNBC TV18
-- Govt to carve out special window under IBC Sec 227
-- Under the window, govt to clarify who could initiate bankruptcy, provide moratorium for resolution professional
-- MCA to issue only notification for rules in next two weeks
-- Govt to avoid regular IBC process for NBFCs
09:07 AM
Rupee Opening Alert
Re opens mildly higher at 70.97/$ vs Wednesday's close of Rs 71.03

09:06 AM
Top gainers and losers on S&P BSE Sensex during Pre-open
09:05 AM
Market at Pre-open
09:05 AM
Market at Pre-open
08:59 AM
Govt measures don't address slowing consumption demand, says Matt Wacher
The reduction in the corporation tax will boost earnings, but for sustained growth there needs to be a revival in consumption demand, says Matt Wacher, chief investment officer (Asia Pacific), Morningstar’s Investment Management Group. In an interview with Samie Modak, Wacher says the investment manager is underweight on India. READ FULL INTERVIEW HERE
Matt Wacher, chief investment officer (Asia Pacific), Morningstar’s Investment Management Group
08:55 AM
BNP sees second-order boost on corporate tax cut, tweaks stock picks
The brokerage has re-balanced its “quality list” of stocks again, after having made adjustments a day before the government reduced corporation tax rates (September 20).

This time, it added firms ranging from large-cap stocks such as Britannia Industries to smaller names like Manappuram Finance, wrote Abhiram Eleswarapu, head (equity research), BNP Paribas Securities, in a note published on September 24. READ MORE

08:51 AM
Market Ahead, September 26: Top factors that could guide markets today
Markets are expected to remain volatile today as investors adjust their positions for the Sept series of Futures and Options contracts, which expire today. As per technical evidence, a 'bearish belt hold' pattern was formed on the daily charts yesterday, suggesting indecisive move ahead. LISTEN TO PRE-MARKET PODCAST HERE
08:49 AM
Stocks to watch: CG Power, YES Bank, Sterlite Tech, NTPC, GSK Pharma, ZEEL
Here's a look at the top stocks that may remain in focus today -

ZEEL: Essel group promoters have decided to concentrate on selling their non-media assets rather than looking for further dilution of their shareholding in Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) through a stake their current shareholding in ZEEL is 24 per cent.

CG Power: The company has appointed Ashish Kumar Guha as its chairman, after Gautam Thapar was ousted from the position in August for allegedly being involved in financial irregularities. READ MORE

08:45 AM
Sebi eases norms for registration of FPIs, junks 'broad-basing' criteria
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Wednesday issued a notification for easing the process for on-boarding overseas investors. The notification states that foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are no longer required to meet the ‘broad-basing’ criteria, under which at least 20 investors were required to establish a fund. READ MORE
Seb

Come to India, if there's any gap I'll act as bridge: Modi tells investors

Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi on Wednesday pitched India as 'the' investment destination for global investors, saying reforms by his government were just the beginning of a long innings. Modi promised to personally act as a bridge for businesses and said India had a government that respected corporates and wealth creators.
“India’s growth story has four important factors that are rare to find anywhere else in the world. These factors are democracy, demography, demand, and decisiveness,” he said. “Democracy together with political stability, predictable policy and independent judiciary gives confidence of safety and security of investment and of growth,” he said, speaking at the Bloomberg Global Business Forum in New York.
The PM said his government’s decision to slash corporate tax rates was a “big revolutionary step” for investment, and that the move had been hailed by businesses as historic.
“If you want to invest in a market where there is scale, come to India,” Modi said. “If you want to invest in a market where the latest trends and features are appreciated, come to India. If you want to invest in start-ups with a huge market, come to India. If you want to invest in one of the world's largest infrastructure ecosystem, come to India.”
India, he said, was waiting for global investors. “India is your only destination. I am waiting to welcome you,” he said.
“Your desires and our dreams match perfectly. Your technology and our talent can change the world. Your scale and our skills can speed up global economic growth,” he said. “Your prudent method and our pragmatic mind can write new stories in management. Your rational ways and our human values can show the path which the world is looking for. And if there is any gap anywhere, I will personally act as a bridge.”
ALSO READ: Reform and Modi's gift of timing
Modi said democracy and an English-based judicial system gave added confidence to investors as there would be no problem of interpretation.
The government is looking at investing Rs 100 trillion in building new airports, railway lines, electrification, laying new roads and giving houses to all. “Infrastructure is a priority,” Modi emphasised.
“We have taken numerous decisions to increase investors confidence including scraping of 50-old laws which were coming in way of development,” he said. “This is just the beginning. We have a long innings ahead. The world business has a golden opportunity to partner with India in this journey.”
Stating that the target of nearly doubling the economy to $5 trillion by 2024 was achievable, he said about $1 trillion was added to the size of the economy during the last five years.

ALSO READ: Imran warns of war over Kashmir as Modi, Trump meet twice in three days
Modi also interacted with over 40 business leaders and American CEOs, highlighting the steps taken by India to build a $5 trillion economy. “Captains of industry interact with PM @narendramodi in New York. The extensive agenda includes harnessing investment opportunities in India and boosting commercial linkages between India and USA,” the Prime Minister's Office tweeted.

361 infra projects show cost overruns of over Rs 3.77 trillion, says report

As many as 361 infrastructure projects, each worth Rs 150 crore or more, have shown cost overruns to the tune of over Rs 3.77 trillion owing to delays and other reasons, a report said.
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation monitors infrastructure projects worth Rs 150 crore and above. Of these 1,623 projects, 361 reported cost overruns and 496 time escalation.

"Total original cost of implementation of the 1623 projects was Rs 19,25,107.47 crore and their anticipated completion cost is likely to be Rs 23,02,230.50 crore, which reflects overall cost overruns of Rs 3,77,123.03 crore (19.59% of original cost)," the ministry's latest report for May 2019 said.
According to the report, the expenditure incurred on these projects till May 2019 was Rs 8,91,512.91 crore, which is 38.72 per cent of the anticipated cost of the projects. However, it said the number of delayed projects decreases to 399 if delay is calculated on the basis of the latest schedule of completion.
ALSO READ: Rs 8,588-crore telecom infrastructure projects receive DCC approval
For 684 projects, neither the year of commissioning nor the tentative gestation period has been reported. Out of 496 delayed projects, 166 projects have overall delay in the range of 1 to 12 months, 105 projects 13 to 24 months, 128 projects reflect delay in the range of 25 to 60 months and 97 projects show 61 months and above delay.
The average time overrun in these 496 delayed projects is 36.98 months.
The brief reasons for time overruns, as reported by various project implementing agencies, are delays in land acquisition, forest clearance and supply of equipment.
Besides, there are other reasons like fund constraints, geological surprises, geo-mining conditions, slow progress in civil works, shortage of labour, inadequate mobilisation by the contractor, Maoist problems, court cases, contractual issues, ROU/ROW (right of use/right of way) problems, law and order situation, among others, the report said.
It also observed that project agencies are not reporting revised cost estimates and commissioning schedules for many projects, which suggests that time/cost overrun figures are under-reported.

After 'Howdy Modi,' Trump and PM could sign limited trade deal: Report

The United States and India are racing to negotiate a limited trade deal that US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi can sign at the United Nations General Assembly in New York at the end of September, people familiar with the talks said a deal between the world's most populous democracies would be a welcome victory for Trump, whose administration has made little headway negotiating an end to its prolonged trade war with China. Trump is also expected to sign a deal with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe next week that lowers Japanese farm tariffs.
The deal under discussion with India would lower some tariffs on US produce and restore preferential treatment for some Indian exports to the United States, the sources said.

Trump and Modi will meet this Sunday in Houston at an Indian-American rally dubbed "Howdy Modi!" in a 50,000-seat stadium -- a sign of their warming relations, which are contributing to expectations for a "mini-deal." "There's a push to get something done with India, with an eye for UNGA," said a Washington-based source familiar with the discussions.
Trump has demanded better terms of trade from most of the top commercial partners of the United States, and blames previous deals for the loss of millions of US manufacturing jobs.
US-India trade relations have been fraught. Trump has repeatedly complained about India's high tariff rates, including a 50% tariff on Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
The United States has also taken issue with India's new investment rules on e-commerce that limit how companies like Amazon.com Inc and Walmart-backed Flipkart can do business in a rapidly growing online market set to touch $200 billion by 2027.
"We've been talking to the Americans, we have engaged them for many months now," Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said at a news conference this week.
"My expectation is that some of the sharper edges, they would be addressed in some forms in the not too distant future." A US trade representative spokesman did not respond to a request for comment on the US-India talks.
Modi, like Trump, has used tariffs to try to boost investment in manufacturing, a key part of his "Make-In-India" campaign to attract foreign cash and create factory jobs for millions of youth entering the workforce.
Apple Inc supplier Foxconn recently expanded production of iPhones in India to avoid a 20% import tariff and diversify its supply chain from China.
Bilateral US trade with India, at $142 billion last year, is just a fraction of the $737 billion in US-China trade.
TARIFFS
The United States in June ended duty-free access for about $5.7 billion worth of Indian exports under its Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program, including chemicals, plastics, leather and rubber goods, and auto parts. India was the largest beneficiary of the GSP, which was designed to help developing countries that dates from the 1970s.
India responded with higher retaliatory tariffs on 28 US products, including almonds, apples and walnuts.
India is the largest buyer of US almonds, paying $543 million for more than half of US almond exports in 2018, according to the US Department of Agriculture. It is the second largest buyer of US apples.
PORK, DAIRY, NUTS
The talks are focused on US demands that India reduce agricultural tariffs, including those for almonds, pork, dairy products, cherries, apples and other commodities, people familiar with the talks in both Washington and New Delhi said.
India is likely to allow some US dairy imports, the official said. Another Indian official said the United States was pushing India to remove high pricing barriers on imported US medical devices including cardiac stents.
In return, India wants the GSP restored for a few more years, as Modi struggles to boost exports dampened by sluggish global demand made worse by the US-China trade war. New Delhi also wants market access for some of its farm products such as grapes to export to the United States.
The United States is also seeking lower tariffs on high-end electronics products, one of the Indian officials said.
Both sides are discussing revising India's domestic content rules on ethanol to allow more imports of the US fuel additive, two US sources familiar with the discussions said.
A narrow deal would be a positive first step and leave thorny issues aside such as the new e-commerce rules, said Roger Murry, deputy director of the Alliance for Fair Trade with India, a group of US trade associations.
"We're hopeful that the Houston events can be bolstered by some real progress on the trade front that shows the US and India can negotiate some reasonable solutions," Murry said.

Petronet signs MoU with US natural gas firm Tellurian in PM Modi's presence

US natural gas company Tellurian Inc. and Petronet LNG Limited (PLL) of India have signed an MoU, wherein Petronet and its affiliates intend to negotiate the purchase of up to five million tonnes per annum (5 mtpa) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Driftwood, concurrent with its equity investment, which remains subject to further due diligence and approval of its board of directors, the two companies announced on Saturday.
Tellurian and Petronet will endeavour to finalise the transaction agreements by March 31, 2020, they added.

The announcement came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a meeting with the CEOs of top oil companies based in the US here on Saturday.
A statement from Tellurian said the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed in Modi's presence.
"Petronet, India's largest LNG importer, will be able to deliver clean, low-cost and reliable natural gas to India from Driftwood. Increasing natural gas use will enable India to fuel its impressive economic growth to achieve Prime Minister Modi's goal of a USD 5 trillion economy, while contributing to a cleaner environment.
"It is an honour to sign the MoU with Petronet in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. At Tellurian, we look forward to a long and prosperous partnership with Petronet in the Driftwood project," Tellurian's president and CEO Meg Gentle said.
The Driftwood project includes natural gas production, gathering, processing and transportation facilities, along with Driftwood LNG, a proposed 27.6 mtpa liquefaction export facility that will be located near Lake Charles, Louisiana on the US Gulf Coast.
In April, the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued the order granting authorisation for Driftwood LNG and the 96-mile Driftwood Pipeline, which will inter-connect the LNG terminal to the US natural gas market.

GST Council cuts rates on hotels, hikes on caffeinated beverages

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council on Friday more than doubled the GST rate for caffeinated beverages such as Thums Up Charged and Red Bull from 18 per cent to 40 per cent while giving relief for hotels and outdoor catering services.
Despite the strong demand from industry to cut the rates for automobiles, the only reduction announced was for 11- to 13-seater mini bus and the cess component at that.
Besides, simplified returns, which are to kick in next month in a phased manner, were postponed to April 1 next year. Those with an annual turnover of up to Rs 2 crore were given the option to file annual returns for 2017-18 and 2018-19.
On the other hand, those under the composition scheme (who file concessional flat rates and do not get input tax credit) were exempted from filing these returns.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who chaired the meeting, said the GST on caffeinated beverages was raised to 28 per cent plus a cess of 12 per cent against the current rate of 18 per cent.
Abhshek Jain, tax partner at EY, said: “This is aligned to the government's agenda of deterring the consumption of deleterious drinks. This now brings rates on such drinks on a par with aerated drinks.”
ALSO READ: Market celebrates corporate tax cut with biggest rally in 10 years
For hotels, she announced a status quo of nil tax for those with tariffs of up to Rs 1,000 per night per room.
The GST on hotels charging Rs 1,001 to Rs 7,500 per room per night was cut to 12 per cent from 18 per cent. The tax on room tariffs of above Rs 7,500 a night was slashed to 18 per cent from 28 per cent.
“For a considerable time, different states have been expressing concern about the high GST rate on hotel rooms and had demanded a reduction,” said Harpreet Singh, partner, KPMG.
Besides, the tax for outdoor catering by those with a daily tariff of at least Rs 7,501 for accommodation was reduced to 5 per cent without input tax credit (ITC) from the existing 18 per cent with ITC, she said. However, the GST on catering on premises with similar tariffs will remain the same at 18 per cent with ITC.
Revenue Secretary A B Pandey said the simplified returns would be introduced next year.
These were to be introduced next month in phases with all the forms to come into effect from January 1 next year.
The deadline for annual returns has been extended many a time from the original one of December 31, 2018.

ALSO READ: GST Council meet: In-principle decision to link Aadhaar with registration
Krishan Arora, partner at Grant Thornton India, said while small players, especially the trading community and the unorganised sector, would be happy with relaxation in filing annual returns for two years, the government needed to also ensure steps to control revenue leakages and ensure adequate compliance levels.
Meanwhile, GST rates for many items were altered.
ChartThe cess was cut on mini buses carrying more than 10 persons but up to 13 persons from 15 per cent to 1 per cent for petrol-driven and 3 per cent for diesel-driven vehicles.
Exemption from tax was given to imports of specified defence goods not manufactured in India.
Sitharaman said the rate for supply of job work services in relation to diamonds was reduced from 5 per cent to 1.5 per cent. Similarly, the rate was cut to 12 per cent from 18 per cent in these services in relation to the engineering industry, except bus body building, for which the rate would remain 18 per cent.
The council also exempted from the GST the services rendered for warehousing various food items such as cereals, pulses, fruit, nuts, and vegetables.
ALSO READ: GST council meet: Hotel owners and operators cheer tax reduction
The council also took steps to promote export. It exempted services provided by an intermediary to a supplier or recipient of goods when both supplier and recipient are located outside the taxable jurisdiction.
Besides, it exempted from the GST and the integrated GST the import of silver and platinum by specified agencies. Similarly, the supply of these items by these agencies for exports of jewellery was exempted from tax.
Among various other products, the GST was cut on marine fuel to 5 per cent, while on railway wagons, coaches, and rolling stock it was increased from 5 per cent to 12 per cent.

Diwali comes early for companies as FM offers tax cuts to lift up economy

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday went a step further to announce steeper corporation tax rate cuts than were proposed earlier even as these would hit the exchequer by Rs 1.45 trillion a year amid a shaky revenue position of the Centre.
The measures are expected to boost investment and manufacturing under the Make in India initiative.
The measures, announced on the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for the US to woo investors, included a cut in the corporation tax rate to 22 per cent from 30 per cent for companies not availing of exemptions such as tax holidays enjoyed by units in special economic zones (SEZs) or accelerated depreciation.
Earlier Sitharaman had announced the 25 per cent rate would be eventually made applicable for all companies. Only 0.7 per cent of the companies in the country were aligned to the 30 per cent rate because the rate for companies with a turnover of up to Rs 400 crore was brought down to 25 per cent in this year’s Budget.
Currently, the tax burden after surcharges and various types of cess on large companies comes to about 34.94 per cent, which has been reduced to 25.17 per cent, Revenue Secretary A B Pandey said.
The companies that are enjoying exemptions and tax holidays and are not willing to join the new tax regime can do so after the sunset clause on their tax breaks kicks in. However, once they join the new tax regime, they have to stay there, Sitharaman said.
The government is projected to forgo revenue of Rs 1.08 trillion in exemptions given to companies in 2018-19, which is 15.3 per cent higher than the Rs 93,642 crore in the previous year, according to Budget papers.
ALSO READ: Corporate tax cut to boost manufacturing; unutilised capacity a concern
Most IT companies, Infosys excepted, may not receive benefits from this move because of various exemptions they enjoy, but others, including financial services firms, may get a fillip.
For the companies getting incorporated next month onwards and start production before March 31, 2023, would get a reduction in the corporation tax rate from 25 per cent to 15 per cent. With cess and surcharges this comes to 29.12 per cent at present and with the new rate structure, it will come to 17.01 per cent. These companies also need not pay the minimum alternate tax (MAT).
To provide relief to companies which continue to avail of exemptions and incentives, Sitharaman also announced a reduction in the minimum alternate tax (MAT) to 15 per cent from the current 18.5 per cent. With cess and surcharge, this comes to 21-22 per cent at present and will be reduced to 17 per cent.
Sitharaman extended the exemption from the super-rich tax introduced in her maiden Budget on July 5 to capital gains arising on sales of equity shares in a company or businesses that are liable to pay the securities transaction tax (STT).

ALSO READ: Corporate tax cut a big positive, but demand recovery may take time
The enhanced surcharge will also not apply to capital gains arising on sales of securities, including derivatives, in the hands of foreign portfolio investors, she said.
To provide relief to listed companies that announced buybacks of shares before July 5, the tax on such buyback shall not be charged.
The government also expanded the scope of corporate social responsibility to include incubators funded by the Centre or state governments, and public-sector units, and making contributions to publicly funded research institutions and universities.
Sitharaman, however, sidestepped repeated questions on the impact of the concessions on the fiscal deficit target, saying that the government was conscious of the reality and would reconcile the numbers. The government has projected its fiscal deficit to reduce to 3.3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in FY20 from 3.4 per cent in the previous financial year. The deficit has touched 77.8 per cent of the target in the first four months of the current fiscal year.
ALSO READ: FM's tax cut: Buyback relief for firms as retrospective rule goes
“We are seized of the matter. We are not oblivious of this development,” she said, adding that the cut in taxes also expanded the basket of tax payers. These cuts were the steepest in recent history. The original task force entrusted with the responsibility of re-designing India’s income tax law, under former direct tax board member Arbind Modi, had proposed a 15 per cent corporate tax rate across the board. This was, however, to be complemented with changes in accounting procedures, and modification in the rule for source of income.
Growth plunged to more than a six-year low of 5 per cent in the first quarter of the fiscal year owing to slackening private investment and weak demand. While the tax rate on new companies manufacturing in India stands at 17.01 per cent and 25.17 for others, it is 21 per cent in the US, where it was 35 per cent earlier. Among competitive economies, Vietnam, which is turning the US-China trade war to good account, has a 20 per cent tax rate. Indonesia has 25 per cent and Thailand 20 per cent. Singapore has a tax rate almost equal to that for new companies in India, at 17 per cent. Hong Kong has a lower rate of 16.5 per cent. The brass of the government hailed the move. “The step to cut corporate tax is historic. It will give a great stimulus to #MakeInIndia, attract private investment from across the globe, improve competitiveness of our private sector, create more jobs and result in a win-win for 130 crore Indians,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.
ALSO READ: Relief for FPIs: Capital gains on debt securities now exempt from surcharge
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the Modi government was committed to making India a big manufacturing hub, and this decision, along with previous announcements on relaxing foreign direct investment, would go a long way in realising this objective.
India Inc. was elated.
ALSO READ: Realtors hope tax cut will boost demand for residential properties
Kumar Mangalam Birla, chairman, Aditya Birla Group, said the government’s move to pump-prime the economy would lead to a big reset and revive the animal spirits in Corporate India. SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar said the move would boost corporate profits and bring down prices. “Additionally, the move to incentivise setting up manufacturing units comes at the most opportune time for multinationals,” he said.

Gurgaon Metro on the wrong track! Poor location making it unviable

With the deadline for the continuation of the Gurugram Rapid Metro ending on September 17, speculation remains rife whether HUDA will run the enterprise, as the current concessionaire Rapid Metro Rail Gurgaon Ltd (RMGL) has expressed its inability to run it any further.
The Rapid Metro was constructed by IL&FS Infrastructure in two phases. In the first phase, the company built 5.1 km elevated track, connecting National Highway No. 8 at Shankar Chowk with Sikandarpur DMRC station, covering six stations. The second phase of the system was opened to the public on March 31, 2017.

Built in three years at a cost of Rs 1,450 crore, the service was opened for public in November 2013. However, residents of Gurugram will tell you that low ridership, high cost and poor location were responsible for the demise of the metro operation.
The two special purpose vehicles (SPVs) of IL&FS — Rapid Metro Rail Gurgaon Limited (RMGL) and Rapid Metro Rail Gurgaon South Limited — which have been running the Rapid Metro in Gurugram since 2013 and 2017, respectively, have served their termination notices to the state government stating an alleged breach of contract.
India's infrastructure deficit story is well documented and when built up infra like this ill fated Rapid Metro project succumbs to the dictates of time, it is an even bigger travesty.
It is now incumbent on the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) to not just run this operation, but also fix what is broke. People in Gurugram will tell you that the line needs to be taken towards old Gurugram across the Expressway which is in dire need of good public transport.
HUDA will have to study the modalities of reviving the ridership, which is in disrepair, and extending the line to areas which actually require such a Rapid Metro. By combining this with the Delhi Metro, it can be a game changer as a local transport instrumentality in higher middle and lower income density areas.
By taking it to the higher income stretch of Golf Course Road, Rapid Metro actually did a disservice to the operation for the residents there who don't require public transport.
The annual report of 2017-18 throws up a strange fact. It shows that the Rapid Metro earned more from advertisements than passenger traffic. About 60 per cent of the revenues came from advertisements, while the share of traffic revenues was only 39 per cent.
There are multiple reasons for this. However, the biggest issue is project alignment. The Phase I of Rapid Metro revolves around Cyber City, which is a work area, but not everyone working there lives around on the Rapid Metro line.
The Phase 2 alignment along the Golf Course Road was a non-starter. This is because the area neither has density, nor mixed-income groups. On the other hand, the old Gurugram on the opposite side of NH 48 has all the elements that could ensure high ridership, but it doesn't even have a single Metro line.
IANS has tried to understand why India's first privately owned Metro has come to such a sorry pass that nobody wants to have anything to do with it. When contacted, IL&FS formally refused to comment, saying the matter is sub judice.
Both fare revenues and non-fare revenues form the overall revenue stream for Metros. Since Metros are treated as social infrastructure, fare is typically regulated and thus fare revenue by itself can never help achieve break even for Metro projects. This has been the global trend in all the cities with metros.
Non-fare revenues typically comprise avenues like advertising, property development, retail etc. Revenues for both SPVs were substantially affected due to many rights not being accorded under the provisions of the concession agreement, Metro Act, as also the obligations of the Government of Haryana agreed between the Government of India, Government of Haryana and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) while according "in-principle" approval to the project. This has led to breaches of the concession agreements by the Authority due to:
* Substantial withdrawal of advertisement rights for both the SPVs due to multiple rounds of modifications to bye-laws by the Urban Local Bodies Department, framed between September 2016 and May 2018. The amendments imposed a ban on advertisements on areas like:
a) Metro pillars, a prolific source of revenue generation
b) Areas facing the direction of traffic on public roads viz. at metro stations etc.
While advertisement rights were accorded to the SPVs under their respective concession agreements signed much earlier in December, 2009, and January, 2013, as also permitted under the provisions of the Metro Act, the subsequent by-laws sought to withdraw many of the advertising rights.
* Non-approval of Property Development Rights from the Authority, as permitted under the Metro Act on all land available with Metro Rail Administrator (MRA) including depot and stations. RMGL is the designated Metro Rail Administrator for both the SPVs as per the provisions of the Metro Act. Around 2 million square feet of commercial development on the land already available for depots with the SPVs, with permissible FAR's (floor area ratio) under TOD (transit oriented development) policy, was not allowed to take shape.
* No action towards multi-modal integration obligations by the Government of Haryana, as agreed between Government of Haryana, Government of India and DMRC while according 'in-principle' approval to the Rapid Metro project. Overall fare revenues were hugely impacted by:
a) Non-allocation of land for parking at stations
b) Absence of feeder/evacuation services from metro stations, a state subject
c) Extensive diversion of traffic through alternate forms of transport in the absence of appropriate regulatory/policy framework
d) No streamlining of routes for alternate modes etc.
e) Overall lack of integration with the comprehensive mobility plan for Gurugram
Incidentally, all these features are necessary and are recognised by the Metro policy announced by the government of India in August 2017.

India's economic growth rate 'much weaker' than expected, says IMF

India's economic growth is "much weaker" than expected, according to the IMF, which attributed it to the corporate and environmental regulatory uncertainty and lingering weaknesses in some non-bank financial companies.
India's GDP growth rate slipped to 5 per cent in the first quarter of 2019-20, the lowest in over six years, according to latest official data.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in July projected a slower growth rate for India in 2019 and 2020, a downward revision of 0.3 per cent for both the years, saying its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will now grow respectively at the rate of 7 per cent and 7.2 per cent, reflecting a weaker-than expected outlook for domestic demand.
However, India will still be the fastest growing major economy of the world and much ahead of China, the Washington-based global financial institution had said.
India's economic growth rate 'much weaker' than expected, says IMF
"We will have a fresh set of numbers coming up but the recent economic growth in India is much weaker than expected, mainly due to corporate and environmental regulatory uncertainty and lingering weakness in some non-bank financial companies," IMF spokesman Gerry Rice told reporters at a news conference here on Thursday.
The risks to the outlook are tilted to the downside, he said.
Responding to a question on the recent GDP figures of India, Rice said the IMF will monitor the economic situation in the country.
Sharp deceleration in manufacturing output and subdued farm sector activity pulled down India's GDP growth to over six-year low of 5 per cent in the April-June quarter of 2019-20, according to official data released last month.
The previous low in GDP growth was recorded at 4.3 per cent in January-March quarter of 2012-13. India's economic growth stood at 8 per cent in the same quarter of 2018-19.
"The GDP at Constant (2011-12) Prices in Q1 of 2019-20 is estimated at Rs 35.85 lakh crore, as against Rs 34.14 lakh crore in Q1 of 2018-19, showing a growth rate of 5 per cent," the National Statistical Office (NSO) said in a statement.
"We will update that assessment in the upcoming world economic outlook," IMF spokesman said.

Best of BS Opinion: Price cuts as good as tax cuts to boost a slow auto mkt

The automobile industry’s demands for tax concessions from a government struggling with a severe revenue shortfall is disingenuous. Given the profits and cash in hand that most major car makers enjoy, price cuts could stimulate the sluggish market just as well, argues T N Ninan here. In other views, two columnists proffer advice on the quality of economic advice the government should access and one discusses the role of the Speaker in Parliament. Kanika Datta sums up the views
The attention focus on commerce minister Piyush Goyal’s comments about Einstein’s “discovery” of “gravity” detracts from the bizarre nature of his overall message: that positive thinking will enable the Indian economy to reach the $5 trillion target.
If he were to follow Einstein’s example in formulating the general theory of relativity, he would rely on good technical advice too, says Mihir S Sharma here.
To imbibe realistic economic advice, the government should set up a new cadre, recruit economists in the 40-50 age group for it and appoint the Chief Economic Advisor and RBI deputy governors from it, says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan here
John Bercow, the Speaker of the British Parliament, has set new standards on how Parliamentary proceedings should be conducted. India could learn from him, says Sunanda K Datta-Ray here
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“The bulb that we're being forced to use — No. 1, to me, most importantly, the light's no good. I always look orange”
Donald Trump on why he was rolling back regulations on energy-efficient light bulbs

Zomato enters video-streaming space, to bundle content with ads on platform

Come September 16, one can watch 3-to-15-minute long videos on the Zomato app, with the country’s oldest online food aggregator announcing a foray into over-the-top (OTT) space, starting with 18 original shows.
These short-format videos, which will be based on food, will be launched over a period of three months. The company has hired stand-up comedians and celebrity chefs like Sanjeev Kapoor, among others, for the shows.

The food delivery platform’s OTT foray comes at a time when online marketplace Amazon is going big with Prime Video and Flipkart is working on its own content vertical.
According to sources in the company, Zomato, which has been trying hard to sell its video advertisements to restaurants, cloud kitchens, and other clients on the platform, believes that entertainment content would help it bring in more restaurants.
“The plan is to weave in content with the advertisements, something what YouTube does on its platform. A video advertisement of a restaurant might play before or in-between the starting of the show,” said a source close to the company.
After listings, Zomato hopes to sell video advertisements to restaurants on its platform. Having content will encourage restaurants to place video ads as the probability of them getting watched by people is higher.
“Available in an all-new videos tab in the Zomato app, these will be categorised by genre letting users watch 3-15 minute videos across shows, recipes, and sneak peek restaurant stories. The Zomato video experience will launch with 2,000-plus videos that include Zomato Originals, which will be available to stream in India, while sneak peek and recipe videos can be accessed anywhere in the world,” the company said.
“We are constantly looking for new ways to engage our users around food. Most of our users visit our app several times a week. This presents us with an opportunity to further delight our users using Zomato Originals” Deepinder Goyal, CEO & founder
Zomato Original shows are centred around food. “We are constantly looking for new ways to engage our users around food. Most of our users visit our app several times a week. This presents us with an opportunity to further delight our users using Zomato Originals,” said Deepinder Goyal, chief executive officer and founder, Zomato.
Infinity Dining off the table
On Friday, the food delivery platform took its Infinity Dining offer of the app amid a battle with restaurants protesting against deep discounting. The programme allowed Zomato Gold subscribers to order unlimited food and drinks for a set price from the menu of the restaurant for a period of time.
Zomato has of late been in the news for all the wrong reasons. Over the past two months, the food aggregator has given pink slips to 601 employees, terming it a move to correct ‘redundancies’. This is more than 10 per cent of its total workforce.
While a record number of 541 employees were laid off on Saturday, 60 were let go last month.
This is not the first time the firm has carried out layoffs, but the number of people let go this year
is the highest.

'Golden letter day' as Navy Tejas fighter jet conducts crucial landing

India on Friday took a giant step towards designing and building a Tejas fighter capable of operating off aircraft carriers, when a Tejas prototype fighter carried out an “arrested landing” in the navy’s Shore Based Test Facility (SBTF) in Goa.
Even air force pilots accept that the most dangerous and spectacular flying mission is one that naval fighter pilots perform every day: landing a fighter on an aircraft carrier deck, which is often just 200 metres long.

Such a landing is only possible if the pilot can successfully snag a “tail hook” on the tail of the aircraft onto a series of “arrestor wires” on the aircraft carrier’s landing deck. The wires then unspool, dragging the aircraft to a halt.

That is what Commodore Jaideep Maolankar, flying a naval Tejas prototype developed by the Defence R&D Organisation (DRDO), demonstrated on Friday on a land-based airstrip, with the aircraft absorbing the huge deceleration stresses. This opens the door to actually landing the Tejas on an aircraft carrier, and thence to introducing the fighter into operational service.
"Today is a golden letter day in the history of Indian naval aviation. This has put India on the world map as a nation with the capability to design a deck landing aircraft,” said a DRDO official who briefed the media after the event.
To be sure, the naval Tejas is still a long way from operational service. The navy has stated that the Tejas Mark 1’s current General Electric F-404IN engine is not powerful enough. This means that the navy will wait for the Tejas Mark 2, which will be powered by the peppier GE F-414 engine.
Yet, a small but highly motivated team of designers, flyers and technicians at the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), the DRDO agency responsible for the Tejas, are continuing to develop the Naval Tejas Mark 1 as a prototype for perfecting key elements needed for carrier deck operations – such as a rugged undercarriage that can absorb the impact of the aircraft with the landing deck.

Navy TejasPhoto-op after the Navy Tejas's flying mission.
This has been a delicate process, in which designers must strike a balance between weight, strength, speed, maneuverability and other flight aspects. For example, strengthening the fighter’s undercarriage adds weight, which reduces speed, climb rate and turning radius.
“Over multiple iterations over a sustained period, we have balanced these aspects in the naval Tejas. This has resulted in our developing a body of priceless technical experience and knowledge. Today’s achievement is not so much about developing an aircraft, as it is about building up a team of designers that will form the backbone of Indian naval aviation design in their working lifetime,” said a senior ADA official on Friday.
The Naval Tejas flight test team that executed the landing will remain in Goa over the next month, consolidating the experience and conducting further testing.
Of the total budget of Rs 14,047 crore sanctioned for the Tejas project, the naval fighter has been sanctioned Rs 3,650 crore. Of that amount, Rs 1,729 crore has been allocated for the naval Mark 1 fighter, while Rs 1,921 crore is earmarked for the Naval Tejas Mark 2.