EbixCash plans to raise Rs 6,000 crore, joining a host of companies such as Healthvista and IndiaFirst Life that are gearing up to hit D-Street this IPO season COMEBACK IPOs MAKE A EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS MEENA GANESH, Co-founder, Chairperson, Portea Medical R.M. VISHAKHA, MD & CEO, IndiaFirst Life Insurance ROBIN RAINA, Chairman, EbixCash INSIDE: INDIA’S TOP ENGINEERING COLLEGES www.businessworld.in SUBSCRIBER’S COPY NOT FOR RESALE I RNI NO. 39847/81 I 01 JULY 2023 Rs 150
ROAD TO IPOs BEGINS AGAIN A robust economy, enhanced investor interest and improving market sentiment are expected to result in wider participation in IPOs this season INSIDE: INDIA’S TOP ENGINEERING COLLEGES R.M. VISHAKHA MD & CEO, IndiaFirst Life Insurance MEENA GANESH Co-founder, Chairperson, Portea Medical www.businessworld.in RNI NO. 39847/81 I 01 JULY 2023
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INDIA’S TOP ENGINEERING COLLEGES A comprehensive assessment of the leading engineering institutes, their core strengths and distinguishing factors SURVEY CONDUCTED BY BW EDUCATION www.businessworld.in RNI NO. 39847/81 I 01 JULY 2023
B.Tech CSE -Mechanical, -Electrical, -Electrical and Electronics, -ET&T, -IT, -Civil, CS and Engineering, CS and Engineering (AI And Machine Learning, Data Science, IOT, Big Data Analytics, Gaming Technology, IOT and Cyber Security With Block Chain Technology. CS and Business Systems) M.Tech -Machine Design, -Thermal Engineering, -Power Systems Engineering, -ET&T Engineering, -VLSI Design, - CS & Engineering, -Structural Engineering, -Power Electronics and Power Systems, - Mech. Engineering (Prod), - Transport Engineering, -Geotechnical Engineering. -AI and Machine Learning B.PHARMA, M.PHARMA MCA MBA - Pharmaceutics, Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Pharmacology, Pharmacognosy [email protected] www.sstc.ac.in Junwani Road, Bhilai C.G., India 1800 547 1064 0788 4088888 UG COURSES* 2020 & 2021 An Autonomous Institute with 40+ Programs & Specialisations Tushar kushwaha CSA Placement Students Placed Companies Visited Highest Package Average Package Students placed as Interns. 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6 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 THE YEAR 2023 is expected to wow corporate houses keen to raise funds from the capital markets. Market experts feel that unlike in 2022, initial public offerings (IPO) this year should exceed market expectations. A recent Ernst & Young (EY) report describes IPO trends as “stable” and promises a positive outlook. In the first quarter of FY2024 India led in terms of IPOs issued globally and a promising pipeline of IPOs wait to debut in the second half of 2023 and beyond. These IPOs should cumulatively rake in more than Rs 1 lakh crore from the capital markets over the next ten months. It is worth noting that the participation of retail investors has exploded, evident in the impressive surge in Demat accounts from four crore in 2019 to 11.6 crore in April this year, at an average monthly addition of 1.5 to two million new accounts every month! A notable example of companies waiting in the wings is EbixCash, a Noida-based technology-enabled provider of digital products in the B2C and B2B sectors, which aims to raise Rs 6,000 crore through its IPO. Initial Public Offerings of numerous other companies are in the pipeline too in a promising market environment. Anticipation is high about a positive trajectory of the IPOs waiting in queue. We wish them all the very best! Meanwhile, it’s that time of the year again when students fresh out of school begin to scout for the right institutions for chosen courses. They are faced with perhaps, the most crucial decision of their lives. Does the institution of choice have a good placement record? Does it have the agility to incorporate new elements in its course curriculum? What about infrastructure, like research laboratories, Wi-Fi connectivity, well-equipped classrooms, hostels and industry connects? The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are the legacy engineering colleges. Every aspiring engineer dreams of getting into an IIT Bombay, Madras, Delhi, Kharagpur or Kanpur. Not counting Black Swan events like Covid -19 (that forced drastic changes in teaching methods) or technological disruptions like artificial intelligence that need to be introduced at breckneck speed, the IITs do not usually witness a shift in pedagogy. BW Businessworld’s annual Engineering Rankings reflect the best in pedagogy, research and overall experience at these and other institutes. The rankings usually differ only marginally from year to year, especially among the top 20 institutions. We hope these ratings benefit aspiring engineers, who also get to peek at the region-specific rankings that offer them options closer home. Of course, we also bring to you all our regular columns and features. Happy reading! ANNURAG BATRA [email protected] AN IPO MARKET WORTH TRACKING EDITOR-IN-CHIEF’S NOTE
Upcoming Special India’s Most Sustainable Companies JULY 15, 2023 The issue highlights organizations leading the way in sustainable practices A comprehensive study of best practices in building a resilient future Regular features and columns Opinion articles from industry leaders fifffflffiflfflffifflffffl flflff fifffflffiflffiflflfffflflfflffffffl fflfflffi Aparna Sengupta, +91 9958000128, [email protected] Anjeet Trivedi, +91 9818122217, [email protected] Ravi Khatri, +91 9891315715, [email protected] CS Rajaraman, +91 9342262859, [email protected] Somyajit Sengupta, +91 9818247444, [email protected] Kiran Dedhia, +91 9833399009, [email protected] Sajjad Mohmmad, +91 9911855935, [email protected] Saurabh Jain, +91 9911334633, [email protected] Shruti Arora, +91 7982628913, [email protected] fifffflffiflfffflffifffffflffififfifflffi ffffl Issue Highlights Block your pages...
8 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 BW Businessworld does not accept responsibility for returning unsolicited manuscripts and photographs. All unsolicited material should be accompanied by self-addressed envelopes and sufficient postage. Published and printed by Annurag Batra for and on behalf of the owners, BW Businessworld Media Private Limited. Published at 74-75, Scindia House, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001, and printed at Infinity Advertising Services Private Limited. Editor : Annurag Batra. © Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. All rights reserved. R.N.I.No. 39847/81 BW Businessworld Media Private Limited EDITORIAL OFFICES BW Businessworld Media Pvt. Ltd. 74-75, Scindia House, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001 Phone: 9818063325 ADVERTISEMENT/CIRCULATION / SUBSCRIPTION ENQUIRIES BW Businessworld Media Pvt. Ltd. 74-75, Scindia House, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001 Phone: 9818063325 SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE Vinod Kumar +91 9810961195, [email protected], [email protected] Subscription rates: ONE YEAR - Rs 2,899 TWO YEARS - Rs 5,599 THREE YEARS - Rs 8,199 HUMAN RESOURCES: Namrata Tripathi ([email protected]) LEGAL ADVISOR: Sudhir Mishra (Trust Legal) GROUP CHAIRMAN & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Dr. ANNURAG BATRA CEO, BW COMMUNITIES Bhuvanesh Khanna CEO & CHIEF INNOVATION OFFICER Hoshie Ghaswalla (CEO-BW Engage) GROUP EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Noor Fathima Warsia EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Suman K. Jha EDITORIAL TEAM Sr. Associate Editors: Ashish Sinha, Jyotsna Sharma, Meha Mathur Assistant Editor:Tarannum Manjul Sr. Correspondents: Rohit Chintapali, Deep Majumdar, Special Correspondent: Rajany Pradhan Correspondents: Abhishek Sharma, Arjun Yadav Jr. Correspondent: Nitesh Kumar, Himanshu Kumar Ojha, Shruti Tripathi, Sangeet Kumar Sanu DESK TEAM Deputy Editor: Mukul Rai Associate Editors: Madhumita Chakraborty; Smita Kulshreshth ART TEAM Art Directors: Dinesh Banduni, Shiv Kumar, Shivaji Sengupta Assistant Art Director: Rajinder Kumar Infographics & Data Visualiser: Arun Kumar Assistant Images Editor: Sanjay Jakhmola PHOTO TEAM Sr. Photo Researcher: Kamal Kumar BW ONLINE: Assistant Editor: Poonam Singh VIDEO EDITORIAL TEAM Video Team: Anurag Giri Pappu Kumar Singh Sunny Kumar Paswan Sr. Cameraperson: Ratneshwar Kumar Singh BW APPLAUSE & EVERYTHING EXPERIENTIAL: Ruhail Amin BW AUTO WORLD: Utkarsh Agarwal BW DISRUPT: Resham Suhail BW EDUCATION: Upasana BW HEALTHCARE WORLD: Smridhi Sharma, Shivam Tyagi, Bhupendra Paintola BW HOTELIER: Editor: Saurabh Tankha Editorial Lead: Bulbul Dhawan Operations Controller: Ajith Kumar LR BW MARKETING WORLD: Soumya Sehgal, Reema Bhaduri BW PEOPLE: Sugandh Bahl, Krishnendra Joshi BW LEGAL WORLD: Kaustubh Mehta BW WELLBEING: Kavi Bhandari, Sanjana Deb BW SECURITY WORLD: Shilpa Chandel BW POLICE WORLD: Ujjawala Nayudu DIRECTOR: Prasar Sharma GROUP SR. VICE PRESIDENT - STRATEGY, OPERATIONS & MARKETING Tanvie Ahuja ([email protected]) CEO, BW HEALTHCARE WORLD & BW WELLBEING WORLD: Harbinder Narula DIRECTOR, ADVERTISING & REVENUE: Aparna Sengupta DIRECTOR, PROJECTS & COMMUNITIES: Talees Rizvi VICE PRESIDENT: Mohit Chopra VICE PRESIDENT STRATEGIC PROJECTS: Uday Laroia MARKETING & DESIGN TEAM: Kartikay Koomar, Mohd. Salman Ali, Moksha Khimasiya, Shweta Boyal, Alka Rawat, Arti Chhipa, Mradul Dwivedi, Himanshu Khulbe Asst. Manager - Design: Kuldeep Kumar EVENTS TEAM Tarun Ahuja, Devika Kundu Sengupta, Priyanshi Khandelwal, Preksha Jain, Akash Kumar Pandey, Mohd. Arshad Reza, Sneha Sinha, Ashish Kumar, Atul, Nandni Sharma, Mahek Surti, Reeti Gupta, Atul Joshi, Biren Singho, Neeraj Verma, Anupama Agrawal, Sushmita Kumari, Vaishali Vij, Anmol Kaur, Baani Chauhan, Shivam Popli, Prashant Kumar, Mayank Kumar SALES TEAM NORTH: Ravi Khatri, Anjeet Trivedi, Rajeev Chauhan, Amit Bhasin, Saurabh Jain, Somyajit Sengupta, Sajjad Mohammad, Agrata Nigam, WEST: Kiran Dedhia, Nilesh Argekar SOUTH: C S Rajaraman BW COMMUNITIES BUSINESS LEADS Priya Saraf (BW Education), Gareema Ahuja (BW Legal World), Chetan Mehra (BW Disrupt), Shruti Arora (BW Marketing World) CIRCULATION TEAM General Manager - Circulation, Subscription & Sales: Vinod Kumar ([email protected]) NORTH-EAST: Vijay Kumar Mishra, Mukhtadir Malik, Kamlesh Prasad WEST: Gorakshanath Sanap SOUTH: Sarvothama Nayak K Production Manager: Shiv Singh FINANCE TEAM Ankit Kumar, Ishwar Sharma, Shrikant Sharma, Vijay Jangra IT SUPPORT: Brijender Wahal ADMIN SUPPORT: Assistant to Chairman & Editor-in-Chief: Aman Mishra ([email protected]) VOL. 42, ISSUE 18 01 JULY 2023
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10 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 MAILBOX YOUR COMMENTS TALK BACK COSTLIER EVs? Subsidy cuts and rollout challenges are likely to decelerate mass adoption of two-wheelers NINE YEARS OF MODI REGIME INDIA’S SUPER CFOs Rs 150 (L to R) R.C. BHARGAVA,Chairman, Maruti; RAJESH JEJURIKAR, Executive Director & CEO (Auto & Farm Sector), Mahindra Group; RAJEEV CHABA, CEO Emeritus, MG Motor India; SOHINDER GILL, CEO, Hero Electric India; SANJAY BEHL, CEO & Executive Director, Greaves Electric Mobility Insights From EV Manufacturers & Stakeholders www.businessworld.in RNI NO. 39847/81 I 17 JUNE 2023 EV: SUNSHINE SECTOR This refers to the editorial (“ SUV Electrification Will Reach An Inflextion Point In Two Years”, BW, June 17). Mahindra, as a market leader in the mobility industry, has the potential to capitalise on the rapidly growing adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) across the country. With the government easing compliance regulations and implementing various schemes, incentives, and subsidies, both established giants and emerging startups can leverage these opportunities to scale their operations. It is particularly encouraging to note that one of the Indian companies, Mahindra, has emerged as the market leader in the threewheeler EV segment, with an impressive 67 per cent market share. While the country still faces several challenges, it is crucial for us to prioritise the promotion of indigenous products instead of relying heavily on the US and European markets. KUNAL SINGH, EMAIL PRIORITISE FOOD SECURITY This refers to the editorial (“ Food Security”, BW, June 17). Given that India is one of the major producers of crops worldwide, we are not considering food scarcity as a major challenge. Undoubtedly, the Green Revolution has significantly improved India’s position since its early decades of independence. However, global warming is now impacting crops in India, just like it does in other parts of the world. Therefore, it is imperative that we escalate our efforts and begin prioritising food security with the same seriousness as we do with pollution control. Currently, over 50 per cent of India’s crops rely on rainfall. As climate change alters weather patterns, we must transition our reliance for irrigation to more dependable sources such as water canals and borewells. By doing so, we can ensure a sustainable and secure food supply for our nation. PRITI WALUNJKAR, EMAIL BLIPP THIS PAGE TO GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK INSTANTLY Submissions to BW |Businessworld should include the writer’s name and address and be sent by email to the editor at [email protected] or by mail to 74-75, Scindia House, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001
JURY MEMBERS Sunil Khurana Managing Director & CEO BPL Technologies Aakash Sachdev Director of ASG Hospital (ASG) and Managing Director Foundation Holdings Gautam Khanna CEO, PD Hinduja Hospital & Medical Research Centre, Mumbai Dr. Mohit Gupta Professor of Cardiology, GB Pant Hospital, New Delhi Dr. Sunita Kapoor Lead Accreditor NABL Dr. Lallu Joseph Quality Manager, Christian Medical College & Hospital, Vellore Mr. Raj Gore CEO, HCG Dr. Annurag Batra Chairman & Editor-in-Chief, BW Businessworld & Founder, Exchange4Media Harbinder Narula CEO, BW Healthcare World and Wellbeing World For Nominations and Speaking Opportunities: Smridhi Sharma [email protected] +91 98715 98343 Kiran Dedhia [email protected] +91 98333 99009 CS Rajaraman [email protected] +91 93422 62859 For Sponsorships & Partnerships: Somyajit Sengupta [email protected] +91 98182 47444 ASSOCIATE PARTNER ORGANIZED BY EVENT PARTNERS THIRTY UNDER SUMMIT & AWARDS 2023 JULY 2023 #BWHealthcare30under30 NOMINATE NOW LAST DATE TO NOMINATE: JULY 10, 2023
12 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 Cover designs by SHIV KUMAR Cover photograph courtesy (Robin Raina image): EbixCash It’s Time to IPO, Again Companies have lined up plans to raise more than Rs 1 lakh crore via IPOs over the next 6-7 months. How will the new season unfold? 16 Jottings Housing prices move up in 8 cities; The trillion-dollar-club; Ring fence data reservoirs; The jugadoo Indian and more 18 Columns Minhaz Merchant (p. 18); Vikas Singh (p. 20); Srinath Sridharan & Steve Correa (p. 22); Bibek Debroy, Amit Kapoor & Aditya Sinha (p. 24); Ajai Kumar Dayal (p. 30); Jayesh Shah (p. 32); Srinath Sridharan (p. 34); Kiran Karnik(p. 38); Prakash Iyer (p. 40); Anu Sehgal (p. 42); Krishan Kalra (p. 66) 44 Interview Lakshmi Narayanan B, Chief Marketing Office, CEAT on the marketing initiatives the company has taken over the past year along with increased focus on activations and building and supporting niche communities 56 In Conversation Robin Raina, Chairman, EbixCash on consistent growth and profitability being the lynchpin of his business philosophy and how the same is going to be reflected in his company’s proposed IPO through which it wants to create value for all the stakeholders 46 CONTENTS VOLUME 42, ISSUE 18 01 JULY 2023 Photograph by Subhabrata Das
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 13 The pages in BW Businessworld that are labelled BWi or Promotions contain sponsored content. They are entirely generated by an advertiser or the marketing department of BW Businessworld. Also, the inserts being distributed along with some copies of the magazine are advertorials /advertisements. These pages should not be confused with BW Businessworld’s editorial content. TOTAL NO. OF PAGES INCLUDING COVER 150 62 Fuel for Growth How home healthcare major Portea Medical’s (Healthvista India) proposed listing plan is part of its overall strategy to maintain its leadership position in the segment 64 Ensuring Growth How IndiaFirst Life is looking to carry forward its stellar performance during FY22 by taking the proposed listing route 70 9 Years of Vikaasvad Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State for Food Processing & Jal Shakti on the Modi government’s achievements during the past nine years 72 In Conversation R. Dinesh, the newly elected President of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on what he thinks of the current state of the Indian economy and the pivotal role CII is playing in driving growth 80 HRspeak Aditya Kohli, CHRO, Orient Electric, on the employability concerns surrounding engineering graduates and how engineering colleges and students can brace for the impact of AI 82 Nurture Core Streams V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, on the thrust areas in engineering that are for societal and country’s benefit 84 Embracing AI Kamal Kishore Pant, Director, IIT Roorkee on the utilisation of artificial intelligence and machine learning for optimising the efficient use of resources in the agriculture sector 86 Making an Impact Parameswar K. Iyer, Officiating Director, IIT Guwahati, on the social impact that this lone IIT in the north-east is creating 88 Iconic Legacy Abhay Karandikar, Director, IIT Kanpur, on how this legacy institute continues to be in the top league of engineering colleges 90 Focus on Multitasking P. B. Sharma, Vice-Chancellor, Amity University Gurugram, on how the institution lays emphasis on enabling students to become multitaskers and future-ready 92 Ranking Tables 142 Gadget Review A review of the ROG Flow X13, the 13-inch gaming laptop from ASUS in its 2023 avatar, and how it is different from the previous editions of the Flow X13 76 Engineering & AI How engineering campuses are bracing for the impact of rapidly changing technologies, and what they are doing on the ground to shape the future 148 Last Word Nilesh Shah, Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company on the deft handling of the country’s economy by the RBI amid uncertainties
14 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 NMDC has consistently performed well. Comment on its physical performance in the post-COVID economy. NMDC stood by the nation through thick and thin. Displaying tremendous resilience, the company worked its way up post the pandemic without compromising on the steady supply of iron ore. We managed to continuously outperform ourselves each month and each quarter. FY21 was a landmark year for us where despite the challenges of the pandemic, we gave in our best to achieve production and sales of 34.15 MT and 33.25 MT during the year. In FY22, NMDC recorded a historic 42 MnT production, becoming the first company in the country to cross 42 million tonnes of iron ore production. We re-created this feat again in FY23, crossing 40 MnT production for the second time in a row. This historic milestone of 42 MnT was achieved on the back of steady fundamentals and a visionary workforce that committed to outperforming its previous targets. Despite challenges, NMDC remained undeterred in its vision to contribute to the growing demand of iron ore in the country and its economy. In FY22, NMDC produced 42.19 million tonnes and sold 40.56 million tonnes of iron ore. With this, the company registered the strongest ever physical growth of 24% in its history, over the previous fiscal’s production of 34.15 million tonnes and a 22% sales growth over the 33.25 million tonnes sold in FY21. In FY22, it recorded a turnover of Rs. 25,882 crore against Rs. 15,370 crore in the previous year, a 68% move upwards. The public sector company also paid its highest ever dividend of 1474% during FY22. NMDC also delivered the company’s best ever annual financial results in FY22. In Q4 FY23, NMDC produced 14.13 MnT and sold 12.41 MnT which is a testimony to its ability to outperform itself each quarter. With these powerful performances, NMDC remains an iron and steel powerhouse. NMDC has also achieved strong fundamentals by investing in cuttingedge mining technologies. With a focus to enhance mine capacity and strengthen logistical support, NMDC has prepared itself to manoeuvre cyclical challenges and is on its way to become a mining giant by 2030. Highlight some key focus areas of your company’s CSR and what impact has it had on the community and your business? NMDC started setting up mines in Bailadila, Chhattisgarh in the early 1960s. Our first health setup for the employees was extended to the host community and since then NMDC has been building a robust health infrastructure for the people of Chhattisgarh and Karnataka. Our Project Hospitals annually benefit around 10,000 in-patients and 1,00,000 out-patients. We have now rolled out Hospital on Wheels to strengthen our health coverage. NMDC’s contributions towards addressing malnutrition, menstrual and maternal health have impacted generations in the State. After NMDC’s contribution to the health sector, Dantewada came to be known as the Island of Prosperity in Chhattisgarh. “NMDC has consistently performed well and its physical and financial performance post-COVID has been excellent” Amitava Mukherjee, CMD (Additional Charge)
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 15 Creating opportunities for the youth of Bastar has been a primary goal for NMDC. First generation school goers study at NMDC Residential Schools and seek benefits from our scholarship and sponsorship programmes - Shiksha Sahayog Yojana and Balika Shiksha Yojana. NMDC runs state-of-the-art Industrial Training Institutes in Bhansi and Nagarnar and over 500 students from our ITIs are employed in MNCs across the country. We encourage entrepreneurship and support the community in creating their own livelihood. In Chhattisgarh’s Education City, NMDC runs Saksham - a school for specially-abled children and is committed to providing them an equal opportunity at quality education. The company has constructed 123 kilometres of all weather roads, 90 bridges and culverts, community centres and hospitals & PHCs in nearby villages and also an Education City in some of the remotest regions of the country to provide better connectivity and facilitate overall development. NMDC has played an indispensable role in building the Bijapur Sports Academy. Recipient of the Chhattisgarh Khel Ankur Award, Bijapur Sports Academy is training and honing the sports talent of tribal youth who go on to participate in national and international games. These CSR initiatives have helped NMDC forge a deep relationship with the community that has perhaps won the company its social licence. In the six decades, our business has grown and expanded from strength to strength because it has always had the faith of the people living around NMDC mines. How have you become an Eco-Friendly Miner? As a leading CPSE of the country, we take cognizance of our farreaching impact on the economy, environment and society. Iron ore is mined from ecologically sensitive areas and it is our responsibility to safeguard our host environment. Proactively adopting the Sustainable Development Framework for the mining sector, NMDC has invested in technological solutions to reduce fugitive emissions, nurture biodiversity and steer towards green energy. NMDC’s Downhill Conveyor is not only operationally efficient but is also equipped with electricity generation capacity. We are constructing a 15 MTPA Slurry Pipeline from Bailadila to Visakhapatnam via Nagarnar for the economic and environment-friendly transportation of iron ore. NMDC has set up a Beneficiation and Pellet Plant in Donimalai and a similar plant on a larger scale is underway in Bailadila towards ‘ZeroWaste Mining’. Committed to hosting a better forest and ecology around our mines than when we started mining in the region, we have built a sturdy afforestation programme. NMDC has planted over 3.0 million trees around the mines in Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh since inception. We conduct annual Carbon Footprint studies to evaluate the Greenhouse Gas emissions from our operations and in the last decade, we have reduced our total per tonne GHG emission intensity by 24%. For our responsible mine and resource planning, all NMDC’s ecofriendly mining complexes have earned a 5-Star Rating from the Indian Bureau of Mines, Government of India. What are your top 3 strategic priorities at the moment? The top 3 strategic priorities for NMDC and for NSL are: (i) Commissioning of NSL in the beginning of next quarter; (ii) Achieving 100 MTPA production target by 2030; and (iii) Diversifying the business to ensure 15% of topline of NMDC is contributed from businesses other than iron ore in 5 years. We are on the right track to achieve all the three. We are in advanced stages of the commissioning, and we have a dedicated team working day and night to ensure commissioning of the plant at the earliest. We have succeeded in crossing 40+ MnT p r o d u c t i o n f o r a consecutive second year and we are targeting to achieve the production capacity of 67 MTPA by FY25 and 100 MTPA by FY30 through expansion of the existing mines and acquisition of new green/ brown field projects. Odisha and Jharkhand are the target states for acquisition of new projects considering that the two states lie in the vicinity of a zone that contributes to more than 40% of the total crude steel capacity of the country. We are in talks with both the States to award iron ore mines to NMDC through an allocation route. Lastly, we have plans to expand horizontally into other minerals apart from iron ore and diamond, vertically into pellet and steel making as well as geographically into other countries to reduce the dependence on a single commodity. We have already been allocated two coal deposits in Jharkhand namely Tokisud and Rohne by the Government of India. We are in advanced stages to operationalise these mines. We have also acquired the Chigargunta-Bisanatham gold block in Andhra Pradesh through an auction route. Internationally, NMDC owns 26% stake in ICVL, which operates a coking coal asset in Mozambique and 90.02% stake in Legacy Iron Ore Limited, Australia which is conducting exploration in Gold, Nickel and Base Metals. NMDC will take up operation of these minerals subject to satisfactory outcome of exploration results and feasibility study. n
16 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 JOTTINGS NVIDIA’S METEORIC rise in stock value, tripling in less than eight months, is a resounding endorsement of the immense potential of artificial intelligence (AI). As generative AI continues to make remarkable strides, captivating us with its human-like conversation a n d c r e a t i v e a b i l i t i e s , Nvidia has positioned itself a t t h e f o r e f r o n t o f t h i s transformative technology. While some may argue that the Santa Clara-based company’s valuation appears lofty, it is essential to recognise the pivotal role Nvidia may play in shaping the future. Why? Nvidia is not just a chipmaker; it is quintessentially an enabler of progress. Its AI GPU technology, powering generative AI systems, has become the gold standard for industry giants like Alphabet and Microsoft. With a staggering 80 per cent The Trillion Dollar Club Photograph by Andy HOUSING PRICES MOVE UPWARDS IN 8 CITIES HOUSING PRICES in India’s top eight cities rose by eight per cent year-onye a r (y- o -y) o w i n g t o strong demand and quality launches by developers. The Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) area saw the highest increase at 16 per cent y-o-y, followed by Kolkata and Bengaluru with 15 per cent and 14 per cent y-o-y increases, respectively. Despite higher interest rates, housing prices have been climbing because of consistent demand since last year. Since interest rates are expected to have peaked, a pause in rising repo rates and a healthy domestic economic outlook is likely to The top eight cities also experienced a 12 per cent y-o-y increase in unsold inventor y. About 95 per cent of unsold units were under construction. Hyderabad saw the highest jump in unsold inventory at 38 per cent y-o-y, while the Delhi -NCR, Bengaluru, and Chennai saw a decrease owing to significant sales growth. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) accounted for the largest share of unsold inventory at 37 per cent, followed by Pune at 13 per cent. —Ashish Sinha maintain a positive market sentiment. President of CREDAI, Boman Irani said, “Homebuyers’ sentiment has been positive due to a conducive buying environment. Sales volume has been significant, especially in tier -1 cities across India. Despite rising prices from increased raw material costs and demand, we expect strong momentum to continue as consumers show an appetite for new, larger houses with better amenities in the post-pandemic era.” market share in GPUs, Nvidia stands tall as the go-to provider for data centres and companies driving the AI revolution. The broader implications of Nvidia’s success extend far beyond its stock value. By revolutionising industries such as gaming, cloud computing a n d c r y p t o c u r r e n c y mining, the company has demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt and capitalise on emerging trends. Nvidia’s achievement of a trillion-dollar market value should serve as a wake-up call to sceptics. It is a testament to the seismic shifts occurring in our society, driven by the accelerating pace of technological innovation. As we witness Nvidia’s remarkable journey, it is clear that AI is not just a buzzword. It is the future. — Rohit Chintapalli
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 17 The Jugadoo Indian IN THE COURSE of a fortnight t w o b i g e p i s o d e s h a v e overwhelmed the healthcare i n d u s t r y – a t h w a r t e d Ransomware attack on India’s most revered institution for teaching and research on medicine, namely AIIMS in New Delhi, and the alleged CoWIN data breach over the messaging application Telegram. The alleged data breach was apparently the cause of leaking of crucial personal information on those registered on the Co-WIN platform for Covid-19 vaccination. Experts have A VIDEO that has gone viral shows an innovative v e h i c l e , c o m p r i s i n g a charpoy and a motorbike engine. T he motorbike driver swerves into a filling station with a passenger on the charpoy and then back onto the highway. The caption beneath says, “No wonder Elon Musk never visits India”. The jugadoo (enterprising) Indian comes in many shapes and sizes, from the slapdash “Indian electrician” that the late British king consort Prince Philip had once sardonically referred to, to the many enterprising paramilitary and National Disaster Relief Management (NDRF) personnel who improvise shelters and save lives during calamities like Cyclone Biparjoy. While the Hindi expression ‘jugaar’ may be new, the spirit that drives these improvisations dates back to times of need and want in India. The ‘kantha stitch’ that is a fashion statement in Bengal and elsewhere, originates from the humble ‘kantha’ – a cotton quilt fashioned out of old sarees and bedsheets. Even half a century ago, almost nothing was thrown away in a middle income home and health drink bottles turned up as masala storage bins on the kitchen shelf and cookie tins stored grain. Of course, in the modern day, these habits are being lauded again and the trend is called “recycling”. There is another difference. This time we are not saving the family budget, but the earth. — Madhumita Chakraborty described these events as warnings of the need to ring fence the data reservoirs of the rising India Stack. Hackers find health data the most lucrative for monetising. Reports say that globally healthcare institutions are 73 per cent more likely to pay a ransom against a Ransomware attack by threat actors. In the purported Co-WIN data breach, however, the data is no good for extortion. Industry experts says data on sexual and terminal diseases are usually exploited for extortion by threat actors. The Union government has denied a direct data breach of the Co-WIN platform or its backend databases. Union Minister of State for Electronics and Technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar has said on Twitter that the data accessed by the threat actor was old and had been stolen previously. Nevertheless, alarm bells are ringing in the healthcare industry about prospects of identity thefts. These recent assaults on government institutions like AIIMS, ICMR and Co-WIN make a strong case for the speedy passage of the Data Protection Bill. —Shivam Tyagi Ring Fence Data Reservoirs Photograph by Amit Verma
18 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 S CHINA’S MIRACLE ECONOMY catching the Japanese disease? The signs have been apparent for some time: a shrinking population, ageing demographics and stalling economic growth. Particularly worrisome for China’s authorities is the weakness of the manufacturing sector. The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for manufacturing sagged from 49.2 in April 2023 to 48.8 in May 2023, indicating weak factory output. China’s exports have long fuelled economic growth but they too are slowing in the face of recessionary demand in the West. Chinese export growth in May fell to 8.5 per cent from 14.8 per cent in April. China of course remains the world’s largest exporter and the second largest economy. But the expected bounce-back from the aborted draconian Covid lockdown has been muted. The real estate sector, which accounts directly for 25 per cent and indirectly, through ancillary industries, for 33 per cent of China’s economy, remains severely stressed. Public and private debt is soaring. Municipal corporations across China have recently resorted to publishing advertisements in newspapers asking debtors to pay up. Local bodies are short of funds for development projects because borrowers haven’t repaid loans or settled outstanding invoices. Economic growth in 2023-24 is estimated to fall below five per cent. The chip war launched by the United States-led West is aimed at keeping China at least one generation behind in advanced chip technology. Japan too has joined the West in denying China its latest chip technology. Ever-thinner chips are driving a tech ecosystem based on artificial intelligence (AI) and deep machine learning. A long-term worry for Beijing is the example of Japan’s 30-year decline from the world’s most dynamic economy to a society that fears it could cease to be a viable nation by the end of this century. Several characteristics of Japan’s decline are present in China. According to Bloomberg: “Japan will spend around ¥3.5 trillion ($25 billion) on policies meant to bolster its sliding birthrate. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has warned that the country’s population crisis threatens to undermine its ability to function as a society.” There are significant similarities between Japan and China. Both are closed, ethnically homogenous societies. China is largely ethnic Han, Japan is largely ethnic Yamato. Both countries discourage immigration. In Japan that is a double-edged sword. The country has one of the world’s lowest levels of violent crime. But homogeneity – 97.5 per cent of Japan’s population is ethnic “Japanese” – brings with it the spectre of demographic Armageddon. The United Nations ranks Japan as the world’s “oldest nation”. More than 30 per China’s Japanese Syndrome I Minhaz Merchant COLUMN MINHAZ MERCHANT The writer is the biographer of Rajiv Gandhi and Aditya Birla and author of The New Clash of Civilizations (Rupa 2014). He is founder of Sterling Newspapers Pvt Ltd., which was acquired by the Indian Express Group
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 19 One reason President Xi Jinping imposed his draconian Covid lockdown policy last year, before abandoning it, is the fear that elderly Chinese would be vulnerable to new strains of Covid, leading to catastrophic fatalities, especially given the low rate of vaccination among elderly Chinese. The relatively mild Covid variant that struck China in 2022 allowed the authorities to end the lockdown and restart the economy. So far the results have been mixed. But China has many inherent strengths. Its demographic dividend began 30 years after Japan’s in the 1990s, and the ageing of the population will reach crisis proportions only in the 2040s. To prepare for a geometric rather than linear future economic slowdown, Beijing has begun a charm offensive. It recently hosted a raft of Western billionaires and CEOs, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk and JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon. Musk was lavish in his praise of China’s advanced technology across sectors. Tesla manufactures 8,00,000 EV cars at its Shanghai Gigafactory. An upbeat Musk said at cent of Japanese are above the age of 65. The average Japanese is 50 years old. The government fears a demographic tsunami will wash over Japan in the second half of this century. Several cities are losing population. Some towns and villages have disappeared entirely off the map as no one remains there. According to Mihoko Onoue, a realtor in Tokigawa, a small town not far from Tokyo, “Depopulation is an unstoppable phenomenon happening all across the nation. It’s neither good nor bad, but something we must accept. And once A long-term worry for Beijing is the example of Japan’s 30-year decline from the world’s most dynamic economy to a society that fears it could cease to be a viable nation by the end of this century. Several characteristics of Japan’s decline are present in China the end of his Shanghai visit: “I tell people throughout the world, the cars we produce here are not just the most efficient, but also of the highest quality.” Despite Musk’s optimism, Beijing knows it is dealing with three problems: one, a long-term demographic decline that will severely impact productivity and stall future economic growth; two, a tech war with the West on chips and other advanced technologies which could undercut China’s ambition to be the world’s technological superpower; and three, geopolitical tensions with the West and littoral Asian states over Taiwan. This cornucopia of demographic, technological and political challenges has forced Beijing to recalibrate its aggressive policy at the India border. China remains a predatory power but it knows it can’t fight all its enemies at once. The Financial Times noted that Dimon was more cautious than Musk about China: “Businesses with major ambitions in China are caught between tensions between Beijing and Washington. Dimon, in private comments, said the complexity of the international order now surpassed that seen during the Cold War.” the baby-boomers are gone, we’ll see the population plummet further. So my job is to find people who are willing to relocate and live in Tokigawa for decades to come. “There are many unoccupied residences in Tokigawa that could be on the market, but most owners either underestimate their value or are reluctant to dispose of homes full of memories of their parents and ancestors.” China stares at a Japanese future: the average Chinese is 40 years old; over 15 per cent of Chinese are above the age of 65 and the ratio is rising. Photograph by 3d Generator
20 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 THE RAPID GROWTH of the last three decades has pulled a majority of Indians out of poverty and lifted a large percentage to a life of comfort and dignity. Growth has largely been driven by the disposable income and spending power of middle-income households. The vibrant middle-class is an avid consumer and a catalyst for growth. It comprises six crore households who are the backbone, growth engine and the heartbeat of the economy. Over two-thirds of the economy is domesticfocused and contributes to a sizeable indirect tax revenue. ‘Invasion’ of the ‘Aspiring’ This is good news. The segments are porous and the transition and mobility are seamless. The pandemic earlier and job layoffs now, have added to the porosity. However, the threshold for the upper- middle income bracket and the rich is high, rare, and ‘generational’. Not decadal. The middle-income bracket rarely transits up. Policymakers do not have a definition for the middle class. Most others use it loosely. Anyone above the threshold of the ‘poor’ or below that of the rich are ‘bracketed’ as the middle-income group. A Crux study of 16,000 houseBy Vikas Singh The author is an economist and columnist holds across five income spectrums gives an insight into the fact that India needs a composite and holistic indicator, based on multiple economic features intertwined with social characteristics. While income indeed is the key, credentials like skills, occupation, education, housing and other factors like social networks and lifestyles too, are important components. The study concludes that welfare and subsidies must be pivoted on more holistic and equally relevant indicators. We have none. The Middle-Income Group is neglected The study highlights that aspirers have a higher income stream with an average of nine of ten adults in the household involved in ‘earning’ activities. This is imploding with the gig economy. Most are plumbers, carpenters, electricians, mechanics, blue collar workers, street vendors or housemaids. They are ‘indispensable’. A large proportion are ‘outsiders’ (migrants). The middle-class household has only six of ten adult earning members. And as a result, are unable to keep pace with the rising costs of healthcare, childcare, education, and housing, among other monthly expenses. The study further highlights that hospitalisation, or a job loss sets them back by three years. Inflation hurts the middle more. Despite GDP growth, the income of middle-income households has ‘stagnated’ in relation to the aspiring class over the last decade. This is in stark contrast with the income trajectories of those at the bottom (admittedly the state provides a stronger and wider safety net) and the very top of the income pyramid. Four of the five respondents lamented that they are orphans. The Crux study articulates that boosting the income of the middle and the poor is socially accretive and a big economic driver. While income inequality is bad for growth and its sustainability, the income distribution impacts the growth THE INCOME GLASS CEILING OF THE FRAGILE MIDDLE CLASS COLUMN
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 21 are not sustainable in a rising automation environment, even less for the low skilled. The middle class need to embrace the idea that low-end white-collar jobs are getting scarce, and saturated. They must realise that competition for jobs is intense and has never been fiercer. They have for long ‘banked’ on education as a means to qualifying for jobs and a comfortable lifestyle. The premium attached to education has flattened (salaries of newly minted computer science graduates has not even kept pace with inflation over the last three decades). Payback (cost to salaries) is now five years and upward in many cases. Employment opportunities are now centred around skills, rather than ‘degrees’. They must adopt the idea of dignity of labour. While the contribution of women to the household is meaningful, the significant other must ‘move’ out to the workplace to augment the primary income. The gig economy is a godsend opportunity. Middle-income households also need to rein in non-essential expenditure. The study highlights that the expenditure on marriages is about six times the average annual salary of the groom. Over 60 per cent of the respondents believe that their children will be financially worse off than their parents. At the beginning of the century over 90 per cent of the children did better financially than their parents. Now the number is close to 30 per cent. The rate of upward mobility is diminishing too. The good news is that children born into poor families will do better than their parents. The Crux study highlights and implies an income convergence of the aspiring and the middle class activated by income stagnation of the latter and the growth of the former. While we celebrate the growth of the aspiring class, policymakers must ensure that the middle-income group doesn’t slip and get left behind. This will need a concerted as well as a collective response. rate; often more, if the social platform is skewed. A rupee in the wallet of the middle-income enhances the growth rate by a tenth, against the same rupee in the vault of the rich. The poor and the middle-income group consume a higher portion of the income, triggering a consumption led virtuous growth cycle. Earn More than Graduating Engineers The aspiring class ‘invest’ a higher proportion of their income and effort on vocational skills. Their children enter the job market early, and graduate as ‘master’ and enhance productivity within two years. Most carpenters, plumbers, electricians earn more than 90 per cent of the graduating engineers. They forfeit the societal respect. The future is not bright either. Taxes and transfers normally reduce the level of inequality but have done little to support the middle-income groups. The increasing redistributive (disguised as welfare) trend bypasses them. Addressing the challenges will require a multifaceted approach. A potential solution is to create better targeted government programmes, including subsidies for health insurance, education, and housing, while also incentivising those who pay taxes. The government should provide ‘capital’ for entrepreneurship, augment it by linking them to the larger economic ecosystem, nourishing them until they stabilise. A success rate of 10 per cent will pay back. Middle of Nowhere Individuals too need to take bigger, judicious steps. They must invest in skills and entrepreneurship. White-collar jobs The Crux study highlights and implies an income convergence of the aspiring and the middle class activated by income stagnation of the latter and the growth of the former Photograph by Urostomic
22 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 support networks, self-reflection exercises, and cultivating a growth mindset. Impostor syndrome presents a significant challenge in the corporate world, affecting the well-being and performance of employees. By incorporating the lessons learned from impostor syndrome, organisations can create a culture that supports employees in overcoming self-doubt and embracing their true potential. Understanding the Individual Challenges Impostor syndrome can manifest in various ways, impacting individuals’ confidence, performance, and career progression. From a business standpoint, these challenges can have adverse effects on productivity, collaboration, and talent retention. Self-Doubt and Fear of Failure: Individuals grappling with impostor syndrome often doubt their abilities and fear that their achievements are merely a result of luck or external factors. This self-doubt can hinder decisionmaking, risk-taking, and innovative thinking, stifling individual and organisational growth. Perfectionism and Overworking: Impostor syndrome can drive individuals to set excessively high standards for themselves, leading to perfectionism and a constant need to prove their worth. This can result in burnout, decreased productivity, and an unhealthy work-life balance. Undermined Self-Confidence: Despite external recognition and accomplishments, individuals with impostor syndrome struggle to internalise their successes. This lack of self-confidence can limit their ability to speak up, take on new challenges, and assume leadership roles. Organisations and Impostor Syndrome Impostor syndrome thrives in an environment where individuals fear judgment and scrutiny. To counter this, organisations must prioritise cultivating psychological safety – a culture where employees feel comfortable expressing their ideas, seeking help, and taking calculated risks without the fear of harsh judgment or ridicule. By fostering an environment that encourages open communication, collaboration, and learning from mistakes, OMAL WORKED AT K a prestigious marketing firm and despite her impressive qualifications and a track record of successful projects, she was often plagued with feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt. While starting her career, she found herself surrounded by highly talented and accomplished colleagues. Instead of feeling motivated and inspired, she felt overwhelmed and feared that she didn’t measure up to their level of expertise. Even the praise she received from her clients or supervisors, only enhanced her feelings that she was merely pretending to be competent, and to being an impostor, and to someday being exposed. Interestingly, she attributed her accomplishments to external factors such as luck or good timing, rather than acknowledging her own skills and hard work. This constant self-doubt began to affect her confidence and hinder her professional growth. She often hesitated to voice her ideas, fearing that they would be dismissed as inadequate or foolish. She would compare herself to her colleagues, convinced that they possessed a deeper understanding of the industry and were more deserving of success. Komal’s impostor syndrome created a vicious cycle. The more she doubted herself, the more her anxiety grew, leading to even greater self-criticism. Impostor Syndrome, a phenomenon characterised by persistent self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy despite evident success, has become a prevalent issue in the business world. From entry-level employees to top executives, many individuals experience the nagging fear of being exposed as frauds, hindering their professional growth and overall well-being. Psychologists Pauline Clance and Suzanne Imes first identified this phenomenon in the 1970s. It is not classified as a mental disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Interestingly, various interventions have been explored to help individuals overcome impostor syndrome. These include cognitive-behavioural therapy, group interventions, mentoring and Impostor Syndrome, Really? PEOPLE TALK By Srinath Sridharan & Steve Correa
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 23 tools for combating impostor syndrome. Encourage managers and leaders to provide constructive feedback that acknowledges employees’ strengths and areas for improvement. Recognising accomplishments and publicly appreciating employees’ contributions can help validate their achievements, boost self-confidence, and alleviate feelings of impostorism. Diversity and inclusion initiatives have a direct impact on combating impostor syndrome. Creating diverse teams that value different perspectives and experiences helps individuals realise that their unique contributions are valued. Organisations should strive to create an inclusive culture where everyone feels a sense of belonging, fostering an environment where individuals can thrive without feeling like they need to prove themselves constantly. An Alternative View Valerie Young, an internationally recognised expert on impostor syndrome, in a Ted talk explores what causes this syndrome. She argues a need for re-framing. So, when some acknowledges don’t say, ‘really?’, but instead, ‘Thank You’. Vincella Smith in her Kellogg MBA Graduation speech argues ‘Stay an impostor syndrome for as long as you humanly can!’ arguing that such folks tend to remain humble and curious. Jordon Peterson argues that impostor syndrome is natural every time you make a transition to a new role. Yet, while you are grappling with the inadequacy / discomfort you must act as if you are confidant (even if you were on your maiden flight as a pilot, for example). Anyone who is not narcissistic would feel that. You can be ignorant, but you should be attentive and be willing to ask questions. Reshma Saujine argues that it is not a syndrome as it is being made out to be, rather it is a scheme. She asserts that it is not a problem for her to solve nor for anyone to solve. She believes this whole phenomenon was built on lies, the first one, is that perhaps there is something wrong with you (that you are the problem) even while asserting that being uncomfortable and having anxiety is a natural response to stressful situations. Systemic and structural inequality cannot be mitigated by individuals alone. She asserts that it is never about competence, qualification, being smart, etc. but it is all about political, the financial and the cultural barriers. organisations can help individuals overcome impostor syndrome and unlock their full potential. A fixed mindset, characterised by the belief that abilities and intelligence are fixed traits, fuels impostor syndrome. Organisations should promote a growth mindset, emphasising that skills and abilities can be developed through effort, learning, and experience. Encouraging continuous learning, providing opportunities for professional development, and celebrating progress can help individuals embrace challenges and view setbacks as opportunities for growth, reducing the impact of impostor syndrome. Mentorship and sponsorship programmes play a crucial role in combating impostor syndrome. Pairing individuals with experienced mentors or sponsors who can provide guidance, support, and advocacy can help individuals build confidence, navigate challenges, and gain valuable insights. Organisations should invest in these programmes, creating formal structures that facilitate meaningful connections and foster professional growth. Regular feedback and recognition are vital Srinath Sridharan is author, Time for Bharat and executive coach & corporate advisor Steve Correa is executive coach, OD Consultant & author, The Indian Boss at Work Jordon Peterson argues that impostor syndrome is natural every time you make a transition to a new role. Yet, while you are grappling with the inadequacy / discomfort you must act as if you are confidant (even if you were on your maiden flight as a pilot, for example). Anyone who is not narcissistic would feel that. You can be ignorant, but you should be attentive and be willing to ask questions Photograph by Danielt1994
24 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 An Unfinished Journey Towards Urban Decentralisation HE DISCIPLINE of routine policy outcome assessment is not a matter of convenience but a critical pillar of effective governance and policy implementation. It’s akin to a seafarer’s relentless verification of their intended course. Absence of such due diligence may allow unnoticed deviations, a situation captured by the dilemma of Alice from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, who found herself disoriented within a perplexing rabbit hole. Consistent tracking offers policymakers the leeway to modify their direction, amend errors, hone strategies, and ascertain that policies align with their predetermined outcomes. It also serves as a bulwark of accountability, providing tangible evidence of policy impacts. A potent example that accentuates this fact is the “Metric Martyrs” incident in the UK during the early 2000s. Local traders, under a policy aimed at metrication, faced penalties for selling commodities in conventional imperial units. Regrettably, the supervising authorities failed to effectively gauge and respond to public sentiment and understanding of the new system, leading to an outcry and an eventual reversion to the age-old system – a preventable outcome of a policy failure. Drawing on these insights and casting them upon the backdrop of India’s 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, a monumental legislation that took effect three decades ago on 1st June 1993, it is incumbent upon both the central and state governments to rigorously evaluate whether the desired objectives of this landmark constitutional amendment have been realised or not. The impeARTHSASTRA by Bibek Debroy, Amit Kapoor & Aditya Sinha Clockwise: Bibek Debroy, T Amit Kapoor & Aditya Sinha
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 25 tus to examine its impacts and outcomes is both a responsibility and a necessity, to ensure that the promise of this transformative act, intended to reshape the landscape of local selfgovernance, is not just on paper but effectively enacted in practice. Every Bill introduced in either the Parliament or state legislative bodies comes bundled with a ‘Statement of Objects and Reasons’ (SOR). This document is a crucial blueprint, revealing the motivating principles and intended objectives behind the proposed legislative action. It brings clarity to the government’s or a private member’s intentions during the drafting of the Bill. For a comprehensive review of any proposed legislation, it is paramount for legislative analysts and policy experts to scrutinise the SOR to understand the deeper purpose and anticipated outcomes of the Bill. Furthermore, once a Bill is enacted into law, this very statement becomes a key resource for gauging the law’s efficacy in meeting its stated aims over time. The SOR is instrumental in providing a metric for evaluation, thus enabling one to determine the extent to which the law has fulfilled its primary goals as time passes. It is worth quoting the first paragraph of the SOR. “In many States local bodies have become weak and ineffective on account of a variety of reasons, including the failure to hold regular elections, prolonged supersessions and inadequate devolution of powers and functions. As a result, Urban Local Bodies are not able to perform effectively as vibrant democratic units of self-government.” Let us look at each of these reasons and track the progress on these parameters. uFailure of regular elections: In the stark reality of our present day, the neglect towards scheduled elections for both rural and urban local bodies remain glaring. Back in May 2022, the Supreme Court Justice A. M. Khanwilkar presided over a bench that found itself astonished and alarmed at this ludicrous scenario, an issue permeating not just one state, but across our nation. The bench observed, “…. This kind of delay cannot be permitted when the constitutional scheme requires such seats to be filled within the stipulated period.” His observations resonate deeply, declaring such deferral as an intolerable offense when the core tenets of our constitution mandate that these vacancies be duly filled within specified Three Decades of the 74th Constitutional Amendment: The analysis by Praja Foundation (https://tinyurl.com/2p94edvt) of the devolution of financial powers to urban centres across India reveals an unsettling reality. It indicates that despite the provisions of the Act, a significant number of urban local bodies have not yet been granted full financial autonomy Photograph by Leochen66 / CANVA
26 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 timeframes. The court didn’t hesitate to express its intense disapproval towards the Madhya Pradesh government for their glaring neglect in conducting elections for over 23,000 rural local bodies. Further compounding this negligence, elections have been absent in as many as 321 urban local bodies in Madhya Pradesh since the year 2019-2020. Unfortunately, Madhya Pradesh is not an exception. Elections to ULBs were not held in several states. v Inadequate devolution of powers and functions: Decentralisation is incomplete without devolution of financial powers. The ULBs, pivotal in navigating India’s urbanisation process and ensuring the provision of critical services, encounter substantial challenges on their trajectory. One primary challenge is the restrained devolution of powers. Despite constitutional provisions, a divergence is evident in the practical realm, where states delegate only a limited number of taxes to ULBs, rendering these bodies financially reliant on higher tiers of governance. The analysis by Praja Foundation (https://tinyurl.com/2p94edvt) of the devolution of financial powers to urban centres across India reveals an unsettling reality. It indicates that despite the provisions of the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, a significant number of urban local bodies have not yet been granted full financial autonomy. Evidence demonstrates that out of 31 cities, 11 lack independent authority to introduce new taxes from the assigned list according to their respective State Municipal Acts. Further, nine out of these 31 cities are unable to independently revise existing tax rates or charges as per their Municipal Acts. The situation further aggravates when it comes to budget approval; 13 cities out of the 31 under consideration do not possess independent authority to approve their budgets as per the respective Municipal Acts. According to this study, Rajasthan, Sikkim, and Jammu and Kashmir have not been granted any of the three financial powers. This scenario paints a picture of incomplete devolution, where the intentions of decentralisation, as mandated by the 74th Amendment, are yet to be fully realised, thereby hindering the financial independence and self-sufficiency of our urban local bodies. Devolution of financial powers to local bodies is a transformative strategy that serves multiple purposes in local governance. Predominantly, it plays an integral role in aligning resources and actions with local needs and priorities. By enabling local bodies to control their finances, it leverages their deep understanding of specific regional challenges, fostering initiatives that address these problems effectively. In addition to this, financial devolution brings about increased accountability and transparency, as the responsibility for service delivery shifts directly to these local bodies, making their actions more transparent and their performance more assessable. Moreover, by providing local bodies with financial control, financial devolution fuels the empowerment of grassroots democracy. It allows local bodies to function as true units of self-government, better equipped to enhance the quality of their service delivery, thus, invigorating the democratic process at the ground level. Crucially, financial devolution contributes to financial sustainability, which is a cornerstone of resilient local governance. By giving local bodies the means to generate their own revenue, it significantly reduces their dependence on financial support from central or state governments. Apart from this, the resulting financial scarcity often impedes resources for essential infrastructure and service delivery. The over-politicisation of these bodies exacerbates this problem, diverting ULBs from their central role as developmental instruments and positioning them as arenas for political manoeuvring, with elections often deferred due to various concerns. The daunting spectre of corruption and administrative malpractice persistently overshadows ULBs. Inefficient audits facilitate the incursion of corruption, which can seriously debilitate the functioning of these bodies. This scenario is accentuated in the face of India’s rapid urban expansion, with growing demands for infrastructure and services, such as water supply, sewerage, and waste management. The task intensifies in consideration of the escalating urban poverty and the extensive prevalence of slums. ARTHSASTRA by Bibek Debroy, Amit Kapoor & Aditya Sinha Photograph by Madsci
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 27 Bibek Debroy is Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister; Amit Kapoor is Chair, Institute for Competitiveness; Aditya Sinha is consultant, EAC-PM The final major obstacle lies in the existence of parallel programmes and authorities whose functions overlap with those of ULBs, spawning a milieu of inefficiency and confusion. The proliferation of para-statal bodies, inclusive of development authorities, housing boards, and district health and sanitation societies, often undermines the role of ULBs. Collectively, these challenges delineate a rigorous course that India’s ULBs must navigate, underscoring the imperative for prompt and holistic reforms. In an effort to bolster the efficacy of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in India, state governments can take decisive actions. Foremost among these is the full execution of the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, providing ULBs with greater autonomy and power. Another key aspect is the augmentation of funding directed towards these bodies, providing them with the means to carry out their roles more effectively. State governments should also consider leveraging advanced technology, such as Geographical Information Systems, to further refine the functioning of ULBs. Additionally, they can strive to enhance the ability of ULBs to generate resources and achieve financial self-sufficiency independently. A substantial focus should be placed on improving the planning and administration of urban spaces to tackle challenges like unplanned urban expansion and the dearth of essential urban services. Lastly, to ensure a more inclusive democracy, efforts should be made to actively involve citizens in decision-making processes, consequently leading to higher accountability from ULBs. The journey of the 74th Constitutional Amendment, akin to the plot of a complex novel, continues to unfold with the objective of bestowing autonomy to Urban Local Bodies in India. It is an epic tale of decentralisation, where the protagonist, the ULBs, are still wrestling to secure their rightful place in the governance structure. Though significant in its intent, the Amendment remains akin to a promising manuscript, yet to reach its full potential. The state governments, serving as the editors of this script, have a crucial role to play in this process. Their task isn’t just about flipping the pages of the Amendment but about comprehending its essence, ensuring that its implications are fully absorbed, and enacting the changes necessary to bring this powerful narrative to life. Until the state governments take robust actions, the story of the 74th Constitutional Amendment will remain a tale of unfulfilled potential, with the real autonomy for ULBs merely a chapter yet to be written. The journey of the 74th Constitutional Amendment, akin to the plot of a complex novel, continues to unfold with the objective of bestowing autonomy to Urban Local Bodies in India. It is an epic tale of decentralisation, where the protagonist, the ULBs, are still wrestling to secure their rightful place in the governance structure Photograph courtesy: Government of Rajasthan
28 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 Organic supplements are steadily gaining ground as a viable alternative to traditional supplements as the world adopts a healthier lifestyle and becomes ecologically conscious. According to industry experts, factors like the rise in demand for preventive healthcare and the shift towards ethical and ecological living will fuel this increase. In the midst of this, one company that’s well-positioned to take advantage of this trend is Wellbeing Nutrition. Founded in 2019, the brand is dedicated to providing consumers with high-quality, natural supplements that are effective, delicious, and convenient. This desire to improve people’s health in a more sustainable way earned Avnish Chhabria, CEO of Wellbeing Nutrition, the BW Wellbeing 40U40 award. By creating supplements that provide all the important nutrients that many people don’t receive enough of through their diets, Wellbeing Nutrition has quickly grown to become a leader in the supplement market. The Avnish Chhabria brand’s primary principle is to establish balance with the support of nature to ensure #AHealthierTomorrow. Building on the Brand’s Business Profile Mission Statement: The company’s goal is to make it possible for individuals of all ages to lead healthier lives through the use of natural ingredients with scientific backing that are efficient, convenient, and safe. “We believe that natural ingredients can work in harmony with science to address the root cause of various health problems and ensure a healthier tomorrow. Our commitment to ethical and sustainable ingredient sourcing guarantees all our customers get nothing but premium, quality products! We also take great efforts to create an enticing, visually appealing identity that resonates with everyone.” Avnish Chhabria. Target Audience: The brand’s target audience consists of health-conscious individuals who prioritize natural products, and care about the environment. “Our How Wellbeing Nutrition is Breaking Through the Clutter and Reaching New Heights ADVERTORIAL
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 29 target market consists of both men and women of all ages who are interested in using supplements to improve their overall health and performance and who are seeking superior products created with natural ingredients that don’t cause any loss of biodiversity.” Product Line: Their unique collection includes Effervescent tablets that provide 100% bioavailability; Slow 2-1 capsules that use an 8-hour delayed-release technology; Vegan Superfood Plant Protein that provides complete protein for everyone, regardless of their dietary restrictions; melts®️ Oral Thin Strips that use advanced molecular science to deliver nutrients directly into the bloodstream, and many more. Marketing: When asked about their unique marketing strategies, Avnish stated, “To reach our target demographic, our marketing strategy uses social media, influencer collaborations, and targeted digital advertising. We also offer free consultations with our in-house nutritionist to give consumers accurate information about our products and their advantages since we place a high value on education and transparency.” The company is committed to giving customers a premium experience with both its products and its website. Searching for the ingredients on the website turns into a quest for personal development. In addition to showing where each ingredient is sourced, the website also offers research articles to support its health claims. The commitment to transparency is clear, even though the consumer might not comprehend the significance of the country of origin of each ingredient. Celebrity Endorsements From a marketing perspective, celebrity endorsements can be advantageous for any brand in several ways. First, having a well-known celebrity associated with the brand can help increase brand awareness and reach a wider audience. Second, a celebrity endorsement can help build trust and credibility for the brand and alleviate concerns about the product’s safety and effectiveness. Wellbeing Nutrition has garnered attention among big players in the film industry who support the brand’s mission. Famous names like Rakul Preet Singh, and Dulquer Salmaan have all taken a personal interest in the brand. Aside from famous names in Bollywood, the brand also has tie-ups with a variety of influencers, including doctors, who recommend their products. Having influential creators that have a strong connection with their community helps build the brand in ways that traditional marketing would not be able to achieve. New Launches “Wellbeing Nutrition is my way of helping people prioritize their nutrition, no matter how hectic their lives become. It’s one step on a very important journey. I believe living well starts with food, and at WBN, we are constantly searching for the best whole food ingredients that can help us physically, mentally, and emotionally.” - Avnish Chabbria. The introduction of new products demonstrates the company’s continued commitment to growing and improving its quality product offerings to better satisfy consumer needs across a variety of wellness categories. They recently launched their functional coffee strips, changing the way people get their regular dose of coffee. These oral thin strips are targeted toward busy individuals who are looking to satisfy their coffee cravings instantly and don’t have time to brew a cup of joe. But these strips go beyond delighting the tastebuds. Made with plant extracts, the range offers products for those looking to manage their weight, get a boost of energy, or just improve their overall well-being. Aside from the coffee strips, the brand is even changing the face of vegan protein powders by launching two new delicious European-delicacy-inspired flavors: – British Banoffee Pie and Italian Café Mocha. With traces of the pandemic still prevalent, the brand’s “clean” ingredients motto— gluten- and allergen-free, non-GMO, no fillers, preservatives, or sugars —won’t go unnoticed. Looking ahead, the plant-based supplement market is expected to continue to grow and evolve, with companies like Wellbeing Nutrition at the forefront of innovation and research. Overall, Wellbeing Nutrition is a company that harnesses the power of nature and uses cutting-edge research and technology to produce safe and effective products that support general health and wellness. With a commitment to quality, sustainability, and customer satisfaction, the brand aims to be a trusted source of natural supplements and is all set to play a key role in shaping the future of the health and wellness industry. Currently, the company’s biggest performing cities are Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad, with growing demand in Tier 2 cities. n
30 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 RECENT STORY doing the rounds, was that someone picked up a call and kept saying “Hello, hello” without getting any response. By the time he disconnected, his bank account was cleaned out. This seems really far-fetched to me, but it highlights a problem that we face every day; unsolicited calls. What is particularly galling, is that some of the biggest culprits are the most respected organisations who would normally adhere to professional and ethical standards, including real estate companies, retail brands, banks, insurance companies and (yes!) the gatekeepers – the telecom companies themselves. According to a report from Truecaller in 2021 quoted in Wired, India was the fourth highest spammed country among the 20 that they surveyed and of this, one company made (hold your breath) 200 million calls between January and October 2021! Of the calls they tracked, one per cent were spam calls asking for personal details. Truecaller crowd sources its data with people voluntarily reporting nuisance calls. But many avoid the hassle of logging a complaint, which means the problem is much bigger. According to Indian law, unsolicited calls are not prohibited. In a good initiative, the government has set up a National Customer Preference Registry (NCPR) where you are encouraged to register your own Do Not Disturb rules. But I don’t know how many people know of this, or how effective it is. I tried a few times to register through the 1909 sms number, without success. The TRAI has registered 2,50,000 Principal entities with 55,00,000 approved communication templates. For calls there are basic rules like; calls only between 9 a. m. and 9 p.m., callers should first identify themselves and ask if the recipient wants to take the call, the recipient should have given written consent for getting calls, etc. The problem however is the surge in unregistered telemarketers who aggressively push unsolicited messages. Even when a recipient clearly opts out or denies interest, the calls continue, often from different numbers. On the face of it, it may look like just a nuisance. But there are bigger issues involved. How do these callers get the telephone numbers and names? What other information do they have? Telemarketers farm out calls sharing lists of personal information to third party service agents who may not be as strictly regulated. With WFH, these telemarketers could be operating offsite. There are so many possible ways for the information to be passed around. Customer data is really valuable. I know when I was a Customer Data Safety? Enjoy the Ride A Ajai Kumar Dayal COLUMN Photograph by Vectorium
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 31 French regulators with a fine of Euros 50m for pushing customers to consent to processing their data that they did not understand. Our proposed law (The Digital Personal Data Protection Bill 2022), has a maximum penalty for Failure of Data Processor or Data Fiduciary to take reasonable security safeguards to prevent personal data breach under sub-section (4) of section 9 of this Act, of Rs 250 crores. There are other penalties, which go down to as little as Rs 10,000. It isn’t the wild west right now, you can still get protection under existing laws such as the Information Technology Act 2000 as amended by the Information Technology (Amendment) Act 2008, or the Consumer Protection Act 1986, but it isn’t so straightforward. The other often ignored problem, is behavioural data being collected without a person’s knowledge or consent. When you look at something on your phone, or talk about it while your phone is listening, or post or scan through social media, aggregators glean the information electronically and create your psychographic profile. This is married to your demographic profile and then used to target digital marketing campaigns, which continuously bombard you. The more accurate the behavioural targeting of these aggregators, the more effective their campaigns and the more money they make. These targeted digital marketing campaigns are not just obtrusive, they are also based on sensitive information that’s been collected. While technically the information is anonymised, you end up getting specific marketing messages that you may not want. For example, if a woman happens to be looking at male undergarments for her partner, her device will continue to be flooded with pop up ads, sms messages, emails or other communications, for male undergarments. A further refinement is Performance Marketing (based on clicks or sales) which tracks people who are interacting, buying, clicking, or just viewing, products online. Machine learning engines soak up this information and then retarget the same users – ‘you were looking at this, here is another option.’ There are no controls currently for behaviour based digital marketing and performance marketing. I guess for now, we just enjoy the ride. retailer, we constantly pressured our sales staff to collect contact details. But customers need to be concerned about protecting their personal data from being misused, especially where it could cause financial or reputation loss. Equally important is the ease with which data is removed from a data base, when you want this done. According to the new Data Protection Law 2022 being mooted, personal information which is in the public domain, can be used for marketing purposes without specific customer approval. There are of course, many ways your personal information could filter into the public domain. So, there is always a fig leaf available to marketers. It is good to know that the government is trying to come up with some rules using as a model the European GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) with its stringent controls for use of private and personal information. Its catalogue of criteria is detailed and if the infringement is found to be intentional, or there is failure to take measures to mitigate damage that occurred, it can render a company liable to pay damages up to Euro 20 million, or four per cent of its total annual turnover of the previous year, whichever is higher. In 2019, Google was hit by According to the new Data Protection Law 2022 being mooted, personal information which is in the public domain, can be used for marketing purposes without specific customer approval. There are of course, many ways your personal information could filter into the public domain. So, there is always a fig leaf available to marketers The writer is a consultant and commentator with over 30 years’ international experience in marketing, managing brands, retail and ecommerce businesses Photograph by Indiapicturebudget
32 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 C COLUMN hends it. It then goes on to predict the next sequence of words till the response is complete. Thus, LLMs can also be called next word prediction engines. HOW ARE LLMS TRAINED? The LLM training is spread over three phases. In the pre-training stage, the model imbibes grammatical rules of the language from the large volume of text data that has been obtained from various sources. It understands the meaning of individual words and the arrangement of those words to build sentences. During this period, it also learns about word patterns. The next step is fine tuning the model to assist it to start identifying concepts with a higher degree of accuracy using a test dataset. The process is repeated continuously by making various adjustments until a satisfactory level of performance is reached. In the final stage, the trained model can be put to use and will start generating responses based on the level of training imparted to it. It also self-learns and improves itself. SOME WELL-KNOWN LLMS GPT-3.5: developed by OpenAI, it is the engine that fuels ChatGPT. It has over 175 billion parameters. LaMDA: or Language Model for Dialogue Applications (LaMDA) runs Google’s Bard AI. Its advanced version called LaMDA 2 incorporates Google’s Pathways Language Model (PaLM), which has a count of 540 billion parameters. LLaMA: developed by Meta AI, it is part of their commitment to open science and democratising access to LLMs. It has in the range of seven billion to 65 billion parameters. WuDao 2.0: known as Enlightenment or Road to Awareness, it comes from the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence. It is the largest model in existence with 1.75 trillion parameters. It has been trained on 4.9 terabytes of high-quality text and image data. PaLM 2: this is Google’s latest release. While Google hasn’t disclosed data on the number of parameters in this model, the claim is that it has been trained on multilingual text from over 100 languages. HATGPT AND BARD are the talk of the town, these days. Both are conversational Artificial Intelligence (AI) bots that can respond to and communicate with humans to provide comprehensive information in response to queries. They can be a virtual assistant and accomplish tasks like organising meetings and replying to messages and emails. They can also create content like blogs and scripts, generate and debug code, and perform the role of a sophisticated search engine with intelligent responses. The question is, what is under the hood of these fascinating tools? It is the LLMs or Large Language Models. HOW DO LLMS WORK? The LLMs are designed to understand natural language. These models are trained on extremely large datasets that have millions of parameters, in some cases, even billions. Simply put, an LLM consists of text data that tools like ChatGPT and Bard can parse through to generate a response to the query input by a user. This data comes from a variety of sources like books, magazine articles, Wikipedia, social media, etc. The more the parameters, the deeper the knowledge of the model and better the responses one can get from it. The LLMs use transformer neural networks, a type of deep learning algorithm. In fact, GPT in ChatGPT stands for generative pre-trained transformer. The transformer algorithm analyses data sequentially, spots patterns in the phrases to understand context and predicts the next word based on the context as it compren By Jayesh Shah LLMs in Generative Artificial Intelligence
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 33 The author is a digital transformation expert and currently Executive Director, AutomataPi Solutions USES OF LLMS LLMs can be used for a variety of applications, some of them being: l Translation: from one language to another lConversational AI: chatbots and other conversational AI platforms that can engage with users in natural language lSearch: improve quality of search results and give more meaningful responses lCode generation: generate and debug code lContent creation: generate news articles, summaries, headlines l Sentiment analysis: analyse text and categorise it into positive, negative or neutral, helping organisations gauge customer sentiment BENEFITS AND LIMITATIONS Like any other technology advancement, LLMs bring along with it benefits as well as challenges. The most obvious benefit of using an LLM is the speed with which it can process extremely large volumes of data and create a response, whether it is answering a search query or generating content or code. In addition to speed, there is a great deal of accuracy and while there are occasional blips, the results produced are by and large accurate and improving rapidly. The LLMs, by their very nature are highly flexible and versatile, and can be customised to a business use case as required by the organisation using them. The key challenge is the training and operational costs associated with running them because of the amount of data and computing power needed, which could be to the tune of millions of GPU hours. While LLMs are highly trained for contextual understanding, they don’t always get it right and this leads to wrong or sometimes downright inappropriate responses. Bias is another risk associated with them. Any bias in the data on which they are trained can percolate down to the responses they provide. FUTURE OF LLMS Claims and assertions that LLMs will be sentient and will pass the Turing test seem farfetched. That said, they are being trained and finetuned to get better by the day. The phenomenal pace at which ChatGPT has been adopted clearly demonstrates that LLM technology is here to stay and grow exponentially. According to available data ChatGPT had over 100 million visitors in the first three months after its launch and now has around 13 million daily users. The estimated reach of Google Bard is one billion users, which in effect means one out of every eight people worldwide will use it. The stats speak for themselves; need one say more? Claims and assertions that LLMs will be sentient and will pass the Turing test seem farfetched. That said, they are being trained and finetuned to get better by the day Photograph by BiancoBlue Source: TechTarget NUMBER OF PARAMETERS 1T 8000 6000 4000 2000 0 GPT-4 GPT-3 Turning-NLG GPT-NEO GPT-2 BERT 17 billion 175 billion 1 trillion Parameters of transformer-based language models 2.7 billion 2 billion 345 million
34 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 ULTILATERALISM, the principle of coordinating actions among multiple nations through international institutions, has long been considered a cornerstone of global governance. As the world grapples with unprecedented global challenges, from climate change to pandemics to geopolitical tensions, the relevance and effectiveness of multilateralism, once hailed as a panacea for global governance, has come under serious question. The rise of bilateral and trilateral nation deals, the formation of regional blocs, and the inward-looking policies of some global politicians have cast a shadow of doubt over the future of multilateralism as we knew it. Multilateralism, which emphasises collective action, shared responsibilities, and inclusive decision-making, has long been heralded as the cornerstone of global governance. International institutions such as the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, and the World Health Organization were created with the vision of fostering multilateral cooperation to address common challenges. However, in recent times, the cracks in the foundation of multilateralism have become increasingly evident. The UN, once seen as the pinnacle of multilateral cooperation, has long been facing criticism for its inability to effectively address global challenges due to issues such as veto powers, lack of its own reforms, and erosion of trust among member states. Similarly, the WTO has struggled to make progress in multilateral trade negotiations, with countries increasingly resorting to bilateral or regional trade deals, undermining the principles of multilateralism. To address these challenges, it is imperative for countries to reaffirm their commitment to multilateralism and strengthen global institutions. Efforts should be made to revive multilateral forums, foster cooperation among nations, and promote inclusive and equitable decision-making processes. It is also crucial to address the root causes of inward-looking policies, such as inequality, insecurity, and disillusionment, and promote a shared understanding of the benefits of international cooperation. Furthermore, efforts should be made to reconcile diverse regulatory frameworks and promote convergence towards common global standards. The urgency of global challenges such as climate change, pandemics, and migration require concerted multilateral efforts. It is imperative for nations to rise above narrow interests and work collaboratively to preserve and strengthen the principles of multilateralism, lest we risk an erosion of global governance and the ability to effectively address the complex issues facing our interconnected world. The Rise of Bilateral and Trilateral Deals In recent years, many countries have pursued bilateral or trilateral agreements, bypassing multilateral forums. For instance, the United States under the Trump administraM Is Multilateralism Possible in the Era of Bilateralism and Regional Blocs? (A)muse & Musings By Srinath Sridharan
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 35 Such bilateral and trilateral deals can undermine multilateralism in several ways. Firstly, they can create a fragmented and unequal global governance system, where countries with greater bargaining power can secure favourable deals at the expense of smaller and weaker nations. This can result in an uneven distribution of benefits and exacerbate global inequalities. Secondly, bilateral and trilateral deals can bypass established multilateral institutions and weaken their authority, leading to a loss of trust and confidence in these institutions. This can erode the legitimacy and effectiveness of multilateralism as a means of addressing global challenges. The Formation of New Regional Blocs In addition, the formation of regional blocs has gained momentum, with countries aligning along regional lines to pursue their interests. This trend, while promoting regional integration and cooperation, can also lead to fragmentation, exclusion, and even conflict, as seen in the rise of regional tensions in various parts of the world, such as the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and the South China Sea. These regional blocs can potentially dilute the global approach required for addressing global challenges, further marginalising smaller and less powerful nations. These regional blocs often prioritise regional interests and may exclude non-member states from their decision-making processes, leading to fragmentation and competition among different regional groupings. Examples of such regional blocs include the European Union (EU), the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and the African Union (AU). For example, the EU’s emphasis on regional integration and protectionist policies has sometimes been criticised for undermining global trade liberalisation efforts. Secondly, The ability of multilateralism is tested against the failure of global institutions to effectively address pressing global issues such as climate change, migration, and global health crises tion withdrew from multilateral agreements such as the Paris Climate Agreement and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and instead pursued bilateral trade deals with individual countries. This trend has been further amplified by the emergence of new economic powers such as China, which has engaged in bilateral agreements with several countries through its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). One of the glaring signs of the eroding state of multilateralism is the rise of bilateral and trilateral nation deals, often driven by narrow self-interests. Powerful nations are increasingly bypassing multilateral forums and opting for exclusive partnerships with select allies. Examples abound, such as the United States pulling out of the TransPacific Partnership (TPP), the United Kingdom’s pursuit of bilateral trade deals post-Brexit, and the India-JapanUS trilateral dialogue and the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) in the Indo-Pacific region. These deals, while pegged as strategic partnerships, risk undermining the principles of inclusivity, transparency, and multilateral decision-making, eroding the collective approach needed to tackle global challenges. Photograph by Gary718
36 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 (A)muse & Musings By Srinath Sridharan regional blocs may create a complex web of overlapping and sometimes conflicting rules and regulations, leading to regulatory fragmentation and inefficiencies. This can pose challenges for global governance, as it may be difficult to reconcile and harmonise diverse regional regulations with global standards. Regulatory Challenges In addition to the rise of bilateral and trilateral deals and inward-looking policies, regulatory challenges also pose a threat to multilateralism. Multilateralism often requires the establishment of common rules, standards, and regulations that govern the behaviour of nations. However, the increasing diversity of national regulations and the reluctance of some countries to adhere to global norms can hinder the effectiveness of multilateral efforts. For instance, in the area of international trade, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has faced challenges in reaching multilateral agreements due to differences in regulatory frameworks, particularly on issues such as intellectual property rights, labour standards, and environmental regulations. This has led to a proliferation of bilateral and regional trade agreements that often have varying rules and regulations, resulting in regulatory fragmentation and complexity. The ability of multilateralism is tested against the failure of global institutions to effectively address pressing global issues such as climate change, migration, and global health crises. For example, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has struggled to reach a consensus on meaningful global action to address climate change, with some countries withdrawing from international commitments and others failing to fulfill their pledges. The United Nations Global Compact on Migration, aimed at addressing the challenges of global migration, has faced resistance and withdrawal from some countries, undermining its effectiveness as a multilateral instrument. India & Multilateralism India, as one of the major global players and a rising power in the international arena, is also relevant in the discourse on multilateralism. As the world’s most populous country and a fast-growing economy, India’s role in multilateralism and its stance on global institutions can have significant implications for the state of multilateralism and the functioning of global institutions. India has traditionally been a proponent of multilateralism, emphasising the importance of collective global action to address transnational challenges. India has been an active member of various multilateral forums, including the United Nations (UN), World Trade Organization (WTO), and regional groupings like the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). India’s commitment to multilateralism is rooted in its philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, which translates to “the world is one family,” reflecting its belief in the interconnectedness and interdependence of nations. In recent years, India’s diplomacy has been marked by a proactive and assertive approach to global leadership, parThe increasing diversity of national regulations and the reluctance of some countries to adhere to global norms can hinder the effectiveness of multilateral efforts Photograph by Rostyle
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 37 The writer is the author of Time for Bharat, a policy researcher & a corporate advisor In recent years, India’s diplomacy has been marked by a proactive and assertive approach to global leadership, particularly in the realm of multilateralism is also reflected in its efforts to promote a multipolar world order, where power is distributed among multiple centres and no single nation dominates global affairs. India has called for reforms in global governance institutions, such as the UN Security Council, to make them more inclusive and representative of the current global realities. India has also been a vocal proponent of the concept of “sovereign equality” among nations, emphasising the importance of mutual respect, non-interference in internal affairs, and the peaceful resolution of disputes. However, India’s pursuit of multilateralism is not without challenges. The evolving global landscape, marked by shifting power dynamics, geopolitical rivalries, and protectionist tendencies, poses obstacles to effective multilateralism. Differences among nations on issues such as trade, climate change, and security can hinder consensus-building and compromise in multilateral forums. Moreover, India faces its own domestic challenges, including climate transition, public services for a large population and developmental needs, which demand attention and resources. The evolving stance of India and its engagement with multilateralism, as well as its pursuit of bilateral and trilateral deals, regional blocs, and regulatory challenges, can impact the state of multilateralism and the effectiveness of global institutions in addressing global challenges. It highlights the complexities and dilemmas faced by global powers like India in navigating the balance between national interests and global collective action, and the implications of such choices for the future of multilateralism. The future of multilateralism will depend on various factors, including the political will of nations, changing geopolitical dynamics, and the effectiveness of multilateral institutions in addressing global challenges. ticularly in the realm of multilateralism. India has been at the forefront of initiatives to address global challenges such as climate change, sustainable development, and counter-terrorism. For instance, India has been actively engaged in global climate negotiations and has taken steps to promote renewable energy, reduce carbon emissions, and enhance environmental sustainability. India has also played a prominent role in advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with a focus on poverty eradication, healthcare, education, and gender empowerment. India has also been a vocal advocate for the reform of global institutions to make them more representative and inclusive, reflecting the changing global power dynamics. For instance, India has called for reforms in the UN Security Council to reflect the realities of the 21st Century and ensure greater representation of developing countries, including India, in decision-making processes. However, India has also pursued bilateral and trilateral deals, such as the India-Japan-US trilateral dialogue and the India-Australia-Japan-US Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad), which are seen as strategic partnerships aimed at balancing China’s rise in the Indo-Pacific region. India’s approach to multilateralism Photograph by Palinchak
38 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 LEANLINESS is next to Godliness”, said Mahatma Gandhi, emphasising the importance of cleanliness. Irrespective of whether he was quoting an old proverb or formulating a new one, his belief in this is borne out by his own personal commitment to the concept. His deep concern about this is evidenced in another statement: he is reputed to have said, with understandable exaggeration, that “Sanitation is more important than independence”. In keeping with the importance of this, the government launched a Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission) in 2014. It aimed primarily at ending open defecation. Appropriately, the image used for branding was a pair of round-rimmed spectacles, an immediately-recognised reminder of Gandhi. In conjunction with a massive toiletconstruction programme, data points to great progress in ending open defecation. VIEWPOINT OF DIGNITY This – though very important from the viewpoints of dignity, hygiene, and health – is but one aspect of a much larger problem of cleanliness. Its physical manifestation is often sensed by our olfactory system, changing from a gentle smell to an C overpowering stench, even before it presents itself in visual form as a heap of rotting garbage. All over urban India – and sometimes even in villages – one comes across such piles of garbage. Sometimes, it is scattered all over a large area or along a roadside; more often, there seem to be a few popular locations to dump whatever is not wanted. It is rare, of course, that these favoured spots coincide with specially made garbage dumps, if and where they do exist. In keeping with socialism, prescribed in the Constitution, there is an attempt to spread the garbage equitably and as geographically-inclusively (widely) as possible! POSITIVE FEEDBACK LOOP In some areas, presumably as an attempt to ensure backward and forward integration, there are big garbage heaps just outside hospitals. These cause sickness, resulting in patients for the hospital; their stay there gives rise to various medical and non-medical waste, including that generated by their visitors; much of this goes into the very convenient dumping area outside the hospital, giving rise to more sick people and a new set of patients for the hospital. So, a positive feedback loop is established between garbage heaps, more patients, higher income for the hospital and more waste, leading to even more garbage. A well-integrated and symbiotic chain, as one can see! All Indians, irrespective of our other diversities, take meticulous efforts in keeping our homes clean (one country, one habit). Daily sweeping and mopping of floors are part of the routine, unlike countries where once-a-week vacuuming may be a norm. In many homes, removing one’s shoes at the entrance is common, ensuring that no dust or dirt from outside enters the home. Yet, public spaces are littered with trash. Roadsides and rivers are full of plastic bottles and bags, besides a wide range of other discards. Nor is the sea spared: CLEANLINESS AND GODLINESS By Kiran Karnik COLUMN n KIRAN’S KONTRARIAN KORNER n
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 39 The author loves to think in tongue-in-cheek ways, with no maliciousness or offence intended. At other times, he is a public policy analyst and author. His latest book is Decisive Decade: India 2030 Gazelle or Hippo (Rupa, 2021) the otherwise wonderful sight of ships and boats, of waves lapping the Gateway of India in Mumbai, is marred by the amount of floating garbage – almost all thrown by visitors at the seaside or tourists on boat rides around the bay. T he sache t re volution too has done its bit: while it opened up the bottom of the pyramid as a consumer market, it did even more in terms of addition to randomly disposed trash. To these largely non-biodegradable items is added a host of other trash, generously supplemented by construction and demolition debris and stones from broken pavements. Barring a few manicured areas like Central Delhi, roadsides are full of these, along with wild undergrowth. EVERYBODY’S & NOBODY’S Is it that public spaces don’t matter; that what is everybody’s is nobody’s, and so no one cares? Is it a sign of not belonging, of not “owning” the city? Why is throwing trash over the wall an acceptable practice? Is it that garbage bins are too few, inaccessible, and not regularly cleaned? Whatever the answers, one wonders why the local authorities do not monitor and control mass dumping, why they can’t take responsibility to pick up garbage and keep the city clean. Just a little care and effort, and small amounts of money, can ensure a clean city. This will change the very appearance of cities; more importantly, it could reduce infections and health problems. “Green city, clean city, healthy city” could be the new slogan. Economic incentives are often a good solution. It may be worth running hackathons or challenge contests for creating technologies (and startups) that convert waste to wealth, along with supply chains that begin with household collection. Already, some limited work in this sphere is on, but we need much more. Of course, this will not take care of use-and-throw habits. For this, as in many other areas, we need awareness and education campaigns, complemented by enforcement. MISSED OPPORTUNITY At the level of personal cleanliness, research has shown that handwashing with soap is one of the simplest and cheapest ways of promoting good health by reducing infections, especially amongst children. During the Covid pandemic, frequent handwashing for all was vigorously promoted. It is a pity that with the groundwork already laid, almost no corporates have followed up with a continuing campaign. It provides a unique opportunity to soap manufacturers to boost sales and thereby do good while doing well. As icing on the cake, they could claim that this is part of their CSR! In the more intangible realm, clean hands are important to corporates, else one of the alphabet soup enforcement agencies may swoop on you, failing which a Hindenburg may. Cleanliness, then, is truly next to Godliness. All over urban India – and sometimes even in villages – one comes across such piles of garbage. Sometimes, it is scattered all over a large area or along a roadside; more often, there seem to be a few popular locations to dump whatever is not wanted. It is rare, of course, that these favoured spots coincide with specially made garbage dumps, if and where they do exist Photograph by Djtreneryay
40 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 RIVING THROUGH Spain on a recent holiday, I was intrigued when I came across several large open spaces filled with old cars. There were cars of different makes, different vintages and in varying conditions too. And across most of these places was a common signboard that said “Desguace” which I later figured means “scrapping” in Spanish. I was curious to know more. And as I got chatting with a local, I learnt a whole lot more. These places are essentially junkyards for automobiles. As a car begins to age, the owner finds it cheaper to scrap it than to pay the taxes necessary to keep it on the roads. There are also laws that forbid owners from driving vehicles that are too old – even if they are in good condition. So when a car reaches the end of its useful life, or if the owner wants to buy a newer, more modern vehicle, he need to dispose off the old car. And that’s where a Desguace comes into play. The Desguace agents buy off the cars at scrap value and store them in these mega garages. And here’s where the fun begins. When a car owner is looking for a spare part for his or her car and cannot afford (or does not want to pay for) an original part from the manufacturer, all they need to do is drive into one of these scrapyards. And it’s guaranteed they will find what they are looking for. At an affordable price. The Desguace plays a dual role. It helps people get rid of old cars when they don’t need them anymore. And it also helps utilise parts of those old cars which are still in good shape – and which might be of use to other people. At an affordable price. A clear win-win! And that made me think. Maybe there’s a business idea for a Desguace of a different kind. A scrapyard of – not automobiles – but managers. Our overall health levels and average life expectancy are both increasing, and yet across corporate India the rule remains that employees retire when they reach the age of 60. They still have a lot to offer by way of knowledge and expertise, but organisations feel they can hire newer – and perhaps more cost-effective resources. And in a more recent trend, cost cutting and head count reduction have become quite common – so many executives find themselves laid off. They are skilled. Capable. Experienced. And unemployed. Imagine if we could create a scrapyard for these retired managers. A one-stop shop where you could find the expertise you are looking for. Smaller businesses, and startups looking for good talent could come to these scrapyards to find the specific skillset they need. And they could get that expertise without having to pay top dollar for it. So imagine a startup that needs help to set up people systems and processes. Or a small manufacturing organisation that is looking for a CFO to help put a costing system in place. Or a D2C ecommerce company looking for a FMCG sales professional. All they would need to do is head to the nearest Desgauce – to the ‘Scrapyard of Managers’ and take their pick of top-quality talent. At a fraction of their regular price. A Desguace for Managers. Sounds like an idea whose time has come. Any takers? A Scrapyard With a Difference! D PI TALKIES Prakash Iyer is an author, speaker and leadership coach and former MD of Kimberly Clark Lever
42 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 I NFLUENCERS marketing continues to sweep the world by storm. It has grown to be a whopping $21.1 billion industry in 2023. Brands are becoming more aware of the ability of influencers and content creators to forge genuine connections with their target customers. According to a study, 97 per cent of Gen Z consider social media to be their favourite source for shopping inspiration. The companies or brands understand that Gen Z consumes material at an extraordinary fast rate. Thus, these firms seek out influencers to reach out to their customers. Rise of Micro & Nano Influencers Consumers now look for more personal, authentic and relevant content. As a result, marketers concentrate on roping in nano and micro influencers. These smaller influencers connect and engage with their community as one would do with one’s family, some even posting on a daily basis. This enables them to have a considerable influencing power over their followers. Customers rely on these influencers for their product reviews, knowledge and even transparency. Mae Karwowski, CEO and founder of Influencer marketing agency, feels that micro influencers and nano influencers have a specific talent or narrative which excites their followers. Till a few years back, brands would only work WHAT’S DRIVING INFLUENCER MARKETING IN 2023? with celebrities and big names but Mae feels that has definitely changed now. The delivery of more authentic and personal content by these micro and nano influencers to their followers, is an important factor for their popularity. More than 70 per cent marketers are of the opinion that the quality of traffic and customers generated through influencers marketing is superior to that of other sources. How to Make Influencers Marketing Work for Your Brand Foremost, finding the right influencer is imperative for your brand or company’s success. They should occupy the same space as your target customers. For example, if you are into selling art and paintings but employ an influencer that has food or clothes as their forte, then it is unlikely that you would get the results that you are looking for. The influencer needs to complement what your brand is about and thereby direct it to your target audience. The next point is to be seen as much as possible on different social media platforms. Influencers found Instagram to be highly effective in engaging with their audiences, followed by FaceBrands can come to life through influencers. They can create an experience around your brand. The audience would then learn and understand about the brand with more positivity. And be willing to purchase it COLUMN DIGITAL MARKETING / Anu Sehgal The author is Founder, Digital Mill Consultants book and Twitter. Brands can come to life through influencers. They can create an experience around your brand. The audience would then learn and understand about the brand with more positivity. And be willing to purchase it. Allowing the influencers to create unique content about your brand is also important. If you wish to control everything that the influencer has to say, then it would lose its credibility. The audience might not respond well to that content as they may find it to be sponsored and not interesting enough. Indian Influencer Market Status The influencers marketing sector in India was estimated to be worth over Rs 12 billion in 2022. It is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 25 per cent over the subsequent five years. By 2026, its market value is projected to reach Rs 28 billion.
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 43 companies to resort to mass layoffs. The year 2023 seems appalling in terms of layoffs in the tech sector. Layoff. Yi, the layoff tracking website reports 696 tech companies laid off workers this year. About two lakh techies lost their jobs as of May 2023. In India, too, many tech companies resorted to job cuts to save money. Dunzo, BharatAgri, Rebel Foods, Sharechat, BharatAgri, and Ola are among them. The start-up sector in India, too, resorted to mass lay-offs in 2023 as a cost-cutting measure. As opposed to traditional companies, the new-age technology firms are distinctive with their disruptive growth strategies, outwitting the theory of constraint and the law of marginal returns. These new-age companies are in a hurry to capture a substantial market share, with a myopic view on short-term profit, stock prices, and rapid growth in market valuation. Such aggressive upscaling and shareholders’ primacy often counter employees’ interests. Further, unrestricted growth with a considerable capital backup creates a solid barrier to entry by other firms and thus, creates an oligopoly scenario. Opting for a mass layoff to cut costs and achieve short-term financial metrics is also detrimental to the organisational culture and society. The mass layoffs bear enormous emotional and social costs, often leaving especially the women workforce vulnerable. The lack of stringent governance policies in the organisation or by the regulatory bodies to curb such unethical growth strategies does not leave many employees with a redressal mechanism. The authors propose interconnected strategies for internal and external governance addressing the humane and social aspects of business, (i) long-term focus on value creation, (ii) identification of workforce as critical stakeholders of the firm, (iii) policies providing social and economic justification before layoffs, (iv) creative alternatives to handle short corrections in profit, and (v) governance policies focusing on human resources with a legislative binding effect on the firm. The study also proposes organisational, corporate, and legislative governance policies with a binding effect on new-age tech firms that removes the prevalent oligopoly structure of this tech industry, adopting a stakeholder approach towards the governance of workforce transitions and the long-term sustainability of the business. The study is also useful for employees to understand the relevance of employee unions in the workplace. The government should urgently frame appropriate workforce relations policies for new-age tech companies to avoid the emotional and social cost of mass layoffs. n The mass layoffs at the new-age tech companies create unhealthy corporate attitudes and call for a new corporate governance framework. Following a one-year study during 2022-23, the authors (Dr Asit K. Barma and Sadrita Deb) propose a sustainable framework of corporate governance for new-age companies that considers building social equity or maximising human potential along with profit maximisation. Looking through the lens of stakeholder theory and the triple bottom line approach, this framework can enforce greater value creation and ethical workforce practices. The authors examined the aggressive growth and profit maximisation strategies of the newage tech companies that fail to address the business’s humane and social aspects, resulting in huge emotional costs during the downturn moment. In response to the current pandemic-induced economic downturn and to meet investors’ demand, major new-age technology companies, including the U.S. Tech dominant companies, Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google (FAANG), and Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta, Amazon, and Apple (MAMAA), witnessed mass layoffs in recent months. The conducive environment during the pandemic caused the outspread of technology companies such as Amazon, Meta, Netflix, and Twitter. There was unprecedented growth with a sole focus on profit and market value maximisation. With the economy slowing down, growing inflation, U.S . Federal interest rate hikes, and the Russia-Ukraine war, the governance structure of the new-age technology firms collapsed. Further, the continuous pressure from investors to cut costs compelled the WORKFORCE TRANSITION IN NEW-AGE TECH COMPANIES: POLICY RECOMMENDATION FOR SUSTAINABLE CORPORATE GOVERNANCE COLUMN Dr Asit K. Barma, Director & Professor, Bharathidasan Institute of Management, Trichy Sadrita Deb, Assistant Professor, Bharathidasan Institute of Management, Trichy
44 | BW BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 We have seen a lot of focus on building communities and creating more engaging brand experiences. Tell us more about these? CEAT has made brand investments in multiple spaces. Especially, after the pandemic, we restarted our focus on connecting with communities. We are seeing communities on semi off-roading grow in a big way. It is a new space that we have been focusing on across the country and now it has turned out to be a great opportunity for us. As market leaders it’s our responsibility to build this space and nurture this community. When it comes to marketing, which medium gives you maximum engagement? When you look at media, be that TV, print or digital, the engagement levels are high. However, when you do events which are based on certain interest groups, since this is an engaged community already, the results are higher when we look at engagement factor, and this is something CEAT is really thrilled about. Such interest groups may be a small audience overall, but it is growing across the country in a big way. What has helped CEAT maintain its high brand recall? I would say we are consistent in terms of communication and focusing on our core MAINTAINING A FIRM GRIP “CEAT’s association with this sport (supercross racing) reflects our long-standing commitment to supporting and promoting the passion and thrill of competitive sporting events” S ince taking over as CEAT’s Chief Marketing Officer a year ago, LAKSHMI NARAYANAN B has unleashed a slew of initiatives in addition to increased focus on activations and building and supporting niche communities. Excerpts from an interaction with BW Businessworld’s RUHAIL AMIN philosophy which is that safety comes first. Also, we are deeply invested around smart mobility. Anything that is adding significant value to our consumers has always been our focus and this has helped the brand build a high recall value. How big is the activation piece in your marketing mix? If you look at today’s marketing mix, the context has shifted post-Covid. When it comes to activations, it is growing significantly and there is a steep increase in investments in these kinds of spaces. For example, we do rides with consumers, we call it discovery rides. While we started this a year back, today we are getting a large number of requests across the country. Consumers want us to organise these events and it pulls us to look at this space more seriously, and I’m sure we will have significant investments diverted towards this in near future. When it comes to marketing, customers are looking for experiences and this is going to be a big differentiator. Twenty-five per cent of your revenues are coming from international markets. What is driving this growth? There are two aspects. One is a concerted effort to provide quality products specific to certain markets. In any particular geogINTERVIEW
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 45 raphy that we have invested in, we want to have a long-term vision and products specific to that geography. This approach has helped us get a firm foothold in new markets and drive growth for us. Tell us about your recent association with the Indian Supercross Racing League? We are thrilled to be the title sponsor for the Indian Supercross Racing League. CEAT’s association with this sport reflects our longstanding commitment to supporting and promoting the passion and thrill of competitive sporting events. The CEAT Indian Supercross Racing League (ISRL) is all set to revolutionise the world of motorsports, bringing together adrenaline-pumping action and fierce competition. With CEAT as the title sponsor and Toyota Hilux as the official vehicle partner of ISRL, this partnership between the brands and the league is a testament to their shared values of innovation, performance, and pushing boundaries. CEAT has been invested in the world of dirt biking since 2014 and will be launching its new Gripp MX range in 2023. CEAT’s advanced and high-performance tyres are perfectly suited to the challenging terrains of Supercross, ensuring superior grip and control for the riders. As title sponsors, we aim to enhance the excitement and adrenaline of Supercross racing and look forward to an exhilarating season ahead. We are proud to be part of this sport and to contribute to its growth and popularity in India. What is your big focus this year? We were recently live in the T20 league. Now, providing a large number of products to the consumer is something we are committed to. On top of that we have offered tyres for all kinds of segments and tyres that deliver the best in quality. We have also been associated with new initiatives like the one with the Bureau of Energy Efficiency. We are very clear that the consumer is evolving and there are a lot of opportunities which are available and we want to leverage them. [email protected]
46 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 Companies have lined up plans to raise more than Rs 1 lakh crore from the Indian bourses over the next 6-7 months buoyed by a resilient economy, a bullish stock market and growing investor confidence By Ashish Sinha OPTIMISM RETURN OF IPO COVER STORY MARKETS
01 July 2023 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 47 OPTIMISM CONSIDER THIS: some 78 companies are looking to raise more than Rs 1 lakh crore from the primary market this year. Of these, 54 companies with plans to raise Rs 76,189 crore already have the listing nod from the market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), while the remaining 24 companies that are looking to raise more than Rs 35,000 crore are awaiting the green signal. There is huge activity on the demat account opening front as well. As of April-end, demat accounts totalled more than 11.6 crore, having risen sharply from 4 crore in 2019. On an average, 15-20 lakh new demat accounts are getting added every month. For the uninitiated, demat accounts are necessary for holding investments like shares, bonds, government securities, mutual funds, insurance and ETFs. “There is a robust pipeline for IPOs in the second half of calendar year (CY) 2023 and beyond in India. After the interim
48 | B W BUSINESSWORLD | 01 July 2023 pressure on market sentiments in the first quarter, there has been a rebound in the second quarter with broad indices near life-time highs again and a good momentum being seen in primary market as well,” says Nikhil Shah, Director at Beeline Capital Advisors and a chartered accountant by training. “The Indian public has started diversifying from the traditional investment model to equity investment. Earlier, India was more of a savings economy but now gradually it’s becoming a spending economy which is an obvious sign of accelerated growth of Indian companies,” Shah adds. Many of the companies that have received Sebi approval, including Tata Play, Cyient and others, are ready to hit the primary market soon. What is giving them the confidence? Experts cite the example of Mankind Pharma’s stellar DStreet listing, which, they say, could signal the revival of retail investors’ interest in initial public offerings (IPO). Kulbhushan Parashar, Founder and Managing Director, Corporate Capital Venture points to the recent back-to-back success of Mankind’s public offering and Nexus REIT. “We are hoping for a primary market revival. We are seeing green shoots of investors’ confidence but they remain cautious and value conscious and it will be a gradual process of recovery. Quality companies tapping the primary markets at right valuation have seen a huge demand by the investors,” says Parashar. Recently, EbixCash received Sebi’s clearance for its proposed IPO. According to reports, the proposed IPO is expected to raise between Rs 6,000 crore and Rs 8,000 crore, making it one of the largest in the financial services sector in India. EbixCash has forex operations in approximately 20 international airports, including Delhi, Mumbai, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata. IKIO Lighting, a top LED lighting manufacturer, had a remarkable debut on exchanges, closing 41.7 per cent higher than its issue price. The stock listed at Rs 391 per share on BSE and Rs 392 per share on NSE, ending the day at Rs 403.75 per share (a 41.67 per cent premium) and Rs 404.50 per share (a 41.93 per cent premium) respectively on June 16. Is the IPO Market Reviving? Calendar year (CY) 2021 saw 63 companies tapping the capital markets and in all raising approximately Rs 1,20,000 crore. The biggest IPOs among these were One 97 Communications “India was more of a savings economy but now gradually it’s becoming a spending economy which is an obvious sign of accelerated growth of Indian companies” Market Summary > BSE SENSEX COVER STORY MARKETS